In his Varadaraja Stavam, Kooratazhvan gives niravadhi and niramha as qualities of Lord Varadaraja of Kanchi. Niramha means absence of undesirable qualities. Nirvadhya means He has no doshas. So both niravadhi and niramha mean the same. So why did Kooratazhvan use two different words to describe the same quality? He was a great scholar, and unless the two words could be explained differently, he would not have used them, said Valayapet Ramachariar in a discourse.
Niravadhi means Varadaraja is blemishless. Niramha means that those who worship Him also end up blemishless. In his Meivrata Mahatmyam, Vedanta Desika records Brahma’s reaction upon seeing Lord Varadaraja. Brahma said he could no longer find his terrible sins (kadu vinaikal) the moment he saw Varadaraja. So, the moment one sees Varadaraja, one’s sins vanish. Kooratazhvan attributes to Varadaraja all qualities of the Supreme One, thus indicating that Varadaraja is Brahman.
Kooratazhvan uses the word ‘sadaa’ (always) in verse 12, while describing His qualities, and sadaa can be prefixed before every quality of His. So He is sadaa niravadhi, sadaa niramha and so on. The Supreme One is unchanging, in terms of appearance and qualities. Varadaraja too is unchanging in any respect. Those who have witnessed His festivals over the years know this. Suppose a regular visitor to the temple is unable to go to a festival one year, he can visualise the entire procession, for he knows that nothing will vary. The alankara of the deity for each day remains fixed. So, if He is on the hamsa vahana, the absent devotee knows He will be clad in white, with the crown made by His devotee Venkatadri. Decorations remain the same every year, and so here we find changelessness.
Bringing one’s palms together and doing an anjali to Lord Narayana is the easiest way to worship Him, said Akkarakkani Srinidhi in a discourse. This simple act is enough to please Him. Alavandar, in his Stotra Ratnam, says that whoever offers an anjali to the Lord, at whatever time of the day, and even if he were to do this only once, it is enough to wipe out all his sorrows, and to contribute to his welfare. Alavandar, addressing the Lord, says that an anjali offered to Him will never be in vain. As Alavandar points out, the beauty of anjali is that anyone can do it. There are no rules about when to do it. No special rituals are to be followed to do an anjali. And yet, there are those who do not even do this simple act. Nammazhvar says that it is their fate that keeps them from doing that which is good for them.
In the Yuddha Kanda of Valmiki Ramayana, Rama tells Sugreeva that should a man approach one with folded palms (anjali), then regardless of whether that man is an enemy, or a beggar, or one seeking refuge, he should not be killed. Anjali is saranagati (surrender) through the body. Valmiki’s use of the word ‘deena,’ indicates surrender through the manas, and the poet’s use of the word ‘yaacantam’ indicates surrender through one’s words.
Vedanta Desika, in his Anjali Vaibhavam, says that if the Lord were about to punish us for our sins, we must direct towards Him the weapon known as anjali! The Lord will melt with compassion and drop the idea of punishing us. Every act has a purpose, but once we achieve our target, we no longer continue the same task. But when you do anjali, you get moksha, and in Sri Vaikuntha, what does one do, but offer anjali to the Lord? So anjali is something that continues even after the goal (moksha) is attained.
In this world, the course of karma is not easily understood. Even the devas are not able to comprehend the wonderful effect of actions. This is Vyasa’s observation on karma when Janamejaya seeks clarification about the law of karma in the Devi Bhagavata Purana, pointed out Sri K. Srinivasan in a discourse. Sastras explain that it is through karma that everything had its origin when the universe comprising the three gunas was created. The seed of karma has always been in existence with no beginning or end. The individual embodied soul, jiva, also arose along with karma. These jivas are born again and again owing to karma, and only when the karma ceases, the jiva is free from the cycle of birth. That is, the jiva no longer will be associated with the body.
Vyasa further added that the sages of yore have said that the Karmas done by the Jivas are of three kinds, auspicious, Satvik karma, inauspicious, Tamasic karma, and the mixed, Rajasic karma. These are further subdivided into three types: Sanchita, accumulated; Bhavishya, to be experienced in the future; and Prarabdha, already commenced. These karmas are always associated with the body. All embodied beings from Brahma onwards to the smallest ant are under the influence of karma. When the jiva undergoes pain, pleasure, old age disease and death, and whenever it gives vent to feelings of anger, hatred, etc, it is all owing to the karma effects. This is also called Fate. These are also linked to one’s past likes or dislikes.
Karma is the cause of the sun’s movement across the skies and of the moon’s waxing and waning cycles. Also, this entire universe comprising the movable and the immovable appears real owing to karma and its effects. That is why sages engaged in meditation to ascertain if the universe is real or not point out the presence of Maya.
The Vedas are timeless, with no specific author. The Vedas are profound, and cannot be easily understood. The help of a learned preceptor is needed to help one comprehend the full implication of any Vedic passage. There is a famous sloka, which says itihasa puranabhyam vedam samupabrmhayet. That means that one must study the Itihasas and Puranas, in addition to the Vedas. The reason is to enable a correct interpretation of the Vedas, said M.A. Venkatakrishnan in a discourse.
Of the two, Itihasas are given more importance, which is why they are mentioned first. Actually, there is a Paninian sutra, which says that when two words are being enunciated, the one with fewer letters must come first. In the case of Itihasa and Purana, the word ‘Purana’ has fewer letters. And yet Itihasa is used first. It may seem as if the Paninian rule is being flouted here, but it is not so. Panini maharishi also said that when two things are being spoken of, that which is superior must come first. So, when viewed in terms of this rule, it is only proper that Itihasa should precede Purana in a sloka.
