PARABRAHMA SUTRAS (222-224)

222. Saamaanyapanchakosheshu nivruttigamakam prajnaanam.

Translation: In the analysis of the five categories of an ordinary human being, the final conclusion of the greatest is only the spiritual knowledge through which one can attain infinite bliss.

Explanation: In the analysis of five categories existing in ordinary human beings, even the limited bliss cannot be the greatest. Without God, infinite bliss is impossible. Hence, the final conclusion is that the exceptional spiritual knowledge (Prajnaanam) given by Sadguru or the human incarnation is the greatest (Brahman). By such spiritual knowledge only you can have a correct approach to God and you can be blessed by God with infinite bliss.

223. Avataarepi naanandah prajnaanamevopaadhidharmah.

Translation: Even in the human incarnation, the bliss cannot be the permanent identity mark due to the entertained misery and the internal infinite bliss is invisible. The special spiritual knowledge is the permanent identity mark but even that is the inseparable characteristic of the medium only.

Explanation: The same analysis of five categories in the human incarnation shows the other meaning of Brahman, which is God. The five categories of the human being indicate the address steps of the existence of God in a specific medium. All the five categories indicate that God exists in a selected liberated soul having His own human body. In the case of the human incarnation also, the happiness is limited because of the existence of misery also in its life of the role. God is having infinite bliss because He derives bliss even from misery like an actor enjoying all types of scenes in his role, while acting in a drama. Hence the limited happiness (Anandamaya Kosha) is only an alternating object along with misery of the human incarnation, since God is internally associated with infinite bliss. Even in the case of the human incarnation, bliss is not given the greatest position or a permanent mark of identification, since the human incarnation is associated with misery also in external life. Hence, you cannot identify God with mere happiness. Rama was weeping several times in His life and hence, His external limited happiness cannot be His sign. The internal infinite bliss is not exposed to us and hence cannot be a permanent identity mark. But the special spiritual knowledge radiated by Him stands as an identity mark to recognize God in human form. Even this exceptional spiritual knowledge is not His inherent characteristic since He is unimaginable. It is only the inseparable external characteristic of the medium in which God exists.

224. Bhagavaduktaa gitaa yashodaanaat na bhaargavastu.

Translation: The Gita was spoken by God directly and not by the liberated soul in the human incarnation. God gives the credit to the liberated soul. Parashurama declared otherwise and got insulted.

Explanation: Whenever the human incarnation declares itself as God, such a declaration may be from the God-component directly or from the liberated soul. While preaching the Gita, Krishna declared that He is the ultimate God. These declarations are from the God directly due to the requirement of such declarations. Hence, everywhere it is written that God is speaking (Shri Bhagavan uvacha…) and not that Krishna is speaking (Krishna uvaacha…). In the case of Parashurama, who is also an equivalent human incarnation (since He is one of the ten incarnations), a declaration that none can oppose Him was made. This declaration was from the liberated soul and hence, there was a subsequent insult at the hands of Rama. When Arjuna asked Krishna to repeat the Gita at the end of the war, Krishna said that He is unable to repeat it again. This is the reply from Krishna (liberated soul). Krishna was true in His reply because He wishes to establish the fact of the existence of God in a liberated soul, in the same human body. Krishna was not hypocritical to save His ego by saying that He does not want to repeat since Arjuna was not attentive when He spoke first. When God is speaking directly the Gita, He used the voice of Krishna as His instrument. God can speak from space also without the help of any human voice. But when an instrument is available, the superpower is never exhibited by God. The liberated soul was blessed and God entered it to give all the credit to the liberated soul. For this purpose also God spoke through Krishna only.

PARABRAHMA SUTRAS (220-221)

220. Taabhyaam tasya dvitiyamukham vistaarabhaashitam.

Translation: The second part of Shankara exposed in his prayers for the minority of theists in His time was elaborated in commentaries of Ramanuja and Madhva.

