Hinduism chapter
QMRRealization of the nature of Self-identity is the principal object of the Vedanta system of Indian metaphysics. In the Upanishads, self-consciousness is not the first-person indexical self-awareness or the self-awareness which is self-reference without identification,[36] and also not the self-consciousness which as a kind of desire is satisfied by another self-consciousness.[37] It is Self-realisation; the realisation of the Self consisting of consciousness that leads all else.[38]
The word Self-consciousness in the Upanishads means the knowledge about the existence and nature of Brahman. It means the consciousness of our own real being, the primary reality.[39] Self-consciousness means Self-knowledge, the knowledge of Prajna i.e. of Prana which is Brahman.[40] According to the Upanishads the Atman or Paramatman is phenomenally unknowable; it is the object of realisation. The Atman is unknowable in its essential nature; it is unknowable in its essential nature because it is the eternal subject who knows about everything including itself. The Atman is the knower and also the known.[41]
Metaphysicists regard the Self either to be distinct from the Absolute or entirely identical with the Absolute. They have given form to three schools of thought – a) the Dualistic school, b) the Quasi-dualistic school and c) the Monistic school, as the result of their varying mystical experiences. Prakrti and Atman, when treated as two separate and distinct aspects form the basis of the Dualism of the Shvetashvatara Upanishad.[42] Quasi-dualism is reflected in the Vaishnavite-monotheism of Ramanuja and the absolute Monism, in the teachings of Adi Shankara.[43]
Self-consciousness is the Fourth state of consciousness or Turiya, the first three being Vaisvanara, Taijasa and Prajna. These are the four states of individual consciousness.
There are three distinct stages leading to Self-realisation. The First stage is in mystically apprehending the glory of the Self within us as though we were distinct from it. The Second stage is in identifying the "I-within" with the Self, that we are in essential nature entirely identical with the pure Self. The Third stage is in realising that the Atman is Brahman, that there is no difference between the Self and the Absolute. The Fourth stage is in realising "I am the Absolute" - Aham Brahman Asmi. The Fifth stage is in realising that Brahman is the "All" that exists, as also that which does not exist.[44
Aurobindo attended the 1906 Congress meeting headed by Dadabhai Naoroji and participated as a councillor in forming the fourfold objectives of "Swaraj, Swadesh, Boycott and national education".
Wilber's interpretation of Aurobindo's philosophy rejects the notion of dividing reality as a different level of matter, life, mind, overmind, supermind proposed by Aurobindo in The Life Divine, and terms them as higher- or lower-nested holons and states that there is only a fourfold reality (a system of reality created by himself).
According to Aurobindo, Brahman, which has the potentiality of becoming, has created out an existence which has a relation between itself. This existence with its experience of becoming and having relation with the absolute is called as Soul or purusha, the principle or power of becoming is called as nature or prakriti.[53][relevant? – discuss]
Swami Rama has provided an interpretation of this Upanishad from the experiential standpoint in his commentary Enlightenment without God.[54]
Ranade calls the aphoristic style of Mandukya Upanishad as highly influential on the Sutras of Indian philosophies that followed it, and that the Upanishad has served as a foundational text of the major Vedanta school of Hinduism. He states,[55]
We are told [in Mandukya Upanishad] how, "the syllable Om is verily all that exists. Under it is included all the past, the present and the future, as well as that which transcends time. Verily all this is Brahman. The Atman is Brahman. This Atman is four-footed. The first foot is the Vaisvanara, who enjoys gross things, in the state of wakefulness. The second foot is the Taijasa, who enjoys exquisite things in the state of dream. The third is the Prajna who enjoys bliss in the state of deep sleep. The fourth is Atman, who is alone without a second, calm, holy and tranquil". This passage has been verily the basis upon which all the later systems of Vedantic philosophy have come to be built.
— RD Ranade[55]
Ranade's views on the importance of Mandukya Upanishad and Gaudapada's commentary on Vedanta school, particularly Advaita Vedanta sub-school of Hinduism, is shared by modern era scholars such as Hacker, Vetter and others.[56]
Johnston states that Mandukya Upanishad must be read in two layers, consciousness and vehicles of consciousness, soul and nature of soul, the empirical and the eternal. The text aphoristically condenses these layers of message, both in literal and metaphorical sense.
