Application - that is what 'Workings-days' are about!
Saadhana-chatushtaya. The four rules of practice. You have read about these here, before. (See label in the sidebar.) The thing is, though, is that these are the workaday tools of practice. Having read them, now use them! Over these four posts of February, then, you will be prompted to make the s-c a part of your daily life, that they become second nature to you and do not remain as just concepts written in words upon a page, but activities within your every thought, word and deed.
मुमुक्षुत्वंकिम्मोक्षोमेभूयाद्इतिइच्छा। /mumukshutvaM kim? moksho me bhuuyaad iti icChaa. "What is mumukshatvam? 'Let me attain liberation!'...this intense desire is mumukshatvam."
This is not a condition which can be ordered of you. It must rise from within you, following all due spiritual enquiry. It is not a product of cultivation as such, it a springing forth of such strong desire, as if the flame of a lamp. The candle is always a candle, but it is not at all serving as such until it is lit!!!
Mumukshatvam, then, is not a 'practice' per se. It is a sense of purpose which can be best served by the practice of all which has been discussed thus far. However, not all who practice viveka, etc. fervently, necessarily have true mumukshatvam. Some say it is a birthright of those who have exercised spiritual advancement in previous births and that this comes as 'grace of God' - a fructification of karma if you will. It is probably true that to reach the level of commitment suggested by this word, one has to have had some strong spiritual experience to ignite it. Whether that is from past births or from an experience in this life itself matters not.
What matters is that you are aware of the possibility of such a condition and can decide whether you have the deep urge within you to attain such a level of spiritual fervour.
Your saadhana this week, then, is to keep this state in mind and allow some time each day to research those who are exemplars of it; the saints and sages of all ages. Those who dedicate their lives entirely to the pursuit of spiritual research and practice have to have this to some degree.
These are the levels of mumukshatvam. तीव्र/tiivra, super-strong in resolve, only liberation will satisfy the desire; मध्यम/madhyama, middling, keen but still prone to distraction from time to time; मन्द/manda, rather dull and somewhat indifferent to the spiritual pull, postpones practice as life is rather more appealing; अतिमन्द/atimanda, no interest whatsoever in the spiritual goal, even though still happy to associate with those who do. Mumukshatvam is the 'engine' behind the saadhaka but only the one with tiivra will truly attain high levels of spiritual satisfaction. This is not to say the others must give up the chase! Not at all. Every attempt along the spiritual road will be to the positive, thus do not become disheartened!
'Freedays' are the 'gather our thoughts' days;
Q&As; a general review of the week so far.
Concluding
the current series of 'vignettes' from Gurudev, we hear some excerpts from
talks on the Vivekachoodamani of Adi Shankara… do turn your sound up as this is
a little on the quiet side.
'Freedays' are the 'gather our thoughts' days; Q&As; a general review of the week so far… During this week, Chinmaya Mission You Tube has been broadcasting live sessions with Guru-ji giving talks on Yoga Vashishta Sara SangraH; his own distillation of the massive Yoga Vashishta into an 'essence' of 86 shlokas only. The absolute highlights, if you will, of the teachings of the Guru Vashishta to an unnamed shishya. The focus of the teachings is given, as always, in the mangala charana (first shloka) and it is clear that this is a text of some advanced level, for it goes pretty much directly to the key goal of the spiritual seeker... attainment of The Knowledge of Truth of the Singularity of Existence. This can seem a grandiose and mighty claim. However, by presenting us with the Sara SangraH, Guru-ji has truly brought big concepts down to a level for even moderate readers of Vedanta. The second shloka, according to tradition, advises what type of student is likely to gain the greatest benefit of the text. It is so clearly defined, that it could, in fact, stand for the entirety of Vedantic study.
