Advaita

by Shyam Mehta, M.A. (Cantab)

[I am no longer updating this document. For the latest version, please see my book which is available
for download/viewing for free at https://archive.org/details/becoming-a-better-hindu]

[ROUGH JOTTINGS]

Q: "Why does any Hindu Swami worry about money and business?"

A: "They are all out to con you. They are interested in sex, power, money, like most of us. To get this
they pretend to be ‘Swami’s’. In English this means “ingratiating and wheedling in a way that is
regarded as insincere or excessive.”. The test is to see how they died. Was it peacefully, naturally or
in horror and shock or drugged etc?"

Look how Adi Shankara died. Poisoned at age 32 (www.culturalindia.net/indian-

religions/shankaracharya.html)

(Some people of course have many deaths and are immortal also: Aurobindo: 1950 or 1962 or “I
came back in 1920; I came here in 1914 and left from here in 1915, I think – from ‘16 to ‘20 I was in
Japan, but I came in ‘14 and I think I left in 1915”). I wonder what caused these numerous deaths?).

“Sathya” (truth) Sai Baba “multiple fractures on his hip, arm, and other places. Records state that he
had also suffered appendicitis…breathing difficulty, which layer developed into cardiovascular
problem, where in the heart is not able to function properly along with weak lungs. A stent was
placed at this juncture to help, but jaundice kicked in, an indication of a aged and weak liver, and
several organs followed to collapse thus death”.

Shirdi Sai Baba when sick on his death bed "Dear Guru! I have no desire on Life, please tell me when
will I die?"

Rajneesh: poisoned by his “devotees”.

Vivekananda: “Vivekananda attained “Mahasamadhi”; the rupture of a blood vessel in his brain”

Tulsidas: Later he was also afflicted by Bartod boils…”It is said that he was in his mother’s womb for
12 months and was born with 32 teeth in his mouth. He did not cry at the time of his birth but
uttered the word “Rama” instead because of which he was named Rambo.

‘Guru’ Tegh Bahadur. Sikh leader. Executed by Muslims.

Neem Karoli Baba (Maharajji) ‘miracle’ worker: “diabetic coma…visited a heart specialist due to
experiencing pains in his chest…”

"Bhagavan" "Sri" Ramana "Maharshi"."a sudden, violent fear of death overtook me...I at once
dramatized the occurrence of death. I lay with my limbs stretched out stiff as though rigor mortis
had set in and imitated a corpse so as to give greater reality to the enquiry"

NDE 2: "my head was swimming and my circulation and breathing stopped. The skin turned a livid
blue. It was the regular death hue and it got darker and darker."

Final cause of death: shrowded in mystery."Thus, all my three attempts (at leaving his 'ashram')
failed"
Kabir was born to an unwed mother in Varanasi, by a seedless conception and delivered through the
palm of her hand, who then abandoned him in a basket floating in a pond...

"Swami" Prabhupada of the Hari Krishna "bhakti" sect: "spewed vitriolic racial hatred toward
black/African people -- repeatedly and explicitly. "The Dravidians, Prabhupada declared, are “non-
Aryans. Just like these Africans, they are not Aryans.”

https://www.ibtimes.com/swami-prabhupada-founder-hare-krishna-movement-virulent-racist-anti-
semite-1412102

An appalling individual. "[It] is best, to keep them under control as slaves but give them sufficient
food, sufficient [clothes], not more than that. Then they will be satisfied.”…“Otherwise, he [Hitler]
had no enmity [against] the Jews"

"Ramakrishna" "Para"mhamsa. devotion toward the Goddess Kali and observance of elements from
Tantra, Bhakti, Christianity, Islam..."From a layman to Godman" "attained" Nirvikalpa Samadhi"
learnt from tantrik adept Bhairavi Brahmani...

These guys are fooling you.

Same with these guys and girls:

https://www.indianyogaassociation.com/blog/yoga-gurus-in-india.html

www.gyanunlimited.com/health/list-of-yoga-gurus-in-india/7925/

and other ‘god men and women’ and ‘nirvana’, ‘samadhi’… types.

See also http://the-wanderling.com/false_guru.html or http://the-wanderling.com/guides.html

There are 6 orthodox ancient philosophies of India, 500-6000 years old (Nyaya, Vaisheshika,
Samkhya, Yoga, Mimamsa and Vedanta).

There are also 5 major heterodox schools—Jain, Buddhist, Ajivika, Ajñana, and Charvaka.

