O Learned and Devoted Servants of God,

[Krishnashtami Day 3] What does Parabrahman mean? It means something, which is other than Brahman. This word does not tell directly the nature of Parabrahman, which is impossible to know. Sages have indicated Parabrahman by negative analysis, which means discarding every item of the creation (Neti Neti— Veda). The reason for this is that all the Vedas and the Gita say that Parabrahman is so much unimaginable that we cannot use even the sentences like “it exists” or “it does not exist” (Nasattat Naasaduchyate—Gita). In such case, why can’t we say that the Parabrahman does not exist at all? Since the Parabrahman gives experience regarding its existence, we have to say that it exists. But we cannot say what it is (Astiityeva— Veda). How such experience is given? The unimaginable Parabrahman enters, pervades all over and identifies with an imaginable item of the creation so that its existence is to be accepted. We see only the external imaginable item and its characteristics only. Since the information regarding itself and its characteristics is not available, we have not known anything about it. It remains unimaginable and still it gives its experience. It is like the invisible current giving its experience through the visible metallic wire. Through which medium Parabrahman gives its experience? It gives its experience through the human incarnation.

The various mediums through which Parabrahman gives its experience are 1) the pure awareness, which is called as original Maya (Suddha Sattvam or Mula Maya); 2) the energetic form like Brahma, Vishnu and Shiva and 3) the material form made of the five elements like Krishna or any human incarnation.

When Parabrahman enters, pervades and identifies with the pure awareness we call it as Brahman from the point of pure awareness. Brahman means greatest and since the pure awareness is the greatest item in the creation, you can call it as Brahman. The word Brahman indicates Parabrahman along with pure awareness. The same pure awareness (Mula Maya) becomes Maya, which consists of three qualities (Sattvam, Rajas and Tamas). Then Brahman becomes Ishwara who is identified with Maya and this means that the Parabrahman is identified with Maya. What is difference between Mula Maya and Maya? The Mula Maya is the pure awareness, which is the knowledge of itself due to absence of any other item of creation. Since knowledge is Sattvam, this is also called as Suddha Sattvam or pure awareness. Maya is the awareness of the things, which are other than itself since creation started. Maya is the knowledge of other things.

Thus, the awareness or knowledge is in two states. 1) The awareness of itself & 2) the awareness of other things. Why not we call the Brahman as the ultimate? Brahman is not ultimate because the pure awareness is also only an item of the creation. The awareness of itself exists in the state of self-meditation. Such state disappears in the awakened state and dream states. In both these states, the awareness is aware of other things. In deep sleep, the awareness of itself and the awareness of other things also disappear. Therefore, this is the dissolution of pure awareness or the awareness of itself. Therefore, the pure awareness is not eternal and so it cannot be ultimate. The second state of the awareness in which the awareness is aware of other things exists in the awakening state (Jagrat) and in the dream state (Swapna). This state of awareness of other things disappears in the state of self-meditation as well as in deep sleep and thus, such state is also not eternal. Therefore, the conclusion is that the awareness in both the states is not eternal. Moreover, the energy produced by the respiratory and digestive systems due to oxidation of food enters the nervous system and is transformed into nervous energy or awareness. Thus, it is clearly established in science that the awareness has generation or birth. Thus, awareness, which is born, is also disappearing as said above. Therefore, the awareness cannot be the ultimate.

This scientific analysis has authority in both the Veda (Annat Purushah) and in the Gita (Annat Bhavanti). The awareness being the greatest item of creation can be called as Brahman like the Veda is called as Brahman being the greatest book among the scriptures. Therefore, Brahman is the incarnation of Parabrahman, which is a combination of the creator and the greatest item of creation, called awareness. Ofcourse all the three spiritual preachers (Shankara, Ramanuja and Madhva) have ended in Brahman only because you cannot cross the ultimate boundary of creation, which is the awareness. Your intelligence or logic or imagination cannot cross the four-dimensional space-time model, which is the creation itself. The finest final realm of the creation is the awareness only. Therefore, there is no other alternative except to indicate the Parabrahman through awareness as the ultimate God. This is called as Arundhati Vashishta Nyaya, which means showing the invisible Arundhati Star by showing the near most Vashishta Star. Parabrahman is unimaginable. Awareness is imaginable with most difficult analysis. Therefore, Parabrahman is very near to the awareness. You have to stop at the awareness to indicate Parabrahman.