अहं बद्धो विमुक्तः स्याम् इति यस्यास्ति निश्चयः| नित्यन्तमज्ञो नो तज्ज्ञः सो$स्मिन् शास्त्रे$धिकारवान् || aham baddho vimuktaH syaam iti yasyaasti nishchayaH, naatyantam-ajno no tajjnaH so'smin shaastre'dhikaaravaan. He is qualified to study this scripture who has an understanding of "I am bound - let me be liberated"; (also) who is neither totally ignorant nor a Knower of Truth. This is being brought to light on today's post as it is such a good general-purpose verse. Firstly it addresses those who, at some point in their own journey, have stopped and raised their hands to the sky and wondered deeply, meaningfully, with ardour and intent..."Is there not more to life than all this which drags me down?!" The recognition of being caught up in so much which holds no lasting joy and that there is surely another way of living is what underpins the philosophical search. Further, there is again the hint that if one genuinely desires that liberation (or at least has a curiosity about it), it is going to require some brain power. This is not a 'pay and play' bit of software! The info-bytes need not just to enter the storage area of the mind, but be pulled out by the intellect and thoroughly examined and tested. Such enquiry requires thinking. Controlled and applied thinking. There is also the suggestion that an absolute beginner may find themselves out of depth if they do not take the correct steps. No skipping texts! There is a strong and logical progression of the knowledge dissemination within Vedanta. Sure, one can read any text and get something from it. However, the fullness and depth will only unfurl with correct approach and preparation.
Conversely, there are those who are highly educated in many areas. It is an ego hurdle for such folk to go back to learning appropriately and not letting the "I know..." part of them block appropriate inculcation of the philosophical subtleties. Having a high level of literacy is not of itself a passport to the mystery of Vedanta. If at all any of the following are present, in the view of Vedanta, one is 'ignorant'; - thinking that "I am the body, I am tall, I am fair, I am handsome..." and so on - thinking that "this world I see is real, there is no truth or Lord beyond the perceived world" - thinking that joy is obtained from objects (external world), thus building a craving for the obtaining of such objects - thinking that the goal of life is to 'eat drink and be merry', resulting in seeking to indulge thus, by fair means or foul. It is in the 1st Mundaka Upanishad (dated approx 500BC) in chapter 2 that we find verse 8; "Living in ignorance, the deluded ones think they are wise. They lead others as well, like the blind leading the blind." Guru-ji says, "There can be a tendency to downplay spiritual study as being for the retired or the retarded!" Thus, the 'knowledgeocracy' are creating walls against their own advancement. Having the ability to apply one's little grey cells, but also being able to swallow ego and take on board the challenges of gathering truth, to let go of preconceived notions and destructive habits... all this and more are required of the ardent seeker of Truth. Which all implies something else. Courage. The determination not to be pulled any further into the mire. Such a seeker is called in Sanskrit as 'mumukshu'. One who knows that they do not know and wish to do what is required to actually know, with courage and determination, is called 'jijnaasu'. Those who are at early stages and working towards a state of mumukshatvam or jijnaasatvam is still considered to have spiritual courage and determination and are referred to as 'saadhaka'. The process of dedicating oneself to applying the learning and using its principles to guide daily life is known as saadhana. Daily reading here, meditation upon what you read, counts as saadhana. We shall eventually be exploring the whole of Guruji's text - but if you wish an advance glimpse and also the experience of listening to a true Guru, you can find the recordings of the broadcasts on the CM You Tube channel.
'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. The chanting for the
oncoming posts was given last week - use the TattvabodaH label to access all
posts relevant to this text. We are currently
studying the text on the shamaadhi-shatka sampatti. You may wish also to review
the chanting of this section, which you will find here.
The last of the saadhana chatushtaya is now our study.
मुमुक्षुत्वंकिम्मोक्षोमेभूयाद्इतिइच्छा।/mumukshutvaM kim? moksho me bhuuyaad iti icChaa. "What is mumukshutvam? 'Let me attain liberation!'...this
intense desire is mumukshatvam."
This is not a condition which can be ordered of you. It must rise
from within, following all due spiritual enquiry. It is not a product of cultivation as such,
it a springing forth of such strong desire if the flame of a lamp. Candle is
always a candle, but it is not at all serving as such until it is lit!!!
Mumukshutvam, then, is not a 'practice' per se. It is a sense of
purpose which can be best served by the practice of all which has been
discussed thus far. However, not all who practice viveka etc fervently
necessarily have true mumukshatvam. Some say it is a birthright of those who
have exercised spiritual advancement in previous births and that this comes as
'grace of God' - a fructification of karma, if you will.