According to wiki, 'orthodox' means whether it believes in 1 or more of 3 alternative criteria:

*the Vedas as a valid source of knowledge;

*whether the school believes in the premises of Brahman (God) and Atman (soul);

*and whether the school believes in afterlife and Devas (gods).

Vedanta means 'the end of the Vedas' and mostly the 7 main Vedanta philosophies (Bhedabheda,
Dvaitadvaita, Achintya Bheda Abheda,

Advaita, Vishishtadvaita, Dvaita and Suddhadvaita)

assume that the Hindu scriptures hold true. These scriptures are the Upanishads (end of the Vedas),
the Brahma Sutras and the Bhagavad Gita.

Duality means that reality is fundamentally composed of two parts, God and the universe. For
Advaita there is only God (monistic),

for, Vishishtadvaita there is only God but the universe also is real, being part of God (qualified
monism). Under Dvaita (dualism), the
world and God are two distinct entities.

Nowadays, the main philosophies are Yoga, Buddhist, Advaita ("A") and Vishishtadvaita ("V").

About Yoga, it was shown to be incorrect, for example in the Brahma Sutras

About Buddhism, it was defeated in philosophical debate by Shankara of the A orthodox school.
(https://archive.org/details/buddhism_202109)

About A, it was defeated in philosophical debate by Ramanuja and Vedanta Desika of the V orthodox
school.

What are the essential tenets of A (Shankara) and how do these differ from V (Ramanuja)?

Of course there are a huge range of matters covered by these philosophies, ranging from the
constituents of matter and mind, the accepted

means of knowledge, the method of inference,...

"The illusoriness of the individual self is apparently the central notion of

A Vedanta. Every vital tenet of the philosophy—Brahman as the sole reality, the

object as false, Maya as neither real nor unreal, Isvara as Brahman in reference to Maya,

moksha (liberation) through knowledge of Brahman and as identity with Brahman—may be

regarded as an elaboration of this single notion."

2. Maya. For Shankara, this is "the cosmic force used by Brahman to maintain the illusion of
multiplicity".

So, the whole of A crucially depends on what the word 'Maya' means. Originally, it meant 'divine
power'. Eg, in the Vedas you see many phrases such as 'Indra through his maya assumed various
forms'.

Eg In the Rig Veda it is used in a good sense for gods and bad sense for demons. (all per
Vivekananda, who as it happens

was an Advaitin)

I would argue that as in V, one should take the original meaning of the word 'maya' per the Vedas, so
there is no justification

for assuming that the world or our souls are illusory.

Maya' means "Divine Power", as in the Vedas: we are real, the universe is real.

For the word Brahman, I will use the word God.

https://quotes.yourdictionary.com/maya

1. 'I am that' and Shankara's view that Shyam Mehta is God. To me, this view seems absurd, and also
disrespectful to God.

He holds that the sentence in the Chandogya Upanishad 'That thou art' suggests the oneness
of ultimate reality. He holds that each one of us is Brahman (God), and there is no other truth or
reality but Brahman.

For what purpose does Brahman want to make people think I am not God if I am? Why does
Brahman want to fool people?

For a discussion of the Ramanuja refutation of Shankara's interpretation of this phrase see
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Vishishtadvaita

3. Personal God. Shankara holds that the only thing that exists is an impersonal attributeless God
(Brahman), neither good nor bad.

Ramanuja holds that each soul and also the universe around us are real, being the body of a God
who has countless auspicious qualities (who has a soul and body).

A soul cannot/will not become God. He argues for a personal God, one that can be prayed to etc.

Nowadays, most Hindus believe in a personal God, it is a distinguishing feature of Hinduism.

4. In V, moksha or liberation can be attained by Bhakti, loving devotion to God, or by surrender to

Him (Ishvara Pranidhana

in the Yoga Sutras). "devotion to godliness and constant remembrance of the beauty and love of
personal god"

As I see it, many Hindus would empathise with this view. In A the path is that of gaining knowledge.

"Correct understanding is believed to provide knowledge of one's true identity as Atman, the
dispassionate and unchanging witness

-consciousness, and the identity of Atman and Brahman, which results in liberation.
(https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/A_Vedanta) "

"Correct knowledge, which destroys avidya, the ignorance that constitutes the psychological and
perceptual errors which obscure

the true nature of Atman and Brahman,[15] is obtained by following the four stages of samanyasa
(self-cultivation), sravana,

listening to the teachings of the sages, manana, reflection on the teachings, and svadhyaya,
contemplation of the truth

that art Thou""."""

