The Crest Jewel (#) of Discrimination (†)
13 Verses* of 580
† viveka
# mani
* sloka
Selection, English version, and analysis of 13 verses of Viveka Chudamani
by
Bernd Zeiger
May 2024
1. The 13 selected verses of Viveka Chudamani in English
2. What each verse of Viveka Chudamani expresses
3. The analysis of the entire structure of the Viveka Chudamani
4. Consequences of the self-referral, cyclic inner structure of Viveka Chudamani
4.1 Connecting the beginning and end
4.2 Synchrony of part and whole
4.3 The ease of being in pure consciousness
4.4 The purifying power of the light of pure consciousness - paramatman
The English text of the Viveka Chudamani:refers to four types of Samskrit terms
† (dagger) overarching principle,
# (hashtag) term that creates a connection,
*(star) reality-related property,
°(degree) characteristics of important people.
1. The 13 selected verses of Viveka Chudamani in English
Verses 1 - 5
Verse 1
Supreme Knowledge # brings to light † what is hidden as transcendental consciousness in everyone. Master° Govinda, whom I honour here, embodies the fulfillment* of the transcendental teaching #.
Like a limited volume in the entire space, the individual pure consciousness* is embedded in transcendental consciousness** when the boundaries are removed †. Just as easy, the wise man° rests within himself.
Supreme Knowledge # brings to light † what is hidden as transcendental consciousness in everyone. Master° Govinda, whom I honour here, embodies the fulfillment* of the transcendental teaching #.
† gochara
# vedanta
* paramānanda
Verse 2
Rare # among all creatures is man, rarer is male courage, even rarer is the profession of guardian of wisdom, even rarer is a life according to the principle of evolution †. But the most precious thing is the distinction: what am I myself* and what not. Lasting freedom of choice is only possible through knowledge of Transcendental Being**, not through countless outstanding deeds during many life cycles.
† dharma
# durlabha ## mukti
*atma **brahman
Verse 3
The rare # triad of being human, striving for freedom ## and support from far-sighted personalities° promotes creative intelligence † .
† deva
# durlabha ## mumukṣutva
° mahapurusha
Verse 4
Anyone who was born human, which is a rare # chance, who has endurance and courage and who has access to traditional knowledge, but still does not strive for liberation ## is a fool. Like a suicidal man, he judges himself by clinging to the unreal.
Anyone who was born human, which is a rare # chance, who has endurance and courage and who has access to traditional knowledge, but still does not strive for liberation ## is a fool. Like a suicidal man, he judges himself by clinging to the unreal.
† veda
# durlabha ## mumukṣutva
Verse 5
However, no one is more wrong if he does not exploit his inner wealth*, even though he has the valuable human body and is a far-sighted personality.
However, no one is more wrong if he does not exploit his inner wealth*, even though he has the valuable human body and is a far-sighted personality.
* sva-artha
# durlabha
° purusha
Vers 288 - 290
Verse 288† vilāpya
*Atma, ** Paramatma
° Muni
Vers 289
In the light of self-referral consciousness † everything is pure - becoming and being - because pure consciousness recognizes everything purely within itself, being untouched by all influences from macrocosm and microcosm, the accumulations of degradation products* - gross and subtle.
† sva-prakash
* Mala
Verse 290Self-referral consciousness †, the joy of pure being, replaces the body as a reference system for experiences, erases conventional concepts and makes one forever independent*.
† Chid-atman
* Kevala
Vers 576 – 580
Verse 576Since you seek freedom # I have shown you today, as to a son in the form of this crown jewel, the transcendental essence† of all the traditional expressions of wisdom that remove the influences of time* and greedy desire** on discrimination.
† param atiguhyam
# mumukshu
* kala, ** kama
Verse 577
After these words from the master, the student is full of gratitude, is given a dignified farewell* and goes on his way, free from all ties.#
# nirmukta-bandhanaḥ
*samanujnata
Verse 578
The Master - his mind immersed in the ocean of infinite consciousness* - continues to purify the world.
* sadānanda-sindhau
Verse 579
This ends the personal exchange between master and student:Through the transcendental reality of consciousness*, in the pursuit of freedom**, the awakening of highest knowledge is easy and pleasant***.
* Atma,**Mumukshu, *** Sukha
Verse 580 The personal instruction † presents effective methods how in the pursuit of freedom# all errors of the intellect* are recognized; external influences** become ineffective and the mind comes completely to rest*** so that wisdom is absorbed unhindered. The person who is thus free is self-sufficient°.
† upadesha
# mumukshu
*citta-doṣāḥ
** viratāḥ
***praśānta-cittāḥ
° yati
2. What each verse of Viveka Chudamani expresses
This small selection of 13 verses from 580 already shows what this Vedanta text is about:
The realization of self-sufficiency and invulnerability of the individual and thus also of society through the creative potential of transcendental consciousness.
But who can do anything with these words? At best, for the majority of people, a magical illusion far removed from the everyday reality of life.
