Shivramkinkar Yogatrayananda

Yogatrayananda was a remarkable scholar saint (1848 - 1927). He was born Sashi Bhushan Sanyal in Bali, Howah, and was initiated at the age of 10 by Swami Shivramananda. After his guru passed away, he took the name of Shivramkinkar (server of Shivram). He was given the title of Yogatrayananda, because of his excellence in all the three Yoga paths.

He is the author of the classic 'arya shAstra pradip' (Light of the Aryan scriptures), of mAnabtattva (Principles of Humanity) and Paraloktattva (Principles of the afterlife). He lived in Baranagar and visited Shri Ramakrishna in his youth. The young Vivekananda and Abhedananda used to go to him to study the scriptures.Yogatrayananda later moved to Varanasi and then returned to Bengal. 

 

Dr. Gopinath Kaviraj wrote about him in his memoirs of saints, about the great influence of his teaching in his development. He is referenced by Alain Dinielou in the book 'Myths and Gods of India'. There is a brief reference to him in the article "Conversations with Swami Nirgunanada" to the question 'What is surrender?' (In Bengal there was a great scholar named Shashi Bhusan Sanyal who was contemporary of the then great saint of India Sri Ramakrishna.)

 

Web source for Volume 1 of Arya Shastra Pradip:

https://archive.org/details/in.ernet.dli.2015.291633

 

Books in Bengali published by Prachi Publications, Howrah.

Arya Shastra Pradip (Vol 1-4), Manab Tattva, Paraloka Tattva, Durgarchana o Navaratra Tatta, Shivramer Avedatattva.

 

 

From RtambharA

Ch. 5 External and Internal by Sri Bijoykrishna Chattopadhyaya

From brahma the greatest, to the tiniest clump of grass, this entire world is a ceremonial altar to the supreme being. The sages have repeatedly said this to us. From the movements of a speck of dust, to the evolution of the entire universe, everything appears to be occupied with the performance of this ceremony. Conscious or unconscious, whatever we see anywhere, all appear to be a flow of activity, of ceaseless unrest, uninterrupted movement. All this unrest and movement is a ceremonial offering to brahma. This ceremony has been going on, uniterrrupted, for eternity and will continue for eternity. The brahma is eternal and his ceremony is without beginning and end. The priest of this sacrificial ceremony is brahma, brahma is the oblation, brahma the fire, brahma the offering. The sages have clearly made us comprehend this and god himself came amongst us and said so himself [21].

The subject, object, means, recipient, source, locus and address, all the cases for this sacrifice are brahma. He has divided himself in many ways, forms and names. Dividing himself in this way, he has lit up sacrificial fire-pits of various perceptions; igniting in all of them, the same fire. The name of the fire is feeling (bhAb), the name of the flames is want (abhAb). The truth-natured brahma’s wish-natured enterprise or heat, taking the shape of flames of want are blazing away. From particle to particle, being to being, planet to planet, universe to universe, flames of want, burning of need. The blazing embers, its external form; the swirling flames, its heated breath; fires of feelings, flames of want.

Those that recognize this conflagration of perceptions as the truth-formed brahma, are carrying out their complete offerings into the sacrificial fire. They are involved by the truth-natured brahma and are the beneficiaries of the sacrifice, the master of ceremonies. Those that cannot do this, their want, their flames of non-awareness, pierce the skies, cross the spaces and spread their fiery tongues to the horizons. Not seeing feeling or perception (bhAb or bodh) one only sees want or non-existence (abhAb or achit).

Those who are taking the words of the seers as of a preceptor, and begin to recognize the fire; their flames are subsiding. Their flames only give light, luminescence, progress and life; they bring forth divine ambrosia; and finding it, they become immortal and in joy move towards nirvANa, they are the gods (sura). Those who do not recognize the fire, do not try to recognize it, only look at the flames as those of want, as non-awareness, not holding them to be the aspiration and wish for truth, their flames blaze into the skies; they burn from space to space, they extend through skies. Unruly, uncontrolled, ill-behaved, their flames of want and non-self burn to the horizons; they burn themselves. They bring up venom, they find venom and on every side they discharge venom. They find only burns, only pain, only smoke- they are the demons, the asura.

