MAYA (ILLUSION)

In the Moksha Gita, Swami Sivananda eloquently provides deep insight into Māyā, the illusory power of Brahmān, the Supreme Being or the Cosmic Self. Of course nothing is in a state, whether latent or manifest, without the glance of Brahmān. It is an interplay of ephemeral, or temporal vs. everlasting, or eternal. The choice is before mankind, as Yoga-Vasistha proclaims through self-awakening based on self-effort. Sage Vasistha teaches Sri Rāma that liberation of the soul, whether of embodied or disembodied spirits, consists in their detachment from the objects of sense; hence, the soul, unattached to sensual gratification, is said to be liberated, having no idea of sensible objects. He goes on to say that though we see before us the living liberated Sage Vyasa as an embodied person, yet we have no doubt of the detachment of his inward soul from the mortal coil of his body. Liberation, whether with or without the body, is productive of unselfishness; we have lost our selfishness ever since we have come to the knowledge of an undivided unity of the soul. Sage Vasistha asserts that the true doctrine of liberation of the soul is self-effort inspired by detachment, equanimity, and forbearance.

1. Outline

Māyā is the Upādhi (limiting adjunct) of Ishwara. She is an illusory power of Brahmān. She keeps up the Lila of Iswara through Her three Gunas (modes), viz. Sattwa, Rajas and Tamas (purity, passion, and darkness). This is an elegant commentary by the sage philosopher Swami Krishnananda. He goes on to say that  Māyā is the cosmic aspect of the power that hides Reality's essence. He says that it is the limiting adjunct of Ishwara or the highest manifestation of Brahmān, the Absolute Existence, or the Supreme Being. The basic meaning of the word "Māyā" indicates its non-existence. However, we cannot explain the existence of a non-existent appearance. Even appearance is not non-existent, because a non-existent entity never exists, whereas an appearance is something that does. Otherwise, one could not discuss and guess about appearances. Māyā is not non-existent only because it appears to us, but it is also non-enduring. This mystery defies all logic and reason, and no metaphysics can explain its nature. The best philosophers began to shelter themselves behind the belief that the human intellect is not all-knowing and hence cannot answer trans-empirical problems.

The cosmic power of mentation Self-restricts Brahmān's infinite potential and transforms it into the cosmic person or Ishwara. Ishwara encompases trinity of Brahmā, Vishnu, and Siva. A Person's variations stem from his various functions and powers, but the being is one. The power of veiling Reality particularises its being through a unique manner of objectification, earning it the title of Ishwara, or God of the Universe. The absolute character of non-duality is separated into the property of relativity, the reason for which is unknown. Māyā limits Ishwara to relative existence among the non-infinities, resulting in a sense of non-being. Ishwara is the Lord of Māyā, unlike the Jiva, who is its slave. He wears the robe of Māyā, but is aware of the Absolute Condition of Existence. This is the distinction between the Omniscient Ishwara and the ignorant Jiva, or the worldly being. Māyā is defined by the attributes of Sattwa, Rājas, and Tamas (light, activity, and darkness), which are responsible for the world's chaos. Sattwa illuminates, Rājas distracts, and Tamas clouds the individual's knowledge.

Ishwara and Māyā's appearances, according to commentaries of sage philosopher Swami Krishnananda, correlate to all additional miniatures of the same in the planes of greater ignorance, where they become increasingly separated until they are completely cut off as the physical entities that comprise the world's various nature. In logical terms, Ishwara is a degeneration of Brahmān caused by the self-limiting power of objectification or the force of Māyā, the explanation for which remains an eternal mystery. Māyā does not cease to exist because it appears, nor does it cease to exist because the dawn of understanding destroys it. Māyā is not that. It has an indescribable aspect. Māyā exists. Why can't it be said? Māyā disappears. Why can't it be repeated again? It is an illusion that has deluded the most intelligent of men and misled even the most accomplished of geniuses. Only self-knowledge or intuitive illumination can answer the why and how of Māyā. It's not that. It is not Brahmān, but it is the Power of Brahmān. It is a misleading and indescribable look that not only makes individuals forget the Unity of Brahmān, but also shows an unreal distracting phenomena of diversity. The individual's distracting factor is egoistic intellect, whereas the veiling factor is the Anandamaya-Kosha, or sheath of ignorance.

