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pages 67-73
shrI Shringagiri MahAsannidhAnam, after giving us various kinds of upadesham--teaching, for us to have our abhimAnam--regard, for sharIram--body, to go away, and vairAgyam--dispassion, to crop up, finally told us such shlokas as below and made us all get into ecstasy.
सिंहासनोपविष्टं द्ष्ट्वा यं मुदमवाप लोकोऽयम् ।
तं कालाकृष्टतनुं विलोक्य नेत्रे निमीलयति ॥
siMhAsanopaviShTaM dRShTvA yaM mudamavApa loko&yam |
taM kAlAkRuShTatanuM vilokya netre nimIlayati ||
--'prabodha sudhAkara' by Adi Shankara
"Looking at which king when he was sitting on the throne were the people happy, the same people close their eyes looking at the body of that same king after his life-force was taken away by Yama."
That MalayALa BrAhmaNa, who was listening to this all, got up and said, joining his palms, "SvAmI, after wandering like a mad man due to putrashokam--loss of son, and the sorrow of my wife's decease, I came here for peace of mind. After listening to your words of upadesham--teaching, all my mana-bhrAnti--confusion in mind, is begone. I have got the phalan--fruits, of what I came here seeking." Saying these words, the man prostrated to the sage again and again. Looking at him, ShrI SvAmigaL said, "You can stay here for some days. Keep doing gAyatrI japam excessively. Your mind will get peace further more", and blessed him.
All these incidents served as the hetu--impulse/motive/cause, for SrInivAsan to get vairAgyam. It even seemed (to me) that only for this purpose did SannidhAnam create such opportunities to do upadesham to him. But then on that occasion, if the fox came on its own accord or was made to appear by SannidhAnam was not known to me.
The next day, this Lekaka was given orders to bring SrInivAsan alone. Accordingly when this Lekaka and SrInivAsan went to the sage the next day, asking us both to sit down, he said, "Today we should do vimarshanam--discussion, if samsAram--worldly life, is good, or vairAgyam--dispassion, is good. To start with, you people tell me the guNas--features, of samsAram."
We both explained him the anukUlams--advantages, of samsAram. But SannidhAnam did-kaNDanam--criticised, all that we said, and proved us with several udAharaNas--examples, pramANas--evidences, and anubhavas--experiences, that whether in gRuhasthAshramam, a man is a dhanika--wealthy man, poor man, or of middle class, it is only kaShTam--suffering/distress, in all respects, and therefore, if a man is adhikAri--having eligibility/authority, for sannyAsam--stage of an ascetic, and if he does not do-pravesham-of--enter, it, there is no other stupidity or naShTam--loss, comparable to it.
कॊ हि जानाति कस्याद्य मृत्युकालो भविष्यति ।
युवैव धर्मशीलः स्यात् अनित्यं खलु जीवितम् ॥
बाल्ये नष्टविवेकः विषयसुखास्वाद-लम्पटस्तरुणः ।
परतो जातविवेको वृद्धोऽशक्तः किमाप्नुयात्सिद्धिम् ॥
kO hi jAnAti kasyAdya mRutyukAlo bhaviShyati |
yuvaiva dharmashIlaH syAt anityaM khalu jIvitam ||
--MahAbhArata, shAnti parva 14
bAlye naShTavivekaH viShayasukhAsvAda-lampaTastaruNaH |
parato jAtaviveko vRuddho&shaktaH kimApnuyAtsiddhim ||
--(source of this verse, anyone?--sd)
Who knows when death overtakes any person?
Since life is transient one should
practice righteousness even while young.
With indiscrimination in childhoold and
pursuit of sensous pleasures in youth,
What is the use of discrimination in old age
when one is weak and powerless?
--Translation credit: http://www.mudgala.com/articles/renunciation.html
With such vAkyas--statements, explaining that there was no use in obtaining sannyAsam after one gets old, and that only when sannyAsam is obtained when the sharIram--body, is dRDham--firm/strong, it would be saukarya--comfortable, to do AtmavichAra--spiritual inquiry, he asked, "SrInivAsA! Now you tell me, is samsAram--worldly life better, or sannyAsam--asceticism, better?" "Only sannyAsam is shlAghyam--praiseworthy/excellent", came the reply. Through this saMbhAShaNaM--conversation, he gave it in sUchana--indication, that this Lekaka too has adhikAram for sannyAsam. (In shIghram--very soon, this man too obtained sannyasam).
In the same way earlier, shrI Narasimha BhArathI gurunAthAL asked his shiShya--disciple, NarasiMhan,
संसारोवा श्रेयान् सन्यासो वेति निर्णयः क्रियताम्
saMsArovA shreyAn sanyAso veti nirNayaH kriyatAm
perhaps this great man too, using his earlier experience asked the same question to SrInivAsan.
