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| AYURVEDA |
GO FORWARD
Let us proclaim to every soul – “Arise, awake and stop not till the goal is reached, Arise Awake, Awake, I from this hypnotism of **weakness.
My ideal is growth, expansion, development on national lines. As I look back upon the history of my country, I do not find in the whole world another country which has done quite so much for the improvement of the human mind. Great things have been done in the past in this land, and there is both time and room for greater things to be done yet. I am sure you know that we cannot stand still. If we stand still we die. We have either to go forward or to go backward. We have either to progress or to degenerate. Our ancestors did great things in the past, but we have to grow into a fuller life and march beyond even their great achievements. How can we now go back and degenerate ourselves? That cannot be, that must not be, going back will lead to national decay and death. Therefore let us go forward and do yet greater things, that is what I have to tell you. I only ask you to work, to work to realise more & more the Vedantic ideal of the solidarity of man and his inborn divine nature.
The ideal man of our ancestors was the Brahman. In all our books stands out prominently this ideal of the Brahman. In India, the greatest princes seek to trace their descent to some ancient sage, who dressed in a bit of loin-cloth, lived in a forest eating roots, and studying the Vedas. It is there that the Indian prince goes to trace your ancestry. You are on the high caste when you can trace your ancestry to a Rishi, and not otherwise. Our ideal of high birth, therefore, is different from that of others. Our ideal is the Brahman ideal, what do I mean? I mean the ideal Brahman-ness in which worldliness is altogether absent and true wisdom is abundantly present. That is the ideal of the Hindu race. Have you not heard how it is declared that he, the Brahman, is not amenable to law, that he has not law, that he is not governed by kings, and that his body cannot be hurt? That is perfectly true. Do not understand it in the light thrown upon it by interested and ignorant fools, but understand it in the light of the true and original Vedantic conception. If the Brahman is he who has killed all selfishness and who lives and works to acquire and propagate wisdom and the power of love if a country is altogether inhabited by such Brahmans, by men and women who are spiritual and moral and good is it strange to think of that country as being above and beyond all law? What police, what military are necessary to govern them? Why should any one govern them at all? Why should they live under a government? They are good and noble, and they are the a men of God; these are our ideal Brahmans, and we read that in the Satya-Yuga there was only one-caste, and that was the Brahman. We read in the Mahabharat that the whole world was in the beginning people with Brahmans, and that as they began to degenerate they became divided into different castes, and that when the cycles turns round they will all go back to the Brahminical origin. This cycle is turning round now, and I-draw your attention to this fact. Therefore our solution of the caste question is not degrading those who are already high up, is not running amuck through food and drink, is not jumping out of our own limits in order to have more enjoyment, but it comes by every one of us fulfilling the dictates of our Vedantic religion by our attaining spirituality, and by our becoming the ideal Brahman. There is a law laid on each one of you in this land by your ancestors, whether you are Aryans, or non-Aryans, Rishis or Brahmans, or the very lowest outcasts. The command is the same to all, that you must make progress without stopping and that, from the highest man to the lowest, every one in this country has to try and become the ideal Brahman. This Vedantic idle is applicable not only here but over the whole world. Such is our ideal of caste, as meant for raising all humanity slowly and gently towards the realization of that great ideal of the spiritual man, who is non-resisting, calm, steady, worshipful, pure and meditative. In that ideal there is God.