5. Moksha. For Ramanuja, moksha means liberation from the cycle of rebirth. For Shankara it means
freedom from

the illusory cycle of rebirth. So, IMO for him moksha does not really exist. (Even though the
scriptures say it does)

For Shankara, moksha is achievable in this life, whereas for Ramanuja it is only after death.

6. Knowledge of Brahman. Ramanuja notes that the scriptures support the hypothesis that God has
countless (wonderful)

attributes and cannot be fully known.

7. Purpose of the cycle of rebirth. IMO, for A there is none (this cycle being illusory). In V,

the soul's highest purpose is to love and serve God.

8. A God without attributes. Ramanuja points out that ALL the scriptures refer to Brahman as having
attributes

or an absence of negative attributes.

9. Atheism. Is A essentially atheistic? A God with no powers, no qualities,...

10. Lack of faith in Vedas and Upanishads:

"According to these [widely represented contemporary] studies, Shankara only accorded a

provisional validity to the

knowledge gained by inquiry into the words of the Sruti (Vedas) and did not see the latter as the
unique source (pramana)

of Brahmajnana. (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Adi_Shankara)"

11. Lack of faith in logic: "Stcherbatsky in 1927 criticized Shankara for demanding the use of logic
from Madhyamika Buddhists,

while himself resorting to revelation as a source of knowledge."

12. Similarity to Buddhism: "Despite Shankara's criticism of certain schools of Mahayana Buddhism,
Shankara's philosophy

shows strong similarities with the Mahayana Buddhist philosophy which he attacks"

Ramanuja, accused Adi Shankara of being a Prachanna Bauddha, that is, a crypto-Buddhist", and
someone who was undermining

theistic Bhakti devotionalism"

"the similarities between A Vedanta and Buddhism are not limited to the terminology and some
doctrines, but also includes practice.

The monastic practices and monk tradition in A are similar to those found in Buddhism."

13. Importance of Shankara. "Although it is common to find Western scholars and Hindus arguing
that Sankaracarya was the most influential and important figure in the history of Hindu intellectual
thought,

this does not seem to be justified by the historical evidence."

14. Renunciation. A is to do with renunciation. What was the world created for (if it was created as
many Hindus believe),

if you are meant to renounce it?

15. Rituals. "The school considers the knowledge claims in the Vedas to be the crucial part of the
Vedas,

not its karma-kanda (ritual injunctions)." Shankara did not like rituals.

16. Morality. "Atman is beyond good and evil". As I see it, with A, there is no case for morality?
You can kill or steal or whatever if you wish?

But, strangely perhaps, "Self-knowledge is understood and realized when one's mind is purified by
the observation of

Yamas (ethical precepts)"

17. Prayer. This seems to be a futile exercise under A? Why pray to yourself?

18. Worship. This seems to be a futile exercise under A? Why worship yourself?

19. Justice. Presumably God does not dispense this under A?

20. Mercy. Presumably God does not grant this under A?

"The basic principle of Advait vedanta is that there is no purpose. Purpose is human way of giving
meaning to our lives.

Secondly, the whole eastern philosophy is based on practice being greater than textbook knowledge.

I would suggest to meditate in silence n let books also be silent."

Of course, you may believe this, and if it were the case that A is correct, then an implication of the
whole world being illusory

is that you do not the need Jnana yoga of the Bhagavad Gita which Shankara says you do need.

If there is no purpose what is the purpose of practice?

6. "Where causality is concerned, the effect is only considered an apparent reality." There is
therefore no such thing as cause

and effect in A.

V believes in cause and effect. Otherwise, for example, why pray, go to temple etc? Praying to God
makes no sense if there is no cause and effect, as I see it.

21. Usefulness of A. Yes, in many respects it defeated the Buddhists in their absurd views.

www.quora.com/How-did-Adi-Shankara-defeat-Buddhist-monks-in-India-Are-there-any-
fundamental-advantages-to-Hinduism-which-he-could-use-to-win-the-argument

22. Shankara and religion. I believe that at the end of his life, he bitterly regretted wasting his short
32 year life by not

worshipping a personal God. But I did search and could not find this information on the internet
anymore.

23. Why does A survive after being defeated by Ramanuja and Vedanta Desika?

"King states that its present position was a response of Hindu intellectuals to centuries of Christian
polemic aimed at

establishing Hindu inferiority complex"" during the colonial rule of the Indian subcontinent. "

The "humanistic, inclusivist" formulation, now called Neo-Vedanta, attempted to respond to this
colonial stereotyping of
Indian culture was backward, superstitious and inferior to the West

It predominantly survives eg in universities where scholars around the world and in India are mainly
essentially atheists.

