DEIVATHIN KURAL #162 (Vol #4) Dated 17 Mar 2011

DEIVATHIN KURAL #162 (Vol #4) Dated 17 Mar 2011

(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 second para on page number 900 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)
BHAKTI THAT IS DEVOTION
“VANDU STOTRAM”
1. Adwaitam, Theory and Practice. Sri Adi Sankara Bhagawat PadaaL has written such treatises on Adwaitam astonishing all the intelligentsia of the world, by his ‘Prasthana Thraya’ of his Bhashyam on the ten Upanishad, Brhma Sutra and Bhagawat Gita. On his own he has written many original ones, namely Viveka ChoodaamaNi, Upadesa Saahasri and many more such. To differentiate these from the Bhashyams, these are called ‘Prakarana Granthas’.
2. The Adwaita Tattvam (principle of Adwaitam) is the One Huge Idea behind all ideas, concepts and principles that can ever be anytime anywhere! The world that we believe to be true is unreal Maya. Paramaatma is the only reality. We, who are thinking ourselves to be Jeevaatma as something different from Paramaatma, are in reality the same as God! This world and the man are all the same as Brhmam, says Adwaitam. By the authority of the Vedas, that is also called the Sruti, our AachaaryaaL has established this fact as strong as the Rock of Gibraltar. Even the Rock of Gibraltar may one day be shattered in an earth quake, but his Siddhantam will stand the test of time till eternity.
3. But, this simple inalienable truth seems to be beyond the grasp and comprehension of many of us! Though logically and sensibly analysed, whatever our AachaaryaaL says becomes reasonably understood theoretically to some of us; even for them when it comes to practically relating it to the worldly life, we and the theory of Adwaitam seem to be at the two ends of the spectrum! What is the use of understanding with our brains and our mind that this Jeevan and Brhmam are one and the same? We who are all the time running helter-skelter physically and mentally are not able to equate us with the ‘action-free, ever static, peaceful Para Brhmam’! The only truth that we can relate to is fickle minded selves and the ever changing world around us. If the mind stops, the world will also disappear and we will be as the Brhmam, OK true. But this mind is never under our control and never stops for a moment, what to do? So, Adwaitam is never being experienced by us, even if we accept it as true.
4. Still to get this Adwaita Anubhava, we have to go from here to that stage. We have to make a start from where we are, with what we see and know as true and reliable. We have to start practicing the Karma Anushtaanaas, leaving, dropping and discarding the things that are untrue and progress step by step to the only reality of Adwaitam in experience. AachaaryaaL was not unaware of this practical difficulty. He was a very practical man. Out of infinite kindness, he knew that his Bhashyam and Prakarana Granthas would not be of much use to the common man. Though he was in the pinnacles of Himalayan heights in knowledge and experience, he has come down to our level and is guiding us step by step, holding our hands as though, taking us higher and higher!
5. To stop this mind on its tracks, first its random movements like a mad dog has to be controlled by doing our appointed duties like a disciplined soldier. AachaaryaaL has required all of us to do our appointed duties which are meant for the welfare of the society at large without selfish motivation, as that would enable cleansing of our minds to a large extent. When we are focussed on our duties, the mind is automatically prevented from uncontrolled running hither and thither. With such employment on the one hand the mind is trained to develop ‘Chitta Aikaagrata’ (that is capacity to focus) and secondly by giving more attention to socially useful activities rather than personal satisfaction and selfishness, it is refined and weaned away from its deleterious tendencies.
6. As we go on training our minds to focus like this, it becomes eligible to finally abide and dissolve in Aatma. For this the best is to venerate, idolize and cherish the SaguNa Brhmam as the repository of all wonderful, salubrious and divine qualities as the aim of our devotion. The mind in the process becomes filled with such worship, void of all other thoughts. It stops all its random vacillations dwelling totally on the Ishta Devata. Now it is in a ripe position for Easwara to take him beyond the Dwaita Bhakti to Adwaita Anubhava, by the Grace of God, to completely drop off all sense of separateness and become one with Oneness! For this purpose, our AachaaryaaL has required all of us to follow Bhakti Upaasana as seriously as Karma Anushtaana. He not only directed us to do so, but has written many slokas soaked in devotion as though to teach us as to how to go about being devoted!
7. Out of many such Slokas that he has authored ‘Soundarya Lahari’ on AmbaaL and ‘Sivananda Lahari’ on Siva, both contain 100 slokas each. Then instead of being so long, there are many smaller ones he has written virtually on all Gods and Goddesses as there can be many Ishta Devatas such as, Ganesha, Subrahmanya, Lakshmi, Saraswathi, Aanjaneya and so on. We should all be learning at least some of them and commit them to our heart.
8. The greatness of Adi Sankara as an author is that, he could put into simple words, both very high philosophy and soul stirring noble sentiments. While writing the Bhashyams for Prasthana Thrayam and Prakarana Granthas, if his language might have been difficult to decipher for even very advanced and learned scholars, his Bhakti Slokas are easily understandable by the masses and children.
9. In them there is this one called the ‘Vandu Stotram’ (that happens to be the heading given to to-days talk by PeriyavaaL)! Vandu in Tamil is a common name for all insects with six legs such as the beetle. This Stotram is not about a beetle. It is called the ‘Shat – Padi’ meaning, having six stanzas. Like we have ‘Panchakam’ for the Sloka with five stanzas and ‘Ashtotram’ for the Sloka with eight stanzas. ‘Shat Padi’ means that it has six legs. ‘Shat’ = Six. ‘Padi’ = feet or ‘Kaal’ in Tamil. In Tamil Kaal also means ¼ or quarter and a foot. You see, man has two legs and two hands. Since each leg is one fourth of those four limbs, it is 1/4th. Since this sloka has six stanzas or six feet and a Vandu also has six feet, with bit of pun on Kaal and Shat Padi, it came to be called the Vandu Stotram.
10. This one with six stanzas is on the C.E.O of the Universe Maha Vishnu. It has easy to pronounce words and intensity of sentiments that can easily touch your heart. If we fully understand this simple sloka, we can bring Maha Vishnu in to our Drawing room and Adi Sankara in to our hearts or the other way around too! Not only that we can get to know Maha Vishnu and Adi Sankara intimately, we can know ourselves also. To know ourselves is after all, the aim of Adwaitam. Thus this ‘Shat Padi can take us to the commanding heights of Adwaitam through the simple means of a Stotra by Adi Sankara on Maha Vishnu dripping with the devotion!
(To be continued.)
Sambhomahadeva.