AthaatO brahma jijnyasaH|

The Brahmasutras start with the words: athaatO brahma jijnyaasaH | This word 'athaatO' is a matter of contention among the scholars for centuries. The Brahmasutras describe in brief, in small phrase, short formulae the different aspects of brahman. However, it is difficult to understand what these 'one word' or 'two words' phrase convey by ordinary readers.Many scholars get confused as to what exactly is the meaning and purport of these. The word 'athaatO' is one such.What does it mean?Many scholars are of the opinion that the students should come to study of Brahma sutras after finishing their earlier studies of the Puranas, Veda, Upanishads, the Bhagavad-Gita, and the like. Some are of the opinion that it means the beginning of the study of Bahmn or discussion on Brahmn after one reaches the last ashram/stage of life in old age! Anyways, it is open to opens level of understandings. We may, at best, say that one should come to spiritual studies, spiritual practice of dhyana after vairagya and devote time to get esablished in the Self, contemplate on 'Brahmn/.     

How to Spend Time

The most difficult thing in life is to spend time since 'time' is a dubious concept? Time is fleeting! There is nothing like the present, past or future since the present only becomes past in a sec. and enters into future! Even the the statement like the "past is dead and future is unborn" is meaningless since past always lives as experience, knowledge, and memory. So also, what is future is already there in your presence and present in a matter of a sec.! It is the Saint Shankaracharya who took this Upanishad statement and presented us the concept of 'maya'. This 'maya' when reversed becomes yama, the 'time'! Time is illusion, a myth and we all live in Time, maya, and an illusory, fleeting phenomenal world of men, subjects and objects.

   Now how to spend the available illusory 'time'? When there nothing like 'time', the question of spending time does not arise, at all! But the rising Sun and the Sunset marks the beginning and end of day leaving us in darkness of 'time'. The question of spending this time of day and night is not general, but specific; it is age-specific, gender-specific, and mind-specific! There are some who are so busy that they do not have time even to breathe, let alone eat and sleep! Some have all the time in the world for gossip, TV and wander! There are people who are lucky to have what they want and still get bored of life and there are many who do not have even bare necessities of life and do not know what time is! Time fleets even before they realize that they lived (once up on a time?). Now what is this we are talking about? Time is an illusion and it is created by Light that travels and creates space! Sine both Time and  Space are illusory, we who are living through in this mythic situation are also living in an illusory fleeting phenomenal objective world?

   Hence, the supreme Lord, Bhagavan Shree Krishna advises us to live consciously! The means to happy life is 'living consciously aware' of every sec. of our life, acquire the true knowledge of Time, Space, illusory or fleeting transitory world and always think of the Creator and BE ONE WITH HIM!   Surrender to Him, He will take care of you. Do whatever that comes your way, as ordained by the Lord; do not show personal or selfish interest. never indulge in anything that just satisfies the senses and the fickle mind and intellect since these are limited by time, space, and causality. Happiness and joyfulness are the inherent qualities of the 'soul', the 'Atman'. It is covered by ego, attachment, anger and other 'ari-shadvarga/ and need to be washed clean and discarded! 

   So it is advised hereto always chant the name of the Lord and be happy. The two significant  syllables 'Ra' and 'Ma" can take us to the ultimate state of 'Bliss', parama ananda!

Negativity?

   What is negativity and what is positive thinking are matters of one's way of facing the wold according to the circumstances that arise? In fact, there is neither a positive or negative thinking and much depends on the problems, as well as, the state of mind and mood of the person. The question of positive thinking or negative attitude is also a product of age, sex, and circumstances. to generalize things may be going too far. The Bhagavad-Gita advocates karma, jnyana, bhakti, dhyana and finally sacrifice (yajnya), gift away wealth (daana), and take to askesis (tapas). This requires a thorough knowledge (jnyan), wisdom (viveka) and renunciation (vairagya) after living a full life upto ripe old age! Nobody should take th advice given regarding positive or negative thinking seriously without a careful study of one's situation, knowledge, and ability to cope with life. Depression, anger, desires, aspirations, expectations, tension, anxiety, etc are temperamental that decide a person's response and actions! The best advice is to surrender to the supreme Lord who takes care of the wold He has created. It is His prerogative and responsibility and the jiva is helpless in this regard. There is no plausible explanation for the circumstances and problems one faces in life. This is not a negative thinking, but the real knowledge, truth, the way the world goes on? 

