What is Maya? A Conceptual Analysis

What is Maya? A Conceptual Analysis
Article of the Month - July 2010

In the seventh chapter of the Bhagavad Gita, Krishna makes a promise to Arjuna:

"I will explain to you how to know me fully and clearly. I will give you the knowledge, after knowing which, nothing more will remain to be known by you. It is only the rarest of men who come to know me in my true essence." (7.1-3).

Having made this exciting promise, Krishna begins His explanation by saying:

"I have two kinds of Maya – lower (apara) and superior (para). The first is the cause of the inert world, and the second is my shakti in the form of prana which sustains this world. Because My Maya, in these two forms, is the cause of this entire world, it is actually Me, who is the ultimate source and dissolution of the world." (7.4-5)

Promising to give a 'full and clear' description of Himself, Krishna begins with Maya. Actually, this is the only way we can understand God. The Upanishads state:

'The speech and mind return without reaching the ultimate God' (Taittriya Upanishad 2.4.1).

The implication thus is that our sense organs are not capable enough to discern the ultimate God. Therefore, the only way to understand Him is through His creation, namely this world, which is perceptible to our senses.

Objection: You mean to say that that the One God can be known through this infinitely varied world? How is this possible?

Resolution: The Shrimad Bhagavatam says that the One God has become many through His Maya (12.9.6). The Brhadaranyaka Upanishad says: 'God takes on many forms through His Maya. He takes on these various forms to reveal His own self' (2.5.19). The great Shankaracharya, while commenting on this Upanishad verse says: "If these various names and forms had not been made manifest, then it would not have been possible to realize God."

Thus this world is but the manifest form of God, created by Him to facilitate our realization of Him. Moreover, it is this Maya, which, during creation, takes on the form of the world: 'It is God's Maya which takes on the shape of the world. The purpose of this transformation is to facilitate both, the reaping of the fruits of our karma, and also to facilitate our Moksha (God-realization)', Shankaracharya's Introduction to the 13th Chapter of the Gita.

Since the supremely compassionate God is ever interested in the Moksha of all human beings, each of whom is conditioned by a different set of samskaras and backgrounds, it is but imperative that there be as many means to realize God as there are variety of people. Hence the diversity in this world.

Objection: The Gita verse 7.4-5 you have quoted above contains the word Prakriti, which you have interpreted as Maya. How do we know they both mean the same?

Resolution: The Shvetashvatara Upanishad clearly states: "Know Maya to be the same as Prakriti." (4.10)

What is Maya?

Shankaracharya Ji puts it as follows 'Maya means showing oneself as something else from the outside' (Commentary on the Prashna Upanishad, 1.16).

We know from the example of science that even as water is opposed to fire, its cause, namely hydrogen and oxygen, both are supporters of combustion. To explain this transformation, science postulates a force named valence bond. Any science, in order to explain the transformation of a cause to an effect different from it, has to postulate a force characteristic of the cause. Vedanta too is an objective science. Therefore, there comes into play Maya, which efficiently explains the transformation of the non-inert, unchanging Brahman, into the inert, changing world. Maya is that which hides the fundamental transcendental form (svarupa) of God and presents it as something else.

Without this Maya, or Shakti, it is not possible to prove God as creator of the world – 'Without Shakti or Maya, God cannot be the creator, because in absence of Maya, there cannot be an inclination (pravritti) to create in God' (Shankaracharya's commentary on the Brahmasutras 1.4.3).

Synonyms of Maya:

Shankaracharya Ji has been much castigated and it has been insinuated that he is the one who has laid undue stress on the term Maya. However, this is not justified because it is the scriptures themselves which use this word to explain the power or Shakti of God (Brahman). The Brhadaranyaka and Prashna Upanishads use it while the Shvetashvatara Upanishad also mentions it several times. The Bhagavad Gita uses the word Maya four times, and its synonym Prakriti more than 20 times. In fact, in addition to Prakriti, all sacred scriptures use the word Maya in one or more of the following synonyms:

1. Shakti: Because it is the power of God which creates the world.
2. Akasha: Because of its unlimited extent, or because it is the cause of akasha.
3. Akshara: meaning indestructible.
4. Maya: Because of this wonderful creation, which shows God in a form discernable to us.
5. Avyakta: Meaning unmanifest, because at the time of dissolution (pralaya), it remains latent inside God.

