Summary of Dvaita Viveka, 4th Chapter of Panchadashi

The fourth chapter is called dvaita viveka or discrimination of duality. Duality is of two kinds. One belongs to Ishvara and the other belongs to the soul. The world seen through the eyes is the duality of Ishvara. With regards to this duality, souls create various types of mental thoughts according to their nature. This is the duality of the soul.

Whatever objects are made by Ishvara are made in his form alone. Just by his making them, they do not become useful to souls. They become useful to us when we receive some knowledge about them, when we meditate upon them, when we accept them as joy giving or sorrow giving, and we begin actions to acquire them or dropping them. This is the reason why, in the universe of infinite objects created by Ishvara, only a few come within the realm of our enjoyment. These are the ones we mediate upon since they are seated in our mind, or those that we act to acquire or drop.

Typically, Ishvara creates the world and souls enjoy it through their knowledge and action. When Ishvara creates a will called maayaa thought flow, this world is created. Since we are extremely extroverted, our power to will is destroyed. A tortoise mother cares for her children through mere will alone. Where other animals act by feeding milk to their children, she does so just by mere will alone. 

By constantly maintaining restraint or saiyama, people's will regains the power of action. The power of action comes from willing alone. Both action and will of an essence knower have power. Ishvara does not have to perform any action at all. He only has to will. Action happens all by itself. He creates the world by will alone. 

When the soul creates a will called "thought flow" and drives it towards the objects of this Ishvara-created world, this world becomes a means of enjoyment for him, otherwise it does not. Ishvara creates only one type of pearl. One who gets it is joyful. One who does not get it is sad. There are some who are neither happy to get it nor sad to not get it. 

So in one pearl, three shapes are proven, one is "dear", other is "hated", third is "indifferent". All three shapes come forth due to the different intellects of people. Ishvara does not have a hand in creating these shapes. The same body of a woman is differentiated in various relationships such as mother, wife, sister, daughter and so on. The flesh filled body created by Ishvara remains one and the same. But there are different "mental women" projected on the same body. This is because the enjoyers' minds are different.

During the time of misapprehension, fanciful thinking and memory, we deal with mental objects alone. In these states, there are no objects created by Ishvara whatsoever. In the state of waking also, only through mental objects do transactions happen. But the mental objects created in the waking state should be understood carefully. When our mind sees any object, it takes the shape of that object. As soon as we close our eyes and meditate, that very form appears in front of our eyes.

In fact, when we see an object during waking, there really are two objects, one is the pot made of clay, and the other is the pot in the mind. The clay pot is known to us by sensory evidence, pramaanaa. But our mental pot is not seen through sensory evidence. It is illumined by the witness self. We are put in bondage due to this mental object notion. If this is present, joys and sorrow arise, if it is not present, they they do not arise. Even when external objects are absent, like in a dream etc., souls become happy or sad. Due to association with a woman in a dream, there could be a direct physical impact.

In samaadhi, sleep or unconsciousness, the external objects remain as they are, but due to the absence of these mental objects, souls do not experience joy or sorrow. Even if the child is alive and well in a foreign country, the parents weep when they hear incorrect news about the child's demise, because it is their mental child that has died. Conversely, when the child has actually died but the parents do not know about it, they do not cry, since the mental object is still alive. So it is clear that the mental world alone binds.

There is two ways to destroy this mental duality. One is yoga, the other is knowledge. In yoga, one has to restrain the mind. This does cause the mental world to stop being created, but that world remains dormant in a seed form. As soon as mental restraint is stopped, the mental duality instantly stands in front of us and will cause us to get bound. The way to permanently destroy mental duality is the knowledge of the brahman essence, of our pervasive self essence. 

The duality of Ishvara continues to remain in front of our eyes, but by understanding that it is illusory, that it can be negated, one can realize the supreme non-duality. When the supreme non-duality is realized, then the creation of the mental world stops once and for all.

When the dissolution of the universe happens, when the teachers and scripture that reveal the non-dual knowledge no longer remain, and when there is no duality to counter knowledge of non-duality, then the non-dual essence cannot be understood. The non-dual essence can be understood only when its opposite, duality is in front of us. If duality is ot seen, there remains no means of understanding such a deep topic like non-duality.

So the duality of Ishvara is not an obstacle but actually is a means to realize non-duality. To remove the real will of Ishvara is not within the reach of limited power souls. Some seekers assume that they will be free once their wife and children die. They should understand that the wife and children that have come out of Ishvara's will can only die when Ishvara's will for them ends. All that needs to be done is this: Stop accepting them as "mine". It is only our mental relationship with them that binds us. Not addressing that relationship but instead addressing Ishvara's will is ludicrous.

We need to create our path of non-duality in the midst of Ishvara's duality. It is not appropriate to hate it. Just like attraction to mental duality causes bondage, aversion to Ishvara's duality causes bondage. 

There are two kinds of soul duality, one is scriptural, the other is non-scriptural. The contemplation of self and brahman is the scriptural mental world. Non-scriptural duality is of two kinds, one is attraction aversion etc., the other is fanciful thinking. If these continue, knowledge of the essence will not occur. Any temporary means of attaining knowledge will result in temporary unstable knowledge. After knowledge of the essence, the state of living liberation must arrive. The divine wealth indicated in the Gita must arrive. 

