Introduction
I bet, if perchance, you could find all the mysteries of this
universe in someone's hands, how exciting that would be. But, beware, nothing
happens until something moves; any magic can only be in those hands that manage
the move. But how did that one move weave the strands of this entire universe
together into warps and wefts of one garment for us!
The need to understand the fundamentals of this very existence
in the universe, was always churning in my mind, for years now. I’ve always
tried to seek - what is it that I long for? There was this anxiety in me, to
reach the goal of life, which is, to make one’s heart-beat sync with the beats
of the universe; to figure out my true identity/ nature that has so far existed
in nature eternally and so on.
I started my quest, seeking out that ‘One Hand,’ which might
hold all the mysteries of reality & tried to quench my thirst for right
knowledge and in my journey, it was Acharya Madhwa who led me to satisfaction
in this search for the ‘Truth.’
Acharya
Madhwa by himself is a 'Wonder.’
Can
any word or combination of words, in existence, aptly describe him?
He
stands beyond all design & standards,
He
appears beyond all tradition & conventions,
Finally,
is universally embraced even beyond human thought.
If
so, how can he be described at all?
I
feel Acharya Madhwa is ‘As simple as such,’ (ಆಚಾರ್ಯ
ಮಧ್ವರು - ಸಹಜ ಮತ್ತು ಸರಳ)
and see him as he was and is 'The way of our life'
The contributions of Acharya Madhwa to Indian Philosophy are
innumerable but I wish to summarise and present here, the ones that fascinated
me the most and which I felt were unique, in terms of balancing the vast
breadth and great depths with gumption for innovation.
And this is
the way I have perceived....
● Anubhava Vaada: Experience the Existence of
Eternal Reality....
● Swabhava Vaada: Law of Evolution &
Transformation….
● Tattva Vaada: State of Awareness....
Now
let us step into each of these to see what they open out into -
v Anubhava Vaada: Experience the Existence of
Eternal Reality
Acharya Madhwa was the first to create a foundational
platform (Panchanga) of basic philosophical hypothesis based on the principle
of experience (Anubhava), built the, if I may say so, foundational platform of
‘Spiritual Physics’ Upon this platform arose the
philosophical castle, autonomy & coherence in nature.
The primary focus of the philosophical theories
or conclusions, propounded by Acharya Madhwa were broad
conceptual frameworks that served to eradicate false beliefs which led to
misinterpreting the truth (Vedas) and disprove the theory of illusion, which
was widely prevalent during his time.
He
fortified philosophical concepts, such that when subjected
to any inquiry, it had to be capable of being validated from the benchmark
of truth (Vedas) which could be referenced, should a need arise, to settle
any disagreements.
He
also ensured that the thought processes behind these concepts, were well within
the reach of ordinary people, so as to encourage them
to pursue the path of truth.
In
his viewpoint, philosophy is the guiding principle for judging any behavioural
pattern in this existence and he laid stress on methodology seasoned through
experience, rather than mere acquisition of knowledge, that became theoretical
in context.
With the above subtleties, let’s reach
out to Acharya Madhwa, seeking the support of his guiding hands, let’s mark the
beginning of a new journey to understand & experience this
fascinating existence of being eternal…….
Inquisitiveness: A
curious path towards truth
My experience says 'I' am the epicentre of this universe
because if 'I' exist everything exists with reference to me; but, on the
contrary, life ceases to exist even after 'I' walk away in time. Which really
does trigger the possibility of the existence of a hypocentre to ponder upon.
With the term hypocentre ringing in my ears, when I just
look at life, the first thing I’m dumbstruck with - how magnificent and big is
this Universe! Which is continuously creating and manifesting countless life
forms, as they seem to be gleefully enjoined, in a dance of coming into being
and destruction.
So, what makes this Universe (an art of true perfection) to
sustain and manage its existence over years? Trust me! Nothing exists or
happens, by itself, by chance or by mistake, because it’s only 'pleasure in a
job' that brings out perfection in the work.
If
I am not wrong, for me it’s all about 'becoming' perfect and it means to
transform and evolve matured every day, as perfection is a journey to attain
completeness with contentment.
But, look at the stars, and things down at your feet level,
existing from time immemorial.
Do they not portray a sense of excellence in their
composition and constitution?
