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Sri Hari
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Sri Hari
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Premika Bhavanam, Chennai
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Sri Swamigal has been rendering ‘Upanyãsam’ (discourses), in Tamizh, in Premika Bhavanam. This is being brought to you here. There may appear to be variations in the ‘tense’ of the language. This is due to the fact that great effort has been taken to maintain the original style of the ‘Upanyãsam’. Therefore, we request you to keep this in mind while reading the translated ‘words’ of Sri Swamigal.
Sri Swamigal,
"JAI JAI GOVINDA JAYA HARI GOVINDA!
"Rangesamãmpãhi! Rangesamãmpãhi! Rangesamãmpãhi! Rangapprabho! "HARE RÃMA HARE RÃMA RÃMA RÃMA HARE HARE
"
Ãzhi mazhaikanna onrunee kaikaravel
Our ancestors have shown us that Varuna is the rain god. Ãndãl who had never attended any school speaks with deep clarity the findings of the modern day scientists. Here, in this above Pãsuram, she details how the rain should pour down. She first says, ‘pãzhiyam tholludaiyap padmanãbankaiyil’ and only then utters the words, ‘ãzhipol minni, valampuripol ninradirndu’. The Swamy explains here, “it is the man’s valor that first attracts a woman. No lady likes a man who lacks courage.” Therefore, Ãndãl speaks of the ‘bhuja bala’ (the power of the arms) of the Lord in ‘pãzhiyam tholludaiyap padmãbankaiyil’ before listing out the weapons held in His hands. Of what use are weapons in the hands of a man who lacks muscle power? He will be unable to use them. Ãndãl elucidates, ‘how will the most courageous use the Shankh (conch), chakra (wheel), gadha held in his hands?’ There is no history of a Vishnu bhakta or Krishna Bhakta trapped in a dangerous situation; nor is there any history of a Vishnu bhakta bestowed with a boon caught in some peril. Jayadrada, a devotee of Lord Siva, performs Tapas and the Lord appears before him. Lord Siva, “Oh! Bhakta! What boon do you seek of me?” Jayadrada immediately appeals, “Bless me with a ‘pãsupadãsthra’ that you have blessed Arjuna with, my Lord!” Lord Siva bestows him with this particular weapon. However, Lord Siva asks him, “Against whom are you going to use this?” Jayadrada, “Against Arjuna!” Lord Siva at once takes the weapon back from him and says, “This will not work against Arjuna. You will go about saying that Lord Siva gave the weapon and the world will scoff at me. It will only earn a bad name for me. So, I cannot give this to you for use against Arjuna.” Surprised, Jayadrada questions, “Why will it not work against Arjuna?” “ ‘Pratya Narãyana Prabhuh!’ Since Narãyana is his Lord no one can harm Arjuna.” explains Lord Siva. This Padmanabha (Lord Vishnu) is extremely strong.