William Butler Yeats, the Irish poet, was inspired by the Upanishads and Mandukya Upanishad were among texts he commented on.[57][58]
David Stoll's 1987 Piano Quartet is inspired by three Upanishads, one being Mandukya Upanishad, other two being Katha and Isha Upanishads.[59]
Sikh translation[edit]
According to Sikh scholars, the Mandukya Upanishad 'is one of the most fascinating upanishads ever written as it deals with the four states of being' and was translated in Anandpur in 1689 under the patronage of Guru Gobind Singh.
Gaudapada
Further information: Gaudapada § Mandukya Karika
One of the first known extant metrical commentary on this Upanishad was written by Gaudapada, This commentary, called the Māndūkya-kārikā, is the earliest known systematic exposition of Advaita Vedanta.
Raju states that Gaudapada took over the Buddhist doctrines that ultimate reality is pure consciousness (vijñapti-mātra),[45][note 3] and "the four-cornered negation".[45][note 4] Raju further states that Gaudapada "weaved [both doctrines] into a philosophy of the Mandukaya Upanisad, which was further developed by Shankara".[49][note 5] The 'four-cornered negation' is an English gloss of the Sanskrit, Chatushkoti.[citation needed]
The Mandukya Upanishad is one of several Upanishads that discuss the meaning and significance of the syllable Om (Aum) and its fourfold nature
Scholars contest whether Mandukya Upanishad was influenced by Buddhist theories along with the similarities and differences between Buddhism and Hinduism in light of the text. According to Hajime Nakamura, the Mandukya Upanishad was influenced by Mahayana Buddhism and its concept of śūnyatā.[5] Nakamura states, "many particular Buddhist terms or uniquely Buddhist modes of expression may be found in it",[36][note 1] such as adrsta, avyavaharya, agrahya, alaksana, acintya, prapancopasama.[38] According to Randall Collins the Madukya Upanishad "includes phrases found in the Prajnaparamitrasutras of Mahayana Buddhism."[39]
According to Michael Comans, Vidushekhara also notes that the term prapañcopaśama does not appear in pre-Buddhist Brahmanic works, but in contrast to Nakamura he does not conclude that the term was taken over from Mahayana Buddhism.[6] According to Comans, eventual Mahayana origins of this term are no more than a possibility, and not a certainty.[6]
Comans also disagrees with Nakamura's thesis that "the fourth realm (caturtha) was perhaps influenced by the Sunyata of Mahayana Buddhism."[note 2] According to Comans,
It is impossible to see how the unequivocal teaching of a permanent, underlying reality, which is explicitly called the "Self", could show early Mahayana influence.[40]
Comans further refers to Nakamura himself, who notes that later Mahayana sutras such as the Laṅkāvatāra Sūtra and the concept of Buddha-nature, were influenced by Vedantic thought.[40] Comans concludes that
[T]here can be no suggestion that the teaching about the underlying Self as contained in the Mandukya contains shows any trace of Buddhist thought, as this teaching can be traced to the pre-Buddhist Brhadaranyaka Upanishad.[40]
Jacobs lists adrsta and other terms in more ancient, pre-Buddhist literature such as the Brihadaranyaka Upanishad.[41]
Isaeva states that there are differences in the teachings in the texts of Buddhism and the Mandukya Upanishad of Hinduism, because the latter asserts that citta "consciousness" is identical with the eternal and immutable atman "soul, self" of the Upanishads.[42] In other words, Mandukya Upanishad and Gaudapada affirm the soul exists, while Buddhist schools affirm that there is no soul or self.[4][43][44]
