Hymn to the Lord
Dakshinamurti
A Commentary by
Shri Yellamraju Srinivasa Rao
Verse 10
सर्वात्मत्वमिति स्फुटीकृतमिदं यस्मादमुष्मिन् स्तवे तेनास्य श्रवणात्तदर्थमननाद्ध्यानाच्च संकीर्तनात् । सर्वात्मत्वमहाविभूतिसहितं स्यादीश्वरत्वं स्वतः सिद्ध्येत्तत्पुनरष्टधा परिणतं चैश्वर्यमव्याहतम् ॥10॥
This verse describes the nature of the Universal Self. In the last nine verses as well, Shankara has repeatedly conveyed the same message. In the first three verses, he established that the apparent world is unreal. In the next three verses, he established the non-difference between Ishwara (Creator), and the jIva (individual). In the seventh verse, he explained that that the Self alone is Real and the not-Self is unreal. In the eighth verse, he explained how we incorrectly associate Atma with anAtma, and how this association perpetuates the disease or the problem of samsAra. In the ninth verse, he provided a solution to free us from samsAra. Shankara used the word vimrusatAm in the ninth verse. This is a gem of a word. Many secrets of sAdhana are hidden in it. Since it is hard for seekers to grasp the teaching if it is buried too deep, Shankara elaborates on it in this verse. He describes the process for attaining the fruit or the result of such a practice, which is sarvAtma bhAva, a state of being in identity with all; an unbroken seamless Oneness. A sincere seeker must contemplate deeply on this teaching to attain such a state of Oneness. Shankara suggests a three-step practice: shravaNa, manana, and nidhidhyAsana. The first step, shravaNa, is to read the scripture or listen to an experienced teacher with devotion and commitment to learn the Truth. This includes understanding the meaning of each word (padArdha shravaNa]) in a sentence, and understanding a comprehensive meaning of the entire sentence (vAcyArdha shravaNa). For instance, in the great saying, tat twam asi (That Thou Art), the student must first understand the meaning of each word - tat, twam, and asi - and then string them all together to get a comprehensive meaning of the entire sentence. When we have such an understanding, we realize that the words tat and twam are pointing to the same thing - Consciousness. Such understanding dispels ignorance. Ignorance is the lack of knowledge that, while Ishwara and jIva are tightly bound to the world, Atma, pure Consciousness, permeates and transcends both of them. In spite of having an intellectual understanding of the truth, we find it difficult to separate Atma (Self) from anAtma (world). We continue to fail to understand the relationship of the insentient world we see to the Consciousness that is our very nature. Are they one or are they two? To address those questions, just shravaNa is not enough. manana, deep contemplation and understanding are necessary. With the help of sound reasoning and examples, we must clearly understand that the effect (world) is not separate from the cause (Consciousness), although they appear as though they are different. Intellectual knowledge of the Self must mature into a firm conviction. Without such conviction, knowledge will disappear the moment we step into the world. The Self will once again appear as Not-Self. This is viparyaya, misapprehension, when a thing appears in reverse, as something different from what it really is. That means, instead of the world appearing as Existence-Consciousness, it appears as names and forms. What is the use of manana if our conviction is so weak that it gets shaken at the least challenge? We would be like the elephant that rolls itself in dirt soon after it takes a dip in the river. To develop firm conviction that the Self Alone Is, manana must culminate in nididyAsana - deep, prolonged, uninterrupted reflection on the nature of the Self (Existence-Consciousness). Like the salt dissolved in water, Consciousness is present in everything. When salt dissolves in water, we cannot see it with our eyes or feel it with our hands. We can only taste it with our tongue. Similarly, when our vision is focused only on the common substance that permeates all particulars, we stop seeing the particulars. The vision that is focused on particulars is a fragmented vision. The vision that is focused on the common substance that permeates all particulars is a homogenous vision. When our vision is continuously focused on the Self alone, like the uninterrupted flow of oil, it is called nididhyAsa. Whatever we see, hear, or think in this world, we must remind ourselves, “It