Correct meaning of "Death in Uttaraayana"

  

The idea of ‘Death in Uttarayana’ has become well-known. But the general opinion about it is not correct. What I am going to say may surprise you. But I am telling you only what is in the Bhashyas of the Acharya. (B.G. VIII-24. Brahma-sUtraM IV -3. Chandogya U. V-10-1, Brihadaranyakam VI-2-15 – Bhashyas of these by the Acharya).

The Acharya never interpreted ‘Uttarayana-death’ as death in the six months of Uttarayana. Then how has he interpreted it?

The Yogi ( a desireless karmi and all upAsakas and bhaktas – other than JnAni) goes to Brahma-loka by a divine path called devayAna after the soul leaves the body through the nADi that goes from the heart to the head. But before reaching the terminus there are several junctions!

Each of these is the seat of a devatA. First comes the seat of Agni. Then comes the seat of the devatA for the daytime; then the devatA for the white fortnight and then the seat for the devatAs of the UttarAyaNa period.

Mark this carefully! It is not UttarAyana period. It is the devatAs of the UttarAyaNa period.

Thus the Acharya has explained that it reaches the terminus after crossing several junctions. The Lord also already has said in the Gita only in accordance with what has already been said in the Upanishads of Chandogyam and BrihadAranyakam.and others.

The Brahma sUtra and the Bhashya of later times (later than the Gita) also explains this point without the least possibility of any doubt.

In the same manner, the dakshhiNAyana-death is wrongly associated with the result of having a next birth. DakshhiNAyana-death does not mean that the time of death is dakshhinAyana, but the seats of the devatAs associated with dakshhinAyana constitute the path (*pitRyAnaM*) of the leaving soul.

Further, another matter. This kind of passage through the path of the seats of the devatAs like those of UttarAyaNa, then passing through junction after junction, finally arriving in Brahma-loka, and then at the time of Grand Dissolution, becoming one with Brahman – all this process has nothing to do with a JnAni.

So by looking at the date or tithi of the leaving of the body of a JnAni, it is not right to conclude that “the time is not that of UttarAyaNa and so they have not got mokSha”!

The NaaDis of the heart - Part 20 of 20

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Just to show the difference that one is in the jIvan-mukti stage even when being in the body, we use the term ‘Brahma-bhUta’. To clear this , He himself says one or two shlokas later: (V-26): “abhito brahma-nirvANaM vartate …”: “In both situations, that is, both in this world and in the other world, JnAni gets the Brahma-nirvANaM’.

He also says what happens to those who go along the ashhTAmga-yoga (the eight-component-yoga) path, what we ordinarily call the yoga-mArga. But the Yogi he refers to must have practised well his ashhTAnga-yoga, and must have perfected both the breath-discipline and the mind-control regimen.

In addition, as an added qualification he should have deep devotion and must be one who constantly and continuously thinks of God – not just one who has to think of God (*Ishvara-praNidhAnaM*), as per the prescriptions of the yogashAstra, for the purpose of developing concentration .

Krishna says “mAM anusmaran” (remembering Me continuously) “satataM yo mAM smarati nityashaH” (B.G. VIII – 13, 14) (he who remembers me always and every day) . Such a yogi who has also devotion, even though he may leave the body in the contemplation of praNava that has been equated to shabda-brahman, will still not get the advaita-mukti.

This is what the Lord says in the eighth chapter called ‘akshhara-brahma-yoga’. It has been described that his soul goes only to Brahma-loka along the path of the ‘uttarAyaNa-Sun’.

The NaaDis of the heart - Part 19 of 20

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What the pilgrim on the jnAna-path obtains, through his SAdhanA, without recognising that it is also the Grace of God, this devotee-type person obtains by prayer, knowing full well it is the blessing/benediction (prasAda) of God.

Of course elder traditionalists in our religion may say that the Lord might not just give him advaita-mokSha on a platter, he will also be turned towards the jnAna path and then only he will be made to reach his goal.

