KATHA UPANISHAD - 48. Swami Advayananda.

Chinmaya Mission :

Arun Yogiraj, a distinguished sculptor, had the honor of crafting a 51-inch divine statue of Bhagavan Shri Ram in Ayodhya. 

As the grandson of Basavanna Shilpi, he continues his grandfather's legacy, who crafted Murtis for Chinmaya Mission during Pujya Swami Chinmayananda's era. 

Basavanna Shilpi's notable works, including Shri Ganesha, Shri Adi Shankaracharya, Dakshinamurti, and Nandi, adorn Sandeepany Sadhanalaya in Powai, Mumbai. 

Additionally, he sculpted the Deenabandhu Devasthanam Kaliya Mardana murti in Chinmaya Mission, Indira Nagar, Bengaluru, and the Ram Sita murti at Chinmaya Tapovan Ashram, Sidhbari, Himachal Pradesh.

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Sunday, 28 Jan 2024 06:40.

Chapter 1. Section - 2: (25 Mantras): THE CHOICE:

Mantram - 19: What is Action & Inaction

Post - 48.

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Mantram - 19: What is Action & Inaction

"Hantaa chet manyate hantum  hatah chet manyate hatam;  

ubhau tau na vijaaneetah  na ayam hanta na hanyate."

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1

Hantaa chet manyate hantum  =  If the killer thinks that he kills, 

2 

hatah chet manyate hatam;  =   and if the killed thinks that he is killed, 

3 

ubhau tau na vijaaneetah   =  both of them do not know the truth. 

4 

na ayam hanta na hanyate.   =  It does not kill, nor is It killed. 

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In this mantram the main point is to expound the doctrine of “Doership”. In this 

doctrine, the spiritual view is that one is not the doer, whether acts or is acted upon.  

[“Killing” is only an example of an action; it should not be taken literally. Any action 

would suffice for the purpose of illustrating ‘doership’. In the context of Nachiketas 

interviewing the Lord of Death, the example chosen is quite appropriate, albeit gruesome to 

sensitive readers. To prove a point the worst case is usually considered. The choice of an 

example of killing could have been for that reason. There is no greater pain we humans feel 

than the loss of someone through a killing, both physically and emotionally. Indifference in 

such an extreme case proves the point more dramatically than any other example.] 

“Saankhya Yoga” as in the Geeta:

1

 The doer is defined as one who does an act. If one thinks that he is acting, then he 

takes on the role of ‘doer’. 

2

 The doer is also one on whom an action is done. If one thinks that he is being acted 

upon, then he takes a share in the ‘doing’. 

3

 In both cases, the role of doership is falsely taken on by the individual. It is not the 

individual who acts, not at all. 

4

 The real ‘Doer’ is the individual ego, who is the false “I”. The Self, which is the true 

“I”, is not the one who acts or is acted upon. The mantram is written from the Self’s viewpoint. 

A seeker has to remember this principle in all actions that he engages in.  

The Self is untouched by whatever happens to the body, even if the worst possible 

thing happens, such as a gruesome slaying. In a spiritual sense, we are all “untouchables ”! 

Whatever happens to us in this world, our true Self remains unaffected, untouched. 

If the hurting were only emotional and not physical, the simile would apply just the 

same. The Self is not touched even by emotion, meaning that the Self is not the mind also.  

The Self may be compared to the space in a pot. Regardless of what happens to the 

pot, even if it is crushed to bits, the space occupied by it is not crushed at all. It goes on 

existing as before and simply merges with the outside space.  

The Shankara Bhashya deduces from this verse that the knower of the Self has to be 

beyond virtue and vice, which can logically apply only to the relative plane of existence. Only 

from the perspective of the Self, there is neither virtue nor vice. 

How is the Self to be known?... 

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NEXT

1.2.20:

 Self-Knowledge – 1: Majesty of the Self

To be continued

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