WHAT IS THE DIFFERENCE BETWEEN BRAHMA & BRAHMAN ?

WHAT IS THE DIFFERENCE BETWEEN BRAHMA & BRAHMAN ;---- WHO IS BRAHMA;-- 06 FACTS;--- 1-It is often confusing to the seeker to know the difference between the words Brahma and Brahman. We can remove the confusion by explaining the terms and their meaning. 2-Brahma is the god of creation and is one of the Trimurti. According to the Brahma Purana, he is the father of Manu, and from Manu all human beings have descended. 3-In the Ramayana and the Mahabharata, he is often referred to as the progenitor or great forefather of all human beings. 4-Brahma's consort is ma Saraswati who sits beside him, is the goddess of learning. Brahma is often identified as Prajapati, a Vedic deity. 5-He is not to be confused with the Supreme Cosmic Spirit in Vedanta philosophy known as Brahman, which is genderless. 6- The significance of his form is;--- 1-The Four Hands - Brahmā's four arms represent the four cardinal directions: east, south, west, and north. The back right hand represents mind, the back left hand represents intellect, the front right hand is ego, and the front left hand is self-confidence 2-The Rosary - Symbolizes the substances used in the process of creation 3-The Book - The book symbolizes knowledg 4-The Golden Pot - Gold symbolizes activity; the golden pot of Braha indicates that He is actively involved in the process of creating the Universe. 5-The Swan - The swan is the symbol of grace and discernment. Brahmā uses the swan as his vāhana, or his carrier or vehicl 6-The Crown - Lord Brahmā's crown indicates His supreme authority over the creation. 7-The Lotus - The lotus symbolizes nature and the living essence of all things and beings in the Universe. 8-The Beard - Brahmā's white beard denotes wisdom and the eternal process of creation. It also indicates the present age of the deity, which is adjudged to be around 50 years and above 9- The Four Faces-The four Vedas (Rig,Yajuh, Sama and Atharva). The Vedas Symbolises his four faces, heads and arms. Also denote the various procedures and rituals for acheiving the onness with the Brahman in various ages(yuga) and ways. 2.WHO IS BRAHMAN;-- 04 FACTS;--- 1-The term Brahman denotes all pervading, originless, genderless being without a form and name who is the origin of all the Cosmos. Brahman is Cosmos and all the Cosmos are in the Brahman. 2-It is neither Male, nor Female and neither is it Eunuch. All forms and names are its, yet it is beyond the form and name.Also this term does not indicate the Caste Brahmin. It cannot be known by reasoning, logic or deduction. 3-Everybeing knows it yet it remains percievable by few. It cannot be known or percieved through senses. Five elements cannot touch it, yet it is in the five elements. Innumerable number of Trimurtis are ruling their cosmos under the guidence and power given to them by it. 4-It is neither material nor immaterial. The Four Vedas have failed to describe it and left it as "OM". I can go on writing about it but one will have the knowledge about it only when one experiences it. Nobody can teach anybody about it. Only IT teaches Itself through Itself. So be the IT.

WHAT IS ''ABSOLUTE TRUTH'' IN HINDUISM ?---

04 FACTS;---

1-Let us look at what Hinduism holds to be the Absolute. The ultimate goal and Absolute of Hinduism are "Brahman" in Sanskrit. The word comes from the Sanskrit verb root brh, meaning "to grow". Etymologically, the term means "that which grows" (brhati) and "which causes to grow"(brhmayati) .

2-BRAHMAN IS NOT "GOD"Brahman, as understood by the scriptures of Hinduism, as well as by the 'acharyas' of the Vedanta school, is a very specific conception of the Absolute.This unique conception has not been replicated (repeat something)by any other religion on earth and is exclusive to Hinduism.

3-Thus to even call this conception of Brahman "God" is, in a sense, somewhat imprecise. This is the case because Brahman does not refer to the anthropomorphic( treating of animals, gods, and objects as if they are human in appearance, character, or behaviour ) concept of God of the Abrahamic religions.

4-When we speak of Brahman, we are referring neither to the "old man in the sky" concept nor to the idea of the Absolute as even capable of being vengeful, fearful or engaging in choosing a favorite people from among His creatures. For that matter, Brahman is not a "He" at all, but rather transcends all empirically (realistically ) discernible( capable of being perceived by the mind or senses)categories, limitations, and dualities.

WHAT IS BRAHMAN?

04 FACTS;---

In the 'Taittariya Upanishad' , Brahman has described in the following manner: "satyam jnanam anantam brahma", "Brahman is of the nature of truth, knowledge, and infinity." Infinite positive qualities and states have their existence secured solely by virtue of Brahman's very reality.

2-Brahman is a necessary reality, eternal (i.e., beyond the purview of temporality), fully independent, non-contingent, and the source and ground of all things. Brahman is both immanently present in the realm of materiality, interpenetrating the whole of reality as the sustaining essence that gives it structure, meaning and existential being, yet Brahman is simultaneously the transcendent origin of all things (thus, panentheistic).

THE NATURE OF BRAHMAN;---

1-As the primary causal substance of material reality (jagatkarana), Brahman does not arbitrarily will the coming into being of the non-Brahman metaphysical (The branch of philosophy that deals with the first principles of things, including abstract concepts such as being, knowing, identity, time, and space)principles of matter and jivas (individuated consciousness), but rather they are manifest into being as a natural result of the overflowing of Brahman's grandeur, beauty, bliss, and love.

2-Brahman cannot but create abundant good in a similar manner to how Brahman cannot but exist. Both existence and overflowing abundance are as many necessary properties of Brahman as love and nurturing are necessary qualities of any virtuous and loving mother.

