Anupam R. Nagar & Ketki
N. Pandya
The world abounds in evil, and suffering seems to be the lot
of every individual. Everybody desires to attain happiness and avoid misery,
but the root question is how do we attain a perfect state of happiness and
avoid misery? And in order to root out suffering and misery it would be most
appropriate to investigate its cause. Like many, Adi Shankracharya and Sri
Aurobindo have successfully encoded the solution to the problem of sorrow and
suffering by expounding the concept of Advaitavaad and
Supra-consciousness respectively. An effort, is therefore, made to find out the
similarities and differences in the two ideologies of Adi Shankracharya and Sri
Aurobindo in this paper.
Jagadguru Shri Adi Shankracharya was the greatest exponent of
the doctrine of Advaita Vedanta, a savior of Vedic dharma and a
great poet. Similarly Sri Aurobindo was a profound scholar, an ardent
nationalist, a valiant freedom fighter, an inspiring teacher, a yogi and a
proponent of the concept of Super-Mind. The analogy between these two
masters is remarkable. Both were
influenced by the social, religious and political conditions of the age. Both
had their roots in the heritage of past ages and great traditions, which they
expanded and built up anew thereby adding a new dimension to Indian Ethos and
Culture. Each was a philosopher, a revolutionary, a literary artist, an ideal
teacher, an ideal son and an ideal patriot in his own right. Both were men of
abstract, soaring, subtle yet scientific speculation. They expressed their
concepts through their learning in prose-in-verse and their world-famous
writings. They were ‘born poets’ and were divinely gifted. In fact, both Adi
Shankracharya and Sri Aurobindo are in a very special sense contemporaries,
although Adi Shankracharya lived and flourished about 800 A.D. and Sri
Aurobindo lived from 1872 to 1950. For contemporaries in the deeper sense are
not those who happen to be born in the same decade or century, but those who stand at
corresponding points in the parallel development of their religious and
spiritual ideology.
As such, Indian Poetry is incomplete without the names of Adi
Shankracharya and Sri Aurobindo. The quintessence of Advaita Vedanta
(non-dualism) is that Brahman (Divine Creator) is the Supreme Truth and
the world (jagat) is unreal or an illusion (“Brahma satyam
jaganmityaa jivo brhammaiva naparaha”). Individuals are manifold but they
have the One Divine in them. The phenomenal world of beings and non-beings is
not apart from Brahman but ultimately become one with Brahman.
Adi Shankracharya opines that through intense practice of the concept of Advaita,
ego and the ideas of duality can be removed from the mind of man. The
comprehensive philosophy of Shankracharya is inimitable for the fact that the
doctrine of Advaita includes both worldly and transcendental experience.
Shankracharya, while stressing upon the sole reality of Brahman, did not
undermine the phenomenal world or the multiplicity of Gods in the scriptures.
His philosophy is based upon three levels of reality, viz., paramarthika satta
(Brahman), vyavaharika satta (empirical world of beings and
non-beings) and pratibhasika satta (illusions of an individual as long
as they last).
Adi Shankracharya’s theology maintains that seeing the self
where there is no self cause’s spiritual ignorance or avidya. One should
learn to distinguish knowledge (jnana/vidya) from ignorance (avidya)
to realize the True Self or Brahman. Shankracharya advocated ananayoga
for a mumukshu and adds that complete liberation (moksh) is
possible only for sanyasins. He taught the rules of bhakti, yoga and
karma to enlighten the intellect and purify the heart as Advaita is the
awareness of the Divine. Shankaracharya developed his philosophy through
commentaries on the various scriptures. It is believed that the revered saint
completed these works before the age of sixteen. His major works fall into
three distinct categories – commentaries (Bhasyas) on the Upanishads,
the Brahmasutras and the Bhagvad Gita. His other remarkable works are
‘Vivekachudamani’ (the crest-jewel of discrimination), ‘Maniratnamala’,
‘Shatsloki’ (Atmabodh), ‘Upadeshahastri’ (Advaitanubhuti) and
‘Stotrasangraha’ (aparokshanubhuti).
The philosophy of Sri Aurobindo is known as Integral Yoga.