is my Self alone, Pure Existence-Consciousness, that appears to me, the Seer, as though molded, folded, and solidified into these wonderous forms of the world.” If we train our minds to perceive everything as nothing other than the Self, gradually particulars will lose their specificity and dissolve into the Universal. Forms become blurred and everything that was earlier experienced as particulars are now experienced as the Universal Self. Since the vision is on the Universal and not on the particulars, there is no duality. There is no room for likes and dislikes, good and bad. All duality vanishes. There is no more samsAra (bondage); Only sAyujya, liberation. When we attain this state of being, there will be no difference between transcending (samAdhi) the world or transacting with it. Even when we transact with the world, we will feel that we have transcended it. We continue to experience samAdhi even while transacting with the world. Life becomes samAdhi. In the beginning, before our practice, we experienced life as eternal bondage, but now, at the end of our practice, we experience life as eternal liberation. When everything is experienced as the Self (sarvAtma bhava), that experience is referred to as the experience of the Universal Self, the Bliss of brahman, and so on. The terms “everything” and “Universal” include the triad - jagat (world), jIva (individual), and Ishwara (Creator). It is the notion of jagat that engenders the notion of a jIva, and it is the notion of a jIva that engenders the notion of Ishwara. Therefore, if the notion of jagat disappears, the remaining two notions will also disappear. This disappearance of the world, the individual, and Ishwara of the Advaiti is not like the “nothingness” of the materialists nor the “emptiness” of the Buddhists. All though the three entities (jIva, jagat, Ishwara) are empty and has no separate existence of its own, as Consciousness, they are Real. When they dissolve in Atma, what remains is Atma alone. Shankara calls this sarvAtma bhava, where everything is experienced as the Universal Self. The one who attains such a Unified Vision is the liberated one. He is a jIvanmukta. He is not yet a videhamukta because he still has a body. Complete liberation (videhamukta), even from the body, occurs when prArabdha karma is fully exhausted. Until then, the jIvanmukta continues to live. Instead of wasting his life on body-maintenance (food, bath, etc.), he dedicates his life for the upliftment of sincere seekers who have a burning desire for Self-Knowledge and liberation. The Self-Realized one transmits his knowledge and experience of the Self to others through his speech and writings. This is the meaning of the word samkIrtan in verse ten. Shankara lists samkIrtan as the fourth step in the practice, following sravaNa, manana, and nididhyAsana. Such a realized being, a jIvanmukta, is a fully Accomplished One. Since he is completely identified with the Supreme Self, he has all the powers of the Supreme Self, the most important of them being expansiveness - the ability to see everything everywhere as an expansion (vibhUti) of his own Self. With a Self that is unrestrained and expansive, a jIvanmukta, like Ishwara, is capable of wielding his mAya shakti to fulfill any desire. He automatically gets the power of command over the different worlds and the beings in those worlds, just like Ishwara. He also acquires all the yogic powers- anima, garima, laguma, etc., like the ones Lord Hanuma demonstrated in Ramayana. The jIvanmukta, however, does not display his powers for trivial reasons. Unlike a mediocre yogi who exhibits his powers to impress others, a jIvanmukta does not have a fickle mind. He has zero desire to exhibit his powers, since he perceives everything as the Supreme Self. When everything is brahman, and there is nobody or nothing inside or outside of brahman, who is there to exhibit and to whom? Only because a jIvanmukta does not have any desires, he is able to see everything as brahman. If he happens to display his powers occasionally, it is only in response to the particular needs of the people of his time based on their prArabdha karma, or to accomplish a particular task that is prompted by the Divine Will. He is simply a means through which things manifest. Even when his powers are operating, like the common people around him, he also simply stands and watches his performance like a spectator. Hence, he is known as a siddha purusha, the Accomplished One.