Maya is under the Control of God:

This world is created by Maya to facilitate the reaping of our karma. Not only this, getting attached to Maya, attempting to 'lord' over it or possess it, we perform various karma, accumulating both Dharma and Adharma in the process and thus are forced to take birth again and again. In this manner, all beings are under the control of Maya. However, Krishna says: “I take Avatara keeping My Maya under control” (Bhagavad Gita 4.6). Thus, unlike the jivas, Maya is under the command of God.

How is the World Created Through Maya?

We have seen above Krishna saying that He creates this world using His two types of Mayas, lower and superior. The first, called in Bhagavad Gita as the 'apara prakriti', is responsible for creation of the material world, which is inert. The second superior Shakti, known as 'para prakriti', upholds and sustains the world through 'prana', or life breath. The former is contaminated, while the second is pristinely pure.

Actually, the ultimate reason behind the creation of this world is avidya, our ignorance about our true status as being one with God. Due to avidya we see the world as different from God (ourselves), and thus get entangled in a plethora of attachment (raga) and hatred (dvesha). Inspired by these emotions, we perform more and more karma to bring that which we like near us, and push what we dislike away from us. To reap the fruits of these new actions God has to create this world again for us. It is like the father who gets his wailing child a toy to play with, even though he is himself totally uninterested in the toy itself (udasin). The desire for this world is ours; the capability to create it is God's.

'First prana is created by the superior form of Lord's Maya. It is our avidya which then actuates the lower form of Maya This. Maya creates the various bodies fit enough to reap the fruits of the karmas of our previous lives. Thus the para prakriti sustains this world through prana or 'life breath', and the apara prakriti is responsible for the bodies, which if it hadn't been for the prana would have been lifeless' (Shankaracharya's Commentary on Bhagavad Gita 7.5).

Doubt: It is still not clear why one of the Maya is called lower (impure) and the other pure?

Resolution: Apara prakriti is said to be the inferior form of the Lord's Maya because it is actuated by our avidya. Para prakriti is pure, uncontaminated by our avidya. Even though the exhortation (pravritti) to create the world comes from avidya, the power to create is solely God's. This apara power, because of this association with our avidya is called impure.

Shri Shankaracharya says clearly:

'Within Maya is avidya, the impure seed of the world' (Commentary on the Gita: 12.3).

'Even though God (Brahman) is essentially quiet and neutral, It creates the world by this Maya which is joined with the avidya of beings' (Commentary on the Brahmasutras 2.2.2).

'The avidya of beings situated inside Maya is responsible for the creation of the world' (Gita Commentary 13.21).

Maya is Eternal:

We know that this world was created to reap the fruits of karma performed by us in previous lives. Similarly, the world before this, was created for the fruits of our karma of lives previous to that and so on. Therefore, there is no world which can be said to have been created 'first of all'. A few rare beings may be able to overcome their avidya and become free from this cycle of life and death. They will not be born again, that is why they does not need the world again. However, the number of beings is infinite (Atharvaveda 10.8.24). Therefore, how so many people may become free, there will always remain many who would be bound to the circle of life. Thus, the creation and dissolution of the world too is a never-ending process, and this timeless cycle is both beginningless and endless.

'As tiny sparks come forth from fire, so does this diverse world always come forth from God, sustains in It and also dissolves back into It' (Shankaracharya's Commentary on Brhadaranyaka Upanishad 2.1.20). Since the world is continuously being created and dissolved, the Maya required for this cyclic process too is eternal.

Status of Maya vis-à-vis God:

Bhagavan Shankaracharya puts it clearly:

'Shakti is fundamentally the same as its cause' (karanasya atmabhuta shakti), Commentary on the Brahmasutras 2.1.18.

