Srimate SrivanSatakopa Sri Vedanta Desika Yatindra Mahadesikaya nama:
A Drop in the Ocean
"Orondru tAnE amayAdo!" enthuses a devotee of Swami Desikan, pointing
out that even if we have neither the time nor the powers of comprehension to
master all the works of the Acharya, the regular study of even one of the
exalted works, is eminently capable of leading us on to liberation. However,
ardent students of Desikaite literature would aver that not even an entire
stotra or work need be studied: a single sloka, a single line of a sloka, would
bestow such wisdom as to make us eligibe for emancipation. This is because all
the works of the illustrious Acharya are power-packed, designed to generate in
us a deep-rooted devotion towards the Lord and His votaries, which would
ultimately reach us at the coveted goal of Moksha. Like the invisible golden
thread on which precious pearls and gems are strung, forming an enchanting
necklace, the concept of Prapatti runs through all works of Swami Desikan,
whether they be stotras, plays, kAvyAs, philosophical or polemical works.
Knowing fulwell that the mortals of the future would like everything in capsule
form, suffering as they would from a misplaced sense of priorities and having
little time for things that matter most, the Acharya has made the precept of
Prapatti and its practice the cornerstone of almost all of his works, so that
the study of even one would bless us with the requisite abhiruchi for the
performance of Sharanagati through our own Acharya.
Two slokas from the "NyAsa Tilakam" of Swami Desikan are dealt with here, to
illustrate the aforesaid.
"andha: anandha grahaNa vasaga: yAti RangEsa! yadvat
pangu: noukA kuhara nihita: neeyatE nAvikEna
bhunktE bhOgAn avidita nripa: sEvakaya arbhakAdi:
tvat samprAptou prabhavati yathA dEsikO mE dayAlu:"
This beautiful verse tells us that just as a blind man reaches his destination,
hand-led by by another blessed with sight, just as a lame person is able to
cross the river by being put on a boat and taken to the other shore by the
boatman, just as the family of a royal servant, even in the absence of direct
contact and acquaintance with the Sovereign, is able to derive the benefits of
the latter'munificence second-hand, the Jeeva too is guided by the merciful
Acharyas to the otherwise unattainable portals of Paramapadam.
Though simple in structure and apparently in purport too, this sloka holds a
wealth of wisdom to the connoisseur. The reference to the blind man is
indicative of lack of knowledge-GnAnam. Comprehensive knowledge, about the
Self, the Lord, the strategy for liberation and the hurdles that impede the
Pilgrim's Progress, is absolutely essential for liberation from our mundane
shackles. Few mortals can lay claim to such wisdom, which is indeed difficult
to acquire and assimilate. People without such knowledge blunder through life
aimlessly and knowing not either the place to be reached or how to reach there,
go around in circles and endup where they started. Such peregrination through
the jungle of life leads us deeper and deeper into the swampland of Samsara,
with our getting caught up in the vicious cycle of births and deaths, with no
means of deliverance. Just as a blind man needs someone to lead him by hand to
ensure safe passage, we too need an Acharya to lead us through the fierce
forest that is life. The Acharya, who knows the terrain well, is able to guide
us through safe trails, avoiding pits filled with the dangerous vipers of KAma,
KrOdha etc., widely skirting dense thickets which might hide deadly predators
which are but our own senses (which lie in wait to ensnare and gobble us up).
In effect, the Acharya endows us with wonderful wisdom about who we are truly,
what our mission on this earth is, what is our real stature, who is our Master,
how we got separated from Him and how to be reunited with Him and be a partner
in His endless bliss. Thus the Preceptor leads us by hand, step by step, in our
quest for freedom and ensures that we surrender ourselves at the Lord's lotus
feet. He supports us when we stumble, lends a shoulder to lean on when we are
fatigued, has a word of encouragement when we are depressed with the long and
apparently unending journey and never tires himself till he delivers us at the
gates of Paradise, handing over charge to the inhabitants of Srivaikunatam.
The reference to "anandha:", or an "unblind" person leading the blind one, is
to emphasize the futility of entrusting our lives to pseudo Gurus, who know not
where they themselves are going, leave alone lead others to the cherished goal.
Putting ourselves in the hands of such impostors would result in the blind
being led by the blind-"andhEnaiva neeyamAnA yathA andhA:" as the Upanishad
says. It is therefore imperative to search for an Acharya belonging to a hoary
and proven tradition, owing allegiance to the time-tested tenets of our
Sampradaya, rather than some nine-day wonder who has managed to garner a motley
crowd of undiscerning disciples about him, irrespective of how persuasive his
teachings are. It is to such an Acharya, belonging to the distinguished lineage
of our beloved Bhashyakara, that we must entrust ourselves, heart and soul.
