அந்தக்கரணம் அவற்றின் ஒன்றன்று,
சந்தித்தது ஆன்மா, சகசமலத்துணராது
அமைச்சு அரசு ஏய்ப்பநின்று அஞ்சவத்தைத்தே.
Sutra. The soul is not one of the Andakarana. It is not conscious when it is in conjunction with Anavamala. It becomes conscious only when it meets the Andakarana, just as a king understands through his ministers. The relation of the soul to the five Avasthais also similar.
Commentary:
This also treats of the nature of the soul and it consists of three arguments.
First Argument:
Churnika. – The Andakarana have no activity except when in conjunction with the soul. Hence there is a soul distinct from the Andakarana.
Varthikam. – As the Andakarana are only intelligent (chit) when viewed in relation to the subordinate Tatwasbut are non-intelligent (Achit) when viewed in relation to the soul, it is established that the soul is not one of the Andakarananamely Manas, Buddhi, Chittam and Ahankara.
Illustration. – (a) Manas and other Andakaranahave perception of permanent sensations. The soul perceives the product of the perception by the Buddhi after such mental perceptions. These perceptions by Manas and Buddhi reach the soul as 70 the waves rising in the sea reach the shore. As the Andakaranaare different from the permanent sensations, so the soul is different from the Andakarana.
(b.) While perceiving so, the soul as Chittam considers; as Manas it doubts; as Ahankaram, it wrongly concludes; as Buddhi it determines properly. As it thus apprehends differently when it is united to each, it is different from them, just as the sun, though marking the divisions of time, is different from it.
(c.) The letter ‘A’ is the symbol of Ahankaram; ‘U’ that of Buddhi; ‘M’ that of Manas; Vinthu that of Chittam; and Natham which is inseparable from all these letters, is the symbol of the soul. The five letters constitute Pranava; when examined, consciousness arises when the soul and Andakaranameet, just as the tides rise and fall during the conjunction of the sun and the Moon.
(d.) Iswara and Sadasiva are the deities respectively of Vinthu and Natham; Brahma, Vishnu and Rudra are deities respectively of ‘A,’ ‘U,’ and ‘M’.
Second Argument:
Churnika. – The soul cannot see, being shrouded by the mala.
Varthikam. – It is established that the soul cannot understand when it is solely in conjunction with its inherent mala (Anava), as this mala is something which darkens the soul’s light or intelligence.
Illustration. – The soul will not know anything, unless it receives the light through its body caused by Maya, as the eye apprehends objects by the light of the lamp. Anavamala exists in the soul eternally, becoming one with it and concealing its luster as does the firewood conceal the heat or fire present in it.
Third Argument:
Chunika. – The soul undergoes five Avastha.
Varthikam. – As the soul is in a formless (Arupa) tatwa form and shrouded by the Mala, it is established that the soul undergoes five Avastha, namely, Jakra, Swapna, Sushupti, Thuriya, and Thuriyathitha.
Illustrations. – (a) In the Jakra Avasthaof the soul, when it is in the region of the forehead, it has 35 active organs including the 10 external senses. In its Swapna Avastha, when in the region of the throat, it has 25 organs excluding the 10 external organs. In the Sushupti Avastha, when in the region of the heart, it has 3 organs including Chittam. In Thuriya Avastha, when in the region of the navel, it has only two, namely Purusha and Pranavayu; In Thuriyathitha Avastha, when in the region of Mulathara, it is pure Purusha having none of these organs.
(b) The soul, which in Jakra Avasthais in the region of the forehead, undergoes all the five Avasthain the same region. That is to say, it becomes conscious of each perception through each of the organs and, at the same time, becomes separated from them. Sutta Avasthaare like these five in number.
NOTES
Andakaranais a generic word, signifying all the internal senses, but they more particularly mean as here, Manas, Buddhi, Chitta and Ahankara. The proof of the proposition that the soul is not one of the Andakaranais given in the Varthika and illustrations. In dead sleep (Sushupthi) where the internal senses are at rest, the soul is not conscious. It becomes conscious only when the Anthakarana become once more active. When the soul is in Sushupti, it is in conjunction only with Anava Mala and performing respiratory function. This last function is the watchman who guards the innermost portals of the Palace of the King (Soul) when it is in perfect solitude. The Avasthas are merely the conditions of the soul when it 72 is in relation with all the external and internal senses or with only some of them or none at all.
