Kanchi Maha-Swamigal's Discourses on Advaita Saadhanaa (KDAS-10)

[Guest guest]

Namaste.

You may see a Table of Contents, under the Introduction,

in

advaitin/message/27766

 

 

KDAS – 10

 

12. TWO DIFFERENT PATHS FOR TWO DIFFERENT ASPIRANTS

(Continued)

 

Those who are gathered here -- maybe there are one or two

exceptions; but the others – are only eligible for karma

yoga. Certainly they cannot cast off their karma. “Do your

karma, persistently. But don’t look for the fruits, don’t

keep them as your sole desire; do your karma because it is

svadharma, it is your duty. Leave the fruits as the

responsibility of the dispenser of fruits” . This teaching

is karma yoga.

 

Only after the mind has been purified by such desireless

karma does one become eligible for JnAna-yoga. In his Gita

Bhashya the Acharya has made this crystal clear. Though in

modern times several persons – Tilak, Gandhi and others –

say that the gita teaching is that karma yoga is a direct

path to salvation, the Acharya has shown that it is not so.

We are not directly concerned with that topic now, but I

have touched on that unknowlingly; so let me ‘clear’ some

cobwebs.

 

*svakarmaNA tam-abhyarchya siddhiM vindati mAnavaH* -- A

person by doing his svadharma as a dedication to God,

attains the goal – so says the Gita in its last chapter.

Those who say that karma yoga is a direct sAdhanA for

moksha, interpret the word ‘siddhi’ here as ‘mokshaM’. But

the Acharya explains: “The siddhi that is spoken of here is

only the eligibility for jnAna-yoga; the end-goal (siddhi)

of karma-yoga is the transition from the stage of

renunciation of the fruits of action to the stage of

renunciation of karma itself so that one can enter the

stage of jnAna yoga and pursue the enquiry of the Atman all

the time”. Reading his impeccable logic with all its pros

and cons one is sure that this is the correct

understanding. Wherever the Gita extols karma yoga to the

skies, it should be taken as ‘artha-vAda’, says the

Acharya. To cheer us up and encourage us to go by a certain

path is what ‘artha-vAda’ means. It is like telling the

child to learn its alphabet in order that ‘the child may

become king of the country’! This cheering up is nothing

but ‘artha-vAda’. In other words, it is an exaggeration

done in the best interests and well-meant. When we wail in

desperation :“Only jnAna is the path to moksha; but I am

not able to go the jnAna path; I think I have to only sweat

it out with this karma” – the Lord, in order to cheer us

up in the path which is suitable to us, says: “Don’t

under-estimate karma yoga like that, my dear; this karma

yoga can do this, can do that, in fact it will give you

such and such merits”. However when he talks about the

JnAni, ‘The JnAni is nothing but myself’ (*jnAnIt-vAtmaiva

me matam*), ‘The jnAnis are those who have reached my

bhAva’ (*mad-bhAvam-AgatAH*) – so says He in right earnest.

 

The Lord has thus in His own words demarcated JnAna yoga

for sAnkhyas and karmayoga for yogis.

 

Bhagavan uses the word ‘yogI’ for those who are eligible

for karma-yoga. We think that a yogi is some great one who

sits with breath control and has controlled his mind.

But then why does he say that such a one does not have yet

the maturity for JnAna, but is only on some right path

along karma yoga? For this also I have a novel explanation.

‘Yoga’ implies uniting. ‘Union’ is the direct meaning. A

union requires two entities, at least. There may be three,

four, or anything higher. Only then can we talk of a union

and ‘yoga’ can occur. When there is only one thing, there

is no question of that ‘union’. That remains as Itself.

There is nothing outside to unite with it. When we see it

this way, a ‘yogi’ is always a dualist, ‘related’ to

something else; in other words, he is still revolving in

the mAyA world. He is not someone who can stand alone as an

advaitin. [The Swami says smiling]: I am saying this in a

lighter vein. Let not scholars and pundits mistake me!

 

Most of us are attached to karma (‘karma-sangis). The

utmost that we can do is to do the karma without attachment

to the fruits. That itself is difficult. All our labouring

is for some kind of result. When that is so, to do the

karma without any thought for the fruit of it is certainly

most difficult. And to be asked to go a step higher – why

one step, in fact several several steps – to renounce the

karma itself and be only doing the dhyana all the time, is

to do the impossible! It is to ‘karma-sangis’ the Bhagavan

says: “You don’t have to do anything in the matter of the

Atman. Just keep doing your karma as a yoga. Let the

purification of the kind happen in its own course. After

that you can enter the Jnana domain”. It is the same

Bhagavan who says “That path is for the Sankhyas but this

one is for you” and has thus demarcated the paths. We are

going in a certain path, and we actually are only

struggling to keep in our own path; what is the use of our

knowing about another path which is supposed to be

inaccessible for us. [And the Swami says smiling]: In

short, why this headache of this sermon to us?

