The shape of the ultimate reality

By Prashant Saxena

Hexagonal, triangle, square, fat, large, small etc are all having a definite shape, a definite form. A human body has a definite shape, so does the sun when viewed from the earth. Thus, if one analyzes the fundamental definition of shape and form, then one would realize that these are only the attributes observable by the eye. If one can see or observe something, then only he can tell what shape, size and form it is. How can one observe from a distance, of the shape, size and form of something if he is blind? The ability to visualize enhances the perception of form and shape. Do knowledge, spiritual experience, energy, empty space or vaccum, thoughts, sound that we hear etc have any shape, size or form?

The ONE/ the Brahman in the Vedas: He is One and only One, Sustains entire universe, Omnipresent, Formless, All-Powerful, Perfect, Omniscient, Unborn, Eternal and supports us always.He alone should be worshipped. (Yajurveda 40.8)

In Gita, Krishna reveals clearly that the true definition of "him" or the ultimate reality is unmanifested, unborn, impersonal, inconcievable, fixed, eternal, unchanging and immovable. How can the "unmanifested, unborn, inconcievable" have a form, shape or a definite name? Naturally, a name is given by those who try to comprehend a concept or something.

BG 12.3-4: But those who fully worship the unmanifested, that which lies beyond the perception of the senses, the all-pervading, inconceivable, unchanging, fixed and immovable — the impersonal conception of the Absolute Truth — by controlling the various senses and being equally disposed to everyone, such persons, engaged in the welfare of all, at last achieve Me.

BG 12.5: For those whose minds are attached to the unmanifested, impersonal feature of the Supreme, advancement is very troublesome. To make progress in that discipline is always difficult for those who are embodied.

BG 12.6-7: But those who worship Me, giving up all their activities unto Me and being devoted to Me without deviation, engaged in devotional service and always meditating upon Me, having fixed their minds upon Me, O son of Pṛthā — for them I am the swift deliverer from the ocean of birth and death.

BG 12.8: Just fix your mind upon Me, the Supreme Personality of Godhead, and engage all your intelligence in Me. Thus you will live in Me always, without a doubt.

BG 10.2: Neither the hosts of demigods nor the great sages know My origin or opulences, for, in every respect, I am the source of the demigods and sages.

BG 10.3: He who knows Me as the unborn, as the beginningless, as the Supreme Lord of all the worlds — he only, undeluded among men, is freed from all sins.

BG 10.12-13: Arjuna said: You are the Supreme Personality of Godhead, the ultimate abode, the purest, the Absolute Truth. You are the eternal, transcendental, original person, the unborn, the greatest. All the great sages such as Nārada, Asita, Devala and Vyāsa confirm this truth about You, and now You Yourself are declaring it to me.

BG 9.4: By Me, in My unmanifested form, this entire universe is pervaded. All beings are in Me, but I am not in them

BG 9.10: This material nature, which is one of My energies, is working under My direction, O son of Kuntī, producing all moving and nonmoving beings. Under its rule this manifestation is created and annihilated again and again.

Some people feel that formless does not have any potency of having a form. Gita clearly tells about the manifestations of the supreme nature (inconcievable, unmanifested and unborn). Naturally, the manifest can contain both form (like material nature, mass, matter etc) and the formless (like knowledge, air, energy. consciousness etc). "Potency" doesn't only mean the masculine strength to lift heavy weights. It can also means the ability to give birth to a child (feminine ability), ability to understand and memorise (mental ability) etc. It can also mean the ability to have eternal knowledge, manifest in any form, in any color and yet the true form which is formless being unknown. One can breathe air around which is present everywhere (omnipresent), but it is formless. A person has a definite shape like sun as we see from earth, but it is "not omnipotent" as we can neither see that person or the sun everywhere and everytime, whereas the energy is an omnipotent concept which is all around us and yet formless. One cannot live without air and energy.

Brahman, the universe or the ultimate consciousness, is all around us. It touches all the individual consciousness and contains all the bodies in the universe. If we imagine of Brahman, we cannot concieve of its form in both in its physical aspect and the mental aspect . Therefore formless, yet omnipotent and omnipresent. Anything percievable by one's limited senses is limited in nature. The fact that we can identifiy a being with a form outright limits it. How can a "limited' being be omnipotent and omnipresent? And hence the understanding of the unmanifest aspect of the supreme truth is difficult (BG 12.5).

An analogy with this manifestation from the unmanifest could be thoughts which appear out of nowhere. In a deep contemplative state, one might get a thought of his relative or a friend, to play a musical instrument, to have fame and name. People might see dreams which are hardly connected to their real life. A human mind contains scattered bit of knowledge and thoughts which keeps on changing and some which manifest randomly out of nowhere. During exam time, one might manifest that knowledge and write something that he might not usually think of. According to many sages, the Veda is also a revelation to many rishis in their heightened state of consciousness. Gita teaches us how one can heighten his consciousness and touch the supreme consciousness. But one might ask what form, shape or size does consciousness have?

BG 9.11: Fools deride Me when I descend in the human form. They do not know My transcendental nature as the Supreme Lord of all that be.

