DEIVATHIN KURAL # 136 (Vol # 7) Dated 20 Apr 2014

 DEIVATHIN KURAL # 136 (Vol # 7) Dated 20 Apr 2014

(These e-mails are translations of talks given by PeriyavãL 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 going ahead from the last paragraph on page No 1048 of Volume 7 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 continually)

14.          You might have heard the story that in his very young age as a baby that he was given Upadesa by the Sun aka Surya.  He saw the rising sun and thought it to be a red fruit.  So he just pounced towards the Sun in Surya Mandalam to catch it.  Out of his infinite kindness Surya stopped him at a distance before being burnt and ionized in to gaseous state!  Then for a few years he kept travelling in space facing the Sun all the time and learnt everything that Sun could think of as suitable to be taught to this adventurous boy.  Those were not teachings on Gnãna but, all sorts of Sãstrãs that can be absorbed by brains and intellect.  Especially all the Sãstrãs of VyakarNam aka Grammar were covered.  This happened in his childhood that he came to be known as 'buddhimatãm varishtam' – 'बुद्धिमतां वरिष्टं', meaning the best amongst intelligentsia!  But that is still cerebral expertise only and cannot be called Gnãna.  Then how did he become 'gnãninãm agragaNyam' – 'ज्ञानिनां अग्रगण्यं' that is, foremost amongst Gnãnis?  Who made him so?  Who was his Guru for Brhma Vidya?  Only Ãtma Sãstram is Para-Vidya.  All other education is known as Apara-Vidya, Para meaning supreme and Apara meaning other than Supreme.  As the Sun God was the Guru for Hanuman for all Apara-Vidya, who was the Guru for him in Para-Vidya?  When did that happen?

15.          Ãnjaneya got his Gnãna Upadesam when the story of Ramayanam had run its full course almost, after Sri Rama's Pattãbhishekam.  That is many years after he got the Upadesam from the Sun as his Guru.  By then he had done all that he did in service of Sri Rama.  He jumped across the land and ocean to Sri Lanka, successfully located Sita and handed over Sri Rama's ring and the message, destroyed the Asoka Vana, set fire to the city of Sri Lanka, and then starting from construction of the Setu aka Bridge across the sea, to fighting in the battle did many wonderful brave acts.  He had physically destroyed many soldiers of the Rãkshasa Sena in his first visit to the island kingdom and then in battle royal he literally had a field day, every day!  When his own army including Rama and Lakshmana were all rendered unconscious by some magical missile of RavaNa's son Indrajit, he flew to India and brought the Sanjivini (the whole mountain itself as he couldn't identify the particular herb), to revive them back to life.  Thus all his famous exploits had been completed.  RavaNa had been killed, and they had all returned to Ayodhya after which many years of Rama Rajyam had been completed. 

16.          Ãnjaneya had completely surrendered his self in the service of Sri Rama.  It is then that he got Gnãna Upadesam.  Naturally a question arises as to how, having surrendered his all to Sri Rama, how could he have gone in search of some Guru?  He didn't leave Sri Rama in search of a Guru but, got Upadesa from Sri Rama directly.  Normally we are aware of their relationship as the Lord and the Servant and as Swami and Bhakta.  Now we are seeing them from a different angle as Guru and Sishya!  Sri Rama is not just any other human being, but the True Being of Sat-Chit-Anandam and Ãnjaneya on the other hand is perfection personified!  Just to think of both of them together as Guru and Sishya is highly meritorious!

17.          On the one hand is the fact that Swami, who was known as Raja Raman conducting himself as the Emperor so exemplarily with Dharma as the governing principle that till day we adoringly call it Rama Rajyam, on the other hand is the truth that he was also the King of Gnãna Rajyam, imparting Upadesa on Gnãna to others.  His father-in-law Janaka was also famous as a Raja Rishi.  So the son-in-law was also like the father-in-law only, on the one side a great King and administrator, and on the other side an all knowing Gnãna Sreshta Rishi; elaborating on Vedanta!

