Message at Kaladi

Shankara is the topmost genius in this world. He was the incarnation of Lord Shiva. He has the third eye, which is the eye of the knowledge that is always burning with flames. It is said “Jñānaṃ Maheśvarāt icchet”, which means that only Lord Shiva can give the spiritual knowledge. When Shankara came there were two types of atheists. 1) Purvamiimaamsakas:- They always do rituals without any analysis and knowledge. 2) Buddhists:- They always argue with logic and say that everything is nothing (Shunya Vaada). Shankara’s aim was to bring these two types of people into the path of theism. Shankara made a big psychological plan. He called even the atheist as Brahman. He defined Brahman as mere awareness without any quality. Such awareness is present in all the souls which are present in 84 crore-types of living beings. The soul is Brahman whether it is present in human beings or animals or birds or insects or worms. Every soul is basically simple awareness and so it is Brahman. Therefore, whether a soul is born as a divine human being like Shankara or whether it is born as a worm in drainage, the soul is Brahman. Whether it is scented water or drainage water, water is common in both. The scent and drainage impurities are the good and bad qualities correspondingly. When both the good and bad qualities are removed only pure water remains. That pure water is the soul or Brahman.

Therefore, whether one is born as a divine man or as the worst worm, he can think, “I am Brahman”. The awareness is common in both the king and beggar. Both can say, “I am Brahman”. But the special qualities like knowledge, courage etc., are associated with the awareness in the king and therefore, he became the king. In the beggar the awareness is associated with qualities like ignorance, fear etc., and therefore he became the beggar. The king is respected and the beggar is neglected. Shankara is the scented water. The atheist is the drainage water. Both are Brahman. But the sandal scent and the drainage impurity are not one and the same. If both are one and the same the scent water and the drainage water must be used for the same purpose practically. Instead of the scent water one can sprinkle the drainage water on the guests in a marriage function. A beggar also must be given the police security as the king is given.

Shankara told that this awareness (soul) is a substance, which is already attained by you without any effort or Sadhana (Siddha Vastu or Praapta Vastu). In Shankara and the atheist this awareness is the common substance. Therefore, any living being in this world can shout, “I am Brahman”. Nobody will object. Don’t feel unhappy if you are born as worm in drainage because you are that wonderful Brahman! Awareness does not mean happiness. Awareness can be associated either with happiness or with sorrow. Therefore, simply by being Brahman don’t think that you are happy. A person is laughing with happiness is Brahman and also a person who is weeping with unhappiness is also Brahman because both have the common awareness. By any effort you cannot lose the awareness and therefore you will always remain Brahman. Even if you are beaten by belt in the hell, you may be weeping. But please don’t forget that you are Brahman. You weep without any worry because you are Brahman.

You have read so many Shastras and you have done such a tedious meditation! Finally, you came to know that you are the awareness (Brahman) that was already present in you before reading Shastras and before doing the meditation. Now you are what you were before all this Sadhana (effort). Don’t you think that all your Sadhana is a waste and did not achieve anything? The drainage water is forgetting its own impurities and is thinking that it is the pure water, which is a component of the drainage water. By such thinking the impurities are not filtered and the bad odor did not disappear. To remove the impurities, work, which is the filtration should be done. Then the drainage water can become really the pure water. Thinking is not work. Filtration is the work. When the Lord comes in human form you serve Him and receive the knowledge from Him along with His grace. Then only the impurities are removed and the pure water results. Then by the association of the Lord (scent water) some scent will enter you and you also become scent water to certain extent though you are not exactly equal to the scent water.

The Lord contains all the three qualities when He comes in the human form as Datta. The three faces indicate the three qualities. Brahma is Rajas. Vishnu is Sattvam. Shiva is Tamas. But the Lord is untouched by the three qualities. The three qualities are floating as a superficial layer. The pure water is not affected and it is not attaining the odors of the three qualities. Neither the pure water has bad smell or good scent. The Lord is like the person wearing a tri-colored shirt. The color of the shirt does not touch Him. But a living being (soul) is different. It is like the scented or drainage water, which receives a good scent or bad odor of the three qualities. The soul is a homogeneous mixture of the qualities and awareness. You cannot separate the qualities (gunas) and their odors (vaasanaas) from the soul by any effort. The Soul is the tri-colored shirt itself. Each thread of the shirt is impregnated with the color. Therefore, the Lord alone is capable of wearing the three qualities and at the same time is unaffected. He plays with the three qualities in this world. At any time He can get rid of all His qualities in a fraction of second. But the soul cannot get rid of its qualities even in millions of births.

