!! Viveka Chudamani  of Shankaracharya !!

Slokas 234-235 with meanings in English

||om tat sat ||


Vivekachudamani Slokas 234- 235

In the earlier Slokas , we heard that well known refrain - 'ब्रह्म सत्यं जगत् मिथ्य’. That Brahman is real, is heard from Adharvana Veda ( Mundakopanishad). Considering Vedas as our reference ( hence authnetic), we need a proof for the confirming the second part, namely  'जगत् मिथ्य’. Guru lays foundations for that in these two Slokas

In following Slokas, accepting Brahman is real, Guru tries to take the disciple on a path of enquiry asking what happens if Jagat is real and not 'मिथ्य’; Guru establishes resulting contradictions. We hear that in the following Sloka.

 Sloka 233:

सत्यं यदि स्यात् जगदात्मनः
अनन्तत्वहानिः निगमप्रमाणता।
असत्यवादित्वं अपि ईशितुः स्यात्
नैतत्त्रयं साधुहितं महात्मनाम् ॥ 234||

सत्यं यदि स्यात् जगत् -
यदि जगत् सत्यं स्यात्-
If universe is indeed real ;

आत्मनो अनन्तत्वहानिः -
loss of infiniteness ( no beginning or end) of Self ( Brahman)

How is loss of infinitude explained? If two things are real, they has an identity and space independent of the other. Like in the example of pot and a peice of cloth. Since both are real, pot cannot be in the place of a peice of cloth, nor the peice of cloth can be in the place of a pot. So if universe is real , the Brahman which is infinite, cannnot  infinite because another entity , Universe is taking part of that infinite , which makes it no longer infinte. So accpeting Universe as real results in loss of infinitude of Self or Brahman .

निगमप्रमाणता -
invadility of Vedas

Vedas expressly state the infinitude of the Brahman. If the infinitude of Brahman is negated, then the Vedas become invalid

असत्यवादित्वं अपि ईशितुः स्यात् -
ईशितुः असत्यवादित्वं अपि स्यात् -
Lord will be reduced to a state of being liar;

In Gita, Lord has stated all of the above. If we accet that Universe is real then all that is stated by the Lord, in Gita wll be false.  So Lord becomes liar.

नैतत्त्रयं साधुहितं महात्मनाम्
साधु महात्मनां एतत् त्रयं न हितं-
All the three are not acceptable to great ones;

So the Guru established three contradictions, that will have to be accepted if Universe is real- driving us to conclude that Universe can only be Mithya.

Sloka summary:

If universe is real, then there is loss of infiniteness ( no beginning or end) of Self ( Brahman); invadility of Vedas;
and Lord will be reduced to a state of being a lier; All the three are not acceptable to great ones.

Hence Universe is not real. Brahman is only real. The essnce of the pots made with clay is only clay. Thus the essnce of Universe created by Brahman is Brahman it self.

Sloka 235

ईश्वरो वस्तुतत्त्वज्ञो
नचाहं तेष्वव स्थितः ।
नचमत् स्थानि भूतानि
इत्येवमेवव्यचीक्लुपत्॥ 235||

ईश्वरो वस्तुतत्त्वज्ञः -
Lord , the knower of reality of things ;

न चाहं तेष्वव स्थितः -
I am not in them ;

न च मत् स्थानि भूतानि-
they are not in Me:

इत्येवमेव व्यचीक्लुपत्-
इति एवं एव व्यचीकथत्-
expressly declared so;

Sloka summary:

Lord , the knower of reality of things,expressly declared that  ; 'I am not in them.  And they are not in Me'

Here, Guru , without any commentary,  restated what Krishna said in Gita. To understand the point Guru is driving , we need to understand  krishna's statement. So let us go through teh Slokas.

This is stated by Krishna in Gita Slokas 9.4 and 9.5. The corresponding Sloka lines are as follows:

       श्लो॥ मयाततमिदं सर्वं
               जगदव्यक्तमूर्तिना
             
        मत्स्थानि सर्वभूतानि
        न चाहं तेष्ववस्थितः ॥( गीत 9-4) ||

        न च मत् स्थानि भूतानि
        पश्यमे योग  मैश्वरम्। ( गीत 9-5)


In Gita (9.4) Krishna starts with the statement,
'मयाततमिदं सर्वं जगदव्यक्तमूर्तिना ’,
the whole world is pervaded by my unmaifested form.

