Re: ātmānātma vivekaḥ: Self and not-Self
hariḥ oṁ
~~~~~
Namasté
There is a general consensus that one's spiritual growth comes through śruti¹ & smṛ́ti¹, yukti (reasoning), and anubhava (direct experience). Note that guidance from muni-s and guru-s fall under śruti as we 'hear' them and the wisdom they offer.
I thought this 164th śloka Ādi Śaṅkara-ji offers in his Vivekacūḍāmaṇi was worth the post:
So long as the vidvas (learned or intelligent i.e. scholarly) does not give up his/her (erroneous) identification with the body, sense organs and so on, which are not real, there can be no talk of his/her liberation (vimukti¹ even if he is supremely proficient in vedānta philosophy.
We find this lesson offered in the Chāndogya Upaniṣad, where Sanatkumāra is instructing Nārada. Nārada is a knower of all the veda-s, ithihasas, purāṇa-s, etc. but is honest to Sanatkumāra and himself by saying I am a word knower or mantra-vit, yet not the knower of the Self (ātma-vit).
Sanatkumāra says whatever you have learned so far is merely nāma ( name). He finds value in this knowing, and then takes Nārada even further. That is the wisdom of the experienced and qualified teacher ( guru) to take one from where they are at and continue to unfold the fullness of Being within that person.
as I see it:
- the mantra for the stuck (sañjayati) and not knowing there is more is deho'ham - I am the body.
- for those that wish to get unstuck the mantra is so'ham - I am He
- for those that are unstuck¹ (asasañjat) liberated, they experience the mantra ahaṃ - 'I'
praṇām
words
- śruti श्रुति - hearing , listening; that which is heard or perceived with the ear , sound ; sacred knowledge orally transmitted by the Brahmans from generation to generation. śruti is also sacred eternal sounds or words as eternally heard by certain holy sages i.e. the ṛṣi-s
- smṛ́ti स्मृति - that which is remembered and handed down in writing by human authors; it is properly only applied to the mantra and brāhmaṇa portion of the vedas , although afterwards extended to the upaniṣads and other Vedic works.
- yukti युक्ति -reasoning , argument , proof , influence , induction , deduction from circumstances ; This word also means union , junction , connection , combination.
- anubhava अनुभव - perception , apprehension, understanding ; impression on the mind not derived from memory i.e. experience , knowledge derived from personal observation or experiment
- vimukti विमुक्ति - release , deliverance , liberation ; release from the bonds of existence , final emancipation
- ahaṁ or aham अहम् 'I'
- 'Unstuck' is being established in one's own Self (svātma-niṣṭhayā).
Last edited by yajvan; 01 June 2009 at 10:04 PM.
यतस्त्वं शिवसमोऽसि
yatastvaṁ śivasamo'si
because you are identical with śiva
_
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