Catalyst ......contd.

Certain catalystic events has shook some men from their somnolence and set them on the path of creativity, inspiring them to spin poems, philosophy and work on ideas in a torrential downpour of words ,that have retained the purity of rain water cascading from clouds!

Three men , Tulsidas ,Thirumangai azhwar and Thondarapidi Azhwar gifted with poetic and spiritual mind were also once leading a life not normally associated with Rishi's and seers ,till certain events in their life changed them ,for good!

Tulsi das was the son of a scholar and seer ,whose services were requisitioned by Akbar.When the father decided to demit office ,his son was asked to take over . And he did.

Tulsidas had been brought up with a sound spiritual education . The attractions of the court life was so enormous that he succumbed to the pleasures it offered . His worried parents got him married in a bid to reform and tie him down.Now he transferred all his affection to his wife and imprisoned her with his excessive attention .

One day , unknown to him ,she left to her parents house. Tulsidas unable to bear the separation went in search . He crossed the swollen river in pelting rain at dead of the night clinging to a bier of a corpse floating on the water
, thinking it to be a log ,and knocked at the door his wife's parental house triumphantly!

Shocked at his lust , his wife wailed at his fascination for a body that was perishable and lamented that had he shown a fraction of this attachment to Rama the eternal being , he would be a better person.

These words stung Tulsidas .He shook off his libertine ways then and there itself , bowed to her calling her his guru and took leave .He became an ascetic . he delved deep into spiritual life and composed several treatises ,the most popular being Ramcharitra manas ,the rendition of Valmik's sanskrit work Ramayana in a language easily understood by the common people, Hindi.

He implores in one of his verses---


Sri Rama kripalu, bajumana

Harana bhavabhaya darunam|


This harsh life is full of fears

To destroy those fears

O, mind of mine

Meditate on the ever compassionate one,

'Sri Rama '!

Catalyst.

Hundreds of men down the ages have enriched our life with their inspirations,in the form of poems,literature and philosophy.

Many of them were of impeccable nature,as pure as the crystal clear waters of mountain springs,unblemished and untarnished ,from their first step in this world to their last breath.



There have also been men ,who have sunk to sordid levels and have pulled themselves up, to ascend heights of brilliance ,perfection and divinity.


Valmiki the author of the epic Ramayana,that has a billion people under its perennial enthralling spell,is known as the first poet of Bharat, was in his youth a hunter by profession . When his family expanded with the addition of a wife and the birth numerous children , he took to waylaying travellers ,in order to feed and clothe his dependants.

One day he came across Narada, the constant thinker of the absolute and demanded of him his veena. Narada the sagacious one ,agreed to part with his dear possession if Valmiki would enlighten him about his family's views on bearing his sins. Valmiki was in for a rude shock . His parents roundly denounced him for resorting to robbery to feed them and refused to bear the sin . His wife alleged that it was his duty to take care of them and she was in no way duty bound to share his sins.

On the advise of Narada , Valmiki performed severe penance for several months at the end of which ,he emerged as a knowledgeable and intellectual person ,shorn of his ignorance .He established an ashram and spent his time ,reading scriptures in the company of holy and scholarly men .

Narada,who was the catalyst in this extraordinary transformation of valmiki, visited him again and as they sat talking Valmiki posed the following question

Is there a person who is courageous, brilliant, of good conduct,adept ,able , lacking in jealousy ,good to look at and feared even by gods in war when provoked ?

To which Narada replied that it was difficult for any single person to posses such good qualities and recollects that there did live a man by name--'Rama' .Then Narada relates the story of Rama and takes his leave .Valmiki then visualises the events and pours 24,000 verses [Sanskrit]relating the godly nature of Rama and his poignant and exemplary life story . The outcome of this inspiration , divine,noble and influential is,the 'Ramayana'.


There are several chapters or kandas in this epic .I'd like to refer to Ayodhya kand , the part that lists the virtues of Rama in the prime of his youth, as follows.



Rama was a source of joy to his father. He always spoke softly and did not react to harsh words spoken by others . He was peaceful in mind and remembered only the good things done to him and forgot the evil done to him . He was wise ,spoke sweetly and was first to initiate a talk. He was compassionate and valorous. He had no arrogance at his valour. He was free of disease and had a good body. He was sinewy and was pleasant to look at and walked like a lion!

