Life of Tara
About the core of Vedas
20/04/2020
（ エスペラント語で交流していた私と同年代のポーランドの女性は、正規の学校に通えない青少年たちの私立学校を設立するために、私との文通が途絶えていました。最近、ようやく学校を軌道に乗せることができたと言って、今度は英語で私にヴェーダについて色々と教えてくれとメールが来ました。彼女は、量子力学など現代物理学の方面から、人間の意識の広がりについて研究しており、ヴェーダにも大変興味を持っているようです。）
A Polish woman in her sixties, who was interacting with me in Esperanto, has lost contact with me in order to establish a few private schools for youth who could not go to formal schools. Recently, she wrote to me in English that she had been finally able to get the schools on track, and that she would like me to teach her about Vedas as long as I knew. She studies the spread of human consciousness from the perspective of modern physics such as quantum mechanics. So, she is very interested in Vedas. Then, I would like to describe the essence of Vedas that I understood in my own way.
Vedas are philosophical and religious documents originated in India from B.C.1500 to B.C.500. Vedas have been presented basically by oral tradition. Our mind is connected with everyone overall, and has been moving to the future from the past as one body. However, an individual inherits the karma which is different each other, and stands alone on the surface and fights each other. In spite of practicing such an individual karma, after step-by-step severe training, the individual who can refuse the desire and attachment feels that an individual footstep unites with the truth of great universe and can get true peace before long in this world. This is the basic way of thinking of Vedas.
Upanishads are compiled texts on philosophical instructions of Vedas located in the end of Veda documents. The old one was formed in about B.C.500 and the new one was made after A.D. Four big Vedas such as Rigveda, Yajurveda, Samaveda and Atharvaveda have a lot of mysterious and symbolic expressions. On the other hand, Upanishads have a guideline of how we should live. However, as for the basics of Upanishads, interpretation of symbolic expression based on the sound itself of words handed down from ancient times plays a key role.
Upanishads or Vedas do not in fact refer to any religion, but address humanity in general and are applicable to all, irrespective of the generation.
I would like to start to explain most important words in order to understand Vedas.
1.Karma
Vedas say that human society is the society where we live through each social duty in this world shouldering cause and effect of various good and evil. That is, we, each one shoulders each burden which he or she has from birth, no matter what it is. Such a burden is named Karma. And each Karma has no choice but to appear in action of each person. Action is the Karma as fate given to each person. Human being’s action includes not only good action but also bad action. Each action of each person forms this secular world. So, we, human beings have to struggle against various actions in this secular world. Vedas say that we, human beings are able to grow spiritually through fight among various actions in this human society. A process of such growing is called Ashrama(four stages of human life).
We cannot get true knowledge without action. Through action, we can gain true knowledge in order to find true self. My teacher, Mr. Iyer said to me as follows.
That is, in any case, the Vedas never said that you must shed all actions and strive for Gnana (true knowledge) only. Vedas deal with the Do's and Don'ts of humanity, in its one part (Karma kanda, full of actions ) and with the nature of the Almighty, in its other Upanishadic part (Gnana kanda), where you leave the transient pleasures of this world and strive for the absolute Truth, which is Almighty itself. Gita is a compendium of both these (Karma kanda and Gnana kanda).
Gita (Bhagavad Gita) is a part of Mahabharata. Mahabharata is the longest story in the world that contains various important ideas of ancient India based on Vedas.
In Gita, the most important teachings about Karma is described as follows.
47. One’s own duty(Karma),(even though) defective, is superior to another’s duty (para-dharmat) well performed. By performing a duty as dictated by one’s own nature, one does not incur sin.
48. One should not give up the duty to which one is born, even though it be faulty. For, all undertakings are surrounded with evil, as fire is with smoke.
Madhusūdana(Indian philosopher c.1540–1640) explained above sentences as follows.
If he fails in this duty (karma) of his, he will be committing a sin thereby. This fight, he has to do, must be done without any attachment, and as an offering of his to the Almighty.
One’s own duty, though defective, is superior to another’s duty well-performed. Death is better while engaged in one’s own duty; another’s duty is fraught with fear. Verily, one’s death while remaining engaged in one’s own duty is productive of fame in this world, and it is the cause of attaining heaven, hereafter.
