Advaita

Courtesy:Sri.Venkat raman

श्री गुरुभ्यो नम: |

सदाशिवसमारम्भाम् शङ्कराचार्य मध्यमाम् |

अस्मदाचार्य पर्यन्ताम् वन्दे गुरु परम्पराम् ||

Fundamentals of Advaita: Post 1 - The four pursuits

In our sanAtana dharma, four purushArtha-s have been identified as worthwhile objects of human endevaour.

They are:

1) dharma 2) artha 3) kAma 4) moksha. 

 

Dharma is simply put, that which the Veda indicates is conducive to human good. This has been technically defined in pUrva mImAmsa as चोदना लक्षणोऽर्थो धर्मः. In defining dharma in this manner, a few things are indicated. 

1) Firstly, the nature of dharma is beyond the normal range of perception and analysis accessible by the human intellect. 

2) Every worldly means of knowledge available to humanity is essentially flawed, because it is ultimately based on the human intellect, which is finite. What is acceptable to one person in one period of time or one location,  is not acceptable to someone else in another time and space, and thus an unchanging, universal basis for determining right from wrong cannot be founded upon any human means of knowledge.

3) The Vedas, on the other hand are the very life breath of the omniscient Ishvara and therefore are apauruSheya - of non-human origin. Therefore, the limitations that afflict other human means of knowledge do not afflict the Veda.

4) Thus, dharma and adharma are not based on the changing ethics of humanity, but are based on what the veda reveals to be respectively conducive and inimical to humanity.

artha is any kind of material wealth that is necessary to maintain a particular quality of life. The pursuit of artha in an ethical manner, as regulated by dharma, is an important duty of mankind, hence the vedic dictum भूत्यै न प्रमदितव्यम् - do not neglect wealth. 

However, this is not a scriptural sanction for the acquisition of wealth for its own sake, but its pursuit for the purpose of upholding dharma. Moreover, the manner in which it is acquired also needs to be in consonance with dharma.

That is why in the taittirIya upanIshad, in the context of the Avahanti homa, there is a mantra - ततो मे श्रियमावह - Thereafter, I invoke Sri devI, the goddess of wealth. A subtle point is indicated by the term तत:, meaning "thereafter", in the upaniShad. Shankaracharya, in his bhAShya, says - ततः मेधानिर्वर्तनात्परम् आवह आनय ; अमेधसो हिश्रीरनर्थायैवेति. "After giving me wisdom, please grant me wealth, for wealth without wisdom only brings misfortune". Thus it is artha, guided by dharma, which is conducive to individual and societal well-being. 

kAma is desire of all types - be it the psychological, emotional or the physical kind. The root of all human action - be it noble or base, is desire. The pursuit of kAma is not only natural, it is also necessary - not least for the propogation of the species, and through it, the sustenance of dharma. Thus, one does not find the outright rejection of desire in sanAtana dharma, which would not only be an impossible demand (for most), it would also be counter-productive to the well-being of society. Therefore, the Veda does not look down upon kAma, it only insists that it is checked and governed by dharma. 

Thus, in each of the first three puruShArtha-s, dharma places a very important role in guiding and regulating human behaviour to be conducive to the ultimate good of humanity. The karma kANDa in the veda outlines various means to attain these three puruShArtha-s.

However, inherent in each of these three aims are certain flaws, namely: 

1) दु:ख मिश्रितत्वम् - they are inextricably linked with dukha, pain, hardship. The achievement of these puruShArtha-s involves hardship, their maintenance is a constant struggle, and they are bound to wane over time, and thus at some point, the pain of losing them is inevitable.     

 2) अतृप्तिकरत्वम् - being the product of actions, which are themselves finite in nature, these three puruShArtha-s are finite and thus they never fully satisfy. 

 3) बन्धकत्वम् - their nature is to bind the individual. The more one seeks these goals, the more they create a sense of dependency upon them.

Thus the discerning individual ultimately comes to the conclusion that the exclusive pursuit of these aims leads to a never-ending cycle of dissatisfaction. The jnAna kANDa of the veda, the upaniShad-s, point the way in this regard.

For example, the utter dispassion displayed by the nine year old Nachiketa when tempted by all manner of worldly and other-worldly pleasures by Yama is worth emulating. He says:

श्वोभावा मर्त्यस्य यदन्तकैतत्सर्वेन्द्रियाणां जरयन्ति तेजः । 

अपि सर्वं जीवितमल्पमेव तवैव वाहास्तव नृत्यगीते ॥ 

Oh Yama, destroyer of the mortals, everything you have offered me are objects whose future and longevity is unpredictable. Not only these sense objects, but the sense organs that are the means to experience these objects, lose their ability to experience pleasure over time. All things that live have a limited life - therefore, what use to me are these pleasures, whether of this world or the next? 

The natural question at this juncture is whether there is a puruShArtha that does not suffer from these flaws.

The muNDakopaniShad says in this regard that every person at some point examines their life and determines that the things they have been striving for thus far have been limited, and that one cannot attain the infinite through the finite. परीक्ष्य लोकान्कर्मचितान्ब्राह्मणो निर्वेदमायान्नास्त्यकृतः कृतेन ।

At that point, the upaniShad says there is a fourth puruShArtha - moksha - the attainment of the infinite. And to achieve that goal, there is one and only method - the shAstra, imparted by the guru.

The muNDaka mantra continues: in order to know It, one has to approach a guru - one who is well versed in the shAstra and who is forever abiding in Brahman - with humility, and seek their help in the attainment of the infinite - तद्विज्ञानार्थं स गुरुमेवाभिगच्छेत् श्रोत्रियं ब्रह्मनिष्ठम् ॥

What that moksha actually means, how it can be attained, and what one needs to do to qualify for it will be considered in future posts.

श्री गुरुभ्यो नम: । हरि: ॐ॥