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The Upanishads- an Overview
The Upanishads- An overview (S.N.Sastri) The word ‘Upanishad’ denotes Brahma-vidya by its derivation. Sri Sankara Bhagavatpada says in his Bhashya on the Kathopanishad that this word is derived by adding the prefixes ‘upa’ (meaning near) and ‘ni’ (with certainty) to the root ‘sad’ which means ‘to destroy’, ‘to reach’, and ‘to loosen’. Thus the meaning of the word ‘Upanishad’ is that it is the knowledge that destroys the seeds of worldly existence such as ignorance in the case of those seekers of liberation who, after becoming free from all desires approach (upa sad) this knowledge. The subject-matter of the upanishads is Brahman, the only Reality. Brihadaaranyaka upanishad, 3. 9. 26 says, “I ask you about Him, the Purusha of the upanishads”. The upanishads are the only source of knowledge about Brahman. The method adopted in Vedanta to impart the knowledge of Brahman is known as the method of superimposition ( adhyaaropa ) and subsequent negation ( apavaada ). In the Bhashya on Br.up.4.4.25 Bhagavatpada says, “The transmigrating self is indeed Brahman. He who knows the self as Brahman which is beyond fear becomes Brahman. This is the purport of the whole upanishad put in a nutshell. It is to bring out this purport that the ideas of creation, maintenance and dissolution of the universe, as well as the ideas of action, its factors and results were superimposed on the Self. Then, by the negation of the superimposed attributes the true nature of Brahman as free from all attributes has been brought out”. This is the method of adhyaaropa and apavaada, superimposition and negation, which is adopted by Vedanta. -
What Is Causal Body (Karana Sarira)?
VEDANTA CONCEPTS Sarada Cottage Cedar Rapids July 9, 2017 Peace Chanting (ShAnti PAtha) Sanskrit Transliteration Meaning ॐ गु셁땍यो नमः हरी ओम ्। Om Gurubhyo Namah Hari Om | Salutations to the Guru. सह नाववतु । Saha Nau-Avatu | May God Protect us Both, सह नौ भुन啍तु । Saha Nau Bhunaktu | May God Nourish us Both, सह वीयं करवावहै । Saha Viiryam Karavaavahai| May we Work Together तेजस्वव नावधीतमवतु मा Tejasvi Nau-Adhiitam-Astu Maa with Energy and Vigour, वव饍ववषावहै । Vidvissaavahai | May our Study be ॐ शास््तः शास््तः शास््तः । Om Shaantih Shaantih Enlightening and not give हरी ओम ्॥ Shaantih | Hari Om || rise to Hostility Om, Peace, Peace, Peace. Salutations to the Lord. Our Quest Goal: Eternal Happiness End of All Sufferings Transcending Birth & Death Problem: Fleeting Happiness Endless Suffering Cycle of Birth & Death 3 Vedanta - Introduction Definition: Veda = Knowledge, Anta = End End of Vedas Culmination or Essence of Vedas Leads to God (Truth) Realization Truth: Never changes; beyond Time-Space-Causation Is One Is Beneficial Transforms us Leads from Truth Speaking-> Truth Seeking-> Truth Seeing 4 Vedantic Solution To Our Quest Our Quest: Vedantic Solution: Goal: Cause of Problem: Ignorance (avidyA) of our Real Eternal Happiness Nature End of All Sufferings Attachment (ragah, sangah) to fleeting Objects & Relations Transcending Birth & Death Problem: Remedy: Fleeting Happiness Intense Spiritual Practice (sadhana) Endless Suffering Liberation (mukti/moksha) Cycle of Birth & Death IdentificationIdentification && -
Integral Drama: Culture, Consciousness and Identity Introduction
Integral Drama: Culture, Consciousness and Identity Introduction Drama and The Natyashastra The seven plays examined in this book focus on the difference between the experience of pure consciousness and our socially constructed identities and suggest how these two aspects of identity can coexist. In analyzing these plays, I apply theories of consciousness developed in Advaita (nondual) Vedanta (the sixth system of Indian philosophy) and the Indian philosophical treatise The Natyashastra, which deals with theatre aesthetics, as well as theories developed in the context of consciousness studies, a thriving interdisciplinary field that includes philosophy, neuroscience, psychology, physics and biology and increasingly focuses on the phenomenology of first- person experience. The seven plays analyzed here include Harold Pinter’s The Birthday Party and The Homecoming, Eugène Ionesco’s Rhinoceros, Tom Stoppard’s Arcadia, Luigi Pirandello’s Six Charac- ters in Search of an Author, Jean Genet’s The Balcony and Wole Soyinka’s A Dance of the Forests. As these plays demonstrate, performance has the effect of taking the characters and audience from an