'Shakti is none other than God, because Shakti is non-different from the one who wields it.' (sa shakti Brahm ev, shakti shaktimato ananyatvat), Gita Commentary 14.27. 'It is My Maya, which is non-different from Me (svabhuta), which creates all beings', (Commentary on the Gita 14.3)

'That which is called as Mula-prakriti, it is the same as our God (Brahman)', Commentary on the Brahmasutras 2.3.9.

We go and lift a stone. Can we say that the power (Shakti) we used to achieve the task is different from us? Similarly, Brahman, the Supreme God, and His Maya are one and the same.

Why Then Maya?

Objection: If God and His Maya are one and the same, why introduce the concept of Maya at all?

Resolution: We know that God created this world. We also know that this world is extremely different from the nature of God as stated in the ancient scriptures, which are infallible. Therefore, Maya is the force, power or Shakti, which efficiently explains the transformation of the non-inert, unchanging Brahman, into an inert, changing world.

Maya thus presents the cause as an effect having a nature different from the cause. It is the latent force which is activated every time God creates this world prompted by our avidya. When we speak solely of God, there is no need to bring in Maya, but as soon as we talk of this world or its creation we cannot communicate without understanding the concept of Maya.

God wants the jivas to understand Him, therefore, He dons that form which they can understand and comes before them in the form of this world. After that, He provides them with the Shastras (Vedic Scriptures), which explain how to realize Him by understanding how He is non-different from the world.

However, the world is very attractive, and we get bound to its outward appearance, failing to apprehend its Ultimate Source.

Actually, the world is like a language and God is its meaning. We concentrate on the beauty of the language, rather than look at the meaning behind it. When can we understand the meaning? When we give less importance to the language (world), keeping our interaction with it to the bare, minimum necessity, and fix our attention solely on the meaning (God). However, at the same time we have to realize that meaning cannot reveal itself without the word; God cannot be known without the world.

Doubt: All this talk about going beyond Maya is all very good. However, it has still not been explained how one actually goes about achieving this?

Resolution: This is a very important question. Krishna answers it in the Bhagavad Gita in a manner which is beautiful in its simplicity, yet profound in implication. He says:

"Only those who take refuge in Me can cross over My Maya." (7.14)

Consider this: We believe the peak of our pleasure to lie between the legs of a woman. It is highest form of pleasure we know. However, have we ever paused to reflect why God has located the locus of this pleasure at the dirtiest spots in the bodies of the two partners? Even if we have pondered on this question, have we still not failed to overcome our intense physical desires? After trying our best and still not being able to win over our desires, what way other than praying and surrendering to God remains for us? Our revered saints, the ones that have crossed over Maya, are unanimous in declaring that taking refuge in Krishna and sincerely praying to Him to help us overcome our desires is the only sure shot way to succeed.

Is Maya 'Illusion'?

In the Shrimad Bhagavatam Krishna says to His Maya: "People will worship you with much fanfare and gifts. You will grant people whatever boons they ask for”. In addition, in Gita 7.14, Krishna calls His Maya divine (daivi). Would Krishna call an 'illusion' divine,? Or, can something which is mere illusion, be capable of fulfilling our wishes and desires?

Nearly all Vedantic Texts translated into English read Maya as 'illusion'. This is very disturbing. God has many a times called it 'My Maya'. When we speak of a compassionate God, will such a God subject His beloved beings to illusion? Such a God would be malicious and not benevolent. Maya is real (bhava-rupa). It is there for us to perceive the reality of God in terms we can understand. Thus in India women are named after Maya, considering it to be sacred. Numerous temples honoring her adorn this land from top to bottom. Ultimately, we have seen, Maya is non-different from God. Does this mean God is an illusion too? There is no substance in such an interpretation.

