16 Apr 2008, 0000 hrs IST
,Pranav Khullar
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In the Brahmn-Sutra Bhashya, Sankara says: "Brahmn alone is real, the world is illusory. The individual and the universal soul are One". Using everyday references to illustrate abstract advaitic concepts, Sankara begins by stating that the Atmabodha will serve as a primer for those who wish to experience liberation, equipped with the tools of discernment. The second declares that knowledge alone can be the cause of liberation, just as fire is the direct cause of cooking. This may include the requirement of water, pots and pans but it is essentially fire that makes cooking possible. Sankara saya that karma or action is powerless to destroy ignorance for "...it is not in conflict with ignorance". The Self can be known only through knowledge, just as light alone can dispel darkness. He compares jnana abhyasa or the practice of knowledge which purifies by removing ignorance, with the traditional method of purifying muddy water in rural India with kataka-nut powder. Just as the powder sprinkled on the surface of the water forms a film and drags all the impurities to the bottom, leaving pure water on the surface, constant use and practice of knowledge removes the dirt of ignorance. And just as the kataka-nut powder dissolves in the water after doing its work, knowledge too disappears after the Self emerges. Sankara uses the example of the illusion created by oyster shells scattered along the beach on a moonlit night. We mistake them for silver, only till we recognise the reality of the oyster shells. Similarly, the world of names and forms exists only till self-knowledge dawns. The phenomenal world exists in the mind of the perceiver alone, and names and forms exist like ornaments. Vishnu, the all-pervading consciousness, is like gold. Sankara reinforces the spirit and content of the Upanishads by alluding to the Mahavakyas, in his delineation of the nature of Brahmn, reiterating the well-known method of arriving at the definition of Brahmn, through the process of elimination "...neti, neti...not this, not this". Meditation is essential to refocus on the Self. The flame of knowledge can only be kindled by constant meditation, Sankara compares this to the act of rubbing two pieces of wood together to create fire. Meditation is the friction between the mind-wood and the Om-wood pieces. The story of Rama is allegorised as Atmarama, who derives satisfaction from the Self alone, having crossed the ocean of delusion to vanquish the creatures of passion, just as Rama crossed the ocean to kill Ravana. In the concluding verses Sankara seems to speak from a meditative trance, as he alludes to the nature of Brahmn - sat-chit-ananda or knowledge-existence-bliss. These verses reflect the cosmic nature of his thought. He says, "...all things which can be perceived or heard, are Brahmn itself and nothing else...and though atma is reality, it can be perceived only by the one who has the eye of wisdom". Sankara asks us to undertake the real pilgrimage to "the shrine of the atma", which will bestow upon us real equanimity. The Atmabodha, like its companion-piece the Vivekachudamani, is a call from the heart. It reflects Sankara’s attempt to reach out to not only the intelligentsia of his time. It conveys the profound, yet simple philosophy of Oneness to anyone who is curious to know more about the nature of consciousness and the path to liberation. It is a pilgrimage of the mind. http://spirituality.indiatimes.com |
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