Rama could grasp the essence of men . He knew both time and place.He was straight forward and humble.He had a good memory and kept his thoughts to himself . He did not show his feelings . He knew when to give and when not to give . He always helped others.

Rama was free from idleness . He recognised his errors as well as other's .He had a firm and stead fast mind . He was not stubborn .He did not speak evil words .He understood the differences between men . He knew whom to punish and whom to protect!

Rama knew various sciences , economics, music and martial arts .He knew ways of getting income and spending them to every one's benifit.He could subdue wild horses and elephants.Rama was the champion of archery in the entire world.

Rama shone like a sun . He took part in all the joys and sorrows of his subjects.Rama was a spring of joy to his father and source of happiness to his people!

Rama's virtues are countless and the verses high lighting them are very many .

I 'll quote the following two verses of Valmiki.


Sanu krosha, jitkrosha ,brahmana prati,

Pujaka,diinanukampi, dharmajnah

nityam pragrahvaan, Suchi.


Rama had compassion. He conquered anger.

He was receptive and worshipful to the wise,

He had mercy towards the meek,

He knew what was to be done,

He had self control

Rama was pure and clean !


Dharmaja Gyah Satyasandhashcha Shilvaanana

Suvyakah

Kshantah Saantvayitaa Shlakshanah Kritagyo

Vijitendriyah


Rama knows all rigteousness . He is true to his words .

He has a good character.He has no envy.

He has patience. He keeps his senses under control.

He speaks only good words . He has gratitude.

And Rama consoles those who are miserable and in troubles.


Ram Ram .



[courtsey --internet]

Power?

Whom to blame? Whom not to blame?

What happened? What need not have happened.

How am I ever going to wipe the humiliation,

And pain my son took to his pyre?

I clearly donot have the power.

Yengirindo vandan.

Naan kudhutha vooir tholaiyvil yengeyo phoi tholainduvittadhu

Naan kudhutha sadhai yen ethirileye theeil thaghithu poiyerru

Yenghirindho vandhan ,maghizhvithan,yen ellan nirai kalathil kanivana oonrukolaaga erundhan

Kshanapozhuthil,yen kann mooduvathirku mun,kaatril kalandhu, yengeyo poivittan.

Sanatsujata.

Vidat means creator . I chose this name after going through Vishnusahasarnama carefully over and over again .

My son had another name Sanatkumar, the name given to him by his father.

Few days back whilst I was going through a journal on Hinduism I came across the word Sanatsujataiya. Intrigued by this combination of names , I explored the Internet for more details.

Sanat sujataiya is a philosophical classic forming a part of Mahabharata the famous epic ,of sage Vyasa ,dated somewhere between 9 th and 6 th century BC .Its importance is heightened by the fact that it is one of the three gems of Mahabharata ,to be commented upon by Adhi Shankara.The other two being Gita and Vishnusahasarnamam.

This treatise is composed of 5 to 6 chapters . The core matter it deals with is the mysterious phenomenon and the great leveler , that has agitated the minds of men and women since time immemorial -Death .

Dhritharashtra the ageing blind king of Kauravas , on the eve of the war between his sons and Pandavas , is tormented by doubts , anxieties ,delusions and sorrow and on coming to know that the only way out of his predicament is to secure Bramhavidya ,requests his wise half brother Vidura to explain the Upanashidic principles and free him from his sorrow.

In popular precept ion ,Dhritarashtra is a villainous , crooked and an avaricious old man . But according to the original tome , he was a good and a wise king . The only flaw in his character was his excessive love for Duryodan and his other sons ,that blinded him to their faults .

Vidhura is wise and compassionate and is also aware of his limitations . Pondering over the problem ,he remembers Sanat kumar of Chandayoga Upanashidic fame.

Sanat kumar is an ancient wise youth . He is the mind born son of Bramha .

Vidhura meditates on Sanatkumar and requests him to teach the path of liberation from the dualities that plague human beings viz gain-loss, fear --fearlessness , youth -old age, anger -lethargy and so on , to Dhrithrashtra.