His major writings are: ‘The Essays of the Gita’, ‘Synthesis of Yoga’, ‘The
Human Cycle’, ‘The Ideal of Human Unity’, ‘Two Volumes of Collected Poems and
Savitri’. A harmonious and integral culture of physical, vital and mental
potentialities of man leads him to super-human levels to realize the sublime
truth (sat-chit-ananda). However, ‘The Life Divine’ is the monumental
work of Sri Aurobindo. According to him the principle of evolution towards
Spirit, Light and Knowledge loses all its significance unless it is assumed
that the Spirit itself is involved in matter, darkness and ignorance. In other
words, evolution necessarily involves involution. This is what is known as
ascent and descent. Sri Aurobindo advocates evolution in terms of spiritualistic
and humanistic principles. He points out that the ascent to the divine Life is
the human journey, the Work of works, the acceptable Sacrifice. This alone is
man’s real business in the world and the justification of his existence,
without which he would be only an insect crawling among other ephemeral insects
on a speck of surface mud and water which has managed to form itself amid the
appalling immensities of the physical universe. (The Life Divine’42-43). The most popular of
Upanishadic sentences also state (i) Sarvam khalu idam Brahma (Dayananda15)
(ii) Hari eva jagat jagdeva harihi (Dayananda15) (iii) Aham Brahmasmi
(Dayananda16).
The descent starts from Truth and reaches matter through
Conscious-Force, bliss, super-mind, mind, psyche and life. The order of ascent
would be just the reverse. The order is as follows: matter to life, life to
psyche, psyche to mind, mind to higher mind, higher mind to illumined mind,
illumined mind to intuitive mind, intuitive mind to over mind and over mind to
Super-mind. According to Aurobindo, this is a process of involution and
evolution. He calls it a game or Lila of God. But the game has an object
to be achieved. What is achieved in the process of evolution is a triple
process of heightening, widening and integration. This is the most
original contribution of Sri Aurobindo. The process of heightening takes
us from lower levels of existence to the higher and highest levels. In the
process of widening a new quality is acquired. Thus something new
emerges. In the process of integration the lower forms get integrated
with the higher forms. The triple process of evolution leads to cosmic
salvation. Here the role of the individual in the process of cosmic evolution
cannot be ignored. In fact, the
evolution can be hastened by individual effort; the transformation by spiritual
awakening. This is the essence of spiritual evolution. Sri Aurobindo’s
evolution can be called purposive for it goes back to the level of matter. This
is unavoidable. At the same time it is treated as emergent for the supra-mental
consciousness is a sudden and uncertain occurrence. Thus he subscribes to satkaryavada.
Sri Aurobindo advocated the theory of Karmayoga
(philosophy of action) as illustrated in the Bhagvadgita. As humans we cannot remain idle for all life.
The human birth is precious. We must work in accordance with dharma.
Therefore one should not shirk one’s responsibilities as a citizen of the
society. In fact, it is a mistake to think that spiritual philosophy has no
relevance to society. To be spiritual does not mean to be religious. Both
Shankaracharya and Aurobindo try to analyze basic human nature and the place,
status and role of man in society. Their experience and understanding are one
and the same so far as the concepts of Brahman and Atman are
concerned.
Both Shankaracharya and Aurobindo believe that Man’s being
has inner and outer dimensions. The inner being is represented by the spiritual
element and the outer by the materialistic. They are integrated into one single
being. Both these components have to be given equal importance for a total
development of human personality. The control over inner being is to prepare
oneself for the new society or social order. Aurobindo observes: The erring race of human
beings dream always of perfecting their environment by the machinery of
government and society; but it is only by the perfection of the soul within
that the outer environment can be perfected.
Sri Aurobindo says that there is no historical evidence to
show that there is man without society. Man and society are interdependent.
They are the self-expressions of the Supreme Reality. The entire universe,
humankind and society are all manifestations of that single Reality. Every
individual born in a society needs the support of society for developing
his/her physical, mental and vital being. There should be perfect equilibrium
among these three aspects that are responsible for healthy human development.
