214. Aatmasamyamasteshaamparamo brahmaapi Gitah.
Translation: For atheists self control is the ultimate and hence the self itself is the ultimate God. The self also means God in human form as seen in the Gita.
Explanation: The Aatmasamyama Yoga is mentioned in the Gita, which means that the self should be controlled. Here the self means the inert energy which is the basic form of awareness. This is the first and final step for atheists. This step is essential for the Nivrutti Yoga also because the self or inert energy is to be diverted for the divine work. Therefore, the Atma Yoga is common for both atheists and theists. The atheists stop in Atma Yoga itself and attain happiness by getting liberation from the expenditure of self in worldly issues. For an atheist, the attainment of self or inert energy reducing the activities of awareness is the end. The self is God for him and hence, Shankara used the word Brahman sounding God to mean the self. Here Brahman (God) means the ultimate goal. Any ultimate goal, beyond which the journey is stopped, can be called as God. A guardian for a boy is said to be the godfather. Here the guardian is neither God nor father. It only means that the guardian is the ultimate. But for a theist, this Atma Yoga is only a preparatory ground for the real spiritual effort. His goal is not the self present in the human body. His goal is God. But God is also present in a specific human being like Shankara, Vasudeva etc. Since God exists in a self, the self could also mean the medium in which God is present. For him, the Atma Yoga means the attainment of God in human form. The meaning of the word Atman or self should be carefully understood as per the context. For example, in the Gita, it is said that the self should uplift the self (Uddharedatmanaatmanam…). The first self means the contemporary human incarnation of God and the second self means the ordinary human being who is trying to spiritually uplift himself. A soul cannot uplift itself and also cannot be uplifted by any other soul. Only God in the form of a soul like Vasudeva or Shankara can uplift any soul. The theist gets infinite happiness from God whereas an atheist gets finite happiness from self-attainment or Atma Yoga as per the Gita (Vindantyamani yatsukham…, Sukhamakshayamashnute…). Thus, the word Atman is also double edged like the word Brahman.
215. Atmayoga ubhayadhaa svarupataijasaalaabhaat.
Translation: Atamayoga stands not only for the attainment of self but also the attainment of God, since the original form and energetic form are not available.
Explanation: Since Atman means ordinary soul as well as God existing in an ordinary soul, the word Atmayoga stands not only for the attainment of self but also the attainment of God in human form. Other than the contemporary human incarnation, God cannot be attained either in the original state or in the energetic form. God can never be attained in the original state because God is unimaginable. God can also not be attained in energetic form like Narayana, Shiva and Brahma, since energetic form is relevant to departed souls only. Hence, the only possibility of God is in the form of a contemporary human being like Vasudeva for any human being. Therefore, Atmayoga means the spiritual path in which the self is attained first and then God in the form of self. This concept is the basis for misunderstanding that any self is God.
216. Naadvaitamekasaamyaat tadbrahmaatmanaam.
Translation: By single similarity, the monism cannot be concluded in God, Brahman and the self.
Explanation: The self is the inert energy and is the working element. The work done by self is the triad of qualities. The self is beyond its work or the triad of qualities (Sattvam, Rajas and Tamas) and therefore it is beyond the qualities (Gunaatita). Since, self is the same cosmic energy qualitatively; the cosmic energy or Brahman is also beyond the qualities (Gunaatita). Comparing self and cosmic energy, we can build the logic, which states that since self is beyond qualities, cosmic energy is also beyond qualities and hence both the self and cosmic energy are one and the same. God is also beyond qualities (Gunaatita) since God is beyond the entire creation. Qualities are a part of the creation and hence God is beyond the qualities. Now you cannot apply the same logic existing between self (Atman) and cosmic energy (Brahman) to self and God (Parabrahman). You cannot say that since self and God are beyond qualities, the self must be God. Self and cosmic energy are items of creation. The logic applicable to the creation cannot be applied to self (item of creation) and God (creator). Even in the case of self and cosmic energy, the similarity is only qualitative and still the quantitative difference exists. In the case of self and God, the difference is total because self is imaginable and God is unimaginable. Similarly, the cosmic energy (the first item of creation) is imaginable and is totally different from the unimaginable God. Even in the case of the items of creation, based on one similarity, you cannot conclude that two items are one and the same. Since, the king and beggar are human beings, you cannot say that king and beggar are one and the same based on single similarity.
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