This pure awareness started doing imagination (Sankalpa) in several ways and when the pure awareness (Mula Maya) starts the sankalpa it becomes the Maya. All the imaginations come under three categories, called as Sattvam, Rajas and Tamas. This is like a state of daydream. Therefore, Brahman becomes Ishwara, once the imagination starts in awareness. This dream is the daydream and therefore, the awareness is controlling the entire imaginary world. The awareness is modified into the imaginary world. The modification is very slight and therefore, it can be apparent, which means not true (true but negligible) or it can be called as real (true though negligible). The former view is of Shankara (Vivarta) and the latter view is of Ramanuja (Parinama).

The world is always an imagination for Brahman and there is no question of imagination becoming materialisation for Brahman. This imagination from the point of Brahman is simultaneously materialisation for Atman, which is a drop of the world-ocean. But this world-ocean is a drop of Mula Maya. Therefore, due to difference in potency of power, the world is imagination for Brahman and is a simultaneous materialisation for Atman. Whenever we talk about the world from the point of Brahman, we say that the world is made of the three qualities (imaginations). Therefore, from the point of Brahman, Shankara is correct and from the point of Atman, Ramanuja is correct. The pure awareness that appeared in various living beings in the daydream like imagination is Atman, which is a reflection of Brahman. The awareness associated with the three qualities in the dream that appears in various living beings is called as Jiiva, who is a reflection of Ishwara. The reflection means a very negligible part. The energy that constitutes the reflected Sun in the water is very little compared to the original energy of the Sun. Thus, there is a quantitative difference and a qualitative similarity between the original and reflection. Similarly, between Brahman and Atman or Ishwara and Jiiva there is a lot of quantitative difference though there is a qualitative similarity. This means that a very negligible part of Brahman is Atman and a very negligible part of Ishwara is Jiiva. Remember that Brahman is the first item of the creation and therefore, the modification is starting from the item of creation and not from the creator.

The creator is Parabrahman, which is unimaginable, and it produced the Mula Maya. Neither Parabrahman nor its generation of Mula Maya is imaginable. Only Mula Maya or Brahaman is imaginable. The process of generation of imaginable Brahman from unimaginable Parabrahman must be unimaginable because we can understand the process of generation of one imaginable item from the other imaginable item only. The imaginary world is like a daydream for Ishwara because the energy that is used in the formation of the world is very negligible compared to the energy of Mula Maya or Brahman. But, at the same time, the energy that constitutes the world is very large compared to the energy that constitutes the Atman. Thus, simultaneously the world is imagination for Ishwara and materialised greatest reality for Atman. Therefore, the imagination itself is the simultaneous materialisation viewed in different angles.

The Parabrahman is untouched or unchanged since all the modifications are of Mula Maya only. Therefore, the Parabrahman is unchanged and untouched. The dreamer is unchanged or untouched by the dream. The reason is that the dream is the modification of His mind and not Himself. Even the Mula Maya is almost unchanged or untouched because the modification is negligible. The Maya or the imaginary world is negligible compared to Mula Maya. Therefore, in the view of Brahman the material world is just imagination and is called as Maya. But the world is not the imagination for Atman and it is materialisation for Atman. In the view of Atman, the same world is called as Prakruti. Prakruti means materialised effect. The prefix ‘Pra’ means strong or materialised. The world which is Maya or imagination for Brahman is simultaneously materialised effect for Atman. Therefore, the Gita says that Maya is simultaneously Prakruti (Mayam Tu Prakrutim). When this Atman or Jiiva creates a dream, then it becomes creator. But there is an ocean of difference between a dream of a soul and the dream of Brahman. The soul controls its own daydream. But the soul is controlled by the Maya, which is the daydream of Brahman. The control of the soul by Maya can be compared to the daydream of the soul in which a living being in the dream is controlled by the mind. In the night dream, the soul, which is the creator of the dream itself is controlled by the dream. This situation can be compared to Brahman entering His own dream as incarnation with self-imposed ignorance to enjoy the dream. As the daydreamer controls a living being in his dream, Brahman controls the soul in this world. What is happening when the human incarnation is appearing in the world? Brahman or Ishwara enters the materialised human body along with His Maya. Brahman is Parabrahman identified with the infinite ocean of pure awareness. Ishwara is Parabrhman, which is identified with the world, which is a drop of that pure awareness-ocean. Therefore, from the point of Parabrhman there is no difference between Brahman and Ishwara. The same Parabrahman is identified with a human body in this world and appears as human incarnation. The human body is again a drop in the world-ocean.