The concept of Unity is very important in showing the relationship
between man and society. The question of unity arises only when there is
diversity. The rich diversity that we see in society certainly allows unity. Of
course, men are often driven by intellectual urges and impulses that make them
act selfishly. This is the starting point of all social evils. To contain these
social evils government and states use their discretion in framing laws and
rules. But do they really work? Thus the government machinery is used as an
external force. In fact, genuine unity lies in the very nature of Spirit. The
social cohesion achieved through external means is only temporary. It becomes
permanent only when it is achieved through spiritual means. The primary
objective of all social, political and other human organizations is to help
each other to evolve supramental consciousness. As Shankracharya sings Bhaja
Govindam in charpatpanjarikastotram, even he himself has been regarded
to be the form of Shiva by his mother. Similarly, Aurobindo also experiences
the vision of Krishna and writes a poem on Krishna.
Let us now observe the similarities and dissimilarities in
the thought and experience of both Adi Shankracharya and Sri Aurobindo:
(i)
Brahman or Sat-Chit-Ananda:
According to Shankaracharya Brahman is present
everywhere. Brahman, the cause of the world is satyam. In his Bhasya
on Taittiriya Upanishad, he says: ;rks ok bekfu
Hkwrkfu tk;UrsA ;su tkrkfu thofUrA ;Rizs;aR;fHklaefo'karhA rn~ foftKklLo~A rn~
czãsfrAA rS0 3-1-1-
Yato
va imani bhutani jayante. Yen jatani jivanti. Yatprayantyabhisanvishanti. Tad
vigigyasasva. Tad brahmeti. (T.U. III. 1.1)
(From which all these elements have come, by which all
these are sustained and unto which all these go back, understand that to be
Brahman).
The
same thought is expressed in Vedsaarshivastotram – Roesdks txn~O;kidks fo'o:i% ¼4½
The Taittiriya Upanishad similarly states satyam
gyanamanantam brahma (II. 1. 83) (Brahman, the truth, the knowledge,
the Infinite).
According
to Sri Aurobindo: “There is then a supreme Reality eternal, absolute and
infinite. Because it is absolute and infinite it is in its essence
indeterminable. It is indefinable and inconceivable by finite and defining
Mind; it is ineffable by a mind – created speech; it is describable neither by
our negations, neti, neti – for we cannot limit it by saying it is not this, it
is not that, - nor by our affirmations, for we cannot fix it by saying it is
this, it is that iti, iti.” (The Life Divine 292-293)
Again, Aurobindo says: “The Indian terms are more
satisfactory, - Brahman the Reality is Atman, Purusha, Ishwara. Brahman is the
Absolute, the Transcendent and incommunicable, the Supra-cosmic Existence that
sustains the cosmos, the Cosmic Self that upholds all beings, but it is too the
self of each individual. The soul or psychic entity is an eternal portion of
the Ishwara; it is his supreme Nature or consciousness-Force that has become
the living being in a world of living beings.” (The Life Divine 293-294)
Sri Aurobindo believes that Brahman is a higher Truth
– Consciousness or Divine supramental consciousness in which action and
creation are the expression not of ignorance and imperfection, but of the
Truth, the Light, the Divine Bliss. The Absolute – Brahman is
self-existent, eternal and infinite. It is the nature of Sat (Reality – Truth -
Existence), Chit (Consciousness Force), Ananda (Bliss – Joy Abounding). He
says,
“Around me was a formless
solitude:
All
had become one strange unnamable,
… Topless and fathomless,
forever still.” (Sonnet
on Advaita 22)
(II) Jiva or Atman
Adi Shankracharya believes that one can find out an equation
of the identity between the Atman (Jiva) and Brahman. The Atman or Jiva
is essentially the same as Brahman and is therefore self-illumined,
unlimited and everfree. In Nirvanstotram, he says ^^fpnkuUn:iks
f'koksge f'koksge---** ¼Lojkatfy 146½ Its limitedness and all
its consequent effects are due to upadhis or conditions, which, again,
appear through avidya (nescience or maya) and as such are unreal.
