JEEVA JAGAT ISHWARA AND MAYA

The material universe of objects and things is nothing but awareness itself appearing to itself with names, forms and functions. Brahman alone appears as the objective world known as Jagat to experience itself through names, forms and activity. Sat-chit-ananda Brahman is Nirgun Nirakara... formless attributeless actionless, unchanging absolute reality but appears as Jeeva, Jagat and Ishwara with naam, roopa vyavahar. 

Names and forms manifest existence that is Sat. Names and forms appear in the consciousness that is Chit and are experienced in it as bliss that is Ananda. The Sat appears in the Chit as Ananda to experience itself. Existence lends being to names and forms. They exist because of pure existence. Objects with name and form borrow existence from pure existence and come into existence. We experience the objects and the existence in them. They enable us to experience pure existence. Pure existence in itself is not an object of experience. It is experienceable only through objects with names and forms. Pure existence is eternal, imperishable indivisible self-effulgent reality but it is not experienceable without names and forms. Pure existence consciousness can only experience itself through objects. It is the eternal unchanging subject. It can never be the object because it cannot be perceived by the material senses. Rather, it is the light of awareness that knows everything illumines everything and reveals everything. It is the Knower, the seer, the Sakshi the witness. It is the constant unchanging subject, the knower and revealer of every object and every experience that comes and goes. The Knower can only experience itself through the known and through the act of knowing and experiencing. It can only experience itself through objects with names, forms and qualities. Just like the eyes that see everything but can never see themselves. They only experience themselves through the objects they see and the act of seeing. In the same way consciousness needs objects to experience itself. Hence, the projection of an objective world of names and forms through Maya is the Leela of Brahman to experience itself through Maya. In the course of this cosmic interplay, entities with names and forms appear as waves in the vast infinite limitless ocean of existence consciousness. They arise in it, exist in it and one day disappear in it. They have no existence of their own. They are not a separate material reality apart from the absolute Being Consciousness in which they appear. The very ground of their existence is Being itself. 

The One unchanging infinite limitless existence consciousness is Sat-chit-ananda Brahman alone. It is all-pervading unchanging eternal and non dual. Brahman is nityam, avyayam sarv vyapi advaitam non dual absolute reality. It is not limited by time, space and object. Time, space and objects arise in it, appear in it exist in it but have no reality apart from it. There is no place where Brahman does not exist. Brahman is NOT limited by space. Brahman is omnipresent and all-pervading. There is no time when Brahman does not exist. Brahman is beginningless, eternal and imperishable. Brahman is NOT limited by time. There is no object that exists apart from Brahman. There is no object different than Brahman. Nothing exists other than Brahman. Brahman is NOT limited by object. Everything exists in Brahman. Brahman is Everything. There is no second reality apart from Brahman. Brahman is non dual...Advaitam. 

Everything in existence is consciousness alone. It is infinite existence consciousness that is of the nature of infinite bliss...Ananda. Brahman is Anantam...infinite limitless. This Anantam Brahman is inexhaustible bliss. Infinitude is bliss itself. This Anantam is Anandam. There is no real joy in things that are of a limited, restricted, perishable and finite nature. Real everlasting joy is in the infinite alone. Unlimited unrestricted, infinite inexhaustible supreme felicity is Ananda. This limitless reservoir of unalloyed bliss is Brahman... which is our very nature that is absolute bliss itself. It is perennial abiding unshakeable peace. Brahman is Shantam.