Sanatkumar materialises before them and Dhrithrashtra desiring to attain the state of supreme bliss ,requests the shining bright youth to impart the knowledge of the Supreme reality. He poses several questions that are duly answered .

This catechism in poetic form is embodied in the Mahabharata as 'Sanatsujata'.

The following are the questions posed and the answers to them . The answers are deep with meaning and exhaustive .I have chosen a few that I felt were pertinent , to the best of my comprehension and understanding.

The very first question raised by Dhritharashtra is

Is there death or not?

To which Sanatsujata replies --Both are true . there is death as well as deathlessness!


He explains further:

Death , verily does not devour living creatures like a tiger. It develops in men as desire and afterwards as wrath and in the shape of delusion . And then travelling in devious paths through Egoism , do not attain union with the self . Those deluded by it depart and again fall down . He undergoes death after death . Being attached to fruit of action they follow it ,and do not cross beyond death!

But sensible men cross beyond death by their good sense . He who ponders on self destroys desires , becomes as it were death of death itself and swallows it ! He is not afraid of death and becomes immortal.


The second question is --

Who is the originator of all this?

Sanat sujata replies--

He is the supreme eternal beginning less creator.



The third question is --
What is the role of piety ? Does it destroy sin ?


Sanat sujata replied---
Yes it does . Respect in this world is for material gain ,but in the other blissful world ,it is truth , straightforwardness , modesty , restraint [senses] ,purity and knowledge , that holds the key to immortality.


The next question is--
Who possess this taciturnity [ mauna]?How is it practised ?

Sanatsujata said --
It is achieved by doing penance free from sin .

The following 12 enormities [sins]that are destructive of man's life are

1 .Grief
2.Wrath
3.Avarice
4.Desire
5.Delusion
6.Laziness
7.Want of forgiveness
8.Vanity
9.Craving
10.Friendship [pity]
11.Censoriousness
12. Reviling others.

These acts attend on each and every man , wishing to find a opening as a hunter watches animals.

The seven defects that attend on a man are

1.Constantly thinking of enjoyment
2.Being proud
3.Boastful
4.Miserly
5.Esteems his senses
6. Hates his wife
7.Is cruel.

The above enormities and defects should always be avoided by a person.

The 12 great observances one need to follow are:

1.knowledge of reality
2.Truthfulness
3.Penance
4.Self restraint
5.Freedom from animosity
6.Liberality
7.Modesty
8.Endurance
9.Freedom from censoriousness
10 .Study of Vedas
11.Courage
12 . Forgiveness.

Whoever does not swerve from these 12 may govern this whole world !And who is possessed of 3, 2, or even 1 of these ,will gradually attain knowledge of Brahman!

The fourth question is :
What is the colour of immortal ,indestructible goal? Is it white or black or red or grey?Or is it tawny? Where is it ?What is its form?

Sanatsujata said;

IT appears not as white or red nor again as black or grey nor is it tawny.

It dwells not on the earth ,nor in the sky, nor in the ocean. It is not in the stars , nor does it dwell in the lightening not is its form seen in the clouds nor even in the air , nor in the deities nor in the sun or the moon . It is not seen in religious texts . It is seen in a man of high vows!

It is invincible , beyond darkness , comes forth at time of destruction . The form is minuter than the the minutest as well as larger than the tallest mountains!

This supports the entire universe . It is immortal . That is Brahman.From that entities are produced and in that they are dissolved . All this shines forth. It is perceived by knowledge and who understands it becomes immortal!


To the next question :
Can it be seen ?

Sanatsujata said:
There is nothing comparable to the form of the eternal being . No one sees with his eyes .He can only be perceived . He who perceives and understands him becomes immortal !

The being which is inner self is the size of a thumb and is always migrating in consequence of connection with the subtle body .The subtle body is---life,air ,10 senses ,mind and understanding. They are restless and go after objects that are like honey to them and this causes transmigration .

The body is perishable but action done by self while in body leaves its effects.The self experiences in another birth results of actions performed in previous births.

Should one fly even after furnishing oneself with 1000's of wings , even with velocity of thought , one would never reach the end of great cause.

