DEIVATHIN KURAL # 03 (Vol # 5) Dated 05 Jun 2011

DEIVATHIN KURAL # 03 (Vol # 5) Dated 05 Jun 2011

(These e-mails are translations of talks given by PeriyavaaL of Kanchi Kaamakoti 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 No 16 of Vol 5 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)
(KTSV adds: This is a common aside equally applicable to all translations and especially so for Sanskrit/Tamil to English translations. One is the problem due to differences in syntax and pronunciation, while the other is due to words and phrases having meanings of elaborate ideas and concepts that require explanations of reference to the context and not simple word to word translations! So, of necessity I have had to give some explanatory notes instead of literal translations. Some of the words of Tamil and Sanskrit quoted here either enclosed by inverted commas or in italics may be pronounced not exactly as we do in English.)
22. ‘Nyaayendu Sekharam’. Amongst the books written by Mannarkudi PeriyavaaL ‘Nyaayendu Sekharam’ is one. It is a book combining the ideas of Adwaita Vedantam and Tarka Saastram of Logic, fairness and morality. There is a book known as ‘Nyaaya Bhaskaram’. This was written by one ‘Ananthaaryar’. It criticizes some of the Adwaita Vedanta scriptures on the basis of Logic. A refutation of this book was done by Mannarkudi PeriyavaaL in ‘Nyaayendu Sekharam’, by proving that all the premises and conclusions of Adwaita Philosophy are absolutely correct as per the reasoning techniques of Logic and Tarka Saastra.
23. Ananthaaryar had named his book ‘Nyaaya Bhaskaram’ to mean that it was shining like the Sun in the world of Justice. After the heat of the Sun, it is the Moon which cools the world and reduces the thirst. The Moon is known as Indu in Sanskrit. So, Mannarkudi PeriyavaaL wrote the ‘Nyaayendu Sekharam’, disputing and countering every argument put forward by Anantaaryar in his book, re-establishing the correctness of Adwaitam! For that purpose, ‘Nyaayendu’ would have been enough. But with his characteristic self control and humility, instead of assuming that he had done something great, he wished to bring in the name of his favourite Siva as Chandra Sekhara, that is Siva with the crescent moon on his matted locks on the head and so, named his book ‘Nyaaya Indu Sekharam’, as Indu and Chandra are synonyms. Sekhara is the head or peak or pinnacle. Nyaaya Indu Sekharam became ‘Nyaayendu Sekharam’ thus! Till date this is a book of authority, clearly putting to rest all arguments that can ever be extended against Adwaitam, firmly establishing its veracity and truth!
24. In KumbakoNam branch of our Matam, to spread the Adwaita Siddhaanta concepts an Adwaita Sabha was established in the year 1894 by my Guru’s Guru. It is doing a great service in arranging for periodical discussions by learned scholars and tests for student aspirants. In their yearly exams, there is one on ‘Nyaayendu Sekharam’. In the concluding session of the yearly meeting by the Sabha, to pass with flying colours in this exam is considered as a great achievement. In the early years of conduct of this Sabha, our Raju SaastrigaL took active interest and held important portfolios.
25. O K! What is the connection between PiLLaiyar and Tarka Saastram? Tarka Saastram is about the study of cause – effect – action – reaction relationship. So this line of study is known as ‘Nyaayam’ to mean ‘Justification for correctness’. This is explained by using clearly identifiable and unique examples. These are defined in the Saastraas as well as in common proverbs in usage. Without any intention when something happens that looks seemingly like cause and effect; it is known as “kaakkaai utkaarap-panam pazham vizhundadu” in Tamil. It means that ‘a crow sat on a palm tree and palm fruit fell’! Crow’s weight anyhow is too less to cause the fruit to fall. The fruit was ripe enough that the slightest rustle in the air could have caused it to fall. So, it looks as though, ‘the crow sat and palm fruit fell’! You have a word ‘co-incidence’ in English for that, while some term it as, ‘chance encounter’! This is known as, ‘kaakka taaleeya nyaayam’ in Tarka Saastra, in which, ‘kaakka’ is the crow and ‘taaleeya’ is palm leaf.
26. In Sanskrit and English there are no differences between ‘la’ and ‘La’ as there is in Tamil, in which there is a ‘la’ lightly pronounced like in ‘melissa’ and a ‘La’ that is stressed ‘azhuththama’ as in ‘kaLam’ and ‘piLavu’! Women’s well being depended on their husbands well being and continued living, at least in the olden times. A married woman with her husband alive and kicking is known as ‘sumangali’ and her state of well being is known as ‘sumangalitvam’.
