A Nagraj Sharma

From NonSpiritual



Real Name	A Nagraj Sharma
Alternative Names	affectionately, Baba
Date of Birth	14 Jan 1920
Date of Death	Still Alive
Spiritual Tradition	None/ Completely new
Methods	existential proof, reason, logic
Headquarters	Amarkantak, India
Website	www.madhyasth-darshan.info
Teacher	None known
Region	India
Language	Hindi

Introduction

Shri Agrahar Nagraj Sharma was born on 14 Jan1920 to a family belonging to the caste of vedic brahmans in the village of Agrahar, Hassan Dist,Karnataka. the family was revered at that time for their learning, seva (service) and hard work. The following is a first person account from him:

quote “I began this bodily-journey in a religious family that had strongly established traditions of knowledge, seva, and manual-work. Every human-child starts believing in the religion of his family, accepts the laws and dictums of the state, submits himself to prevalent education-system, and tries to follow guidance of its educationists. I too started in the same fashion. Apart from this, there were dictates of tradition – the do’s and don’ts. From the very beginning, these dictates didn’t satisfy me. This happened in childhood itself. Initially, my elders dismissed this behavior of mine as childish. But slowly their language, postures, and body-language started changing towards me. I sensed my elders weren’t happy with me. This became first cause of my sorrow.

But how could I make them happy? Even if I obeyed them – I would start testing them against their own criteria. Even after their strictly following those dictates (and by not following also) they themselves weren’t happy all the time. I could see that. That was the main thing. I observed my elders weren’t themselves happy all the time by following those dictates of tradition and scriptures. Still one couldn’t find better scholars of vedic-scriptures than them… Having seen this, I decided within to not follow tradition’s dictates blindly – come what may! It started becoming like an oath within me. And another reason got added to this – that my elders weren’t able to explain things to my satisfaction. Their repeated failure in explaining things only fueled my pride. My growing pride and non-conformance to dictates of tradition happened side by side. Where would this trend culminate eventually? Now my elders started claiming – he hasn’t understood the Vedas, Vedanta, and traditional scriptures. He rejects every tradition, every dictate, and everything we say – how far could this be tolerated? They started worrying about this. This became second cause of my sorrow. Now what could I do? There was no other way for me but to study the traditional scriptures of Vedas which they considered supreme.

(On studying the Veda’s, a number of questions arose in his mind, and he sensed logical discontinuities. However, satisfactory answers were not forthcoming. He was told that the answers to his questions could only be attained in the yogic state if Samadhi – where the unknown becomes known)

Samadhi has answers to all my questions – was the assurance that I got from my elders. So I determined within to achieve the state of samadhi. There was no other way for me. My claims meant nothing. My following or not following dictates didn’t mean anything. I had to get answers to my questions for once.

Such were my iconoclastic ways… I didn’t conform to my elders – so they started calling me an iconoclast. I said – whatever you consider me is fine, but you should answer to these questions. I didn’t get answers to my questions from them. Eventually they told me that I will get answers to these questions also in the status of samadhi. Now what could be done? Gradually I readied myself for samadhi. This began in 1944, and I was ready to endeavor for samadhi by 1946. That was the time when India was ready for getting its independence. In 1947, as we were hoping, power got transferred from the British. We used to listen to the present-day thinkers and elders – and contradictions in their words after this success. These also caused me pain. Thereafter another hope was kindled from prospects of India’s new National-Constitution (law-framework). Perhaps that would provide a valuation framework for a human-being. I kept thinking myself – that Indian-Constitution should provide a direction somehow.

I kept listening to the developments for Indian constitution’s making through newspapers etc – trying to understand. By 1950 – after listening to all its presentation, I felt that it was impossible to valuate a rightful-man under this constitution. It had no explanation for rightful-character for human-being – which could provide a definition of National-Character. Now what could be done? I added this also to my list of questions for which I expected to find answers in samadhi. There was no more need left to debate with elders and scholars. If the answers are there in samadhi then good, otherwise I am throwing this bodily-journey for this purpose – so I decided within.

