The journey of soul after death-2

The journey of soul after death of the gross body for 12 days to acquire noble traits and divine light is described in Yajur Veda. It goes to Prakrti devas particular¬ly Chandrama (moon), Surya and Savitar (sun), Indra, Agni, Mitra, Varun and others. In another hymn of Yajur Veda, its qualities of luster, bril¬liance, light and one that gives commands and orders are mentioned. The concept of souls going up for purification is also described by a qualified monist Ramanajum. Only the sinful souls cannot go up even for purification as subtle particles of evils, sins and corrup¬tion make the soul heavier. It gets manifested in a new gross body even before its 12 days journey to moon, sun etc. Such a birth is the lowest as the infant is born in families where corruption is parading up and down and tamas¬ic way of living is the highest based on greed, ego and ostentation.

It is for this reason birth in the families of vulgar rich, smugglers, black marketers and other evil-minded persons are considered as the lowest type of birth. This Vedic metaphysical concept is rebirth even Plato agreed, though he arrived at this concept independently. Lighter souls are purified of their knowledge and light but effect of good or bad action stays. However, noble souls, which are still lighter, cross six other noble and divine communities (Taittriya Upanishad) and tend to move towards Vaikunth - the abode of God. Vaikunth and the abode of six other communities are beyond the range of human senses and even scientific material instruments.

Atharva Veda also relates to Purusha - the immortal soul. It has complete knowledge of Rta - the laws of God and is the nucleus force of cosmic order, body and socie¬ty. This hymn gives the spirituous-materialistic interpretation of the world, human beings as part of society and also the “self” integral part of human body and senses. Vedas clearly aim at harmony of body and soul, even though in Atharva Veda, matter, soul and God have been taken as separate entities. God permeates the world made of elements, while pervading the earth from all sides. One fourth of His grandeur is seen in the universe, Prakrti and cosmos and remaining 3/4th of his grandeur is in immortality i.e., abode of God which Vedas describe as Brahma lok, Heavens (Swarga lok), Pitri lok, Deva lok etc; where the Creation and Dissolution is not applicable.

While providing soul to individuals, God also created a social structure and four divine professions as Chatavar Varna ashram. Vedas thus give a great emphasis that human soul is the cause of social order and to maintain this cosmic and social order, the soul is provided with complete knowledge of Rta, divine laws. Even holy Bible also says “the soul keeps God’s laws” In Atharva Veda, the word Purusa has been used both for God and soul, leading to the conclusion that on realisation of the real self, individual himself becomes Brahma. The Vedic metaphysicists like Badrayana, Sankracharya and all of their Brahma Sutras guide the individuals to achieve “self realisation,” which stage has been described as Turiya by Advaita Vedantists and Kaivalya by seer Patanjali. The a-priori principles known to the soul and manifested soul relating to love, harmony, truth, transparency, selfless service, cosmic laws of social and moral order and other are beyond Time and Space.

This knowledge in the soul always remains but gets covered with the subtle atoms of human karma of good or bad deeds. It is at this stage that the out ward looking mind (etani), senses and sense organs start explaining these a-priori principles based on sense experience and distortion emerges owing to vested interests of individuals and also degree of knowledge each individual possesses. Thus even a-priori principles and also laws of God get corrupted. It is for this reason that the definition and description of love, truth, self less work and other virtues would considerably vary with each individual and it becomes the major cause of confusion in any society in regard to social and moral values. Thus purity of the manifested soul and keeping it free from the effect of bad, corrupt and evil deeds, thoughts and desires make it as our philosopher, guide and friend.

Rig Veda refers to six major constituents of the gross, subtle and causal body of the human beings. There is the reful¬gent Brahma as universal over self, soul, mind, Prana (ten vital breaths), senses and the gross body. Mind is the inner sense of finer elements. The spirit energises mind, Pranas, senses and the gross body. Thus, spirit is found in the entire body as subtle energy princi¬ple. Atman makes the human being as a divine animal, being a particle of God with its center in the heart and infinite circumference. Rig Veda says, “He Himself is seated with the soul (atman) with His imperishable higher nature.” It is the mind under the influence of senses, which shuts you from your real being - the immortal soul. Sankracharya explained this phenomenon due to Maya (cosmic illusion) and with the understand¬ing of Vedic metaphysics, when reality emerges, real self appears as atman.

