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Thread: Being...

  1. #1
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    Being...

    hari o
    ~~~~~~
    namasté

    If I say Being, it is different from 'the being' and again different then 'being late'. Some use the term 'a spiritual being'. So, within the realm of ādhyātmika¹ and the study thereof (adhyātmavidyā) this is good to get a handle on this matter.


    Why bring this up ? Because there are some great thinkers ( in the West) that are of the opinion ~being~ has relatively little value to consider. Why so ? Because they wish to compare the objects of existence from one thing to another. Yet being as the foundation of existence itself and nothingness are closely related.
    This is an 'existential' view point. Some think this nothingness is totally śūnya¹ , others think nothingness is less then accurate and is filled with Being-ness, existence itself.

    We will look at this in a few posts. The posts, if properly done, will have vast differences and slight differences. It is the slight differences that grooms discrimination and vast differences that help one correct their understandings.

    Let's see if I can frame some ideas to start.
    • Being, as a noun, = the state of having existence, and in my opinion it is 'the state of existence itself'
    • Being as an adjective = present. This is like 'being present'
    • Being as a conjunction equals (=) 'since or because' ; used with 'as, as how, or that'
      • example: being that it was too early to rise, the boy slept 10 more minutes.
    It will be the intent of the following posts to compare and contrast these ideas, yet the value will be to find the root of Being in the Supreme, in existence, in the verbiage used for the Supreme.


    iti śivaṁ

    words
    • ādhyātmika - from adhy-ātma , relating to Self or soul
    • adhyātmavidyā = adhy+ātma+vidyā = jñāna = higher knowledge, knowing
    • śūnya - empty , void ; say vājin-śūnya = 'a riderless horse'
    Last edited by yajvan; 24 April 2013 at 11:02 PM.
    यतसà¥à¤¤à¥à¤µà¤‚ शिवसमोऽसि
    yatastvaṠśivasamo'si
    because you are identical with śiva

    _

  2. #2
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    Re: Being...

    hariḥ o
    ~~~~~~

    namasté


    So , we get a little more information when we use the present participle¹ of the term be, and that is being. We can get a ~feel~ of being, the mind can grasp the idea of being as a personal experience. Yet to call it present participle is misleading because present participle does not mark any time at all - past, present or future. It is without time.
    So is this idea of Being. We as humans can get a feel for Being, it occurs while one thinks about it, then it fades away and another installment of the concept of Being needs to be considered again to freshen the idea, then this too fades.

    To go a bit further - what can the mind do when we consider the auxiliary verb¹ form 'to be' ? Does the mind know how 'to be' ? It's a bit more fuzzier in the mind this notion 'to be'. It seems we need to add more to it e.g. 'to be' happy, 'to be' sad. But when asked just 'to be' we are some what stumped. Why so ? IMHO we are action oriented humans, so we expect some doing to go on vs. just being.

    This whole notion helps us (perhaps just me ) frame this notion of Being which is so fundamental to adhyātmavidyā ( higher knowledge of Self understanding). It is my humble opinion when this intellectual query is too formidable for one to take on, then other avenues to develop this sense of Being is needed. One could then argue , all roads lead to Rome, so what is the difference ? Yes, I can see this point. But for some, it is the keen honing of the intellect that allows discrimination to occur. Hence the reason for the post on this subject.

    We will go further in the up and coming posts.

    iti śivaṁ

    words
    • Present participle is formed by adding -ing to the base form of the verb. Example: rise > rising, fall > falling, jump > jumping.
    • A verb describes an action, or occurrence, or indicates a state of being. We find two types of verbs: main verbs and
      auxiliary verbs ( some call helping verbs). I have offered the auxiliary verbs that fall into the class of be, have, and do.
    Last edited by yajvan; 25 April 2013 at 06:04 PM.
    यतसà¥à¤¤à¥à¤µà¤‚ शिवसमोऽसि
    yatastvaṠśivasamo'si
    because you are identical with śiva

    _

  3. #3
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    Re: Being...

    hariḥ o
    ~~~~~~

    namasté
    Quote Originally Posted by yajvan View Post
    So , we get a little more information when we use the present participle¹ of the term be, and that is being. We can get a ~feel~ of being, the mind can grasp the idea of being as a personal experience. Yet to call it present participle is misleading because present participle does not mark any time at all - past, present or future. It is without time.
    This present participle idea is quite inviting to consider...why so ?
    Because it is without a time constraint. Being is not constrained by past, present or future. When one realizes one's own Self (ātman) it too is without constaints. It is Being. It perfectly aligns to the wisdom offered in chapter 2, 12th śloka of the bhāgavad gītā. Kṛṣṇa-jī informs us,
    there never was a time when I was not, nor you, nor these rulers
    of men. Nor will there ever be a time when all of us shall cease to be.

