Class 35

Feature of thuriyum is kariya karana vilakshanam.  The first two padhas are seen as kariya pada as they are subject to birth and the third is considered karana padha as it is the cause of the first two padas.   The teaching adjathi vadhaha is establishing that nothing is born out of thuryium.  This creation that we experience is generally classified as jiva and jagat.  Gowdapadha wants to establish that jiva and jagat are not born out of Thuriyum.   This he teaches in four stages:

1. Yuktyya jiva shrity nishedhaga:  Logical negation of jiva shristy (Vereses 3 to 9)
2. Yukthya jagat shristy nisedhagaha:  Logical negation of jagat shrisy (Verse 10)
3. Shruthya jiva shristy nishedhaha:  Scriptural negation of jiva shristy (Verses 11 to 14)
4. Shruthya jagat shrisy nishedhaha:  Scriptural negation of jagat shrity. (Verses 15 to 30)

To convey the first idea, Gowdapadha is comparing jiva to pot space.  The same paramatma enclosed in body is jivatma.  Unenclosed consciousness is paramatma and enclosed consciousness is jiva.  Similar to total space and pot space.  Pot space seems to have an apparent origination.  The pot space appears to originate when the pot is created.  Similarly, when the pot is destroyed, the pot space is also seemingly destroyed.  The origination and destruction are apparent.  The arrival, departure, plurality, gradation etc. of pot space are all apparent.  Because space can never leave or be impure.  Space itself does not have purity or impurity.  Extending the same principle, jiva is pure consciousness and the birth, death, arrival, departure, getting old etc.  are apparent.  All of these belong to body mind complex.

Verse 9

Jiva is similar to the pot space in the case of death, birth, departure, arrival and existence in various bodies.

Whatever feature of jiva are all not true.  To understand this, you should compare to pot space.  The feature of jiva we consider are:

• Birth:  Jiva is never conceived
• Death:  Maranam
• Arrival and Departure from one body to another body.  All pervading consciousness cannot travel from one body to another.   We mistake the travel of mind as departure
• Occupation of different bodies

Jivatma is very much similar to the pot space.  With regard to pot space these five features are only apparent; similarly, for jivatma these features are illusion and delusion.  Jivatma is not born out of paramtma.  Paramatma is not a karanam and jivatma is not kariyam.  There is only one kariya karana vilakshanam and that atma is mistaken as jivatma and paramta.  By that mistake you create a karana kariya sambandha.

Verse 10

All bodies are projected by the maya of the atma like dream.  There is no reason to establish their realty whether there is superiority or total equality among them.

Logical negation of jagat shrishti.

In the previous portion we said pot space is not born at all; birth belongs to pot only and we committed the mistake of transferring the birth of pot to pot space and conclude pot space is born.  Jiva atma, the chaithanyam is not born.  Chaithanyam is eternal and not born.  Body is born and the birth of the body is falsely transferred to the chainthanyam.  But only body the enclosure is born.  So, if you accept that the body is born, then you should accept the birth of the elements – pancha boodham.  That means the world is born, then for that world paramatma should be karanam.  So paramatma can’t be kariya karana vilakshanam.  However, even the birth of the body and elements is not real birth.  The body, pancha boodha etc are born out paramatma maya sakthi, the power to create unreal world.  The world is born unreally or apparently.  Brahman created this world with the unique power, Maya.  This is similar to human’s nidhra sakthi which creates swapnam – dream world. 

Body mind complex is called sanghatha.  This represents entire inert creation.  During the dream, the dream world appears real, but upon waking up, it disappears.  Similarly, the inert world appears real but upon gyanam it becomes unreal.  So Maya is mithya and the world created by Maya is also mithya.  This Maya is resting on Atma. Maya and world are mithya and atma is sathyam.  Mithya does not mean absent, but it means less real.  Just like dream is experienced but not as real as the world.  Similarly, this world is experienced but not as real as thuriyum.  Thuiryum is paramarthika sathyam; this universe is called vyavaharika sathyam and dream world is called parabathika sathyam.  Dream world is less real than waker’s world; the waker world is less real from thuriyum standpoint.  Less real world can’t be counted with more real world.  The dream money can’t be added along with waker’s money.  Therefore, there is only one atma, or thuriyum.

Tangible experience can’t be real, in dream there are so many experiences that look real. But upon waking up they are falsified.  Whether the bodies are superior or inferior or equal, they are all mithya.  Utility, tangibility, expedience cannot prove that the world is real.  World is mithya.

Verse 11

The five kosas beginning with annamaya are mentioned in Tatitreya upanishda.  The supreme atma is revealed as teh content of them like space.

• First stage:  Gada Akasa example
• Second stage:  Swapna example.
• Third stage:  Vedapramanam or scriptural evidence to establish jiva shrishy nishedha or negation of jivatma creation.

Common misconception paramatma is the cause and jivatma is the effect.  Because of this misconception paramatma is taken as karanam.  He quotes maha vakyams to support for the conclusion.  Maha vakyam means any statement that reveals oneness of jivatma and paramatma.

• Tatvam asi – Chhandogya Upanishad
• Pragyanam Brahma – Aitareya Upanishad
• Aham Brahma asmi – Brihadaranyaka Upanishad
• Ayam atma Brahma – Mandukya Upanishad

Jivatma is identical to paramatma and we accept that paramatma is eternal and doesn’t have birth.  Paramatma is birthless; paramatma is identical to jivamta; therefore, jivatma is birthless; so jivatma is not a product.  If jivatma is not a product or kariyam, then paramatma can’t be a cause or karanam. Taitreya upanishad says very same all-pervading consciosness obtained in the panca kosa atma.  When it is outside it is called brahman or paramatma and inside it is called atma or jivatma.  It is only nama vasthu.  In taitreya upanishad five kosas were enumerated; annamaya, pranamaya, manonmaya, vigyanamaya and anandamaya.  After enumerating the pancha kosa, the inner content, consciousness, was revealed as atma.  Then this atma is revealed as all-pervading consciousness.  Jivatma contained within the kosas is revealed as the same paramatma outside.  From this we have to derive, that if jivatma and paramtma are identical, then jivatma is birthless just like paramata