அவனே தானே யாகிய அந்நெறி
யேகனாகி யிறைபணி நிற்க,
மலமாயை தன்னொடும் வல்வினையின்றே.
Sutra. – As the lord becomes one with the Soul in its human condition, so let the Soul become one with Him and perceive all its actions to be His. Then will it lose all its Mala, Maya, and Karma.
Commentary
This Sutra treats of the way of destroying Pasa, and consists of two arguments.
First Argument
Churnika. – Become one with Hara.
Varthikam. – It is pointed out, here, that the Soul should become one with Parameshwara as He had become one with it, as, when it does so, it joins His feet by losing its pride of self and self-knowledge.
Illustration. – When the Soul asserts its own knowledge by distinguishing its acts from those of others, the Lord losing His identity, will appear as the Soul. But the Soul which says that there is no such thing as itself and that all actions are His, the Lord unites to His feet and reveals His real self to it.
Second Argument
Churnika. – Consider all your actions to be those of the Lord.
Varthikam. – It is enjoined that the Soul should perceive its actions to be those of the Lord’s unceasingly, as it will not act, except with His Arul, and, in consequence, ignorance and Karma will not enter it.
Illustration. –(a) If the soul determines that the senses are not itself, and that their actions are not its own, and that the perceived objects are also not itself, and that it is the servant of Hara, and then arrives at the conclusion, that everything is His work, then none of the actions of the Soul which, thus, attributes every work to Him, will affect it, in whatever body it may be encased. And Paratha Karma will also then cease.
(b.) As it is the prerogative of the great to protect those who resort to them, so God raises those who approach Him and yet bears no ill-will (to the rest). He transforms His devotees into His own Form; and the rest who do not approach Him, He makes them eat the fruits of their own Karma. These two functions He performs according to the deserts of each.
(c.) Like the smell which is present in the pot, even after the asafetida is removed, the effects of the Gnanai’s previous Karma will be felt in the material body and yet they will not furnish food for a future birth, as it, having been transformed into the Lord is fixed in Him.
(d.) Like the Siddha who, sitting in fire, is not burnt by it, and like the horseman who, riding on the fleetest animal, does not lose his hold, the Gnani’s who, ascertaining the true path, fix their thoughts on the Divine Feet of Hara, will not, though, having perception through the senses, be affected by such perception, and leave their true nature.
(e.) If one, finding the truth that he is Sata sat, understands only with Sivagnanam, he will not be affected by Anavamala and will become united to Sat. Then will not 120 the affections of the senses influence him, just as the darkness will have no effect before the fierce light of the Sun.
NOTES
In the last Sutra, it was enjoined that the soul should contemplate on Sri Panchatchara for the purpose of effecting its purification. The present chapter treats of the Palan or ends to be achieved by the Sadanas mentioned in the foregoing chapter. The end, it is agreed on all sides, is what is called Moksha or Mukti or “Veedu” in Tamil. The word literally means freed or freedom and it therefore, imports two things. When the soul attains Mukti it is freed from ignorance or Pasam (Pasa and Pasu Gnanam) and attains Pathi Gnanam. The very act which separates the soul from Pasam (Jagat) unites it to the Pathi (Brahm) as was before illustrated by the case of the man reaching the ground by the breaking of the rope of the swing. Of these two results of Mukti, this Sutra treats of Pasatchaya or the mode by which the soul is freed of Pasa. This is achieved by the soul becoming one with God and by considering all its actions as those of the Lord. Becoming one with God means attaining Adwaitha relation is, the Sutra points out that the soul should become one with God in Mukti as God was one with the soul in its bantha condition. This relationship is further explained in the next Sutra in explaining the attainment of Pathi Gnanam. Some of the Purvapaksha theories relating to the condition of the soul in Mukti are as follows: – Freedom or unity is reached,
1. When the Akas of the pot unites with the outer Akas by the breaking of the pot;
2. When the man mistaken for a post is ascertained to be a man;
3. When the cause of the earthen pot is found to be earth (causation);
4. When the color or quality of a thing is found to be united to the thing itself, (a 121
thing and its inseparable attribute);
5. When the iron becomes red hot, (iron and heat);
6. When water is mixed with the milk;
7. When the charmer becomes one with the object of his Mantra;
8. When the heated iron absorbs water;
9. When the man becomes one with the devil when possessed;
10. When the fire-wood is covered up by the flames;
11. When the lamp is lighted before the midday sun;
12. When two lovers become one by the result of their love;
13. When two friends become united by friendship;
14. When two animals are one by mere resemblance or similarity such as color,
&c.
