All Living Beings are Brahman Alone

This article is based largely on comments Sathya Sai Baba has made in His discourses about the eighth-century saint/poet Shankaracharya.

In the early centuries of the Kali Age (Iron Age), Buddhism and Jainism were the predominant religions of India. Kings of that time fought each other for territorial rights. Hatred flared skill, between the peoples of different regions, making national unity impossible. Untruth and injustice prevailed. Even the eternal scriptures—the Vedas—were being misinterpreted. As a result people were losing faith in the scriptures. At this time, a baby, Shankara, was born in the village of Kaladi, in Kerala, India.

Early Years

When Shankara was barely three years old, his father passed away. Ten days before his passing, the father had a vision. It conveyed the message that he was to perform the thread ceremony (an initiation ceremony normally performed for a child of seven) for his young son. Hurriedly, the father did as he was instructed by the vision. As a result, Shankara started reciting the Gayatri Mantra at the age of three.

After her husband died, Shankara’s mother devoted herself to bringing up the little boy. She took him to a guru, Govinda, who taught him the scriptural texts. A child prodigy, Shankara completed the study of the texts by the time he was sixteen. Normally 50 years is not enough for such study. But Shankara could grasp any subject very soon after its first mention. Even his guru was astonished by the boy’s genius.

One day, to test Shankara’s mastery of the scriptures, Govinda engaged Shankara in a philosophical debate. It was a debate between preceptor and disciple. Shankara was full of humility and reverence for the guru. Hence, before entering into the debate, he prostrated himself before his teacher and prayed for permission to argue with him. With the guru’s sanction, he began to argue with amazing skill, demolishing the propositions of the guru. His arguments demonstrated that he not only understood the Vedas, but he saw application in worldly life.

Shankara’s mother was anxious for him to marry. Shankara, on the other hand, was totally opposed to marriage. He wanted to be a sanyasi (renunciate) and dedicate his body, mind, and all else to God. He wanted to surrender himself to God. His mother was greatly distressed over this difference of opinion. One day, as she was going to the river to fetch water, young Shankara followed her, earnestly pleading, “Mother, please permit me to take sanyasa.” But she refused. Later, when his mother went into the river for her bath, Shankara jumped into the water, too. He slid under water, then raised one hand and shouted, “Mother, a crocodile has hold of me.

At least now—permit me to become a sanyasi.” The mother, desiring to save her son, said, “lf you can be saved from the crocodile by taking sanyasa, then do so, so that you may live.” As soon as she said this, the crocodile released its grip on Shankara’s leg. Having received the permission, he wanted from his mother, Shankara came out of the river and said, “In the ocean of samsara (the world), I was about to be drowned by a crocodile—in the form of a wife. When you agreed to let me become a sanyasi, I was freed from the hold of the crocodile. No one can marry a sanyasi.”

Swami says, “Sanyasa does not mean a mere change in the color of the robe. It is really a change in one’s qualities.” Shankara prostrated himself before his mother, and then took leave of her to start his life as an ascetic. She bade him go, but asked him to promise that in her last moments of life, he would be at her side. He promised that it would be so.

The teenaged Shankara was disturbed by the conduct of Vedic scholars, who were using their scriptural knowledge to make money.

They had forgotten that knowledge should not be used for commercial purposes. Shankara’s teachers saw that, with his understanding of the scriptures, Shankara was the right person to correct this unhealthy trend. They told him to leave for Kashi (the original name for Benares, at that time the seat of religion and philosophy in India) to propagate the true doctrine of the Vedas to the whole world. That was the mission that theI6-year-old Shankara set out to accomplish.

Journey to Kashi

Walking to Kashi, the young lad saw a pundit sitting under a tree, memorizing rules of grammar. Suddenly, Shankara was struck by the futility of the man’s effort. He composed a famous hymn, Bhaja Govindam. The opening stanza says, “You foolish fellow. Why do you immerse yourself in the rules of grammar? They will not save you when death knocks at the door. Instead worship Govinda.” Shankara advised the pundit to immerse himself in feeling God rather than in chanting the rules of grammar.

Once in Kashi, Shankara set forth his teaching of non-dualism (advaita) with tremendous conviction and clarity. Hearing about him, scholars in the holy city arranged for a grand assembly of learned people. Many came in all their regalia. The assembly did not lack for ostentation. Shankara, on the other hand, surprised the gathering with his simple attire, without even a rudraaksha-mala (a garland of beads, generally worn by pundits) around his neck. When his turn came, Shankara spoke with simplicity and clarity, pointing out the transitory nature of material wealth. He then urged them all to give up worldly desire. He declared that a true pundit is equal-minded, gives up the desire for wealth, and develops a thirst for God.

Those at the assembly realized that Shankara was not only a great teacher, but one who practiced what he taught. Swami says, “The unity of thought, word and deed is the mark of greatness. Shankara was the very embodiment of unity and purity in thought, speech and action.”

The Three Sins

Once while praying in Kashi, Shankara repented before the image of the Lord, asking for forgiveness for three sins he had committed. The first, he said, was his description of God as Isha, as Gireesha, as Naresha, and the like. “Though I know you are beyond thought and word,” he said, “I tried to describe you in words. The second sin occurred when, though I declare that God is everywhere, I came all the way to Kashi to have your darshan, as if You are present only in Kashi. I have committed the sin of saying one thing and doing another. The third sin I have committed is that of praying for the atonement of my sins, even though I have clearly said that there is no merit, no sin, no joy, and no sorrow.” The significance of Shankara’s statements lies in the recognition that disharmony of thought, word and deed is itself a sin.