One more person got ready for this, and that was my wife. We used to hear about Amarkantak – the originating place of river Narmada, and an auspicious place. Why not give one very last attempt here? And with this thought we arrived at Amarkantak.” unquote

He spent 25 years at Amarkantak, doing rigorous practices and achieving knowledge according to the traditional vedic vichaar. (1950 to 1975). After achieving certain higher states beyond Samadhi by improvising this state (called sanyam), he found the answers to his questions and he was fulfilled. On realizing that what he had discovered was an answer that belonged to the whole of humanity, he felt it just to share it with others – which is where the process of expressing this knowledge in words began. During the intervening years since then, he has written over 13 books. The investment for the books was borne by him. He has not used any public money so far – be it for his own expenses or the for the publication of the books. He has spent all his time and effort since then to share his knowledge with others and ensure that it is replicated in them as well. He continues to live in Amarkantak with his 2 sons, daughter, daughter-in-laws and grandchildren. He has been producing his own needs via rearing cows, the medicinal practice of Ayurveda and farming.

He lives the full life of an 'awakened' human being, and is also called ‘Baba’ - the affectionate word in Hindi for ‘grandfather’.

Teachings

The basic need of the human being is happiness. This need for happiness cannot be separated from the human being. It is innate to him. Just like the tendency to ‘grow’ cannot be separated from a plant. Man seeks a resolution – or wants to be resolved in all his relationships: within himself, with other humans and with nature at large.

On studying existence and mans place in it, it turns out that existence is basically in harmony, as co-existence. This co-existence is in the form of units saturated in space. These units are nothing but all the entities we see around us: humans, animals, plants and the material order. These units are in self-organization within themselves and participate in the larger organization. The human being has been found to belong to the knowledge order.

It is evident that out of the 4 order (knowledge, animal, plant and material) it is only the human being that is not self-organized, and as a result is unable to fulfill his relationship with the other three orders (animals, plant and material). This manifests as the ecological problem. The human is also not able to fulfill his relationship with other humans in the knowledge order. This manifests as economic problems, social problems, problems in relationships, in criminal mentality, war and exploitation. The result is unhappiness due to extraneous reasons – due to other humans, or nature at large.

The human is also unresolved within: full of conflict, depressed and with a lack of clarity, marked by indefiniteness, tension, confusion, self-doubt, desperation etc. The result is unhappiness within himself.

There seem to never-ending dichotomies between the inferences from logic and intuition, between the desirable and un-desirable, the limitations of logic and the limitations of intuition, and the relative nature of mans conclusions in the non-physical domain. We seem to be largely certain regarding our conclusions about physical reality. Attempts to derive conclusions about human beings from our findings in the study of physical reality are incomplete and unsatisfactory. The result is a lack of direction, an existential crisis. It manifests as unhappiness within, albeit of a different nature.

The human being is thus unresolved, is unhappy - within and without.

The reason for the above is lack of complete understanding of the self and existence and his relationship/place/purpose in existence. The human being wants to live in organization, wants happiness. The need for happiness is fulfilled by having knowledge (right understanding) while the need of physical things is fulfilled by physical things. On having knowledge about the self and existence, the human becomes resolved, and happy. Complete knowledge fulfills his existential, intuitive, intellectual, logical, ethical, moral, emotional and sense-organ related needs. He is able to be in harmony within and without. He is happy. This harmony is already there in existence. One does not have to create it. One only needs to understand it to be in it.

Animals do not have this need to understand. Surviving is sufficient for them. i.e. they have a will to live. The human has a will to live, with happiness. To have this happiness, he needs knowledge. Animals ‘are’. They do not have to learn how ‘to be’. The human being ‘is’. But he is not satisfied with just ‘existing’. He has to understand ‘how to be’. While some progress has been made in this direction in human history, it is only completely possible by having knowledge. It is also seen that humans have the capacity of imagination (kalpanasheelta) and freedom of action (karma-swatantrata). We act based on our thoughts, our imagination. What is the satisfaction point of imagination and freedom of action? (triputi bindu of kalpanasheelta & karmaswatantra) How do we know that our imagination is correct? In that, it is based on the principles of existence? – this can only be fulfilled by having knowledge. i.e. knowledge or right understanding provides the basis for our imagination, of our desires, of our conclusions on physical reality as well. Knowledge is thus the anchor for the human being, his innate, inalienable need. This knowledge is: • Knowledge of self (jeevan: conscious aspect of a human being) [jeevan gyaan] • Knowledge of existence (knowledge order, animal order, plant order, material order) [astitva darshan gyaan] • Knowledge of humane conduct [manaviyata poorna acharan gyaan] - values, character, principled living [mulya, charitra, naitikta]

