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 THIS post and chant the mangala-charana. Think again on the
meaning. Seek to focus on the subject.
Now we begin the text proper.
We found, through the mangala verses, that the adhikaari
is one who has established saadhana chatushtaya. Surely then, more questions
must follow in order to satisfy the enquirer as to the nature of this study and
the prompt has come by mention of the saadhana... What is this qualification?
What exactly is this 'viveka'? Also, what is the Truth into which we must
enquire?
(NB: the longer
compound words, in transliterations will be broken with hyphens for ease of
reading when chanting. There are no question marks in Sanskrit, rather the very
words का, कः, किम् /kaa, kaH, kim are themselves the
query. Having had Swami-ji's example for the mangala verses, please now use the
gaps in the chant recordings for your own repetition practice.)
साधनचतुष्टयं किम् (?)
नित्यानित्यवस्तुविवेकः।
इहामुत्रार्थफलभोगविरागः।
शमादिषट्कसंपत्तिः।
मुमुक्षुत्वं चेत्ति।
saadhanacatuShTayaM
kim?
nityaanityavastuvivekaH.
Iha-amutra-artha-phala-bhoga-viraagaH.
Shamaadi-SaTka-saMpattiH.
mumukshutvaM
cetti.
"What
are the four-fold qualifications?
The
capacity to discriminate between permanent and impermanent;
Dispassion
to the enjoyment of fruits of one's actions here and hereafter;
The group
of six accomplishments beginning with shama;
And the
yearning for liberation."
नित्यानित्यवस्तुविवेकः
कः (?)
नित्यवस्त्वेकंब्रह्म
तद्व्यतिरिक्तं सर्वमनित्यम्।
अयमेव नित्यानित्यवस्तुविवेकः।
Nitya-anitya-vastu-vivekaH
kaH?
Nityavastv-ekaM-brahma
tad-vyatiriktaM sarvam-anityam.
ayameva
nitya-anitya-vastu-vivekaH.
"What
is meant by discrimination between permanent and impermanent?
The
Reality alone is eternal,
Everything
else is ephemeral;
This
conviction alone is the discrimination…"
Two are
given here as the first is very straight forward. The four key skills of a
spiritual student are the ability to discriminate correctly (viveka), to be
objective and not emotionally caught up (vairaagya), to be self-contained by
use of the six 'wealths' of personality (shamaadi-shatka-sampatti) and to have
the burning desire to progress to fullest spiritual end.
Easy
enough in words! It ought to be noted
here that almost the entirety of vedanta for most people is the practice and
application of the disciplines suggested here. Majority of the prakarana
grantha are for that purpose only - including this very one. TattvabodaH is to a large extent an
exploration of viveka, how to adopt it, what it implies and so on. Each text
will build on the foundation laid by the one before it so, just as learning the
multiplication tables in early school ensures easier grasp of higher maths,
those who learn well the basics of vedantic saadhana can only reap benefits.
Note the following for now (much elaboration will come in due course!);
Viveka does not mean that one
becomes calculating and neither must it be used as an excuse for sticking to an
idea or concept which can be demonstrated as erroneous by clearer thinking.
True viveka permits the thinker to think more.
Vairaagya is not an excuse to
become hard of heart or unfeeling. There are those who take up the
intellectualism of vedantic philosophy and use it as a barrier between
themselves and the world. This is a grave error. True vairaagya permits one to
interact and have an effect upon the world, yet not be touched or damaged by
it. For those who cry out 'how to be in the world but not of it?!', vairaagya
is the answer!
Shamaadi-shatka-sampatti are
six gems of wisdom for personal development.
Taking up self-assessment and adjustment based on these six can have
profound benefits. For now, simply list their names; shama (peace of spirit),
dama (peace of mind), uparati ('holding in'), titiksha (forbearance), shraddha
(faith) and samaadhana (meditative nature).
Mumukshatvam is, as already
mentioned, that state of spiritual hunger which drives one on in enquiry,
despite setbacks from within and without.
From this
then, clarity is sought as to the meaning of discrimination and the shishya
asks of the guru, what is this thing called viveka, determination of what is
permanent and what is not? Thus viveka is a little more elaborated. In simple
terms, discrimination is to assess two things or situations and make a decision
based upon the information gathered. Such basic assessment is available to all
animals; eat this or that? Chase this or that? Safe or unsafe?
Only
mankind, however, has the ability to use this talent in abstract terms. We can
use this skill to extrapolate much more than simple survival methods; it is
used not only to understand means of
living, but also a purpose in living.
Mankind has a sense of the ephemeral and has, with his intellectual capacity,
the opportunity to investigate the unseen.
The assessment between two perishable things is referred to as
anitya-anitya-viveka. Thus we are told that one who is truly seeking spiritual
freedom will be able to determine that there is something which may be
imperishable and thus we have nitya-anitya-viveka. The observant will note that
in Sanskrit, to make a word into its negative, the prefix 'a' is used.
Therefore 'anitya' is impermanent, ever-changing, and 'nitya' is the permanent,
that one thing which never, ever changes.
Never,
ever changes!
THAT can
only be the causeless cause. Absolutely everything else changes. Be it the
seconds of the day, or the turn of the cosmos. Change itself is a 'permanent
constant' in life! With well applied viveka, however, we can come to know
Brahman, That One upon which all change occurs, but which itself changes not.
The firm
determination of what changes and what does not is called viveka. What then is
this thing called 'dispassion'?
...next
week!...
Practice
your viveka. How? At this stage, ponder only on cause and effect. Effects can only arise by cause. The flame on
your gas hob, or the light in your bulb have a cause. Think on the cause of
that cause then… yes there will be the endless scientific, chemical and
physics-based explanations, but now you are giving mananam to that which causes
even those sciences to arise…