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

[Raghav Kumar Dwivedula]

Namaste Sudhanshu ji
Thank you for an authoritative list of references and explanation for
nididhyAsanam. As you wrote there are multiple meanings for the word.

To arrive at nididhyAsanam, there needs to be prior shravaNam and mananaM.
That is an essential condition.

A mere thought-free state is not nididhyAsanam. Neither does nididhyAsanam
involve, entertaining with effort and a sense of doership, some particular
thought. There is no कर्तृत्वम् in nididhyAsanam.

I might add a couple of other references which in my understanding come
under the category of "nididhyAsanam" viz., Gita (6.24, 6.25).
शनैः शनैरुपरमेद्बुद्ध्या धृतिगृहीतया ।
आत्मसंस्थं मनः कृत्वा न किञ्चिदपि चिन्तयेत् ॥ २५ ॥

यतो यतो निश्चरति मनश्चञ्चलमस्थिरम् ।
ततस्ततो नियम्यैतदात्मन्येव वशं नयेत् ॥ २६ ॥

 We can facilitate the happening/arising of nididhyAsanam by refraining
from thoughts of anAtmA by
1. understanding the mithyAtvaM of all objects revealing their unreality,
2. and by an attitude of vairAgya towards them

 as gItA bhAShya (6.25) says -
शब्दादेः ....याथात्म्यनिरूपणेन आभासीकृत्य वैराग्यभावनया च एतत् मनः *
आत्मन्येव वशं नयेत् आत्मवश्यतामापादयेत्*। एवं योगाभ्यासबलात् योगिनः
आत्मन्येव प्रशाम्यति मनः

and recollecting the essence of vedAnta, that the "Self is all that exists,
Nothing other than the Self exists" is helpful for the occurrence of
nididhyAsanam.

 In the wake of highlighting the above understanding, the mind (including
all thoughts) resolves *as* the Self and this has been termed
"Atma-saMstham manaH".
आत्मैव सर्वं न ततोऽन्यत् किञ्चिदस्ति’ इत्येवमात्मसंस्थं मनः कृत्वा न
किञ्चिदपि चिन्तयेत् । एष योगस्य परमो विधिः

This in the above explanation of nididhyAsanam as per Gita and it's
bhAShya, there are no thoughts actively cultivated with doership, during
nididhyAsanam. Yet, we facilitate the arising of nididhyAsanam by the twin
methods of abhyAsa (highlighting the fact that -Atmaa eva sarvaM) and
vairAgya (dropping the involvement with the content of thought by
highlighting - tato na anyat kincid Asti).

This very meaning of the word nididhyAsanam has been reiterated by Sri
VidyAraNya in jIvanmuktiviveka chapter 4,

दृश्यस्य मिथ्यात्वम् दृगगोचरत्वम् च पश्यन्नात्मनि लीनम् मनः स्वयमेव लीयते ।
By appreciating the illusoriness of the objective world and the
non-objectifiability of the Seer/Consciousness,   the mind, absorbed in the
Self, resolves of its own accord.

Thus by a purely cognitive process (ie pramANa vyApAra of seeing things as
they truly are), the mind resolves as the Self.

Om

On Sat, 16 Nov, 2024, 4:49 pm Sudhanshu Shekhar via Advaita-l, <
advaita-l at lists.advaita-vedanta.org> wrote:

