(continued from Part 5) ----------------------------------------------------------------------- In the 'parama-pada-sOpAnam', Swami Desikan put forward a Vedantic thesis in a very scientific and modern way. It is a thesis that shows Man a pathway to personal development from lower to the highest state of existence and experience. It is a "vEdAnta-mArga" which shows us how to enrich our lives in an easy-to-follow 9-step program. The 9-step program begins at the first stepping-stone as surely as it ends with the last. There are no alternate routes on this journey --- just as there are none on a stairway. The "parama-pada-sOpAnam" is a journey which leads only one way: upwards, straight from the low plains of worldly experience towards "paramapada", the very summit of human experience in the kingdom of God. Swami Desikan described 9 "steps" or 'parianka-s' which a man aspiring to reach the pinnacle of Joy in 'parama-padam' must have to tread: 1) vivekam 2) nirvedam 3) virakti 4) bheeti 5) prasAda-hetu 6) utkramanam 7) archirAdri 8) divya-desa-prApti 9) prApti The first 4 steps from 'vivEkam' to 'bheethi' are collectively termed by Swami Desikan as "adhikAra-parva". These deal with the the various processes by which a man acquires the requisite "adhikAra", or qualifications or eligibility, that will enable him to proceed along the pathway to the next 5 steps. The stepping-stone described as "prasAdana-hetu", next, is termed by Swami Desikan as "UpAya-parva". It is the program that deals with the various "practical means" a qualified spiritual aspirant employs in order to get ahead further on the journey to 'parama-padam'. The last 4 stepping-stones viz. "ut-kramaNam", "archirAdi", "divya-dEsa-prApti" and "prApti" are all collectively put together by Swami Desikan in one program called "phala-parvA". It deals with the aftermath of the journey man has already undertaken along the path of the first step through the 5th 'parianka'. It is interesting to note that out of the 9 steps above, a man is expected to take the trouble to scale only the first 5. Steps #6 to #9 are easily traversed by an aspirant with the aid and Grace of God himself. While a little of strenuous effort is required of Man to climb onto Step #5, none is required thereafter. The Lord Himself assumes the burden and responsibility of "lifting" the soul of man from Step #6 through Step #9. The first 5 'parianka-s' in the 'parama-pada-sOpAnam' are thus so many steps on a stairway; but the last 4 may be said to be a bit like a modern escalator. One merely needs to step on it to be conveyed forward effortlessly. While Steps #1 to #5 are trodden with the physical body of the aspirant, the journey through Steps #6 to #9 is believed to be undertaken without the physical body i.e. Man's spirit alone undertakes this leg of the journey. While sometimes one can attempt to hop-step & jump over ordinary stairways in order to accelerate one's way up, it is not possible to do so on Swami Desikan's 'parama-pada-sOpAnam'. Here one has to scale the height in proper "krama" (methodically) and there are no short-cuts or slip-throughs. You cannot arrive at any given stepping-stone without first having landed on the immediately preceding one. (to be continued) dAsan, Sudarshan __________________________________________________ Do you Yahoo!? Y! Web Hosting - Let the expert host your web site http://webhosting.yahoo.com/
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