That person who is engaged in attraction aversion etc. does not have real knowledge. It will not result in the fruit of liberation. It is blank or unproductive knowledge. If knowledge arises and attraction aversion etc. are not dropped, if there is no purity in transactions, if the self is still considered as the body, then the knowledge is as useless as taking medicines without the proper diet. If someone still has desire for sensory pleasures, and claims to have knowledge, it cannot break the chain of life and death. The knower who continues to hold on to attraction etc. falls really low.

He falls because the fear ignorant people harbour towards Ishvara or the laws of action still enters into the knower. Such a knower falls really low. Mental faults trouble a person prior to the advent of knowledge, but such a blank knower becomes the object of ridicule in this world. Ignorance is much better than this dry knowledge. 

At a minimum, knowledge of the essence should result in the lifestyle, the speech, the transactions of the knower becoming a model worthy of worship by others. Along with faults such as attraction, fanciful thinking also should be stopped. To do so, nirvikalpa samaadhi should be practiced. By practicing savikalpa samaadhi, nirvikalpa samaadhi also is entered into. In this state, there is no more any mind or thinking. One who knows the essence, who lives alone, whose mental faults have gone, can stop fanciful thinking by chanting long Omkaaraas.

When fanciful thinking is conquered, then the thought flow less state of the seeker's mind becomes like that of the mute person. Just like a mute person does not speak anything, there is no more creation of thought flows in the mute mind. The knowledge broom of "there is no seen" is used to sweep the temple of the mind in order to get rid of trash called the seen. This results in infinite liberation joy swelling inside. When attraction and other states are destroyed, when the deep silent state of no habitual desires or vaasanaas arises, there is no better state than this.

Even people who have attained this state are subject to some agitation due to enjoyment and action. But the force of their practice does not allow agitation to linger. Their intellect immediately becomes focused. Those great people whose mind has completely stopped being agitated are not fit even to be called brahman knowers. Exalted sages say that such people have become brahman essence themselves.

When a being completely drops the duality created by a soul, he will be able to attain the most highest state of living liberation. Keeping this notion in mind, we have separated the duality of Ishvara from the duality of the soul, for the benefit of seekers.

Translated from the Commentary by Pandit Raamaavataara Vidyaabhaaskara, a student of Achyuta Muni

Vaasanaas

"Vaasanaa" is a word that comes up again and again in Vedantic scripture. So far I did not come across a translation that clicked with me. As I was thinking about it today, I realized that the simplest translation of the word vaasanaa is - a habit.

What is the life cycle of a habit?

1. An impression comes from the outside which says "this object can make you happy". Impressions are called samskaaraas.

2. If the intellect allows this impression to be stored, at some point this impression will be activated when the object in question comes in promixity. 

3. The object is consumed, and a sensory stimulation occurs, which is mistaken for happiness. The impression is confirmed, readying it for the next time the object is available.

4. Repeating point number 3 several times leads to the impression becoming a habit or a vaasanaa.

E.g.
1. Person sees an ad: X brand of coffee will make you happy
2. Person sees that brand, and tries it once
3. He gets sensory pleasure, repeats it
4. Drinking X brand of coffee has very quickly become a vaasanaa, a habit that he cannot live without.

Vedanta tries to hit at the root problem of our life, which is the wrong vaasanaa that the sensory world is real, and that this body is the self. Both these are habits and like any habit, can be broken with practice and guidance.

But on the journey to break these deep rooted habits, smaller habits are broken as a means to get to that larger goal, such as : the habit that selfish result-oriented action is the goal of life, acquisition is the goal of life, and so on.

Summary Of Pancha Kosha Viveka, 3rd Chapter of Panchadashi

In the third chapter called pancha kosha viveka or discrimination of the five sheaths, it is explained that there is the body, inside which resides the vital force, inside which resides the mind, inside which resides the intellect or the doer, inside which resides the bliss or the enjoyer. This sequence is the place or "cave" for the hiding of the self. This cave inside which the brahman element has hidden can be known only when the afore-mentioned five sheaths are discriminated. That is why, come on, let us skin the five sheaths like a coconut and behold the brahman element beyond the cave.

Normally, these sheaths of the food, vital force, mind, intellect and bliss conceal the self element. They do not let it manifest. In the same way they can be used as a means to view the self. They create bondage and they enable freedom also. Although the coconut shell hides the coconut, the shell also enables its access. If these five sheaths were absent, no one could focus on the self element. The technique of beholding the brahman element is that one by one, none of the entities from the body to the bliss sheath contain the self. But that which sees them, and is never seen, that element, is the self.

The self is not seen, not because there is no such thing called the self, but because it is the self that causes seeing to occur. Jaggery cannot be made any sweeter. Similarly, the self cannot be made into a seen. It may not come in the experience of anyone, but the knowledge form of the self element is not impacted in the least bit. If a person cannot understand knowledge, how can he experienced known objects? "My mouth does not have a tongue". This point is quite illogical, on the same lines of the point "I do not know knowledge".

