[Advaita-l] Is morality necessary for liberation?

[H S Chandramouli]

Dear Sri Sureshji,

Ultimate Truth in Advaita is not realized as " no creation everything is
unreal " etc. Advaita is personal realization ( aparoksha anubhava ) , in
an effortless natural involuntary manner that " this entire creation is not
distinct/ not different / not apart from I the Consciousness " . This
Realization is of the same nature as the effortless natural involuntary
conviction we all have today that " I am  distinct / different / apart from
the entire rest of the creation " . This is the only way Realization is
achieved in Advaita as clearly evidenced by Mahavakyas such as Tatvamasi/
aham brahmasmi etc. It is not merely acceptance of this statement or
understanding of this statement or even developing expertize in dealing
with these statements even as per the shastras that results in the Goal. It
is only the conviction as mentioned above that results in realizing the
Goal.

Now the shastras do not merely state what is to be achieved. They also show
the way ( sadhana/marga ) to achieve this Goal. Till the Goal is reached,
THIS IS OF CRUCIAL IMPORTANCE  , the advaitin must necessarily scrupulously
follow the dos and donts prescribed by the shastras . There is no other
way. BG 16th chapter enumerates in a consolidated manner the mental
attitude one should develop as part of this sadhana. Even following a few
of these puts the sadhaka in an autopilot mode and helps him through the
pursuit of the sadhana. Morality finds a prime place in these dos and donts
 So have a go and Happy Journey.

Regards


On Sun, Jan 26, 2014 at 11:50 AM, Suresh <mayavaadi at yahoo.com> wrote:

> Friends,
>
> First of all, this isn't a justification for immoral behavior.
>
> In most religions, especially creator-centered religions, morality is most
> important. Even if faith in god is stressed, it still requires the believer
> to be moral, or else god won't be pleased. This is the logic, basically.
> Suffice it to say that for theistic religions, morality is perhaps as
> important as faith.
>
> But advaita is unique in that God is all there is - everything else is a
> mere appearance. So morality cannot get you out of this samsara any more
> than morality can get you out of a dream. Only knowledge between real and
> unreal can. So morality, as far as I can see, has utilitarian value - the
> same value that 'dream water' has for a dreamer. But does it have any
> salvific value at all?
>
> Again, I am not attacking morality or moral people - but isn't it silly in
> the context of advaita to see morality as something mighty important?
> Knowledge alone is salvific - morality is simply useful for us to carry on
> at the worldly, vyavaharika level. But to obsess over moral codes, to
> constantly think in terms of dos and don'ts, rights and wrongs - isn't that
> unnecessary for an advaitin?
>
> Thanks,
> Suresh
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