But why are Itihasas superior to Puranas? Itihasa simply means that what happened was being reported. It is an account of something that took place at the very time when it took place. Itihasa means “This is what happened.” So, the chance of interpolations or additions are not there in the case of Itihasas. We have two Itihasas in Sanskrit — Ramayana and Mahabharata. Purana is the narration of something that happened long ago, and so the chance of some inaccuracies in presentation is possible. Puraa means “long back.” Purana means an account of long past events, which, however, seem to the listener or reader as if they are something relevant in the present.
The Bhagavad Gita is called Smriti Prasthana as it is part of the Mahabharata. Smritis derive their teaching from Sruti, the Vedas and the Upanishads, believed to be the source of all esoteric and metaphysical knowledge. So Sruti is revealed scripture, unlike Smriti that teaches the essence of the Vedas through divine incarnations, sages, etc.
In the section on Karma Yoga, when Krishna explains the path of karma, Arjuna has many doubts about the relative efficacy of Karma and Jnana. Adi Sankara’s Gita Bashya provides precise clarifications on such issues when the nuances of Vedic karma and dharma that people are expected to uphold with faith at all costs are clearly explained, pointed out Nannilam Sri V. Rajagopala Ganapadigal in a discourse. The Vedas have ordained two paths, Pravritti and Nivritti, to guide the active life of people, both as an individual pursuing spiritual goal and as a member in a social set up. Both paths are meant to lead to salvation. Pravritti dharma entails one to follow the worldly path and seek salvation, while Nivritti dharma is rooted in renunciation of the worldly aims. Both are meant to serve the needs of people born with inherent tendencies to either lead a life of action or of contemplation.
In other words, Pravritti pertains to ‘ashrama’ dharma and is the path shown by sages Marichi, Atri, Angiras and others. Nivritti is the path of renunciation and the jnana marga that the Sanatkumara sages exemplify. Those upholding Pravritti marga have been created to lead life to propagate the race; but still they lead disciplined lives and realise God by discharging the ordained duties in a detached and selfless manner without any personal gain or expectation. It is shown that Karma by itself cannot lead to salvation; but in the process of doing one’s karma one attains chitta suddhi and gains jnana by which he is likely to attain salvation.
In the Bhagavad Gita, Lord Krishna tells Arjuna about the nature of the body, what it is made up of, what is the purpose of the body, whether it is made of something material (jada) or of something intangible (ajada). But before He begins to explain about the body and the atma, He says that whatever He is going to say has already been said by sages and has been stated in the Vedas.
Moola prakrti is not a transformation of anything, but itself undergoes transformations. Take the example of gold. If gold is prakrti, then we do see it transforming into various kinds of jewellery. So, a bangle made of gold is a vikAra of gold. Can this bangle be the prakrti for something else? Yes, it can. So, some things have both the qualities of prakrti and vikrti. The five elements and the eleven indriyas belong to the category of just vikrti. In other words, they do not transform into anything else. So, everything in the Universe fits into one of these three categories — prakrti, prakrti-vikrti and vikrti, elaborated Valayapet Ramachariar in a discourse.
Kshetra, that is the body, is composed of the five elements — earth, water, fire, air and ether — and ahamkara, buddhi and prakrti. The Lord further says that the five karmendriyas, five jnanendriyas and manas are also present in the body. Desire and dislike are also in the body. However, this raises a question. Dislike, liking, pain and pleasure are experienced by the atma. So, how does the Lord say they are in the body? The reason is that without association with a body, the atma does not experience anything. So, the body is what makes the experience of sukha and dukkha possible for the atma. So, the question as to the purpose of the body is answered here. It makes possible experiences of various kinds for the atma.
Saint Vallalar prays for the company of the right people. He does not want to be associated with gossips, liars or those who argue all the time. He wants nothing but to sing the praises of Lord Shanmukha, who resides in the temple of Kanda Kottam, in the city of Chennai, elaborated M.A. Manickavelu in a discourse. Vallalar’s unshakeable faith in the Lord is evident in every verse of his Deiva Mani Malai. Such faith comes naturally to the jnani.
Vivekananda saw an idol of Lord Krishna being taken in a procession. “Look! Krishna is walking towards us!” Vivekananda exclaimed to the man beside him. But the man was skeptical. So Vivekananda put his hand on his shoulder and the man immediately saw Krishna walking towards them! But the moment Vivekananda took his hands off the man’s shoulders, he no longer saw Krishna, but only an idol. That is because only jnanis can see God.
When Vivekananda met Ramakrishna Paramahamsa, he had a question for him. Vivekananda asked him if he had seen God.
To this Ramakrishna replied: “Yes, I have seen God. I have seen Him as clearly as I now see you.” No one had ever made such an assertion to Vivekananda and he was amazed at the statement. Ramakrishna further said that one can even talk to God.
People shed tears over their relatives. But how many shed tears to have a glimpse of God? If one cries for God, one can see him, assured Ramakrishna. Ramakrishna himself used to weep when he worshipped Goddess Kali. Saint Manickavachagar says in a verse that if one cries, one can reach Him.
Sundarar says that even if he forgot Lord Siva, his tongue would go on chanting His name.
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