One seeks completeness (purNa), and finds entirety (purNatA). The other seeking entirety, find nothing (sunya). To complete themselves, one looks at the face of the entirety, and see the completeness of purNa. To give total authority to the whole, they empty themselves into the wholeness, increase the power of the whole, do not limit the authority of the whole by keeping their own; they put what is whole on their own throne. The others also want to make themselves complete, but they increase their own rule, spread looks of longing and discover want, create kingdoms of emptiness upon emptiness; trying to become whole by increasing the emptiness, they create a mirage of completeness in the void; they dissolve in emptiness. They want to seat themselves in the throne of purNa.
I have said, perception or feeling is the fire of this ceremony, its flames are want or non-self. The truth natured brahma, having the wish to play, with infinite reach, on one side shows its wholeness and on the other, the void, void, void. Those who see feeling (bhAb), do not see want (abhAb). Those who see abhAb, they do not see bhAb. Those who vision want, they only have burns, flames and the screams of danger.

They shout for succor, but who will save them? Where is the savior? Who is there to rescue them, who is a liberator? Only spirals of fiery smoke; unending darkness, endless immobility, only empty expanses; vision dimmed by smoke, breathless with it; throat choked by it.

No signs of a savior- only echoes. “Are you there?” echoing “there”. “Where are you?” echoing “you”. “Where?” echoes “Here”. “Where?” “There”.

A phenomenal ceremony, which is being carried out superbly; the conductor is right there. The ones who see want, think it to be a house on fire, a conflagration. “Run from here! Run, run!” But, where to run to? That is not known. This happens when one does not look at the very root of this.

The sages say, “Children, why this turmoil? Why this running about? Look at the lord of the ceremony. Keep your eyes there. The smoke will not bother you. This is not a house on fire, this is a ceremonial site.”
“Where is the lord of ceremonies?” In you, in your heart; in me, in my heart; in this fire ceremony, in it’s heart, in the flames, in the heart of the flames, in the burning, in it’s heart.

One can envision the ceremony and catch sight of the ceremonial priest if one can recognize, know and acknowledge this universe, this sacrificial ceremony of brahma, this playing field of the awareness of the truth-natured, animate brahma, as an indulgence of awareness, as a play of knowledge, as an evolution of feeling or an appearance of the sentient atma as name-form-action. If you can attain divine sight of the self, by applying the kohl of knowledge to eyes blind to the self; if you can know and agree that the truth-natured paramatma, the priest of the ceremonies exists; if you can expand the perception of his universal existence to the most material expression in this world; if you can realize, earth, water, energy, air, sky or sound, touch, form, taste, odor, or mind, intelligence, spirit and ahaMkAra or the fundamental force of these variations to be expression of the atma, differences in the name, form or action of the atma, then you will be able to observe the ceremony, see the master of ceremonies. As long as you can not do that, untruth, emptiness, the mirage of want will blow you about from space to space. The flaming, burning tongues of death will throw you about time and again. To satisfy the hunger of death, you will have to be born and burn again and again.

