This is intended to be a series of articles on the basics of Vedanta, gradually moving on to the depth with details. Please feel free to comment, ask questions related to the articles. Your comments are the thermometer for my writing skills and contents. I will do my best to write on subjects that interests you. Hope you enjoy my articles.
1. Anubandha- catustaya: The four preliminary considerations with respect to vedantic texts. They are Adhikari, Visaya, Prayojana and Sambandha.
2. AdhikárÄ«: Qualified aspirant. The personalities of an individual, qualified to study the vedantic texts.
3. Viveka: The ability to differentiate between the Permanent & impermanent. (Understanding that Brahman alone is permanent and worldly objects including body, mind & intellect are appearing as real) This is the basis/foundation to climb the spiritual ladder.
4. Vairágya: It is the readiness to lose anything at any time. (Recognizing that except Brahman, everything has a beginning & end. A strong conviction of viveka will support Vairágya)
5. Uparama: The ability to withdraw oneself from the worldly attractions. (Be a part of the world yet, being apart -detachment. When viveka & Vairágya are strong, uparama is effortless)
6. Titiksá: The capacity of the mind to take all kinds of pain and sorrow objectively. Equanimity in situations without forbearance (Ability to forgive & forget and not be affected/carried away by the obstacles on the spiritual path)
7. Samádhána: Single-pointed ness. Ability to stay focused in the spiritual path. (If the mind & senses are managed properly, developed the ability to be detached from the worldly attractions for such a person, Samádhána is an effortless act).
8. MumukÅYutvam: A desire for Liberation. (An intense desire to get out of the cycle of birth & death.)
The defects of worldly enjoyments...
- They have a beginning & end - They cause pain - They sap energy - They give a sense of incompleteness at the end - They lead to a cycle of birth & death - due to attachment through pleasure, memory and an illusion.
Differentiation between Sama from Dama.
Sama is mastery of mind. Mind can travel faster than light and in all directions. To manage the thoughts and keep the mind as your servant is a challenging task. Keeping the mind away from the desires of the worldly attractions and in the spiritual path is Sama. (Mind starts with experiencing the pleasure, to the memory of the past pleasure (recalling) to the yearning of the experience again and when not possible, getting agitated, losing clarity, increases anxiety, thus loses calmness and gets detoured from the spiritual path).
Dama is mastery of senses. Information flows from the senses to the mind. Senses are the entry points/gateways to the mind. If these senses are trained properly in the right directions, managing the thoughts and mastering the mind is not difficult. Monitoring and managing the senses is the beginning step towards the spiritual path to recognize Brahman.
Comparison between 'blind belief' and 'sraddhá
The two terms 'blind belief' and 'sraddhá' are vastly different.
Blind belief is a concept, temporary in nature and does not have to have a truth. It has no logic and gets shattered in a difficult situation. My personal experience is: When I was little, I believed that my parents would be there with me forever. On the contrary, when they passed away, I recognize that the belief that I had, isn't true. My father's sudden demise let me questions as to 'where did father go?' 'Will this happen to everyone?' 'When will I go and where?' "Why did I come here from where?"
Sraddhá / Faith is a trust. The faith that I had & continue to have in God, strengthened me (the ego to be humble) leading to an enquiry mind with an ability to intellectually recognize the permanent from the ephemeral, leading to inner peace. Faith is simply trusting that something IS, even though you cannot necessarily see it or prove it.
From the spiritual point of view, a blind belief is a belief based on pure ignorance. Before Sankaracharya, people had blind believes, practiced rituals without understanding the meaning of Vedanta. Once we learn our philosophy, it gives clarity that performing mere rituals alone is not the life's goal. They're only a means to steady our mind and stay focused and elevate us towards the higher goal - Self Realization.
Unfortunately lots of people's beliefs are of this sort, they let themselves be taken by the popularity of something and they have no idea of what the principles or basics of which those beliefs are built upon. They get attracted to the wealth, fame and popularity due to their belief of what they believe is real in life and gets detoured from the spiritual path.
Blind belief reminds me of blind obedience. When a child is put in that situation & the parents are suddenly out of the picture, the child is unable to survive independently because he/she is raised to follow direction. Faith on the contrary is like a child raised to use his critical, analytical, logical thinking and make the choices of his life.
Regular consistent spiritual practices, study of Vedanta, viveka, vairagya, and single pointed focus on self-enquiry will take us to a higher elevation on the spiritual path under the guidance of a Guru and the grace of Lord.
1. Anubandha- catustaya: The four preliminary considerations with respect to vedantic texts. They are Adhikari, Visaya, Prayojana and Sambandha.
