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Thread: mokṣa by any other name...

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    mokṣa by any other name...

    hari o
    ~~~~~~

    namasté

    We hear this word mokṣa often on HDF. It is a core value of sanātana dharma. Perhaps if we took a few posts to look at it we may be able to appreciate the true essence of its offering.
    • mokṣa¹ - emancipation , liberation , release from ; setting free , deliverance (of a prisoner) - it is from the root verb mokṣ , to free one's self from ; to shake off.
    • mokṣitum is to free or deliver from.
    Some say it is attainable only via karma (actions), others say via jñāna, still others say it is only available via bhaktī (devotion); and still others say it only comes from the Supreme's grace (prasāda or anugraha).

    This post is not so much about the vehicle(s) that may reveal this state of Being, but more about the various words associated with it (mokṣa) and their associated meanings.


    For me I have been fortunate enough to comprehend this notion is not so much the idea of being liberated from (mukti - deliverance from) ignornace, but more of the notion of being identified with the Supreme, with one's essential nature. One can then see the difference.

    Yet over time we have come to use the term mokṣa as liberation from ignornace; yet in its essence it is the liberation from smallness (āṇava mala). When this smallness is no more, what is left is vastness (viśva¹), one's real home. Let's look at some of the terms and ideas that may capture this idea and notion.

    One idea that is used often ( in yoga schools and found in saṁkhya philosophy or darśana¹) is kaivalya. It is defined as perfect isolation , abstraction , detachment from all other connections , detachment of ātman from matter or further transmigrations. This kaivalya comes from the term kévala defined as 'isolation'. Yet too it also means simple , pure , uncompounded , unmingled. We can see the beauty in this term as how it can apply to the conversation of mokṣa. One in this condition is simple, pure, uncompounded.

    What is this simple, pure and uncompoounded state of being ? Some like to call it sattva. It means purity, stainless. Why so ? Because when one is possessed, in full, of the Self, there is not even one iota of impurity found in this Self. That is, even if one is 99.9999% pure and this 0.0001% of undifferentiated awareness remains , it is considered a contrary state of being nestled (samatā¹) in the Supreme.


    There is another notion called īśitṛtva. Let's address this in the next post.

    iti śivaṁ

    words
    • mokṣa - in jyotish, is known as the liberation of an eclipsed or occulted planet , the last contact or separation of the eclipsed and eclipsing bodies , end of an eclipse
    • mokṣadā - is the name of a female ascetic
    • viśva - to pervade; all-pervading or all-containing , omnipresent
    • darśana - is to see; inspection , examination . There are 'classically' 6 schools(saḍ darśana) that in general can be grouped into 3 pairs :
      • yoga & sāṁkhya
      • mimāṁsā & vedānta as vedānta is also known as uttara mimāṁsā a.k.a. the brahma-sūtra-s. Some distingush mimāṁsā as pūrva ( former , prior ) to that of uttara ( later , following , subsequent ) mimāṁsā
      • nyāya & vaiśeṣika - logic and cosmology - Here we find the 'atom eater' or kaṇāda-muni the author of the vaiśeṣika branch. And we have akṣapāda-muni (akṣapāda = having his eyes fixed on his feet ) of the nyāya philosophy.
      • These 6 fall into many of one's studies. Yet one that is not called out that I have spent much more time with has been the trika-darśana.
    • samatā - sameness of level ; identity with
    Last edited by yajvan; 07 December 2012 at 10:08 PM.
    यतसà¥à¤¤à¥à¤µà¤‚ शिवसमोऽसि
    yatastvaṠśivasamo'si
    because you are identical with śiva

    _

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    Re: mokṣa by any other name...

    Namaste yajvan ji

    Quote Originally Posted by yajvan View Post
    ...and still others say it only comes from the Supreme's grace (prasāda or anugraha).
    Could you expand on this? Is it based on B.G. 8.5? "Whoever thinks of Me alone even at the time of death, attains to My state on abandoning the body. There is no doubt about this." Or is there more to it? My understanding is that the Supreme is the final arbiter and controller of karma. Is it possible that at some point during an atman's journeys through births, the atman has done so much good that the Lord says "You have done enough, your work is finished" and grants moksha? Or is that the simple explanation of it? This came up in a conversation, and I did not have the answer, just a to the question.

    This post is not so much about the vehicle(s) that may reveal this state of Being, but more about the various words associated with it (mokṣa) and their associated meanings.