Thus there are several yogas. In one of these it has been stated that one should hold on to the primeval shakti, hold on to it and rise on the sushumnA nADi, chakra after chakra, and finally through that Power reach the Source of that Power, namely the ShivaM that is Brahman and unite with it in one-ness.

And that mukti has been depicted as an advaita-mukti only. For such upAsakas also, we may be sure that the destination is not Brahma-loka, but the advaita-mukti itself.

Another opinion is the ashhTAnga-yoga siddhas who speak of the goal of samAdhi in the attributeless Absolute also obtain *Brahma-nirvANaM*
(advaita-mukti).

But the words of the Gita don’t support this. There is no greater suthority than Lord Krishna Himself. That He calls only JnAnis as ‘sAnkhyas’ or ‘sannyAsis’ is well-known to scholars of all the different traditions.

Krishna says: Only those who go on the advaita path become ‘brahma-bhUtas’ while living in this world and reach ‘Brahma-nirvANaM’ when the body falls. (B.G. V -24). ‘Brahma-bhUta’-becoming is also only Brahma-nirvANaM’.

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The NaaDis of the heart - Part 18 of 20

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I have to tell you one or two more points on the subject of mokSha.

It is not as if only the mokSha of the ‘dualistic’kind is what will be obtained by all the followers of the Bhakti path till the end. That was said only with respect to those devotees who circumscribe themselves by a non-advaitic philosophy.

But in actuality, when one adheres to bhakti that comes from the heart and overflows in its own natural way, it cannot be circumscribed by any boundary. Such were the devotees, like the Alwars and Nayanamars. Instead of limiting themselves to visishtadavaita or shaiva-siddhanta, they just allowed themselves freely to be led by their noblest emotion of bhakti, wherever it tossed them, to whatever experiences they were subjected to.

For many of them, even this process was not enough; they were not satisfied with doing this from outside, they wanted to be one with their Ultimate. They poured all this in their songs and some have sung about the non-dual experience that they were blessed with.

Such travellers who journeyed on the path of parA-bhakti and were led on to the continuous state - *anusandhAnaM* - of one-ness, will not go to the saguNa-brahman of Brahma-loka. Instead they will reach the MokSha of non-dual Realisation (*advaita-sAkShAtkAra-mukti*).

The person who by himself does not do any yoga-SAdhanA, but keeps on praying to God that He should grant him advaita-mokSha, to him also the Lord grants the Brahma-nirvANa, that is superior to Brahma-loka.

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The NaaDis of the heart - Part 17 of 20

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We can be even more generous and broad-minded. Once our Vedic religion itself was objected to and there were founders of other religions.

Let the matter be whatever with these Founders. In fact our Vedas have said (see Br. U. IV.3.22) the Veda is not a Veda beyond a certain stage.
Maybe one or two people might have transcended by themselves the ritual regimen of the Vedas. Let us not try to infer anything about those individual people.

But unlike the avaidik (i.e. which do not accept the vedas) religions that sprang up in other countries, other religions in our own country were established by objectors to the Vedic religions that prevailed here. I am now speaking of those who came in later times in these other religions.

They have been following these non-vaidik religions as their veda and have been revering, with devotion and dedication, their founders and other important persons as much as we revere our rishis and Acharyas.

They cannot be faulted for this. For them also it is possible that Brahmaloka is their destination. For them it may be exactly what they think it is – void or whatever.

Whether Ishvara gives them Brahma loka or so, let me have the credit of being ‘broad-minded’ for giving them this! If you ask the hard-liner Vaidik people, they might not agree with me.

They might opine: ‘If those who belong to the non-vaidik religions follow their religion steadfastly, as a consequence they will be born in their next birth in some vaidik religion and only by properly doing the upAsanAs there they will reach Brahmaloka’.

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The NaaDis of the heart - Part 16 of 20

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Maybe,in a lighter vein, one might say that if it had been named after one of those favourite deities, the others in the same category might object to it!

We can be more ‘generous’ and include some more in this list of ‘upAsakas’. Originally once upon a time only the Vedas were there all over the world.

Later, in the other countries, somehow it all got mutilated and in course of time, the very fact that there was a vedic path was itself forgotten.