The known translations of the Viveka Chudamani reinforce this impression with expressions such as: "liberation only through good deeds of many millions of lives", "renouncing the pleasures of worldly existence", "turned away from the world", etc. The English version of 13 verses presented here attempts to show that the usual worldly interpretation of the text misses the actual life-related meaning that is important for every human being and even turns it into its opposite.
However, if the meaning of the term "transcendental" is consistently taken into account and the reality characterized by it is explicitly used as a reference state, the Sanskrit original conveys a completely different life-related meaning.
The Crown Jewel of Discrimination overcomes this dilemma by introducing someone (in verse 1) who has actually realized what he teaches. If science cannot be attained without connection to a teacher, this is even more true for the experience and understanding of the transcendental reality. Verbal instructions alone can never reach the realm that precedes all instructions or transcends them. Therefore, teachers of the transcendental are the most precious thing in the world.
Verse 2Rare among all creatures is man, rarer is male courage, even rarer is the profession of guardian of wisdom, even rarer is a life according to the principle of evolution. But the most precious thing is the distinction: what am I myself and what not. Lasting freedom of choice is only possible through knowledge of Transcendental Being, not through countless outstanding deeds during many life cycles.
The transcendental answers the core questions: what is a human being, what is his actual purpose in life and what is the potential inherent in every person that enables him to realize his highest goal. The answer to all of these questions leads to the ultimate state of the experiencer and knower.
If the horizon of knowledge and experience is only small, the ego, by its nature, strives to expand this horizon. Freedom from all limitations is the naturally goal of every human being. To characterize this role of consciousness Immanuel Kant coined the technical term "transcendental", which is just another word for "the condition for the possibility of knowledge and experience."
As a quality of intelligence, "transcendental" refers to the I-ness: or the " state of being". Anyone who can say "I am" without reference to anything external, experienced, done, owned or internally thought, felt or strived for he knowss what he really is. The transcendental is by definition beyond all limitations but at the same time the simples form of every human being, the essence of every human being and, as it turns out, is the essence of everything in creation.
Vedanta brings to light this transcendental reality of everything and is thereby eliminating the limitations of the experiencer and knower. Therefore Vedanta is called the ultimate knowledge. That is why Vedanta is essential for the survival of every single person and for humanity as a whole.
From the perspective of Vedanta, the majority of people are currently still in a lightless "delirium of intelligence" and the ego is in an unfulfilled state of limitation. This is why everyone strives for more and more without any clear vision of what he really is. This striving is the engine of development and evolution. But without access to the transcendental, which is the inexhaustible and unlimited reservoir of energy and intelligence, it will eventually reach its limits. This universal principle is called the Second Law of Dynamics which in technical terms, states “it is impossible to build a machine that always works.”
Vedanta brings to light this transcendental reality of everything and is thereby eliminating the limitations of the experiencer and knower. Therefore Vedanta is called the ultimate knowledge. That is why Vedanta is essential for the survival of every single person and for humanity as a whole.
But there is a solution and it is offered by the 3rd law of dynamics: "Reduction of disordered activity (not of striving for perfection) opens up the transcendental reservoir of energy and intelligence"
Because The Cown Jewel of Discrimination seeks to address this deficit, each individual verse has two basic characteristics:
Because The Cown Jewel of Discrimination seeks to address this deficit, each individual verse has two basic characteristics:
- Intelligence, indicating the direction of development - its own "Eigen"-function.
- Energy, characterizing the level or degree of striving - the intrinsic "Eigen"-value.
The number assigned to each verse represents these two clearly distinguishable aspects of intelligence and energy, while the sequence of all verses of Viveka Chudamani describes the overall development in the field spanned by directions and values. The values correspond to certain energy differences (colors) and the directions correspond to two different tendencies of the ego, depending on the energy level.
The 580 verses of the Crown Jewel of Discernment thus describe an overall wave-like development in the field of values and directions, the color-number field. First, expansion in the low-energy area is balanced by subsequent compression (left half of the field) and then a growth phase finds fulfillment through maturation in the right half of the field.
However, both sides are only in overall equilibrium if the turning area is not (!) a "logistic curve", because this describes a life cycle with limited resources. (Through innovation, new logistical life cycles can be created one after the other, but these always have their limits).
Only when the turning area brings about a full circle, i.e. leads back to the beginning, does a balanced development emerge, This happens when the transcendental is the common absolute reference point, because only then the full potential of consciousness is exploited.
The cyclical evolutionary pattern of the 580 verses of the Crest Jewel of Discrimination in the Number-Quality (Color) Field is ultimately based on the self-referral dynamics of the transcendental reality, which expresses itself as a color wheel.
h
pure consciousness recognizes everything purely within itself, being untouched by all influences from macrocosm and microcosm, the accumulations of degradation products - gross and subtle.Supreme Knowledge brings to light what is hidden as transcendental consciousness in everyone. Master Govinda, whom I honour here, embodies the fulfillment of the transcendental teaching.
