Isis 2005
[Note: This is the
first of several articles that address the issue of Hinduism &
non-dualistic philosophy.]
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Brahman of the Vedas
from Dr. Frank Morales
A Unique Concept of the Absolute
Let us look at what Hinduism
holds to be the Absolute. The ultimate goal and Absolute of Hinduism is termed
"Brahman" in Sanskrit. The word comes from the Sanskrit verb root brh,
meaning "to grow". Etymologically, the term means "that which
grows" (brhati) and "which causes to grow" (brhmayati).
Brahman is not "God"
Brahman, as understood by the scriptures of Hinduism, as well as by the 'acharyas'
of the Vedanta school, is a very specific conception of the Absolute. This
unique conception has not been replicated by any other religion on earth, and
is exclusive to Hinduism. Thus to even call this conception of Brahman
"God" is, in a sense, somewhat imprecise. This is the case because
Brahman does not refer to the anthropomorphic concept of God of the Abrahamic
religions.
When we speak of Brahman, we
are referring neither to the "old man in the sky" concept, nor to the
idea of the Absolute as even capable of being vengeful, fearful or engaging in
choosing a favorite people from among His creatures. For that matter, Brahman
is not a "He" at all, but rather transcends all empirically discernable
categories, limitations and dualities.
What is Brahman?
In the 'Taittariya Upanishad' II.1, Brahman is described in the
following manner: "satyam jnanam anantam brahma",
"Brahman is of the nature of truth, knowledge and infinity." Infinite
positive qualities and states have their existence secured solely by virtue of
Brahman's very reality. Brahman is a necessary reality, eternal (i.e., beyond
the purview of temporality), fully independent, non-contingent, and the source
and ground of all things. Brahman is both immanently present in the realm of
materiality, interpenetrating the whole of reality as the sustaining essence
that gives it structure, meaning and existential being, yet Brahman is
simultaneously the transcendent origin of all things (thus, panentheistic).
The Nature of Brahman
As the primary causal substance of material reality (jagatkarana),
Brahman does not arbitrarily will the coming into being of the non-Brahman
metaphysical principles of matter and jivas (individuated
consciousness), but rather they are manifest into being as a natural result of
the overflowing of Brahman's grandeur, beauty, bliss and love. Brahman cannot
but create abundant good in a similar manner to how Brahman cannot but exist.
Both existence and overflowing abundance are as much necessary properties of
Brahman as love and nurturing are necessary qualities of any virtuous and
loving mother.
Brahman is the Source
One can say that Brahman Itself (Him/Herself) constitutes the essential
building material of all reality, being the antecedent primeval ontological
substance from whence all things proceed. There is no ex nihilo creation
in Hinduism. Brahman does not create from nothing, but from the reality of Its
own being. Thus Brahman is, in Aristotelian terms, both the Material Cause as
well as the Efficient Cause of creation.
The Final Goal & the Final Cause
As the source of Dharma, the metaphysical ordering principles inherent in the
design of the cosmos, Brahman can be viewed as the Formal Cause. And as the
final goal of all reality, Brahman is also the Final Cause. Being the
ontological source of all reality, Brahman is the only substantial real that
truly exists, all other metaphysical categories being either a) contingent
transformations of Brahman, having their very being subsisting in attributive
dependence upon Brahman, or else b) illusory in nature. These views about the
nature of Brahman are in general keeping with the theological teachings of both
the Advaita and the Vishishta-Advaita schools of Hinduism.
Brahman is the Ultimate Reality
All reality has its source in Brahman. All reality has its grounding sustenance
in Brahman. It is in Brahman that all reality has its ultimate repose.
Hinduism, specifically, is consciously and exclusively aiming toward this
reality termed Brahman.
Advaita: Non-Duality
from "Peace
& Harmony in Daily Living" by Ramesh Balsekar
BOOK EXTRACT
Advaita (a+dvaita = non-duality) simply means
that the Source, by whatever name known - Primal Energy, Consciousness,
Awareness, Plenitude, God - is Unicity, Oneness, Non-duality. The manifestation
that arises or emerges from the Source is based on duality, the inevitable
existence of interconnected opposites: male and female, beauty and ugliness,
good and evil. At any moment there are bound to be interconnected opposites.
The sage accepts the duality that is the basis of life and is anchored in peace
and tranquillity while facing the pleasures and pains of life exactly like the
ordinary person. The ordinary person does not accept the duality, the existence
of interconnected opposites at any moment of life, chooses between them and is
unhappy.
The sage accepts the
'duality' of life; the ordinary person chooses between the interconnected
opposites, and lives in the unhappiness of 'dualism'.