Conclusion:

The desire for the world is ours, but the capability to create it is God's. Maya not only just does its job – create the world for us to reap the fruits of our pervious karma, but at the same time also facilitates our Moksha by presenting God in terms we can understand. For this we need to be grateful to Maya. That we get attached to Maya, and create more karma in order to possess it is but our own faulty ignorance. The Mahabharata puts it crisply:

'It is not the fault of Maya but mine, that, looking away from God, I became attached to it' (Moksha Dharma 307.34).

References and Further Reading:

• Baba, Bhole. Shri Shankaracharya's Commentary on the Brahma Sutras with the Sub-Commentary 'Ratnaprabha' (Text and Hindi Translation), Varanasi, 2006.
• Bharati, Swami Paramananda. Fondations od Dharma. Bangalore 2008.
• Bharati, Swami Paramananda. Lectures on Vedanta (80 MP3 Files).
• Bharati, Swami Paramananda. Vedanta Prabodh. Varanasi, 2010.
• Chaturvedi, Shri Giridhar Sharma. Shri Gita Pravachanmala (Discourses on the Gita in Three Volumes): Varanasi.
• Chinmayananda, Swami. The Holy Geeta: Mumbai, 2002.
• Date, V.H. Vedanta Explained (Samkara's Commentary on The Brahma-sutras in Two Volumes): Delhi, 1973.
• Devi, Uma S. Maya in Shankara's Advaita Vedanta (Paper Read at Asian Philosophy Congress, New Delhi, 2010). Unpublished.
• Goyandka, Shri Harikrishnadas. Ishadi Nau Upanishad (Nine Principal Upanishads with Word-to-Word Meaning in Hindi), Gorakhpur, 2004.
• Goyandka, Shri Harikrishnadas. Shrimad Bhagavad Gita (Translation of Shankaracharya's Commentary into Hindi): Gorakhpur, 2006.
• Goyandka, Shri Harikrishnadas. Translation of Shankaracharya's Commentary on the Eleven Upanishads (Hindi): Gorakhpur, 2006.
• Gupta Som Raj. Upanisads eith the Commentary of Sankaracarya, Fine Volums. Delhi
• Jacob, G.A. A Concordance to the Principal Upanisads and Bhagavadgta. Delhi, 1999.
• Ramsukhdas, Swami.Sandhaka-Sanjivani (Commentary on Bhagavad Gita). Gorakhpur, 2005.
• Saraswati, Swami Akhandananda (tr). Shrimad Bhagavata Purana (2 Volumes): Gorakhpur, 2004.
• Devi, Uma S. Maya in Shankara's Advaita Vedanta (Paper Read at Asian Philosophy Congress, New Delhi, 2010). Unpublished.

I'm Just trying to Always be there for you

Sunday, February 28, 2010 at 9:46pm

okay,
forget me,
forget the words,
forget any sense,
forget all desire,
forget what is still unthinkable, ignore it ...

I'm just trying to always be there for you.
Perhaps all this could never reach with us, although we've tried to be reached.
Although we continue to try to wake the hope that again, although we are trying to knit back of each piece of straw to the nest beautiful, comfortable and suitable for both of us, so we can be together.

But this is just a naivete that happened between us, and we will never realize that we really need that feeling of togetherness that we need.
The more we try to be more distant, the more we are far apart and away.

Where we no longer rests on the same path.
Side we have no right to give the sense that we can understand each other.

We're getting away, either to the extent, and may not be achieved, until no longer find our limits and getting lost, losing the meaning of all that has been created, the meaning of all flavors have existed between us.

I had always longed for your presence, and you know it ....

The Simple Project

simple project we did at the noisy turmoil of noise and shouts discontent over the implementation of the legal system and legal manifestations in between screams of skinfold-empowerment of the weak, elderly, women, teenagers, and children are crying with fear of the terrible events that throughout the day and in seconds always happen in everyday life. a view that contrasts with the prosperity and greatness and pride of the capital who want the honor and power and always put political interests and ignore the values and human rights. that it is every person has equal rights and deserve to be appreciated, respected, and recognized its existence, is not taken, seized, and ignored.

