Posted on: 04 Jun 2017
Shri G. Lakshman asked: In the light of your explanation of Mandukya Upanishat, please clarify the following
1) Regarding the state of deep sleep of Human Incarnation like Krishna and,
2) Regarding the visible objects to the eyes of Angels in the upper worlds.
Swami Replied: 1) The Upanishat mentions four states,
i) Awaken State or Consciousness (Jaagrat): The human being or Human incarnation observes this world in which objects constituted by inert energy, inert matter and awareness are seen. The seer in the human being is the individual soul made of awareness. The seer in the Human incarnation is the individual soul of the human being with which the unimaginable awareness or unimaginable God is mixed. Both God and individual soul are simultaneous seers. The external container of the seer is gross body made of inert energy and inert matter. If the seer is only human being, naturally the seer will be individual soul alone. God or unimaginable awareness has the inherent potency to see always the entire creation.
ii) Dream state or Sub-Consciousness (Swapna): The seer is both human being and God in the Human incarnation. Both God and individual soul are simultaneous seers. The object is the imaginary world made of inert energy and awareness. The external container is subtle body made of inert energy. If the seer is only human being, naturally the seer will be individual soul alone. God or unimaginable awareness has the inherent potency to see always the entire creation.
iii) Deep Sleep State or Unconsciousness (Sushupti): In the case of human being, there is no seer in this state because the individual soul or awareness disappears due to resting nervous system. Since awareness is a specific work form of inert energy functioning in a specific nervous system, it disappears if the system stops working. Of course, the inert matter and inert energy exist in the gross body. This gross body can’t be object since the subject or awareness disappeared. In the case of human incarnation, the same above state exists since human incarnation is nothing but the human being. Hence, the individual soul of human being or awareness disappears as usual. The unimaginable awareness is leftover as soon as the individual soul disappears like the dry clay is leftover when the water in the wet clay gets evaporated. In Human incarnation, the only seer here is unimaginable God or unimaginable awareness. For this God, the entire creation is the object. We can’t mention this state in the case of human being since the seer is absent. The word unconsciousness denotes the total ignorance of the human being in this state. With reference to unimaginable God, this state is simultaneously the state of super consciousness. In the state of super consciousness, we mention unimaginable God without medium. Here, the same unimaginable God is in the medium. The Upanishat uses several adjectives to the seer in this state like creator of the entire world, controller of the entire world etc. Hence, this state belongs to human incarnation only and not to the human being. God or unimaginable awareness has the inherent potency to see always the entire creation.
iv) Divine State or Super Consciousness (Amaatra): This state is nothing but the state of unimaginable God without any medium. This state is exactly the same state as mentioned in the deep sleep of Human incarnation, which is the state of unimaginable God. God or unimaginable awareness has the inherent potency to see always the entire creation.
Here, if you take the Human incarnation as the unimaginable God only, all the above four states are applicable. If you take the Human incarnation as the ordinary human being only, the third and fourth states do not apply and only first and second states are applicable. Therefore, the deep sleep state of Krishna can be told in two ways as per your view, which is whether you take Him as the absolute unimaginable God or mere ordinary human being. Here, one clarification is very important. The unimaginable God and unimaginable awareness are treated as one God only since two unimaginables can’t exist. In the case of human being, the inert energy (working element) converted into awareness (work) exist in the first two states. In the third state of deep sleep, the inert energy along with materialized gross body exists but not the awareness (awareness means to be aware of something and this denotes that awareness is only work and not an entity like working element). In the case of human incarnation the working element (kaaraka) exists along with the work (kriyaa) or awareness. This means that in deep sleep state, God is aware of everything. In the case of human being, even though working element (inert energy) exists, the work (awareness) is not generated since the working system (nervous system) is not functioning. In the case of Human incarnation neither inert energy nor the system exists. But, still, the working element (unimaginable God) is omnipotent to generate any work without the presence of working system and even the working element called as inert energy. Here, the work is generated by the absolute working element called as God. Hence, in Human incarnation the unimaginable awareness means not the work that can be generated with the help of inert energy and nervous system only, but it means the ultimate working element called as unimaginable God. Hence, awareness means work in the case of human being and in the case of God awareness means the same unimaginable God due to the absence of any second item. If this clarification is understood, one can easily understand the sense in which awareness was taken as God by the three divine preachers (Shankara, Ramanuja and Madhva). The awareness taken by them as God is simply unimaginable awareness, which is the unimaginable God Himself. Ofcourse, in the case of Shankara, very critical understanding is necessary because He said that this unimaginable awareness is relative awareness of human being, which is generated by inert energy and nervous system. Such treatment is only to encourage atheists and should not be taken as the real idea of Shankara.
