Talks on Shankara's - Vivekachoodamani

Vivekachoodamani is considered as best work in the field of Advaita Philosophy. Original work by Shankara is a question and answer session between a Guru and Seeker of Truth. Vivekachoodamani gives us an insight about Shankara's famous saying "Brahma Satyam Jagam Mithya".

It is not to be misunderstood that Shankara was not believing in Vishnu or Bhakti movement. There has been a misunderstanding about it.

To understand this, it is urged to men, please read other work of Shankara Bhaja Govindam where two stanzas are clearly indicative of it. They are mentioned at the end of this discussion.

The book titled  "Talks on Shankara's - Vivekachoodamani" by Swami Chinmayananda is worth reading. The message along with examples given to understand the concept by Swamiji is worth reading. An attempt will be made in subsequent posts to share those examples given by Swamiji periodically. This posts can be termed as the Vivekachoodamani - Series.

In the book Swamiji shares an example of Vairagya which appears in page 35 of the book:

"In Sri Gyaneshwar's commentary on the Geeta, the Yogiraja beautifully brings out this idea in a series of inimitable similes. Describing the attitude of a man of detachment towards sense objects, he gives some examples which are very striking and effective. He says that a man of true detachment will run towards sense objects with as much enthusiasm as one would rush out to embrace a dead queen's rotting body; with as much satisfaction as one would decide to quench one's thirst by drinking the pus flowing out from a leper's wound and with as much readiness as one would enter a boiling cauldron of molten iron to take a refreshing bath. It is a very powerful way of expressing the idea that where the intellect has come to a firm conviction about the hollowness of sense objects, the mind will not gush forth towards them with hopes and expectations of satisfaction therein. This sense of detachment that arises from a full application of one's discriminative faculty is called true vairagya."

Om Namah Shivaya

From Bhaja Govindam

bhagavad.h giitaa kiJNchidadhiitaa

gaNgaa jalalava kaNikaapiitaa .

sakRidapi yena muraari samarchaa

kriyate tasya yamena na charchaa .. (20)

geyaM giitaa naama sahasraM

dhyeyaM shriipati ruupamajasram .

neyaM sajjana saNge chittaM

deyaM diinajanaaya cha vittam. .. (27)

Courtesy: http://srikrishnaradha.com/bhaja-govindam/