This is where ethical values and solidarity to ridicule because of the interest is no longer based on the principle of respect for the rights but the uniformity and unification of the interference to the recognition of diversity and unity values. This is the value of freedom to attack and kill empowerment, independence and build deadly hegemonic stability of the ruling group. Create opportunities for conflict that divided the value of unity, making restrictions and discrimination, cause limitations and dependency, which is very weak to rely on strong and then used as a reason for the guarantee of a criminal act. this is politics and robbery are very experienced in this area of the red line, because no day without bloodshed, for the values and identity which is set in stone.

Listening to them talk about the horrible experience, how they are feeling the loss of relatives, fathers, mothers, brothers, sisters, and even parts of their bodies .. how they are feeling hopeless and demoralized and the future, it is very frightening experience they can even make them become more cruel and empathy toward the outside world ... and we tried to given what we could, to comfort them, to train, assist, giving understanding, teaching, and try to feel what they experience by living among them ... get donors to fund social, educational, clothing, food .. and fight for their fate, so get the recognition and equality of human rights as a whole .. at least admit that they were with us in common as human beings ...and everyone can do it, at least by providing moral support for the common good ....

Wake up and think about you

As the early morning, I woke up, when everyone was still asleep in his bed ..
I woke up, stretched, and for some reason, as I felt there was a faint voice that sounded to call and wake me up ..
I realized, for a moment, then I felt that it was only a shadow that always occurred to me.
A feeling I've always kept in the depths of the heart. All the feelings about her, somewhere she is now. And what I knew all that had passed, with a series of spoken word, with so many debates, with all sorts of differences are revealed, when all turned into an expression of emotion and anger, until finally all the stops and ends.
There's not much I can do but pray and hope that the best thing for her there. Hoping for peace of heart that he always felt happy and cheerful, and tap once sad.
I can only give what I got, I'm not demanding for anything from her, quite understanding and sincere love.
Much trust will be meaningful when all comes together in the same desire.
Our existence is just a matter of time now to always be together, and all that will happen when we are always confident, and for the confidence to live with it still there, we'll be happy, there is nothing more than that.
At times like this, not a miracle that we expect, not a necessity, but a conviction, and do not stop there. This silence, this emptiness, and all the unrest would soon be over .. but I have to realize that one side of my life has ended, one side has gone, and I must accept it with all my own consciousness.
But in the recesses of my heart I still love you, still feel all of you, and that feeling will never disappear. I know, something has happened and we've each decided to accept what has been spoken.
Despite all that weight and must be accepted.
But I believe, all of that is for the common good.
And, are you there ... How are you? I hope everything's fine and do not despair, time will come where all wishes will come true, and a beautiful smile will be etched in every piece of our lives today, greeted each other, trust each other, build each other.
Simple love will never run out to talk about, because that is eternity.
And when I woke up, I still feel you smile for me ... Thank you.

about the same feeling that I still feel it ..

Sincerity is a form of virtue in oneself to be able to make himself valuable to the people around him. Caring attitude, attention, affection, and even volunteered whole is a touch far more meaningful than mere revenge and a desire to impose a self satisfying.

People will more easily understand the mood of the full joy and peace. People will more easily accept a mere sincerity of his own self-interest can not understand it correctly. When a problem comes, do not always blame yourself, but don't also always take it as it is short, this is fate. Not that that should be, he must be strong, came out of her, even had to fight himself, of course done with a wise action, directed, and have clear objectives. Don't often complain to the state, because the situation is the result of our own actions. Don't just stop at what is already there, because it will never be able to compensate for the rotation time constant.

We have to grow, making a series of dynamic in our lives, ranging from simple things, but meaningful, useful, and everyone can feel it as a common good. Therefore, it may be useful if we want to learn a little from the way people live who have managed to make sense of her life, at least we can take a positive attitude that can guide and direction to a development in our daily lives.

So with this love, though not able to have a whole, we will always feel it consciously, sincerely, and appreciate it as a treasure to be guarded. Will never be lost, erased, and irreplaceable, love that will never move to anywhere, as long as we can keep it, and make it meaningful.

