EVERYTHING DISSOLVES IN THE SUPREME SELF

 

EVERYTHING DISSOLVES IN THE SUPREME SELF. ATMA BODHA 8

UPADANE AKHILADHARE JAGANTI PARAMESWARE

SARGASTHITI LAYANYANTI BUDBUDANEEVA VARINI

“Like Bubbles in the water, the worlds arise, exist and dissolve or merge in the supreme Self. This Supreme Self is the material cause and the basis and support of everything”

Prasnopanishad declares: “ Just as birds resort to a tree for rest, even so, my friend all things here go into the supreme Self-----earth and elements of earth, water and elements of water, fire and elements of fire,  air and elements of air, ether and elements of ether, sight and what can be seen, hearing and what can be heard, smell and what can be smelt,  taste and what can be tasted, the skin and what can be touched, speech and what can be spoken, hands and what can be handled,  the organ of generation and what can be enjoyed,--------------the intellect and what can be conceived, self consciousness and what it can be conscious of, thought and what can be thought,  light and what can be illumined and life and what can be supported by it.” (iii Up 4) 5 Mundakopanishad states: “ As the flowing rivers disappear in the ocean, losing their name and form, so does the knower, freed from name and form go to the Divine Purusha higher than the high.” VI Up (III. 2) 8 William Wodsworth, the famous Nature poet says in one of his odes: “ Like trailing clouds of glory do we come from God who is our home.” Every Hindu is conscious of this philosophic idea that we have to return to God after our mortal existence.

 Creation is nothing but the change of form, name, nature and condition. It is a kind of reconversion. Creation entails three essential factors which when put together are called the “Cause.”  Three types of “Causes “are recognized in creation.  They are 1 The Material cause 2 The Efficient cause and 3 The instrumental cause. For example, the potter making the pot is the  Efficient cause. The wheel he uses to make the pot is the Instrumental cause. Material cause is the mud he uses to make the pot. This is called ‘ Upadana Karan. In general, the pot—mud is separate from the potter. But in the process of Creation  where the finite emerges from the Infinite, the material cause and the Efficient cause  are one and the same.

The ocean is composed of water.  But the water in the sea or ocean doesn’t stand still.  It is always in motion. On account of that continuous motion waves are produced and they travel to the shore with speed. They lash at the shore and withdraw into the ocean again. One wave upon another, they continue to lash at the shore and withdraw into the ocean .They cannot be distinguished individually. They rise and rise again and merge into the ocean even as we wonder at the mighty ocean.  Bubbles are created as the waves lash against the shore. They are colorful and extremely beautiful . But they are short lived and burst in a fraction of a second! What is this bubble? Is it different from water in the wave or ocean? It is formed in the water of the ocean, exists in the same water and loses itself in the same water. We consider the ocean, water, wave, and the bubble as separate entities.  Are they really separate?  This plurality and multiplicity is due to the action of body-mind and intellect.  It is all a play of names and forms upon the Divine  Eternal substratum or the Infinite Consciousness.

 In spite of changes in names and forms, the Supreme Brahman doesn’t undergo any change. That is why it is called as the Absolute Brahman. It is not subjected to any modification in itself. It is because of this unchangeable nature that the world of multiplicity originates from the Brahman. The plurality and multiplicity is only an appearance, no real manifestation or factual creation. Everything dissolves in the Supreme Self!