[Advaita-l] Moksha

[kuntimaddi sadananda]

PraNAms

Here is my understanding. 

1. It is not Shankara or any other acharya that defines moksha. Shankara interprets the mahavakyas as the essential truths and provide analysis that is supported by scriptures, logic and anubhava.

2. Every jiiva is looking for happiness - not for existence nor consciousness. One goes after sense objects in this or other lokas without knowing that happiness comes from oneself. One can be absolutely happy if one has everything in the universe - Happiness scale is provided by Tai. Up. The Prajapati's happiness is 1X10 to the power of 26 of one unit of happiness that a human being gets if he owns the whole world and young enough to enjoy it. Yet even prajapati's  happiness is limited. Scriptures are also point out that the same happiness one can get if one is contended by himself and understand he is the source of happiness on the basis of scriptures - shrotriyasya akaamaya tasya. 

3. In essence one can get absolute happiness if one owns the infinite universe then there is nothing left that he is lacking for him to be unhappy- Thus logic indicated he can be happy if he gains Brahman or infinite-ness which cannot be gained by any pursuit as any pursuit by definition is finite.

4. Limitless alone is freedom from wanting mind to be happy. Limitless is Brahman. 

5. Moksha is freedom from limitations. Jiiva feels that he is limited by time-wise, space-wise and object-wise - desha-kaala-vastu parichhinnatvam.

6. Therefore moksha by definition has to be freedom from all the three limitations - that one can gain only by gaining Brahman. Hence moksha is desha-kaala-vastu- aparicchinnatvam. 

7. One cannot gain Brahman or limitless or one can stop the pursuit of happiness - that is the samsaara. 

8. Hence the scriptures point out that you are trying to solve a problem where is no problem to solve and that itself has become a problem. The very longing for happiness deprives one to be happy.

9. Only solution to the problem is to recognize that Happiness that one is longing for comes from one's own self - nay the self's nature is pure existence-consciousness-limitless. 

10. Recognition of one's own nature that one is limitless or aham brahmaasmi is Moksha since Brahman is free from all limitations. - This is what Scriptures says, Acharya interprets the scriptural statement that jnaanam alone is the means for moksha - since it involves dropping all misconceptions about oneself. 

Hari Om
Sadananda