The Doctrine of the Upanishads - 9. Swami Krishnananda.

=====================================================================================================

------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Saturday, July 24, 2021. 11:20. AM.

GOD, THE UNIVERSE AND THE INDIVIDUAL - 9.

----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

This leads us to another philosophy which is called objective idealism, which explains the existence of the Cosmic Mind independent of the subject and objects. The Cosmic Mind is the creator of the whole universe, and the individual minds are parts of it. The individual mind’s perception need not be correct. It is coloured by the constitution of the individual. The Cosmic Mind is the cause of the whole universe with the different planes of its existence—causal, subtle and material. This universe which is the creation of the Cosmic Mind presents itself as an object before the individual consciousness. When it becomes the object of the individual, it is estranged, as it were, from the perceiving individual. This estrangement is called Samsara. Samsara means turning away in the wrong direction, entering the stream of process or becoming. Instead of knowing that the experiencer is a part of the universe, the individual thinks that it is different from the universe. The Upanishads have their aim in bringing about a synthesis of all these various forms of perception. They bring home to man the idea that the individual is a part of the universe as a whole, and nothing independent, and that the universe is an organic whole of experience, rooted in the Absolute.

Ishvara is the Soul of the universe, the Cosmic Self, the Cosmic Mind, who is the efficient and material cause of the individual minds; the individual has no independent existence apart from Ishvara; God includes in himself both mind and matter. Brahman (the Absolute) is Ishvara divested of cosmic relations, and Ishvara is Brahman in relation to the cosmos.

When we started philosophising, we came across three principles-God, the universe and the individual. We have advanced further and have found that God must include within Himself the universe and the individuals. He is not merely a relation, but true existence. He is That which resolves into Itself the universe and the individuals.

But, if, in God, the universe and the individuals are merged completely, why is there perception of difference? I cannot say that I am the same as the world that I see. This question can be answered by making a distinction between the human view of the universe and the divine view. We look at the universe in terms of space, time and causation. The moment we think, we think in terms of these three terms of knowing. Everything is involved in these three links. We imply in the fact of our thinking, our being individuals. We think of something in space; space objectifies experience. When we try to introduce a relation among these principles, i.e., God, the universe and the individual, we have already created difference. The difference implied in their conception is the very basis of our processes of thinking. How can we think of the nature of the Divine Being without objectifying it in space? This is why the Upanishads hold that Ultimate Truth is transcendental. The mind of man cannot think of anything independent of objectivity. This is the fundamental error in human perception. God transcends space, time and causation. In order to think of God, we have to transcend these limiting factors. And we cannot do that. The moment we try to avoid these things, we avoid our own existence. The thinker ceases to exist in the attempt at transcending relativity of perception and experience.

To be continued ...

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

========================================================