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‘Being complete’, ‘Being the whole’ is what is contained in the expression Ananda; it is non-different from the term anantam in that sense; and so sat-chit-Ananda and satyam-j~nAnam-anantam are corollary expressions, which are pointers to the One, Non-dual, Brahman.
Use of terms such as happiness, or bliss, or ecstasy conjures up a concept of an experience, mystic, and indescribable and perhaps conditioned by our own current concepts of what is bliss or ecstasy, and by default these are always in the construct of a subject-object relationship. It’s very hard for us to think of ourselves as being the very "stuff" that constitutes Ananda!
The only sorrow in the world is our own sense of limitation, of want. We crave what is pleasant and we ascribe the joy experienced as a result thereof to be a quality of that thing or situation.
Only upon enquiry do we realize the futility of this approach and the depths of our delusional thinking.
Lord Yama congratulates Nachiketas with these immortal words in their famous dialogue contained in the Katha Upanishad:
1. Yama said: The good is one thing; the pleasant, another. Both of these, serving different needs, bind a man. It goes well with him who, of the two, takes the good; but he who chooses the pleasant misses the end.
2. Both the good and the pleasant present themselves to a man. The calm soul examines them well and discriminates. Yea, he prefers the good to the pleasant; but the fool chooses the pleasant out of greed and avarice.
3. O Nachiketas, after pondering well the pleasures that are or seem to be delightful, you have renounced them all. You have not taken the road abounding in wealth, where many men sink.
Later in the same Upanishad Lord Yama tells Nachiketas the true route to Ananda, which is beyond sukha and duHkha - joy and sorrow:
11. The fulfillment of desires, the foundation of the universe, the rewards of sacrifices, the shore where there is no fear, that which is adorable and great, the wide abode and the goal—all this you have seen; and being wise, you have with firm resolve discarded everything.
12. The wise man who, by means of concentration on the Self, realizes that ancient, effulgent One, who is hard to be seen, unmanifest, hidden and who dwells in the buddhi and rests in the body—he, indeed, leaves joy and sorrow far behind.
13. The mortal who has heard this and comprehended it well, who has separated that Atman, the very soul of dharma, from all physical objects and has realized the subtle essence, rejoices because he has obtained that which is the source of joy. The Abode of Brahman, I believe, is open for Nachiketas.
After all joy and sorrow stem are two sides of the same coin
“Your joy is your sorrow unmasked.
And the selfsame well from which your laughter rises was oftentimes filled with your tears. And how else can it be?
The deeper that sorrow carves into your being, the more joy you can contain.
Is not the cup that holds your wine the very cup that was burned in the potter's oven?
And is not the lute that soothes your spirit, the very wood that was hollowed with knives?
When you are joyous, look deep into your heart and you shall find it is only that which has given you sorrow that is giving you joy.
When you are sorrowful look again in your heart, and you shall see that in truth you are weeping for that which has been your delight.
Some of you say, “Joy is greater than sorrow,” and others say, “Nay, sorrow is the greater.”
But I say unto you, they are inseparable.
Together they come, and when one sits alone with you at your board, remember that the other is asleep upon your bed.
Verily you are suspended like scales between your sorrow and your joy.
Only when you are empty are you at standstill and balanced.” (Gibran)
Let us examine the issue a little more closely. Our innate nature is of fullness. The “I”-sense or ahaMkAra is born out of a beginning-less sense of limitation, from which stems a irrepressible notion of “want” or "desire" Every want or need reflects an innate sense of fullness, in which I am unable to abide – a satisfied need creates a very temporally limited joy in the mind because this “wanting” I is temporarily resolved. But as my self-nature is not realized, another “want” almost instantaneously fills up the vacuum so created. And so the cycle goes on – more desires and more futile works to fulfill those desires and so on and on and on over millions of cycles of births and deaths – “punarapi jananam punarapi maranam punarapi jananii jathare shayanam” An eternal hide and seek with sorrow and joy peeping through – and unfortunately as it turns out more sorrow than joy for the most part. And we are never content with anything less than pUrNatvam because pUrNam is who we are.