Carry Vedanta to Every Door
Good results can be produced only through love, through sympathy. It is a great subject. This ship of our nation, O Hindus, has been usefully plying here for ages. Today perhaps, it has sprung a leak; today perhaps, it has become a little worn out; and if such is the case, it behaves you and me to try our best to stop the leak and holes. Let us tell our countrymen of the danger, let them awake and help us. I will cry at the top of my voice from the part of this country to the other, to awaken the people to the situation and their duty. Be patriots, love the race which has done such great things for us in the past. The spirit will triumph in the long run In the meanwhile let us work and let us not abuse our country, let us not curse and abuse the weather-beaten and work-worn institutions of our thrice holy motherland. Have no word of condemnation, even for the most superstitious and the most irrational of its institutions, for they also must have served some good in the past. Remember always, that there is not in the world any other country whose institutions are really better in their aims and objects than the institutions of this land. I have seen castes in almost every country in the world; but nowhere is unavoidable. I would rather have a caste of purity and culture and self-sacrifice, than a caste of dollars. Therefore utter no words of condemnation. Close your lips and let your hearts open. Work out the salvation of this land and of the whole world, each of you thinking that the entire burden is on your shoulders. Carry the light and the life of the Vedanta to every door, and rouse up the divinity that is hidden within every soul. Then, whatever may be the measure of your success, you will have this satisfaction, that you have lived, worked and died for a great cause. In the success of this cause, howsoever brought about is centred the salvation of humanity and **.
CHAPTER V
THE SAAKTA SYSTEM OF PHILOSOPHY
[*The following extracts are taken from the valuable contribution, by Sir. Atal Behari Gosh, M.A.B.L., on The Spirit and culture of The Tantras, to the Cultural Heritage of India – Our grateful thanks are due to the author and to the publishers.]
[CONTENTS – The Sakta system of Philosophy – Tantras correspond to Upasanakanda – The Three dispositions of Temperaments… The Seven Aacharas – Qualities of Teacher and Disciple – Form of Worship – Conception of Creation – Image Worship – The Five Tattvas or Principles – The four kinds of speech – The Mantras – The Shalcharas.]
Tantras Correspond to Upasanakanda
Nigama is Veda, Aagama is Tantra – Both – these are essential for a Hindu. The Saukta system is one of the systems of worship (Sadhana) included in the Tantras. The Tantras lay down different forms of practice for the attainment of the highest aim of human existence by one living the ordinary life of a householder. In this respect they correspond to the upasana kanda of the Sruti: The Tantras fall under five heads, viz. Saiva, Sakta, Vaishnava, Soura, and Ganapatya. These five classes of worshippers are collectively called pannchopasaka, Each of these classes of worshippers got its own Tantras.
According to the Maha-siddhasara Tantra, Bharatavarsha is divided into three Krantha or divisions viz Vishnu Kranta. Ratha – Kranta and Asava – Kranta and each of these Krantas, it is said, has sixty – four Tantras. The Sakti mangals Tantra says that the land east of the Vindhya Hills extending right upto Java is Vishnu Kranta. The country north of the Vindhya Hills including Maha – China is Ratha – Kranta. The rest of the country west-ward is Assva – Kranta. It will thus be seen that by Bharatavarsha is not to be understood what British India represents nowadays. The inhabitants of the island of Bali are “Hindus” and they follow the same from of worship as their brothers in India. In Java there are ruins of Buddhistic temples and in far-off Combodia there exist to the present day some temples and priests who worship according to “Hindu” rituals. The image of Dakshna Kali and Tara and some forms of Rudra are to be found in China.
The Shat – Sambhava – rahasya says that in Bharata there are four sampradayas (schools). Viz., Gauda in the East, Kerala in the middle and Kashmirian the West; the fourth, called Vilasa, is a sort of electric school which is not confined to any region but spread all over.
The Three dispositions or Temperaments
The Tantra classifies mankind primarily under three heads, viz., the man with a divya or divine disposition, the man with a vira or heroic disposition and the man with a pasu or animal disposition. On this depends the competency of the aspirant for any particular form of worship. Padmapadacharya, the favourite disciple of Sankaracharya, in his commentary on the prapanchasara says that there are five different ways in which the teachings of the Sastra have got to be considered. These five ways are (1) Sthula (gross), (2) Sukshma (subtle), (3) Karana (causal), (4) Samanya (cosmic), and (5) Sakshi (witness-like). Now every one is not competent to view things from these different points. The pasu man can hardly be expected to see beyond the sthuls or material aspect of things. In the vira man there is an urge to reach the plane beyond matte and the true vira is he who is fighting the six enemies – the passions-which obstruct the path of spiritual advancement. The man of divya disposition is, as a result of his practice in previous births, endowed with qualities, which make him almost divine. The Kamakhya Tantra says that the man of divya disposition is the beloved of all and is sparing in his speech, quiet, steady, sagacious and attentive to all. He is always contented and devoted to the feet of his guru (teacher). He fears no one and is consistent in what he says and is experienced in all matters. He never swerves from the path of truth and avoids all that is evil. He is good in every way, and is Sivas very self.