मत्स्थानि सर्वभूतानि  -
All beings exist in my unmanifested form.

न चाहं तेष्ववस्थितः -
but I ( in my manifested form) am not in them.

Krishna says , that the whole world is pervaded by my unmaifested form. All beings exist in my unmanifested form.
But I am not in them (in my manifested form).

This much is understandable and clear.
But we get a riddle in the next sloka(9.5)

        'न च मत् स्थानि भूतानि
        पश्यमे योग  मैश्वरम्’ ॥गी 9-5)||

 - the beings  donot exist in Me, see my divine Yoga.

Having said in the previous Sloka, मत्स्थानि सर्वभूतानि , that all being are in his unmanifested form, what is meant by Krishna is saying exactly the opposite , न च मत् स्थानि भूतानि - the beings  donot exist in Me ?

What is Krishna's intent?

If the world of beings is true, let us step back in to the real world of two real things. Consider Jar and a peice of cloth. Both being real, the jar cannot be in the place of cloth, nor the peice of cloth be in the place of Jar( unless both are replaced by the other in space).

On a similar token if the universe and the Brahman are real , Brahman cannot be in the Universe and Universe cannot be in Brahman. If it stated to be so, then it can only be an illusion. We know by Vedic lore, Brahman is real. The universe of being is unreal or illlusion.

By positing two contracdictory statements, Krishna is hinting at the ureal nature of the world. That is ब्रह्म सत्यं जगत् मिथ्य’

Guru by merely restating , Krishna's contradictory words, is forcing us to acknowledge the contradiction and accept the reality that only Brahman is true, rest all is an illusion.
 
A different way of understanding Viveke Chudamani Sloka, leading to the same conclusion, is as follows

This refers to Sloka 9.4 and 9.5 in Gita.

Krishna said;
"mathsthani Sarva bhutani"- world is in Me ( Gita 9.4)
"Na ca mathsthani bhutani" - world is not in Me ( Gita 9.5)

It seems like an impossible riddle, yet it is stated by Krishna.

So question really is,  it possible or when is it possible?

In general a thing is having existence or a thing is not having existence ; in either case it is not possible.

But possible when a thing is neither Existence  nor Non existnce - seemingly in Trisanku existence-

Any example?

Consider dream and dreamer.

Dream is experienced; one may even get frightened - Dream at that moment of dream, is true and exists.

On waking up, dream is no longer there : In dream we might have won a million dollar lottery, which disappears on waking up. Dream is now clearly non existence.

So dream is -"Mithya".
Only in Mithya , we can have the feeling of existence and non existence coexisting.

Similarly world is "Mithya"
Krishna ' comment of World is in me ; world is not in Me is possble when world is Mithya.
If world is real - Krishna is wrong.
Since we take Krishna is true- world is mithya.


III Yet another way of understanding Sloka 9.4

In Gita 9-4 Krishna says :

मया ततं इदम् सर्वं
जगत् अव्यक्तमूर्तिना।
मत् स्थानि सर्वभूतानि
न चाहं तेषु अवस्थितम्॥( गी9-4)||

All this world is pervaded by me in my unmanifested form. All beings exist in Me. But I donot dwell in them.

First the unmanifested form is all pervasive. All pervasive is eternal and infinite. Krishna referring to himself as Brahman , is all pervasive; eternal in infinite. Self too is allpervasive, being with no beginning and and no end , it is infinite.

When infinite pervades all things finite - what is the relationship betwen infinite ( real)  and the finite (unreal).  in Advaita phiosophy, there is only one reality. Both cannot be real.

Here, Krishna defined the relationship, they are all in him and he is not in them. In the context of Self pervading the body, Self is not in the body in the sense it does not partake in the happiness and  sorrows of life.


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Viveka Chudamani Slokas 234-235

with meanings in English

- Sloka Text in Devanagari

- Sloka Text in Telugu 

Om tat sat !

 

 

 

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