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(continued from Part 12)
-----------------------------------------------------------------------

The Man of "bhakti" (or "prappati") who is on the verge of the
"prasAdana-parvA" asks himself:

"After all these years of "bhakti" I have shown towards God (or,
after having absolutely surrendered to Him in "saranAgati") is He
going to consign me in my last moments on earth to suffer the same
indignities of physical death that I have seen so many others before
me in this world undergo?"

The answer is "NO!". The man who has climbed up the first 5 steps of
the "parama-pada-sOpAnam", and who has faithfully embraced either
"bhakti-upAya" or "prappati", has earned the privilege to enjoy the
fruits of his hard endeavour in the "phala-parvA" of Desikan's
"parama-pada-mArgam". He has earned the "right of way", so to say, on
the road of "utkramana". Hence there is no question of he having to
suffer the various "vikAra-s" and horrors of death described by
Peria-AzhwAr in the "pAsuram-s" we saw earlier.

What is this "right of way"? What is this "utkramana" which exempts
and saves the "bhaktA" from the indignities and ignominy which attend
the act of physical death in one's last moments of life?

This has to be explained with reference to 2 significant
pronouncements of Sri.Krishna in the Bhagavath-Gita: 

anta-kAlE cha mAm Eva
smaran muktvA kalEvaram I
yah: prayAti sa madh-bhAvam
yAti nAst~yatra samshayah: II (Gita VIII.5)

"Whoever, at the time of death, quits his body, remembering Me alone,

at once attains My nature. Of this let there be not even a shadow of 
doubt." 

Krishna, the 'avatAra' of God, categorically stated that a man of
"bhakti" who is, by definition, a soul immersed in thoughts of the
Almighty, exits both the world and his mortal body painlessly and
easily. He merges into the bliss of God. 

Furthermore, a little earlier in the Gita, Krishna had also explained
why the 'bhakta' deserved such absolute ease of death: 

"chatur-vidhA bhajantE mAm 
janAh: sukritinO'rjunA I
aartO jignyAsur arthArthi
gnyAni cha bharatar-shabha II

"tEshAm gnyAni nitya-yukta 
eka-bhaktir-visishyatE I
priyOhi gnyAni-nO-artham
aham sa cha mama priya: II (Bhagavath-gita VII.18)

"O Arjuna, there are 4 kinds of souls in this world who profess 
devotion to Me --- he who is distressed, he who seeks wealth, he who 
is inquisitive and he who is in quest of the Absolute -- the supreme 
'gnyAni'. Of these, the 'gnyAni' whose 'bhakti' springs out of his 
knowledge of Me, is the best. For I am very dear to him; and he is 
very dear to Me".

We see from the above "gitA-vAkya" that from out of the rest of
humanity, God clearly singled out the man of "bhakti" as being very
dear to him --- "...priyOhi gnyAni-nO-artham, aham sa cha mama
priya:"-- and such a "priya-bhakta" shall therefore surely be
released from death, on the path of "utkramana", without pain,
without indignity... and delivered unto God.

What Krishna promised in the Bhagavath-Gita, He made sure He also
delivered later on the battle-field of Kurukshetra.

Bhishma-pitamahA, the grand old Sire of Hastinapur, was a great
'bhakta'. He was mortally wounded in the battle between the Pandavas
and Kauravas. Arjuna had shot and riddled Bhishma's body with a rain
of arrows until the old warrior was bleeding and broken beyond
recognition. Although Bhishma lay dying on the battle-field waiting
for the imminent end, He never showed the least trace of pain or
suffering. The great 'bhaktA' that he was, Bhishma passed away from
the world with the joy of God brimming in his heart. In the
Mahabharata, we see Bhishma exclaim exultantly in almost the very
last moments of his life:

"yaccha bhUtam bhavishyaccha bhavaccha paramachyuta
tat sarvamanupasyAmi panou phala mivAhitam"
"vEdoktaschaiva yO dharmAh: vEdAnta niyataschayE
tAn sarvAn samprapasyAmi varadAnAt tavA'chyutA"

"O Krishna! My Lord! I am now able to visualize fully the past, the 
present and the future? as easily and lucidly as one can see a fruit 
held in the palm of one's hand! The eternal truths enshrined in the 
Vedas and Vedanta now stand visible and absolutely transparent to me?

thanks to your infinite Grace, my dearest AchyuthA!"

Thus, it becomes very clear to us why the passage of Man's soul
through the "utkramana" phase is described by Swami Desikan to be
absolutely free from pain, "vikAram" and indignity.

********* *********** *********** 

For a "prappana", the moment of physical death is made even far
easier to bear than for the "bhaktA". While the latter has to make a
conscious effort to remain concentrated upon God in the dying
moments, the "prapanna" is freed from even such conditions. To the
man who has surrendered wholly to God, Krishna of His own volition
appears in a wonderful vision in the final moments, making the act of
dying absolutely tranquil and painless.

How can the "prappana" be certain of God's appearance in the moment
of death?

The answer lies in the famous assurance given by God to his Consort,
"Bhudevi", in His "avatAra" as Bhu-Varahan. In a solemn pronouncement
known to us as 'varAha-charama-shlOka', God guaranteed appearance by
His visitation upon any Man that lay like a lifeless log upon a
death-bed, provided such a man had early in life, when both body and
spirit had been in hale condition, chosen to surrender to Him
absolutely and since offered worship to Him in all faith:

stithE manasi susvathE sarirE sati yO nara:
dhAtusAmyE stithE smartA visvarUpam cha mAmajam
tatasta mriyamANAm tu kAshta-pAshANa-sannibham
aha smarAmi madhbhaktam nayAmi paramAm gatim II 
("vAraha-charama-shlOkam")

******** *********** ***********

That the last moments on earth --- i.e. "antima-prayAnam" -- of a
"bhakta" or "prappana" is never delirious or undignified is
emphatically and beautifully described by Swami Desikan in a verse in
the hymn, "gOpAla-vimshati".

"adharAhita chAru vamsha nAlAh:
makutAlambi mayUra pinchamAlAh:
harInIla shilA vibhanga nILAh:
pratibhAsantu mama antima-prayANE" 
("gOpAla-vimshati" - Verse 12)

"As I lie on my death-bed nearing the end of my life's journey, may 
my eyes feast upon nothing else but the graceful form of my Krishna
--- 
holding a slender flute to his lips, peacock-feathers framing his 
lush hair-locks, curly and cute? bathed in colours iridescent true? 
bright, vivid and sapphire blue!"

Desikan further added at the end:

"ithya-anannya-manasA vinirmitAm
venkatEsa kavinA-stUthim paTann 
divya-vENu rasikam samIkshatE
daivatam kimapi yowatha-priyam" 
("phala-sruti" Verse 21)

"He who reads this hymn of the devoted poet Venkatesan, shall surely 
obtain that unique vision ("pratibha") of young Krishna playing the 
divine lute; of He who is the darling of the ever-youthful belles of 
this world!"

The 2 verses above powerfully convey the idea: It is 
the vision of youthful Krishna that the "bhaktA" and "prappana"
experience in the moment of one's physical death and spiritual
release. It is a moment of intense bliss called "antima-smriti". It
has the power to turn even black Death into a "thing of Beauty, a Joy
forever".

(to be continued)

dAsan,
Sudarshan 













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