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CHAPTER IX
THE PHILOSOPHY OF THE ABSOLUTE SELF
We also see even in the Material sciences, that we first get an expe-
rience and later on come to know or find out the reasons for
it. For the same reason, hundreds of years before the rational
explanation for the identity of the Brahman and the Atman
was found out, our ancient Rsis had first come to the conclu-
sion that: "neha nanasti kimcava" [1],
i. e„ "the diversity which is visible in this world is not real ",
and that there is at the bottom of that diversity an Element
which is one in all directions, immortal, imperishable, and
permanent [2]; and had, by introspection, arrived at the
ultimate conclusion that the Imperishable Element clothed
in Names and forms in the external world and the Atman-
element to be found in our bodies, which is beyond Reason,
are one and the same, that is, they are both homogeneous,
immortal, and inexhaustible; or that whatever element is in
the Cosmos (brahmanda) also resides in the human body
(punda ); and in the Brhadaranyakopanisad, Yajnavalkya says
to Maitreyi, to Gargi, Varuni and others, and to Janaka that
this is the mystic import of Vedanta [3]. It has
been stated earlier in the same TJpanisad, that he who has
understood that "aham brahmasmi", i. e., "I am the Para-
brahman", has understood everything [4]; and in the
sixth chapter of the Chandogyopanisad, the father of Svetaketu
has explained to him this elementary principle of the Monistic
(advaita) Vedanta in various ways. In the beginning of the
chapter Svetaketu said to his father.— "In the same way as
one knows all the Name-d and Form-ed transformations of mud
when he once knows what there is in a ball of mud. tell me
that one thing by knowledge of which I will come to know
about all things ; because, I do not know that one thing ".
His father then explained to him by nine different illustra-
tions, namely, of rivers, the sea, water, salt, etc. that: "that
Element (tat) which is at the root of the visible world and
thou (tvam), that is to say, the Atman in thy body, are one
and the same thing; that is, "tat tvam asi"; and when thou
hast understood what thy Atman is, thou wilt of thy own
accord understand what is at the root of the Cosmos"; and
every time, the canon "tat tvam asi" "thou art that"
is repeated [5]. "tat tvam asi" is one of the
important canons of Monistic Vedanta, and that is translated
into Marathi by "jem pindim tem brahmandam", i. e., "that
which is in the Body, is also in the Cosmos”.
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