5 Guru

(A “Smarana Saptaha” was organised at the Shankar Math, Bengaluru, from 30.8.1987 to 5.9.1987. Several persons spoke about our Paramacharyal, His Holiness Chandrasekhara Bharathi Mahaswamigal. Our Guru presided over the 7-day function and delivered benedictory discourses on all the days except 4.9.1987 which, being Ekadashi, was His day of silence.

Acharyal’s six divine speeches form a well-knit set. Viewed in one way, they detail Paramacharyal’s life; the extensive scriptural analysis serves to elucidate certain aspects of Paramacharyal’s state and role. Viewed in another way, the divine discourses thoroughly explain the characteristics of a Sadguru, how a Guru enlightens his disciple and how a disciple should conduct himself; incidents from Paramacharyal’s life serve to illustrate the points made.

I reverentially submitted to our Guru that this hexad of sacrosanct speeches appeared to admit the just-mentioned two interpretations. With a smile, Acharyal graciously said, “I realized that even when I spoke. Presumably, My Guru wanted it to be that way. He was not in the least interested in people speaking of Him or eulogizing Him.” In the translations, the material within brackets highlights the tight links within and between the benedictory discourses and also contains the translations of verses. In His infinite mercy, Acharyal listened and gave His nod of approval to my submission about these links, in 1988.

These sacred speeches unambiguously reveal the excellence of Acharyal’s devotion to His Guru and His complete freedom from egoism. In particular, the last holy talk bears testimony to Acharyal’s humility and lack of inhibition in making fun of Himself. The following incident illustrates the unique relationship between our Paramacharyal and our Guru.

In 1946, Acharyal once went to behold Paramacharyal, taking Sri Subbaramaiya, a Bengaluru-based, close disciple of Theirs, with Him. As He approached the door of Paramacharyal’s room from one side, He noticed that His Guru was reading a book. Not only did Acharyal not enter, He did not even want to stand next to the door on the side where He could be seen. So, He walked round the building and came to the other side of the door. Then, He moved a foot of His slightly forward, leaned, peeped in and, finding that Paramacharyal was still reading, immediately stepped back. Then, He stood motionless and silent. After a few minutes, He again looked inside as before and withdrew. About 15 minutes passed thus before Paramacharyal happened to notice Him on looking up prior to turning a page.

Immediately, Paramacharyal called our Guru in. Acharyal entered and respectfully submitted that Sri Subbaramaiya had come for Darshan. Paramacharyal rose, walked out of the room and began talking to Sri Subbaramaiya. To enable them to converse in private, Acharyal moved out of earshot. Paramacharyal was scheduled to take Vedanta class for our Guru. So, after some time, our Guru returned to have a word with Paramacharyal. As He approached, Paramacharyal told Sri Subbaramaiya, “The Guru is coming. Do Namaskara.” As instructed, Sri Subbaramaiya prostrated before Acharyal. Then, Paramacharyal and Acharyal spoke to each other for a few moments. Thereafter, Acharyal walked backwards till He was out of His Guru’s range of sight; He was unwilling to even turn His back towards Paramacharyal. Such was His reverence for His Guru. Paramacharyal, on the other hand, declared to Sri Subbaramaiya while Acharyal was leaving, “Do not think He is just a Swamigal. He is God. He is My Guru.”

On an occasion, Paramacharyal even composed verses about Acharyal and gave them to Him. One of them is :

“O Wise people! Hold in the heart-lotus the Guru, Vidyatheertha, the young one with tranquil mind, who is exceedingly compassionate, who destroys the mountain of impediments by His extremely pure glances, who is skilled in protecting the whole world, who is known by means of the Pranava, Om, and who is the manifestation of the Supreme Brahman.”

Paramacharyal told our Guru, “I have written only what I definitely know to be true about You. There is no encomium here.” Acharyal, for His part, felt that it was His Guru’s extreme love for Him that caused Paramacharyal to view Him thus. What a remarkably unique Guru-Sishya relationship characterized by absolute mutual veneration!

• Translator)

Guru Part I

(Benedictory address delivered, in Kannada, at Bengaluru on 30.8.1987)

(I contemplate the beautiful Goddess, whose seat is a lotus, whose smile is radiant like the autumnal moon, who has gleaming, blue-lotus-like, captivating eyes and whose face is as pretty as a lotus.)

Apart from authoring several commentaries on the Upanishads, Gita and the Brahma Sutras, Shankara Bhagavatpada has composed Prakarana texts, light works, to facilitate easy comprehension of the truth. A Guru is essential for one to peruse and comprehend the import of the commentaries. Further, one’s intellect must be particularly sharp. On the other hand, there is less difficulty with the Prakarana texts; their style is very simple and they explain the subject matter in a lucid manner. Neelakanta Dikshitar has said:

(Even that subject matter which is difficult to learn from the scriptures is readily understood from the utterances of poets. A gem that is terrible on the head of a serpent is attractive when it lies on one’s palm.)

When expounded in scriptural parlance, a topic strains the intellect but, when presented in the words of poets, it is easily grasped. For instance, when some scientific topic is elaborated mathematically, people fail to comprehend it. But, when mathematical terminology is dropped and familiar illustrations are proffered, people say that they have understood. Nevertheless, they are not in a position to act on what they have learned. In the present case, the situation is different in that people not only comprehend the import of the scriptures from the Prakarana texts but are also able to put into practice what is taught.

Shatashloki, a composition of Bhagavatpada is one such Prakarana text. Therein, in the beginning, it is said:

(No illustration is seen in the three worlds - heaven, earth and the nether world - for the Sadguru, the imparter of knowledge. What if the Sparsha gem were conceived as an example? It indeed transmutes iron into gold but not into another Sparsha. The Sadguru imparts to his disciple, who has sought refuge in his pair of feet, his own natural state. Therefore, even the giver of worldly knowledge is incomparable. (Alternative meaning: He is therefore incomparable and transcendental.))

If some object is to be indicated, an effective way to do so is to present a familiar article that is akin to it and to declare, “This is what that object is like.” If a Guru were to be described in this manner, some well-known object must be chosen as an illustration. A Guru makes an ignorant man a great knower. Is there any example in the world for this function?

If a piece of iron were to come into contact with a Sparsha gem, it would get transformed into gold. How low is the worth of iron as compared to that of gold! A Sparsha gem thus has the power of converting iron, whose worth is low, into gold, which is valuable. A Guru too converts an ignorant, worthless person into a valuable epitome of wisdom. It thus seems at the first flush that the Sparsha gem is a good example to indicate a Guru.

However, an attempt to describe the Guru in terms of the Sparsha will not be worthwhile. Why? It is true that a Sparsha transmutes a piece of iron brought into contact with it into a piece of gold. However, if that piece of gold were to be brought into contact with a piece of iron, both the gold and the iron would remain as they are. There would be no metamorphosis. On the other hand, a disciple, who is endowed with faith and devotion, is not only transformed by the Guru into a knower but is also rendered capable of changing a disciple into a person on par with himself. In other words, a Guru not only transforms his disciple into a knower but also confers on the disciple the power to convert another into a knower. That is why:

(Even the giver of worldly knowledge is incomparable.)

When such is the case of even an ordinary teacher, what need be said about a transcendental Guru who imparts knowledge of Brahman? Indeed, great is the merit that would accrue to a man were he to have the good fortune of beholding such a Guru.

(He, who is not available to many to even hear about and whom many do not comprehend though hearing about Him...)

In accordance with this Upanishadic declaration about the Self, it is rare to come across such a Guru who is a knower of Brahman and is, in essence, non-different from the Supreme. If, having obtained the rewarding vision of such a Guru, one were to hear the truth from him, cogitate on it and one-pointedly fix one’s mind on it, then one’s gain would be even more; limitless would be one’s gain if one were to obtain the very realization of the Self from him.

(His lineage is purified, his mother becomes one who has accomplished what is to be done and the earth becomes meritorious on account of him.)

In keeping with this averment, the disciple of a sage becomes one who is

(Himself liberated and who liberates even others from the cycle of transmigratory existence.)

In Vivekachoodamani, another Prakarana text, Bhagavatpada has extolled the glory of the Guru in a delightful manner. He has said:

(There dwell calm, great noble ones who move about effecting, like the spring season, what is beneficial to people. Having themselves crossed the dreadful ocean of transmigratory existence, they, without any motive, cause other persons too to cross over.)

Normally, when we wish to cross a stretch of water, we approach a boat and ask the boatman if he will row us across. He agrees, but on completing his task, asks for money. The Guru, however, makes no such demand.

He has crossed the ocean of transmigratory existence and also causes other people to cross. Why? For no reason at all.

His mind is intent upon doing what is beneficial to others.

When the spring season commences, people feel joyous. What return does the spring season expect for conferring happiness? Nothing; making people happy is its very nature. Likewise, doing what is beneficial to others is the nature of noble sages. Blessed is he who learns from a Guru of this kind.

What is the characteristic of such a Guru? Bhagavatpada states thus in the Vivekachoodamani:

(There is some fortunate one, the enjoyer of the fruit of limitless virtue, for whose intellect external objects have completely ceased owing to its constant abidance in the form of Brahman, who experiences like one asleep or a child, what is submitted by others (as, for example, food and water) and who, sometimes, when his mind emerges from absorption in the Self, perceives this world like a world seen in a dream (that is, as a mere appearance). In this world, he is worthy of reverence.)

