Mandukya Upanishad, Class 69

Gowdapadha extends aladha
dhrishtantha to show that there is no kariya karana sambandha between Brahman
and Jagath.  In general transaction, we use several words without really inquiring
about the meaning.  When you make an inquiry into gold and ornaments,
there is no kariya karana sambandha because there are no two things; gold and
ornament refer to the same substance.  We use two words for the sake of
communication; after using the words we assume there are two substances. 
But we get trapped and conclude there are several things; once we assume there
are several things, then we discuss the sambantha, the relationship.

Once you understand the truth that
world is nothing but Brahman with nama roopa, you will not talk about
creation.  The talk of creation is based on delusion or worldly
transaction.  The truth is there is no question of any creation.  In
reality, nothing is created out of Brahman.  Any experience of arrival of
creation it is nothing but myth like magic.  Cosmic maya is responsible
for vyavakarika jenma and individual maya is responsible for pradhipadhika
jenma.

Brahman is creating a seeming
universe because of the power of Maya and therefore the creation is myth cause
by the power of Maya.  But this creates a doubut that there is Brahman
which has the power of Maya.  This means duality – Brahman and Maya. 
If dream plant has to grow out of the seed, the seed also must also belong to
dream.  Therefore, the karanam seed as real or as unreal as karanam
plant.  Therefore, Maya is not paramarthika sathyam, but only vyavakarika
sathyam.  From the paramarthika dhrishti even Maya is not there. 
When we negate the universe, we negate maya is also.  Even that maya is
also not there from paramarthika dhrishti.  That is why maya is called
avidhya.  Brahman, Maya and prabanja:  of these three, two are
vyavakarika sathyam and one alone paramarthika sathyam.  In Brahman, the
paramarthika sathyam, there is vyavakarika Maya which is responsible for
vyavakarika sathyam.  Maya, and maya kariyam Prabanja is also
mithya.  They both are supported by the sathyam Brahman which is neither
karanam nor kariyam.

Verse 59

Cause is also as real as
effect.  Dream mother who produces a child both have the same order of
reality.  Similarly, Maya which is responsible for the creation, both have
the same order of reality.  Maya and creation both are unreal.  A
sprout which comes our unreal or magic seed is also unreal or magic. 
Kariyam is mithya; karanam is mithya; kariya karana vilakshanam alone is sathyam. 
Mithya is that which seems to exist as long as you don’t make an inquiry. 
It is like trying to find darkness while carrying a light on your head. 
Since the very mithya substance is nonexistent, you can’t use any
attribute.  To use attribute, you need a substance.  You can never
talk about the birth date of rope snake because it doesn’t exist.  You
can’t talk about the arrival or departure of the snake because it does not exist. 
Similarly, any attribute you describe to the world, is not correct as world as
a substance does not exist.  Is the world eternal – Vedanta cannot answer. 
No attribute can be given to the world because it is not a substance.

Verse 60

You can never give any attribute or
descriptions to the world, because there is no substance called world. 
Then what is there?  There is only one thing – kariya karana vilakshanam,
Brahman, the Thuriyum.  Can you give any attribute to Brahman?  We
can’t give any attribute to Brahman because Brahman is free from all
attributes.  I can’t talk about Brahman; I can’t talk about world. 
That is why gyani observe mownam.  When they try to talk about Brahman
they realize Brahman is free from all attributes; when they try to talk about
world, they realize that world doesn’t exist.  Words can be used only when
one of these conditions are fulfilled.

  1. Roodihi means available for direct
    perception.  Once you identify an object
    with a word, then you can identify that object with that word.  Example sun; there is only one and that
    identified with direct perception.
  2. Jadhihi; a species; suppose there is
    a tree outside.  e.g.  a tree belonging to the same class of tree
    that was perceived elsewhere with another tree.
  3. Gunaha:  An object revealed through its property;
  4. Karma:  Revealing through the function; e.g. cook,
    driver, wind.
  5. Sambanthaha; revealing through
    relationship; father, brother etc.

Brahman does not fulfill any of these conditions and so Brahman can’t be associated with any verbal specification.  World is mithya vasthu and Brahman is sathya vasthu; I am the sathya vasthu, called Thuriyum.

Verse 61

When Gowdabadha consistently negates
the world, it will create a question in our mind:  How can we negate a solidly tangible world? 
But in swapna also we experience a world seemingly so solid, capable of creating
raga, dwesha, suga and dhukkam.  From the standpoint of waker, the dream
is mithya.  Simiarly we are negating the world not from the standpoint of
waker – which will be a big mistake – from the standpoint of Thuriyum. 
Never negate sthula prabanja from viswa dhrishti and shukshma prabanja from
Taijasa dhrishti.  Negate them only from Thiriyua dhrishti.

Verses 61, 62 and 63 are repetition
of verses 29 and 30 third chapter Advaida prakaranam.  Here the word used
is chitham and there the world used is manaha.

In dream whatever you tangibly
experience is nothing but thought vibrations from your mind.  In the same
way, the jagradh prabanja also is a mental disturbance at cosmic level. 
There is no tangible objects at all.  The cosmic mind is called eeswara or
maya.

Verse 62

The objects in the dream are not separate from your own mind.  The seeming duality is nothing but advaidam chitham.  One non dual mind alone appears as a pluralistic world; similarly one cosmic mind – Maya – alone is appearing as Jagraedh Prabanja.  The tangibility is a myth; there is really no tangible world on inquiry.  Dream or magic are the two examples of advaidam.  the limitation of the dream example is that when you wake up from the dream, the dream experiences will end.  But when I wake up from Jagrath prabanja by gaining wisdom, even after I become gyani, the jagrath prabanja experiences continue.  For a gyani it is like continuation of dream with the knowledge that it is a dream.

Verse 63

Gowdapadha graphically describes swapna
to show how it appears as very real.  This can be grasped only when you go
to your own dream mentally.  A dream subject is projected by me.  I
myself become the dream subject in the dream by acquiring a dream body, dream
sense organs and a dream mind.  The dream mind which experiences the dream
world, does not know it is a dream world.  There he comes in contact with
all types of objects.  The dream is
located in me, but I think I am located in dream.