Think about this, we have knowledge of the pot, of the cloth, and of form and other sensations. We need to discard the specific knowledge of the pot, the cloth and so on, and the shift our vision to the knowledge, the awareness that in incorporated in all those knowledges just like the string in a necklace of beads. When this happens, understand that this knowledge is the brahman element. It is also self illumined. Before any of this mess is seen, it sees. When this self gives the command "the desire to see", then this mess begins to be seen afterwards.

In fact, this mess is seen by its seeing alone. If this self does not want to see, like in sleep, then this mess will not be seen.  This seeing is one hundred percent subservient to the seer. This witness of the entire world, the knowledge form self, will only see in its pure state when it will completely cast off all these five sheaths. In other words, we should stop considering them as the self. That which makes these sheaths shine, that light called knowledge, that is our inherent form.

During the time of non thinking, the sheaths are considered the self. When they are considered as the not self, then the self element itself comes in front of the contemplator. At that time you can call it nothing, you can call it the self, or don't call anything at all. In order to describe the self element, the spiritual scripture used the unique language of not this not this. 

A story is told by certain traditions in connection with this. A man and a woman were separated in a fair. The king lined up all men in the fair. The woman kept saying not him, not him, and when she saw her husband, she became quiet. Similarly, whatever can be negated, when it is negated, that essence which remains is the self. 

So here, the self is the reality, this is proven. Its knowledge form is also proven. This element is endless. Even if we visit the farthest reaches of time and space, that knowledge will already be there. There is no boundary of time or space for it. This knowledge takes all forms. It is like the sun taking all forms of the objects it illuminates. Or it is like the five elements taking the form of the objects they inhabit. Similarly, this knowledge also takes the form of all objects. It is the self of all objects since it sits inside them and reveals them. It is infinite in every respect.

This same element sometimes becomes Ishvara and sometimes becomes the jeeva or the soul. When the creative power of the world comes into our thinking, then we remember this element in the form of Ishvara. When our mind goes towards the five element composed body, then this element appears to us as the soul. What this means is that this element plays with all of the adjuncts that we see, it revels in all of them. When we see neither the world nor the body, then this infinite pervasive awareness comes and stands in front of us. Then the yogee becomes speechless and reaches the highest state. 

Both Ishvara and soul both exist due to their adjuncts. Both are awareness imbibed with adjuncts. That great person who leaves the awarenesses with adjunct, and goes eye to eye with the adjunctless awareness, that seeker whose concentration is not divided, that seeker who does not forget this pervasive awareness even while governing a kingdom, that great person in whose insides this point is firmly placed that this Ishvara notion and soul notion is born when we pay attention to powers and sheaths, if we stop paying attention to both, then only the brahman notion remains.

When seekers find this knowledge, the fully become brahman. They break their adjuncts and earn their pervasive form. Those qualified seekers who are endowed with the four fold qualifications of Vedanta conduct discrimination of the sheaths as mentioned above, they realize that cave-hidden brahman, and they definitely become brahman. The birth and death of such a person goes away, since brahman is not born. Through discrimination, one awakens his immortal brahman notion.

Translated from the Commentary by Pandit Raamaavataara Vidyaabhaaskara, a student of Achyuta Muni

Summary Of Pancha Bhoota Viveka, 2nd Chapter of the Panchadashi

The second chapter is called pancha bhoota viveka, discrimination of five elements. During the monsoon, dust from the mountain covers the entire mountain itself. Similarly, these five elements have come from that non-dual reality alone, but they have concealed it. Now, it is the duty of us seekers to analyze these five elements, and to again recognize the concealed reality.

Here is the technique to recognize that reality. 11 senses, logic and scriptures show us this mess, which was not there prior to creation. At that time, there was only reality, which was partless. Like a tree has part-whole divisions like flowers, branches etc., such a part-whole division did not exist in this reality. Like one tree is different than another, such an intra-species division did not exist in this reality. Like a tree differs from a rock, such an inter-species division did not exist in this reality. So there was one reality devoid of all these three kinds of distinctions.

Many people cannot bear to listen to the talk of this one essence. A land dwelling mammal will suffocate as it drowns in the ocean. Similarly, when one listens to talk of this undivided single essence, and the mind does not have space to expand, such people are afraid of the deep silence. People used to a foul smell close their noses when they smell a fragrance. Similarly, the most peaceful undivided essence seems scary to the mind. Like a child is scared of the forest, many people fear this undivided essence. But there is no reason for them to be afrad.

When someone attains samaadhi, and when the state of firm resolve comes, and when quietitude arises, then the experience of the reality becomes clear to seekers. "At that time nothing remains", this thought is inaccurate. The void cannot be known by another void. When we become thoughtless, the witness of that thoughtless state is that essence reality. In this reality, the power to create this messy expanse is neither unreal, since it is seen, nor is it real, since it does not exist forever. It is negated.

Devadutta has the power in him, but the power and Devadutta cannot be counted as two. Similarly, brahman and its power cannot be counted as two. They are both counted as one. The meaning is this: Its power does not make brahman a duality. Just like power does not create duality, in the same manner, the gross effects of the power also do not have any trace of duality. 