According to the scriptures, the mind assumes the semblance of whatever object it thinks of. Our minds keep wandering, taking on the forms of sense objects. On the other hand, inward-turned minds have the form of Brahman. That is, they are anchored in Brahman, which is devoid of qualities and which is of the nature of existence, knowledge and bliss.

The mind that has constantly taken the form of bliss has no reason to engage itself in grasping external objects.

The mind of the sage is completely free from the ideas of sound, touch, form, taste and smell and also from tendencies. In other words, the sage is devoid of the thought of any external object; he does not even have an inclination to think of it.

Is there then no worldly dealing at all for the sage? Lord Krishna says that the sage has no need for any activity. Some dealings may, however, arise for him owing to the accumulated merit of the good deeds of others. For instance, a person may come to the sage and request him to do something.

The question then arises whether the sage will do whatever people request him to do. The answer is in the negative. Sri Vidyaranya has written, in Panchadasi, the following verse, which is appropriate to the present times:

(If a knower of the non-dual Truth were to engage in reckless conduct then what is the difference between a dog and a knower in the matter of consuming what is impure?)

A person may contend as follows: “To a great extent, I have obtained knowledge.

Knowledge reduces to ashes all good and bad deeds. Therefore, I remain unaffected regardless of my misdemeanours. So I drink whatever I wish, eat whatever appeals to me and act as I please.”

Can this person be regarded as a knower of the Truth?

No. Consider a man who is not a knower of Brahman but who dwells in the company of a holy one. Even he would abstain from misdeeds thinking, “Who indeed will perform an act like this?”

A dog eats what is unclean. It does not discriminate between what is right and what is wrong. If a knower too lacks discrimination then what is the difference between him and a dog?

Why should a knower of the Truth not engage in misconduct? Since his mental tendencies, nurtured even prior to the dawn of knowledge are very pure, his mind does not feel inclined to do what is wrong. A knower of the Truth thus does not perform any misdeed. If, perchance, he were to do something improper, it would be on account of the evil conduct of those near him and the deed would relate to them, who impelled him; it would not pertain to him who is devoid of even the tendency to do evil.

The sage is one whose experience of what is essential, such as food, stems from the submission of others.

Sometimes, the mind of one who has been abiding in Samadhi does not descend to the level of worldly experience. If at such a time, a person were to go to the sage, draw his attention by shaking him and then indicate, “This must be done”, the sage would respond but in an absent-minded manner. That with respect to which we commonly say, “I”, the sage says, “The body”. Why? Because, for him identification with the body has ceased; a sense of identity has arisen with respect to the Self, which is of the nature of existence, consciousness and bliss.

Sometimes, children who are asleep, wake up partially and eat food given to them by their mothers. However, on waking up in the morning, they deny having consumed anything at night.

Mother : You did eat.

Child : When did I do so?

Mother : When you were sleeping, I repeatedly woke you and gave you food.

Child : Oh, yes. I am beginning to faintly recollect that.

The indrawn knower of the Truth may, in accordance with the wishes of and motivation provided by a devotee or disciple who has come to serve him, engage in action like a sleepy person responding absent-mindedly to an external stimulus or like a child given food by its mother without effort on its part.

How does the knower behold the world when he has descended further from Samadhi? He apprehends the world to be akin to a dream. His mind is elsewhere, on the Self, but somehow he engages in activity.

(Having indicated the characteristics of a knower of the Truth, Acharyal now proceeds to show how His Guru, Sri Chandrasekhara Bharathi Mahaswamigal, too was a knower with such characteristics.)

In the life of My Guru, one special feature was that He did not acquire the knowledge of the Truth from the teaching of someone.

Arjuna asked:

(O Krishna! What end does a person attain who is endowed with faith but who does not strive and whose mind has slipped from Yoga without his having attained perfection in Yoga?)

The Lord answered:

(He who has failed in Yoga is born in the house of the pure and affluent. Alternatively, he is born in the family of wise Yogis. Such a birth is indeed very difficult to obtain in this world. There, he gains the knowledge that was acquired in the previous birth.)

We see people having different kinds of mental tendencies. Some, owing to tendencies stemming from past lives, perform only good deeds. Some others, regardless of how much competence they possess, constantly do what is wrong. Why? In accordance with the statement of Duryodhana,

“I act as impelled by some god who abides in my heart”, they are dragged by the force of past actions.

In the case of My Guru, His introversion did not stem subsequent to His taking Sannyasa, studying the Shastras and practising spiritual disciplines. It manifested right from His birth.

As a boy He had to go to the market. Though He was unconcerned with domestic affairs, He had to keep in mind the requirements of His parents. There is a hymn called Mooka Panchasati. He used to contemplate it and so much was His absorption in the import of the verses glorifying the Goddess that, without knowing it, He sometimes used to proceed well beyond the market, to the end of the town. It was there that He used to note, “Where have I come? To the market. Where is the market? Oh! I have come beyond the town limits.” He then used to return to the market, make the necessary purchases and deliver the goods at home.

Can one encounter such an inward-turned person? He was not enamoured of seeing shops nor was He keen on making purchases; He did not even have money to buy much. What then was His mental attitude? “This purchasing of articles is something that ought to be done. So I must do it. However, there is a mental state which I must have and from it there must be no slipping away” - this was His firm view.

When young, He used to perform worship of Ishwara. The worship of the Lord can be done with the body, through speech and with the mind. Amongst these three forms of worship,

(The succeeding one is superior to the preceding one.)

When we worship, our hands offer flowers to the idol but our eyes are turned elsewhere and our minds think of something or the other. This is quite a way of worshipping! Some others are not like this. They worship with their gaze rivetted to the idol. Their minds, however, wander. Thoughts of the office, etc., arise in their minds; after all, they do have to go to their places of work. In spite of their efforts to ward off such thoughts, their minds continue to muse.

In the case of a few, the three instruments, namely body, speech and mind, are concerned with the same object. It is said:

(That which he mentally contemplates, he utters through speech and that is what he executes through action.)

Amongst bodily, verbal and mental worship, mental worship is exalted. My Guru did not have the requisite materials to perform bodily worship. Were He to have offered verbal worship, others might have objected to His loud utterances. What, indeed, is the obstacle to a person offering his mind to God and worshipping Him? Nothing, except that it is very difficult to hold the mind in check. My Guru, whose mind was under His control, used to perform mental worship of Ishwara on every Pradosha (which occurs twice in a lunar month and is regarded as sacred for the worship of Lord Shiva). How did He go about His worship? Without any articles and

(with Abhisheka (ablution) performed with the waters of the pure mind taken from the river of faith and with flowers of constant Samadhi, the purpose being to get rid of rebirth.)

There is a traditional temple in Sringeri called the Vidya Shankara temple. I have now given it to the Archaeological department in accordance with the request made. That temple is delightful; it is most pleasing to sit there, at the base of a pillar, in the evening, at six O’ clock, on a Pradosha day. My Guru used to sit there till around 7 or 7.30 in the evening, with no awareness of the external world, contemplating:

(I mentally conceive for You a seat made of precious stones...)

He proceeded to mentally offer food to God and to wave lamps before Him.

There is a story in the Mahabharata about the glory of mental worship. Everyone was performing worship on Shivarathri but Bheema was seen just reclining comfortably. Arjuna and the others felt sad thinking, “Even on this day, he refuses to abandon his characteristic of sleeping.” Lord Krishna wanted to throw light on what Bheema was actually doing and took Arjuna to Kailasa. On the way, they saw Bilva leaves being carried to Shiva. On being asked, “How come you are carrying so many Bilva leaves?”, the ones carrying the leaves replied, “All we know is that someone is continuously heaping leaves on Lord Shiva and we are carrying them. People offer one leaf at a time but this worshipper, Bheema, seated under a tree, is mentally offering tree after tree.” Arjuna indicated, “I too performed worship.” The response was, “Your offering has been placed under that tree. What this man offered mentally is limitless. What you gave is limited exactly to the leaves you actually used.”

Mental worship has been highly extolled in the scriptures. My Guru, when young, used to perform such mental worship in an excellent manner. Even about His worship, much remains to be said. I shall, however, confine Myself today to speaking only about some aspects of His life.

After My Guru became a pontiff, several devotees used to come to Him. They wished to plead, “O Mahaswami! Please bless that this, which we seek, come to pass.” Yet, on several occasions, My Guru used to provide the concerned answers of His own accord, without the devotees saying anything about their problems. I was a boy at that time. One day, after He had given clarifications and permitted the devotees to leave, I asked him, “How is it, O Mahaswami, that when people come to You to seek clarifications, You provide the answers even before they present their requests?” He replied, “There is nothing to it. God is the one who impels Me and I respond in accordance with His wishes. Such being the case, whatever is in His mind automatically comes to My mouth. I need to make no effort.” He was a great soul who had attained such perfection.

His dispassion was so great that though He dwelt as pontiff in such a big Math, He did not even have the idea that He lived there.

(Having his meal in his palm and dwelling at the base of a tree...)

It was with this mental attitude that He abided in the Math. However, when it came to religious activities and activities relating to the welfare of the devotees, He acted in accordance with the following words of the Gita:

(O Partha! There is nothing in the three worlds that I must do; nor is there anything to be attained that has not been attained. Yet I engage in actions.)

(O Partha! If I do not, without laziness, ever engage in action, men would, in all matters, follow My path. These worlds would be ruined if I did not perform action.)

