What is Brahm or Brahman or Atman as per Advaita Vedanta?

Brahman is indescribable. Wish me luck because I am going to do the exact opposite by trying to describe Brahman in great detail.

Is Brahman some kind of energy?

According to the Advaita Vedanta, “Brahman can neither be created nor destroyed”. Wait a minute. We have heard this before as part of the first sentence of the first law of Thermodynamics which says "Energy can neither be created nor destroyed". Putting the two together we can deduce that Brahman is some kind of energy. According to scriptures, Brahman is the life principle and Brahman provides Sentience as it shines as Consciousness in the mind. Hence I would like to call Brahman, Atman as Sentient Life Energy.

Did we conclude in haste that Brahman is Energy?

Let us examine further the descriptions of Brahman found in the scriptures.

In the Katha Upanishad, in Verses 1.2.18 and 1.3.15, the Life Principle, Brahman is described as "not born and does not die. Unborn, eternal, everlasting, ancient, without sound, without touch, without form, without decay, without taste, without smell, without beginning, without end, eternal, unchanging and cannot be destroyed".

Bhagawad Gita (2.21. - 2.25) describes the Brahman as “indestructible, eternal, unborn, unthinkable, unchangeable. It cannot be cut by a sword, burnt by fire, wetted by water, dried by air”.

Please try to apply the above descriptions to any energy we are aware of such as heat energy, light energy, gravitational, electrical, magnetic, wind, solar, nuclear, mechanical, potential, kinetic, etc. We observe that all the descriptions perfectly apply to all of these energies.

So I feel that we could conclude that Brahman is some kind of energy yet to be discovered by science and it is different from all the energies discovered so far. The two main differences are 1) Brahman provides life and 2) Brahman provides Sentience, Consciousness.

I also found that in the Upanishads the exact word Shakti (Energy) is used. Svetashvatara Upanishad 1.3 calls the Life Principle as “Atma Shakti” and Kaivalya Upanishad 1.21 calls it as “Achintya Shakti” meaning “Incomprehensible Energy”.

Just like there are no two but only one electrical energy, only one heat energy, etc. the Upanishads also say that the Brahman, the Life Energy is also not two but only one "Ekam Eva Advitiyam Brahma" which is mentioned in Chandogya Upanishad (6.2.1).

When a light bulb goes bad it does not mean that the Electrical Energy “goes away” from the bulb. It only means that the bulb has lost the capability to manifest the Electrical Energy though the Electrical Energy is very much present.

In the same way Brahman / Atman does not “go away” from the body. The body at some point of time loses the capability to manifest the Atman though Atman is ever present. Bhagavad Gita (2.18) says that the body has an end and it is called death but Brahman / Atman is eternal.

Verify that Brahman is Energy

Let us take an example of a Video Camera and we all know that it cannot function on its own and requires Electrical Energy to function. Same is the case with other devices such as a microphone and a loud speaker. They just cannot function on their own without the help of Electrical Energy.

Now consider our eyes, ears and tongue which are similar to video camera, microphone and loud speaker. Can our eyes, ears and tongue function on their own without the help of some energy? No!! says Kena Upanishad (1.1 - 1.8). Each of our body parts and for that matter every single cell in our body requires some force or energy to function. We can call this energy as Life Energy or Brahman or Atman.

That's the reason when a person dies, at that moment though the eyes may be good but still cannot function. Whereas once the same eyes within the stipulated time are transplanted into another living body the eyes become functional again. That means something that is present in the living body is missing in the dead body. We all know that what is missing is Life and Sentience which implies that Sentient Life Energy is missing in the dead body. Brahman, the subtle energy not only provides life and sentience but also energises all organs and every single cell in the body.

The second sentence of the first law of Thermodynamics states that "Energy can be converted from one form to another". That means say if heat energy is noticed then it can't be due to some magic but because some energy got converted into heat energy.

We notice the presence of heat energy in our body, electrical energy in our nervous system, chemical energy in our digestive system, mechanical and kinetic energy when we move our hands and limbs, produce sound energy, etc. According to Upanishads all these are due to Brahman and hence Brahman is the energy that is getting converted into all these different forms of energy.

Where is Brahman?

Chandogya Upanishad (3.14.1) says "Sarvaṃ Khalvidaṃ Brahma" meaning "All this is Brahman". The very first verse of Isavasya Upanishad begins with "Isa Vasyam Idam Sarvam" meaning “Brahman pervades everywhere”.

According to the Upanishads, just like the inexhaustible gravitational energy pervades the entire earth, the inexhaustible solar energy (for all practical purposes) pervades the solar system in all directions, the inexhaustible Brahman pervades the entire space in all directions. There is no place in this vast infinite space where Brahman is not present.

Broadcasted radio signal pervades all around us and a radio in a car tuned into that particular frequency can make use of those signals even while moving. It makes me think that we are pervaded by the inexhaustible Brahman, our body and mind get energised by the all pervading Brahman just like a radio makes use of the all pervading signals. That's why Brahman or Atman should never be translated as "Soul" and it helps a great deal in our understanding if we think of Brahman as all pervading energy.