Therefore, Parabrahman, which is beyond spatial dimensions, is one and the same in Brahman, Ishwara and human incarnation. The human body consists of three parts. 1) The Causal body is the pure awareness, which indicates the chittam without the memories. The memories are stored in the pure awareness called chit or Atman. This chit along with the memories is called as chittam or Jiiva. 2) The subtle body that is associated with three qualities, called as Sattvam or Jnanam or buddhi (intelligence), Rajas or work or Manas (mind) and Tamas or ignorance or Ahankara (egoism). 3) The gross body, which is made of five elements. Remember that the materialised five elements and three qualities are only simultaneous views of Brahman and soul. Therefore, the gross body also appears as imagination to Brahman.

From the point of Brahman, the whole world is made of the three qualities only. The human body prepared for the Ishwara to enter is not controlled by the rules of Karma Chakra because this divine human body is not for enjoying any fruit of previous deed. This human body is fully under the control of Ishwara or the Lord only. As soon as the divine work is over, all the components of the divine body merge in the components of cosmos (Samudra Ityevam— Veda). If it is the case of other human beings, the subtle body goes to the upper world for enquiry and subsequent enjoyment of fruits. Therefore, in the human incarnation, Parabrahman along with His Maya called as Ishwara exists in the human body, which is called as Prakruti. Whenever the normal works of the human body are to be done, the Prakruti acts as usual. For example, Krishna wants to lift a small pot of milk. This work is done by the human body (Prakruti). When Krishna wants to talk or think in the normal way of the world, the human body or Prakruti acts under the instruction of the Lord. But if Krishna wants to lift the mountain on His finger, His Maya will act. This miracle is wonderful but partly imaginable. This is a small action of Maya with little unimaginably. When Krishna showed the world in His mouth, both Krishna and His mother stand on the earth present in His mouth. This miracle is completely unimaginable. The former miracle is partially unimaginable, because the power to lift the mountain present in the boy is only unimaginable. But, the process of lifting the mountain by a greater power is imaginable. But, in the later miracle the whole concept is unimaginable.

All this unimaginability is the characteristic of Parabrahman, since the Veda says that the only knowledge about Parabrahman is that it is unimaginable. The meaning of the word Maya is the awareness associated with unimaginability. The characteristic of unimaginability of Maya comes only from Parabrahman. The three qualities together in the state of unimaginability are called as the Maya. The same three qualities in the state of imaginability are called as Prakruti. The imaginability is also from Parabrahman. Parabrahman is the hidden real cause of every thing other than itself. The three qualities are referred as Jnanam (knowledge), Bala (force) and Kriya (work). These are Sattvam, Tamas and Rajas respectively as said in the Veda (Parasya Shaktih). The unimaginable knowledge called as Prajnanam belongs to Sattva-Maya as seen in preaching the Gita. The unimaginable force to bear the world in the mouth is Tamas-Maya. The unimaginable work to create, rule and destroy this world as shown in Vishwaroopam is Rajas-Maya. Thus, the three characteristics of Maya are possible only for Ishwara (Mayinantu Maheshwaram— Gita). Maya and Prakruti are qualitatively similar in having the three qualities. In fact, both are one and the same because this world appears in the subtle state of imagination (Maya) to Ishwara and the same world appears as materialised form (Prakruti) simultaneously to soul (Mayamtu Prakrutim viddhi— Gita).