Keeping others in mind, He opined, “You have all labelled Me a big pontiff. Regardless of whether or not I should perform worship and obtain the fruit thereof, what would you say if I were to abstain from worship? ‘Even Swamigal does not perform any worship. Yet, He repeatedly tells us to do so. Why should we engage in what He Himself is not interested in carrying out?’ Therefore, I must perform worship. Then you people will act likewise, thinking, ‘The great one Himself engages in worship. It may or may not be necessary for Him but we need it. So we must carry it out.’”

In accordance with the utterance,

He gave great importance to actions, though He was established in the path of knowledge. Some of His disciples too have followed His example. Why? They also have the same fear as Him. They reason, “If I leave Sandhya Vandanam for one day, my son will leave it for a whole year. Therefore I must do it everyday to show the correct path to the boy.”

My Guru was a knower of Brahman and was not dependent on any effect or cause. Still He led His life in such a way that there accrued the welfare of the world. Remembering the events that transpired in His life, chanting His name, and incorporating into our lives, at least to some extent, what He demonstrated in His life, constitute a means to our highest good.

Guru Part II

(Benedictory address delivered, in Kannada, at Bengaluru on 31.8.1987)

(There is the foot of the Guru. In his glance, there is limitless compassion. There is something that has been said by him. What else is there that constitutes the summum bonum of life?)

Shankara Bhagavatpada, who authored several Prakarana texts, has composed the above extremely delightful verse. What do you have? The reply to this question is:

I have the lotus foot of my Guru. What else?

There is limitless mercy in the side-glance of the Guru. He has graced us with his glance.

What about your path?

He has given some Upadesham, teaching. That is indeed there constituting my path. If we have faith in the Guru, become the recipients of his grace and, having heard his teaching, act accordingly, then

what else is needed for the summum bonum of life?

It is, however, difficult to obtain such a Guru.

(These three, namely, human birth, desire for liberation and the refuge of a great soul arise only on account of the grace of God.)

That My Guru was a great person has been known by experience by those who were His contemporaries and beheld Him. How does one become a Mahapurusha or a great soul? When the accumulated good tendencies of numerous previous lives manifest in a person, in a particular life, that person becomes a Mahapurusha.

(Just as swans approach the Ganga in autumn and just as the great medicinal herb regains its own lustre at night...)

So too, what was practised in the previous birth manifests in the present birth.

Manu has said that no matter how old one is, one must not cease to learn. A person may get the doubt, “I am old. There is no occasion for me to utilize in this life what I have learned. Must I then strive merely to end up straining myself? Is it not much better for me to sleep happily instead?” To this, Manu says:

(Knowledge must be acquired by the wise, with dedication, though they may be old. Though it may not yield any fruit now, it will be easy to acquire in another birth.)

If you have some understanding, then, no matter what your age may be, you must learn. What is the use? While the learning may not be beneficial in this life, in a future life you may again be born as a human. You may then get an opportunity to acquire knowledge. If mental impressions of past learning are there, the mind instantaneously grasps what is taught. Else, what knowledge the teacher imparts wastes away in the preceptor himself as it is not acquired by the disciple. Such a situation must not arise. If we grasp quickly what is taught, the teacher proceeds to teach further. Otherwise, he feels frustrated and thinks, “Why should I impart this lesson?” If that happens we will be unable to learn anything.

The Shastras state, as illustrated by the verse of Manu just considered, that efforts made in previous lives to acquire knowledge play a vital role in determining the ease with which we acquire knowledge now. So, if we are able to easily acquire knowledge, it can be inferred that we must have developed suitable mental impressions in a previous birth. Thus, on seeing a sage, we infer, “This man must have essentially perfected himself in his previous life. However, owing to some obstacle to his enjoying the fruit of his effort and getting liberated, he has been reborn and so is now present before us.”

My Guru was congenitally inward-turned. No matter how many worldly things He was in the midst of, He never forgot the Self and His mind was ever focussed on His goal. This, I indicated yesterday by means of some examples. Speakers at this function have taken up the fruits that accrued to others because of My Guru. I, on the other hand, am only saying what I saw in Him; the sources of My information are what He Himself told Me and what I personally observed. The incidents I narrated yesterday about My Guru going to the market with His mind absorbed in the import of the Mooka Panchasati and of His performing mental worship at the Vidya Shankara temple were made known to Me by Him.

(Acharyal began this benedictory discourse by explaining, in the light of Bhagavatpada’s Svatmaniroopanam verse, that one would attain total fulfilment if one were to obtain a Guru, be the recipient of his grace and act, with faith, according to his teaching. Acharyal then showed how mental tendencies developed in former lives play a role in making a person the great soul spoken of in the verse. Once it becomes clear that mental impressions of the past lives play a role in the making of even a knower, it goes without saying that meritorious deeds of the past births are involved in a person getting a Guru and becoming a recipient of the sage’s grace. This point is so obvious that Acharyal has deemed it unnecessary to explicitly elaborate on it.

Acharyal’s specifically taking up the involvement of past impressions in the blossoming of a knower is significant in that He has thereby provided a link with His previous benedictory address. Therein, Acharyal explained the characteristics of a knower of the Truth and went on to show how His Guru was a knower, with the concerned characteristics accruing to Him mainly by virtue of His previous lives.

Acharyal now takes up the role of faith. A disciple, who has beheld a sage and become the recipient of the great one’s grace, can derive the full benefit of his Guru’s teachings and thereby attain the fulfilment of the purpose of life, as indicated in Bhagavatpada’s verse, only if he has full faith.)

All of us say that faith is essential. What is meant by faith?

(The firm acceptance of the words of the Shastra and the Guru as true.)

There must be the unwavering conviction, “This is true” with regard to what the Shastra and the Guru say. We may think, “We certainly do have faith. If not, would we be studying the Vedanta Shastra?” “We have faith” - these are only our own words; the question is whether our faith finds manifestation in our actions. If not, our words are hollow.

The Shastra says that Sandhya Vandanam must be performed. However, if at the Sandhya time, some matter were to crop up, it is possible that we may drop our Sandhya Vandanam. If such be the case, it cannot be true that we have faith. If we genuinely accept something as true as, for instance, that it is obligatory on us to do Sandhya Vandanam, we must necessarily act accordingly.

My Guru had made it a practice since His youth to do Parayanam (recital) of the Ramayanam. The procedure for Ramayana Parayanam comprises the chanting of some verses at the commencement of the recital. One such verse is:

(Salute Hanuman, the destroyer of Rakshasas, who remains with His palms joined above His head and with His eyes brimming with tears of joy wherever there is a recital about Rama.)

What is the nature of Hanuman, the devotee of Rama? He comes and sits down at all the places where a discourse on the story of Rama is taking place. What does He do if, on Rama Navami day, discourses simultaneously take place in a hundred different places? He sits in all the hundred places. How is this possible? The Veda discusses a related issue pertaining to oblations made at a Yagna.

What oblations we offer the Devatas during a sacrifice is limited. Is it sufficient to fill the stomachs of the Gods? If not, how will the Devatas be pleased? On an occasion, one may have resolved to perform a Homa with a thousand Modakas (sweetmeats commonly offered to Lord Ganesha) and may have fulfilled one’s resolve. If the Lord were to consume such a large number of Modakas, would He not suffer from indigestion? We make different quantities of offerings; as such, we may be giving the Devatas either insufficient food or an amount enough to cause indigestion. Raising such an issue, the Veda says:

((Sayanacharya’s interpretation of this Mantra is:) If the Devatas obtain only as much oblation as is offered into the sacrificial fire, how is it that the little quantity of oblation pleases the Devatas? There is no rule that the Devatas obtain only what amount is offered. On the other hand, the offering increases to the extent desired by a Devata. Thus, they can be satisfied.)

If you have to offer oblation to the Devatas, your duty is to offer, with faith, what the Shastras enjoin. It is not necessary for you to consider whether what is offered is adequate to appease the hunger of the Devatas or whether, in the event of your offering an excessive amount, the Devatas will accept only what they need.

Even if you give a little, a Devata has the capacity to make the offering increase to the amount which he desires. What is important is faith. If we have faith, then whatever we offer goes to God.

It is necessary for us to reason in accordance with our scripture-based faith and not in a perverse manner. Else, we may perversely feel, “We have performed for Ganapathy, a Homa with a hundred Modakas. However, on noting the size of His stomach, it is clear that it can accommodate a thousand Modakas. Therefore, what we have offered is inadequate.” If we contend thus, then we are fools. Alternatively, having resolved that we will, in a Homa, offer a thousand Modakas, we may wrongly reflect, “How will Ganapathy eat this much? Even if we eat ten Modakas, we find it excessive. So, He will not consume more than a hundred Modakas.” Reasoning thus, if we perform the Homa with only a hundred Modakas, then we lack faith in the Vedic teaching:

(The oblation increases to the extent desired by a Devata.)

What is the sign of faith in the Shastras? One’s acting as dictated by the Shastras. My Guru had read the verse to the effect that Hanuman comes and sits wherever Rama is glorified. Hanuman, He believed, has the power to sit in all places; He suitably modifies His body and comes. Wherever there is dearth of air, air rushes there. It fills a place regardless of whether it is big or small. The Devatas grace by their presence the place where oblations are duly offered. Likewise, Hanuman comes to the spot where Ramayana Parayanam is performed.

