DEIVATHIN KURAL #180 (Vol #4) Dated 22 Apr 2011

DEIVATHIN KURAL #180 (Vol #4) Dated 22 Apr 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 last para on page number 1,009 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)
187. If someone does get the Adwaita Anubhava, does he remain in that state of NirguNa? It does not seem so. Gnaanis of the world are seen to be doing many things interacting with people of this world, seemingly more effectively! Starting from Sukha Brhmam to our AachaaryaaL to Sadasiva BrhmendraaL recently, attainment of the oneness did not result in total delinking with worldly involvement! Does it mean that the Adwaita Anubhava left them?
188. The answer is that we are under the wrong notion that, ‘Samaadhi means a state when we are not seeing the world anymore; and that if and when the Gnaani is doing the worldly works, his Gnaanam has been held in abeyance or something like that!’ Though the Gnaani seems to be interacting with the world, he continues to be in a state of Samaadhi only. He has no sense of ‘Doer-ship’ and he does not look at the world as them or those others and his body as his self! That his mind has been annulled is a foregone conclusion and is not open for discussion anymore! Through him God gets things done. For the sake of demonstrating to the rest of the world, God may make use of him as a ‘role model’ to be emulated. Such a person may continue to function in various roles, which is all a play of God. (KTSV adds:- You may study the biography of such people from Ramakrishna Paramahamsa, to Nisarga Datt Maharaj, to Poondi Swami to RamaNa Maharishi; Sai Baba to Amirtananda Mayi Amma; to learn one lesson. That is, we may aspire and take efforts to get rid of the mind, ‘but this has to be done by using the mind only’, as Swami Dayanand Saraswathi says. ‘Drushtim gnaana mayam krutva pasyata brhma mayam jagat’, meaning, ‘having made your vision full of awareness of Sat – Chit – Aananda, see the whole world as an expression of divinity’.)
189. For such a Gnaani these differentiations of SaguNa and NirguNa Brhmam will cease to make any impact. In SaguNa Upaasana itself he or she may be able to enjoy the thrill of NirguNa Brhma Aanandam. On occasions with the certain knowledge that all the varieties of the world are play acting by the one Brhmam only, instead of the utter loneliness of the one, the variety may seem more enjoyable without any trace of ahambhaava or delusion. It is in this state that Sadasiva BrhmendraaL sang the song, “brhmaNi maanasa sancharare”, to mean ‘my dear mind you keep moving in brhmam’. Having told the mind to do so, he immediately sings eulogies of praise of SaguNa KrishNa Paramaatma, who is having the feathers of the pea-cock stuck jauntily in his hair!
190. That is how our AachaaryaaL also wrote many accolades and encomiums on SaguNa Brhmam’s many forms such as, Baja Govindam, Vishnu Paadaadi Keshaanta Stotram, Sri Vishnu Bhujangam, Govinda Ashtakam, Panduranga Ashtakam, Jagannatha Ashtakam, Sri Hari Stuti, Sri Lakshminrusimha KaruNarasa Stotram, Sri Lakshminrusimha Pancharatnam, Sri Ramabhujanga Prayata Stotram, Hanumath Pancharatnam, Achyuta Ashtakam, Sri Lalita Trisati, Sri Siva Keshaadi Paadaanta VarNana Stotram, Sri DakshiNamurthy Stotram, Sri Siva Paadaadi Keshaanta VarNana Stotram, Sri Mrutyunjaya Maanasika Pooja Stotram, Dasaslokee Stuti, Sri GaNesha pancharatnam, GaNesha Bhujangam, SubrahmaNya Bhujangam, Siva Bhujangam, Sivaananda Lahari, Siva Aparaadha KshamaapaNa Stotram, Sivashtakam, Siva Naamaavalyashtakam, Siva Panchaakshara Stotram, Veda Saara Siva Stotram, Sri DakshiNamurthy VarNamaalaa Stotram, DakshiNamurthy Stotram, UmaaMaheswara Stotram, Dwadasa Linga Stotram, Ardha Nareeswara Stotram, Kaala Bhairavaashtakam, SuvarNamaala Stuti, Soundarya Lahari, AnnapoorNaa Stuti, Amba Pancharatnam, Ambaashtakam, Aananda Lahari, Tripura Sundaryashtakam, Tripura Sundari Vedapaadastotram, Tripura Sundari Maanasa Pooja Stotram, Devi Bhujanga Stotram, Devi Chatush Shashtyupachaara Stotram, Sri Devyaparaadha KshamapaNa Stotram, Matruka Pushpamaala Stuti, Mantra Matruka Pushpamaala Stava:, KalyaaNa Vrushtistava:, Navaratna Maalika, Shyamala Navaratna Maalika Stotram, Sri Lalita Pancharatnam, Gowri Dasakam, Bhavani Bhujangam, Sharada Bhujanga Prayatashtakam, Meenakshi Pancharatnam, Meenakshi Stotram, Bramaraamba Ashtakam, Kamalamba Ashtakam, Kanaka Dhaara Stotram, Haristuti:, Bhagawan Maanasa Pooja, Srimad Achyutashtakam, Kaashi Panchakam, Ganga Ashtakam, Yamuna Ashtakam, Narmada Ashtakam, Gurvashtakam, Praata: SmaraNa Stotram, and many more! Please note that I have not touched upon his works on Adwaita philosophy at all here.
