Sthulasrsti r Part ll ^"1,...--n #ffiSWAMI ADVAYANANDA

IntroductionThe earlier essay was devoted to the Process of paficlkarattat -

the pentamerous division and combination of the five elements bywhich the sllksma-tanmdtras (subtle elements) transform themselvesinto sthttla-pafica-maha-bhatas (gross elements). It is to be noted

that the whole proccess of creation - the creation of the tanmatrns,

the proccess of pafictkaralta and so on - happens only by the will

of l6uara. After pa'iiclkarana the sthtLla-bhntas i.e., the gross ele-ments of space (aka1a), air (adyu), fivs (agni), water (apah) and

earth (pythiuT) in various permutations and combinations combineamongst themselves to create the gross world that we perceive.This essay will be devoted to the various aspects of this sth|,Llasrstior creation of the gross world which includes the creation of

1. the brahmanda (cosmos),2. the four types of sthnla 1arlras and3. the creation of food and water etc., for the inhabitants of the

brahmanda.

BrahmdryQaA total of fourteen lokns (worlds) together constitute abrahmdnda

(cosmos). There are infinite brnhmdndas. The fourteen worlds of

the brahmdnda are divided into two categories - ardhaa (higher)

and adhah (lower) depending upon their position frorn bhah lokn

1 Refer to March 2004 issue of theTapouan Prasad -'Sthillasrsti - Part I'for explana-

ti.on of paftclkarana.

Apri l 2004

(earth). The bhnh lokafourteen worlds are as

Upper Worlde

as part of the upper world. The

rr,d#6i.Woil*$ ''

Atatra ' :.,

liiia!SatataRasdta.Ia, ,Taldtala

I I i t :

Ma:kfttq|l*,xi

ffi,'.".,,---There are elaborate descriptions oi these worlds- as to their

nature, their denizens, the internal worlds within the lokas them-selves, the inter-distances between t];re lokas and so on. But weshall not ent€r into those descriptions now, as that will be adigression (though quite an entertaining one!). It is enough toremember that all these fourteen worlds, which are as real and asfalse as this world, are without any exception made from the sthtlla-bhntas by the will of l6aara.

SthfrIaiarlraFrom the sthillg-bhiltas (gross elements), the sthiila-1arTras (gross

bodies) of the beings are created. Beings are classifed into fourcategories depending upon the type of gross body they possess. Itis interesting to note the way our rsls have very beautifully di-vided the beings based on the types of bodies they possess.Sri Swami Sadananda inVedanta-sdra elaborates on the four kindsof beings:

jardyuja: Those born (ja) from the womb (jartyu).

q{gqrft .ffig$ qrdrfr rrgrqqcdr{iff tljarayujani jarayubhyo jatani manuiyapa1addlni tl

Those that are born of the womb refer to men, beasts, etc.

Tapovan Prasad

)

is takenfollows:

Bka:I:l'.,

l.h"yohbaafl

yaniuIAnAnT,n;p,p,ftSa!.gam

27

aqtQaja: Those born (ja) from eggs (atrda).

anrsvrTia anu-erqi qrdrft qiqqxqrfrR rra1tflaj ani altQebhyo jatani paksipannagddTni | |

Those that are born from the egg are birds, reptiles etc.

Saedaja: Those that are born (ja) from sweat (soeda). Thoughthe word 'sueda' literally means 'sweat'

, what is meant is moisturecontaminated with dirt.

€a{qrft €ae'+ qrarft {n-mffir*R rrsa edaj ani sa edebhy o j dt nni y i.tka-mai akrtdmi tt

Those that are born from moisture are lice, mosquitoes, etc.

Udbhijja: Those that are bon (ja) by breaking through theearth (udbhid).

qKq[l;| lilqa gfffi GiliTrri 6iTqq{rE[l;{ rl

udbhijjani bhnmim udbhidya jatani lataarksddlni lt "r

Those that spring fom the soil are the creepers, trees, etc.

Along with the creation of the bodies of the various beings,food, water and other nourishment required for the maintenanceof these gross bodies are also created by the compassionate l1aara.

Thus the fourteen worlds, the four types of gross bodies andthe food-water nourishment for the denizens of the brahmanda -

all these three together form tlite sthi,tla-srsti or gross creation.

Annamayako{aThe gross body or sthiila-1artra is produced by the generative

fluids of the parents. These generative fluids are nothing but trans-formations of the food that is consumed by them. Also the gross bodyis sustained by the food that is eaten. Finally the gross body perishesand becomes food for other beings. Since the sthitla-1arlra (grossbody) is thus born from food, sustained by food and on destructionbecomes food for others, it is c alledannamat1ako6a-the food-sheath.Sri Shankaracharya malces this amply cleir in Tattua-bodhtt:

Apri l 2004

srTfiq T-{r^ ei-f,Giq qfr qrEq srilsrqRrcqi qAffi irqirrq!i6I{! RldtRR{tl

annarasena iaa bh t tad annarasena iaa arddh i rh p rdpyaannari ipaprthiaydri t yadai l tyate tsdannamayah kodahsthilla{arTram ll

The gross body which is born from the essence of food, growsby the essence of food and merges into the earth, which is of thenature of food, is called the food sheath.

