[Advaita-l] The Jnani's feeling of physical pain

[kuntimaddi sadananda]

Does jnaani breaths or does ajnaani breaths? 

The fact is neither one. 

Who breaths - Krishna answered that  - PrakRitieva ca karmaaNi kriyamaaNaani sarvaShaH. -All actions (without exception) which obviously includes breathing, eating, sleeping, walking and also writing this email - is done by prakRiti alone - that includes, or more correctly starts from, BMI. 

There two differences between a jnaani and ajnaani. 1 jnaani knows this as a fact and therefore does not take agency of action as REAL, while ajnaani thinks he is really doing the action - even though breathing is going on even when the body has gone to deep sleep state.

2. The second difference arises from the fact that jnaani knowing that he is akartaa can still see that in his very presence the BMI is doing it. He can say for purpose of transactions that I am breathing or even I am teaching - without really taking the agency of action - like an actor playing the role in a drama knowing very well that he is not fully accountable for the actions of the role he is playing. No one can arrest him that he committed a murder on the scene that he is playing - other than in the drama. That is the essence of karmaNi akarmaNi yaH pasyet, implies. ( I am reminded of Swami Tejomayanandaji's joke - after a vedanta class, while he was waking, a disciple came forward with his wife and introduced her to swamiji - saying that swamiji - this body is married to that body). It is silly to talk like that just because you are advaitin. In VevekachuDamaNi it is said, even when the student has gained the knowledge, he must prostrate to the
 teacher because of whose grace he gained the knowledge. The parents are still parentes and teachers are still teachers even while knowing all are only self that I am. 

The discussion from the point of jnaani has to be understood from what reference  it is made. From paaramaarthika point there is no one does any thing. From vyaavahaarika point, the prakRiti does all actions. From jnaanis point, he knows that he is not really a doer while doing is going on at vyavahaara. This is the essence of mithyaatva aspect of  the prakRiti - the basis for advaita. The confusion arises when we keep shifting reference point in the discussion.  I see that everyone is arguing the same thing from different references points. 
The question is only  jnaani having the knowledge of paaramaarthika, can play as a role in vyaavahaarika without having a kartRitva bhaava. Hence Krishna’s elaborate discussion of kartaa aspect saying that even knowledgeable people have some confusion.  Looks like Bhagavaan is right on the mark. Krishna himself says in many places that Arjuna I am going to teach you in short since you are dear to me. And Bhagavat paada says – I am going to write this bhaaShya. Is there a kartRitva bhaava in both statements?– or they playing the roles without having the agency of action? – or third way it look at it, it appears is - they are not doing anything but only ajnaani sees that they are doing – The last one seems to appeal to some. Only problem with the last one is if ajnaani can project the jnaanam coming from the mahaatmaas then he is no more ajnaani since he has enough jnaanam to project mahatma as well as the jnaanam that they are going to teach. If
 I can dream of Shankara bhagavat paada coming into my dream and writing bhaashyaas in my dream without I ever studying those bhaashyaas –I am indeed blessed. I wished that can be true. Unfortunately I cannot dream what I do not know.  I have to make effort to study those bhaashyaas written by Shankara for me to know. 

Shree Subbuji points are essentially this which Shree Vidyashankarji is elucidated.


Hari Om!
Sadananda