Ethical Values in Ishopanisad-Conclusion

Ethical Values in Ishopanisad-
CONCLUSION
It will be seen that  there are many  gems of  ethical values  in Ishopanisad, which are still relevant 
in modern  times. It   begins with the statement 'whatever exists in this world is enveloped by 

the Supreme and  by renunciation and absence of possessiveness , we should enjoy  the bounties

Provided y Him,without coveting what does not belong to us.   Balanced view  of 

wealth,signifying non-accumulation and sharing of God-given resources  is a significant concept  

in the prevailing social orderwith  wide-spread inequalities  existing   in the society  and  the 

world  at  large.

 The Upanisad  is also of immense significance, as  it contains a concentrated view of the essential  Vedic philosophy and the choicest Ethical Values and  forms the foundation of Vedantic System of thought. It highlights the divinity of man, as well as all His manifestations in nature.  Oneness of the Soul and God, and the value of both faith and works(Action) as means of ultimate attainment are the leading themes of this Upanishad, emphasising that works alone, even the highest, can bring only temporary happiness and must inevitably bind a man unless through them he gains knowledge of his real Self. To help him acquire this knowledge is the aim of this  Upanishad.  It shows the way the Upanishad describes the non-material aspects of the Supreme Being, as ‘One who walks but does not walk’. It is a way of relating how the Lord has no material qualities, but has all spiritual qualities and characteristics.   May  i conclude with the hope that all  of  us shall endeavour  to cultivate the  significant ethical values stated in Isha Upanisad,  to lead a more contented  and spiritual life, leading to intimate and  intense awareness of Self. With my Best  wishes  for the Spiritual journey.

vedaprakasha
http://www.ethicalvaluesinishopanisad.blogspot.com/

Agne naya supatha raye: Lead us on to 'wealth' by a good path

 Lead us  on to'wealth'  by a good path


अग्ने नय सुपथा राये अस्मान विश्वानी देव वयुनानि विद्वान्।

युयोध्यस्म ज्जुहुराणमेनो भूयिष्ठां ते नम उक्तिं विधेम ॥१८॥


Agne naya supatha raye asman
Visvani deva vayunani vidvan,
yuyo-dhyas-majjuhu-rana-meno
bhuyistham te nama uktim vidhema (18)

"O Agni!Lead us on to'wealth' by  a good path, as Thou knowest, O God, all the many  ways. Remove  the crooked attraction of  sin from us. We  offerThee our best salutations.(SwamiChinmayananda)

O Adorable God(Agni),may Thee lead  us along the wholesome path  for our prosperity, since O Lord, Thou art  in  the  knowledge of all  our actions. May Thee cleanse  us of  the sin that  forces  us  astray.  With  humility, we  offer  thee our  most  reverential    homage.

This is the last Mantra  of Isha Upanisad.According  to Aryan heritage man  has  to seek  the support of God   even after doing his best efforts., which  has  been  sought  here. The Upanisad, which started  from  the  first  wave 'tyagten bhunjitha ma gridah kasya -savidhnam' concludes with this  last  wave  with a beautiful  prayer 'to lead  us to the right path to prosperity,abjuring treading wrong  path of sin'. God's (Ishwara's)  guidance  is  sought in following  the  right  path and  remaining  away  from sin here.The  devotee(sadhak) having done his best efforts takes refuge in Him for raye i.e.wealth, prosperity, including 'the riches  of a spiritual seeker.', for attainment  of  the supreme felicity. It is, thus,  an active  dynamic spiritual giving  up to Him and a becoming  into the  new awareness.

vedprakash
http://www.ethicalvaluesinishopanisad.blogspot.com/

ॐ क्रतो स्मर कृत स्मर Om krato smara krtagm smara

वायुर्निलममृतमथेदम भस्मानतम शरीरम।


ॐ क्रतो स्मर कृत स्मर क्रतो स्मर कृत स्मर ॥१७॥

Vayur-anilam-amrtam athedam
Bhasmantagm sariram,
Om krato smara  krtagm smara
krato smara krtagm smara (17)
" Let my Prana merge into the all-pervading air(and)now let this body be burnt(by fire)to ashes.Om,Omy mind!remember, remember, what  you  did! Oh  remember, remember,  what  you  did!" (Swami Chinmayananda)

Vâyur-anilam-amRitam athedaM, bhasmântaM sHarîram,


AUM krato smara kRitaM smara krato smara kRitaM smara. 17.