Thus everywhere it is a glorious dance of energy called Brahman and this is symbolically depicted by the beautiful dancing posture of Lord Nataraja in the temple of Chidambaram, Tamil Nadu and there the Lord Shiva is called Akasha Linga. Akasha means space and Linga is the Lord Shiva.

Terms like Zero-Point Energy (ZPE), Vacuum Energy are gaining prominence in the scientific community. In this video, around 5:34 the physicist Tom Valone, while trying to introduce Zero-Point Energy, mentions a quote from Nikola Tesla which says “Throughout space there is energy”.

Why should we know Brahman?

We all differ in our names, forms, functions and capabilities. But in the core, the substratum is the same Sentient Life Energy, Brahman which is present in every cell of our body (Bhagavad Gita 7.7).

Thus it is just not "Love thy neighbour as you love yourself". Knowing that everybody is nothing but Brahman takes it one more step further "Love thy neighbour as you love yourself because it is yourself".

Thus attempting to know Brahman completely transforms the individual. Greed and Selfishness would vanish. Morals and ethics would spring from within. It promotes kindness, open heartedness, love and compassion. The prevailing capitalistic "Profit Mentality" would give way for the sacred "Service Mentality".

According to scriptures Self-Realisation and attaining Moksha is the real goal of human life.

Who can know Brahman?

Many people think that Self-Realisation is attainable by only very few great folks and even quote Bhagavad Gita (7.3) which says only rarest of the rare attain the Truth. The very fact that you are reading this means you are entitled to belong to that exclusive rare club. It is actually a disrespect to Guru Ramana Maharshi who said Self-Realisation can be had “Here and Now”. Hence not listening to such advise, having our own personal opinion that Self-Realisation is not possible and therefore giving up even before starting is a great disregard and disrespect to all the Gurus and Scriptures.

How to know Brahman?

"Car Driving" can't be "Known" by reading about it, but can be "Known" by the experience of driving. Thus it is an "Experiential Knowledge". Similarly reading about Brahman gives only theoretical knowledge. The real Brahman can be "Known" by "Experiential Knowledge".

Brahman can be "Known" by the experience of "Being" or "Existing" as Brahman.

What? Everyone of us are already Brahman whether we know it or not and we can truly "Know" Brahman by "Being" or "Existing" as Brahman.

Confusing, isn't it? I promise that I am not smoking any weed nor am I under the influence of any kind of intoxication (except for tasting the nectar of trying to explain Brahman).

We have now come to the most important juncture that all the scriptures try to address and all the masters of Vedanta try to explain. Let me try to provide the gist of all those explanations in as simple manner as possible.

Visualising Brahman as some kind of energy which we can call as Life Energy helps a great deal in trying to understand it because of our knowledge of other energies taught by science. By the way, I am not alone in calling Brahman as Energy. The great scholar and Guru Shriram Sharma, the founder of "All World Gayatri Pariwar" strongly emphasised visualisation of Brahman as Energy. When we consider Brahman as some energy then we do not go looking for it physically as to where it is just like we understand that we can't see or touch gravitational energy.

Gravitational energy can be "experienced" and the instrument needed is our body. Just jump in the air. We come back to the floor due to the gravitational energy. In the same way, Brahman, the Life Energy can be "experienced" and the instrument needed is our mind, a very calm mind.

When Brahman, the Life Energy energises the eyes they get the seeing ability and when the Life Energy energises the ears they get the hearing ability. When the same Life Energy energises the mind, the mind gains its Sentience or Consciousness or Awareness or Thinking Ability.

Using our mind all we need to do is to be in one single thought that "I am Consciousness", or "I am Awareness" or "I am Thinking Ability" or "I am a nameless, formless, Life Energy". Being in this one single thought is called as "Fourth" by the Mandukya Upanishad and is called as "Turiya" in the Gaudapada Karika. The verse 3.3 of Aitareya Upanishad says “Prajnanam Brahma” meaning “Consciousness is Brahman”. Brihadaranyaka Upanishad (1.4.10) says “Aham Brahmasmi” meaning “I am Brahman”.

The main trick used here is firmly holding on to just one thought which helps in keeping all other thoughts away. According to Ramana Maharshi, when one attempts sincerely holding on to one thought that "I am Awareness" after some time even that one thought also falls away (Who Am I? - Verse 10) and one would successfully exist as Silent Awareness. In other words one would exist as Brahman and due to that experience becomes the “Knower of Brahman”. Mundaka Upanishad (3.2.9) says "Brahmavid Brahmaiva Bhavati" meaning “the Knower of Brahman becomes Brahman”.

Knowledge of Brahman is the greatest treasure one can attain. Hence please set aside 10 minutes everyday, think of the Brahman, the Life Giving Energy, be in the silent thankful and grateful thought of Brahman, firmly hold on to just one thought that “I am Thinking Ability”, “I am a Concentrating Entity”, “I am Awareness”, “I am Consciousness”, become a recipient of the blessings of all Gurus and delight yourself basking in the glory and thought of Brahman.

Please read all the articles I have written so far on Vedanta. I have been spending my own personal money to promote / advertise my articles on social media for the sole purpose of propagating the sublime knowledge of Sanatana Dharma to everyone irrespective of caste, religion or nationality.

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