At some places some great men established a religion or a religious philosophy – and these were made in such a way that it promoted devotion to the divine, good character and spirituality.

All those who follow these other religions and religious works may be included in the list of ‘upAsakas’. We may even suppose that they will also go to Brahma-loka and that will be their ‘heaven’ or ‘the relieved state’ which is their goal according to their belief.

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The NaaDis of the heart - Part 15 of 20

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Incidentally, BrahmA is not the favourite deity (ishhTa-deivam) for no one! Then why is this called Brahma-loka?

Maybe that is exactly the reason!. Let me explain.

The ShAstras assign this Hiranya-garbha loka only to those who perform their religious rituals without desire for the fruits thereof, but as a path to mokSha.

Not only in the spiritual type ShAstras like Upanishads but also in Manu-smRti, which is a Dharma-shAstra, the assignment of Brahma-loka is only for such persons.

He does not have a favourite deity in particular. So on the plea that he goes back from Creation to the Source, the world that is the path from one to the other is given the name of the Creator.

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The NaaDis of the heart - Part 14 of 20

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For the majority of of us jIvas who have a lot of karma balance and instead of going on the path of Karma-yoga, or Bhakti, or Yoga or JnAna, have to repeatedly die and be born, they are destined to suffer lakhs and lakhs of janmas till that pralaya.

He who goes by the jnAna path merges in brahman in this life itself. The others who are ‘upAsakas’ escape from the birth and death syndrome, but still do not get the advaita-mukti.

They go to Brahma-loka and from there at the time of Adyantika-pralaya dissolve in the very brahman along with Creator BrahmA.

What would be that Brahma-loka like? He who reaches there would not have either the internal enemies like lust, anger, etc. or the external enemies like disease, heat and cold, asura, etc.

Their life will be pleasant and pure. This is true of all kinds of upAsakas who go there.

Besides this, for each particular kind of ‘upAsaka’ it will be different.

For the Karma person, it will be a place where whatever he desires that is not faulty will be fulfilled.
For the Bhakti person, it will be a place which has the favourite deity that he wanted to reach. Brahma-loka does not mean that there is BrahmA there.

Various bhaktas might say that even beyond, further higher up, there is Vaikuntha (the loka of Vishnu) and there is Kailasa (the loka of shiva); but really it is this Brahma-loka that appears to different viewers in a different way. The same paramAtmA shows up as Vishnu, Shiva in the ‘different’ lokas.

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The NaaDis of the heart - Part 13 of 20

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In our reckoning, 1000 caturyugas (the period of four yugas: Krta, Treta, Dvapara and Kali) make one day-time of Hiranyagarbha.

Similarly another 1000 caturyugas make one night of his. So that his one full day is 2000 caturyugas. His years are calculated on this basis.

Like that he lives 100 years of his. All that time Creation goes on.

When he is of age 100, he is taken in into Brahman. Along with him all the worlds, jIvas and all that was created would go and merge into Brahman.
Brahman alone is there now. Whatever time was spent in all this creation, an equal time goes on without any creation, but with Brahman alone. Then Creation begins again.

When the lifetime of Hiranyagarbha ends his Creation work ends and he merges in the ParamAtmA. This event is called ‘Adyantika-pralaya’. You may recall I earlier mentioned it and told you I will come back to it later.

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The NaaDis of the heart - Part 12 of 20

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Nirguna brahman is subtler than the subtle state. By the work of MAyA the concrete creation takes place. This is the concrete state.

In between the two states is the state of Hiranyagarbha. This is the state where creation has not yet taken place, but the saguna-brahman with its MAyA has kept the whole creation within itself as if in the embryo stage.

Hiranya means gold. AvidyA (Ignorance), otherwise MAyA, by itself is like darkness, but by the presence of Brahman-consciousness it works out this wonderful task of creation, the consciousness which thus shines and reflects is said to be golden.

The gate that allows things to go out is also the gate through which things enter. So the creation which came out from Hiranyagarbha goes back inside through the same Hiranyagarbha.

When does it go back? – when Hiranyhagarbha is of age one hundred and thus his lifetime is over, he merges into nirguNa brahman.