The man of understanding certainly sees
preferences being made in daily living between the polaric opposites, but is
totally aware of the fact that the preferences happen according to the individual
programming in each case, and are not made by any individual person doing the
preference. The man of understanding is, therefore, always in tune with the
Source. When the final flash of total understanding happens, it is not at all
unlikely for the individual to realize the unbroken wholeness of the universe
and to clearly see the whole range of polaric opposites as a great illusion or
a play of a feigned quarrel between lovers. The result can be an uncontrollable
fit of huge laughter or intense weeping.
If only one would realize it, one's daily
living is never more than a continuous choosing, comparing and judging, blaming
and praising - hardly ever mere witnessing and accepting. How can there ever be
peace and harmony in our daily living?...
In day-to-day living, one faces problems
that have an astonishing range of apparent reasons and possible consequences.
The interesting question, therefore, is whether there is a basic common cause
that could be isolated and dealt with. Indeed, the basic cause of human
conflict and unhappiness is 'dualism', as distinct from 'duality'. The core of
this difference needs to be thoroughly analyzed and clearly understood. In
fact, such a clear understanding could itself be the solution of human
unhappiness because it would relieve the human being from the double-bind in
which he finds himself in his relentless pursuit of unalloyed happiness.
The fact of the matter is that 'duality' is polaric, interrelated and,
therefore, not really separate, whereas 'dualism' is opposition, separation,
and, therefore, conflict. Phenomenal manifestation is a process of
objectivization that basically requires a dichotomy into two elements: a
subject that perceives and an object that is perceived. This is the process
that is known as 'duality': all phenomena that are sensorially perceivable are
the correlation of a subject (object-cognizer) and the object (the object
cognized). This process of duality makes it evidently clear that without such a
process there cannot exist any phenomena, and that neither of the two
phenomenal objects (neither the cognizer subject nor the cognized object) has
any independent existence of its own: the existence of one depends on the
existence of the other.
When the basis of duality is clearly apperceived, there is no question of
either any samsara (phenomenal day-to-day living) or any bondage for any
conceptual individual for the simple reason that the 'individual' concerned is
merely the psychosomatic apparatus, the instrument through which the process of
perceiving and cognizing takes place. Our unhappiness, our conflict, our
bondage arises as the effect of the identification of What-We-Are
(Consciousness) with the object-cognizer element in the dichotomy of the
whole-mind (Consciousness) into subject and object in the process of duality.
This identification or entitification as a separate independent entity (as the
pseudo-subject) is the 'dualism' - the maya - which results as the
practical application in day-to-day living of the original principle of duality,
that is polaric, interrelated and, therefore, not separate. It is this
illusory entitification that causes all the conflict, all the suffering,
all the unhappiness that is collectively termed 'bondage'. The instantaneous
apperception of this very fact of the illusoriness of the pseudo-subject as an
independent doer-entity means the freedom from the bondage.
Excerpted from 'Advaita: The Teaching' - Chapter 6 of Peace & Harmony in Daily Living by Ramesh
Balsekar ( Yogi Impressions)
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The
last of the three statements asserts that the true nature of each individual is
Brahman. Because of "avidya", i.e., our original and inherent
spiritual ignorance, we have forgotten our true identity and mistakenly believe
that we are little, limited individuals.
Describing Brahman
Although Brahman is beyond description, the "rishis" (seers or sages)
of yore declared, based on their personal experience, that it can best be
described as sat-chit-ananda.
Sat means existence pure and absolute.
Chit means knowledge, or consciousness, pure and absolute.
Ananda means bliss, pure and absolute.
Our
true nature is pure existence, knowledge and bliss. We have this knowledge deep
within us and therefore we cannot settle for being mortal or experience any type
of limitation to our existence, we have an infinite thirst for knowledge and
constant yearning to experience joy.
Perceiving God: The Snake & Rope Analogy
A man, let us call him Bob, walks at night on a dark path. All of a sudden, a
snake bites him on the leg. The snake is lying on the ground just a few feet
from him. Lying on the floor, he weeps in pain, knowing that his life is most
likely over. He can feel the poison traveling in his bloodstream and he cries
for help.
The
nearby farmer hears him, and comes with a flashlight and points it to the
snake. Lo and behold, the snake turns out to be nothing more than a rope!
Superimposition: Is Brahman a Reality?
This analogy illustrates the concept of superimposition. Bob, due to his fear
of snakes, superimposed a snake upon the rope. He had been touched by a branch,
and the sight of the rope was enough to create the imaginary presence of the
snake and pain of the venom.
Now
the question is — during the incident, was the snake real or unreal? The answer
is that, subjectively, the snake was very real to Bob. However, objectively,
the presence of the snake was all illusory and created by Bob's mind.
Similarly,
this world has its own subjective reality, but upon dawning of the knowledge of
Brahman, this relative reality subsides and only the absolute reality of
Brahman remains.
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