The Brihadaranyaka Upanishad - 5. Swami Krishnananda.

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Tuesday, 01 Aug 2023. 06:15.

Article 

Scriptures

The Brihadaranyaka Upanishad 

Post-5.

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After having said this much, Yajnavalkya continues by saying, “After departure, there is no consciousness.” “I cannot understand,” Maitreyi says. “What are you saying, ‘There is no consciousness'? You are confusing me by saying this.” “No, Maitreyi. I am not confusing you. You do not understand what I am saying. When I say there is no consciousness, I mean that when the consciousness departs from this individuality of the bodily personality, there is no particularised consciousness.”

To us, all consciousness is psychological consciousness; to us, every consciousness is sensory consciousness. When we make a statement like “I am conscious”, we mean that we are conscious of something – which is psychological perception, sensory perception. Consciousness by itself does not perceive anything. It is the Self, the universal perceiver. “So why did you say that there is no consciousness after the absolution of consciousness from entanglement in this body?” The reason is: yatra hi dvaitam iva bhavati, tad itara itaram pasyati (Bri.U. 2.4.14). ‘You will see another only when there is duality'. If there is something outside consciousness, consciousness can see something; but if there is only consciousness everywhere, what will it see? What does God see, for instance? You can put a more poignant question to yourself, in a more intelligible manner:  Does God see anything? What does He see? If the entire creation is pervaded by God, what does God see? He sees nothing; He sees Himself only. The awareness by God is awareness of Himself. The so-called omniscience of God, which we attribute to Him, is actually an all-knowledge of Himself. The very quality that is attributed to God is actually connected with Himself, His own existence.

Therefore when there is no duality, no consciousness outside Its Self – It is Itself all things – there is no knowledge of anything. It is pure Being-awareness.

Yatra tv asya sarvam atmaivabhut, tatra kena kam pasyet, tatra kena kam jighret, tatra kena kam manvita, tat kena kam vijaniyat? vijnataram are kena vijaniyad (Bri.U. 2.4.14): Who will know the knower? Who will think of the thinker? Who will understand the understander? Who will be conscious of consciousness? Yad vai tan na pasyati, pasyam vai tan na pasyati. You will be wonderstruck. What kind of thing is being told? No knowledge of anything? All-knowing and yet not knowing anything outside? Knowingly It knows not anything, not-knowing, It knows all things. It knows all things because It alone is everywhere. It does not know anything because outside It, nothing is. You understand the point. God does not know anything, because outside Him nothing is; but God knows everything because He Himself is everything. That is the meaning of this interesting instruction of Yajnavalkya at another place: yad vai tan na pasyati, pasyan vai tan na pasyati; na hi drastur drister viparilopo vidyate (Bri.U. 4.3.23). There is no gulf between the seer and the seen. Therefore the seer alone reigns supreme.

These are all Sanskrit verses I am quoting. You may not be able to understand them. Anyhow, they are interesting.

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To be continued

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