DEIVATHIN KURAL # 105 (Vol #4) Dated 23 Nov 2010

DEIVATHIN KURAL # 105 (Vol #4) Dated 23 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 582 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)
95. We were discussing as to how Kaama and Krodha are one and the same thing. When your desire is not fulfilled it becomes frustration, leading to anger. So, Kaama unfulfilled becomes Krodha. That is how our object of desire could easily turn to be an object of hate. We lovingly meet or marry and hatefully depart or divorce! This does not end there. Once our object of love has become an object of dislike our Kaama looks for yet another object as the focus of attention. We get angry when we do not get what we wanted. If we hate someone, evidently that person is acting contrary to our wishes or is a block in our wishful thinking. We wish to do something contrary to Swa Dharma and so think of it as a block in the way and so end up developing a love for Para Dharma. It could happen the exact opposite way too. Desire leads to hate and hate for one leads to desire for yet another! So, for each desire or the flow of our desire, if something comes as a wall in the way, the reflexion is anger and hate! If Kaama is the ball hit against the wall, the returning reflected ball is Krodha. Adi Sankara’s Bhashyam thus equates these two words. It is Kaama which metamorphoses in to Krodha when reflected. He uses the word, ‘pratihatam’ to mean what returns after hitting an obstruction. But in human transactions, these feelings seem to be exact opposites, we think of them as two different words.
96. Elsewhere, Sri Krishna himself has mentioned that anger is born out of desire, in those many words (Gita 2.62.): “kaamaat krodho abhijaayate”! So, we saw that in answering Arjuna’s question, he has said Kaama and Krodha as two different things, later grammatically treating them in the singular as though they are a single word! Then in another place he adds another slight modification of Kaama to this, as the three reasons for opening the doors of Hell! This is Gita 16.21., saying “trividham narakasyetam dwaaram nasanam aatmanaha”, meaning there are three types of entrances to Hell, “kaamaha krodhas – tataa lobhaha”, meaning, ‘desire, anger and greed’! What is ‘Lobha’? It is also Kaama only. Starting from the attraction between man and woman, to wanting to go to the sea shore and buy boiled peas or popped corn there and so on; all the thousands of real and imaginary wants are all Kaama. Even the desire of well matured individuals to understand life and its meaning or to know the Self, is all part of it. In the Upanishad this desire to know oneself is mentioned as ‘Aatma Kaamam’! Amongst all these desires, the desire for material and other properties has a special name as ‘Lobha’! The meaning of this word includes in itself greed for other’s property and miserliness for one’s own! Thus though Lobha is part of Kaama, Bhagawan Sri Krishna is finding it necessary to separately mention them as three types, one - Kaamam, two - Krodham and three - Lobham!
97. All Evil Are Born From Desire Only. There are six inner enemies of man. The first three are what you know already in this talk as Kaama, Krodha and Lobha. The next three are Moha, Mada and Maatsaryam. They are infatuation, passion and envy or jealousy! On deeper thought they will also be found to be born of the first that is desire! What is Moha? It is a combination of palsy, delusion and confusion. Mada is again a combination of lust, intoxication and passion. Matsaryam is a combination of envy, jealousy and a refusal to share. It is the same as what a child claims as its own shouting “Mine”, whatever it may be! Thus all the six inner enemies of man are clearly identified as born of one source, the desire! So, if we are to be rid of what is pestering us eternally, we have to root out the basic cause of them all, the desire. The monster Kaama is to be destroyed. (That is what Goutam Buddha also identified. He did not even bother to identify or analyse the more difficult concepts and theories about the existence of God! For the inner battle, get rid of Kaama, he said and for the worldly business of living adopt Ahimsa as ‘paramo dharma’, he simplified! That his followers have complicated the issue is yet another matter!)
98. ‘Having understood the voracious gobbler Kaama the sinner as your main enemy, you have to fight your battles’, says Sri Krishna, “mahaasano maha paapma viddyenamiha vairiNam”.Instead of calling the Kaama as a lifeless neuter gender, he is personifying Kaama as though he is referring to a living being, who is a voracious eater! The very Parmaatma Tattva has come in the form of Sri Krishna, with all the limbs of a body as a living being, with the intension of lifting the Jeevan from the mire of mortal existence. So, Sri Krishna is telling Arjuna that he has to identify the enemy correctly as the power capable of tripping him into everlasting (long enough to be taken as never ending), damnation! He is calling him, “mahaasanaha, maha paapmaa” (including Krodha). Mahaasanaha – is great eater. ‘Asanam’ means food and ‘asanan’ is the eater. The fire in the Homa is known as ‘Hutaasana’ – the eater of ‘Aahuti’, offerings as oblations. The more you put in fire, it burns more without end. Similarly, the fire in the stomach that cosumes the food is known as, ‘Jaataraagni’. The more you feed, it will say, “Bring me more!” Kaama is the great consumer who is never satisfied with any amount of sensual pleasures.
99. Kaama is “maha paapma”, the big sin! In Chandokya Upanishad (8.1.5. and 8.4.1.), while saying that Atma is completely without any blemish, it mentions, “apahata paapma”. Maha Paapma is not a normal sinner, but a great sinner. Did not Arjuna ask Krishna as to, who is it that instigates all people into sinful ways? The answer to that question is here. He has to be the very embodiment of sinfulness! Bhagawan is telling Arjuna to learn that, ‘He is the greatest of your enemies’, “viddyenam iha vairiNam”, meaning, “iha” – here that is, in this world of the living; “enam” – him; “vairiNam” – as the enemy number One in this battle between Devas and Asuras, that is, between divine beings and evil beings; “viddhi” – learn or know! “Now the battle you have to fight is with the Kourava army with Duryodana as the King, is for the world. The inner battle you have to fight is with this Kaama as the King of all sinful forces”, says Sri Krishna Bhagwan!
100. O K, I get you! It is desire the cause of all problems. Though seemingly desirous and pleasing for the mind, when we endeavour to do all the things to satisfy that urge, Kaama is the forerunner for a whole generation of a series of negative qualities. AachaaryaaL Adi Sankara in his Bhashyam says that because of this one Kaama, all the unwanted family of sinful feelings transgress into our minds. Satisfy one desire, it generates other desires; if unfulfilled, it generates anger; erasing all sense of propriety, kindness, compassion and generosity, making us tight-fisted; causes us to be mired in lust and possessiveness; increases the haughtiness and pride; becoming blind to the negative qualities of the target of our passion. Thus it is the basis of every one of our detestable qualities that should be avoided. So, it is clear that Kaama is the Devil incarnate. He is the main Raakshasa or Asura. Desiring ease and comfort, we get stuck with all the problems of the world.
(To be continued.)
Sambhomahadeva.