Sridakshinamurtistotram Part V (first half)

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Sridakshinamurtistotram

Part V (first half)

Anandam ananda-karam prasannam

Jnana-svarupam nija-bodha-yuktam |

Yogindram-iidyam bhavaroga-vaidyam

Srimad gurum nityam aham namami ||

 

(Ever do I prostrate to the Lord who is Bliss Himself, and makes others

blissful. He is ever pleasant, Consciousness Itself and is of the nature of the

Inmost Awareness. He is the Supreme Master of Yoga, fit to be prostrated and is

the panacea for the disease of samsara)

 

 

Verse Four:

 

Naanaa-cchidra-ghatodarasthita-mahaa-dipa-prabha-bhasvaram

Jnanam yasya tu chakshuraadi-karana-dvaara bahiH spandate |

Jaanaami-iti tameva bhaantam anu-bhaatyetat samastam jagat

Tasmai Srigurumurtaye nama idam Sridakshinamurtaye ||

 

Obeisance to Him, whose Consciousness flows outwards through the sense-organs

such as the eye, like the light of the mighty lamp placed in the bosom of a

many-holed jar, and thus this whole universe shines after Him alone who shines

in the consciousness 'I know', to that resplendent Dakshinamurti, incarnate in

the glorious figure of one's own Guru.

(Since the structure of the verse is simple enough, the anvaya is not

provided.)

 

The earlier verse had established that the objects of the world, inert as they

are, are illumined by the Sphurana, Consciousness. The present verse, while

strengthening the idea that the Cosciousness that obtains in the knower is what

is responsible for the knowledge that comes from the objects, lays down the

method by which this knower-knowing process takes place. The Tattvasudha, a

commentary on the Stotram, puts the verse in perspective by voicing an

objection:

 

If according to you, the entire universe is thus superimposed on Atman, where

is then the need for the senses etc.? Why should not everything shine always,

because of direct association itself with Atman which is of the nature of

effulgence? If it be maintained that it is because of obscuration by ajnana,

even then, since the only possible remover of ajnana , the all-pervasive

Consciousness, is not opposed to anything, even to ajnana, in your system, how

is there the possibility of even occasional shine of any object of the world?

 

The present verse comes as the reply to this objection. It is a matter of

experience of all that the objects shine and that happens only with the

corresponding knowledge arising in the knower as: I know it. If the objects

were to shine by themselves, then there would be no experience of the form 'I am

conscious of the object.' One must admit a Conscious Principle on which depends

the universe for its manifestation. That Consciousness must also be admitted to

be constant and not requiring anything else for its manifestation.

 

The Experience 'I know', Aham jaanaami:

 

The Experience 'I know' is the key to the understanding the existence and

shine of the objects in particular and the universe in general. This experience

stems from the Witness Consciousness, the Sakshi, the ever-knowing principle.

The Sakshi is defined as 'akartrtve sati bodhrtvam', that is, it is

characterised by knowing even without the act of and effort of knowing on its

part. There is this passage in the Mundaka Upanishad 2.2.11:

Na tatra Suryo bhaati, na Chandra-taarakam, nemaa vidyuto bhaanti kuto'yam

agniH

Tameva bhaantam anu bhaati sarvam, Tasya bhaasaa sarvamidam vibhaati.

 

The Bhashyam for this Sruti is:

How that is the Light of all lights, is explained. The Sun, though the

illuminator of all, does not illumine Brahman, the Atman of the Sun. The Sun

illumines all else i.e., the whole universe that is other than Brahman, himself

shining by the Light of Brahman Itself without which he (the Sun) would not have

the capacity to illuminate; similarly the Moon nor the stars nor the lightning

shines by itself; then how could this fire, which is an object of our cognition

(shine by itself)?

 

This universe which appears to shine, shines by the Light of Him alone, the

Supreme Lord who shines being Himself of the nature of Effulgence. Just as

water, fire-brand etc. heat not by themselves but because of their association

with burning fire that produces heat, so does all this, the Sun and the whole

world, shine by the Light of the Lord. Since it is Brahman alone that shines

thus and shines variously in the form of the shine of the objects, the

self-effulgent nature of Brahman is known. That which is not self-effulgent

cannot illumine another; as is evident, pot etc., cannot illumine another and

the effulgent Sun etc., can. (End of Bhashyam quote).

