Arjuna’s Distress

Nammlavar opines that Kaivalyam is inferior to God-realization (bhagavat-sākşātkāra). Kaivalyam is ātma-sākşātkāra, equable resolution of Punyam and Papam, supreme happiness, self-realization... Kaivalya is the existence of the soul enjoying the bliss of Jivatman (S.M.S.Chari) and NOT Paramatman or Bhagavat.  That is serious. What is better?  Soul realization or God Realization. Kaivalya is NOT the Real Thing in modern parlance, according to Nammalvar.

In Kashmir Saiva tradition, the highest attainment is to acquire Sivaness (Sivatva). As in Vaishnava tradition, Saivite tradition has two attainments with differences: Atma VyApti and Siva VyApti (Self-Realization and Siva Realization). They can be obtained in corporeal state (while living). Of the two, the Atma VyApti is lower and Siva Vyapti is highest. VyApti (வியாப்தம்) means pervasion. In Atma Vyapti, one's soul is pure, perfect, pristine and free. All these adjectives are admirable but the soul is not one with Siva; it is lower attainment. In Siva Vyapti, there is oneness with Parama Siva (Supreme Siva) who is transcendent  and immanent in the universe. As different from Samkhya and Vedantic Self, in Siva-VyApti, the I-Consciousness of the Self dissolves in Siva Consciousness; you are Siva. Sivaness has pervaded; the river of your consciousness has merged with the ocean of Siva Consciousness. Your Citta (Limitation of Universal Consciousness in an individual)) does not die, but undergoes regeneration, transformation and transfiguration into Cit (Absolute foundational Divine Consciousness of Siva).The individual Citta upon immersion in Cit becomes Citi (Universal Consciousness and the knower (Cetana). Citi is the Universal Consciousness and the ocean. When it descends into an individual, it becomes limited as Citta. You cannot put a ocean in a pot and likewise Citta has limitations. In like manner the Supreme Knower cannot be put into an individual embodied soul; naturally he becomes the little knower. He is Max and each one of us is Mini.

    Patanjali says in Mahabhasya: Knowledge has four parts: acquisition, study, teaching, and application. When all parts come together, knowledge finds perfection.

2.1: Madhusudhana (Killer of demon Madhu), Lord Krishna, having seen Arjuna overwhelmed by compassion, looking confused, eyes brimming with tears, depressed and lamenting...

2.2: Sri Bhagavan said to Arjuna where this filth (kasmalam) came from at this hour of crisis which is Unaryan practice and which would not lead him to heaven but to infamy.  

Aryan = one with courage, courtesy, nobility and straight dealing. Definition by Dr. Radhakrishnan.

 The old-world Indian (Sanskrit) word Aryan is synonymous with nobility and trustworthiness. 

The view from the West: A change from invasion theory to native Aryan Indian theory

Donald A. Mackenzie in his book, Indian Myth and Legend (page, xxxviii-ix, says, "If the long-headed Kurds are, as Ripley believes, the descendants of the Mitanni raiders, then the Aryans of history must be included in the Brown race. They are regarded as ancient brunet dolichocephalic (long-headed) peoples. During the Brahmanical age, a fresh Aryan wave hit India and divided (themselves) as Westerners of Punjab and Easterners of Kasi (Benares, Varanasi), Maghada, Kosala, and Videha. The kings of the Easterners (Ramayana) claimed to have descended from the solar race. The Middle Country Aryans came as the next wave and put themselves between the Westerners and Easterners, called themselves descendents of Lunar Race and Bharatas and worshipped goddess Bharati associated with Sarasvati river. Sarasvati River dried up in 1900 B.C.; Rg Vedic hymns are placed prior to it. The Kurus and Purus of Mahabharata were the descendants of Bharatas.

 It is postulated that the Indo-Aryans migrated out west as far as Egypt, when Sarasvati river dried up.  The Bharatas worshipping the moon and Sarasvati River were possibly the Brown Aryans. Much later, the Vedic gods, the Fire god and Indra "suffered eclipse;" Brahma, Vishnu, and Siva with their respective consorts came into prominence.

  The west is quick to say that the central figures of Ramayana and Mahabharata are not historical but creations of active imagination of Brahmanical compilers for religious propaganda. Here are some dates: Epic Sanskrit, the forerunner of Classical Sanskrit is tentatively assigned a date between 5000 BC (the date of Rg Veda) to 2000 BC. Ramayana of Valmiki is assigned a date to about 3500 BC; Mahabharata of Vyasa to about 3000 BC. Misra opines that the theory that the Mahabharata precedes the Ramayana is baseless. The original home of Indo-Iranians is India; Iranian is the second most archaic language next to Sanskrit; all other Indo-European languages and the Indo-Europeans came from India and thus the Indo-Aryan is the immediate or proximate progenitor of the Europeans. Simply put Indo-Aryan gave the genes and the speech to the Europeans. The loan words of Hungarian, Finnish, and Estonian (Uralic) are derived from Sanskrit as the Indo-Aryan made several trips to these areas from 5000 BC. Harmatta says that the loan words in Chinese and Korean are derived from Sanskrit. Since the discovery of fire altars, Indus civilization is accepted as a continuation of the Vedic Civilization. Misra opines that Dravidians are also Aryans and that Aryans did not drive out the Dravidians to the South. Thus the Indo-Aryans, Iranians and the Dravidians were living in India spreading out to Europe. One factor in the color of the people depends upon the longitude and latitude of their habitat. Remember people marry within their group or caste and thus certain physical features get embedded or imprinted in that group and make them appear distinct from other groups or castes. Some people defy by their physical features categorization by group or caste or even race. The Greeks were not Greeks in that they came from outside and destroyed the Minoan-Mycenaean civilization. (Joseph Campbell says that Greeks and Indo-Aryans are cousins.) The Germans came to Germany from outside; so were the Celts, the Slavs, the Iranians.  Misra goes a little further to say that "India as the best place for the origin of human beings." -- Page 224-229, The Indo-Aryan Controversy.

There are historians who dispute the supposition that Indo-Aryans were of  external origin; they originated in India, spread to other countries (Persia, Europe and Asia) and later came back to their motherland; in that process they spread their language and speech. The world was making cockamamie sounds; Sanskrit life letter a and its cohorts e, i, o, u, au, am... came about and introduced intelligible mellifluous sound, speech, and text for the first time. The world, before the Indians gave the vowels, were talking in lifeless generic consonants, grunting, grating, screeching, jarring.... Satya Swarup Misra says that no language worth its salt existed before 5000 BCE when Rg Veda was existent. No European language existed before that date: Sanskrit first, Persian later and all other Indo-European languages much later.  The Gypsies left Central India earlier than 3rd century BC and spread all over Europe. The Indo-Aryans likewise populated Persia and Europe.  (Misra thinks that Dravidian and Indo-Aryan belong to one language and one genetic family.)

The English words father, mother, brother and sister are (derived from) cognate with Sanskrit: pitar, mātar, bhrātr, and svasar. Sanskrit was the First Spoken and Written Language in this world. The universe of alphabets, words and languages originated from Mother Goddess, Kali.

Jesus uses the word abba (father) 170 times to describe God's relationship to humans and his very nature. In Tamil we call father APPA  («ôÀ¡) mother Amma («õÁ¡).  ABBA and APPA are cognate with Pitar, Patar or pater. In Tamil, it is common to address Father God as Appan (= «ôÀý). Tamil 'Amma' and Hebrew 'Ima' means mother.

Here is an instance of pettiness and unwillingness on the part of erstwhile ruling class to give credit to India. H.L.Gray says, "The earliest investigators were quite certain that it was in Asia, the continent which was the source of oldest civilization, the traditional site of the garden of Eden, and where Sanskrit was spoken." A scholar of his caliber could not get himself to mention India by name and thus used the substitute word Asia instead. Now you know why the West makes it appear that Aryan came from outside India. In their mind the Indo-Aryan of Sanskrit could not be a original native Indian. So they put him all over central Asia.

Return of the Aryans by Bhagavan S. Gidwani tells the story of Indo-Aryans in the format of a novel. 

The West says that there are essentially three schools: 1) the Indigenous School which claims Punjab as the origin of the Indo-Aryans 2) the Out of India School which espouses the theory that the Indo-Aryans were the immigrant forefathers of today's Iranians. [The dug-up old Iranian human skeletons are not Indian.] and 3) the Devabhasya School which asserts that all so-called Indo-European languages originated from Sanskrit.

Elst says Sanskrit palatization of words (ca, cha, ja, jha, na) allows for the possibility  that (Indo-Aryan) homeland was originally India and not outside. He makes a somersault and an about-face and says that still there is a possibility of immigrant origin of Indo-Aryan. Retroflection, so characteristic of South Asia, is not found in Old Iranian, discounting Out of India Theory.

Hock injects a new element on the so-called  anasa (noseless or mouthless) Dasyas in Rg Veda. Arya and Dasa do not refer to color but to "light and dark worlds." Anasa refers according to him to possessing bad speech and not to bad nose. (Some regard the inhabitants of Indus valley as Sumero-Dravidians.) Let me give you an example of onomatopoeic words, bad speech and good speech.  Brr, grr, hmm, mm, psst, tsk are some of the consonantal English words (onomatopoetic interjections) without vowels.  Let us take the word Zebra. It was most likely called zbr, that annoying sound without mellifluous grace,stars and stripes; then came along the vowels donated by the Sanskritic Indo-Aryan; zbr acquired the sound of zebra and the vowels show their stripes and stars.

The prevailing opinion at present is that 1) there is no linguistic or archeological evidence to support the Invasion Theory, 2) Pre-Vedic Indo-Aryan culture became a Hybrid Vedic Culture from contact with other cultures at religious, material, and linguistic areas,  3) the Indus Valley Script and the Horse are the bugaboos. If the Indus Valley script is deciphered, a new paradigm comes into play and the theories have to be revised. The horse, the chariot, and the Indo-Aryan: do they go together always?  Are they contemporaneous?  The horse was first present in 4th millennium BC in India and later in Persia and Caucasus. Likewise the Indo-Aryan traveled from India to Persia, Caucasus and beyond. They all didn't walk; some rode on horses and some walked.

