Poojya Sri Anubhavananda Saraswati
Vivekachooddamani Talk 8 20th October, 2020
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XeUwE20xtRU
Summary of Talk 7 by Swami Anubhavanandaji.
Compilation - Dr. Hegde, Mr. Ullas, Smt Padma Baliga & Smt. Jyothirmayi Kartik
Sloka 55
अविद्याकामकर्मादिपाशबन्धं विमोचितुम् ।
कः शक्नुयाद्विनात्मानं कल्पकोटिशतैरपि ॥ ५५ ॥
avidyākāmakarmādipāśabandhaṃ vimocitum |
kaḥ śaknuyādvinātmānaṃ kalpakoṭiśatairapi || 55 ||
Who but one’s own self can get rid of the bondage caused by the fetters of Ignorance, desire, action and the like, aye, even in a hundred crore of cycles?
· Grace works in 4 ways:
o God’s: by helping us come in contact with the mahatmas
o Mahatamas’: by helping us seek the truth through studying the scriptures
o Scriptures’: by revealing the truth about ourselves
o Self: by working on the scriptural knowledge on our own selves (not for lecturing to others)
· Two types of teachers. Acharyas who instruct and the Siddha parampara
· Don’t be dependent on anything, discover your divine nature,
· Avidya is incomplete knowledge part of hrudaya granti.
· What we have done so far is desire fulfilment only
· Satsang is part of the divine will where our unasked questions are answered, and all doubts are resolved.
· Karma is action with a sense of doer-ship. We must get over this doer-ship notion.
· One can be reborn many times and spend millions of years in relative existence. But you cannot attain liberation unless there is effort
Sloka 56
न योगेन न सांख्येन कर्मणा नो न विद्यया ।
ब्रह्मात्मैकत्वबोधेन मोक्षः सिध्यति नान्यथा ॥ ५६ ॥
na yogena na sāṃkhyena karmaṇā no na vidyayā |
brahmātmaikatvabodhena mokṣaḥ sidhyati nānyathā || 56 ||
Neither by Yoga, nor by Sānkhya, nor by work, nor by learning, but by the realisation of one's identity with Brahman is Liberation possible, and by no other means.
· Liberation cannot be achieved by yoga (body oriented) or sankhya (Purusha prakriti bheda) or karma or upasana [here Vidya means Upasana. Not to be confused or misinterpreted as knowledge (vidya’s common meaning) cannot help liberation].
· The only way (none other) for liberation is by recognition of our infinite blissful being.
· Turiya is not the 4th. State, it is the state.
· None of these, if practiced
mechanically, will bring on the highest knowledge—the absolute identity of the Jiva and Brahman—which alone, according to Advaita Vedanta, is the supreme way to liberation.
· ‘Yoga’ may mean Hathayoga which strengthens the body.
· According to the Sankhya philosophy liberation is achieved by the discrimination between Purasha and Prakriti. The Purusha is sentient but inactive, and all activity belongs to Prakriti, which is non-sentient, yet independent of the Purusha. The Sankhyas also believe in a plurality of Purushas. These are the main differences between the Sankhya and Vedanta philosophies.
· Work for material ends, such as getting to heaven and so forth, is meant.
Sloka 57
वीणाया रूपसौन्दर्यं तन्त्रीवादनसौष्ठवम् ।
प्रजारञ्ज्जनमात्रं तन्न साम्राज्याय कल्पते ॥ ५७ ॥
vīṇāyā rūpasaundaryaṃ tantrīvādanasauṣṭhavam |
prajārañjjanamātraṃ tanna sāmrājyāya kalpate || 57 ||
The beauty of a veena’s form and the skill of playing on its strings serve merely to please a few persons; they do not suffice to confer sovereignty.
· A veena exponent with a beautiful instrument can only entertain the audience for a while but cannot become King.
· Similar these qualities cannot help one attain Liberation.
Sloka 58
वाग्वैखरी शब्दझरी शास्त्रव्याख्यानकौशलम् ।
वैदुष्यं विदुषां तद्वद्भुक्तये न तु मुक्तये ॥ ५८ ॥
vāgvaikharī śabdajharī śāstravyākhyānakauśalam |
vaiduṣyaṃ viduṣāṃ tadvadbhuktaye na tu muktaye || 58 ||
Loud speech consisting of a shower of words, the skill in expounding the Scriptures, and likewise erudition - these merely bring on a little personal enjoyment to the scholar, but are no good for Liberation.
· Fluency, erudition, intelligence etc. can only be for entertainment not for liberation.
· Well-spoken, skilled orators, erudite scholars are appreciated by the world but this does not aid in getting Liberation which does not depend on these qualities
· If one has not realized the infinite blissful nature of their Self then all the scriptural study is useless.