The fact that this is done "in the light of transcendental consciousness" is of particular importance. On the one hand, the transcendental gives the connectedness an absolute foundation; on the other hand, the term "in the light" can be taken literally. In the transcendental context, there is a correspondence between the inner light of consciousness and the outer light perceived by the eye. This correspondence can be precisely quantified because the interface between inside and outside is also an expression of transcendental consciousness. This situation is called the "lamp at the door". Quantum mechanics has made it possible to describe all this with mathematical precision.
- Expansion and compression are characteristic to the low energy range where the individual dominates and
- Growth and maturation in the high energy range, where coherence dominates and with it order in society.
3. The analysis of the entire structure of the Viveka Chudamani
As the content of the 13 verses suggests, self-referral pure consciousness is the absolute reference point for two qualitatively different phases of development that are thereby balanced:
- Expansion and compaction and
- Growth and maturity.
Only when the turning area brings about a full circle, i.e. leads back to the beginning, does a balanced development emerge, This happens when the transcendental is the common absolute reference point, because only then the full potential of consciousness is exploited.
What makes the circle possible is the inner nature of the light field being the light of transcendental consciousness. In Vedic science this is described as "the best of light" - Jyotish (more details in the article "The Vedic Chemistry of Light" https://veda-science-magazin.blogspot.com/p/vedic-chemistry- des-lichtes-ratna.html )
The closure of the circle establishes highest knowledge (Vedanta) on the basis of the timeless, intrinsic dynamics of consciousness - Veda - which is "not the work of man" (Apaurusheya). The color circle is the expression of this self-referral dynamics. The 13 verses of the Viveka Chudamani already express this.
4. Consequences of the self-referral, cyclic inner structure of Viveka Chudamani
hWith the color wheel as a frame of reference, the entire inner connectedness between the verses of Viveka Chudamani is revealed.
4.1 Connecting the beginning and end
The first verse and the last verse reveal the whole story of Viveka Chudamani:
Through close personal instruction of the disciple by the teacher, the whole reality unfolds..
Its essential characteristic is self-sufficiency. This is achieved by combining the low-energy, individualistic behavior - RED - with the high-energy, holistic behavior - VIOLET. Highest knowledge, connects simplicity and scientific precision. The master is the representative of the highest knowledge, because he stands on his own, is uninvolved.
Vers 1
Supreme Knowledge # brings to light what is hidden as transcendental consciousness in everyone. Master° Govinda, whom I honour here, embodies the fulfillment of the transcendental teaching. Vers 580
The personal instruction presents effective methods how in the pursuit of freedom# all errors of the intellect are recognized; external perturbations become ineffective and the mind comes completely to rest so that wisdom is absorbed unhindered. The person who is thus free is self-sufficient. 4.2 Synchrony of part and whole
Through the cyclic inner structure of highest knowledge, part and whole are synchronized at every step.
Vers 2
Rare among all creatures is man, rarer is male courage, even rarer is the profession of guardian of wisdom, even rarer is a life according to the principle of evolution. But the most precious thing is the distinction: what am I myself and what not. But lasting freedom of choice is only possible through knowledge of transcendental Being, not through countless outstanding deeds during many life cycles.
Vers 290
Self-referral consciousness, the joy of pure being, replaces the body as a reference system for experiences, erases conventional concepts and makes one forever independent.4.3 The ease of being in pure consciousness
With transcendental consciousness as a fixed point of reference, the seemingly difficult is easily achieved:
Vers 288
Like a limited volume in the entire space, the individuals pure consciousness is embedded in transcendental consciousness when the boundaries are removed. Just as easy, the wise man rests within himself.
Like a limited volume in the entire space, the individuals pure consciousness is embedded in transcendental consciousness when the boundaries are removed. Just as easy, the wise man rests within himself.
Vers 579
This ends the personal exchange between master and student: Through the transcendental reality of consciousness, during the pursuit of freedom, the awakening of highest knowledge is easy and pleasant. 4.4 The purifying power of the light of pure consciousness - paramatman
The purifying power of transcendental consciousness expresses itself in such a way that everything that is in darkness comes to light. This is why the sphere of influence of light is constantly expanding. That which remains in darkness is on the one hand the motor for this expansion, but has no influence on that which is in the light.
Vers 289
In the light of self-referral consciousness everything is pure - becoming and being - becausepure consciousness recognizes everything purely within itself, being untouched by all influences from macrocosm and microcosm, the accumulations of degradation products - gross and subtle.
Vers 1
Many other connections between the verses of the Viveka Chudamani are shown in the detailed presentation of the number-related decoding process of Vedic texts.
The fact that this is done "in the light of transcendental consciousness" is of particular importance. On the one hand, the transcendental gives the connectedness an absolute foundation; on the other hand, the term "in the light" can be taken literally. In the transcendental context, there is a correspondence between the inner light of consciousness and the outer light perceived by the eye. This correspondence can be precisely quantified because the interface between inside and outside is also an expression of transcendental consciousness. This situation is called the "lamp at the door". Quantum mechanics has made it possible to describe all this with mathematical precision.