THE Doctrine of Maya - HolyBooks.com

"""""""""74 THE DOCTRINE OF MAYAas given in the pure idealism," e.g., that of Yajfiavalkya.Granting as it does a world," itboldlysays that All is the Atman," that the only realityis the Atman, even though the world may be takento possess some kind ofexistence.In this way for accommodatingthe real truth ofthe sole reality of the Atman (and consequentlythe falsity of the world) to the empirical consciousness which refuses to part with the grosser conception of the world an idea with which it has longbeen familiar the idealist has to come down fromhis high pedestal and speak in words intelligibleto people in general. He will, for the time being,grant that there is a world, but will add that whatever is is the Atman." If we analyse this form ofPantheism we find that it is not far removed fromthe original Idealism, since the oneness of the Atmanis still maintained and all this diversity in the worldis said to be only a name depending on the Atmanfor its existence ;and as the name is unreal,it follows that even this doctrine indirectly comes to thesame truth. But a further abuse of the doctrinereduces it to what we may call the lower Pantheism," according to which each and every material thing is also the Atman, the horse is theAtman, the rider is the Atman, the table is theAtman, etc., so that when a man kills a snake theAtman has killed the Atman would be the vulgarway of expression and ; losing sight of the originalidea on which this conception is based, it is liable