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The NaaDis of the heart - Part 11 of 20

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However, all these have asked for release from samsAra and from rebirth and have followed noble paths, the Lord grants them that release from samsAra certainly.

In this way, the souls that left their bodies do not return to this world.

Instead they go to Brahma-loka And that grants them the release from the samsAra of this world and all the attendant sufferings and also from the rebirth.

This is mokSha.

Brahma loka does not mean the world of Brahman.. You would have inferred this yourself from all that you have heard from me so far. Yes, there is no loka (world) for Brahman).

What we refer to as Brahma-loka is just the world (loka) of the God known as Creator BrahmA.

But instead of calling it BrahmA’s world (the world of the four-faced deity BrahmA) we should call it saguNa-Brahma-lokaM.

Knowledgeable people call BrahmA as Hiranya-garbha and Brahma-loka as Hiranya-garbha-loka.

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The NaaDis of the heart - Part 10 of 20

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From what I have said so far, it is clear that except for the seeker on the JnAna path, the other three major ones, namely, a Yogi, a Bhakta and a Karmi (the one who adopts karma yoga) – all three of them – are ‘upAsakas’.

In the same category we may include all those who follow different schools of philosophy which do not object to the Vedas and which do not subscribe to the idea that ‘there is no Ultimate Truth, there is only a void’.

All the above get release from samsAra after their death. They are not reborn.

However, the soul that goes out from their body does not immediately get absorbed or unifed with the ParamAtmA.

Because, none of these had the goal of non-dual one-ness and an identification with the absolute. They did not think of it nor did they understand it and do what was required for that.

Even when one asks for it, the Lord does not give it out so easily; so why would He give it unasked?

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The NaaDis of the heart - Part 9 of 20

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So, on the path for Release, he keeps on doing his svadharma duties and obligations without being attached to the fruits thereof. Whatever the Vedas have prescribed as samskAras for purification of the JIva, he performs.

We should also include in this category those, in the modern world, who do service, without the thought of any gain for oneself. But whether it is a religious karma or social service, whatever he is doing, he should be one who longs for a retreat from samsAra (Release from Bondage ).

Not only should he not be thinking of one’s own benefit, he should not be thinking of the results, to others, of his actions or service by the work or service he is doing.

In other words, there must be no stubbornness that the result must happen.

On the other hand, the conviction should be: “There is a God above. Whatever happens to anybody will happen only by His Will, according to norms of dharma and justice. I have no right to demand that things should happen only a certain way. I should keep on doing whatever appeals to me to be just and good . And leave the results to that dispenser of fruits (*phala-dAtA*).

This is the path of Karma yoga and the one who follows it is a karma yogi.

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The NaaDis of the heart - Part 8 of 20

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Not only does he think that one should not become one with the paramAtmA which is saguNa. He goes even further: “Such a union with the paramAtman is not possible.

The Lord has not provided for such a union” – this is his contention.

Another proponent, however, is not able to do the SAdhanA by breath and mind control; or he is not interested in that direction. Nor is he able to do bhakti by pouring out his mind.

But he is also one of those to be listed in the ‘upAsaka’ category of those who wish to be released from this samsAra and the world of sensual pleasures.

He does believe in the existence of God but he is not able to hold on to Him either by bhakti through a feeling for Him, or by jnAna through his intellect, or by any saguNa or nirguNa conception .

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The NaaDis of the heart - Part 7 of 20

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And he gets the added responsibility of not missing his goal by being attracted by them.

Another opinion holds that the Basic Truth is only saguNa.

He thinks: ‘We should reach that goal; but we should not merge in it. Because if we merge into it then there will be no possibility of enjoying, by experience, its multifold qualities.

Either in one of them or in all of them one should experience it and it is in this experience there is the Bliss for the JivAtman.

So without being one with it, I should be outside and be permanently enjoying that. And that is mokSha’.

Only by placing our Love on something we can experience and enjoy how it is and what it does.

So he considers Love as the basis of all that experience and he practises loving it.

We call him a Devotee (Bhakta).

