[ramanuja] Flexible Faculties

[Guest guest]

FACULTIES TRANSFERABLE?

 

The ticket procured from the railway counter read 'Not Transferable'. Unless

this is strictly followed, one will end up either paying fine or resting fine

with free boarding and lodging at state's expense.

 

Coming to the topic, 'is faculty transferable'? This has already been discussed

with true life examples from Sri KrshNA and Sri RAmA's divine episodes, by Sri

Sadagopan Iyengar.

 

There has also been reference from Nam-AzhwAr from the ninth ten of

ThriuvAiMozhi.

 

AzhwAr's thoughts are indeed strange. Strange, in the sense that they think

differently. Even their pangs of sepaaration manifest into wonderful hymns of

devotion, their outbursts blossoming into sweet thoughts and ecclesiastic

tenets.

This is possible perhaps only from those who have been blessed by EmperumAn

Himself-mayarvaRa mathi nalam aruLap peRRavargaL.

 

SwAmy Nam-AzhwAr being the soul who enjoys in mirth and rapture while devouring

the Lord Almighty sulks in sullenness when in deep distress, apparently the

distress casued from separation from the Lord.

 

However, here is a unique thought from him. He desired the function of one

faculty to be performed by the other? Medical world will spurn it with disdain.

Rational beings will criticise this as illogical.

 

Devotion does not have any boundaries and swAmy Nam-AzhwAr being the

personification of Love for KrishNA -KrshnAthrishnA thathvam - crossed any such

borders and yearned to consume the Almgihty by criss-crossing the faculties and

their role.

 

"Oh! Lord the mind thinks of You. Permit the mind to get Your Vision, Please"

pleads SatagOpan.

The faculty of speech desires to think of the Lord and yearns for the role of

mind.

But wait, the sense of touch desires the effect of speech on the Lord whereas

the eyes desire to have the sense of touch.

Not enough with this the ears want to see and lO! the Atman wants to listen to

Your divine stories.

 

The Edu summarises this as 'prajaigaLin izhavu sonnAr kEzh' 'The hunger of

one's children is described.

 

This is not any imagination but the blissful and emotional outbursts of Sri

ParAnkusan in the wonderful ThiruvAiMozhi 3-8;

'mudiyAnEa mUvulagum thozhudhEAthum sEr adiyAnEA and goes on for another six

pAsuram-s pleading for transferability of the role of the faculties.

 

The avatharikai of EDu for this ThiruvAiMozhi indeed reiterates swAmy

Nam-PiLLai's vyAkyAnic prowess.

 

The immense desire for the Lord and srEvaishNavites accumulated and the

cumulative effect transformed into 'one sensory organ pining for the role of the

other analogous to a person with burning hunger not able to resist it, takes

away the food meant for his children while the children take away his food.

"What shall I do for this deep hunger ?" exclaims mARAn and calls EmperumAn,

alongwith the sensory organs.

 

EDu: "..maRRai indhriyangaLum vidAithu, Or indhriyathinudaiya vrudhiyai maRRai

indhriyangaLum, Asaip pattum, maRRai indhriyangaLinudaiya vrudhiyai maRRai

indhriyam Asaip pattum, avai ellAvaRRinudaiya vrudhiyai thAn Asaippattum,

thammilum vidAitha karaNangaLum, karaNangaLulim vidAitha thAnumAi-shama kAlathil

bahU prajanAnavan than pasikku ARRA mATTADhEa, avaRRin vAyiR sORRaith thAn

pasithu jEvippadhu than vAyiR sOthai avai paRithu jEvippadhAi "en pasikku en

seivEAn? ennumA pOlEa, thAmum thammudaiya karaNak krAmamumAga nOAVupattuk

kUppidugiRAr"

 

The VyAkyAnam and the pAsuram-s have to be consumed to realise the emotions and

outpourings of AzhwAr

 

dAsan'

vanamamalai padmanabhan

PS: Why not? I can hear the claims. Yes, the optical mouse indeed extracts

vision from its erstwhile touch perception.

 

 

 

 

-

sadagopaniyengar

; Oppiliappan ;

tiruvenkatam ; ramanuja

Cc: Radha Jagannathan ; rajamragu ; CHETLUR SRINIVASAN

Wednesday, November 30, 2005 11:06 AM

[ramanuja] Flexible Faculties

 

 

Srimate SrivanSatakopa Sri Vedanta Desika Yatindra Mahadesikaya nama:

 

 

 

Flexible Faculties

 

 

 

 

 

During a recent visit to Tirumala, I accidentally fell into one of the deep

trenches that are being dug all over the hills for some strange purpose known

only to the TTD authorities. They did not deem it fit to provide warning signs

and in the pitch dark of 3 a.m., not being endowed with sensors, I could not

help stepping involuntarily into the trench. The result was an immediate and

searing pain in the calf muscle and walking became extremely difficult.

