An Analysis of the Brahma Sutra - Swami Krishnananda

AN ANALYSIS OF THE BRAHMA SUTRA

by

SWAMI KRISHNANANDA

The Divine Life Society Sivananda Ashram, Rishikesh, India

Website: swami-

ABOUT THIS EDITION

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CONTENTS

Chapter I: The Forest of the Brahma Sutra ............................. 5 Chapter II: The Critique of Erroneous Doctrines .................. 16 Chapter III: Erroneous Notions Refuted .................................. 26 Chapter IV: The Origin of Bondage ............................................. 34 Chapter V: Towards Liberation ................................................... 41 Chapter VI: The Controversy Over Actionand Knowledge 48 Chapter VII: Specimens of Vedantic Meditations ................. 59 Chapter VIII: Upasana ? Upanishadic Meditations .............. 70 Chapter IX: The Causal Law as a Limitation ............................ 84 Chapter X: Vaishvanara Vidya ...................................................... 90 Chapter XI: The Preliminaries to Sadhana .............................. 94 Chapter XII: Brahman and Its Realisation ............................... 104 Chapter XIII: Consideration on Some Issues Arising in

the Brahma Sutra .............................................................. 112

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Chapter I

THE FOREST OF THE BRAHMA SUTRA

The greatest truths available for human comprehension are supposed to be documented in the great scriptures called the Upanishads. They are exultations of masters who are deeply involved in the ultimate principles of the cosmos. They are realised souls, called Rishis, but these Rishis in their expressions through the Upanishads spoke in terms of their particular vision of the Ultimate Reality.

A common student of the Upanishads is likely to feel embarrassed over apparently irreconcilable differences and contradictions among the statements of these great Masters. Every kind of philosophy you will find in the Upanishads. There are provisions for establishing the monism aspect of philosophy, the dualistic aspect, the active aspect, the volitional aspect ? everything can be found. Even Sankhya and Mimamsa have a reference.

What is it that you are supposed to take from this big forest of statements on the nature of Reality? To clarify the intention of these sages and to reconcile these statements in a harmonious manner, and to point out that different expressions do not necessarily mean contradictory presentations, Brahma Sutras was written. They can be harmonised by a higher perception of what is there and what is happening. In order to harmonise these multifaceted statements, Bhagavan Sri Krishna Dvaipayana Vyasa wrote a new text called the Brahma Sutras. Sutra is a thread that connects different parts of the vision of Truth.

All the statements connected with Ultimate Reality, known as Brahman in the Sanskrit language, have to be threaded together so that instead of the various statements of the Upanishads being contradictory outbursts, they become beautiful pearls in the garland of the knowledge of the Supreme Being, from various points of view. This act of reconciliation is called samanvaya.

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