Maya-Cosmic Power
the cosmic power of The Supreme God is called Maya shakti (Devanagari: माया शक्ति ISO15919: māyā śakti).
It is also referred to as just
- Maya (Devanagari: माया ISO15919: māyā).
- Prakriti (Devanagari: प्रकृति ISO15919: prakr̥ti)
It is fully controlled by God.
मायां तु प्रकृतिं मायिनं तु महेश्वरम । तस्यावयव भूतैस्तु व्यापतं सर्वमिदं जगत॥श्वेता. 4.10
māyāṁ tu prakr̥tiṁ māyinaṁ tu maheśvarama ।tasyāvayava bhūtaistu vyāpataṁ sarvamidaṁ jagata॥śvetā. 4.10
"Maya is the cosmic power and Master of Maya is Brahm- Supreme God."
Brahm- Supreme God is the master of infinite powers. Out of those the three primary powers are
- Jeev Shakti - All souls are parts of this power of God,
- Maya is an inert power of God, and
- Para Shakti, or most intimate and personal power of God.
God and jeev (or soul) are conscious which means they are endowed with life.
But Maya is lifeless or inert (Devanagari: जड़ शक्ति ISO15919: jaṛ śakti). Maya is called an external power of God Devanagari: बहिरङ्गा शक्ति ISO15919: bahiraṅgā śakti).
Since Maya is inert it cannot do anything by itself. Yet, it performs wondrous things like creating this amazing sansar. It can do all this because The Supreme God Himself wields it.
Thus, this insignificant, inert and external power of God is so mighty that even those possessing great knowledge are also afraid of it. Since it is governed by God Himself, it is as powerful as God Himself.
Modes of Maya
Maya is endowed with three material modes. These modes are called guna (Devanagari: गुण ISO15919: guṇa).
Sattvik Guna
Sattvik guna (Devanagari: सात्त्विक गुण ISO15919: sattvika guṇa) is the material mode of righteousness. It is the superior most guna of Maya.
It is also referred to as Maya which is white in color or shvet varna ki Maya (Devanagari: शुक्ल वर्ण की माया ISO15919: śukla varṇa kī māyā).
Sattvik guna is dominant in celestial gods and goddesses (देवी-देवता). Love, purity, sympathy, benevolence, philanthropy etc. virtues are the signs of sattva guna.
Rajas Guna
Rajas guna (Devanagari: राजस गुण ISO15919: rājasa guṇa) is the material mode of passion.
It is also referred to as Maya which is red in color or lohit varna ki Maya (Devanagari: लोहित वर्ण की माया ISO15919: lohita varṇa kī māyā).
This mode is predominant in human beings. To help others, being honest, forbearing and sympathetic to an extent, without harming ones self-interest, are the signs of rajas mode of Maya.
It means that these kinds of people are neither considered 'very good' nor 'very bad'.
Tamas Guna
Tamas guna (Devanagari: तामस गुण ISO15919: tāmasa guṇa) is the material mode of demonic dark tendencies.
It is also referred to as Maya which is black in color or krishna varna ki Maya (Devanagari: कृष्णाम् वर्ण की माया ISO15919: kr̥ṣṇām varṇa kī māyā).
Tamas guna promotes darkness, destruction and ignorance and is predominant in devious beings. Individuals, who are extremely selfish, angry, dishonest, cruel, unfaithful and destructive, fall in this category.
Aspects of Maya
There are two aspects of Maya
Swaroopavarika Maya
Swaroopavarika Maya (Devanagari: स्वरूपावरिका माया ISO15919:
svarūpāvarikā māyā) aspect performs two actions
- It makes us forget that we are an immortal and divine jeev. Instead it makes us believe we are the physical body.
- makes us attracted to the material world.
This is also called Avidya Maya (Devanagari: अविद्या माया ISO15919: avidyā māyā).
Two of the above mentioned modes of Maya fall under this category
- rajas guna - the material mode of passion and
- tamas guna -the material mode of demonic tendencies
With intense practice over many lifetimes gyani (those who tread on the path of gyan) can overcome this aspect of Maya.