That power of brahman first creates space. Saying "existence of space" is a philosophical mistake. This reality also applies to wind and other elements. Space did not go in them, that is why it is said that space and reality are different elements. If you remove existence from space, then tell me, what form of space is left remaining? By being different from existence, it is undoubtedly determined to be unreal. It is unreal, yet it is seen, that is the miracle of maayaa. 

Space can never be real, and reality does not have any place for space or other objects to enter it. That is why, when an essence knower sees space, he will know it devoid of essence, and when his vision goes towards reality, he will know it to be devoid of holes, to be undivided. When the unrealness of each worldly element and worldly substance is contemplated in this manner, the reality of non-duality will become firm. But remember, this habit of unreality will not impact transactional dealings at all. Those will carry on as before.

New seekers harbour the idea that transactions will stop, this is incorrect. What should happen is this. Transactions that were happening from a narrow viewpoint will not happen from the viewpoint of the pervasive supreme self. This knowledge does not change the inherent form of objects. All it does is change our perspective. There certainly should be a miracle in the dealings of a knower that makes his dealings attractive, compassionate, exemplary, imitable, not obstructing welfare. One who behaves in this manner is a knower. The amount by which the knower's disrespect for duality increases, is the amount by which his intellect in non-duality increases. 

When this intellect stops, and when waves of the the foul ocean of the world will not break the shore of the intellect, then this person will be called a living liberated person or jeevanmukta. When the five elements, or any object made of the five elements will be seen, when the vision goes to the reality and stays on the reality, then it is called "dviataavajnya" or absence of duality knowledge. This is called the non-dual vision as well as the state of brahman. Even while dying, if someone gets this compassionate state for even a second, his liberation is assured. Then what to say of those great people who can stay in this state since childhood? When the misapprehension is broken at the time of death, it will never return. 

Death is considered the boundary between this world and the next. When one's misapprehension is destroyed on that boundary, in other words, the funds for his trip into the next world will be burnt. For someone who attains this afore-mentioned state of brahman, whether he rots on a bed, rolls on the ground, remains healthy or faints prior to giving up his vital forces, he will never yield to misapprehension again. 

Even in the state of unconsciousness, the knower does not forget his knowledge. Is it possible for a literate person to forget reading and writing after he wakes up from sleep? That great science which has been awakened from scripture through such effort cannot be destroyed just like that. This is because there is no other means more powerful than Vedanta. That seeker who has fully accepted the non-duality as per Vedanta will not find any other science to negate this knowledge. 

There is no greater means than one's own experience. Nonduality is real, duality is false. Both these have mixed into a mixture. When this mixture is separated, when each of these two components is understood correctly, then no one can stop the state of nirvaanaa from being attained. 

This is the summary: After discriminating the elements, that non-dual Vedantic knowledge attained cannot be negated in any time, and body liberation will definitely be attained.

Translated from the Commentary by Pandit Raamaavataara Vidyaabhaaskara, a student of Achyuta Muni.

Summary Of Tattva Viveka, 1st Chapter of Panchadashi

If someone needs something, and they have the capacity to imbibe it, then they are called qualified. If some people are not qualified to hear something, and they hear it, then due to lack of understanding, they will not able to benefit from it. Those people whose minds are devoid of faults such as attraction or aversion, those who have understood the real situation of this world, those who maayaa has been unable to influence any more, those whose eye of knowledge has opened, those whose buds of knowledge are about to sprout, in brief, those who can discriminate between permanent and temporary objects, and due to this, they have turned away from enjoyments here and hereafter, those who regulate their senses, in whose mind, the shackles of quietitude have been established, those for whom only the door of liberation has been opened, for such people, this text has been created, and they are qualified to read it. This will enable them to recognize the essence, in other words, the form without anything superimposed on it.

The existence consciousness bliss form of brahman has been described in scripture. The exact same indications are found in the soul. First look at "existence". Everybody says "I am", in other words, "I exist". I am an entity that exists in all three states of time. Now contemplate about knowledge in this manner. During the waking state, we get innumerable sensory inputs or knowledge of sounds, touch etc. In those various knowledges, even if each knowledge is distinct, there is one knowledge that illuminates all of them that remains as one entity. The various differences seen in that one knowledge are due to adjuncts of sound, touch etc. The knowledges within waking and dream also should be considered in this manner.

Waking and dream may be two distinct states, but the afore-mentioned knowledge is always one. The knowledge of ignorance in deep sleep also shines in that very same knowledge. It means that seconds, minutes, hours, weeks, months, years and eons come and go, but this knowledge remains stable, like the anvil of a blacksmith, remains and will ever remain, self illumined. This lord of knowledge has pervaded all three realms. If you send your mind millions of light years away, or ask it to orbit the sun, this lord of knowledge will already have reached there. He was there before creation, and he will be there after dissolution. If that were not the case, how will those states be known? This pervasive knowledge in space and time alone is the self. 

Now let us contemplate on his supreme bliss nature. Every being has a wish that they want to exist forever. Do you know the secret reason for such a wish? Its reason is not the general bliss form of the self. The supreme bliss form of the self is the reason for such a universal wish. We have dared to speak of this self love as the form of supreme bliss because this love can happen in others due to our selfishness, but others selfishness does not cause love to occur in us.

