95. शङ्कराचार्यसंसेवी Śaṅkarācārya-saṁsevī

One who devoutly worshipped Śrī Śaṅkarācārya

Śrī Ādi-śaṅkarācārya incarnated at a time when the country was in turmoil; people were being misled by faulty ideas and erroneous practices that were in vogue. He toured the length and breadth of the country on foot thrice, gently cleansing, of various corruptions, the then prevalent practices of worship, and leading people into the path to higher good. He defeated in debate, scholars of various schools opposed to the Vedic way and established the supremacy of the Vedas as also its true interpretation.

Bhagavatpāda championed the cause of Sanātana-dharma rooted in the Vedas and resurrected the knowledge of Advaita enshrined in the Upaniṣads. His peerless Prasthāna-traya-bhāṣyas, that is commentaries on the triad of paths which are the principal Upaniṣads, the Brahma-sūtras and the Bhagavad-gītā, serve to clearly establish the Advaita philosophy beyond doubt; His several minor philosophical works, prakaraṇa-granthas, elucidate the same ultimate Truth in simple language for common people to understand; the many devotional hymns He composed can lift the ordinary soul to the sublime heights of bhakti.

In just the 32 years that marked His earthly sojourn, He managed to conquer, as it were, the entire country, unify it and bring peace to the land and the hearts of its people, conclusively vouchsafing for even future generations, a culturally, religiously and spiritually rich and vibrant Bhārata. And all this, without drawing a sword or subjugating anyone, but by the sheer brilliance of His intellect, speech and pen.

The Mādhavīya Śaṅkara-vijaya says about Jagadguru Śri Ādi-śaṅkarācārya, “To save, by teachings about the Self, people, who are trapped in the dense forest of ignorance and who are exceedingly tormented by the heat of the flame of the forest fire of transmigratory existence, Dakṣiṇāmūrti gave up silence and, coming forth from the foot of the banyan tree, moves about in the world in the form of Śaṅkarācārya.”²⁴⁶ He is therefore referred to as Bhagavatpāda, meaning ‘the pre-eminent Bhagavān’.

His Holiness was a saṁsevī, a devout worshipper, of Śrī Śaṅkarācārya. His Holiness paid homage to Bhagavatpāda every day as an integral part of His āhnika, paying obeisance to Bhagavatpāda’s idol placed next to the Candramaulīśvara-pūjā maṇḍapa. He worshipped at the shrine of Bhagavatpāda during the five-day Śaṅkara-jayantī celebrations every year apart from paying obeisance at the shrine every Friday when at Sringeri. He was extremely devoted to Bhagavatpāda and would be moved to tears while recalling the various aspects of His greatness.

Another meaning of the word ‘saṁsevī’ is ‘one who excellently serves’. The best possible service that can be offered to Bhagavatpāda is to further the cause that He championed - protect, sustain and propagate Sanātana-dharma and the tenets of Advaita. After having Himself become established in the Supreme Advaitic principle taught by Bhagavatpāda, His Holiness carried out extensive renovation projects in Kalady, the birthplace of Bhagavatpāda (vide nāma 23). Building, consecrating and renovating the temples of Bhagavatpāda in several places, establishing, running, improving and supporting institutions of Sanātana-dharma, traveling the length and breadth of the country many times over and spreading the message of Bhagavatpāda, teaching Bhagavatpāda’s bhāṣyas to scores of disciples and scholars and training them in the tenets of Advaita are some of the ways in which His Holiness was a true saṁsevī of Bhagavatpāda.

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In a letter penned by His Holiness from Bengaluru in 1937 to His Guru who was then at Sringeri, He paid glorious homage to Bhagavatpāda through a verse composed by Him, meaning, “By means of numerous unassailable arguments destructive of opposing schools of thought, He drove away all the Buddhists, who had internal divisions and had taken possession of the earth coveted by the asuras, and restored it to its pristine state. May He, our pre-eminent preceptor of Advaita, Śaṅkara, who is the sun to the lotuses of the Vedas and is of the image of Dakṣiṇāmūrti, confer happiness on those who are in dread of saṁsāra.”²⁴⁷

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Regarding His visit to Kolkata in 1967, His Holiness reminisced, “I went to Kolkata. Even there some hurdles and hardships surfaced. ‘For saṁnyāsins like me, what is fame or infamy, triumph or defeat? Let Īśvara’s will prevail’ - thinking thus, I proceeded. On the very next day after I reached the city, a wonderful transformation was seen in the atmosphere. There was no end to the love and deference of the large gathering. Aren’t these the glory of Bhagavatpāda, tell-tale signs of Guru’s grace?”