We have read this verse about Hanuman and know its meaning. Still we hardly believe that Hanuman will come and go. My Guru’s stance was novel. He reflected: “What is the procedure for seating Hanuman when He comes? Is it appropriate that He should sit on the ground and listen while we sit on wooden plank and recite? Further, is it appropriate that He should just have to get up and go when we close our books? Is He not to be offered respect and a place to sit?”

Having thought over the matter My Guru decided, “As I Myself sit on a wooden plank, a seat must be placed for Him.” Placing a wooden plank for Hanuman to use, He did Ramayana Parayanam with the feeling that Hanuman was seated. Once someone came there and asked, “Boy, why have You placed a wooden plank here?” The following conversation ensued.

“It is for Anjaneya.”

“He is not there.”

“He may not be seen by you but:

He is seated there with His hands over His head.”

“What is all this nonsense that You are saying?”

“Can the words of the great be false? Do we not recite this verse about Hanuman’s presence everyday?”

The extent of My Guru’s faith in the verse being factual now becomes clear to us. What faith He had!

While faith may be essential and while the hallmark of its presence may be its influence in our behaviour, one may ask, “How does faith confer any fruit?” The following illustrations throw light on this.

Right from His childhood My Guru was devoted to My Paramaguru (Sacchidananda Shivabhinava Nrsimha Bharathi Mahaswamigal). Being poor, He neither had the courage nor the opportunity to freely go to His Guru and submit what He desired. What did He desire? His longing was, “How wonderful it would be if I could somehow have the Guru’s Padukas in My house and worship them.” An interesting situation arose.

A person living elsewhere came to Sringeri, served My Paramaguru with devotion for many days and became the recipient of his Guru’s grace. Finally when it was time for him to leave, he requested, “Oh Mahaswami, if I have Your Padukas in my house I will get the highest good. Please grace me with them.” The Guru felt compassion for the man and gave the Padukas. The man collected them and came to My Guru’s house, where he was lodged. While departing, he gathered his belongings. However, being old, he forgot about the Padukas and left without them. My Guru’s joy knew no bounds. The man had left and it was not possible for him to return; in those days the arrival of a vehicle at Sringeri was an infrequent occurrence. What was My Guru to do? He thought, “I was so desirous of the Padukas and they themselves came to Me.

What has happened is on par with the waters of the Ganga drenching and purifying a lame man who was merely seated.”

A similar incident took place today at a person’s house. Some have the desire to wash My feet. If, however, I were to keep washing My legs in everyone’s house, My feet would, I feel, be adversely affected. So I avoid it. Today, one person brought, with great faith, a Poornakumbha (a vessel filled with water and with a coconut in its mouth).

Do you know what some people do? They bring a Shoonyakumbha. They do not know the meaning of ‘Poornakumbha’ (filled vessel). They fetch a clean vessel with a coconut on it but, on the coconut being lifted, there is nothing below; this is a Shoonyakumbha (an empty vessel).

It seems that some elder had duly instructed this person to whose house I went and so he completely filled a vessel with water. As he was bringing it, owing to his joy on seeing Me and the commotion created by the others, the coconut and the water fell. The coconut did not land on My feet but near them. The water, however, fell on My feet.

The man felt, “Alas! An unfortunate event has occurred.” I, however, told him, “You are indeed meritorious. You have the desire to wash My feet. But if you had brought water for that purpose I would have said, ‘No’. The water, however, fell on its own on My feet. The implication is that what was in your mind has been fulfilled by God. So do not be upset.”

I narrated this to point out that if God is merciful to us and we have faith and devotion, then what we wish automatically gets fulfilled. Likewise, by virtue of His faith, My Guru obtained the Padukas. Thereafter, He kept up the practice of worshipping them. What were the fruits that accrued on account of this devout worship of the Padukas of the Guru? I shall elaborate on this later.

Guru Part III

(Benedictory address delivered, in Kannada, at Bengaluru on 1.9.1987)

(Mental affliction is quelled by the glances of the exalted Guru which are cool and dense with the essence of compassion and which, in granting whatever is desired, are excellent wish-fulfilling trees.)

What does the glance of the Guru do?

Man has several bodily, verbal, sense-based and mental afflictions. Mental suffering is the most potent of all. The glance nullifies even mental torment.

What else?

Shankara Bhagavatpada has described the Guru as an ocean of mercy with no motive. Here, the Guru’s glance is declared to be dense with the essence of compassion. In every portion of the glance, there is a torrent of mercy.

Every man, regardless of how dispassionate he may be, necessarily wants to be free from sorrow. Further, the dispassionate man does have the desire to develop divine qualities. Whatever one’s desire may be, in granting the desired object, the glances are excellent Kalpaka trees; the Kalpaka tree has the power to give whatever is sought. The glance of the Guru fulfils all our longings.

In Sanskrit, this does not mean “Acharyal’s foot”; it means “the Acharyal who is pre-eminent.”

This common reference to Shankara Bhagavatpada means “pre-eminent Acharya.” Likewise,

means “the glances of the pre-eminent Guru” and not “the glances of the Guru’s feet.”

These cool glances destroy mental afflictions. The prayer is, “May the glance of the Guru fall on us and thereby let all our sorrows end.”

(Acharyal, in His preceding benedictory address, explained that the summum bonum of life is attained if a man obtains a Guru, becomes the object of the compassionate glance of the Guru and with complete faith, acts in accordance with the teachings of the Guru. In continuation of what He said then, Acharyal has, in the present benedictory address, spoken of the characteristics and effects of the Guru’s glance. Only knowledge can truly destroy all sorrow; the glance of the Guru produces such knowledge. To teach this, Acharyal, now begins to explain how sorrow arises and how knowledge eradicates it. He elaborates on the different kinds of knowledge and shows how His Guru mastered them. Finally, in terms of a verse on Shiva as Dakshinamurthi, He highlights the role of the compassionate glance of the Guru in producing sorrow-eradicating knowledge in a competent disciple.)

While speaking of My Guru, I earlier gave examples to reveal the extent to which He had brought His mind under control and mastered His senses. What was His effort to acquire knowledge like? I shall now talk of this. In the beginning, He had secular education. With regard to the types of Vidya or knowledge, Manu mentions Loukika Vidya, Vaidika Vidya and Adhyatmika Vidya. By Loukika Vidya (secular knowledge) is meant Artha Shastra (the science of wealth / polity), Silpa Shastra (sculpture / engineering), etc. Vaidika or Dharmika Vidya (Vedic knowledge) relates to those scripturally-indicated actions by performing which our minds become pure and we attain, after death, the joys of heaven followed by a fine future birth. Adhyatmika Vidya (knowledge of Brahman) means that knowledge which is taught by the Upanishads.

Even if we acquire the first two Vidyas, we cannot have permanent cessation of sorrow. We may get rid of one grief but there is occasion for another. How should absolute cessation of unhappiness be? Once eradication is achieved, sorrows must never recur. How is such permanent removal of unhappiness achieved? It is said:

(“Sorrow, birth, actions, faults (attachment, aversion and delusion) and false knowledge” - in this sequence (in which a member is responsible for the occurrence of the member that precedes it), when each successive element is removed, the preceding element is eradicated and thence there is liberation.)

At the head of the sequence, there is Mithya Jnanam or false knowledge. What is it?

False knowledge is the perception of something as what it is not. For example, in semi-darkness, a rope may be wrongly perceived as a snake.

Those who know the import of the scriptures tell us, “You are not the body. On the other hand, you are the one who has identification with the body and performs activities.” A worldly parallel is, “I am not the house. The owner is the one who closely associates with the house and conducts the activities there. I am that owner.”

(Acharyal has indicated here that the conviction “I am the body” is false knowledge. He who feels “I am just the body” cannot obtain even the benefit of Vaidika Vidya; what then to speak of his getting liberation? The Self is not only not the body but is also not the mind or the intellect and is actually Brahman, which is of the nature of existence, consciousness and bliss. This was indicated by Acharyal in His first benedictory address itself. As such, comparison of the Self with the owner of a house, as done here, is not meant to directly elucidate the true nature of the Self but to show, as the first step, that the Self is distinct from the body.)

By our performing Sandhya Vandanam, etc., we attain heaven. It is not possible for us to go there with our bodies as it is for us to proceed from Bengaluru to Mysuru by boarding a train. If the body does not go to heaven, who or what does so? The Self. Though the Self does not travel per se, the subtle body , which is associated with the Self, transmigrates; there can be activity for the subtle body comprising the mind, senses, etc. Depending on our Karma or actions, we may go to heaven or hell or be reborn on earth in a human body, in the body of an animal or as an immovable, such as a tree. Even if we wish to perform some Karma and attain an excellent birth, we must first give up the false knowledge that we are just the body.

What has happened is that we strongly feel that we are only the body. If we really are only the body then there is no need for us to perform Sandhya Vandanam, no need to go to a temple and no need to engage in any religious activity. However, if there is something different from the body and what Karma we perform does fructify then we do need to perform religious activities to attain future happiness.

(Acharyal has thus shown that the false knowledge, “I am only the body,” must go for us to cease being completely materialistic. He now reveals how it is false knowledge that leads to all activity, good and bad; activity, in its turn leads to rebirth and birth implies experience of sorrow.)

It is from false knowledge that we get ‘Pravritti’ or activity. Why? Because false knowledge gives rise to the manifestation of ‘Dosha’ or defects. What are they?

(Attachment, aversion and delusion are the defects.)