· They will only become erudite scholars and nothing more
Sloka 59
अविज्ञाते परे तत्त्वे शास्त्राधीतिस्तु निष्फला ।
विज्ञातेऽपि परे तत्त्वे शास्त्राधीतिस्तु निष्फला ॥ ५९ ॥
avijñāte pare tattve śāstrādhītistu niṣphalā |
vijñāte'pi pare tattve śāstrādhītistu niṣphalā || 59 ||
The study of the scriptures is useless so long as the highest Truth is unknown, and it is equally useless when the highest Truth has already been known.
· If one has not come to realize one’s being infinite, whatever studies we have done from scriptures, is useless.
· We have to discover ourselves. Have we become free from the world? Have we overcome the lack of self confidence?
· If one has discovered the truth, there is no more need for the scriptures
· If we have discovered the Truth then again shastras are useless! Why do we need scriptures to tell us about us being the infinite? We know we are.
· Like food is not required after hunger is satiated. If you do not realize your limitations, then all your studies are futile.
· Prior to realization, mere book-learning without Discrimination and Renunciation is useless as it cannot give us Freedom, and to the man of realization, it is even more so, as he has already achieved his life’s end.
Sloka 60
शब्दजालं महारण्यं चित्तभ्रमणकारणम् ।
अतः प्रयत्नाज्ज्ञातव्यं तत्त्वज्ञैस्तत्त्वमात्मनः ॥ ६0 ॥
śabdajālaṃ mahāraṇyaṃ cittabhramaṇakāraṇam |
ataḥ prayatnājjñātavyaṃ tattvajñaistattvamātmanaḥ || 60 ||
The scriptures consisting of many words are a dense forest which merely causes the mind to ramble. Hence men of wisdom should earnestly set about knowing the true nature of the Self.
· Words are like the wrappings and the chocolate is inside. Do not get lost in the wrappers.
· One must put effort to know the import of the scriptures from the one who is abiding in the Truth.
· Go seek the truth with complete dispassion. Only then you will find it.
· Contemplate and find out what are the disturbances preventing you. Find out why. Do this patiently and step by step elevate your practices by reading, japa and other activities to remove the impact of any untoward events. Thus progress towards knowledge
Sloka 61
अज्ञानसर्पदष्टस्य ब्रह्मज्ञानौषधं विना ।
किमु वेदैश्च शास्त्रैश्च किमु मन्त्रैः किमौषधैः ॥ ६१ ॥
ajñānasarpadaṣṭasya brahmajñānauṣadhaṃ vinā |
kimu vedaiśca śāstraiśca kimu mantraiḥ kimauṣadhaiḥ || 61 ||
For one who has been bitten by the serpent of Ignorance, the only remedy is the knowledge of Brahman. Of what avail are the Vedas and Scriptures, Mantras and medicines to such a one?
· One who is bitten by the snake of wrong notions (incomplete knowledge), without the medicine of self-knowledge (Brahma Jnanam) there is no use of karma kanda – rituals and services/seva etc.
· What is the purpose of scriptural studies, rituals, mantras and yagjnas?
· One does not need to do these rituals if one has no desires
Sloka 62
न गच्छति विना पानं व्याधिरौषधशब्दतः ।
विनापरोक्षानुभवं ब्रह्मशब्दैर्न मुच्यते ॥ ६२ ॥
na gacchati vinā pānaṃ vyādhirauṣadhaśabdataḥ |
vināparokṣānubhavaṃ brahmaśabdairna mucyate || 62 ||
A disease does not leave off if one simply utter the name of the medicine, without taking it; (similarly) without direct realisation one cannot be liberated by the mere utterance of the word Brahman.
· Just talking about Brahman, one can never attain liberation.
· The finite demands repetition. The Infinite cannot be repeated. Therefore, we need to discover the Truth only once.
Sloka 63
अकृत्वा दृश्यविलयमज्ञात्वा तत्त्वमात्मनः ।
ब्रह्मशब्दैः कुतो मुक्तिरुक्तिमात्रफलैर्नृणाम् ॥ ६३ ॥
akṛtvā dṛśyavilayamajñātvā tattvamātmanaḥ |
brahmaśabdaiḥ kuto muktiruktimātraphalairnṛṇām || 63 ||
Without causing the objective universe to vanish and without knowing the truth of the Self, how is one to achieve Liberation by the mere utterance of the word Brahman? -- It would result merely in an effort of speech.
· By realizing one’s identity with Brahman, the one without a second; in Samadhi, one becomes the pure Chit (knowledge absolute), and the duality of subject and object vanishes altogether. Short of this, ignorance which is the cause of all evil is not destroyed
· Live Vedanta not just talk so that you achieve the Realization
· The teacher and the student part. Just teaching no decision making for the student. Never take decisions for others. Everyone must grow on their own.
Vivekachoodamani
Translation of verses covered on 20th October, 2020 by Sri Anubhavanandaji, with grateful thanks to Swami Gurubhaktanandaji and Swami Advayanandaji.