Vedanta in Rishikesh, day 7

30 September 2005

Creation presupposes a Creator who has knowledge of what has to be created and a capability to do so. Creator of the universe has jnana of all creation and all powers, ie, omniscience.

Creator is not only creator, but also material cause, otherwise there would be no material causes. Potter makes the pot from the clay which is not of his making. God created the world out of nothing else. Material cause pervades the effect of creation, eg, as cotton pervades cloth.

In space all being exists, and within entities space exists. Therefore, space is all-pervasive. Karananam pervades effect. All gross and material causes are pervaded by effect.

God pervades every cell of this body in the form of its functions. In Ishvara entities exist, actions take place, actions are experienced, thoughts occur. In every thought, in every mind, there is Ishvara. God is not only experiential, it is definitive. Three-fold: experiencer, object, experience itself; knower, known, knowledge.

Devata from divine – that which is shiny. Devata: effulgent entity. Sun is devata for sight. In order of effect, it is adhyadevata. Sun deity is not the lord God, but is the lord God manifest as light.

Vishnu is the pervasive one who has the ability to cover distance. Power of speech: fire, agni. Fire can do two things: (1) throw light and make one see things, (2) burn and thus harm. Words are capable of revealing things, showing intentions or doing harm.

One planet wants to bless you, but another planet pulls its legs or gives it a frown, or another planet gives it a lift. It’s generally said that Ketu is bad, ie, the person becomes a Sannyasin, decides everything keeps going wrong, therefore decides to leave everything.

This talk is based on Adhi Shankara’s talk on Panchikaraman. Pramana is the means for valid knowledge, eg, Vedanta. A means of valid knowledge is unique, and no other means can contend with it.

The Indriyas perceive the world, each with its own domain of perception. So too does Vedanta reveal the Self and its place in Creation, the nature of reality, and of God in a way no other system of thought can.

Once we determine the nature of the object, it fixes the means for knowing, eg, sight for color, sound for music, etc. But when the object is reality, Vedanta becomes the tool of perception. But a certain level of preparedness is necessary for understanding to take place. For some, the appropriate preparation in Vedanta takes years.

Through Vedanta we can analyze all three states – waking, sleeping and dreaming. We understand the unity of knower, known and knowledge. My being human is not an event in time. Neither is my consciousness an event in time. Truth is not alterable by time. Knowledge of reality is moksha. Clear understanding is moksha.

Upahdi is comparison based on physical reality, as opposed to metaphysical reality. A drop of water is not the same as an ocean in size and quantity, but they are the same in terms of element. So too I am not the same as the World of Creation, in terms of name and form, but am the same in terms of essence.

Ignorance does not begin. Ignorance simply is. But ignorance does end when understanding begins. If I cannot read, I am severely handicapped in the literal word. By the same token, if I do not understand the nature of reality, I am handicapped in the phenomenal world.

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Alan Annand is a graduate of the American College of Vedic Astrology and a former tutor for the British Faculty of Astrological Studies. 

His New Age Noir crime novels (Scorpio Rising, Felonious Monk, Soma County) feature astrologer and palmist Axel Crowe, whom one reviewer has dubbed “Sherlock Holmes with a horoscope.”

He’s also the author of several non-fiction books. Stellar Astrology offers a compilation of Vedic astrology techniques, in-depth celebrity profiles, and analysis of world events. Parivartana Yoga is a reference text for one of the most common yet powerful planetary combinations in jyotish. Mutual Reception is an expanded companion volume for western practitioners, covering the same subject of planetary exchange through the lens of traditional astrology.

Websites: www.navamsa.com, www.sextile.com

You can find his books on Amazon, Apple, Barnes&Noble, Kobo and Smashwords.