18.          He not only gave Upadesa to Hanuman but, that day he also imparted Upadesa to all the Rishis of the world.  Those Rishis were aware that he was an Avatara of NãrãyaNã.  They also knew that his very Avatara happened to come about for the destruction of RavaNa and other Rãkshasãs like him.  That job known as 'Dushta Nigraham' – 'दुष्ट निग्रहं' was over and he was ruling as the king.  Then he was conducting himself and his governance in a most judicious and fair manner for the common man to emulate as the ideal and that is known as 'Sishta Paripãlanam' – 'शिष्ट परिपालनम्'.  That was also a job of the Avatara, the second in order.  With that they added a third job of the Avatara and that is what we are discussing now.

19.          For anything like a book or project or programme, there is a Preamble or Introduction and then there is the body of the project and then there is a conclusion, isn't it?  In our Vedic tradition we have 'Poorvãngam' – 'पूर्वाङ्गं' and 'Uttarãngam' – 'उत्तराङ्गं'.  The Uttarãngam may also include the conclusion.  In Vedic Sampradãya, first we have to run our lives sensibly keeping our individual and social Dharma in view and while doing so, after attaining some maturity, endeavour for eventual understanding and comprehension of Brhmam and Gnãna beyond all relative knowledge.  In that process there are six levels for which there are six Sãstrãs known as 'Shat-Darsanam' – 'षट्-दर्शनं'; in which the first one in the first Darsanam is 'Dharma Jignãsã' – 'धर्म जिज्ञासा'.  That is the desire to know as to what is Dharma or the right thing to do on various occasions.  Thus Poorva-Meemãmsa is the preamble.  Then is the desire to know as to what is Brhmam and that is Uttara Meemãmsa.  Poorva Meemãmsa came to be known as just Meemãmsa and Uttara Meemãmsa came to be known as Vedãntam, in which the first one is Karma or action oriented and the second basically one of self-analysis and meditation. 

20.          After the destruction of the Rãkshasãs, Sri Rama's first Avatara Kãryam of 'Dushta Nigraham' was over.  Then after Pattãbhishekam for a number of years of functioning as the King, his second Avatara Kãryam of 'Sishta Paripãlanam' was also over.  Those days the kings were having the authority of judiciary, administration, defence and maintenance of law and order all rolled in to one in their hands.  So now, all the Rishis of the world collected at Ayodhya to enable him to complete the last of the purpose of coming in to being as an Avatara.  Please note that those Rishis of yore were subtly equipped to see through any secret, whatever may be the number of veils hiding the truth.  They were aware of the fact that Sri Rama was a Parama Gnãni intrinsically and only play acted as a normal human being.  Some time he was anger personified and on occasions he was crying like a most distraught person, asking every stone, tree or a bend in the river as to where is Sita!  They knew that all that was play acting as Rama Leela!  Inwardly as SaguNa Roopa he was Maha Vishnu and further as NirguNa Roopa he was the omniscient, omnipresent and omnipotent Lord God in human form!  So though they were all already Brhma Gnãnis, they were keen on Upadesa from the very source of our existence, that can only add to their credit and make them all Jivan Mukta while still alive as human beings!  So they made a collective request to bless them all with his Upadesa.

21.          Sri Rama was also keen to do so because, as the proverb says, 'nãn pertra inbam peruga ivvaiyagam' – 'நான் பேற்ற இன்பம் பெறுக இவ்வையகம்', meaning that 'the pleasures that I received, let me share with the whole world', is the intention.  Rama is the very form of Brhma Vidya; ever thriving naturally in the Brhma Ãnanda of Satchitãnandam.  He did not have to learn it from anybody.  But still, when he has come on this earth in human form, he has to do all that as a model to be emulated by others isn't it?  So he enacted the scene in which he also learned the Brhma Vidya from a Guru.  In the very young age, he learnt all Vidyas from Vasishta in his Guru Kulam, including Dhanur Veda that is Archery.   At that time itself he had also learnt the basics of Brhma Vidya that is Vedãntam.  Still his thirst for Brhma Vidya was not satisfied.  Then just before proceeding with Lakshmana to enable Vishwãmitra to conduct his Yagas without being interfered by Asuras and eventual arrival at Videha and marriage to Sita; he was given Brhma Vidya Upadesa by Vasishta.

