WHY OF CREATION - LEELA OR KARMA?

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SRIMATHE RAMANUJAYA NAMAHA.

 

Dear devotees,

 

I am once again raking up the question of 'why'of

creation.

While the scriptures say in unmistakable terms that

Leela or a sportive impulse is the cause of creation

(refer my previous posting on this topic), there are

also references to karma as a cause of creation.

Unless questions on the role of karma are

satisfactorily answered, we will be once again beating

around the bush and fail to understand what God has

in HIS mind - the clues about which are found in

plenty in scriptures.

 

In this post, I, with my very limited knowledge and

ability to understand / grasp the truth veiled in the

shastras, attempt to answer some of the oft-repeated

questions on karma in order to uphold the Leela factor

as the prime cause of creation.

I may be right or wrong in the following passages. But

what is fulfilling as far as I am concerned is that

the Lord has been kind enough to me, enabling me to

think about HIM. and what more, attempt to trace HIS

mind!

 

Contemplating on those divine verses from

Thirukkurunthandagam,

"PESINEN YESA MAATTEN, PEDHAIYEN PIRAVI

NEETHTHARKU,

AASAIYO PERIDU KOLLGA ALAI KADAL VANNAR PAALE.

let me proceed with what I understand.

I am mainly relying on the Vyagyanam given by Sri P.B.

Annangarachar Swamy, based on the interpretations

given by Sri Manavala maamunigal for

'AACHARYA HRUDHAYAM" written by Srimad Azhagiya

manavala perumal nayanar, the younger son of Vadakku

Thiru veedhi pillai.

 

On Karma :-

Question 1- IN MANY PLACES IN THE SCRIPTURES, IT HAS

BEEN SAID THAT KARMA IS BEGINNINGLESS ( ANAADHI). IS

THIS THE FINAL WORD ON KARMA?

 

Answer:- At the out set, a reading of any scripture

leads us to think that creation has been effected

mainly to enable the Jivas work-out their balance of

karma but in the process they come to acquire new

karma which binds them into a vicious cycle of birth

and death.

 

e.g. Kathopanishad says, " SOME GO TO THE WOMB FOR THE

EMBODIMENT OF A CORPORAL BEING, OTHERS GO INTO WHAT IS

STATIOANARY, ACCORDING TO THEIR DEEDS, ACCORDING TO

THEIR KNOWLEDGE"

 

And in a number of other places too, it has been said

that the karma is anaadhi. We can understand if it is

said that the Jiva is Anaadhi, but how karma? The same

scriptures also say that in the beginning IT was there

and IT alone was there. Then where does the question

of characterizing karma as beginningless arise?

P.B. A. Swamy in his commentary offers an excellent

answer to this question.

(Refer ACHARYA HRUDHAYAM (AH) 1 -12)

The prakaran runs thus :- pattru arukka meendu

ozhigaiyile-

If karma can be cut off sometime in a prapannan's life

( meendu ozhigaiyil), it pre-supposes that it must

have had some beginning. If something has no beginning

then it can be assumed that it will have no end. If a

Jiva can be liberated someday from karma Bhandam

(pazhavadiye yendrum adondrume ozhikka ozhiyaadadu, AH

1-12 ¡VEverything else can be driven out, but not

¡¥pazhavadi¡¦ ¡Vsimilarly ¡¥undrannodu uravel namakku

ingu ozhikka ozhiyaadu¡¦), it is logical to think that

it happened to acquire karma sometime in the past.

There are innumerable places in NDP indicating that

karma came to cling to the Jiva.. e.g. " adainda varu

vinaiyodu allall noi paavam midaindavai meendu ozhiya"

Karma is said to come (adainda varu vinai - note:

according to Tamil grammer, varu vinai is a Vinaith

thogai, i.e., vanda vinai, vandu vitta vinai and

varappogum vinai, thus speaking of the three kaalam.