To save oneself from the clutches of death, to free oneself from the ties of delusion, to find the cooling touch of a million moons from these burning flames, one has to move towards the establishment of truth, wager ones life for the view of truth, turn oneself into truth. Death is but another form of the divine nectar; your perceptual self is both the forms of death and eternal life. Inside and out, this is the perceptual duality of your true self. This has been shown by the sages in the srutis and following these great statements, you will attempt to fill your perceptions with these feelings. Whether inside or outside, do not fell any other existence, and even if you do, think of it as the form of truth; this is the central conclusion in all the srutis. This is what the sage declared as ‘envelop this world by god, whatever is in the outer world or inner’ [22]. Convert this world, this consumption of the world into the enjoyment of truth. See it as truth. Feel yourself to be truth. Practice that other than truth there is nothing that you know of, inside or outside. Do not see the world as false. Say, ‘you alone are the only refuge in this universe’ [23]. Say ‘That self or my own self is all that is manifest or unmanifest. It is all the earth, water, air, fire and sky. It is all perception, intellect, mind, prANa. It is energy and non-energy, desire and non-desire, anger and non-anger, it is all. Truly it exists. Whether inside or outside, it truly exists. There is nothing false, no mirages, it truly exists even as unconscious form. I am engrossed in truth, it is my inside, it is outside, this universe is true, my mind is true, senses true, life is true, I am true. This world is true, all beings are true, the host of deities are true. He is true, who is the truth of truth. I am born in truth, live in truth and will vanish in truth. Hear this, O dwellers of this world, blessed children of the divine nectar, I see that great truth, know it and abide by it. There are not many; the one has become many. What else but truth will hold me, what else will pick me up to its heart. From what else but the truth, will I receive food, in what other water will I bathe, by what other fire, what light will my eyes be lit, by what other air will I survive, in what sky will I will I pour my words of care, love, respect, unruliness and demand? Other than that, from which all appears, who else will I accept with the heart of my heart? Whose wealth will I enjoy but his. Don’t accept riches from anybody. Take it as his. ‘do not desire the wealth of others ’. Really all things are his glory. Enjoy them as his glory. DO not accept riches from anyone else. What you know as different from the true soul is poison, is death.

Inside and out, accept all things as the true form of the AtmA. Do not build mirages of falsehood by trying to understand what is false. Do not cover the deity of your hearts, by the things of the world. Drown your sense of falsehood into oblivion, for ever.

This perception of truth, in truth, is the establishment of truth.


21 bhagabad gitA: 4: 24.
22 ishaponiSad, 1 “ishA vasyamidam sarvam…..”
23 AdhArabhutA jagatastvamekA, devI mAhatayma. 11:4
24 mA gridhaH kasyasiddhanam, ishaponiSad, 1


© 2008 Adyakalidas

Shri Shiva Chandra Vidyarnava Bhattacharyya Mahodaya

Shri Shiva Chandra Bhattacharyya was born in the village of kumArkhAli in Nadia district of Bengal in 1860. He earned the honorific vidyArnava (ocean of learning) in his youth. He was introduced to writing script by the writer saint kAngAl harinAth. He went to vAraNasi and studied vedanta, agamas and nigamas with leading proponents. He returned home and began study and practice in tantra from his grandfather kRSNasundar.

Shiva Chandra travelled to kailAsh, manas sarovar, jwalamukhi and other places in his spiritual quest. He returned to his home and a temple to sarvamangallA (the goddess who bestows all blessings).

He was a great orator and authored books of poetry and prose, gitAnjali, rAslilA, and the famous tantra tattva.
The last was translated by his famed disciple, Sir John Woodroffe, aka Arthur Avalon, as the Principles of Tantra.
In this, Woodruffe was helped by Shri Pramathanath Mukhopadhaya, who was later known as Swami Pratyagatmananda.

Shri Shiva Chandra passed away in 1913.