That is, as I mentioned above, we, each one shoulders each burden which he or she has from birth, no matter what it is. Furthermore, each one cannot understand another person who shoulders another burden, completely. If a person assumes that he knows another person’s inner world well and tries to understand another person’s action only by his assumption, he falls into hell. Vedas declare even to that point.
2.Gunas
As I described above, Karma is different each other. So, each person who shoulders each Karma has no choice but to act differently in his daily life. In Gita, Krishna describes the main human emotions which affect each person’s action. Such emotions are three predispositions (gunas). Gunas are purity (sattva), excitation (rajas), and darkness (tamas). These three arise from matter and bind immortal soul to body. So, "The human world always drifts in a state of confusion because these three are intertwined in the human body.
Purity (sattva) is based on emotions that seek genuine knowledge. It is innocent and radiant. Excitation (rajas) is based on emotions that always adhere to action with the heat of passion. And darkness (tamas) comes from ignorance, perturbs everything in body, and is based on laziness and apathy.
Therefore, it is only necessary to make purity project out of these three predispositions (gunas), but human beings do not go that way. Every human being who lives in the world has three predispositions (gunas) inevitably, no matter how different. Arjuna who is a main character in Mahabharata is a man who is filled with purity (sattva) , but there is still a scene in which he is obsessed with excitation (rajas) in Mahabharata. In order to fight as a warrior, excitation (rajas) is also an essential element. On the other hand, if only excitation (rajas) emerges in a person, he becomes a man of personality who wants to realize his claim as action in a lordly manner. When darkness (tamas) is added to it, the possibility of becoming a criminal or a hypocrite increases.
In this way, for a human being, there is no practice or measure that he can become a person who has only purity (sattva) or who has decent excitation (rajas) and darkness (tamas) with a focus on purity (sattva). There is no way for a human being to change the inborn temperament, which is the basis of Vedic teaching. That is, Karma shows such a situation of human beings
3.Ashrama
Such various people who shoulder each Karma are related, cooperate or fight against each other in this human society, and we have no choice but to take some action while being restricted by the predispositions (gunas) given to us. In a sense, such human beings are weak existences. Nevertheless, they should grow not only physically but also mentally in this secular world.
So, Vedas also show the life stages where a human being advances in an ideal way. That is Ashrama, four stages of human life. The stages are Brahmacharya (a student stage), Grihastha (a householder stage), Vanaprastha (a retired stage) and Sannyasa (a renunciate stage).
Brahmacharya (a student stage) or Grihastha (a householder stage) will be caught up in human society and live as a human who has three predispositions (gunas). So, a person in these stages is full of self-esteem, sometimes expresses anger, and competes against others for status and honor. That is an unavoidable act for a person to live in the society. Of course, a person should grow up mentally amid struggles at these stages. But If he or her stops at these stages, he or her would have no choice but to reach to death in the undesirable state mentally. If a person eventually reaches Vanaprastha (a retired stage) or Sannyasa (a renunciate stage), it is told ideal to live alone quietly, avoiding various desires and conflicts with other people.
Ashrama as human life stages handed down in India is very significant thought for human being’s life. But the influx of modern democracy seems to have blurred the significance of such a life stages. A certain human being finds his way into his spiritual core through various severe experiences. Such a spiritual and lonely road is universal for human beings all over the world from ancient times. However, people, especially people in advanced countries, seems to be going to forget such a valuable life’s journey.
4. Consciousness
A question arises here, "why should we spend our time seeking for spiritual stages?” Consciousness in our mind may force us to do so. But, Consciousness won’t stay only in human being’s brain. It pervades all space and time, and is homogeneous. Madhusūdana explained about Consciousness furthermore as follows.
Consciousness is devoid of any distinguishing characteristics. This Consciousness, however, remains covered due to nescience, and when that nescience is removed the Reality which is the substratum of everything, becomes revealed. The removal of ignorance through this modification of the mind bearing the reflection of Consciousness is called true knowledge. A person who reached to such a Knowledge can understand that The self (true himself) is just Consciousness itself.