Skeletons of IVC (3300 BCE-1700 BCE) , Harappans (1700 BCE-1300 BCE) Vedic Aryans (1500 BCE-500 BCE) and present-day North-west Indians are not markedly different. Decline of Indus Valley Civilization (IVC) is not attributed to invasion but to natural conditions, such as drying up of Sarasvati River. River Sarasvati went dry before 1900 B.C. At present Sarasvati River features as a pentimento from satellite earth images. Plain-talking historians are of the belief that polemics took precedence over facts on the question of Aryan Invasion, migration or lack there of.  Aryans (Indo-Aryans) were the people of IVC. Other historians of opportunism are horsing around, putting the horses, chariots, Indo-Aryans here, there, everywhere on the chessboard, mucking up everything. The Indo-Aryans wrote the manual for horse training and were the very first broncobusters.  Many historians are playing both sides, giving conflicting pros and cons. The colonial history of India: the west put down the Indians first as good for nothing bozos; then came along the archeological digs of Harappa by Sahni and Banerjee; the West put down the "Invading pastoral Aryans" and elevated the Dravidians as the civilized race; there was no invasion or mass murder of the natives of Harappa; before the Dravidians were admitted into the civilized club, some of the Indians were branded as Criminal Tribes (What a switch); the west found Sanskrit words common with their languages, so they dubbed Sanskrit as Indo-European language (why not plain-vanilla Indo-Aryan language) and elevated the North-west Indians. In 1856 before the discovery of Indus Civilization, two morons, John and William Brunton were building the East Indian Railway from Karachi to Lahore. They used the bricks from the Indus civilization as ballast. Brahminibad ancient bricks went into use for the railway; part of Harappa and Mohenjo-daro escaped the Brunton brothers' mindless quarrying of the ancient bricks, 3x10x20 inches. The excavation did not begin until 1920.  It is possible that these two archeologically-challenged nincompoops did not get the contract to lay the gravel road near Stonehenge on Salisbury plain England, but ended up in India to do their carefully crafted bang-up botch  with bootleg ancient bricks at the Indian railways.

Let me give you an idea of the kind of cities they had. The walls encircling the city was 40 feet wide at the base and 35 feet high. Mud was used to hold the bricks on the walls, and gypsum and lime mortar for the drains. The sewer system featured terra cotta pipes with manholes like what you see in the modern cities now. They built multistoried house with flat tops. Like the modern day laundry chutes they had garbage chutes in the houses along with toilets and bathrooms. They had 23x39x8 feet tank with 8 feet thick walls for public bathing. Copper, bronze, lead, silver, ivory and gold were in use.  They were trading with Mesopotamia and were called Meluhha. They cultivated barley, wheat, peas, sesamum, cotton.... Cotton would not appear in the west in the next 2000 years.

Sanskrit is the Mother of languages; the European languages are the daughter languages. Listen to what Mark Twain says: India is, the cradle of the human race, the  birthplace of human speech, the mother of history, the  grandmother of legend, and the great grand mother of tradition. Our most valuable and most constructive materials in the history of  man are treasured up in India only.  They tried to find horse bones in Harappa. Yes, the horses were in Harappa. They tried to pin the tail on the donkey. It was decided after all India was not a donkey country but donkeys came from outside India. Thank God, donkeys are not native to India, but horses were. What a relief to know that. We all can attest to it. They were looking for broken and bruised skeletons as evidence of massacre of the native Harappans by the so-called invading Aryans. Uninjured skeletons were found at different depths in the dig, evidence  against a massacre. George F. Dales (1964) very aptly decried this so-called massacre as "The Mythical Massacre at Mohenjo-daro." For fifty years since Independence the Indians were made to sit in the corner. Now suddenly, the talking heads (read yapping heads) of TV Land are talking about Bangalore and Indians taking their jobs.

Momma comics February 01, 2010

http://comics.com/momma/2010-02-01/

What a mind-tickling ride for me in all these years! Indian scientists have Chandrayaan 1 circle the moon without outside help (November 2008). The native genius is showing. The Indo-Aryan vs Dravidian or North vs South divide goes bust. The scientists belong to both South and North. Some suggest that the Dravidian and Sanskrit share many words and thus need further study of their affinity. Another hypothesis is Aryan and Dravidian are two parts of single Aryan identity.  They exchanged  culture, words, phrases etc. Colonialism and independence have not served well to sort out this matter. If you are all confused, welcome to the club of polemics, politics, passion, and confusion. How is this for rumination: We all belong to one human race?

The Indo-Aryan looks at the sun and the moon and said that is Circle, Zero, Zip, Zilch, Nada, Null.... If it is not for the Dravidian, you won't have an idea of a million, a billion, a trillion, a quadrillion, a zillion.... The concept of ZERO came from the Indo-Aryan. Without 0 and 1, You would not have the computer.

Here is an example of servile sycophancy of some Indians of the colonial period and Phule's demolition of pet theory of two castes and petty divisions of the caste system.

The following piece is from The Indo-Aryan Controversy edited by Bryant and Patton. The words are mine.

The Arya-Brahmanas declared, fortuitous circumstances brought the civilized British White Aryans to India to uplift the degraded Indian (Brown) Aryans -- the forerunners of the bygone era and bring the latter to their former glory.  Some British felt it that way too.  The Brown Indo-Aryans declared themselves as the chosen race. "It was for nothing that God has showered his choicest blessings on this ancient land of Aryavarta. We can see His hand in history." This declaration was made  in Lahore in the Aryan Land of Five Rivers.  One such Indo-Aryan declared that there were only two castes: Brahmins and Sudras. The Ksatriyas, they declared, were killed by Parasurama; the Vaisyas no longer existed.  The acuteness of the hostile situation was felt by the then ruler Shivaji in 1676, when the local Brahmins refused to accept him as Ksatriya (they were all killed by Parasurama) and refused to perform his coronation ceremony. A Kasi Brahmin did the honors to Shivaji.

Then came Phule of gardener caste,  sedimented, hardened, layered, and sandwiched between the Untouchable and the Sudra. He agreed with vicarious mildly malevolent glee with the prevalent premise of two castes, Brahmanas and Sudras.  Then he began his demolition by design by placing explosive charges at the critical places and lighting the fuse. Phule (1827-90) accepted the theory of invading Aryan Brahmanas for didactic purposes, killing of the indigenous kings and Vaisyas and subjugation of the humble indigenous people (Dasas and Dasyus by the Brahmin-Aryas). He spoke aloud of the cruelty of  the foreign Arya-Brahmins subjugating the humble Pre-Aryan people of the soil and killing of all the Vaisyas and the indigenous Ksatriyas (the kings),  many of whom died fighting the invading Arya-Brahmanas; the survivors became the MahA-ari (Great Enemies).  These MahA-aris were relegated to the status of Untouchables; the king (Ksatriyas--the ruling class) becomes an Untouchable. The subjugated native sons of the soil became the land-owners or land-tillers and the name he gave them was Ksetriyas (Ksetra = land, field), which sounds cunningly like Ksatriyas.  Now you see Phule's use of Arya's premise and tools of separation, segregation and superiority to demolish them. He says Vamana's subjugation of king Bali and his expulsion to Netherworld as an example.

As said earlier, Arjuna incarnates from Nara, an embodiment of dharma and ahimsa – virtue and noninjury. (Nara, a Rishi of yore and Narayana performed Tapas in Badrinath (Badarikasrama) in the Himalayas; Nara incarnated as Arjuna and Narayana incarnated as Krishna; now you can see the generational connection between these four personages.) Although he is a Ksatriya – warrior class – his basic belief and instincts are dharma and ahimsa. Arjuna is in a crisis. Krishna understands Arjuna's difficulty, and advises that as an Aryan and a Ksatriya, it is his duty (dharma) to fight an enemy, who thrust this war on him. According to the Laws of Manu, a Ksatriya's main duty is to bear arms, and using them is a duty born of his station in life. A Ksatriya is a deity in human form; he is the law and dispenses punishment with due regard to the facts. Dispensing punishment on the guilty is compulsory for a king to prevent the stronger from victimizing the weaker. The allegory used here is the stronger will roast the weaker, like fish on spit. As an aside, I want to point out that a Brahmin, if he is not able to make a living by teaching Vedas, can do the job of a Ksatriya or even a Vaisya. Such a Brahmin, stepping out of his ordained role, can engage in statecraft or agriculture, raise cattle without injuring (ahimsa) and avoid dependence.  

Lord Krishna Himself  was born of  an Aryan  Ksatriya prince Vasudeva, and a non-Aryan princess Devaki.  Vyasa, the author of Mahabharata and the Bhagavad Gita as told by Krishna,  was born of a Brahmana father and a non-Aryan mother (a fisherwoman).   

Satyavati (Sanskrit: सत्यवती) is the mother of Vyasa and great-grandmother of the Pandava and Kaurava princes, principal characters of the Mahabharata. She is nevertheless a commoner, daughter of a ferryman or fisherman. She is also known as Matsyagandha (one who has the smell of fish).  As a young woman, she met the wandering Rishi Parasara by whom she had a son, Vyasa (the son of a single mom).  Parasara by his mystic power guaranteed that she would not lose her virginity from union and delivery. This reminds me of girls  who had premarital sexual relations undergo hymenoplasty (surgical restoration of  inviolate contour of hymenal ring)) to restore the appearance of  hymen to its virginal inviolate state to impress the husband who insists on virginity in his wife in certain countries. Parasara and Satyavati had union and Vyasa's birth took place in secret on an island in the river Yamuna.  Vyasa was also known as Krishna Dwaipayana (Dark islander) because he was dark (Krishna) in color and born in an island.  Rishi Parasara by his Yogic power created an ambience of mist around the island, so that no body could witness the famed union and delivery of the baby. Vyasa was born immediately after the union with no mandatory gestational period, which is the norm for humankind and immediately grew into a young man. This is again a Yogic phenomenon.  (Consider Jesus Christ born of Virgin Mary.) The West says that Vyasa is a generic name (meaning compiler) like teacher, tailor, barber. There were many Vyasas, according to the west. Many of the sacred texts span over many centuries and they could not have been all composed by one Vyasa. This is contested by devout Hindus.  Later,  King Santanu legally marries Satyavati, who thus becomes the matriarch of the Pandavas in the lineage of Parasara Rishi and the Kauravas in the lineage of Santanu..

