Beach 7: The Art and Science of Spiritual Love
Wave 8: Devotion
vis-a-vis Non-duality:
a la nArAyaNIyaM
The
Ultimate Reality is non-dual. Reality
is only one – in the sense there is Reality and Reality alone. To name it by something is an
under-statement. To give it a form again circumscribes it. It is actually
nameless and formless. It just exists. It is Consciousness; it
is Bliss, say the scriptures. This non-duality that is the central core of
Advaita philosophy therefore identifies the Supreme Self (that transcends
everything) with the innermost Self (that is immanent in every being). If God
or the Supreme Reality does not have a separate status other than our Selves,
then who is to worship whom? Hence the concept of Bhakti, or Devotion, seems to contradict
the Oneness inherent in Advaita. This apparent conflict may be easily
resolved by studying nArAyaNIyaM,
composed by Bhattattiri
around the end of the 16th century in the presence and praise of the
Lord of Guruvayoor, but actually rendered as a long prayer to Him in the form
of a profound retelling, in 1036
verses, of the entire Bhagavatham.
That the Ultimate is non-dual there is no
question. But to be able to realise it
as a fact of experience one has to go through the processes of Bhakti of God
with form and content, with name and description, with qualities and adjuncts.
Such a God is known by the technical name of saguNa
brahman, in contrast to the nirguNa
brahman which is the formless and nameless Absolute. The genius of
Bhattattiri saw to it that none of the central points of Bhagavatham were
missed in his rendering. Not only were
they not missed but they have also been focused by him with the powerful emphasis and enchanting
poetry that is characteristic of him. One really begins to understand the
Bhagavatham only after a study of nArAyaNIyaM.
One can select several verses from nArAyaNIyaM
to substantiate this thesis.
Bhattattiri’s
conception of Bhakti emphasizes the nirguNa
aspect of the Ultimate in no uncertain terms, even while he expatiates on the
worship of the visible form. His rationale is summed up in verse no.10 of the
99th Dasaka. The Absolute Being is not
manifest to the senses or the intellect. It is therefore difficult to grasp or
attain to. But when it is manifest as Krishna it is like the wavy surface of
the Ocean of Blissful spirit, definite, clear and easy to grasp. Therefore one
resorts to the worship of the Krishna form that is lovable and most captivating
by its sweet beauty and other blessed attributes. The wave-ocean analogy is standard in
Advaita. We cannot ‘see’ the ocean except as waves. In the same way nirguNa brahman cannot be seen, conceived, visualised or
imagined except as saguNa brahman, that is, except as the mUrtis
installed in temples.
But why does the limitless Infinite ‘descend’ as it were into the limited Finite? This common question is referred to in the scriptures as well as by saints as an unanswerable question and they escape into poetic raptures to venture an answer. Bhattattiri says: How else do we get the thrilling experience of taking delight in the bewitching Form of the Lord? (Dasaka 1 - Verse 7).
brahman is the causeless Cause.
To know this is to get out of this samsAra. (98 - 6). What you see is not what is. What
you see not is what you should see! (98 - 7). He is the base of all this world
of manifestation. He is both the material and the efficient cause of it. Into
Him it dissolves. He manifests as the
whole world but none-the-less transcends them all and forms the light of
Consciousness by which and to which they are revealed. He is far beyond all
word-descriptions or even mental conceptions. His true nature is not recognized
either by the divines or the great sages, much less to others. (98 - 1). Blessed are those who see It, think and
hear of It. They are the ones who can see the Invisible ‘through’ the visible
universe. (1 - 3).
He
is the Master-Controller. (98 - 8). He
transcends Time and Space. The three gunas together constitute the three
worlds. He is the three worlds. He is the three Divinities of the Trinity, all
rolled into one. He is the One who is sung ecstatically by the three Vedas. He
is the consciousness behind the three states of awareness. He remains ever
unchanged. The concepts of ‘past’,
‘present’ and ‘future’ do not apply to
Him. He is the One to be propitiated by the three Yoga-paths. (98 - 9) The only way to describe Him is by
negations. (98 - 10).
The
very idea of a second entity in existence introduces fear and insecurity. (91 - 3).
But in practical life one has to accept duality and multiplicity. The
concept of non-duality has to be only in one’s attitude. The practical application of it is possible
only for the few Jivanmuktas (= the liberated
while still living) about whom history has select examples like Sadasiva
Brahmendra, Ramana
Maharishi and Ramakrishna
Paramahamsa and Kanchi
mahA-swamigal. Ordinary seekers can only pray to God to be given that equanimous
view of everything that we see, hear or touch. (94 - 6). Be it friend or foe,
be it human or animal, can we see all alike? This samadrishti
is attainable only by Service – Service to God and Man. (91 - 6). So long as this equanimous view
does not arise in the mind one has to keep striving and worshipping through the
normal modes of devotion to forms and idols. (97 - 3). These four slokas
constitute the essence of the teaching of nArAyaNIyaM
for the layman. The basis of the teaching is Advaita pure and simple. The means
recommended is Bhakti. ‘bhaktya mAm abhijAnIti’
says the Lord.
Several verses of Bhattattiri wax eloquent on the modalities of this Bhakti. These verses also represent some of the best of nArAyaNIyaM. You have only to keep on doing your normal duties but with the undercurrent of devotion in your mind. You will never be let down nor will you have occasion to falter. (91 - 1). Just surrender every one of your actions to the Lord. Even if you are very low in spiritual evolution you will be considered by the Lord to be greater than even the best of the ‘brahmins’ who however have turned their face away from God. (91 - 2). It is the association with spiritually minded people that matters. Your spirituality will then grow, just as by associating oneself with the rich one gets the taste of riches. (91 - 4). What is the use of elaborate and noisy expressions of metaphysics if it is not to speak of the glories and majesties of God that are emotionally fulfilling? (94 - 7). In all these one recognises echoes of similar thoughts from the eleventh Skanda of Bhagavatham, almost in the same words .
Grant
me, O Lord of Guruvayoor, pleads Bhattattiri, for him as well as for us who
recite the nArAyaNIyaM, that supreme
Bhakti of the Gopis who merged with you , not by acts of charity or ritual, not
by fasting or penance, not by philosophical dialectics, nor by the so-called
yoga but only by pure thought of constant association with you! (94 - 10).
ALL THIS WAS ELABORATED IN 13 POSTS ON THE "ADVAITIN" AS WELL AS "ADVAITIN-L" IN NOVEMBER-DECEMBER 2002. THIS WITH A FURTHER ELABORATION CAN NOW BE SEEN AT
WAVE 9 .
Copyright Ó V. Krishnamurthy
November 11,1999 CONTENTS HOME Previous page Next Page