22.          The Upadesa by Vasishta at that time is available even today as a book, like an authority on the subject, known as Gnãna Vãsishtam, or Yoga Vãsishtam that is also available in Tamil simply as 'Vãsittam' or 'Gnãna Vãsittam' – 'ஞான வாசிட்டம்'!  Instead of calling it a book of Yoga, it is more correct to call it a book of Gnãna.  All the paths of Sãdhana are also said to be Yoga mãrga in the sense it leads to the oneness of Jivãtma with Paramãtma in the end.  Still the word Yoga is more applicable to Patanjali's Ashtãnga Yoga – the Eight Part Yoga.  But this Gnãna Vãsishtam is more closely applicable to Adwaita Gnãna Sãdhana only.

23.          There is a generally accepted social injunction that a Vidya that a person learns, instead of vanishing with him should be taught to at least four other persons.  Besides that, the one who has so learnt something new would also like to teach it to some worthy students so that, the idea continues even after his death.  Sri Rama also had this urge, as one of his Avatãra Kãryam was to open the gates of Gnãna Mãrga and keep it open, for future aspirants.  Sri Rama was keeping that urge under control till Rama – RavaNa Yuddham was done with and he was happily managing his royal duties.  But slowly but steadily this urge was looking for opportunities to out itself.  As the most opportune moment arrived, the Rishis were also at his door-steps!

24.          Still Sri Rama was too full of the quality of Vinaya, that he felt diffident of playing the role of Instructor being a Kshatriya that too younger in age to all those Brahmin Ãchãryãs much older to him and well qualified and experienced!  As per their wish he should be talking about Brhma Vidya so as to strengthen and harden their knowledge of Brhma NirvãNa.  At the same time, he felt that he should not be directly giving them Upadesa.  Then he suddenly remembered Ãnjaneya.  'He is one who has completely mastered his senses and mind.  He lives a life without any iota of selfishness for the sake of others.  Without a life of his own, he has completely dedicated his everything in my service and as result even if he never knows anything about Gnãnam will attain to the 'Gnãna Lakshya' of Moksham alright.  But why not make him aware of Gnãnam, Gnãna Marga and Upadesa for Gnãna?  Of course those without much power of Buddhi need not waste their time and effort in trying to understand the Gnãna Marga.  For them surrender alone would do, as he has done already.  But he happens to be a great specimen of intelligentsia.  It is best that I should have him as the main Sishya and let others overhear the dialog.  There cannot be a better deserved 'Sat-Sishya' than him also.  In the bargain let other saints and sages also benefit.  So I shall give Brhma Vidya Upadesa to Hanuman', decided Sri Rama.

25.          If in the childhood of Ãnjaneya it was Surya Bhagawan who instructed him on Apara Vidya, in the older age as Acharya for Para Vidya it was Surya Kula Tilakam Sri Rama as his Acharya.  It is that Rama again in his Moola Roopa as Maha Vishnu, who had given Upadesa on Para Vidya.  This fact has been clarified by Sri Krishna in Gita in the chapter named Gnãna Vibhãga Yoga (4.1) when he says, 

इमम विवश्वते योगं प्रोक्तवानहमव्ययं |

imam vivashvate yogam proktavãnahamavyayam |

विवश्वान मनवे प्राह मनुरिक्ष्वाकवेsब्रवीत ||

viashvãn manave prãha manurikshvãkave abraveet ||  The Blessed Lord said, 'I taught this imperishable Yoga to Vivasvãn, he told it to Manu and Manu proclaimed it to Ikshvãku.  Vivasvãn means the Sun.  Then the teaching goes to Manu, the first of all human beings and from him the Upadesa passed on to Ikshvãku the reputed ancestor of the Solar Dynasty aka Surya Kula!'

26.          It means that, Ãnjaneya got Para Vidya Upadesa from the Moola Guru of his earlier Guru, Surya from whom he obtained the Upadesa on Apara Vidya (of being worldly wise) which made him 'Bhuddhimatãm Varishtam' and the second one from Sri Rama (his Guru's Guru) made him 'Gnãninãm AgragaNyam'!  If there is a cow it gives milk to many.  But to motivate the cow to gush forth with milk there has to be calf near it.  Similar is the milk of human kindness, the Upadesa from a Guru.  When there is a worthy Sishya, there will be outpouring of Upadesa and everybody else can also benefit!

(To be continued.)

Sambhomahadeva