Note:  Purusa creates heaven from His head and the earth from His feet. If liberated men and gods do not populate heaven, there is no meaning in living (a virtuous life) on this earth; therefore, earth and heaven are integral parts in the life of men and gods. When gods fall from grace, they come down to earth as humans. Prajapati created the asuras (demons) first and the gods second; there were more asuras than gods; the asuras and the gods were half-brothers, the embodiments of evil and goodness. Each one of us is part asura, and part god: Which is dominant? If there is no evil, there is no idea of goodness; therefore, evil is a necessary part of our character. How much of one is evil? We have in each one of us a pristine, stainless entity, namely atman. It is evil-free.

Garuda Purana (1.213.35) defines filth as fat, semen, blood, marrow, saliva, feces, urine, earwax, phlegm, tears, mucus in the eyes and  body sweat. There are eight auspicious entities in this world: Brahmins, cows, fire, gold, butter, the sun, water, and the king.  When one encounters any of the above, he should view, worship and circumambulate that entity.  

Let me take up the example of water as auspicious.  Rudra was born of Brahma and was given water as his body.  Wherever you see water, you are seeing Rudra, Bhava or Siva. Since all living beings are born through water and made of water, the body of Rudra or Siva, one should not urinate, defecate, spit, wade nude, or have sex in the waters. One should not obstruct the natural flow of waters into the sea. –Brahmanda Purana,1.2.10.29-32.  Pollution of water is considered an act against the body of god. Pollution of water was a problem in olden times too; When the Buddha was born, polluted streams became clear; the lame walked; the deaf and dumb talked; the malevolent had a change to a heart of love; the angels rejoiced; peace came back to life; and Mara, the evil one, was in grief.

क्लैब्यं मा स्म गमः पार्थ नैतत्त्वय्युपपद्यते ।

क्षुद्रं हृदयदौर्बल्यं त्यक्त्वोत्तिष्ठ परन्तप ॥२- ३॥ 2.3

klaibyaṁ mā sma gamaḥ pārtha nai 'tat tvayy upapadyate
kṣudraṁ hṛdayadaurbalyaṁ tyaktvo  'ttiṣṭha paraṁtapa 2.3

klaibyaṁ = unmaniliness. mā sma gamaḥ = do not yield to. pārtha = Partha (Arjuna). tvayi =  of you. upapadyate =  becoming or worthy. kṣudraṁ = base (Ramanuja). hṛdayadaurbalyaṁ = faint-heartedness (R); Weakness of the heart (Sankara). tyaktva = giving up (S). Uttiṣṭha  = Arise (Rad = Radhakrishnan). paraṁtapa = Scorcher of foes (R).

2.3: O son of Partha (Arjuna), this smacks of impotence and weakness of the heart, which are unbecoming of you, the conqueror of enemies.  Give up and rise up to the occasion. 

Lord Krishna says that this sudden attack of grief speaks ill of a Ksatriya. Cowardice and weakness of the heart are the Tamasic qualities of  king in retreat; the Sattvic Ksatriya must face the enemy, have a balanced emotion, weigh the outcome, and fight to win: That is Ksatriya's duty. Since retreat from battlefield for a Ksatriya is sin itself, Krishna urges Arjuna to fight; running away from an enemy for a Ksatriya is not a sign of compassion, but one of fear. 

2.4: Arjuna said:

O Madhusūdana, how could I ever fight with arrows on the battlefield Bhisma and Drona, who are worthy of my worship, O Arisūdana?

Note: Bhisma is the grandfather of the Kurus, and Drona is the military science or marital arts teacher for the Kurus. Arisūdana: slayer of foes.

2.5:  Begging would give me more joy than killing my gurus and the great souls; By killing them, I will be enjoying wealth and desires tainted with blood.

The pleasures, I would enjoy in this life and in this world by killing them, are not worthwhile, considering that those gains would have a taint of blood.

Bhisma and Drona are worthy figures for reverence and even worship; they enjoyed high life under the Kauravas. Arjuna contends how he could enjoy same high life, after killing the revered Bhisma and Drona: All those enjoyments would have a taint of blood. Arjuna did not consider that his was a just cause and theirs was not. Arjuna's reverence, compassion, and love for the teachers, elders, and relatives overpowered his will to fight: He was shirking his duty.

  2.6: We do not know what is better for us. Do we gain victory over them, or would they conquer us? We do not know that. We do not

want to live, having killed the sons of Dhritarastra, who stand before us in the battlefield.

 We do not know what is better for us between the two: vanquish them or be vanquished by them. If we killed the sons of Dhrtarastra arrayed before us in the battlefield, we do not have a penchant for living.

Note: Dhrtarastra is the blind king with 100 sons, the Kauravas; and Duryodhana is the eldest. Arjuna sees a conflict between his dharma (duty) as a Ksatriya and his principle ahimsa (nonviolence) as a man

2.7: A taint of misplaced compassion afflicts my nature; I am addled about my sense of duty; what I ask of You is that You tell me in no uncertain terms what is honorable for me. I am Your disciple and seek advice and refuge in You.

Dharma means duty and virtue. Arjuna cannot cope, and lost his verve and nerve. What can he do?  Arjuna seeks advice from his God and his friend, Lord Krishna. Arjuna wants divine help in conflict resolution in his mind.

The king is the refuge of his subjects, the parents are the refuge of the children, righteousness is the refuge of men, Lord Hari is the refuge of all (Garuda Purana, 1.230.46).            

2.8: I do not see how I could get rid of my sorrow that has wilted my senses, even if I achieve unrivaled prosperity and kingdom on the earth and the supremacy over gods in heaven.

2.9: Sanjaya said (to Dhritrastra):

Having spoken thus to Hrisikesam (Krishna), Gudakesa (Arjuna) the conqueror of sleep said to Govinda (Krishna) “I will not fight” and became silent.

Hrisikesam: the Lord of the senses. Gudakesa: the conqueror of sleep, a name for Arjuna.

Fall into silence may suggest here the beginning of a spiritual awakening for Arjuna, also known as the conqueror of sleep (ignorance). Gudākesa also means that Arjuna is “thick-haired.”  Arjuna has reached the end of the rope. Initially he was exercising his reason and even reason has taken leave of him. The faintness of his heart hindered his capacity to address the call for duty. He has not even waited to see what his God Lord Krishna or teacher has to say on this matter: It shows a total exhaustion. That makes it all the more difficult for his savior or teacher to get him out of his deep depression, and inculcate some sense and dharma into Arjuna. Dhritrastra, the father of Kauravas, was happy to hear from Sanjaya that Arjuna, the archenemy of Kauravas, was losing the will to fight, which could end in the victory of the Kauravas.

2.10: O Bharata (Dhritarastra), Hrisikesa smiling with a hint of ridicule, standing between the two armies, spoke the following words to Arjuna who was in acute sorrow.

Krishna, in the following verses, has put together concisely the meaning, the practice and the purpose of performing Bhakti, Karma, and Jnāna yogas for the benefit of Arjuna and humanity. Work performed in the spirit of sacrifice does not cause any attachment and therefore is free from karmic inflows.

2.11: Sri Bhagavan (Krishna) said:

You grieve for those worth not grieving for, yet you speak words of wisdom. The panditah (learned men) grieve neither for the dead nor for the living.

An individual has an eternal soul and a perishable body; there is no reason to grieve for something that is eternal, and there is no reason to grieve for something that is perishable. If a living one grieves for the dead because of the death of the physical body, the dead have to eat the tears and the phlegm formed during the grieving; eulogy instead of grief will appease the departing soul. When a person has the knowledge of the self and the body, he grieves neither for the living nor for the dead. The soul is eternal and real, and the body is unreal (in relative terms) and subject to change, because of its insentient elements.

Bhagavan: One who is endowed with Bhaga (Grace) is Bhaga-van. Bhaga consists of six attributes: (Transliteration from Tamil) Aisvaryam, Viryam, Pukaz, Tiru, Jnanam, and Viaragyam (Supremacy, Power, Glory, Sacredness, Wisdom, and desirelessness. others list the following attributes: knowledge of creation, maintenance, destruction, origin and sublation of all life forms, Supreme Truth, and Avidya or ignorance. Some say that the attributes correspond to nine angles of Yantra, which is a mystical diagram made of geometric forms, images, avaranas, deities, alphabets and syllables etched on metals and stones, whose purpose is to invoke god for progeny, health, and wealth and attain Samadhi

Others list the following: Sri (Auspiciousness), Virya (Power), Jnana (Wisdom), Vairagya (Dispassion), Kirti (Glory), and Mahatmya (Greatness).

Bhaga is Grace and any desirable quality such as dignity, majesty, distinction, excellence, beauty, loveliness, love, affection.

2.12: Never was there a time that neither I, nor you, nor those kings did not exist and nor will all of us stop to exist from now on.

The Recycling of souls.

