Philosophy of Ramanuja-concludingpart

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Chapter 6-PurushaarTha

 

PurusharTha is defined as the objective of human life, or the goal of endeavour, while the Thatthva is the nature of reality and the Hitha is the path to attain the ultimate reality.

 

The goals or purusharTha according to Hinduism are four, namely, dharma, the ethical values, arTha, the economoical values, kaama, seeking sensuous pleasures and moksha, liberation.

 

Moksha is the ultimate goal of human life which means the liberation from the bondage of karma which leads one to the cycle of birth and deaths. The other three .are only subsidiary values which must be pursued in such a manner as to lead to the final goal of moksha. The Lord says in the Bhagavatgita `dharma avirudDha kaamo asmi,' I am the kama or desire which is unopposed to dharma. It implies that the kama or sensual enjoyment must be with in the limits of dharma. To fulfil the desires and also to follow the precepts of dharma one should earn wealth or go for the objects of desire, again in a manner not opposed to dharma. The word arTha means both wealth and objects of desire. Since the ultimate aim is moksha all the other purusharThas should be conducive to that.

 

This interpretation of purusharthas is accepted by all vedantic thinkers while each one differs regarding the concept of moksha. The desire for release fro the woes of samsara is deeply implanted in the mind of men which is why they seek to acquire the knowledge, brahmajijnasa, of the ultimate reality. Ramanuja writing on the concept of moksha says that it is not the annihilation of `I' as some profess because in that case no one will wish for release.

 

However this `I' should not be confused with the egotistic self, but the natural state of the self. Release or moksha therefore consists in the manifestation of the true self free from sin and the state of infinite joy, and knowledge which have been obscured by karma.

 

In mukthi the individual soul is not identical with Brahman but attains its real nature of being inseparable from Brahman. That is, the individual soul is separate yet united with Brahman and is in the relation of body to soul, sarira-sariribhava.

 

In chandhogya upanishat it is declared `sa svarAt bhavathi, thasya sarvEshu lOkEshu kama charO bhavathi, he is self-ruler and moves in all the worlds according to his desire.'

 

The meaning of the passage beginning with 'sa svarAt bhavathi saya Ramanuja, is that the released soul, conscious of Brahman and His glories experiences the objects which lie within the limited spheres of HiraNyagarbha and the like and does not indicate the powers of controlling the universe on the part of the individual soul, because they exclusively belong to the Lord. The equality in attaining the state of mukthi is in enjoyment of bliss. The individual soul however can assume any form at will and wander all over the universe.

Mukthi is not only the freedom from bondage but also regaining of Paramapadha, the realm of bliss which the individual soul is entitled to, as its natural state. Paramapadha is the self luminous suddhasathva and shines in its own light. This is the world of Brahman from which there is no return.