Turiya, ignorance in deep sleep, etc. in Upanishads and Shankara bhashya

Turiya in Brihadaranyaka Upanishad / Bhashyam, ignorance in deep sleep, etc.

There is enough material in the Brihadaranyaka Bhashya for the teaching of the Turiya, the ‘fourth’ state beyond the three states of waking, dream and sleep.

BUB 4.2.4:

 तं सर्वात्मानं प्रत्यगात्मन्युपसंहृत्य द्रष्टुर्हि द्रष्टृभावं नेति नेतीत्यात्मानं तुरीयं प्रतिपद्यते

The realization of the self as Turiya by stages is described here.

BUB 4.3 introduction:

अत्र च जाग्रत्स्वप्नसुषुप्ततुरीयाण्युपन्यस्तानि अन्यप्रसङ्गेन — इन्धः, प्रविविक्ताहारतरः, सर्वे प्राणाः, स एष नेति नेतीति । इदानीं जाग्रत्स्वप्नादिद्वारेणैव महता तर्केण विस्तरतोऽधिगमः कर्तव्यः ; अभयं प्रापयितव्यम् ; सद्भावश्च आत्मनः विप्रतिपत्त्याशङ्कानिराकरणद्वारेण — व्यतिरिक्तत्वं शुद्धत्वं स्वयञ्ज्योतिष्ट्वम् अलुप्तशक्तिस्वरूपत्वं निरतिशयानन्दस्वाभाव्यम् अद्वैतत्वं च अधिगन्तव्यमिति — इदमारभ्यते ।

The three states of waking, etc. have been taught as analogy, through stages, and the Turiya established.

[Read Mandukya mantra 5 bhashya where ‘parama ananda’ quoted from BU.]   Since the mind, in deep sleep, is free of the stress arising out of subject-object duality perception of the waking/dream, he is called anandamaya, which only means approximately ananda and not ananda itself; since it is not of everlasting nature. Just as in the world a person who is free of stress is called blissful, happy. Since this state in sleep is extremely free of stress, the sleeper is called ‘enjoyer of ananda.’ And here to substantiate this cites the very BUB 4.3.32 passage: Esho asya parama Ananda verbaitm!!  So, Shankara’s impression of the BUB 4.3.32 is now absolutely clear and that it is a teaching of Ananda that obtains in the deep sleep state.

BUB 2.1.19:

 स्वाभाविक एव स्वात्मनि वर्तमानोऽपि कर्मानुगतबुद्ध्यनुवृत्तित्वात् पुरीतति शेत इत्युच्यते । न हि सुषुप्तिकाले शरीरसम्बन्धोऽस्ति । ‘तीर्णो हि तदा सर्वाञ्छोकान्हृदयस्य’ (बृ. उ. ४ । ३ । २२) इति हि वक्ष्यति । [Shankara says that even though the jiva rests in his natural Self during deep sleep, since the intellect connected to karma persists, he is taught as ‘sleeping in the pureetat naaDi’ by the Upanishat.  There is no contact with the physical body in the deep sleep state. Thus, as per Shankara the jiva is not free from karma during deep sleep, which implies that he is not free from avidya which is the foundation of karma.

BUB 4.3.6:

सुषुप्ताच्च उत्थानम् — सुखमहमस्वाप्सं न किञ्चिदवेदिषमिति ;  Here Shankara alludes to the popular experience ‘I slept blissfully; did not know anything’ which also implies ajnana in sushupti.

Shankara answers the question:  BUB 4.3.31:  ननु यदि अस्य अयमेव स्वभावः, किन्निमित्तम् अस्य विशेषविज्ञानं स्वभावपरित्यागेन ;   … उच्यते, शृणु — यत्र यस्मिन् जागरिते स्वप्ने वा अन्यदिव आत्मनो वस्त्वन्तरमिव अविद्यया प्रत्युपस्थापितं भवति, तत्र तस्मादविद्याप्रत्युपस्थापितात् अन्यः अन्यमिव आत्मानं मन्यमानः

Q: If non-perception of duality is the very nature of the jiva/self, why does one perceive duality, giving up his nature? Reply: In the waking or dream when one sees himself as different from another due to projection by ignorance, then he perceives himself as different.

In BUB 4.4.23    तत्र किं तावन्मात्रं परिच्छिन्नम् ? नेत्युच्यते — सर्वं समस्तम् आत्मानमेव पश्यति, नान्यत् आत्मव्यतिरिक्तं वालाग्रमात्रमप्यस्तीत्येवं पश्यति ; मननात् मुनिर्भवति जाग्रत्स्वप्नसुषुप्ताख्यं स्थानत्रयं हित्वा ।    Is the jiva finite alone? No. He sees everything as his own self; nothing, even a wee bit does he see as distinct from himself. By ratiocination, mananm, he becomes a muni, the state of liberation that is beyond the three states, including sushupti.

Here Shankara teaches that the word ‘muni’ of the Upanishad in the previous mantra, here, is the one who realizes his true nature that is beyond the three states, verily the Turiya, as taught in the Mandukya and other Upanishads. This is called mananam because one has to use reasoning to determine  that while the three states alternate, the self in and through the states does not alternate; it remains unchanging.  This avasthaatraya viveka is the teaching of all Upanishads and the Brihadaranyaka is no exception to this.