191. That is to say, our AachaaryaaL has wallowed in deep devotion describing the various Gods from head to feet and from feet to top of their heads and their qualities, traits and attributes and their Leelaas of what all they have done and can do! By calling God, ‘GuNa Mandiram’, it does not mean that he has forgotten the NirguNa Brhmam and is self contradictory at all! To me he seems to be still describing the NirguNa Brhmam only in which all the wonderful GuNas have taken refuge in. It is like the colourless white Sunlight, which is made of Violet, Indigo, Blue, Green, Yellow, Orange and Red. There is no contradiction in terms here. It is that one nameless, colourless, shapeless Parabrhmam becoming all the varities of names, shapes and colours of the world.
192. The phrase ‘guNamandira’ following immediately after ‘daamodara’ is a word play of immense beauty. ‘Dama – udara’ means, having his hips tied by rope as we have seen and ‘guNa’ also has a connotation of a rope, as I told you already. So, the phrase ‘GuNa mandira’ seems to indicate that, the normally ‘NirguNa Brhmam’ without any defining traits or characteristics is seemingly tied-up as KrishNa let himself be tied by Yashoda, thus the NirguNa Brhmam becoming SaguNa Brhmam! “What a wonder and how surprising! The meaning and purport of all the Upanishads, that ‘NirguNa Brhmam’ itself is seen here to be tied to a household mortar!” There is a song in ‘KrishNa KarNamrutam’ with that sentiment. So I suppose, it is in the rightness of things that in the Shatpadi Stotra, the phrase ‘guNamandira’ immediately follows the phrase ‘daamodara’ very appropriately.
193. In appreciation of the beauty of the scene, he adds ‘sundara vadanaaravinda’. Word by word meaning is as follows - sundara – beautiful; vadana – face; aravinda – lotus; ‘a face as beautiful as a lotus flower’. Adwaitins not only in speech but, deeply immersed in their Adwaita Anubhava have become highly enraptured when describing the beauty of God’s form and figure. Those who are Adwaitins and also devotees are found to be devotees of Siva (the Nayanmaars who have sung the Tevaram songs) or Subrahmanya (such as Kumara Gurupara, Paamban SwamigaL, AruNa giri Natha, and Kachiappa Sivachaariyaar) or KrishNa (such as Leela Suka, Chaitanya Maha Prabhu and KrishNa Premi). There are more Adwaitins who have KrishNa as their Ishta Devata.
194. Leela Suka who wrote the ‘KrishNa KarNamrutam’ belonged to the Adwaita tradition. Talking about his family in Kerala, he says that their family deity is Siva and ‘Siva Panjatcharee’ is undoubtedly their Japa Mantra. Still he was a very ardent devotee of KrishNa, who has written the ‘KrishNa KarNamrutam’ with such intensity to virtually steal our hearts. Some five centuries back there was one Madusudana Saraswathi in Bengal. He has authored a book known as ‘Adwaita Siddhi’ and contributed much for the tradition of Adwaita Siddhantam. Then he has also authored a book known as ‘Bhakti Rasayanam’ to mean, ‘The Chemistry of Devotion’, to prove and establish the point that there is no conflict between the experience of NirguNa Brhma Gnaanam and being intensely devoted to the SaguNa Brhmam!
195. Madusudana Saraswathi was an ardent devotee of KrishNa Bhagawan too. There is a sloka known as ‘Siva Mahimna Stotram’ quite popular in Maharashtra State and the whole of North India! Here in South India people may not know about its existence even. But the point I am making here is that, Sri Madusudana Saraswathi has written a word for word translation with commentary of the ‘Siva Mahimna Stotram’, in which he has proved that the Stotram is equally applicable to Sri KrishNa also.
(To be continued.)
Sambhomahadeva.