VIVEKA-CHUDAMANI

By: Shankaracharya
Commentary: Swami Ranganathananda
Edited: Swami Shuddhidananda
Summary: Satyendra Nath Dwivedi

SHANKARACHARYA

The life of Shankara, in its merely outward incidents, may be told in a paragraph.
But the quantity and quality of thought that he packed into the short span of his
life of thirty-two years have earned for him a place among the world’s immortals.

Possessed of extraordinary powers, this young boy, highly intelligent and deeply
conscious of his vision, has worked wonders in the cultural, philosophical and
religious fields of Indian life. Within a short period of thirty-two years he changed
the mind of India.

We find clearly from a study of Shankara’s career that his purpose was to reduce
to unity and harmony, under the hegemony of Vedanta, the multiplicity of
conflicting thought systems, without destroying the integrity of the prevalent
faiths. Unity was his aim – unity in diversity – and not uniformity. Diversity
connotes richness.

In Shankara we find that immense sympathy, a desire to understand other points

of view, and a patient effort at critical appreciation of thoughts and things. With
an iron resolve attuned to a deep affection and loyalty for the people and the
culture of his vast country, and with a strong conviction that he was born to
strengthen the one and enhance the other, we find him taking up this problem
with a firm determination to produce cosmos out of chaos in the world of culture
and in the mind of man in India. And his sustained struggle of a lifetime brings to

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India a measure of unity, harmony and order in religion, thought, and culture,
which is a record unparalleled in the history of man.

A single individual – whose only companion was his glowing spirituality,

vast intellect, and deep sympathy – going the length and breadth of India
and conquering its mind and heart is something unique in history, even in
Indian history. He captured both the intellects and the hearts of men. He
established an empire of spirit, of love, and of lofty spiritual idealism.

The environment that existed at the time of Shankara is of great interest to us

today. Those were the times when men paid homage to intellect and character.
Those were days when men of culture and intellect, and the rare ones with new
ideas, were respected all over the country. In a sense this has been so
throughout our history. All fights were on the intellectual level, on the ideological
level. We find, at the time of Shankara, people’s minds ever ready to receive new
ideas. There was an intellectual receptivity to truth.

The most enduring appeal is that which affects the intellect, the mind of
people, and which, through its inherent truths and beauty, gradually
penetrates into the heart, producing deep convictions and rational faiths.

He was a great ‘parivrajaka’, a traveler, in the true sense of the term, ever in
contact with nature and man. He was ever on the move, preaching and teaching
and uplifting the people wherever he went. Shri Krishna had said in the Gita:
“I have nothing to gain for myself and yet I work hard so that good may
come to society”. Shankara, who became the able commentator of Shri
Krishna’s teachings, was the embodiment of what Shri Krishna taught.
Having no desires of his own to satisfy and having nothing to gain for
himself, we see Shankara going from place to place in order to uplift the
people, to enlighten them.

Shankara took steps to ensure the continuity of his great work by setting up ten
Orders of monks (the Paramahansa parivrajakas) – a band of roving and
teaching monks – and establishing four monastic centres of India and entrusting
them to the care of monks noted for their intellect, character, and vision. The
location of these centres – at Sringeri in the South, at Puri in the East, at
Dwaraka in the West, and at Badrinth deep in the Himalayas in the North –
reveals his far-seeing genius as also the vision of the geographical and cultural
unity of India.

He was a teacher of unity. His spirit was universal. His mind was inclusive and
not exclusive. He taught not merely toleration, but also dynamic acceptance.

“Wherever there is emphasis on unity, there is knowledge; its fruit is concord and
happiness and beneficence; and wherever there is emphasis on diversity’ it is
ignorance; and it results in conflict and misery”, says Shankara.

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INTRODUCTION TO VIVEKACHUDAMANI

The central theme of Viveka-Chudamani is God in its transcendental, impersonal

aspect – beyond mind and duality. In our tradition this path is called the ‘Jnana
Marga’ the path of knowledge, the other being ‘Bhakti Marga’, the path of
devotion to a personal God. In the Bhakti Marga divine grace is central, whereas
in the Jnana Marga it is self-effort that is primary.

