"To Hell with It!"

[Guest guest]

Srimate SrivanSatakopa Sri Vedanta Desika

Yatindra Mahadesikaya nama:

 

“To Hell with it!”

 

What would be the worst fate you would wish for an adversary? When you

consider someone’s offence to be extremely heinous, unspeakably

atrocious and wicked beyond measure, what punishment would you wish

upon the offender? Though human laws do prescribe appropriate

penalties for transgressions, ranging from a mere censure from the

court and release on assurances of good conduct, to capital

punishment, traditionally some offences have been considered too

monstrous to be dealt with under mere human laws. Again, when the

criminal escapes the clutches of law (as happens many a time in the

case of those with money and muscle-power), does it mean that he does

indeed go scot-free, totally unpunished for his offences? Is there a

mechanism to ensure that offenders are brought to book without fail

and made to repent for their wrongdoings? Yet another question

relates to wicked thoughts, as opposed to deeds—under our legal

procedures, mere thoughts, as long as they are not translated into

action, are not punishable, whether they relate to wishing somebody

dead or coveting someone else’s lawfully wedded spouse. Yet,

since it is the thought that forms the seed of action, one would feel

that such thoughts too should attract some form of retribution.

However, (fortunately for people like me) how to identify, recognise

and appropriately punish such thought processes remains beyond human

capabilities.

 

The concept of Hell, as a place where just retribution is meted out to

offenders, is as old as the hills. There appears to be rare unanimity

among religions on this—we Hindus call it

“Narakam”, for the Christians it is “Hell”

and for the Muslims, “Jahnham” (or some similar sounding

word). Even if someone manages to evade human law, we are told that

the long arm of the Lord would ensure for him or her a spell in Hell,

to cure him or her of sinful inclinations.

 

However, do Hell and Heaven really exist as separate places, where the

wicked and the good respectively go? As some people say, are they not

to be experienced in one’s own mind, which torments one when

one does something wrong and is extremely happy when one performs

some meritorious deed? Or, as the atheists say, are they mere

figments of imagination, created by elders to ensure adherence to

accepted norms of social and personal behaviour?

 

As firm believers in that supreme body of knowledge, the Shruti

(Vedas), we are curious to know whether this compendium has anything

to say in the matter. As essentially all wisdom beyond the grasp of

our frail faculties has necessarily to be accessed from the Vedas, we

scour the vast body of the Shruti for any mention of Narakam, the

place inhabited by pApAtmAs. And we do come up with several,

especially in the aruNa Prasnam of the TaittirIya Aranyakam--

 

“DakshiNa poorvasyAm disi visarpI naraka:--tasmAt na: paripAhi

uttara poorvasyAm disi vishAdI naraka: tasmAt na: paripAhi”

 

These lines from the AraNyakam tell us that Narakam does exist, and

incorporate a prayer to the Lord to save us from these hellish fires.

Additional proof, if needed, is furnished by the Sri Vishnu Puranam,

which says that these worlds of sinners are located beneath the earth

and the waters—

 

“tatascha narakA vipra! BhuvO adha: salilasya cha

pApinO yEshu nivasantE tAn shruNu mahAmunE!”

 

And it would appear that “Narakam” is not just a single

world, but is the generic name for a group of worlds inhabited by

offenders of various types and hues. We thus hear of a good number of

“narakam”s, each intended for a specific type of

wickedness, with punishments varying accordingly. The same Vishnu

Purana catalogues a sample list of narakams—Rouravam, Sookaram,

ROdham, TAlam, Vishasanam, MahAjvAlA, Taptakumbham, lavaNam,

VilOhitam, RudhirAmbham, VaitaraNi, KrimIsam, KrimibhOjanam,

asipatravanam, Krishnam, DAruNam, lAlAbhaksham, Pooyavaham, PApam,

Sandamsam, VahnijvAlA, adha:shirA, aprathistta, aprachi, KAlasootram,

Tamas, AvIchI, ShvabhOjanam, etc. Lest we derive comfort from the

rather short list of hells indicated, the Purana hastens to assure us

that the aforesaid is just the tip of the iceberg and there are

hundreds and thousands of Narakams,e each intended for a certain type

of offender—

 

“EtE cha anyE cha narakA: shatasOtha sahasrasa:

yEshu dushkrita karmANa: pachyantE yAtanAgatA:”

 

Defining the pre-requisite for a spell in hell, the Purana tells us

that sin is nothing but behaviour incompatible with the codes of

conduct prescribed for people belonging to various VarNAs and

AshramAs (stages of life, viz., student, householder, ascetic, etc.).