27. Physical indications of ‘sumangalitvam’ are the ear ring known as ‘Taadangam’ and the ‘Mangalya Sutra’ worn like a medal in a string coated with turmeric. (KTSV adds: Even today the world over the marriage ceremony is said to be ‘tying the knot’! There may not be a cogent explanation for this except in Hindu traditions wherein the groom is required to tie three knots in a thread soaked in turmeric, around the bride’s neck!) Much before the metallic age, a small palm leaf piece was rolled and used as an ornament in the ear as well as the medal in the ‘Maangalya Sutra’. This palm leaf peace is known as ‘taalee’ and so the very ‘Maangalya Sutra’ came to be known as the ‘taalee’ in the colloquial too. In ‘Syamala Navaratna Maala’ AmbaaL is described as sporting, ‘taalee palasa taadangaam’. The matter seems to have gone far away from PiLLaiyar!
28. I was talking about ‘Adwaita Siddhaantam’, from where I went to ‘Nyaaya Siddhaantam’, to ‘Nyaaya Bhaskaram’ and then to ‘Nyaayendu Sekharam’, in which I happened to be talking about the PiLLaiyar Stuti. Nyaaya as we have seen is about the cause and effect relationship. If there is a book, at the start of it there will be a ‘mangala slokam / paayiram / KadvuL VaNakkam’, is another such ‘nyaayam’. Raju SaastrigaL aka Mannarkudi PeriyavaaL in his book ‘Nyaayendu Sekharam’ has composed his initial KadavuL VaNakkam itself with such a logic or Nyaaya, clearly bringing out the Nyaaya for the whole book. So I have brought you back to PiLLaiyar and Nyaaya quite logically, is it not so? That is how PiLLaiyar is related to Tarka Saastra!
29. Mannarkudi PeriyavaaL’s PiLLaiyar Sloka. “abhyanyaamaram, aariraataishataam yat paada pangeruha dwandwaaraadanam antaraaya hataye kaaryam tvavasyam vidhu: I tat-hetoriti neetividdu bhajante devam yam ekam param sarvaarta pratipaadanaika chaturo dwimaaturo (a) vyaat sa na: II” This is the ‘mangala sloka’ of ‘Nyaayendu Sekharam’. Let us look at its meaning. “Even those who wish to pray to some other deity other than Vigneswara, happen to know that, so as to obviate any likely obstacles in their approach to that deity and or in that deity’s coming to their help; it is essential that they should first pray to Vigneswara’s lotus feet! If the one doing this prayer happens to know, ‘tat – hetu – nyaayam’, instead of thinking of approaching any other deity, completes his ‘pooja’ with the prayers to the One Ultimate God of Vigneswara as the One to grant all his prayers!”
30. ‘tat – hetu – nyaayam’. Here he gives a simple example of the very first principle of Tarka, ‘tat heto: iti neeti’! That means, ‘whatever is the cause is the justice’! ‘Neeti’ , ‘nyaaya’ and the principle of justice are synonymous. In practical life we use the words ‘Needipathi’ and ‘Nyaayathipathi’ as synonymous as the Justice and ‘Needi Manram and Nyaaya Sthalam’ as equivalent to the court of Justice; do we not? It is that ‘tat – hetu – nyaayam’ that I am trying to clarify. The word ‘hetu’ in Sanskrit is ‘edu’ in Tamil and the ‘cause’ in English. Opposite of ‘hetu’ is ‘ahetu’ or injustice. For no apparent reason God is kind to us all living beings. Such kindness is known as ‘aheituka krupa’! Similarly, the Gnaani despite knowing that he has no separateness of being but, one with the entirety of existence is still devoted to God for no apparent reason or expectations of returns! That is known as ‘aheituka’ Bhakti. Even the devotee who is a traveller in the Path of Devotion is devoted to God to reach God or for Self Realization. For the Gnaani there is no such aim or mission. But the Gnaanis of the world even after self realisation have simply melted in devotion. This is known as ‘aheituka bhakti’.
31. In ‘tat – hetu – nyaayam’, hetu means the reason. ‘Tat’ means that aim or target. For one aim or mission ( tat ) there can be many means of attainment ( hetus ), say. At times none of those means or ‘hetus’ may be able to give you that ‘tat’ and so, you may have to take the help of another means or ‘hetu’ which may be able to aid that ‘hetu or cause’ in being effective. If you make use of any one of those means, we may have to make the direct cause amenable to our need! Instead of having many subsidiary aims and subsidiary means, why not make use of the direct cause effective in our mission? When we see that the secondary or subsidiary means is effective in causing not only the secondary aim but also the original primary aim; why use a circuitous round about method and why not go for the primary aim through the direct cause? Vedantam asks this same question in these words, ‘tat-hetoreva tat-hetutve madye kim tena?’ So, why not?
(Understood? Whether your answer to that question is a ‘Yes’ or ‘No’, wait for the next issue of the e-mail! To be continued.)
Sambhomahadeva.