So existence consciousness bliss seen in brahman are also seen in the self. Vedanta and the teacher say this to the qualified person: O fool, the self and brahman are not two, they are two names of the same thing.

The supreme bliss form of the self as described above has been stuck in an unusual situation. It is known and also unknown at the same time. That which hides the supreme bliss nature of this self has two parts: ignorance and maayaa. From both of these arise Ishvara, Praajnya, space etc. five elements, five organs of knowledge, mind, intellect, five organs of action, five vital forces. Then the gross form of five elements occurs through intermixing, called "pancheekarana". In those intermixed five elements, many kinds of gross bodies and realms are created.

Subtle and causal bodies are the same in all beings. Differences exist only in gross bodies. "Vaishvaanara" and "Vishva" are imagined on the basis of these gross bodies. These gods, animals and birds that are called Vishva, do not have the knowledge of the inner element hidden inside them. Just like children watching a street show remain inside their doors, in the same way, due to their ignorance, these beings always remain within the doors of their sense organs, and the organs of actions are labourers who carry out the commands of the sense organs. What more can we say about the foolishness of these beings? They are stuck in such a whirlpool, that coming out of it will be difficult.

These beings work in order to enjoy, and then they enjoy so that they can work. Since they perform action, they have to go through its result. After enjoying, when some base pleasure comes their way, they enter into the trap of action with double enthusiasm and so get further entangled. So action created enjoyment and enjoyment creates action. They cannot see beyond action and enjoyment. In their mind, they never ask a question, will we ever come out of the cycle of action and enjoyment? Will we ever get respite from it? They are like blind people who have been trapped in a doorless room one birth after another. They will never have the vision of joy. Their state is like that of a moth who is trapped in one whirlpool after another in a stream. Only after millions of merits do they find a person in the form of a teacher who can remove them from this whirlpool.

There are so many oceans in the world, but only rainwater is potable. Similarly, the entire universe is pervaded by the self element, but it is made useful for us only through a teacher. The oil in a cow's body cannot benefit the cow directly. When it is milked from the cow, the oil extracted from it and fed back to the cow, then its body is nourished. That is why, a teacher is required that can churn his student and feed him the self element. 

The teacher causes the student to realize for certain that the self is hidden somewhere inside the five sheaths. When this self hides in the five sheaths, then the self is forgotten and one becomes trapped in the world.

A stalk has to be removed from grass with great care. Similarly, using the technique of the teachers, when brave people remove the self element from the three bodies, the indications of brahman begin to be seen in the self. By seeing the oneness of the indications, seekers have to admit that I am that very supreme brahman self. Through this, the possibility of oneness of the superior and inferior self sits in the heart of readers. "I am that" and other such great statements, they give witness to this oneness. When qualified students hear these statements appropriately, then they realize the undivided existence consciousness bliss brahman.

The doubts regarding this supreme goal go away through hearing and contemplation. When this supreme goal stays in the heart firmly and flows like a stream of oil, it is called nidhidhyaasana or meditation. When this meditation reaches its fruition, what to say of its greatness? Then the meditator and meditated become one. At that time, the meditating mind is like a burning lamp in a windless place, or a lamp drawn in a picture. When such a state is attained, then it should be understood that "samaadhi" has been achieved.

The greatness of this samaadhi is that the garbage bin of actions that we have accumulated since time immemorial are destroyed by this samaadhi. Pure duty begins to increase, due to which realization that can destroy ignorance and its cause, arises. By remaining in this samaadhi, when the entire web of desires is destroyed, when the heap of actions known as merits and sins is gone, then the meaning of statements such as "you are that" will be properly understood. Prior to arrival of this generous state, any spiritual knowledge should be considered indirect. But when someone gets this direct knowledge then even the cause of the world, the root ignorance, also gets burnt.

When someone does such a discrimination of the essence and gives the great teaching to his mind towards this goal, then he will definitely gain direct knowledge. His bonds of the world will be cut open. Then there will not even be a moment's delay for him to gain the supreme state. We can also say that he will become the supreme brahman, of the form of existence consciousness bliss. 

The non-superimposed, non-imagined reality has been demonstrated in this section. The deeper meaning of this section is this: In one place there cannot be two imagined substances. That only one non-imagined substance can remain in one place is a general rule. Where there is one real rope, there cannot be a real unimagined snake in that same place. But yes, it is possible that an imaginary snake can exist in the same place as the rope. Reality and imaginary are seen in one place, like in a mirage. 

Wherever we see an imaginary substance, there lies the non-imaginary essential reality beneath it, but at time it is hidden. If at that time, we know the essence, then the imaginary substance will vanish instantly, just like objects in a dream. Similarly, understand that this world has a reality, it has a non-superimposed inherent form that is one, and that also is hidden. Its inherent form is "real", "knowledge" and "supreme bliss". But there have been several kinds of superimpositions on it. There are several imagined worldly entities such as body, senses, mind, intellect and others, they have taken all our attention towards them. As a result, all we see is "unreal", "ignorance" and "sorrow" everywhere.

