Advaita : Some Basic Explanations - 8

[Srikrishna Ghadiyaram]

Hari Om !!

In this posting # 8 you wrote regarding Jiva:


> Reply : Atman is the basis of inanimate objects
> also. Difference between
> animate (live) and inanimate is not due to Kutastha
> or Atman. It is due
> to jiiva - reflection of Kutastha on intellect.
>
------
Here you seem to mean that the reflection is the Jiva
------------

In Posting # 3 you wrote:

Doubt : Is not chidaabhaasa the jiiva or jiivaatmaa?
Reply : Strictly speaking, NO.

Doubt : This is not at all clear. What is this
"reflection"? Whose
reflection it is?

Reply : Yes, it is a good question, but this posting
has become too
long. We shall discuss it in the next.

In posting # 4 you wrote:

{\skt jiiva} -- or what we roughly call Soul. What we
have called
        {\skt aanandamaya ko.sa}, "Happy" previously
is also called
        {\skt cidaabhaasa}
         = {\skt cit} the brain activity + {\skt
aabhaasa} reflection,
        just as the sun produces a reflection on a
water surface,
        {\skt brahman} creates an illusion of
Consciousness in the
brain.

        That {\skt cidaabhaasa} plus the {\skt
saak.sii} which is the
cause
        of it, together are called {\skt jiiva}, Soul.
        It is analogous to {\skt jalaakaa"sa},
"image-space".
        {Water in the pot is analogous to brain
activity, pot is
shariira}

Also you wrote:

Doubt : Is Self not controlling all that this body
does? Then how can
one say that it does not do any actions?

Relpy : You are confusing between {\skt jiiva} Soul
and {\skt aatmaa}
Self.
Just as on Sunrise all animals, including men, go
about doing their
activity
and on Sunset take rest in form of sleep, and thus are
as if directed
in
their activities by Sun, but the Sun itself does not
do any of the
action,
similarly the presence of Self is sufficient for the
lifelike
activities.

-----

Here you seem to mean that Jiva which is different
from aatma. Jiva does all the work, and aatma is the
controller by mere presence.
----------------

Also, I am referring to sloka # 184 to 188 of
Vivekachoodamani says:

Budhirbhdhindriaih .... etc.

say that the Vijnanamaya Kosa is the Jiva.

What is the correct view ?

If we do not consider that

Antahkarana + Reflection + aatma = Jiva

there is no meaning and requirement of
BadhaSamanadhikaranya to establish Jiva is Brahman or
Tatvamasi, which is an accepted practice.

But the above referred Vivekachudamani slokas do not
seem to speak in similar lines.

Also, we refer to Ahamkara as EGO which is a function
of the mind. So, it means to me that it is independent
of any consciousness or reflection of it, for its own
definition. In such case how is this EGO related to
this reflection of consciousness ?

or is EGO itself is Jiva ??? If so, how can the
statement Jivo Brahmaiva naaparaha hold true ??,
because the whole effort is to live without Abhimana
or EGO , right ?

Would you please clarify ?

If EGO is Jiva then what happens to it in Deepsleep ?
Is Jiva gone ?  To support the knowledge of deep sleep
happiness we resort to the Antahkarana + Reflection +
aatma = Jiva definition. In such case why are we
calling Chidabhasa as Jiva (not strictly, as referred
by you in your posting # 3, pasted at the top of this
e-mail).

In any case please address the deep sleep issue and
Vijnanamaya Kosa being called as Jiva in
Vivekachudamani.

Om Namo Narayanaya !!

Srikrishna

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