Srimate SrivanSatakopa Sri Vedanta Desika Yatindra Mahadesikaya nama:
The Early Bird
"Please, five more minutes!"-this is the standard request I hear from my son
and daughter, whenever I wake them up in the morning. And when they say five
minutes, you shouldn't take it literally and expect them to be up and about
after three hundred seconds. One block of five minutes naturally leads to
another and before the kids actually get up, it is anywhere from 25 to 30
minutes from the time they were woken up. I am sure that my experience is not
unique and must be shared by many a parent. Though we expect our children to
rise and shine early in the morning, they invariably tend to disagree,
reluctant to forego their beauty sleep.
When you come to think of it, this disinclination for early rising is not
confined to children-many adults too are equally guilty. "Guilty!-is that the
correct word to use for merely enjoying a few more minutes or hours of sleep!"
I hear you saying. Well, I leave you to decide for yourself, after going
through the following.
Coming back to getting up early, many of us tend to wake up only when the
sunlight falls on our face, forcing us to open our eyes and blink. Yet others
wake up when the milkman sounds his bell, while some sleep on, oblivious to the
chirping of birds or to the shrill tones of the proverbial cock, heralding the
imminent sunrise. (Incidentally, it is quite some time since I heard a cock-the
urban environs appear to have taken a toll on this species too, which used to
faithfully function as an effective alarm system, waking us up in time). In any
case, even if a dutiful alarm clock were to emit loud rings, we are accustomed
to snuggling back into the bedcovers after stifling its strident tones.
Somehow, the hours and minutes just before our waking appear to be especially
precious and we are prone to resent any intrusion into our slumber more at
those times than at others. Like the "Maamaan magal" in Tiruppavai, who is
loathe to leave her bed of swan feather_-("Toomani maadatthu suttrum vilakku
eria, dhoopam kamazha tuyilanai mel kan valarum maamaan magale!"), we too are
deep in slumber in our comfortable beds, with a "Good Knight" battling
valiantly to drive away mosquitoes.
"Kousalya supraja! Rama! Poorvaa sandhyaa pravartate
Uttishtta nara saardoola! Kartavyam daivam aahnikam"
This is a slokam from Srimad Ramayanaam, with which all of us are familiar-so
much so that in cinemas and TV serials, this couplet finds a place whenever
daybreak is depicted. It is Visvaamitra Maharshi who utters this slokam, urging
the young Sri Rama, who is sound asleep, to rise and shine, the time for
performance of morning prayers being at hand. (My son murmurs with indignation,
"So, it appears to be an age-old practice for elders to torment kids, forcing
them to get up at unearthly hours!"). The point is that Visvaamitra attaches so
much importance to early rising, that he doesn't mind waking up the obviously
tired Sri Rama, whom he (Visvaamitra) had taken by walk all the way from
Ayodhya into the inhospitable forests, paying scant attention to the Prince's
tender years and the creature comforts to which He was accustomed. We are faced
with a question-Why? Why should the Rishi urge the young Prince to rise early,
knowing full well that the latter must have been tired by the long journey by
foot?
As in everything else, here too, Srimad Ramayanam is a guide book for human
conduct, telling us how we ought to live our lives.
The Shastras are emphatic that barring invalids, all others ought to be up and
about pretty early in the morning. What exactly does "early morning" mean?
The day is divided into eight "Yaamaas", each consisting of 3 hours, four of
them accounting for Day and the remaining four constituting the Night. However,
half of the first Yaama of the night and the latter half of the fourth Yaama of
the night are counted along with the day, which really leaves the Night with
just three Yaamas. Thus the last part, of the last Yaaama of the night, roughly
corresponding to around 4.30 a.m., is the ideal time prescribed for our rising.
This is the auspicious hour known as the "Braahma Muhoortam" --"Yaaminyaa:
charamo yaama: Braahma eerita:". It is at this hour that we should rise, say
the Smritis-"Braahme muhoorte utthaaya".
