GeethA sAstramum nedunthAndaka sAstramum-16

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Sri Parthasarathi thunai

 

Srimathe Ramanujaya Namaha

 

Sri Vara Vara munayE Namaha

 

Sri vAnAchala mahA munayE Namaha

 

 

 

In the previous posting we saw that the soul remains inside our body but doesn't

get affected with all the changes that happen to the body. One doubt may arise

in our minds: We cook food in a vessel. The vessel outside gets heated and

cooks the rice inside. So we find that the changes that occurs to the outside

vessel does affect the rice inside. Then how is it that the soul inside does

not get affected? Sure the argument is correct. But consider the case of a

stone, which is mixed along with the rice. Does that also get cooked like the

rice? No it remains without any change. So we see that there are objects that

remain without any change also due to the changes in the outside vessel.

Similarly the soul who is a jnana-svaroopan (personification of knowledge) does

not get affected due to the changes in the body that is made of the

panchabhoodhas (land, water, fire, air and sky).

 

 

 

(erappadarkE ennAdhu) Earlier azhvar talked about the shatbhAva vikAram, the

six types of changes that happen to the body where the last change which happens

is the death pertaining to the body. But here " erappadarkE " refers to the death

of the soul. That is kaivalyam. But it was seen all along that the soul

doesn't undergo any change? Then how can it die? The soul doesn't die like the

body that falls down lifeless. But due to the separation from the paramatma who

is the saviour/master (Athmabhoothan) and enjoying once own soul in the

kaivalyam it is considered to be a form of death, svaroopahAni. Where is this

kaivalyam and does the soul have a possibility to return back and reach the

actual moksha etc are debatable topics not pertaining to our subject now. We

will just see the meaning as per the commentary of swami periya vAchAn pillai

and geethAbhAshyam of swamy emperumAnAr. So here 'erappadarkE' refers to

kaivalyam and 'ennAdhu' indicates that it is not the lord's wish to put us into

that ditch instead he always wishes that we go and join him in the nithya Ananda

anubhavam of the nithya vibhoothi like the other nithya sooris.

 

 

 

Where is the proof that emperuman is against us reaching the kaivalyam and doing

athmAnubhavam? Let us track it from bhagavan's words,

 

 

 

" jarAmarana mOkshAya mAmAsrithya yadhanthi yE I

 

thE brahma tadhvidhu: krisnamadyAthmam karma chAkilam II "

 

 

 

[Those who try to get away from the six types of changes like old age, death etc

of the body and reach the kaivalya moksha for athmAnubhavam away from this

prakruthi sambhandam, they should fully know about the brahmam, adyAthmam and

karmam.]

 

 

 

The above sloka clearly shows that there is something beyond the kaivalya moksha

that a kaivalyArthi should know. So it cannot be the ultimate moksha. Since a

kaivalyArthi forgets perumal and wants to enjoy his athma alone it is stealing

of emperuman's property (pirar nan porul, 'chOrEna AthmapahArinam'). Atleast

for an IshwaryArthi there is a chance to correct himself and attain emperuman's

thiruvadi but for a person who has attained kaivalyam there is no way back and

hence it is like athma nAsam. But will that emperuman who has so much krupai on

us leave us like that? His sankalpam is not to leave us die ('erappadarkE

ennAdhu').

 

 

 

Here it has to be noted that the athmAnubhavam talked about by bhagavan in the

first six chapters has no connection with this kaivalya moksha. In the first

shatkam of bhagavat geetha emperuman talks about the karma yoga done along with

jnana that leads to chiththa shuddi further leading to knowledge about the

athma, which gives one an in-depth understanding of the athma (Athma

sAkshAtkAram). This is totally different from the AthmAnubhavam, which a

kaivalyArthi wants to attain. So the first stage of learning is the tattvatraya

vibhAgam (existence of three permanant tattvas, chit, achit and Ishwaran). Then

the changes that happen to the body (achit) and the unchanged nature of the soul

has to be realized then finally the knowledge about the Ishwaran who is our

sEshi (master) has to be obtained that will lead us to surrender with deep love

towards the supreme lord (Jnanam kanindha bhakthi) and attain nithya mukthi.

 

 

 

Most of us get mixed up with the nature of the body and the soul and concentrate

on taking care of the body forgetting the soul. This is the first stage

(IshvaryArthi). The second category is those who have understood that the body

is temporary and this leela vibhoothi is filled with sorrow and hence wants to

get rid of this cycle of life and death and hence he wishes for a permanent joy

but he lacks to understand the relation of the soul with bhagavan and hence

wants to attain kaivalyam (kaivalyArthi). This is like a person wanting to

forget his problems getting addicted to drinking that again doesn't give him a

permanent solution but further worsens his problems. The kaivalyArthi fails to

understand that emperuman can get him out of these samsAric worries and grant

him the nithya moksha where he can enjoy emperuman along with the nithya sooris

permanently. The final category is the jnAni/mumukshu, who understands about

the nature of all the three tattvas and hence wants to attain the divine feet of

emperuman. The different types of bhakthas have been stated by bhagavan as,

 

 

 

" chaturvidhA bhajanthE mAm janAs sukrithinOrjuna I

 

ArthO jignyAsu arthArthi jnAni cha bharatharishabha II " (7-16)

 

 

 

After telling about the kaivalyArthi, geethAcharyan proceeds to do upadesam

(advice) to arjuna about the bhakthi yoga. The knowledge about the third tattva

Ishvaran leads us to bhakthi towards him. How will bhakthi develop in our

minds? We will see in the next posting.

 

 

 

(To be continued)

 

 

 

Azhvar EmperumAnAr Jeeyer thiruvadigalE sharanam

 

 

 

Adiyen ramanuja dAsee

 

Sumithra Varadarajan