Eliminate the upadhis and the apparent duality at once ceases, and the Jiva
no longer retains separate identity. The Atman is immutable and
indestructible. It is self-evident, self-existent and self-revealing. It is
neither the body nor the senses nor the mind because they are variable. The
Shruti says, “Thou art that” (Tat twam Asi). The individual (JIva) is to
be regarded as perfectly identical with the absolute Brahman. He says, ^u
tk;rs uks fez;rs u o/kZrs u f{k;rs uks foØksfr fuR;% foyh;ekus·fi* (Vivekachudamani 48).
Similarly Sri Aurobindo states, “The Soul of man, a traveller,
wanders in this cycle of Brahman, huge, a totality of lives, a totality of
states, thinking itself different from the Impeller of the journey. Accepted by
him, it attains its goal of Immortality.” The Absolute, cosmic Nature and
ourselves are linked in oneness. Atman is Brahman but avidya does
not permit us to know its affinity and integrity. He further says, “I am the one Being’s sole
immobile Bliss. No one I am, I who am all that is.” (Liberation 6) In Savitri, he
says, “All
life a song of meeting many lives; for worlds were many, but the Self was one.” (323).
(III) Maya and Jagat or Illusion and World:
Apart from the above-mentioned
parallels, both Shankaracharya and Aurobindo differ in their concept of Maya
or illusion. In fact, they are poles apart even in their conception about
Liberation (Mukti, moksha or Nirvana) or the final aim of life. Let us
analyse in detail:
Shankracharya says, “Brahman
alone is real, the world is false. He explains it by what is known as maya
(illusion) or adhyasa (superimposition), the principle of unifying
contradictions–contradiction between the self and the non-self and the ego and
the non-ego, the subject and the object, the cause and the effect, Brahman
and the world. As we know contradictions can never be reconciled. Therefore maya
is the principle that mysteriously unifies contradictions and is as such
inexplicable and indefinable (anirvachaniya). Brahman simply
appears as the world through maya or avidya. In Dwadashapanjarikastotram
he states: ^ek;kef;fenef[kye fgRok czãine~ Roa izoh'k fofnRok*
¼4-150½ In Vivekachudamani,
Shankracharya says,^cht laLd`fr*- Maya or avidya is the
seed of this tree like world. (147, 53).
On the other hand, Sri Aurobindo
poetically describes the whole process of maya as follows: “World-existence is the
ecstatic dance of Shiva (Absolute) which multiplies the body of God
numberlessly to the view; it leaves that ‘white existence’ (Absolute) precisely
where and what it was, ever is and ever will be; its sole object is the joy of
dancing.” (The
Life Divine 295)
To Aurobindo, Brahman, the Ishwara, is all this
by his Yoga-Maya, by the power of His Consciousness-Force, put out in
self-manifestation. He is the Conscious Being, Soul, Spirit, Purusha and
it is by his Nature, the force of His conscious self-existence that He is all
things; He is the Ishwara, the Omniscient and Omnipotent All ruler, and
it by his Shakti, His conscious Power, that He manifests Himself in Time
and governs the universe (The Life Divine 294). It is the conscious Power of the Divine Being,
Shakti, which is both conceptively creative and dynamically executive of
all the divine workings. All the works of Maya look like the production
of a supra-rational magical Power which arranges things according to its wisdom
or fantasy, but a wisdom which is not ours and a fantasy that baffles our
imagination. (The Life Divine 295)
Thus Shankracharya believes that the
world is an illusion, mithya. While Aurobindo does not agree with this
view. He says in ‘Letters on Yoga Tome One’ (43) “it is hardly possible to
suppose that the Divine Reality has no power or force or that its only power is
to create a universal falsehood, a cosmic lie –mithya.” (‘On Yoga’ 43) The
world is not unreal or illusionary (italics mine), but our present seeing
or consciousness of it is ignorant, and therefore the world as seen by us
can be described as an illusion. So far the Maya idea is true. But if we
see the world as it really is, a partial and developing manifestation of Brahman,
then it can no longer be described as an illusion, but rather as a Lila.