Yesterday’s pãsuram was,
Today we take up,
‘Mayanai mannu vadamadurai maindanai’ - Bhãva Bakti is different from the bhakti of the Vedantis. The Vedantis who nurture the desire to attain ‘jivan mukti’ state will not worship a ‘form’. They will not care for the ‘form’ of Bhagavãn. However, if the Vedantis do perform such worship of a ‘form’ or some ‘satkãrya’ (good work) it is only with the aim of purifying their minds and hearts. ‘Siddha suddhi’ is required for attaining Jnãna. So, it is purely with the intention of cleansing their thoughts that they undertake worship (‘upãsana’) of some god or go on a pilgrimage or take bath in holy rivers. In the course of their spiritual practice they ignore the visions that appear and the ‘shabda’ (sound) heard as these are only temporal features. Instead, the Vedantis look out for the one who sees or hears them. But how does ‘bhãva’ grow? Only on thinking of Bhagavãn repeatedly. Since Vedantis suppress their thoughts they will not experience any ‘bhãva’. While wandering about Chaitanya Mahaprabhu’s would catch sight of the sand on the earth. Immediately he would swoon! The reason for this is that it is out of the sand that an instrument akin to ‘dholki’ is made in Puri Jaganãtha Kshetra for use in bhajan. As soon his vision falls on the sand chain of thoughts would arise in him, “Is it not out of sand that the ‘dholki’ for bhajan is made in Puri? Is it not Bhagavan nãma chanted then? The Sadhus sing Bhagavan Nãma.” His mind would then recollect all the Sadhus who sing Bhagavan Nãma. Deep joy springs up with the very thought of the Sadhus; this becomes unbearable for him and he immediately swoons! How is the heart of a Bhakta? It is like a waterfall. Innumerable thoughts about Bhagavãn keep rising in his heart in waves, one after another. How is the heart of a Jnãni? It is like a stagnant pond. It is very calm. It rests in the ‘swaroopa’. So, it is ‘bhava’ which is predominant in a bhakta’s heart. ‘Bhava’ is thoughts connected with Bhagavãn, imagination, ‘rasokthis’, Bhagavãn’s compassion, the divine Lila of Bhagavãn. Since the Bhakta is ever thinking of Bhagavãn such imaginations rise up from his heart. ‘Bhava Bhakti’ is very rare. One does not get to hear of a Vedanti filled with emotion. Whereas, if we take up the life history of Bhaktas like Meera, Ãndãl, Chaitanya Mahaprabhu, Ramakrishna Paramahamsa we find them dancing, crying out and pining for Bhagavãn. Therefore, the state (‘rithi’) of a Bhakta is different from that of a Vedanti. A Bhakta can understand the state of a Vedanti but a Vedanti cannot comprehend the state of a Bhakta. But how does a Vedanti look? He appears like a crazy person. The Bhakta is filled with tears in his eyes. When a person listens to divine stories (‘katha sravana’) or perform Nãma Sankeertan for Bhagavãn or involves himself in Bhagavat worsip or entertain thought of Bhagavãn he feels moved. Bhakti will not be fruitful without the constant thought (‘smarana’) of Bhagavãn. Suppose we have an idol of Krishna, which we worship. Our Bhakti is successful only when we accept this idol as Bhagavãn and feel immensely grateful to have obtained the opportunity to worship the Lord and enjoy every moment of the worship. When we worship the ‘Pãduka’ of our Guru we should imagine that our Guru is standing there, feel the presence of His Lotus Feet, welcome Him, prostrate to Him, seek permission from Him and then perform the worship. Then and only then will the worship be fruitful. Instead, if we have some idol on which we pour some water as just another act without any feeling of devotion what difference will there be between ‘abhisheka’ and pouring water over an ordinary stone nearby? Both will be the same - pouring the water over an idol kept for worship and over an ordinary stone. So, it is only ‘bhava’ that is bhakti. One cannot forcefully acquire such ‘bhavas’ through imagination. Such a forced, imaginative bhava will be only artificial. Bhava should be forthcoming naturally and should be ‘rasokti’ and ‘sãtvic’. One acquires such ‘rasokti’ and ‘sãtvic’ bhava only through the grace of God or Guru because it is an art. Suppose we see a beautiful picture and desire to draw one. We may possess the desire but will not be able to draw one as imaginative and beautiful as the one drawn by a fine artist. When we hear a good musician we may desire to sing like him/her but we cannot render such highly refined music. The reason for this is that it is an art. There are some born to enjoy arts while there are those who are themselves the artists. It is the same when we speak of ‘bhava bhakti’. It is very rare. If we ‘dream up’ such bhakti towards Bhagavãn and try our hands in it, it would prove to be fateful. Hence, ‘sãtvic’ and ‘rasa roopa’ bhavas should be born towards