Knowledge of self (jeevan gyaan) Jeevan is the name given to the conscious aspect of a human being. A human being is as a co-existence of jeevan (conscious) and body. (physio-chemical). The activities and nature of this jeevan can be understood. Jeevan has been identified as having 10 activities – 5 in state (stithi) and 5 in motion (gati). [every unit has state (stithi) and motion motion (gati) . state or stithi of a unit is its being in itself, while motion or gati is its expression in the larger order]. The activities in jeevan are the principle activities of a human being. The rest is merely the physio-chemical activities of the body. Activities in jeevan include all known activities like taste, selection, evaluation, thinking, memory, desiring, feeling, imagining, curiosity, using logic, reason, intuition and yet-unidentified activities which are detailed out in the Darshan. All these activities can be studied and known. i.e. it is possible to know oneself fully.

Knowledge of Existence: (astitva darshan gyaan) Existence is in the form of co-existence, as units saturated in space. These units are manifested as the 4 orders: • Knowledge Order (human beings) • Animal Order • Plant (pranic) Order • Material Order. Each of these units has 4 dimensions. Of these 4, form and quality (roop, gun) are form-full and swabhava and dharma (participation and innateness) are form-less. Understanding both the form-full and form-less dimensions is needed to understand these 4 orders completely. This enables to understand their purpose and their very being-ness. Knowledge of humane conduct: (manaviyata poorna acharan gyaan) When a human being has knowledge, he desires, thinks and behaves according to that knowledge. This knowledge is based on existence, on reality, hence human living becomes based on something definite. On the basis of knowledge, one is able to clearly identify the values in and is able to see that it is natuarally acceptable to him to live with these values and by living with these values gives satisfaction. Consequently all his thoughts and imagination are in accordance with these values and he expresses them with other humans as well as nature. Therefore to live these values becomes natural for him and to live otherwise becomes unnatural. By doing this he ensures continuity of happiness and prosperity. On the basis of this he is able to live with satisfaction in the self and have mutually satisfying relationships. This prepares the ground for the realization of Human tradition. Human beings can thus have definite conduct. Humane Conduct comprises of: • Values • Character • Principled living

First – values naturally flow upon recognition of relationships. Values are realized – when relationships are recognized, valuation is done, and mutual-fulfillment is achieved.

Second – humane-character is one. Humane-character is in the form of self-wealth, continence, and work-behavior filled with kindness.

Third – we realize principled-living when we right-use and protect our resources (body, mind, and wealth).

In this way – humane-conduct gets explained as a combination of values, character, and principled-living. These are three pillars for living in orderliness

Values: Relationship IS. It does not have to be created. It is already there. It only needs to be understood. These are definite expectations in relationships, also called values. Values in behavior are manifest in human relationships as 9 established and 9 expression values. These are definite and can be understood. i.e. the expectations in human relationships are definite and can be fulfilled leading to mutual satisfaction. Values are realized only on recognizing the meaning or purpose of relationships. For example – when someone recognizes (the meaning or purpose of) relation of his father, or of Guru, then values naturally flow in those relationships automatically. Values don’t naturally flow where there’s no recognition of relationships. Recognition of relations is the crux issue. Study of relations can be done on the basis of their purposes. For example – relation of mother is primarily for purpose of nourishment. Study of relation of father is primarily for purpose of protection. Recognition of all relations this way leads to elimination of mistakes by a human-being. Mistakes keep happening from us till we understand relations.

Character: • Self Wealth • Sexual Morality (Continence) • Work and behavior with kindness Each one can live within self-wealth, within continence, and by doing work and behavior filled with kindness. Such living leads to assurance and right-use of our resources (body, mind, and wealth). When both these aspects are fulfilled – the relations, values, valuation, and mutual-fulfillment also get realized spontaneously. In this way – Humane-conduct gets defined as a combined form of Values, Character, and Principled-living. Principled-living are methods for right-use of body, mind, and wealth.

