" Mama vartma---" : Our pUrvAchAryAL's comments

[Guest guest]

Dear Sri Narendran :

 

It is amazing that GeethAchAryan used the exact

paadham in two different chapters of GitA . It is

therefore a challenge to understand the text

and the context .

 

AlavandhAr was the first one to cover the commentary

on the essence of GitA in his GithArtha Sangraham(GS) .

The postings on the above sacred text are in the Bhakthi

archives. Sri RaamAnujA's GitA Bhashyam is an

elaboration of AlavandAr's GS . Swami Desikan gave us

two commentaries on GitA , one in Tamil ( GS ) and

another in Sanskrit known as Taatparya Chandrikai .

 

I will cover Sri RamAnujA's comments first and then

Swami Desikan "s . You had also asked about the meaning of

Varthma . It has two meanings . Mama Varthma means

my path or way and also means my svabhAvam or natural

disposition . The first meaning is applicable for

the slOkam line in the third chapter

and the second meaning is applicable for the slOkam line

in the fourth chapter , when every thing else remains same .

 

The word varthman arises from Vr*uth+maninn suggesting

a way , a road , a path , a passage or a track or a course

and finally an established or prescribed usage or course of

conduct .

 

SlOKam 3.23

 

yadhi hyAham na varthEyam jAthu karmaNatandhritha: I

mama varthmAnuvartanthE manushyA : Paartha sarvasa : II

 

In the previous slOkA (3 . 22) , GeethAchAryan stated :

O ArjunA ! for Me , there is nothing in all the three worlds

that ought to be accomplished , nor is there anything

unacquired that ought to be acquired . YET I GO ON WORKING

( i.e., I keep on working for the protection of the world

although there is nothing whatever for Me to achieve .

Even though there is nothing yet to be acquired by

Me through work , I go on working ) .

 

In the verse of interest to us ( 3.23 ) , he continues with the thought

of his working . Here , He says " If I did not continue to work unwearied ,

O ArjunA , men would follow My path thinking that is the correct way " .

 

RaamAnjuA's commentary

******************************

Here , our Lord points out that He is SarvEsvaran , sathya sankalpan

( whose will is always true ) and He is born as the son of Vasudeva

out of His own volition to help the world( Loka ujjeevanArtham ) .

He states that He has to continue to work unwearied as the son

of the noble Vasudeva in a way suitable (prescribed ) for the son

of such an illustrious family . The Lord says that if He takes it easy

and slackens by not performing His duties assidously ,

the human beings with imperfect knowledge will think that

it is the real way and will follow Him . Through that act of imitation ,

they will end up in NarakA by failing to do what ought to be

done and also because of the sin arising from the abandonment

of their prescribed duties .

 

Swami Desikan"s comments

********************************

All the SaasthrAs are my command .Hence I do not

need to be subservient to them . For those , who

are under the influence of karmAs ( karmavasyAs ) ,

they have no choice but to obey the saastraic injunctions.

 

When I incarnate out of My own will , I am not bound to

observe these injunctions like the karmavasyAs and yet

I follow the dharmAnushtAnams prescribed by Me for others

without let . If I follow that path , is there any choice for

the earthlings ? If I do not follow that prescribed path , then

they will stray thinking that this is the right way and end up

with disastrous consequences thru the neglect of

their duties .

 

Athandritha: is an important word here meaning " unwearied "

and without slack . If I do not stay the course of the prescribed

duties befitting the varNAsrama dharmAs ( Yadhi na

varthEyam ) , then manushyA: ( those , who look to

the righteous ones to follow their path ) , would

fully follow My path ( Sarvasa : mama varthma

anuvarthanthE ) and end up in disaster .

 

SlOkam 4.11

**************

This is a celebrated slOkam of GitA :

 

yE yathA maam PRAPADHYANTHE

taamstathaiva bhajAmyaham I

mama varthmAnuvarthanthE

manushyA: Paartha sarvasa: II

 

RaamAnujA's commentary

*****************************

 

yE math samAsryaNa apEkshA yathA , yEna prakArENa

svApEkshAnurUpam maam sankalpya prapadhyanthE ,

samAsrayanthE , thaann prathi tathaiva tanmaneeshitha

prakArENa bhajAmi maam darsayAmi .

 

" whoever desirous of resorting to me , in whatever manner

they think of Me according to their inclinations and take refuge

in Me,i.e., resort to Me --I favour them in the same manner as

desired by them ; I reveal Myself to them .

 

Kimathra BahunA ? ( Why say much here ?

why elaboratefurther on this point ? )

 

sarvE manushyA : madhanuvarthanaika manOrathA

mama VARTHMA mathsvabhAvam sarvam yOginAm

vaangmanasAgOcharam api svakeeyai:

chakshuradhikaraNai: sarvasa: svaapEkshithai :

sarva prakArai: anubhUya anuvarthanthE .

 

(Meaning) : All men , who have made up their mind to

follow Me do experience Me with their very eyes and

other sensory organs in every manner desired by them .

My form is acccessible to them readily , even if it is

beyond the reach of the speech and thought of yOgis

generally .

 

Swami Desikan"s comments :

*********************************

 

Swami Desikan explains that it is the guNAdhisayam

( wonderous quality of the KalyANa guNam of the Lord )

that makes Him responsive to the wishes of those , who

approach Him with their own prayers and selected ways .

 

This flexibility of the Lord to respond to the wishes of

bhakthAs approaching Him through different routes

and choices is a doctrine celebrated by the Sathapatha

BrAhmaNam ( tham yathA yathOpaasathE tadhEva Bhavathi ).

The above -quoted scripture says that BhagavAn

takes the form desired by the human beings

worshipping Him in whatever way they wish to see Him .

 

Some wish Him to go as a messenger to the court

of DuryOdhanA , some want Him to graze the cows ,

some wish Him to perform raasakreetA and play the flute .

The Lord says that He obliges them all and takes on these

different roles in response to their wishes . He states further

that His body , which is not easily seen or comprehended

even by parama yOgis becomes visible and accessible

during the avathArams in response to the request of

the people approaching Him in the manner elected by

them . Even His appearance to bless us as ArchA mUrthys

of different divya dEsams will fit in this category of His

flexible response to the wishes of the people approaching

Him in their own ways guided by their predispositions .

 

yE yathA maam prapadhyanthE taan aham tathA yEva

bhajAmi ( In which ever way , anyone , who desires Me and

reach towards Me , I reach them in the way they wished . I make

them enjoy Me in the same way they visualized Me and

worshipped Me .

 

Paartha ! ManushyA : Sarvasa: mama vathma anuvarthanthE

( O ArjunA ! Therefore through this willing rsponsiveness of

Mine , every one , who who approached Me in whatever way get

the fulfillment of their wishes through the enjoyment of My

svabhAvam and thus attain the supreme status of Moksham ) .

 

In the slOkam 3.23 , the Lord explained why He has to

perform His duties so that people do not slack off and

end in Narakam ; here , he says that the enjoyment of

His svabhAvam yields readily the supreme purushArtham .

He underlines His Bhaktha Sulabhatvam here .

These two identical sections found in chapters III and

IV have the same thread running through them (viz).,

sowlabhyam and bhaktha dhAkshiNyam .

 

Sri GeethAchAryan ThiruvadigaLE SaraNam

Oppiliappan Koil VaradAchAri sadagopan