TRANSCENDENTAL PLATFORM

Transcendental is that which transcends the threshold of time-space-causation and at the level of supreme consciousness. It is beyond the manifest and unmanifest dimensions. It is farther away from material existence. It is also over and above the comprehension of ordinary and finite beings. The  Srimad Bhagavad Gita is quite aphoristic on this dimension.

paras tasmāt tu bhāvo ’nyo ’vyakto ’vyaktāt sanātanaḥ

yaḥ sa sarveṣhu bhūteṣhu naśhyatsu na vinaśhyati

Transcendental to this manifest and unmanifest creation, there is yet another unmanifest eternal dimension. That realm does not cease even when all others do.

na tad bhāsayate sūryo na śhaśhāṅko na pāvakaḥ

yad gatvā na nivartante tad dhāma paramaṁ mama

Neither the sun nor the moon, nor fire can illumine that Supreme Abode of Mine. Having gone There, one does not return to this material world again.

1. Outline

In Sanātana Dharma (eternal righteousness and order), transcendence refers to the state of being beyond the material limits of ordinary experience and understanding. Various spiritual practices and disciplines, such as yoga, meditation, and self-inquiry, can actualise this state.

Transcendence is not above us in a physical sense. It is not merely an ascension from the level of the seer and the seen, but is also an inclusiveness of both the seer and the seen. Transcendent is also immanent. It is a logical ascendance, and is not physically something higher up. The more invisible a thing is, the more real it is; and the more tangible it becomes, the more unreal it is….The largest generality of the cosmos is present in the littlest atom, including your own self.

Transcendental experience, event, object or idea is extremely special and unusual and and cannot be understood in ordinary ways.

Transcendental platform means above the three modes of material nature, which is called brahma-bhūtaḥ. So this position, brahma-bhūtaḥ's position.

Transcendence is often associated with the concept of "moksha" or "liberation" in Sanātana Dharma. Moksha is the ultimate goal of human existence, and it is believed that through transcending the limitations of the material existence, one can realise supreme consciousness.

In Sanātana Dharma, one of the main ways to achieve transcendence is through the practice of "yoga" (union). Yoga is a spiritual discipline that involves physical postures, breathing exercises, and meditation techniques designed to help the chieve a state of union with the divine.

Meditation is a technique that involves focusing the mind on a particular object or activity, such as the breath or a mantra. This practice can help individuals develop greater awareness of their thoughts, feelings, and bodily sensations, as well as increase their ability to concentrate and focus.

When the subtle mind goes out through the brain and the sense organs, the gross names and forms appear; when it stays in the heart, the names and forms disappear. Not letting the mind go out but retaining it in the heart is what is called "inwardness". Letting the mind go out of the heart is known as "externalisation". Thus, when the mind stays in the heart, the ‘I," which is the source of all thoughts, will go, and the Self, which has always existed, will shine.

Transcendence is seen as a key component of spiritual growth and liberation. Through various practices and disciplines, individuals can transcend their limitations and attain a state of union with the divine.

sarvasya chāhaṁ hṛidi sanniviṣhṭo

mattaḥ smṛitir jñānam apohanaṁ cha

vedaiśh cha sarvair aham eva vedyo

vedānta-kṛid veda-vid eva chāham

I am seated in the hearts of all living beings, and from Me come memory, knowledge, as well as forgetfulness. I alone am to be known by all the Vedas, am the author of the Vedant, and the knower of the meaning of the Vedas.

Besides these, is the Supreme Divine Personality, who is the indestructible Supreme Soul. He enters the three worlds as the unchanging Controller and supports all living beings.

yasmāt kṣharam atīto ’ham akṣharād api chottamaḥ

ato ’smi loke vede cha prathitaḥ puruṣhottamaḥ

I am transcendental to the perishable world of matter, and even to the imperishable soul; hence I am celebrated, both in the Vedas and the Smṛitis, as the Supreme Divine Personality. 

vyakto ’kṣhara ityuktas tam āhuḥ paramāṁ gatim

yaṁ prāpya na nivartante tad dhāma paramaṁ mama

That unmanifest dimension is the supreme goal, and upon reaching it, one never returns to this mortal world. That is My Supreme Abode.