Please note, till Maya has control over the jeev all three guna of Maya remain with the jeev. But, some gyanis can supress rajas and tamas guna in themselves.
Gunavarika Maya
Gunavarika Maya (Devanagari: गुणवरिका माया ISO15919: guṇavarikā māyā) is the sattva guna.
This is also referred to as Vidya Maya (Devanagari: विद्या माया ISO15919: vidyā māyā).
Nobody can win over this aspect of Maya. This Maya spares the jeev only upon being instructed by The Supreme God to do so. The Supreme God instructs it to spare only the fully surrendered jeev.
Usefulness of Maya
God is concerned about spiritual upliftment of jeev. Also, jeev is non-doer which means it cannot perform any actions. So jeev needs body, mind and intellect to perform actions for its own upliftment.
So, first God creates sansar. Then before sending jeev into the sansar, God gives each of them trisharir, a mind and an intellect. All of these things are made by Maya. Every material thing is inert, transitory and ever changing.
You have experience of the sthool sharir (the physical body). It is made of Maya. That is why our body is inert, insentient, lifeless, temporary and ever changing. It comes into being one day, grows, matures, dies and decays (see shadvikar).
Our physical body is lifeless! This might seem absurd and contrary to good sense. Lifeless things don't perform any action! Our physical bodies perform numerous actions like seeing, hearing, touching, thinking, smelling, deciding etc. These bodies have got to be sentient!
No, bodies are inert. The body does not perform actions on its own accord. The life force jeev lives in the heart of the body. When a lamp is placed inside a room it illuminates the whole room. Similarly, jeev lives inside the heart and provides consciousness to the whole body.
Understand it with this example: A table is lifeless. Yet it moves from one corner to another.
How?
It moves only when live hands push the table around.
Vedic scriptures reveal that these hands are also NOT sentient. They get consciousness from the mind. The mind is also not sentient. It gets consciousness from the intellect. The intellect is also insentient. It gets consciousness from the jeev. The Supreme Soul has eternally given consciousness to jeev.
That Supreme Soul is The Supreme God. He is the source of all consciousness. He does not get consciousness from anybody else.
Jeev has eternally been conscious and keeps the body, in which it is, also alive. That is why, as long as jeev lives in the body, the body functions as if it were “alive”. When jeev leaves then it because clear as day that the body is unconscious and made of Maya.
Jeev is part of divine bliss and is the master of the senses, mind and intellect. It is jeev who naturally desires to attain divine happiness.
The dilemma is its servants (mind and intellect) are material. They are unaware of existence and whereabouts of divine happiness. So, it should not be a surprise that they are ignorant of the ways to attain it.
So, Maya is essential for jeev to attain the bliss that jeev strives to attain. Maya is a power of God. God is all loving and gracious. But Swaroopavarika Maya and Gunavarika Maya seem to be the cause of jeev's despair. So, what is it?
Is Maya a well-wisher or antagonist?
Maya has lured us away from God and that is the cause of our misery. So Maya must be our foe. Right?
No. Maya is extremely beneficial to the jeev. God is our well-wisher and Maya is a power wielded by God. Lord Krishna said in Srimad Bhagavat Gita -
दैवी ह्येषा गुणमयी मम माया दुरत्यया । मामेव ये प्रपद्यन्ते मायामेतां तरन्तिते॥
गीता 7.14
daivī hyeṣā guṇamayī mama māyā duratyayā । māmeva ye prapadyante māyāmetāṁ tarantite॥
gītā 7.14
"Maya is My power. I wield it. Hence, one has to win over Me to win over Maya. I am invincible, thus Maya is also invincible. Yet the one who surrenders himself completely unto Me, becomes free from Maya and attains My grace.”
So, Maya can be nothing else but a well-wisher. It is no exaggeration to say that without Maya one cannot realize God.
- It creates and provides for everything needed to sustain the body, and mind. Jeev does sadhana in the human form with a material mind to attain God. Without Maya neither a body nor a mind would be possible.