1. The churnika furnishes the first proof which is amplified in the Varthika. The internal senses are active; you lift your Ego to its own place as in Yoga, the Andakaranabecome dead and inactive, thus showing that the Atma is not one of the Andakarana.
The distinction is drawn in the following manner.
The Andakaranaare the faculties of perception and reason. They perceive and reason but are not conscious that they perceive and reason. This latter function is performed by the True Ego, Atma.
The four Andakaranaare distinguished in this wise Chittam takes an impression presented by the senses and considers what it is. It cannot know that it so considers. Manas takes such an impression, and double whether it is or is not this or that. It cannot know that it so doubts.
Ahankara ventures boldly that the impression is such and such. It cannot know that it so ventures.
Buddhi determines properly that the impression is this or that. It cannot know that it so determines.
- The Andakaranaare divided into two classes as remarked above.
Manas, Chitta, and Ahankara are merely faculties of perception and they perceive permanent sensations and the language of the text is remarkable as “மன்னு புலன்கள்” exactly mean permanent sensations. Buddhi is the faculty of reason involving the sense of agreement and difference among such impressions. The product of this faculty is what is brought to the cognizance of the soul. The first 73 three ministers merely gather statistics and prepare them. The Chief Minister, Buddhi compares the statistics and draws his conclusions and formulates the proposition to the King (Soul).
As the waves are stirred by the winds, the senses affect the Andakarana.
(b) Another distinction is that the four Andakaranaare four different functions, one not capable of performing the function of another or all the rest. That which stands above, cognizant of all the four, is the soul.
(c)It was before observed that the soul was of the form of Sri Panchatchara and the latter was stated as synonymous with Pranava. The symbol of Vinthu is a circle and that of Natham is a line. These two in fact, constitute the Pranava symbol o – or உ and the latter will be been is the same as Pillayar shuli. No Tamil man will begin the smallest piece of writing without prefixing Pillayar shuli. The significance being forgotten, it is thought of as a sectarian symbol, and the bigoted among Vaishnavas to whom the Pranava is as important, begin now to use ஸ்ரீ instead. Why it is called Pillayar shuli is, because God, Ganesha, represents Pure Sat, Brahm and the elephant Head is the Pranava sumbol.
Cf. the popular Tamil couplet.
பிரணவப்பொருளாம் பெருந்தகை ஐங்கரன்
சரண அற்புதமலர் தலைக்கணிவோமே.
The popular Sanskrit slokas in praise of Ganesha also describe Him as Pranava Sorupi. The illustration contained in this stanza is a beautiful one.
(d) This contains another explanation of Pranava. Sivam was first stated as True Sat or Brahm. I have shown that the form of Ganesha shows Him to represent True Sat or Brahm. The very name of Subramanya signifies that He is True Brahm. The 74-word Uma meaning Sakti is composed of u, m and a, i.e., Om manifested. So, these different words or mantras are different modes of expressing the same Principle, the True Sat, in symbol, sound and language. So, Om, Sri Panchatchara, Ganesha mantra, Subramanya mantra and Devi mantra are mere equivalents and denote the Samashti Pranava; when analyzed i.e., regarded as Vyashti, it becomes divided into Natham, Vinthu, a, u, and m. ‘a’ represents creation or origin as its place is the place or origin of all sounds. ‘u’ or ‘oo’ represents sthithi, as, when after pronouncing ‘a’ we bring it to a stand for an instant by converging the lips, ‘u’ is formed; when we close our mouths after pronouncing ‘a’ and ‘u,’ ‘m’ is formed and hence it represents Samharam. Binthu and Natham are the form and sound of these letters.
2. This explains that man’s intelligence only receives play and brightness and is capable of infinite improvement, when brought in contact with human body, by getting frequent births. That is, by evolution alone, man gets himself perfected.