The vira is a man of fearless disposition and inspires fear in the man of passu disposition and is pure in his motive. He is gentle in his speech and is always mindful of the five tattvas (principles). He is physically strong, courageous, intelligent and enterprising. He is humble in his ways and is ever ready to cherish the good. The passu is a man whose inclinations are like those of an animal. He is a slave to his six enemies-lust, anger, greed, pride, illusion and envy.
The Seven Aacharas
Closely connected with the three bhavas are the seven acharas, rules of conduct which are given in the Kularnava Tantra (chap. II) as follows: Veda, aishnava, Siva, dakshina, vama, siddhanta and kaula. The aspirant rises step up by step through these different acharas till he reaches the seventh and highest stage, when Brahman becomes an experiential reality to him. In the first stage cleanliness of the body and mind is cultivated. The second stage is that of devoutness (bhakti). The third is that of Jnana (knowledge) Dakshina, which is the fourth stage, is that in which the gains acquired in the preceeding three staes are consolidated. This is followed by vama which is the stage of renunciation. This does not mean, as has been said by the detractors of the Tantra, the practice of rites with a woman (Vama). By vamachara is meant the stage of sadhana which the seeker of liberation follows for his own purposes; it has nothing to do with a woman, vama is the reverse of dakshina; it means the path of renunciation. If a woman is at all associated in this practice, she is there to help in the path of renunciation and not for animal gratification. A woman is such an object of great veneration to all schools of Tantrika sadhakas (seekers). She is considered to be the embodiment on this earth of this supreme sakti who pervades the universe. She should therefore be reversed as much and even if guilty of a hundred wrongs, she is not to be hurt even with a flower. It is a sin to speak disparagingly of any woman. The sixth stage, viz. siddhanta is that in which the aspirant comes to a conclusion after deliberate consideration as to the relative merits of the path of enjoyment and that of renunciation. By pursuing the latter path he reached the final stage, that of kaula. This is the stage in which kaula or Brahmana becomes a reality to him. The first three of these seven stages, viz., veda, vaishnava and satva belong to the Pasubhava, dakshina and vama belong to vira bhava and the last two belong to divya bhava. According to some the last alone is divya bhava. The seven stages are also compared by way of illustration to seven stages of intoxication.
It may be noted here that the seven acharas correspond, with very slight difference, to the seven jnana bhumikas (knowledge planes) described in the Yagavasistha, which are vividisha or subhechehha, vicharana, anumanasa, sattvapatti, asamsakti, padarthabhavani and turiya. The difference between the acharas of the Tantra and the Jnanabhumika of the Yogavasistha is that in the former the aspirant reaches Jnana through the path of bhakti (vaishnava achara) whereas in the latter the stage of tanumanasa (bhakti) comes to the man of learning who is confronted with insurmountable difficulties in the path of barren ratiocination and finds that without bhakti he can make no further progress.
QUALITIES OF TEACHER AND DISCIPLE
Like the Sruti, the Tantra lays great emphasis on the necessity of initiation. It also emphasizes the necessity of the teacher and the disciple being fully qualified. A good teacher is defined to be a man of pure birth and pure disposition, who has his senses under control. He should know the true meaning of the Agamas (Tantras) and all sastras (scriptures), and be always doing good to others, and engaged in repetition of God’s name, worship, meditation and offering oblations in the fire. He should have a peaceful mind and must possess the power of granting favours. He should know the Vedic teachings, be competent in Yaga and be charming like a god. The characteristics of a good disciple are as follows: He should be of good parentage, of a guileless disposition, and be a seeker of the fourfold aim of human existence. He should be well read in the Vedas and be intelligent. He should have his animal desires completely controlled be always kind towards all animals and have faith in the next world. He should not associate with non-believers (Nastikas), be assiduous in his duties, alert in the discharge of his duties towards his parents and free from the pride of birth, wealth and learning in the presence of his teacher. He should always be willing to sacrifice his own interests in the discharge of his duties to the teacher, and be ever ready to serve him in all humility.