It would be noticed that some of these relationships are exactly what have been already used as illustration in the preceding pages, but it should be carefully noted that they are used as mere illustrations only and nothing more. These are not to be mistaken for the actual truth itself and the only similarity in nature which approximates almost to truth itself is found in the relation of the soul and God in the bantha condition. In the bantha condition soul exists and God is non-existent; in Mukti, God exists and Soul is non-existent; yet in either case neither God nor Soul is non-existent.
The relationship contemplated in the last Sutra is what is called that of Gnathuru, Gnana and Gneya. Mukti cannot be attained of this relation is preserved and unless Adwaitha relation is established. It is not even sufficient if it becomes one, for the purpose of rooting out all Karma; and the soul is therefore enjoined to consider its actions as those of the Lord. These injunctions are of course for the Gnani attaining Mukti even in this life. So long as the human body lasts, the effects of Praraptha will sometimes linger as the smell of the asafetida lingers in the pot, or as the author of Sivagna Siddhi adds, the wheel of the pot continues to resolve for sometime even after the hand of the potter is removed. Sanjitha Karma is destroyed by the very touch of the Gnana Guru as the seed coming in contact with fire. Praraptha continues and it is destroyed by practicing the Sadana contained in the last Sutra; and its effects or Vasana are destroyed by the condition attained by the Jivan Mukta. But so long as the human body continues, some acts will have to be performed by the Jivan Mukta, and it is shown by the illustrations, these acts will not produce any other acts or form the seed for any future Karma or Akamia and no other births will be induced.
The arguments point out why the condition attained by the Jivan Mukta has the effect of destroying Pasa. It is because the soul thereby loses its Ahankara and Mamakara or Anava and this last is the source of all evil, all Karma and successive births.
The learned commentator of Ozhivilodukkum and the author of several excellent devotional works argues out the existence of the three padarthas and the rest of the doctrine from the word Mukti or Veedu itself, in the following stanza: –
வீடென் றறைதரு சொற்குப் பொருளோ விடுதலை யாதலினால்;
விக்குண் டோனும் கட்டுண்டோனும் விளங்கும் திடமாக,
பீடுறு கட்டுத தானாய் விட்டுப் பெயராது இது சடமாம்,
பிணி பட்டோன் அசுதந்தரனாகும் பிணிபெயரச் செய்வோன்,
நீடு சுதந்தர முண்டா மொருவன் எனுமிவ் வேதுவினால்,
நிகழ்பதி பசுபாசம் மென முப்பொருள் நிச்சய மென்றருளி,
வேடனை வெல்லும் குருவா யெனையாள் மெய்பொருள் நீயன்றோ,
வேதகிரிப்பவ ரோக வயித்திய வேணி முடிக்கனியே.
“As the word Mukti or Veedu means freedom, it imports clearly a Free Being and an unfreed or fettered being. The fetters can never become removed of themselves. Hence this Bantham is Jatam or Asat. So, saying, O Thou Healer of Sins! Thou hast appeared to me as my Sar Guru, the victor of the savages (of the senses) and hast taught me to infer for certain the three Padarshas, Puthi, Pasu and Pasa from the word Mukti and hast graciously taken me as thy servant.