We are spirit and matter, which are recycled according to the merit or demerit of karmic load. It is Samsara, birth and rebirth. Samkhya philosophy of dualism: Kapila was the founder and propounder of Samkhya philosophy.  Its basis is not Vedic; it treats two juxtaposed contrary polar principles: Prakrti and Purusa. In Samkhya, Prakrti does not contaminate Purusa but the latter lights up Prakrti. Prakrtik products are Mahat, Ego, and the senses. It is the Purusa that lights up these products of Prakrti. Ramakrishna Paramahamsa illustrates this point by saying that the human body is like a pot and the mind, intellect and the senses are like water, rice and potato. When the pot is boiling the contents become hot, though the heat source is from the fire. Similarly, the power of Brahman causes the mind, intellect and the senses to function. When that power stops to act, all cease to work. Adapted from Sayings Ramakrishna, saying 27, page 28.

Proponents of Sankhya system do not believe in Isvara but in Purusa that has Jnana not unlike Nirguna Brahman. The Light of Purusa makes the Inert Prakrti to quicken and evolve the world of matter. Purusa is not the Nimitta Karana (Efficient Cause) as Isvara is. This transformation (Parinama) is inherent, spontaneous, and pre-programmed in Prakrti. Of course Vaishnavas and Saivas who believe in Isvara dispute this idea.

Sankaracharya of Kanchi says Parinama Vada does not hold water and advocates Monistic Vivarta Vada (a method of asserting the Vedanta doctrine--maintaining the development of the Universe from Brahman as the sole real entity , the phenomenal world being held to be a mere illusion or MAyA)

 Purusa is Consciousness and Supreme Unparalleled Intelligence, and Prakrti [Pra (before) krti (creation)] is matter, unconscious, indiscriminate, and insentient. If PRAKRTI sounds similar to PROCREATE, it is so in meaning too. Prakrti indicates an urgency to produce, as Prasavam (parturition) has the imminence to deliver a baby. It is the same as PROCREATIX in Latin. 

Woodroffe in Serpent Power:  Prakrti is derived from Kr and the affix ktin which is added to express bhAva or the abstract idea and sometimes the Karma, or object of the action, corresponding with the Greek affix sis. Ktin inflected in the nominative becomes tih, tis. Prakrti therefore has been said to correspond with 'nature' of the Greeks (Banerjee, "Dialogues on Hindu Philosophy," 24). It is also called Pradhana, Pra+dha+anat=Pradhatte sarvam ātmani, or that which contains all things in itself, the source and receptacle of all matter and form. Pradhana also literally means" chief" (substance), for according to Samkhya it is the real creator.

The splendid Hymn to Prakrti in Prapancasāra-Tantra. What can be seen by the eyes can be defined, but not She. "It cannot be seen by the eyes." Kena Up., 1-6: "Yat caksusa na pasyati." She is beyond the senses. Hence the Trisati addressess the Devi who is not to be particularly pointed out as being this or that. She is ineffable and inconceivable: with form (Vikrti}, yet Herself (Mula-prakrti) formless. Mahanirvana-Tantra, IV. 33-35. Thus Sayana (Rig-Veda. X, 129, 2) says that, whilst Maya is Anirvācyā (indefinable), since it is neither Sat nor Asat, Cit is definable as Sat. end Woodroffe.

Matter in Saiva Siddhanta has the following qualities:

1. unconscious element.

2. anything that obstructs consciousness and its working.

3. anything that obstructs obtaining right knowledge.

4. anything that imparts false, incomplete and partial knowledge.

5. senses which do not have intrinsic consciousness or omniscience.

6. a mind that does not present knowledge of things as they truly are.

7. all physiological and psychological processes.

8. all organs.

9. Space, Time.

10. Apara vidya, not supreme knowledge (Faustian knowledge) as opposed to Para Vidya.

Aparavidya covers arts and sciences.

Andakosa, the cosmic egg, represents matter. The cosmic egg has seven layers: water, fire, Hara, ether, ahankara (ego), Mahat, and gunas. Vishnu pervades the egg as Vairaja and makes it viable and productive. The individual souls emanate from the Lord’s Para Prakrti (Supreme Nature), while the universe emanates from his Apara Prakriti (Inferior [not supreme] Nature). The cosmic egg is Apara, while Vairaja is Para.  Apara Prakrti (inferior nature) consists of elements, mind, ego and intellect. Since the Lord is the owner of Para and Apara, He is Man (Purusa) and all created beings are women (Striyah). 

  Woodroffe: The first or Causal Body of any particular Jiva, therefore, is that Prakrti (Avidya-Sakti) which is the cause of the subtle and gross bodies of this Jiva which are evolved from it. This body lasts until Liberation, when the Jivatma ceases to be such and is the Paramatma or bodiless Spirit (Videha-mukti). The Jiva exists in this body during dreamless sleep (Susupti).

The second and third bodies are the differentiations through evolution of the causal body, from which first proceeds the subtle body, and from the latter is produced the gross body.

The Subtle Body, which is also called Linga Sarira or Puryaṣtaka, is constituted of the first evolutes (Vikrti) from the causal Prakrtic body--namely, the Mind (Antah-karana), the internal instrument, together with the external instruments (Bahya-karana), or the Senses (Indriya), and their supersensible objects (Tanmatra).

The third or Gross Body is the body of " matter" which is the gross particular object of the senses¹ derived from the supersensibles.

Shortly, the subtle body may be described as the Mental Body, as that which succeeds is called the gross body of Matter. Mind is abstractedly considered by itself, that is, as dissociated from Consciousness which is never the case, an unconscious force which breaks up into particulars the Experience-Whole which is Cit. It is called the ee working within" or "internal instrument" (Antah-karana), and is one only, but is given different names to denote the diversity of its functions. The Sāṁkhya thus speaks of Buddhi, Ahaṁkāra, Manas, to which the Vedānta adds Citta, being different aspects or attributes (Dharma) of Mind as displayed in the psychical processes by which the Jiva knows, feels and wills. End Woodroffe.

Bhagavatam. Nothing new can come out in this world that does not exist in Aparaprakrti in its potential form. Also from Prakrti evolves, Chitta which consists of Mahat, buddhi, ahankāra, and manas. Mahat has the unique ability to undergo transformation into this universe when it comes under the field of vision of the Lord, (influence of) Time, and three gunas, according to Bhagavatam 3.5.28.

Prakrti according to the followers of Mother Goddess

Prakrti: Prakrti produces matter which is gross in its form, undergoes mutation and is not eternal. It is the Universe of Mind and Matter according to Woodroffe. Prakrti is personified as She, cannot be seen by the eyes and is beyond the senses. She is ineffable, inconceivable, formless and derived from Mula Prakriti (Root Producer) and yet can produces forms (Vikriti-- Alteration, manifestation). Prakrti is synonymous with Pradhana (Chief substance, That which contains all) and sometimes with Sakti, Maya and Mahamaya.  Prakrti Sakti is personified and called Trigunamayi and Triguna-atmikA (Composed of Sattva, Rajas, and Tamas).  When Sattva dominates pure Consciousness dominates; when Rajas (Action) dominates, the results are two-fold: dominance of Sattva or dominance of Tamas with mutual suppression of the other; when Tams dominates, there is veiling of consciousness. As Tattvas evolve, the more distant the tattva from Sakti Tattva, the degree of Sattva diminishes and Tamas rises gradually. Siddha Yogi is the purest and most Sattvic (Divya Bhava); he is Sat, Cit and Ananda (Consciousness, Being and Bliss). Among people, dominance of Rajas with suppression of Tamas produces a Vira (Hero) according to Tantrics.  When Tamas Guna dominates, he is Pasu (animal). Prakrti exists in two states: quiescent and agitated. In quiescent state the Gunas are in equilibrium and thus a state of Avyakta (unmanifest) exists. Woodroffe calls it natura naturans. When Karma comes into the forefront, Sabdabrahman quickens and makes Spandana (vibration);  Gunaksoba (agitation of Gunas) takes place and the universe is created. The products of Prakrti is called Vikara or Vikrti. Technically, milk is Vikara and curd is Vikrti, indicating the change.

Mahat

Mahat is the Great principle and results in buddhi, from which develops ahankāra, I-ness or individuation. Mahat and buddhi are the cosmic and individual counterparts of intellect. Sixteen entities such as five faculties of action, manas (instinctive mind) five faculties of sense, and five tanmatras namely sound, touch, color, taste, and smell arise from ahankāra (ego). This pluripotential Prakrti (nature) results in gunas – Sattva, Rajas, and Tamas. These three constituents of gunas are inseparable and form a complex – Sattva-Rajas-Tamas complex, which is inert, if it is in equilibrium. Only one of the three constituents is dominant in a person or entity. Sattva is knowledge, intellect, light, and balanced emotion; Rajas is the motor behind Sattva and Tamas; Tamas is darkness, passivity, or negativity. Without Rajas, Sattva, and Tamas are inert; dominance of Rajas naturally means revved-up emotions. These three gunas, complex or strands condition the manifest world, both animate and inanimate; the force behind this complex or strands is excitatory Purusa, which agitates these strands or gunas and causes disequilibrium and subsequently diversity and polymorphism. Bhagavatam (3.10.14) states that God created the first product Mahat by causing disturbance in the equilibrium of the gunas.

Ahankāra (ego), the second product, is subject to Sattva, Rajas, and Tamas:  The Sattvika ahamkāra gives rise to the mind and the presiding deities of the senses; the Rajasic ahamkāra gives rise to the sensory and motor organs; the Tamasika ahamkāra gives rise to the subtle elements like sound, touch, color and vision, taste, and odor.

Ego by nature does not express satisfaction and is in a state of restless motion. Ego has ignorance, likes and dislikes: 1. ignorance of the difference between the eternal and the noneternal, 2. mistaken belief that body and mind are the same as self, 3. love and attachment to gratifying objects, 4. hatred and avoidance of unpleasant things, and 5. love of life and fear of death.

