For Seekers by Seekers

Atma Bodha Ch 4 - Upadhis

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Great human beings can communicate to us in the dreams.

Examples used: 

akasha is one but is divided

water is tasteless & takes on taste of anything it is in.

Manisha Panchakam story of Sankaracharya

- Are the sun, space different in the street where Chandala or Brahmin lives?

- Five slokas - each sloka is a mahavakya and the fifth one is the summary

Upadhi - 'adjunct'

- nearby, transfer its attributes, appears to be false

Fireball, blue cloth next to a crystal - examples of upaadhi.

There is a subtle part of five elements - tanmatras.

Universe is created all at once! Like in our dream world.

In a split second.

Which entity is experiencing the world?

- ego appropriates the experience; there is no experiencer!

Ignorance has no cause; but it has the effect - desire....

Ego is a thought!

Reflected consciousness has no instruments to experience?

What happens in pralay?

- anshik pralay - life gets wiped out; new cabinet comes

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Svayam Prakash - self illuminating

knower - known - process of knowing: 3 aspects

Consciousness is all three.

"like Sun" 

Examples:

soapnut powder & dirt; world &dream; mother of pearl & silver; Bubbles in water; gold & ornaments

kirti-kanchana-kamini - three desires which bind us.

Example of kataka-nut: use a thorn to remove the thorn - throw them both away.

Tiger in the dream also goes away.

Why do people react the way they do when they have a bad dream and carry forward it to their waking state?

- Identity, vasanas, ignorance,

Vasanas of the waking world projects the dream. In dream we don't create more samskaras or vasanas.

Three examples from Mundakopanishad:

Spider (material & efficient), earth (one, many), nails (sentient creating non-sentient)

Do dreams convey something important?

Do we see the differences from our vantage point today?

Empathy will have powerfulness when we understand 'advaita' - not two;

Examples in Atmabodha were apt.

Cooking, sun/cloud, light/darkness.

Everything else we do in preparation for cooking is equally important.

All the yogas have a role to play in terms of creating chitta-shuddhi.

Sloka 1 is summary of Sadhana Chatushtaya.

Tapas:

Chaturmasa - food control.

Thinking within - anything to do to restrain in the material world - japa, pranayama, value reflection

Tapas is the attitude with which we do.

Tapas & Yagya - what is the difference?

You deny yourself what you are normally used to - because of a higher knowledge driver /desires - either through restriction or extra effort.

Atma - four amazing derivations of the word

ap - yat apnoti iti atma - that which pervades

ada - that which resolves itself 

atti iti atma - that which experiences /chaitanyam

satatam asti - that which exists always is atma

pervader, resolver, experiencer, eternal - atma.

bodha - objective knowledge of the subject.

Without a thought (vritti) in the mind, we cannot have chaitanya jnanam. 

Ashtanga yoga steps are dos /don'ts and other preparatory steps - but does not give Atma jnanam till we have knowledge.

avidya - kama - karma are connected.

Only other way to get moksha (other than jnanam) is to roll the akasha like a carpet!

[Svet. U]: Impossible without atma jnanam.

Life is not separate from attaining moksha.....

mukti, moksha, nirvana, kaivalya - four stages

Adi Sankara's five cardinal principles:

1. permanent happiness with lasting peace can happen ONLY through moksha

2. moksha can ONLY be through spiritual knowledge

3. spiritual knowledge (atma jnanam) ONLY through Systematic learning

4. Systematic learning is ONLY with a pure mind

5. To get pure mind has several paths - charity, iswara dhyanam, pranayama, karma yoga, bhakti etc. 

Most of the work to be done is in step 5 - to purify the mind. Most of the humanity is at either step 5 or below step 5 - trying to get to step 5.

Yagya, daana, tapah are never to be given up.

keep saying GITA fast....it comes to TA GI....TYAGI - renouncer of desires.

Who is a tyagi?

vritti vyapti /phala vyapti - mind takes the shape of the object/ what is there has to be illumined by the light source.

phala vyapti is not required for realizing brahman.

Ganga (knowledge), Yamuna (Bhakti) will merge to Saraswati (underground - enveloping both).

Vivek

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Sloka 61 - Having restrained them all....

What the stanza says - no one with excessive force control of sense indriyas can bloom into a flower.

The story of Princess of Kashi....

Once we have the knowledge, things will fall into place...no need to force.

Vidya

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Sloka no 7 - word, prapannam - totally surrender.

sloka no. 20 - na jayate mriyate va....

Soul never takes birth, never dies, all pervading, eternal.

Story of Ganesha visarjan - He comes back year after year! But for a three year old, Visarjan means - gone!

When you think you are 'dying from this body' then you will reach Brahman.

