Guest guest Posted December 10, 2008 Report Share Posted December 10, 2008 Transliteration: illE enum maayaiyil ittanai nee, pollEn aRiyaamai poRu— thilaiyE mallE puri panniru vaakuvil en, sollE punayum sudar vElavanE. 29 Meaning: Into this Maya non-existent You have me involved; Alas, this wicked one's ignorance You have not pardoned! On Your mighty shoulders, twelve, valiant to wrestle, My song-garland You wear, O Lord of Luminous Vel! "O Lord, with the luminous Vel, Who, on Thine twelve mighty and valiant shoulders that are fit to wrestle, wearest my garland of songs! Thou hast entangled me in this Maya which is said to be non-existent. Alas, You have not absolved me, who is of evil-deeds, of my ignorance!" Detailed Commentary: Why God took away the non-dual experience from Arunagirinathar? Saint Arunagirinathar had that most blessed experience of existence-knowledge-bliss Absolute, as mentioned in the previous verse. After giving that non-dual experience, the Lord, it would appear, has withdrawn it back from Arunagirinathar — with a divine purpose. Had the saint been absorbed into Himself and not been made to return to this phenomenal life, how could we get his wonderful works! The Lord wanted Arunagirinathar to sing His glories and reveal his experiences and thus, illumine the path to perfection — to serve as a guiding light to seeking souls. It is not that God will give divine experience to someone and get His divine work done through someone else. He who is given something, from him will the work be extracted. This is seen even in this world; he who is highly paid is also given high responsibility and work commensurate with his salary. It may appear that only in order to wear these song-garlands that the Lord involved Arunagirinathar, once again, into this non-existent Mayaic life — after giving him that grand experience of "Mere Existence." What is Maya? What is Maya? And why is it said to be non-existent? The Absolute is unconditioned existence and it cannot admit of anything else, and so this world cannot exist in addition to it. If this phenomenal world is admitted as a real and independent existence of its own, it would mean the acceptance of a limitation to the Absolute, in which case the Absolute would be no Absolute, which is untenable. It cannot be that something else also exists side-by-side with the Absolute. Hence, (the things of) the world cannot be attributed any real existence. They are only phases of Reality, just as waves in the ocean are only phases of the waters of the ocean. The waves have neither a real existence of their own nor are they essentially different from the ocean. The wave is water, is the ocean. Hence, to attribute any independent reality to the waves, apart form the ocean in which they partake of their existence, would only mean ignorance of Truth. So is the case with this Samsara (phenomenal existence), which has no independent existence apart from Satchidananda (the Absolute). But, the world is taken as the sole reality, as having a reality of its own, forgetting the underlying Reality, which latter is often even denied its existence. Thus, not only a world is seen which does not really exist, but also the great Reality that alone appears as this world is ignored. How strange! What is it due to? This is called Maya. To perceive a thing which really is not, and not see That which alone is, is Maya. But, is Maya a substantial thing? No. It is not that Maya has any existence, it is not an entity by itself; it is only a term used to describe our inability to understand the relation, if at all there is any, between the phenomenal and the Real, in our present predicament. That which really is not and which yet appears to be, and whose relation to the Absolute cannot be satisfactorily explained (there being no real relation, as the Absolute cannot admit of any relation) is explained as Maya. It is only an initial concept introduced to solve the riddleless riddle of phenomenal existence. It is like the "X" that is employed in algebraic equations, which vanishes together with the problem when the sum is solved. When the Absolute is experienced, there is neither the world nor are we — much less "Maya." Hence, Maya, is said to be non-existent. Perception of Maya: the ignorant Transliteration: illE enum maayaiyil ittanai nee, pollEn aRiyaamai poRu— thilaiyE mallE puri panniru vaakuvil en, sollE punayum sudar vElavanE. 29 Meaning: Into this Maya non-existent You have me involved; Alas, this wicked one's ignorance You have not pardoned! On Your mighty shoulders, twelve, valiant to wrestle, My song-garland You wear, O Lord of Luminous Vel! "O Lord, with the luminous Vel, Who, on Thine twelve mighty and valiant shoulders that are fit to wrestle, wearest my garland of songs! Thou hast entangled me in this Maya which is said to be non-existent. Alas, You have not absolved me, who is of evil-deeds, of my ignorance!" Detailed Commentary: Why God took away the non-dual experience from Arunagirinathar? Saint Arunagirinathar had that most blessed experience of existence-knowledge-bliss Absolute, as mentioned in the previous verse. After giving that non-dual experience, the Lord, it would appear, has withdrawn it back from Arunagirinathar — with a divine purpose. Had the saint been absorbed into Himself and not been made to return to this phenomenal life, how could we get his wonderful works! The Lord wanted Arunagirinathar to sing His glories and reveal his experiences and thus, illumine the path to perfection — to serve as a guiding light to seeking souls. It is not that God will give divine experience to someone and get His divine work done through someone else. He who is given something, from him will the work be extracted. This is seen even in this world; he who is highly paid is also given high responsibility and work commensurate with his salary. It may appear that only in order to wear these song-garlands that the Lord involved Arunagirinathar, once again, into this non-existent Mayaic life — after giving him that grand experience of "Mere Existence." What is Maya? What is Maya? And why is it said to be non-existent? The Absolute is unconditioned existence and it cannot admit of anything else, and so this world cannot exist in addition to it. If this phenomenal world is admitted as a real and independent existence of its own, it would mean the acceptance of a limitation to the Absolute, in which case the Absolute would be no Absolute, which is untenable. It cannot be that something else also exists side-by-side with the Absolute. Hence, (the things of) the world cannot be attributed any real existence. They are only phases of Reality, just as waves in the ocean are only phases of the waters of the ocean. The waves have neither a real existence of their own nor are they essentially different from the ocean. The wave is water, is the ocean. Hence, to attribute any independent reality to the waves, apart form the ocean in which they partake of their existence, would only mean ignorance of Truth. So is the case with this Samsara (phenomenal existence), which has no independent existence apart from Satchidananda (the Absolute). But, the world is taken as the sole reality, as having a reality of its own, forgetting the underlying Reality, which latter is often even denied its existence. Thus, not only a world is seen which does not really exist, but also the great Reality that alone appears as this world is ignored. How strange! What is it due to? This is called Maya. To perceive a thing which really is not, and not see That which alone is, is Maya. But, is Maya a substantial thing? No. It is not that Maya has any existence, it is not an entity by itself; it is only a term used to describe our inability to understand the relation, if at all there is any, between the phenomenal and the Real, in our present predicament. That which really is not and which yet appears to be, and whose relation to the Absolute cannot be satisfactorily explained (there being no real relation, as the Absolute cannot admit of any relation) is explained as Maya. It is only an initial concept introduced to solve the riddleless riddle of phenomenal existence. It is like the "X" that is employed in algebraic equations, which vanishes together with the problem when the sum is solved. When the Absolute is experienced, there is neither the world nor are we — much less "Maya." Hence, Maya, is said to be non-existent. More commentary info in www.skandagurunatha.org Courtesy: skandagurunatha website Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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