The following verse of Sanatsujataiya shows a way ;

cakre rathasya tishthantan dhruvasya avyaya karmanah

Ketumantam vahantya svahtam divyam ajaram divi

Yoginastam prapasyanti bhagvantam Sanat anam .

[Meaning ] The 3 worlds are the chariot of the Supreme eternal being . The body of wise man is his chariot , with the help of this he attains effulgent being who is beyond life and death . The horses of the chariot [ controlled senses] take him to world of light!


A wise man remains placid meditating on this , which is placed in his heart . The talented man who has got rid of affection and aversion perceives him by mind .He is a yogi. He becomes immortal!

The Sanatsujataiya concludes with the following verse,

Anoranlyan sumanah sarvabhutesh vavashitah

Pitaram sarvabhutanam pushkare nihitam Vidu.

I am like the reservoir to which water's flow from all sides . I am unborn ,free of old age and ceaslessly moving about . I am alone your mother and father.
I am woven through and through[ everything].


Minuter than an atom I am stationed in all beings in their hearts!




Vidat' alias 'Sanatkumar' is a youth, forever . There is no old age for him.






{Courtesy - Kashinath Trimbak telang [Dob-August 20 1850]}

Silk samiyar and Mahant.

My grandfather's on both sides were orthodox Hindu's,performing all the long winding rituals ordained to a house holder ,to perfection.

The following two incidents from their life ,shows that they couldn't brook charlatans and feudalism.

My father's father Kapisthalam Veeraghava chari ,illtreated by his step mother and thrown ,literally on the streets on the demise of his father , finished his schooling and law course ,owing to the kindness of his maternal uncle.

By sheer dint of handwork ,he established a lucrative law practise in Chittoor[ A.P].And supported his family as well as all poor relations and friends . At a given time they easily numbered 75 to 100, living under one roof, his!
There were men and women of varying charecteristics . One such was his aggressive brother-in law Paddu [ his wife's brother],who at the drop of a hat would use his immense physical prowess to settle scores and disputes.

This town was suddenly agog with the news of arrival of a God man who came to be called as 'Silk samiyar' ,since he always wore silken robes .It was rumoured that his inner garments were also made of silk!

In no time , his ashram was frequented by all the bigwigs and their families., especially women.

Amongst the huge beneficiaries of my grandfather's generosity were a issue less couple and the woman ,who visited the Samiyar often,didn't return home even after a lapse of a couple of days. Alarmed by this absence and shooed away by the ashramites , her husband and my grand father lodged a complaint with the police who refused to take any action ,fearing the God man's supernatural powers !

Vexed , my grand father took the matters into his hands . He called Paddu and marched to the ashram ,brushing aside protests from the town folks ,most of whom, as was the case 80 years back ,were bogged down with superstitious belief's .

Paddu , fought the guards with his bare hands and stormed into the building . They were stunned by the spectacle that greeted them . Silk samiyar sat smoking ,surrounded by swaying women,several from respectable families , drugged and dazed by the smoke of ganja that was swirling thickly all around. The man yanked his wife and Paddu went for the Samiyars throat.He thrashed him soundly and let go only when the silk samiyar pleaded for mercy.

The 'silk samiyar' fled the scene from a back door and was never heard of, there after.After this incident not a single fake God man ,dared to camp in and around Chitoor for decades to come!


My mother's father Madabhusi Ananthasayamam iyengar on his vacationing in his home town Tirupati, whilst studying Bsc maths from Pachaippa college[ 100 years back it was a premier institute in entire south], had climbed up the seven hills leading to Tirumala.He was exhausted by the arduous climbing ,the only way to reach the temple those days.He was made to wait for several hours for a darshan , not because of crowds , there wasn't much those days , but because the 'Mahant' was yet to pay his obeisances.

During the British rule Mahants were vested with the power to control the temple and its finances . Some of them did a good service , but in successive generations they started assuming a pompous and feudalistic postures, like zamindars and came to treat this ancient and sacred temple as their personal fiefdom!They rode on elephant backs and led a life of ease and luxury,The current Mahant was rumoured to be liaising freely with women of easy virtues! my grand father who [was in his late teens then] got tired of waiting , pushed himself into the sanctum ignoring the protests of priests and others , offered his salutations to the deity and ran down the steps and reached Tirupati . On the way he visited his aunt who pressed him to take his lunch .Tired by his exertions he went into an inner room for a short nap .