 

The Acharya points to another vital fact that has to be taken note of while

understanding the 'shine' of the objects/universe by the 'Shine' of Brahman. In

the Sutra bhashya on 1.3.6.22,23 He refutes that the concerned shine is

physical in character and says that the shine of the objects of the world that

is perceived is that of praajna, the Shining One, the substratum on which it is

superimposed in the manner of the fire in the iron ball. Because of the

expression 'all this' 'sarvam idam' by the Sruti without any reservation, it

follows that the manifestation of this entire world consisting of names, forms,

acts, agents and fruits of action, has for its cause the existence of the Light

of Brahman, just as the revelation of all forms and colour is caused by the

existence of the light of the Sun, etc. Further, about this Brahman the Light,

the Sruti says, 'In whom the heaven, the earth and the interspace are woven'

(Mundaka Up. 2.2.5); and also ' In the supreme golden sheath

is Brahman free from rajas and without parts; That is pure and the Light of

lights; that It is which the knowers of Atman realise'. Again there is the

Sruti that says: 'It is only by Atman that is the Light, that one sits'

(Br.Up.4.3.6) etc. and 'He is never perceived for He is not perceivable'

(Br.Up.4.2.4). Also, the Bhagavadgita XV 6 and 12 convey the above idea:

Neither the Sun, nor the Moon nor the fire illumines That attaining which, men

do not return; that is My Supreme Abode' and 'the Light which residing in the

Sun illumines the whole world, that which is in the Moon and in the fire - know

that light to be Mine'.

 

How wonderfully does the revered Acharya, Sri Shankara, teach the purport of

the Vedanta! Everything that 'happens' in the range of our experience is a

superimposition on that very Consciousness that we are. It is the Drk, the I,

the perceiver, the Consciousness and the drsya, the perceived, is the universe.

Again, we are reminded of the first verse, the dream analogy and the mirror

analogy. So many things happen in a dream. With what 'light' is all that seen?

We cannot assert that it is due to the Sunlight or the moon light that we see

objects in the dream. Of course there is a dream sun and a dream moon. But all

that is in the mind of the dreamer. The dreamer 'sees' all of them together.

The conclusion that one has to come to is that it is none other than the

Consciousness that is responsible for all that happens in a dream. The dream

objects, the dream events, the dream space, the time there, the various jivas

and the very person that we identify with as 'I' in the dream

are all 'made up' of the 'material' that is Consciousness. The teaching of the

Vedanta is that as we conclude with the dream so we better conclude with the

waking as well.

 

The lamp-in-the-pot analogy:

 

This verse uses the analogy of the lamp placed in a many-holed jar to say that

the Consciousness is to be seen as the light placed in the body-jar that

consists of many holes, the instruments. It is through these instruments, both

sensory and motor, that the jiva-consciousness operates and gets experiences of

the world outside. In the absence of the operation of the consciousness through

these organs there is practically no world for the jiva. We have to accept the

role of the mind, a vital instrument in this scheme of things. The mind is

accepted as an instrument, antaH-karanam, in the Sastra. So, when we cease to

function through all the instruments, including the mind, there is absolutely no

world, which state is commonly experienced as sleep. The mind is that entity

through the attention and non-attention of which result perception and

non-perception. The Sruti declares: 'My mind was elsewhere, I did not see; my

mind was elsewhere, I did not hear' (Br.Up. 1.5.3) and 'it

is verily through the mind that one sees and through the mind that one hears'

(Br.Up. 1.5.3).

 

When the verse says 'mahadeepa', a mighty lamp, what is meant is that in order

to be able to know the vast world of variety, the lamp has to be an effulgent

one and not a feeble one. It is possible for the light inside to illumine the

vast world only if the instruments, including the mind, are capable of letting

out the light. We have a situation where the requirement of the light and the

requirement of the instruments are essential. In the Lalitha Sahasranama there

is this name for the Mother: Nija-aruna-prabha-puura-majjad-brahmanda-mandala

which means: The Mother, none other than Pure Consciousness, is of such a mighty

effulgence that She immerses the entire Cosmos in Her Light. The Acharya

teaches that it is this Light that we are and it is we, the I, that illumines

the entire world of experience.