Explanation: The present Advaitins were atheists in the previous births and sufficient time has passed in doing the worship of mediated God. The Advaitins worship the mediated God in all forms but the sincerity is not true because they believe that they and the mediated God are one and the same in the absolute plane. They feel that the difference is only in the present relative plane and that the difference is only due to ignorance. The Advaitin thinks that his ignorance about his Godliness is not yet removed fully and the ignorance of the Lord whom he worships is already removed. Except this apparent difference, the Advaitin feels that the Lord and Himself are one and same. The Advaitin feels that the moment he rises to the absolute plane, even this apparent difference between him and the Lord gets removed. Even the demon who claims that he is also God worshipped the Lord with true sincerity for a long time. After getting powers from the Lord through the boon, the demon becomes egoistic and feels that he is God since he is controlling the creation through his superpowers. The Advaitin is a worse case than even the demon because he is worshipping the Lord without true sincerity and he never worshipped the Lord with sincerity even for a little time. The Advaitin does not have any superpower granted by the Lord like the demon and cannot control anything in the world like an ordinary human being. But his ignorance mixed with over-intelligence makes him say that he need not control the world since the world is unreal. It is again another dimension of ignorance because the world can never become unreal for him in the present relative plane and except God, none can exist in the absolute plane. To uplift such Advaitins only, Ramanuja and Madhva came down to stress the preaching of Shankara given through His composed prayers. The commentaries of Shankara were for the majority of atheists existing in His time as final goal and the same commentaries were intermediate stage for minority of theists existing in His time. The prayers were for the same minority of theists existing in His time after passing the intermediate state. After Shankara, in due course of time, the situation is reversed and theists are in majority whereas atheists are in minority. In such a situation, Ramanuja and Madhva gave the commentaries in which the concept of Shankara presented in His prayers was stressed and elaborated. Hence, Ramanuja and Madhva have exposed the other side of Shankara which was already exposed to the minority of theists in His time. Therefore, Ramanuja and Madhva have propagated the second part of the preaching of Shankara only.

221. Sarvadravyagunakriyaasrashtaa samyojakah na chideva.

Translation: God being the Creator of all entities, all properties and all works and also being the Designer of their specific associations, cannot be concluded to be mere awareness due to the work form of wish.

Explanation: Simply based on the wish to create the world, you should not decide that God is awareness. God can do everything, whereas the awareness cannot do everything. God can wish anything and also can burn anything simultaneously. Awareness can only think anything but cannot burn anything. If you say that God is awareness, since God wished, you have to say that God is fire since He burns anything. God is the source of all items, all qualities and all works in the creation. By the order of God only, a specific item is associated with a specific quality and corresponding specific work. The fire is an entity. Its quality is heat. Its work is to burn anything. The fire is associated with the property of heat and the work of burning only by the will of the Lord. If God wishes, the fire is no more hot and cannot burn anything. If God wishes, the water gets the property of heat and starts burning everything. You can identify the entity through the specific property or specific work based on the already sanction of God. Since God is the creator of all entities, all properties and all works, God can attain any quality and can do any work. In such a case, you have to conclude that God is every item in this creation. The Brahma Sutra (Ikshateh…) means, that God enters the item qualified by awareness. It means that God does not enter into a non-living being. The awareness is the broad step of the address of God existing in the specific medium. This is the basic point where Advaitins slipped and their basic confusion continued throughout their philosophy.

PARABRAHMA SUTRAS (218-219)

218. Sanmaargaphalaaya vakravaak na paapaaya kramamukteh.

Translation: If the path and the fruit are true and not affected, a twist in preaching is not a sin since in course of time, the twist gets released.

Explanation: The practical spiritual effort is to worship God intensively to become God. By the worship of God, a soul gets liberated and enters the inner circle of God. When God wants to incarnate in human form in the world, He will select some liberated soul and enter it. That blessed liberated soul gets a human body and such a human being charged with God is the human incarnation. The human being along with its human body becomes God since God pervades all over the soul and body. We say that God pervaded all over the human body because the soul is a part of the human body. A metallic wire becomes electricity when the current pervades all over it. Now we can say that the soul becomes God. Hence, the chance of becoming God is open to every soul provided it becomes deserving for the entry of God. Advaita or monism is quite possible and any soul has the chance to become God. But, in basic reality, the current is not converted into the wire and the wire is not converted to current. Similarly the current is not wire already and the wire is not current already. But the electrified wire is electricity for all practical purposes. This is the true concept, which can be accepted by any non-egoistic and non-ambitious soul. But the atheist is highly egoistic and highly ambitious. He will never worship God because he does not even accept God. Hence Shankara modified the style of the concept without affecting the basic reality to suit the atheists for their upliftment. He told atheists that they are already God and worship of the mediated God is a relative truth only to achieve the ambition. The atheist now starts worshipping the mediated God, Ishwara, believing that such worship is not true in the absolute plane. Therefore, his worship of the Lord, Ishwara, is not sincere. However, during the course of his insincere worship, the kindest Lord will pity on him and change his mind so that even this atheist becomes sincere and an obedient servant without any trace of ambition. When the path and goal are not affected, a theoretical twist is not a sin to lead a foolish human being into the correct path. The mother says to the child that the moon will come down if the child eats the food. This twist of the fact is not a sin because it is for the welfare of the child.