Shankara has taken this unimaginable awareness as the absolute God without mediation. For such unimaginable awareness or God, the entire creation is non-existent (Paramaarthasattaa). The creation becomes existent to the soul since soul is a part of creation (Vyavaharasattaa). We should not misunderstand that since the soul is the unimaginable awareness, for every soul, this creation must be non-existent. But this is contradicting practical experience. By this itself you can understand that the soul is only treated as unimaginable God to encourage atheists, which is not a real reality. Later on, Ramanuja and Madhva have taken this absolute God as a mediated energetic incarnation (called Narayana). Both these strictly stuck to relative reality (Vyavaharasattaa) only. Hence, mediated God taken as energetic form, soul and creation are three real entities for them. The soul is said to be a tiny part of God because God is taken as energetic form and the soul is a tiny part of energy (awareness is work form of inert energy only) and hence soul is said to be a spark of God. This soul-spark should not be taken as the spark of absolute unimaginable God since unimaginable God is beyond whole-part concept.
2) Angel is a soul in energetic body present in the upper world. Human being is the same soul present in materialized body on this earth. For the human being there are two regions of vision: a) Human Visible region in which the matter and energy to certain frequency are visible and b) Human Invisible region – Energy beyond certain frequency is invisible to naked eyes but visible to powerful instruments. For angels, there is only one visible region called divine visible region in which energy of all frequencies and matter are visible. The frequency of energy of the body of angels is beyond both above mentioned human regions (i.e., human visible region and human invisible region). Here, you should not get the doubt that in future, science may develop some more powerful instruments to detect the high frequency of the body of angels so that we can see the angels one day or other through invented instruments. This is not possible because the will of God in the process of creation is that by which no human being can see any angel through any instrument. This will of God checks the future possibility of any invention to see the angels. In the Vishnu Puranam, it is mentioned that the upper worlds can be seen by any human being even with his naked eyes by the grace of God only.
Therefore, the angels can see their upper worlds fully with their eyes and also can see this lower world (earth) with their eyes very easily. The energetic body of the angel contains inert energy and awareness only without inert matter. The existence of awareness without the materialized nervous system in the body of an angel is by a super technology that was provided by the will of God. This will of God again answers the difficulties of science in understanding the super technology in the absence of matter. For angels, there is no state of deep sleep. In the case of angels both the dream state and awaken state are one and the same. In the case of human beings the dream state contains energy and awareness only and the awaken state contains matter in addition to these two. For angels, in the upper worlds since matter does not exist, the awaken state is just the same dream state only. This is the case of upper invisible energetic worlds in which matter is absent. Even if matter is present, the angels can see the matter. I will explain this point with the help of the moon. The Moon is said to be the Pitruloka or the world containing the departed souls from the earth existing in the energetic bodies. This Pitruloka in which the departed souls exist, is invisible to any human being through any instrument and does not contain any materialized object. This Pitruloka exists on the planet of moon itself but in the planet of moon, matter also exists apart from inert energy. The departed souls present in the energetic bodies existing in Pitruloka can see the materialized objects present on the planet-Moon. If a human being goes to moon, it can’t see the Pitruloka and the departed souls present in the energetic bodies existing in Pitruloka. Hence, one should not say Pituloka is absent on the planet-moon. The moon is also said to be a deity or angel or a soul present in the energetic body as the Lord of the planet-moon. This deity (Moon) can’t be seen by any human being through any instrument on the planet moon. Hence, one should not say that the inert Moon-planet alone exists and that it is foolish to believe either Pitruloka or Moon-deity on the Moon-planet. The will of God stands as a barrier between the potency of human being and the upper worlds.