Māyā, according to Swami Sivananda, is a beginningless play of cosmic imaginative force that transforms the Eternal Nature into various forms. It also leads to egoistic attachment to specific experiences. Māyā is referred to by various terms, including appearance, power, force, and phenomenon, all implying an unreal character and untrustworthy behaviour. Every idea is an activity in the domain of Māyā, as it stems from individual consciousness, which is caused by Māyā's diversified nature. Māyā influences all beings, including those in heaven and the underworld, to varying degrees. Māyā creates or modifies the universe's five elements, Tanmatras (subtle or base elements), and objects. Vikshepa-Shakti, or the diverting power of Māyā, creates the five basic principles of sound, touch, colour, taste, and smell, as well as the five gross elements of sky, air, fire, water, and earth. This creates the universe of objective reality. Māyā has an inherent inclination to constantly change. Māyā is not a static entity. It is a vigorous active agent whose sole purpose is to transform itself into the phenomenon and Noumenon through evolution and involution of diverse bodies. Disintegration and integration are the two aspects of the destructive and constructive powers of Māyā. Individuals are thrown into Being or Becoming by this gigantic Power according to the extent of the process of development undergone by each individual. It is a powerful active agent whose main mission is to evolve into the phenomena and Noumenon through the involution of various bodies. Māyā's destructive and constructive qualities encompass both disintegration and integration. This tremendous Power throws individuals into Being or Becoming based on the amount of their development process.

 2. Scriptures

Ancient scriptures prolifically mention the distracting power of Māyā by blurring the knowledge of discrimination, so eloquently propagated by Adi Shankaracharya, to discriminate between the Self and non-Self. He emphatically declares that let people quote the Scriptures and sacrifice to the gods; let them perform rituals and worship the deities, but there is no Liberation without the realisation of one’s identity with the Ātman—no, not even in the lifetime of a hundred Brahmās put together.

This blurring of Reality has been covered in the Srimad Bhagavad Gita. Just as a fire is covered by smoke, a mirror is masked by dust, and an embryo is concealed by the womb, similarly, one’s knowledge gets shrouded by desire. Desire to propitiate the greed and lust distract a being to circulate in the Samsāra Chakra (wheel of birth and death) perennially.

Yoga-Vasistha teaches the identity of Brahmān and Ātman, as well as the oneness of Brahmān and the world, which is a creation of Māyā that disappears with the dawn of knowledge. Māyā is attributed with bringing the world into existence. Māyā is solely the work of the mind or Citta, and the world has no external reality. The entire universe exists in the mind, just as a large tree with leaves and flowers does in its seed. Citta (perceivance) is Māyā's primary hub. Māyā comprises of gunas (modes) and is difficult to comprehend. Though unreal, it came to be from nowhere. Despite being non-existent, it causes pratibhasa (appearance) and viparyasa (distortion) in this phenomenal universe. However, upon closer investigation, it retreats, as waves reveal themselves to be nothing more than water. Māyā established a cosmos based on citta-camatkara (surprise, astonishment) and citta (perception). It is both existent and non-existent.

3. Remarks

By overcoming the deceptive influence of Māyā, Swami Sivananda emphasises, one can gain knowledge of the Self and comprehend its origins and collapse. Gaining Infinite Knowledge removes the mystery of Māyā's appearance. Spiritual seekers overcome Māyā via meditation on Brahmān and renunciation of worldly desires. The Truth-centered Sage has eternal wisdom and aligns with the One Whole Being of Brahmān. The awful sport of Māyā appears as Satya or real to a worldly person, indescribable to an aspirant, and mean to a Jñāni (real knowledgeable). Knowledge of the Self is the resting in the awareness of the infiniteness of Consciousness and Bliss in one unchanging mass. Māyā departs from the Light of Enlightenment after experiencing the spectacular state of Truth. Where there is light, there cannot be darkness. When ignorance is removed, Vidya (knowledge) shines by itself. When the clouds clear, the sun beams in his clean greatness. When ignorance is gone, Knowledge immediately manifests itself. When egoism is eliminated, only the Absolute reigns supreme. Only those who have transcended Māyā and entered the Glory of the Self can truly understand its why, what, and how. Human knowledge is focused in the psychological organ, which is a modification of Māyā, making it impossible to solve the enigma through conjecture. Darkness cannot annihilate itself. Ignorance cannot be removed, because they are not opposing forces. Man's highest faculty of knowledge is the intellect, which is a creature of self-limitation, making it impossible for the human being to define the nature of the Power that surpasses him in scope and subtlety. Only intuitional light, which encompasses all of existence, can transcend Māyā and witness the Self's glory. Only then can the illusory nature of Māyā and the eternity of Brahmān be fully comprehended. Intellect should give way to greater spiritual experiences that are not ego-based. When the intellect ceases to function, the true faith begins. The consciousness of Self and its realisation emphasises the experience of Brahmān and rejects Māyā fully.

-Asutosh Satpathy