219. Ahantaakaamau visham phalaaya tadarthamadvaitam.

Translation: The ego and desire to become God are the poison that hinders the soul becoming God through the human incarnation. The soul becomes God in the human incarnation only to fulfill the work of God and not to satisfy its ego and ambition.

Explanation: Neither the possibility of the above-explained monism nor the open chance for such monism to any soul is false. The twist that the soul is already God is for the sake of an atheist only. Such an atheist worships the Lord without true sincerity since he feels that the difference between the Lord and Himself is only relative and in the absolute plane, both the Lord and Himself are already one. Such defective worship is inevitable in the beginning because every beginning has to be associated with defects only as per the Gita (Sarvaarambhaahi doshena…). Such defects must be removed in course of time and the soul must feel that it is a part of the imaginable creation, whereas God is the Unimaginable Creator. The difference is eternal and hence, Dvaita or duality is the basic eternal truth. God grants the above explained monism when the soul gets a chance to become the human incarnation. The soul pervaded by God becomes God for all practical purposes and the monism is practically true. The duality in the human incarnation is only the theoretical truth. Before such a chance of human incarnation, duality is the practical truth and during the human incarnation, monism is the practical truth. Hence, both monism and duality are equally important and equally true in different contexts. In the same context of human incarnation, the monism is true in the view of devotee, whereas duality is true in the view of the liberated soul charged by God. This means simultaneously the liberated soul charged by God is treated as God by devotee, whereas the liberated soul charged by God treats Himself different from God. As long as the soul aspires to become God, it will never get this chance because this ambition is the greatest poison and sin. Once this ambition is totally eradicated from the soul during the long worship of the Lord, the soul deserves to become the human incarnation. The human incarnation is to fulfill the work of God and not to satisfy the ambition of the soul. Unless this ambition and ego are completely eradicated, the soul remains undeserving to become the human incarnation.

PARABRAHMA SUTRAS (217)

217. Saadhanakriyaasadekatve Shankarabodhabheda ubhayoh.

Translation: If there is no difference in the practical effort, there can be difference in the mode of preaching and this was followed by Shankara.

Explanation: A soul can become God and such a chance is open to every soul. But claiming that the soul is already God is not correct. It is against logic, scripture and also experience. Even Shankara told that a lot of spiritual effort must be made to become God. In order to convince the atheists Shankara told that the soul is already God. If you say to an atheist that he will become God in future, he will not agree at the outset because if he agrees, it means that in the present moment, God is existing separately from himself. Saying that he is already God, is a talented trap for the foolish atheist. Even though Shankara said that the soul is already God, He recommended a lot of spiritual effort to realize this truth. If it is a reality, no time or no effort is needed to realize what you are already. If I say that you are a man, does it require any time or any effort to realize that you are a man? Therefore, it is not a reality but a talented twist of the preacher to uplift the rigid and egoistic foolish disciple. Actually a lot of effort and time is needed to become God. If I say that you are already the district collector and if it is a reality, you should become aware of your designation right from that moment. Since such practical realization is not happening, because it is not the reality, the other way is that you should put a lot of effort for a long time to remove your ignorance about your designation of collector. Now the reality of this statement is that you should put a lot of effort in studying for the IAS examination for a certain period and then become the collector. The reality is that you are not really the collector right now and that you have to put a lot of effort for sometime to become the collector. This reality is presented in a twisted form without affecting the basic reality to convince a foolish fellow in the above manner. Such a twist is to say that he is already the collector and the study for the IAS examination is only an effort to remove his ignorance about his designation as collector. Both versions are the same as far as the basic practicality is concerned. When basic practicality is not affected, the theoretical twist is not wrong. This theoretical twist is given by Shankara to bring an atheist to the path. Shankara told that an atheist is already God and he has to do certain spiritual effort to remove his ignorance about his already present Godliness. For a theist, Shankara tells that he is not God already and he has to do the same spiritual effort to become God. Practically, both are one and the same, though theoretically both the cases differ.

PARABRAHMA SUTRAS (214-216)

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.

PARABRAHMA SUTRAS (212-213)

212. Naastikaanaam ubhau karmakaamanigrahabodhakau.

Translation: For the sake of atheists both Buddha and Shankara were forced to preach the Yoga of Pravrutti only, stressing on the control of actions and desires.