 

I shall tell you now.

 

 

(To be Continued)

PraNAms to all students of advaita.

PraNAms to the Maha-Swamigal.

profvk

[Guest guest]

> *svakarmaNA tam-abhyarchya siddhiM vindati mAnavaH*

> -- A

> person by doing his svadharma as a dedication to

> God,

> attains the goal – so says the Gita in its last

> chapter.

> Those who say that karma yoga is a direct sAdhanA

> for

> moksha, interpret the word ‘siddhi’ here as

> ‘mokshaM’. But

> the Acharya explains: “The siddhi that is spoken of

> here is

> only the eligibility for jnAna-yoga; the end-goal

> (siddhi)

> of karma-yoga is the transition from the stage of

> renunciation of the fruits of action to the stage of

> renunciation of karma itself so that one can enter

> the

> stage of jnAna yoga and pursue the enquiry of the

> Atman all

> the time”. Reading his impeccable logic with all its

> pros

> and cons one is sure that this is the correct

> understanding. Wherever the Gita extols karma yoga

> to the

> skies, it should be taken as ‘artha-vAda’, says the

> Acharya.

 

 

Namaste, Please refer to the above extract from

KDAS-10. My dull ears/understanding was that Karma

yoga by itself is a 'path' to moksha. Atleast that was

my conclusion based on

 

Gita 2:50-51

4:20

9:27-28

11:55

 

Is this really artha-vada ? It almost sounds that the

Acharya and Maha-swamigal are calling it rhetoric to

"cheer us up and encourage us".

 

best regards,

Shailendra

 

 

 

 

 

Mail - PC Magazine Editors' Choice 2005

 

[Guest guest]

advaitin, Shailendra Bhatnagar

<bhatnagar_shailendra> wrote:

> > the Acharya explains: "The siddhi that is spoken of

> > here is

> > only the eligibility for jnAna-yoga; the end-goal

> > (siddhi)

> > of karma-yoga is the transition from the stage of

> > renunciation of the fruits of action to the stage of

> > renunciation of karma itself so that one can enter

> > the

> > stage of jnAna yoga and pursue the enquiry of the

> > Atman all

> > the time". Reading his impeccable logic with all its

> > pros

> > and cons one is sure that this is the correct

> > understanding. Wherever the Gita extols karma yoga

> > to the

> > skies, it should be taken as `artha-vAda', says the

> > Acharya.

>

>

> Namaste, Please refer to the above extract from

> KDAS-10. My dull ears/understanding was that Karma

> yoga by itself is a 'path' to moksha. Atleast that was

> my conclusion based on

>

> Gita 2:50-51

> 4:20

> 9:27-28

> 11:55

>

> Is this really artha-vada ? It almost sounds that the

> Acharya and Maha-swamigal are calling it rhetoric to

> "cheer us up and encourage us".

 

Namaste Shailendra-ji,

 

Your confusion is legitimate. And the Gitacharya (Lord Krishna)

anticipates it and says in III - 26:

 

na buddhibedam janayet ajnAnAM karma-sanginAM /

joshayet sarva-karmANi vidvAn yuktaH samAcharan //

 

Let no wise man unsettle the mind of ignorant people who are

attached to action; he should engage them in all actions, himself

fulfilling the actions in the proper way.

 

The 'proper' way is explained in the next three shlokas (27, 28, 29)

where he brings in the "na ahaM kartA" attitude, which is the core

of the Gita teaching as I have said in another mail.

 

In Shankara (Acharya)'s Bhashya to 18-66, there is an elaborate

final explanation of all that was said all along; and that is what

the Mahaswamigal refers to as "Reading his impeccable logic with all

its pros and cons one is sure that this is the correct

understanding. Wherever the Gita extols karma yoga to the skies,

it should be taken as `artha-vAda', says the Acharya".

 

The karmasangi's mentioned in III - 26 includes all of us, who

somehow cannot get out of the ingrained feeling: "karma-yoga is a

path to moksha". According to both the Acharya and the Mahaswamigal,

it is certainly a path for the 'qualifying siddhi' for the path of

jnAnayoga.

 

Also please see some of the posts of Shri Jayanarayanan in the other

list (advaita - L) where he has quoted these words of the

Mahaswamigal in a similar discussion. Pursue the thread in

http://lists.advaita-vedanta.org/archives/advaita-l/2005-

September/015802.html

 

PraNAms to all advaitins.

PraNAms to the Mahaswamigal.

profvk