Mind perceives by Samkalpa-Vikalpa, selection and rejection from the material provided by Janendriya--sense organs, --Woodroffe.  Samkalpa = purpose, will, desire, determination.  Vikalpa = imagination, doubt. Samkalpa is experiencing the perceived sensation by the mind and presenting the sensation to the AhamkAra and Buddhi, the former 'making the sensation his own in feeling and experience' and the latter making a determination on the sensation, so that the experiencer identifies with the sensation. Sensation is personalized by Ahamkara. Woodroffe states, 'when a sensation is perceived  by the Manas (mind) and determined by Buddhi, Ahamkara says: "It is I who perceives it."  Buddhi, Ahamkara being its part, pervades the organs, and is the repository of all Karmic tendencies (Samskaras), and the seat of memory. Buddhi is the thinking entity involved in ideation and conceptualization with the help of AhamkAra, Manas and Indriyas (organs).  Sense organs beam sensations to mind or Manas (perception);  AhamkAra identifies them for personalization (self-arrogation); Buddhi stores the sensations for determination, cognition,  resolution and presentation to Consciousness (Purusa), which illumines the Buddhi.  Buddhi is the Charioteer; Manas, whose quality is Samkalpa-Vikalpa, is the reins; the senses are the horses; Jiva is the enjoyer. Buddhi is Sattva-dominant; AhamkAra is Rajas-dominant; Manas, Indriyas and their objects are Tamas-dominant.

Take a look at the Tattvas above and below. The light of consciousness is Purusa^12. Prakrti Tattva ¹³ is the origin of all distal Tattvas. All the organs 17 to 31 report to Manas¹⁶, which reports to AhamkAra¹⁵, which reports to Buddhi¹⁴, which is illumined by Purusa¹². All Tattvas serve for the pleasure of Purusa¹².   The Subtle body is made of 17 Tattvas from Buddhi^{14 to}  odor^31.   AhamkAra¹⁵ is part of Buddhi^14.   Samkhya philosophy makes no mention of Prana (the pentad); the MAyAvAdins remove the Tanmatras (sound¹⁷, touch¹⁸, color¹⁹, taste²⁰, and smell²¹)  and put in the five Pranas (Prana, Samana, Apana, Udana, and Vyana..

12. Purusa, 13. Prakrti Tattva, 14. Buddhi, 15. Ahamkara 16. Manas, 17. hearing 18. tactile sense, 19. vision and color, 20.tasting, 21. smell, 22. speech, 23. grasp, 24. ambulation, 25. evacuation, 26. procreation, 27. sound, 28. palpation, 29. form, 30. taste, 31. odor,  32. ether, 33. air, 34. fire, 35. water, 36. earth.

According to Ramakrishna Paramahamsa ego comes in two flavors: unripe and ripe.  Unripe ego gives rise to ideas such as "This is my house, this is my child, this is my wife, this is my body." Ripe ego gives rise to ideas such as "Nothing is mine, whatever I see or feel or hear, nay, even this body, is not mine; I (my soul) am always eternal, free and all-knowing." adapted from Sayings of Ramakrishna, saying 115, page 48.

Ramana Maharishi says that from the vast unbroken Being-Awareness-Self springs forth a separate "I" ( I am, my, mine, me) which falls into the error of confronting a world perceived as something other than the Self --Verse 156. A true seer and ascetic is the strong hero who has discarded the body-based ego. It is hard for those who still retain regard for Asrama or varna (caste) to cast off the ego's heavy burden.  Varna and Asrama pertain to the body and ego. The egoless person is the true Brahmin and true ascetic--Verse 163. One who sees otherness and difference cannot become a Brahmin merely by the study of four Vedas. He alone is a true Brahmin who sees his ego dead and knows the Veda's import. Failing here one swelters inly (sic), fallen, despised--Verse163.  If a traveler does not put down his luggage  in the cart but carries it plainly on his head, whose fault is it? The Lord sustains the universe; the pseudo-self, which thinks it bears it, is like the grinning figure which seems to carry the weight of the temple tower--Verse 171. Adapted from The garland of Guru's sayings, pages 30 to 33.

The sensory and motor organs are called Jnanedriyani and Karmendriyani. (Jnana +Indriyani = perception (sensory) organs. Karma + Indriyani = action (motor) organs.) Organs of perception are eyes, ears, nose, tongue, and skin. Motor organs are larynx, hands, feet, anus and genitals and their functions are speech, grasp, locomotion, evacuation and reproduction. Chitta, the command and control center or inner organ (antahkarana), presides over the vital functions of the universe of the body. These vital functions go by the generic name Prana (breath) which consists of five parts: Prana, Samana, Apana, Udana, and Vyana.  Please refer to the commentary on verse, BG10.9 for more details on Vital breaths.  Here breath does not exclusively mean physiological respiration. Implicit in the terms is the fact that all the organs to work optimally need breathing of air (prana) by the lungs.

Saiva siddhantist says, soul is the ever-awake knowing entity in wakefulness, deep sleep and dream sleep. The sense organs receive their respective stimuli (eyes perceive color and form, ears receive sound.) and pass them on to Antahkarana, the inner organ which consists of Manas (the Mind), Buddhi (Intellect), Ahamkara (Ego), and Chitta (Subconscious) (Chitta covers manas, ahamkara, and buddhi: mind, ego and power of discernment or judgment). Perception received by the inner organ reaches the soul, as the wave rolls to the shore.

Antahkarana is the expression of Saksin (Atman-Witness) as listed above and is compared to a ray which radiates from the Witness, Atman or Self. This emanation is called Vrttis or ripples. Perceptions are compared to the waves reaching the Self. Chitta (Citta) is less subtle than Ahamkara  and is like the RAM memory, remembering and forgetting; The forgetting is called Apohana and recall is known as Smrti. Chitta obtains knowledge from Buddhi and keeps it in storage. Apohana or forgetting is to move the knowledge to the back burner from the front of consciousness. Smrti or remembering is to move the knowledge from the back to the front.

The Buddhi is less subtle than Chitta, makes decisions and instructs the Mind which works in collaboration with the five Janendriyas (sense organs = eyes, ears, nose, tongue and skin). Mind serves as the blackboard where on the sense organs register their impressions, which are converted as concepts by the mind and presented to Buddhi, which rejects most of them and keeps some as nuggets of knowledge. Buddhi keeps moving the knowledge back and forth between the front and back of the consciousness as Smrti and Apohana with the help of Chitta.

Antahkarana is operational in two modes: External knowledge Acquisition (Abhijna) and internal Self-Knowledge (Pratyabhijna) acquisition. In Abhijna knowledge acquisition, knowledge proceeds from the gross to the subtle, from the sense organs to Chitta. It also depicts the evolution of the gross from the subtle (Ahamkara, Chitta, Buddhi, Manas). In Pratyabhijna mode, it turns itself inward and obtain Self-Knowledge. Abhijna is outbound, while Pratyabhijna is inbound.

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The subtle elements proceed in their formation in a cascade fashion starting with sound, which gives rise to ether. The elements combine under the enzymatic action of Time, Maya, Jiva, and the glance of the Lord. Ether, treated with these enzymes, becomes touch, which transforms to air; the air and ether combine in the presence of enzymes to become color; from color evolves fire; fire and air combine to produce water, whose special quality is taste; water and fire combine to form earth, whose special quality is odor. Source: Bhagavatam 3.5.27-37. The term enzyme (inductor) is my interpolation.

The elements starting with Sound and its product Ether going forward in their combinations and permutations sequentially and progressively pick up qualities of the previous elements and display their own special qualities. Bhagavatam 3.5.36

Table:

As I said earlier, the elements need four factors for transformation and they are Time, Maya, Jīva, and the glance of the Lord; time connotes change; Maya is illusion plus distraction; Jīva is the life force; the most critical deciding factor in the combinations, permutations, and transformations is the glance of the Lord. Maya is the cause of the universe, which, in its female form, derives its energy and support from the Lord. Avyakta (the Unmanifest) is the father of Maya.  

According Saiva Siddhanta and its main formulating proponent Tirumular, Sakti is the mother of Maya. Space, air, fire, water, and earth were born of Maya in succession. From Maya came the subtle elements Tanmatras, from which the gross elements were born; thus, Maya is the Mother of the Universe and beings.

Maya according to Ramakrishna Parmahamsa

On attainment of Nirvikalpa Samadhi, Ramakrishna Paramahamsa sees Maya as Brahman in its twofold aspect: Avidyamaya and Vidyamaya. (Avidya = ignorance; Vidya = wisdom) Avidyamaya in terms of Kundalini Chakras is living in the pelvis and abdomen--Muladhara, Svadhisthana and Manipura Chakras of lower order; it is living a life of animal passions, Kama, Krodha, lobha, Raga and Dvesha (lust, anger, greed, passion and hate). One should transcend the lower Chakras and ascend to higher chakras. Avidyamaya keeps man in samsara, a cycle of birth and rebirth. Vidyamaya represents the higher centers and consciousness of Anahata, Visuddha, Ajna and Sahasrara Chakras or stations of life. Once Avidyamaya is conquered with Vidyamaya, the round of birth and rebirth is abolished and one enters a state of Mayatita, end of Maya or freedom from Maya. Maya is the power of Kali who transcends both types of Maya. She shines far above the clouds of Maya, under whose spell and shadow man lives.  The word pelvis is my interpolation.

Let us take cloning as an example: The biologists have mastered the physical art of cloning. The product is not as perfect as nature because the main factor – glance of the Lord – is lacking.

In the following diagram, the concept of Sūtra, not found in Sankhya system, is a contribution of Bhagavata purana. Sūtra means thread or aphoristic rule. Sutra = suture. Sutra is the functional counterpart of Mahat, the Cosmic Intelligence. Both work together --Intelligence and function—to evolve Ahankara. Sutra is subtler than Mahat.  (Sutra and Suture are cognate words)

Karmendriyani are five motor organs, voice box, hands, feet, rectum and genitals, causing  speech, grasp, locomotion, evacuation, and generation.  Janendriyani are five sensory organs, ear, skin, eye, tongue and nose involved in hearing, touch, vision, taste, and smell.

