Kanchi Mahaswamigal's Discourses on Advaita Saadhanaa - (KDAS-79)

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For a Table of Contents of these Discourses, see

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For the previous post, see

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SECTION 67: WORM BECOMING THE WASP; MAKING THE WORM A WASP

Tamil Original: http://www.kamakoti.org/tamil/dk6-140.htm

 

 

The action of constantly thinking about brahman ends up in the state

where one has become the action-less brahman.

 

There is what is called a *bhramara-kITa-nyAyaM*. Bhramara is the wasp.

KITa means a worm. The worm is said to be constantly thinking of

becoming a wasp. That constant thinking, it appears, causes its own

transformation of its form and the growth of wings and finally it

becomes a wasp and flies away from the nest. So it is said! The

nidhidhyAsaM of the worm makes it the wasp - this is

bhramara-kITa-nyAya. In the same manner the Jiva in the constant thought

of Brahman, thinks of 'this' Jiva becoming 'that' Brahman, thinks that

even now 'this' is only 'that' and such a nidhidhyAsana all the time

ends up with the Jiva becoming Brahman - so says the Acharya in Viveka

chudamani 358-359/359-360.

 

This has been said by the Acharya in order that the jnAna-pathfinder

does not get side-tracked into the direction of saguNa-brahman. In other

words he has wound up the context of Vivekachudamani by saying that by

the sheer power of this constant thought one automatically becomes

Brahma-svarUpa. In actual fact this becoming happens only by the Grace

of God! It is by His Grace that the JivAtma becomes the ParamAtmA! The

Acharya certainly knows this; and knows this quite well. To win over the

karma-mimamsaka-upholders this is the final BrahmAstra that the Acharya

used: "No action by itself gives the result; the results are given by

Ishvara". When that was the case, he would have never d to the

idea that the very mental action of nidhidhyAsana would automatically

produce the great result of Brahma-nirvANaM.

 

MayA's function of hiding things is called 'tirodhAnaM'. Right now the

real Brahman that we are is *tirohitaM*, that is, hidden from us. The

hidden thing comes out by the dhyAna of ParamAtmA - so says BrahmasUtra,

but immediately, lest we may think it is an automatic consequence, it

adds, clearing up any confusion, "This hiding as well as the bondage

(caused by the hiding) are both by Ishvara. When we do nidhidhyAsanaM,

the removal of the hiding, the manifestation of the Truth and the grant

of mokshha, all are again the work of Ishvara". (III - 2-5). When the

Acharya writes the BhashyaM on this, he says, more explicitly, "This

manifestation will not happen automatically or naturally for all and

sundry. Only to that rare person who makes effort to do intense

nidhidhyAsana it happens by God's Grace". *na svabhAvata eva sarveshhAM

jantUnAM* -- 'Revelation' does not happen naturally for everybody.

*Ishvara-prasAdAt samsiddhasya kasyacit eva Avirbhavati* -- 'By God's

Grace It reveals only to that rare person who has the highest

achievement'.

 

 

[Note by Ra. Ganapathy:

See the Mahaswamigal's related discourses in Tamil under the Sections

'The jnAna gift of the Lord as per Adi Shankara' in

http://www.kamakoti.org/tamil/part4kural364.htm

and 'The bondage of Karma is by the Lord;

the attainment of jnAna is also His Grace' in

http://www.kamakoti.org/tamil/part4kural367.htm ]

 

In advaita shAstras it is customary to depict God's Grace as Guru's

Grace itself.

 

[ See again http://www.kamakoti.org/tamil/part4kural365.htm

under the heading: 'The duality in the form of Guru does not intervene']

 

But the Acharya in the apex of his prakaraNa-granthas, namely, the

Vivekachudamani (476/477) has given a higher place to Ishvara's Grace

over and above Guru's Grace. A person asked me this question. The

reference is to the statements: "The Gurus stay on the banks of the

ocean of samsAra and being on the bank they teach you how to swim across

the ocean of samsAra. It is the disciple who, on his own, has to get the

prajnA of True Knowledge, and keeping it as the boat he should cross the

ocean; and this prajnA is granted only by God".

 

Maybe the Acharya thought: "In the coming ages, there may not be many

gurus of knowledge who have attained enlightenment. Even then, as far

as the disciples are concerned, even through them (such gurus) the Lord

Himself will grant the release" and so depicted the gurus as those who

have not crossed; but however he added, the disciples will cross (the

ocean) by God's Grace.

 

Another reason may also be mentioned. If a disciple gets the true

attitude of surrender, by which he totally surrenders to the Guru and

leaves it to him to 'do whatever he likes', then that Grace of the guru

itself is the boat as well as the favourable wind, and it ferries him

to the other shore. But that kind of total surrender is not possible

by every one. Even if he does not do the total surrender, he may default

by being a little indifferent in his sAdhanA, thinking that "After all

he is our guru. He is the one who blessed me with the teaching . So

his own Grace will surely lead us on to the goal of the upadesha. How

can this fail to happen?" Coupled with the absence of total surrender

if this kind of default persists wherein even the sAdhanA is not

perfect, and if there is the indifferent attitude in the hope that the

Guru will take care, -- such a possibility should be prevented.

Addressing such defaulters, in other words, to emphasize the fact that

one should not lax on the self-effort on the alibi of Guru's Grace, the

Acharya must have said "Guru shows the way from the bank; it is you who

have to set sail in the boat and cross the ocean".

 

Though the Acharya said "You have to do it yourself" he must have

also thought this might end up in boosting up one's ego in the thought

"Thus after all it is our own effort that has all the power". So he also

says that even though it is you who do it, that is also Ishvara's Grace.

It is He who prompts you and keeps you company.

 

If we carefully note what the Lord says in the Gita we would know the

Acharya has said the same thing. When He winds up the Gita, the Lord

says: "Surrender to me and rest. I will take care of you!" A little

before that he also says "Do a total surrender to the Lord in every

possible way. By His Grace you will attain the highest goal of Peace".

And He Himself says in another place *uddhared-AtmanAtmAnaM* 'one has to

lift oneself by oneself' and thus talks of self-effort as great. Unless

one does the total surrender, it is self-effort that wins - this is the

sum and substance. In all this also there is God's Grace in hiding!

 

To be Continued and CONCLUDED.

PraNAms to all students of advaita.

PraNAms to the Maha-Swamigal.

profvk