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[This is a summary of a benedictory discourse of His Holiness in which He brought out the greatness of Bhagavatpāda and insights into His teachings.]

What was the state of affairs in India when Bhagavatpāda incarnated? There was discord on metaphysical and dhārmic matters; each deemed his view to be paramount. Bhagavatpāda, however, emphasized a sameness in all. Nowadays, people create a hullabaloo about uniformity, without proper consideration of its nature and scope. It is a truism that there are and shall be differences between individuals; their natures are disparate. What Bhagavatpāda visualized was sameness compatible with human variety.

True sameness, which has been enunciated by the scriptures and by Bhagavatpāda, lies in the way a person conducts himself in the world, the way he mentally reacts to the world and in his discernment. If a man uniformly behaves in an appropriate manner in different situations and with different people then it can be said that there is a sameness in his conduct. What is appropriate is, however, far from uniform. Thus, the man in question would obey his parents but would instruct his students. While living as a householder, he would attend to the needs of his wife and children but would not continue to do so after becoming a saṁnyāsin.

People go to a dance hall for entertainment but not all of them have similar tastes. One who relishes the sentiment of valour feels happy on watching a performer enact the part of Karṇa; another who likes the sentiment of tranquility revels in the portrayal of Bhīṣma. Though such is the case, there is a sameness in the joy of the different persons. A man invited several people for lunch and not wanting to discriminate among his guests, served them the same quantity of food. As a consequence, by the end of the meal, a voracious eater was left hungry, a child ended up with a bloated abdomen and stomach-ache, and a man who disliked sweets was left grumbling. None of the guests was happy. On the other hand, another host served his guests in accordance with their requirements and tastes, ensuring that the hunger and taste of each of them were appeased. All left happy.

The Śāstras instruct a person to consistently adhere to his dharma and to eschew adharma. Certainly, there is a uniformity in the conduct of a person who consistently abstains from what he ought not to do and does what he should, with respect to different persons and in different circumstances. A person with such sameness in behaviour is like the dance drama that uniformly entertains the different members of the audience and like a host who uniformly satisfies the appetite and tongue of all his guests.

Commonly, a person’s mind is full of likes and dislikes. Being swayed by attachment and aversion, people stray to the path of adharma. Blinded by attachment for Duryodhana, Dhṛtarāṣṭra did not pay heed to the beneficial advices of Vidura. Aversion led Duryodhana to make an attempt on Bhīma’s life even when the two were but lads. Thus, likes and dislikes are impediments to true sameness in conduct.

A man engaged in activity cannot avoid pleasure and pain caused by persons, objects or even natural situations. For instance, even when no one disturbs a man, he feels discomfort on a very hot day but experiences pleasure when a cool, gentle breeze blows. Attachment and aversion towards the persons, things or events responsible for pleasure and pain are common, but unlike pleasure and pain, are avoidable. If a person gets rid of likes and dislikes, a sameness characterizes his mental responses to the world, for he does not feel attachment to one who is friendly and aversion towards one who is hostile. Same-sightedness, marked by absence of likes and dislikes, is highly eulogised in the Śāstras. Just as true sameness in conduct is not antithetical to the diversity in the world, sameness in mental reactions is not opposed to the experience of pleasure and pain due to external stimuli. When a person is free from attachment and aversion, he consistently conducts himself in a righteous manner; he has sameness in conduct. Uniformity in conduct is an important step towards developing equanimity of vision. Thus, sameness in mental reactions and sameness in conduct are linked.