What then is the “real” Ananda?
What is happiness?
The Taittiriya Up. gives us an eternally true calculus of happiness:
Yuva syat sadhu yuvadhyayakah asistho drdhistho balisthah, tasyeyam prthivi sarva vittasya purna syat, sa eko manusa Anandah te ye satam manusa Anandah, sa eko manusya-gandharvanam Anandah, srotriyasya cakamahatasya;
Now this is an inquiry regarding the Bliss.
Suppose there is a young man—a noble young man—versed, the best of rulers, firm in body and strong and possesses the whole world, full of wealth, is his: that is one measure of human bliss.
So we paint the picture of the ultimate in human “happiness” – someone who is young; not only young but also wise – how? By being a follower of dharma, by enjoying a conflict-free mind. Not only that, he enjoys great health and vigor. And very wealthy – in fact so wealthy, that - forget being on the Forbes list of richest people - he IS the list; he owns the entire earth!
How can such a person exist? But Ma Shruti says let us just suppose that there is such a one; then his measure of happiness can be taken as one solitary unit! (Put this in perspective with our petty pursuance of a few dollars and pounds, a few hundred extra-square feet of living space!) Next the shruti goes on to talk about more evolved beings, with inner equipments more refined and hence more capable of finer and more lasting enjoyments – such as gandharva-s, pitRRi-s, and deva-s, including the King or Lord of the deva-s – Indra, as well as the Guru of the deva-s – BRRihaspati. Even a higher quotient of bliss is enjoyed by Lord PrajApati.
Te ye satam manusya gandharvanam Anandah sa eko deva-gandharvanam Anandah, srotriyssya cakamahatasya;
Te ye satam deva-gandharvanam Anandah sa ekah pitrnam cira-loka-lokanam Anandah, srotriyasya cakamahatasya;
Te ye satam pitrnam cira-loka-lokanam Anandah, sa eka ajanajanam devanam Anandah, srotriyasya cakamahatasya;
Te ye satam ajanajanam devanam Anandah. sa ekah karmadevanam devanam Anandah ye karmana devan apiyanti, srotriyasya cakamahasya;
Te ye satam karma-devanam devanam Anandah, sa eko devanam Anandah, srotriyssya cakamahatasya;
Te ye satam devanam Anandah, sa eka IndrasyAnandah, srotiyssya cakamahatasya;
Te ye satam IndrasyAnandah, sa eko Brhaspater Anandah, srotriyasya cakamahatasya;
Te ye satam Brhaspater Anandah, sa ekah Prajapater Anandah, srotriyasya cakamahatasya;
This human bliss, multiplied one hundred times, is one measure of the bliss of the human gandharva-s, as also of a man versed in the Vedas and free from desires.
This bliss of the human gandharva-s, multiplied one hundred times, is one measure of the bliss of the celestial gandharva-s, as also of a man versed in the Vedas and free from desires.
This bliss of the celestial gandharva-s, multiplied one hundred times, is one measure of the bliss of the Manes, who dwell in the long—enduring world, as also of a man versed in the Vedas and free from desires.
This bliss of the Manes who dwell in the long—enduring world, multiplied one hundred times, is one measure of the bliss of the gods born in the Ajana heaven, as also of a man versed in the Vedas and free from desires.
The bliss of the gods born in the Ajana heaven, multiplied one hundred times, is one measure of the bliss of the sacrificial gods who have attained to divinity by means of sacrifices, as also of a man versed in the Vedas and free from desires.
The bliss of the sacrificial gods, multiplied one hundred times, is one measure of the bliss of the gods, as also of a man versed in the Vedas and free from desires.
The bliss of the gods, multiplied one hundred times, is one measure of the bliss of Indra, as also of a man versed in the Vedas and free from desires.
The bliss of Indra, multiplied one hundred times, is one measure of the bliss of BRRihaspati, as also of a man versed in the Vedas and free from desires.
The bliss of BRRihaspati, multiplied one hundred times, is one measure of the bliss of PrajApati, as also of a man versed in the Vedas and free from desires.