Think Positive?

   We all hear day and night how some people advise us to 'think positive'. Man is a thinking animal and thinking is a continuous process from birth till death. The mind is the thinking machine. Its work is to think. Mind thinks with the help and support of 'desire'. There is no work for the mind if there is no desire in the jiva. The desire starts with breathing and 'to breathe' itself is the desire. we see people lying in coma in the ICU of the hospitals, unconscious, but breathing! The Life-force, Prana, is there and the body works! There is no reason why the person should live in this condition, but for the desire to breathe. May be, there is a hidden cause and it may be attributed to past karma, the unfulfilled desires of past lives of the jiva?

   Now, what is there to think? Thinking as prompted by desire knows no other reason! The interesting fact is that the function of the mind depends on moods of the individual that dictate ('chitta'). This again  is whimsical. The mind is incapable of knowing what the consequences are unless the Intellect (buddhi) governs the function of the chitta, Most of the time, it is the ego (ahankara) that dictates the buddhi, manas and the chitta to do what it wants and consequently the jiva suffers. The jiva suffers due to the whimsical behavior of the ahankara, buddhi, manas, and the chitta. The joy or suffering is inconsequential to the jivatman, but the body and mind suffers for lack of support of the soul, Atman, in its pursuits!
  Mind (manas) has no intelligence of its own and it depends on the Intellect (buddhi) for guidance! But the ego does not permit the mind to look to buddhi and tries to dictate according to its whim nd fancy. In case the Mind (manas) looks to Consciousness (prajnya) there is a chance for the jiva to decide what is good for it and think positive! But, the jiva has to strive hard to get the prajnya to assist it in its journey! The ego rules the roost?
  The jiva attains to its goal of emancipation, liberation, break the shackles of the chain of the cycle of repeated births and deaths only when the light of the Consciousness falls on the buddhi, and this enlightened buddhi drives the mind and the senses to work for the spiritual upliftment and finally emancipation through 'enlightenment', the state of the Buddha!  
   

   Hence what all the mind does depends on its stage of development. As at present, the mind is not well developed in the humans and the jivas have to get refined by repeated births and develop into a highly spiritual, divine state! 

Prana, the Life-Force

    Vivid graphic details are now available as to how the child is formed in the womb once pregnancy is confirmed. The medical science will not vouchsafe or guarantee of the child's birth and anything may happen during the pregnancy! The child that was certified after nine months of growth found hale and hearty, was declared dead on delivery! The child did not breathe! There is no answer?

   There are Upanishads that describe the birth of a child. Garbhopanishat is one such. The single sperm when fertilized divide and multiply to form tissues and organs. The cells are fully equipped with knowledge, information, technology, ability to transfer knowledge and transform. Ultimately, 'One only becomes many'! Eko'ham bahusyam | However, there is no clue as to when and how the child acquires the antahkarana, the inner instruments, that emanate from the soul (mind, intelligence and the ego aspects)! It is said that these aspects exist outside, as well! The Bhagavad-Gita explicitly states that the "Atman knows all". It is also stated that "the supreme Lord only manifests in all as the soul, the Atman!"  

   ‘Pranic Energy’ or ‘Life-force’ (vital-airs with oxygen) is not just a single form of energy but a combination of many unknown ones. Cosmic energy exists in akasha as alpha, beta and gamma rays. The Band-width of a single ray of sun’s radiation is so vast and deep, that it can never be understood by human brain or intelligence. Only a bit of this as ultra-violet and infra-red has already brought havoc in our understandings. The influence of radiant energy from distant stars is never understood and scientists are shy of using the word jyoti Shastra for the science of solar/stellar radiation. ‘Jyoti’ is light and the radiant energy from these cosmic radiation sources are many and distant and powerful too. They play significant role in shaping the desires, imagination, thoughts and creating images in the mind. This field of science has not yet taken root despite our great saints talking abstractly about all these. The language of Yogins (like Devanagari or Devabhasha, Samskrutam) may not be understood by the modern physicists studying waves and vibration but definitely they can analyze the sounds of alphabets- consonants and vowels and may come out with secrets of creation. The ‘God Particle’ lies in our breath, the life-breath, prana. Silence speaks louder than sound! Silence (mouna) is energy conserved!   

