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I'm still trying to understand the basic principles, and have some more questions.
Is Maya the same as Saguna Brahman? Or a consequence of Saguna Brahman?
Is it Nirguna Brahman that is identical with Atman?
Thanks!
Maya is illusion. It's the dream or hallucination we create in our minds and perceive as a world or reality.
Brahman is the fabric or brane underlying Reality, it's expression is Reality itself. It has no properties (gunas), so is, essentially, nir-guna.
However, how can one discuss something with no features at all?
Unlike the more sensible Buddhists, we Hindu types can't resist talking about mystical things like this till we're blue in the face (you've seen what happened to Krishna, I'm sure ), so we add features to it, for convenience.
Brahman with handy features tacked on then becomes becomes sa-guna.
Atman is just Brahman conceived of as vital breath, spirit or soul. This is a feature, so it's saguna. It's a favorite concept throughout the Hindu religions.
No. Maya is the veil (or glass, as Swami Vivekananda referred to it) consisting of time, space and causation that keeps one in ignorance of one's true nature as Brahman.
Saguna Brahman is Nirguna Brahman with qualities. I think it might be fair to say that Nirguna Brahman appears as Saguna Brahman as a result of maya.
Atman is an appearance of Nirguna Brahman as a wave is an appearance of the ocean. The wave and the ocean are both water.
Quite welcome.
No - Atman is the individual self - it is Param Atman - or Parmatma as is colloquially called in India that reflects Brahman IMODoes this mean that Atman is a manifestation of Brahman?
Thanks. I'm still not clear about the relationship here between Maya and Saguna Brahman. Do you mean that Maya "causes" Saguna Brahman? And when the illusion of Maya is "seen through", what happens to Saguna Brahman?
Thanks. I'm still not clear about the relationship here between Maya and Saguna Brahman. Do you mean that Maya "causes" Saguna Brahman? And when the illusion of Maya is "seen through", what happens to Saguna Brahman?
I don't really know.I'm still trying to understand the basic principles, and have some more questions.
Is Maya the same as Saguna Brahman? Or a consequence of Saguna Brahman?
Is it Nirguna Brahman that is identical with Atman?
Thanks!
Maya is the ignorance that causes one to perceive the world as made of many many diverse category of essences.I'm still trying to understand the basic principles, and have some more questions.
Is Maya the same as Saguna Brahman? Or a consequence of Saguna Brahman?
Is it Nirguna Brahman that is identical with Atman?
Thanks!
Well I'll attempt a mathematical equation for an answer:I'm still trying to understand the basic principles, and have some more questions.
Is Maya the same as Saguna Brahman? Or a consequence of Saguna Brahman?
Is it Nirguna Brahman that is identical with Atman?
Thanks!
Everything's a manifestation of Brahman. We just like to create endless categories, qualities and subdivisions. Makes us feel we have a handle on things, I guess.Thanks. An interesting point about Atman being Saguna Brahman. Does this mean that Atman is a manifestation of Brahman?
Brahman is the fabric or brane underlying Reality, it's expression is Reality itself. It has no properties (gunas), so is, essentially, nir-guna.
However, how can one discuss something with no features at all?
One has to understand what is meant by 'nirguna'. Don't we say that Brahman is eternal? Is that not a 'guna' (attribute)? Don't we say that Brahman does not have preferences ('nirlipta')? 'Nirpeksha', without desires. Then we say Brahman is form-less, changeless, etc. All these are 'gunas'. Perhaps what is meant is that it does not acquire new 'gunas'.Brahman is the fabric or brane underlying Reality, it's expression is Reality itself. It has no properties (gunas), so is, essentially, nir-guna.
In light of what I wrote above, Brahman is always 'saguna'.Is Maya the same as Saguna Brahman? Or a consequence of Saguna Brahman?
Is it Nirguna Brahman that is identical with Atman.
True, even my explanation of Brahman as fabric or brane involves attributes. Nirguna cannot be discussed or described. Any descriptor needs be of Saguna or Iswara.One has to understand what is meant by 'nirguna'. Don't we say that Brahman is eternal? Is that not a 'guna' (attribute)? Don't we say that Brahman does not have preferences ('nirlipta')? 'Nirpeksha', without desires. Then we say Brahman is form-less, changeless, etc. All these are 'gunas'.
All what is manifested or unmanifested is Brahman only, since there is none other. "Eko sad, dwiteeyo nasti' (What exists is one, there is no second). That is what 'Advaita' is (non-duality).Thanks. An interesting point about Atman being Saguna Brahman. Does this mean that Atman is a manifestation of Brahman?
That fails because one cannot worship his own self? Why use the word 'divine' or 'not divine'? All things are the same because all are constituted by the same entity.- try worshiping an absolute reality that is beyond (at least my) understanding -
As I said, 'maya' is 'caused by' and not 'causes Brahman'. What can happen to Brahman (whether 'saguna' or 'nirguna')? Basically, nothing. Nothing effects Brahman. It is eternal and changeless.Do you mean that Maya "causes" Saguna Brahman? And when the illusion of Maya is "seen through", what happens to Saguna Brahman?
After 50 years of association with Hinduism, nothing would surprise me.You would be surprised
However, how can one discuss something with no features at all?
Don't we do it all the time, going round and round and round.You would be surprised
Maya is the ignorance that causes one to perceive the world as made of many many diverse category of essences.
True, even my explanation of Brahman as fabric or brane involves attributes. Nirguna cannot be discussed or described. Any descriptor needs be of Saguna or Iswara.
Everything's a manifestation of Brahman. We just like to create endless categories, qualities and subdivisions. Makes us feel we have a handle on things, I guess.
Maybe you can think of yourself as a 'pinched off' portion of Brahman; a jiv-Atman.