3. I have not seen any objection to regarding the Soul as a separate entity more formidable that this, viz.
“If so, while I am in my objective state of consciousness, my Ego is something existing as a real entity in the physical body itself. How is it possible to transfer the same to the astral body? Then, again, it has also to be transferred to the Karana Sarira. We shall find a still greater difficulty in transferring this entity to the Logos itself; and you may depend upon it that unless a man’s individuality or Ego can be transferred to the Logos, immortality is only a name.” This objection which is stated with so much confidence will, on examination, be found to be groundless. In the first place, it is not shown, how it is not possible to affect the transference from one Avasthato another under this theory and that it is possible under the objector’s theory. Besides, the difficulty is more in the language employed, than in actual 75 fact. And it is, often, in our experience what a fruitful source of error is the inadequate language we employ, in describing laws of thought. The objector speaks of the transfer from one body to another. On the premises already laid down in the preceding Sutras and on the view of the Avast has as discussed in this argument, it will be apparent that there will be no transfer at all. The atma does not fly from the Sthula Sarira into the Sukshuma or astral body and leaving this into the Karana Sarira. It did not enter any new cosmic body at any one time. Its connection with Maya is eternal. And the law of mental evolution or evolution of subjective consciousness corresponds exactly to the evolution of objective consciousness. The human mind cannot evolve unless there is a corresponding evolution in its body. A pure disembodied mind or Atma is not recognized by this school. In the human as well as in the freed state (Moksha) it is connected with matter and between matter and God, the Atma is supported like a piece of iron between two magnets, the one pulling it higher and the other pulling it lower. And in the human state, the iron is in closest contact with the lower magnet, and in the Moksha with the Higher Magnet. In Moksha, the power of maya to undergo births alone is destroyed, by the Karma having been eaten up, just as a seed of grain loses its power of germination in the granary of the ant, by the sprout being nibbled off or by some other process. In human evolution, however, we find both the object and subject being evolved together and there could be no evolution of the one without the evolution of the other. In its original condition, what is here called Thuriyathitha condition, the atma is pure Purusha without consciousness of any sort, its body also being altogether undeveloped. This is the stage before evolution had commenced. The atma has no consciousness, no intelligence and no movements of any sort. In the next condition (Thurya avastha) evolution had been started, we have the first beginning of life, Purusha, in a living breathing body, without consciousness or any manifestation of any other faculties. They (mind and 76 body) are evolved a step further in the Sushupthi avastha, and we have the first beginning of consciousness; and as such the faculty of Chittam is evolved in addition; and the objective body is then called Karana Sarira. A step further we arrive at Swapna avastha, where all the faculties (objective consciousness) except the 10 external senses (Gnana and Karma Indriyas) are fully developed and the objective body is called Sukshuma or astral body. In the final stage of evolution, where man’s consciousness has been fully developed, all the 36 tatwas formed of Maya, have been also fully developed; this is the Jakra avastha, and the body is the Sthula body. In this account of human evolution, there is no transference really. Similarly, when the atma and its body undergo resolution, subjective and objective consciousness ceases little by little or is drawn in as it were, just as a spider or tortoise draws all its legs and organs into itself and rolls itself into a mass and becomes dead to all appearance. In fact, like a revolving prism of many sides, the attitude of the atma alone changes and this change of attitude or Avasthais brought about, as, in the language of the text, it is in a formless (Arupa) Tatwa form enshrouded by mala i.e., not being made of matter but being chit itself and encased in matter. These five avasthas and their bodies are divided into three states Kevala, Sakala and Sutta. The Kevala state is the original state before evolution and described in the text of this sutra ‘சகசமலத்துணராது‘ (It is not conscious when it is in conjunction with Anavamala). The Sakala state is described in the next sutra (V) and in the next one (VI) the Sutta state is treated off.
Having met a few of the most formidable objections taken to this view of the Siddhanta school, let me here state a few of the objections to the Idealistic view for which a rational answer is not yet forthcoming. Evolving Logos and Mulaprakriti (matter) from Brahm (Sat), why don’t you apply the law of causation and conservation of energy, and say otherwise that, Logos and matter are not Brahm, 77 and why do you throw a veil between Logos and Brahm, and why do you say also that matter is not ‘Sat’ but Asat, and why should the one energy or Chaitanyam or Sakti of the Logos subdivide itself and form into different monads and acquire Karma, and become evil, and corrupt and bring sin and sorrow into this earth? If Atma is not a particle of this Chit but a mere reflection or shadow, how could a mere shadow become individualized and clothe with thought and action? And why should this shadow work out its own salvation? Will it not disappear when the substance is itself resolved. The same way as the Logos manifested itself in various bodies, as the sun in various pots of water, cannot the Logos itself gather up its lost energies or cannot the energy pass into the Logos as soon as the body dies, just as the sun’s reflection ceases as soon as the water pot is broken? With what grace can the objection be stated that unless the man’s individuality is transferred into the Logos itself, immortality is only a name, when for no reason or end, the human monad is evolved from Logos, and when there is an equal chance for the individual attaining immortality to evolve again as a human monad?