Brahman is the absolute unchanging infinite consciousness underlying all our experiences and sense of existence. Brahman is the substratum of all existence. We are none other than Brahman the absolute existence consciousness experiencing itself through bodies and minds and the objective universe of names and forms and functions. This entire Jagat is an appearance of the infinite eternal cosmic consciousness experiencing itself through the objective universe of objects with names, forms and qualities. By the inscrutable illusory potencies of Maya the great Cosmic Illusion, the one indivisible changeless non dual reality that is Brahman, manifests as this magical cosmic creation called Jagat replete with variegated insentient objects and multifarious sentient beings with finite gross and subtle forms. Maya, an internal potency of Brahman, creates the illusion of division and separation through its dual powers of concealment and projection. It conceals the true nature of the one undivided reality that is Brahman and projects the appearance of multiplicity and divisional plurality. On the one hand, Maya obscures conceals and distorts and on the other hand, it projects manifests and perpetuates the sense of false duality, division and separation. It creates the illusory transformation of Brahman, the eternal unchanging unaffected absolute, into multitudinous limited finite parts appearing as multiple individual sentient beings and variegated insentient objects. Thus, due to the delusive effects of Maya, the immutable unchanging undivided absolute appears divided into finite parts. In reality Brahman does not undergo any actual transformation but only appears as the unreal ever-changing phenomenal world. Maya, the beginningless changing principle, divides the undefined attributeless Infinite into finite forms and forces. It functions through its powers of projection and concealment...Vikshepa shakti and Aavarana shakti. It projects names, forms and attributes and conceals the fundamental oneness of existence. Maya obscures, conceals and circumscribes the absolute Being Consciousness. The wholeness is veiled so only parts and specifics may be experienced. It seemingly transforms the whole, complete, self-contained Pooran to the not whole fragmented Apooran. It transforms the Infinite into finite and the formless into form. Brahman is beyond time, space and causation. Maya creates time, space and causation through projection and seemingly divides the unlimited unbroken unitary consciousness and makes it appear limited divided and demarcated into separate objects which are seen as ‘other’ than the Self and then further circumscribed and split up into multitudinous objects of the universe. Thus, the Absolute seems to become the universe through time, space and causation projected by Maya. So the One appears as the many. The Indivisible Infinite is apparently divided into separate finite objects due to the illusory potencies of Maya. Hence, the manifestation of the Jagat is a product or effect of Maya. It is not unreal but it is false as a separate independent material reality. It is real only in the empirical sense. It has no reality of its own. In the absolute sense only Brahman exists and everything that appears in this objective universe as a gross or subtle object is only a Vivarta or an appearance. It is only an appearance in pure being consciousness. It is a play of Maya i.e. Maya Vilasa. It is is a play of consciousness i.e. Chit Vilasa. It is an appearance in consciousness i.e. Chit Vivarta. It is pervaded by consciousness i.e. Chin maya. It is nothing but consciousness itself i.e. Chin matram. Hence, jagat is only an appearance in consciousness. Matter is only an appearance in consciousness. It is Chit Vivarta. Everything in the universe is pervaded by consciousness. It is Chin maya. Consciousness pervades everything in existence. Nothing exists outside of existence consciousness. Everything appears in consciousness, exists in consciousness and disappears in consciousness. The universe is an appearance of consciousness to consciousness in consciousness. It is nothing but consciousness itself appearing to itself as objects. There is nothing apart from consciousness. There is nothing other than consciousness. Consciousness is Isness. It is pure being awareness. This entire universe is consciousness alone. Chin matram. 

Everything is a Vivarta or appearance of Sat-chit-ananda Brahman. The existence aspect Sat appears as all the physical objects in the universe ranging from particles and atoms to planets, stars and galaxies. The consciousness aspect Chit appears as all the Sakshis, knowers and knowing minds...from the jeevas to Ishwara. The bliss aspect Vivarta appears as all the happiness, pleasures, sorrows and sadness in this world. 

Brahman the immutable Absolute consciousness which is completely unaffected and unaltered by Maya, apparently undergoes modification and transformation by the projection power of Maya for the apparent creation or manifestation of the universe. The Mayashakti of Brahman projects the appearance of the phenomenal universe by producing the illusion of alteration, distortion and differentiation in the eternal principle of changeless limitless pure consciousness by apparently transforming and circumscribing it into separate finite objects and entities. The substratum of Pure Consciousness when circumscribed by Maya appears as a Vivarta or apparent transformation through which Brahman is unfolded into the dualistic world of Samsara. The first Vivarta of Consciousness transformed by Maya, unfolds as Ishwara or Saguna Brahman. Then, Consciousness circumscribed by cosmic mind which is the aggregate of total number of subtle bodies/ finite minds in the universe manifests as Hiryanagarbha or the cosmic egg which is the creator of the entire material universe. Hiryanagarbha is the omniscient all-pervading cosmic mind. It is the sukshma sharira or subtle body of Brahman. Consciousness further circumscribed by the total number of all the gross finite physical bodies and physical forms in the universe is known as Virat. It encompasses the entire manifest physical universe. It is the gross physical body of Brahman. So, at the transcendental level of supreme reality there is only Brahman, the Attributeless Absolute. Then by the spontaneous play or Leela of Brahman through His latent immanent illusionary Maya, Jeeva Jagat and Ishwara manifest. First appears Ishwara or Saguna Brahman the personal God, which is Brahman with name, form and qualities. Next appears the cosmic womb, Hiryanagarbha or the cosmic mind which is the subtle body of Brahman. Then appears Virat, the physical universe which is the gross body of Brahman. This is how creation unfolds through the apparent projection of Vivarta, whereby the non dual immutable consciousness, seemingly circumscribed by Maya, appears as the pluralistic objective universe without undergoing any actual change, modification, alteration or division into parts.