Last Rites of the Mother

One day, during his stay in Kashi, Shankara closed his eyes While in an assembly and experienced a vision of his mother in great distress. Immediately, he started on his journey to Kaladi. He reached his mother in her last moments as he had promised to do, thus discharging his duties toward her. The people of Kaladi disapproved of Shankara’s action because, in their view, a person who had taken sanyasa cannot attend to the activities of a householder and perform rituals. Performing the last rites for a parent is the duty of a householder. On the other hand, once someone has taken sanyasa, he has died, as it were, to worldly commitments and entered a new life. Shankara, however, had promised his mother that he would fulfill the duties of a son in her moment of death even though he was a sanyasi.

No one in the village was willing to help Shankara perform the last rites. Utterly helpless, he carried the body himself to the backyard of the house and cremated it. In this manner, he fulfilled the promise he had made to his mother.

An Encounter

Once Shankara—a Brahmin—was walking through a forest when he saw a low caste person (chundala) about to cross his path. In those days, when Brahmins were walking, people from lower castes were expected to give them right of way. Shankara exclaimed, “Get out of my way.” The figure in front heard the command, but instead of moving away, he asked, “Which one would you like to move—the body or the soul?” Shankara instantly realized His mistake and prostrated himself before the person, as if he was his own guru. After this incident, Shankara composed a verse, the refrain of which is, “He who has learned to look upon all as Brahman, is really my guru—be he a chandala or a Brahmin.”

Other Achievements

Shankara went all over the country spreading his message of advaita. It did not matter to him whether he was talking to a scholar or a common person, to someone young or old. His message was always that of the oneness of all. Shankara visited all the sacred shrines in India, traveling on foot. He attended many assemblies of scholars and shared the message of Vedanta. His conviction in the truth of the message—and above all, in the unity of thought, word and deed that he displayed in his life—transformed the face of religion in the country forever. His works are studied with reverence even to this day.

Shankara went all over the country, from Kashmir to Kanyakumari, several times. He passed away at the early age of 32, but by that time he had completed the mission for which he had come. Before his passing, he collected five lingas and installed them in five different centers—Puri, Dwarka, Sringeri, Benares, and Kanchi. By establishing these centers and promoting the sense of spiritual oneness among the people, Shankara promoted harmony in the country.

Shankara’s Teachings

Shankara’s primary message was that of non-dualism. Swami says, “Non-dualism is a state of consciousness that can only be experienced and not described in words. In this regard, the advaitin (one who has experienced non-dualism) is like a dumb man who has enjoyed a delightful dinner but cannot describe the taste of the dishes he has consumed. There are two kinds of proof for the existence of anything—direct proof and indirect proof. The bliss derived from the non-dual consciousness is beyond words. It can only be experienced, it cannot be described or explained. Direct perception [in a worldly sense] is out of the question in this matter. Unfortunately, today people attach value to direct perception alone and have scant regard for indirect evidence.

This is not the right attitude. For instance, one sees a block of ice. It appears solid, but it is entirely made up of water, which is a liquid. Thus water, whose presence is inferred indirectly, is the basis for the solid block of ice that is seen by direct perception. Likewise, for this visible phenomenal universe, the invisible basis is the divine.”

Shankara taught that bodies are different and forms are different, but the inner self is one. The divine is present in all, like sugar cane juice, which is the same regardless of the cane it comes from. In Swami’s words, “Clay is one substance. But out of it, a variety of products with different names and shapes can be made. Likewise, out of gold, a variety of ornaments can be made. The same white milk comes out of cows of different colors. The Supreme is one, but dwells in innumerable bodies, with different names and forms.”

Shankara pointed out that we are all actors on the stage of life. The Worldly life is like the scenes on a screen. The scenes come and go, but the screen remains the same. He declared, the Self is real; the world is illusory. In Swami’s words, “The creator is the instrumental cause of creation. The bodies are like pots. They are used for various purposes and are a source of enjoyment. But like pots, bodies are perishable. When their time is up, they fall away. But the creator is permanent. The elements out of which the bodies were made remain. Only the bodies have gone.”

He also declared that the universe is permeated by God. When scholars pointed out the contradiction between the two statements (that the world is illusory and the universe is permeated by God), Shankara said, “Worldly life is illusory because it is continually coming and going. At the same time, this worldly life is lived like the moving scenes on a permanent screen. In this process, the world and the Divine become one, as it were, like the oneness of the screen and the pictures on it. This is the basis for the statement that the whole cosmos is God’s abode.”

Shankara demonstrated that underlying all forms, names and qualities is one basic reality that alone is real and changeless. Out of a mango seed comes a tree with branches, leaves, flowers and fruit, each with distinct forms and uses. But all the myriad things that have come from the seed owe their existence to the seed from which the tree arose. Just as Krishna stated in the Bhagavad Gita, “I am the seed that is the origin of all beings. All things in the universe are manifestations of the one Divine.”

Swami says, “Shankara related the experiences of daily life to the doctrine of spiritual oneness. The divine is one but is adored under different names and forms-Allah, Jesus, Buddha, Zoroaster, Rama, Hari or Hara. All are the same. Shankara did not approve of God being described as mother, father and so on. The relationship between God and man is oneness. ‘You and I are one.’… This experience does not come easily. You have to undertake intensive inquiry and also practice spiritual discipline. When that discipline leads to the refinement of the spirit, the experience of oneness with the Divine comes…. The person who gets this experience is the Lord of the universe. The atma is present in every cell of the human body. When this nectarine truth is realized, man will not seek the ephemeral.”