The Concept of Mithya

 

 

Mithya is a very important concept one should grasp in order to understand the true nature of reality. Mithya refers to “that which is real until it’s not”. In other words, mithya refers to that which appears to be true only within a given frame of reference. Therefore, it is *arbitrary*, i.e. "not really real". 

So what exactly is “really real”? What is real doesn’t change and is permanent in nature. It is not subject to come and go but rather stays as is permanently. It doesn’t depend on anything else to exist other than itself. In Vedanta, we refer to this permanence as truth or satya. The opposite of satya is mithya. Anything that is mithya will eventually disappear due to its impermanent nature. There are many forms of mithya in this world and each part relies on the other for its existence. In other words, anything that is mithya has borrowed existence from something else. It has a dependency on something else to exist. For example, we can say a chair is mithya because it depends on wood for its existence. In this case, the chair is real until we realize that it’s not real because it's only wood.  The wood is lending its existence to the chair. In this case, the wood is real (satya) and the chair is false (mithya).  However, we can then speak from the perspective of the wood and say that it is real, until we realize it’s not because it borrows its existence from organic compounds. We can then say that organic compounds are real until we realize it’s not, due to the existence of elements. If we keep doing this, we get to the fundamental building blocks of reality which are made up of subatomic particles. Beyond this we get to the most fundamental substratum there is, awareness.  This is absolute consciousness (i.e. Brahman). 

Therefore consciousness, i.e. Brahman is said to be Satya (ultimate truth). Everything else is mithya as it all ultimately borrows existence from Brahman which allows all things to be known for what they are.  Brahman is the changeless background that allows the appearance of change to be known.  Mithya is sometimes called illusion or maya, but it actually means false-hood because it is a dependent reality. This means it is dependent on Brahman to be known as a changing appearance.

 

For example, when you dream at night, you believe the dream world to be real from the perspective of the dream character. You're so absorbed in the identity of a dream character, nothing appears to be real other than this.  From this perspective, the dream character and the dream world both appear to be real. However, when you wake up, you realize you weren't a dream character at all, but a physical being now experiencing a waking state. In this case, the dream world or dream character was mithya. It was neither *unreal* from the perspective of the dream since it appeared to be real from that given frame of reference, and it was neither *real* from the perspective of the waking state, since it no longer exists in the current frame of reference. Therefore, mithya is that which is neither real nor unreal. 

Mithya does not mean it doesn’t exist. I cannot say a dream doesn’t exist when I’m in the dream. It’s clearly there and no one can deny the existence of the dream world when you're identified as a character in the dream.  It is however fundamentally false as it was negated as such in the waking state. It no longer exists from this current frame of reference but only existed in the frame of reference of the dream. So just because it appears a certain way, doesn't mean it IS that way.  In other words, what you see IS NOT what it actually IS.

We use the word mithya to explain borrowed existence. In Advaita Vedanta, the world is described as absolute reality (Brahman) appearing as relative reality. This doesn't mean there are two separate realities.  It means there is only one reality appearing as the other.  Within relative reality, there are many levels, e.g. the pancha-maya koshas. These koshas represent the different layers of reality that become more subtle the deeper one's attention drifts inward.  Each kosha borrows existence from another kosha that pervades it. Nonetheless, they are all mithya (a dependent-reality), depending on it's cause for existence. However, the cause and effects are never separate. In other words, the chair (effect) and wood (cause) are one and the same.  Similarly, satya (absolute) and mithya (relative) are one and the same. It just appears to be different when we perceive a world of plurality.

 

Vedanta describes Brahman as the fundamental reality *appearing* as everything else you perceive. When you perceive something separate from yourself, this is because your perception is wrong. However, when deep inquiry (meditation) is underway, all forms of mithya are eventually negated until Brahman (truth) is exposed. This means right now there is no two (dvaita). Things only appear to be two because of the way it is incorrectly perceived. 

 

It is important to note that once something is negated as mithya, such as the physical body, it doesn't mean you left the physical object behind and that the physical object still exists as a physical object after you left it.  What actually happens is your consciousness is now known to be more subtle and no longer physical, and the physical object is no longer perceived as physical.  This means there was never a physical object!  It only appeared that way when attention was immersed in the functions of the mind that perpetuated its false existence.  Negation gives you knowledge of that object so it can be known in its true light (i.e. wisdom).   

 

Now that you understand Mithya, you can now dive deeper into the different layers of reality so that you truly understand what needs to be negated during meditation, until you cannot negate any further. Though bear in mind, since permanence gives the illusion of impermanence existence, it can only be said that only permanence exists. The two only appear to be different which is why we need to use the word mithya in the first place! Once we negate all forms of mithya, we can then throw away this concept and be firmly established in the fact that there is only satya. From this frame of reference, mithya does not exist. There is only Brahman. This is the truth as it stands right now!