BRAHMAN IS THE SOURCE;--

One can say that Brahman Itself (Him/Herself) constitutes the essential building material of all reality, being the antecedent primeval ontological substance from whence all things proceed. There is no ex nihilo( out of nothing )creation in Hinduism. Brahman does not create anything from nothing, but from the reality of Its own being. Thus Brahman is, in Aristotelian terms, both the Material Cause as well as the Efficient Cause of creation.

THE FINAL GOAL & THE FINAL CAUSE;--

1-As the source of Dharma, the metaphysical ordering principles inherent in the design of the cosmos, Brahman can be viewed as the Formal Cause.And as the final goal of all reality, Brahman is also the Final Cause.

2-Being the ontological source of all reality, Brahman is the only substantial real that truly exists, all other metaphysical categories being either a) contingent transformations of Brahman, having their very being subsisting in attributive dependence upon Brahman, or else b) illusory in nature.

NOTE-These views about the nature of Brahman are in general keeping with the theological teachings of both the Advaita and the Vishishta-Advaita schools of Hinduism.

BRAHMAN IS THE ULTIMATE REALITY;--

All reality has its source in Brahman. All reality has its grounding sustenance in Brahman. It is in Brahman that all reality has its ultimate repose. Hinduism, specifically, is consciously and exclusively aiming toward this reality termed Brahman.

THE WESTERN PROSPECTIVE---

1-In general, absolute truth is whatever is always valid, regardless of parameters or context. The absolute in the term connotes one or more of: a quality of truth that cannot be exceeded; complete truth; unvarying and permanent truth. It can be contrasted to relative truth or truth in a more ordinary sense in which a degree of relativity is implied.

2- In philosophy, absolute truth generally states what is essential rather than superficial - a description of the Ideal (to use Plato's concept) rather than the merely "real" (which Plato sees as a shadow of the Ideal).

3-Among some religious groups this term is used to describe the source of or authority for a given faith or set of beliefs, such as the Bible.

3-In science, doubt has been cast on the notion of absolutes by theories such as relativity and quantum mechanics . Attempts to tie together all the known facts about the universe into a single unified theory (one example is string theory ) could be seen as efforts to discover absolute truth about this set of facts.

4- In pure mathematics , however, there is said to be a proof for the existence of absolute truth. A common tactic in mathematical proofs is the use of reductio ad absurdum , in which the statement to be proved is denied as a premise, and then that premise is shown to lead to a contradiction. When it can be demonstrated that the negation of a statement leads to a contradiction, then the original statement is proved true.The logical proof of the statement, "There exists an absolute truth," is almost trivial in its simplicity. Suppose we assert the negation of the statement, that is, that there is no such thing as absolute truth. By making that assertion, we claim that the sentence "There exists no absolute truth" is absolutely true. The statement is self-contradictory, so its negation, "There exists an absolute truth," is true.This proof applies only to logic. It does not tell us whether any particular statement other than itself is true. It does not prove the existence (or non-existence) of God, the devil, heaven, hell, or little green people from another galaxy. Neither does it assert that we can always ascertain the truth or falsity of any arbitrary statement.

Shuddha Dvait philosophy of Madhavacharya to define''ABSOLUTE TRUTH''-----

1-Dvait philosophy, also known as Shuddha Dvait or Pure Dualism was given by Madhavacharya (Madhvacharya, or Madhva) (1238-1317). Just as Advaita is different than Monism, Dvaita is different than Dualism.

2-Dualism defines about two independent already opposite realities, such as, mind and body, good and evil, physical and spiritual, whereas Dvaita philosophy defines two, characteristically look-alike but ontologically quite distinct, eternal realities, namely, soul and God (also known as the super-soul), maintaining the Supremacy of God.

3-The distinction between soul and God which was not proposed in Advaita and not clearly defined in Vishishtadvait philosophy was explained clearly by Madhavacharya. Madhavacharya removed the paradoxical (vishishta) part of Ramanujacharya’s philosophy of having similarity but difference between the soul and God.

4-Madhavacharya stressed of having a strict ontological (tattvik) distinction between God, called Vishnu (also known as Krishna or Hari), and the individual souls. Because of this, his philosophy is also known as Shuddha Dvaita Vada (Pure Dualism).

He propounded that, this duality of soul and God is maintained even after the liberation of souls which was not cleared or stressed in the Vishishtadvait philosophy of Ramanujacharya.

5-In the book Mayavada-shata-dusani (Tattva Muktavali), it is said that, the Absolute Truth is the Supreme Personality, full of transcendental attributes and not the attributeless impersonal Brahm. Madhavacharya describes five major differences in realities:

1- Major ontological difference between God and jiv.

2- The ontological difference between God and maya.

3- The ontological difference between maya and jiv.

4- The difference, meaning separation or individuality, between one jiv and another jiv.

5- Individuality between different forms of maya.

6-According to Dvaita philosophy souls are eternal and are not created by God, yet, like maya or other fundamental realities they are not independent but are dependent on the Supreme God for their existence. Souls are many and uncountable.

7-How come the individual souls which are mingled with Maya (mayan + veshtita = mayanveshtita, meaning, enveloped or completely covered with maya) can be of the same level of the Supreme God which is ever transcendental to maya and also to whom maya even cannot touch.

8- Maya, though revocably but strongly, binds the souls but cannot bind God, it cannot even touch God. Moreover, by having salvation or liberation of one soul all souls do not get liberation. 9-Madhavacharya strongly says to those who believes that they are Brahm (Aham Brahmasmi), “If you feel that there is no God, then how, in what way, and who controls the universe . If you feel that you are Brahm (God) – the controller of everything, then how come you do not always enjoy the eternal happiness?” ........SHIVOHAM.........

.....SHIVOHAM.....