[Advaita-l] Advaita vEdAnta - Unit (19)

[Krishnamurthy Ramakrishna]

In Unit 15, we started with the understanding of Brahman; we reviewed the
vishEShaNa , vishEShya relationship.

In Unit 16, we reviewed the lakShaNas that help us understand Brahman.

In Unit 17, We looked at some of the scriptural statements describing
Brahman.

In Unit 18, we understood that Brahman is nirguNa and why so.

In this unit, we will conclude the study of Brahman, by understanding that
jagat is a projection (adhyArOpa) and negation of it (apavAda) helps us
understand the svarUpa of Brahman.

 

adhyArOpa and apavAda.

 

The seeker, in the beginning understands that Brahman is the intelligent
cause of jagat and the jagat is different from Brahman. This understanding
makes him identify Brahman with attributes only. The shAstras take him from
here, closer to Brahman, through the understanding of Brahman as real
(satya), consciousness (jnyAna) and infinite(ananta); finally, Brahman being
also the material cause of jagat, describes Him as nEti, nEti ( not this,
not this logic) and takes the seeker to Brahman. This method is described in
the shAstras as adhyArOpa and apavAda. The study of shAstras helps the
seeker understand that Brahman is independent of all transactions, even
though the creation and dissolution are happening through Him. Without a
firm knowledge (without internalizing) that Brahman is the material cause of
jagat, the seeker believes that the jagat is independent and its creator is
Brahman. adhyArOpa is the process of following this thread of the seeker in
attaching creation, vishEshaNa, lakShaNa and transactions to Brahman.
Following this, the shAstra, through the discussion of kArya nad kAraNa,
helps the seeker understand that the jagat is not different from Brahman  -
Brahman is the upAdAna kAraNa of jagat. Then the seeker comes to ignore the
unreal names and forms and firmly experiences the only Real Brahman. The
seeker comes to understand that the jagat, not different from Brahman,
cannot be an upAdi of Brahman. Without upAdi, he understands that there are
no creation, vishEshaNa, and lakShaNa. Upon this realization, the seeker
experiences the svarUpa of Brahman and all the attached transactions
disappear. Then, even though he is transacting in the unreal jagat, he does
not move away from the experience of the svarUpa of nirguNa Brahman. This
state of rejecting the adhyArOpa on realizing the knowledge of svarUpa of
Brahman is apavAda.

In summary, adhyArOpa is due to seeing the jagat as a kArya. Once he
understands the teachings of shruti, he starts to see jagat from the view of
kAraNa. Then he firmly rejects (apavAda) all transactions in Brahman, though
the sense organs are transacting with sense objects. 

 

Three Levels of Reality.

 

We have understood that Brahman appears in different forms in association
with upAdhis, though He is not subject to any limitation and can not be
described at the speech and mind level. The truth at the supreme level
(paramArTha) is the only Reality, while what is observable at the
transactional or relational level is not the reality. However the common
experience of people is to recognize the body / mind level experiences as
reality. Keeping this in mind, the vEdAnta recognizes three levels of
reality as follows;

1)      pAramArThika satya or Supreme Reality

2)      vyAvahArika satya or Trancactional Reality

3)      prAtibhAsika satya or Apparent Reality.

These three levels of reality can be better understood through an example.
An image of an object can be captured on a screen through a lens. The
clarity of the image is dependent on the distance between the lens and the
screen, the orientation of the screen, lighting conditions etc. This image
is available to everyone's experiences. Under other circumstances, an
apparent image of the object (virtual image) can be seen, by a select few in
some specific orientation (This will not be the experience of all, as in the
lens image above).

It is not possible to capture this image and cannot be a transactional
experience, though can be seen (think of a creative artwork, which at an
angle, will look something differently). In this example, the object is the
pAramArThika satya, the lens image is the vyAvahArika satya and the apparent
image is the prAtibhAsika satya. In the backdrop of this example, we can
understand the three levels of reality in the philosophical plane.

Brahman is Real is the pAramArThika satya. This is the statement of shrutis.
The experience of the sense organs keeps changing from time to time or
person to person; what is changing can only be the experiences of the sense
organs as Science has demonstrated to us. Even in ordinary experiences this
is true - like the change in the musical speed can only be determined with
respect to a metronome. Brahman is beyond sense organs and is unchanging and
is the Supreme Reality.

The jagat is constantly changing and this change is experienced by the five
sense organs. This change is the common experience of all (without defects
in sense organs). The knowledge thus established through the sense organs is
the basis of all transactional activities. The shAstra classifies this
changing jagat experienced by all and being the basis of all transactions as
vyAvahArika satya.

A traveler, on a hot afternoon, sees water at a distance. When he arrives at
that location, the water that we all have come to know is not to be seen.
The water is a mirage. It appears to be there, but it is not there. This
experience, dependent on time and space, is called prAtibhAsika satya. This
experience is also called "satya", though it is an apparent experience,
because Brahman is the substratum supporting this apparent experience - the
laws of nature support the mirage. 

 

Though the three levels of reality are conceded by the shAstra, the
pAramArThika satya is the supporting Reality for the Transactional Reality
and the Apparent Reality. As much as the Apparent Reality is unreal with
respect to the Transactional Reality, so is the Transactional Reality is
unreal with respect to the Supreme Reality.

 

Summary.

Brahman, though is the kAraNa for the jagat, is different from jagat, in
that the jagat is jaDa and Brahman is consciousness. vEdAnta's approach in
explaining Brahman, obviously, has to be, to take the student from the known
to the unknown. jagat is the known, Brahman is the unknown. The vEdAnta
takes the seeker from the jagat, through the mAyA to the Brahman. The first
experience to the seeker is the Brahman with upAdhis. Then the seeker
experiences the lakShaNas of Brahman - satyam, jnyAnam and anantam. Here the
seeker understands the Supreme Reality of Brahman.  He understands that the
Transactional Reality (jagat) and the Apparent Reality are nothing but the
Supreme Reality that is Brahman. The adhyArOpa that Brahman is the
intelligent cause of jagat, and the jagat is different from Brahman is
negated (apavAda) and establishes himself in Brahman, the Supreme Reality,
beyond speech and mind.

 

We will take up the study of jIva in the next unit.

 

Om shAntih, shAntih, shAntih ( Om peace, peace, peace).