This section introduces the essential vision of Advaita Vedānta. It lays out the fundamental distinctions—Ātma and anātma, satyam and mithyā, Brahman and Māyā—through which the Upaniṣads reveal the nature of reality. These pages offer a stable foundation for deeper inquiry.
Getting beyond Apparent Reality using Vedanta Approach
A student needs to clearly understand the difference between the changing transactional realities of our experiences from the unchanging reality of awareness.
Transactional Reality (ETU)
Conventionally “reality” of the world is assumed because of ETU (Experientiality, Transactability and Utility). During the waking state, the world appears to be “real” thru our body-mind interactions. However, we know thru neuroscience and quantum physics that what we perceive and transact with is just a learnt behavior of abstraction of names and forms of constantly changing matter.
Dream World
Further the dream world’s ETU factors are quite different from that of the waking world’s ETU factors. The realities are not the same. e.g., a person’s debt in a dream cannot be paid by the bank balance in his waking life.
Actual Reality
Vedanta teaches that actual Reality cannot be dependent on such changing ETU criteria. True Reality is unchanging substratum, relative to which changes appear to happen. This reality is the Consciousness, the Self/Atma, the Brahman and has to be understood.
Sat & Chit equivalence in Advaita Vedanta
Sat is “real” – materialist view, Charwaka etc Chit is “real” – Idealists, Vijnana wada, Buddhists. Chit is “momentarily real” – Kshanika vijana Chit and Sat are both real – Dualists, All religions of the world. Most people live at superficial level of Chit centered on the mind (memory and habits/vasana) and therefore get bound by the worldly events and suffer. Need external God and live in the Triangle format (Jiva, Jagat, Ishwara). Chit is Sat – Advaita Vedanta. In the depth of Awareness (chit) there is the presence without name and form. BE in this unified state of Tattavamasi. Talk
Enquiry into the Process of discovering One-ness, Tattvamasi
I as Jiva is THIS, and the world, jagat is THAT (out there). So there is no direct clarity/understanding of one-ness, needs deep and subtle enquiry. Enquiry starts with me the Jiva, as it is easiest to access and enquire into. Jiva-Atma enquiry process Ishvara-Brahman enquiry process Aikyam (Tattvamasi) This way the mahAvAkya “Aham Brahmasmi” points out that “I am Brahman” (removing the superimposition of the saguna Ishvara and Jiva ). Also “Tattvamasi”- That (Brahman Conciousness without Maya) Thou (Atma Conciousness) Are (the same oneness)” From Drk-Drshya Viveka, we understand the subject/ object relationship, and discard what is observed, and continue to investigate the subject, who am I. Even at the level of witness thought of the mind, there is duality of witnessing subject and thought movement in the mind. But mind itself is an appearance and object too. For complete non-duality, one needs to understand the Beingness and Knowingness that is beyond any thoughts contained in the mind. This is transcending the mind and abide in that understanding. So just BE.
THIS person (body mind sense complex ) is Jiva. But who am I?
From Taittiriya upanishad study, we understand that beyond the changing/objectifiable koshas (coverings ) – I come to appreciate the non-changing Awareness Chit
From Mandukya upanishad study , we understand that the common factor to all 3 states (waking/dream/sleep), is the Turiya/ consciousness/ awareness – Chit.
(So Chit/Conciousness is the main focus of enquiry).Sat-Chit ananda – atma ( unchanging self of Jiva)
I am – I exist (Sat)
I know I am – I am awareness of my existence (Sat + chit)
I know I am and complete in myself – I am unaffected by changes in body/mind/senses. ( Sat + chit + ananda)
Ishvara is the creative principle of the cosmos; both the intelligence that shapes the universe (efficient cause) and its very substance (material cause). Ishvara means ‘Lord’ and refers to Saguna Brahman; the Self associated with Names/Forms,(Maya shakti).
Brahman is the formless, unchanging substratum. Satyam, Jnanam, Anantam – Brahma.
Issness (Being) is common to all changing Names/forms of objects (object IS, idea IS). – Satyam
Knowing that N/F are changing, and ‘appearance’ only, is the Jnanam. Forms and objects appear to have a static “transactional reality” in the time space that human’s interact with and appreciate (this is the power of Maya shakti)
Scientists continue to prove that what is observed / measured is momentarily static otherwise it is constantly in flux – quantum theory
However the Issness/being of all objects and ideas of the world is space and time independent. Satyam is nityam (even space -time is changeable).
(Issness /being is the main focus of enquiry)
The process of THAT is THIS enquiry, understanding Tattvamasi.
THAT outside world of Names/Forms and ideas (Ishvara’s creation), is sensed/perceived by me as Thoughts in my mind (e.g. Pot exists as a Pot Thought in me, otherwise the world does not exist for me, as in deep sleep). this is very important to understand and validate for oneself. Every individual’s perception of the world is unique to oneself due to the mind’s conditioning baggage from the past.
Similarly, I am, I exists is also in me.
Now applying the process of bhAga tyAga lakShaNa. The oneness that is pointed to (lakShaNa) is understood by ‘giving up’ (tyAga) the contradictory parts (bhAga) in the perception of world and I. By discarding the Names and Forms added (adhyasa) to the issness of world and also to I, one comes to understand the oneness of the Being/Issness.