puruṣhaḥ sa paraḥ pārtha bhaktyā labhyas tvananyayā

yasyāntaḥ-sthāni bhūtāni yena sarvam idaṁ tatam

The Supreme Divine Personality is greater than all that exists. Although He is all-pervading and all living beings are situated in Him, yet He can be known only through devotion.

ahaṁ sarvasya prabhavo mattaḥ sarvaṁ pravartate

iti matvā bhajante māṁ budhā bhāva-samanvitāḥ

I am the origin of all creation. Everything proceeds from Me. The wise who know this perfectly worship Me with great faith and devotion. 

na me viduḥ sura-gaṇāḥ prabhavaṁ na maharṣhayaḥ

aham ādir hi devānāṁ maharṣhīṇāṁ cha sarvaśhaḥ

Neither celestial gods nor the great sages know of My origin. I am the source from which the gods and great seers come.

yo māmajam anādiṁ cha vetti loka-maheśhvaram

asammūḍhaḥ sa martyeṣhu sarva-pāpaiḥ pramuchyate

Those who know Me as unborn and beginningless, and as the Supreme Lord of the universe, they among mortals are free from illusion and released from all evils. 

mattaḥ parataraṁ nānyat kiñchid asti dhanañjaya

mayi sarvam idaṁ protaṁ sūtre maṇi-gaṇā iva

There is nothing higher than Myself, O Arjun. Everything rests in Me, as beads strung on a thread.

ye chaiva sāttvikā bhāvā rājasās tāmasāśh cha ye

matta eveti tān viddhi na tvahaṁ teṣhu te mayi

The three states of material existence—goodness, passion, and ignorance—are manifested by My energy. They are in Me, but I am beyond them.

āśhcharya-vat paśhyati kaśhchid enan

āśhcharya-vad vadati tathaiva chānyaḥ

āśhcharya-vach chainam anyaḥ śhṛiṇoti

śhrutvāpyenaṁ veda na chaiva kaśhchit

Some see the soul as amazing, some describe it as amazing, and some hear of the soul as amazing, while others, even on hearing, cannot understand it at all.

When spiritual vision is awakened, we can see the soul directly, just as we are seeing each other. We will be able to see the soul. Those who are at that level see how the eternal, who is part and parcel of Krishna, comes in illusion, and such a soul can become a ruthless terrorist who has no consciousness while ruining thousands of people. How can such perversion happen? That is amazing.

manuṣhyāṇāṁ sahasreṣhu kaśhchid yatati siddhaye

yatatām api siddhānāṁ kaśhchin māṁ vetti tattvataḥ

Amongst thousands of people, hardly one strives for perfection, and amongst those who have achieved perfection, hardly one knows Me in truth.

vedāhaṁ samatītāni vartamānāni chārjuna

bhaviṣhyāṇi cha bhūtāni māṁ tu veda na kaśhchana

Sri Krishna says, I know of past, present, and future, and I also know all living beings; but Me no one knows.

2. Ways and Means:

The Three Yogas, or Trimārga are three soteriological paths mentioned in the Bhagavad Gita for the liberation of the human spirit.

They are:

-Karma Yoga or the Path of Action (Karma-mārga)

-Bhakti Yoga or the Path of Devotion (Bhakti-mārga) to Ishvar (God)

-Jñāna Yoga or the Path of Knowledge (Jñāna-mārga)

If one leaves the material dharma, it is considered a sin due to dereliction of duty. But if one leaves material dharma and takes shelter in spiritual dharma, it is not a sin. The Bhagavatam states:

devarṣhi-bhūtāpta-nṛiṇāṁ pitṝīṇāṁ na kiṅkaro nāyam ṛiṇī cha rājan

sarvātmanā yaḥ śharaṇaṁ śharaṇyaṁ gato mukundaṁ parihṛitya kartam (11.5.41)[v37]

Similarly, by fulfilling our duty to God, we automatically fulfil our duty to everyone. Hence, there is no sin in renunciating material dharma if we are properly situated in spiritual dharma. In fact, the ultimate goal is to engage completely and wholeheartedly in spiritual dharma. The Bhagavatam states:

ājñāyaivaṁ guṇān doṣhān mayādiṣhṭān api svakān

dharmān santyajya yaḥ sarvān māṁ bhajeta sa tu sattamaḥ (11.11.32) [v38]

"I have given innumerable instructions regarding the performance of bodily dharma in the Vedas. But those who realise the shortcomings in these and renounce all prescribed duties, to simply engage in my devotional service, I consider them to be the best sādhaks."