Bhagavãn. A Bhakta performs ‘Thirumanjanam’ with milk for Lord Krishna. He stops the worship unfinished. When questioned by a man sitting beside him, the Bhakta explains, “It is my practice to perform ‘Thirumanjanam’ only on Ekadasi (11th day from the full/new moon) but today it is full moon”. The other man asks, “How do you say that it is full moon today?” The Bhakta explains, “I can see the full moon.” The man clarifies, “No, it is not full moon but Krishna’s face that appears to be like full moon! Today is Ekadasi and not full moon. So, you are right in performing ‘Thirumanjanam’ today.” This is a ‘bhava’. Such ‘bhavas’ should be born from the heart (‘spurikannum’) otherwise Bhakti is of no use. This is the reason that Mahãns like Shridara, Vallabãchãrya who have enjoyed Ramayana, Bhãgavatam have given us infinite picturesque explanations. As one would dive deep into the ocean and bring back pearls so, too, have Mahãns dived deep into the Epics and brought out such enjoyable explanations, in their bhava, for us. Even the original Texts do not seem to consist much as do the commentaries (‘vyãkyãna’) that have been written at later times! Only on reading these commentaries is one able to appreciate the glory of and marvel at Bhãgavatam, Ramayana, Thiruppãvai and such other Ãzhwãrs’ Texts (‘granthãs’). It makes us wonder whether the authors themselves had possessed such ‘bhavas’ while writing them! So, ‘Bhava’ is only Bhakti. So, what does one who desires such ‘bhavas’ but does not possess, do? This is the reason that we sing Ãndãl’s Thiruppãvai and enjoy Bhagavãn the way Mahãns had enjoyed Him.We need not fret about not possessing such ‘bhavas’. It will do if we are blessed to enjoy the writings of the Mahãns. How deeply have they all enjoyed Bhagavãn? They have all enjoyed the Lord in innumerable ways. Thiagaraja Swami sings in his keertan, ‘bhakti bhiksham eeyave’. We tell others, “Be devoted to God. Do bhakti. Why are you without any bhakti for the Lord. Do bhakti. Become a Bhakta.” But how will they do it? What is bhakti? Is bhakti so easy? The least the person so advised may do is go to a temple, do pradakshina and prostrate to Bhagavãn. But how will one attain Bhakti? It is acquired only by the grace of the Guru or the Lord. One cannot gain bhakti through one’s own effort because it is not an act. It is a feeling. If this feeling has to rise from deep within, it needs the grace of the Lord. This is because it is ‘sadhana roopa’. Suppose we ask a man to clap his hands he can clap his hands. If asked to stand he will be able to obey; if asked to sit, yes, he can do so immediately. But if he is asked to cry for a while he cannot cry. A situation should arise which will bring tears in his eyes. In such despair even if asked to stop he will not be able to contain his tears. Likewise, if a man is asked to feel joyful how can he feel so unless such a situation arises? So, all these are feelings. The same way bhakti is also a feeling. We cannot ‘imagine’ the feeling of bhakti. We cannot forcefully create one in us. Then what should we do to acquire bhakti? Well! One needs such an atmosphere (‘sangam’). If we remain in the company of a Mahãn who deeply pines for Bhagavãn, the same feeling of bhakti takes hold of us, too. A cotton kept close to the fire catches fire immediately, a stone takes a longer time while a piece of wood takes some time to catch fire. The time taken to catch fire depends on the material involved. So it is in the case of those who go to a Mahãn. The ‘feelings’ of the Mahãn take hold of the person who comes to His proximity depending on his (person’s) inner maturity. This is so because it is a ‘feeling’. If we happen to visit a place of bereavement where the atmosphere is sorrow filled we, too, feel sad. The feeling of sorrow remains with us even after leaving the place. When someone asks us, “Why do you look so sorrowful?” we inform that we had been to a place of mourning. Since everyone in such a place is filled with sorrow a wave of grief spreads there. So, we are also grief-stricken. Suppose we visit a marriage party where all are wearing silk saris, are chatting cheerfully, laughing about, are very joyful then we also feel very happy. This is because in such a place all are cheerful. In the same way, when we frequently visit a place where the atmosphere is bhakti filled with everyone weeping and pining for Bhagavãn, we also develop such a feeling gradually even without our knowledge. So, in ‘bhava bhakti’ tears of joy flow incessantly out of deep love experienced in the heart, horripilation is experienced, a shiver, pain is experienced in the body, one swoons, hairs on the body stand erect, blood oozes out of the skin pores. The shastra ‘Sankeetha Rathnãkaram’ written by a native of West Bengal thus details