lakshmi-nrsimha karAvalamba stOtram- 2

[Guest guest]

Dear bhAgavatOttamA-s,

 

The predominant mood and emotion of the "lakshmi-nrsimha karAvalamba

stOtram" is one of deep and brooding "virakti".

 

A very facile but inaccurate translation into English of the Sanskrit

term "virakti" is "world-weariness". But "world-weariness" is a sweeping

term whose meaning quite often widely varies in shades of kind and

degree.

 

In its most extreme sense the word is used to describe feelings of

overwhelming revulsion for the society of men. Anchorites, misanthropes

and the mentally perturbed are generally seen to suffer from such strong

"virakti". Intense "virakti" urges such men to reject their families and

friends, snap all ties with the community, with the world at large; and

usually it makes them flee into forest-monasteries, island-retreats or

sanatorium-wards.

 

In age-old vedic society, as we all know, there was the tradition of

men, turning grey in the evening of their lives, uprooting themselves

completely from all family and social ties and retiring into the forests

to live as "vanaprastA-s". These reclusive hermits observed the

"dharma" of their particular station in life and it chiefly consisted in

displaying a certain kind of "virakti" - the calm and contemplative

variety. It meant maintaining a steady distance from the world,

jealously guarding one's spiritual space and privacy and, at all times,

studiously keeping at bay the intrusive tumult and temptations of the

world they'd previously known and willingly left behind.

 

Then there is also the kind of "virakti" embraced by the enlightened

ones. In the vedic times of yore, again as we all know, there were the

"rshi-s" who chose to permanently reside in the deep woods. It was both

their secular and spiritual home. The central mission of their lives was

accomplished in the deep and solitary "aranyA-s"--- the perfect workshop

in which the industry of their penance ('tapas'), contemplation

('dhyAna') and worship ('smaraNa') gave yield to the sublime product of

the "aranyakA-s", the centre-piece of the vedantic Upanishads.

>From time to time, however, these "rshi-s" or sages were known to breach

the norm of wonted "virakti". They would on occasions come out of their

retreats in the jungle and mingle with the outside world not for social

intercourse, of course, but to pursue their high purpose in life viz.

promote 'dharmA' and well-being, regenerate moral values, instruct

society in goodness and truth.

 

If one is even remotely familiar with the historical accounts of the

Biblical sages/prophets like Moses, Elijah and John the Baptist one can

surely appreciate how the "rshi-s" of the vedic times, who were even

more ancient, might have lived maintaining that fine balance between

distance from and engagement with the outside world…. that fine blend

which is really the essence of true and noble "virakti".

 

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

 

None of the above types of "virakti", however, is what ordinary people

like us experience in the space of our individual lifetime. Neither

does the "lakshmi-nrsimha karAvalamba stOtra" (LNKS) too deal with any

of the same.

 

So what is so special about the kind of "virakti" … "world-weariness" …

which we experience in life? And how does the LNKS deal with it?

 

This is what we must study in the next few posts.

 

adiyEn dAsAnu-dAsan,

sudarshan

 

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