12 Oct 2022 Mandukya Upanishad, by Dr CSR Prabhu transcripted by PS Srinivas on 27 Nov 2022

Mandukya Upanishad is the central  for the theme of AdvaitaSiddhanta delivered by Adi SankaraCharya. And that AdvaitaSiddhata has been taken out from the commentaries of Mandukya Upanishad by Gowda Pada.

Gowda Pada was the teacher of Govinda, who was the teacher of Adi Sankaracharya. Adi SankaraCharya has not developed AdvaitaSiddhanta on his own. Taken out from the Gowda Pada’s Mandukya Upanishad.

Mandukya Upanishad is defining the nature of self and the nature of the Brahman and the nature of Omkar. What is the connection between self Brahman and Omkar.

IdagamSarvam, the nature around you all that put together is one single syllable sound that is Om.

Om, it ekaksharamidagamsarvam.

Om, id ekadaAksharamsarvam.

Whatever is present today right now, which you are able to observe, suffer, whatever is existed before this moment, whatever that existed after this moment, that is Bhavishya all that is nothing but omkar.

Then what about anything that is transcending trikalas, if anything that is existing, that is also omkar.

Beyond the tri kalas, trikaalaateetam, thadapiomkareva

Sarvametad brahma.

Everything this infront of you is Brahma. Now that more profound mahavakya that comes in here, ayamatma brahma. This self is brahma.  This self that means, I, that I is brahman and it has four legs. Four aspects.

First part is the manifest Universe. Jargritasthanah. Waking state. One hour back we were in a different state. Those states are Wake State, Deep Sleep state.

We have been shuttling between the three state. The waking state, dream state and the deep sleep state, Sushupti.Jagrita, Swapna and Sushupti.

In the Jagrita state, bahihpragnah, we are extroversial. Our consciousness, our awareness, prajnais external. Drawn to the external,extroversial world. The external universe which you are experiencing in your waking state is valid real only in the waking state. And it comprises of 7 parts. And 21.

They are various aspects, external experiences in the waking state. BahihpragnahaSaptangah, ekonavimsati.

There are different classifications of external experiences. Important point to note is that during the waking state, there is no dreaming state. So what ever happened in the dream is a fake. Spurious process. It is like a movie. In deep sleep state, whatever happened is not relevant.

Because we know that we stopped happily. I slept happily, I came out happily like that we may feel. Except that we don’t know anything of what happened in the deep sleep state. So, with respect to the waking state, the deep sleep state also is non-existent.

In each of these 3 states, the other two states are non-exist. They are invalid, fake, false, unreal. In deep sleep state, whatever you have experienced in the waking state and the dream state don’t exist. They are fake. They are unreal. They are not there. So, in Jagritasthana, Swapna sthana, sushuptisthana, each avastha is creating it’s own experience of valid knowledge as pramana and the knowledge acquired in the other two states, are dismissed as invalid or irrelevant or not to be considered. This is an important point to note. So whatever statements or conclusions you may draw on the ultimate truth or the absolute reality has to be based on this fact that the reality in one avastha, is unreal in the other avastha.

Each avastha is having its own domain of reality is a profound issue. That itself shows there is something wrong. Because if you are talking of a single absolute reality, it should be there always. But it is not there. Different realities are appearing at different times. So, which is realreality?  That question arises. Now Swapna sthano, in the dream state, antahprajnah.

Your consciousness, your intelligence, your awareness is inter, is not external. Sapthangah, ekonavismshatimukhahapratibartahaut, tejhasodwiteeyaha.That said, in the dream state is known as kaijasa in that state.

In the waking state is vaishwanara that is in Viswa. And similarly in the deep sleep state you have no desires, no recalling of it’s any experience. You are alone. You are by yourself. That is prajnanaghanaha. You are in deep engrossment of your own prajnaana consciousness. Ananda mayaha. You are in Ananda. Because when you wake up, you may recall, I had a good sleep. And if you don’t have that good sleep you can imagine what will happen when you take an overnight but or watch movie whole night, what will happen to you after that. So, the deep sleep is essential for your survival. Existence and you feel only thing you can recall is that I was happily slept. Anandamaya.

No desires no experiences of the external world and no dreams of also. naswapnampasyati, nasushiptam. That is called Sushupti. And Sushiptistanahaekeebhutaha. Who are alone prajnanaghanaha. There is deep, thick, dense self consciousness, awareness, intelligence. Anandamayo. Nothing is better than that. So, having Ananda is the best experience, you ever think of.

You consume Ananda. You have felt sukham, pleasure, enjoyment. Where? Only in deep sleep. Of course, you may say, you may get sukham by eating ice cream, in the waking state. But that is very very trivial and very short lived and it can turn into unpleasantness also. where as the sukham in sushupti, never turns unpleasant. It is always present. Therefore, it is in sukham. That is Tritiya pada.

