You are here: SriPedia - SriRangaSri - Archives - May 2004

SriRangaSri List Archive: Message 00031 May 2004

 
May 2004 Indexes ( Date | Thread | Author )
[Date Prev][Date Next][Thread Prev][Thread Next]


Dear sri vaishnava perunthagaiyeer,

We struggle in this world to get a mouthful of food first and then a stomach 
full. That becomes the main occupation throughout the life of a man, to first 
search for food. For the unending 'hunger' just takes the control of the mind 
when the stomach is empty. Just to impress this aspect of the hunger, the 
proverb is also coined - 'pasi vanthida paththum paRandhupOm' - as soon as 
hunger takes over all the ten goes off [viz. ten characteristics or personal 
traits takes off from that hungry person]. 

Now just look at the other side - If you don't feel hungry for a few days, can 
you afford to feel comfortable and sit at home? Okay, I have got rid of a very 
big problem. No, not at all. On the contrary, then only the serious problem 
starts. You become anxious. You rush to the doctor, take some medicine, try 
everything like medicines, poojaas, etc, make every effort to restore your 
natural hunger. 

What you need is a healthy, right type of hunger. Also you need a solution to 
the problem of this right hunger by having good quality food at right time the 
hunger. Then satisfaction comes with that food and you are assured of your 
normal health. As far as this physical hunger is concerned, it is the necessity 
of life, and it is most important and very special.

Each one has different kinds hunger, and that makes their personality. The 
question may arise, that if someone is busy with his physical hunger, can he 
say that his personality is perfect? The answer will be - Of course not. But it 
is also true that no one can avoid hunger. No one can neglect it. Bhakthi is 
also a type or form of hunger. 

Nammaazhvaar also has this right type of 'hunger' of bhakthi - the food he 
wanted is 'the lord to come and stay in his heart' - and he had the food also 
served to him by that lord - aazhvaar's food giver or server - so aazhvaar says

thiruppEr nagaraan  thirumaalirunchOlai
poruppE uRaiginRa piraan inRu vandhu 
iruppEn enRu en neju niRaiyap pugundhaan
viruppE peRRu amudham uNdu kaLiththENE - 10 -8-6

Only thing aazhvaar did not desire simple food like us. So he had amudham - 
nectar as his food. For the food provider is that supreme lord - that too how 
he served - nenju niRaiya - heart full. That is the all that simple difference.

We also see many many kinds of hunger. First, in this world, everybody is born 
out of the big hunger; viz. hunger of coupling. When a person is born, 
immediately and thereafter regularly at intervals, he cries announcing to be 
fed. As the person grows, the same hunger is expressed in his / her longing for 
toys, education or hunger for knowledge, friends, and competition. This hunger 
later finds expression in search for a wife, child, respect, money and more 
such things, etc. 

That is why there is the famous Maslow's 'theory of needs' in the management 
science of motivation. This theory also tells about the rising levels of need 
or hunger, like 
        1.       Basic need. 
        2.       Security needs. 
        3.       Social needs 
        4.       Esteem needs 
        5.       Self actualization needs. 
It is all the same expression of the energy of 'hunger' at different levels.

Can we say this is level 1 hunger in the verse above - 'I was having the hunger 
- he came entered my heart - that was the food for me- so I enjoyed it' - the 
basic need to fulfill. 

See here another one who says 'even though I do not eat on a particular day, I 
do not have the hunger on that day. But if I do not do pooja to you with the 
slOkaas of rk, yajur, saama vEdhaas, then, that day is a day of fasting / going 
hungry without food for me'.

kaNNaa, naan muganaip padaiththaanE
kaaraNaa, kariyaai, adiyEn naan
uNNaa naaL pasiyaavadhu onRu illai
OvaadhE namO naaraayaNaa enRu 
eNNaa naaLum  iruk yaju saama vEdha
naaN malar koNdu una paadham 
naNNaa naaL avai thaththuRumaagil
anRu enakku avai pattini naaLE - 5-1-6 periyaazhvaar thirumozhi

So his hunger is in doing pooja or worshipping that lord. Can we say this is 
level two hunger - of 'securing' a place or position with the lord by offering 
the pooja without break. May be he thinks by missing pooja for a day also may 
displease the lord and thereby he may lose his security thread broken.