I am sure you too would doubt that the perfectness in them
would have emerged from an imperfect or ‘inert-matter-action’ paradigm! Never
can it be...!
The
term perfection is normally associated with the existence of a creative faculty
personified and filled with attributes such as pleasure, sense of art,
divinity, individuality, intuition, analysis, balance, passion &
construction.
When
I say perfection personified, it may be inferred as perfection existing in the
form of being content & divine.
So,
from the above analogy - if the hypocenter, could be that perfection
personified creative faculty, the source of all creation and manifestation,
then this universe too is born as a true reflection of that real perfection
indeed.
Spiritual Physics:
A
hypocenter as creative faculty, universe a reflection & personifying
perfection; sounds dramatic, doesn’t it?
A drama is a specific mode of narrative, typically
fictional but life is all about truth as it narrates experience through
existence; this in turn is helpful for us to shake off illusion.
Illusion means to believe in a false idea, nurturing it to
deliver deceptive explanations, with the sole objective of misinterpreting the
perceptions gained from sensory experiences. Eventually disrespecting the very
existence of this universe.
How then can we know that this experience offered by life,
is the right one?
Good
question, but is it not right to be truthful to ourselves at this very moment?
As I see, we all are striving hard, every single second, not to be deceived, to
shed misconceptions, not to be misled or also, taken for granted. Don’t these gestures
or actions prompt the process of dismissing falsehood from within us?!
Yes, experience is all about overcoming illusions by
dismissing falsehood, acknowledging truth through accepting and respecting the
very existence of this universe.
To
acknowledge the truth means to gain knowledge about the truth, by observing
events, gathering facts and the reality is, there can be no knowledge without a
knower, a known or knowable object.
When I say “Knowable object" the one that is to be
known is the "Knowledge of Nature" and that is Physics - it is the
natural science that involves the study of the application of 'force' on
objects from the existing phenomena called 'energy,' which drives the
capability to do some 'work on matter,' thereby enabling its motion through
'space and time.'
But what is Spiritual
in Physics?
Spirituality is centred around, and embraces the idea of,
an ‘alleged’ ultimate creative faculty indeed a divine immaterial reality.
Acharya Madhwa’s Viewpoint:
Spiritual Physics is all about that inquisitive quest in
search of that 'Energy Source', the phenomena, the cause from where it
‘generates’ the capability to do any work by the application of force enabling
this very existence of life (universe) into motion through space & time….
This inquisitive quest is only for the reason
that - No one knows who wrote the laws of physics or how do they exist from
time immemorial, science is based on testable, reproducible evidence and so far
there is no evidence about testing the universe.
When there exists no evidence to
understand the behaviour of this universe, where then is the clue for
understanding the existence of that ‘One Creative faculty – The Source of all
Energy,’ that we have been discussing hitherto, which stands shadowed within this
natural existence….?!
Its real difficult trying to understand the way nature
works as it involves the most terrible test; the test of the ability called human
reasoning.
From a drop of water a logician might infer
the possibility of the existence of an ocean, without having seen or heard of
one; but, the point is not how logical the inference is, it’s all about how
appealing & convincing is the inference, when explained.
As
conviction is always gained through experience and not through abstraction, it
means conviction is worthless unless converted to conduct and it is the degree
of conviction to oneself that brings satisfaction to life.
For the philosophical explanation to be more convincing
with an objective of attaining fulfilment & contentment (satisfaction)
within the scope of the evidence available, let’s understand three elements of
the ‘Philosophical Castle’ –
The Hypothesis (Foundation), The Postulate (Pillar) &
The Theory (Roof)...
As a starting point for further introspection, lets
Visualise this philosophy as a castle, where hypothesis to be the foundational
platform upon which the pillars of postulates are raised with one end
reinforced deep-rooted inside the foundation (hypothesis) and the other end
raised sky high to hold the roof that is the theory.
For the roof (theory) to remain unaltered and
approved, the pillars (postulates) must remain strong and tethered to the
foundation of hypothesis as it deserves the highest focus and attention to
detail; remember your entire castle sits on top of this foundation! If you
skimp here and something fails, it’s not an easy fix. So, it’s important to
ensure that the foundation is built
to the very best standards possible.
(To be continued ....)
(Contributed by Shri Guru Prasad)