[Advaita-l] Meditation on the Nirguna Brahman results in Parama Ananda

[Krishna Kashyap]

Nirguna Brahman cannot be an object of meditation anywhere in
shankarabhashya. Hence it is not an upasya vastu or even dhyeya vastu. An
attributeless Brahman cannot be meditated upon. One can say lower
capability people can meditate only on Saguna Brahman but higher capability
folks can. In that case, it does not become upasana. It becomes a denial of
all that is not self.  In Bhagavatham these aspects are not explained in
the original verses. They vaguely state meditation on nirguna-brahman.

In certain places, Shankaracharya uses the term "sarva samsara dharma
varjitam" for Brahman, which does not negate all gunas; however, only those
are samsara dharmas. Then one can ask how to understand the advaitic view
of satyam, jnanam anantam in negative terms such as asat-vyavritti,
achetanat-vyavritti or ajnanat vyavritti, other than that which is limited.
This is because, Brahman has no samsara gunas such as limitedness,
non-sentience, and non-existence. By the way, one meaning of existence is
immutability as per Advaita, not mithya. If you understand it this way,
Advaitic writers are stating that Brahman cannot be known as it is not an
object but a subject only. Hence all denotations have to denote only
upadhis and not Brahma svarupa. If you understand it this way, there is no
real difference between Advaita and other Vedantic traditions.

Here and there in Shankara bhashya you see terms like (sarva dharma
varjitam) or sentences that deny any gunas.

If you read how in Shankara-gita-bhashya, over later chapters (say last 6),
you see the development of bhakti to saguna brahman, and realization of
Brahman as only sakshi, and then finally triputi laya of fusion of
jnata-jnana-jneya occur. In fact, without Brahman's grace, the triputi-laya
does not happen. see this carefully hidden in the final chapters of Gita. I
am not remembering exactly the verses. I can find it later.
*Best Regards,*

*Krishna Kashyap*




On Mon, Nov 11, 2024 at 3:30 AM V Subrahmanian via Advaita-l <
advaita-l at lists.advaita-vedanta.org> wrote:

> In the Srimadbhagavatam Lord Krishna gives a detailed account of the
> various powers, siddhi-s, that a person focussing on one or the other
> aspect of the Lord, Brahman.  There the Lord says:
>
> श्रीमद्भागवतपुराणम्/स्कन्धः ११/अध्यायः १५
> https://sa.wikisource.org/s/ikh
>
>
> निर्गुणे ब्रह्मणि मयि धारयन्विशदं मनः।
> परमानन्दमाप्नोति यत्र कामोऽवसीयते १७।
>
> One who fixes his pure mind on Me in My manifestation as the *impersonal
> Brahman* obtains the greatest happiness, wherein all his desires are
> completely fulfilled.
>
> Vamshidhara in the commentary says: nirguna brahman = nirvishesha brahman
> (attributeless).
>
> The Taittiriya Upanishad says:
>
> ब्रह्मविदाप्नोति परम् । तदेषाभ्युक्ता । सत्यं ज्ञानमनन्तं ब्रह्म । यो वेद
> निहितं गुहायां परमे व्योमन् । सोऽश्नुते सर्वान् कामान् सह । ब्रह्मणा
> विपश्चितेति ।
>
> The knower of Brahman, the Jnanin, attains to the Supreme.  He experiences
> all the joys in one go and not in bits and pieces like samsarin-s
> experience.  There is the Brihadaranyaka 4.3.32 passage:
>
>
> सलिल एको द्रष्टाद्वैतो भवत्येष ब्रह्मलोकः सम्राडिति हैनमनुशशास याज्ञवल्क्य
> एषास्य परमा गतिरेषास्य परमा सम्पदेषोऽस्य परमो लोक एषोऽस्य परम आनन्द
> *एतस्यैवानन्दस्यान्यानि
> भूतानि **मात्रामुपजीवन्ति ॥ ३२ ॥*
>
>  "In deep sleep it becomes transparent like water, the witness,  one and
> without a second. This is the World of Brahman, Your  Majesty. This is its
> supreme attainment, this is its supreme  glory, this it its highest world,
> this is its supreme bliss. *On a particle of this bliss other creatures
> live."  *Thus did Yajnavalkya teach Janaka.
>
> This Ananda is realized to be his true nature by the one who meditates on
> the Nirguna Brahman.
>
> Here are some instances of the term Nirguna and its purport in the
> Bhagavatam:
>
>
> https://guruandnamakirtan.wordpress.com/2013/10/27/one-who-takes-refuge-in-me-and-remains-egoless-is-verily-nirgunam-the-shraddha-in-worshipping-me-is-verily-nirgunam-the-food-that-is-of/
>
> हरिर् हि निर्गुणः साक्षात् पुरुषः प्रकृतेः परः (*Srimad Bhagavatam
> 10:88:5)*
>
> स सर्व-दृग् उपद्रष्टा तं भजन् निर्गुणो भवेत् (*Srimad Bhagavatam 10:88:5)*
>
> मां भजन्ति गुणाः सर्वे निर्गुणं निरपेक्षकम् (*Srimad Bhagavatam 11:13:40)*
>
> निर्गुणे ब्रह्मणि मयि धारयन् विशदं मनः(*Srimad Bhagavatam 11:15:17)*
>
> यान्ति माम् एव निर्गुणाः (*Srimad Bhagavatam 11:25:22)*
>
> मन्-निष्ठं निर्गुणं स्मृतम् (*Srimad Bhagavatam 11:25:24)*
>
> मन्-निकेतं तु निर्गुणम् (*Srimad Bhagavatam 11:25:25)*
>
> निर्गुणो मद्-अपाश्रयः(*Srimad Bhagavatam 11:25:26)*
>
> मत्-सेवायां तु निर्गुणा (*Srimad Bhagavatam 11:25:27)*
>
> चशब्दान्मन्नीवेदितं निर्गुणमित्यभिप्रेतम् (*Sridhara Swami’s Bhavaratha
> Deepika 11:25:28)*
>
> निर्गुणं मद्-अपाश्रयम् (*Srimad Bhagavatam 11:25:29)*
>
> गुण-सङ्गं विनिर्धूय मां भजन्तु विचक्षणाः (*Srimad Bhagavatam 11:25:33)*
>
> निःसङ्गो मां भजेद् विद्वान् अप्रमत्तो जितेन्द्रियः (*Srimad Bhagavatam
> 11:25:34)*
>
>
> *Om Tat Sat*
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