See here another basic need - or hunger - as expressed by thirumangai aazhvaar -

uNNum naaL illai uRakkamum thaan illai
peNmaiyum saala niRaindhu ilaL - pEdhaithaan
kaNNanoor kaNNapuram thozhum kaarkkadal
vaNNar mEl eNNam ivatku idhu enkolO? - 8.2-4

perhaps aazhvaar was in a different mood - to think of union with kaNNan - in a 
tender age - pEdhai stage itself - [girl not yet fully matured is pEdhai] . But 
wants a status - a level 3 need - as the wife of that kaNNapuram lord. That 
also see the usage of the word - kaarkadal vaNNar mEl ivatku - to this girl - 
what is that = idhu = not openly said as 'love' - but indirectly as 'idhu' - 
oh, what a usage of words.

Now see here a level 4 need - he wants himself to be recognized as a 'high 
esteem person' - for - I worship only the lord who can do wonder of wonderful 
things - that krishNa. No second level god I will worship. Or a person of my 
status can not even think of carrying out such petty thing as to worship 
somebody else as his lord except krishNa - 

vaai avanai alladhu vaazhththaadhu kai ulagam
thaai avanai alladhu thaan thozhaa - Pei mulai nanju
ooN aaga uNddan uruvodu pEr allaal 
kaaNaa kaN kELaa sevi  - 11 mudhal thruvandhaadhi

My mouth will talk about the supreme lord only. My hands will not join in 
anjali to somebody else. My eyes will not see any other roopam - figure - than 
that krishNa - my ears will not hear any thing else except his name - krishNa's 
name. I am such a high level person. He proclaims that my hunger level is 
different than you ordinary folks - says aazhvaar in this verse.

Now - the level 5 need or hunger - for - as nammaazhvaar says 

uNNum sORu parugu neer thinnum veRRilaiyum ellaaam 
kaNNan emperumaan enRu enRE kangaL neer malgi
maNNinuL avan seer vaLam mikkavan oor vinavi 
thinnam en iLa maan pugum oor thirukkOLoorE  -- 6-7- 1  

so his hunger or longing is to see krishNa in all forms what he sees or 
consumes - thus wants to become one or identified with that krishNa - that 
level of hunger is satisfied with the thought of kannan in every form - the 
normal food, the water drank, and the betal leaf eaten after food. 

Dear bhakthaas - this hunger for looking krishNa in every thing is the real 
hunger which we have to develop and the food for us - he will serve - no doubt 
in that for he is one who has assured - 'yOga kshEmama aham vahaami' in 
geethaa. if that is so why we should not create that hunger in us and then 
expect the food to be served by him and him alone.

We will have some more food for our hunger of enjoying krishNa in the next post 
also.

Dhasan

Vasudevan m.g.

PS: this is just a thought that came to me in a slightly different fashion, of 
relating to management science points.




------------------------ Yahoo! Groups Sponsor ---------------------~-->
Make a clean sweep of pop-up ads. Yahoo! Companion Toolbar.
Now with Pop-Up Blocker. Get it for free!
http://us.click.yahoo.com/L5YrjA/eSIIAA/yQLSAA/VkWolB/TM
---------------------------------------------------------------------~->

 
Yahoo! Groups Links

<*> To visit your group on the web, go to:
     http://groups.yahoo.com/group/SriRangaSri/

<*> To unsubscribe from this group, send an email to:
     SriRangaSri-unsubscribe@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxx

<*> Your use of Yahoo! Groups is subject to:
     http://docs.yahoo.com/info/terms/
 


[Date Prev][Date Next][Thread Prev][Thread Next] [Date Index ] [Thread Index ] [Author Index ]
Home Page
http://www.ibiblio.org/sripedia
srirangasri-subscribe@yahoogroups.com
To subscribe to the list