Mandukya Upanishad, Class 35

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:

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