Swami Dayananda would warn his students against using mystic words. Swamiji would say that the field of spirituality is full of mystic words that are mysterious in nature. The words are vague in meaning besides being subjective. The meaning would differ from people to people. This has helped me a lot and hence I am sharing.
Mystic words cannot be used to communicate ideas clearly. No doubt such words are often attractive, awe-inspiring, reverential generating, and hallow creating – but mystic words certainly cannot communicate. There it is in the interest of a teacher and student of spirituality to avoid mystic words. That’s the first lesson of spirituality: change your vocabulary. Shed all the mystic words and replace them with words a common man can understand. This is very important and beneficial as we shall see.
Bearing this mind let us examine the title of today’s talk: Nature and process of spiritual enlightenment. The first point is the words “spiritual enlightenment” are mystic words. There is problem starting itself! If we spoke on this topic for 20 minutes or 25 years even then we will not know what this blessed “spiritual enlightenment” is. So we must change these two words and replace something that gives clarity. In the context of spirituality our scriptures clearly says that ignorance is our problem and knowledge is the solution. They use the word “Ajnanam” and “Jnanam” and let us use their English counterparts “Ignorance” and “Knowledge”. So we replace “enlightenment” which is a mystic word with “knowledge”. 50% of our problem is solved! Avoid using words like “realization” or “awakening” (perhaps it has got a meaning from people sleeping in spiritual classes!).
How can we replace the word “spiritual”? It may also have different meanings. Good if you don’t understand because there are varieties of spirits. In our tradition the word “spiritual” is used to convey the message of Vedanta. “Spiritual” therefore refers to the teaching of Vedanta or Upanishads. Therefore “spiritual enlightenment” is nothing but “knowledge of Vedanta teaching”.
This leads us to the central message of the Vedanta. During Gurupurnima I am mostly addressing my students. Therefore I am taking a lot of things for granted. The message of Vedanta is “Brahma Satyam, Jagat Mithya (BSJM) ” and “Jivah aham Brahmiva (JAB).” Brahman is the absolute reality and world is conditional reality. Jiva, which is me, is none other than Brahman. The clear knowledge of this teaching and clear understanding of the teaching is called “spiritual enlightenment”. So we have made a frightening and intimidating word more clear.
The understanding of “BSJM” is paroksha jnanam. And the knowledge of “JAB” is aparoksha jnanam. Both are nothing but jnanam only. Both lead to knowledge only. But if you ascribe “knowledge” to paroksha jnanam and realization to aparoksha jnanam, we will get into a knot. Why? The moment we use “realization” we have entered into vagueness, confusion, and subjectivity.
Paroksha Jnanam (PJ) is the knowledge of the teaching, while Aparoksha Jnanam (AP) is the knowledge that Brahman is myself. If both are jnanam, why divide them? In PJ I am not talking where I stand. When we refer to ourselves that we say ‘aparokha’. Even scriptures have a word for self-confusion as “aparoksha brahma”. Therefore PJ and AJ differentiates the inclusion or exclusion of myself. Take for an instance a person going to Kailas Mano Sarovar. The group has reached the place and the leader says: I am going to divide the group in two – group A and group B. Group A will do Kailasa Parikrama today and group- B will do Mano Sarovar Parikrama today. Tomorrow it will be reverse. After listening to the leader every member knows that group –A will do Kailasa Parikrama and Group – B Mano Sarovar Parikrama. I ask one member,” What Parikrama will you do today?” The member will most likely answer,” Because the leader has not yet divided the group, I don’t know to which group I will belong. But I have a clear paroksha jnanam that group-A will do Kailasa Parikrama today and Group – B Mano Sarovar Parikrama. But once the leader divides the group and if the members belongs to Group –A he will say,” I am doing Kailasa Parikrama today.” The second situation in which my status is very clear is called “Aparoksha Jnanam”
There “Brahma Satyam, Jagat Mithya” is Paroksha Jnanam and “Jivah Aham Brahmiva” is Aparoksha Jnanam which is liberating knowledge. Clearing understanding of PJ and AJ is “spiritual enlightenment”. We have analyzed a bombastic mystic word “spiritual enlightenment” to the ground. So there is a lot more clarity. This Knowledge – both PJ and AJ – is the nature of spiritual enlightenment.
