[Advaita-l] Aham Brahmaasmi

Naresh Cuntoor nareshpc at gmail.com
Thu Dec 10 18:36:17 CST 2009


> i) 'aham brahmaasmi'
>
> Now, the word 'aham' in "aham brahmaasmi" does not mean "I" -- it
> means "aheyam" -- that which cannot be avoided, that which is not to
> be given up. The word 'asmi' does not mean "I am" but is a compound of
> "as" meaning existence, and "mi" meaning knowable.
>
> ...
>
> Thus, "aham brahma asmi" means: "That Brahman which cannot be avoided
> ..."

I wonder if this is a widely-held view within the dvaitic schools. Or
if it is someone's overzealous interpretation.
If it is the former, "palm, meet head!". If it is the latter, such
creative interpretations are unnecessary and 'ham' or heyam (to borrow
his words!).

Naresh



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