Post by saidevo on Sept 19, 2012 9:44:19 GMT 5.5
oLiyuDan oru nAL (A Day with the Light)
author:....... Raa. Ganapathi
source:....... maitrIm bhajata, pages 120-182
publisher:.... Divya Vidya Padhippaham (Aug. 2006 Edition)
type:......... book, Tamil
translator.....saidevo
Pages 120-125
On the occasion of today's piLLaiyAr cathurthi, we are blessed to have a look at a day in his life, as narrated by his staunch devotee and inimitable author Sri Raa. Ganapathy in his book 'maitrIm bhajata'.
It's a long account extending over 60 pages. As usual, I shall try to serve this prasAdam by the only way I can do it--in smaller instalments.--saidevo
Arjuna had the desire to know how would one anchored in jnAnA be, how would he talk, how would he sit and walk and do such things (in his daily life). Such a desire is one that could commonly arise in every one of us. And when we start knowing it, that holy fount would wash our dirts a little.
How would our JnAnaGuru, who is a jnAna niSTA (always established in wisdom), be? How would he talk, remaining full of peace in unity, full of love in duality? How would he sit, so closely, unassumingly? How would he walk, in countless poses? As hamsa (swan), also as the pArasika ashva (Persian horse)?
How can it all be told in such a few words? Alright, let us have a look at the daily affairs of our Acharya KamakotigaL in an orderly way. On the occasion of this holy Deepavali, let us reminisce on the nityappadi (daily affairs) of the JnAna Deepa OLi (lamp flame of knowledge). Isn't it that the grammar says of 'guru' as one who removes darkness?
The beats of the Nagaaraa drum in SriMaTham would rise in the air around four-thirty early morning, a time known as the Brahma MuhUrtam. It would be followed by the sounds of the Tangaa drum. The assistants would get up as this gaMbhIram (resonance) starts to engulf the atmosphere.
Even before them, with nobody except his antaranga kinkara (personal assistant) knowing when he got up, our Gurunathan would have awakened and finished his chore in the 'koTTAi' (washroom). 'To come back from the koTTAi' is the SriMaTham paribhAshA (slang) for 'he is back from the washroom, after answering his nature's call.
When he goes for that, the way he stands wrapping his vastram (cloth) over his head in a summAdu (turban), as according to the Shastras, would be a pose of grace!
After answering the nature's call, he would do unerringly the act of cleaning himself with sand and water, known as mRttikA shuddhi, and the act of gargling his mouth, the exact number of times mentioned in the Shastras--the pEr-anubhUtimAn (great man of knowledge) who is past sakala shAstras!
Even his getting up in the morning should be in a Shastric time. "A muhUrta kAlam is 48 nimiSam (minute). The brahma muhUrtam starts three muhUrtas before the sUryOdayam (sunrise). Thus if the udayam is at six o' clock, brahma muhUrtam would start at 3:36 hours. It would be a dosham (deficiency) if one does not get up even after it starts."--From these words of his, we can do the anumAna (inference) that he gets up either at three-thirty or even earlier (in the morning).
We should stress the word anumAna because he would never on the maximum be explicit about the things concerning him; we should understand only by anumAna!
Our Acharya SwamigaL is a strange mixture! Looking at the simplicity of how he moves with everyone from the parama pAmarar (simple rustic), weaving himself through them with an open heart, we know that he is completely without the qualities of obstinacy and reticence. We have the happiness of knowing with utter clarity that personification of purity and simplicity who is crystal clear in his manners.
But then even within that crystal clarity what amount of thievish secrecy?
I have titled this account 'oLiyudan oru nAL'. Light not only shows up other things clearly, but is itself clearly visible. It is that quality which makes the other things known clearly. Since the katturai nAyakar (hero of this essay) is like that light, this title (for the account on him).
But then strangely, this oLiyudan oru nAL will also be oLivudan oru nAL (A Day with the Veil)!
Why one day, even for those who spent their entire life in his service, he has remained in a veil so they would never know about the jIvAdhara viSaya (life supporting details) concerning him!
Another strange thing lends its trace here. We would all keep hidden our shortcomings, errors and ordinary human tendencies. We would let out and take pride of our skills and about anything good we have done. We would showcase our skills and good deeds, even imagining about them.
Such lowly shortcomings as ours are never possessed by that mahA mEru (the great Mount Meru). Still, when he looks at himself from the lofty state of that Meru, it seems to him that what he does and how he is have a few-many shortcomings. He would be natural and explicit about such shortcomings on his part.
