The fourth seminar on Pandit Madhusudan Ojha’s Sharirikavimarsha, an exceptional work on Brahma vijnana, was organised by Shri Shankar Shikshayatan on July 31, 2023. The present seminar focussed on eighth, tenth and twelfth chapters of the text.
In his keynote address, Prof. Vishnupada Mahapatra of Shri Lal Bahadur Shastri Rashtriya Sanskrit University, New Delhi, spoke on the life’s journey of a living being as mentioned in Pandit Madhusudan Ojha’s Sharirikavimarsha as well as in the fourth chapter of Brahmasutra authored by sages Bādarāyaṇa and Vyāsa. The Brahmasutra chapter has four padas and explains the state and condition of a being after death.
The first pada describes the form of nirguna or devotion to the divine as formless. Humans must always remember self, a being distinct from ishwar. The soul of a being is not the same as that of self. There is a discussion on various forms of worship, posture, introspection and concentration. In the second pada or section, there is an explanation on where does the human self go after leaving the material body.
Prof. Ramanuj Upadhyaya of Shri Lal Bahadur Shastri Rashtriya Sanskrit University, New Delhi, spoke on the twelfth chapter of Sharirikavimarsha titled, Atmabrahma Mimamsa. He said Ojhaji has explained three forms of atma or self–kevalatma, ishwaratma and jeevatma. All three are products of Brahma.
Prof. Parag Bhaskar Joshi of Kavikulguru Kalidasa Sanskrit University, Ramtek, Nagpur spoke on the tenth chapter of Sharirikavimarsha titled Shodashapadipadarthanirukti. He said Ojhaji has explained the meaning of Brahmasutra in his book. Dr Janakisharan Acharya of Sri Somanath Sanskrit University, Veraval, Gujarat, presented his views on the eighth chapter of the book. Titled Upanishachastranirukti, the chapter examines the form of Upanishads. There is a detailed explanation of upanishads related to four vedas.
The session was chaired by Prof. Santosh Kumar Shukla of Jawaharlal Nehru University. He explained that Ojhaji’s objective was to present an overview of the principles of Upanishad in his book. He has presented a new perspective on Brahmasutra.
The seminar was organised and managed by Dr Lakshmi Kant Vimal and Dr Manishankar Dwivedi. The online seminar was attended by students, teachers and scholars from different universities.