The disciple should always bear in mind that the teacher is immortal. This does not mean that the human teacher is so; he is the channel through which the spirit of God descends. The true teacher is the Supreme Brahman, or Siva, or as some say, primordial Sakti.
The position of the human teacher is one of very great responsibility, which does not end with initiation. He has to look after his disciple’s welfare in every respect and guide him. He called the physician of the soul, and a healthy soul can abide only in a healthy body. He has to see that even in matters of health the disciple goes the right way. The teacher who is conscious of his responsibility does not initiate in a hurry, and sastra enjoins that the disciple should not accept a teacher to whom he is not attracted. The mode of initiation is not in every case the same and varies according to the disposition and the competency of the disciple. The ordinary mode of initiation is called kriya-diksha. This may be an elaborate process and consist of many rituals. Men of higher competency are initiated by other methods. The initiation which is the quickest and most effective is called Vedha-Diksha. There are very few who possess the competency for this. A person initiated according to this method realizes at once the oneness of his own self with that of the teacher, the mantra (sacred formula) and the deity, becomes as the Tantra says, the very self of Siva. The disciple who is initiated according to other forms of diksha arrives at his realization by slow degrees, each according to his competency. The object of initiation is to lead the disciple to this. As the Trantraraja (Ch. XXXV) beautifully puts it: One’s own atman is the charming deity of one’s worship. The universe is but its form”.
FORM OF WORSHIP
The different Tantras describe the different processes It should be noted that the worship is not always in a tangible image, nor are the articles of offering gross articles. The worshipper who is competent to dose worships in the image mentally evolved out of his mantra and the articles are also mental. The flowers, for instance, are kindness, forgiveness, and so forth. This is described in Arthur Avalon’s-Great Liberation (V 141. F. F.) There are among others two well known books, one by Sankaracharya called the Prapanchasara, and another the Saradatilaka by Lakshmana Desikendra, which give short accounts of almost all the different forms of worship. No one can dispute the authority of Sankara to speak on this subject. Lakshmana’s knowledge of the Tantra is also unsurpassed. And in both these books are given accounts of all the five methods of worship and their subdivisions. There is another book called Tantrasara which gives the rituals. This is also recognized as authoritative. The highest end as thought in the Brahmanic scripture is not heaven, as is taught in other forms of faith, but is absorption into the Divine Light out of which we came and in which we always abide, but the vision of which we are deprived of by our passions and prejudices and by our preoccupation with worldly things.
Conception of Creation
The Tantra has its own conception regarding creation. According to it, creation begins with sound. Siva or Brahman has two aspects, nirguna (attributeless) and saguna (with attributes). He ever is. As the former, he is transcendent and therefore dissociated from Prakriti or Sakti, and as the latter, he is associated with Sakti. It is out of this Sakti emanates; from that, nada (sound); and out of nada, bindu. This conception is put in another way. At the time of pralaya or final dissolution everything is withdrawn into the supreme Sakti. Thereafter when Sakti which is the tattva (substance) approaches the light which is Chit or knowledge, there arises in the former the desire to create (vichikirsha) and the bindu is formed. This bursts and divides itself, and out of that division there arise bindu, nada and bija. Bindu partakes of the nature of Siva or jnana, bija is sukti, and nada is the relation between the two as stimulator and stimulated (Kshobhya). When the bindu bursts, there arises as inchoate volume of sound. This sound is called Sabda-brahman which is the chaitanya (stress towards manifestation in all beings) pervading all creation, and is the source of the letters of the alphabet and of the words and other sounds by which thoughts are exchanged. All sounds (sabda) have meaning; sound and meaning are inseparable.
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