    I hope my questions don't take you intentions of the thread off track.
    śivasya hridayam viṣṇur viṣṇoscha hridayam śivaḥ

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    Re: mokṣa by any other name...

    hariḥ oṁ
    ~~~~~~

    namasté

    Quote Originally Posted by Jainarayan View Post
    Namaste yajvan ji

    Could you expand on this? Is it based on B.G. 8.5? "Whoever thinks of Me alone even at the time of death, attains to My state on abandoning the body. There is no doubt about this." Or is there more to it?
    Your question is well founded. This knowledge comes from the non-dual (advitīya) views found in kaśmiri śaivism. I will expand upon it a bit later, but thought to mention it here. Even within in the upaniad-s¹ we are informed that the Self reveals itSelf to itSelf.

    iti śivaṁ

    1. Two upaniṣad-s call this out : kaṭhopaniṣad (1.2.23) & muṇḍukopaniṣad (3.2.2)
    यतसà¥à¤¤à¥à¤µà¤‚ शिवसमोऽसि
    yatastvaṠśivasamo'si
    because you are identical with śiva

    _

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    Re: mokṣa by any other name...

    hariḥ oṁ
    ~~~~~~


    namasté



    There is another notion called īśitṛtva


    īśitṛtva components

    • īś = master, lord, Supreme; it is also another name of śiva; ī́ṣṭe is to own or possess.
    • ṛtva is from ṛtu and ṛtu is any settled point of time , fixed time.

    Hence this īśitṛtva is the ability (power) to abide/own/possess/settle within the divine without interruption. This is then 'divine facing' or being within one's own true nature, kaivalya .

    iti śivaṁ
    यतसà¥à¤¤à¥à¤µà¤‚ शिवसमोऽसि
    yatastvaṠśivasamo'si
    because you are identical with śiva

    _

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    Re: mokṣa by any other name...

    hariḥ oṁ
    ~~~~~~

    namasté

    I wrote in post 1 above,
    and still others say it only comes from the Supreme's grace (prasāda or anugraha).
    ... and Jainarayan asks about this grace in post 2. Here is a bit more on the answer. Within the non-dual (advitīya) views found in kaśmiri śaivism, pañcakṛtyavidhiḥ or the the Supreme's 5 fold act is discussed. The 5 are the following:
    • sṛṣṭi सृष्टि - letting go or emanation or emission - from this all of creation as we know it unfolds. Note it is an emission of all the tattva's that make up creation
    • sthiti स्थिति - continued existence; continuance in being . We may see this as the maintenance of life or of all creation
    • saṁhāra संहार - contraction; drawing in (like an elephant's trunk); fetching back. Note many like to use the word destruction (vilaya - dissolution , liquefaction , disappearance , death , destruction ) yet this is not what is being communicating here, it is tat of drawing back in.
    • tirodhāna तिरोधान - concealing; covering ( like a sheath , veil , cloak ) ; this covering people wish to call māyā, and we have many posts on this subject.
      Yet here in this darśana (view , doctrine , philosophical system ) māyā is the śakti of the Supreme, in this case of śiva. It is His own self-imposed limitation on his own Self. Why so? I hope we can offer a POV that satisfies this question ( It has for me).
    • anugraha अनुग्रह - grace; showing favor, kindness; This we know as His blessings and the main act that brings one to kevala¹
    This grace is viewed as 3 groups of 3 ( or 9 in total )¹. The common theme to all 9 is śaktipāda that is found in the 3 major catagories:
    • tīvra śaktipāda and has 3 qualities or levels
    • madhya śaktipāda and has 3 qualities or levels
    • manda śaktipāda and has 3 qualities or levels
    iti śivaṁ

    words
    Last edited by yajvan; 08 December 2012 at 05:42 PM.
    यतसà¥à¤¤à¥à¤µà¤‚ शिवसमोऽसि
    yatastvaṠśivasamo'si
    because you are identical with śiva

    _

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    Re: mokṣa by any other name...

    Namaste.

    Thanks for giving it thought and for the references. I'll pull out my copies of the Upanishads. I look forward to more.

    Of course... this speaks volumes: "...we are informed that the Self reveals itSelf to itSelf."

    Quote Originally Posted by yajvan View Post
    hariḥ oṁ
    ~~~~~~

    namasté


    Your question is well founded. This knowledge comes from the non-dual (advitīya) views found in kaśmiri śaivism. I will expand upon it a bit later, but thought to mention it here. Even within in the upaniad-s¹ we are informed that the Self reveals itSelf to itSelf.

    iti śivaṁ

    1. Two upaniṣad-s call this out : kaṭhopaniṣad (1.2.23) & muṇḍukopaniṣad (3.2.2)
    Oops, I should have read further.
    śivasya hridayam viṣṇur viṣṇoscha hridayam śivaḥ

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    Re: mokṣa by any other name...

    hariḥ oṁ
    ~~~~~~

    namasté

    There are other words for this mokṣa that come to mind:
    • svādhisthāna = svā +dhi + sthāna¹ or one's own + delight + being fixed or stationed
      • svādhisthāna therefore means being stationed and delighted in one's own Self.
    • ātmajñāna = ātma + jñāna or knowing (jñāna) one's Self (ātma).
      • This Self sometimes goes by the name nijātman (nija + ātman); this means 'my own' or 'inate' or 'native' + ātman (Self, essential nature).
    Yet the one I find of interest is tattvaparyavasāyi
    tattva + paryavasāyi
    • tattva¹ = true or real state, some say That-ness; It is made up of tad and tvam , 'that (art) thou', and called one of the 4 mahā-vākya-s. Some look at it like this: tata-tva
    • paryavasāyi = paryavasāna = termination , conclusion .
      • within in this word we have vasā which is shining, white and vasa - dwelling or residence
      • also we have āyi or āya which is 'arrival, gain'.

