Internal Auditing - Body,Mind and Beyond - The Question of Existence: Exploring Advaita Vedanta - Series - 6

The Question of Existence: Exploring Advaita Vedanta

If one delves deeply into Advaita Vedanta, an unavoidable question emerges: If we are already Brahman, the absolute reality, why do we appear as sentient beings, endure suffering, pursue spiritual awakening, and ultimately come to the realization that we were always Brahman? What is the purpose of this entire cycle?

The answer lies within the question itself. My Guruji,Swami Vivekananda often remarked that the question itself is flawed. To understand why, we must first examine the nature of questioning. When we ask "why," we seek causality—a cause for every effect. The grass is wet; we inquire about the reason. If told it rained or a sprinkler was used, we feel satisfied because we have identified a cause.

Yet, when applied to existence, this pursuit of causality falls apart. According to Advaita Vedanta, the cycle of life—the grand play of existence—unfolds due to maya. But what is maya? One way to understand it is as the framework of space, time, and causation. Just as a theatrical performance requires a stage, the universe requires this stage of space-time and causality, which maya provides.

However, attempting to find a cause for maya is inherently paradoxical. It is akin to asking: What lies beyond space? What existed before time? Such questions presuppose the very concepts they seek to challenge. "Before" implies time, "outside" implies space—concepts that make no sense in a reality where these constructs do not exist independently.

Likewise, asking for the cause of maya assumes causality within it. One can investigate causes within maya, but asking for a cause of maya itself is as meaningless as asking for the cause of causation.

 

The Illusion of Maya

Advaita Vedanta teaches that the world, as perceived through maya, never truly existed—it is an illusion, much like a dream. When one experiences a nightmare and is chased by a lion, one might ask, "Where did this lion come from?" The real answer? "There is no lion—wake up." 

However, if the dreamer refuses this truth, explanations must be fabricated: "The lion came from the jungle," "Its parents were there before it," and so on. The chain of causality extends indefinitely, yet none of it is real.

This applies to our experience of maya. Upon awakening into the true realization of Brahman, the question of "why" dissolves. Enlightened beings do not grapple with it; they have found the answer beyond the illusion of inquiry. In the Himalayas, monks advise seekers not to "establish maya" but to transcend it—to negate it entirely.

What Must Be Done?

Advaita Vedanta tells us: You are Brahman. But most of us react with doubt. Though we hear it, we do not feel its truth. That very doubt is maya—our inability to recognize our true nature.

The spiritual path is not about discovering Brahman; it is about overcoming the illusion that we are separate from Brahman. As long as maya clouds our vision, we remain caught in questioning, unable to truly awaken. The task ahead is not to rationalize maya, but to move beyond it—to seek and realize the truth of who we are.

Warm regards.

......To be continued