Perhaps this quality of ¡¥varu vinai¡¦ makes it

beginningless in the strict meaning of the term. But

the preceding word 'adainda' characterises the ¡¥varu

vinai¡¦ as something that has come to occupy or hold

on to, irrespective of it being a vinai capable of

permeating the three stages of past, present and

future.) and cling (vanderi) to the Jiva.

 

PBA swamy says, "karma is A-NITHYAM because it has

prakruthi sambandam" and

"the pramanaas started calling the karma as anaadhi

because we don¡¦t know the time (kaalam) when it came

to cling"

Also that which has prakruthi sambandam can not be

termed as anaadhi in terms of how we characterise Jiva

as anaadhi.

PBA swamy goes on to say that if it is possible to

remove the karma bhandam ( pattru arukka meendu

ozhigaiyile), it cannot be anaadhi. "vanderiyaana

prakruthi sambandaththai anaadhi endru solluvaanen?

Ennil, vanderina kaalaththukku adi theriyamaiyaale,

anaadhi endru pramaanangal sollugaiyaale, sollugirom.

Adi theriyada podu, vanderi endru eppadi

sollalaamenil, oru naal varaiyile Emperuman arullal

adhu kazhiya kaangaiyale vanderiye"

>From the above passages, it can be assumed that karma,

though a valid cause for continuing janmas, can not be

the principal cause of ceation. To borrow the example

given by Sri. V.N. Gopala Desikan in his book, 'A

dialogue on Hinduism' in a related context, if we

compare creation to the growth of plants, we come up

with two scenes.One is that all plants need water to

grow and this water is the general cause or the

principal cause. If we want a particular plant to

grow, we require both water and the seed of the

particular plant - the particular seed becoming the

particular or special cause for growth.

Similarly if Leela is the general or prime cause that

has triggered off creation, karma decides the

particular form of creation, thereby becoming the

particular or special cause. This can be substantiated

by quoting a verse from Brihadaranyaka upanishad,

¡§The unmanifest got manifested through naama (names)

and rupa (forms)" - the names and forms getting

decided by past karma .

 

Question 2 :- IF KARMA IS A 'VANDERIA ONDRU' (THAT

WHICH HAS COME TO CLING) WHY OR HOW DID IT HAPPEN IN

THE BEGINNING, IN THE UNFATHOMABLE PAST?

WHAT WAS THE YARDSTICK USED TO ALLOT KARMA OR ALLOW

KARMA TO CLING TO?

 

Answer:- AH explains the process by which karmas are

'born' (!!!!) in the course of answering why God

created Shastras. But before we go into the details as

given by AH, it is imperative to note how creation

proceeded as 'quintuplication' or ' panchi karana'.

The following passage from Yatindramatadipita says

this, " The supreme person created the elements and

divided each element into two. Of theses two parts, he

reserved one part of its own nature and then redivided

the other part into four. Then he combined the four

sub-divisions with four other elements. In this

process when all the elements are created, one half of

each element retains its own nature, while the other

half is made up of the parts of the other four

elements. So there is the designation of 'earth' etc.,

since the portion of its own nature is more and that

of other elements is comparatively less."

 

Vishnu purana speaks about Sapti karana by adding

mahat and Ahankara too (and more) in the division

and diffusion.

Diffusion of Bhutas take place during creation , so

also the mixing up of chit and achit in different

proportions , in different forms, with different

levels of the three gunas. (a relevant reference here

is the sloka 'Trigunna vishaya veda... ... BG - 2-45)

This results in Jivas coming to possess different

levels of vidya and avidya.

According to AH, the distribution of the three gunas

at the time of creation and the resultant absence or

the lack of 'Artha Panchka gyanam' gives rise to

karma.

