Sunday, July 11, 2010

TOWARD THE TRUTH

|kuntimaddi sadananda to advaitin



There is saying – God helps those who can help themselves.

Realization involves clear understanding of the truth since according to Vedanta, it is the ignorance generated misunderstanding of the truth is the root cause for suffering. When I proceed to take a path, and do not have either clear understanding of either the destination or knowledge that the path leads to the intended destination, then there is finite probability that I my get lost in the path or I may luckily end up in the destination. Randomly one cannot arrive at the goal since the obstacles for the path are many and some are dangerous too – hence scriptures says – kshuraya dhaara duratyayaa, durgam pathanaat kavayo vadanti – it is a razor-edge path and therefore it is easy to fall down, if one is not vigilant.

In the Ch. Up. 6th chapter the teacher Uddalaka provides his son, Swetaketu, what is the means for knowledge of the truth - in the form of a story. A man from Gandhari desham or place was tied and blind-folded, taken to a forest, was robbed and was left behind in that dense forest, unharmed. The man in a state of helplessness, keeps screaming for help, turning in all directions – saying that he was tied and blind-folded and needs help to get back to his town. Some kind soul passing by runs to him, unties, and removes the blind-fold, and thus sets him free, pointing the direction to his town and distance involved, and guides him to proceed in that direction. This mans proceeds in the pointed direction and using his intelligence, medhaa (the forest-foot paths being zig-zag, therefore he has to move zig-zag path, while not loosing sight of the general direction for the goal that was pointed by his savior). On the way, he confirms that he is in the right
path by inquiring with passers by to insure that he will reach his destination. With his rightful efforts and with the help he received initially and later, he eventually reaches his destination. If he vigilent, he reaches faster without getting lost in those zig-zag paths.

Shankara points out that the scriptures provides the map and the direction and teacher comes in the form of a savior and removes his blind-fold of ignorance and directs him to proceed in the direction pointed for abiding in the knowledge of the truth. The ups and down along the zig-zag path due to the praarabda has to be endured without forgetting the goal and direction to proceed. He has to use his medha or intelligences all along to insure that he does not loose sight of the goal and the path, taking the help of the passersby without loosing is discriminative power to insure the suggestions of the passers by are not contradictory to the goal that was originally pointed out by his teacher or the savior.

We need to have a full faith in the words of the savior – that what he said in terms of goal and the path are indeed correct before we can proceed. There are many intellectual giants – all scholars of Vedas – yet have misinterpreted the scriptures as we have many Veda-based philosophies. Since they themselves vehemently criticize the other Vedantic teachings saying that they are all wrong interpretations (in our story pointing to wrong direction and distance to reach the goal), question arises as to which teacher is right and whom to follow : we have besides advaita, vishiShTaadvaita, dvaita with various sub-sects – all claiming Vedas and puraNaas as authority.

Goudapaada in his kaarki- 2nd ch. vaitatya prakaraNa – lists many philosophical doctrines that are based on the truth that is objectifyable, which is other than the subject, I – all taking Vedas as pramaaNa. All these philosophical positions are dismissed as untrue because they prescribe the the truth as objective, different from the subject, I. Any object is mithyaa since it can be perceived or reached or gained or known or conceptualized, etc. The logic is any objectifiable truth is finite, therefore limited, and therefore anityam or temporary (was not there before and will not be there later and therefore is not really there in the present also- adaavante yannasti vartamaanepi tattadhaa). That which is anityam cannot be real it is only mithyaa. On the other hand Advaita rests on the nithya vastu or eternal entity that can never be dismissed – it is the turiiyam – beyond any states and that pervades all the states. It is only forth in the sense
that it different from the three yet it pervades the three as the substantive for the three. Hence in spite of how great giants those philosophers or daarshanikaas are or were, if they think that the truth is objectifyable entity different from the subject, then all those philosophies constitute only confusions.

Having dismissed all those philosophies – GouDapaada makes an interesting statement - which is important from our perspective- since we get into heated discussions as which is right or which is worng.

Yam bhaavam darshayedyasya
tam bhaavam sa tu pasyati|
tam caavati sa bhuutvaa22sou
tadgrahaH sumupaiti tam|| II-29.

Seeker recognizes only those ideas which are presented to him by his teacher (in our story the savior). The all pervading aatma being the substantive of all ideas, including the confused ones, it too pervades them too and thus supports them too. Hence having faith in those ideas, when a seeker proceeds in that direction with faith (even if they are not correct) he ultimately reach the goal, that it is one without second and pervades every second.

Hence Krishna statement: yo yo yam yam tanum bhaktaH .. whoever whoever he may be and whatever whatever form (here form includes ideas or concepts) he worships I give him with full faith and eventually he will grow out of the path to reach that which is pathless.

The idea is not disturb the others who are in the wrong path or wrong understanding, since if they have full faith in that understanding, the Lord will help him see the truth in one way or the there if not in this life in the life after.

From the point of our discussions, it is important to present the correct understanding and show if possible the incorrectness either logically or scripturally or by both and leave it with that. Goudapaada establishes what is the correct understanding and why the others are confused. In the above sloka he, however says that every sincere seeker ultimately gets the help he needs later if not now and will eventually reach the destination, if not in the life, in the life after.

Hence Goudapaada says – tam sumupaiti – They will eventually reach the goal, even though their current understanding of the goal and the means is incorrect. It is the faith that takes them to the ultimate goal – is the promise of the Lord.

Hari Om!
Sadananda

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