An analysis of Sabda and vAk - Part 8

Background

In the last 2 chapters of An analysis of Sabda and vAk (3), I had described the 7 parts and 19 faces in Mandukya Upanishad.

These 7 parts and 19 faces are not described in Mandukya Upanishad. The 7 parts and 19 faces comes from saMkhya kArika. Here is a brief introduction to saMkhya kArika (5).

The 24 principles of samkhya kArika

Samkhya kArika talks of 24 principles of the Universe. They are

1. Prakrti
2. Mahat
3. AhamkAra
4. A 'Set of Sixteen' and pancha-bhutas (Sloka 22 of samkhya kArika)
5. The set of Sixteen are set of Eleven and  pancha tanmAtras (Sloka 24 of samkhya kArika)
6. Set of Eleven Sattvika is Five Buddhi Indriyani, Five Karma Indriyani (Sloka 26)
7. ONE Manas/Atmanas (sloka 27 of samkhya kArika)

Sometimes saMkhya is said to have 25 principles including Purusha (4).

The seven parts of Mandukhya

The 24 principles of saMkhya can said to be organized into seven physical manifestations, as described in Mandukhya Upanishad (3).

They are

1. Prakrti

2. Mahat

3. AhamkAra

4. Pancha bhutas

5. Pancha Buddhi Indriya

6. Pancha Karma Indriya

7. Manas or Atmanas

The above 7 parts are physical manifestations in the physical Universe.

The Five 'tanmAtras' are 'properties' of the above physical manifestation. 'mAtra' means 'measures'. tanmAtra can be translated as 'those measures' and is not counted as one of the 'Anga' or 'Parts' as they are properties of the 'Parts'.

Prakrti as Citta

Pra-krti means the first creation. Pra-krti is the 'Stri' as described in Brhadharanyaka Upanishad Sloka 1.4.2 (1).  Pra-krti or Stri is the Background quantum oscillations or the energy that fills up the vacuum.

Prakrti which I translated (1) as 'background quantum oscillations' of Universe is the 'Citta' or simple thoughts in a Human being.

'Cita' means collection/piling up/heaping up etc. Cita -agni  is pile of agni  or funeral fire. A thought/thinking is a 'collection' or piling of neurons.  

A thought is a pile of nuerons (Cit) connecting with some purpose. Cit-ta is that specific thought or idea that is visible/noticeable.

'Cit' is the faculty of thinking or thought process that is not just with humans. 'Cit' is the faculty of thinking or thought process of that Atman too.

Cit-ta are not just thoughts of human, but the thoughts of Atman. The Very Universe is the 'Cit-ta', the thoughts/ideas of that Atman. The very universe comes from the 'Cit' of Atman. 

This idea is re-inforced by Chaitanya when he says in Madhya lila 21.55 

"cic-chakti-vibhūti-dhāma — tripād-aiśvarya-nāma māyika vibhūti — eka-pāda abhidhāna".. 

The Universe is the Cit-sakthi, the power/potency of thinking of the Atman. The three fourths of which is hidden (dark) and one fourth is what we observe (visual matter).

This means the entire Universe including Purusha and Prakrti are the Cit-Shakti, the thought process of Atman.

Samkhya kArika sloka 63

Samkhya kArika sloka 63 also talks about the seven forms/parts of its 24 principles, in this way.

rūpaiḥ saptabhir eva tu badhnāty ātmānam ātmanā prakṛtiḥ |

saiva ca puruṣasyārthaṃ prati, vimocayaty ekarūpeṇa

By the seven rupA/forms,  manifestations of Atma (AtmAnam), bind (badhnAty) from Atma to Prakrti. To that one form (of prakrti) manifestations of Atman are liberated in return, for the sake of Purusha.

There are seven forms by which manifestations of Atma bind from Atma to Prakrti.  They are Prakrti, Mahat, AhamkAra, Pancha-bhuta, Buddhi Indriyas, Karma Indriyas and Atma.

When manifestations of Atman get liberated/dissolve they all return to just one form, the form of prakrti.

In Universe parlance, with the energy filling the space/vacuum, with the background quantum oscillations, different manifestations of Universe get bound. When that binding is removed, the manifestations no longer exist and they dissolve in that empty space.