Those who violate these dicta fall into one or the other of the

aforesaid narakAs. And, for our comfort, the Scripture adds that

these offences need not be actual deeds—even sinful thoughts

and words consign one to the horrible worlds

below—“KarmaNA manasA vAchA nirayEshu patanti tE”.

This then is the important difference between human law and the

divine—You might be guilty of any amount of evil thoughts, but

as long as you hide them well behind a law-abiding façade, no

government can prosecute you. The arm of the divine law has, however,

a greater reach and is able to discern wickedness in thought too and

award appropriate punishment.

 

We are filled with horror at all this ghoulish spiel. Is there no way

we can avoid these fires of hell? We know from practice that it is

impossible for us to refrain from committing sin, one way or the

other, for, Sin seems such an all-encompassing word. Even a smile of

derision at some one wearing TirumaN, even a word in a lighter vein

making fun of someone’s orthodoxy, even a single thought

coveting someone else’s belonging—all these would reserve

for us a place in hell. Given the impossibility of strict adherence to

divine dicta in the present day and age, how then can we avoid falling

into the fires of hell?

 

The same Purana, which furnishes a graphic description of hellish

worlds, also prescribes for us ways of avoiding the same, by telling

us to perform “PrAyaschittam” or atonement. For each and

every type of transgression, ShAstrAs lay down the type of atonement

to be adopted. If one takes recourse to these, then one is saved from

the aforesaid worlds of chastisement. However, if one is hard nut, one

must definitely undergo purification in one or the other of

“narakam”s, to cleanse one of the cloying stigma of

sin—

 

“pApa krit yAti narakam prAyaschitta parAngmukha:”.

 

We must remember that atonement demands an appropriate frame of mind,

the mind made sorrowful by the act of sin committed and keen to make

amends through atonement. Thus, “PaschAt tApam” or

remorse at having committed the sin, is an essential pre-requisite

for atonement.

 

However, when we go through the list of atonements prescribed by

MaharshIs, we feel we might as well spend a spell in hell and be done

with it, for, the PrAyaschittams laid down for each sin appear indeed

impossible of performance, given our current physical and mental

state. Many of these atonal acts involve prolonged periods of fasting

and other forms of physical inconvenience, which appear much beyond

frail mortals like us. What then is our fate—is there no way

for us to avoid the rigours of hell? Are we destined to rot in hell

forever, for, our predilection for the forbidden act is proverbial

and, in the absence of atonement therefor, what else awaits us but

hell?

 

“Despair not!”, the Purana tells us, showing us a way out

and an easy one at that. Not only does it prescribe an act that is a

comprehensive PrAyaschittam for sins of all types, but one that is

sweet and pleasurable in performance. Can you ever find a panacea, a

sure-cure for all ills, which is simultaneously and incredibly tasty?

Sri Vishnu Purana tells us that of all types of PrAyaschittam, the

best is to think about the Lord, with a mind full of remorse for the

violation of His dicta—

 

“PrAyaschittAni asEshANi tapa: karmAtmakAni vai

yAni tEshAm asEshANAm KrishNa anusmaraNam param”

 

What could be easier, what could be sweeter to the mind and tongue,

what could be more cleansing, than to think of and utter the Krishna

nAmA?

 

Sri Kulasekshara Azhwar wonders at the propensity of people to live

lives steeped in sin, when there is any number of the Lord’s

names, which one could chant and think about, capable of instantly

cleansing of them of all sins. Why could one not say

“Ananta”, “Vaikunta”, “Mukunda”,

“Krishna”, ”Govinda”, “Damodara”,

“Madhava” etc., which are incredibly sweet on the tongue

and also act as purifiers, wonders Azhwar—

 

“ananta Vaikuntta Mukunda Krishna GOvinda DAmOdara MAdhava iti

vaktum samartthOpi na vakti kaschit ahO! JanAnAm vyasana abhimukhyam!”

 

Realising that we would never consciously utter or contemplate the

Lord’s holy names, Sri Periazhwar suggests an easier way to

ensure that we derive the benefit of the exercise-just name your

children after Emperuman, so that each time you call your child, you

accumulate merit and ward-off sin. Azhwar extends the categorical

assurance that this is the way to avoid the rigours of hell—

““MAnida sAdiyil tOndrittOr mAnida sAdiyayi

MAnida sAdiyin pEr ittAl marumaikku illai

VAnudai Madhava! Govinda! Endru azhaitthkkAl

NAnidai NAranan tam annai narakam pugAL”

Azhwar’s assurance appears to be based on the story of ajAmiLa,

who, when on his deathbed, called to his infant son Narayana and was

transported to Vishnu lOkam, despite his numerous transgressions.

