T Ram Sewak

NETI NETI

In Shri Ramcharitmanas 2.93, Lakshman continues to elucidate on the innate unity of the nirakar brahm (formless) and the sakar roop (avatar) that Shri Ram represents,

"sakal bikar rahit gatabheda kahi nita neti niroopahin beda"

"Shri Ram is free of all impurities and beyond all variations or disturbances. The Vedas ever describe Him as neti neti (not this, not this)."

This reminds us about attaining the purity and stability of mind that Shri Krishna desires for us in Gita 6.19. He says that as a lamp in a windless place does not flicker, so disciplined should be the mind of a yogi practicing meditation in the self. Shri Ram is the epitome of that pure, disciplined and unruffled yogi.

'Neti Neti' is a profoundly deep concept enunciated in the Brihadaranyka Upanishad and interpreted variedly. One interpretation is that it negates all tangible forms and attributes, emphasising that the Ultimate Reality (Brahm) is, beyond all, the only truth. Everything else is an illusion (Maya)an emptiness (Shunyata).

Another viewpoint acknowledges the limitation of human knowledge and language in describing Him, underscoring the infinite, omnipresent, omniscient, and omnipotent attribute of the Divine. This is Infiniteness (Anant). Thus, though 'Neti Neti' may appear negative, it comprises, in essence, the superabundance of infiniteness. Both interpretations are correct, revealing the unity in the diversity of thought, much like the Glass is half full or half empty.

The concept of emptiness stresses that all diversity is illusory, revealing Brahm's infinite, undivided nature. On the other hand, infiniteness highlights the underlying unity and the non- dual nature of existence, where everything is interconnected. The realization of emptiness (that the self and phenomena have no independent existence) leads to the experience of infiniteness as the self dissolves into the Ultimate Reality.

The unity of nirakar and sakar, so explained by Lakshman, is, in essence, what some other philosophies describe"Form is emptiness, emptiness is form." / DAILY WORLD /

Namami Ramam Musings-65

The author is a former electrical Engineer and resides in the Himalayas. He can be occasionally reached at ramam.namami@gmail.com