In Human parlance, with the thoughts, different manifestations of human body (buddhi and karma indriyas) gets bound. When that binding is removed, the manifestations  (the indriyas) no longer exist and they dissolve into that thoughts.

When thoughts don't control our body, we just become a bundle of thoughts.

The Mahat as Buddhi

saMkhya kArika says 'Mahat' is what comes from Prakrti. 

If Prakrti of Universe is Citta of Human being, then Mahat is the 'Buddhi' of Human being.

In Universe parlance, Mahat is the Energy. This energy leads to matter forms, which becomes the information content or entropy of the Universe.  Thus energy becomes the 'Buddhi' (Knowledge or Information content) of Universe.

In Human parlance, Mahat is simply buddhi, the knowledge that arises out of thoughts.

aham-kAra as Ego

aham-kAra is that makes (kAra) an 'aham' or 'self'. It is the minimal energy that gives an identity to a living being or non-living object.

It is what makes every classical object/system as it is. In classical Universe's thermodyamics, it is the Internal energy that makes a system.

In Human beings, aham-kAra, that makes the self is identified with 'Ego'. In reality, it is equivalent to internal energy of matter forms. 

The Five natural bhutAs

The five principal states of matter are 1. Solid 2. Liquid. 3. Gas 4. Plasma 5. Bose-Einstein Condensate. 

They are principal because they exist naturally.

Solid exists naturally as Earth. Earth is Prthvi.

Liquid exists naturally as Water. Water is Jal.

Gas exists naturally as Air. Air is vAyu.

Plasma exists naturally as 'Fire'. Fire is Agni.

Bose-Einstein Condensate exists naturally as 'Interstellar space'. Interstellar space is AkAsa.

The Five tanmAtras

The sloka 38 of saMkhya kArika says "tanmātrāṇi avisheṣās, tebhyo bhūtāni pañca pañcabhyaḥ", which means the tanmātras are  'avisesa' which means 'not differentiating' or 'common properties'. The tanmAtras are common properties of the bhutA. They differentiate the bhutA into the pancha-bhutA or five states of matter.

The common five tanmAtras are the five properties or measures of matter which differentiate the five different states of matter. 

The common five properties or measures of all the five states of matter or pancha-bhuta are Mass, Velocity, Pressure, Volume and Temperature.

The Atmanas, Buddhi Indriya and Karma Indirya

For a detailed discussion on these three, please refer to (2) and (3).

The seven parts and nineteen 'faces'

The seven parts of saMkhya have nineteen faces in the sense, one can 'see' nineteen different facets of the seven parts.

For Universe, they are

1. Prakrti - 1
2. Mahat - 1
3. AhamkAra - 1
4. Bhutas - 5
5. Buddhi Indriya - 5
6. Karma Indriya - 5
7. Manas/At-manas - 1

The above seven gross/sthula  parts  have nineteen facets or faces. They are Five of the Bhutas, Five of Buddhi Indriyas, Five of Karma Indriyas, Manas, AhamkAra, Mahat and Prakrti.

The above 19 becomes 24, when the five/pancha tanmAtras which are properties or 'measures' of the seven parts.

For human beings, the the Seven parts and nineteen faces becomes

1. Citta - 1

2. Buddhi - 1

3. AhamkAra -1

4. Pancha Bhutas - 5

5. Pancha Buddhi Indriya - 5

6. Pancha Karma Indriya - 5

7. Manas -1

The above seven gross/sthula  parts  have nineteen facets or faces. They are Five of the Bhutas, Five of Buddhi Indriyas, Five of Karma Indriyas, Manas, AhamkAra, Buddhi and Citta (3).

The above 19 becomes 24, when the five/pancha tanmAtras which are properties or 'measures' of the seven parts.

-TBT

References

1. http://vedabhasya.blogspot.com/2018/07/brhadharanyaka-upanishad-sloka-142-and.html
2. https://vedabhasya.blogspot.com/2018/10/an-analysis-of-sabda-and-vak-part-6.html
3. https://vedabhasya.blogspot.com/2018/12/an-analysis-of-sabda-and-vak-part-7.html
4. https://vedabhasya.blogspot.com/2018/09/the-pancha-maha-yajnas.html
5. saMkhya kArika - http://scriptures.redzambala.com/hinduism-scriptures/text/samkhyakarika-with-vacaspati-misra-commentaries.html