Introduction To Vedanta

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Item Code: NAD082
Author: Swami Dayananda
Publisher: Vision Books
Edition: 2022
ISBN: 8170942896
Pages: 120
Cover: Paperback
Other Details 8.5 inch X 5.5 inch
Weight 190 gm
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Book Description
Publisher's Note

Swami Dayananda Saraswati is a traditional teacher of Vedanta, the teaching og the Knowledge of Self found in the Upanisads at the end of the Veda. In addition to giving public talks, Swami Dayananda conducts comprehensive residential courses in Vedanta and sanskrit from time to time, training other teachers to carry on the tradition of teaching , swamji teaches his courses in English but uses texts printed in the original Sanskrit. He introduces and defines, as needed, technical Sanskrit words, helpful in grasping the subject matter, and frequently redefines them until they become familiar. This book is based on the opening talks given by Swami Dayananda at the start of a 3-year course in November 1979, at Piercy, California. The first text studied at this course was Tattvabodha, a simple textbook of definitions, comprising an outline of Vedanta. Swamiji’s introductory talks were aimed at helping the new students discover the nature of the fundamentals human problem. Barbara Thornton compiled, abridged, and edited the talks, Laurel Elkjer, Mahadevan Embrathiry, Diane Piskulic and Ruth Greenfeld addicted in editorial review and proofreading.

Back of the Book

We spend all our lives in the pursuit of varied pleasures, wealth and fame expecting these will give us total fulfillment. Yet , each moment of joy is only that: momentary, showing up the rest of our lives to be unsatisfying, somehow lacking and incomplete. On the other hand, Vedanta, the body of knowledge found at the end of the Veda, asserts with breathtaking boldness that one’s true nature is completeness and limitlessness. Vedanta also promises that moksa, liberation from all forms of limitations that seem to bind a human being, is possible here and now.

In this lucid, lively introduction to Vedanta, Swami Dayananda shows how man’s constant struggle to overcome these limitations through the ceaseless pursuit of security and pleasure are pre-destined to failure for the simple reason that they are misdirected; they stem from a failure in understanding the real nature of the fundamental problem itself. All effort howsoever great or unremitting being limited, the result of such effort is also bound to be equally limited, inadequate. The road to freedom from limitation, then can scarcely lie that way indeed, asserts Vedanta, it is only to be found in the correct knowledge of one’s true nature as absolute. This vital first step, a clear understanding of man’s fundamental problem of ignorance and error about his real nature is what this book is all about.

CONTENTS

Publisher’s Note viii
1. HUMAN PURSUITS
The Four Categories of Human effort 1
The Endless search for Security: artha 2
The Mercurial Nature of Pleasure: Kama 3
Human Choice Requires Special Standards 5
Animals Need No Ethics 6
Sources of Ethic s:Commonsense 7
Interpretation of Ethical Mandates 7
To be Ethical is to be Fully Human 8
What Religious Ethics Add 9
The Religious Ethics Called dharma 10
The Ranking of the Fourfold Struggle 11
“Falling into Place”: moksa 11
2. THE FUNDAMENTAL PROBLEM
The Locus of Error 13
The Self-Judgement of Inadequacy 15
The Attempt for Completeness through Change 16
Personal Values Determine Types of Changes 18
Attitude towards Change 19
Gain through Change Always Involves Loss 20
Fickle Pleasure 22
Recognition of the Fundamental Problem 23
The Analysis of Experience 24
Inadequacy is Centred on Oneself 25
Insight into Adequacy : the Norm for Self-Judgement 27
The Direct Search for Freedom from Inadequacy 28
3. THE INFORMED SEEKER
The Futile Solution 30
The Experience of Adequacy 31
Distinguishing Knowledge and Experience 32
Inquiry into the Nature of Oneself : atma – vicara 34
Analysis of the Search for Adequacy 35
The Nature of Achievement 37
The Gain of the Already-Achieved 39
Freedom from Inadequacy : an Already Achieved Goal 41
The Informed Seeker 42
4. IGNORANCE AND KNOWLEDGE
Everyone is Born Ignorant 46
The Shedding of Ignorance 46
Connections: sambandha 48
Objects are Known through Perception 49
The Means of Knowledge Must be Appropriate 49
Inferences are Perception-Based 50
Intellectual Knowledge is Inferential Knowledge 52
Knowledge is Not Created 52
Valid Knowledge 53
Perception is Useless for Knowing Oneself 54
The Need for Knowledge of Oneself 57
The Means to Gain Knowledge of Oneself 57
For knowledge of Oneself, Go to a Qualified Guru 59
Indirect and Direct Knowledge from Words 63
The words of the Guru give Direct Knowledge of the Self 64
5. THE TEACHER
The Gain of Adequacy Requires Knowledge, Not action 66
Words, a Valid Means of Knowledge 67
The story of the Tenth Man 68
The problem when the Seeker is the Sought 71
Teaching through Words in a Context 73
General Knowledge and Particular Knowledge 73
Self-ignorance is not Total Ignorance of Self 74
What the Teacher Must Know 76
The Teacher should know Adequacy as Himself 77
Inadequate Teaching Can Make the Problem Worse 80
The Teachers must Demolish Wrong Conclusions 83
Both Self Knowledge and Methodology are Needed 84
The Traditional Teaching of Self-Knowledge is Called Vedanta 87
6. THE TEXT
The Two Sections of the Veda90
The Variety of Action 91
The Role of Scriptures 92
Knowledge of the Subtle Results of Action 92
Knowledge of Heaven 93
Knowledge of Rituals 96
“How to” Knowledge is not an End in Itself 97
Knowledge as an End in Itself 99
Special Name for End of the Veda Justified 100
The Student of the Karmakanda 101
The Student of Vedanta 102
Words are Means of Knowledge in Both Sections of the Veda 104
The Words of Vedanta Give Direct Knowledge of Oneself 105
Handling the Words of Vedanta 107
The Mind Must be Attentive 108
The Proof of Vedanta 110
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