Like the snake on the rope attracts attention towards it, and takes our attention away from the rope, in the same manner these imaginary objects block the experience of the essence, and themselves come in front of us. We develop fear and agitation when we see the snake, in the same manner when we see the body and other entities, the cycle of birth and death starts. We unfortunate beings are born to die and die to be born. When due to fruition of merits we meet a recognizer of the essence, and when he bestows his grace upon us, then we realize these imagined entities, our vision goes to the non-imaginary existence consciousness bliss reality, and then worldliness stops.

This teacher reveals the inherent true form of the non-imaginary reality. Then, contemplation or manana on that reality begins, and when all doubts go away, the mind settles on that reality. As this happens, when the state of the minds becomes quiet like the picture of a lamp, then this state is called samaadhi. When this happens, the heap of actions burns away, and bonds of the world decay. In this state, the final goal has to come close to the seeker.

A mirror is solid. It does not have the capacity to hold even a grain. But inside it, it can hold several things, and a long and wide sky can be seen. In the same way, that existence consciousness bliss reality is solid everywhere, there are no holes in it, no grain can enter it. But, due to this accident of maayaa, this entire world is seen as a misapprehension in this existence consciousness bliss. Just like we know the purity of a mirror while seeing the infinite sky in it, and we do not believe what we see, if we are able to realize the purity of the existence consciousness bliss while seeing infinite worlds in it, if a few drops in the form of the water of existence consciousness bliss will fall upon us, if the mind revels in this essence, and we lose the faith of reality in what we see externally, then understand that the superimposed entities have gone and the essence has been accessed. 

To be able to give us access to this essence is the goal of the chapter called Tattva Viveka.

Translated from the Commentary by Pandit Raamaavataara Vidyaabhaaskara, a student of Achyuta Muni.

Summary Of Chitra Deepa, 6th Chapter of Panchadashi

A cloth with a picture on it has four states - washed, starched, outlined and painted. In the same way, there are four states of the supreme self: (1) Chetana 2) Antarayaamee (3) Soortaatmaa (4) Viraata. In his own self he is chetana, when he meditates on maayaa he is antaryaamee, when he sees the subtle creation then he is sootraatmaa, when he sees the gross creation he is viraata.

The bodies of gods, animals, humans are superimposed on awareness. In that, there are reflections of awareness called chidaabhaasa or jeeva/soul. It is those souls that are roaming the creation. The aware element is pervasive, transcendental, undivided, it cannot roam in creation. Those who take the creation of the soul as the creation of the awareness, they make a mistake. One point to be noted about the chidaabhaase is that it reflections in bodies, but not in soil or stones. The notion of a soul arises due to lack of science.

The visible creation is the supreme goal, everyone pursues it, thinking is is misunderstanding. This creation is of the soul, and there is no creation happening in the self element, this knowledge is called "vidyaa" or science. This science arises through constant contemplation. To gain it, one has to constantly contemplate upon the world, soul and supreme self. When the notion of soul and world will go, then just the self will remain, then kaivalya or aloneness will arrive.

When the self element will ascend in the form of aloneness, then contemplation will drop by itself. In order to bring the self element in the form of aloneness, the assistance of contemplation is required, so let us spend some time on contemplation. "Kootastha" and "soul", "brahman" and "Ishvara", these four kinds of awareness have been imagined for ease of understanding.

The awareness in both bodies never undergoes any transformation (vikaara). This awareness is called kootastha. In that kootastha awareness, first there was the imagination of an intellect, then the reflection of awareness fell on it, then the power of vital force arose. This is all that constitutes a soul. It is that which gets trapped in the world. It has completely wrapped and covered the kootastha underneath. Now, it never gains the distinct understanding of the essence. Its not knowing this is beginningless. This is called "moolaajnyaana".

This lack of science works in two ways. One, it covers the real form, two, it projects or shows the real form as some other form, like the body etc. This alone is aavarana and vikshepa. Aavarana or cloaking stops the experience of our own form. Vikeshepa or projection mixes our self with other things. Both of these vanish once knowledge of the essence happens. But projection takes longer to vanish after knowledge of the essence. This is because projection is creation through actions and lack of science intermingling. Projection vanishes only after the effects of actions go away. This is the reason why after knowledge, the praarabdha actions of a knowledge bearer are not destroyed.

About the self, many people have misconceptions. Some people think of it as one thing, some people think of it as another. The essence of all of this is that the supreme Ishvara is the wielder of maayaa, which is an instrument of his. The imagined parts of that controller have pervaded this entire world. When his maayaa is not contemplated upon, it appears real, upon contemplation it appears indescribable, if the shruti is to be accepted, then maayaa is proven useless. This maayaa power is not seen without awareness. It is not independent from that, but since it can convert unattached to attached, it is independent as well.

As long as maayaa is not understood, it is considered as a wonder. When it is understood, it is no longer considered as a wonder. In dreams, the soul creates his own maayaa, in which no rules apply. Whatever is seen is fine, it is accepted. In the same manner, no matter how maayaa is seen, it is fine. If logic is used to understand it, it is a mistake. When walking on the path of faith, that point which was seen in the early stages of knowledge, should be reexamined to check whether it was seen when none went astray.All objections are imposed only on those who believe that the world is real. Just like in sleep, there can be no objections applied to maayaa. Without applying objections to maayaa, and contemplating on ways to remove it, this is the supreme benefit.

