SrI sArasAram -- I (8)

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SrI sAra sAram – I (8)

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I – ThirumantrAdhikAram

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The Eminence of Thirumantra (continued)

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SwAmi Desikan has just shown how the AzhvArs hold the esteemed Thirumantra,

with sample statements from their verses. He now assures us that, it also makes

our birth an excellent one:

“anukoola-pratikoola sAdhAraNa-mAna janmam PolanRikkE ‘piRanthapin

maRanthilEn’ enkiRa SrEshTha janmam AchAryan upadEciththa thirumantramadiyAka

varukiRathu.†---

At present our life is full of miseries interspersed with some favourable

moments. Swami Desikan assures us it will be no more like this:

“anukoola-pratikoola sAdhAraNa-mAna janmam PolanRikkE†---

How is it possible? We have heard from the scriptures that so long as we

continue in this whirlpool of the prakruti, we can not escape the misery and the

cycle of births and re-births. In a way it also lies in our hands to get out of

this situation, says Swami Desikan:

“SrEshTha janmam AchAryan upadEciththa thirumantramadiyAka varukiRathu†--

A better life comes through the Thirumantra which is also known as the

ashTAksharam. This mantra is taught to us by the compassionate AchArayas.

Our part of action is only to approach them and place ourselves under their

care. After learning this gem of mantras, we have to continuously utter in the

way as advised by SrI Thirumazhisai AzhvAr in his verse which we considered just

before.

One may think whether there is any instance in the past to assure us. The same

AzhvAr comes to assure us through this verse in his Thirucchantha Viruttham,

says SwAmi Desikan through a quote:

“piRanthapin maRanthilEn†-- I have not forgotten it after my birth.

Let us consider the significance through the study of this verse in full:

“ninRathu enthai oorakatthu irunthathu enthai pAdakatthu

anRu vehkaNaik kidanthathu ennilAtha munnelAm

anRu nAn piRanthilEn piRanthapin maRanthilEn

ninRathum irunthathum kidanthathum en nenjuLE.†(Thirucchantha

Viruttham-64)

The AzhvAr beautifully narrates the manner in which the Lord entered into him

and stayed put in his mind; and from that moment onwards, the AzhvAr says, he

started truly living and there is no end to it. Let us go through the steps the

Lord took to capture the AzhvAr:

1) The Lord first failed in His attempts to catch hold of a place in the

AzhvAr’s mind. Even though really He is present everywhere including the

AzhvAr’s mind and body, yet it was known only to Him and the AzhvAr had no

idea.

2) So, the Lord works out a scheme to get the AzhvAr’s attention.

3) First, He took a position in a place called, Oorakam, where He was standing

waiting for the AzhvAr. Though the Azhvar came there and saw Him, he went away

without paying any particular deep attention. But, he used to remember this at

times.

4) Next, the Lord felt inconvenient in continuously standing as though pain in

the legs. So, He decided to sit and wait for the AzhvAr.

5) As the AzhvAr used to roam about, the Lord chose another place called,

PAdakam, where He sat down and looked for the AzhvAr. His expectation proved

correct when the AzhvAr went there. This time when the AzhvAr saw the Lord in

the sitting pose, he didn’t pay much attention. However, he could find some

resemblance to the face he saw in Ooragam. This made some impression in the

AzhvAr’s mind. But, he didn’t give any importance and so went away. Thus the

Lord’s wait in the sitting pose was not fully successful and He felt tired of

sitting continuously for a long time. So, He decided to take some rest by lying

down.

6) The Lord chose the place called, VehkA, for resting on a bed and he continued

to look for the arrival of the AzhvAr there.

7) One day (AzhvAr says ‘that day’), the AzhvAr came there and saw the Lord

in the reclining posture. As he saw the same face here also, the AzhvAr started

thinking about the similarity and came to the conclusion that the same person,

who was standing in Ooragam and sitting in PAdagam, is now lying on a bed here

in VehkA.

8) This remembrance made a strong impression in the mind of the AzhvAr. He came

to the discovery that the Lord has stabilized Himself in his mind and this

remembrance started like a small stream and slowly took a shape of a big river.

The AzhvAr too started enjoying the Lord within his mind.

9) That was the starting point for the AzhvAr and soon he realized the true

nature of his Atma, which is an indwelling place for the Lord. There also the

Lord was taking different postures, like standing, sitting and lying as the Lord

did in the three places where the Azhvar had seen Him.

10) That became a permanent feature and the Azhvar could not forget Him even for

a moment, because of the compassion of the Lord.

The AzhvAr links the first realization of the Lord’s presence in his mind to

his real birth. Before that he was like an acEtana (a material object without

consciousness). Now, when he continues to keep his mind on the beautiful figure

of the Lord, he could not come out of that thought. That is, he is in deep

meditation.

Here, the AzhvAr’s state of mind is similar to the one of Sri NammAzhvAr, as

he states in these words:

“appanai enRu maRappan? ennAkiyE

thapputhalinRith thanaik kavi than colli†(Thiruvaimozhi, 7-9-4)

(Will I ever forget Him? He became me to get verses sung about Himself without

any mistakes?)

Only then, the AzhvAr felt that he is really born as his dharma-bhoota-j~nAna

(attributive knowledge) expanded. This birth is the best one and thereafter

there is no memory loss.

Till the time he did not have the knowledge about the Lord’s presence in him,

he had not been born. In spite of taking several births earlier, he remained

ignorant and so he was not really living. The same point is conveyed by the

Scripture:

“asannEva sa bhavati / asad brhamEti vEd cEt / asti brahmEti cEdvEda /

santamEnam tatO vidhuh //†(Taittiriyopanishad, Anandavalli-6)

(If one knows that Brhman is not, he himself becomes non-existent. If any one

knows that Brahman does exist, then they think that he is existing on account of

that.)

The Lord has spoken about it in the Gita:

“sarvasya cAham hrudi sannivishTO mattah smrutir-j~nAnam-apOhanam ca /

vEdaiSca sarvairahamEva vEdyO vEdAnta-krud-vEdavidEva cAham //â€

(Bhagavadgita, 15-11)

(I am well established in the hearts of all. From Me come memory, knowledge and

their loss also. I alone am to be known from all the Vedas. I bring into being

the results of the rituals of the Vedas, and I alone am the knower of the

VEdas.)

As stated by the Lord, it is only due to His grace the jIva gets the knowledge

and not by his efforts. Hence, there is no chance of forgetting that knowledge.

When the interest in the Lord appears in one’s mind, he gets his existence and

when it does not, he is non-existent.

“ninRathum irunthathum kidanthathum en nenjuLE†---

(He stood, sat and lying in my heart.)

By this expression, therefore, the AzhvAr conveys that as a deep love for Him

develops in one’s mind, the Lord establishes Himself in his heart and takes

the postures He took in those kshEtras, namely, Ooragam, PAdakam and VehkhA and

makes my birth as the best.

This is the gift of our AchAryas who imparted the ashTAkashara mantra to us,

says SwAmi Desikan.

 

 

(To continue)

dAsan

Anbil S.SrInivasan

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