hayagreevasthothram-slokas 11 and 12

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11.yanmoolam eedhrk prathibhaathi thatthvam

yaa moolam aamnaaya mahaadhrumaaNaam

thatthvena jaananthi viSuddhasatthvaah

thaam aksharaam aksharamaathrkaam thvaam

 

Thos whose mind is filled with pure satthva know You as the cause of this universe and the root of the tree called Vedas, You being the Pranava, the mother of all letters.

 

His universe consists of all types of beings, sentient and insentient, classified as deva,manshya, thiryang,sthaavara, divine beings, humans, animals and plants. The gross universe originated from the five elements, which were in turn evolved from the subtle elements, thanmathras, born out of the three kinds of ahamkara,satthva,rajas and thamas.The ahankara itself is the evolute of mahat or buddhi the first evolvent of all being the unmanifest prakrthi. These are known as thatthvas. 24 in number, the 25th being purusha or the sentient soul. All this has Brahman as the cause as mentioned in the upanishats, `sadheva soumya idham agra aaseeth ekameva advitheeyam, sath, or Brahman was alone in the beginning, one only without a second. Then the Upanishad goes on to say `thadhaikshatha bahusyaam prajaayeya , thatthejo asrjatha, it willed to become many and created fire. This implies the creation of akasa and vayu prior to that of fire which was alone mentioned as it is the first manifest form of the elements. Vedanta accepts the thatthvas which are actually the principles of the school of sankhya but upholds the view expressed by the Upanishads that Brahman is the cause of even the unmanifest prkrthi. Hence the Lord, who is the supreme self, Brahman, is the moola or source from whom all this manifest universe (prthibhaathi sarvam) came and also the root of the tree called Vedas.

 

The metaphor of the tree is seen in Katopanishad `oorDhvamoolo avAkshAkhah Esha aSvatthah sanAthanah,(Kat.up.2-3-1) which has also been referred to in the fifiteenth chapter of the Bhagavatgita.(BG.15-1)

 

 

The tree is said to have branches below as the whole creation is originated from Brahman and proceeds below, that is away from the reality, being the effect of karma causing bondage. The branches represent the whole creation from devas to the lowest forms of life and also the immovables. Its leaves are said to cchandhAmsi or Vedas. All karma that are done with an expectation of fruit are enjoined in the Vedas and they are necessary for the worldly life as the leaves are for the tree. Hence the Vedas are compared to parNas, leaves. One who understands this will desist from doing desire motivated karma which will cause the cycle of births and deaths. Hence it is said that one who knows this tree, knows the Vedas, meaning that he will understand the real nature of the Vedas, the real import of which is only Brahman.

 

Hence the root of Vedas compared to a tree is the Lord. The Pranava is the source of all sound and synonymous with Brahman and hence it is referred to as aksharaa aksharamaathrkaa.

 

This upanishadic declaration of the causation of Brahman is further carried out in he next sloka and hence this and the next contain the whole visishtadvaita in a capsule form.

 

 

12.avyaakrthaath vyaakrthavaan asi thvam

naamaani roopaaNi cha yaani poorvam

Samsanthi theshaam charamaam prathishTaam

vaageeSvara thvaam thvadhupaJnavaachah

 

 

Oh Lord of speech! You become the manifest world from your unmanifest state and give the name and form to everything as before. The Vedas which were instructed by You praise You as the ultimate goal.

 

The term avyaakrtha, meaning unmanifest, refers to the moolakrkrthi, the primordial nature of the sankhayas but what Desika means here is the soolshmacidhacithviSishtabrahman of visistadvaita. That is the Lord before He manifests as the world. Brahman unmanifest is the cause and Brahman manifest is the effect. The Upanishad says, `yatho vaa imaani bhaoothaani jaayanthe yena jaathaani jeevanthi yasmin abhisamviSanthi, thath vijijnaasasva thath brahma.' The meaning of the passage is as follows:

Know that to be Brahman from whom all these beings emerge, by whom they are sustained, and into which they merge back. So all beings exist in Brahman in subtle state without name and form and after creation they become manifest.

 

The passage quoted in the previous sloka which describes the creation further proceeds with the statement, `anenajeeven aaathmanaa anupravSya naamaroope vyaakaravaaNi.' The Brahman after creating the universe of sentient and insentient beings, declares "I will enter into everything as its self and give them name and form." This is what Desika denotes by the phrase naamaani roopaaNi cha yaani poorvam.' In each kalpa the creation preceeds on a similar pattern as before. The lion is known only as such and the ant is similarly known as such. The names and forms do not change in different kalpa. This is because the Vedas are the same being apourusheya and anaadhi and the creation has its basis on the Vedas.

 

Brahman entering as the inner self is confirmed by the Upanishadic passages such as yah aathmani thishTan aathmanah antharah yam `aathmaa na veda yasya aathmaa sareeram yah aathmaanam antharah yamayathi esha tha aathmmaa antharyaami amrthah thath sathyam sa aathmaa thaththvam asi,' This means, the inner immortal self is the one who is inside the individual self, whom the individual self does not know, whose body is the individual self , who controls the individual self from inside,this is the real self and `thouart that.'

 

 

Similar description of this inner ruler is found with respect to all elements all luminous bodies, all beings and all organs of the body including mind and intellect and each passage ends with the words

'Esha tha AthmA antharyAmyamrthah' this is the immortal inner self.

 

Therefore the Lord who is the inner self of all is the ultimate import of everything, charama prathshTa. Ramanuja says in his sribhashya that the identity of all beings, sentient and insentient with Brahman can be established only through the sarira sariri bhAva. And as all that is other than Brahman is His sarira the denotation of everything terminates only in Brahman. This is the import of the Vedas, `Samsanthi theshaam charamaam prathishTaam vaageesvara thvaam thavdhulpajna vaachah.'