In the Chandogya Upanishad the sections 8.7 through 8.12 of the Chandogya Upanishad return to the question, "what is true Self, and what is not"?[163] The opening passage declares Self as the one that is eternally free of grief, suffering and death, it is happy, serene being that desires, feels and thinks what it ought to.[164] Thereafter, the text structures its analysis of true and false Atman as four answers.[163] The first three are false Self (material body,[107] corporeal self in dreams, individual self in deep sleep) and the last is the true Self (the self in beyond deep sleep state that is one with others and the entire universe).[165][166]
This theory is also known as the "four states of consciousness", explained as the awake state, dream-filled sleep state, deep sleep state, and beyond deep sleep state.[167][168]
Theory and nature of Atman[edit] Mandukya Upanishad
The verses 3 through 7 discuss four states of Atman (Self, Soul).[3][4]
Verse 3 of the Upanishad describes the first state of Self as outwardly cognitive with seven limbs,[32] nineteen mouths,[33] enjoying the gross,[34] a state of Self common in all of human beings.[3][4]
The Mandukya Upanishad, in verse 4, asserts the second state of Self as inwardly cognitive with seven limbs, nineteen mouths, enjoying the exquisite, a state of brilliant Self.[3][4]
The Upanishad's verse 5 states the third state of Self as one without desire or anticipations, where pure conscience is his only mouth, where he is in unified cognition, enjoying the delight, a state of blissful Self.[3][4]
The verses 6 and 7 of the Upanishad states the fourth state of Self as one beyond all the three, beyond extrospective state, beyond introspective state, beyond cognitive state, the state of ekatmya pratyaya sara (one with the Self), tranquil, benign, advaita (without second). He then is the Self, just Atman, the one which should be discerned.[3][4]
Johnston summarizes these four states of Self, respectively, as seeking the physical, seeking inner thought, seeking the causes and spiritual consciousness
The Mandukya Upanishad describes four states of consciousness, namely waking (jågrat), dreaming (svapna), and deep sleep (suṣupti),[web 1][web 2] which correspond to the Three Bodies Doctrine:[29]
The first state is the waking state, in which we are aware of our daily world. "It is described as outward-knowing (bahish-prajnya), gross (sthula) and universal (vaishvanara)".[web 2] This is the gross body.
The second state is the dreaming mind. "It is described as inward-knowing (antah-prajnya), subtle (pravivikta) and burning (taijasa)".[web 2] This is the subtle body.
The third state is the state of deep sleep. In this state the underlying ground of concsiousness is undistracted, "the Lord of all (sarv'-eshvara), the knower of all (sarva-jnya), the inner controller (antar-yami), the source of all (yonih sarvasya), the origin and dissolution of created things (prabhav'-apyayau hi bhutanam)".[web 2] This is the causal body.
The fourth factor is Turiya, pure consciousness. It is the background that underlies and transcends the three common states of consciousness.[web 3] [web 4] In this consciousness both absolute and relative, saguna brahman and Nirguna Brahman, are transcended.[30] It is the true state of experience of the infinite (ananta) and non-different (advaita/abheda), free from the dualistic experience which results from the attempts to conceptualise ( vipalka) reality.[31] It is the state in which ajativada, non-origination, is apprehended.
The Mandukya Upanishad is an important Upanishad in Hinduism, particularly to its Advaita Vedanta school.[24][25] It tersely presents several central doctrines, namely that "the universe is Brahman," "the self (soul, atman) exists and is Brahman," and "the four states of consciousness".[24][26][27] The Mandukya Upanishad also presents several theories about the syllable Om, and that it symbolizes self.[24][4]
Aum in the Mandukya Upanishad[edit]
The Mandukya Upanishad is one of several Upanishads that discuss the meaning and significance of the syllable Om (Aum).