Thus, the Lord along with Maya and Prakruti is both Narayana and Nara or Ishwara and Jiiva playing with the devotees, since He is integrated as two-in-one system in the case of human incarnation. The Prakruti contains awareness or Atman, which is called as Kshetrajna (Kshetrajna Iti— Gita). But the Maya of the Lord in the human incarnation also contains awareness and therefore, not only the Atman of Prakruti but also the Suddha Sattvam of Maya is also awareness and thereby, the Lord also becomes Kshetrajna (Kshetrajnam Chapi— Gita). These two verses of the Gita belong to the context of human incarnation since the Lord starts speaking by the word “Idam Shariiram”, which means the body of the Lord only and not the body of Arjuna. The statement ‘Sarva Kshetreshu’ means the various human incarnations. Some scholars have applied this word to the human body of every human being and are misled in concluding that the Lord is present in every human being. If Para Prakruti or Atman is Purusha, then the Lord is Purushottama (Yasmat Kharat— Gita). However, if you treat Atman also as an item of Prakruti (Para Prakruti is only a sub-division of Prakruti), the Lord is called as Purusha (Atha Purushoha— Veda, Prakritim Purusham—Gita). The Lord stated in the Gita that His Para Prakruti is modified into the soul. Therefore, this word Para Prakruti indicates His Sattvika Maya before modification and thus maintains the world (Yayedam— Gita). If you take the word Para Prakruti as a soul it is against to the word “Jiiva Bhutam”, which means that the Para Prakruti is the cause to be modified into the soul.

Parabrahman created Mula Maya or Suddha Sattvam. When Parabrahman desired to create this world, the desire itself is Mula Maya or pure awareness. This pure awareness is aware of itself and therefore, it is called as Suddha Sattvam. Now you should not think that Parabrahman is pure awareness. The desire is the characteristic of awareness. Parabrahman can desire even though Parabrahman is not awareness. By the characteristic of desire, you should not conclude that Parabrahman must be awareness. The awareness is an item of creation and your imagination can never cross that final limit of creation, which is pure awareness. With the help of the characteristic “desire”, you can end only in Mula Maya, but you cannot cross Mula Maya and touch Parabrahman (Mamamaya Duratyaya— Gita). This proves that Parabrahman is beyond logic. Logic is limited to the items of creation only and cannot touch the creator or Parabrahman. This Mula Maya becomes Brahman when Parabrahman pervades and identifies itself with the Mula Maya. Therefore, Brahman is not simply Mula Maya. The Mula Maya itself, before identification with Parabrahman is called as “Mahat Brahma” (Mama Yonih Mahat Brahma— Gita). This Mula Maya is the greatest item of all the items of creation and therefore, it is twice stressed as great. Infact Mahat means great. The word Brahman also means great. The repetition indicates the stress of greatness of Mula Maya. Now, when Parabrahman enters the Mula Maya and pervades all over it, such Mula Maya is called as Brahman, which is referred by all the three Acharyas (Preachers) in their commentaries (Tasmin Garbham— Gita).

One should note that it is the Parabrahman that is preaching the Gita through Krishna. Thus, this Brahman is referred in the first Sutra of the Brahma Sutras. Brahman creates, maintains and destroys the creation. All these three actions are again due to Parabrahman only. But it appears as if Mula Maya is doing all these three actions. Thus, Parabrahman maintains its secrecy everywhere. A small drop of the Mula Maya is modified into this world. Now Parabrahman enters the drop and is identified with that drop. This Parabrahman identified with that drop is called as Eshwara. The drop of pure awareness creates the world only due to the Parabrahman in it and this drop in this first stage is called as Lord Brahma. The Parabrahman in this drop during the maintenance is called as Lord Vishnu. The Parabrahman in this drop during the destruction of the world is called as Lord Shiva. Parabrahman in this drop in all the three states is called as Eshwara. Now when a human body is created in the world specifically for the purpose of human incarnation, Parabrahman enters that specific human body and is called as Lord Krishna. All the actions of Lord Krishna are due to Parabrahman only. Thus, Parabrahman is the root cause for the very creation of Mula Maya or for the very creation of this universe or for all the actions of the human incarnation. Parabrahman is root cause of all the unimaginable actions of Maya as well as imaginable actions of Prakruti. An ordinary human being is a part of Prakruti. All the actions of an ordinary human being are also due to Parabrahman only. Here the will of Parabrahman is responsible for any action of the human being. But at the same time the direction of the action is in the hands of human being. Thus, Parabrahman is responsible for the action but is not responsible for the fruit of the action of the human beings (Kartaaramapi Sarvasya- Gita).

