NOTE: Readers having difficulty in reading the text may need to change their encoding to UTF-8.ÂÂ ---------------- srI: SrI sAra sAram â I (17) -- I â ThirumantrAdhikAram -- The Significance of the âaâ in PraNava (continued) --- SwAmi Desikan has been dealing with SEshatvam conveyed by the first syllable, âaâ of the praNava, revealing the dative case, âAyaâ which is hidden in the syllable. This dative case implies that one exists only for the sake of the Other, Who is none other than the Lord himself and Who is represented by the syllable (a) itself. But, who has to have this SEshatvam is to be revealed by third syllable, âmâ which is yet to come. First, SEshi has come followed by SEshatvam as in âaâ and the hidden âAyaâ which is clinging to âaâ. This peculiar line-up is illustrated beautifully by SwAmi Desikan in the following sentence, in his inimitable way: ââtvam mEâ enRu swami thoDara âaham mEâ enRu thimirappaNNum ahankAratthAlE asat kalpanAnavanai SEshatva-j~nAnam ujjeevipikkiRthAkaiyAlE, athan prAdhAnyam thOTRa sambanthatthinuDaiya vidhi-nishEdhatthkku pothuvAna dharmi-nirdESatthukku munnE ic SEshatvam prakASithamAyiRRu.â Here, Swami Desikan gives the reason for the priority SEshitvam gets over the entity which possesses this quality: âdharmi-nirdESatthukku munnE ic-SEshatvam prakASithamAyiRRu.â Let us try to understand this part of the sentence. âdharmiâ means the entity which possesses the âdhamaâ, that is, quality. Here, âdharmaâ is SEshatvam. The possessor of this dharma is the jIvAtma who is referred to as âdharmiâ. In the praNava, the possessor is placed at the last, in the form of the syllable, âmâ. The arrangement of syllables in the praNava is âaâ comes first followed by âuâ and the last is âmâ which is jIvAtma. Hence, Swami Desikan puts it beautifully that, even before the jIvatma is mentioned, his primary quality of being SEsha to the Supreme Lord is declared by the hidden dative case, âAyaâ attached to the first syllable, âaâ, representing the Lord. What is the logic behind this? It is simple. As the syllable âaâ is the origin of all the letters, the Lord represented by it is the origin of all things in the Universe. The existence of the jIvAtma also is in His hands. So, the Lord is always the first, as the Cause will precede the effect. Along with Him comes the fact of His being a SEshi for Whom all other things â sentient and non-sentient exist. As soon as the jIvatma gets his self-consciousness, after the praLaya period is over, the Lord tells him (jIva), âYou are Mine!â and chases the jIva who has acquired a body by the grace of the Lord. The jIva, on the other hand, due to avidya, thinks that he is independent and the body and other accessories are his own. This ahamkAram (egotism) makes him to reply to the Lord, âNo, no. I am mineâ (Ah< me) (aham mE). This egotism born out of ignorance makes the jIva one like a non-existent (asat), just like a stone which does not have consciousness. When does he come into existence? SwAmi Desikan says, ââtvam mEâ enRu swami thoDara âaham mEâ enRu thimirappaNNum ahankAratthAlE asat kalpanAnavanai SEshatva-j~nAnam ujjeevipikkiRthAkaiyAlE,â â While the Lord goes after the jIva calling him as His own and the jIva runs away with arrogance. This makes the jIva appear as non-existent (asat kalpanAnavanai). But, he comes back to life because of the dawn of the knowledge that he is only a servant and the Lord is the Master. This is known as âSEshatva-j~nAnamâ. Hence, SEshatva knowledge is the cause for the jIva to exist as a sentient-being. Till then, he is equal to a dead-wood or a stone, a non-sentient object which cannot act on its own without the help of a sentient being. SwAmi Desiakn uses the terms, âtvam mEâ and âaham mEâ taken from a Sloka of SrI ParAsara Bhattar, which is as follows: âtvam mE aham mE kutastat tadapi kuta idam vEdamoola-pramANAt EtaccAnAdisiddhAt anubhava-vibhavAt tarhi sAkrOSa Eva / kvAAkrOSah kasya geetAdishu mama viditah kOtra sAkShee sudheessyAt hanta tvatpakShapAtee sa iti nrukalahE mrugya madhyasthavat tvam //â (Thirumanjana Kattiya SlOka) Meaning: The Lord: You are mine. The jiva: I exist only for myself. The Lord: Where is it stated? The jIva: Where is the opposite stated? The Lord: In the original pramANa: the VEda. The jIva: The opposite view is based on the strength of my own enjoyment of myself from Beginning-less time. The Lord: But protests have been recorded then and there. The jIva: Where is it objected to? And by whom? The Lord: The protest or objection was made in such work as the Gita and it was made by me. The jIva: Is there any witness? The Lord: The wise man. The jIva: But he is partial. (In this dispute there is a need for an arbitrator. But, as no one is available, You appear as though undertaking a pledge, going into the pond adorning a Tulasi garland!) This slOka is recited as part of the Kattiyam, at the time of the ceremonial bath given to the Lord and his Consorts in temples. Thus, as Seshatvam is the basis for the existence of the jIva, even before the syllable indicative of the jIva, the SEshatvam is highlighted in very first syllable itself. When SEshatvam is established, its opposite, namely, the responsibility of the Master is naturally derived: âIthukkup prati-sambandhiyAna rakshakanuDai SEshitvsm phalitam.â â While the jIva is the protected, the Lord is the protector.. âprathi-sambandhiâ â the corresponding opponent is the protector; His quality of mastership is derived as an analogue. Next, Swami Desikan says that this SEsha-SEshi relationship is a permanent one: âkAla-avacchEdam-illAmaiyAlE ithukku ayOga-vyavacchEdam siddham.â â There is no time factor in this servant-Master relationship and so, it is a permanent one. This relationship cannot be broken, neither by the jIva nor by the Lord. There is also another fact derived from this. Of these two, one is the soul and the other is the body. The Lord is the Sareeri (soul) and the jiva is Sareera (body), sys SwAmi Desikan: âiththAlE Sareera-Sareeri bhAvamum phalikkum.â â From this, also results the concept of body-soul tie. Here, we my recall a SlOka of Swami Desikan in his Srimad rahasyatraya-sAram: âniScitE paraSEshtvE SEsham samparipooryatE / aniScitE punastasmin anyat sarvam-asatsamam //â (When the relationship of our being the servants of the Supreme Lord is well established in the mind, the other requisites follow easily as being necessary to it. When that thought is not established in the mind, all the rest serve no purpose and are really non-existent even though they may be there.. These requisites for spiritual life are self-control and serenity.) (To continue) dAsan Anbil S.SrInivAsan --------- Messenger blocked? Want to chat? Go to http://in.messenger.yahoo.com/webmessengerpromo.php ------------------------------------ Oppiliappan Koil Varadachari Sadagopan http://www.sadagopan.org Yahoo! 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