    So , this most noble word means terminating, or arrival, dwelling in That, the real state.


    iti śivaṁ

    words
    • sthāna is also 'a state of perfect tranquillity' which applies to the Self.
    • tattva in the trika view of Reality calls out 36 tattva-s that make up the whole of everything;
      • in the sāṃkhya view the concern is with 25 tattva-s
    यतसà¥à¤¤à¥à¤µà¤‚ शिवसमोऽसि
    yatastvaṠśivasamo'si
    because you are identical with śiva

    _

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    Re: mokṣa by any other name...

    hariḥ oṁ
    ~~~~~~

    namasté



    Before mokṣa we know the person resides in ignorance; that of avidya, moha, etc. Yet an interesting way to say the person resides in khecarī-vaiṣamya . What is this ? Let's take a look:
    • vaiṣamya - unevenness; inequality , oddness (opposed to 'evenness') , diversity , disproportion
    • khecarī - kha = brahman, sky + carī is rooted in 'car' = that which moves about, to move or travel through , pervade , go along , follow
    So, this word form of khecarī-vaiṣamya is he/she that moves about (carī) within the world (kha) of diversity (vaiṣamya).


    And what occurs when the fullness of Being unfolds? Then that person moves within khecarī-samatā. We know what khecarī means... in this case the person resides within brahman (kha). Yet what of this samatā ?
    It is defined as 'equality , sameness , identity with , normal condition'. So this person that has realized khecarī-samatā moves about in the normal condition, the sameness of brahman.


    iti śivaṁ
    Last edited by yajvan; 11 December 2012 at 05:44 PM.
    यतसà¥à¤¤à¥à¤µà¤‚ शिवसमोऽसि
    yatastvaṠśivasamo'si
    because you are identical with śiva

    _

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    Re: mokṣa by any other name...

    hariḥ oṁ
    ~~~~~~


    namasté

    The aspirant that desires this mokṣa has a few names...
    • mumukṣu - (a person) eager to be free (from mundane existence) , striving after emancipation
    • mumukṣutva - (the) desire of liberation or of final emancipation.
    We note 'mu' in both words above - 'mu' is rooted in 'mū' - a bond, the act of binding or tying. 'mu' is defined as final emancipation. So 'mu' is to be free from 'mū' - to be free of bondage.


    • adhikārin - fit for; possessing authority. This word is used for one that is 'fit' for kari or accomplishment. That of being on the path of sādhana. And what is this sādhana ?
    It is the means of effecting or accomplishing , any agent or instrument or implement or utensil ; an expedient. It is the one that wishes to be the sādhu - straightened , not entangled or the virtuous , honorable , righteous person on the path of unfoldment.


    iti śivaṁ
    यतसà¥à¤¤à¥à¤µà¤‚ शिवसमोऽसि
    yatastvaṠśivasamo'si
    because you are identical with śiva

    _

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    Re: mokṣa by any other name...

    hariḥ oṁ
    ~~~~~~

    namasté

    I wrote,
    So, this word form of khecarī-vaiṣamya is he/she that moves about (carī) within the world (kha) of diversity (vaiṣamya).
    This one idea khecarī-vaiṣamya is at the core of the conversation between śiva and devī found in the parā-trīśikā vivaraṇa tantra¹. The very first śloka, where devī asks śiva the following:


    śrī devī uvāca ( or śrī devī said)
    anuttaraṁ kathaṁ deva
    sadyaḥ kaukilasiddhidam
    khecarī-samatāṁ vrajet || 1


    Without a word for word translation ,this says:

    O'Lord how does the unsupassable divine consciousness (anuttaraṁ¹)
    bring about immediately the identity of the emperical I ( or that 'I' of the human) with the perfect 'I' of śiva while still in this human form ?




    This is the fundamenal desire of the seeker - to be in samatā, (sameness) with the supreme... to move about (khecarī - see post 8 above); to achieve (siddhi) this khecarī-samatāṁ level of Being. It is from this question that the parā-trīśikā vivaraṇa tantra knowledge unfolds.


    If one wishes to read a few more excerpts from this work, consider the following HDF post(s): http://www.hindudharmaforums.com/showthread.php?t=3808

    iti śivaṁ

    • this work is also known by the name anuttarasūtra-s , the essence of the Unsuprassable. Some too refer it as the trikasūtra-s.
    • anuttara means unsurpassable, the highest.
      • We also find the term 'anuttaramūrti' used for that form (mūrti) who is the highest, supreme (anuttara). It is another name for paramaśiva,
      • Now there is another view - this anuttara is considered the technical name for the letter/vowel sound we know as 'a'. If we view it in this manner then we can say 'anuttaramūrti' is the ~form~ of the vowel sound 'a'. And who is this 'a' ? It is śiva.
    Last edited by yajvan; 13 December 2012 at 05:10 PM.
    यतसà¥à¤¤à¥à¤µà¤‚ शिवसमोऽसि
    yatastvaṠśivasamo'si
    because you are identical with śiva

    _

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