Thread by @DefiledGod

As I said here, the sanat sujAtiyam discourses on nature of the jIvAtman. ParamAtman is described too, but only as a means to attain jIvAnubhava. A few tongue twisting shlokAs that some have tried to interpret (unsuccessfully) - advaita-vedanta.org/archives/advai…

https://twitter.com/DefiledGod/status/1304425324835295234?s=19

Due to the beautiful construction of the shlokAs, I decided to have a go. First one:

na vedAnAm veditA kaScidasti vedena vedam na vidurna vedyam |+

#Hinduism #Mahabharata #SanatanaDharma #Sanatsujatiyam #Vedas

[Not any acts like seeing, speaking, hearing about jIvAtma (vedAnAm), is capable of knowing it truly. By knowledge in form of seeing differences (vedena), one can't know the nature of self that is identical in all (vedam) & the body belonging to it, so distinct from it (vedyam)]+

“vedAnAm” are acts related to self-knowledge and hence called “knowledge”. GIta 2.29- kriShNa says even those who know/speak of the self cannot understand its’ wondrous nature, what to speak of ajnAnIs seeing differences? Then who is a “knower of the jIvAtman”? Below+

#Hinduism

yo veda vedam sa ca veda vedyam

[He who knows the self as it truly is, ie, imperishable & changeless (yo veda vedam), he also knows the body that belongs to it, as distinct & perishable (yo veda vedyam).]+

Self is called "veda" as it is jnAnasvarUpa.

#Hinduism #Mahabharata

yo veda vedyam na sa veda satyam ||

[He who knows (sees) the changeable body as the self (yo veda vedyam), he does not know the self which is changeless (satyam)]+

We need to take "veda vedyam" as knowing body "vedyam" as the self itself due to negative emotion+

#Mahabharata

yo veda vedAn sa ca veda vedyam

[He who knows the numerous, identical individual selves in all bodies (vedAn), he also knows the body as cause of differences/inequalities (sa ca veda vedyam).]+

#Hinduism #Mahabharata #SanatanaDharma #SanatanDharm #Sanatani #Hindus #Vedas

Doubt - is there one self in all bodies, or many identical selves in all bodies. "vedAn" is used to affirm the latter. Singular (veda) was only used as self is identical in all. Eg: identical rice grains are called "rice".

"sa ca veda vedyam" is a positive here+

#Hinduism

na tam vidur vedavido na vedAh |

[That self, cannot be known exactly by those who know (meditate on) the self as identical in all (vedavid) & by those who have knowledge of the bodies as different from the self (vedAh)].+

Two types of meditations exist - some see self as same everywhere (This is not man, god etc – this is the self), some meditate on bodies (this self has body of man, this identical self has body of deva). But both cannot fully understand how wondrous the self is.+

#Hinduism

tathApi vedena vidanti vedam ye brAhmaNA vedavido bhavanti ||

[Even so, instructors of Veda on topics of the self (brAhmaNA), who know the self (vidanti vedam) by discriminatory knowledge of self & body (vedena), exist as knowers (meditators) of self (vedavido bhavanti).]+

How do such knowers of the Veda communicate the knowledge of the self? As below

yAmAmSabhAgasya tathA hi vedA yathA hi SakhA ca mahIruhasya | samvedane’pyevamathAmananti tasmin hi nitye paramAtmano’rthe ||+

#Hinduism #Mahabharata #SanatanaDharma

[Just as tree branches are used to know digits of the moon appearing through them, likewise Vedas only indicate, in making known the imperishable (nitye) self, supreme to body, mind etc (paramAtmana)].+

"Atma" denotes body, mind etc. Self > all these, hence called "paramAtma"+

The TaittiriyOpaniShad teaches the self using sthUlArundhati nyAya. Since the arundhati star is too subtle to spot with the naked eye, one points to a larger entity present beside that star as the star itself.+

#Hinduism #Mahabharata #SanatanaDharma #SanatanDharm #Sanatani

Once the large entity is known, the subtle star by its’ side is now indicated as “this is arundhati”. So, to point out the self that is vijnAnamaya, first annamaya etc were pointed out in the Upanishad. Also applies to paramAtman (Anandamaya), but present context is for jIvAtman+

This concludes the discussion. Just wanted to interpret these shlokAs purely due to their wonderful construction by but great rishis to deliberately confuse everyone!//

#Hinduism #Mahabharata #SanatanaDharma #SanatanDharm #Sanatsujatiyam

ADD: just wanted to add how I interpreted "Vedya" as "body, belonging to the self". "Vedya" means "that which is to be known". In other words, it refers to the body which is to be known as belonging to and distinct from the self (Veda). Forgot to mention this in the tweets.