A gold bangle and a gold necklace, though regarded as different, have no existence apart from the single substance, gold. In semi-darkness, a person may mistake a rope to be a snake, while another may misapprehend it as a stick; it is the single entity, the rope, that appears as a snake and as a stick. Likewise, this diverse world has no existence apart from the Supreme Brahman; it is Brahman that appears, on account of Māyā, as the cosmos and its inhabitants. The wise man sees Brahman everywhere; there is thus a sameness in his discernment of apparently diverse persons and objects. It is only such uniformity of vision that cuts at the very root of likes and dislikes. Attenuation of attachment and aversion is important for knowledge of the Truth to dawn. Thus, sameness in discernment, sameness in mental reactions and sameness in conduct form a unit.

In the time of Bhagavatpāda, there were several creeds, each of which held that only its own view was correct. It was in this prevailing atmosphere that Bhagavatpāda incarnated among the people. Reform is best effected by keeping in mind the ways of the world. Bhagavatpāda graced people engaged in austerities, yogins, seekers of knowledge and those desirous of liberation. But He did not stop with that. He realised that He had the responsibility to set an example for the people by His life. Rāma has made such a great impact on us by His having led a life totally wedded to righteousness. Bhagavatpāda, like Rāma, showed by His life, what an ideal son is like. He implemented the Vedic injunction that one should venerate the mother as a god, in letter and spirit. He then wanted to set an example by adhering to the scriptural norm by approaching a Guru, receiving saṁnyāsa and learning at the Guru’s feet. So, He approached sage Govindapāda. Govindapāda was in nirvikalpa-samādhi at that time. Bhagavatpāda did not disturb His Guru but humbly waited on with the sincere longing for the darśana of the exalted Guru’s holy feet. On coming out of samādhi, Govindapāda asked, “What brings You here? Who are You?” Bhagavatpāda replied in ten verses that conveyed the Supreme Truth. The Guru, perceiving the divine plan underlining the unique disciple’s arrival, prepared himself to play the role of an instrument in the execution of the divine plan. He accepted Bhagavatpāda as a disciple.

During His stay with His Guru, Bhagavatpāda, by the use of His yogic power, brought succour to the suffering people of the region by taking into His kamaṇḍalu, the flood waters of the Narmadā. Later, in accordance with the instructions of His Guru, He set out correcting the attitude of the various people who were following several schools propounded by men merely on the strength of their intellect. He analysed their viewpoints thoroughly and laid bare, before such blind followers, the lacunae contained in their merely relying upon the intellect and upon persons who propound fanciful theories.

Bhagavatpāda’s teaching that the world is only an appearance is pertinent to those who have obtained an understanding of the Supreme Reality. Till that realization dawns, we are left with little option but to look upon this world as if it were true. The Brahman of the Upaniṣads is one which always was, is and will be, whereas the world does not satisfy this condition. That is why the world is said to be unreal whereas Brahman is regarded as the only Reality. It is the same Reality that appears to us as all the forms seen in the world. Distinction asserts itself only when you and I are regarded as different. It is only the One that appears as you and I. Where then is diversity? This, in a nutshell, is the teaching of Bhagavatpāda. He did not propound any new theory or any new deity for worship, but only restored the Upaniṣadic teaching to its pristine purity.

The Brahman established by the Upaniṣads is like pure water. It does not have any attributes of Its own, but is simply Truth, consciousness and infinite. It appears, owing to Its power, differently as Śiva or Śakti or Viṣṇu to different devotees, but in truth It is the Absolute. Bhagavatpāda accomplished His task of establishing sameness by taking care to see that no devotee was displaced and that no devotee was set up against another, stressing only that the worship of deities opposed to the Śāstraic way has to be given up. The great master showed each adherent the way to the Absolute by making him tread his chosen path without conflict with the other paths. In effect, He did this by dotting the i’s and dashing the t’s without radically upsetting the various systems.

The most compassionate Guru, Śrī Śaṅkara-bhagavatpāda, rendered all of us indebted by His kind and profound teaching. We, who are fortunate to be His followers, will be gravely erring if we do not reverentially pay our obeisance to Him.

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