 In a similar manner the illusory transformation of Brahman unfolds at the individual level. Here the first Vivarta appears as Pragya the causal state that is experienced in deep sleep or samadhi. Then, Consciousness circumscribed by the limiting adjunct or Upadhi of one individual subtle body/finite mind appears as Taijas or the dreamer. It refers to the subtle state in which the Jeeva experiences the dream world. Consciousness circumscribed by the limiting adjunct or Upadhi of one individual finite body/sthool sharira is known as Viswa which is the waker in the gross waking state when the jeeva experiences the waking world. Thus, multiple separate individual beings with diverse gross and subtle forms are seemingly produced and manifested by Maya. So at the cosmic level, Consciousness circumscribed by Maya appears as Ishwara, Hiryanagarbha and Virat and at the individual level of the Jeeva it appears as Pragya, the causal state experienced in deep sleep then Taijas the subtle state of the dreamer that experiences the dream world and then Viswa the gross state of the waker who experiences the waking world. These three levels pertain to the three states of consciousness waking, dreaming and deep sleep that the Jeeva experiences. The fourth state Turiya is the transcendental state of pure consciousness which pertains to the Absolute level of supreme reality that is Atman or Brahman...the substratum which underlies, pervades and transcends the three states, illumines them, witnesses them and makes the experience of them possible. At this transcendental fundamental level there is nothing else but Brahman the Supreme existence consciousness that is one without parts but appears divided into multiple parts at the empirical level of relative reality known as Vyavaharik Satya or Jagat.

In this manner, both at the cosmic level and the individual level Maya creates the illusion of division, duality and demarcation by seemingly inducing the transformation, differentiation or distortion of the Absolute into gross and subtle finite entities. Formless attributeless changeless Brahman appears as Jeeva, Jagat and Ishwara. Brahman is one without a second and one without parts. It is Maya that creates the distinctions of man, world and God. The one unaffected unattached reality appears as a multifarious conglomeration of objects. Multiplicity of gross and subtle finite forms with names, qualities and functions are superimposed on the one unbroken undivided absolute reality Brahman. As a result of this superimposition or Adhyasa, the one unfragmented unbroken whole...the non dual unchanging Self, appears divided and fragmented into a plurality of variegated objects and multifarious sentient beings that are deluded by the false projection and identify themselves as individual Jeevas. They interact with each other as separate beings and perceive the world of illusory objects with names and forms to be real. In their interactions with the phenomenal world, based on their erroneous identifications with the superimposed Upadhis of body and mind, the Jeevas perceive themselves as individual beings competing with each other as doers and enjoyers of their actions and become entangled in the perpetual cycle of birth and death to enjoy the results of their actions. Thus the illusion of bondage is created and the ever-free self-existing unlimited boundless Brahman appears as limited individual mortal Jeevas that are bound and trapped, deluded by Maya, enmeshed in the Samsara projected by Maya. They are bound by the illusory notion of individuality superimposed by Maya through the Upadhis of body mind and objects. Maya conceals the eternal principle of unity indivisibility and infinitude. It hides the underlying unfragmented oneness of Brahman, the one unchanging non dual reality of which the Jagat is an appearance. Brahman alone is all existence. Brahman alone IS, objects are not. Release from Samsara lies in transcending the individuality and merging with the Oneness.