Vedanta Rocks -16 > Discover the four layers of your personal universe
Part 16 of 46
Akara, ukara makara iti…amatras chaturtho…aumkara
Mandukya Upanishad 1-1-8, and 12
The syllable ‘aa’ the syllable ‘uu’ the syllable ‘ma’…and the syllable without a sound, these are the four syllables
of the sacred mantra Aum
Eka eva tridha smritaha
Gaudapada ‘Karika’
The three states, (the waking, dreaming and pure intelligence) are controlled by the one which is beyond the three.
You are a beautiful creative expression of the deep silence of infinity. You may not be aware of this in your waking or dreaming states, but the pure intelligence that runs your being knows this very well, for its roots are nourished by infinity all the time. At this very moment, if you can somehow touch that pure intelligence, you can reach out into the silence. Touching the deep silence is what is called being enlightened. It is a simple everlasting moment of great joy and a life altering experience. It will release you into a freedom beyond imagination. Deliver a bliss beyond expression. Reveal a truth beyond articulation.This is the essential wisdom of the great Mandukya Upanishad, a wisdom that has been accepted unquestioningly by all eastern religions as the core truth of existence.
The big question is how to make that connection. The other realm seems to be out of bounds for us. All our lives are spent in the waking or dreaming states. We never touch the state of pure intelligence, so reaching the deep silence appears out of question. There isn’t any mechanism that directs our energies inward. The waking state allows us to interact with the world and fulfill our ambitions, but all its energies are expressed into the world outside. The dreaming state seems to be totally useless since it takes us to a weird irrational domain, which vanishes into thin air the moment we wake up.
The Mandukya reveals the connection technique. It is meditation on the syllable Aum. The Aum is the core mantra of Hinduism. It is a most powerful and sacred word. The Aum has the power to take you from the waking state into the deep silence and deliver you into the arms of the infinite.
The Aum has four syllables, each syllable corresponds to each state of being. The ‘aa’ relates to the waking state, the ‘uu’ to the dreaming state, the ‘mm’ to the state of pure intelligence, and the fourth syllable of Aum is the syllable without a sound, the ‘amatras’ (literally ‘that which is beyond a matra or syllable’) that corresponds to the deep silence of infinity. When the Aum is chanted in the mind, it has to be expressed as a combination of the four syllables. Start with the ‘aa’ sound, then slowly morph it to the ‘uu’ sound, then flow into the ‘mm’ sound and then slowly taper the ‘mm’ into silence but keep flowing, for you are now uttering the fourth syllable which is pure silence. Keep flowing into the silence for a long moment before resuming the chant. This is the technique. Let’s discuss its secrets in detail next week.
Previous Posts >>
( Source: Mani Shankar/ Deccan Chronicle, Hyderabad 19th April 2009 )
Vedanta Rocks -17 > A divine sound that transcends space, time
Part 17 of 46
Yach chaanyat trikalateetam, tad api aumkara eva
“If there is any state beyond Time, that too is the AUM.”
Mandukya Upanishad 1-1
Advaita evam aumkara eva, samvishaty atmana atmaanam…ya evam veda
“The Source of your self can be felt as AUM, and he who knows this becomes enlightened…this is the truth of the Veda.”
Mandukya Upanishad 1-12
The primordial AUM has remained an enduring mystery even for mystics. Since thirty five centuries no one,including the great masters, has been able to say why AUM works. All they can say is that it does work - it takes the individual into another realm of experience - and reveals visions and truths he will never be able to articulate when he surfaces. The AUM is considered as the Pranava, the primordial resonance of creation, and the Maha Bijakshari, the great seed sound, the first and original expression of the formed universe. The AUM is not of this age or this place. It transcends Time and Space. It can represent the past, the present and the future - or even an unimaginable state where time does not exist.
All this sounds close to a description of the Quantum Domain as described by bewildered physicists who have reached the edge of knowledge - and reason. Indeed, Vedanta has had a profound impact on the minds of the greatest nuclear and particle physicists - like Frank Oppenheimer, Erwin Schrodinger and many others.Its almost as if they took refuge in Vedanta after coming up with bizarre and nexplicable observations. Frank Oppenheimer was the creator of the atomic bomb, and was intrigued to no end by the famous verse of Katha Upanishad, ‘Anor Aniyan, Mahator Mahiyan’- “I am hidden in the atom- but I am unimaginably mighty and powerful.” He could never shake of the notion that Vedanta contained coded secrets that scientists would keep unraveling for generations to come.
Indeed the mystery of AUM may be unraveled someday by a Quantum physicist, applying as yet undiscovered theories about matter and the universe. Meanwhile, lets master the technique without worrying over how and why it works. The AUM is a sweet and beautiful sound, but saying it in the mind isn’t so easy.In fact it’s almost impossible for people who have lived on the surface all their lives. It needs a pre-requisite of silence and inner calm. If you don’t have the calm you can’t chant it. The reverse is also true - if you can repeat it inside your head effortlessly, you are already an evolved person.
For those who cannot intone the AUM easily, there are other techniques - which we shall see next week. To those who can chant the AUM, here are a few tips. Treat the AUM with respect and reverence. Remember to flow with the fourth syllable - which is pure silence. So in effect, with each chant, you must be able to feel the pure silence. As you get better, extend the duration of that silence.
A time will come when you don’t need to chant the AUM anymore. The pure and beautiful silence will ever remain with you at all times.
Previous Posts >>
( Source: Mani Shankar/ Deccan Chronicle, Hyderabad 3rd May 2009 )
No comments:
Post a Comment