  The fundamental principle here is that, “Nothing is created or destroyed; everything is just change of forms.” Evolution of life is a continuous process, and, as such, there is no Big Bang or a beginning for the universe! The Big Bang is the explosion, a flash of thought or desire. Desire is brahmn. Whatever rises in the mind as a desire or thought will be fulfilled is the rule, rather than an exception.

   Further, there is no reproduction or birth and death in the real sense of the term. Ali organisms flash or flicker as light, and briefly shine only to die out. Father only shines as the son and the son only shines as the father. Both father and son are one- ‘bundle of desire’. “I and my Father in Heavens are one”, says the Biblical statement.

  The ‘One’ only (Desire or Brahmn) manifests as the ‘many’, rather, appears in different forms. Yaksha also says the same thing. Yaksha’s son is his father, too. One only replicates as many. This is the whole Truth. Being born, the so called parents are the creation of the child!

    Scientists, especially the biologists may contradict these statements. But, the world of science is built on matter and not spirit, physics, not metaphysics, on philosophy, not mysticism, on groundwork of the earthly existence, not the spiritual practices of yoga and Samadhi. Let’s see what some of the recent findings in science reveal.

It is extremely difficult to know how dynamic, unstable, delicate is our world and how difficult it is to understand the reality. Nothing definite can be said about the nature of this universe; there must be some powerful driving force behind all these, simply called GOD. In samskrutam the term God means ‘that which lifts up’, dEva. There is no substitute for this simple word ‘GOD’. It only means; ‘Go On Discovering’ until you visualise it and convince yourself as to what it is! Once you visulaize (God Visioning is possible) and experience the Truth (‘IT’/ Brahmn) within the Self in the transcendental meditative mode, there remains nothing to be proved. Thus, God is the fundamental concept in all religious faiths and beliefsystems and an emotional quotient, at that. There are several methods of realization of this supreme power, ‘Force’ (Shakti) that operate in the universe as pure Consciousness, shuddhavidya called by different names of devi devata.

Life in its primordial state is light. It is a biophoton. It is jyoti- Atma jyoti, the nucleus ornutrinos, the core of teh living substance.

     A biophoton or ultra-weak Photon Emission, (UPE) is a kind of light particle that is emitted by all living things.  Though it exists in the visible and ultraviolet spectrum, in order for us to see it, our eyes would have to be about 1,000 times more sensitive. While we can’t see them with our eyes alone, technology has given us a glimpse and what it’s shown us may have a profound impact on us all.

    Biophotons were first thought to be merely the byproduct of metabolic chemical reactions.  That idea is being challenged with an exciting theory that claims biophotons have a much larger role to play when it comes to our physiology and quite possibly our consciousness as well.

     Experiments are showing that biophotons (UPEs) can be captured and stored inside of cells and  can even travel through our nervous system; suggesting that biophotons might provide a way for cells to transfer energy and communicate information.  It’s has also been suggested that UPEs might even have properties which help us to visualize images. This makes sense considering how we’re creating computers. All computers are is silicon crystal chips which we pass light through to relay 0′s and 1′s. (Light on, Light Off). The first computer was literally built with a lightbulb and these punch-cards which had holes in them, which is how we would program computers.

Knowledge Supreme!

 ‘Transcend all limitations, acquired qualities- gunas, and surrender to HIM’. He says, sarva dharman parityajya maamekam sharanam vraja | “Worship Me only, adore Me, I shall take care of you, give you what you want and protect what you have”. Let there be no doubt about it”.

