Tat Tvam Asi

‘Tat tvam asi’ according to the philosophies of  Samkara ra,,

Ramanuja,

Madhva,

Vallabh bha a,

Nimbarka, haskara ! "adava

‘Ta ‘T at tvam asi’ according according to the phil philosop osophies hies of Samk Samkara ara,, Rama Ramanuja nuja,, Mad Madhva, hva, Va Vallab llabha, ha, Nimbarka, haskara ! "adava #hilosophical interpretations of $Tat tvam asi$ are a great insight into relation bet%een &od and 'reation (the soul and the %orld)* The philosophies identified %ith the Vedanta dra% their  support from the +panisads and ma be e-pected to interpret in their o%n %a various important ancient te-ts, such as .Tat tvam asi/ or .That thou art*/ Thus, Samkara’s 0dvaita, Ramanuja’s Visistadvaita and Madhva’s 1vaita and other acharas have tried to anal2e such +panisadic te-ts using their o%n philosophical ideas* 'onsider for e-ample in the follo%ing various interpretations of .Tat tvam asi/*  0* Samkara3 0dvaita or or non4dualism non4dualism (5) Samkara is of the opinion that the passage, .That art thou,/ is intended to bring out the metap met aph hsic sical al ide identi ntit t be bet%e t%een en r rah ahman man an and d the ind indivi ividua duall so soul, ul, %h %hen en the their ir sp speci ecial al characteristics are ignored* 6n the judgment, .This is that 1evadatta,/ the idea conveed is of  1evadatta and him alone* To understand the identit bet%een S (soul or individual soul) and # (#armatman or supreme soul 4 rahman) %e must eliminate thisness and thatness* +ntil %e do so, S and # are never identical, and the sentence %ould be affirming a contradiction* So that te-t .Tat tvam asi/ means absolute oneness of rahman and the individual soul, %hich %e should reali2e %hen %e drop the imagined distinctions produced b avida* Ramanuja argues against this contention (of Samkara) and holds that ver judgment is a snthesis of distincts* 7hen rahman and the individual soul are placed in the relation of subject and predicate (samana (sam anadhik dhikara arana) na),, it foll follo%s o%s that there is a diff differe erence nce bet%een bet%een the t%o* Subj Subject ect and predicate are distinct meanings referred to the same substance* 6f the t%o meanings cannot co4inhere in the same substance, the judgment fails* 7e distinguish subject and predicate in their meaning or intension, but unite them in their application or e-tension* So the te-t .Tat tvam asi’ brings out the comple- nature of the ultimate realit, %hich has individual souls inhering in it* rahman and the jiva are related as substance and attribute (visesa and visesana), or soul and bod* 6f there %ere not a difference bet%een the t%o, %e could not sa that the one is the other* There are statements recorded in the scripture %here the mstic soul identifies himself %ith the supreme and calls on others to %orship him* .Meditate on me,/ and Vamadeva’s declaration, .6 am Manu, 6 am Sura,/ are interpreted b Ramanuja as affirming the vie% that rahman is the inner self of all (sarvantraatmatvam)* Since the infinite one d%ells in all, he ma be said to d%ell in an individual, and so one can sa %ith #rahlada that as rahman .constitutes .constitutes m ‘6’ also, all is from me, 6 am all, %ithin me is all*/ 0ll %ords, %ords, directl or indirectl, refer to rahman (5)* * Ramanuja3 Visistadvaita or 8ualified non4dualism (5)

Ramanuja supports his conception of realit from the scriptures* The Vedas declare that rahman is full of auspicious 8ualities* .Truth, kno%ledge and infinite is rahman,/ sas the +panisad* These several terms refer to the one supreme realitand declare that the absolute rahman is unchangeable perfection, and possesses intelligence %hich is ever uncontracted, %hile the intelligence of released souls %as for some time in a contracted condition* 6t is infinite (anantam) , since its nature is free from all limitations of place, time and substance, and different in kind from all other things* 6nfinit characterises the 8ualities as %ell as the nature of rahman, %hich is not the case %ith regard to the souls called eternal (nita)* 6t is first %ithout a second, since there is no other &od than &od* Ramanuja admits that there are te-ts %hich den all predicates to rahman, but contends that the onl den finite and false attributes, and not all attributes %hatsoever* 7hen it is said that %e cannot comprehend the nature of rahman, it onl means that the glor of rahman is so vast that it eludes the grasp of the finite mind* The te-ts %hich den pluralit are e-plained as intended to den the real e-istence of things apart from the supreme spirit %hich is identical %ith all things* The supreme spirit subsists in all forms as the soul of all (sarvasaatmataa)* 6n the highest intuition the +panisads declare that .one sees nothing else, hears nothing else, and kno%s nothing else/ than rahman* Ramanuja e-plains that %hen the meditating devotee reali2es the intuition (anubhava) of rahman, %hich consists of absolute bliss, he does not see anthing apart from it, since the %hole aggregate of things is contained %ithin the essence (svarupa) and out%ard manifestation (vibhuti) of rahman* Ramanuja interprets the famous te-t, .Tat tvam asi,/ in accordance %ith his vie% of kno%ledge (5)* '* Madhva3 1%aita or dualism (9) Madhva rejects all attempts to reduce the %orld of souls and nature to a mere illusion or an emanation of &od, and sets forth an absolute dualism* The individual soul is dependent (paratantra) on &od, since it is unable to e-ist %ithout the energi2ing support of the universal spirit, even as the tree cannot live and survive %ithout its sap* :ven ;aksmi, the consort of  Visnu, though supreme and eternal, is dependent on &od* She is the presiding deit over  prakrti, %hich is the material cause of the %orld* 6svara someho% energi2es prakrti, %hich forms no part of his being* #rakrti someho% lends itself to the control of 6svara* Madhva comes into conflict %ith man scriptural passages, %hich he strains to make them ield a dualism* Taking the great te-t, .Tat tvam asi/ (.That thou art/) Madhva argues that it does not declare an identit bet%een &od and soul* 6t onl states that soul has for its essence 8ualities similar to those of &od* This is also the meaning of passages %hich declare that the soul is a portion of the ;ord*
both a doer and enjoer* 6t is atomic in si2e, though pervading the %hole bod b its 8ualit of  intelligence (like sandal4%ood makes its presence felt through its scent even %here there is no