That which cannot be explained, but is visible, such an indication of worldly maayaa is applicable to Ishvara's maayaa as well. That which has the power of infinite creation, that seed called maayaa is experienced by all in deep sleep. Just like a tree within a seed, the entire world is dormant in that state of deep sleep. In that maaya, all the latent desires (vaasanaas) of the world are present. The awareness in those desires is not clearly manifested. That is why no one fully knows the extent of their latent desires.

When this maayaa or lack of science becomes endowed with the reflection of awareness and manifests as the intellect, then the reflection of awareness is clearly seen in it. When the latent desires become intellect thought flows, then it is known that even such a latent desire was present. The reflection of awareness (chidaabhaasa) subservient to maayaa, is the same one that is called maheshvara, antaryaamee, sarvajnya, jagat kaarana in the Vedas.

No one has the capacity to change the inner or outer world created by this one. This alone is its sarveshvara or "all Ishvara" nature. That is why, when one is obsessed with something, no one else can change it. In this state of lack of science in deep sleep reside the latent desires of the intellects of all beings which have surrounded the world. The entire world becoming subservient to these subtle desires is occupied in their endeavours. That is why it is called sarvajnya or omniscient. The reason why we do not know its omniscience is no one ever knows their desires directly. Depending on the objects that come before us, the corresponding desires spring up. Perhaps not in one time, but in some other time, by experiencing all objects, his omniscience is proven. Just because his omniscience is not known in one instance, we cannot gauge it. It has to be inferred.

This one stays inside all of the sheaths including the intellectual sheath and others, and controls them. Hence he is called antaryamee or the inner controller. Just like the thread stays as the material cause in cloth, this one becomes the material cause of everything and remains everywhere, sarvatra. When the thread moves, it is certain that the cloth also moves. In the same way, when the inner controller is influenced by the desire of a thing, that effect will definitely arise. If the desire of a pot arises in the inner controller, a pot will surely be created. This is the notion in the Gita of the inner controller making everyone move by sitting on a machine.

That same Ishvara takes on the form of the supreme goal also, that is why the supreme goal or purushaartha is not useless. If this inspiration of the inner controller were to fully come into the mind, then the non-attached-ness of the self element will be understood. By the knowledge of its unattachedness, liberation is attained, this point is mentioned in the scriptures.

Anticipating the actions of beings, Ishvara sometimes creates the world, and sometimes hides it in himself. Creation and dissolution of this world is exactly like our day and night, our waking and dream, our blinking the eyelids, and our silence and fanciful thinking. This Ishvara and that brahman element are not one. But in general, this difference is not known. Most people think of them as one. Scriptures assert that the brahman element is unattached. The creation of the world, the great Ishvara, wields maayaa.

Now hear about the sootraatmaa. He keeps the "I am" nature in all subtle bodies. "Desire", "knowledge" and "action", these powers are resident in him. Just like the world is seen fuzzily in light darkness, is the same way it is seen in the sootraatmaa. It is the state of the seed ready to sprout, also called Hiranyagarbha.

The third state called viraata is like the world shining under sunlight. No matter how large or how small, aware or inert, all objects of the world are the Ishvara element alone. That is why, when someone comes to the aid of another, he says, you have become Ishvara and come to me. This world is doing nothing but worshipping all these small and large Ishvaras. It is also reaping the fruits of these large and small Ishvaras. This is all fine, but the great fruit called liberation will not be achieved by worshipping these Ishvaras. Liberation will be achieved only by realizing the brahman element. Just like our dream is not broken unless we wake up. in the same manner, without knowledge of the self, the bondage of the world does not get cut.

In the non-dual brahman element, this entire world is like a great dream In this dream, someone is Ishvara, someone is soul, some are aware and some are inert. Ishvara is "of bliss" and soul is "of science". The Ishvara element is fuzzy, the soul element is clear. Both are created out of maayaa. Their worlds are also created out of maayaa. Ishvara and soul are two playthings of maayaa, Regarding them, there are many debates, but no one knows the brahman element which remains unattached. Without knowing this non-dual brahman element, neither liberation nor worldly enjoyments can be properly realized. That is why seekers continuously contemplate on the brahman element.

This brahman element was the same prior to, during, and after creation, and will remain so even after liberation. All of this negation, creation, bondage, seeking, all this is only happening on the surface of the ocean of brahman. In the quiet depths, none of this is even registered. Like the idol of Shiva, it always remains in an unbroken state of silence. But maayaa has unnecessarily caused people to become deluded. They think that neither there is such a thing called the non-dual, nor can it be experienced. The resolve of the knowledge bearer is opposed to this. He is bound by his own resolve, and he is liberated by his own resolve. When masters of horses and donkeys don't have ropes to tie them, they pretend to tie them, and that works just as well.

