DEIVATHIN KURAL # 114 (Vol #4) Dated 11 Dec 2010

DEIVATHIN KURAL # 114 (Vol #4) Dated 11 Dec 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 633 of Vol 4 of the Tamil original. The readers may note that herein 'man/he' includes 'woman/she' too mostly. These e-mails are all available at http://Advaitham.blogspot.com updated constantly)
162. Everything in life has to go through the changes as per the life-cycle of birth, childhood, growth, maturity, attenuation and death. As we have seen, death is not an end but is a part of the process of change, metamorphosis, transformation and continuation of the cycle! This change is called, ‘vikaaram’ in Sanskrit. In Tamil this word is wrongly understood as ‘goram or kuroopam’ to mean something horrible. Anything shattered or destroyed is ugly to look at. But in nature, this process of death is also accompanied with transformation into something else. Flower becomes the fruit. Pupa becomes the butterfly. There is a principle of Life that goes on effecting this change into another. Only the form changes. Flower withers to become the fruit. The worm transforms in to a butterfly or wasp. Without interference from us humans this change over is smooth. If we pluck the flower, it may not become a fruit. Then the flower simply withers. Till it is in touch with the tree, connected to the tree or plant then the withering flower becomes a fruit. Similarly our bodies and minds are repeatedly destroyed the fundamental life principle goes on. That is the Aatma. That principle of Life is not the breath. Even when the breathing stops and the body is dead, Aatma is forever. Having been there a few seconds back, this mind and body have ceased to be as it was or have changed; they cannot be the real self. Because they are all the time changing and never the same, they cannot be the reality! But, though the mind and body may be changing all the time, our sense of being as ‘I’ has not undergone any change! So if we set aside all the things that are changing, and identify the eternal changeless reality of ourselves, that will be seen to be this thing that I am calling the Aatma! That Aatma is our only reality.
163. When we are unaware of our body and our mind in deep sleep; or in a swoon; or in deep meditation; we are unaware of the body and the world but, simply aware of being. In that state of being aware, it is Aatma only, which we refer to as ‘I’, if at all we refer to! That is, in that state of pure awareness, there is nobody else with whom to respond or converse. But later we may say, as Jesus Christ said, “I am that I am”. That is the eternity and infinity in comprehension. Is there any difference between our thinking of us as ‘I’ when we were a small child and the ‘I’ today? No! When we were only a baby or later when we knew of the world and many things else; while in the hospital bed or when we were healthy; when we were poor or after becoming wealthy; when we were experiencing many of the sorrows and pleasures of the world; this ‘I’ has remained as the constant witness to all our experiences! This ‘I’ is the one basic foundation, the common strata, the reference point; as Sri Krishna says in Bhagawat Gita 7.7., “...sutre maNigaNaa iva...”, as the string of continuity holding the beads in a rosary.
164. Real Aatma and the Fictitious Mind. ‘Nijam’ is a word that is normally construed to mean ‘truthful or real’. Actually it means ‘our nature’ that is our normal behaviour and attitude. In both aspects of our reality and natural self is one and the same Aatma and not the mind. To the extent that we believe to be our minds, the mind dupes us to think of it as our reality. Not just one disguise but many garbs and disguises it assumes! In Pazhani, they dress up the God Dandayudha PaaNi in many different decorations, one after the other. In between the curtain will be drawn to close the view. Then the curtain will be pulled aside, and they will anoint him with clarified butter, rose water, plain water, ashes of the Vibhuti, honey and so on. For some time He will be the Aandi PaNdaaram, next the King, followed by the Hunter’s garb. Like that we have been changing our disguises, have we not? As a young child, we have been running around naked, eating anything without a care in the world! Then we have been dressed up as a school going boy. Then as a teen-ager we have been doing monkey tricks to impress youngsters of the opposite sex. Then we think of our self as modern or sophisticated, as a father, as a lecturer and so on. In all these ‘I am’, is the first thought followed by any one of these adjectives. In all these disguises and varied roles, there is one basic reality of continuity.
165. In cinema or stage, there is an actor. In one scene he may appear as Rama and in another he could be Krishna or Ravana. Some time as a rich man and some time as a poor man. Despite the changes, he remains the same man, is it not so? Similarly the life principle in each one of us, despite the multi various roles that we may play is the one Aatma. Not only that, it is that one-life-principle in all of us, the people of the world! As that actor is some time without make-up, there is a real person sans cloths, sans make-up, sans body and sans mind! Without a thought, without a conflict, confusion, tension and competition, there is this real being without the Deva-Asura battle, being-aware-bliss or what is called in Sanskrit as ‘Sat-Chit-Anandam’. That is the highest peaceful state of reality as the sub-stratum of all existence.
166. The interesting point is that without that one peaceful Aatma, this bundle of restless bundle of contradiction, the mind cannot be there. There is a famous dictum, “avan anri vor aNuvum asaiyaadu”, which means that without Him not an atom can move! Without that one life-principle, the mind cannot exist even, let alone make any move or wear a make-up! As the mind controls most of our bodily actions, this mind borrows heavily for its existence and identity from the Aatma, especially for thinking and desiring. The mind causes the body to do many things but, to do so it draws its power from the Aatma. A subtle point to note here is that Aatma by itself is undifferentiated as a being and power as one, without any separation whatsoever, completely devoid of any action or thought or intention! The moment you have ‘sankalpa’, there is an intention and it is in tension, like a taut wire! So, nowadays when often I hear the phrase, ‘Aatmashakti’ being loosely mentioned, as though ‘Aatma’ and ‘Shakti’ can have separate existence or evolving out of each other. The moment something can be good or bad, there can also be the separation into many, with all sorts of powers! Till then, there is no place for ‘Shakti’ in ‘Aatma’, which is whole and complete by itself as the only Universal entity inclusive of ‘Shakti’! Emphasizing the obvious, in oneness, there is no separation!
167. Now, there can be the question remaining in your minds as to how can it be that, “Without Aatma, there is no action and not an atom can move! Then it is also said that Aatma is not related to any thought or action! How can we reconcile these two apparent contradictions?” That is Maya! This Maya can never be comprehended, however much we may deliberate upon it! Though not connected to anything, it looks as though totally connected with all, by the power of Maya. To make this point somewhat understood a few examples are given. That is, by the presence of the Sun, all the plants grow, seasons change, living things start doing their actions with sun rise. All the power and energy on earth is from the Sun. Without the Sun, there will be no life on earth and none of the things that happen will occur. So, Sun is the only power in being. Still it cannot be directly held as the doer of all that happens on earth!
168. When the Sun sets, there is no light. We light up lamps or street lights. With that light, one man reads the scriptures and another reads useless trash! With the light, many people do many lawful activities and some do illegal exploits! Can we hold the light to be responsible for what happens by its presence? Similarly without doership, by its very presence, Aatma enables occurrence of many activities, including your reading of this idea!
(To be continued.)
Sambhomahadeva.