Page 25 - Acharya Vinoba Bhave in 21st Century ISBN

21oha “krkCnh esa vkpk;Z fouksck Hkkos dh izklafxdrk

The universe is perceived and therefore it is perceptible Brahman but God is inferred from the
experiences of Universe. Therefore it is inferential Brahman. The Vedas are the words of Realized

Soul, so it is sound Brahman.
Vinoba’s third point of view perhaps emerges from perceptible Brahman when he talks of it

as: Sat-Brahma or Existence Brahman: Cit-Brahma or Conscious-Brahman and Ananda-Brahma
or Bliss-Brahman. Sat-Brahma or Existence-Brahman can be seen in the world, Cit-Brahma or

Conscious-Brahman can be realized in meditation that is Jiva (individual Soul) and Ananda-Brahma
or Bliss-Brahman can be seen in eyes, for example, in the eyes of Saints. 12

Explaining the term Saccidananda of the Upanisads, Vinoba states “The Sun necessarily
implies light so Satya necessarily implies knowledge and where there is Satya-jnana, there cannot be

grief. There is bound to be bliss so Brahman is known as Saccidananda.” Satya implies the highest
13
element, so Satyam Brahma means, ‘The Highest Reality is Brahman.’ Brahman is not only existence
but the highest existence. Thus, Vinoba puts his thought about the nature of Brahman in the form of
aphorisms. He does not only explain the traditional meaning of Brahman but offers his novel

interpretation. Unlike Gandhi, he distinguishes between three terms Brahman, God and Truth. Brahman
is such a wide term which is not synonymous with God but God is an important aspect of Brahman,

according to him. Again, Brahman is in the form of Truth. Brahma Satyam can be interpreted as (1)
Brahma is Satya, i.e., it is existence. (2) Brahma is nothing but Satya, i.e., Truth. Brahman is a form

of Truth. (Brahma Satyaka Svarupa hai). He accepts the first meaning from the worldly point of
view. But from the philosophical point of view, the first meaning is not acceptable to him. According to

him, the nature of Truth is Truth alone. “There cannot be definition of Truth. For a definition itself is
14
based on Truth.” So Brahma cannot be accepted as the nature of Satya. According to him, Satyam
Brahma is philosophically acceptable. That is, Satya is Brahman only, i.e., the nature of Brahman is
15
Satya. Brahma necessarily has beingness’ so existence is its inseparable quality.

Relation of Brahman to the Phenomenal World

How is ‘this’ Brahman related to the world of our experience? Here Vinoba follows the
authority of the Isha Upanisad. He says, “The whole universe is filled with Isha (God) — Ishavasyam

Idam Sarvam.”Is this Isha different from Idam Sarvam (Jagat)? Vinoba’s metaphorical answer
would be that though our language suggests a container and contained, in actuality, there is no difference

between the container and the contained. The contained is merely a Vibration — ‘Sphurti of the
container. But the contained is Isha. Here Isha means Brahman and only in a secondary sense, it may

mean God; for God is only the ‘Saguna’ form of Brahman. What Vinoba wants to covey is that every
particle of the world is also an amsha or element of God or Brahman. 16

25