In this manner, due to their own desires, beings are bound since the beginning of time unnecessarily. A hornet that can cut into wood cannot make a dent in a lotus. In the same way, people are bound by their own desires which are hard to tackle. Now they cannot come out of it. Due to having all these desires, infinite universes have passed. The being's notion of bondage has become firm. He has begun to think that I am a trapped being. It is natural for me to experience birth and death. I have to experience the results of my actions. My stay in the womb cannot be averted. I will never break the cycle of birth and death. It is this kind of thinking alone that is called bondage. Besides the experience of bondage, there is nothing else called bondage.

A silkworm wraps itself up in silk and invites death. He digs his own grave. In the same way, a person thinks himself to be bound, becomes a criminal who has confessed, becomes bound by his own will, and the cycle of birth, old age and death continues. So long as the non-dual element is not immediately experienced, the notion of bondage cannot be destroyed. In the form of knowledge, that non-dual element is shining in all. This knowledge has kept all worlds within itself. There is no space or time that is not covered by the sea of knowledge. Using the logic of cooked rice in a vessel, a little bit of non-duality should be converted to an understanding of entire non-duality. Using the logic of oneness of cause and effect, the non-duality should be contemplated, and whenever the maayaa oriented duality arises, it should be removed through contemplation.

Fruits ripen and leave their stems. Similarly, when there is fullness in realization, then this contemplation automatically drops. After gaining this knowledge, if the essence is harmed by feelings of hunger and thirst, if this essence is ready to run or disappear, let hunger and thirst stay with the ego that has them. Do not take the qualities of others upon yourself. This hunger and thirst stick to the self through identification alone. The removal of that superimposition and the repetition of discrimination should be conducted always. This is because the enemy in the form of superimposition can be repelled only through the shield of discrimination.

When the chidaatmaa is kept separate and the ego is known as distinct, you can become free and desire a million things, after the knots have been removed, there is no obstruction. Even after the knots have gone, desires can come due to the defect of praarabdha. There is no need to fear desires. Whether there is sickness in the body, whether trees grow or wither, whether the ego desires, how does any of this affect the aware self? When the self element was never affected even before removal of the knots, when this understanding comes, that itself is called "removal of the knots". But ignorant people do not understand this, this is what is called a knot. This knot is what separates ignorant from the wise.

In worldly dealings, both wise and ignorant look the same. In the Gita, the mark of a wise person is as follows: he does not detest the sorrows that have arrived, and he does not insist the departing joys that they stay. He just works like someone uninterested. In other words, internally he has renunciation, but externally he shows attachment, and this is how he works. Those who insist that the result of knowledge is leaving all action, they make a mistake. The knowledge gained by them is a kind of disease that makes the body useless. The thing that has to be dropped is attachment. Dealings are not meant to be dropped. One who wants joy should give up attachment. 

Dealings do not cause any harm. But attachment does cause harm. In the world, even if someone commits murder without any attachment, then he does not become a criminal. Knowledge is not the cause of dealings to stop. In order to understand the starting and stopping of dispassion, dispassion, knowledge and cessation or uparama have to be understood properly.

Dispassion arises from the vision of fault in enjoyments. The desire to give up enjoyments is the true form of dispassion, not having the notion of dependency on enjoyments is the effect of dispassion. The knowledge of the essence arises from hearing, sorting and meditation. Recognizing real and unreal is the true form of knowledge, the prevention of further knots is the effect of knowledge. Yama (non-violence, truth, non-stealing, incontinence, non-hoarding) and niyama (cleanliness, contentment, penance, self study and Ishvara devotion), aasana, praanaayaama, pratyaahaara, dhaaranaa, dhyaana and samaadhi, by performing all of these, cessation is born. The ability of the intellect to stop is its true form. The reduction or cessation of dealings is the effect of cessation.

People who want to stop dealings immediately after knowledge continue to think mental dealings. People who forcibly stop dealings regress. Their unfulfilled desires arise at some point and cause agitation. What should happen is this. After the knowledge of the essence, when our mental creations, the creation of the soul ends, we begin to conduct transactions keeping Ishvara's creation in mind. In other words, the actions that were conducted by us in a state of attachment, they will happen in a state of non-attachment in Ishvara's creation. By performing yama etc., the creation of our mind begins to hide, and the creation of Ishvara begins to come in front of our eyes.

This is how divine wealth begins to increase, and that will slowly leave us into the full essence. Then, quite naturally, our transactions will exhaust. The practice of withdrawal alone will really result in transactions ending. The reduction of transaction only happens through withdrawal, not through the ending the knowledge. If dispassion and withdrawal are complete, but if knowledge is halted, then liberation is not attained. If there is fullness in realization, then even if dispassion and withdrawal are complete, then too, liberation will be attained, but the rare bliss of living liberation will not be attained. 

Considering even the realm of Brahma like a blade of grass is the foremost point of dispassion. When the supreme essence also is considered the self like the body self, this is the foremost state of dispassion. Forgetting the world in waking, just like in sleep, is the foremost limit of withdrawal. In our self awareness, maayaa has created a picture in the form of the world. Through knowledge, when we do not look at this picture, but look at our self awareness instead, then even while seeing this world picture, we do not get deluded.

Translated from the Commentary by Pandit Raamaavataara Vidyaabhaaskara, a student of Achyuta Muni.