Shankara called the atheist as Brahman and equated him with Himself. The reason for the equation is that both have a common component called awareness, which is named as Brahman by Shankara. Shankara interprets the Vedic quotations like ‘Satyaṃ Jñānam’ and ‘Prajñānam’ so that the word Jnanam means simple awareness. Actually, the root meaning of Jnanam is “Jānāti iti jñānam” i.e., that which is aware is knowledge (Jnanam). As long as the root meaning (Yoga) is satisfied there can be no objection to derive such meaning for a word. But the word ‘Jnanam’ is not used in the sense of awareness in the world. A donkey, a cat etc., also has awareness. But the donkey or cat cannot be called as possessor of Jnanam (Jnani). Only a scholar who has the special knowledge is called as Jnani. Such usage in the world is called ‘Rudhi’. But one can use a word if the Yoga is satisfied and the Rudhi can be neglected. Therefore nobody could oppose Shankara for such yogic derivation of the word Jnana. Of course, He used such derivation for a good purpose i.e., to convert an atheist into theist. He did not misuse it.

If you call an atheist as a possessor of awareness, he will immediately shout. “Don’t I know that I have awareness? Why should you call like this?” But if he is called as a Jnani or Brahman he will immediately run towards you. In fact, awareness is the greatest subtle substance created in this world. The word Brahman means “greatest”. Therefore, Shankara proved by such logic that awareness is Brahman. The pure water is Brahman. The pure water mixed with scent and impurities and yet not touched by them is the Lord. The soul is also the pure water but is homogeneously mixed with scent and impurities and has become a solution. Therefore, Brahman and the Lord (Ishwara) are different. In the Lord apart from the three qualities, all the superpowers are present. He has the extraordinary three superpowers also, which are creation, ruling and destruction of this universe. Such superpower is called Maya. One can get the eight miraculous superpowers (Ashta siddhis) but not the above extraordinary three superpowers. Therefore, the soul never becomes the Lord.

Hanuman attained the superpower of Creation of the world. He became the future creator but remember, the inner form of Hanuman is already Lord Shiva and so it is expected. A king and his servant have the common awareness. Both of them have common good and bad qualities. But the special courage in the battlefield and the administration power in the court cannot be attained by his servant. Such extraordinary Maya is inseparable from the Lord. The knowledge (Jnana) is the inherent quality of the Brahman but in the case of the Lord due to association of the Maaya, the Knowledge becomes wonderful. The word Maaya comes from the root word Maya which means the most wonderful and inexplicable. Therefore, the knowledge of the Lord is wonderful and is not possible to any other human being. Therefore, such special knowledge is called as Prajnanam. Shankara told “I am Brahman” but He also told “Śivaḥ kevalo'ham” i.e., I am alone the Lord Shiva. Ishwara (the Lord) is always associated with Maayaa.

The Gita says the same (Māyinaṃ tu Maheśvaram). Brahman is devoid of Maayaa. Shankara swallowed the molten lead as Ishwara but not as Brahman. When Shankara told that He is Brahman the disciples told that they are also Brahman. Shankara did not object. But when Shankara told that He is Lord Shiva, the disciples also told that they are Lord Shiva. Then He swallowed the molten lead and asked them to swallow the same. The disciples fell on His feet as servants singing “Bhava Śaṅkara deśika me śaraṇam”. Therefore, He admitted everyone to call Himself as Brahman which is a post without salary. A bill collector collects the revenue as a clerk when the revenue is paid but He cannot order to pay the revenue. A district collector orders for the payment of the revenue. Veda says that the Sun is running with the fear of the Lord (Bhīṣodeti sūryaḥ). But a human being who calls himself as Brahman is subjected to the sunstroke and is dying. The Scholars should understand the commentary of Shankara along with His demonstration experiment of swallowing molten lead. Both the theory and practical are important in science. In fact, the practical is more important than theory. The Advaita philosophers do not even mention this experiment. They raise their collars saying that they are Brahman. Let them say raising the same collar, when beaten in the hell or born as worms in drainage. They cannot escape the hell and drainage by being Brahman, which is only simple awareness. After so much study of Vedas and Shastras they catch a small rat after digging a big mountain.

The heart of Shankara is Ramanuja and Madhva. Therefore, when Ramanuja writes the commentary, He always says “Yaduccyate Śāṅkaraiḥ” i.e., I am condemning what the disciples of Shankara say. He never said that He is condemning what Shankara said. The same Lord Datta incarnated as these three preachers. Shankara was Shiva, Ramanuja was Vishnu, and Madhva was Brahma. All the three are one and the same Guru Datta.

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