However, this does not mean that the upper worlds and angels are beyond the creation called as imaginable domain. All these worlds (both upper worlds and this earth) are in the imaginable domain only and the unimaginable domain is only the absolute unimaginable God, who is the absolute reality before which this entire imaginable is non-existent only. Hence, the unimaginable God, absolute existent, is able to create, control, destroy and do any change in the non-existent relative creation. If the creation is also an equally existent item, God can’t do any of these actions. One existent cannot alter another equally existent item. Soul and world are equally existent items. Hence, soul can’t create even an atom. But the same soul can create any object in its non-existent imaginary world. The difference between earth and upper worlds is only a sub-division within the imaginary domain or creation based on the will of God, which is an unimaginable action of unimaginable God.
Prof. Bhanoji Rao asked:
3) You said that third state is not applicable to human beings, but deep sleep exists for human beings also and hence it must be applicable to human beings.
4) What about the Coma state?
5) What about the Cow slaughter that is being discussed today in the entire nation?
Swami Replied:
3) The third state is not applicable to human beings in the sense that there is no seer (sakshi) in the third state because the individual soul or relative awareness disappears. In the first and second states, the seer exists as individual soul. From the view of this single point only, I said that the third state is not applicable to the human beings. In human incarnations, this third state exists based on the same above point only, which is that in this third state the seer exists, which is the unimaginable awareness or absolute God. In the deep sleep of human beings, the whole gross body exists with all the systems and inert energy. All the systems except nervous system and relatively concerned part of the brain are functioning. Even in the brain, other part is functioning sending signals to other systems for their respective functioning. That part of the brain is not considered here since these signals are only inert signals like traffic signals. We are concerned only with the awareness. Hence, in the deep sleep state except the functioning of the nervous system and the work of nervous system (awareness), everything exists. We are not bothered about this entire gross body and the surrounding world since there is no process of knowledge or awareness in this state.
4) In the Coma state, if the awareness is totally absent it is as good as state of deep sleep. If partial awareness exists, the nervous system is not functioning fully. Such partial state varies between the states of dream and awakening based on the various stages of partial awareness. Coma is different from death because in death all the systems of the gross body stop functioning. In coma, the gross body is alive even though the nervous system is not functioning or partially functioning. Clinical death means the disappearance of awareness in the body. In the actual death, all systems of the gross body stop functioning forever. During death, the awareness leaves the gross body and enters an energetic body along with all its strong pulses called as attitudes (samskaras or vasanas). Such type of leaving is again by the will of God only and hence science is unable to detect the individual soul after death.
5) Cow is an animal of soft nature, which does not harm you in anyway. But, there are other soft natured animals also like goat, deer etc. The basic law is that you can kill even a human being if that human being is attacking your life. The same applies to any living being. You can kill a tiger or a lion or a wolf, which will certainly attack you even if you do not harm it. Applying this basic law, it is not justified to kill any soft natured animal, which does not harm you. You may argue that you are killing it for the sake of your food. You may say that you have to save your life by the food only and hence it is inevitable. I agree if the situation is like that in which you are unable to get food by any alternative way and you have to save your life in draught by killing even a soft natured animal. This is justified as special justice in emergency (Dharmasukhma in Apatdharma). But this is not justified when God has given plenty of alternative food. You may argue that even cutting the paddy etc, is also slaughtering living beings because plant has life. Here, you must distinguish life from awareness. Life is only an inert mechanism of taking oxygen and leaving carbon dioxide. In view of this, plants are said to be living beings. But, there is no development of this life into advanced stage called as awareness, which exists as mind, intelligence etc. When the awareness exists, the living being killed experiences the same pain, which you get when you are killed. There is homogeneity between yourself and zoological kingdom of life containing insects, birds, animals etc. All the plants come under a different subject called Botany in which the life is limited to simple mechanism of inert respiration only. If you have studied Botany and Zoology as different subjects, this question will not attack your mind. You may further argue that the flesh or vegetable contains the same chemical components like Carbohydrates, Proteins, Vitamins etc., and hence eating flesh and vegetable food are one and the same. I fully agree with your point and say that there is no sin in eating flesh because of the presence of same ingredients of plants. If you go to the cause of acquiring the flesh and vegetable food, an animal with awareness is killed for flesh and a plant without awareness is cut for grains. In the stage of cause, there is lot of difference because awareness exists in zoological items and the same does not exists in botanical items. You may argue that you are not directly cutting the animal for the flesh. You might have not done the sin directly, but since you are consuming the flesh, the butcher is cutting the animal. Hence, as a consumer, you are indirectly an equal participant of the sin. I do not want to enter much into ethics or scriptures in this subject. I stand simply on one point, which is that just you think that you are in the place of that animal being cut and then imagine the pain. This one point is sufficient in this subject.