Syamala

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Gita has everything! Powerhouse packed with everything!

Ch 2 is summary of the Gita

2.47 -most heard and relate to it so much more now.

How Krishna chides Arjuna is the same way we behave (like Arjuna).

Confusion comes when we associate with 'small I' but when we associate with 'Big I' then the confusion drops.

Swadharma - swabhava - swaroopa.

Body gives signals.

How Gita differentiates from physical, mental, intellectual dimensions.

Shantha

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2.47 - Karmanyevaadhikarasthe.

As a coach, I observe kids practice KY.

It is a tough message to say 'don't expect results' but use the opportunity when they share something to tell them that 'learning is important'

Criticism from others does not impact when we put 100% effort in it.

Story of pregnant deer stuck in four corners with threats and it delivers the baby

Ranjani

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2.62 &2.63 - Eight steps to a spiritual fall.

Thinks of sense objects -attachment - desire -anger - delusion - loss of memory - destruction of discrimination - falls in life

Attachment not so much to objects but to people has been a personal struggle.

The world determines the emotional state of mind. We lose control.

Reminds me to practice sense control.

Theory is easy and practice is hard. Use these as a constant reflection.

Attachment is not love. Attachment binds you, love sets you free.

Love is unconditional, attachment is full of expectations.

We are already completely detached....

Rajesh

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Arjuna’s mindset - Pity, despondency, agitated, dejection, eyes full of tears, lost all hope, no sense of purpose, depression, visible signs of depression - seed anti mama gaatrani, mukham cha parishushyati, vepathushcha sharire me, romaharshascha jayate - limbs fail, mouth parched, sweating, quivering, hairs standing on end…

LESSON 1: EMOTIONAL MIND VERY STRONGLY covering his intellect - like a thick black cloud covering the sun. We can recognize signs of DEPRESSION within us too!

His Intellect becomes convoluted. Tries to justify. Puts forth arguments that will justify his point of view - without any sufficient logical base - altering facts, creating opinions to suit one’s emotional turbidity.

Sentiments cloud our understanding. Emotions rule us.

Strong sense of ego - “I” expressed as “How can I kill my relatives?”

SPLIT PERSONALITY SYNDROME.

Perception /Action Sense Organs, Emotional Mind, Intellectual Mind are not aligned together.

LESSON 2: WHEN WE ARE NOT MENTALLY INTEGRATED, our efforts dissipate like clouds in a bright sun.

This is our life too.

Most of us don’t seek right help to our mental wellbeing. Right help can come only from scriptures - not paid psychoanalysis help!

He Finally gives up. Surrenders to a superior intellect - Trust in Krishna’s supremacy.

LESSON 3: Surrender is hard. But when one surrenders, it becomes easy.

Either surrender to a parent, trusted friend or relative, or plainly to your inner conscience.

What is inner conscience?

It is the sense of ‘Big I’ of who we truly are!

Not the sense we have of the ‘small I’ that identifies itself with body, senses, mind or intellect.

How do we know there is a “Big I” within me?

When we ask the question - who am I and analyze with a simple framework - subject is different from objects, then we will truly know who we are!

Heat & Cold, happiness & sadness, praise & criticism, success & failure are all experienced by me - so they are not me! I stand apart from them!

They are all finite - in time, space or relationship.

All these too will pass!

LESSON 4: Even if we don’t trust anyone, trust that inner conscience. Recognize that it is there and ask - what would that inner conscience want me to do now in my depression state?

Why should one trust the inner conscience? Is there any such thing? Why don’t I experience that? If that is happiness, eternal, consciousness - and it is my real nature - why don’t I feel it? Are there any preparations I need to do?

Krishna says, karma yoga, bhakti yoga, jnana yoga are the rungs of the ladder to know & become that sat-chit-ananda: the eternal existence, conscious & bliss nature. Preparing the body, senses is the pre-requisite for karma yoga.

LESSON 5: Like in all knowledge acquisition, we need to prepare. Mind is the biggest obstacle as well as the most important instrument we have to acquire this knowledge about the Big I - our true.

This is life worth living. Anchored to an unchanging goal post - meandering around, using life situations as learning &growing opportunities and overcoming the mental doubts, confusion and expanding our mind to include everything in the sense of I.

Small I becoming the Big I in three steps through karma yoga, Bhakti yoga, jnana yoga.

Hari Om Tat Sat!

Mukundan

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Destination - current location - route - signboards of progress - affirmation of you have reached destination

How the Ch 2 is structured as a 'seekers journey' - the way it is laid out.

Destination is shared.

Shows us where we are in the current location.

Small I -> Big I route Karma Yoga.

Signboards - Gurubhakti /stithapragya 

Sloka 1-10: If you can smile at the end of the tantrum - you are enlightened!