BG 9.22: But those who always worship Me with exclusive devotion, meditating on My transcendental form — to them I carry what they lack, and I preserve what they have.

BG 10.8: I am the source of all spiritual and material worlds. Everything emanates from Me. The wise who perfectly know this engage in My devotional service and worship Me with all their hearts.

References :

Bhagvada Gita

Yajurveda

Actions, Maya and the Ultimate Reality

By Prashant Saxena

People today have a deep misconception about the scriptures like Veda and Gita. They assume that 'Maya' means that world is not real. Some people even think that to free oneself, one has to give up all the worldy activities and chant some mantras. But people forget often that mantras are divine incantantations to understand and rever the nature and its elements like fire (agni-dev), surya (surya-dev) etc. They are also the source of meditation and spirituality. Chanting the mantras without understanding the message is not considered either spirituality or intelligent.

A person cannot live without doing any action. Meditation, breathing, seeing, hearing, chanting mantras etc are all actions. Bhagvada-Gita simply teaches to control these actions and to find the truth.

Gita Verse 3.4

A person can never achieve freedom from reactions to activities without first performing prescribed Vedic duties; neither can perfection be attained by renouncing them as well.

Gita Verse 3.5

One cannot remain without engaging in activity at any time, even for a moment; certainly all living entities are helplessly compelled to action by the qualities endowed by material nature.

Gita Verse 3.6

Anyone who having controlled the five working sense organs remains thinking within the mind about sense objects, that foolish being is known as a hypocrite.

Gita Verse 3.7

But anyone who regulates the senses by the mind O Arjuna, begins the science of uniting the individual consciousness with the Ultimate Consciousness by the actions of the working sense organs without desire for results; he is superior.

Gita Verse 3.15

One should understand that actions originate from the Vedic scriptures, the Vedic scriptures originate directly from the Supreme Lord; therefore the all prevading Ultimate Truth is established eternally in performing sacrifice unto the Supreme Lord.

Gita Verse 3.16

O Arjuna, one who in this world does not apply the procedures prescribed and established by the Vedic scriptures; that person living in sin wastes their human life captivated by sense gratification.

Gita Verse 3.17

But one who remains ecstatic within the self; self illuminated and fully satisfied within the self only; activities do not exist for him.

Gita Verse 3.18

In this world for him no purpose is gained by discharge of actions neither is any sin incurred by non-discharge of actions and among all living beings never needs to depend upon anyone.

Gita Verse 3.19

Therefore without attachment, without interruption, perfectly perform prescribed actions; since by performing prescribed actions a person achieves the highest good.

When people are attached to their activities and senses, they are under the influence of Maya. It is this Maya that creates an illusion and ignorance. If people are attached to what they hear without analyzing it intellectually, it leads to ignorance. For e.g many people are deluded that Hinduism is divided in cast system "by birth" where people with surnames like Sharma, Chaturvedi, trivedi, Pathak etc are Brahmins. Chaturvedi simply means the knower of the four (chatur) Vedas. Trivedi refers to the knower of the three (Tri) Vedas. What Veda and GITA teach is a categorization of the society, a 'class system' and not 'cast system', based on profession or Karma and not birth. Brahmins, by its definition and in today's modern terminology, includes scientists, researchers, teachers, doctors, engineers etc i.e those who indulge in intellectual work and knowledge to know the science and nature. Kshatriyas is the warrior class. Thus all the soldiers in Indian army are kshatriyas irrespective of their religion and surnames. Vaishyas consisted of the business class and Shudras the unskilled labourers.

When people get attached to what they see and how they look, it causes suffering and visual illusions. e.g A girl attached to her beauty finds it hard to accept her change to old age. Thus it is very important to control the mind which controls the five senses.

BG 5.17: When one's intelligence, mind, faith and refuge are all fixed in the Supreme, then one becomes fully cleansed of misgivings through complete knowledge and thus proceeds straight on the path of liberation.

BG 5.18: The humble sages, by virtue of true knowledge, see with equal vision a learned and gentle brāhmaṇa, a cow, an elephant, a dog and a dog-eater [outcaste].

BG 6.4: A person is said to be elevated in yoga when, having renounced all material desires, he neither acts for sense gratification nor engages in fruitive activities.

BG 6.5: One must deliver himself with the help of his mind, and not degrade himself. The mind is the friend of the conditioned soul, and his enemy as well.

BG 6.6: For him who has conquered the mind, the mind is the best of friends; but for one who has failed to do so, his mind will remain the greatest enemy.

In upanishads, this is the "manmaya kosa" or the mental sheath. Sight, hearing, smell, touch and taste are only the objective channels to the mind and its the mind that can act very subjectively. The mind can chose to hear what it wants and ignore the rest. In a crowd, one's mind may chose to focus and hear only to what a particular person might be saying. At that moment one might not be able to process any other person. The focus can shift though as per the directions of the mind. Thus the mind is the controller of all 5 senses from which the collected data can be put to use by one's own intellect. Its a recursive procedure and the intellect can sharpen itself with the information it recieves.

The ultimate reality is said to be unmanifested, unborn and inconcievable from which everything else, both material and spiritual, is emanating.