According to him, Brahma is “Bhuman” as bliss and this Bhuman is no other than the innermost self or the soul of the individual. Soul's wisdom tells you do not resist flux and law of change as these are beyond resistance, but the wisdom through human senses aims at provid¬ing permanence to the non permanence, like matter, material wealth, mythology, effort to control divine Nature and make human beings run after these non permanent things, ideas and mythology. The wisdom through senses makes certain mythological gods, char¬acters and religious fairy tales to look real and even permanent. Only after realization of the real self, the veil of cosmic illusion disappears and the need for any type of mythology, idols and icons is no longer felt.

The soul has been addressed by various names and epithets in the Vedas. Samrat (the ruler of the body), Vaishva Deva, Teja, Vak, Agneye, Prajapati of Yajaur Veda. Each name or epithet indicates its attributes, like the controlling lord, the nourisher of human beings, the just ruler etc., It is also called Twashta - subtle soul. In Bhagavad Gita, apart from atma, jivatma, words like sah (self), dehin, deha, sharirin, shariri are used. All these later epithets generally mean lord of the body. Ramanajum - the Vedic metaphysicist and Vedantist of medieval period, refers to it as Sesa - servant of God who is Sesi (master). A few other Vedantists refer to it as Kshetri - the soul that illumines the entire body.

Atharva Veda and other scriptures also mention it as Shivansh (particle of God), dehinam, Purusa - the dweller in the city of God i.e., the sublime causal body seated along with God. Most of the names indicate its attributes of knowledge, light, always at the service of God, master of subtle and gross body. It is for this reason Bhagavad Gita refers to it as “higher self” and the other body self, which is described as lower self. Vedas contain an interesting discussion and conversation between soul as atman and spirit as manas, prana to indicate which is superior. At the end, all the divine and gross instruments in the body accept superiority of the soul.

Dante found soul in the human beings and described man as divine animal. Aristotle who was not an idealist like his eminent teacher Plato, could not find soul as different than spirit and combined both in his entelechy and found it in all animate and inanimate life. He could thus find man as a social animal and the entelechy makes the person move towards perfection.

However, the Vedic metaphysics has found the higher self only in the human beings on this earth and six other divine communities not living on this earth. These six communities like devas (gods), angels, pitries, gandharvas etc., are more divine and noble than human beings. According to Ramanajum, a Vedantist the human soul when goes on acquiring noble and higher qualities passes through all these communities before merging with God as His servant. He described God as Sesi - the Master and the soul when attains Moksha i.e. salvation and attains Brahma Lok - the abode of God becomes Sesa, the servant of God.

Only the sinful souls which are heavier owing to accumulation of three gunas and predominance of tamasic guna of stupor and rajasic guna of selfish desires and activity get rebirth on this earth based on past good or bad actions. The concept of lighter souls going up¬wards on death and the heavier souls remaining on the earth and getting manifested in gross bodies of human beings in nine types of families of philosophers, musicians, soldiers, traders etc., is also given in the metaphysics of the ancient Greek philosopher Plato.

The calm soul examines well good, bad, virtuous, evil, pleasant and other actions. While human senses prefer pleasant and transitory pleasures to good, the soul prefers good to pleasant. Katha Upanishad further says that the fool chooses the pleasant out of greed and avarice. Bhagavad Gita refers to Soul as “shashwat” - ever lasting and “ajo” - unborn and cannot be cognized by any of the senses and sense organs. It is ever keen to get out of the gross body and get merged in God. However, the evil activities, thoughts, desires make it manifest again and again. Human mind cannot conceive it under the control of senses and so it is unthinkable. Human beings are manifest only during the interim stage and are un-manifested before and after death, so the rela¬tionship of individuals is more like Maya (cosmic illusion). In reality neither the children nor other relations are yours nor are you theirs. The concept that children do not belong to you, they only come through you.