What is the significance of calling the gross body a ko6ah2(sheath)? A sheath covers an object's true i-dentiy. The gross bodyis called a sheath as it veils the thq,,Self by being the locus ofignorance-bred-thoughts like 'I am fat', 'I am lean', 'I an dark incomplexion' and so on. The Self is neither fat nor lean nor dark!It is pure sat-cit-dnanda. Sri Shankaracharya in Saraa Vedanta SaraSahgrahah says:

sTr-B-1-qdrileqr€qrcirQ ! *qr*{nrrr' rdcchddakata ddetasy dpy aseh koSaa addtmanah I

It (gross body) is referred to as a ko6a (sheath) in as much as theSelf lies encased in it like a sword that is hidden in its sheath.

$aSztikdraThe sth|Ila-1arlra is described as having six (Aad) modifications

(rrikAr a)3 . T atta a Ro dha summarises these six modifications:

eTFd qrqe qde ffi srqm ffi aft vQe+rc+q aR-(rtaqrfir(rr

Asti jayate aardhate aiparinamate npakstyate uinasyati iti sadaikAraaadetat sthilla$arTram ll

The six modifications of the gross body are to exist, to be born,to grow, to change, to decay and to die.

2 For further elaboration of the word koin or sheath refer to March 2004 issue of theTapoaan Prasad.

3 For fur ther descr ipt ion of theTejomayanandaji's commentary on

Tapovan Prasad

gross body, refer to Pujya Guruj i SwamiTattaa Bodha - CCMT Publication.

These six modifications are:

7. Asti:'It exists'. This is the existence of the body prior to thebirth in its foetal form. Though the body also exists in its otherfive aikaras (the modifications which are described below) thisfoetal state is specifically described as 'exists' just to counteractthe possibility of someone denying the body's prior existence beforebirth.

2. Jdyate:'It is born'. The foetr,rs develops and is born after itsperiod of gestation in the mother's womb.

3. Vardhate:'It grows'. Nourished by the food-water (anna-pfrna),

the gross body grows in size.

4. Viparinamate: 'It changes'. Even after the full maturity isattained, the gross body still undergoes changes like losing theold cells, building up new cells to replace the dead ones, gettinga new hue, colour, texture and so on. Also the body suffers throughdiseases and sicknesses which too produce modifications in it.These changes that keep happening on and off are meant by theterm 'oiparindma'.

5. ApaksTyate: 'It decays'. After due time the body slowly startsweakening. It starts losing its strength and vitality and we saythat it has become old.

6. Vina{yatl; 'It dies'. Finally it perishes, disintegrates and be-comes one with the five elements from which it was created.

ldgraddztasthdThe state (aaasthd) that is experienced due to identification

(abhimdns) with the karana 1arlra (causal-body) is the susuptiaaasthd (deep-sleep state); with the sllksma iarlra (subtle body) itis the saapna aaastha (dream-state), and with the sthtila 1arTra (grossbody), it is the jagrad-aaasthd (waking state). In the jagrad-aaasthd

though there is aGo the identification with the s'llksma 1arTra andthe karana 6arTra, it is only in this state that we identify particu-larly with the gross body and experience the gross world.

30 April 2004

Sri Shankaracharya in Tattua Bodha defines the jagrad-azsasthdas that state of existence in which the sense objects like sound,touch, form, taste and smell are perceived by the sense-organs -

srotrddi-jfidnendriyaih 1abdadi-aiSayai1ca jfiayate iti yd sa jagrad-azsasthd. It is in the waking-state of existence that one perceivesthe external world of objects through the senses. In the dreamstate there is only the internal mind-projected-world, unlike thewaking state, where there is an outside world which is perceivedby the mind through the sensesa. And in the deep-sleep state thereis no perception of the world whatsoever since the senses as wellas the mind have withdrawn their functions:-'

The following tabular column summarises in a nutshell the statesof experience, the experience gained therein, and the special iden-tification that exists in these states. ;.