We have attachment. Our desires are continuously increasing and, in accordance with them, we go on performing actions; there is no limit to our desires. Likewise, we have aversion towards numerous objects. Is it possible to eliminate what we dislike and thereby to put an end to our aversion? Today, something may be undesirable and we may remove it. Tomorrow, another object also may be undesirable and may have to be removed. On yet another day, something else may be undesirable. Thus, we cannot get rid of aversion by getting rid of what we dislike. Similarly we cannot eradicate attachment by procuring all that we want because there is no limit to our desires.

Why do attachment and aversion arise? Because of delusion; it consists of incorrectly viewing an object as the cause of our happiness or unhappiness. Delusion, in its turn, stems from false knowledge because if a man did not have the misconception that he is the body, mind, etc., there is no question of his being deluded with regard to some object like wealth. Consider the case of wealth. Bhagavatpada has said:

(Ever reflect that wealth is a harmful object; there is indeed not an iota of happiness from it. For the affluent, there is fear even from a son. Everywhere, this is the established norm.)

You always think of money. Do so, it does not matter. However, does wealth give you what you desire, namely happiness? No. What then?

(Wealth is the cause of fear.)

When money accumulates, fear is great. Suppose one were to ask you, “Will you lie down in the open front verandah?” If you have no ornaments or money on you, you will say, “I shall, by all means, do so.” If, on the other hand, you have some ornaments or money on you, you would say, “No, it is not possible for me to sleep there. I need a place inside the house.” Further, you would demand that the door be securely shut. Thus, what we think is the means of great happiness is only the cause of our unhappiness.

My Guru used to give humorous examples. The following story was narrated by Him. There was a Bairagi (mendicant); a disciple stayed with him. The Bairagi used to go from place to place, light a fire and sit by its side. He used to remain there doing some contemplation. Wherever he went he used to ask, “Is there some cause for fear here?” The disciple wondered, “Why does my teacher keep talking of fear wherever he goes?” He happened to put his hand inside the Bairagi’s Kamandalu (water pot). He found that there was something inside which produced a “kada, kada” sound. He reasoned: “There should be just water here and not something that rolls about.” He found that there was a cloth packet inside. Thinking, “Oh, this must be the cause of my teacher’s fear”, he threw away the packet. When the Bairagi reached the next place, he asked, as usual, “Is there any fear here?”

The disciple replied, “It has been left behind.”

“What do you mean?”

“There is no fear now. It has gone into the river.”

“What? Went into a river!”

“I examined your Kamandalu and threw the packet away.”

“Why?”

“What is the purpose in your clinging to that source of fear? What have we to do with such worldly things? There is no need for fear and so I threw it away.”

What do we think? It is from this wealth that there is fulfilment of all that we desire. For its sake, we go to the extent of doing what is improper. We do not feel inclined to give the Government what is due to it. Therefore, it becomes necessary to prepare a false account. If we get caught, we need to pay a bribe. We feel that somehow we must amass wealth. Yet, where must it be kept? There would be a tax problem if we were to deposit it in a bank. Therefore, it must be kept in a box. The box must be locked. Further, we must sit guarding the box!

When Sandhya Vandanam is done, the thought of the box crops up. When we sit for the worship of God, the thought of the box comes to mind. When does a person in such a situation finally become free from this thought? Only on one day; the day he dies and departs. He then does not even know who subsequently takes his wealth away. Such a man would have wished to take his wealth with him after his death but, being unable to do so, was forced to leave it behind.

“Do you have the desire to take wealth with you?”, asks Neelakanta Dikshitar.

“I have somehow earned money and so far have kept it with me. I do not at all want to part with it even after death.”

“What do you want to do?”

“I want to place it on my head and take it with me.”

“Where to?”

“To heaven.”

“Only if you have a head left after death, is there any question of your placing your wealth on it and carrying it. No head can remain; it too is cremated.”

If you do have the desire to take your wealth with you after death, then donate it, while you are alive, to a good, deserving person. What will happen if that is done? The wealth will get transformed into Punyam (merit). Regardless of whether or not you have a head after death, it is certain that the wealth will accompany you in the form of Punyam. Because wealth is really the cause of your unhappiness and because you must part with gross wealth at the time of death, do not be deluded with regard to it.

No matter how much it be stressed, “Do not be attached to wealth”, our attachment does not leave us. Such is the extent of our delusion.

These are the words of Gautama in the Nyaya Sutras. Attachment, aversion and delusion are the three defects.

Among them delusion is the most vile. Why?

(Because attachment and aversion do not arise in one who is not deluded.)

If you are to get attachment, it is from delusion. If you have to get aversion, it too has to come from delusion.

Sometimes, we mistake a person who helps us to be good for nothing. Why? Because of delusion. Owing to our wrong notion about our benefactor, we develop aversion towards him.

(O Desire! I know your source. You are indeed born of Sankalpa or the conception that an object conduces to happiness.)

Something may not be conducive to our welfare but we entertain the delusion that that object will give us happiness. On account of such delusion, attachment to that object manifests and grows. So, delusion is extremely bad and should be eradicated. Its removal implies the elimination of attachment and aversion as well.

What will happen if the three defects are got rid of? We will then not engage in activities. If engagement in activities ceases, we will not have a future birth, which we are forced to take to experience the fruits of the actions performed earlier. If there be no birth for us, we will have no sorrow, for it is only one with a body who has sorrow.

Delusion is indeed a big obstacle for us. Because of it we have all our fears; it must be eliminated. My Guru used to say, “Do not have much attachment to wealth.” It is to earn this wealth that we go in for secular education. As I said earlier, My Guru too acquired Loukika Vidya. But this was only till the completion of middle school. He passed in first class.

In those days, there were no opportunities in Sringeri for higher education; one had to go elsewhere for it. My Guru was the only son of His parents. They did not wish to be separated from Him as would have been the case if He had left Sringeri for high school education. Prior to His birth, His mother had given birth to many children who did not live long. Desirous that My Guru too should not die young, they had left Him in Srikanta Sastry’s house saying, “You please take care of this boy.”

Owing to the meritorious deeds performed by Him in His previous births, My Guru got the opportunity to learn Sanskrit as a student of the Math Patashala.

Everyone studied in each class for a year. But My Guru made it a point to go through two classes every year. Yet, in keeping with,

He did not make His teacher unhappy. If anything was taught to Him once, it was sufficient; He grasped it. After reaching the fourth class of the Math’s Veda Patashala, He, apart from studying, began to teach students of the lower classes. His teacher used to tell Him, “You must take classes. You teach well.” Thus, by helping His teacher, He kept the latter happy.

In those days, books were hard to come by in Sringeri. He copied down, in excellent handwriting, the contents of several books. There is a Sanskrit book called Dhaturoopa Manjari. His copy looks just like a printed book. It has the same number of letters per page as the printed text; I have with Me His copy. In this manner, He studied with great sincerity.

He was greatly devoted to Sacchidananda Shivabhinava Nrsimha Bharathi Mahaswamigal, My Paramaguru. In the preceding discourse, I illustrated this by narrating how He obtained the Guru Padukas. There is another episode which brings out His sincerity and His devotion to His Guru.

My Paramaguru used to go on tours. He had the habit of examining students and teachers. Prior to leaving on a tour, He once told the Pandits, “I will state the fourth quarter of a verse. I would be glad if you compose and append to it the first three quarters.” My Guru’s characteristic was that He used to keep in memory, with great faith, whatever words came from the lips of His Guru. He thought, “He has now given something to the teachers”, and bore what was said in mind. What did the Guru say?

The meaning is: A figure is seated in front. Is he asleep or awake? There is a reason for this doubt.

The entity is competent to give even liberation. However, on seeing the figure, it is not clear whether he is giving advice or is asleep.

My Paramaguru gave this portion for completion and left on a tour. My Guru thought, “Let Me see if I can complete the verse.” He succeeded in doing so and kept the completed verse with Him.

While on tour, the Guru had the habit of asking for the answer papers of the students of the Patashala, perusing them and determining the competence of the students. In the course of His going through the answer sheets, He also saw My Guru’s answer papers. He got the impression, “This Narasimha Sastry (as Sri Chandrasekhara Bharathi Mahaswamigal was known prior to His Sannyasa) is extremely intelligent.”

Almost completing His tour, He camped near Belagola. Distinguished persons came and reverentially beheld Him. My Guru too was present to behold His Guru.

The Guru asked, “I had given you, four years ago, a verse for you to complete. Who all have completed it?” Though unlike the others, My Guru had completed it, He was shy and afraid to say so. However, someone nearby said, “This boy has done it.” The Guru remarked, “Has this boy done it? Read the verse.”

What is the meaning? My Guru had great devotion to Lord Dakshinamurthi (a manifestation of Shiva). My Paramaguru too had devotion to Shiva. He had tried to complete the verse in terms of Shiva but His composition, as it turned out, referred to Vishnu. So, He was slightly dissatisfied with His own composition. My Guru, on the other hand, had completed the given portion in terms of Dakshinamurthi.

Where does Dakshinamurthi abide? He dwells on the Himalaya mountain. There is a big banyan tree there and He is seated in the shade of that tree. How is He seated?

In one hand, He has the Chinmudra (the sign of knowledge in which the tips of the thumb and the index finger touch and the others are straight). In another hand, He has a book. He has mastered all the senses and so His body is motionless. In accordance with the utterance of Kalidasa,

“Desirous of something, He performed penance”, the Lord has, in the mode of penance, directed His gaze at the tip of His nose. His eyes are three-fourth closed. They are only slightly open.