He is still more than His Lila, but He is in it and it is in Him; it is
not an illusion (45-46). Therefore along with Brahman, Jagat also
is Satyam. Aurobindo says, “The philosophy of The Life Divine is
such a realistic Advaita. The world is a manifestation of the Real and
therefore is itself real. The reality is the eternal and infinite Divine,
infinite and eternal Being, Consciousness-Force and Bliss. This Divine by his
power has created the world or rather manifested it in his own infinite Being.
But here in the material world or at its basis he has hidden himself in what
seem to be his opposites, Non-Being, Inconscience and insentience. This is what
we nowadays call the Inconscient which seems to have created the material universe
by his inconscient energy, but this is only an appearance. For we find in the
end that all the dispositions of the world can only have been arranged by the
working of a supreme secret Intelligence. The Being which is hidden in what
seems to be an inconscient void emerges in the world first in Matter, then in
Life, then in Mind and finally as the Spirit. The apparent inconscient Energy
which creates is in fact the Consciousness-Force of the Divine and its aspect
of consciousness, secret in Matter, begins to emerge in life, finds something
more of itself in Mind and finds its true self in a spiritual consciousness and
finally a supramental consciousness through which we become aware of the
Reality, enter into it and unite ourselves with it. This is what we call
evolution which is an evolution of Consciousness and then the evolution of
Spirit in things and only outwardly an evolution of species.” (Letters on Yoga
– Tome One 41-42)
Both Shankracharya and Aurobindo, as
poets wrote innumerable verses/poems which are matchless in sweetness, melody
and thought. Shankracharya, as a poet, had wonderful mastery over language and
meter. His well-known vedantastotras are – Pratah-smaranam, Advaitapanchak, Dakshinamurtistotra,
Vigyanauka, Shatpalistotra, Harimidestotra etc. His bhakti
stotras are Anandlahri, Devyaparadhkshamapanstotra, Gangashatakam,
Yamunashatak, Narmadashatak, Krishnashatak, Vishnushatapadi etc. There is hardly any Stotrasangraha
that has not included the emotional, touchy, sensible and melodious sweet
stories of Shankracharya. His verses are unique in lucidity, directness and
sweetness. His use of metres and figures of speech is marvellous. Sri Aurobindo
also possessed the same features in his verses. Some of his significant poems
are ‘Liberation’,
‘The Witness Spirit’, ‘The Incosncient’, ‘Cosmic Consciousness’, The Universal
Incarnation’, ‘Krishna’, ‘Shiva’, ‘Lila’, ‘Omnipresence’, ‘Advaita’,
‘Evolution’
and many others.
As philosophers, both Shankracharya and Aurobindo, explain
their ideology like scientists but one explains his ideology with the support
of logic and reason, while the other explains it with the support of intuition
and consciousness. For Shankracharya,
(i)
Maya is tuccha (negligible) – therefore the
question of its existence or non-existence does not arise.
(ii)
From the standpoint of strict logic, maya
is aneervacaniya (inexplicable) i.e., it logically fails to explain any
relationship between Brahman and the objective world.
(iii)
From the standpoint of common experience, Maya
is Vaastava (real), the very life of the world.
But for Aurobindo, Maya is the very Lila or Shakti
of the Absolute – Brahman. Aurobindo says: “...So far the Maya
idea is true. But if we see the world as it really is, a partial and developing
manifestation of Brahman, then it can no longer be described as an
illusion, but rather as a Lila.” (Letters on Yoga – Tome One 46). Brahman
is still more than His Lila. He further says, “Of course, it (maya) is there. But
the question is, first, what is it? Is it really an illusionary power and
nothing else, or is the Mayavadins idea of it a mistaken first view, a mental
imperfect reading, even perhaps itself an illusion? And next, “is illusion the
sole or the highest-Power which the Divine Consciousness or Super-Consciousness
possesses?”
According to Sri Aurobindo, the Absolute is an absolute Truth
free from Maya, otherwise liberation would not be possible. Has then the
supreme or Absolute Truth or other active Power than a power of falsehood and
with it no doubt for the two go together, a power of dissolving or disowning
the falsehood, - which is yet there forever? Aurobindo suggests that this
sounds a little queer. But queer or not, if it is so, it is so... – the
Ineffable cannot be suggested to the laws of logic..
