Editorial

Advaita

Advaita has become a fascinating and interesting subject of study in different parts of the world. Thanks to the healing presence of Swami Vivekananda for some time in America and Europe, the world has heard his call. Intelligent people of Europe and America have now heard of Advaita, and a few study the subject deeply.

Advaita does not say that this world or universe is a magic creation. Mâyâ, the word used for illusion, does not mean witchcraft-like magic or magician’s illusion. It’s relativity. Advaita speaks of relativity. Until Albert Einstein appeared on the scene, we had the idea that Time, Space, etc were all absolute and independent and of one another. We thought time was limitless and was the same throughout the universe. Einstein changed this idea and said that SpaceTime is a singular thing and is relative. That is, your time and space is different from the space and time of someone travelling at the speed of light.

Going further, Advaita Vedanta had declared long, long ago that Time and space are indivisible concepts, called Deshakâla.  Let’s not limit the concept of Space into just physical space. We shall use the term “event” used by science. Event is a happening in time, in a location. For instance, seeing something terrible in darkness. The ancient example is of the snake and the rope.  In darkness you assume that there’s a snake. But when light comes, it’s just a piece of rope. According to Advaita, the moment that you “saw” the snake, you indeed saw the snake. The next moment, when you saw the rope, you saw the rope. For how long you see the rope is immaterial. Time is infinite, and events are only relative to time. In dream, you see a palace and at that instant it’s all true for you.

So whether it’s the rope or the snake or the palace in the dream, nothing is absolute. Everything is related to SpaceTime. Everything is like a movie passing on a white screen. The white screen alone is true.  Mrittika eva satyam [मृत्तिका एव सत्यम्], the clay alone is finally real. Pots, mud cups, mud vessels, and so on are all only designs in time. This is what is maya according to Advaita.

Advaita teaches us to reject all that is just shape and form in time and seek the Eternal, Permanent Reality.

May Sri Ramakrishna guide us all towards the supreme Light. This is the eternal prayer of all of us.

Swami Sunirmalananda