Hari OM
'Text-days' are
for delving into the words and theory of Advaita Vedanta.
TATTVABODHAH.
[You are reminded
that reviewing the previous week's posts will become essential as the meanings
of the Sanskrit terms may not be repeated. There may come additional or
alternative meanings, but all should be noted. As study progresses, the
technical terms must necessarily become 'second nature' to the student. When
the Sanskrit is used, the translation will fall easily into place - or
likewise, if the English is used, the Sanskrit term must easily come forwards.]
Please revisit last week’s post and
chant the mangala-charana. Think again on the meaning. Seek to focus on the subject.
Let us now look at the mangala as
an exercise in breaking into the translation. Recall the different types of
mangala described two weeks back and consider where this mangala sits compared
to those descriptions. …remember that any
text you enter requires that you have some idea of how the translation and
therefore the interpretation have been derived. This may seem like ‘hard work’
at first, but actually all subjects require this intellectual approach to
fulfill them… for example, you can look at and appreciate art as it hits your
eye – or you can engage with it, get beneath its surface to understand more
than its ‘at glance’ offering. Sanskrit is a highly contextual and yet
supremely precise language. Many words
have multiple colourations according to the context in which they are applied.
Conversely, there are words which have one meaning in all contexts. Further, for any one context there can be
multiple words. Here at Aatmaavrajanam it is not at all expected that you learn
Sanskrit per se; however, there is no escaping the need to understand how it is
‘broken’ down.**
Vaasu – that which resides
Deva – principle of consciousness
Indra – being the power which
enlivens all functions (‘king of’)
VASUDEVENDRA – the Lord/king which
resides as the consciousness of all.
Yogi – one who practices yoga
(which, you will recall, means ‘union’ – not contortionism!)
Indra – being the power which
enlivens all functions (‘king of’)
YOGIINDRA – the Lord/king of the
practice of union with the Self
NATVAA – having prostrated/saluted
Jnaana – knowledge
Pradam – bestower, giving blessing
Gu – darkness
Ru – remover
JNAANAPRADAMGURUM – the one who
gives the blessing of removing the darkness of our ignorance. How? By bestowing
knowledge to light our way.
This is the first paada of the
shloka. Having broken down the individual words which make up the sentence we
can reconstruct it as “having saluted Vasudevendra, the King of the Yogis, the
guru” and we can begin to appreciate the type of mangala this is. We see here
an acknowledgement of the Higher in form of ‘lord’, we see acknowledgement of
the teacher. (…did you take notes? Check
back!)
Mumukshuunaam – ardent seekers
Hitaarthaaya – for the benefit of
(in the assistance of)
TattvabodhaH – (the understanding
of truth) this text
Abhi - is being
Dhiiyate –given/presented
Thus with the second paada of the
shloka we have “for those who seek deeply, this text by this name is being
given”. Thus we find the subject matter is addressed as well as the type of
reader expected to gain from the perusal thereof.
This brings up another technical
construction called the अनुबन्ध चतुष्टय/anubandha chatushtaya. All modern text books will give
the name and level of the text – “Chemistry, Module 4” – so that, instantly, it
is clear that students who have a need to utilise chemistry may benefit from
the text, provided they have read and understood modules 1 to 3! Similarly, the anubandha guides the reader
and lays out the expectation of subject, purpose and for whom it is meant.
Anu – after
Bandha – binding/connection
Chatur – four
Taya – to begin
“The four points after knowing
which you get connected.”
What are the four preliminaries
then?
- अधिकार/Adhikaari – eligibility (one who has the ability); the one for whom the text is intended
- विषय/Vishaya – the content of the text, the subject matter
- प्रयोजन/Prayojana – expected outcome – i.e. purpose, the goal of the text which follows
- संबन्ध/Sambandha – relationship (of the text with the purpose).
This is applied to all texts. How does it apply to TattvabodhaH? Who
is the adhikaari? The mumukshu. What is the content of the text? Tat (that) Tva (‘ness’, the essence of) Bodha
(understanding of/knowledge). What is the purpose, what is the expectation
of achievement from reading this text? That
the mumukshu is helped in their process of obtaining the understanding provided
here. What is the connection between text and the purpose stated? For TattvabodhaH
this is straightforward – the text is a simple statement of its own goal; there
is something (that) which is beyond description yet must be approached with
many words in order to gain its essence.
We find that the anubandha is
satisfied within the mangala-charana. The reader for whom it is intended is
thus ‘primed’, interest sparked and the promise of a worthwhile outcome in
pursuing the study of the text. The adhikaari for this text is one who seeks
Knowledge for Knowledge’s sake. What is the Knowledge here? Liberation. From what? The bondage we call ‘life’.
Freedom from bondage of external circumstances and/or the inner limitations. This
is called मोक्ष/moksha. The whole of Vedanta is presented for this purpose!
**NB very soon, an additional ‘page’
will be added to blog containing the Devanagari script so that those who have a
desire to be able to chant from the original can at least recognize the words…
all adds to the fun of learning!