The philosophy is built entirely on plain statements from the ten major Upanishads. They speak, in different ways, of one Brahman or Atman that is without a second, that desired to become many, entered into them, and will finally withdraw them into itself. They also say that this Atman dwells in the heart, and that Brahman is of the nature of mind.
From these statements the book draws the four great declarations — Tat Tvam Asi (That thou art), Ayam Atma Brahma (This Atman is Brahman), Prajnanam Brahma and Aham Brahmasmi (I am Brahman) — and treats them as natural consequences of the one sentence Sarvam Kalvidam Brahma.
If the Upanishads say Brahman desired to become many and entered into them, then the many are real, and Brahman is in them. The Upanishads never say that Brahman imagined itself as many, or merely appeared so.
Two consequences follow. First, the world, human values and religious life all keep their meaning, because they are Brahman in form. Second, Brahman remains “one without a second”, because everything that exists is of the same substance as Brahman and nothing stands outside it.
What we see as matter, life, mind and senses is the same Brahman acting in many ways.
Differences are of form and function. They are not differences in what things are made of.
There cannot be a second thing beside Brahman — otherwise it would not be one.
Because Brahman is in everything, there is nothing “high or low, civilised or barbarous” in worship. Someone worshipping in a great temple and a villager who holds the Divine in a tree or a stone stand equal. What matters is the intensity of faith, and the one whose faith is more intense receives more grace.
The one condition is inner: no contempt for another’s worship. “The Satyadvaitin is no sectarian.” He regards every worshipper of every deity as a brother in a common quest.
The Upanishads call the knowledge of Brahman Para Vidya, supreme knowledge; everything else, even the study of the Vedas, is lower. It is not won by much study of scriptures, a keen intellect or hearing. It reveals itself to one who earnestly seeks it — which means seeking, and receiving, the grace of Brahman.
That grace, he insists, “is not a myth”. Like electricity and magnetism, its effects can be perceived, and it can be harnessed for the service of man. A person whose pure mind concentrates on Brahman in the heart, with faith and earnestness, enters what he calls “the magnetic field of Brahman”, and knowledge dawns of its own accord.
This is why Satya Advaita is practical. It asks for no hard yogic exercises and no painful penance, and no renunciation of the world. It asks for earnest, faithful devotion, practised in these ways:
“Man has to rise beyond mere animal existence… Let him therefore gird up his loins and embark upon an enquiry into these transcendental matters.”
— The One and the ManyRealisation does not come from reading every philosophy. It comes to one who truly longs for it.
The mind can rest on Brahman as formless spirit, or in a form with great power and auspicious qualities — whichever form one’s own faith and nature prefer. Since the formless is hard to hold, most seekers enthrone a favourite form.
The heart is the Kingdom of God, where Atman shines. Place the chosen form there, and hold the mind on it.
Conceive the form as the one God of the whole universe, common to all humanity — and never hate or decry the worship of others. Bigotry bars full grace.
If the heart is restless, concentrate on an external object that appeals — the sun, a mountain, an idol, a symbol, a holy object — believing it to be the one omnipresent God. Without that belief, concentration leads only to mesmerism.
The Divine may be held as father, mother, friend or guide. To many, the Divine Mother is the most natural: she knows every need of her child. We cannot know what is truly good “in the long run”, so the devotee says, “Thy will be done.”
“In whatever form and manner it concentrates on God, God showers grace in that form and manner.”
— The One and the ManyChoose a Name of the Divine form dear to you — Kamakshi, Siva, Murugan, Krishna, Venkateswara or any other — and repeat it silently or aloud, keeping the mind on the Name and on the form, with faith. Because Brahman pervades every form, any Name held sincerely as the one God is a doorway.
Hymns, Thiruppugazhs, ashtakams and kavasams keep the mind absorbed in the Divine through melody and meaning. Singing together, as in a class or choir, deepens this further.
The mind is, potentially, Brahman itself. Constant concentration with deep faith brings it great power and peace, and the grace of God comes in the same form and manner in which it is sought.
“Let man therefore wake up before the sands of his life are out, and act quickly.”
— The One and the ManyJoin a class, sing his works, or take part in the Foundation’s programs.