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srI:
SrI sAra sAram â I (60)
--
I â ThirumantrAdhikAram
--
The Meaning of the Thirumanthiram as a Whole
---
SwAmi Desikan now explains how by realizing the significance of the
three words in the Thirumanthiram, different kinds of egoism of the jIva are
removed. He takes up the first word, the praNava:
âithil pratham-pada-ththil thruthIya-aksharaththAlE dEhAdikaLilum
tadanubanidhikaLilum varm ahangkAra-mamakArangkaLaiyumâ ---
In the first word of the Thirumanthiram, which is the pranava, the
third syllable, âmâ indicates the jIva who has knowledge as his form and
also his attribute. One who realizes the significance of this syllable gets rid
of the ahamkAram, the misconception that his body is identical with his self
and the mamakAram, the wrong notion that things connected with the body belong
to him.
âprathama-aksharaththil caturthiyAlE thAn thanakkuriyanAkivarm
ahangkAra-mamakArangkaLaiyumâ ---
We have already seen that the first syllable of the praNava has the
fourth-case suffix, âAyaâ which is hidden and that it indicates the
servitude of the jIva. By realizing the truth of being a servant to the Lord,
one gets rid of the ahamkAram, that is, the thought, âI belong to myselfâ;
and the mamakAram, that is, the thinking of oneâs qualities as his own.
âmadhyma-aksharaththil avadhAraNaththAlE nAn vERoruvankku
nirupAdhika-SeshanenRum enakku vERoru nirupAdika- SeshiyuNdenRum varum
ahangkAra-mamakArangkaLaiyumâ â
As the middle syllable of the praNava, âuâ indicates that the jIva
is the exclusive belonging of the Lord alone, the realization of this syllable
removes the ahangkAram, which is in the form of thinking oneself as a natural
servant of any one other than the Lord; and the mamakAram, that is, the
thinking of some one other than the Lord as oneâs natural master.
SwAmi Desikan now takes up the middle word, ânamahâ in the
Thirumanthiram:
âmadhyama-padaththil nishedha-viSEshangkaLalE svarakshaNa-vyApArAdikaLaip
paRRa nirapEksha-svantranenRum nirupAdhika-SeshiyenRm varum
ahangkAra-mamakArangfkaLaiyumâ ---
The negation in the middle word, ânamahâ, indicates the rejection
of certain attitudes on the part of the jIva. Its components are: ânaâ and
âmahâ, which stress the denial of self-responsibility for self-protection,
bereft of the dependence on the Lord. It is a fact that one cannot protect
himself independent of the Lordâs grace. The thought that one can protect
himself without the help of the Lord is a type of ahangkAram, which is removed
when one realizes the significance of this word. When this happens, he will
also be free from the type of mamakAram, in the form of thought, âThe other
is my servant (Sesha) and I am his master (Seshi).â Similarly the mamakAram,
that is, the feeling, âI am the master of actions done by meâ, will also
disappear as a result of the realization of the significance of this middle
word.
SwAmi Desikan now takes up the third and last word, ânArAyaNAyaâ of
the Thirumanthiram:
âin nishEdh sAmarthyam thannAlE NaRaYAnA Sabdaththil caturtthin karuththAn
kainkarya-anbhavaththil phalAnthara-anubhava-nyAththAle varun
svadhina-kartrutva-bhOktrutva, svArtha-karrutva-bhrama-roopangkaLAna
ahangkAra-mamakArangaLaiyum SAbdamAkavum ArthamAkavum aDiyaRuththu niRkiRAn.â
â
This negation in the middle word, ânamahâ, has more to convey. We
know that the third word, ânArAyaNAyaâ is composed of the name of the Lord,
ânArAyaNaâ and the fourth-case suffix, âAyaâ. This suffix is indicative
of the service one has to render to the Lord.
In the worldly life, when one does some action and consequently enjoys
the fruit of such action, he experiences ahangkAram in the form of, âI
performed the action independently and I enjoy its fruit independentlyâ and
also a mamkAram in the form of, âThe fruit of the action is my ownâ and
âI experience its fruit for my own sake.â We may doubt whether such
ahamgkAram and mamakAram will be there in SrIvaikuNTam too where the mukta is
rendering service to the Lord. But, when one realizes the significance of the
middle word, ânamahâ, it will result in the removal of such ahamgkAram and
the mamkAram. He will not even utter the words âIâ and âmineâ, as the
significance of ânamahâ gets enshrined in his mind.
(To continue)
dAsan
anbil S.SrInivAsan
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