(IV) Liberation or Brahmanhood:
According to Shankracharya,
realization of Brahman or Nirvana is the goal of Advaita Vedanta.
He explains that Brahmanhood is realized by the knowledge of the absolute
identity of the Jiva and Brahman. The dictum Tat twan Asi
reveals this identity. Nirvana is quite possible in this body, that is, even
while living (jivanmukti).
In the case of Aurobindo too,
realization of Brahman is the first radical result of his own Yoga.
But it is not the goal of his ideology. He indicates: “Nirvana in my liberated
consciousness turned out to be the beginning of my realization, a first step
towards the complete thing, not the sole true attainment or even a culminating
finale. It came unasked, unsought for, though quite welcome...” (Letters on Yoga – Tome One 48) He further says, “But there is a
Truth-Consciousness, not static only and self-introspective – but also dynamic
and creative and I prefer to get at that and see what it says about things and
can do rather than take the shortcut away from things offered as its own end by
the ignorance.” In addition, Aurobindo says, “Nirvana is a step towards it; the disappearance of
the false separating individuality is a necessary condition for our realizing
and living in our eternal being, living divinely in the Divine. But this we can
do in the world and in life.” Letters on Yoga – Tome One 44)
Thus, quite apart from Advaitavaad’s defects as a mental
theory of things, it serves a great spiritual end and as a path, can lead very
high and far, whereas in the theory of Super-mind there is a
Truth-Consciousness i.e., not static only and self-introspective, but also
dynamic and creative. Aurobindo clarifies and proves that the static release is
only a beginning, a first step in the Divine. If anyone is satisfied with the
first step as all that is possible for him, he has no objection to his taking
it like that.
On the other hand, although Shankracharya does not really
explicate the types of truth, yet for the sake of convenience he speaks of paramarthika
truth (attributable only to Brahman); vyavaharika truth (attributable
to the objective world) and pratibhasika truth (attributable to the
illusions of the individual so long as they last). Aurobindo too shows
different levels of Mind, but not of Truth. He elucidates at length upon Higher
mind, Illumined mind, Intuitive mind, Over mind and Super mind.
Conclusively, it would be most appropriate to state in terms
of parallels and dissimilarities that Shankracharya was an expert in Sanskrit
while Aurobindo was a genius in English. One travelled to all four corners of
India and established four muths for the everlasting protection of vedic dharma, whereas Aurobindo was confined to the four walls of his own room for
forty years and he established the Auroville ashram in Pondicherry for the
realization of Ascent and Descent for the welfare of the total mankind and thus
found a permanent solution to the problem of human sorrow and suffering. One
believes in the theory of neti, neti, while the other talks about iti, iti.
References:
1. Aurobindo Sri. The
Life Divine. The Greystone Press: New York, 1949.
2. Aurobindo Sri. Last
Poems. Sri Aurobindo Ashram: Pondicherry, 1952.
3. Aurobindo Sri. On
Yoga II, Letters on Yoga-Tome One. Sri Aurobindo Ashram:
Pondicherry, 1969.
4. Aurobindo Sri. Savitri. Sri Aurobindo
Ashram: Pondicherry, 1952.
5. Shankracharya
Adi. Stavanaanjali (Mulmaatram). Swami
Brahmasthananda (Ed.). Ramakrishna Math: Nagpur, 1997.
6. Pandya Ketki. N.
Tagore’s Chitra and Aurobindo’s Savitri. Atlantic Publishers &
Distributors: New Delhi, 2004.
7. Shankracharya
Shreemad. Vivekachudamani. Ghanshyamdas Geetapress:
Gorakhpur, vikram Samvat, 1688.
8. Shankracharya
Shreemad. Taittiriya Upanishad. Ghanshyamdas Geetapress:
Gorakhpur, vikram Samvat, 1688.
9. Dayananda Swami.
The Teaching Tradition of Advaita Vedanta. Ashya Vidya Gurukulum:
Coimbatore. (Year of Pub. - not mentioned)
Dr. Anupam R. Nagar
Principal,
Dr. V.R.G.
College, Porbandar.
Dr. Ketki N. Pandya
Visiting Professor,
G. M. College, Porbandar.
Gujrat.