The five gyanams are

# Paraswaroopa gyanam :- 'ninnai nenjil uiyum vagai

unarden'

The a-gyanam of the same :-'

maranden unnai munnam'

# Athma swaroopa gyanam :- 'nindra ondrai unardenukku'

The a-gyanam of the same:- ' yaane

ennai arigilaathe'

# Virodhi vishaya gyanam :- ' agatra nee vaiththa

maaya vallai am pulangalaam avai

 

nangarinden'

The a-gyanam of the same :- vodiyum

uzhandru vuyirgale kondre

 

unarvilen'

# Upaaya vishaya gyanam:- 'avanadarullalural poruttu

en unarvinulle eruththinen'

The a-gyanam of the same :-'piravi

noi aruppaanen elen erunden'

# Purushartha Vishaya gyanam :-'aam parisarindu kondu'

The a-gyanam of the same :-'aazhi

am kai ammanai yeththaadu ayarthu'

 

AH says that the one who is blessed by the Lord at the

time of creation becomes saattvic (jaaya manam hi

purusham¡K), comes to possess the panchaka gyanam and

attains moksha (Nithya suris)

The route as outlined by PBA Swamy is this:-

--> Narayana sambandam which is anaadhi is the basis

for Bhagavat Sowlabhyam

--> which is the basis for krupa

--> which is the basis for visesha kataaksham

--> which is the basis for sattva guna poorthi

--> which is the basis for Artha Panchaka gyanam

--> which is the basis for moksha sukham

Such a Jiva blessed by the Lord (avan kanngalaale

amalangalaaga vizhikkum- NPD)

goes back to HIM.

A question comes why these Jivas are such a blessed

lot!!

It is because

the ultimate choice lies with HIM!

"The self cannot be attained by any amount of teaching

or great intellect. It can not be known even by a

wider learning. The self reveals itself to him WHOM

GOD CHOOSES" ( Kathopanishad)

It depends on whether or not Bhagvat kataaksham falls

on you at the time of creation.

(¡¥Jayamaana kaalaththil nerum parama bhavanmaana

bhagavat kataakshame ¡Khetu ¡¥ ¡V PBA Swamy.)

By the logic of division, mixing and diffusion that

take place among chit, achit and the gunas, at the

time of creation, perhaps we can understand the birth

of Nithuyasuris or those blessed Jivas.

 

But what about others?

The route given here is as follows:

# The connection with ¡¥achi¡¦ (achit sambandham)

gives rise to avidya.

„³ which in turn gives rise to karma

„³ which gives rise to janma

„³which gives rise to holding on to rajas and tamas

„³ which gives rise to lack of / absence of Artha

Panchaka gyanam

„³ which gives rise to samsara dhukkam

 

In the beginning these Jivas (us) must have failed to

rise to the occasion, and therefore fallen into the

spiral of karma.

Thus karma is a ¡¥vanderia ondru¡¦ and becomes a cause

for further creation and to sustain creation.

The variety / division in creation and the ever

growing multiplication of karma from unfathomable

past have made karma appear anaadhi and the sole

cause of creation after every pralaya.

 

Question 3:- IF LEELA IS THE PRIME CAUSE OF CREATION,

HOW CAN THAT BE PROVED?

The first proof is that scriptures say so.

Secondly, it must have been so ordained that each

must, at some point of time, come to realise / enjoy

the game with the Lord.

That is it is entirely upto each Jiva to understand,

to know and to experience the Lord within himself.

The relationship between the Lord and the Jiva can be

any of the following (as recognised by Sri Ramanuja)

Between

# The master and the servant

# The owner and the owned

# the mother and the child

# The father and the son

# The nayaka and the nayaki

 

But what happens if the roles are inter- changed?

„³The master serving the Pandavas,

„³The owner asking for three foot-holds of land

„³The mother getting into the arms of the alwar and

frantically calling up the moon ¡V that which

revolves obeying HIS command ¡V to come to play

„³The son who till today stands as the only glorious

example for pithru vaakhya paripalanam

„³ and the nayaka (whom the Jiva must cling to as a

climber embracing the tree) who desires to take a

place in the hearts of the devotees ( panikkadalil

palli kollai pazhaga vittu, vodi vanden manakkadalil

vaazha valla maaya manaala nambi)

Are theses not reversal of roles?

