Sinduja Kosgi
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Sinduja Kosgi
ParticipantHow does the Self move and not move?
Self does not move as it is the changeless presence enabling all change.
No object can appear without the existence of the Self.
Self is silent, most subtle and still always.
Self moves with respect to the sopadika drishti/upadhis. Whether the hands move or not, it refers to the Self moving. Self does nothing, yet, Self is doing everything by its very presence – Sannidhi Matrena.How is the Self both far and near? When the wise see it as one’s own Self, it is near and when one sees not even in a million years because of ignorance, it is very far.
How is delusion and sorrow ended, as per the upaniṣad in verse 7?
When one sees all beings as one’s own Self, there is sarvatma bhava. There is no delusion or sorrow when there is experience of the one Self in and through the upadhis.ParticipantReflect the fruit of the Knowledge of īśāvāsyam idaṁ sarvam as per verses 6 and 7.
Fruit of the knowledge of isavasyam idam sarvam is seeing the world in the Self by the vision of the Self because of the Upadesha from the Guru.
Brahma Satyam – Brahman is the adhistan, Jagat is the adhyasta and the Paramartika Jeeva, The Sakshi is the same as the adhistan, The Self. In this way, atma vidya makes one see the Self as the adhishtan of all objects and beings and frees one from samsara arising out of identification with the upadhis.Reflect which terms in verse 8 negate the Self being free of the gross, subtle and causal bodies.
kaayam – body – negates the self being free of the subtle body
vrina – wound and asnaviragam – nadis
negates the self being free of the gross body
Shuddham – refers to the Self being free of the causal body
apaapavidham = refers to the Self being beyond paapa and punyaWhy does the upaniṣad begin the discussion of karma and upāsanā? What does the upaniṣad want to show by this discussion?
Th Upanisad begins the discussion of karma and upasana to glorify Atma Vidya and show the means to proceed to Isha vasya midagam sarvan through Karma and Upasana. It wants to show the limitations of karma and upasana by this discussion. As long as there is no atma vidya, even the best results that are got by performing karma and upasana put together will not give one peace. It leaves one unfulfilled.ParticipantReflect on iṣṭa- and pūrta-karmas.
karma comes under avidya, and is of 2 types ista and purta
Ista – Vedic rituals – the yagnas and yagaas
Purta – Social service / welfare activities like digging wells
Result of Ista and Purta karma is pitr lokaReflect on what can be achieved through karma and upāsanā?
Through Karma – one goes to pitr loka and through upasana, one goes to deva loka.
Through karma, one transcends mrityu meaning, one can go beyond living an instinctive life, even though it is sakama karma, one gets a life of achievement and success because of the discipline needed.
Through Upasana which comes under vidya – one gets amrita – they identify with hiranya garbha and enjoy immortality till end of kalpa.
When karma and upasana is performed together, one goes to greater blinding darkness as ones attachment to i and my increases as it is done for pleasure and happiness.
Reflect ahaṅgraha-upāsanā and its result.
When one does upasana and takes it to its limit, one identifies with the object of devotion – i is you , they get the devatma bhava when it makes the individual one with the object of worshipParticipantWhat does the upaniṣad refer to as vidyā and avidyā in verses 9 to 11?
Vidya refers to Upasana
Avidya refers to KarmaWhy does the upaniṣad ask the practitioner to combine vidyā and avidyā?
Upanisad asks the practitioner to combine vidya and avidya for getting the maximum benefit of both karma and upasana put togetherWhat is the maximum result gained by combination of vidyā and avidyā? How does it compare to the result of īśāvāsyam idaṁ sarvam enumerated in verse 1?
Maximum result gained by vidya and avidya, ie karma and upasana is that karma makes you human with nobility and great achievement and upasana gives one the immortality of the embodiment – till pralaya.
it is not the immortality gained by atma jnana. it is nothing compared to atma jnana as it is all in the realm of matter.4.What does the upaniṣad refer to as sambhuti and asambhuti-upāsanā in verses 12 to 14?
sambhuti upasana is where one worships the karya brahma (hiranyagarbha) /born and attains oneness with it.
asambhuti upasana is where one worships the karana brahma (Ishwara)/prakriti/unborn and attains oneness with it5.Why does the upaniṣad ask the practitioner to combine sambhuti and asambhuti-upāsanā?
Again to get maximum result.6.What is the maximum result gained by combination of sambhuti and asambhuti-upāsanā? How does it compare to the result of īśāvāsyam idaṁ sarvam enumerated in verse 1?
Sambhuti – worship as aham hiranyagarbha – (result of which is aishwarya and sidhis and and going to brahma loka)
asambhuti – worship as aham prakriti – which is bhava pradana – (result of which is prakriti laya – relaxed till endless time where no karma will wake one up).combination of sambhuti upasana and asambhuti upasana is again nothing as it is still in the realm of maya and leads one to blinding darkness.
jeeva is still suffering as light has not yet dawned. Only solution is Know one’s True Self.ParticipantReflect on verses 15,16 and 17 on the mood of the seeker while chanting these prayers.
