Are there any Svargam and Naragam?/ A la Smt. Sumithra

[Guest guest]

Sri rAmAnujasya caraNau Sharanam prapdyE

 

/vaNakkam Shri Varadaragan, Shri Krishna Tathachar, Smt. Jaysree Saranathan, and

Sri Mani Varadarajan.

 

The discussion on /svargam and /narakam has moved so fast thanks to Smt.

Jayasree, I wonder where I should start? (/enku/thAn thuvankuvatu kol!)

 

I would like to import into this discussion the well-laid out commentaries of

Smt. Sumithra Varadaraan on the /tiru/mAlai of /tonTar/aTip/poTi AZvAr. That is

my destination (/poruT/kati). /nAn /pAcuram No. 2 (of /tiru/mAlai) -vaip paRRi

eZutap pOkirEn. I am going to write about /pAcuram No. 2 of /tiru/mAlai,

following the commentaries of Smt. Sumithra.

 

I would like to give notice of what is forthcoming as an abstract. My intitial

discussion is based on the following two lines:

 

/amararkAl ati/pati evan/avan; tuyaraRu cuTar/aTi toZut/eZal mananE (nammAZvAr:

tiru/vAy/moZi 1): Oh mind, rise in worship of the glorious Feet of the One (Shri

/vishNu), Who is the Executive Head of the "well-Living" (/amarar) --- the Feet

which wipe out sorrows. One may also use "ever-lasting" in place of

'well-living".

 

/pani vicumpil amarar paNintu/cUZn; /anita kOTi aNi/muTi mAlaiyum; . . .

/munivar aJcali mAlaiyum mun elAm; (/cEk/kiZar 15: [Presiding in Court] in the

cooler world, as an innumerable number of the "well-living" (/amarar) prostrate

in que and encircle Him (/civA) . . . and the silent /munivarkal raise their

hands in supplication.

 

 

First, may I seek the forbearance of the /bhaktAs on my examples. I learnt

mathematics from Prof. SuryanarAyana Iyer in St. Joseph's College, Tirucci. He

used to give many examples as a good teacher would do. But often he would

preface his remarks by saying, "All our examples are for the glorification of

mathematics only". I do the same. All examples are for purposes of illustration

and glorification of Shri /vaishNava sapratAyam only. I mean no offence to

anyone. I beg for understanding. I also take examples from others in the same

spirit.

 

Let me begin with /pra/patti. I agree with Shri Thathacar that a /pra/panna is

free from the cycle of births and deaths and that the concepts of /svargA and

/naraka cease to have any effect on a /pra/pannA.

 

But what is the road to /pra/patti? May I illustrate with an example?

 

When we were children we used to play a game called /parama/pata cOpAnap paTam.

The more children participate the more fun it is. It is a board game, the board

being a matrix of about 500 squares or so. Approximately a 25 x 20 matrix, with

25 rows and 20 columns.

 

Children would toss /cOZi -- the Indian equivalent of a die --using 4 to 6

/cOZis. The aim of the game is to reach /svarga/vAcal and then onto /vai/kunTam.

The top most row consisted of many deities lying in wait on the way to

/vai/kunTam.

 

You start with cell no. 1 and wind your way up. The excitement of the game lies

in the ladders and serpents in certain marked cells. The ladders corespond to

/punyam and the serpents correspond to /pApam. /cOpAnam means steps or ladders

in the formation of an echelon. The game is a model of /pra/patti! If you follow

up the echelon without falling back, you are Blessed indeed. But the serpents

lie in wait and if you land on a cell with a serpent, it swallows you and you go

down its huge or small belly as the case may be and fal to a bottom cell. Each

time you have to pray not to throw the wrong toss. Otherwise you may fall back

to where you started. Once you reach /svarga/vAcal, there are no ladders or

serpents. It is one Bliss of forward march.

 

In fact just a few steps before you reach /svarga/vAcal, there is a huge snake

winding its ugly belly down to square no. 1! Believe me, you could be in square

428 and then in one wink of a toss get swllowed by that huge ugly serpent. What

could a child do, but to say, "/accO!" or "/acc/accacO!" I did not know then

that /accO means "give me a hug". Indeed that is what a child would need at

that time. I learnt much later from /peri/AZvAr that /accO means to hug a child.

So next time a child says, "/accO", please give a hug to the child and if you

can, do not fail to sing a corresponding song from /peri/AZvAr.

/divya/pra/pantam 97-106.

 

In this game, a child lagging behind may end up to be the first to win the game

and a fast-track child may end up loosing.

 

The game models the road to /pra/patti. It is in fact a road well-laid out in

echelon formation (cOpAnam), but there are also ugly serpents lying in wait.

After all we are our worst enemies, isn't it?

 

Thus /pra/patti is a goal one strives for as in the game. But the outcome is not

entirely in our hands.

 

Thus the loser has to ask, "What is in it for me?". The answer is, 'Fear not".

The concepts of /svargA and /narakA attend to these nagging questions in life.

In addition to these, the concepts have important applications to our world.

 

Let me mail this now. I will follow up soon.

 

/naha svIkurvaka asmAt krupAm: Wherefore, please cause us to be endowed with

your Grace.

 

/vantanam.

 

Visu

[Guest guest]

-

 

SRIMATHE RAMANUJAYA NAMAHA

 

dear devotees,

Sri Visu has the following to say..

on our ongoing discussion on swargam and naragam.

>

> Thus /pra/patti is a goal one strives for as in the game. But the

outcome is not entirely in our hands.

>

> Thus the loser has to ask, "What is in it for me?". The answer

is, 'Fear not". The concepts of /svargA and /narakA attend to these

nagging questions in life. In addition to these, the concepts have

important applications to our world.

>

> >

> Visu

 

Agreed.

similar views echoed in Sri Sri krishna Tathachar's mail too.

There can be no two opinions about what and how prapatti can do to a

jiva. That is the ultimate upaya, the ultimate route to paramapadam,

something that can help us wriggle ourselves out of the clutches of

paava-punyas.

But the problem is how many of us are really qualifying for prapatti.

Is it not something easier said than done?

 

As one continues to understand the virtues of prapatti, there also

exists the reality staring at our faces in the form of numerous

karmas which we are knowingly or unknowingly doing. The fear of hell

and heaven is so real for many, many people.

 

A combined reading of the two posts I have sent to the list, will

tell how I want the concepts of heaven and hell as found in

scriptures (Garuda Puranam including)to be something of lesser

significance/ relevance to us, the mortals already steeped in

troubles of sorts.

Let not the fears of naragam trouble the people, who are already

undergoing hell of sorts.

 

I prefer to compare the issue with the maze puzzle. You know the

entry point and the exit point. But you are caught inside and don't

know for sure whether you are heading in the right direction. If then

you hear some one scream 'puli varudu, puli varudu' what can you do..

Even this 'carrot and stick' policy has no takers in any sphere in

today's world.

Positive talk . That will do.

 

But discussions such as these are interesting to read and must be

made to know what our texts actually want to say.

 

-having confused and complicated the issue to my heart's fill,

and taking leave

-for the time being,

jayasree sarnathan