awareness of something toward awareness per se, and then toward having awareness per se simultaneously with the intentional content of the mind, thereby providing a glimpse of higher states of conscious- ness. The three ordinary states of consciousness are waking, dreaming and sleep, and the higher states include the fourth state of pure con- sciousness (Atman or turiya, the fourth), cosmic consciousness and unity consciousness. As Eliot Deutsch says in Advaita Vedanta, pure consciousness or 8 Integral Drama Atman (or paramatman, the highest Self), for Advaita Vedanta, is that pure, undifferentiated self-shining consciousness, timeless, spaceless, and unthinkable, that is not different from Brahman and that underlies and supports the individual human person. -
Volume 16 INDEX
By Suresvaracharya Volume 16 INDEX S. No. Title Verse Page No. Destruction of avidya through scriptural 60. 67 – 72 2579 to 2668 knowledge [Verse 65 – 72] Restatement of agency, etc. for the purpose 61. 73 – 77 2683 to 1764 of negation [Verse 73 – 80] [ii] INDEX S. No. Title Page No. II Chapter 3 : Topic 60 to 61 66 Verse 67 2601 67 Verse 68 2606 68 Verse 69 2611 69 Verse 70 2624 70 Verse 71 2656 71 Verse 72 2667 72 Verse 73 2683 73 Verse 74 2698 74 Verse 75 2703 75 Verse 76 2724 76 Verse 77 2747 [iii] Topic 60 to 61 Verse 67 to 77 Verse 67 – Introduction : The removal of this illusion of ignorance takes place through the rise of the right knowledge. [Introduction – Chapter 3 – Verse 67] • Since Moola Avidya is non enquirable, can only work for negating it. Verse 67 : From text such as "You are that Being," which remove the desire for further inquiry, certain knowledge about the inward Self does arise, and this [knowledge] cannot be obtained from other sources. [Chapter 3 – Verse 67] a) Tatu Asi Iti Akinam : • With help of Mahavakyam. • Sad Asi = Tat Tvam Asi. • Tat = Pronoun – That – standing for what? • Tatu = Pure existence, Attributeless, sat. 2601 • Sureshvaracharya replaces Tat by Sat, drops word Tvam because verb Asi is 2nd person – singular. • Tvam – Singular, need not be said. • Subject, understood as you. • Sad Asi = Tat Tvam Asi. b) Sad Asi Iti Adhi Mahavakyam : • For the student, Samyak Jnanam, right knowledge w.r.t. Atma, Pratyag Atma, inner self, Advitiya Jnanam. -
Brahman, Atman and Maya
Sanatana Dharma The Eternal Way of Life (Hinduism) Brahman, Atman and Maya The Hindu Way of Comprehending Reality and Life Brahman, Atman and Maya u These three terms are essential in understanding the Hindu view of reality. v Brahman—that which gives rise to maya v Atman—what each maya truly is v Maya—appearances of Brahman (all the phenomena in the cosmos) Early Vedic Deities u The Aryan people worship many deities through sacrificial rituals: v Agni—the god of fire v Indra—the god of thunder, a warrior god v Varuna—the god of cosmic order (rita) v Surya—the sun god v Ushas—the goddess of dawn v Rudra—the storm god v Yama—the first mortal to die and become the ruler of the afterworld The Meaning of Sacrificial Rituals u Why worship deities? u During the period of Upanishads, Hindus began to search for the deeper meaning of sacrificial rituals. u Hindus came to realize that presenting offerings to deities and asking favors in return are self-serving. u The focus gradually shifted to the offerings (the sacrificed). u The sacrificed symbolizes forgoing one’s well-being for the sake of the well- being of others. This understanding became the foundation of Hindu spirituality. In the old rites, the patron had passed the burden of death on to others. By accepting his invitation to the sacrificial banquet, the guests had to take responsibility for the death of the animal victim. In the new rite, the sacrificer made himself accountable for the death of the beast. -
Bhagavad Gita • a Word of Caution About Going Through the Gita with Me