Our ancient teachers discovered a transcendental dimension to human life.

There is the body and the sensory system through which the soul experiences
the external world, but the soul itself is beyond physical and sensory limitations.
Spiritual life is the progressive attempt of the soul to free itself from the meshes
of the body and senses and experience itself in the transcendental plane.
The sages in India studied various possibilities hidden in human beings. Infinite
possibilities are hidden in every one of us. We have to unfold these possibilities,
both at the physical and the spiritual planes. At the physical plane we have to do
it by controlling external nature and, thereby, build a healthy economically strong
and politically stable society. At the spiritual plane we should do it by becoming
masters of the internal nature and, thereby, become fulfilled and bring peace to
all.

Vedanta proclaims that immortality is the prerogative of every human being. It is

built into us. Having discovered this truth, the sages proclaimed it to all. The sage
of Shvetashvatara Upanishad has ecstatically proclaimed: “O children of
immortality, listen to me, I have a profound message for you.” What is the
message? In this very body there are mortal and immortal dimensions. By
pursuing truth we can experience the immortal, and pursuit of truth, whether in
physical science or in spiritual science, stands on the bedrock of ‘Viveka’,
discrimination. Viveka being the most precious jewel, Shankara called this
treatise ‘Viveka-Chudamani’, the crest jewel of discrimination.

“The true form of reality should be known by one’s own clear eye of
understanding (bodha-chakshu) and not through the proxy of a scholar; the true
form of the full moon should be known by one’s own eyes,; how can it be known
by proxy.”

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 VIVEKA-CHUDAMANI

THE BASICS OF SPIRITUAL LIFE

“I bow to Govinda, whose nature is Bliss Supreme, who is the ‘Sadguru’, who
can be known only from the import of all Vedanta, and who is beyond the reach
of speech and mind.”

“It is difficult for living beings to obtain a human birth, more so in a male body;
rarer than that is ‘brahmana-hood’; rare still is the attachment to the path of
Vedic religion; higher than this is erudition of the scriptures; discrimination
between the Self and the non-Self, realization, and continuing in a state of
identity with Brahman – these come next in order. [This kind of] liberation is not
to be attained except through the well-earned merits of a hundred crores of
births.”

The power of imagination is an exclusive human feature. In the increased area of

the cortex of the human brain, nature developed a mechanism capable of a
series on new processes – observation, memory, comparison, evaluation,
selection and judgment. In and through this, man achieved two things. Firstly he
discovered the path leading to the processing of raw experience into knowledge,
of knowledge into power, and of power into control and manipulation of the
environment. Secondly, he discovered his sense of ‘self-awareness’, as the
subject behind the fleeting mental images.

When we utilize our faculty of discrimination to discriminate between the Self and
the non-Self, we get the firsthand experience of Brahman. We then continue in
that state of identity with Brahman. One then lives in that consciousness of
Brahman all the time. This is the highest state.

Shankara urges us to understand the importance of our human birth, so

precious, and direct all our energies towards this Supreme End.

“There are three things which are rare indeed and are due to the grace of God –
namely, a human birth, the longing for liberation, and the protecting care of a
perfect sage.”

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There is an element of freedom in every man. There is a focus of light inside us,
though glimmering in our present state, which is the true focus of freedom. That
is the Atman, the Divine spark, which is beyond nature. The little semblances of
freedom we all experience in our day-to-day life is due to light of the Atman,
which percolates through the intellect, mind, senses and the body. It makes all
these faculties energized and vital.

Vedanta deals with freedom at the spiritual level. Freedom is essentially a

spiritual value, which gets manifested in the social and political fields. Vedanta
points out at the true focus of freedom, which is gained only by the practice of
self-discipline. It is the science of acquiring true freedom that is dealt in this great
book.