Therefore, killing any soft natured animal or any soft natured human being is a sin provided it does not attack your life. Except this one point, you should not kill any human being or any soft natured zoological living being. All other reasons can be enquired by law and corresponding justified punishments other than death sentence should be given. Hence, cow slaughter is only a part of the total concept and this part should not be emphasized as the total concept. You try to extend this partial concept to the other similar items also and arrive at the general total concept. Taking the advantage of the slaughter of other soft animals, you should not kill the cow.
The fundamental cellular fluid in Botany is cytoplasm whereas the fundamental cellular fluid in Zoology is protoplasm. The neuro spot giving awareness exists even in unicellular organisms (Amoeba) of Zoology. If you justify killing of animals for the sake of food, you have to simultaneously justify the killing of human beings for food by demon or present carnivorous human beings present in the forest. Kaapaalikas eating the dead bodies of human beings are justified. Proteins primarily synthesized in plants are good for health whereas proteins re-synthesized in flesh are not good for health. Bhagavan Shri Satya Sai Baba even as a boy used to become curious if a bull of cart was beaten. The highest justice is non-violence (Ahimsa paramo dharmah…). If you say that you will kill the animal by giving anesthesia, it is also not justified because you have no right to take away the God given life from its enjoyment. Will you justify your killing also by the demon if anesthesia is given to you? In such case, even an atheist will argue such human killing is unjust!
Shri Ramakrishna Paramahamsa was found killing blood (bed) bugs in His cot. The blood (bed) bug or a mosquito can be killed harming you seriously. But, non-harming ant or butterfly etc., should not be killed. Bhagavan Shri Shirdi Saibaba showed the wound on His body when a devotee beat a buffalo. By this, He is preaching that human being doing violence should keep in the place of victim and imagine the suffering of the violence. Can He be a non-vegetarian as some people criticize? Buddha left this family life on seeing when a swan was shot. In the Valmiki Ramayanam, an inserted incident was told that Rama killed a deer in Panchavati forest. He killed certainly the golden deer since He knows it as a demon in disguise. Rama was never a non-vegetarian as spoken in the Valmiki Ramayana itself (Na maamsam Raghavo Bhunkte…). Even Jesus, the embodiment of love, was not a non-vegetarian and reports otherwise are false, which were created by the non-vegetarian followers only. Mahavir preached extreme non-violence by restricting the justified non-violence also so that people will not do atleast the justified non-violence. Here, (n+1) rule applies, which is to preach the highest goal so that atleast high and higher goals are achieved by the followers.
Non-violence is the fundamental justice and no divine scripture in the world can preach atleast the justified non-violence. Scriptures are polluted by the insertions done by the followers and hence, logical analysis is the ultimate filter to reject such insertions. Sometimes the human incarnation may not oppose such fundamental non-violence also since it is strongly established. The human incarnation may neglect even such fundamental issue in view of concentration on other issues so that when other issues are rectified, this fundamental issue can be taken by next human incarnation in course of time. Such fundamental strong issue is dealt by partial controls step by step. The scripture says that fish should not be captured on holy days in holy places. This is a partial control in the initial stage. Finally, the scripture preaches the step called as ‘Mahavratam’, which is not to catch the fish in any place on any day. Full and permanent reformation on any issue can come only through the divine scriptural knowledge. Enforcement through rules can bring only partial and temporary control.