Vivekachudamani 28 Anatman vs Atman - By Swami Tattwamayananda

Vivekachudamani is a text on fundamental tenets of Vedanta and has 584 verses.

The entire text is built around answering seven questions from the student in the 51st verse. The seven questions are: (1) What is this bondage? (2) How does it come about? (3) How does it exist and what sustains it? (4) How do we come out of it? (5) What is anatman? (6) What is the supreme Atman? (7) How do we differentiate between atman and anatman?

The teacher answers the 5th question first – “What is anatman?” He addresses it from three angles: Sthula sarira (gross body), sukhshma sarira (subtle body, the personality behind the gross body) and karana sarira (lack of understanding of our true nature).

The subtle body (Sukshma-Sarira) has eight units (Puri-ashtakam): (1) Five organs of perception (2) Five organs of action (3) Five pranas (4) Five subtle elements (5) Antahkarana – mana, buddhi, chittam, ahamkara (6) Avidya (7) Kama and (8) Karma.

Shankaracharya includes avidya, kama and karma in his definition of subtle body. Avidya means ignorance of our true nature. Kama means desire. Karma means action. When we are ignorant of our own real nature (avidya), we have kama, or desire for enjoyments, which compels us to be engaged in all kinds of activities (karma) to satisfy the desire.

When referring to the five organs of perception and action, Shankaracharya refers to the subtle dimension of these instruments that leave impressions in the chittam.

Starting from the 126th verse, the teacher takes up the 6th question: “What is the supreme Atman?”

127th verse: “There is one reality (Atman) that is present in all three states of consciousness as the witness – waking state, dream state and deep sleep state. It is the foundation of the “I” feeling. This
Atman is distinct and different from the three states of awareness and the five sheaths of consciousness.”

132nd verse: “It is the eternal knowledge. It knows all, from our body, mind, intellect to emotions, but whom no one knows. Everything in this world that we experience – it is revealed by the presence of the Atman.”

King Janaka asked Sage Yajnavalkya: “Endowed with what light does a person live in this world”.

The first answer was sunlight. As each option provided in previous answers was eliminated, subsequent answers were moonlight, agni, and sound. When all four of these options were eliminated, the final answer was Atma-Jyoti, which is in all of us and that is self-revealing. It is the light of all lights - that enables all other lights, such as sunlight, moonlight, agni to function.

133rd verse: “Our senses of perception and senses of action are able to work only due to the presence of the Atman. The human body is compared to a city with nine gates. Within this city resides the Purusha (Atman).”

Purusha is eternal and it is of the characteristic of eternal, infinite bliss.

Whatever we come to know using tools of perception and understanding or any kind of awareness, they all reveal a spark of the supreme truth within us.