    Being is without time, without birth and never ceases to be. This is why one could argue present participle could indeed make sense. It is ever present in 'now'. Now never leaves, it is always now and this is eternal. 'Now' will be here with or without creation being manifest or unmanifest. Hence Being takes on the quality of 'now' for all time.

    When we come to know this Being intimately, then we live in 'now' all the time. Everything is fresh and new. There is no baggage. Each moment is the discovery of living in the eternal now.

    iti śivaṁ
    Last edited by yajvan; 26 April 2013 at 12:09 PM.
    यतसà¥à¤¤à¥à¤µà¤‚ शिवसमोऽसि
    yatastvaṠśivasamo'si
    because you are identical with śiva

    _

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    Re: Being...

    hariḥ oṁ
    ~~~~~~

    namasté

    Let's see if any of the words we find in sanātana dharma's saṃskṛtam that alludes to the notion of Being, in general or in specificity.

    The first one that comes to mind is bhū. It is the first utterance (vyāhṛti¹) we hear when one sings the gāyatrī mantra of viśvāmitra-ji.

    How is bhū defined ? It's 2nd derivative is defined as becoming , being , existing , springing , arising. Its feminine gender is ' the place of being'. It's 1st derivative of bhū = 'be' , 'to become'. It makes perfect sense that it is the first word uttered for preparing to sing the gāyatrī mantra , as one needs to Be, become, come into being as one recognizes Being and existence as the foundation for all manifest and unmanifest to rest upon i.e. existence itself.

    iti śivaṁ

    1. vyāhṛti - utterance , speech , declaration; the mahavyāhṛti-s are considered bhūr , bhuvar (or bhuvaḥ) and svar
    Last edited by yajvan; 26 April 2013 at 02:45 PM.
    यतसà¥à¤¤à¥à¤µà¤‚ शिवसमोऽसि
    yatastvaṠśivasamo'si
    because you are identical with śiva

    _

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    Re: Being...

    hariḥ oṁ
    ~~~~~~

    namasté


    If we look to another word, bhāva, it too is rooted in bhū , and this takes us back to the last post ( number 4).
    So, then what can be interesting about this bhāva ? It is defined as 'continuity of the thread of existence through successive births'.
    The key word for me is 'continuity'. Because Being is changeless, it therefore holds its continuity.


    It (bhāva ) is also defined as the 'true condition or state , truth , reality' . Because Being does not fluctuate it is the basis for
    reality or a true condition. It is a true condition today or a billion eons from today. Why so ? Because existence in and
    of it-self is changeless.


    iti śivaṁ
    Last edited by yajvan; 26 April 2013 at 05:31 PM.
    यतसà¥à¤¤à¥à¤µà¤‚ शिवसमोऽसि
    yatastvaṠśivasamo'si
    because you are identical with śiva

    _

  6. #6
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    Re: Being...

    hariḥ oṁ
    ~~~~~~

    namasté

    At times I have heard this noun Being take on the term ( using the definite article¹) 'the' Being.

    Here is the pickle:
    When we use the notion of a definite article with a noun it implies that the noun is specifically definable...that is,
    the speaker and listener can identify this noun being used. If we agree that Being = Self = ātman, for most on this planet,
    it is not definable.

    What of the opposite indefinite article ? Then we would call out 'a' Being instead of 'the' Being. When we use it in this manner then the listener is not expected to readily identify the object or idea at hand. This may be true with the notion of Being.

    So, is this not a curious human condition ? We are surrounded by existence itself (sattā¹) yet we cannot identify it clearly. We can intellectually conceive of its reality, yet we do not know it personally.

    We can continue this line of thinking, but one needs to ask, does this Being have some quality other then existence ? Is it just inert existence itself, or does it take on some trait, property, some mark ?