Sarasvati, Savitri and Gayatri preside over the gunas, Sattva, Rajas and Tamas respectively.            

Matter consists of four (individual and) cumulative stages 1: Matter (Anna) 2: Life (Prāna) 3: Mind (Manas) and 4: Intelligence (Jnāna). Bliss (Ānanda) is the spirit. These are Kosas – sheaths: The four sheaths, layer on layer veil the self. Self stands alone when the kosas fall; Self is King and likes his nakedness without all these sticky layers or Kosas. Self is self-supporting and self is Bliss. Self is the light of Purusa's consciousness by which we become aware of the insentient Prakrti (nature) and its gunas (modes). The AnandaMaya kosa or the Bliss-Body or Pure Consciousness or the Absolute is Self itself, and is a chronicler and a repository of karma of this and past lives. This is the sheath of Consciousness and Bliss (Cinmaya) and made of Nada and Bindu. Self is the companion of jivatma – the individual self and the Greater Self in the spiritual heart are like the two birds on a tree. The Self by itself is bliss, but man needs realization to find the light that is bliss. Man has four cumulative features but does not reach his inherent potential that is bliss, illumined Consciousness, if he does not strive for it.  As you see, matter becomes finer from one stage to the next. Here is an illustration of evolution from the gross to subtle via Food sheath, Vital breath sheath, Mind sheath, Knowledge sheath and eventually to the Bliss sheath. When man strives for and gains perfection, he receives Ananda (Bliss); God according to the Vedas is Sat-Chit-Ananda– Satchidananda– Being, Consciousness, and Bliss. Bliss comes to man in Deep Sleep, when there are no mental Vrittis, modifications or thoughts. It is as if the individual self plugs into the Power Grid of the Universal Self (the origin of the individual self) every night in deep sleep. Without this infusion of nightly bliss, we are zombies. This temporary life-sustaining nightly Bliss should not be mistaken for the Eternal Bliss that comes with liberation. The first four outer sheaths are matter; Matter and Mind have to come to a standstill  for the individual self wrapped in Anandamaya Kosa to enjoy the Bliss of the Universal Self.

Kosas and their origin

Vaishnavas have this view on the Tattvas, 26 in all:

Prakrti, Mahat, Ahankaram = 3

Tanmatras =5

Five Bhutas = 5

10 Indriyas + manas = 11

All these are Prakrti Tattvas, 24 in all.

Jivatma is the 25th Tattva.

Paramatma is the 26th Tattva.

Saivites describe 36 Tattvas; one and two are Siva and Sakti Tattvas; 12th is Purusa or the Jivatma.

TATTVAS-36 for more information on Tattvas.

Bhrgu Muni practicing Raja Yoga (Kundalini yoga) discovered the sheaths or Kosas of the body. Annamaya Kosa takes its origin from Earth, Water, and Fire which are present in Muladhara, Svadisthana, and Manipura centers. Earth (minerals), water and Fire (heat) are the basic elements of our body. Pranamaya Kosa (Vital Air Sheath, five in number) and Ether take their origin from Anahata and Visuddha Chakras respectively. The mind or mental sheath originates from Ajna Chakra, which is the seat of Nada and Bindu, which give rise to Vijnanamaya Kosa. Primordial Prakrti in its undifferentiated form is Anadamaya Kosa.

According to Joseph Campbell, bliss is never having to say that you did not follow your bliss and that you did not do what you wanted to do. He talks about the hub at the center and the rim of the wheel. A person at the hub is serene and the one riding on the rim gets the dizzying experience of duality of pain and pleasure, love and hate. He adds that one should go where his body and soul take him. It is not the wealth or the prestige (body-mind-ego complex) that he seeks or recommends. You are the soul and not the body. Why does this soul wrap itself with the body or these kosas? Swami Vivekananda says: “For the same reason that I take a looking glass: to see myself. Thus in the body, the soul is reflected.” Joseph Campbell puts it in another way (paraphrase): "when one gains transcendence (or the Brahman), one dies to his flesh and is born into his spirit. The body is a vehicle. It reminds me of the life (and times of) our Lord Jesus Christ."  

Panchadasi puts forward the following theory with regards to Brahman, Jiva, and Prakrti. Prakrti is not a product of Brahman; it is not a palpable real entity separate from Brahman. It represents the Will (Iccha) of Brahman to create and this Will becomes (transforms into) the three gunas: Sattva, Rajas and Tamas which gel into material.  When Prakrti is sattvic, it is called Maya; when it is dominated by Rajas and Tamas, it is called Avidya (nescience). Maya is the mirror that reflects Brahman; the reflected image of Brahman is called Isvara who controls Maya. It is like the lady who carries the mirror in her purse. The lady is Brahman, the mirror is maya and the lady's image in the mirror is Isvara. Sat Chit: Sat (Being) is Consciousness (Chit) and exercises its Will to create; therefore, it is Being, possessing and controlling  maya, and becoming matter through the gunas. On the other hand, Brahman is the subject; Avidya is the water-mirror; and Jiva is the inverted reflection of Isvara in water.  What does it mean?  Isvara' head is at a high point and man's head in the water-mirror is at the low point. Isvara's consciousness is Pure Consciousness at the high point, while Jiva's consciousness is at the low point; there is a wide chasm between these two entities--two heads. Man, as said before, is governed by ignorance (avidya), meaning that he identifies himself with the body and not with the soul (self) which is organically connected and related to Isvara. This ignorance is both veiling and projecting (Avarana and Vikshepa). This ignorance veils Sat and Cit (Being and Consciousness) of Brahman and projects the phenomenal world by Vikshepa. Vikshepa: power of ignorance that causes the world seem real. This projection is mediated by Tanmatras: Principles of Sound, touch, vision and color, taste and smell, which are pervaded by qualities Sattva, Rajas and Tamas. The Sattva of Sound becomes the sense of hearing; that of touch, the sense of touch and so on. These in combination form an entity called Antahkarana or inner organ which have four aspects: Manas, Buddhi, Ahankara and Chitta (citta). These were discussed above. The Rajas-dominated sound, touch, vision (color and form), taste, and smell become the respective motor organs.

Go to  BG Chapter 13 The Knower, the Field, the Nature for more details contained in commentary under Verse 13.06 Table. Panchadasi says that these composite elements formed the Cosmic Egg (Brahma Anda) from which the universe came into being.

 Jiva takes on the qualities of Sattva, Rajas and Tamas. Jiva's body is Avidya while Isvara's body is Maya. Subtle and gross bodies of Jiva come out of  Avidya causal body. Lord's will (Ichha) is Maya Sarira (body) and the creator of the world. Here the term "body" does not mean a palpable body with head, trunk and limbs, in the same sense that a "body of knowledge" does not walk on feet. Isvara's Maya Body is creative (of the universe) while Jiva (man's individual soul) is the causal body, creative in its own limited sense because it gives rise to subtle and gross body--Suksma and Sthula Sarira). Jiva's causal body (Karana Sarira) is pervaded by Avidya (ignorance) of its true nature that it is part of Brahman; it is temporary amnesia (loss of memory or forgetfulness). In its amnesic state, Jiva is not contaminated with Vikshepa until it takes on the gross body with head, trunk and limbs. Jiva without Vikshepa is closer to Isvara (Supreme Consciousness and Supreme Knowledge) than the Sthula Sarira (gross body). Though it forgets its true nature, the causal body is closer to Isvara than the gross body; therefore, it has supreme knowledge within ignorance (Prajna within Praajna--knowledge within ignorance). Vikshepa = projecting power of Avidya or ignorance.

Let me mention the Tantric view, which is cognate with some aspects of Samkhya philosophy. Mahanirvana Tantra says the following as a dialogue between Sadasiva (Siva) and Devi (Sakti).

Sadasiva eulogies Devi.

You are Sive (Devi, the counterpart of Siva); you are Mula Prakriti; You created everything in this universe; You are Isvari, the controller; You are the Great Mother Goddess, the origin of Brahma, Vishnu and Siva. You know the essence of all Tattvas (building blocks) of the entire universe, but no one knows your nature. You are the gods and goddesses of the universe; you are Kali, Bhairavi, Mahalakshmi, Devi of speech and Annapurna. You are Sakti; you are subtle, gross, unmanifest, and manifest; you are formless and with form.

Saivaites say that the universe and beings are made of 36 Tattvas, which take their origin from Siva-Sakti.

Saktas (monistic worshippers of Devi, Mother Goddess) are firmly entrenched in their view that conflicts with Samkhya philosophy. Samkhya declares Prakrti (matter) as an unconscious element, apart from Purusa, the conscious element. Saktas declare that Devi has both aspects in her, matter and Consciousness. Another concept that is notably absent in Sankhya System and unique to Saiva Siddhanta is Mum-malam (three impurities) of the soul. Go to Primer in Saiva Siddhanta.

2.13: As the soul passes from childhood to youth to old age in a body, so also the soul takes another body. This does not confuse a sage (brave and composed person).

Dēhina: Embodied soul or jivātma. Dēhē: body. Kaumāra: childhood, age one to five)  

The soul of good people leaves the body through Brahmarandhra (Brahma's aperture, crevice: Anterior fontanel area of the head at the crown, equivalent to the soft spot on baby's head). The soul of evil people takes a downward descent and is expelled in the same manner as the excreta. If the spirit exits through the feet, it goes to Vishnu; if from the head to Brahma, and if through the eyes to Agni or Fire-god. In Buddhist, it exits through back of the forehead. Harper's Dictionary of Hinduism P53.

Hindus perform Samskaras from conception to death in order to prevent the soul from taking another body and attain liberation from rebirth.  In Hinduism, the twice-born (Brahmanas, Ksatriyas, and Vaishyas) and the Sudras perform Samskaras or sacraments from conception to departure from this world. In twice-born, Samskaras are mandatory and the Sudras too practice if not all of them.