Today’s Lecture • Concluding the Upanishads • Beginning the Gita Upanishads – Atman • Where we left off: • For Upanishadic philosophers, this perspective on the self and the Self yields two further consequences worth noting at this time (see Brihadaranyaka Upanishad IV: 4: 5-7). • (1) Release or liberation from samsara is achieved by transcending your-self, by transcending the ‘I’ or ‘me’ of personal identity. • (2) The good life, or the morally fulfilling life, is to be had by transcending one’s egocentrism. By moving beyond an ‘I’ orientation, or the possessive ‘mine’, by acquiring a transcendent perspective of Reality, one moves beyond those motives of action that lead to wrong doing. • By cultivating (2) you walk the Path to (1). Arguably, and this is a stronger claim, (1) requires (2). Upanishads – Atman • Atman cannot, according to the Upanishadic philosophers, be grasped as an object of knowledge (at least when knowledge is understood as either (i) propositional (or linguistic) in nature, or (ii) as arising from the senses, memory or reason). •The Kena Upanishad describes Atman as both “other than the known and other than the unknown” (Koller, Asian Philosophies, p.22). Other than known because it is not an object of knowledge in the way a table or chair is such an object, other than unknown because we can know, or can become aware of, the Self (Koller, Asian Philosophies, pp.22-23). Upanishads – Atman • Why can’t Atman be an object of knowledge? • Start from the Upanishadic premise that (1) Atman is other than our bodies, or other than our states of wakened consciousness, dream consciousness, or deep sleep consciousness. -
Part I the Religions of Indian Origin
Part I The Religions of Indian Origin MRC01 13 6/4/04, 10:46 AM Religions of Indian Origin AFGHANISTAN CHINA Amritsar Kedamath Rishikesh PAKISTAN Badrinath Harappa Hardwar Delhi Indus R. NEPAL Indus Civilization BHUTAN Mohenjo-daro Ayodhya Mathura Lucknow Ganges R. Pushkar Prayag BANGLADESH Benares Gaya Ambaji I N D I A Dakshineshwar Sidphur Bhopal Ahmadabad Jabalpur Jamshedpur Calcutta Dwarka Dakor Pavagadh Raipur Gimar Kadod Nagpur Bhubaneswar Nasik-Tryambak Jagannath Puri Bombay Hyderabad Vishakhapatnam Arabian Sea Panaji Bay of Bengal Tirupati Tiruvannamalai-Kaiahasti Bangalore Madras Mangalore Kanchipuram Pondicherry Calicut Kavaratti Island Madurai Thanjavar Hindu place of pilgrimage Rameswaram Pilgrimage route Major city SRI LANKA The Hindu cultural region 14 MRC01 14 6/4/04, 10:46 AM 1 Hinduism Hinduism The Spirit of Hinduism Through prolonged austerities and devotional practices the sage Narada won the grace of the god Vishnu. The god appeared before him in his hermitage and granted him the fulfillment of a wish. “Show me the magic power of your Maya,” Narada prayed. The god replied, “I will. Come with me,” but with an ambiguous smile on his lips. From the shade of the hermit grove, Vishnu led Narada across a bare stretch of land which blazed like metal under the scorching sun. The two were soon very thirsty. At some distance, in the glaring light, they perceived the thatched roofs of a tiny village. Vishnu asked, “Will you go over there and fetch me some water?” “Certainly, O Lord,” the saint replied, and he made off to the distant group of huts. When Narada reached the hamlet, he knocked at the first door. -
Management Lessons from Advaita Bhavesh a Kinkhabwala
143 Management Lessons from Advaita Bhavesh A Kinkhabwala Introduction Acharya Shankara is a thorough, outright one. he word ‘Advaita’ is very beautiful. It As indicated by him, whatever is, is Brahman. Tliterally means ‘non-dual’. Dvaita means Brahman itself is totally homogeneous. All dis- ‘dual’ and the prefix ‘a’ negates the exist- tinctions and plurality are deceptive.3 ence of duality so, there is no ‘two’ but, ‘one’. It Dualism, Dvaita; qualified monism, Vish- could be simpler, if we said ‘one’, but then, the ishtadvaita; and Monism, Advaita; are the three next question would be, is there ‘two’; so by say- different fundamental schools of metaphysical ing non-dual, it conveys the clear and firm mes- ideas. They are altogether different stages to the sage of being just one, that is non-dual. final stage of the ultimate Truth, namely,para- Acharya Shankara’s ‘philosophical stand- brahma. They are the steps on the stepping stool point can be tried to be summed up in a sin- of yoga. They are not in any manner conflicting gle word “Advaita”—NonDuality. The objective but, in actuality, they are complementary to one of Advaita is to is to make an individual under- another. These stages are amicably orchestrated in stand his or her fundamental (profound) char- an evaluated arrangement of spiritual experiences. acter with the preeminent realty [sic] “Nirakar Dualism, qualified monism, pure monism—all Brahm” and reality that there is no “two” yet one these come full circle inevitably in the Advaita and only. Advaita shows us to see the substance Vedantic acknowledgement of the Absolute or of oneself in each one and that nobody is sep- the supra-normal trigunatita ananta Brahman. -
Shankara: a Hindu Revivalist Or a Crypto-Buddhist?