The seeker is on his death bed and chanting these prayers to his deity, the Surya Mandala Purusha to remove the brightness of his covering so that he can see him. he is identifying himself with his deity and not as a servant because of his long years of upasana. he is asking the fire deity to merge his elements with hiranya garbha. Even though, this could be the best death anyone can ask for, it is not tension free. he is still identified with his body and thinking that he is dying.What does the upanisad want to convey by the description of the above verses?
The Upanisad is conveying to us that we should not attempt this. It is not worth it. We should give up the identification with this body and abide in the Self. It is telling us to go beyond death as there is no death for one who has identified with the Self.Participant- How and why is karma-yoga the bridge between pravṛtti and nivṛtti-margas?
Pravrtti Marg – This path includes nitya karma and Naimmitika karma (Duties).
Nivritti Marg – Path which is taken by one who has realized his/her true nature of Isha Vasya Idam Sarvam – I am the consciousness and I pervade the entire totality. There is no desire to acquire anything because one has realized that I alone am everything and in everything. This is the Jnani’s state – Akaama state – he has realized that he is not the karta or the bhokta. State of Knowledge.
Karma-yoga is the bridge between the pravritti marg and nivritti marg because, as one keeps performing the duties without focusing on the results, mind gets purified. Then, when one performs the duties with Iswara Arpana buddhi and prasada budhi, mind gets further purified(Karma-yoga). In this way, one proceeds from sakaama, to nishkama karma to akaama (Nivritti marg).
- What is meant by killing the Self and what is its result? Why are asura-loka said to be in blinding darkness?Killing the Self means ignoring the Self and taking an embodiment. All embodiments are rooted in ignorance and thus go to Asura loka. Only Realization of the Self takes you out. Asuras are those people who revel in sense pleasures. Asura loka is said to be in blinding darkness because there is no way out of the suffering due to the mistaking of the Not-self to be the Self and the Self to be the not-Self.
ParticipantReflect the apparent contradictions made by the upaniṣad in verse 4? What are the reasons the upaniṣad presents these contradictions?
Upanisad says, Self is the motionless one, faster than the mind which is an apparent contradiction.
Self is motionless in motion. Motionless when looked at through the Nirupadika drishti, meaning without upadhis and in motion refers to when looked at through the Sopadika drishti, meaning with upadhis. The Reality or Truth is beyond words.
The upanishad is presenting the apparent contradictions so that we can understand the nature of the Truth and train to go beyond words and just abide as the Self.
• How is the Self faster than the mind? Which components of the mind does the Self overtake?
Self is faster than the mind because, before the mind can reach, Self is already present both as reflected consciousness which has empowered the mind and as pure consciousness which is the substratum.
Mind is faster than the indriyas as it functions through them. Since Self is faster than the mind, and mind is faster than the indriyas, Self overtakes the indriyas and the mind.
• Who is referred to as ‘Mātariśva’ in verse 4 and how? What is its function?
Matarisva is Hiranyagarbha or Ishwara who enables the deities to function. Wind is one of the deities who is enabled by Matarisva to move in the interspace.Participant- Why should the mantras of Isavasya-upanisad not be considered as part of karma – Because the mantras are not meant for doing karma, it is meant to give us the True nature of the Self – in other words – teaches us Brahma Vidya – knowledge of the Self. Self is not karta, bhokta,It is not for whom , we are doing karma. It is Shudh, it is untouched by Punya and Paapa.
- reflect how isavasyam idam sarvam is to be done – Self is all pervading. identify with my own True Self and see myself as all pervading without identifying with the Body, mind and intellect. Remain as the Self. Abide in the knowledge – I am the Self, I am not the karta, bhokta.
- Why is isavasyam idam sarvam not a mental upasana – isavasyam idam sarvam is knowledge of our true self, This is not a mental activity. It is knowling, who i truely am. When i identify myself with the body, mind and intellect, i think that i am so and so. With Self- knowledge, i know my true nature as the all pervading consciousness. I alone am everything in this world. There is nothing apart from me, the pure Self.
Participant- Why should one have the notion of isavasyam idam sarvam and what is its result? We should have the notion of isavasya idam sarvam to protect ourselves from sorrow which rises out of the notion of individuality. Instead of identifying oneself with the True self,which is the all pervading consciousness, one identifies with the body, mind and intellect and greatly suffers.
- For whom does the upanishad prescribe duty to be performed and why?The upanishad prescribes duty for one who has not realized one’s own Self as the all pervading Reality. Duty when performed without being anxious for the results and as a worship of the Lord, purifies the mind and paves the way for Self Knowledge.
- How is kurvan eva (verse 2) indicating nishkama karma? The word Eva refers to alone – Kurvan eva means, by being focused on work alone and not on the results indicates nishkama karma. Without a desire, no action is possible, but, when i focus on the work alone, without being anxious about the results or any insistence on a particular result, and do the work as the worship of the Lord, this work becomes nishkama karma.
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