Samskaras have more than one meaning. The most common one means Sacraments. The other meaning is Impression. It is the impression that your soul carries from birth to birth as a result of actions in the past life. What is an impression? It is like the odor of cedar wood closet that your clothes carry though the clothes are out of the closet. It is the fragrance or impressions (Samskaras) from past life, that clings to your soul like fragrance and shape your present life.

The body follows the soul in the sense the body in the next birth may be a human or animal depending on the Samskaras-- impression from the past life. It is your action, good, bad, or indifferent performed under right thought, delusion, or illusion, which contributes to the Impression or Samskaras. They determine one's heredity, ancestry and environment. Heredity: One may be born in a royal family or a commoner. Ancestry: One's ancestors may be Vedic Pundits, accomplished musicians or jailbirds. Environment: One's environment may be wretched poverty and penury in a world of perennial want or a life of luxury in the present life, all determined by the Samskaras from the past life.

Samskara draws its meaning from Sam meaning together and Kri meaning to do or act. It is putting the act or acts together creating an Impression, that determines the future direction (of the embodied soul).

Now we come to Samskaras or Sacraments, which celebrate the various stages in the life a person. People who question rituals are in the minority. Take for instance the Presidential Inauguration, which is an expensive and extravagant ritual or Samskara in the political life of the nation and the elected president. We know a person has been elected by due process, will occupy the White House and discharge his or her duties. Why should we fuss with pomp and pageantry of the ceremonial aspect of inauguration? Why can't the president just move into the White House and start working? It is a milestone for the nation, people and the world that demands a Samskara and a historical record.

Take the Jewish tradition. They have more Samskaras than one may imagine. Every move, turn or act is a Samskara for a good reason: Circumcision, naming of boys and girls, the Redemption of the First-born Son (Pidyon Ha-ben Ceremony), Bar/Bat Mitzva and confirmation,  Mikva (immersion), Wedding (Erusin and Nisuin--Betrothal and Marriage), Contract (Ketuba with witnesses), the Seven Blessings (Sheva Berachot), Breaking the glass to scare away the demons, Rending Garment at death (Keria), Burial with shroud (Tachrichim), Seven day mourning (Shiva), Dietary Laws (DOs and DON'Ts), Mitzva (good acts: 248 DOs and 365 DON'Ts), Synagogue (as house of prayer, community hall, and house of study), Sabbath and cooking rules, Passover (Pesach), Koshering, Shavuot, Days of Awe (Rosh Hashana and Yom Kippur),  Sukkot, Shemini, Atzeret, Simchat Torah, Chanuka, purim....

In the Hindu religion the Samskaras fall into Prenatal Samskaras, Natal Samskaras, Postnatal Samskaras, Childhood Samskaras, Educational Samskaras, Wedding Samskaras, and Final Samskaras (Funeral Rites). I am excluding listing of religious festivals and associated rites. Samskaras of childhood include: Conception ceremony, Quickening Ceremony, Hair-parting ceremony of the pregnant woman, Birth ceremony, Naming ceremony, First outing, First feeding, Tonsure,  Piercing the ears, First entry into school, Upanayana (initiation), Vedic Studies, First shaving, Completion of studies, Marriage and its subsidiary ceremonies, and Funeral ceremonies.

A person undergoes many Samskaras (purification rites) from the time of his birth: Jatakarma (consecratory rites after birth), Namakarana (naming sacrament) and Upanayanam (holy triple-cord ceremony). The goal of all these sacraments or Pancha (5) Samskaras is to purify the individual and his soul so that he attains God realization. Samskarams in Vaishnava tradition is done to induct an individual into Sri Vaishnava sect, because no one is Sri Vaishnava until he or she is inducted; Sri Vaishnava is not a birth right.  When a person is inducted with Pancha Samskaras, he is born into the sect. The idea is that all previous lives were a waste until one becomes a Sri Vaishnava.

   Samskaras (Purificatory rites or sacraments) are many:

The best book I know of on Hindu Samskaras is written by Dr. Rajbali Pandey. The work was originally written as a thesis, which was approved by the Benares Hindu University for the degree of Doctor of Letters in 1936. The publisher is Motilal Banarsidass.

2.14: O son of Kunti (Arjuna), as organs and objects induce cold and heat, happiness and sorrow which are sensory perceptions, appearing, disappearing and impermanent. Learn to endure them, O Bharata (Arjuna). 

When the body, mind and ego interact, perceptions of dualities, such as pleasure and pain, love and hate are dominant. These dualities cause vibrations on the Body-Mind-Ego complex and are temporary during its existence. When the mind separates from the body and the ego, and turns inward, composure, tranquillity, transcendence, and certitude free from dualities get you close to your self and therefore close to Brahman.

2.15: He, who suffers no distress from these, O the best of men, and stays even in sorrow and happiness, is a sage and fit for nectar of eternity or liberation.

    He, in whom dualities cause no distress, O the best of men, and who stays even in sorrow and happiness, is a sage and fit for nectar of eternity or liberation

    Krishna in his discourse The Uddhava Gita, Dialogue 6, Verse 29 - 31 lists the attributes of a Sage.

    He, who is compassionate to all beings, who brings no harm to anyone, who is patient and controlled, whose tenet and strength is Truth, who does not entertain envy, whose mind is even in joy and sorrow and whose only interest is the welfare of all, is a sage. His mind is not overcast by a cloud of desire; he reins in his senses; he is kind to others; he is pleasing in his disposition, freeing himself from a desire for possessions; he eats to live; he fulfills his duty. He thinks deep and his judgment is considered and deliberate. He is calm, collected and resistant when the six waves of hunger, thirst, heat, cold, greed, and infatuation buffet him on a daily basis. He is averse to seeking honor and yet confers honor on others. When adversity strikes, he contemplates. He is friendly and kind esp., to those in misery. He does not discriminate as to whom he gives his light of knowledge. He renounces his duties and their outcome, good or bad. A sage sees his Self in all.

  2.16: In the nonexistent (Asatah), there is no continuance (Bhāva), and in the existent (Satah), there is no cessation (Abhāva). In the two, the seers saw the truth and came to that conclusion.

In the Unreal (Asatah) continuance is absent, and in the Real (Satah), there is eternity (no end).

In the Being (Sat), the Truth is existent and self itself. The self is real, the body is unreal, and the self is embodied. The I-factor, heavily influenced by avidya – ignorance – prevents us, from accepting the self as real and the body as unreal. The self, being real, is eternal.

2.17: Know that which pervades all, is indestructible and immutable by anyone.

The self, emanating from Brahman (chip off the Old Block as it were), is all-pervasive. Let me present to you the monistic theory of Atman or the Absolute.

What is that force that moves and animates the body? Body is not self-created. This force must be a common denominator for all sentient beings. According to Advaita philosophy even insentient objects have a force in them. This force must be beyond the mind, body and matter, because it is still a mover or a force or a bright light even after the mind and body are gone. Atman is that all-pervasive force that remains after the body falls. It has to be infinitesimal to be all-pervasive; it is what remains after you chop a fig seed to its ultimate infinitesimal size. You cannot see it but you know it is there; It has no shape and therefore no name; the ultimate infinitesimal, the one without form or name, if it is conceivable, is within the fig seed. It (Brahman) is neither Sura (god) nor Asura (Demon), nor man, nor woman, nor eunuch, nor animal, nor insect, nor attribute, nor action, nor existence, nor non-existence; What remains after all negation is THAT.

It is like the salt in the water: You know it is there, but you do not see it. It is all-pervasive like the all-pervasive salt in the saltwater. You have an Atman and I have an Atman. How could that be possible if Atman is only One? Each one of us is like a pot holding one’s individual space inside. When the pot breaks, the space is still there. The Real (space) is Atman and the seeming (space) is limit of the Real as in a pot. The space is unbound and bound at the same time: The Real is unbound and the apparent has bounds. That is the difference between the Real and the apparent man. The phenomenal world is an apparent product of the Absolute by intermediation of time, space and causation. Since Atman has no form and is beyond mind, it cannot be under the control of time, space and causation.

Since it is infinite and there can be only one infinite, infinite cannot have a beginning or end, birth or death; and that infinite is Atman. Since the infinite is only one and all-pervasive, Atman pervades the sentient and the insentient, the whole universe. Monistic doctrine describes the phenomenal world and superimposition: This phenomenal world rises and falls like the waves in the ocean. The wave has the time, space and causation elements incorporated or expressed in them during the wave. In addition, there are many waves; and therefore, there are many forms and many names. Since the waves rise and fall into the ocean, the waves have a finite existence; the ocean is Monism and the waves are dualism. When the dualistic waves fall back into the monistic ocean, the transient dualism disappears and the Monism exists as it does always.  How can there be finite elements in the Infinite or the Absolute? As the waves rise and fall (superimposition) on the ocean surface, transient elements rise and fall on the Absolute. That is an illusion and superimposition. The term for this apparent and unreal phenomenon or change is called Vivarta. Now it is there; and now it is not there, as the waves rise and fall: It is Maya (illusion). Monists say that the Prakrti becomes products (Vikara or Vikrti) of the universe. The substrate is Prakrti and the substance is the universe of products. The products are called Vikara or Vikrti. Example: Curds (Yogurt) is the Vikara of milk. Vikara is transformation from to another and the product. The Time, Space, and causation elements are translucent elements between the Upper Absolute and the lower universe. The lower universe is a superimposition on the Absolute seen through time, space, and causation. The allegory of a snake and a rope explains this superimposition. In the dark, we see a snake in a rope; the rope is real and the snake is a superimposition and unreal. When ignorance dissipates on closer inspection, the real asserts itself. In the same manner, the phenomenal world (the snake) superimposes on the absolute (the rope). Once ignorance dissipates, realization sets in.