An introduction to the Devi Suktam by Brahmarshi Satyadev

vAk,a daughter of the great sage ambhRN , realized brahma, the ultimate being, so she too was a sage. She experienced union with, that is became non-different from, the sadchidAnanda (existence-awareness-bliss) paramAtmA (supreme soul) and expressed that unity in what is known as the ‘devI sukta’. There are eight mantras in the sukta. The devI sukta is the fundamental component of the chanDI . The chanDI or ‘devI mAhAtmya’ is an analysis of this sukta. The devI sukta is from the veda; it is the insight of self-realized flawless seers; therefore it is eternal, without extrinsic creation. The flow of words in the chandI, although uttered by some sage, expresses a knowledge and affect that too is eternal. This knowledge and affect appears at all times, in the hearts of all classes of advanced seekers. Only because of differences in place, time, person and language, this eternal knowledge and affect show differences in expression.
The subject of the devi sukta is sadchidAnanda paramatma. In the Devi Mahatmya, this paramatma is described in the episodes as Mahamaya . Paramatma and Mahamaya are non-different. In the logics of textual argument or in verbal discussions, maya and atma may be said to be different; but the seeker, the brahma-conscious or self-realized, know that atma and maya are completely non-different. As long as there is a search, as long as there is a body, atma expresses as maya. In paramatma, there is no attempting, no seeking, no seeker, no scriptures, no thoughts, and no language. When we come into language, thought or seeking, atma is manifested as maya. So, even though paramatma is the subject of the devi sukta, in the Chandi it is described as Mahamaya. These will be discussed in detail later.
The aim of all the scriptures is knowledge of the paramatma. The self, within all the diversity of race, color, denomination, is present identically in all beings. Who am ‘I’ ? The definite knowledge of this is ‘self-knowledge’. All beings are keen to know their true selves. As long as they do not understand this, they are just common entities. When they are aware of this search, they are termed seekers or devotees.
When one is aware of this movement towards the self, then, the external signs that are manifested are named as ‘a path of withdrawal’ (nivritti mArg) or sAdhanA . These characteristics have been described in the spiritual texts as rules of conduct. In reality, all work is a spiritual quest, all beings seekers, and self-realization is the goal. Any quest without realization of the self is incomplete. As long as we seek any god other than the self, even though ‘I’ am the only one sought (who else is there but ‘I’), it is an incomplete quest, unable to deliver liberation (mokSa). In other words, all spiritual quests without self-awareness are open to error. On the other hand, everyday worldly acts with self–enquiry are spiritual enterprises. This atma is ‘I’- mA (Mother). Knowing myself, finding Mother, and self-realization, are all the same. The principle appearing as ‘aham’ in the devI sukta, is described as Mahamaya in the Chandi. That which is At-mA in the devI sukta, is in the Chandi mA (Mother). Therefore the idea that the Chandi is meant only for the worshipper of shakti (shAktas) is not correct.

It is useful to have a gross idea of the nature of the goal one is striving towards, consciously or unconsciously, whatever be ones desired goal. Otherwise, the road becomes unnecessarily long. That is why the shAstras advise not to enter into the Chandi without knowing the devI sukta. The reason we see many seekers in this world fail, is because of a lack of direction. Having no idea of the nature of the divine and not seeking the divine nectar, advancing on the path will be wrought with danger.

I, My and My 'I'

In English,  we use 'I' to refer to our identity (self) and 'my'  to refer to things connected to or owned by the 'I'.

So, 'I have a headache' identifies me as the one that suffers, 'I am rich' meaning that the self is wealthy, and so on. When we say 'my head hurts' or 'my savings are gone', we imply that 'I' am not my head or my savings. Implicit in much of the usage of 'my' are to things not  identified as the 'I'. Many of our planes of existence are not identified as 'I' and separate from it.

What then is meant by 'I am my own master'? Does it point to a 'self' separate from all that is usually implied by me? Does it mean a self that can be separated from all the rest that usually identifies me? My social, physical, perceptual, intellectual expressions are manifestations of the self but not one with the self? Is it possible to identify this 'I' by introspection?

Can the 'Self' be identified as the 'I' that observes/owns all that is connected to 'my', yet is distinct from all of it?

Devi Suktam - Brahmarshi Satayadeva

ahaM rudrebhirbasubhishcharAmya ahamAditairuta vishvadevaiH.
ahaM mitrAvaruNobhA vibharmya ahamindrAgnI ahamashvinobhA. 1

I (the sadchidAnanda atma) move about as rudra, bAsu, Aditya and viswadeva. I bear mitrA, varuNa, indra, agni and the asvinikumAr(s).

ahaM somamAhanasaM vibharmmyahaM tvaShTAramuta pUsSaNaM bhagam.
ahaM dadhAmi draviNaM haviSmate suprAvye yajamAnAya sunvate. 2