sandal4%ood)*

The %orld of maa is not regarded as unreal, since maa is nothing else than a po%er %hich 6svara of his free %ill produces*
he

is

kno%n

%hen

he

manifests

himself

through

the

%orld*

hakti is the chief means of salvation, though jnana is also useful* >armas precede kno%ledge of the Supreme, and are present even %hen this kno%ledge is gained* The liberated perform all karmas* The highest goal is not mukti or liberation, but rather eternal service of >rsna and participation in his sports in the celestial rndavana* Vallabha distinguishes the transcendent consciousness of rahman from #urusottama*
on

a

life

of

un8ualified

love

to

&od*

The relation bet%een rahman on the one side and the individual souls (jiva) and the inanimate nature (jada) on the other, is one of pure identit, even as the relation of %hole and part is* 7hile the difference is subordinated b Vallabha, non4difference alone is said to be real*
of

nature

to

the

three

gunas

is

accepted*

7hile both Ramanuja and Nimbarka regard difference and non4difference necessar, Ramanuja emphasi2es more on the identit* Aor Nimbarka, the t%o (difference and non4 difference bet%een &od and 'reation) are e8uall real and have the same importance* 6n the light of this doctrine of difference4non4difference, the famous te-t .Tat tvam asi,/ is interpreted %ith .Tat/ signifing the eternal, omnipresent rahman= .tvam/ referring to the individual soul, %hose e-istence depends on rahman= and .asi/ brings out the relation bet%een the t%o, %hich is one of difference compatible %ith non4difference* Such a relation subsists bet%een the sun and its ras or the fire and its sparks* Though souls and matter are

distinct from &od, the are et intimatel connected %ith him, as %aves %ith %ater or coils of  a rope %ith the rope itself* The are both distinct and non4distinct from rahman* 7e need not regard the distincts as mutuall e-clusive and absolutel cut off from each other* 1ifference and

identit

are

both

e8uall

real,

and

%hat

is

different

is

also

identical*

Nimbarka$s philosoph also had the general support of >esava, %ho in his commentar on the rahma Sutra developed the theor of the transformation (parinama) of rahman* 0 distinction is made there bet%een the independent realit of #urusottama (&od) and the dependent realities of jiva and prakrti* 7hile both jiva and 6svara are self4conscious, the former is limited, and the latter is not* 7hile the jiva is the enjoer (bhktr), the %orld is the enjoed A*

(bhoga),

haskara3

and

6svara

hedabheda4vada

or

is

the

real

supreme

controller*

difference4nondifference

(B)

haskara does not favor either Samkara$s vie%s or those of #ancaratra Vaisnavas*
t%o

are

e8uall

real*

haskara believes in the real evolution*
is

illustrated

b

the

analog

of

sparks

and

fire*

>arma, according to haskara, is an essential means to ac8uiring kno%ledge (jnana) %hich results in salvation* Thus he adopts the vie% of jnana4karma4samuccaa (the combination of  karma and jnana)* &* "adava #rakasa3 Svabhaviko bhedabheda4vada or simultaneous difference4nondifference (C) "adava (for some time the guru of Ramanuja) adopts rahma4parinama4vada , or the theor of the transformation of rahman*
and

6svara

(&od)*

6f 6svara is brought under cit, both conscious and unconscious forms are onl different states of one substance and not different substances themselves* 6t is called the doctrine of  simultaneous difference and non4difference* 7hile rahman undergoes changes, it does not forfeit

its

purit*

"adava does not see a contradiction in saing that a thing can be different and at the same time non4different from itself*
and the class characters (jati) are concerned= the present difference so far as their effected condition (kara) and individual characteristics (vakti) are concerned* rahman and the %orld are

thus

both

different

and

non4different*

7hile haskara believes that rahman undergoes in a %a the e-periences of the finite souls, "adava contends that rahman remains in its pristine e-alted condition* 6f %e believe that the three, &od, soul and matter are ultimate realities and not transformations of rahman, %e are in a realm of misconception* Aor removing false kno%ledge, both karma and jnana are considered useful* rahman alone is real, and all else is produced from rahman* Aor "adava, distinctions are as real as the identit, %hile for haskara the distinctions are due to upadhis (limitations), %hich are real, %hile the identit is the ultimate truth* Ramanuja objects to "adava$s concept of 6svara as a modification of rahman on the ground that there is none beond 6svara