    This we can take up next...

    iti śivaṁ
    words
    • definite article = In English, the definite article the is a determiner, that is , it introduces a noun. In our example 'the' introduces 'Being'.
    • sattā; another word often used for Being is sattā. It is defined as existence , being.
      • within this word sattā we have sat + tā .
      • sat = being , existing , occurring , happening , being present ; it is defined also as that which really is , entity or existence ,
        essence , the true being or really existent. At times it is written as satī, with the same definition. This sat is rooted in 'as' which once again means 'to be, exist, be present'.
    Last edited by yajvan; 26 April 2013 at 10:47 PM.
    यतसà¥à¤¤à¥à¤µà¤‚ शिवसमोऽसि
    yatastvaṠśivasamo'si
    because you are identical with śiva

    _

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    Re: Being...

    Namaskaram Yajvan-ji,

    Will you soon find it tiresome to receive my repeated thanks for your far-ranging, in-depth contributions to HDF? In any case, the subject matter you are now elucidating, BEING—without specificity, non-objectifiable—is the intended meaning of the member ID “TrikonaBindu.” From that you may judge the importance of this subject to me.

    At the center of Sri Chakra there is a Bindu (point) situated in the very midst of a Trikona (triangle). For me, the Trikona with its Bindu is the finest representation I have found of Paramashiva or Supreme Consciousness.

    As I see it, Bindu is the aspect of Paramashiva that can never be objectified. It is that which you have so felicitously designated as satta. Trikona is the integrated triad of powers (traditionally specified as iccha-shakti,, kriya-shakti, and jnana-shakti—to discuss which would carry us off topic).

    Suffice it to say, Trikona is expressively God Almighty; whereas Bindu is satta, i.e., absolute reality, unresearchable certitude, implicit in the Self-confidence of the Lord, and devoid of which Shiva would not be what He is—completely free and independent.

    Om namah Shivaya.

    Mahadeva Smaranam OM namah shivaya
    Mrtyunjayaya rudraya neelakanthaya shambhave
    Amrteshaya sarvaya mahadevaya te namah

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    Re: Being...

    Namaste and pranams.

    No personal disrespect (more mental slowness on my part), but your threads are difficult to understand sometimes.

    I think that being (existing) is like be-ing or if I want to try and remember my old French teacher here..

    Etre means 'to be' and it is an irregular verb. It has many compound conjugations depending upon tense and participle (try this in French and you'll see).

    Je Suis meaning 'I am' or 'I am be-ing' to Nous Fumes meaning 'We were/existed'.

    To Be or Not To Be? That Is The Question.
    - William Shakespeare

    The 'Being' is that which always has existed. Does it have any other quality than this? Just existing there, you also ask?

    I don't know the answer to that. I do know that from it, everything is formed and yet it remains intact:

    “OM – Purnamadah Purnamidam Purnat purnamudachyate.
    Purnasya Purnamadaya Purnamevavashisyate.”
    If you want to talk about:
    Is it just inert existence itself, or does it take on some trait, property, some mark ?
    That word is 'Lingam'.

    The inert form of Brahman is the Jyotirlingam. It is that without beginning, middle or end.

    The inert form of Brahman is also the Omkara. It is the universal vibration forming the substratum of creation.

    That is the mark it makes.

    Aum Namah Shivaya
    Last edited by Necromancer; 27 April 2013 at 04:21 AM.

  9. #9
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    Re: Being...

    hariḥ oṁ
    ~~~~~~

    namasté


    Quote Originally Posted by Necromancer View Post
    Namaste and pranams.

    No personal disrespect (more mental slowness on my part), but your threads are difficult to understand sometimes.
    No offense taken on my part.

    One must be aware that knowledge is structured in consciousness... this is a key take-away of the upaniṣad-s. When consciousness grows, so does comprehension.

    Please consider this post: http://www.hindudharmaforums.com/showthread.php?t=3730

    iti śivaṁ
    Last edited by yajvan; 27 April 2013 at 11:05 AM.
    यतसà¥à¤¤à¥à¤µà¤‚ शिवसमोऽसि
    yatastvaṠśivasamo'si
    because you are identical with śiva

    _

  10. #10
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    Re: Being...

    Quote Originally Posted by yajvan View Post
    hariḥ oṁ
    ~~~~~~

    namasté



    No offense taken on my part.

    One must be aware that knowledge is structured in consciousness... this is a key take-away of the upaniṣad-s. When consciousness grows, so does comprehension.

    Please consider this post: http://www.hindudharmaforums.com/showthread.php?t=3730

    iti śivaṁ
    Namaste and thank you. That was also a very interesting read. I guess I am still getting used to your etymology.

    Aum Namah Shivaya

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