Te ye satam Prajapater Anandah, sa eko Brahmana Anandah, srotriyasya cakamahatasya;
The bliss of PrajApati, multiplied one hundred times, is one measure of the bliss of hiraNyagarbha (virAT), as also of a man versed in the Vedas and free from desires.
Beyond hiraNyagarbha or the virAT there is nothing – why? Because there is no further desire for hiraNyagarbha – It verily Is Everything – It is the Whole.
While everyone up to PrajApati including the deva-s, Indra, etc. may have a wish-list of sorts – the virAT, or Ishvara, represents the Entirety – and there being nothing other than the Entirety there is nothing for Him to covet or seek or desire.
What a stupendous gradation in an experiential happiness? Just to give a perspective to where we stand? Where does it begin and Where does it end? And yet repeated over and over again, is the key to this entire section – akamahatasya – free from wants – free from desires. In other words – vairAgya. We think of vairAgya as something that involves giving up – giving up money, giving up family, giving up on comforts and conveniences we hold so dear to us. But truly is vairAgya the key to happiness. VairAgya is a mature outlook to what all these things are worth and signify. From True vairAgya is born tyAga [surrender] and tyAga is the only gateway to eternity - as the Kaivalya Up. asserts and boldly affirms:
“Na karmana na prajaya dhanena Tyagenaike amrtatvam anasuh”
One can achieve immortality in association with the Lord, not by one’s own pious deeds, nor by the pious deeds of one’s sons, nor by the accumulation of wealth, but only by renunciation of all enjoyment for oneself and offering everything to the Supreme Lord.
So if there is a man, let’s say sitting under a tree or by the riverbanks, with true and abiding dispassion, born out of a understanding of His nature, and who wants nothing, who is not lacking in anything, then his happiness is of the nature of Brahman; He is happy out of HimSelf; He verily is the source of Joy to everyone in the world. His Happiness is Ishvara's – there being no separation, as furthermore the Upanishad clarifies:
Sa yascayam puruse, yas casavaditye sa ekah, sa ya evamvit asmallokat pretya, etam annamayam Atmanam upasamkramati, etam pranamayam Atmanan upasamkramati, etam Anandamayam Atmanam upasamkramati
Tadapi esa sloko bhavati
He who is here in man and he who is in yonder sun—both are one! He who knows this, after dying to this world, attains the self which consists of food, attains the self which consist of the vital breath, attains the self which consists of the mind, attains the self which consists of intellect, attains the self which consists of bliss.
He has realized himself to be the Self. His notional separation from the Whole has ended. He abides in Being. He is Being and hence Ananda, there is no question of him being happy or unhappy. Why again? Because there is no fear of any sort, including the Ultimate fear of all fears – the fear of mortality. Whence can there be happiness where lurks fear?
The enlightened man is not afraid of anything after realizing that Bliss of Brahman, failing to reach which, words turn back along with the mind.
So coming back to the question of Ananda, it is not an attribute or a quality of Brahman – it does not mean Brahman is blissful. Brahman is One Non-dual Entirety, the Whole, “pUrNamadaH pUrNamidam” and hence alone anantam – that has to be conveyed to the seeker and it is beautifully conveyed by the term Ananda. Everyone and everything is held dear not for their sake but for the sake of resolving the notional wanting self ever so temporarily so that a glimpse of the Self seeps through. And because it is anantam it transcends time and space and hence alone is changeless – hence satyam. Only That which is the Entirety can be the changeless and can serve as the substratum for this changing manifest Universe we call sRRiShTi, and hence alone is sRRiShTi mithyA, lacking in anything substantive or satyam other than the substratum, the vastu. And moreover it is of the nature of knowledge or consciousness. Not in the sense of knowing something or being conscious of something but in being the very illumining principle which enlightens and enlivens.
Thus are the words satyam j~nAnam anantam or sat chit Ananda words which point to the indescribable, the One non-dual vastu.
Hari OM Shri Gurubhyo namah, Shyam
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