The nature of Reality for the Awakened Jīva

The metaphysical sleep (ignorance of Reality) continues throughout transmigratory life. Its spell is broken only on the realisation of the Self. ‘When the individual soul (jīva) sleeping on account of the beginningless māyā, is awakened, it realises the state of Turīya which is unborn (aja), and in which there is neither sleep nor dream, nor duality’. This is the first time Gauḍapāda refers to the Turīya as ‘unborn’ (aja), and this term does not occur in the text Māṇḍūkya Upaniṣad.

Śaṅkara here compares the “sleep” to māyā which functions through non-apprehension (tattva-apratibodha/ agrahaṇam [agrahaṇa]) and misapprehension (anyathāgrahaṇa) of Reality.

The jīva, the individual soul, subject to the cycle of birth and death and reeling/sleeping under the influence of māyā sees the dream in the two states of wakeful and dream. The “dream” in the nature of illusion (māyā) which is beginningless has two characteristics, viz. non-apprehension of Reality which is the seed/cause and misapprehension of Reality as something else (effect). These “dreams” are like “this is my father”, “this is my son”, “this is my grandson”, “this is my property”, and “these are my animals”, “I am their master”, “I am happy”, “I am miserable”, “I have suffered a loss on this account”, and “I have made a profit on that account” and so on and so forth.

Then the jīva is awakened by a compassionate teacher who himself has known the Reality taught by Vedānta, through such instruction as:

(nāsyevaṃtvaṃhetuphalātmakaḥ kiṃtu tattvamasiti)^[1]

“Thou art not an entity conditioned by cause and effect, but thou art Brahman”

Thus awakened from sleep, the jīva realizes the real nature of its own Self as being free from birth, (ajam [ajam]), sleep (anidram [anidra]), dream (asvapnam [asvapna]) and non-dual (advaitaṃ [advaita]).

Anticipating the following objection, Gauḍapāda has highlighted an important point in kārikā 17: Can the Turīya the non-dual Reality co-exist with the phenomenal world which is said to be an appearance? Does the simultaneous existence of the phenomenal world contradict the teaching, Turīya being always non-dual (advaita)? According to Gauḍapāda, if the phenomenal world were to really exist then the above doubt could be entertained. But the phenomenal world being a mere appearance is compared to the wrong perception of snake on the rope. Just as the wrong perception of the snake does not tarnish the underlying substratum (the rope), the non apprehension and distorted view of the Self creating wrong perception of the phenomenal world does not affect the Self which is the source/substratum.

What does not “exist” without a positive ontic status cannot disturb or disrupt the status of the underlying substratum.

He says that:

“If the phenomenal universe (prapañca) were real then certainly it would disappear. But this duality is mere illusion/appearance (māyāmātram [māyāmātra]). On the realization of the Truth, there is only non-duality”.

The disappearance of an object can be asserted only when such an object is taken to be real. But the phenomenal world, being illusory, does not possess reality. Hence, one cannot speak of its disappearance. Only those who believe that the manifold universe really exists shall speak of its disappearance. The snake imagined in the rope, through illusion, does not really exist and therefore does not disappear through discrimination. Likewise, the vision created by the magician does not really exist and thus there remains no question of its disappearance, after the magical veil binding the sight of the seer is removed. Therefore there is no such thing as the manifold universe which appears or disappears. A non-existing thing neither comes nor goes. The duality of the manifold universe is only illusory and non-duality is the Supreme Reality like the rope and the magician. In fact it is the illusion that the manifold universe exist as something other than the non-dual Turīya, disappears. The snake in its substratum ever remains the rope; the magic show has no being apart from the magician. However, from the point of view of its substratum, the manifold universe is ever the eternal, the non-dual Turīya.

Gauḍapāda makes a similar point in kārikā 18. He says:

‘If anyone has ever imagined the manifold ideas (such for instance as the teacher, the taught, and the scripture), they might disappear. The explanation is for the purpose of teaching. Duality (implied in explanation) ceases to exist when the Highest Truth is known’.

To an objection as to how could manifold ideas in the form of the teachers, the student and the scripture disappear, Śaṅkara replies that such ideas being part of the manifold universe is an illusion like the snake superimposed on the rope or like the magical show of the magician. These ideas are imagined for the purpose of imparting instructions to attain the Supreme Reality. When the purpose of the instruction being the realization of the non-dual Supreme Reality is achieved then the duality ceases to exist (dvaitam na vidyate).The absolute truth is that the manifold universe including the ideas of the teacher, the student and the scripture are essentially one with the Supreme Reality, the non-dual Turīya.

The examination of the three states is the essence of the Māṇḍūkya Upaniṣad and the Āgama Prakraṇa which has been beautifully expressed in the first invocatory verse which reads:

“I bow to that Brahman that (during the waking state) after having enjoyed (experienced) all gross objects by pervading the entire universe through the omnipresent rays of its immutable consciousness that embraces the entire variety of the movable and the immovable objects; that again, after having digested, as it werethat is to say, experienced within (in the dream state)-all the variety of objects produced by desires and brought into existence by the mind, enjoys bliss in deep sleep and makes us experience through Māyā, the bliss; which, further, is designated, in terms of Māyā, as the fourth (Turīya),and which is supreme, immortal and changeless”.^[2]

The object of inquiry into the three states of consciousness is to realize the nature of the Self which alone is constant and unchanging while the appearances vary. The knowledge emanating from the study of Vedānta is that the Self is Brahman (ayam ātmā Brahman).

Footnotes and references:

[1]:

Māṇḍūkyopaniṣad, Gita Press, 65-66.

[2]:

Swami Nikhilananda, The Māṇḍūkya Upaniṣad with Gauḍapāda’s Kārikāand Śan ƒ kara’s commentary, 1.