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Mundaka

  • mundaka = head,
  • spider and net,
  • arrow, bow, target,
  • river and ocean,
  • two birds on a tree,
  • fire and spark.

Kena

  • eye of the eye, voice of the voice...
  • Cannot be known. Cannot be not known. Is the ID. When it is known it can only be the reflection. Just like an eye cannot ever see itself.
  • Indra needed Uma Devi. We need also a guru for self-knowledge. It cannot be gained without.
  • Lord like lighting, blinking, thought. And possessor of all glories.

Katha

  • Naciketas and Yamadharmaraja,
  • chariot analogy,
  • body and consciousness. Two independent inseparable entities. Like light and hand.

Kaivalya

  • not commented by Shankaracharya,
  • topic is moksa (kaivalyam) = no need to change the setup,
  • on meditation,
  • teacher Brahman, student rshi Ashvalayana,
  • world is only a mithya product/property of brahman. It has no effect on him -> on me.

Taittiriya

  • 2nd bimba vs. pratibimba ananda. atmananda Vs koshananda;
  • 7 proofs for the existence of brahman:
    1. every product presupposes intelligent cause (creator). nimita karanatvat
    2. material cause. upadana karanatvat
    3. brahman alone is existing in the form of you the experiencer now. jiva rupena vartamanatvat.
    4. ananda hetutvat: hapiness can come only out of infinite. and we are experiencing hapiness... every moment of joy comes out of brahma
    5. inert body is functioning -> because of some cetana tatvam (=brahman) vyapara hetutvat
    6. security of sanyasis. the source of their security (they have nothing). abhaya hetutvat.
    7. bhaya hetutvat. source of fear if it is not understood properly. not understood brahman becomes source of fear. rope -> snake.
  • both jnani and ajnani are brahman. jnani has only removed notion of being apart from brahman.

Mandukya

  • Smallest out of the ten Upanishads; 12 mantras; summary of other Upanishads.
  • Analysis by Gaudapada.
  • "frog" upanishad.
  • 4 prakaranam
  • atma vichara - my relationship with the world. Existence of an object depends on its knowability. Any object is only knowable when there is a knower. Therefore is depending on the knower and therefore is mithya. A knower comes to existence only when I choose to know. Therefore knower also has a dependent existence also is mithya. Both knower and knowable depend on I the consciousness. They are Nama Rupa. The entire Nama Rupa which is resting on me is divided into three categories.
  • Chatuspath Atma:
    1. Vishva (knower) - virat (known).
    2. Taijasa - Hiranyagarbha.
    3. Prajna - Ishwara
    4. without reference to any nama-rupa I am called Thurya.
  • Omkara vichara. 4 parts. AUM plus silence. In silence there is the witness/illuminator of the silence, not nothing.
  • Karya pada. Tree. Sthula and sukshma
  • Karana pada. Seed.
  • Karya karana vilakshana. Beyond both.
  • Conscious being doesn't need a knower to reveal its existence, unlike inert objects.

  • Creation = I plus Nama Rupa.

  • Borrowed attribute. Not my own. Existence for objects is borrowed, like warmth of water. Dream example. Experience does not prove reality, like sunrise, blue sky or flat earth.

  • Creation is unreal and cannot ever come from Brahman. He is beyond time and space thus it cannot be subject to modification. Any modification is caused by time. A cause produces effect by modification.

  • Gatakasha example: pot space. All attributes (movement, separation, death and birth) belong to the container and wrongly are attributed to the content.

  • Adhyaropa apavada method. Introduce world, reveal Brahman, dismiss shrsti. Example: 17 elephants.

  • World is in me. World does depend on me. World does not affect me

  • From the standpoint of consciousness the mind is unreal.

  • Buddhism - only flow of thoughts exists. Who is present to witness the flow?

  • strong raga dvesha - attributing too much reality. Losing the peace of mind, forgetting Vedanta.

  • Mistaken Brahman is creation.

  • Asparsha yoga

  • Alatam drshtanta - patterns of a glowing stick appear in the night example. No substance other than the stick.

Isavasya

  • Packed: 18 verses. Commented upon in Brhadaranyaka.
  • Though: Words do not have literal meaning.
  • ishwara arpana prasada Bhavana plus satvik actions - karma yoga. Isavasya also recommends upasana.
  • The more beneficiaries the better.
  • The wise person see the world as atma.
  • isavasya idagm sarvam. See the secure atma everywhere.

Aitareya

  • the only Upanishad from Rig veda
  • travel of Jiva: bijam in father, then in mother's body, then it's own body, then repeat. If you are tired better known the one beyond this cycle.
  • prajnanam brahman - the real I
  • take ant knowledge, remove the thought. What remains is I the pure consciousness

Prashna

  • Commentary upon Mundaka Upanishad.
  • Dialogue between a rishi and six disciples - six chapters.
  • Belongs to Atharvana veda.
  • First four chapters atma anatma viveka. Creation is of complementary pairs, not opposites. prana shrestatvam. All life is and depends on prana. Prana depends on Atma/Bhagavan. Prana is like a shadow of atma.
  • 5.: omkara upasana as a mean for krama multi.
  • 6.: brahman in the form of shodasha atma purushaha. Creation as the body of the lord.

Brhadaranyaka

  • Upanishad of the great forests.

  • We are all Brahmajis children born out of fear and loneliness.