Principled Living Essence of principled-living is deploying one’s resources (body, mind, and wealth) into purposefulness. This is called right-use. Right-use is in two aspects: (1) deploying one’s resources for production and seva. (2) deploying these for realizing values in human-relations.

Human Civilization It is only on the basis of the understanding of humane conduct, its acceptance, commitment, and fulfillment leading to mutual satisfaction that all 4 dimensions of Human civilization can be understood and ensured:

1. Humane Conduct Has been outlined above.

2. Human Education: Process to ensure the understanding of human conduct and commitment to live in accordance to it from generation and generation. To understand and live in harmony at all levels from self to entire existence is human education. This means ensuring value education that ensures development of consciousness.

3. Human Constitution: The framework of human living in harmony with himself and in harmony with the entire existence is human constitution. It is knowing, believing, recognition and fulfillment of relationship of humans with humans and the rest of nature leading to mutual happiness and prosperity in human beings and the enrichment, protection and right utilization of the rest of nature.

4. Human Organization: Realization of harmony with entire existence, in behavior, work and participation in organization from family to world family in the human order. There are 5 dimensions to ensure this human organization: • Education-Right Values system (shiksha-sanskaar) • Health-Discipline (swasthya-sanyam) • Production-Work (utpadan-karya) • Exchange-Storage (vinimay-kosh) • Justice-Suraksha (nyaya-suraksha)

Fulfillment of these 5 dimensions at the level of Family to World family results in undivided society (akhand samaj) and universal order (sarvabhoum vyasvastha) This ensures the realization and continuity in which the human target of: • Resolution in every human being (samadhaan) • Prosperity in every Family (samriddhi) • Fearlessness in Society [Trust] (abhay) • Co-Existence with Nature (sah-astitiva) is fulfilled.

Conclusion:

‘The Alternative’ – Madhyasth Darshan - proclaims: –

• Knowledge is manifest. • Knowledge is expressible in words. • Knowledge can be internalized by a human-being by way of study. • Knowledge can be realized by every human-being in work and behavior. • Existence expresses itself at all levels as coexistence. In other words, Existence is Coexistence. • Existence exhibits stability. There is no increase or decrease in existence. • Existence exhibits definite progress. Progress is exhibited in atom. Awakening is definite in existence. • All principles in existence are innate to entities in existence as their natural-characteristics.

We have so far been largely dealing with the form-full dimension of things: i.e we study through the senses and via machines. Today, we are also only largely aware of the sensory or form-full dimension of things. This is insufficient. The human being has a need to understand the formless dimension of things as well – essentially of the 4 orders: humans (knowledge order), animals, plant (pranic) and material order. Space can also be directly experienced and understood. We have missed out on understanding space so far, simply because it is formless. Knowledge in a human being is incomplete without an understanding of the self, and the formless dimensions of entities in existence as well as the formless entities in existence (space). Knowledge also includes understanding the relationship between these entities. Till such time, the human shall remain unfulfilled and unhappy. It is only on having this knowledge that the human is able to be in self-organization within himself and fulfill his relationship by participating in the larger organization.

Existence can be understood. All entities in existence including the human being can be understood. Knowledge is manifest. It can be expressed. This knowledge includes the form-full dimensions as well as the form-less dimensions of entities in existence. I.e. physical and non-physical reality are included, can be studied, understood, verified and lived as an expression of this understanding.

Our problems today are on account of man. The rest of existence is already in co-existence. i.e. the environmental problem, the problem of economics, of relationship, of sectarianism, social problems, problems in relationships, problems in the self, conflicts = together called unhappiness are due to man. The contradictions are not outside, they are within man. Hence we need to work on man. This is possible by means of education.

Madhyasth Darshan has proposals for the same – proposals on the development of human beings and existence so far, the reasons for the same and the knowledge needed to demystify the human being and existence, thus opening up the possibility of a just and humane order, of a desirable human tradition that meets the human target.