Georgia State University ScholarWorks @ Georgia State University Religious Studies Theses Department of Religious Studies 12-4-2006 Shankara: A Hindu Revivalist or a Crypto-Buddhist? Kencho Tenzin Follow this and additional works at: https://scholarworks.gsu.edu/rs_theses Part of the Religion Commons Recommended Citation Tenzin, Kencho, "Shankara: A Hindu Revivalist or a Crypto-Buddhist?." Thesis, Georgia State University, 2006. https://scholarworks.gsu.edu/rs_theses/4 This Thesis is brought to you for free and open access by the Department of Religious Studies at ScholarWorks @ Georgia State University. It has been accepted for inclusion in Religious Studies Theses by an authorized administrator of ScholarWorks @ Georgia State University. For more information, please contact [email protected]. SHANKARA: A HINDU REVIVALIST OR A CRYPTO BUDDHIST? by KENCHO TENZIN Under The Direction of Kathryn McClymond ABSTRACT Shankara, the great Indian thinker, was known as the accurate expounder of the Upanishads. He is seen as a towering figure in the history of Indian philosophy and is credited with restoring the teachings of the Vedas to their pristine form. However, there are others who do not see such contributions from Shankara. They criticize his philosophy by calling it “crypto-Buddhism.” It is his unique philosophy of Advaita Vedanta that puts him at odds with other Hindu orthodox schools. Ironically, he is also criticized by Buddhists as a “born enemy of Buddhism” due to his relentless attacks on their tradition. This thesis, therefore, probes the question of how Shankara should best be regarded, “a Hindu Revivalist or a Crypto-Buddhist?” To address this question, this thesis reviews the historical setting for Shakara’s work, the state of Indian philosophy as a dynamic conversation involving Hindu and Buddhist thinkers, and finally Shankara’s intellectual genealogy. -
Śamkara and Husserl: Investigations on Consciousness
Śamkara and Husserl: Investigations on Consciousness By Surya Kanta Maharana Department of Humanities and Social Sciences Indian Institute of Technology Guwahati. Guwahati – 781039 February, 2004 Śamkara and Husserl: Investigations on Consciousness A Thesis Submitted In Partial Fulfillment of the Requirements For the Degree of DOCTOR OF PHILOSOPHY Surya Kanta Maharana Roll No: 01614105 Department of Humanities and Social Sciences Indian Institute of Technology Guwahati. Guwahati – 781039 February, 2004 TH-325_01614105 TO ŚRĪ ŚRĪ THĀKŪR I dedicate this thesis at the lotus feet of my utmost reverential Śrī Śrī Thākūr, who has been the source, inspiration and the unseen power behind my success. TH-325_01614105 INDIAN INSTITUTE OF TECHNOLOGY, GUWAHATI Department of Humanities & Social Sciences ________________________________________________ STATEMENT I hereby declare that the matter embodied in this thesis is the result of investigations carried out by me in the Department of Humanities and Social Sciences, Indian Institute of Technology, Guwahati, India under the guidance of Dr. Archana Barua. In keeping with the general practice of reporting observations, due acknowledgements have been made wherever the work described is based on the findings of other investigators. I. I. T. Guwahati February, 2004. (Surya Kanta Maharana) TH-325_01614105 ii Indian Institute of Technology Guwahati Department of Humanities & Social Sciences North Guwahati, Guwahati - 781 039 (Assam), INDIA Dr (Mrs.) Archana Barua Phone: +91-0361-2690321-328 Ext.2552, 2582552. Associate Professor Fax: +91-361-2690762 E-mail: [email protected] [email protected] CERTIFICATE This is to certify that Mr. Surya Kanta Maharana has been working under my supervision since July 23, 2001. I am forwarding his thesis entitled “Śamkara and Husserl: Investigations on Consciousness” being submitted for the award of Ph.D degree of this institute. -