I bear the gods soma, destroyer of enemies, tvastA, puSa and bhaga. Those worshippers that offer great soma sacrifices with much oblation, I bear the fruits of their fire ceremony.

ahaM rASTrI saMgamanI vasUnAM chikituSI prathamA yaJgiyAnAM.
tAM mA devA vyadadhuH purutrA bhUristhAtrAM bhUryAveshayantIm. 3

I am the sole monarch of this universe. I bestow all worldly and other worldly wealth. I am the awareness of encounter with brahma, or as knowledge. This knowledge is the origin of all worship. I exist in many forms as all phenomena. I exist in surfeit in innumerable beings; the gods worship me in diverse manners.

mayA sohannamatti yo vipashyati yaH prANiti ya IM shRNotyuktam.
amantavo mAM ta upakSiyanti shrudhi shruta shradvivate badAmi 4.

The food and other materials that beings eat, view and survive on, all these functions are carried out by me. Those who cannot see me in all these actions, or understand this, they do not thrive. O pious one, I impart to you these principles, listen to them with respect.

ahameva svayamidaM vadAmi juSTaM devebhiruta mAnuSebhiH.
yaM yaM kAmaye tantamugraM kRNomi taM brahmANaM tamRSiM taM sumedhAM 5

I myself express these fundamental principles, the gods and humans proffer this. Whomever ‘I’ wish, I give him the highest position, make him brahmA, or a seer (Rsi), or give him the mental faculty to grasp knowledge of the self.

ahaM rudrAya dhanurAtanomi brahmadviSe sharave hantavA u .
ahaM janAya samadaM kRNomyahaM dyAvApRhibI Avivesha. 6

To destroy the rudras (eleven indriyas) opposed to the knowledge of brahma, I mount the arrow of the self in the bow of pranava and in this way do I battle for all. I am closely enmeshed in both regions of heaven and earth.

ahaM suve pitaramasya mUrdhanmama yonirapsbantaH samudre.
tato vitiSThe bhuvanAnu vishvotAmUndyAM varSmaNopaspRshAmi 7.

I give birth to the father of the universe. My subtle body (kAraN sharir), resides in the intellectual body (vigyAnmay koSa), inside the blissful body (Anandamay koSa) in its upper part. I reside, entering into the entire universe. Even the distant heavens, I touch with my own body.

ahameva vAta iva pravAmyArabhamANA bhuvanAni vishvA.
paro divA para enA pRthivaitAvatI mahinA saMvabhUva. 8.

When I flow like the winds, then does all this universe begin to be created. I am present even after the heavens and earth. This is my glory.

Copyright 2008 Adyakalidas

Seeing the Self - Shri Bijaykrishna

Shri Bijaykrishna Chattopadhyaya, in his book RtambharA gives these two analogies for becoming aware of the presence of the AtmA.

If one sees a house in a distance, with light streaming out of the windows, one assumes without seeing it directly, that there is a lamp lit up inside. When one looks into a mirror, one sees the images reflected by it without generally observing the mirror; but one can divert attention and actually look at the mirror itself. Shri Bijaykrishna used these analogies for observing our perceptions and the objects in the world leading to these perceptions, to lead us to an awarenness of the self.

These are reminiscent of the analogies in the dakSiNA murti stotram by shrI shankarAchArya. In verse 1 there is a reference that the universe being like the reflection of a city viewed in the mirror of the self.  Verse 4 tells about  a lamp lit inside a pot with many holes being like the self emanating through the senses.

Dr. Mahanambrata Brahmachari

One of the most profound Vaishnava scholar saints of modern times, Mahanambrata Brahmachari composed a series of insightful expositions and commentaries on many of the classic Indic scriptural texts. Mahanambrataji was born in Barishal district of what is now Bangladesh in 1904.

He came to the United States in 1933 to speak at the World Fellowship of Faiths. He earned his Doctorate degree in religious studies from the university of Chicago in 1937. In the next 60 years he authored over 50 books. He is one of the most articulate exponents of dharma and philosophy of the Indian subcontinent.