The Srimad Bhagavad Gita explains the pathways for the realisation of transcendental consciousness.

In it, Sri Krishna says that when one discards all selfish desires and cravings of the senses that torment the mind and becomes satisfied in the realisation of the self, such a person is said to be transcendentally situated.

He further says that when a man gives up all varieties of desire for sense gratification, which arise from mental concoction, and when his mind, thus purified, finds satisfaction in the self alone, then he is said to be in pure transcendental consciousness.

nirmāna-mohā jita-saṅga-doṣhā

adhyātma-nityā vinivṛitta-kāmāḥ

dvandvair vimuktāḥ sukha-duḥkha-sanjñair

gachchhanty amūḍhāḥ padam avyayaṁ tat

Those who are free from vanity and delusion, who have overcome the evil of attachment, who dwell constantly on the self and on God, who are free from the desire to enjoy the senses, and who are beyond the dualities of pleasure and pain, such liberated personalities attain My eternal Abode.

praśhānta-manasaṁ hyenaṁ yoginaṁ sukham uttamam

upaiti śhānta-rajasaṁ brahma-bhūtam akalmaṣham

Great transcendental happiness comes to the yogi whose mind is calm, whose passions are subdued, who is without sin, and who sees everything in connection with God.

yuñjann evaṁ sadātmānaṁ yogī vigata-kalmaṣhaḥ

sukhena brahma-sansparśham atyantaṁ sukham aśhnute

The self-controlled yogi, thus uniting the self with God, becomes free from material contamination and, being in constant touch with the Supreme, achieves the highest state of perfect happiness.

sarva-bhūta-stham ātmānaṁ sarva-bhūtāni chātmani

īkṣhate yoga-yuktātmā sarvatra sama-darśhanaḥ

The true yogis, uniting their consciousness with God, see with an equal eye all living beings in God and God in all living beings.

brahma-bhūtaḥ prasannātmā na śhochati na kāṅkṣhati

samaḥ sarveṣhu bhūteṣhu mad-bhaktiṁ labhate parām

One situated in transcendental Brahman realisation becomes mentally serene, neither grieving nor desiring. Being equitably disposed towards all living beings, such a yogi attains supreme devotion to Me.

bhaktyā mām abhijānāti yāvān yaśh chāsmi tattvataḥ

tato māṁ tattvato jñātvā viśhate tad-anantaram

Only by loving devotion to Me does one come to know who I am in truth. Then, having come to know Me, My devotee enters into full consciousness of Me.

antavat tu phalaṁ teṣhāṁ tad bhavatyalpa-medhasām

devān deva-yajo yānti mad-bhaktā yānti mām api

But the fruit gained by these people with little understanding is perishable. Those who worship the celestial gods go to the celestial abodes, while My devotees come to Me.

prakāśhaṁ cha pravṛittiṁ cha moham eva cha pāṇḍava

na dveṣhṭi sampravṛittāni na nivṛittāni kāṅkṣhati

udāsīna-vad āsīno guṇair yo na vichālyate

guṇā vartanta ity evaṁ yo ’vatiṣhṭhati neṅgate

Sri Krishna sys, the persons who are transcendental to the three guṇas-sattva (goodness), rajas (passion), and tamas (ignorance)- neither hate illumination (which is born of sattva), nor activity (which is born of rajas), nor even delusion (which is born of tamas), when these are abundantly present, nor do they long for them when they are absent. They remain neutral towards the modes of nature and are not disturbed by them. Knowing it is only the guṇas that act, they stay established in themselves without wavering.

Those who are alike in happiness and distress; who are established in the self; who look upon a clod, a stone, and a piece of gold as of equal value; who remain the same amidst pleasant and unpleasant events; who are intelligent; who accept both blame and praise with equanimity; who remain the same in honour and dishonour; who treat both friend and foe alike; and who have abandoned all enterprises—they are said to have risen above the three guas.