In a beautiful verse Shrimad-Bhagavat expresses a deep concern about man’s

failure to make the best use of this rare opportunity. It says:

“Having obtained at the end of many births, this human form which is difficult to
obtain, and, though perishable, capable of conferring on man, in this very life, the
highest spiritual freedom, the wise man should strive earnestly, before death
overtakes him, for spiritual freedom, which is highest excellence. Sensual delight
can be had in all other bodies (hence human body need not be dedicated to
that).” [Shrimad-Bhagavat 11.9.29]

“Let noble people quote scriptures and sacrifice to the gods, let them perform
rituals and worship the deities, but there is no liberation without the realization of
one’s identity with the Atman, no, not even in the lifetime of a hundred Brahmas
together.”

Work and wealth can provide us with different commodities of this world but not
immortality, because immortality is a self-existent eternal entity. That ever-
existing immortality has to be just realized by the extraordinary experience of
spiritual illumination, which alone destroys our ignorance about our true nature.

Most of us are in a deluded state. We have taken ourselves to be this flimsy

body-mind complex, thinking that we are male, female, young, old, poor, rich, etc.

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The root of all our suffering is this deluded understanding. Shankara therefore
asks us to shed the powerful light of reasoning and discrimination to remove this
delusion caused by ignorance. Then alone we can gain the conviction about our
true nature as Supreme Consciousness.

“Success depends essentially on a qualified aspirant. Time, place, and other

means are but auxiliaries in this regard.”

If we are fit, we can wade through the most unfavorable circumstances, else,
even favorable conditions will fail to take us far.

“Hence the seekers after the Reality of the Atman should take to reasoning, after
approaching the ‘Guru’, who should be the best of the knowers of Brahman, and
an ocean of mercy.”

Vedanta, and so also Shankara, lays great stress on scriptures and ‘Guru’. The
Guru must be an ocean of compassion, and should be the best among knowers
of Brahman. He must be a man who knows the truth. Then alone he can help the
aspirant.

“An intelligent and learned man skilled in arguing in favour of the scriptures and
in refuting counter-arguments against them – one who has got the above
characteristics is fit recipient of the knowledge of the Atman.”

The path of self-realization primarily demands a heroic spirit, courage, and a

strong conviction in the truth as stated by the Upanishads and the Guru.

When we slowly start searching for our higher dimensions, mind becomes
naturally withdrawn from lower things, bringing about a spontaneous and joyous
renunciation. When we think of higher things, attachment to the lower things
drops off automatically. This is the type of positive renunciation taught in
Vedanta. It makes us give up the fleeting joys of the world by showing us the
source of all joys.

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“Regarding this, the sages have spoken of four means of attainment, which
alone being present, the devotion to Brahman succeeds, and in the absence of
which, it fails.”

“First is enumerated discrimination between the Real and the unreal; next comes
aversion to the enjoyment of fruits (of one’s actions) here and hereafter; (next is)
the group of six attributes, viz. calmness and the others; and (last) is clearly the
yearning for liberation.”

“A firm conviction of the mind to the effect that Brahman is Real and the universe
is unreal, is designated as ‘discrimination between the Real and the unreal’.”

The Supreme Truth is that Brahman alone is true. The universe, as it appears
through our senses, is unreal. From Brahman this universe has come, in It the
universe remains, and again the universe merges into Brahman.

In our present state of existence, consciousness muddles in the mire of the

sense organs and the body, which are changeful and mortal. But, in fact,
consciousness alone is the true changeless Entity behind the changeful mind,
senses, and the body, which are all perishable. It is the true Self of man.

“Vairagya or renunciation is the desire to give up all transitory enjoyments

(ranging) from those of an (animate) body to those of Brahma-hood (having
already known their defects) from observation, instruction and so forth.”

At the highest spiritual level we renounce not merely the objects of this universe
but the universe itself, which our separatist ego had conjured up. Then, with our
mind purified, we see this universe as non-different from Brahman.

“The resting of the mind steadfastly on its Goal (viz. Brahman), after having
detached itself from manifold sense objects is called ‘Shama’ or calmness.”

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“Turning both kinds of sense organs away from sense objects and placing them
in their respective centres is called ‘dama’ or self-control. The best ‘uparati’ or
self-withdrawal consists in the mind-function ceasing to be affected by external
objects.”