> Namaste Krishna ji.
> Many thanks for raising pin-pointed question. Before responding, I would
> like to provide some references for nididhyAsana in advaita vedAnta. I will
> present a brief analysis thereof. And subsequently, I will take up your
> points. This is for systematic presentation.
>
> *Excerpts*
>
>    1. निदिध्यासनं मननोपबृंहितवाक्यार्थविषये स्थिरीभावः - पञ्चपादिका
>    2. वेदान्तानामेकरसे ब्रह्मणि शक्तितात्पर्यनिश्चयः श्रवणम् । तस्मिन्नेव
>    श्रुत्यनुसारिण्या युक्त्या सम्भावनाधानं मननम् । श्रुते मते च बुद्धेः
>    स्थैर्यं निदिध्यासनम् । - न्याय निर्णय व्याख्या
>    3. विजातीयदेहादिप्रत्ययरहिताद्वितीयवस्तुसजातीयप्रत्ययप्रवाहो
>    निदिध्यासनम् । - वेदान्तसारः
>    4. निदिध्यासनं नाम अनादिदुर्वासनया विषयेष्वाकृष्यमाणस्य चित्तस्य
>    विषयेभ्योऽपकृष्य आत्मविषयकस्थैर्यानुकूलो मानसो व्यापारः । -
> वेदान्तपरिभाषा
>    5. निदिध्यासितव्यः निश्चयेन ध्यातव्यः - बृहदारण्यक भाष्य 2.4.5
>    6. निदिध्यासस्व वाक्यानि अर्थतो निश्चयेन ध्यातुमिच्छेति ॥ - बृहदारण्यक
>    भाष्य 2.4.4
>    7. बृहदारण्यक वार्तिक सार - page 1543
>    8. निरन्तरं विचारो यः श्रुतार्थस्य गुरोर्मुखात्।तन्निदिध्यासनं प्रोक्तं
>    तच्चैकाग्र्येण लभ्यते।। - बृहदारण्यकभाष्यवार्तिकसार 2.4.15
>    9. अनात्मन्यरुचिश्चित्ते रुचिश्चात्मनि चेद्भवेत्। पुण्यपुपुञ्जेन शुद्धं
>    तच्चित्तमैकाग्र्यमर्हति।।  - बृहदारण्यकभाष्यवार्तिकसार 2.4.16 (Page
> 1426)
>    10. निदिध्यासनशब्देन सम्यग्ज्ञानं विवक्षितम् ।।उक्तानुवचने तस्य
>    विज्ञानेनेतिनिर्णयात् ।। ८९९ ।। - बृहदारण्यकभाष्यवार्तिक 1.4.899
>    11. अपरायत्तबोधोऽत्र निदिध्यासनमुच्यते ।।पूर्वयोरवधित्वेन तदुपन्यास
>    इष्यते ।। २१७ ।। -  बृहदारण्यकभाष्यवार्तिक 2.4.217
>    12. ध्यानाशङ्कानिवृत्त्यर्थं विज्ञानेनेति भण्यते ।।निदिध्यासनशब्देन
>    ध्यानमाशङ्क्यते यतः ।। २३३ ।। - बृहदारण्यकभाष्यवार्तिक 2.4.233
>    13. श्रुत आगमतो योऽर्थस्तर्केणापि समर्थितः ।।स एवार्थस्तु निष्णातो
>    निदिध्यासनमुच्यते ।। १५ ।।- बृहदारण्यकभाष्यवार्तिक 2.5.15
>    14. शास्त्राचार्यानुभवनैर्हेतुभिश्च समर्थितः ।।ईदृगैकात्म्यसंबोधो
>    निदिध्यासनमुच्यते ।। १६ ।।- बृहदारण्यकभाष्यवार्तिक 2.5.16
>
> *An analysis:*
>
> The word "NididhyAsana" can be used in two senses. One, in the sense of
> samyak-jnAna (10-14) and second, in the sense of dhyAna (1-9) i.e. in the
> sense of “तत्र प्रत्ययैकतानता ध्यानम्”.
>
> The often-considered meaning of nididhyAsana is in the sense of dhyAna. The
> meaning of nididhyAsana as samyak-jnAna is rarely used. But that also is a
> valid usage.
>
> Now, dhyAna merely requires प्रत्ययैकतानता. It is not concerned with the
> vishaya of pratyaya.
>
> However, nididhyAsana is a special type of dhyAna. It accepts the ekatAnatA
> of only that pratyaya which is मननोपबृंहितवाक्यार्थविषयक. Now,
> मननोपबृंहितवाक्यार्थविषय is शुद्ध-निरुपाधिक-ब्रह्म. To have प्रत्ययैकतानता
> in respect of शुद्ध-निरुपाधिक-ब्रह्म means to have no pratyaya with anAtmA
> as the vishaya. That is what is meant by मननोपबृंहितवाक्यार्थविषये
> स्थिरीभावः or श्रुते मते च बुद्धेः स्थैर्यम् or आत्मविषयकस्थैर्यानुकूलो
> मानसो व्यापारः. This is what is AtmAkArA-vritti or akhanDAkArA-vritti.
>
> Thus, nididhyAsana basically means to have no thoughts related to non-self.
>
> *Your points*
>
> //so nidhidhyasana is not someone does something. it is the cessation of
> all thoughts. is that right?//
>
> Yes. It is the cessation of all thoughts related to anAtmA. It is not
> “doing” something, rather it is “not doing” anything.
>
> //self-efforts do not attain this state.//
>
> There is absence of effort. There is no grinding-of-teeth in nididhyAsana.
> It is complete relaxation which is coupled with the understanding “seen is
> illusory”. So, there is no self-effort. There is, on the contrary, no
> effort. It is effortless-being.
>
> //However, only if someone denies all thoughts whatever these thoughts may
> be (since all thoughts are anatma in nature), then nidhidhyasana state
> comes as a result which is a thought-less state //
>
> Yes. There is no attention to thought just as there is no longer any
> attention to the mirage when one understands that it is just a mirage.
>
> //is this thoughtless state attained due to some or no blessing?//
>
> When we understand “seen is illusory”, we understand “causation is
> illusory”. This, in my opinion, is one of the greatest discovery one can
> have. Appreciation of the illusoriness of causation means ending of why,
> how, when. “There is no causation” means a “why/how/when” is impossible to
> be asked. Only when one seeks to know the cause, these why/how/when are
> possible.
>
> So, I understand “causation is illusory” -- and -- nididhyAsana is seen to
> appear. I don’t ask why/how/when. I don’t say that this knowledge - "seen
> is illusory" - has caused nididhyAsana. I don’t say that blessing has
> caused nididhyAsana.
>
> Nor do I investigate the how/why of nididhyAsana.
>
> //If it is no blessing how does it occur as soon as someone can deny all
> thoughts? I still don't understand what it means to deny all thoughts!//
>
> So, one sits in meditation and sees that thought related to his office has
> appeared. He pays no attention thereto knowing that it is illusory. Denial
> of thought refers to ignoring thought, paying no attention thereto. Also,
> one is not asked to pay attention to some other thing. Merely paying no
> attention to thought is sufficient.
>
> Whether it is coupled with blessing or not is not pertinent. Blessing is
> also seen, and is hence illusory. So, even if it is present, it is to be
> paid no attention.
>
> //Is it like neti neti, where all thoughts are assigned a tag "atman is not
> this one" atman is not this one" to every thought that may arise naturally
> due to prior vasanas? if so, does it mean that the mind moves away from all
> thoughts and naturally this state of "nidhidhyasana" occurs by itself
> somehow.//
>
> It is neti, neti only in action. And there is no grinding-of-teeth and
> effort here. Whatever is seen, is illusory. I am not inclined to know Atman
> here. I am situating as Atman.
>
> Thoughts arise, and they are paid no attention whatsoever. And they are
> seen to evaporate.
>
> This, in my humble understanding, is the description of nididhyAsana. There
> is effortlessness. There is complete relaxation.
>
> Regards.
> Sudhanshu Shekhar.
>
> >
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