the nineteen different states of a Bhakta. It is rare, indeed, to find even one such sign (‘lakshana’) in a Bhakta - either incessant flow of tears of joy, horripilation or swoon. But all the nineteen signs of bhakti bhava have been experienced only by the highest ‘adhikãriis’ like Ramakrishna Paramahamsa, Chaitanya Mahaprabhu, Radharani/ Ãndãl. ‘Bhava bhakti’ is thus a very high state. How does such a Bhakta look like? In the eyes of the world a Jnãni and a lazy man seem the same! A Jnãni does not sleep. He does not need food and does not entertain any feeling for wearing good clothing or maintaining his health, etc. Only if he finds a world apart from himself is there a need for any activity. A lazy man is also the same. But, a Jnãni is in ‘ananda’ (bliss) while a lazy man is in ‘tamo guna’ (darkness). In the same way a Bhakta and a madman seem alike! A madman sings, dances about and falls down; so does a Bhakta! But the difference lies in the fact that the madman’s heart is filled with grief and others around him also suffer agony while the Bhakta’s heart is filled with ‘ananda’ and ‘prema’ (love). People around him are also filled with ‘ananda and ‘prema’. Wherever Bhaktas moves about they make the people around them happy and joyful. Happiness and joy spreads from them to all around because joy is ever flowing from their hearts. Ramakrishna Paramahamsa was in such kind of experience. Seeing his high state of Bhakti even Hriday and Mathur Babu who were very closely associated with him suspected his mental stability. They wondered if he had lost his senses. But what happened? Vivekananda arrived. In the North where ‘Melãs’ are conducted innumerable sanyãsis participate. If one watches the Television coverage of such ‘Melãs’ one can find thousands of Guru Maharajs moving about in palanquins with thousands of followers behind them. During Vivekananda’s time there had been innumerable such Sadhus. Vivekananda had studied all the shastras. He possessed deep knowledge. He was a great scholar. Such highly learned, knowledgeable Vivekananda searches for Bhagavãn; searches for Truth. He has darshan of many Gurus. Amongst them were many who were more learned than he was. But he did not feel like doing ‘atma samarpana’ (surrender) to any of these gurus. He surrendered to Ramakrishna Paramahamsa, an illiterate who sang and danced about like a madman, who could not answer any query straight. To Vivekananda none else seemed bigger than Ramakrishna Parmahamsa. The reason for this is that where there is Truth (‘Satyam’) there the answer lies. Ramakrishna has elucidated high philosophies spoken by the Vedas, itihasa, puranas through innumerable tales. He was highly intelligent. ‘Bhava bhakti’ is rare (‘durlaba’), indeed. ‘Bhava’ is bhakti. Through the grace of Guru and Ishwara such ‘bhava bhakti’ is born. The ‘grantãs’ of Mahãns are for us to read, enjoy and imbibe the ‘bhava’ experienced by them. When we read through Dãsar’s kritis we find his ‘bhava’. What does Thiagaraja Swamy say in the ‘charana’ of his song, ‘Bhakti bhiksham eeyave’? ‘You are doing puja without bhakti. Seek bhakti as alms!’ Suppose a bhakta is performing sadhana, japa and dhyãna. All of a sudden he will be seized with the doubt if he really possesses devotion; He will wonder, “Shall I seek bhakti as alms? From whom shall I seek bhakti?” so on and so forth. Thiagaraja Swamy was seized with this kind of a feeling. “I keep doing japa of Rama! Rama! I do not know how to cry or pine for the Lord! Who will give me bhakti as alms?” So, it is only Guru or Ishwara who bestows this on us. But one should not sit idly entertaining the thought that if it is Guru or Ishwara who bestows this on us then let it happen as and when He desires to pass it on to us. Because only who asks gets it. There are so many going on the street. We do not give food to all those go about on the street. It is only to the one who comes to the doorstep and begs do we offer food. So only the one who demands gets it. Therefore, ‘bhakti bhiksham eeyave’. Give me bhakti as alms. Thiagaraja says, “The puja performed without bhakti is like decorating the corpse.” It is similar to adorning the corpse with silk clothing and applying sandal paste to it. Thus, a sadhana bereft of bhakti is utterly useless. When a man performs either a puja or Nama Sankeertana or any other kind of worship without devotion it will amount to a farce and Bhagavãn will not be the least pleased with it. One should, therefore, earn deep bhakti. And for this we should perceive the ‘bhava’ of Mahãns. We should note how Nãchhiar (Ãndãl) has enjoyed Bhagavãn; how Meera has enjoyed Bhagavãn; go through their ‘grantãs’ and learn to do bhakti. It is then that with the grace of Guru/Bhagavãn such a ‘bhava bhakti’ will be born in our hearts.
