DEIVATHIN KURAL # 102 (Vol #4) Dated 17 Nov 2010

DEIVATHIN KURAL # 102 (Vol #4) Dated 17 Nov 2010

(These e-mails are translations of talks given by Periyaval of Kanchi Kamakoti Peetam, over a period of some 60 years while he was the pontiff in the earlier part of the last century. These have been published by Vanadi Padippagam, Chennai, in seven volumes of a thousand pages each as Deivathin Kural. Today we are proceeding from the middle of page number 566 of Vol 4 of the Tamil original. The readers may note that here in 'man/he' includes 'woman/she' too mostly. These e-mails are all available at http://Advaitham.blogspot.com updated constantly)
75. All the life forms have an experience of Pralaya every day, of being restored in Easwara that is God, during our sleep. This is known as ‘Nitya Pralaya’! Then we wake up from sleep similar to coming into being call it waking up or creation or genesis. Then after the death of the body, in the interregnum before entry into Heaven or Hell or Rebirth, in the body-less state we again rest in Him! Thus God is our source, transit camp as well as the final destination. Thus sleep is the daily experience of God, available every day or night, for all life forms, irrespective of age, gender, status or any other differentiation! This also happens after every Manvantara of about 70 Chatur Yuga when all the manifested universe becomes unmanifested and is in harmony with the fountain head of God! This is one another type of Pralaya. Then after 14 such Manvantaras are over, that is, after 1000 Chatur Yugas of Brhma’s one day, there is a Pralaya of a night of another 1000 Chatur Yugas. Thus having lived a life of two thousand Chatur Yugas constituting a day/night unit for 360 such days, for hundred years, Brhma becomes absorbed in the Paramatma for another Brhma to come in to being. Thus Puraanaas talk of ‘Prakritik Pralaya’ of change of Brhma and an endless Pralaya called ‘Aadhyantika Pralaya’!
76. Even then, even the reabsorption of Brhma in Paramatma is not Adwaita Moksha. Jeevas who get absorbed in the Paramatma for such very long periods too are reborn again when the fresh Srushti takes place. He has to see the Drama of life and so, you and I have to go through the process again to get the God experience, as during Laya of Pralaya, Adwaita Anubhava of experiencing God is not possible! Aikyam is to become Him with no me or mine left in balance. In Laya there is no Aikyam. In Laya, one is one with another and not become that! That is how, they are enabled to let go as individuals with a personality in Samsara. The Nitya Pralaya of daily sleep is an example of the fact that after a period of Laya, we are again as before, ‘as you were’! Saastraas thus talk of the whole lot of life forms, without any effort of Sadhana on their part, by his grace, being dissolved and absorbed in Him in Pralaya and being recreated in the next creation and not about all of them getting Adwaita Moksha.
77. That is, as long as there has to be something called the world with people and life forms, there will be variety. There will have to be some dispassionate enough entitled to immediate liberation and many without any inclination for devotion and Gnaana! The whole spectrum of variety will be there. Like the spider creates the web from within itself and pulls it back periodically; so also when Easwara reabsorbs the entire universe within Himself in Pralaya, he blesses all forms of creation with a period of rest. If and when there is a world, he will never leave it peopled by only devotees and Gnaanis; as seen in the Saastraas. At the highest level of Gnaana, for the true state of awareness; world of matters is immaterial. For purely Love and Devotion, there are Vaikunta and Kailaasa! This world will always be a stage for variety in species, types, colours, cultures, feelings, characters, personalities, levels and inner and outer atmosphere.
78. For the Highest Benefit of Life in the World. At the time of Maha Pralaya, when the entirety is reabsorbed in Him, only then the human drama will end. Till then all these billions of people cannot move in the path of Mukti whole sale! Some small percentage will be in the path of devotion and a further lesser percentage will be aspirants of Gnaana! Still, there has to be some efforts to motivate them in this direction towards obtaining Gnaana with devotion to God as a prelude! Because, doing so is some consolation for the heat and pain of existence. So some initial promptings acts as a catalyst, to be matured to ripeness over many a life time! Those who are in the final few steps in this process may utilise their actions meant for their own Chitta Suddhi as a tool for motivating others. Earlier we analysed and found that pure devotion is almost impossible and with action devotion is feasible. Like that, to get people together for a Satsangh, make them do Bhajans that is sing prayer songs of devotion, do worship in the temples of God, read the advices of saints or their poems; you need to have some who have progressed farther than the common lot. Normally people pray to God for their own personal fulfilment of demands. So, to involve the common lot in devotional activities, there have to be some who are ready to work for the welfare of the society. It helps them in achieving Chitta Suddhi while enabling others to be guided on to the right lines.
79. In the ongoing drama on the world-stage, we cannot expect all and sundry to become fully ripened in devotion. There will only be some rare people who would be dispassionate enough to be inclined towards Mukti. Rest are all likely to be having many likes, dislikes, desires, passions and accounts to be settled. So, in addition to spreading and imbibing devotion, there is a need to safe guard people from being washed away in the flood waters of sensual desires and proclivities. To guide people in legally and morally correct pursuits, we need to get them turn towards the creator of us all! The first requirement is to bring in some semblance of order in one’s practical life to accommodate value systems such as, truth, honesty, integrity, love, justice, morality, service and philanthropy. To do so is Dharmam.
80. Though there are many other meanings for that word Dharmam including religion, the most important meaning is to bring in empathy, sympathy and cohesiveness within the society. To bring in mutual trust, truthfulness and co-operation between people, there is a need to evolve a sense of discipline and order in all our social dealings and interactions. So, at all times all our social actions (Karma) has to be matched with orderliness (Dharma) repeatedly. That is why Jaimini’s Poorva Meemaamsa Sutra, which gives priority to Karma, starts with the words, “ataato dharma jignyaasa”. This means ‘Let us start with the analysis of what is Dharma’! Thus when we strictly adhere to morally correct actions of Karma full of Dharma, there by cancel out our past debts and by Nish Kaamya Karma ensure that our present actions too do not bind us, resulting in Chitta Suddhi; we get the urge to drop this all, rid of all assumptions and ignorance; regaining our true selves, which was never lost anyhow! At that stage what helps us is the Uttara Meemaamsa of Brhma Sutra, which gives priority to Gnaana, starts with the words, “ataato brhma jignyaasa”. This means, ‘‘Let us start with the analysis of what is Brhma’! I wished to prove to you that even in the worldly life, order, harmony and decorum are in Karma with Dharma only!
81. Conducting Yaaga and through that to ensure the availability of divine powers for the benefit of the worlds with good rains from the skies and agricultural produce from the land; by divine powers cause harmony and good feelings in the external and internal atmospheres of the world and people’s minds; to fight battles and protect the people from the enemies; for the sake of public get material from all over the world and conduct trade and commerce; till the land, cultivate, irrigate, planting and seeding and produce, making them available for the public; doing carpentry, pottery, fishery and so many other trades and professions of service and manufacture; are all required for decent living. All this has to happen in a social milieu of order and propriety. Keeping all these requirements in view, the society has been divided in to the four VarNaas of Brahmin, Kshatriya, Vysya and Sudra; each person’s individual life has been divided into four Ashramas of Brhmacharyam, Gruhastam, Vanaprastam and Sannyasam each with their appointed roles and duties, permitted food according to the type of work expected of that person and in consonance with all these the daily and periodic rituals that person is required to perform; have all been beautifully worked out and known as Swadharma!
(To be continued.)
SAMBHOMAHADEVA.