GnAnam or wisdom about matters which matter is indeed essential for liberation,
but mere wisdom, without attendant practice, would be meaningless. What is the
use of a doctor with a string of degrees behind his name, who is unable to
treat a common cold? To be effective, whatever is learnt must be put into
practice. When we learn that we are the Lord's servants, we should
automatically cease caring for ourselves, realising that He would indeed take
care of us, as we are His own property. When we get to know that all this world
is His shareeram, we should be able to eschew anger, jealousy, hatred etc.
directed towards anyone or anything, for, all of them are an integral part of
Bhagavat vibhooti, and one part of the body cannot be at loggerheads with
another. Thus "anushttAnam" or putting into practice what we have learnt, is
extremely essential if we are to cross the ocean of Samsara. And this is what
we sadly lack, being beset by all sorts of misconduct towards all and sundry,
which is made the worse by our knowledge that such behaviour is to be shunned
at all cost. Sri Tondaradippodi makes fun of such people, who do know what is
to be done but lack the drive to do it, who pose to be paragons of virtue while
actually being nothing of the sort, who sport the appearance of devotees but
lack the Atma guNAs and impeccable conduct that should accompany such
postures.
It is such lack of anushttAnam that afflicts us with spiritual lameness.
Despite all these grievous faults in us, the Acharya takes pity on us, toils a
lot as does a diligent farmer on barren and unyielding soil, dins into us the
need for righteous conduct and behaviour behoving those who belong to the Lord.
He makes us promise to shun all acts abhorrent to the Lord and His devotees, to
adopt only that course of action which pleases our Maker, instils in us an
unshakeable faith in the Paramapurusha, persuades us to surrender ourselves,
body and soul, to the Universal Saviour and makes us realise our helplessness
in saving ourselves or what we regard as our own. In short, the Acharya either
makes us perform Prapatti or does it on our behalf, restoring to the Lord what
is rightfully His property. It is thus that he enables us to cross the perilous
ocean of Samsara, reaching us safe, sound and sane on the shores of Paramapadam.
It is customary in this world for people in high places to favour and oblige
only those whom they know personally. Favours are doled out only to friends,
relatives or acquaintances. In such a situation, where it is extremely
difficult to obtain favours from people without atleast a nodding acquaintance
with them, how are we going to wangle out the best of all boons, Moksha, from
the Lord? None of us knows the Lord. We have not spoken to him nor have been
spoken to by Him. We have not seen Him and would probably not recognise Him if
He were to stand right before our eyes this very minute. Many of us do not even
know OF Him, what He looks like, His attributes, His retinue etc. In sum, but
for the most accomplished of souls, none could claim to know Him or to have
seen Him.
Granting all this, is it not a foolish dream to hope that He would favour us
with emancipation?
No, says Swami Desikan, furnishing the example of a palace servant, who is the
beneficiary of the King's munificence. The benefits of this royal largesse are
automatically passed on by the servant to his family members, despite their
having absolutely no connection with the King, except through the head of their
family.
Similarly, despite our not knowing the Lord personally, we too can attain the
unimaginable bliss of emancipation through the good offices of an Acharya, who
himself has a hot line to the heavens. Knowing Him well to be the Paramapurusha
with all auspicous attributes (including the all-important one of Mercy) and
ourselves to be sinners of the first order, the Acharya intercedes on our
behalf with the King of all Kings and ensures that we too are rewarded with the
fabulous fruit of deliverance.
Anyone who is unacquainted with any other work of Swami Desikan and happens to
read only this particular sloka, is given a fair amount of data about the
concepts of the Godhead, the Acharya, the individual soul, the extremely
effective strategy of Prapatti and the boundless benefits it bestows, in the
form of freedom from mundane shackles and attainment of the ultimate bliss--
that of kainkaryam to the Lord. If one were to compare the works of Swami
Desikan to an ocean of wisdom, this particular sloka might represent just a
single drop. Normally, drops are entirely insignificant, which is why a "drop
in the ocean" is an idiom used to indicate an inconsequential quantum. However,
in the ocean of Swami Desikan's works, each individual drop is significant and
noteworthy by itself, capable of independently imparting wonderful wisdom.
While in the case of other oceans, divers have to search long and deep for
locating pearls and gems, in the case of the unique ocean referred to above,
precious stones and pearls lie strewn on the shores, ours for the picking, if
only we make the effort.
Srimate Sri LakshmINrsimha divya paduka sevaka SrivanSatakopa Sri Narayana
Yatindra Mahadesikaya nama:
Dasan, sadagopan
[Non-text portions of this message have been removed]
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