     The varnashrama mentioned in the Gita is not about the castes and sub-castes and creeds, divisions and sub-divisions amongst the Hindus, or the philosophies, or schools of thought, etc. God never makes any distinction and division amongst His own creation! These are of our own making and, as such, not important to us in spiritual pursuits and attaining to unity consciousness, Self Realization- ‘Atmasakshatkara’.  Hinduism does not preclude other religions. It is all inclusive eternal/sanatana dharma- a broad term that applies to all the people who followed it. It is a universal religion, sanatana dharma, equity, justice, and righteousness granted to all living beings. Hinduism also called sanatana dharma, an eternal system is just a broad-minded, open-minded way of life that is all-inclusive. The fundamental principle here is the whole world is one family (vasudhaiva kutumbakam). It gives freedom to follow whatever faith one likes. It is not even a religion or the faith in God and rituals. What is important here is the fundamental principle of creation of jiva on the earth and its fate or destiny. It is discernible that the “embodied soul clamours for release from its eternal bondage.” As such, every jiva strives for release from this bondage. However, mukti or salvation does not come from intellectual jugglery but the knowledge of Brahmn, “Realization of the Self”- atma-jnyan. This calls for a totally different type of mind-set, life-style than the one that has been so far adopted. It calls for higher knowledge (para vidya), the highest level of wisdom (Viveka), and renunciation (vairagya) and a sincere effort to cleanse the blemishes, arishad-vargas acquired so far. This is what is quite interesting here. No amount of worldly knowledge will help here. What is required is just child-like simplicity, absolute faith, and surrender to the higher power that be; these will definitely help in the pursuit of the jiva to get liberated from the repeated embodiment and eternal bondage.

    Salvation is not a wishful thinking. It needs a practical approach through yoga. The only way to get rid of the whimsical nature of the mind is to tame it and use it for the purpose of liberation of the soul from eternal bondage. Some people say, the soul is always free and it is the ignorance that makes it feel. It is exactly, this ignorance that one has to remove with the help of divine knowledge (divya-jnyana) that is within the embodied soul that the seeker should find out. Salvation lies in transcending all the barriers of time, space, causality, influences of mind, buddhi, and ahankara, establish oneself in his true self, the atman. One who is established in his Self has attained his Self.

  Nobody knows, for certain, what is the ultimate truth. There is no well laid path to salvation, or for that matter, is there anything such as salvation, at all? Salvation for whom, some people ask?  Let’s make these points very clear from the sacred text of Bhagavad-Gita. This world is compared to an inverted Banyan, fig tree (urdhvamula ashvathha vruksha). All jivas, including the devi devata (Gods and Goddesses), tapo-janah inhabit this tree above and the insects and germs occupy below. By their good deeds, a man may go up the ladder to reach the realms of manes, devas, and Rishis and brahm, or go down the ladder to animal, insects and germs to be crushed any moment. The human being is stated to be a ‘blessed-one’ that reached this level by right thoughts and good deeds. However, nothing precludes the lower jiva from reaching higher and higher levels of consciousness and thereby attain to godliness. Even plants and animals, birds and things, such as, stones and metals attain to these divine levels and get worshiped!  For example, a mall plant like tulsi, bilva, or a tree like Fig tree (Oudumbra), the Banyan (Peepul) are considered sacred and worshiped; so also, the birds and animals like cow and bull, rat, peacock, crow, lion, or tiger and even pigs and dogs are divine creatures. There are the sandalwood carvings, stone sculptures in marble, Shalagrama or Basalt, copper, brass or alloy-metal (panchaloha) engravings of idols worshiped. These come under archavatara of Gods (Pancharatra).

  Thus, nothing precludes living beings in this world from attaining to divine status. Divinity is inherent in all moving and non-moving beings. The purpose of creation of jiva is thus believed to be to bring out the divinity inherent in it and make it realize its true nature. However, there is yet another level of understanding here; it is either that of scepticism- what if, or ‘nothing counts’! This is ignorance. Ego rules the roost and diversities and dualities do not end. Hence the jiva should drop all its idiosyncrasies. There is nothing like good or bad here. Whether one does good or bad deeds, anyway, the jiva has to come back here to experience the fruits of its action. But, if the account is closed once and for ever, there is no need to visit this mortal realm. The Atman is free to roam about as a micron, an ionic energy particle, or a photon forever. Till the embodied jiva attains to this pristine state of purity it has to struggle on this earth. Hence, all the Jnyanis try to cleanse of their karma kleshas, remove the vasanas, samskaras, and memories and become pure like a crystal that can refract whatever light that falls on it and prove nothing as its own!

