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CHAPTER VIII
THE CONSTRUCTIN AND THE DESTRUCTION OF THE COSMOS
The explanation of how the numerous inactive (acetana),
that is to say, lifeless or gross objects in the world, which can
be distinguished by Name and Form, came into existence out
of the fundamental imperceptible Matter — or according to the
Vedanta theory, from the Parabrahman — is now over. I shall
now consider what more the Samkhya philosophy tells us
about the creation of the sacetana (that is, active) beings in
the world, and later on, see how far that can be harmonised
with the Vedanta doctrines. The body of living beings comes
into existence when the five gross primordial elements sprung
from the fundamental Matter are united with the subtle organs.
But though this body is organic, it is still gross. The element
which activates these organs is distinct from Gross Matter
rand it is known as Spirit ( purusa ). I have, in the previous
'chapter, mentioned the various doctrines of the Samkhya
philosophy that this Spirit is fundamentally inactive, that
the living world begins to come into existence when
this Spirit is united with fundamental Matter, and that
'when the Spirit acquires the knowledge that "I am
-different from Matter", its union with Matter is dissolved,
failing which it has to peregrinate in the cycle of birth
and death. But as I have not, in that chapter, explained
how the Atman — or according to Samkhya terminology,
the Purusa — of the person, who dies without having realised
that the Atman is different from Matter, gets one birth
.after another, it is necessary now to consider that question
more in detail. It is quite clear that the Atman of the man
who dies without having acquired Self-Realisation does not
escape entirely from the meshes of Matter ; because, if such
were the case, one will have to say with Carvaka, that every
man escapes from the tentacles of Matter or attains Release-
immediately after death ; and Self -Realisation or the difference
between sin and virtue will lose its importance. Likewise, if
you say that after death, the Atman or the Spirit alone survives,
and that it, of its own accord, performs the action of taking
new births, then the fundamental theorem that Spirit is inactive
and apathetic, and that all the activity is of Matter is
contradicted. Besides, by acknowledging that the Atman takes
new births of its own accord, you admit that to be its property >
and fall into the impossible position that it will never escape
from the cycle of birth and death. It, therefore, follows that
though a man may have died without having acquired Self-
Realisation, his Atman must remain united with Matter, in
order that Matter should give it new births.
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