A person touches the electricity in his house and commits the suicide. No doubt the electricity sent by the power station is the cause of his death. But, the engineer of the power station cannot be punished and such death is not a murder committed by the engineer. Another wise person is using the same current through several facilities and is enjoying a lot. Such an enjoying person will not go to the engineer and garland him, praising him as responsible for his enjoyment. Parabrahman exists in the human incarnation. In the case of ordinary human being, Parabrahman does not exist in the human being. All the actions of the ordinary human being are done by the will or power of external Parabrahman only. This is the difference between the human incarnation and the human being. The drop of pure awareness or Mula Maya becomes aware of the world, which is different from the rest of Mula Maya. The modification (world) is always different from cause (Mula Maya). Now this pure awareness in the drop becomes aware of the universe and such awareness is called as Maya. Thus, Brahman is aware of itself and Eshwara is aware of the world. Eshwara is also Brahman because Eshwara is almost simultaneously aware of pure awareness. The ignorance of self-awareness cannot be treated as real ignorance, which is temporarily and apparently superimposed in order not to contradict the awareness of the world. But Brahman is not Eshwara because after the dissolution of the creation, Brahman is not aware of the creation. After the dissolution of the world, the world becomes a small pulse called as Avyaktam and is stored in Brahman like a small carbon particle existing in a mighty infinite ocean. Such state of world can be considered as almost non-existence of the world. Now the Brahman which is the Parabrahman pervading all over the pure awareness remains. In this state, the pure awareness is aware of itself only and not aware of any other thing (world).

Therefore, such pure awareness is called as Suddha Sattvam. By this word, one should not mistake that Sattvam alone exists. Never any single quality out of the three qualities (Sattvam, Rajas & Tamas) exists. When I say that a single quality exists, the other two qualities also simultaneously exist about which we are not concerned. Suddha Sattvam means the pure awareness, which is the pure self-knowledge. Awareness or knowledge is only a form of energy, which is always active. Action indicates Rajas. This knowledge is unaware of Parabrahman and therefore, it is ignorance indicating Tamas. The Gita says that knowledge is Pure Sattvam (Sattvat Sanjayate Jnanam). The Gita also says that action is pure Rajas (Rajah karmani). The Gita also says that ignorance is pure Tamas (Tamastvajnanajam). Therefore, all these three qualities are always simultaneously associated in equal potency. The soul in the human being, which is called as causal body (kaarana shariiram) is also the pure awareness, which is a tiny droplet of Mula Maya. This proves that the soul is also constituted by all these three qualities with equal potency. Thus, the creation started with the generation of Mula Maya itself. The creation is always made of three qualities. The Mula Maya or the soul is in an equilibrium state of the three qualities. The soul can be a small part of Mula Maya only and cannot be a small part of Brahman. Brahman means the infinite ocean of Mula Maya in which Parabrahman pervaded. The droplet of Mula Maya (soul), which is modified as creation is not pervaded by Parabrahman.

The creation is supported and pervaded by the Mula Maya only. Therefore, the Mula Maya acts as a curtain between Parabrahman and creation. The creation will not touch the Parabrahman at all. The creation is supported by the will of Parabrahman and that will is called as Mula Maya. When the awareness in the drop is aware of the creation, the Parabrahman present in that drop along with the associated creation is called as Eshwara (Eshwarah Sarva Bhootanaam - Gita). The drop of awareness in the state of its awareness of the world is called as Maya. Thus, the difference between Mula Maya and Maya is that in the Mula Maya, the awareness is aware of itself and in Maya, the awareness is aware of other things, which are items of creation. Thus, Eshwara is called as ‘Sakshin’ of the world or observer of the world. When Eshwara becomes Brahman, the awareness of the world disappears and the film show is put off, which is reduced into a reel of the film only called as Avyaktam. Now the drop of awareness merges with the ocean. Maya disappears and Mula Maya only remains. The creation contains unimaginable actions as shown by the human incarnation, which are specified as Maya. The creation also contains imaginable actions as shown by human beings, which are specified as Prakruti.

The Maya along with the Prakruti is Prakruti only in the view of Lord, because even the unimaginable actions are imaginable to the Lord. There is no Maya for the Lord. The Gita says ‘Mayamtu Prakrutim Viddhi, Maayinamtu Maheshwaram’. This means that the Lord is associated with Maya but that Maya is only Prakruti for Eshwara. Only in the view of human being both Maya and Prakruti exist simultaneously. Without Prakruti, Maya cannot exist because without the reference to the imaginable actions there cannot be an unimaginable action. When the water flows it is imaginable Prakruti. When the water is standstill then it is unimaginable Maya. Unless the concept of Prakruti exists the concept of Maya cannot be grasped as different from Prakruti.