Accepting this as a prasaadam the Tirumalayappan had bestowed on me even before

granting an audience, I managed to crawl, limp and drag myself through the next

few hours and, as soon as the glorious Saattrumurai was over at the Sannidhi

(during which Srinivasa seemed to smile rather mischievously at me) returned

home post-haste, in considerable pain. For a couple of days thereafter, I

couldn't set my foot down and was confined to the bed due to doctor's orders,

having torn a ligament.

 

 

 

There is nothing like an enforced rest to set you thinking and I too indulged

in this idle pastime. Having temporarily lost the use of a leg, I wondered

wistfully how nice it would be if one organ of the body were able to perform the

function of another, when the latter is out of order. For instance, if you had

conjunctivitis and had difficulty seeing with your eyes, how convenient would it

be if the ears could also see! If you had a hearing problem, how handy would it

be if the eyes could take over as conveyors of sound too, in addition to sight!

If only the tongue could smell and the nose act as a taste bud! In short, if one

crucial part of the body were able to substitute the functions of another, we

would have absolutely no problems even in the case of a temporary or even

permanent loss of one faculty. And it appeared rather remiss of the Lord, for

not having provided the requisite interchangeability among our faculties, which

would make them substitute for one another in case of need.

 

 

 

The sad fact, however, remains that all our knowledge is faculty-based-we are

unable to see, hear, smell or taste, without the respective organs doing their

duty.

 

 

 

Chiding myself for such fanciful thoughts, I pondered as to whether there were

indeed instances of such substitutive faculties and, to my surprise, I did come

up with a few. (Incidentally, I was mortified to find that even a snake was able

to hear with its eyes, as could be gathered from its Sanskrit

sobriquet-"Chakshushrava:")

 

 

 

Describing the Raasa Leela, Sri Nammazhwar paints us an enchanting picture of

Sri Krishna playing the flute, surrounded by an adoring bevy of Gopis. While

doing so, Azhwar comes up with an interesting formulation, (in the ten paasurams

beginning with "Malligai kamazh tendral")-

 

 

 

 

 

"toodu sei kangal kondu ondru pesi, too mozhi isaigal kondu ondru nokki"

 

 

 

Azhwar tells us that Sri Krishna spoke volumes to the Gopis with His beautiful

eyes, conveying all possible intimate endearments-"toodu sei kangal kondu ondru

pesi". And simultaneously, He saw the Gopis with love-filled glances, through

His music-"too mozhi isaigal kondu ondru nokki".

 

 

 

Normally, the eye can only see-it can't speak. Even granting that expressions

can be exhibited in the eye, they can only be extremely inadequate and can

convey meaning fully, only when supplemented by the spoken word. By itself,

eye-contact, as a means of communication, would be ineffective.

 

 

 

Not so, however, in the case of Sri Krishna-He managed to convey to Gopis with

His dark, passionate and red-lined eyes, all that He could have actually said

through speech. All the love and affection He had for them, all the endearments

that lovers utter at great emotional heights-all these were conveyed to the

Gopis with utmost effectiveness, as if Sri Krishna was actually speaking

volumes, says Sri Nampillai-"pecchaal pirakkum spashttathai nokkaale pirakkai".

The message went through to the Gopis through the Lord's eyes with all the

clarity that only the spoken word can convey.

 

 

 

And what was the need for speaking through the eyes, when He did have a pearly

mouth ("tirupppavala chevvaai") with which to speak and dulcet tones which were

music to the ears?

 

 

 

Sri Krishna was playing the flute, regaling man, woman and beast alike and

could not be bothered to take it off from His mouth, interrupting the flow,

every time He wanted to speak to a Gopi. However, He could not also refrain from

speaking to His female fans frequently. As much as they wanted to speak to Him,

Krishna too was enamoured of whispering sweet nothings in their ears constantly.

And as a way out, He continued with His concert, simultaneously conversing with

Gopis through His eloquent eyes, managing to communicate as effectively as if He

were speaking to them lovingly and at length. We wonder whether it is this act

of Emperuman which inspired Tiruvalluvar's words " Kannodu kan nokkin

vaaicchorkkal enna payanum ila".

 

 

 

And the mesmerising music that emanated from the flute had no less an impact

on the audience than a captivating look from the Lord's beautiful eyes. A mere

glance from Sri Krishna's eyes has the effect of comprehensively winning over

the onlooker and making the latter a slave for eternity. Azhwar avers that the

Venu gaanam was so enchanting as to enslave all those present and Sri Nampillai,

commenting on the line "too mozhi isaigal kondu ondru nokki", says-

 

 

 

"Azhagia pecchodu koodiya isaigalaale kannaale nokki eedu padutthumaa pole

eedupadutthi".

 

 

 

This episode tells us that it is indeed possible for one faculty to perform

the function of another and that too quite effectively-"vaak vyavahaaramum netra

vrittiyum maaraadina padi". However, this is possible only for the Lord, who

does not depend upon His faculties for generating data.