State Expqrience Special Idgntilication

$#fl$fYf,l#d f;r#'.fi'91:Ny,,,,ury.F,!@LW,:,[#,$rudi# rd$ ##'

hr,g.w6r,[ffi;i i:f i l; i : : : ; ; ; a t r t ; ; t ; ; i , ; l r t

Merd*[:,#pxlil.,i i : : : i : : : i : i r I a r :1. i r : : : r t r : r . : r : l : : ,i : ; i : : r i i i t I I r : r t r t t ! ! : r : : r : u:1:r 1:r : t r : : l

Fh#sfEffi:wdf,l::::i:, i: J : ir i:i:i ii r:i i it: :tit: :t ::::u:

: * : t t t t t : )

KfinEryil S*ltfe; := i ; ; ; ; . : ; ; i in i : ; ; ; r r ;F#k€W:ffi"n:i i:tt : : ! I :j :: t:r:t t:r: I :::r : :

*ifi#+#:##Fil#r-

Vi6aa and Vai{oanara or Virdt

Just as we have seen in the earlier essays that the causal andthe subtle world can be looked at from two standpointss, the in-dividual (r:yaqli) and total (samasti), the gross world can also be

This explantion is in line with ihe methodology of si9li-dr9ti-ztddc, called also as bahu-jlaa-udda where the gross world is given a ayaoaharika-sattd (transactional reality).Here the mind with the help of the senses perceives a world which exists outside.It is only in drsti-srsti-rsdda, called also as the eka-jtaa-aada, that the world is consid-ered as a mere creation of the mind and given a prdtibhdsika-satfd (illusory reality).This footnote is for those who have already a grasp of the Vedantic methodology.Others may wish to skip this.

Refer to August 2003 and February 2004 issues of the Tapooan Prasad for the indi-vidual and total aspects of the causal body and subtle body respectively.

Taoovan Prasad

viewed similarly. At the individual level we have a gross bodybut at the total level we have the whole gross cosmos made of thefourteen worlds, the four types of gross bodies pertaining to theinhabitants of the worlds, as well as their food, water etc.

The consciousness identified with the total gross cosmos is calledaai4adnara or airdt and the same consciousness identified with theindividual gross body is called the ai6aa. The terms employed todescribe the consciousness identified with the total and individualgross bodies. are very significantl

Vaila7nara comprises two words -'vi6l:a' and'nara'. The word'ai1ua' means 'total' and 'nara' means 'person'. Thus aai1uanarastands for the One who is identified with all beings.

Virdt is a word which comes from the Sanskrit verbal root 'rdt'

- to shine. To this root is added the prefix (upasarga) 'ai' whichrneans 'special'. Hence the Consciousness that specially manifestsin all beings is called airdt.

Vi6aa literally means 'all'. Thus the word 'ai1aa' signifies theConsciousness that is identified with each and every individualgross body.

Sri Shankaracharya in Sarua Vedanta Sara Sahgrahah, explatnsthe significance of these terms:

qfr( €qewfu-if *cd wo€gaqr\ t n A n \ A

$gqcilTt {kI Frursld I qKot: I

et at s amasty aa ac chinnarh cait any arh phalas arhy utam Iprdhurztai1urtnara iti airaditi ca aaidiknh ll

The wise therefore call the consciousness which is reflected inand through the aggregate of all gross bodies by the name ofuai1ahnara or airdt.

\ \ A \ \ ^EI4IFRI lc{tFRc.ffcrlttF{Tl-}tE[Fkl: IA A \ \ 6

. l-.l-tq ,w;t Fl{rqq Frucffir(tl

a aiSa dn ar o a i6o anar e su dtmata en dbhimdn at ah Iairdt syddaiaidhataena saayameaa airdjandt ll

32 April 2004

It is called aai1udnara because it symbolises the Consciousnesswhich identifies with all gross bodies. As the Consciousness iden-tified with all gross bodies, it feels through all beings, for it iden-tifies itself with them. It is also called airdt for it makes itselfmanifest in and through the diverse forms of life.

qq5qe frg qft {Iffr trl?il rFrdrq{lEqRqtTq ftqpq ,rqfr er(afr*a,rryatastato oi*sa iti namna sdrtho bhaaatyayam Iay astir es dsy a uiia asy a bhaa ati s thnlaaigr ahah ll

The term ai6va is very appropriate becauseit signifies that theuniversal Self becomes identified with the multitudinous forms ofexistence and lives in them in all theii^ manifold variety.

ConclusionWe have in this essay seen in detail the various components of

the sthiilasrsfl. Also with this essay we have completed the de-scription of the entire adhydropa or deliberate superimposition asdescribed by the Srutis and dchdryas (teachers) of Vedanta.Adhydropa started with the positing of mdyd. The two powers ofmdyd - daarana and aiksepa {akti were then described. This wasfollowed by elaborations on stlksma and sthi.tla sf qti6. We havethus traversed a lot on the road of VedAnta.It is time we enter intothe next phase of VedAntic thought developmerrt viz., apaadda orthe negation of the adhyrtropa.

6 For the complete desciption of the Vedantic Adhyaropa please refer to the series of tenessays starting from June 2003 issue of the Tapoz.tan Prasad.

Tapovan Prasad

t

,Sfi t*u:;e$rr: ske.ue.sr, lrra+'f.,If,, ffffi l$; fi#iiE$$ffi ,. thby"', o#. H# $d# =frr�.Constructive fuiposes; if misused, they."" ab*t "y us totally. ,

SwCmi Chinmayananda