- Additionally, Maya awakens us, from the deep slumber of ignorance, by giving us hardships. These hardships are God's punitive way of helping us realize the basic facts
- They do not belong to you.
- You are not the body; you are the soul immortal and divine like your origin God.
- Why are you increasing your attachment to them?
- All other material beings are also searching for happiness. It is futile to expect happiness from them. So, give up our expectation of getting happiness from them as they are beggars just like you. Please note, material people or things are not the cause of ones miseries. Instead, it is your false expectations of achieving happiness from material people and things that makes you miserable.
One's grim experiences of life are due to one's attachments to the world of Maya. Maya itself is not bad or miserable. Maya exposes the true behavior of the material beings.
For example, a son asked his father to buy him a motorcycle and the father refused to give it. Son was really looking forward to getting it, so he got really angry. In spite of anger he used harsh words. That time he really spoke his mind. When his temper cooled off then the son realized how his actions had undermined his personal aspirations. Then, son apologetically approaches the father.
Such instances are everyone's everyday experience. When one deeply reflects upon the selfish intent behind every action then the attachment to this material world reduces.
Many jeev like Ajamil, Meerabai, Tulsidas, Soordas were woken up by Maya.
So, Maya is a essential and is a well-wisher. Also, this is the punitive power of God.
Is respite from Maya possible?
God is extremely gracious. He actively engages in promoting the well-being of jeev. He is ever eager to bestow the ultimate bliss upon every jeev. To usher jeev towards the ultimate bliss He employs two types of servants namely saints and Maya namely
1. His Saints who coach us on how to rectify our lives. They assist us in attaining our goal of unlimited divine happiness. They lovingly guide and try to infuse true knowledge in your mind. The goal of this is to detach us from the wrong path of attaining happiness.
2. But, if one refuses to listen to the good servants of God, the strict servant Maya comes forth and shows the real nature of the world. It reveals one's family members, friends and relatives true intent to the forefront. In those moments friends and family drop their facade and reveal the real intent for demonstrating all the love and affection. This naked truth makes one dissatisfied and unhappy with the world. It is then that they realize the truth of the words of those Saints and turn towards God.
Saints descend on earth and lovingly explain the divine precepts to the jeev. Saints coach the jeev to follow those precepts. When jeev ignores all those teachings then God employs the punitive power to awaken the jeev.
When Ajamil, Meerabai, Tulsidas, Soordas were woken up by Maya then they paid attention to words of saints. Then they put those divine precepts into practice. It is then that they got respite from Maya and attained their aim of life.
In a nutshell
If you want respite from Maya then follow Bhagavan-Shri Krishna's advise.
तद्विद्धि प्रणिपातेन परिप्रश्नेन सेवया । उपदेक्ष्यन्ति ते ज्ञानं ज्ञानिनस्तत्तवदर्शिनः।।
गी. 3.34
tadviddhi praṇipātena paripraśnena sevayā । upadekṣyanti te jñānaṁ jñāninastattavadarśinaḥ।।
gī. 3.34
तस्माद् गुरुं प्रद्येत जिज्ञासुः श्रेय उत्तमम्। शाब्देपरे च निष्णातं ब्रह्मण्युपशमाश्रयम् ।
भा11.3.21
tasmād guruṁ pradyeta jijñāsuḥ śreya uttamam। śābdepare ca niṣṇātaṁ brahmaṇyupaśamāśrayam ।
bhā 11.3.21
"Submit to a God-realized saint and humbly ask questions to clarify your spiritual doubts."
Do not ask questions to test them. Ask question to seek clarifications and then follow their guidance. Affirm the knowledge that God is happiness and is the sole source of happiness. Then, redirect your mental attachments to God.
Reaffirm that He is the only true source of all kinds of happiness. This repeated contemplation will firm up your resolve to attain Him.
The firmer the resolve the greater is natural detachment from Maya. Detachment from Maya and attachment to God move together in the same direction. Greater is the detachment from Maya equally great will be the love for God.
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