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The NaaDis of the heart - Part 6 of 20

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He performs yoga by controlling the mind and for ultimate union with that blank Existence. We call him yogi.

He also thinks that the individual jIva-bhAva – ego – has to be destroyed. However, he has not known correctly about the one absolute True status .
About the control of mind also, he commits the same error. “I am not the mind. I am Brahman. Why should I be tossed about by something which is not Me.

Let me constantly recall the Shruti statement that ‘I am Brahman’ and put an end to this” – this is the thought of the seeker on the jnAna path, but the Yogi does not do it.

In order to overcome the difficulty in the direct control of mind, he gives much importance to breath control, and only with its help he controls the mind.

By such a process, even though his goal Truth is a blank kaivalya, strangely, the breath shakti goes to prANa-shakti, its source, that prANa shakti goes back to the mahA-prANa-shakti, which is the root-source of all living beings, and by the might of that shakti, he obtains several miraculous powers.

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The NaaDis of the heart - Part 5 of 20

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That there exists a basic Truth is a confirmed belief of all of them.

They all have the thought of the necessity to release themselves from this world and the bondage.

The common opinion stops here. Beyond this there are lots of separate opinions.

And the observances also differ accordingly.

One of those opinions holds the basic Truth as nirguNa, just like the advaitin.

However he thinks (contrary to advaita) that the Truth basis differs from JIva to JIva.

The advaitin holds that even though it is nirguNa, it is sat-cid-Ananda-ghana.But he (the other opinion) thinks it is a blank, but still not void (like the Buddha).

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The NaaDis of the heart - Part 4 of 20

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Let us be content with that (explanation). Thus even after Brahman-realisation he has his life (prANa).

What happens to that prANa at the time of his death? Just as the ahmkAra (since the mind and intellect has gone into the ahamkAra – so we can as well say it is antaHkaraNaM now) has already gone into the heart-gate and merged into the Atman-locale, so also now when death takes place the prANa also merges in the same way in that Atman-locale.

In other words, when the JnAni’s body dies, his prANa does not go outside anywhere through any nADi. In the Upanishad and the Brahma-sUtra it is so declared clearly. (Br. U. III-2-11; IV-4-6) (Br. S. IV-2- 12 to 16).

In general parlance also, it is never said that the JnAni’s life is gone; it is usually said that it has ceased, settled or disappeared.

Other than the JnAni who are those that have made themselves not to be reborn in this world?

They are generally called ‘upAsakas’. There are several categories among them.

They all have something in common. They all know that this world or this body is not the end of it all.

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The NaaDis of the heart - Part 3 of 20

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He has been thinking of the Atman, as his life, the supreme life.

Without even recognizing it as bhakti, but with a great attitude of bhakti, he has been doing his SAdhanA for the purpose of dissolving the ego.

By this process, it dissolves and dissolves and reaches such an emaciated slender state, that it enters the small gate of the heart which is the locale of the Atman, converges into the Atman, unifies with it and itself gets extinguished.

And immediately he becomes a mukta.

However, his life (PrANa) has not left him. He is living and he is also a mukta; that is why he is called a JIvan-mukta. Then in due time one day his body dies.

Why should he live after reaching the mukta state, and when does his life part with him – these are questions into which we don’t need to enter at present.

Mostly the opinion is that he lives in order that his *prArabdha* may exhaust itself.

When it thus exhausts itself, then life also leaves.

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The NaaDis of the heart - Part 2 of 20

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I said “other than JnAni”. So what is the case of the JnAni?

Other than the JnAni, who are those that are not destined for a rebirth?

The prANa of the JnAni does not go anywhere outside at the time of the fall of the body.

There is no mokSha which he has yet to get.

And in the same way, there is no mokSha which has to be obtained at some time after death, for him.

Whenever he got his jnAna, that is, the Realisation of Brahman, then itself, his antaHkaraNaM (the mind of the jIva) has been extinguished and he has been released from MAyA; so he becomes a mukta, a JIvan-mukta then and there.

Thus he has been ‘released’ even when being in the body and the prANa does not have to go anywhere after the fall of the body, for mokSha.

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