Moment to Speak

Brahma Satyam jagan-mithya , an assertion by Adi Shankaracharya to the declaration of "There are no others" by Sage Ramana Maharshi profoundly enunciates the non-duality of existence, reality, and truth. There are no second but only one. The subject and objects are one only. The entire cosmos is a projection or manifestation of Brahmān , the Absolute Existence or the Cosmic Self. Paramaguru Gaudapadacharya, Adi Shankaracharya, Sage Ramana Maharshi, Swami Vivekananda, and Swami Sivananda, among others, are the leading lights of non-duality. They advocate that Brahman is Real and the rest are illusions. The doctrine of Ajativada (no change), propounded by Gaudapadacharya (Parama Guru according to Adi Shankaracharya) in his Karika (commentary) states that this world does not exist in the past, present, or future. Brahmān ( Cosmic Self, or Absolute Existence) is not subject to being and becoming, nor to birth, change, and decay. This world is a mere collection of Samskaras cr...

The person is a consciousness centre labelled by imperfections such as limitation, birth, growth, change, decay, and death. Sage philosopher Swami Krishnananda lucidly states that thought is the objectified form of awareness. The higher the objectification, the denser the ignorance, and the more aggravating the suffering. Truth does not shine as brightly as it might because of the inner instruments, the obstructing psychological changes. Crossing the barrier of these restricting adjuncts appears to lead to a larger reality, better freedom, and a more fulfilling life. Every being has a shared desire-impulse to exist indefinitely, to know everything, to dominate everything, and to experience the greatest bliss. Despite individualised appetites that may attempt to hinder it, sage philosopher Swami Krishnananda underlines that every form of cogitation flows, propelled by an undetectable power that progresses towards the recognition of the indivisibility of existence and the discovery o...

The manifestation of the universe is a projection of Brahmān , or Cosmic Self, the Absolute Existence. Creation is nothing but the projection of the externality of something as part of the cosmic will of Cosmic Being, the Subject. Something is a thing, or an object, i.e., the creation of the universe, is not the manufacture of a new thing but a manifestation from a state of unmanifestation. It manifests out of Brahmān , the Cosmic Self and the all inclusiveness of subjects and objects as Absolute Existence. The word ' Brahmān ,' according to sage philosopher Swami Krishnananda , is derived from the Sanskrit root ' brhm ', which means to expand, be comprehensive, include, or be flawlessly. He refers to it as bhuma , the All-inclusive Absolute, or Plenum, which includes everything. He goes on to say that it is inappropriate to call Brahmān creates the universe because Brahmān is eternity, complete, indefinable, infinite, perfect existence par excellence. It has no nec...

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 selfishnes...

Individuality is an idea related to the individual as a psycho-physical and mental construct bestowing certain identification attributes emanating from that construct but artificially validated by a group of people. It is afflicted by the ego, harboured in the body-mind complex, and benchmarked by the duality of the worldview. It is by nature, according to Brihadāranyaka Upanishad (4.2.1), manifest and unmanifest like the tree and the seed, and is made up of name, form, and action. It is in the mode of ignorance as it subjects itself to means-end relationships. According to the sage philosopher, Swami Krishnananda , there is an agreement among people that certain ideas should be accepted as logically valid. That is called temporal law. Man-made law is temporal law, and it is valid as long as people who are concerned with it agree that it is valid. However, that principle loses its validity if it is not agreed upon. Accordingly, ownership likewise ends when people's acceptance ...

The text of Yoga-Vasistha is based on questions from Sri Rāma, the main character of the  Rāmayana of Sage Valmiki, and answers by Sage Vasistha. Stories and fables tell much of the text of Yoga-Vasistha, revolving around the idea that our own sense perception of the illusionary world causes worldly miseries. It affirms that whatever we perceive on the outside is merely a reflection of thoughts manufactured by our thought machine, the mind.  Within the body, mind, and intellect combination, the  mind  is the most dynamic. In terms of subtlety, speed, thought, quickness, ability to produce ideas and think critically, and multidimensionality, it is omnipresent and pervasive. A mind is a collection of ideas, according to  Swami Sivananda . He continues by saying that the idea "I" is the primary and fundamental thought of all thoughts. The mind uses sensory mechanisms to process information and carry out actions. However, due to its inability to function independ...

The Yoga-Vasistha ,  according to Swami Sivananda , first sets out the doctrinaire in all of its aspects before utilising engrossing tales and fables to make it abundantly evident.  a. The lines of doctrinaire highlights on the universe are a manifestation of thought and mind that itself is transitory and ephemeral. It is only an idea and a conception of the mind. Yoga-Vasistha : “Water in the mirage does not come into being and go out of existence; even so, this world neither comes out of the absolute nor does it go anywhere. The creation of the world has no cause, and therefore it has no beginning. It does not exist even now; how can it reach destruction?” b. Space and Time are not absolute.  Space and time do not have any absolute meaning, being relative to the standpoints of observing centres or perceptual contents. Sage philosopher  Swami Krishnananda in his commentary on Yoga-Vasistha says that "space is the relation of the coexistence of ideas, and time...