The next aspect is “what is the process of spiritual enlightenment”? The process can be clearly understood if you avoid mystic words. First we will replace the world “spiritual enlightenment” with simpler word “knowledge”. So the question becomes,” What is the process of knowledge?” We are now on the ground and not floating in the air because “knowledge (k)” we all understand.
Vedas have exhaustively studied how “k” takes place. Be it spiritual knowledge or knowledge of any subject in the world, the process is the same. Knowledge takes place when pramatha (the knower), premeyam (the object to be known) and pramanam (the instrument through which we know) come together, Then knowledge takes place and that is called “prema”.
So pramatha, premeyam, pramanam alightment leads to the rise of knowledge which is nothing but a thought modification in the mind (anthakaranam vritti parinama). When I look at the wall, I am the pramatha, my eyes are the pramanam, wall is the premeyam and then what happens? A relevant thought modification takes place and I know that there is a “wall” there. Similarly if we want to know the sound, the pramanam is the ears. Therefore the law of knowledge is pramatha (subject)+ premeyam (object)+ pramanam (instrument) alignment generates thought modification for knowledge to take place. The Sastas declare that depending on what you want to know, you must use appropriate and relevant pramanam. To see a “wall” you need eyes, to listen to this lecture you need ears. To summarize, knowledge takes place when pramatha, premeyam, and pramanam together. This same principle holds true in spiritual field also.
In other field you are studying worldly objects, here we are dealing with Brahman or Athma. And fortunately where is Brahman or Atman? It is everywhere. “I” am the pramatha (spiritual seeker), Brahman is the premeyam (object of my pursuit) and I should use a relevant pramanam. The Sastras talk about a varieties of pramanams for varieties of premeyam. The scriptures what pramanam to use to gain Vedanta knowledge as Mundakopanishad says: Go to a guru. Swami Dayananda even avoids the word guru and instead uses “teacher”. In “guru” the problem people may think that he is someone who will touch my head or base of my spine or place a feet on my chest and I will get liberated. Sadly “guru” has become a mystic word. Instead “teacher” makes it clear. Therefore,” I am a teacher and you are all my students. The word “teacher” indicates what is my role. I teach. As Mundakopanishad observes: A guru is one who will systematically, properly, verbally communicate the teaching. Verbal communication is one of the pramanams is called “Shabda Pramanam” (Vedanta Vakya Pramanam). Hence in spiritual knowledge the relevant pramanam is “guru-prayukta, vedavita vakyam pramanam” – the words coming out of the mouth of an Acharya is the pramnam, the instrument or medium for knowledge to take place. This systematic teaching – where the pramatha, premeyam, and verbal communication come together – results in Paroksha Jnanam and Aparoksha Jnanam. This same idea is conveyed in the Katho Upanishad. Yama Dharmaraja tells Nachiketas how “spiritual enlightenment” takes place. It takes place when it is properly and verbally communicated by a teacher avoiding mystic words. The guru communicates, total knowledge will take place.
The next question is: Can we get both Paroksha Jnanam (PJ) and Aparoksha Jnanam (AJ) though teaching? Vidyaranya says in Pachadesi: Parosksha Jnanam will come from a desika (guru or teacher). Aparoksha Jnanam will also come from a desika. Both will come to a spiritual aspirant with teaching as prama and thought modifications where pramatha, premeyam, and pramanam come together. Pramanam is nothing but systematic teaching, verbal communication. Then liberating knowledge will come. To summarize, what then is “spiritual enlightenment”? According to us it is the clear understanding of PJ and AJ from a guru’s verbal communication on “Brahma Satyam, Jagat Mithya” and “Jivah Aham Brahmiva”.