BG 9.4: By Me, in My unmanifested form, this entire universe is pervaded. All beings are in Me, but I am not in them

BG 12.3-4: But those who fully worship the unmanifested, that which lies beyond the perception of the senses, the all-pervading, inconceivable, unchanging, fixed and immovable — the impersonal conception of the Absolute Truth — by controlling the various senses and being equally disposed to everyone, such persons, engaged in the welfare of all, at last achieve Me.

BG 10.8: I am the source of all spiritual and material worlds. Everything emanates from Me. The wise who perfectly know this engage in My devotional service and worship Me with all their hearts.

Thus Bhagvada Gita teaches directly how manifest arises from the unmanifest. On contrary to the unmanifest, the manifestations are changing, dynamic or limited. e.g Sun which a manifestation of the ultimate reality has a form, color, size etc when viewed from the earth. But are we seeing the truth? Do we think that the Sun or our appearance when we see in the mirror is static? What exactly are we seeing?

Physically, we are growing daily. The change is very slow as per our perception and it is unobservable. We are not the same person who existed some ten years ago. The physical image of our face, weight, shape, size, height etc have all changed. Chemically, we are losing millions of molecules per second in the form of breath (exhale), perspiration, excreta, urination, farts and intaking other molecules in the form of breath (inhale), drinking, eating etc. In brief, a person does not have the same set of molecules or atoms that he had a second ago. Mentally, our thoughts are changing too. What we were thinking a second ago is not the same. Mentally we evolve and our knowledge increases every passing second. Our holistic experience of the world changes every moment.

So how can we be the same even in a seconds differentiation? Are our eyes decieving us when we look into the mirror? If we get attached to our looks, then we are bound to suffer when we change or grow old. This suffering due to attachment and ignorance is the constant effect of Maya which is all around us and forever trying to control our mind. It is only because of Maya that we are not able to understand the ultimate reality or the truth. We see the sun and we think it is the same. But the truth is that the sun is also fading out. It has spent 4 million years and only has another 4 million years to live after which it will convert into a nova or a supernova. It is releasing huge amount of hydrogen in the form of fusion reactions into helium. Therefore, chemically it is not the same any second. Physically it releases long chains of fires or the solar winds, its magnetic field keeps on changing. So again, is our perception decieving us about the shape and size of the sun? Do we think we will be the same person after 20 years with the same strength, healing rate of the cells, quickness of the mind and the body? Do we think that change is sudden that we would grow fragile with white hair and brittle bones overnight?

In Gita, this is explained via the three modes of the material nature.

BG 14.5: Material nature consists of three modes — goodness, passion and ignorance. When the eternal living entity comes in contact with nature, O mighty-armed Arjuna, he becomes conditioned by these modes.

BG 14.6: O sinless one, the mode of goodness, being purer than the others, is illuminating, and it frees one from all sinful reactions. Those situated in that mode become conditioned by a sense of happiness and knowledge.

BG 14.7: The mode of passion is born of unlimited desires and longings, O son of Kuntī, and because of this the embodied living entity is bound to material fruitive actions.

BG 14.8: O son of Bharata, know that the mode of darkness, born of ignorance, is the delusion of all embodied living entities. The results of this mode are madness, indolence and sleep, which bind the conditioned soul.

BG 14.9: O son of Bharata, the mode of goodness conditions one to happiness; passion conditions one to fruitive action; and ignorance, covering one's knowledge, binds one to madness.

BG 14.10: Sometimes the mode of goodness becomes prominent, defeating the modes of passion and ignorance, O son of Bharata. Sometimes the mode of passion defeats goodness and ignorance, and at other times ignorance defeats goodness and passion. In this way there is always competition for supremacy.

BG 14.11: The manifestations of the mode of goodness can be experienced when all the gates of the body are illuminated by knowledge.

BG 14.12: O chief of the Bhāratas, when there is an increase in the mode of passion the symptoms of great attachment, fruitive activity, intense endeavor, and uncontrollable desire and hankering develop.

BG 14.13: When there is an increase in the mode of ignorance, O son of Kuru, darkness, inertia, madness and illusion are manifested.

BG 14.14: When one dies in the mode of goodness, he attains to the pure higher planets of the great sages.

BG 14.15: When one dies in the mode of passion, he takes birth among those engaged in fruitive activities; and when one dies in the mode of ignorance, he takes birth in the animal kingdom.

BG 14.16: The result of pious action is pure and is said to be in the mode of goodness. But action done in the mode of passion results in misery, and action performed in the mode of ignorance results in foolishness.

BG 14.17: From the mode of goodness, real knowledge develops; from the mode of passion, greed develops; and from the mode of ignorance develop foolishness, madness and illusion.

BG 14.18: Those situated in the mode of goodness gradually go upward to the higher planets; those in the mode of passion live on the earthly planets; and those in the abominable mode of ignorance go down to the hellish worlds.

BG 14.19: When one properly sees that in all activities no other performer is at work than these modes of nature and he knows the Supreme Lord, who is transcendental to all these modes, he attains My spiritual nature.

References :

BhagVada Gita

http://www.hinduism.co.za/kosas.htm