Post by radha on Apr 25, 2014 7:58:40 GMT 5.5
OM SRI GURUPYO NAMAHA:,RESPECTFUL PRANAMS TO SRI KANCHI MAHA PERIVA.
Teachings of MahaperiyavA
SAMSARE KIM SARAM? – [What is the essence of worldly life?]
Our Acharya (Adi Sankara), in his “Prasnotra Ratna Malika” raises the question, “Kim Samsare Saram?” (What is the saram in this wordly life?) He provides the reply too. ‘Dear man, you have asked the question, is it not? You go on asking this question always. ‘That is the saram of samsaram’. That is, we have to constantly think,’what is the purpose of our having been born? What for are we born?’. We have to think whether we will achieve that purpose. ‘Why are we incurring sin? Why do we get angry? Why do we get desires? Why should all these come? Can we not be always happy and blissful? – these thoughts occur. We do not understand what the reply to these are.
Everything is for our good only. In a tree the fruit comes from the flower only. When it is a flower it is appealing to the nose and when it is fruit it is tasty to the tongue. The fruit is very sweet. What was the taste before this sweetness? The flower is bitter, the tender unripe fruit is astringent, the unripe one is sour and then the sweetness. When sweetness arrives all attachments go away. In the case of a fruit when it is fully ripe with sweetness it falls down. In the same manner, if the heart is filled all over with sweetness (peace) all attachments will go away of their own. So long as it is sour, there will be attachment. If the unripe fruit is plucked, water will ooze at the stalk. Water will ooze from the unripe fruit also. That means neither the tree wants to leave the unripe fruit nor the unripe fruit wants to detach itself from the tree. But if it becomes fully sweet, the attachment will go. The ripe fruit will fall on its own. The tree leaves the fruit and then fruit also leaves the tree. Both will part with each other without water oozing, that is happily, without crying. One who has evolved step by step and whose heart is filled with sweetness (madhuram) will happily detach himself from tree of samsara. Just as before the fruit ripens, sourness and astringency are required, in the beginning stages, it appears that desires, anger and impatience are necessary!
We cannot get released completely from these things at the early stage when we are victims of these. Even then, we should at least constantly think why these are coming. ‘We now had this feeling, this desire, anger, fame, falsehood! Is there any use by all these? Does this feeling come as something necessary or something ‘not necessary?’ ‘We should think on these lines. If we do not think like this, they will deceive us. We will get cheated.
When it is time for sourness, it must be sour. When it is time for astringency, it must be astringent. Yet just as the tender fruit does not stop with the early stages but keeps on going towards ripeness, we should go on thinking of the love and peace which is sweet. If we go on doing this way, we need not go in search of Moksha. If we are how we should be at different stages, the sweet state of Moksha will come on its own. Instead of that if we attempt at the wrong time, it will be like the tender fruit ripening without reaching the next stage. It will be spoiled. It will not be sweet. Just as Ramalingam sang, ‘will it get spoiled and fall off’ there is no use our making premature attempts to get Moksha and falling off on the way.
It is wrong to remain satisfied with the condition in which we are. But, at the same time when we still carry a heavy load of the past ‘karmas’ it is wrong to be in haste to gain the supreme jnana immediately. We need not desire for the supreme jnana here and now and go in search of it. We will go on performing our duties with the thought that, if it does not materialize in this birth (janma) let it come after several births. We shall follow the Dharma as enjoined by our vedhas. If we do so supreme jnana has to come on its own. Now we are able to see only external activities and appearances. Therefore, let us start with religious rituals which are external activities and the religious symbols that we wear which are also external. We will ripen through stages, from the tender to the unripe and then the ripened fruit and reach the truth that is internal.
SRI KANCHI MAHA PERIVA THIRUVADIGAL CHARANAM
Teachings of MahaperiyavA
SAMSARE KIM SARAM? – [What is the essence of worldly life?]
Our Acharya (Adi Sankara), in his “Prasnotra Ratna Malika” raises the question, “Kim Samsare Saram?” (What is the saram in this wordly life?) He provides the reply too. ‘Dear man, you have asked the question, is it not? You go on asking this question always. ‘That is the saram of samsaram’. That is, we have to constantly think,’what is the purpose of our having been born? What for are we born?’. We have to think whether we will achieve that purpose. ‘Why are we incurring sin? Why do we get angry? Why do we get desires? Why should all these come? Can we not be always happy and blissful? – these thoughts occur. We do not understand what the reply to these are.
Everything is for our good only. In a tree the fruit comes from the flower only. When it is a flower it is appealing to the nose and when it is fruit it is tasty to the tongue. The fruit is very sweet. What was the taste before this sweetness? The flower is bitter, the tender unripe fruit is astringent, the unripe one is sour and then the sweetness. When sweetness arrives all attachments go away. In the case of a fruit when it is fully ripe with sweetness it falls down. In the same manner, if the heart is filled all over with sweetness (peace) all attachments will go away of their own. So long as it is sour, there will be attachment. If the unripe fruit is plucked, water will ooze at the stalk. Water will ooze from the unripe fruit also. That means neither the tree wants to leave the unripe fruit nor the unripe fruit wants to detach itself from the tree. But if it becomes fully sweet, the attachment will go. The ripe fruit will fall on its own. The tree leaves the fruit and then fruit also leaves the tree. Both will part with each other without water oozing, that is happily, without crying. One who has evolved step by step and whose heart is filled with sweetness (madhuram) will happily detach himself from tree of samsara. Just as before the fruit ripens, sourness and astringency are required, in the beginning stages, it appears that desires, anger and impatience are necessary!
We cannot get released completely from these things at the early stage when we are victims of these. Even then, we should at least constantly think why these are coming. ‘We now had this feeling, this desire, anger, fame, falsehood! Is there any use by all these? Does this feeling come as something necessary or something ‘not necessary?’ ‘We should think on these lines. If we do not think like this, they will deceive us. We will get cheated.
When it is time for sourness, it must be sour. When it is time for astringency, it must be astringent. Yet just as the tender fruit does not stop with the early stages but keeps on going towards ripeness, we should go on thinking of the love and peace which is sweet. If we go on doing this way, we need not go in search of Moksha. If we are how we should be at different stages, the sweet state of Moksha will come on its own. Instead of that if we attempt at the wrong time, it will be like the tender fruit ripening without reaching the next stage. It will be spoiled. It will not be sweet. Just as Ramalingam sang, ‘will it get spoiled and fall off’ there is no use our making premature attempts to get Moksha and falling off on the way.
It is wrong to remain satisfied with the condition in which we are. But, at the same time when we still carry a heavy load of the past ‘karmas’ it is wrong to be in haste to gain the supreme jnana immediately. We need not desire for the supreme jnana here and now and go in search of it. We will go on performing our duties with the thought that, if it does not materialize in this birth (janma) let it come after several births. We shall follow the Dharma as enjoined by our vedhas. If we do so supreme jnana has to come on its own. Now we are able to see only external activities and appearances. Therefore, let us start with religious rituals which are external activities and the religious symbols that we wear which are also external. We will ripen through stages, from the tender to the unripe and then the ripened fruit and reach the truth that is internal.
SRI KANCHI MAHA PERIVA THIRUVADIGAL CHARANAM