[Advaita-l] Notes on Vichara Sagaram-2

[kuntimaddi sadananda]

The first chapter is identified as anubhandhaanaam saamaanya niruuupaNam as prathama tarangaH| - The first chapter deals with general objections on the anubhandha chatuShTayam as discussed in the beginning. 

Next comes two mangala slokas: Benedictory or prayer slokas.  Any text is started with prayer. Following the tradition there are two benedictory slokas as reproduced below. 

sukham nityam svaprakaasham vyaapakam naamaruupayoH||
adhiShTaanam buddhyabodhyam buddherdRigyattu nirmalam||  (1)

apaaram sarvavedantavedyam pratyak param mahaH|
tadevaaham na matto2nyaditi me nishchitaa matiH||                    (2)

There are three types of mangala slokas. 1) namaskaara ruupa mangalaacharaNam – Benedicotry slokas in the form of prayer to God and/or Teacher. 2) ashiirvaadaruupa mangalaacharaNam – Benedictory  slokas in the form of blessings or wishing welfare of all as in - lokas samasthaaH sukhino bhavantu – Let all be happy. 3) vastu nirdesharuupa mangalaacharaNam – Remembrance of the ultimate reality or truth or statement of absolute fact. Vicharasagaram presents the third type involving jiiva brahma aikya mangalacharaNam, the identity of individual and the total since any differentiation between the two or abhedam is considered as amangalam or is inauspicious. From the point of jiiva any differentiation contributes to the cycle of birth and death, hence it is inauspicious. Bhagavan Ramana says - bhaavanaabhidaa paavanii mataa| Feeling of non-difference between jiiva and Iswara is more auspicious compare to the feeling of difference. For that reason, in
 the beginning of the text itself the author identifies himself with  chit swaruupam of Ganesha, as a sign of auspiciousness.

Now the analysis of the two slokas: 

In the second line of the second sloka – the essential truth is pointed out – tadeva aham –that alone I am, where that stands of Brahman, and aham or I am stands for the jiiiva or the author/reader or the subject – In essence it is aham brahmaasmi mahavaakyam. This forms the statement of absolute truth. This statement is further confirmed by the rest of the line. namattaH anyaad iti me nishchitaa matiH –I can definitely declare that Brahman cannot be different from I am which is the self or aatma. If it is different from aatma it becomes anaatma since anything that is different from aatma is anaatma, which is mithyaa, which is neither sat nor asat. If I am real or sat then I have to be aatma and if Brahman is real then Brahman has to be aatma. Brahman that is different from I, ceases to be a Brahman by the very exclusion process. If it includes both aatma and anaatma, then anaatma cannot be real but only apparent. This follows from the fact
 that anaatma is jadam or inert, since Brahman is pure consciousness or prajnaanam brahma is the mahaavaakyam.  Being inert, it cannot be same as Brahman since Brahman is consciousness; or it cannot be different from Brahman since it violates the infinite nature of Brahman. Same argument applies to Iswara too. If there is Iswara out there, let that Iswara be none other than aatma that I am, lest He becomes anaatma or inert entity.  Thus mahaavaakya is stated as part of mangalaacharaNam sloka. The remaining parts of the two slokas describes, then, the nature that Brahman that I am. 

tat pratyak param mahaH – jiivaatma abhinna paramaatma that is jiivaatma – the essence of jiiva or myself is not different from the essence of everything – that is my swaruupam – that I am – tat eva aham – that alone I am. Pratyak is the inner essence of myself and param mahaH – the light of consciousness i.e the swa prakaaSha chaitanyam which is the highest. Hence the essence of myself is the same as the essence of the supreme. It is jyotiSham api tat jyotiH – light of all lights, and is described further in the slokas as: sukham nityam, etc. absolute eternal happiness – yo vai bhuumat tat sukham, says Ch. Up. It is happiness which is infinite. It is nityam, eternal, and svaprakaasham which is self-effulgent and therefore self-existing or self-evident (need not be proved).  vyaapakam – pervades everything - naama ruupayoH adhiShTaanam ca – it supports all the names and forms as the very substantive or material cause lending
 existence to everything in the universe. buddhi abodhyam – unknowable by the intellect (cannot be an object of knowledge by any intellect) – buddheH dRik – the witness of the intellect – the unknowable witness. It illumines the intellect but it cannot be illumined by the intellect (illumination is shedding light on or knowing the object illumined). naiva vaacha – it cannot be described by words – yato vaacho nivartante apraapya manasaa saha – mind along with speech return back without defining it or conceptualizing it – na tatra suryo bhaati … tasya bhaasa sarvam idam vibhaati – it cannot be illumined by anything but it illumines everything – yan manasaa na manute yenaahur mano matam (Kena Up) that which mind cannot know but because of which mind is known. Thus author after stating - tat eva aham - that alone I am - provides the nature of that which in principle cannot be described.  With this, the mangalaacharana sloka meaning is
 completed. 
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Hari Om!
Sadananda