Deep sleep as analogy for Moksha

 

In the Br.U. Bhashyam while introducing the mantra 4.4.7, Shankara says that the exemplified, daarshTAntika, moksha, characterized by sarvatmabhava has been taught by the Upanishad through the analogy of the deep sleep state starting from 4.4.6. What is to be noted here is that Shankara is not equating deep sleep with moksha; the example-exemplified bhaava is maintained; he is not saying X is an analogy to X; he clearly says, as the Upaishad, that X is an analogy to Y.    

 ‘अथाकामयमानः’ (बृ. उ. ४ । ४ । ६) इत्यारभ्य सुषुप्तदृष्टान्तस्य दार्ष्टान्तिकभूतः सर्वात्मभावो मोक्ष उक्तः । मोक्षकारणं च आत्मकामतया यत् आप्तकामत्वमुक्तम् , तच्च सामर्थ्यात् न आत्मज्ञानमन्तरेण आत्मकामतया आप्तकामत्वमिति — सामर्थ्यात् ब्रह्मविद्यैव मोक्षकारणमित्युक्तम् ।

And the cause of Moksha is clearly stated as Atmajnanam and not deep sleep.

Shankara admits the ‘beeja avidya’ in deep sleep:

BSB 2.3.32:   दर्शयति च सुषुप्तादुत्थानमविद्यात्मकबीजसद्भावकारितम् — ‘ सति सम्पद्य न विदुः सति सम्पद्यामह इति ।’ (छा. उ. ६ । ९ । २) ‘ त इह व्याघ्रो वा सिꣳहो वा’ (छा. उ. ६ । ९ । ३) इत्यादिना ।  The waking from deep sleep is the effect of avidya-seed persisting then, as taught by the Chandogya upanishad.

BSB 3.2.9:  स एवायमुपाधिः स्वापप्रबोधयोः बीजाङ्कुरन्यायेन — इत्यतः स एव जीवः प्रतिबुध्यत इति युक्तम् ॥  There is a seed-sprout relationship between sleep and waking.

BSB 4.2.8:  मिथ्याज्ञाननिमित्तश्च बन्धो न सम्यग्ज्ञानादृते विस्रंसितुमर्हति ; तस्मात् तत्प्रकृतित्वेऽपि सुषुप्तिप्रलयवत् बीजभावावशेषैव एषा सत्सम्पत्तिरिति ॥ ८ ॥……… Even though the jiva’s bondage is due to error, mithyaajnana, it cannot be remedied without right knowledge. Hence, even though the jiva is by nature ever-free, yet his attaining the Sat Brahman in death is not without the error persisting in seed form, just like deep sleep and pralaya.

The above statement is reflecting Shankara’s statement in the Mandukya bhashya where he has categorically stated: In all Upanishads, the jiva’s attaining Brahman in sleep/pralaya is to be seen as an attainment of sabeeja brahman, saguna brahman, and not nirguna/nirbeeja brahman.  For, the latter will amount to liberation and non-return to samsara. So, there is ample evidence in Shankara bhashyas for the avidya remaining in deep sleep state in seed form.  So, wherever Shankara has said ‘there is no avidya in deep sleep, etc.’ such statements are to be understood in the background of his other statements. If the other statements, forming the global view, are ignored and only the local statement is taken it is a case of erroneous study of Shankara Bhashya.

Mandukya:    बीजनिद्रायुतः प्राज्ञः सा च तुर्ये न विद्यते ॥ १३ ॥ ………  The praajna, sleeping jiva, is endowed with the beeja (for the waking/dream).

 प्राज्ञस्तु बीजभावेनैव बद्धः । तत्त्वाप्रतिबोधमात्रमेव हि बीजं प्राज्ञत्वे निमित्तम् । ततः द्वौ तौ बीजफलभावौ तत्त्वाग्रहणान्यथाग्रहणे तुरीये न सिध्यतः न विद्येते, न सम्भवत इत्यर्थः………  The praajna is endowed with ignorance of the Truth. The waker/dreamer is endowed with both ignorance of the Truth and the error of perception of duality. The sleeper is free of this second type of error/avidya. Turiya is contrasted from the three states by the absence of both types of avidya.  Mandukya 1.12:  अविद्याबीजप्रसूतं वेद्यं बाह्यं द्वैतम्    The external perceptible dvaita is the sprout of avidyabeeja (of the deep sleep). Thus, avidya is happily, by default, on the basis of the shruti, is admitted by Shankara in all places when he talks of deep sleep. Mandukya 4.88:  ग्राह्यग्रहणविषयो हि लोकः, तदभावात् सर्वप्रवृत्तिबीजं सुषुप्तमित्येतत् ।  Shankara clearly states the nature of deep sleep: it is the seed of all activity (which will project itself in the waking characterized by subject-object duality perception). Thus, deep sleep is never free of this avidya seed.

Also, the Kaivalyopanishad which Shankara has cited, by naming it, in the Aitareya Bhashya and annotated without naming in the Vishnu sahasra nama bhashya twice, says explicitly the existence of tamas, ignorance, in deep sleep: https://sanskritdocuments.org/doc_upanishhat/kaivalya.html?lang=sa

सुषुप्तिकाले सकले विलीने तमोऽभिभूतः सुखरूपमेति ॥ १३॥ 
पुनश्च जन्मान्तरकर्मयोगात्स एव जीवः स्वपिति प्रबुद्धः ।

Here, there is a crisp but complete description of the three states and the Turiya. It says that in deep sleep the jiva attains bliss-form, being enveloped by tamas, avidya.

Thus, there is ample evidence in the Upanishads and Shankara’s prasthana traya bhashya explicitly and implicitly for the persistence of avidya in deep sleep.

Om Tat Sat