There are some people who sleep with their eyes partly open; I have observed this. The Lord’s eyes are slightly open. There is no activity at all in His body. Thus, it seems as if He is sleeping while seated. Yet, if we decide to say that He is indeed sleeping, it will be difficult to reconcile this position with:

Param means Brahman, which is superior to everything. About Dakshinamurthi it is said:

(Silence is the mode of Guru’s exposition but the doubts of the disciples are rent asunder.)

There is no need for the disciple to ask any question. There is no need for the Guru to verbalize any reply. If one is seated in front of the Guru, Shakti Pata takes place; that is, the power that is in the Guru descends on the disciple. As for the disciple’s doubts:

(The knot of the heart is broken and all doubts completely vanish.)

All this happens automatically on one seeing the Supreme.

Dakshinamurthi, purely by His grace, fulfils the desire of Shuka and others to know the Truth and grants them knowledge. What do the disciples of Dakshinamurthi, such as Shuka, say? Each avers, “On my coming to Your presence, all my doubts have been cleared. I have received instruction about realization of Brahman.” If Dakshinamurthi is to teach, He must be awake.

Therefore, I am unable to say whether this figure, who is competent to confer liberation, is asleep or awake. This is the meaning of the verse.

My Paramaguru was extremely happy and felt, “This boy is so competent. I wanted to complete the verse to refer to Shiva but that did not happen; this boy has done it.” His glance fell on My Guru.

My Guru was destined to become a Sannyasi. How did He become a Sannyasi? What was His conduct at that time? I shall talk about these aspects on another day.

Guru Part IV

(Benedictory address delivered, in Kannada, at Bengaluru on 2.9.1987)

(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, Dakshinamurthi gave up silence and, coming forth from the foot of the banyan tree, moves about in the world in the form of Shankaracharya.)

(In His preceding address, Acharyal revealed how a Guru, by His gracious glance, produces knowledge in a disciple and thereby quells the disciple’s mental torment. In the present benedictory address, Acharyal elaborates on what He taught earlier and also explains how a Guru ensures the dawn of knowledge in a disciple who is much less competent than the sages who approached and obtained enlightenment from Shiva in the form of Dakshinamurthi.)

For a long time, the Madhaviya Shankara Vijayam has continued to serve as an authentic record that enables us to know the life of Shankara Bhagavatpada. What was He like intrinsically? This has been elucidated in this verse of the Madhaviya Shankara Vijayam. Dakshinamurthi remained seated at the foot of a banyan tree teaching sages, while observing silence. By that very teaching, imparted through silence, the doubts of the sages were set at rest and they became enlightened about the Self. What, however, is the position in Kali Yuga (the present age of unrighteousness)?

We have ignorance. The sages too had ignorance. What is the difference between their ignorance and ours? There is darkness on the night of the full moon as also on the night of the new moon; there is no night without darkness. In the darkness of the night of the full moon, we are able to move about on the roads and are also able to perform our routine activities. We, however, have to strain to read a book; that is all. In the darkness of the night of the new moon, if the sky happens to be overcast too, it is not possible for us to walk on the road or to engage in our activities; the question of reading a book does not arise at all. The ignorance of the sages was like the darkness of the night of the full moon while our ignorance is like the darkness of the night of the new moon. To get rid of the ignorance that they had, the sages sought refuge in Dakshinamurthi. Our position is like that of the man described in the sequel. There is a big forest of ignorance. A man has got trapped in its midst. He is unable to see a path in any direction. He does not even remember how far he has come; he is unable to judge the direction in which he must move forward. What is he to do? So unbearable are his bodily and mental afflictions that he is not even in a position to remain where he is. Thus, in the verse, it is said:

(Those who have got caught in the dense forest of ignorance.)

It is necessary that this man be shown the way out. If he were merely in an ordinary forest, one could tell him, “Proceed to the East” or “Go to the West.” He has, however, been caught in the forest of ignorance. What guidance should be given to this man who has forgotten his very nature? He must be advised, “You are so and so.” That is all that needs to be done. So it is said:

(By teachings about the knowledge of the Self.)

In every one, the individual soul is really the Supreme. When the Supreme takes the form of an individual, He must act in accordance with what He taught earlier in the form of God, thereby obtain, as it were, knowledge and get liberated, as it were. What is the basis for saying that the Supreme alone is there and that His becoming an individual, striving to get knowledge and getting liberated are mere illusions and not actualities?

(There is none desirous of liberation and no one who is liberated. This is the highest Truth.)

If the highest Truth is known, there is no one desirous of liberation, no one who is liberated and no one who is bound in the cycle of transmigratory existence. There is nothing except Brahman. If, however, one were to behold distinct objects of experience then what prevails is the state of ignorance.

If we sit in a cinema theatre, we see several pictures on the screen. We feel happy, unhappy, angry and so on. What is it on seeing which all such emotions arise in us? Mere images on the screen. Should we get angry or obtain happiness on beholding just an image? Strictly speaking, there is no reason for us to. However, though we are actually seeing a mere image, we do not feel so. We feel that we are watching the hero of a story in front of us. The producers of the film intend that such an idea must come to us; only then does the picture become interesting. Once we feel that we are seeing not the hero but a mere image, the charm of the picture vanishes.

What has happened to us? Just as, while seeing a picture, we forget that we are seeing mere images projected onto the screen and, on the contrary, feel that the hero is in action in front of us, we have completely forgotten our true nature of being the non-dual Brahman, and, on the contrary, we believe, “I am human. I am a Brahmin. My thread ceremony has been performed.” Once this much false knowledge has arisen, can Sandhya Vandanam be discarded? No, it must be performed. If false knowledge were not there, there would be no necessity to perform Sandhya Vandanam.

Sandhya Vandanam and other scripturally enjoined duties are not done by two types of persons for whom the thread ceremony has been performed; he whose thinking is perverse and he who has known the Truth.

(In the world, both he who is extremely foolish and he who has attained the acme of knowledge live happily. The people between these limits of stupidity and wisdom suffer.)

He who is extremely foolish is happy; he is too stupid to anticipate or analyze problematic situations and become unhappy. He who has attained the limit of knowledge is also happy; he feels, “This is all there is to the world. No purpose is served by laughing or weeping over it.”

Such a knower is not obliged to perform even scripturally-ordained actions but, out of compassion, he thinks, “The common folk must not get deluded by my non-performance of good acts. Let them see me and do good. They should obtain good results.” With this attitude, he engages in good activity. That is why even when God incarnates as a human, He has to do everything.

With regard to the man caught in the forest of ignorance, the Lord teaches about the Atma till realization of the Truth dawns.

God should save these people caught in the forest of ignorance by this teaching.

When a person has some difficulty, the thought of helping him arises in us. Suppose a man with some financial resources is in a position to read but is unable to acquire all the books that he desires. If he were to ask us for help, we would direct him to a library. On the other hand, if the man were penniless, we ourselves would supply him with some books. Why this difference? Because the difficulty of the penniless man is greater. The help rendered to a person should be proportional to his difficulty.

Transmigratory existence is a forest conflagration. The man trapped in the forest of ignorance, has fallen onto the flame of this fire. Should he go forward or backward? In both directions, there is fire. As such, he is not in a position to go forward or backward; he cannot also remain where he is. For one in such a terrible predicament, the only pertinent succour is a rain of nectar which would put out the fire and also rejuvenate him. The teaching about the Self is this rain of nectar. To save the intensely tormented man by raining nectar, Lord Dakshinamurthi acted by

For uplifting the sages Sanaka, Sanandana, etc., the Lord just showed the Chinmudra (the sign of knowledge in which the tips of the thumb and index finger touch and the other fingers are held straight). With a smiling face, He radiated peace. By glancing at them, He produced a cool rain of nectar. That was sufficient for the sages. For us, it is insufficient.

When we indicate, “Come”, by suitably moving our hand, some correctly interpret the sign and approach us. Some do not understand. Even if we wave briskly, they just wave back! My Veda teacher narrated an example. During a religious rite, honey was essential; it was kept on the top. The priest was engaged in chanting Mantras and so was not in a position to converse. Hence, when he came to

the portion where honey was required, he pointed to the honey. The performer of the rite thought, “Maybe I am supposed to do what he is doing”, and he too pointed to the honey. What could the priest do? “I wanted you to bring down the honey”, he said. “Oh! If you had said so earlier, I would not have gestured with my hand at all”, responded the performer of the rite. There are people with this level of understanding also! So, for the sake of people of limited competence:

(Dakshinamurthi gave up silence and came forth from the foot of the banyan tree.)

Earlier, the disciples went to the Guru.

(To fully know that Truth, he should necessarily, with sacrificial faggots in hand, go to a Guru, who is versed in the Vedas and is established in Brahman.)

In accordance with this injunction, the disciple of the olden days went, with sacrificial faggots in his hand, to the Guru.

(The good disciple waits for the appropriate time to pose questions.)

Accordingly, he used to wait. In this fashion, he acquired knowledge. What is the present situation like? Neelakanta Dikshitar has humorously said, “I have studied Vedanta. But look at what has happened?”

(Alas! How did my study of Vedanta end up serving to pass the time of kings who hear stories at nights to get sleep?)

With great strain, with faith, studying for several years in the presence of the Guru and constantly contemplating on the teachings, I acquired my knowledge. It is very surprising how my learning has ended up.