The prevalent education of today is essentially based on the Freudian thesis of Sex-maniac Psychology, Adam Smith's thesis of Profit-maniac Economics, and Darwin's thesis of Consumption-maniac Sociology. Madhyasth-Darshan proposes alternative theses for these as - Human-Consciousness Oriented Psychology (मानव संचेत्नावादी मनोविज्ञान), Cyclical Economics (आवर्तनशील अर्थशास्त्र), and Behavioral Sociology (व्यवहारवादी समाजशास्त्र). This Study of Human-being leads a human-being to realize humanness in living - as self-confidence, coexistence with other humans and with nature at large.

Influence and Followers

Nagraj 'realized' the truth about existence, and mans role and purpose in it in 1975. Since then, he has been sharing it with people. In the early 90's a few people from the Indian Institute of Technology (IIT)-Delhi, came in touch with him. One of them a quantum physicist and he was intrigued by A Nagraj's observations on the physical and conscious world, including his views on the role of space in the universe. Since then, a number of people have been associated with Nagraj and his teachings. These include a lot of students from IIT Kanpur, a few from IIT Delhi, etc. There is also a growing group of people in the cities and villages of India that are now studying this knowledge system. There is a compulsory course on Jeevan Vidya at IIIT Hyderabad. It is also currently being explored at the KJ Somaiaya group of institutions in Mumbai, India. The aim here seems to not be quantity, but quality, and as a result there has been little need or effort to 'spread' awareness in the conventional sense.

Over the past few years, people from all walks of life have attended workshops on Jeevan Vidya or Madhyastha Darshan and many are now seriously studying it. These include academicians, social activists, housewives, students (of all age groups), social workers, scientists, working professionals, psychologists, doctors, politicians, bureaucrats, farmers, carpenters, tribals etc. It has now now become part of the curriculum in a number of technical institutes and efforts are on to take this to other levels and areas of education.

On the personal front, a number of people engaged in studying this proposal are finding that they are able to resolve their long-standing questions, have these answers for themselves and are finding that once understood, knowledge automatically manifests in living, leading to resolution in the 6 levels and 4 dimensions of human living.

It is now clear that knowledge is not esoteric and in-expressible, it is not the domain or the right of the ‘few’: it can be transferred from one human to another. This knowledge-transfer requires Communication. Language is the most potent means of communication between humans. Information is the first step towards Knowledge.

The information on Madhyasth Darshan is being shared by means of seven day long workshops conducted at various places. Jeevan Vidya is presented in the form of propositions, that are expected to be rigorously self-examined by the listener. The whole objective is to get beyond assumptions/faith/beliefs and perceptions to knowing in ones own right. Through the process of studying directly in existence (Hindi: adhyayan prakriya) Jeevan Vidya helps us understand the basic nature of all entities. The participants are requested to evaluate these propositions on their own right (Hindi: adhikaar) without taking any recourse to past beliefs/conditioning (Hindi: manyata). The whole workshop is conducted in the form of a dialogue where the basic nature of, and issues in, the self, the body, family (human relationships), society, nature and existence are explored and their inter-relationships are explored. Multi-dimensional contemporary issues, from the seemingly mundane to the supposedly profound are investigated into. Whether or not to accept what is being stated is completely unto the participants – the objective being to enable the person to ‘verify’ the veracity of the proposals within themselves - and not to convince. If a participants ends up assuming what is being as stated as true, the objective is lost. There are no fees for the workshops, and the boarding and lodging costs are usually managed by the participants themselves.

Famous Followers

The following have heard, are acquainted with it, but cant be said to be followers: Ex President of India Abdul Kalam Magsaysay awardee Sandeep Pandey Ex Chief Justice of the Supreme Court of India - Venkatachaliah

Controversies and Criticism

Hard to understand language - Hindi with a lot of sanskrit leanings
Arcane vocabulary
Akin to the discredited philosophy of Vitalism

Organizations and Websites

Jeevan Vidya (Madhyasth Darshan)…

· Is not a retro-fitment or re-fitment of existing human knowledge systems to achieve a ‘new combination’ – it has come about in an Alternative way.

o Is not linked to any past ideology, belief system or religion

· Is not affiliated or limited to any caste, creed, religion, sect, gender, geography (space) or time.