Thus, after SrInivAsan's anggIkaraNam--consent, was obtained, only after summoning for his mother and father, shrI SannidhAnam and SrIKaNTa ShAstrigaL doing upadesham--advice, to them in various ways and obtaining their anumati--permission/assent, was the auspicious date for the sannyAsam (of SrInivAsan) decided. The rahasyam--secret, that shrI SannidhAnam did not make public until then was announced only on that day: Everyone came to know that only SrInivAsan was the one eligible for the next paTTam--title. Invitations were sent to the mahArAjas--great kings, prabhus--lords, vidvAns--scholars, and all shiShyakOTis--multitude of disciples, throughout the country of BhAratam. Calling the engineers, SrIKaNTa ShAstrigaL gave them orders to erect facilities for one lakh people to stay, dine and conduct durbar--sessions of discussions. Everything was ready very soon.
When thus sakala ERpADukaL--all arrangements, were being done, one Friday, this Lekaka after going with the vidyArtins--pupils, to ShAradAmbAL temple and finishing darshanam, prArthanam--prayers, there and then returned to his residence, and as was the custom, made SrInivAsan to have his bed near his, and did nidrA--sleep, after doing dhyAnam of shrI SadgurumUrti. As some noise was heard then suddenly, his sleep dissolving, when this Lekaka got up and checked, (he found that) SrInivAsan was saying audibly something or other in his sleep. Wasn't it GurunAthan's kaTTaLai--(Tamil) orders, that he check whatever SrInivAsan spoke in his dream and inform the sage! So he keenly watched the boy.
Although the boy apparently talked about unrelated things, if they were collected together, his mental state could well be perceived. Finally, saying, "aDADA! What the hands reached for, the mouth couldn't reach! What stupidity!", he patted himself firmly on the head. Unable to wait further, when this Lekaka woke him up, he said, "ShAstrigaLE, I have lost that sphaTika mAlA--crystal chain. Though it came into my hands, it could not be used, can I get it back?", as if uttering a riddle. When he was made to sit up fully awake, he narrated the details:
"I had gone to the AmbAL sannidhi. When I was standing in the midst of a throng of thousands of people, our GurunAthAL called and asked me to go inside the garbhagRuham--sanctum sanctorum" of the AmbAL sannidhi. Forthwith the door was bolted. Lifting and keeping me on her lap, AmbAL told me, 'kuzhandAi--my child, good times are ahead for you. You are going to get the great bhAgyam--fortune, of chakravartins--emperors, coming and bowing to you. At that time, without becoming garva--arrogant/proud, even a little, you should also be doing ArAdhana--worship, of me without forgetting it. You should not at all move away from your GurunAthan. Here, as a way of remembering me, wear this sphaTika mAlA', and She herself slipped a beautiful sphaTika mAlA onto my neck and then sent me out. Forthwith the mahA dIpArAdhanA was held, which I too had darshan of. You were not seen in that crowd. When I was returning, I did not find the sphaTika mAlA on my neck. It disappeared somewhere; perhaps someone removed it and went away without my knowing it. AhA! How can I describe that AmbAL's tejas--splendour, and the beauty of the sphaTika mAlA, I have lost it!" He wept as he said these words.
Only after this Lekaka pointed out to him, "All this is only a dream, so you don't have to worry", did he realize it. With faith in this Lekaka's words, "Still, since it is a dream that happened in the brahma muhUrtam, it is likely to become true, so don't be anxious", that lad was somewhat comforted.
As his obtaining sannyAsa dIkSha after that, and decorating the vyAkhyAna siMhAsanam was a kAkShi--sight, witnessed and experienced by lakhs of people, it is not described here. Thus was shrI Abhinava VidyAtIrtha svAmigaL getting niyamanam--appointed, as the 35th pIThAdhipati, doing guru-susurakShaNam--service to guru, for a period of 24 years and becoming a pAtra--drinking vessel, to his pUrNa-anugraham--full divine favour, and now (in 1961) doing vijaya-yAtra and anugraham to us--are all known to everyone.
A bAlakavi--young poet, called shrIRAmadAsa, describes shrI MahAsvAmigaL obtaining sannyAsa dIkSha in the prajApati saMvatsara--year, thus:
वर्षं प्रजापतिं तं वन्दे यस्मिन् समाश्रिताऽऽचार्यान् ।
पारमहंसी वृत्तिः पातुं नेतुं प्रजाः शुभे मार्गे ॥
सशरीरः शास्त्रजणः तनुमांस्तुर्या श्रमोचितो धर्मः ।
विग्रहवद् वैराग्यं शृङपुरे भाति शारदापीठे ॥
varShaM prajApatiM taM vande yasmin samAshritA&&chAryAn |
pAramahaMsI vRuttiH pAtuM netuM prajAH shubhe mArge ||
sasharIraH shAstrajaNaH tanumAMsturyA shramochito dharmaH |
vigrahavad vairAgyaM shRu~gapure bhAti shAradApIThe ||
"The sannyAsa dharma, in order to protect the prajAs--subjects, and take them in good path, in the year of prajApati, reached our AchAryAL. Therefore, I bow to that year."
"shAstra samUham--the scriptural community, sannyAsa dharmam and vairAgyam, taking a form, shines (as AchArya rUpam) in the Shringagiri ShAradA PITham."
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