If this teaching gives liberation, what then is the role of meditation is the next question. If the teaching gives PJ and AJ why is meditation required. All these ideas are analyzed in the scriptures and none of these ideas are mine. I am only borrowing them. In scriptures, meditation is not a pramanam, therefore it cannot produce any knowledge. We can see from this example: Suppose I want to attend the Sarada puja of Sringeri Acharya (who is incidentally staying in Chennai now) and he does not know where the puja is taking place. He has “address” ignorance and he wants “address knowledge”. If meditation is a pramanam, he will close his eyes and says “Sringeri, sringeri; Acharya, acharya…..Chaturmasya, chatuurmasya, puja, puja” for 45 minutes. He will not get any knowledge but some punyam as all these are sanctified words. Sringeri is a thirta sthanam and Acharya is a Mahaan. The point is meditation cannot give knowledge and therefore not a pramanam.
The next question is what is the purpose of meditation if it does not give knowledge? There are two-fold purposes. Before Vedanta teaching “meditation” is practiced for refining the mind. It is used for mind purification. In Bhagawat Gita, chapter six we have seen. After gaining knowledge from a guru (both PJ and AJ) again “meditation” is useful. It is important to mention to avoid using mystic words like Deeksha or Upadesha (instead it is simply a teacher’s teaching or a guru). Based on the teaching the disciple has to change his/her worldview. Before knowledge I was ignorant and I had one narrow worldview. After in the light of a guru’s teaching my worldview becomes as broad as said in the scriptures. This “transformation” in worldview is a paradigm shift to be affected. It is here meditation plays an important role. It is nothing but dwelling on the teaching continuously. How do you know “transformation” in worldview is taking place? Previously I would say,” I have only knowledge and I am not yet liberated.” And when the worldview is shifted, I declare: I have knowledge and therefore I am ever liberated. It is small change of dropping “only” before knowledge for it is insulting to knowledge but in terms of worldview I realize I am Brahman. This takes time and meditation is required for changing one’s perspectives.
I will clarify it with an example. Suppose I want to talk about Madras summer. Temperature can be measured in two ways, either Celsius or Fahrenheit. We also know how to convert from one scale to the other: divide by 9/5 and add 32 from C to F. 100 C is 212 F. But if I am used to only one scale (I have to use only one scale) then my mind has an idea. Say, I am used to Celsius case. I know from experience how 37 degrees would be, 38 would be miserable, 39 intolerable, and at 40 I am saying ‘shu shu” all the time. The other scale I know but I don’t use. Suppose if someone says,” Swamiji it went to 105 Fahrenheit nothing registers in my mind.” Because my mind is not used to Fahrenheit scale. I have to mentally convert it to Celsius and then my mind understands. Same thing with dollars. $2 does not convey anything to me but if you say Rs.110 I understand. Similarly thing happens in Vedanta learning. Between pre-teaching and post-teaching there is a huge paradigm shift. Meditation will not give either Paroksha Jnanam or Aparoksha Jnanam. Even as I receive the teaching I must change my worldview for “I have only knowledge but I am not yet liberated” to “I have a clear understanding the teaching (Brahma Satyam, Jagat Mithya and Aham Brahmiva Na Parah) and I am ever liberated.”
So my answer to the person who interviewed me and he only gave me ten minutes! I said something and managed. Then I thought I must dwell on the topic: The nature and process of spiritual enlightenment. I realized that of proper communication of the teaching the guru must avoid mystic words. He makes Paroksha Jnanam and Aparoksha Jnanam as clear understanding such that when the disciple dwells on the teaching they will change their limited worldview to Vedantic worldview. With this I conclude my talk.
On this auspicious Gurupurnima day let us pray to all the non-mystic guru parampara who make the teaching down to earth and bring it to the level of a lay person to grasp.