What is so special about this "Braahma Muhoortam", I hear you enquire. The
Smriti Ratnaavali, a comprehensive compendium of rules for good conduct, tells
us that this hour belongs to the Deities. Devas and Pitru devataas visit our
homes at this auspicious hour, says the Smriti. When we have distinguished
visitors, it is only courteous on our part to be up and about. The Smriti is
very specific that these celestial visitors deem it a great insult if we remain
in bed, with predictable consequences. In fact, the Smriti goes to the extent
of terming such a home, where the residents are asleep at the Braahma
Muhoortam, as a "Smasaanam" (burial ground). In a rather wholesale condemnation
of sound sleepers who know not what sunrise is, the Smriti calls them
permanently impure and ineligible to undertake any vaidika karma. We may well
slumber on irrespective of sunrise, but we do it at the risk of all our merits
(Punyam), accumulated through lifetimes of good deeds, being destroyed. Such
inconsiderate slumber is considered not merely a minor misdemeanour, but a
veritable sin, warranting atonement or Praayaschittam. One who sleeps on beyond
sunrise (known as an "Abhyudita") can wash off the sin only through Gayatri
Japam for the whole day, while remaining on fast. Failure to atone in such a
fashion leads to accumulation of great "Paapam", says Manu.
Aapasthamba Maharshi adds to the difficulty of the aforesaid Praayaschittam, by
saying that it should be done while on one's feet-no sitting or lying down is
permitted during the entire day, which is to be spent in Gayatri Japam and
fasting.
Frightening, isn't it? And all for merely sleeping! Well, we must keep in mind
that Shastras are guidebooks fashioned by our kind Lord, indeed His helping
hand, extended for lifting us up from the mundane morass-"magnaan uddharate
lokaan kaarunyaat Shastra paanina". Shastras are indeed the voice of the
ever-merciful Emperuman, enunciated through venerated seers, to guide us in
this world and others. As such, the Shruti and the Smritis have nothing but
extreme benevolence towards us-- all that they say are indeed for our good,
even if some of their injunctions may sound unpalatable and inconvenient.
Remember, medicine may be bitter, but it cures us of our ills.
And it is not only what the Smritis lay down, but is also what the Doctor
ordered. Ask any doctor, and he will list for you the advantages of early
rising. The mind and body are fresh and compliant and the hour is extremely
conducive to all good deeds. The Biological Clock which nature has endowed us
with at birth, comes with the alarm set to the early morning hours. It is hence
natural for us to get up before sunrise. Our body and mind are designed to
function at their peak during the early morning hours-if a survey of inventions
and discoveries is undertaken, I am sure we would find that many of the sparks,
which ignited the ideas, occurred during the wee hours of the morning. And as
the day wears on, so do our strength and mind power, till they reach their
nadir at night, when rest is prescribed in the form of sleep. With peace and
quiet reigning within and without, isn't the early morning the ideal time for
all creative work? Only those who have savoured the pre-dawn serenity would be
able to appreciate the beauty of the hour and its conduciveness to all
endeavour, especially spiritual.
The references in Tiruppavai to early rising are numerous and noteworthy. Of
these, the most poignant is "Chittram chiru kaale vandu unnai sevitthu". The
venerated commentators wax eloquent on the auspiciousness of the Braahma
Muhoortam, as signified by the words, "Chittram chiru kaale". They point out
that it is this time of the day/ night which is ideally suited for worshipping
the Lord, as it is then that all the noble qualities of man come to the fore.
Sri Nammazhwar too advocates paying obeisance to Emperuman in the wee hours of
the morning-"Kaalai nal gnaanatturai padindu aadi".
With all these in favour of early rising, is it a wonder that all the Smirtis
exhort us to be early birds? Admittedly, before it becomes a habit, early
rising does tend to torment one, the natural instinct being not to relinquish
the comfortable warmth of the bed-however, once we brave the first few days,
grit our teeth and get up at the golden hour, once we experience fully what it
has to offer in terms of peace, tranquility, productivity and concentration,
once we restore our biological clock to its original settings, the elation you
experience is a commensurate reward for your efforts. Clarity of thought,
creative sparks, good resolutions and spiritual inclination-all these
automatically follow, when you rise early. Even black swallows get up early, so
why not we human beings, hints Sri Andal-
"Kaalai ezhundirundu karia kuruvi kanangal
Maalin varavu solli marul paadudal meimmai kolo!"
For those who are still loathe to leaving their bed, all that we can do is to
despair, along with Sri Kodai Naachiar-"Elle! Ilam Kiliye! Innam urangudiyo!",
stopping short of Her more uncomplimentary epithet, "Pey Penne!".
Srimate Sri LakshmiNrisimha divya paduka sevaka SrivanSatakopa Sri Narayana
Yatindra Mahadesikaya nama:
Dasan, sadagopan
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