Just as the candle requires to have its wick lit, so it is that the
truly-seeking saadhak requires to have that inner desire for spiritual freedom
set alight by one who has gone before and who can relate the necessary items to
guide that student. The Guru. Sitting with the wise ( सत्संग / satsanga) is surely one
of the best ways to kindle that fire. There are levels of mumukshatva. तीव्र /Tiivra, super-strong in resolve, only
liberation will satisfy the desire; मध्यम /madhyama, middling, keen but still prone to
distraction from time to time; मन्द /manda, rather dull and somewhat indifferent to
the spiritual pull, postpones practice as life is rather more appealing; अतिमन्द /atimanda, no interest whatsoever in the spiritual goal, even though still happy
to associate with those who do. Mumukshatvam is the 'engine' behind the saadhak
but only the one with tiivra will truly attain high levels of spiritual
satisfaction. This is not to say the others must give up the chase! Not at all.
Every attempt along the spiritual road will be to the positive, thus do not
become disheartened!
There is a phrase; "complacency is the enemy of progress; a
happy slave is the worst enemy of freedom." If we are coasting along in life, never
questioning, just continually thinking that the status quo will do, how will we
ever rise above our current circumstances?
If we think that we are happy in our current condition, how will we ever
know that there is something better to strive for? So many of us do not even
realise we are bound in the wreaths of Maya!
This is the nature of mumukshatvam. It makes us question the sense
of bondage we have in life in such a way that answers will come and they will
help us to raise ourselves to ever greater heights. We will easily find that we
can surrender all in order to gain the kind of knowledge which will truly
liberate our spirit. Surrender what? पुत्र /putra - children, वितेषणा /viteshanaa - wealth, लोकेशन /lokeshana - name/fame. This seems harsh if we are happily in household life;
however at the level of tiivra, even that is no longer desirable. Fret not.
This is not a signal to run from marriage or responsibility. These things can
still be maintained and spiritual practice maintained in parallel. The
surrender of the three things mentioned is not necessarily at the physical
level, but within ourselves, by cutting away the desires for children, welath
and name, supplanting with the desire for spiritual betterment. Occasionally,
one who is touched by the grace, who has tiivra, will find the call
unavoidable. Generally, in such cases, the way is smoothed simply by that same
'grace'.
So how to assess mumukshatvam?
Hetu - concept of moksha (liberation) must be present and this comes
from satsanga; it is the 'primer' for mumuksha, for it in such gatherings with
the elders and sages that we can discover the goal of life and have our
smouldering tinder truly kindled alight.
Svaroopa - fullness of desire is lit
Kaarya - guru upasadhana - sitting at the teacher's feet and serving
as advised
Avadhi - the release of pointless and worthless pursuits. Dedication
to spirit.
Know that mumukshatvam is dormant in all; those who at all find a
need to associate with spiritual life, at whatever 'strength level' are
answering the call of that desire.
एतत्साधनचतुष्टयम्।ततस्तत्त्वविवेकस्याधिकारिणोभवन्ति।/etat saadhana-catuShTayam.
Tatas-tattva-vivekasya-adhikaariNo bhavanti. This is the four-fold
qualification. Thereafter, they become fit for the enquiry into the Truth.
Here we
round off the section on the saadhana chatushtaya. We have been shown the
basics of what they are, what is involved in their practice and what we might
expect as a result of our dedication to such practice. No matter how much study
of higher texts we may undertake, unless we are applying them and their
'experiments' to our life and monitoring them through these paramaters, we can
make no gain. We must come to the need to enquire only within ourselves. It
cannot be at all forced upon us. The chatushtaya serve as the gardening tools
of our inner garden. The help in preparation of the mind. If the mind is unprepared, the even if one
hears and read this Knowledge, it is likely all to seem theoretical and abstract.
Even if appreciative of the concepts, until such time as efforts are made to
'own' this Knowledge, it will fall fallow.
Okay.
What is the 'Knowledge' we are talking about here? What is this 'Truth' and how to research it?... We
shall pick this up from next week.
'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.
Let us recap.
We saw the need for viveka and had some insight to vairaagya. At the
moment they seem rather 'high', something so ideal as to be unmanageable. Many
attempt vairaagya, but fail; sometimes because they have not fully grasped
application of viveka but often simply because they have misused the
concept. There are some who seek to
escape their lives which they perceive as negative and thus use the excuse of
need to 'go to forest or hill' (which was the tradition) and quite literally
run away. In the forest hut or the cave on the hill, they find all the ravages
of life still exist, because they have not properly determined what is Real and
what is not, neither have they worked on chitta-shuddhi and chitta-ekaagrata.