So, that entity, which is shuttling between the three and is experiencing sukha Ananda in the deep sleep state. The Upanishad says that is sarveswara. That or He is resident inside, because the birth cause, birth spot of the entire universe. Because of the genesis, the origin of the creation of all objects is amazing to hear this statement that this self, which is shuttling between the 3 states. And experiencing Ananda only in deep sleep. It itself, Ayamatmaa brahma has Brahman by definition. Ayamatmaa brahma has been told and he’s also telling. So, if you want to challenge this position you can challenge the Upanishad not me because I am only explaining your conscience. Now Gowda pada gave a karika which is also produced along with the Upanishad in all the texts is so important. I will explain what he has explained as what has been told in the Upanishad till now.  Only one he’s becoming these three different things. You know it is like we call when we love our child, we callthe child with many names. The same child, same person. All the 3 states he goes. Bhogam, the enjoyment of the self Ananda in deep sleep. And vaishwanara, that is an external Universe, Vishwa, in the waking state. And as I told you, the reality in one state is unreality in the other state. So, the Universe about which science and all subject talk about does not exist. Please note it does not exist in deep sleep state and in dream state also. as invalid as dream, he is in waking state. So, the experience of the universe in the waking state is as invalid as dream in waking state. Because in dream state the external universe experience is invalid. In waking state the dream experience is invalid. In the deep sleep state both of them are invalid. So, what is experienced in deep sleep alone true and that is just Ananda.

So, on the question of validity of the real world of experience in the external world during universe during waking state. He says some people are equating to dream state. Just as in dream, the whole universe appears external to yourself. You are enjoying, experiencing, suffering that particular universe of that particular dream on that particular night. In the same way, this universe which is apparent to be real and true and all that and all that for each person at different times. He is appearing to be true and real and valid and very strongly felt and then you start doing things in reaction to it, is equally invalid that’s what some people say that’s what Gowdapada says, Samsara Swapna tulyohiraagadweshaatusantulahswakaalesatyavatbhaaghi . Sri Sankaracharya, “Prabhodheasatyabhaghavet”. In it’s own times, appears to be real. Yesterday also we discussed this. So, there was a question, I answered it later. The maximum validity given to Maya is practicality, in practice the so called reality in waking state is valid marked in the essential truth. We have established it yesterday this fact, that Jagat is Maya. In the waking state so here we are not discussing what is Maya. But we are talking of the validity of the reality experienced in three different states. The first point is each state is independent. And in it’s state the other two states are invalid and they don’t exist and whatever experiences were obtained in the other two states are invalid and cannot be accepted as real. So, in it’s own time, whatever experience of the reality is done that alone is said to be true.

This universe is created out of a desire. There are time thinkers who think that it is all a play of time. He’s giving different different perspectives on this question of what is reality. And some people say, this universe is meant for enjoyment and some people say it is for a game, a sport. Now the important point is we all know that this universe is a game, is a sport, is a play of the Lord. But here the Upanishad says, the self itself says that God is Esha sarveswarah. Sarveswara himself is the self. Now coming back to Upanishad, now the fourth, we have finished the three. There is a fourth state being referred which is known as turiya and which is neither extroversial nor introversial. Na antahaprajnaha, nabahihprajnaha. Nor like in deep sleep in it’s own dense experience of the self. Na prajnam, naappayajnam. Not even it is aprayajnam.  Not that prajna is not there, obviously it is, it cannot be visible. It can not be handled in practical life. Agrahya, cannot be grasped. Alakshanam, no qualities or attributes.  Achintyam, can not be thought about.

Peaceful, it is the stage of calming down the universe and it is one single cell. Please note this point. Taken on them, now we have been talking about many individuals having many different dream state, deep sleep state and waking state experiences the cells. But now it is said, all these are only one. Though they appear to be different. We have discussed this earlier also. Like you take any other instance, like, suppose you take water. Water in a glass, water in your tank, water in Gangotri, water in glacier, water in Manasavorar. All these waters are different or same? They have different contamination but water is the same. Similarly Akasha, space in my room here and space in your room there and space in Putin’s room, space in Gerontsky’s room and space in weddings room.  Is it all different or same? It appears to be different it has different contents different locations but, space is same. In the same way, you can talk about Prithvi, Vayu everything. Similarly, atam also is this one that atma is this one shuttling between the three states and also has the fourth state and that atman has to be one. Because the qualities, attributes are same being Nirgunam, Nirakaram. And nobody say, I don’t exist. It exists, Sat Chit and Anandam. Satchidanandam.

This satchidanandaatma, in me, in you and in everything that is in Jeeva, Kesava, Brahma. The whole universe in so many items that self has to be one. EkatmaTatvam, KalyanaSwarupam means blissful. Advaitam, non dual. I don’t know how people say because clearly mentioned here. This Shruti can never be wrong. So, that self has to be understood, has to be known. This is the Shruti, the sum and substance of the entire philosophical knowledge.

You are free to give it up or escape or you are welcome to understand it and achieve in liberation.