   The perturbed jiva now can look into its past with the help of this narration- journey of the soul, an autobiography, and try to get released from all bondage. All the Upanishad statements quoted here are intuitional knowledge of great sages derived in a transcendental state, samprajnya Samadhi. These are as good as one’s soul’s reverberations, antaratma dhvani. One has to remember the fact that as long as we possess a bank account we have to run to bank whether to pay back the loans with interest, or collect the FD/CD interest. So also, the jiva has to repeatedly take to birth again and again until all its karma kleshas are cleansed by yoga, dhyana, meditation and, even the good deeds here will only bring attachment and bondage. This is the reason why some saints and sages have given up worldly activities and take to solitary living. There is no gainsaying the fact that good deed and service will help liberation, mukti or moksha. Here lies the difference. Even the so called ‘self-lessness’ is inwardly strengthening ego that thwarts liberation. Nothing but the total abnegation of the self will help here. The blemished soul, smeared with karma kleshas, moha, lobha and antahkarana should revert to its pristine purity cleansing off all its stains.

     The soul is bound to acquire pollutants such as gunas- tamas, rajas and sattva, attachment, desire, anger, selfishness, greed, avarice, ego, etc. as long as it is attached to earth- depending on food, water and air. This has prompted many a yogins to stop taking food and water and controlling breath. This is the secret of advanced yoga. One cannot be here as well there; it is like riding the two horses- suti and the asuti,worldly and the other-worldly, aihika and the paramarthika or ‘Self’ and ‘the other’- one of total liberation, and the other an eternal bondage.

  In fact, when i set out on journey to earth, as a speck of stellar dust, many Great Sages who were shining Stars of different magnitude warned me to be careful as to where I am going. They too had visited this Mrutyu lok once. They got rid of this shackle with great difficulty. Dhruva is one such great who chanted the name of Narayana all the way to the heavenly abode. All others hold him as a model and follow him.

The Mysterious Being called 'Man'- nara namanav

     All the animals, including the human beings are endowed with nervous system that convey emotions, energy, air and water, enable blood flow, and communicate with organs. Man is called nar manv. However, we have not understood the development of the nervous systems and their function fully enough to organize them to perform efficiently. Yoga helps in this direction.
 The role of   nerves and neurons in the life of a jiva is of utmost importance. Every Cell is interconnected with each other intimately conversing with each other and sending communication to the brain cells.  The cells themselves do not move, but just push and pull each other. These gross as well as subtle communication system called the nadis, neurons and nerves constitute the mainstay of the jiva. One cannot imagine what would be the fate of the jiva without an efficient networks system constantly working in the body and each cell charged with energy!

    The information stored in the trillion and odd brain cells cannot be even imagined by mortals. A pin-head of a cell stores the knowledge available in all the books of the world libraries! Each cell has an intricate structure that will be discussed in detail later. The most important components of a cell are the amino acids, vitamins, enzymes, protein cell membrane, the chromosomes and the genes, the DNA, RNA and the like. 
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 The role of nerves and neurons in our body are akin to the transport and communication network, and mostly a wireless system! These may be compared to the circuit system in a computer. The energy flow in the computer and the hardware decide the function depending on the software provided and the function for which the computer is devised. Unlike a computer the human system functions with an invisible strong force of thoughts, desires, dreams, imagination, images and resolves and use the brain as a CPU! The software is constantly devised from the beginning to end of a jiva and the source of the energy supply here is a constant one.

   Human perception of objects is a very complex phenomenon and it depends on a number of extraneous factors that govern the quality and appearance of the objects, as well as, the internal mechanism of the senses and the brain as dictated by unknown factors such as mind, desire, impressions and memories, dreams and aspirations, etc. In fact nothing exists as long as the mind does not exercise its desire and focused attention on the desired object. Here, the captive power, fascinating qualities of the objects that attract the senses and the mind cannot be ignored. Brain, as a machine that classifies and clarifies the objects, has different domains that exercises visual stimulations. The brain waves, such as, the alpha, beta, theta, and delta have different powers. The overall mental coordination and learning are the functions of the alpha brain waves. The beta brain waves are generated when there is alertness focused attention, interest in solving a problem, or taking a decision.  The theta and delta brain waves are of low frequency and operate when the person is asleep, or in deep meditation. The gamma brain waves are the highest frequency brain waves capable of tackling several issues simultaneously and processing information coming from different areas or parts of the brain. It is here we find the perceptions, feelings, and word formations occur! There are fluctuations in the brain waves that cause many serious problems like delirium, autism, schizophrenia, and many neuropsychiatric disorders. There is need for further detailed study in this field.  rvous system plays a very important role in the life of all animals including man. The function of the cells that create and maintain this wonderful network needs a careful study.