 

 

 

If this is what Sri Krishna did, He must have continued where He left off in

His previous avatara, for, we find Sri Rama too employing one faculty to perform

the function of another. If Krishna spoke with His eyes, we are told by Sri

Valmiki that Sri Rama drank with His! When Sri Vibhishana falls at Raghava's

feet in a gesture of Saranagati, what does Rama do? The Prince of Ayodhya

extends refuge to the distressed rakshasa with sweet words of reassurance, all

the time looking at Vibhishana with compassionate eyes which appear to drink him

in. Here are Sri Valmiki's beautiful words-

 

 

 

"Tasya tat vachanam shrutva Ramo vachanam abraveet

 

vachasa saantayitvainam lochanaabhyaam piban iva"

 

 

 

Sri Rama's eyes appeared to drink in Vibhishana, says Sri Valmiki,

highlighting the Lord's abundant love and affection for one who has realised the

folly of his ways and surrenders totally to the Lord, forsaking all that he has

held dear so far. Swami Desikan compares the passion in the Lord's eyes to that

of a traveller in the desert, tormented by thirst, when he sights water at

last-"peru vidaai pattavan tanneerai kandaal oru kaalum vida maattadaar pole".

Emperuman's eyes thirst for the sight of a Saranagata and once He sights a

surrendered soul, He is so eager that His eyes appear to drink in the Prapanna.

 

 

 

We see thus that quite unlike human faculties, which are designed to perform a

single function, the Lord can speak with His eyes, see with His speech, drink

with His eyes and so on. And how is He able to substitute the function of His

faculties at will? Because He is not dependant on His Indriyas or senses, for

cognition. Though He sports a magnificent tirumeni for the edification of His

devotees, replete with eyes, ears, nose and limbs, apparently meant for

respective cognitive functions, His faculties are not mundane and moribund like

those of mortals. In fact, He does not need faculties or senses at all, for

seeing, hearing or for any of the other functions. The Upanishad tells us that

He sees without eyes, hears without ears, travels without legs and so on-

 

 

 

"Apaani paadou javano griheetva pasyati achakshu: shrunoti akarna:".

 

 

 

While sitting at the same place, He can commute to quite a distant place--

"Aaseeno dooram vrajati". Seated at Sri Vaikunttam, He is aware of all that

happens at every nook and cranny of all the universes, instantaneously, as if in

a live telecast, says Sri Nathamuni-

 

 

 

"Yo vetti yugapat sarvam, pratyakshena sadaa svata:"

 

 

 

This article started with my wishful thinking about faculties which could be

used interchangeably. However, when I went through the Varadaraja Stavam of Sri

Koorattazhwan, I found that my thoughts were not as fanciful as they appeared

initially. Azhwan too expresses a yearning for such a state, where each of his

organs wishes to perform the duty of another, apart from its own assigned task.

And what is the provocation for the Acharya's wish for faculties overreaching

their respective roles and trying to usurp those of their companions?

 

 

 

It is the magnificent and mesmerising vision of Sri Varadaraja, which makes

Azhwan long for his sense of touch being able to drink in the Lord's boundless

beauty. The Acharya wishes that his tongue would hear the sweet words of the

Lord's praise. So also is Azhwan's wish for his nose, which is loathe to

confining itself to smelling and craves a much greater role in Bhagavat

anubhavam. It is an indication of the depth of Azhwan's devotion that all his

faculties compete with one another in not only securing their rightful share of

enjoyment of the Lord, but also encroach into that of the other faculties-- the

ear trying to see the incredible beauty of Varada, the eye wishing to hear His

praises, the skin longing for a blissful sight of Emperuman and so on. Here is

Sri Azhwan's beautiful verse, describing the plight of his faculties, driven to

madness by the sight of Sri Varadaraja-

 

 

 

"Tvak cha drik cha nipipaasati,

 

Jihvaa vihvalaa shravanavat para vrittou

 

Naasikaa tvayi Kareesa! Tatheti

 

Praapnuyaam katham imaamsvit avastthaam"

 

 

 

The Lord is generous and endows us with such flexible faculties, capable of

performing not only their allotted functions, but also those of their brethren.

However, He gifts us with such interchangeable indriyas, only after our

emancipation through an appropriate strategy like Prapatti. After release from

Samsara and reaching Sri Vaikunttam, it would appear that the liberated soul is

able to assume at will any sort of body, with faculties which are capable of

performing any function-eyes that hear, ears that see, etc. All this, however,

is done only to enhance the Mukta's enjoyment of the Lord and His boundless

beauty and not for any self-gratification.

 

 

 

Srimate Sri LakshmiNrisimha divya paduka sevaka SrivanSatakopa Sri Narayana

Yatindra Mahadesikaya nama:

 

dasan, sadagopan

 

 

 

Azhvar EmberumAnAr JeeyAr ThiruvadigalE Saranam

http://www.vedics.net

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

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