· Does not talk of “Do’s & Don’ts”: Is not something to be ‘learned’ and ‘followed’ – but to be studied and ‘understood’. If we ‘understand’ reality, it comes in our living.

· Is not an organization or a Not for Profit (NGO). It is the name for a set of proposals. There is no channeling of, or any interest in channeling money.

· Has no ‘central organization’

Website Links:

http://www.madhyasth-darshan.info/
http://madhyasth-darshan.blogspot.com/ (All posts on this blog are about Jeevan Vidya and about elucidating its propositions)
http://madhyasth.darshan.googlepages.com/home
http://www.iitk.ac.in/infocell/announce/ncvejv/

Works

Some translated works are available here.

The need to take the information about the Alternative proposal of Madhyasth Darshan was felt by the propounder, Shri Nagraj Sharma and the books were published between 1975 and 2008.

The entire work has been written in the classical Indian style (3 sets: Darshan, Vaad and Shastra), and is currently available only in Hindi. The style of language has a lot of Sanskrit influence. Work of translating the same into English is underway. The literature has been written using the paribhasha style. Paribhasha means definitions. I.e. The words that are used are from what is already available in tradition, but the definitions have been given anew by the propounder. i.e. these words have been redefined.

The definitions, or paribhasha – links the words to meanings in reality – entities in reality are as meanings, and on reading the words with the definitions (paribhasha), it becomes possible to understand the same meanings ourselves. i.e. These words are pointers to meanings in reality, which can be studied, understood (‘seen’) and realized by a human being, in himself. The Human being is ultimately the carrier of this knowledge. The books contain information only.

The books are not mutually exclusive of each other – they are linked: since it is the same existence, reality they are addressing, only seem from different dimensions and at different levels. Knowledge itself is such that all of it can be captured in a single line: that said, reading the entire literature is recommended in order to get a complete picture of the work.

It is hoped that the books would be used for their purpose: to have the information and be able to ‘see’ or understand the reality for oneself. Knowledge, or understanding is transferred in this manner. It is a requirement that the literature be studied with the accompanying definitions or paribhasha.

The purpose of publishing the books is neither for publicity nor for profit. It is hoped that you would use these books to have the understanding yourself.

Darshan (Insight,Awakening) This set of books focus on the actual understanding/realization achieved of reality. The meaning of the word Darshan means direct insight or ‘sight’,which leads to awakening. Hence, Darshan can also mean awakening. In order to have darshan we need to have a drishta or seer, and drishya or seen.

These books are available in 4 volumes

• Manav Vyawhaar Darshan (Awakening in Human Behavior) • Manav Anubhav Darshan (Awakening in Human Realization) • Manav Abhyas Darshan (Awakening in Human Practice) • Manav Karm Darshan (Awakening in Human Behavior)

Vaad (Thought) Vaad or thought is the expansion in thought of the realities seen/realized/understood at the level of darshan.

• Samadhaanatmak Bhoutikvaad (Resolution Centric Materialism) • Vyawhaaratmak Janvaad (Behavior Centric Humanism) • Anubhavatmak Adhyatmavaad (Existential Realization/Experience Centric Spiritualism)

Shastra The Shastra’s contain the implementation of this understanding in human society, its implementation and manifestation in human organization, in human tradition. • Avarthansheel Arthashastra (Cyclical Economics) • Vyawharvaadi Samajshastra (Behavioral Sociology) • Manav Sanchetana Vaadi Manovigyan (Human-Consciousness Oriented Psychology) Others • Paribhasha Samhita(Definitions of words used in the literature) • Adhyayan Bindu (Topics of Study) • Manav Achar Samhita Roopi Manav Sanvidhan Sootra Vyakhya (Human Consciousness based law framework – from essence to detail) • Jeevan Vidya ek Parichay (Jeevan Vidya a Primer)

Yojana (Program) • Parivaar Moolak Swarajya Vyawastha (Family based self expression organization)

Notes

A Nagraj Sharma

From NonSpiritual

Contents

Introduction

Teachings

Influence and Followers

Famous Followers

Controversies and Criticism

Organizations and Websites

Works

Further Reading and Links

Articles

Blog Posts

Forum and Discussion Threads

Notes

Views

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