They seek only to separate themselves, physically, in hopes of becoming free
emotionally and mentally, then give vairaagya a bad name by seeming cold,
distant, hard-hearted. Sad indeed. Clear viveka leads to refined vairaagya and,
whilst perhaps to those who live only in their emotion this can appear as
aloofness and distance, it will be found that from such individuals arises pure
compassion and Love without strings.
What is the key point for
viveka? यत् दृश्यम् तद्-जदं तन्नश्वरम् /yat dRshyam tad-jadam
tannashvaram - that which is perceived, that is inert (and therefore)
perishable. DRsh, actually means to see, but in philosophy we are
understanding that perception is beyond mere vision therefore our hearing,
taste, touch are also methods of perception; if we can perceive a thing, it is
an item of matter. Matter is, of itself,
inert. This includes the body. The body
and all other matter is impermanent and therefore not considered as 'Real'.
That which is of matter has a start/creation point, so it follows that it also
has an end/destruction point. It's a fact. The Sanskrit aphorism for this
is उद्पत्ति विनाष सहित/udpatti vinaasha sahita.
In thinking on these things, we need also to bring a sense of true
feeling of the truth in them. That
'feeling' of the truth of the logic settles and brings us into the vairaagya
required to continue our spiritual work. Knowing that things are not permanent
means that there must be something which
is. This is an essential part of human nature, the search for stability and
permanence. The vairaagi makes the search for that elusive condition. In doing
so, he or she finds that material things are desired less and less in life.
They are there, but in their rightful and functional place, not interfering
with the inner world which the vairaagi now inhabits. It becomes easier and
easier to brush aside the small things of life and take up only meaningful
activities.
How might the spiritual aspirant build further on his or her
advancement? What is it that informs the
state of vairaagya, keeping it strong and progressive?
This section is broken into its six components, but the text and
chanting for the whole section are given here in one pass, as each paada is
very small. As per previous example, chanting will be given in small chunks
with gaps for you to repeat the chant, followed by 'together'. Another part of
the teaching tradition, is that the text learned thus far (or at least for the
previous half dozen or so lessons) is also chanted to begin the current lesson.
To give you a feel for this, today's sound-clip will begin with some of the
recording with Swami Advayananda and Sandeepany students, before going into the
part of the text we are about to study. [For
the keen, you might like to think of setting up a playlist folder in your You
Tube page to collect these Aatmaavrajanam clips together - it will make
backtracking access easier for you. Practicing these simple chants now will
make the more complicated and wonderful chants which come later less daunting
for you.]
शमादिसाधनसंपत्तिःका
शमोदमउपरतिस्तितिक्षाश्रद्धासमाधानंच्इति।
Shamaadi-saadhana-saMpattiH kaa?
shamo dama uparati-stitikshaa shraddhaa samaadhaanaM ca iti.
"What is the inner wealth starting with shama? They are shama,
dama, uparati, titikshaa, shraddhaa and smaadhaana.
What is shama? It is control or master over the mind.
What is dama? It is control of the external sense organs such as the
eyes and so on.
What is uparamaH?** It is the strict observance of one's own dharma
(duty).
What is titiksha? It is the endurance of heat and gold, pleasure and
pain etc.
What is the nature of shraddhaa? Faith in the words of the guru and
Vedanta (scriptures) is shraddhaa.
What is samaadhaanam? It is the single-pointedness of mind.
What is mumukshutvam? 'Let me attain liberation!'...this intense
desire is mumukshatvam."
**Sanskrit has 'gender' and some
terms are changed accordingly; uparati and uparamaH are interchangeable. This
is most notable by the alteration to the question; kaH is (m), kaa is (f) and
kim is (n).
SAADHANA That is quite a lot of chanting practice for the uninitiated! Take
time to rehearse it and adjust your ear to these unfamiliar sounds. Let this
week's saadhana be about participation… Reading alone is not experience. Taking
action based upon what is read becomes the experience. Next week we shall start
study of each component.
'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!
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