Many people do not get sleep. Why? They have numerous worries; they are enmeshed in various affairs. So, what is to be done to sleep? Some think, “Let me take tablets. I will then sleep.” Some others recline comfortably. They summon a scholar of Vedanta and tell him, “You keep expounding Vedanta.” The scholar does so and the listener goes to sleep. Thus, Vedanta ends up serving to pass the time of one who is not even a scholar.

The term “Hari-Katha-Kala-Kshepa” is commonly used; it means a story to spend time! Instead of hearing the story of the Lord, developing devotion and then worshipping the Lord, people often just while away time by nonchalantly hearing the story of the Lord. This is the fate of Vedanta and the Puranas now. It is said that we must go to the Guru’s presence and, there, know the Truth by prostrating before the Guru, serving him and posing our doubts.

(Know the Truth by prostration, questioning and service. The knowers who have realized the Truth will impart knowledge to you.)

Is this now regarded as feasible? No. So, recognizing the limited competence and deplorable attitude of people in Kali Yuga, the Lord Himself started from the foot of the banyan tree and came to the people.

(The figure of Shiva moves about in the world in the form of Shankaracharya.)

If the Lord were to come in the form of Dakshinamurthi, all people would fear Him. Why? Because they have not seen a person who has four hands. They might think, “This being has four hands and as such must be some ghost. Hence, we shall disbelieve whatever this entity says.” In the present times too, people are not comfortable with what they are unfamiliar. For instance, the advice of a Swamigal and the discourse of a man who dons a worldly attire are viewed differently. Why? The common folk feel, “The Swamigal does not know our problems. He talks about what is pertinent to himself. We are unable to decide how much of what he says is fit or unfit to be grasped by us. The other man is just like us and so he is in a position to speak on what is relevant to us. As such, what he says is particularly interesting.”

This point has been brought out by Neelakanta Dikshitar. He wrote:

First, the Lord taught us by means of the Vedas. About the Veda, it is said:

The author of the Veda is no ordinary person. He is the Lord Himself. The continuation of Neelakanta Dikshitar’s verse is:

With reference to the Veda, one may think, “God is omnipotent. So, He has composed the Veda in such a way that it is suitable for Him. We lack His capacity. So, how is it possible for us to practise what is specified in the Veda?” To ward off this objection, the Lord decided that apart from His teaching, the Veda, an individual must also be taught by another individual. So, He got the sages to write the Dharma Shastra, which prescribes what we must and must not do.

(Having balanced ‘doing good to others’ and ‘absolute freedom’ and, having determined that ‘doing good to others’ is heavier, the Lord incarnated ten times. Fie on the life of a man who never does good to another! May animals live long; even after death, they continue, through their skins, to serve others.)

Lord Vishnu abided in the state of absolute freedom. Why then did He have to incarnate many times, as:

(A fish, a tortoise, a boar, Narasimha, Vamana, Parasurama, Rama, Krishna, Buddha, and likewise Kalki.)

God wanted to know, “What constitutes the heaviest or most exalted object in the world?” So, He said, “Bring a balance.” He took the state of absolute freedom in which He abided and put it on one pan. On the other pan, He kept loading some object or the other; on it, He placed heaven, other worlds, wealth, etc. Yet, no matter what He placed, the pan with absolute freedom on it continued to remain low; it did not rise up at all. The Lord became afraid and thought, “What! Is there nothing at all to match absolute freedom?” Finally, He took “Doing good to others” and placed it on the balance. The pan that was on the top came down while the pan that was below went up.

The Lord deemed, “Doing good to others is the truly heavy object. So, what should I do? I shall eradicate whatever problem any person in the world has and cause an arrangement of doing good to others to develop.”

Having first incarnated as a fish, the Lord gradually manifested as a man like us. He then showed us the way. Why? In His incarnation as a fish, He uplifted the Vedas. However, it could be objected, “Is it possible for us to become a fish? Can we uplift the Vedas? No. So, what have we to do with this incarnation?” The Lord then appeared as a tortoise and lifted a big mountain. Here also people could think, “We have neither the power to incarnate as a tortoise nor to lift a mountain. So, what is the point in concerning ourself with the tortoise-incarnation?” What about the Lord’s incarnation as Narasimha? People may say, “There is no Hiranyakashipu before us to slay. Further, we do not have the power of Narasimha. So, let Narasimha go.” What then? The Lord, in due course, incarnated as Rama.

The people then felt, “Ah! He is just like us. He too has a father, a mother, brothers and a wife. He has all that we have. We have experienced some suffering but He has experienced it much more than us; He dwelt in a forest for fourteen years. We find even our problems too much to bear. So, it seems that the path He showed is appropriate for us.”

God says, “O, Man! I have given you the power to discriminate but you have not used it. Look at a cow.” God created milk for its calf. However, we too are able to obtain and drink the milk of a cow. We take cow dung and put in a field as a fertilizer. Even cow’s urine, we treat as pure and consume a little of it as Panchagavya (a mixture of cow dung, cow’s urine, clarified butter, curd and milk). In every way, the cow is beneficial. People use the skins of all sorts of animals; on seeing a belt made of animal skin, they say, “First class!” Thus, even a dead animal is beneficial to others. If, however, a belt were made of human skin, none would touch it; people would regard it as disgusting. Being useless after death, if a man is to do good to others, he should do it while he is alive.

Fie on the life of a man who does no good to others!

On the other hand,

May animals live long; even after death, they continue, through their skins, to serve others.

Such is the important place that has been assigned to doing good to others. That is why the Lord first taught the Vedas for the benefit of mankind, then got the sages to write the Dharma Shastra, and also personally appeared in various forms. He manifested in the form of man to make His teachings appear highly relevant to the people who are trapped in the forest of ignorance and who are tormented by the forest fire of the cycle of transmigratory existence. Thus did Dakshinamurthi give up His silence and His place at the foot of the banyan tree and move about in the world in the form of Shankaracharya.

On encountering Bhagavatpada’s advice we feel great joy, as if we have touched the moon. Likewise, on seeing a preceptor belonging to the line of his successors, we feel as if we have encountered Shankaracharya Himself. That is why it is said in the Madhaviya Shankara Vijayam verse that has been expounded so far:

(He moves about in the world in the form of Shankaracharya)

and not

(Moved about.)

“He is continuing to move about” - it is only because you have this attitude and are devoted that the line of successive preceptors has come about. “Shankaracharya has come and gone” - if this were your view, the Maths of Shankaracharya could not have lasted. It is you who have, by your attitude, sustained the Maths. My Guru too came to us in the form of Shankaracharya.

(Acharyal has so far explained, in the light of a verse of the Madhaviya Shankara Vijayam, how the Lord, the primordial Guru, imparts knowledge to the disciple after taking the disciple’s limitations into full consideration. He now illustrates the kind of advice that is given by a Guru, by considering how His Paramaguru graced His Guru.)

Earlier, I spoke of My Guru’s efforts to gain knowledge. What was the extent to which His Guru’s grace was on Him? I shall now take that up.

My Guru did not have the opportunity to be initiated into Sannyasa by the actual touch of the hand of His Guru. However, initiation of a disciple by a Guru is of several types. There is Drishti Deeksha or initiation by glance, Sparsha Deeksha or initiation by touch and Manasa Deeksha or initiation by the mind itself.

Shankara Bhagavatpada, by His mind itself, imparted fourteen sciences to Giri, His disciple. “By the mind itself”, implies without recourse to classes. Bhagavatpada just thought, “Let him get this knowledge.” If the Guru graces thus and if the Guru has the power to bless, the power descends on the disciple and the disciple obtains knowledge. This is certain.

What happened in the case of My Guru? When My Paramaguru felt that His body had served its purpose, He sent word for My Guru through Srikanta Sastry. I shall give the details of His sending for My Guru later. He made the resolve. “I shall give Sannyasa to Him (Narasimha Sastry).”

How is it known that such a resolve was made? The following details reveal this. Every evening, My Paramaguru used to go to the Kala Bhairava Temple, situated atop a hill in the vicinity of the Ashrama in Sringeri. On the way, He used to chant Antyakshari verses (In Antyakshari verses, the last syllable of a verse must be the first syllable of the succeeding verse) and used to discuss some scriptural topic. One day, Markandeya Brahmachari, Shivananda and My Guru, who were students, went for reverentially beholding their Guru. He asked them to accompany Him to the Kala Bhairava Temple. When seated in the temple, He looked at My Guru’s face and chanted three verses.

(O Child! If you have the desire to cross the ocean of transmigratory existence then listen to my utterance which is in consonance with the Upanishads and will later be beneficial. Having shaven your head, together with the tuft, and, having broken the sacred thread donned for performing sacrifices, take up Sannyasa. Very firmly endowed with the four spiritual means, faith and devotion, enquire for long about the Truth by recourse to the nectar-like utterances of the Upanishads flowing from the lotus mouth of the Sadguru.)

What is the meaning? O Child! People have various longings. What desire should be there in your heart? Transmigratory existence is a big ocean. In it, you are sinking and rising. Do you have the desire to reach the shore? This desire must be there.

If you have this desire to cross the ocean of transmigratory existence then,

O Child, hear my words. Are these words just my own? No.

The fruit that shall subsequently accrue from my words is extremely beneficial. In Sanskrit, “Hita” and “Priya” have different meanings. Priya is what is pleasing now. “You have won one lakh in a lottery”, is a Priya utterance. The concerned man may have actually won nothing and the speaker might have intended to have fun at his expense. Nonetheless, the hearer believes the statement and feels happy. Hita is what confers joy subsequently. “Read. You will certainly pass”; this is an example of a Hita utterance.