Whether an avatar, or the one who is born as a man and raised himself to the status of divinity through sAdhana and Grace, whoever it is, there are some human tendencies that are part of the human vesture that is worn by him. There are numerous indications for this in the life of avatars and other mahaans (great men). In that way, SriCharaNar would explicitly and naturally speak about his own tendencies so the people around him would know about them.
But then he would completely hide his skills, his wonderfully sublime tendencies and the good deeds that he did!
He would never speak about the jnAna pEranubhavam, the bhakti pEranubhavam (great experiences of knowledge and devotion) he had.
Not only that. As the peak of his good deeds, the great experiences of wisdom and devotion that he confer on some of his devotees--even those he would do remaining in a veil, never revealing that he did them!
He would never speak about his vidvat mahimA (greatness of knowledge) either.
Thus within the play of veil that he enacts in many ways, he would also not explicity show the wonderfully sublime tendencies related to the path that he travels, which is paved to the atom with the rules of the Shastras. He would not open his mouth to say that all he does from the time he gets up to the time he retires are only shAstrAcara (according to the Shastras).
Nevertheless, unlike the matters of knowledge and devotion, since this dharmAcara viSaya (matters relating to dharma) that fall under the Karma Yoga path, have their dealings with the outer world, we have the fortune of seeing well without any veil, in kArya rUpam (form of action), at least the one speciality of his shAstrAnuSTAnam (adherence to Shastras).
That guides us in such a path at least to some extent. And it prompts us to have a reverential attitude towards that path and feel self-pity for our inability to go that way.
If we keenly look at his andRAdam (daily life) with a feeling of devotion, we could infer the inner depth of some of what he does and feel happy about it, keeping well in mind that a day with the light is also a day with the veil.
Glossary:
anubhUti - perception; knowledge from any source but memory; (in phil.) knowledge gained by means of the four pramANas (perception by the senses, inference, comparison, and verbal authority); dignity, consequence.
anumAna - the act of inferring or drawing a conclusion from given premises; inference, consideration, reflection; guess, conjecture; one of the means of obtaining true knowledge.
sarala - candid, honest, straight, direct
*** *** **
author:....... Raa. Ganapathi
source:....... maitrIm bhajata, pages 120-182
publisher:.... Divya Vidya Padhippaham (Aug. 2006 Edition)
type:......... book, Tamil
translator.....saidevo
Pages 120-125
On the occasion of today's piLLaiyAr cathurthi, we are blessed to have a look at a day in his life, as narrated by his staunch devotee and inimitable author Sri Raa. Ganapathy in his book 'maitrIm bhajata'.
It's a long account extending over 60 pages. As usual, I shall try to serve this prasAdam by the only way I can do it--in smaller instalments.--saidevo
Arjuna had the desire to know how would one anchored in jnAnA be, how would he talk, how would he sit and walk and do such things (in his daily life). Such a desire is one that could commonly arise in every one of us. And when we start knowing it, that holy fount would wash our dirts a little.
How would our JnAnaGuru, who is a jnAna niSTA (always established in wisdom), be? How would he talk, remaining full of peace in unity, full of love in duality? How would he sit, so closely, unassumingly? How would he walk, in countless poses? As hamsa (swan), also as the pArasika ashva (Persian horse)?
How can it all be told in such a few words? Alright, let us have a look at the daily affairs of our Acharya KamakotigaL in an orderly way. On the occasion of this holy Deepavali, let us reminisce on the nityappadi (daily affairs) of the JnAna Deepa OLi (lamp flame of knowledge). Isn't it that the grammar says of 'guru' as one who removes darkness?
The beats of the Nagaaraa drum in SriMaTham would rise in the air around four-thirty early morning, a time known as the Brahma MuhUrtam. It would be followed by the sounds of the Tangaa drum. The assistants would get up as this gaMbhIram (resonance) starts to engulf the atmosphere.
Even before them, with nobody except his antaranga kinkara (personal assistant) knowing when he got up, our Gurunathan would have awakened and finished his chore in the 'koTTAi' (washroom). 'To come back from the koTTAi' is the SriMaTham paribhAshA (slang) for 'he is back from the washroom, after answering his nature's call.
When he goes for that, the way he stands wrapping his vastram (cloth) over his head in a summAdu (turban), as according to the Shastras, would be a pose of grace!
