[Advaita-l] References for Atma vichAra in shruti/smriti

V. Krishnamurthy profvk at yahoo.com
Sat Dec 13 12:18:28 CST 2003


Namaste, Jayanarayananji
 
You wrote:
"While the advaita VedAnta tradition demands qualifications from the
disciple who seeks Self-realization and places importance on
shruti/smR^iti for removing ignorance (of the Self), Ramana Maharshi
emphasizes the path of Self-enquiry or Atma VichAra (i.e. tracing the
source of the I-thought) which can be practised by anyone, anywhere,
anytime, independent of all texts.

I'm trying to locate references in shruti/smR^iti which treat
Self-enquiry as being independent of the scriptures,'"
 
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I do not clearly understand what exactly you are looking for. I thought Atma-vichAra has been emphasized everywhere. 
What about, as a sample, the following quotations from Sanat-sujAtIya?
 
vidyAt bahupaThaM taM tu bahuvAg-iti brAhmaNaM /
ya eshha satyAn-nApaiti sa jneyo brAhmaNastvayA // II-40
 
Know that Brahmana who has studied many branches of knowledge as only an orator. Know him who does not dissociate himself from the Truth as the real Brahmana.
 
na vedAnAM veditA kashchidasti vedena vedaM na vidur-na vedyaM /
yo veda vedaM sa ca veda vedyaM yo veda vedyaM  na sa veda satyaM // II - 42
 
None of the Vedas know Him. For the Vedas do not help us to know Him nor the known (the world). One who knows the Knower knows also the known. But one who knows only the known knows not the Truth.
 
tUshhNIMbhUta upAsIta na cecchen-manasA api /
abhyAvarteta brahma-asau bahvanantaram-ApnuyAt // II - 47
 
One should renounce all action and meditate. One should not desire mentally. One realises Brahman and attains plenitude immediately. 
 
PraNAms to all seekers of Truth
profvk
 
 


Prof. V. Krishnamurthy
My website on Science and Spirituality is http://www.geocities.com/profvk/
You can  access my book on Gems from the Ocean of Hindu Thought Vision and Practice,  and my father R. Visvanatha Sastri's manuscripts from the site.
Also see the webpages on Paramacharya's Soundaryalahari :
http://www.geocities.com/profvk/gohitvip/DPDS.html



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