Meanwhile the Mahant on coming to know that a mere chit of a boy,that to of poor means, had dared to break the protocol of 'Mudal mariadhai' i.e devotees could have darshsan only after him, was enraged and sent his minions with lathi's to comb the temple town and beat an apology out of the renegade . They knocked on that lady's house who was privy to the events.She quickly locked the inner room,as she feared an confrontation , an unequal one , if the lad woke up to take on those henchmen ,which he was sure to do so.

The raging men were astutely diverted and sent away . Later, my grand father on coming to know of this brutish display of force by the Mahant , resolved to free the sacred temple from the clutches of those hoodlums ,masquerading as religious men .

He studied law , became a lawyer and dragged the Mahant to court exposing his high handed tactics and the systematic looting of the coffers of the temple. The case went up to Privy council,London , where it was decided to abolish the hereditary post of the Mahant once and for all !


My grand father,then mooted the idea of a elected body to govern the affairs of the temple with total transparency . This idea was well received and several leading men came forward to form the elected committee known as T.T.D . Since then the temple town has shown a steady progress and has become accessible to one and all.


{As related by my brother.}

Kumbakonnam.

In the Bhagwat Gita lord Krishna says ,4 types of people seek me out. Those in search of wealth, those in grief, seekers of knowledge and finally those who only want to merge with me ! I belong to the 2 nd category.

I was not much of a temple goer.My prayers were said at home , when it was quiet after every one left to office and college respectively.When my complacency was shattered my serenity evaporated . And I found a greater source of comfort worshipping at a temple than in the house.

The reason , places of worship are frequented by people with sole purpose of paying their obeisances and therefore the percinints is sanctified by prayers emanating from 100 's of hearts ,several of those bleeding in pain and anguish.

Gallons of tears were shed by me , my family , Vidat's friends ,common friends and relatives.Yet in the collective memory of scores relatives and friends ,there was no precedent or parallel in the predicament I found myself in . None had gone through the gamut of emotions I was going through.I was very lonely in my grief and I felt that Vidat must be even more lonely up there.

God wasnt kind to me , yet strangely I derived succor in temples! Then I visited ancient temples , that I am sure were frequented by my ancestors. The very fact that they stood where I stood decades later and worshipped the diety ,dispelled my loneliness . The very fact that Acharyas like Ramanuja and Desikan 100's of years earlier had visited these shrines , worshiped the presiding deity , circumbulated and meditated in its percinints and spun beautiful slokas and analysed and presented philosophical thoughts , gave me a sense of continuity and assured me that Vidat is not alone ,but in company of my ancestors and holy men .And this was a balm .

Then I decided to visit 108 Vaishnavite temples whose importance to Sri vaishnavaites lies in them being visited by Azhwars[5 th to 9th centuryAD] and sanctified by their immense faith, pre dating Acharyas . In pursuit of which , I hurtled towards Kumbakkonam last week, a small town that has 40 temples in and around it.

The 7 hour journey whisked away , like all those trees, sky and landscape speeding by outside the window in the pleasant company of my brother , in what seemed like a few moments. Blood is thicker than water. My brother's company was the much needed balm to my withering soul .We broached my tragedy without hedging around and sailed to topics ,from our happy childhood .

Kumbakonnam , our destination , the base to visit Divyadesams , was bustling with activity--the political kind.Sticks were bored into streets and entire stretches were being covered by pandals. An union minister and deputy CM was to visit the next day to unveil a political leader's statue.We were unwittingly caught in the melee and decamped out of the town early next day ,before it would be swamped by police, party bigwigs,and workers and paid audiences and went careenering down narrow tar roads ,hoping to cover 10 Vishnu temples , each day in 4 following days.The temples are scattered in 60 km radius.

The lush villages start barely 5 kms away from Kumbakkonam town .Cool green paddy fields, langorously swaying sugar cane boughs and tall bamboo groves greets the eye ,everywhere!

Small cemented platforms with only a concrete slab for a roof ,on open grounds and at times amidst lush paddy fields , for cremating bodies is the first indication that a village lies just beyond.