After answering the nature's call, he would do unerringly the act of cleaning himself with sand and water, known as mRttikA shuddhi, and the act of gargling his mouth, the exact number of times mentioned in the Shastras--the pEr-anubhUtimAn (great man of knowledge) who is past sakala shAstras!
Even his getting up in the morning should be in a Shastric time. "A muhUrta kAlam is 48 nimiSam (minute). The brahma muhUrtam starts three muhUrtas before the sUryOdayam (sunrise). Thus if the udayam is at six o' clock, brahma muhUrtam would start at 3:36 hours. It would be a dosham (deficiency) if one does not get up even after it starts."--From these words of his, we can do the anumAna (inference) that he gets up either at three-thirty or even earlier (in the morning).
We should stress the word anumAna because he would never on the maximum be explicit about the things concerning him; we should understand only by anumAna!
Our Acharya SwamigaL is a strange mixture! Looking at the simplicity of how he moves with everyone from the parama pAmarar (simple rustic), weaving himself through them with an open heart, we know that he is completely without the qualities of obstinacy and reticence. We have the happiness of knowing with utter clarity that personification of purity and simplicity who is crystal clear in his manners.
But then even within that crystal clarity what amount of thievish secrecy?
I have titled this account 'oLiyudan oru nAL'. Light not only shows up other things clearly, but is itself clearly visible. It is that quality which makes the other things known clearly. Since the katturai nAyakar (hero of this essay) is like that light, this title (for the account on him).
But then strangely, this oLiyudan oru nAL will also be oLivudan oru nAL (A Day with the Veil)!
Why one day, even for those who spent their entire life in his service, he has remained in a veil so they would never know about the jIvAdhara viSaya (life supporting details) concerning him!
Another strange thing lends its trace here. We would all keep hidden our shortcomings, errors and ordinary human tendencies. We would let out and take pride of our skills and about anything good we have done. We would showcase our skills and good deeds, even imagining about them.
Such lowly shortcomings as ours are never possessed by that mahA mEru (the great Mount Meru). Still, when he looks at himself from the lofty state of that Meru, it seems to him that what he does and how he is have a few-many shortcomings. He would be natural and explicit about such shortcomings on his part.
Whether an avatar, or the one who is born as a man and raised himself to the status of divinity through sAdhana and Grace, whoever it is, there are some human tendencies that are part of the human vesture that is worn by him. There are numerous indications for this in the life of avatars and other mahaans (great men). In that way, SriCharaNar would explicitly and naturally speak about his own tendencies so the people around him would know about them.
But then he would completely hide his skills, his wonderfully sublime tendencies and the good deeds that he did!
He would never speak about the jnAna pEranubhavam, the bhakti pEranubhavam (great experiences of knowledge and devotion) he had.
Not only that. As the peak of his good deeds, the great experiences of wisdom and devotion that he confer on some of his devotees--even those he would do remaining in a veil, never revealing that he did them!
He would never speak about his vidvat mahimA (greatness of knowledge) either.
Thus within the play of veil that he enacts in many ways, he would also not explicity show the wonderfully sublime tendencies related to the path that he travels, which is paved to the atom with the rules of the Shastras. He would not open his mouth to say that all he does from the time he gets up to the time he retires are only shAstrAcara (according to the Shastras).
Nevertheless, unlike the matters of knowledge and devotion, since this dharmAcara viSaya (matters relating to dharma) that fall under the Karma Yoga path, have their dealings with the outer world, we have the fortune of seeing well without any veil, in kArya rUpam (form of action), at least the one speciality of his shAstrAnuSTAnam (adherence to Shastras).
That guides us in such a path at least to some extent. And it prompts us to have a reverential attitude towards that path and feel self-pity for our inability to go that way.
If we keenly look at his andRAdam (daily life) with a feeling of devotion, we could infer the inner depth of some of what he does and feel happy about it, keeping well in mind that a day with the light is also a day with the veil.
Glossary:
anubhUti - perception; knowledge from any source but memory; (in phil.) knowledge gained by means of the four pramANas (perception by the senses, inference, comparison, and verbal authority); dignity, consequence.
anumAna - the act of inferring or drawing a conclusion from given premises; inference, consideration, reflection; guess, conjecture; one of the means of obtaining true knowledge.
sarala - candid, honest, straight, direct
*** *** **