Explanation: The Yoga in Pravrutti (Atmayoga) is totally different from the Yoga in Nivrutti (Brahmayoga) since atheists do not believe in God. The Yoga of Nivrutti is irrelevant to them. The only possible advice to help them is the Yoga in Pravrutti which is the attainment of the stored inert energy or self. The Yoga in Pravrutti is common to both atheists and theists, which is the attainment of perfect physical and mental health that gives happiness, but not the bliss of God. This happiness is non-eternal, where as the happiness from God is eternal and is called as bliss. The happiness in Pravrutti yoga is nothing but peace attained by arresting the loss of inert energy in the worldly affairs. Hence, the storage of inert energy is mainly based on the discipline of life and the control of desires, which are responsible for extra activities leading to extra expenditure of inert energy. Since the inert energy cannot be supplied infinitely, by taking infinite food, the control on expenditure is essential. Since the expenditure is only work (Karma) and the initiator of work is the desire or qulaity, control of desires has to be advised in the Yoga of Pravrutti. Hence Buddha stressed on the control of desires, to attain happiness in the case of atheists and this is the reason for His silence about God. Shankara was also concentrating on atheists and hence had to follow the path of Buddha by saying that God does not exist separately other than the self. This is also another style of atheism. Hence, Shankara was said to be a follower of Buddha in disguise (prachchhanna bauddha). You must remember that neither Buddha nor Shankara were atheists but they had to act like atheists in dealing with atheists. Buddha kept silent about God in the case of atheists. Shankara, being the top most genius, introduced the word Brahman which means both inert cosmic energy as well as God. Since, self is a part of the cosmic energy and qualitatively the same, Shankara extended the word Brahman meaning cosmic energy to soul also. The word Brahman can be taken as God also in the sense that it is the ultimate. Since, cosmic energy is the ultimate for atheists, it can be called as God of atheists.

213. Laukikavyayanirodhah patanjaleh tasmai puurnavyayah.

Translation: Even Patanjali appreciated the control of expenditure of inert energy for worldly affairs so that the expenditure is totally diverted towards the divine mission.

Explanation: The expenditure of inert energy in the world, has to be controlled for the Yoga, both in Pravrutti and Nivrutti. In Pravrutti, you can derive peace as happiness directly from the stored inert energy due to the control of expenditure. But in Nivrutti, you have to spend the entire inert energy without any control in the divine mission of God. In Nivrutti, since God, who is beyond the inert energy, is the source of happiness, you need not worry about its expenditure. But in Nivrutti, the expenditure must be for God alone and not for the world. Hence, the control of worldly expenditure is also advised in the Yoga of Nivrutti by Patanjali (Yogah chittavrutti nirodhah). The Yoga Sutras of Patanjali keep the Lord or Ishwara as the goal and hence the Yoga of Patanjali is not the Yoga of Pravrutti for atheists, which is the Nirisvarasankhyayoga of Kapila (sage not the human incarnation).

PARABRAHMA SUTRAS (211)

211. Samamubhayoh madhyamantamcha brahmaapyarthe tu.

Translation: For both theists and atheists, this state is common as intermediate and final respectively. Even the word Brahman is common to both, but the sense differs.

Explanation: Shankara established the nature of Atman or soul as inert energy and proved that it is the same cosmic energy or Brahman. By getting rid off Jiva, who is the doer and enjoyer of all works and by attaining the soul, one gets total peace by disassociating with all worldly affairs. This is called as the attainment of self by filtering the essence of Jiva, which is the inert energy or Atman. Since, Jiva is the work of Atman, leaving Jiva means only stopping the work of Atman as in the deep sleep. Thus, Atmayoga means attainment of deep sleep during the state of waking itself and therefore it is the attainment of peace in the waking state itself. This state is also needed for theists to do the divine service of God. This state is the final state for atheists where they enjoy the peace as bliss and treat soul as God. But the theists also enjoy the peace as peace and soul as soul in this state. Such attainment of peace is essential even for theists, who try to please God and achieve bliss from God. This Atmayoga is the final state for atheists and intermediate state for theists. The final degree of the school is common to a student, who stops there, and also for a student, who advances to college. The stopping student feels that it is the ultimate degree and the advancing student feels that it is an intermediate degree. This difference in their feelings has no relevance in doing efforts to attain the degree. Hence, the final degree of school is open to all and need not be specified for anyone of these students. For this reason, Shankara did not specify theists or atheists as relevant for His commentary, which establishes the Atmayoga. Shankara did not mention God beyond Atmayoga in His commentary, for the reason that the atheists will run away if such mention of God related to theists only is done in His commentary. Therefore, the commentary of Shankara is universal to all humanity irrespective of theists and atheists. The word Brahman satisfies both theists and atheists. For atheists, the cosmic energy is the ultimate God or Brahman. For theists, the cosmic energy is the greatest item in the creation or Brahman. Since, Brahman can mean both God as well as greatest item in a category, the theists and atheists are not separated in using the word Brahman. Both are separated only in the sense of the word to be taken in relevance to their context.