The Mandukya Upanishad opens by declaring, "Om!, this syllable is this whole world". Thereafter it presents various explanations and theories on what it means and signifies.[4] This discussion is built on a structure of "four fourths" or "fourfold", derived from A + U + M + "silence" (or without an element[28]).[3][4]
Aum as all states of time
In verse 1, the Upanishad states that time is threefold: the past, the present and the future, that these three are "Aum". The four fourth of time is that which transcends time, that too is "Aum" expressed.[4]
Aum as all states of Atman
In verse 2, states the Upanishad, everything is Brahman, but Brahman is Atman (the soul, self), and that the Atman is fourfold.[3]
Aum as all states of consciousness
In verses 3 to 6, the Mandukya Upanishad enumerates four states of consciousness: wakeful, dream, deep sleep and the state of ekatma (being one with Self, the oneness of Self).[4] These four are A + U + M + "without an element" respectively.[4]
Aum as all of etymological knowledge
In verses 9 to 12, the Mandukya Upanishad enumerates fourfold etymological roots of the syllable "Aum". It states that the first element of "Aum" is A, which is from Apti (obtaining, reaching) or from Adimatva (being first).[3] The second element is U, which is from Utkarsa (exaltation) or from Ubhayatva (intermediateness).[4] The third element is M, from Miti (erecting, constructing) or from Mi Minati, or apīti (annihilation).[3] The fourth is without an element, without development, beyond the expanse of universe. In this way, states the Upanishad, the syllable Om is the Atman (the self) indeed.[3
The foundation of several theories in the Mandukya Upanishad are found in chronologically more ancient Sanskrit texts.[19] For example, chapters 8.7 through 8.12 of Chandogya Upanishad discuss the "four states of consciousness" as awake, dream-filled sleep, deep sleep, and beyond deep sleep.[19][20
The Mandukya Upanishad (Sanskrit: माण्डुक्य उपनिषद्, Māṇḍukya Upaniṣad) is the shortest of all the Upanishads, and is assigned to Atharvaveda.[1] It is listed as number 6 in the Muktikā canon of 108 Upanishads.[2]
It is in prose, consisting of twelve terse verses, and is associated with a Rig Vedic school of scholars.[1] It discusses the syllable Om, presents the theory of four states of consciousness, asserts the existence and nature of Atman (Soul, Self)
The following well-known 'Parampara-stotra' among Smarthas in Sanskrit has the list of early Advaita teachers in their order and that is recited at the beginning of the study of Commentaries,[4][26][27]
Nārāyanam Padmabhuvam Vasishtam shaktiæ ca tatputraæ Parāsharam ca |
Vyāsam Shukam Gaudapāda Mahantam Govindam Yogindram athasya shishyam |
Shri Shankarāchārya mathasya Padmapādam ca hastamalakam ca shishyam |
Tam trotakam vartika karamanyan asmad guru-nsantat-amanato ’smi ||
It means: 'To Narayana, to the lotus-born Brahma, to Vaśiṣṭha, to Shakti Maharshi and to his son Parashara, to Vyasa, to Shuka, to great Gaudapada, to Govinda-Yogindra and to his disciple Sri Shankaracarya, then to his disciples Padmapada, Hastamalaka, Totraka and Vartikakara [Suresvara], to these our Masters we pay our respectful obeisance now and forever'.
From this verse we can understand that, first teacher being Lord Narayana himself and line of descent from father to son up-to Sri Shuka Acharya. From Lord Narayana to Sri Shuka Acharya the line of succession is known as 'Vamsarsi-parampara' and from Sri Gaudapadcharya starts the descent of Sanyasins and known as 'Manava-Guru-Shishya-parampara'.[14]
To bifurcate Acharyas according to the Yuga:[28]
A) In Satya or Krata Yuga
1) Lord Narayana / Lord Sadashiva and 2) Lord Brahma.
B) In Treta Yuga
1)Vasishta Maharishi 2)Shakti Maharishi and 3) Parashara Maharishi.
C) In Dvapara Yuga
1) Veda Vyasa and 2) Sri Shuka Acharya
D) In Kali Yuga
1) Acharyas start with Sri Gaudapada Acharya.
Other religion chapter
The diversity of Daoist interpretations of Dao can be seen across four texts representative of major streams of thought within Daoism. All four texts are used in modern Daoism with varying acceptance and emphasis among sects. The Dao De Jing is the oldest text and representative of a speculative and philosophical approach to the Dao. The Tao T'i Lun is an eighth century exegesis of the Dao De Jing, written from a well-educated and religious viewpoint, that represents the traditional scholarly perspective. The devotional perspective of Dao is expressed in the Ch'ing Ching Ching, a liturgical text that was originally composed during the Han dynasty and is used as a hymnal in religious Daoism, especially among eremites. The Zhuangzi (often spelled Chuang Tzu) uses literary devices such as tales, allegories, and narratives to relate the Dao to the reader, illustrating a metaphorical method of viewing and expressing the Dao.[16]
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