The Self (ātmānam) is the indwelling Consciousness which is non-different from the supreme Self. It is the nondual, infinite and uninterrupted Existence-Knowledge-Bliss with the mind that is absolutely pure sattova untarnished by rajas and tamas. It is not possible to describe orally that bliss which arises in the mind that is totally freed from defects through samādhi and is absorbed in the Self. Such Bliss is intuited by the internal organ. ‘By the internal organ’ means ‘by the mind in which all the modifications have been totally restrained’. The peaceful Self is that which is all-pervasive and homogeneous Consciousness.
5. Brahman and Māyā
Brahman is said to be the efficient cause of creation. Madhusūdana said that even though the world is subject to quick destruction, there is no end to it, because it helplessly reappears again and again under the influence of kleśas (poison), karma, etc., and what had appeared disappears again under the influence of kleśas etc. alone.
Māyā produces the universe with all the moving and non-moving things, just as the power of the magic, under the direction of a magician, produces elephants, horses, etc. But we don’t undertake any other activity apart from illuminating Māyā together with its products.
Though Māyā is the material cause of this creation, Brahma is the substratum of Māyā. Without Brahman, Māyā can have neither existence nor manifestation. In this sense, Brahman is said to be the efficient cause of all creation.
6.Athman
Athman is like the soul which stays in the mind. As long as this Athman is present in a certain body, that body shows signs of life. When this Athman leaves the body, the body ceases to function. This Athman does not ‘die’, it leaves this body and enters another being, and that being starts ‘living’. The body only ‘lives’ or ‘dies’. Athman is always alive, shedding its body periodically like casting away old clothes, and donning new ones. We can called it, “Athman”, residing in each living being in the mind. Furthermore, when we acknowledge Athman residing in all the beings, we can understand that Athman and Brahman are originally one in the same.
7.Yoga
Yoga is generally thought as an exercise to maintain mental and physical health. But, Gita teaches us that a person who practices Yoga overcomes various desire and can see all things as homogeneous. Thus, a true practitioner of Yoga can see the Self in all beings and can see all beings in the Self. In that sense, he lives in the last step of Ashrama.
The Self is Athman. A true practitioner of Yoga can find Athman in his mind through his Consciousness. Consciousness intends something spiritual. What does it intend? Athman knows. But a person who is not able to find Athman in his mind will never know what his Consciousness will intend toward the future. Therefore, a true practitioner of Yoga can see an eternal soul flowing from the past to the future, I think.
As I explained above, Vedas teach humans in every age how they should live, clearly but strictly. However, Vedas contain not only wisdom for human being’s life but also knowledge to elucidate human deep psychology. Therefore, as I wrote above, a Polish woman who is one of my friends as an Esperantist, might have asked me about Vedas.
So, I would like to write to her as follows.
Dear friend in Poland,
I appreciate your try to understand the core of Vedas. You have had a severe experience that you had made effort to establish schools for younger generations. Furthermore, you have overcome a bad disease. So, I think you can understand Vedas sufficiently as a guideline of your life. At the same time, I know that you are going to search for the truth of human consciousness as human deep psychology by the method of modern science such as quantum mechanics. I am also interested in such a try. In fact, as explained above, Madhusūdana said that Consciousness pervades all space and time beyond each person’s mind. Therefore, the elucidation about Consciousness might have close relationship with the world of quantum mechanics. If the research for such a relationship isn’t plunged into an easy spiritualism, we may find a bright result for human being’s future.
However, teachings of Vedas have been established for several thousand years in human history. On the other hand, as for human modern science, only about two hundred years have passed yet since the Industrial Revolution. Human wisdom for better life in the realm of morality has never been changed all through the human history. So, I think that we have to study the core of Vedas earnestly by reflecting each person’s severe experience.
Buddhism seeks for the state of silence and nothingness. But Veda(Gita’s world) seeks for not only the state of nothingness but also the state of action. Action is the Karma as fate given to each person. Each action of each person makes this secular world. Each person cannot but live a life shouldering each Karma. That is human being’s life. We cannot get true knowledge without action. Through action, we can get true knowledge in order to find true oneself. After that, we can enter the state of nothingness eventually, I think.
Let’s study Vedas together also from now on for current human beings, furthermore for future generations!
Kunio Oki from Japan
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