 

Mind, the Divine 'Eye' of the Atman:

The Chandogya Upanishad 8-12-4,5 speaks of the mind as the divine eye of Atman

– Mano'sya Daivam chakshuH. The Bhashya elaborately discusses the role of the

sense organs in the experiencing of the world by the Atman, the jiva, and the

indispensability of the mind in the process. About the mind, the Bhashya says:

Mind is the divine 'eye' of the Atman. It is extraordinary and unlike the other

organs. It is referred to as the 'eye' since Atman 'sees' through it. And the

organs have as objects only those that exist at the present time i.e., at the

time of perception, hence they are non-divine. The mind, however, is the means

for the perception of the objects of the past, the present and the future, it is

free from defects and is the means for the perception of all objects that are

subtle, remote etc., and as such it is termed the divine 'eye'.

 

The 'components' of the mind:

 

The Vivekachudamani (95, 96) says:

 

The inner organ (antaH-karanam) is called manas, buddhi, ahankara or chitta

according to its different functions; manas, from its considering the pros and

cons of a thing; buddhi, from its determining the true nature of its objects;

ego, from its identification with this body as one's own Self; and chitta, from

its function of remembering things it is interested in.

 

The association of the mind with Atman continues over the many births the jiva

goes through and will terminate only upon Enlightenment. The association is

there in deep sleep and dissolution as well, obtaining in a seed form. This is

pointed out by the Sutras 2.3.13.30,31 and the Bhashya. In reality, however,

there is no such thing as jiva apart from what is fictitiously concocted because

of the connection with the intellect which is its (Atman's) delimiting adjunct.

The Sruti quoted by the Acharya is: 'This infinite entity, Purusha, that remains

identified with the intellect in the midst of the organs, the Effulgence within

the heart, assuming the likeness of the intellect, moves between the two worlds;

It thinks, as it were, and moves, as it were.' (Br.up.4.3.4). By identification

with the intellect is meant the predominance of the qualities of the intellect.

The idea implied by the Sruti is this: By Itself, the Atman, does not think,

nor does It move. But when the

intellect thinks, It appears to think; and when the intellect moves, It appears

to move. This connection of Atman with the intellect has false ignorance as its

root cause; and this false ignorance is not removable by anything other than

enlightment. The contact with the intellect etc., remains in a potential form

during sleep and dissolution and that itself emerges again at the time of waking

up and creation.

 

Mukhyaprana also a constituent of the subtle body:

 

The mind and the ten organs (five sensory and five motor) were considered

above. In addition, the Mukhyaprana which functions differently as prana,

apana, vyana, udana and samana is to be considered as a vital constituent of the

subtle body, the sukshma shariram. The Acharya quotes a Smriti passage in His

bhashya for the Sutra 2.4.2.6:

 

Puryashtakena lingena praanaadyena sa yujyate |

Tena baddhasya vai bandho moksho muktasya tena cha ||

(He is associated with the lingasharira comprising of the eight ingredients

viz., prana, etc. His bondage consists of being bound by it, his release, in

being freed from it.)

The 'eight-fold city': 1.the pentad of the pranas, 2. the pentad of the subtle

elements, 3. the pentad of the sense organs, 4. the pentad of the motor organs,

5. the mind quartet, 6. Avidya, 7. kaama and 8.karma.

 

Activity and Cognition – Prana, Prajna and Chaitanya:

 

All the activities of the jiva while residing in the body, departure from the

body and the journey thereafter are to be traced to the prana which is the

upadhi of Chaitanya. The Kaushitaki Upanishad speaks of the prana, the vital

air, the kriyashakti, as being verily the prajna, the mind, the jnanashakti.

These live together in the body and depart together from the body. The

Sutrabhashya 1.1.11.31 points out that the mind and the vital air which are the

respective abodes of the two powers of cognition and action and constitute the

upadhis of the Atman could be spoken of as different from each other. But the

Atman itself which is limited by these two adjuncts has no difference within

Itself. Significantly, the Kathopanishad (2.5.5) says: No mortal lives by the

breath that goes in and goes out, but, they (the mortals) live by 'another' in

whom these two repose. Prana and Prajna point to the Atman by implication just

as the branch of a tree points to the moon.

 

The Vedantic prakriya with regard to sensory perception shall now be

considered.

 

(to be continued)

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

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[Guest guest]

Ref. Post 30396;

 

Namaste Subrahmanian-ji;

 

Your post shines brightly with the effulgence it refers to. Thank you very

much for devoting your time and knowledge to help us inch closer to the

truth. This series of posts (i believe) sums up a lot of what has been

discussed in the last two months in the list and i eagerly await the next

post.

 

Thank you and my warmest regards...

 

 

 

 

 

 

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