It is a grim reminder of what Ramayana has to say.----

'Death travels with one . Death rests with one. However far one goes ,one cannot leave death behind'.

Tolstoy the great Russian thinker and seer has observed , whilst the poor accept untimely death as God's will ----''He giveth -He taketh'' and treat it as part and parcel of life and get going , the educated middle class will not digest it so easily. They 'll analyse the cause and torture themselves with thoughts ,of not doing enough to prevent it and if death is due to illness ,will blame themselves for not exerting enough to find a good doctor .

That wise man's observation a century and half back ,still holds good.The question 'What if ?' continues to taunt me on and off.


The land is fertile and water is available in plenty.Water flows generously from taps on road sides and in hamlets, non stop 24 hours ![unbelievable to Chenaaites , used to cranking laboriously for water from hand pumps and hoping and praying that the sumps fills up at the allotted times]There is thus no dearth of luxuriant greenery.Yet paradoxically most of the houses in the villages are made of mud and have thatched roofs .Concrete and tiled houses are very few and far between .

The people are thin and dark Old men go around bare chested . The mopeds that have vanished from Chennai have found a roaring market amongst the rustics. These, cart huge bundles of grass , hay , firewood, merchandise and whole families or 4 to 5 men at a time!They have taken the mantle of bullock carts of yore .I saw line of girls pedaling slowly towards their schools in light weight cycles in the morning .At nights I saw groups of men,young and middle aged , in their puny frames milling around eagerly and expectantly around 'wine shops'.

The presence of mud houses or houses plastered with mud in every village ,pricked me.The lush paddy fields beyond ,must be yielding good dividends, so I thought and wondered aloud that maybe the villagers preferred the cooling comfort of earthen ware dwellings out of long custom and habit at which our driver of the local tourist cab laughed and said '' No amma , they do not have the money to build concrete houses.''

The temples rise majestically,mainly due to the munificence of rulers of byegone era's[1000 to 2000 years ago] and are well tended by dedicated foot soldiers of Hinduism , the Brahmin priests.I am, but touched by their faith in the deity , their determination to overcome the attractions of a cosy life in cities and dedicate themselves in conducting regular puja's , decorating the idols, keeping the premises clean and organising year long festivals.

Nearly each and every temple at the remotest village is kept open by its priest . It is truly amazing.These Brahmin priests are all poor .Their salary from the govt is a pittance ,a measly sum varying from 200 to 1000 Rs !It is with the help of periodic handouts from charitable trusts like the U.S based Vedic trusts and others and from philanthropists that they manage to scrape through .

The priest of our ancestral village ,which we visited,is a lone representative of our community, others including my forefathers having repaired to flourishing centres in British India in search of livelihood , is lame.He was disabled during his tenure at a larger and popular temple.He hopped on cheerfully in his crutches , into the nearby temple . The sight of the old priest dragging himself on the floor lighting lamps and singing Ramayana with total involvement was simply moving.

But the old priest bore his disability philosophically. His wife greeted us smilingly in their nearby tumble down ramshackle house .The mud plaster was peeling off from all corners . It is a wonder that it has withstood the onslaught of the elements all these years!The tiny dwelling is surrounded by overgrown bushes. She insisted that we should take coffee and she prepared it in a jiffy over a coal stove in a kitchen, the size of a match box !There wasn't a drop of gold in her person . Only a yellow string hung around her neck.
She told me wistfully ,that her only son ,who was a wee bit better off than them was living in the nearby town ,but her husband wanted to stay near his temple and felt insecure away from the company of 'Navaneetha Krishnan,'the presiding deity he tended so solicitously.

Poverty was writ large every where , yet the crumbling cottage resonated with their laughter as the old couple sparred with each other.A peacock called from nearby shrubs piercing the desolation.Creepers , grass and trees have grown densely over the remnants of buildings ,once housing a large vibrant community.
The 35 year old burly driver of our cab brushed aside the tears smarting in his eyes ,moved by the old priests efforts to overcome his disability and touched by his hospitality. The priest insisted that the driver take his seat next to him on the small slab whilst his wife pressed a tumbler of piping hot aromatic filter coffee in his hands !

As we took leave, I involuntarily bowed to them .