 

We have seen how terrifying hell and its keepers are. Azhwars speak of

an occasion when the entire cruel hell was transformed into a heavenly

abode. How could this be possible, we wonder. Azhwar elaborates in the

following TirumAlai pAsuram—

 

“namanum Murkalanum pEsa, narakil nindrArgaL kEtpa

narakamE Svargam Agum nAmangaL udaya nambi

avanadu oor arangam ennAdu ayartthu veezhndu aLiya mAndar

kavalayuL padugindrAr endru adanukkE kavalgindrEnE”

 

In a glowing tribute to the glory of the Lord’s holy names, Sri

Tondarappodi Azhwar recounts the episode of a conversation between

Mudgala and Yamadharma rAjA. Mudgala was an extremely wicked person,

guilty of innumerable acts of sin. Quite unusually for him, he gifted

a cow to a Brahmin one day, accompanying it with the words, “Let

this be for Krishna” (“KrishNAya nama:”). When he

died and reached YamalOka, Yamadharmaraja himself received him with

all honour and acclaim. When the surprised Mudgala sought the reason

for the unusual reception, Yama told him that the single word

“Krishna” uttered by Mudgala during the

“GOdAnam” earlier, had rid him of all evil.

 

The beneficial effects of the single utterance of the Krishna nAma did

not stop with Mudgala. Those in Naraka who listened to the

conversation between Yama and Mudgala, and, in the process, to the

Krishna nAmA, were instantly absolved of their sins. What is more,

the entire hell was immediately transformed into heaven, lock, stock

and barrel.

 

Such indeed is the efficacy of the holy name of the Lord, which is

capable of benefiting even those who utter or listen to it, by sheer

accident, without any instinct of devotion or adulation.

Azhwar’s pasuram is in turn based on the Sri Vishnu Dharmam,

where the episode is narrated in detail.

 

For those who are unable even to utter the short and sweet names of

the Lord, Azhwar has another prescription for saving them from the

fires of hell. A mere mention of the hallowed abodes of Emperuman

would, by itself, ensure that none goes to Narakam: indeed, if

everyone were to just say the name of a divyadesam once, it would

render the hellish worlds uninhabited and desolate, says Azhwar in

the following pasuram—

 

“arivilA manisar ellAm arangam endru azhaippar Agil

poriyil vAzh narakam ellAm pullezhundu ozhiyum andrE”

 

There is something worse than even Narakam, we are told by Sri

Nammazhwar. Once we undergo punishment for the particular series of

sins, we are freed from hell and are reborn on earth. Thus sojourn in

hell is a time-bound thing. There is, on the other hand, an infinite

prison sentence imposed on all Jeevatmas, which makes them hop from

one body to another interminably and to remain imprisoned eternally

in one mortal coil or the other. This is SamsAram, which makes people

remain bound forever, unable to rid themselves of the powerful

shackles of Karma. If Narakam can be compared to a long and dark

night, Samsara is unending gloom, a permanent blackout, an

interminable tunnel without a hint of light, says Sri

Nammazhwar—

“VidiyA vennarakam”.

 

We have seen that there are ways of keeping out of hell—but are

there ways of escaping the unending pall of gloom that is Samsara?

 

Instead of a PrAyaschittam for each individual sin, is there a

one-time, cover-all atonement, which would serve as a massive

cleansing agent, ridding us all of all types of sin? And is there

such a panacea, which would ensure that even in future, unintended

offences would not stain us with sin?

 

Though this appears too much to ask for, there is indeed a procedure

for getting rid of our baggage of accumulated misdeeds, while

simultaneously ensuring that we remain untainted by offences during

the rest of our lives on earth. Prapatti or Sharanagati is the

universal atonement for all our sins past and present, and, when

performed through a benign Acharya, ensures that we never even peep

into hell, however major our sins be. Unlike other atonements, it is

not hard of performance nor anywhere as demanding. All it requires is

the right attitude of mind, the resolution to toe the right path

henceforth, to avoid the path of sin and of absolute conviction in

and total surrender to our Lord and Master, giving ourselves up to

Him, heart and soul. If Tapas or Penance is prescribed as atonement

for major sins, this Sharanagati is rated even higher than Penance,

says the Upanishad—

 

“TasmAt NyAsam EshAm tapasAm atiriktam Ahu:”

 

Once we perform Prapatti, we can challenge the minions of hell with

impunity and tell them, “To hell with you!”,as does Sri

Nammazhwar—

 

“Poliga poliga poliga, pOyittru valluyir shApam

naliyum narakamum nainda namanukku ingu yAdondrum illai”.

 

Srimate Sri LakshmINrisimha divya paduka sevaka SrivanSatakopa Sri

Narayana Yatindra Mahadesikaya nama:

dasan, sadagopan