If creation has not proceeded, how can HE enjoy these

roles?

 

If the second set of Jivas (as told earlier) are not

left out of his kataaksham, can there be any

possibility of going through this enjoyment.

The first set of Jivas are of course there to enjoy

themselves in HIM. But has HE not ordained them to be

born now and then ¡V in one instance as alwars ¡V and

enjoyed their bhakthi?

So we, the unfortunate lot are not really unfortunate!

¡¥naadi naadi narasingha endru

vaadi vaadum ev vaanudale¡¦

We continue to long for HIM.

HE continues to have the Vaathsalyam of the mother (AH

1-14) like a mother who out of vaathsalyam allows the

child who wants to eat mud to eat the mud and then

brings it back and applys the remedy. (

¡¥Evvuyurukkum thaayon)

HE is like the same mother who on another occasion,

in a playful mood hides herself waiting for her child

to find her out. She will wait till the child loses

its patience and starts wailing and then will reveal

herself at the right moment.

If this is not Leela, what else is?

 

Some proofs from scriptures on these lines:-

In his interpretation of AH, PBA Swamy quotes

nammpillai ¡§Aanandam avan preethiai thulirezhuppa¡¨

and how can the Lord enjoy Aanandam if the Jiva does

not reciprocate. The Lord is the Bhokhtha and the

Jiva is the Bhokhya -vasthu ¡V Unless the Vasthu also

is capable of enjoying, it being the vasthu enjoyed by

the Lord, it will be like enjoying a wooden plank

(manaikkattai) by the Lord. The example quoted by PBA

Swamy is the ecstatic blare of Bhrugu (in Taiittriya )

¡§ahamannam and ahamanaadam in sama gaanam.

 

May I cite the other proof as Naadanukku naaalaayiram

uraiththa ¡§Kanninum siruththambu¡¨?

Of interest are two questions that arise in this

context.

# Of all the paasurams why this paasuram became

capable of retriving the lost / not previously

accounted paasurams?

# Why of all the other vibhoothis of the lord, HIS

voluntary submission to be tied by a thin thread has

been chosen to make the opening Vibhoothi of this set

of paasurams?

 

We are periodically coming across scholarly

explanations for these questions. ¡¥But to my humble

mind, it seems to tell what excites the lord more, of

being tied when he can not be grasped at all by

anyone!!

If this is not leela, what else is?

(I think Krishnavatar is the one avatar that God would

have enjoyed to his heart¡¦s fill!!- Making me say

this is also part of his Leela ¡V would he not enjoy

how the totally unfit person is squabbling to describe

his qualities in the fitness of things!)

 

Looking at NDP, how the paasurams that depict deeply

the complete reversal of roles (as child and mother)

has come to occupy the first part! The ordering of the

paasurams have been variously explained, one of which

can be found in Sri Madhavakkannan¡¦s prelude to his

vyaagyaanam to Perialwar thirumozhi.

But in my eagerness to spot the leelavanthu kaivalyam,

may I say that since this part of NDP greatly

emphasises the leela of the Lord, this has been placed

first. There is the gradual transformation from child

and mother to owned and the owner as found in

Senniyongu paasurams. The ultimate enjoyment that the

lord finds in taking his abode in the Jiva.

If this is not leela, what else is?

 

The next to follow, Naachiyar thirumozhi seems to

proceed in this level of enjoyment.

If the lord is ready to oblige when Andal sends an

ultimatum

¡¥¡¨Gathiendrum thaanaavaan karudadu,

vor pen kodiai vadai seidhan¡¨ ennum sol

vaiyagaththar madiyaare

 

is this not leela?

 

¡¥Ari sinaththaal eendra thaai agatridinum marru aval

than,

arul ninaindu azhum kuzhavi aduve pol ¡§

Iruukkum ennaiyum padaiththu

and given me this desire to talk about him¡X

If this is not leela, what else is?

 

Jayasree sarnathan

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

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