An anonymous visitor to our blog has left the following comment on my post "Brahmn/Creation - Taithriya and others" written sometime beginning of 2013.
"Just came across your blog on the internet. Am a lifelong student of Vedanta without formally being exposed to it until recently. I have studied a wee bit of samskrutam and I am trying to get to root-base understanding of upanishadic translations. In this regard, where can I find conclusive references to God's creation being Maya or illusory as opposed to other descriptions/allusions to non-permanence which do not necessarily question reality? For instance, you state "The creation therefore is that “brahmn” manifesting itself from itself along with the illusion called Maya, as the non-existent gross material world..." The Ananda Valli of Taittriya emphasizes Brahmn as the manifester, manifested and the manifestee.. where do I look for illusory, non-existent nature of the manifestation?"
The post is obviously from & by someone who assumes that I possess adequate knowledge on the subject of Vedanta prompting him to query so beautifully. I have very limited knowledge of samskrit, & barring my fascination for advaithic doctrine, I have absolutely no claims to either great scholarship/ grasp/understanding of this or that I consider myself a probable teacher who can take questions so easily on my stride.
This blog as the name suggests is a "quest" to know & is mostly a family one where we exchange views on "emerging thoughts/doubts etc on matters spiritual. To get a response like this from a unknown is both (a) a pleasant experience to know that someone is actually pondering over what is dished out & (b) a rude jolt that being in the net people can ask questions exposing our limitations.
To come back to our visitor's query re "maya". In "svetasvatara" upanishad" Maya is described thus
"The birth-less one, Maya, is engaged to bring about the Enjoyer, the Enjoyable, and the Enjoyment" & goes on further to say
"From repeated meditation on the Supreme, by union with & contemplation on the Truth, there comes about at the end, the cessation of Maya in the form of the Universe".
Maya is described in various texts as "Avidya (ignorance) & Illusion"
In Panchdasi by Vidyaranya Swami, Maya is described as innate energy in Brahmn which is the agency which creates sustains & thence dissolves in re-union. (Shrushti, Sthiti, & Layam). To understand this it says in a similar way, the "nidra Shakthi" of an individual is able to create dreams where all the the three stages are experienced.
The upanishadic doctrine does not assert that the Universe is not real from an empirical view point. Only in the Absolute stage Avidya - ignorance, maya, illusion etc vanish. The Manifester, the Manifested , the Manifestee are empirical reality & will cease to exist differently in that Absolute stage in that non-dual all pervading "brahmn".
Let me get back to the dream analogy. Lets sayin a dream sequence, a lion chases you, you run for shelter, devastated by fear &finally wake up in realization that you were in a dream. The Lion vanishes, but the sweat, fear take time to disappear. The ultimate truth that even I am just Him comes after "maya" vanishes and these experiences cease in "realization".
The difference between Him & me is simply this: He is beyond "maya". I am a slave of the same Maya (mayaadethah & Mayaadhenah)
I hope I am able to do some justice to the queries raised by our visitor. I am still not able to understand though as to why he wants to remain unknown. which is the prerogative of of Brahmn to be thus for us mortals.
I only hope he reads this piece and is satisfied enough to engage us......
Love
Vichu .
"Just came across your blog on the internet. Am a lifelong student of Vedanta without formally being exposed to it until recently. I have studied a wee bit of samskrutam and I am trying to get to root-base understanding of upanishadic translations. In this regard, where can I find conclusive references to God's creation being Maya or illusory as opposed to other descriptions/allusions to non-permanence which do not necessarily question reality? For instance, you state "The creation therefore is that “brahmn” manifesting itself from itself along with the illusion called Maya, as the non-existent gross material world..." The Ananda Valli of Taittriya emphasizes Brahmn as the manifester, manifested and the manifestee.. where do I look for illusory, non-existent nature of the manifestation?"
The post is obviously from & by someone who assumes that I possess adequate knowledge on the subject of Vedanta prompting him to query so beautifully. I have very limited knowledge of samskrit, & barring my fascination for advaithic doctrine, I have absolutely no claims to either great scholarship/ grasp/understanding of this or that I consider myself a probable teacher who can take questions so easily on my stride.
This blog as the name suggests is a "quest" to know & is mostly a family one where we exchange views on "emerging thoughts/doubts etc on matters spiritual. To get a response like this from a unknown is both (a) a pleasant experience to know that someone is actually pondering over what is dished out & (b) a rude jolt that being in the net people can ask questions exposing our limitations.
To come back to our visitor's query re "maya". In "svetasvatara" upanishad" Maya is described thus
"The birth-less one, Maya, is engaged to bring about the Enjoyer, the Enjoyable, and the Enjoyment" & goes on further to say
"From repeated meditation on the Supreme, by union with & contemplation on the Truth, there comes about at the end, the cessation of Maya in the form of the Universe".
Maya is described in various texts as "Avidya (ignorance) & Illusion"
In Panchdasi by Vidyaranya Swami, Maya is described as innate energy in Brahmn which is the agency which creates sustains & thence dissolves in re-union. (Shrushti, Sthiti, & Layam). To understand this it says in a similar way, the "nidra Shakthi" of an individual is able to create dreams where all the the three stages are experienced.
The upanishadic doctrine does not assert that the Universe is not real from an empirical view point. Only in the Absolute stage Avidya - ignorance, maya, illusion etc vanish. The Manifester, the Manifested , the Manifestee are empirical reality & will cease to exist differently in that Absolute stage in that non-dual all pervading "brahmn".
Let me get back to the dream analogy. Lets sayin a dream sequence, a lion chases you, you run for shelter, devastated by fear &finally wake up in realization that you were in a dream. The Lion vanishes, but the sweat, fear take time to disappear. The ultimate truth that even I am just Him comes after "maya" vanishes and these experiences cease in "realization".
The difference between Him & me is simply this: He is beyond "maya". I am a slave of the same Maya (mayaadethah & Mayaadhenah)
I hope I am able to do some justice to the queries raised by our visitor. I am still not able to understand though as to why he wants to remain unknown. which is the prerogative of of Brahmn to be thus for us mortals.
I only hope he reads this piece and is satisfied enough to engage us......
Love
Vichu .
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