Part 10 (1/2)
”Santi” is peace, the well known invocation of the Vedas at the end of a Mantra.
”Kardama” means clay. He was born of Brahma's Chhaya or shadow.
Devahuti, being wedded to the materialised shadow of the whole Universe, gave rise to certain female types which in their turn on being wedded to the Ris.h.i.+s, the highest Planetary Intelligences, became the progenitors of all the life forms of the Universe. Kapila was one of the earliest Ris.h.i.+s. The word - Kapila means tawny or brown coloured.]
X. KAPILA'S INSTRUCTION TO HIS MOTHER DEVAHuTI.
*SKANDHA III., CHAP. 25-33.*
We now come to an important part of the Bhagavata Purana, the teachings of Kapila to his mother in the Yoga philosophy of the Bhagavat Purana.
They adapt the Sankhya and the Yoga systems to Bhakti or devotion. For a full knowledge of the teachings I refer my readers to the Purana itself, I shall only give the salient points and avoid details as much as possible, without breaking the continuity of the discourses. ”Yoga directed towards atma brings about Mukti. Chitta attached to the transformations of Gunas causes Bondage; attached to Purusha, it causes Mukti. When the mind is pure and free from distractions, man perceives atma in himself, by Wisdom, Dispa.s.sion and Devotion. There is no path so friendly to the Yogins as constant devotion to Bhagavan. Company of Sadhus opens wide the door to Mukti. They are Sadhus who have forbearance and compa.s.sion, who are friendly to all beings, who have no enemies, who are free from pa.s.sions, and above all who have firm and undivided Bhakti in Me. They give up all for My sake and they hear and speak no words that do not relate to Me. Their company removes the impurities of worldliness. Men first hear about Me from the Sadhus. By faith their heart is drawn towards Me, and they have devotion for Me.
Devotion causes Dispa.s.sion and makes easy the path of Yoga. By indifference to the Guna transformations of Prakriti, by wisdom fostered by Dispa.s.sion, by Yoga and by Bhakti (devotion) offered to Me, the Jiva attains Me even while in this body.”
”When the Indriyas (the senses and the mind), that manifest the objects of external and internal perception, become trained by the performance of Vedic Karma, their spontaneous Vritti (or function) in a man of concentrated mind is in Satva which is the same as Vishnu. This Vritti which is void of all selfishness is Bhakti in Bhagavan. It is superior to Mukti. It instantly destroys the Kosha (Astral body) as the digestive fire consumes food. The devoted have no yearning for that Mukti (Sayujya or Nirvana) which makes the Jiva one with Me. But they prefer ever to talk with each other about Me, to exert themselves for My sake and ever to meditate on Me. Mukti comes to them unasked. My Vibhutis, the eight Siddhis (_anima &c._) and all the glory of the highest Lokas are theirs, though they want them not. I am their Teacher, their Friend, their Companion, their all. So even Kala cannot destroy them.”
”Purusha is atma. He is eternal, void of Gunas, beyond Prakriti, all pervading, self luminous and all manifestating.”
”Prakriti is Pradhana, one in itself, but is also the source of all differences (_visesha_), possessed of three Gunas, unmanifested (_avyakta_) and eternal.”
”The twenty four transformations of Prakriti called Pradhanika or Saguna Brahma are: -
”5 Maha Bhutas - Earth, Water, Fire, Air and Akasa.
”5 Tanmatras - Smell, Taste, Rupa, Touch and Sound.
”10 Indriyas - Ear, Skin, Eye, Tongue, Nose, Speech, Hand, Foot, Upastha and Payu.
”4 Divisions of Antahkarana - Manas, Buddhi, Chitta and Ahankara.”
”Kala is the twenty-fifth. But according to some, Kala is Prabhava or Sakti of Purusha. Those who identify themselves with Prakriti are afraid of Kala. Kala as the outer aspect of Purusha disturbs the equilibrium of Gunas in Prakriti.”
”Purusha energised Prakriti and the Gunas led to transformations following the action of Daiva or Karma, (Jivic record of the previous Kalpa). Prakriti brought forth the refulgent Mahat Tatva. The seed of the Universe was in the bosom of Mahat, and it manifested the Universe and destroyed the darkness of Pralaya by its own light.”
”Chitta which is Vasudeva and Mahat, is Satva, transparent and pure, and the perception of Bhagavan is achieved by this division of Antahkarana.”
”Transparence (fitness for the full reflection of Brahma) immutability and tranquility are the characteristics of Chitta, as of water in its primal state.”
”Mahat Tatva was transformed into Ahankara Tatva, with its Kriya Sakti.
Ahankara became three-fold - Satvika (Manas), Rajasika (Indriyas) and Tamasika (Bhutas) _i.e._ Kartri or Cause, Karana or Instrument and Karyya or effect.”
”Sankarshana is the Purusha of Ahankara. He is the Thousand-Headed and Ananta (endless.)”
”Manas is Sankalpa and Vikalpa. It is the generator of Kama (or desire.) So Aniruddha, the king of Indriyas, blue as the blue-lotus of autumn, the Purusha of Manas, has with patience to be got over by yogins.”
”Buddhi is Rajasa transformation of Ahankara. The perception of objects, dependence on the Indriyas, doubt, wrong-knowledge, right-knowledge, memory and sleep these are the functions of Buddhi. (Pradyumna is the Purusha of Buddhi.)”
[The terminology here adopted will appear strange to the Vedantin scholar. The divisions of Antahkarana are here adopted to the sacred Tetractys or Chatur-vyuha, consisting of Vasudeva, Sankarshana, Aniruddha and Pradyumna. In Devotional practice, Antahkarana should be made the channel for higher communion and its divisions are the divisions of spiritual perception.