Sri Rama Gita
SRI RAMA GITA Chanting by Video by Swami Paramatmananda Swami Bodhatmananda Volume 1 INDEX S. No. Topic Page No. I Summary (a) Summary Chart 1 (b) Topic 1 2 (c) Topic 2 4 (d) Topic 3 8 (e) Topic 4 9 (f) Topic 5 13 (g) Topic 6 14 II Introduction 15 III Class Notes (1) Verse 1 16 (2) Verse 2 19 (3) Verse 3 21 (4) Verse 4 22 [i] S. No. Topic Page No. (5) Verse 5 25 (6) Verse 6 27 (7) Verse 7 30 (8) Verse 8 38 (9) Verse 9 42 (10) Verse 10 44 (11) Verse 11 48 (12) Verse 12 54 (13) Verse 13 57 (14) Verse 14 59 (15) Verse 15 68 (16) Verse 16 74 (17) Verse 17 80 (18) Verse 18 86 (19) Verse 19 92 [i] S. No. Topic Page No. (20) Verse 20 96 (21) Verse 21 98 (22) Verse 22 and 23 102 (23) Verse 24 113 (24) Verse 25 121 (25) Verse 26 126 (26) Verse 27 131 (27) Verse 28 147 (28) Verse 29 150 (29) Verse 30 154 (30) Verse 31 157 (31) Verse 32 160 (32) Verse 33 169 (33) Verse 34 183 IV Video Duration - [ii] Summary Sri Rama Gita 62 Verses – 6 Topics Verse 1 – 5 Verse 11 – 23 Verse 52 – 57 Upaothgatha Samuchaya Vada Jnana Phalam benefit of Khandanam knowledge Verse 6 – 10 Verse 24 – 51 Verse 58 – 62 Vedanta Sara Vedanta Vichara main part of Upasamhara text Conclusion 1 Topic 1 : Verse 1 – 5 – Introduction : • Rama Gita condenses Vedantic teaching in the form of a dialogue between Sri Rama and Lakshmana. -
Vasistha's Yoga
Page iii Vasistha’s * Yoga Swami Venkatesananda STATE UNIVERSITY OF NEW YORK PRESS Page iv Disclaimer: This book contains characters with diacritics. When the characters can be represented using the ISO 88591 character set (http://www.w3.org/TR/images/latin1.gif), netLibrary will represent them as they appear in the original text, and most computers will be able to show the full characters correctly. In order to keep the text searchable and readable on most computers, characters with diacritics that are not part of the ISO 88591 list will be represented without their diacritical marks. Published by State University of New York Press, Albany © 1993 State University of New York All rights reserved Printed in the United States of America No part of this book may be used or reproduced in any manner whatsoever without written permission except in the case of brief quotations embodied in critical articles and reviews. For information, address State University of New York Press, State University Plaza, Albany, N.Y., 12246 Library of Congress CataloginginPublication Data Venkatesananda, Swami. Vasistha's * yoga / Swami Venkatesananda. p. cm. Includes translation of: Yogavasistharamayana*. Includes index. ISBN 0791413632 (hard.) — ISBN 0791413640 (pbk.) 1.Yogavasistharamayana*—Commentaries. 2. Religious life— Hinduism. 3. Hinduism—Doctrines. I. Yogavasistharamayana*. English. II. Title. BL 1237.32. Y633V46 1993 294.5'4—dc20 923160 CIP 10 9 Page v SCHEME OF TRANSLITERATION a * i i* u u* r* r* l* e ai o au m* h* VOWELS: a CONSONANTS: gutturals k kh g gh n* palatals c ch j jh ñ cerebrals t* th* d* dh* n* dentals t th d dh n labials p ph b bh m semivowels y r I v sibilants s s as in sun s* palatal sibilant s* cerebral sibilant—as in shun aspirate h The above scheme does not facilitate the pronunciation of the syllable jna which occurs often in the Yoga Vasistha* as also in yoga literature (jnana*> means knowledge).