Now I will read the GowdapadaKarika for this portion. The first two states, Vaishwanara, the waking state and the dream state, the experience is bound by karyakaranasambandh. The cause and effect relationship not in deep sleep state. Only karana. There is no karya. That’s why vaiseshika karana bhava and karya bhava. Karana can exist without karya but karya cannot exist with out karana. In a waking state and dream state, both karya and karana exist because without karana there is no karya. Where as in deep sleep state, only karana exists no karya. In the turiya state, the fourth state, there is no karya karana. Now he is talking of maya. Who is talking, Gowdapada is talking. What is Avidya, Geetha also says, my maya is beginning less, endless. Jeeva, who is sleeping is anadi. When he wakes up, then he will realise his true nature of the Supreme Consciousness, Cosmic Consciousness.

Very profound statement, whether this universe exists or it gets withdrawn. The whole thing is Mayamatram. The duality itself is Mayamatram. Advaitamparamardatah. So, in practice we are living in the ocean of Maya. We are operating within Maya. So, within Maya all this is true. I am speaking, you are hearing this happened, that happened, so and so said this so and so did this, and then there is a fight there’s an argument and there is all kinds of things happen within Maya. Please note. But beyond Maya, it is just Advaitam. Once single entity. In Paramatma, in the ultimate truth is vedam. Dvaitam na vidyate. In the ultimate reality, duality or the multiplicity does not exist. This is the statement of Gowdapada, who is the profounder of the AdvaitaSiddhantha, from the Mandukya Upanishad. You can understand the propound importance, most profound importance of Mandukya Upanishad, on which Gowdapada promulgated, declared and established the entire AdvaitaSiddhanta, which Adi Sankaracharya utilized to defeat all other contemporary philosophies of his time. Before I go further, I want to clarify about the turiya. Some people say, turiyais not exactly a fourth state, but it is only an assertion to say that all the three states are not the real nature of the self. Because the self exists independent of the three states and that existence of the self is called the fourth state Turiya. That is one interpretation. Another interpretation is turiya is the fourth state, which is experienced in samadhi. Another interpretation exists whatever it is the three states, and turiya the fourth state are explained in the Mandukya Upanishad. Now we go to the next part of the Upanishad.

Now coming back to Om, Om has 3 padas. akaara, ukaara and makaara. So, the combination of these three is Om. What does this akaara indicates? It indicates the waking state reality. The one who is experiencing the Vishwa, that is the akaara and ukara is referring to the dream state. Makaara is representing the Susuphtisthana.  All the three put together, is Om and transcends it. And is the true identify of it. Amatra, that is one which has, which is combining all the three, and transcending it.  Once you understand, what is Omkaram, you need not thing anything else.  When you meditate, chant and deeply get absorbed lost in Omkaram. You shall practice meditation, yoga, dhyana, on omkaram. Omkaram is Braham itself, fearless. A person who is always in pranava sadhana, omkara sadhana, is free from all fears. In fact the greatest of all is and you know ashramas we have the Brahmacharya, vanaprastha, gruhastha and sanyasa. So, which is the mantra, recommended for sadhana for the sanayasis, only pranavamantram. So, all the sanyasis, they are supposed to chant, japa dhyana and everything on OM. Because om is Brahma. Pranava is Brahma. Pranava is Transcendental. A person who is in Omkara sadhana is free from all fears. Inside, outside everything is pravana. Pranava itself is Eswara, who is located in the heart of all. Having experienced sarvavyapinamomkaram, the three matras a u ma, which put together is OM and the fourth one is permeation of the three and transcending and that is the lord.

Cessation of duality, cessation of multiplicity happens in the fourth state, the combination of all the three, that is Shiva.

Shiva is known as Omkareswara. Omkara, shiva one and the same. He who knows omkara, is muni. He is the sage. Upanishad is completed and the Gowdapadakarika is also completed. Of course there is a continuation of Gowdapadakarika as what is called VaipatyaPrakaranam, explaining Maya for a large number of verse it is something like 15 pages and 10 pages. He explains what is Maya. Finished the Mandukya Upanishad, which is very very short but it is the most profound, and in the Taittariya Upanishad just as a passing of the explanation, Brugu goes to Aruna his father and asks what is Brahman? By definition Brahman is that pitch from which everything is originating and by which it is sustained and into which everything dissolves. And varuna says, you’re going to tapasya to find out the answer. So, first we performed tapasya and comes back and says, Brahman because everything is and everything is sustained  by Annam and everything else gets dissolved. Varuna simply said he said you didn’t say, yes he simply said burned through tapasya once again so he did and comes back and says prana is Brahman.

Then again third time Manayeva brahman, and fourth time vijnaana is brahman and the fifth time he comes back with a reply, anandam is Brahma. Such existence and consciousness, is bliss. Satchidanandam is the definition of Brahman, and that is explained as OM. And let us do om meditation for a few minutes and afterwards close the session.