by Sri Bimal Mohanty
VOL No. 31
September. 2003

ATTEMPTS TO DESCRIBE BRAMHAN - Part 5

"Based on the lectures by Sri Bimal Mohanty"

As Bramhaa, Vishnu and Mahesh are indeed representations of the same Ishwara, the three energy concepts are also representations of a single primordial energy source, the Adishakti or the original unified power force.

Bramhaa, Vishnu and Mahesh are extentions of Ishwara and Saraswati, Lakshmi and Parvati are similarly extentions of Adishakti.

Everything emanates from Bramhan and returns back to Bramhan. So are the energy constituents. When Bramhaa, Vishnu and Mahesh merge with Ishwara, Saraswati, Lakshmi and Parvati also go to rest in Ishwara. Together, this combination of Bramhaa, Vishnu, and Mahesha joined with Saraswati, Lakshmi and Parvati, form the active facet of Bramhan, the activator as well as the power behind the three constituents of the creation. The masculine and feminine elements each supplement and compliment each other, without one, the other loses meaning.

This beautiful concept is unique to Sanatana philosophy, and establishes the futility of ascribing a gender to Bramhan. He is either both or beyond both. Neither a He nor a She and beyond gender. It also unquestionably establishes the equal importance of masculine and feminine entities.

The Ishwara is the kriya or action aspect of Bramhan where as the feminine concept is the Adishakti or the primordial energy or power aspect of Bramhan. Whatever is visible or expressed as the entire creation has come out from this energy. The energy which is again beautifully described in the sanatana philosophy as chetana or the consciousness residing in everything is indeed this energy. Energy is the source of everything. All ‘matter’, gross or subtle is nothing but this energy (chetana) manifested under different concentration and under different boundary conditions. The modern science today accepts that energy and matter are inter-convertible. Our seers knew this thousands of years back that it is the energy that is the source of all matter and all matter eventually return to energy.

The feminine concept of energy, the adishakti, which is the source for everything and everything comes out of it, then looks very logical. It is the mother that gives birth. The primordial energy- the adishakti-, is then the mother of all. The strong mother concept in our philosophy springs from this concept. Many sadhaks see Bramhan through the image of mother. It stands to reason.

Now we discuss the other aspect i.e. the meaning behind "coming into being", "existing" and "dissolving"- sristi, sthiti and pralaya.

As we have also discussed earlier, this sristi or creation is again an inherent character of Bramhan’s action mode. Whether this creation is an illusion or a conditional reality is the subject of another discussion later. But at the level of our basic perception, the creation is very much a part of our very existence. In our previous discussions we understood that, these entire activities of the creation, the whole cosmos, of which the Bramhan is at the helm (adhyaksha), are not directly executed by Him. Having set the things in motion and established the divine principles of operation, He sits back and watches. He is the supreme witness (sakshi) of all that goes on.

So how this creation runs? It runs through the agents, or nimittas like you, me, stars, suns, moons, animals, plants et all. Every single created entity in the universe is an agent, an essential agent through whom the universe runs. Nothing is here by accident. Nothing is superfluous, no one is unwanted.

So these agents have to be created constantly and as and when required for this grand endevour to remain functioning.

While we are all here to carry out our ordained divine task, in the process, due to ignorance, we fall prey to our senses and commit mistakes. It is like some one who has been provided with powerful tools to assist him in his tasks, but at times due to wrong application and losing control over the tools, hurts himself or damages the tool. When this happens, the nature or the governing principle of the creation itself, comes to our rescue, by providing lessons to learn so that we can correct ourselves. The nature provides these lessons.