 "The Breath of things is an immortal Life, but of this body ashes are the end. OM! O Will, remember, that which was done remember! O Will, remember, that which was done remember."( Sri Aurobindo)

After the experience, 'He,the Purusa within thee  I am', what  would be  the condition of  such a perfected Master atthe  time of  his  death?When the ego-centre has meged itself in the SupremeAwareness,  what would be its attitude towards the possessions like body, prana,mind, intellect, etc.? Such  questions  have been answered here by  the great Rsi. While  the Soul  is  immortal, the body  is  burnt  to ashes, after  death. A man, after  the realisation of Self, will  face  death happily,  and  his  only cry  would  be that  his  prana  should  merge with  theall-pervading air(Vayu) and  that  his body must  go back to the dust from which  it  has  come.  As  regards  his mind, he  cies,'May  you  remember  what you  did  in  the past, including the great  achievement, the Supreme experience.After all,  our memory is always about our own most  intense  experiences, and   it   has been advised to remember Om, the holy name of God, alongwith  what  has been done  in the past. Reciting 'OM'  will not come automatically,unless practised  intensely during life-timeby the devotee(sadhak).

vedaprakasha
http://www.ethicalvaluesinishopanisad.blogspot.com/

The Purusa within Thee, He am I

THE PURUSA WITHIN THEE (HE) I AM

पूषन्नेकर्षे यम् सूर्य प्राजापत्य व्यूह रश्मीन समूह।

कल्याणतमं तत्ते पश्यामि यो सौ पुरुषः सो हमस्मि ॥१६॥

Pusanne karse yama surya praja patya,
Vyuha rasmin samuha tejah
 yatte rupam kalyana-tamam tatte pasyami
yo'sa-vasau purusah so;ham-asmi (16)

"O Pusan(Sun, Nourisher), O Sole Seer, O Controller of All, Surya, son of Prajapati, disperse Thy rays and  gather  up Thy  burning  light.... I  behold  Thy  gloriousform....the Purusa within Thee, He am I"(Swami  Chinmayananda)
 
 "O Nourisher (pūṣan), the sole Seer (ekarṣi), O Controller (yama), O Sun (sūrya), offspring of Prajāpati, spread forth thy rays! Gather thy brilliance (tejas)!, What is thy fairest form—that of thee I see. He who is yonder, yonder Person (puruṣa)—I myself am he." 
 
" O Fosterer, O sole Seer, O Ordainer, O illumining Sun, O power of the Father of creatures, marshal thy rays, draw together thy light; the Lustre which is thy most blessed form of all, that in Thee I behold. The Purusha there and there, He am I.."(Sri Aurobindo)
 According  to  Swami Chinmayananda,the philosophical import  of this prayer is  suggestive  of various qualifucations ( like Nourisher,Sole Seer, the Controller  of All,etc. ) of  the Lord Sun, which  equallly  apply   to Atman, the spiritual  centre  in man.According  to the prayer, the  prayerful  ego- the  completelly integrated inner  personality of  the  individual at  (the height of )meditation, when the  mind and  intellect are transcended - meets  Truth in  silence to become itself the Truth in its  subjective  experience.'By Thy grace may I reach nearer  the Isha who indwells everywhere, including Thee' seems  to be, here, the cry of  the heart at  meditation. The idea  that theSpirit  is is  to be experienced in  an intimate subjective experience(anubhava)  is  clearly brought    out  by  this declaration' He am I, the Purusha within Thee.'  The  Sadhak (devotee)  cries  at  that  stage  that he  is not a body-conditioned  individual that  he  thought he was, in  his  ignorance,  but  now  that  the wisdom has dawned, he  realises  that  he  is  nothing but  the Pure Awareness, 'the one  resides  in Him, the Purusha.' Theman, who realises Godhead isnomore aman, but  is a God upon earth,walking  temporarily in  the form of that man.  When  the  ego ends, there  is a blaze  of perfection, (as  if)  the Divine re-incarnates.