2. AdhikárÄ«: Qualified aspirant. The personalities of an individual, qualified to study the vedantic texts.
3. Viveka: The ability to differentiate between the Permanent & impermanent. (Understanding that Brahman alone is permanent and worldly objects including body, mind & intellect are appearing as real) This is the basis/foundation to climb the spiritual ladder.
4. Vairágya: It is the readiness to lose anything at any time. (Recognizing that except Brahman, everything has a beginning & end. A strong conviction of viveka will support Vairágya)
5. Uparama: The ability to withdraw oneself from the worldly attractions. (Be a part of the world yet, being apart -detachment. When viveka & Vairágya are strong, uparama is effortless)
6. Titiksá: The capacity of the mind to take all kinds of pain and sorrow objectively. Equanimity in situations without forbearance (Ability to forgive & forget and not be affected/carried away by the obstacles on the spiritual path)
7. Samádhána: Single-pointed ness. Ability to stay focused in the spiritual path. (If the mind & senses are managed properly, developed the ability to be detached from the worldly attractions for such a person, Samádhána is an effortless act).
8. MumukÅYutvam: A desire for Liberation. (An intense desire to get out of the cycle of birth & death.)
The defects of worldly enjoyments...
- They have a beginning & end - They cause pain - They sap energy - They give a sense of incompleteness at the end - They lead to a cycle of birth & death - due to attachment through pleasure, memory and an illusion.
Differentiation between Sama from Dama.
Sama is mastery of mind. Mind can travel faster than light and in all directions. To manage the thoughts and keep the mind as your servant is a challenging task. Keeping the mind away from the desires of the worldly attractions and in the spiritual path is Sama. (Mind starts with experiencing the pleasure, to the memory of the past pleasure (recalling) to the yearning of the experience again and when not possible, getting agitated, losing clarity, increases anxiety, thus loses calmness and gets detoured from the spiritual path).
Dama is mastery of senses. Information flows from the senses to the mind. Senses are the entry points/gateways to the mind. If these senses are trained properly in the right directions, managing the thoughts and mastering the mind is not difficult. Monitoring and managing the senses is the beginning step towards the spiritual path to recognize Brahman.
Comparison between 'blind belief' and 'sraddhá
The two terms 'blind belief' and 'sraddhá' are vastly different.
Blind belief is a concept, temporary in nature and does not have to have a truth. It has no logic and gets shattered in a difficult situation. My personal experience is: When I was little, I believed that my parents would be there with me forever. On the contrary, when they passed away, I recognize that the belief that I had, isn't true. My father's sudden demise let me questions as to 'where did father go?' 'Will this happen to everyone?' 'When will I go and where?' "Why did I come here from where?"
Sraddhá / Faith is a trust. The faith that I had & continue to have in God, strengthened me (the ego to be humble) leading to an enquiry mind with an ability to intellectually recognize the permanent from the ephemeral, leading to inner peace. Faith is simply trusting that something IS, even though you cannot necessarily see it or prove it.
From the spiritual point of view, a blind belief is a belief based on pure ignorance. Before Sankaracharya, people had blind believes, practiced rituals without understanding the meaning of Vedanta. Once we learn our philosophy, it gives clarity that performing mere rituals alone is not the life's goal. They're only a means to steady our mind and stay focused and elevate us towards the higher goal - Self Realization.
Unfortunately lots of people's beliefs are of this sort, they let themselves be taken by the popularity of something and they have no idea of what the principles or basics of which those beliefs are built upon. They get attracted to the wealth, fame and popularity due to their belief of what they believe is real in life and gets detoured from the spiritual path.
Blind belief reminds me of blind obedience. When a child is put in that situation & the parents are suddenly out of the picture, the child is unable to survive independently because he/she is raised to follow direction. Faith on the contrary is like a child raised to use his critical, analytical, logical thinking and make the choices of his life.
Regular consistent spiritual practices, study of Vedanta, viveka, vairagya, and single pointed focus on self-enquiry will take us to a higher elevation on the spiritual path under the guidance of a Guru and the grace of Lord.
Awesome Power is an organization committed to encourage, motivate, inspire, coach and support individuals to believe in themselves and reach their fullest potentially in life.
The author of this article is a motivational speaker, a professional writer, personal coach dedicated to public speaking, writing articles to make a difference.
The author is also deeply interested in spiritual studies and believes our life is the consequences of our own actions and that the spiritual study is the way for inner peace. We are on this earth to realize that all is ONE and that ONE is in all.
The author of this article is a motivational speaker, a professional writer, personal coach dedicated to public speaking, writing articles to make a difference.
The author is also deeply interested in spiritual studies and believes our life is the consequences of our own actions and that the spiritual study is the way for inner peace. We are on this earth to realize that all is ONE and that ONE is in all.
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