How to take the man and put him on the road to freedom with the equipment
made nature has given to him is the main concern of Vedanta. Nature has
equipped us with a wonderful instrument – this body-mind complex, with the
wondrous brain at the top.
Our body-mind complex, the equipment given to us by nature, must be properly
cleaned, kept fit and fine for spiritual pursuit, just like a workman keeping his
tools in good condition. The practice of ‘shama’ and ‘dama’ bestows on him the
required fitness. Backed by ‘uparati’ these make for a steady inner state.

“The bearing of all afflictions without caring to redress them, being free (at the
same time) from anxiety or lament on their score, is called ‘titiksha’ or
forbearance.”

For human beings, along with physical endurance there has to be mental
strength to cheerfully face the ups and downs of life and remain steady, because
human life is not just physical but psychic and spiritual.

We are continually tormented by the ups and downs of life in the form of joy and
sorrow, success and failure, honor and humiliation, etc. Contrasting types of
experiences come to us tossing our mind into various moods of elation and
dejection.

“Acceptance by firm judgment as true of what scriptures and the guru instruct is
called by sages ‘Shraddha’ or faith, by means of which the Reality is perceived.”

“Not the mere indulgence of thought (in curiosity) but the constant concentration
of the intellect (or the affirming faculty) on the ever-pure Brahman, is what is
called ‘Samadahana’, or self-settled-ness.”

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“Mumukshuta or yearning for freedom is the desire to free oneself, by realizing
one’s true nature, from all bondages from that of egoism to that of the body –
bondages superimposed by ignorance.”

“Among things conducive to liberation, devotion alone holds the supreme place.
The seeking after one’s real nature is designated as ‘devotion’.”

“9The Guru is one) who knows the spirit of the scriptures, is sinless, unsmitten
by desire, and is best among the knowers of Brahman, who has found his place
in Brahman, is calm like fire that has consumed its fuel, who is a boundless
ocean of motiveless mercy, and a friend of all good people who humbly
approach him.”

“There are some good people, calm and great-souled, who go about doing good
to the world as does the spring; having themselves crossed this ocean of relative
existence, they help others also to cross the same without any selfish motive
whatsoever.”

(The Guru said:) “Fear not , O learned one, there is no death for thee; there is a
means of crossing this sea of relative existence; that very way by which sages
have gone beyond it, I shall inculcate to you.”

World does us no harm, but worldliness does. This world in itself is neither good
nor bad. Our understanding about it and the way we handle it makes it either
good or bad. To live in the world is not the same as being worldly. When
worldliness enters us, this human system becomes unfit for higher evolution and
becomes stagnant.

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The path to God is an ancient path. This is the language used in the Upanishads
and also by Buddha. Buddha said that he was not making a new path. The path
already existed and was trodden by many in the past. For sometime it was not in
use and therefore grass and weeds had grown over it. Buddha said that he was
just cleaning up that path for us, a path which was an ancient one.

“Reasoning on the meaning of the Vedanta leads to efficient knowledge, which is

immediately followed by the total annihilation of the misery born of relative
existence.”
The Upanishads say that one should first learn the truth from the scriptures or the
guru, then think about it deeply, and, finally, live in that truth by becoming one
with it. This is the method of spiritual realization in Vedanta.

“Faith, devotion, and the yoga of meditation – these are mentioned by the ‘Shruti’
as the immediate factors of liberation in the case of a seeker; whoever abides in
these gets liberation from the bondage of the body, which is the conjuring of
ignorance.”

“It is verily through the touch of ignorance that thou who are the Supreme Self
findest thyself under the bondage of the non-Self, whence alone proceeds the
road of births and deaths. The fire of knowledge, kindled by the discrimination
between these two, burns up the effects of ignorance together with their root.”

Our present bondage has come upon us due to ignorance. And from this alone
proceeds the round of births and deaths. We are essentially the Supreme Self,
ever free; only we don’t know this truth.

The fire of knowledge, kindled by the discrimination between the Self and the
non-Self, burns up the effects of ignorance together with their root. This is the
complete destruction of bondage.

(To continue)

Summary: Satyendra Nath Dwivedi

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