  • Jivatma = new name for Paramatma (within the physical body).
  • Every dream individual can claim I am the waker. Every Jiva can claim I am Brahman the creator. I became afraid of my own creation.
  • Not missing anything is ananda. Brahman alone is purnaha. Ananda swarupa. Everybody loves oneself only.
  • avidyam -> kama -> karma

  • World is the object of experience. 7 annam.

  • Sleeping person example. Consciousness being intrinsic. Other states incidental.

  • Upanishad - secret name - satyasya satyam.
  • neti neti - negate everything relative. Whatever is left behind is paramathika satyam. Sakshi chaitanyam.
  • Self-love universal.
  • Since atma is universally loved - atma must be source of ananda
  • Since atma is source of ananda it must be worth knowing
  • Atma - Chaitanya svarupa
  • Atma is source of everything
  • Atma alone is appearing in the form of everything
  • Atma is nirvikalpa. I the indivisible self am appearing as the world. Division is only apparent.

  • Atma is never an object of your experience. It is the experiencer of everything. Whatever I see can be only image.

  • Madhu Vidya: atharvana rishi Ashwini kumaras samvada:

  • whole world is interdependent. You the atma observer are the substratum
  • atma the indveller in the body. Puru - body. sha - indveller
  • atma - allpervading brahman. Like potspace is allpervading space
  • atma is beyond karya karana, time.

3. Chapter

  • heat generation - argument between scholars. yagnavalkya - 8scholars - gargi - 1000 cows
  • innermost essence - self evident consciousness. It is ever free.
  • Sanyasa - mental preparedness to lose anything at any time.
  • Antaryami (saguna, distorted) - akshara chaitanyam (not distorted) described by neti-neti.
  • What is beyond matter you can never understand intellectually. Field of consciousness.

4. Chapter

  • light generation - teaching. Yagnavalkya and Yanaka.
  • chatuspath atma - consciousness seen as endowed with four aspects. Facets: vishwa - virat, taijasa - hiranyagarbha, prajna - iswara, turiya (pure consciousness).
  • There is no time and space where consciousness is pure. Any state of experience is state in which conciousness is associated with gross/subtle/causal world.
  • Pure consciousness can be arrived only through wisdom, understanding. By nisheda vakyam: neti-neti. 1) what is existent can never be negated. Law of conservation of matter and energy. 2) what is non-existent need not be negated. Yet Veda negates the world. World cannot come under 1) and not 2) as we experience it. -> world is 3) sat-asat-vilakshanam. Existentially existent, factually as good as non existent - mithya. If world is mithya relationship (of the consciousness) with the world is also mithya. I am seemingly related to the world all the time. I am really not related to the world at any time. Since not really related I am always turiyam.
  • Sense organs, mind, consciousness compared to light principle = that in which presence forms and colours are known.
  • In the absence of consciousness everything becomes inert. Nothing can be known.
  • Who makes conciousness evident? Self luminous consciousness I am, unrelated to what is experienced.
  • Samsara - assuming the problems of the world to be my own problems. Nearest example - dream.
  • Even before death coming janma is indicated by the dreams we get.
  • Moksha example: snake removing the skin.
  • Moksha example: sushupti. Purnatvam and ananda enjoyed in sleep by dropping superimposed limitations.
  • Moksha - freedom from guilt and regret.

  • Without knowledge (that I am will be and always was free) a life is wasted.

  • 4 compulsory disciplines:

    • karma joga: before jnanam after the same is called paropa karmani for loka sangrahaha. like tax for living
    • upasana: meditation before jnanam. after nididhiasanam (paramathika and vyavaharika amshas of ishwara)
    • saatgunyam: acquisition and maintenance of daivi sampat. before jnanam called sadhana after alankara (decoration)
    • Vedanta vichara: pre jnanam - study. post jnanam - nishta (revision).
    • 3 supportive (sahakari) sadhanas and study (mukhya sadhana). all are important all the time. don't give up any.

  • devas asuras and manushya being taught from prajapati (da-da-da teaching, like thunder). problem of devas - extrovertedness, kama. help: sense control - damah.

  • manushya: posesivness and miserliness - sense of insecurity. lobha. help: danam.

  • asuras: inconsideration for others. tendency to be rough. krodha. help: empathy - daya.

  • omkara upasana. chitanasharupena (puranamkam) - consciousness compared to bhutakasharupena (vayuramkam) - space. because so many similar features.

  • hiranyagarbha upasanas. mind/intellect. prana reverence to life in any form.

  • virat upasana. jataragni. digestive fire. can be heard with closed eyes...

  • 3x anatma upasana.

  • convert any pain into upasana. welcome it, see it as tapas. understand every form of pain is exhaustion of papam. purification.
  • looking at death as vanaprasta or sanyasa ashrama.

  • cremation offering to Agni.

  • Panchaagni vidya - travel of jiva in his potential shariram given by atni between death and another janma: svarga - rain - earth - father (by food) - woman

  • krshnagatih - price for good karmas. associated with devatas of darkness. svarga. named because spiritual ignorance due to extrovertion is more there.
  • sukla gathi. krama mukti. good karmas along with ishwara dhyanam. destination Brahma loka. associated with devatas of light

  • Without karma and upasana inferior birth.

  • First secret name given to a child - Brahman (otherwise called Veda).