Those who serve Me with unalloyed devotion rise above the three modes of material nature and come to the level of the Brahman.

3. Remarks

The transcendent has energy to permeate everything, manifest and unmanifest. Simultaneously, it goes beyond or surpasses ordinary limits, boundaries, or understanding. Transcendent is also immanent, omnipresent, and omniscient. In philosophy, transcendental often refers to the conditions that must be present in order for knowledge or experience to be possible.  For example, Immanuel Kant's philosophy includes the idea of "transcendental idealism," which holds that the mind actively shapes and structures our experience of the world.

To break free from the clutches of these gunas, Sri Krishna reveals a simple solution to Arjuna, which is to attach his mind to God. He says: "Since the Supreme Lord is unaffected by these three modes, whoever attaches their mind to God also rises from the material to the divine level. Hearing this, Arjuna inquires about the characteristics of such beings who have risen above these three gunas.

na rūpam asyeha tathopalabhyate

nānto na chādir na cha sampratiṣhṭhā

aśhvattham enaṁ su-virūḍha-mūlam

asaṅga-śhastreṇa dṛiḍhena chhittvā

tataḥ padaṁ tat parimārgitavyaṁ

yasmin gatā na nivartanti bhūyaḥ

tam eva chādyaṁ puruṣhaṁ prapadye

yataḥ pravṛittiḥ prasṛitā purāṇī

The real form of this tree is not perceived in this world, neither its beginning nor end, nor its continued existence. But this deep-rooted aśhvatth tree must be cut down with a strong axe of detachment. Then one must search out the base of the tree, which is the Supreme Being, from whom flowed forth the activity of the universe a long time ago. Upon taking refuge in Him, one will not return to this world again. Sri Krishna compares the material world to an upside-down aśhvatth (sacred fig) tree. On the branches of this mysterious tree, the embodied souls wander up and down, lifetime after lifetime. They are unable to comprehend its origin, age, expanse, or how it continues to grow. Sri Krishna explains that, although souls are His eternal fragments, they are under the influence of material nature and thus struggle with their six senses, including the mind. The embodied soul, ignorant of its divine nature, savours the material objects of the senses. He then describes the transmigration of the soul to a new body at the time of death and how it carries with it the mind and senses from the present and previous lives. The ignorant can neither perceive the presence of the soul in the body when alive nor its departure upon death. However, the yogis see this process clearly with the eyes of knowledge and the purity of their minds.

When wise persons see that in all work there is no agent of action other than the three guṇas, and they know Me to be transcendental to these guṇas, they attain My divine nature.

naiva kiñchit karomīti yukto manyeta tattva-vit

paśhyañ śhṛiṇvan spṛiśhañjighrann aśhnangachchhan svapañśhvasan

pralapan visṛijan gṛihṇann unmiṣhan nimiṣhann api

indriyāṇīndriyārtheṣhu vartanta iti dhārayan

Those steadfast in karm yog always think, "I am not the doer," even while engaged in seeing, hearing, touching, smelling, moving, sleeping, breathing, speaking, excreting, grasping, and opening or closing the eyes. With the light of divine knowledge, they see that it is only the material senses that are moving amongst their objects.

Behold the one homogenous Self in all. Mentally repeat the formula or mantra 'OM Ek Sat-Chit-Ananda Atma' whenever you perceive any form. Negate the illusory name and form and try to be one with the underlying immortal essence. Serve them all with Ātma Bhava. Melt all illusory differences. Annihilate separateness. Destroy all unreasonable dislikes or prejudices. Mix with all. Include all. Embrace all. Share what you have—physical, mental, moral, and spiritual—with all. Never remain idle, even for a moment. Lead a life of intense activity, but in the midst of it, keep a calm mind, and thus become a practical Vedantin. Glory to such practical Vedantins! May they radiate joy, peace, and love everywhere! May they move about as torchbearers of truth, divine light, and divine splendour! May they demonstrate a life of practical Vedanta by their very exemplary living!

-Asutosh Satpathy