They do not like the concept of a personal God, devotion, bhakti,...

As it happens, if one looks into the life story of Shankara, there are many magical events. If you
believe in A, am I right that these are illusory? Not true? Did he lie? Of course.

Why did he not believe in the scriptures whilst at the same time saying that he did? To gain
followers…

Why did he not believe in the use of logic? So that his system would not be challenged.

Shankara changed his mind about his philosophy in later life when he became deeply religious.

He regretted misleading people.

My works
About me: https://prabook.com/web/shyam_jindrich.mehta/217729

“Shyam Jindrich Mehta, British writer. Certified advanced Yoga teacher Ramamani Iyengar Yoga
Institute, India, 1977. Fellow: Institute Actuaries.”

Born December 7, 1952 Enfield, Middlesex, England

Education: Cambridge University, mathematics

In my profession as an actuary I received the the Jim Anderson award for Professional Excellence.

I, together with friends and family, have written many articles, research papers and books:

https://archive.org/details/yoga-the-iyengar-way

("Students often ask me which book I recommend they buy. My first answer is usually this book,
Yoga: The Iyengar Way by Silva Mehta, Mira Mehta and Shyam Mehta. It is a large-format book that
is beautifully illustrated with color and black and white photos. One of the nice things about the
book is the models themselves, Mira and Shyam Mehta. Though their poses are elegant and
advanced, their bodies are not intimidating in any way. A lot of poses are covered for such a concise
book, with plenty of material for beginners and advanced students alike. Also included is a
progressive course which will take you from raw beginner to advanced student.")

https://archive.org/details/hundredsof-delicious-vegetarian-cookery-dishes (my mother)

https://archive.org/details/my-book-of-watercolour-paintings

https://archive.org/details/my-3rd-book-of-watercolour-paintings

https://archive.org/details/my-4th-book-of-watercolour-paintings

https://archive.org/details/my-5th-book-of-watercolour-paintings

https://archive.org/details/my-book-of-paintings

https://archive.org/details/financial-theory-of-defined-benefit-pension-schemes

(“Eighteen years' ago today, Jon Exley, Shyam Mehta and Andrew Smith published what has been
described as the most important and influential paper ever written on defined benefit (DB)
pensions”)

https://archive.org/details/becoming-a-better-hindu

https://archive.org/details/bhagavad-gita-essential-teachings

https://archive.org/details/how-to-teach-a-child-english-and-general-knowledge

https://archive.org/details/sanskrit-to-english-dictionary_202109

https://archive.org/details/the-harmful-effects-of-yoga

and:

https://archive.org/details/bhagavad-gita-text-and-commentary-ramanuja-and-prabhupada

https://archive.org/details/bhagavad-gita-text-ramanuja-and-prabhupada
https://archive.org/details/on-errors-in-translating-the-bhagavad-gita

https://archive.org/details/allowing-for-asset-liability-and-business-risk-in-the-valuation-of-a-life-
office

Pricing of Insurance Risk

https://archive.org/details/quantifying-the-success-of-a-life-office

https://archive.org/details/mortgage-calculator

https://archive.org/details/home-valuation-spreadsheet

https://archive.org/details/how-to-market-a-property-for-sale

A few of my and my friends’ other books and works are:

https://archive.org/details/asset-strategy-for-defined-benefit-pension-schemes

https://archive.org/details/consistent-assumptions-for-multinational-asset-models

https://archive.org/details/hedge-funds-for-pension-funds

INVESTMENT STRATEGIES FOR DUTCH AND UK PENSION FUNDS

Market Efficiency (https://archive.org/details/exley-mehta-smith-market-efficiency)

Mean Reversion (https://archive.org/details/exley-mehta-smith-mean-reversion)

(https://archive.org/details/pension-funds-a-company-managers-view)

https://archive.org/details/summary-and-comparison-of-approaches-used-to-measure-life-office-
values

https://archive.org/details/taxation-in-the-assessment-of-profitability-of-life-assurance-products-
and-of-li

THE FINANCIAL MANAGEMENT OF UNIT TRUST AND INVESTMENT COMPANIES

www.theactuary.com/archive/old-articles/part-2/2012/09/21/trend-towards-using-market-values

www.theactuary.com/archive/old-articles/part-4/2012/09/21/trend-towards-using-market-values

I have actually written more than 50 books. But, I was mentally ill at the time and except for the
above, these books are 90%...rubbish.

I also at the time set up a website ‘The Loving Heart Centre’…rubbish (although all was with good
intentions).
AUM