Discourses on Tantra -Taraka Brahma by Shrii Shrii A'nandamurti- Discourses on Tantra Volume One

Discourses on Tantra -Taraka Brahma by Shrii Shrii A'nandamurti- Discourses on Tantra Volume One

(Táraka Brahma is not a figure of philosophy – it is a creation of devotional sentiment.)

Shrii Shrii A'nandamurti

1 June 1959, Jamalpur

Discourses on Tantra Volume One

Táraka Brahma

Consciousness in the psycho-physical unit structures gets manifested in the process of pratisaiṋcara when Puruśottama by His ota yoga associatively reflects on the unit psychic plate. It is through this process, pratisaiṋcara, that the Ever-Merciful elevates each creation of His by the force of Vidyámáyá. As already discussed, the physical and psychic clash and the attraction of the Great cause psychic dilation, and ultimately the unit psychic body can attain its final liberation or mukti by its spiritual sádhaná. Different unit minds exist at different levels and experience varying degrees of His love and proximity depending upon their progress in the process of pratisaiṋcara. The auspicious day with infinite ánanda descends, and all the bondages of Prakrti shatter down when Brahmatva is attained.

Such individuals set the ideal for humanity and, in turn, humanity starts paying homage to them. Such elevated beings can and should only be called Mahápuruśa, meaning thereby elevated psychic beings. Unto their holy feet, one can offer the flowers of devotion and aspiration, but they desire no crude earthly flowers and offerings.



The advent of Mahápuruśa is misinterpreted as incarnation. Incarnation is an illogical hypothesis. The whole universe being created out of Him and by Him is His incarnation. The term avatára means a “derivation”, and the application of this term to individual units who are far advanced in the process of pratisaiṋcara is a misleading misnomer. It is illogical to consider that the Macrocosm metamorphosed Himself directly into some unit structure, mostly as a human being. Human beings are the most evolved individual units as a class in His creation, and every stage of the elevated psychic Mahápuruśa is the result of saiṋcara and then pratisaiṋcara. It is a gradual elevation and not an abrupt descent or occurrence.



Logically speaking, therefore, it will be correct to designate any unit consciousness as incarnation of God or to say that the Messenger of God traverses the path of saiṋcara, goes through a process of evolution and importance, and through psychic dilation in the process of pratisaiṋcara reaches different stages of elevation. The incarnation theory, or avatáraváda, however, hypothesizes that the incarnated being is the direct descent of the Almighty, the rest of His creation remaining unexplained as to its source of origin.



The word avatára [derives from ava – tr, which means] “descend”, “derive” or “degenerate”. The incarnated being, according to this dogma of degeneration of Puruśottama, cannot have an equal status with Puruśottama. When the psychic status of a created being assumes sameness with the Cosmic Entity, the unit psychic entity actually merges into the Cosmic Mind leaving no dualism. Hence how can any equal status with Puruśottama be imagined existing as a separate entity in any stage within Brahma Cakra (the collective name of saiṋcara and pratisaiṋcara)? The whole theory of incarnation or avatáraváda is, therefore, not convincing and rational for an intellectual analysis.



Behind the superstitious belief of avatáraváda lies one more social current created by a class of vested interests. Inquisitiveness and reasoning is a natural impulse in human beings. Due to certain pressing circumstances or intellectual renaissance there was a reaction against the illogical faiths and superstitions prevalent in society. These superstitions provided a strong basis for exploitation of society by intellectual parasites who had learnt to live on the blood and labour of others. To maintain their domination through a system of superstitious belief, these parasites invented means to curb this growth of reaction and intellectual rationalism and presented to the mass a sentimental appeal. Any command, rational or irrational, was enforced on society with so-called divine force by enunciation of the incarnation theory. Corruption was perpetrated in the name of God and all those raising their heads against such commands or preachings were called reactionaries, atheists, and curbed drastically. “Give the dog a bad name and hang it,” was their motto. They went to the extent of manipulating, polluting and misinterpreting even the precious writings of many great philosophers whose work had been respected as religious treatises from ancient times – all with an ulterior motive, to get their interests served.



Táraka Brahma



In Brahma Cakra there is no uniformity of flow. The speed of the sentient force is greater than that of the mutative, and the mutative has more speed than the static. Thus in the beginning of saiṋcara the speed is greater. Similarly, after elevation, under the influence of the sentient force or reaching sámánya deha (a stage beyond the hirańmaya kośa where the unit mind experiences only the sentient force), the speed is greater. The speed of the unit mind far exceeds the normal flow in the Cosmos, and it gets accelerated if the unit mind as a result of spiritual practice tends itself towards the Nucleus Consciousness.



Since the beginning of creation humans have been aspiring for this merger with the Nucleus Consciousness. The non-uniformity of speed changes the movement of the unit mind to an elliptical force, and the motion changes to oval from circular. They get merged in Puruśottama who aspire for Him as the ultimate destiny, but those who aim at mokśa, where sádhaná is the complete surrender of self into That (Nirguńa Brahma, the Objectless Consciousness), get out of this Brahma Cakra by a tangential touch. At this point of tangential touch is the abode of Táraka Brahma (who resides within the scope of both Nirguńa and Saguńa Brahma). Táraka Brahma is a concept of Tantra.



In Tantra the whole creation is known as sambhúti. When Táraka Brahma by His own will takes the help of the five fundamental factors (the paiṋca bhútas), His physical entity comes within the scope of Saguńa Brahma, otherwise He is Nirguńa Brahma. When Táraka Brahma takes the assistance of the five fundamental factors, according to Tantra it is called His Mahásambhúti.



In Tantra sádhaná or in Ananda Marga sádhaná one whose goal is Puruśottama merges in Saguńa Brahma, and one who aims at Nirguńa Brahma becomes surrendered into the Objectless Entity. It is only in Tantra that the sádhaná of Táraka Brahma has been specially defined distinct from the sádhaná of Nirguńa and Saguńa and has its own peculiarity. Theoretically speaking, Saguńa Brahma has infinite saḿskáras, and so for an infinite time to come Saguńa Brahma will continue to enjoy the fruits of Its own past actions. Nirguńa is the Objectless Entity with no action or derivation, but Táraka Brahma is the middle point and can fulfil the function of both. He guides, loves and favours His affectionate sons and daughters. His children say that He cannot live without loving them and address Him, “O our great Father, our affectionate Mother, our All, we remember Thee, we adore Thee. O Witnessing Entity, we offer our homage to Thee, Thou art the only rescue in this crude worldly ocean, so to Thee we surrender ourselves.” This complete surrender is the summum bonum of all spiritual sádhaná, which only can lead to Him from where decline is not even imaginable. Really blessed is one who has attained this complete surrender unto Him, like the piece of salt which went to measure the depth of the ocean – but a momentous divine jerk and an attraction occurred and the bit of salt was lost, no one knows where.



(Táraka Brahma is not a figure of philosophy – it is a creation of devotional sentiment.)





Shrii Shrii A'nandamurti

1 June 1959, Jamalpur

Discourses on Tantra Volume One