That is how Maya manipulates our mind and the phenomenal world. The snake depends on the rope, as the world depends on Brahman; if there is no rope, there is no snake; if there is no Brahman, there is no phenomenal world. The world is both real and unreal at the same time. The world is Brahman-dependent, as the snake is rope-dependent. The world and the snake by themselves (their intrinsic merit) are not real and non-existent; they are real if considered in the context of primary essential Brahman and the primary essential rope. Isvara has control over Maya whose effect is on the mind. Since there is only one Absolute pervading the whole world, there is no second: The Absolute or the Atman and the manifested universe are one giant organism. There is no individuality: Individuality is apparent only because of the mind; if there is no mind, there is no perception of individuality. If you look beyond time and space, the Absolute is One who is real, immutable, all-pervasive; that is Advaitism or Monism of Sankara. We are all part of that oneness. Vivekananda says: “I am in everything, in everybody. I am in all lives and I am the universe.”    

How could you say that Atman pervades everything in the universe, both sentient and insentient? You cannot compare a tree or an animal to a man. Yes, you can. Sentience is same in all. Only the extent of its manifestation varies. Sentience manifests the most in man and the least in the insentient or the inanimate and somewhere between from the plants to animals. Saiva Siddhanta asserts the power of Sakti (Tattva) exists in all beings and matter. Consciousness sleeps in the stone, feels in the flora, senses in the fauna and thinks in man. Sentience runs parallel with consciousness.  Since there is only a difference in the (expression) degree of sentience between animal and man, how could one kill an animal for whatever purpose? That is the basis of Ahimsa or noninjury.

2.18: The material bodies are perishable, but the (embodied) souls being eternal, indestructible, and unexplainable are never destroyed and beyond comprehension. Therefore, fight O Bharata (Arjuna).

The bodies (encasing the imperishable, incomprehensible, and eternal individual souls) are perishable. Therefore, O Arjuna, fight.

That, which emanates from Self, pervades all living beings. They (self Vs self) are separate but equal. Here the self is the individual self. It is existing, unseen, unknown, and incomprehensible. During dreamless sleep, the body does not exist as it were, but only the self is existing and awake, and shines as the disembodied being, according to Ramana Maharishi.      

2.19: Anyone who knows this (atman or soul) as the killer, and thinks that this is killed, knows not in his knowledge that this soul neither kills nor is killed.

He, who thinks he knows this (atman or soul) as the killer, and thinks that this soul dies in the hands of another soul, does not have the knowledge of the self. The soul neither kills another soul nor dies in the hands of another soul.

As there is Atman or Self, there is “not-Self” (anatman); according to Samkhya, anything that is not Atman is anatman. To put it simply, not-Self is anything other than atman except Brahman or Paramatman; anatman consists of  body, sense organs, and their functions, sense objects, mind, breath, ego, thoughts, emotions, and Maya – life itself. Discussion of Maya appears later.

2.20: This (atman or soul) is neither born, nor dead, nor coming to be, nor will it cease to be at any time. This atman is unborn, eternal, timeless, everlasting, and primeval; it is not killed when the body is slain. 

Since atman is the chip off the Old Block, which is “Self” (Atman, Paramatman, Brahman, Superconsciousness or Purusa), it has the qualities, mentioned in Verse 2.20. The atman is only a chip and not the whole and so it does not share the highest qualities of the “Self.” The atman remains in the heart, not the anatomical heart, but the spiritual heart, which exists on the right side of the front of chest cavity. Man has two souls: Parmatman and jivātman. Jivātman is the individual soul that falsely identifies itself with the body; Paramatman is the universal immortal Self. This jivātman and Paramatman are like the two companion birds on a tree. The jiva bird is eating the sweet fruits, while Paramatman is watching and witnessing, and taking notes without eating, contented, great, and free from sorrow. The jiva bird, once it finishes eating the fruits on one tree, goes to the next tree. The tree here represents the body and the bird represents the jivatma. Here eating means the jiva identifies itself with the body, the body-mind-senses complex experiencing pleasure and pain, and other life events. The transmigrating jivātman, one among many, is susceptible to rebirth, while all-pervasive Paramatman, free from Vasanas, Samskaras (impressions from past life), Karma and transmigration, is One (Paramatman), but appears as many. Karma is the cause of transmigration of the individual soul. Discussion of Karma will appear elsewhere. Note:  Read the detailed story of the birds in the Supplement section: 

 See Supplement < Go to Two Birds in One>

2.21: How can a human being (Purusha), who knows that this (atman) is indestructible (Avināsinam), eternal (nityam), immutable (Avyayan), and unborn (ajam), O Partha (Arjuna), think that he could kill or cause anyone to kill?

Since Purusa is uncreated, atman also is uncreated or unborn. That which is uncreated or unborn cannot be slain. It is like saying, “You are not the body but the jivātman and Parmatman, which can never be slain, when the body is slain.” Here, Arjuna is fulfilling his duty as Ksatrya, by killing his enemies. Death is justifiable in battlefield. 

2.22: As a person (nara) sheds the old and worn-out garment and wears a new garment, the embodied atman (soul), in the same manner, gives up the old and worthless body and takes on a new and different body. 

                         vasamsi jirnani yatha vihaya

                                                               navani grhnati naro 'parani

                                                               tatha sarirani vihaya jirnany

                                                               anyani samyati navani dehi

Sarīra is body and has its root in Srī, to wane and waste, to decay, to molder, to disintegrate.

What can be truer than this definition of Sarira or body? Now you can appreciate the power of words in Sanskrit.

The word body is from the root bodig meaning 'trunk, chest' or botah of unknown origin. What a dull word 'body' is.

            Atman changes body as a person changes garment. Each one of us has five sheaths, according to Vivekachoodamani: The food sheath, the vital-air sheath, the mental sheath, the intellectual sheath, and the bliss sheath. Another classification bundles these sheaths differently. The physical body (Sthula or Annamaya Sarira) is food sheath or layer. The astral or subtle body (Suksma Sarira) consists of many sheaths namely vital air sheath (Prāna), mental, and intellectual-instinctive sheaths–buddhi, ahankāra, manas, indriyāni, and tanmātrāni. The causal body (Kārana Sarira) is the most important and the innermost sheath consisting of the soul as light, which has a record of all karmas of present and past lives and Bliss. When someone dies, the physical body goes to the elements that nourished the physical body; the vital air sheath dissipates, leaving the intellectual-instinctive and mental sheath with the karmic sheath, the soul-light, and Bliss intact. Brhad-aranyaka UP: 3.2.13: According to Yajnavalkya, on death, the speech of a dead person goes into the fire, the breath into the air, the eyes into the sun, the mind into the moon, the hearing into the space, the body into the earth, the self into the ākāsam (ether), the hairs of the body into the bushes, the hairs of the head into the trees, and the blood and the seed go into the waters. The message is the body parts come home to their respective cosmic counterparts. Karma, Dharma, and the functions of the respective organs including that of the mind are the companions of the soul, when the kosas drop and go to their gross or subtle source. Please read the commentary section of verse 40 for details.

The Lingasarira or Kāranasarira (causal body) takes with it not only the soul-light and karma, but also the primary prāna, the senses, the manas, avidya, a suitcase of experiences, purvajnāna, vidyā (knowledge), and other vāsanās and samskaras. Purvajnāna is wisdom of past lives; Vāsanā is fragrance from past karmas and impressions that cling to the subtle body from birth to birth. At the time of creation, Lingasarira takes its birth from Sattvika Mahat and is presided over by ksetrajana, which is jiva-ksetrajna in beings and Supreme ksetrajna in the Lord, having control over the respective ksetras. The Supreme Ksetrajna presides over all jiva-ksetrajnas and the universe, while each jiva-ksetrajana presides over its respective body. It is the light of life for we work, eat, sleep, and wake up again because of its presence.  

The soul-light encased with the rest of the layers is ready for rebirth according to the karmic compulsions. This karmic connection determines “the heredity, ancestry, and environment”, the phrase used by Radhakrishnan.

The soul is distinct from the body; they do not go together from one birth to the next. The transmigration of the soul does not support Mendelian laws but adheres to Karmic laws. A soul shall not come to reside in a son or grandson. --Bhagavatha Purana, 12.5.3.

The soul’s origin is Brahman, while the body’s origin is matter. The laws for each entity are different, but Isvara (Brahman) has control over both.

2.23: The weapons cannot cut the self, the fire cannot burn it, the water cannot wet it, and the wind cannot dry it.

Upanishads looks at Atman in a perspective of exclusion: It is not this; it is not that (neti, neti). The first Neti excludes Maya and the second Neti excludes the products of Maya (Prakrti), matter and beings with names and forms; thus, what stands alone after those exclusions is Atman.  It is not susceptible to seizure and destruction. It is irrevocably independent (unattached); no one can injure it; and it does not tremble. Earth, water, light, ether, and air, the inanimate ingredients forming the body need consciousness to animate it, which at universal level is Atman (Paramātman or Supreme Soul) and at individual level is atman or individual soul.

There are many individual souls, many bodies, and many experiences; therefore, all souls are immutable, irreducible, and atomic, and dependent on a controlling authority: Brahman or God.

Swami Vivekananda says: "So then the Hindu believes that he is a spirit. Him the sword cannot pierce -- him the fire cannot burn -- him the water cannot melt -- him the air cannot dry. The Hindu believes that every soul is a circle whose circumference is nowhere, but whose centre is located in the body, and that death means the change of this centre from body to body. Nor is the soul bound by the conditions of matter. In its very essence it is free, unbounded, holy, pure, and perfect. But somehow or other it finds itself tied down to matter, and thinks of itself as matter."

2.24: This (atman) is uncuttable,  fireproof, waterproof, besides without doubt drought-proof, eternal, all-pervading, stable and immovable; it is everlasting (sanātanah).