Guest guest Posted June 8, 2007 Report Share Posted June 8, 2007 Dear Brothers and Sisters, Loving SAI RAMs. An interesting mail has been received from a member requesting me to clarify as to in what way Liberation is different from attaining heaven. According to her " God is in heaven and hence reaching heaven is as good as merging with God which alone is considered as liberation " . Terms such as ' Kingdom of God,God in heaven or Father in heaven' etc. etc.are, perhaps, relevant in some religions other than Hinduism. In Hinduism the word heaven connotes an inferior plane as compared to the State of Godhood. According to Hinduism, God`s prescence is not limited to heaven only. God is everywhere, in every being, in every object etc. God is not a personality but a concept according to Vedanta. The Upanishads tell us that the whole universe is filled with the spirit of God. God is the indwelling spirit in man and nature, the ultimate Reality, the cause, the ground and the goal of the Universe. God is the true nature of man and man finds his fulfilment in God. God, according to Vedanta is the Self of all, in whom we live and move and have our being. The Atman, Self, the Paramatman, The Supreme Self or God are not mere words but are verities of direct experience. Many a times we find people looking up towards the sky when they think of God. God is not confined to the regions yonder in the skies or in the snow-clad peaks of the Himalayas or in Vaikunta. God is very much there in each one of us. The fact remains we are unable to realize this fact. According to Vedanta those who attain self-realization are not born again. In the ISA UPANISHD, the seeker prays to be taken by the northen path, by the path of light, by taking which he need be born gain;he will gradually attain liberation (Kramamukti), in a disembodied state, the highest plane of Brahmaloka, the abode of God. This is what is called Liberation or Moksha. On the other hand, heaven according to the Hindu concept, is inhabitated by the demigods or the inferior gods. It is a place where certain pleasures and enjoyments specific to heaven are available. To attain heaven, human beings will have to accumulate sufficient merits (punya) by performing noble deeds and worship of God through sacrifices(yagna), performing charity(dana) etc. etc. The Bhagavad Gita asserts that if the accumulated merits of a person enjoying heaven are exhausted he will have to come back to earth (Te tam bhuktva svargalokam visalam kshhene punye martya lokam visanti evam trayeedharmam anuprapanna gatagatam kamakama labante). Thus heaven is not the final place of rest for the soul according to Hindu thinking. Anybody reaching heaven will have to come back to earth. Both merits (Punya) and demerits or sins(papa) are causes for reincarnation according to Vedanta. Libearation means reaching a state where there is abscence of any further births. Heaven ,on the other hand implies further births. This is the essential difference between Liberation and reaching Heaven. If, however, the term heaven is synonymous with the Brahmaloka, in that situation reaching heaven can be considered as attaining Liberation . G.Balasubramanian Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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