MUNDAKA UPANISHAD - 33. Swami Advayananda.
#PM pays obeisance to Bhagwan Vishwakarma on the occasion of Vishwakarma Jayanti-17 Sep 2023.
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Monday, 18 Sep 2023. 07:40.
6 Chapters (64 Mantras)
4. PENETRATING BRAHMAN
(Mantras - 33-43, 11 no.)
dviteeya mundake dviteeyah khandah –
Here begins the second Section of the second Canto.
Mantram - 4.1: Brahman’s “Business Card
Post - 33
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HERE WE HAVE SOME of the most sublime verses of the Upanishads that direct our
mind towards union with the Supreme Brahman. The stage has been set in the last three
Chapters for us to now move onto the runway of Para Vidya. Apara Vidya was extensively
covered in the earlier Chapters with a view to showing us how inadequate it is in furthering
our spiritual evolution. The dispassion gained by a study of that Vidya gives us an entry point
into the Para Vidya which we are about to begin.
33 - Mantram - 4.1: Brahman’s “Business Card
1
aavih san-nihitam = Bright and effulgent, existing very close,
guhaacharam; = moving in the cavity of the heart;
2
naama mahat, padam, = Known as Mahat, “The Great”, the support of all,
atra etat samarpitam; = in and around Him is all this (Universe) centred;
3
ejat praanat nimishat cha = Whatever moves, breathes and winks,
yad etat; = (all sentient beings) all these are He (Brahman);
4
jaanatha sad-asad, = Know Him to be with form (gross) or without form
varenyam param; = (subtle), most adorable, the highest of beings;
5
vijaanaad yad, = He is beyond the understanding of the intellect;
varishtham prajaanaam. = He is the adorable Lord of all living beings.
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This mantram is the Lord’s “Business Card”! It briefly gives us His address and some
directions of where to locate Him. Yes, if we look carefully, it contains His mobile, email and
website as well, all in neat Vedantic code format. He is, after all, the very Subject of our
discussion for this whole chapter, so we’d better get to know Him personally.
His details are as follows:
1
Avih –
He is bright and effulgent; handsome would be an under-statement for Him!
Sannihitam – He lives very close to us, is always at hand, and always on call.
Guhacharam – How far away? In the very “cavity of our heart”, at the core of our
being; to some that means the chest, where we all point to show who ‘me’ is. To others He
is between the eye-brows where they focus during meditation; to yet others He is in their
intellect, the seat of all their thinking and enquiring.
2
Naama –
His name is Mahat, “the Great One”, the greatest of all. As lumps of clay
on a potter’s wheel, we are placed on His wheel, being shaped by Him at every moment. He
is the centre of the wheel of our life.
3
What is fixed on Brahman?
All that moves. All living beings are mounted on Him, so
to speak. This refers to the fact that the whole creation is superimposed upon the Lord. He is
the canvas upon which we are all paintings! His website is the whole universe.
4
Brahman has two mobile numbers and can be contacted on either one at any time.
They are:
i)
everything with form, and
ii)
everything without form. It all depends on which
one is more convenient to us. Not all of us may be able to reach Him on His Formless line,
but everyone can easily reach Him in one or more of the many forms used to depict Him.
Varenyam –
He is the most worthy, adorable, desirable and covetable item to be
known, because He is Eternal and He is seated in our own heart. His email address is:
brahman@heartsofall.om as He resides in all beings and things ever known to us. And we
don’t need a computer to send Him a mail; we just need lots of love for our fellowmen and
we are instantly online!
5
Such a great, wonderful and divine Person, our closest Friend and Guide, is He who
dwells in our heart! Let Him be throughout this Universe, what does it matter; to the
devotee He is always in his own heart, ever accessible and on call 24/7!
Such is the introduction the Rishi gives us to Brahman, our own true Self, the Lord of
our being. Would we not be most anxious to know more of Him, the centre of our life?
Acharyaji told us that as a young schoolboy he used to ask his teacher what was
beyond space. He was always very curious and investigative from an early age. This verse is
the Business Card he was looking for to answer his childhood questions.
*****
Next
34 - Mantram 4.2: “On Your Marks” – Eyeing the Target
To be continued
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