‘Mãyanai’ - The Swamy writes a long commentary on this single term (‘padam’).
The reason for this is Vishnu Himself is a ‘mãyavi’ (one who creates illusion). And in Krishna-avatãr,
at every step, right from His birth there are countless wonders. Not just from His birth but even before
His birth! The Lord declares to Brahma ‘Vasudeva grahe sãkshãt Bhagavãn purushah parah
janishyate tatpriyãrtham sambhavanthu surastriyah ‘ - should He not have stopped with it?
During ‘ratosava’ a voice from above speaks on what is awaiting Kamsa,
‘Mannu vadamadurai maindanai’ - Ãndãl has sung the ‘Param’ (the highest-Sri Vaikuntam) in the first Pãsuram; secondly, the ‘Vyooham’ (the state of Bhagavãn in the ocean of divine milk [‘Ksheerãbdi’] ); thirdly, the ‘Vibhavam’ (the avatãr of Bhagavãn) and the fourth pãsuram has come about ‘prasangãth’ and now the fifth speaks of the ‘archai’ (the idol form). So, Vadamadurai maindanai. ‘Mayanai Mannu vadamadurai maindanai’ - while writing the commentary on this the Swamy refers to the holy place of ‘Thirukannapuram’ - ‘Sowrirãjam aham vande sadã sarvãnga sundaram’. He takes up Sowriraja Perumal of Kannapuram who is sung as ‘Kannapurathu karumaniye’ (the ‘eye’[pupil] of Kannapuram). The Swamy puts forth a query here and answers it himself. “While speaking of ‘Vadamadurai’ I refer to Thirukannapuram here. Is this right?” “I have named Vadamadurai (Mathura) as Thirukannapuram in Tamizh! We keep saying Vadamadurai but since it is the birthplace of Lord Krishna we call it Thirukannapuram (Krishna is called Kannan in Tamizh)!” The first of the ten Mokshapuris (bestower of liberation) is Mathura. Mathura includes Vrindãvan, Gokula, etc. Mathura covers a distance of eighty-four ‘yojanas’. The foremost amongst these is Mathura. Ayodhi, Avanti, Kanchi come only later. Once, all the Devatas (gods) of these Mokshapuris assembled together. While debating who was the greatest of them all, Mathura sat on the throne while the rest served ‘Mathura’ in different ways. One showed camphor ãrati, another waved the wafter and so on. But Ayodhi alone refused to offer any kind of service to Mathura. Ayodhi said, “If Krishna’s birth has made you great I am no less in greatness, for, Rama was born in me. So I refuse to do any service to you! Why should I server you?” Mathura calmly explained, “ Rama was in Chitrakoot. The only joyful scene in Ramayana is Chitrakoot. Here Rama lived happily with Sita. The whole scene of Chitrakoot is very delightfully described. Mandakini river flows close by. This part of Ramayana - Chitrakoot - depicts how a couple could live in harmony with mutual love and affection, without giving up either the worldly life or spiritual life, and lead a ‘dharmic’ life. To lead a life of dharma does not mean sacrificing marital pleasures (‘rãsikyamãna’) to perform (only) japa and dhyãna nor does it mean sacrificing spiritual matters to enjoy worldly pleasures. When we look at how the couple led their life here, we find that Rama holds Sita’s hands and shows her the mountain filled with various coloured sand. The peacock dances and the cuckoo sings. Sita runs about enjoying them and points to Rama, “Did you see the beautiful dance of the peacock? Can you hear the melodious singing of the cuckoo?” But Rama’s glance is fixed on Sita. So, Sita asks Rama, “Are these not attracting you?” Rama says, “The way you