Although everything will change, though it will not be as before, though we'll never be together, but it's all just a state, and the situation will never be able to beat that feeling of freedom and space that is much broader in us. Even if you're far away, and I'd be here within the unreached, we will continue to feel a similar sense, about love, about having love, about wanting to love, the feeling of wanting to be loved, about the beauty of love.

This beauty, this is poetry, this is sincerely from my heart that I always feel the love between us, and it will never disappear because it is always meant in my life. I will never stop feeling and make it meaningful.

:-)

pasqual

How Should I love You?

Friday, February 12, 2010 at 9:50am

Everything is about our feelings, about what once existed between us, about ourselves completely. All are between you and me. Among us.

When I find it hard to close my eyes, when the night was so late, even late in the morning, I found it difficult to sleep and could not sleep, my eyes would not shut, I felt there was something that kept spinning in my mind about something that just occurred to me .. I wish one day I found the answer, whether I would still feel that I could not escape the feeling that I have now, or I should remove it with objectives and common interest? I'll keep looking for what is happening with my feeling is, whether limited or feel it is really present, filling and fulfilling day of my life, until I could no longer resist, though I will never be able to have it because it would gradually There are more than me to have it. Desire to express this turmoil has my heart stand it because I still want to try, but I should be aware that this is not good to enforce and would create something that is not good if there is no willingness and desire to be with ... I have learned that love is not merely to have a physical, not just want to be next to each person at any time, not merely present in reality, not because he wanted to wanted to be together all the time. To love is to give, understand, appreciate, accept, and volunteered with the real situation, it is, and never requires more than ability. To love means to support each other, if the two have different desires, but must seek what is of concern and obtain what is best. To love is sincerity heart, willing to overcome the ego and the will itself, defeat arrogance and envy. To love is to sacrifice themselves for the sake of the true value. To love is to love, no longer in physical form, but in the whole self out, embrace, providing comfort, peace, radiating love to everyone. To love is not to yourself. To love is being together, build relationships that reach beyond the area of each personality, based on mutual desire, that we need love. Loving is not just keeping time, love is not separated by time, love not because of distance, not because of differences, not because something can not be found within each person, not because they want to make one, loved the whole.

At every opportunity I kept trying to be as desired, but when the opportunity was there, I always find a failure because the things that do not agree with me. Is it a serious obstacle to me beat? But why when I want to try again, always there is no chance? Everything went by so fast, like he does not care what ever kept, let it be in vain. And even, it was considered futile, because there is a fear that this would not be real, it's just a toy, this is only an illusion, a virtual world. I realized, what would happen if I was just expecting this to happen, but no response on the other? And I know it's not easy, because there are still many things that should be the reason so that we can make it happen. However, no better if I continue to push the relationship was not supposed to have. I'm not supposed to require understanding of you, because you are your own self, with all the freedom you can make a choice. Out there because there are many more interesting choices, perfect, and in accordance with your wishes. And now it's time for me to let go, so all went according to expectations, giving understanding, to understand, so there is no hatred, no anger. I had to learn to love you from this side, the side that not everyone can understand. I'll love you with my own way, not as mine, but as a person who should be respected, guard, and I understand. Because you are so special.

Not easy to make perfect, beautiful and happy, but I must try how it should be. There is no reason for me to reject that decision, that I will slowly let go and forget all the feelings that ever existed, which is always awake, so be happy, so no word to hate, so all happy. I believe that someday, you'll find that you're looking for authenticity, and he will fulfill all your life. I'm sure it will go well, beautiful, and fun for us and all those who noticed. Maybe I should say that you deserve it, and you'll be happy ... and now I'll start something new, maybe a little to improve what is already begun, in my life. Later, we will meet, and I hope all will smile, laugh, share. You are never found happiness, and you are my strength for to survive and you have given me confidence to be able to love with the truth. Thank you, and be happy .... :-)

Thank you for the opportunity you've given, the ever present, ever had.
I had you know, pasqual.