'I am the Purusha  in Thee'(Purusah aham asmi). is, in contrast what is said earlier (in Mantra 3) that  those  who identify  with  theirbody-mind vehicles are 'destroyers of the Self'(Atma-hanah), ever bound  to the wheel -of - change. Whensuch an individual, through' dedicated activities'( karma)  purifies  himself, and  through  renunciation(tena tyaktena)comesto enjoy 'All this  is the Lord'(Ishavasyam idagm sarvam), hemustnowcry out that  I am no  more  the one who 'destroyed the experience  of the Self'(Atma-hanah) in a sunless realm(asurya lokah), but 'I am indeed,He, the Self,(Purusah Aham- asmi). In SwamiChinmayananda words, ' the wave that  has  realised  itself, understands  and experiences  the ocean...Man experiencing God-head is  himself the  immortal God.'

vedaprakasha
http://www.ethialvaluesinishopanisad.blogspot.com/

Unveil the Truth covered with Golden Lid

UNVEIL THE TRUTH

हिरण्यमयेंन पात्रेण सत्यस्यापिहितं मुखं।


तत्वं पूषन्नपावृणु सत्यधर्माय द्रृष्टये ॥१५॥

UNRAVEL THE TRUTH

Hiranmayena pâtrena satya-syâpi-hitaM mukham,

tat tvaM pûSanna-pâvRinu satya-dharmâya drstaye. 15.

"The face of the Truth is covered by a golden lid, remove. O Sun that (covering) for me,the practioner  of Truth, so  that I  may behold It."(SwamiChinmayananda)

"O Sun God! (representing the God in general) The luminous and attractive face of truth is hidden by a golden disc. Unveil it for my vision (the one who is in search of truth)."(Sri  Aurobindo)

The world -of -objects and their  glittering  fascinations seems  to  envelop  theTruth,which  the Practioner of Truth is ultimately seeking.In  this prayer  raised   to the effulgent   form of the Lord  seeking His  Grace and Blessing  to  remove  the  golden veil  that  hides  true vision of  Truth. Isha Upanisad that  started with 'clothed by by the Isa in all this', must  end in this prayer unto  the Nourisher, Sustainer: O Lord!unveil  the Reality to me, as if pleading, 'May i pierce through  the golden lid covering the Truth,and   experience the Supreme Immutable Reality.'
 According  to Swami Chinmayananda, "Prayer in Vedanta is  only an attempt of the  ego-centre to attune itself tothe Supreme Consciousness in the individual.. The  word 'pusan'  in this verse represents  the Seeker's inner  world-  the Nourisher and Illuminator, the Atman. The ego-centre is  to die when it  relises its real nature,  the Self. It  is the  last prayer of  theactivespiritual seeker  in his meditation-seat when he, in  his  divine effort, is shaking off his  last vesture ofego which  is  lingering to veil  the Self in him."
The devotee(sadhak) declares that  the Truth should reveal Itself unto him for  he is  himself a practioner of Truth.' This is  very  significant as the seeker's  goal isTruth, his path  isTruth, which  is laid over  with Truth at  every step. And,  as a dedicaed  devotee, he has a  right  to demand that 'Unveiling of Truth'  for him.
(To be contnd.)

vedprakash
http://www.ethicalvaluesinisopanisad.blogspot.com/