run about enjoying the dance of the peacock and describe the singing of the cuckoo with your soft lips are much more attractive to me! You enjoy the peacocks and the cuckoos and I will enjoy the enjoyer of the peacock dance and the cuckoo’s singing!” During this time in Chitrakoot the Lord does not speak to Lakshmana. He is always with Sita. This is because Lakshmana being a man would go about speaking with the forest dwellers and the hunters. He wandered about independently. Sita could not speak to Lakshmana. The only company for her was Rama. Moreover, Lakshmana was a prince. It is in the nature of a prince to hunt in the forest, face any danger that may arise. This is the dharma of a prince. But it was not so for Sita. She was used to walking only on silk carpets Therefore, Rama’s company was the only comfort for Sita, who was sharing with them all their tribulations in the forest. Whenever time permitted Rama gave company to Sita. In the evenings Rama spoke the glory of the Mandãkini river and said, “The whole day we have spent our time in enjoyment. It is dusk now. Great Mahãtmãs have bathed in this holy river of Mandãkini. Agasthya Maharishi has bathed in this river. Both of us will bathe in this river and perform ‘brahma vichhãra’ (enquiry of the Self). Let us meditate.” Rama and Sita, thus lead a pleasurable life in Chitrakoot but without giving up spiritual matter. One should enjoy worldly pleasures without giving up dharma. It is not necessary to give up worldly matters for living according to dharma nor is it necessary to give up dharma for enjoying worldly comforts. They enjoy worldly comforts even while leading a dharmic life. The next day Rama and Sita play the game of Indian ludo. They come to an understanding that the winner will tie up the loser. Rama loses the game as his whole concentration was on Sita and not in the game. Here, Valmiki writes, “Rama’s arrows proved futile in the presence of the sharpness of Sita’s glance!” Entranced by her glance Rama was making all wrong moves. Sita had made a garland of jasmine flowers. Sita takes hold of Rama by His hands and drags Him to where the jasmine garland is kept. Valmiki describes, “It seemed like a lion being dragged by a deer!” The imposing Rama was being led by the soft creeper-like Sita! The Lord, too, bound by the ‘pranaya kalaga’ follows her. Sita ties up Rama to a tree with the garland of flowers! Rama, too, stands there until Sita herself unties the flower rope. Later, in Ashoka vana, Sita tells this to Hanuman while the latter takes her message to Rama. The Rama who was in Chitrakoot says, “I have forgotten Ayodhya. I do not want Ayodhya. This Chitrakoot is enough for me!” Here, Mathura points this out to Ayodhya, “As soon as Rama went to Chitrakoot he had forgotten you. Whereas, our Krishna wherever he goes keeps claiming that no place is as great as his Mathura or Gokula. Hence, I am indeed greater than you are. There is no iota of doubt in this. Therefore, it is not wrong if you do serve me. ‘Mãyanai mannu vadamadurai maindanai’ - Vadamadurai (Mathura) claims such fame. " Page 1 Page 2
NOTE: Any discrepancy/lapse in the translated version of the Upanyasam is the sole responsibility of the person/s who translated the work from Tamizh into English.
Radhe Krishna |
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Thiruppãvai - Day Five (PAGE 1) 