Chapter 8 – akshara parabrahma yOga or The Way to the Changeless parabrahma

by

SrI:  SrImathE SatakOpAya nama:  SrImathE rAmAnujAya nama:  SrImath varavaramunayE nama:

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paramapadhanathan

ramanujar-4-formsbhagavath rAmAnuja at AzhwArthirunagari, SrIperumbUthUr, SrIrangam and thirunArAyaNapuram

AUM

ŚRI BHAGAVAD-GĪTĀ

WITH

SRI RĀMĀNUJA’S VIŚISHTĀDVAITA COMMENTARY

LECTURE VIII

NAMED,

AKSHARA-PARABRAHMA-YOGA

OR

THE WAY TO THE CHANGELESS PARABRAHM

INTRODUCTION

In the Seventh Lecture, the following points were discoursed on, viz: the nature of Parabrahma[1. ‘The Great, par excellence‘, the 669th name of God.], Vāsudeva[2. See footnotes to verses 7.19 and …], —man’s Object of Worship, as being :—

  1. The Spiritual Sovereign (Śeshī)[3. Spiritual Sovereignty is used to distinguish from mere limited terrestrial Sovereignty. Spiritual Sovereignty is God’s, absolute and exercised over bodies as well as souls. The term Sovereignty is used to translate Śeshī. Śeshī means the Sovereign Lord, between Whom and man exists the indissoluble relation of Lord and liege expressed by the phrase ‘śesha-śeshi-bhāva‘. Man is God’s ‘deposit’ whom God has in his power to dispose of in any manner He may please. Śeshitva is thus the absolute power of disposability vesting in God. ‘Sovereign Absolute Disposing Master’ would nearly convey the sense implied by the term Śeshi, but as introducing such long phrases at every place must be lumbersone, ‘Sovereign’ is considered enough. Cp:’… they which live should not henceforth live unto themselves, but unto Him which died for them. Cor: 5-15.] of all entities, the Sentient and the in-Sentient; as,
  2. The Cause (Causa Causorum); as,
  3. The Support (or Prop); as,
  4. The Ultimate Referee of all language, used as the expression of ideas, which ordinarily relate either to His body or His mode, —the Referee being ultimately Himself, of whom are all things the body, or all things the modes; as,
  5. The Governor (or Ruler); and as,
  6. The Most Exalted and Supreme, by possession of the multitudinous Blessed Attributes (Omniscience etc)., etc.

Then the Lecture went on to give the rationale of why Brahm is screened from man, on account of the series of iniquitous deeds committed by him in the long past, —being addicted as he is to the delights which the body and the senses furnish, sated with the triple qualities of satva, rajas, and tamas;

And how this screen (hiding Brahm) is removable by man, by, in faith and resignation, throwing himself on Bhagavān’s protection (such trust and resignation resulting as the fruit of highly meritorious works being performed).

And next, the Lecture showed how the differences of merit produced differences among the votaries (upāsakas=bhaktas), as,

  1. Seekers of fortune etc., (aiśvaryārthi)[4. Cp: Annie Besant’s Article on Prayer in the Theosophical Review,vol: XXI, P: 538(1897-98): ‘We find prayers that are petitions for definite worldly advantages, for the supply of physical needs— prayers for food, clothing, money, employment, success in busi-ness, recovery from illness etc. These we will group together as class A (nearly corresponding to aiśvaryārthī). Then we have prayers for help in moral and intellectual difficulties and for spiritual growth for the overcoming of temptations, for strength, for insight, for enlightenment. These can be grouped as Class B (nearly corresponding to jijñāsu). Lastly there are the prayers that ask for nothing, that consist in contemplation and adoration of the Divine Perfection, in intense aspiration for union with God —the ecstasy of the mystic, the meditation of the sage, the soaring rapture of the saint. These we will call class C (corresponding to jñāni), Vide footnotes to verse 7.16.]
  2. Seekers of akshara, or aspirants for realizing the imperishable ātma (jijñāsu)[5. Cp: Annie Besant’s Article on Prayer in the Theosophical Review,vol: XXI, P: 538(1897-98): ‘We find prayers that are petitions for definite worldly advantages, for the supply of physical needs— prayers for food, clothing, money, employment, success in busi-ness, recovery from illness etc. These we will group together as class A (nearly corresponding to aiśvaryārthī). Then we have prayers for help in moral and intellectual difficulties and for spiritual growth for the overcoming of temptations, for strength, for insight, for enlightenment. These can be grouped as Class B (nearly corresponding to jijñāsu). Lastly there are the prayers that ask for nothing, that consist in contemplation and adoration of the Divine Perfection, in intense aspiration for union with God —the ecstasy of the mystic, the meditation of the sage, the soaring rapture of the saint. These we will call class C (corresponding to jñāni), Vide footnotes to verse 7.16.]
  3. Seekers of God (jñāni)[6. Cp: Annie Besant’s Article on Prayer in the Theosophical Review,vol: XXI, P: 538(1897-98): ‘We find prayers that are petitions for definite worldly advantages, for the supply of physical needs— prayers for food, clothing, money, employment, success in busi-ness, recovery from illness etc. These we will group together as class A (nearly corresponding to aiśvaryārthī). Then we have prayers for help in moral and intellectual difficulties and for spiritual growth for the overcoming of temptations, for strength, for insight, for enlightenment. These can be grouped as Class B (nearly corresponding to jijñāsu). Lastly there are the prayers that ask for nothing, that consist in contemplation and adoration of the Divine Perfection, in intense aspiration for union with God —the ecstasy of the mystic, the meditation of the sage, the soaring rapture of the saint. These we will call class C (corresponding to jñāni), Vide footnotes to verse 7.16.]

And that, of all these aspirants, the God-aspirant was the most eminent, inasmuch as by his incessant devotedness to God and singleness of love for him, he became the object of God’s warmest love; and that such a God-lover was very hard to find.

After this, the Lecture concluded by making mention of several requisites of knowledge which those three classes of aspirants have to acquaint themselves with, and act in accordance therewith, (as Means to realize the several ideals of future felicity, which each class sets to itself).