Priya is:

(That which confers happiness for the time being.)

On the other hand, Hita is:

(That which confers happiness subsequently.)

A Hita utterance does not immediately confer joy. For instance, a person who is told to study may feel, “Why is he pressurizing me?” The advice, however, later proves to be beneficial. Likewise, my words are of the Hita kind. How is it that my words constitute Hita?

Because what I shall tell you is in consonance with the teaching of the Upanishads. Listen to these words. What are they?

You must take Sannyasa.

Nowadays many take Sannyasa but without anyone to initiate them into it. For their Sannyasa, about ten rupees are sufficient. They just go to a shop and say, “Give me a cloth which is ochre-coloured.” Unlike normal Sannyasis whose clothing is drab, they want theirs to be resplendent. So, they specify, “Give me a cloth which is ochre-coloured and resplendent.” They wear it and wander about as Sannyasis.

The Sannyasa being spoken of here is not like that; it must be taken in accordance with the scriptural injunctions. One such injunction is,

(Having shaven the head together with the tuft...)

There was an argument between Mandana Mishra and Bhagavatpada. Mandana Mishra did not have faith in Sannyasis as they lack a tuft and the sacred thread. He asked Bhagavatpada, “What would have been your problem if you had retained a tuft? What indeed would have gone wrong had you continued to wear the sacred thread?” These days, regardless of whether anything would go wrong or not, people discard the sacred thread as if it is not wanted. In those days, people removed the sacred thread only if they felt that something would go wrong if they continued to wear it. Why did they discard it? Because they felt that this cycle of transmigratory existence must be got rid of and that the sacred thread was an obstacle. Mandana Mishra’s criticism was:

(Wicked-minded one! Even for an ass, the rags you wear would be tough to bear. Would the tuft and the sacred thread be a load for you?)

“You take so many books with you and wander. What load will the tuft and the sacred thread constitute for you who carry so many books?”, questioned Mandana Mishra.

Bhagavatpada’s reply was:

“If I had the tuft and the sacred thread, the load of the Veda, that is, the burden of Vedic rituals, would have been on My head. I do not want that burden. To put it down, I discarded My tuft and the sacred thread and took to Sannyasa.”

Consider a policeman. If he were to wear a dhoti, don a tie, put on a cap and stand on the road, what would people say? “Every thing seems topsy turvy. Below and above this man’s waist, we see the products of different cultures. Is he mad?”, they would wonder. On the other hand, if he were to come wearing the appropriate uniform, people would say, “Oh! A policeman has come. Let us be careful.”

Amongst us, there is the practice of women wearing saris and of men wearing dhotis. Because of men and women wearing distinct dresses we are able to recognize a woman from afar and address her with the words, “What is it, mother?” Suppose women were to quit wearing saris and were, like men, to don trousers and to cut their hair short. Then we would have to stare to determine whether a person is male or a female. If the person were a female, she may scowl and demand, “Why are you staring at me?”

“I was trying to find out whether you are a man or a woman.”

“That is none of your business. Stop staring.”

All such confusion would be absent if men and women were to dress distinctly. It is of course not wrong if a man belonging to the C.I.D. were to camouflage himself and go about in a sari. In such a case, to catch a culprit, it is desirable that a person seeing the detective mistake the latter for a female.

However, the normal course is different. Just as society specifies the kind of dress which would be appropriate for a particular person in a specific situation, the Shastras specify how a celibate must be, how a householder must be and how a Sannyasi must be. What is the scripturally-specified mark of a Sannyasi?

If you are a Sannyasi, you must not have a tuft and you must carry a wooden staff. That is why My Paramaguru said:

Remove your tuft. Further,

break the sacred thread worn for performing sacrifices.

“Why must we wear the sacred thread?” - this is a question many ask. There is a book called Mrichchakatika in which a question is raised about the need for the sacred thread and a tongue-in-cheek answer is given. It seems someone was bitten by a snake. Unfortunately, nothing was available to tie as a tourniquet. At that time, the afflicted man thought, “Now my father’s investing me with the sacred thread has proved useful.” He used the sacred thread as a tourniquet. The sacred thread thus comes in handy when a snake bites! This, of course, is just said in jest.

Actually, the sacred thread is worn to acquire the competence to perform scripturally-ordained rites. The sacred thread is also called Brahmasutram; here “Brahma” means Veda and “Sutram” means thread. While donning the sacred thread, the resolve made is:

I shall put on the sacred thread for gaining the competence to perform the obligatory rites ordained by the Vedas and Smritis. Sannyasis are unconcerned with sacrifices and so it was specified:

(Having broken the sacred thread worn for performing sacrifices.)

Some complain, “You say that if Vedanta is studied, knowledge of Brahman arises. I have read all the Upanishads, the Brahma Sutras and the Gita, with the commentary on them, and have also read other books on Vedanta. In fact, I have read and re-read such books. Still, I have obtained neither Brahman nor knowledge. No matter how much I read, everything continues to be as before.” The reason for this predicament is the absence of the qualifications necessary to study Vedanta. To do anything, there must be the necessary competence.

For instance, judges pass judgments, while lawyers argue cases. There is not much difference between what a successful lawyer says and what a judge says. However, a lawyer argues to establish the innocence of his client, accused of felony, while the judge hears both sides of the case and passes judgment. So, a lawyer is qualified to hold on to one view and to adduce reasons in support of it, while a judge is qualified to hear lawyers of both sides and to give a decision. That is why what a judge says constitutes a judgment while what a lawyer says constitutes an argument.

Just as lawyers and judges are duly qualified to do their respective tasks, we too must have some qualifications to study Vedanta and thereby obtain knowledge.

(He is qualified to study this Shastra.)

He who has discrimination between that which is eternal and that which is not, who is dispassionate, who is endowed with the six qualities, such as control of the mind, and who has a strong desire for liberation is qualified to study Vedanta. The six qualities are mind control, control of the senses, withdrawal, forbearance, faith and firm fixation of the intellect on Brahman.

We too have the desire for liberation. Sometimes we do not want transmigratory existence, but that is all. Neelakanta Dikshitar has humorously commented thus about the type of desire for liberation that many have.

A person felt like renouncing home and so wanted to determine the auspicious time to leave. He finally concluded that while an auspicious time is chosen to enter a new house, such is not the case with renouncing home and going away. Hence, he just set out. A grandchild of his cried out, “Grandfather! Grandfather! Where are you going?” Replying, “No, no, I am never going to leave you”, he returned to his house.

(Those who have firmly resolved thus (to quit home without delay), even while setting out from the house, quickly return to pacify weeping children.)

What is the use of this type of desire for liberation? That is why, in the verses in which abandonment of the tuft and sacred thread were advised, it is said:

The tetrad comprising discrimination, dispassion, six qualities such as mind control, and desire for liberation must be very firm. Possessed of this qualification and,

endowed with faith and devotion,

you should enquire, for long, about the Truth.

How should such enquiry be done?

(Acharyal first illustrates, in terms of the study of the Veda, how such enquiry must not be done and then shows how it must be done.)

Many feel like learning Rudram (a portion of the Veda used during the worship of Shiva). Some feel ashamed to call a priest and learn from him in accordance with the rule that there should be

(Repetition of what the Guru has said.)

They feel, “I am fifty years of age, while the priest is only 25. How then can I prostrate before him and learn by repeating what he chants?” Some others feel, “Why should I make a respectful offering of cash to this man and learn? He is not necessary at all.” Some others feel that a priest who can teach them to their satisfaction is not available and use a tape recorder to play back a recorded version of the Rudram. Thus, people see no need for them to overcome shyness and offer prostrations, no need to make a reverential offering of cash and no need for restrictions either. They feel that they just have to return from the office and sit, with a hat and boots on. That is enough, for, on the tape recorder being turned on, it begins to say

(O Rudra! Salutation to Your anger.)

To what extent does a person using a tape recorder in lieu of a teacher learn? He gets his inflexions all wrong.

(Acharyal illustrated the errors in a humorous manner. As the charm of the examples would be lost in a written text, they have not been included here.)

It is also possible that he may learn to chant correctly. However, even if such mastery is attained, the chanting will not confer any virtue. Why? A parrot says, “Ram, Ram, Ram, Ram.” Does virtue accrue to it or vice? Neither. On the other hand, if we say, “Ram, Ram, Ram, Ram”, we acquire merit. This is because of our mental refinement; the parrot’s utterance is thoughtless. Therefore, after investiture with the sacred thread, we must learn the Veda by reciting after a teacher. Only by doing so we can get the merit that stems from Vedic chanting.

Some do not wear a sacred thread and yet begin to chant the Vedic Mantras. So I tell them, “First don a sacred thread. You are qualified to do so and to chant.” It is said:

(A Brahmin must be invested with the sacred thread in his eighth year, from the time of conception.)

If it be specially desired that the initiated one acquire spiritual splendour, the investiture is to be done in the fifth year. Some children pick up a knowledge of Veda Mantras merely by hearing them. Yet, their parents are lax about performing their thread ceremony. This is wrong. In the case of some others, the thread ceremony is performed after they are sixteen years old. That too is wrong. It is said:

(The Brahmin’s investiture with the sacred thread can be done till he is sixteen.)

Some are happy thinking, “I have completed sixteen years of age. As such, for me, the problem of being invested with the sacred thread does not arise.” For a Brahmin over 16, in accordance with,

(Even a little of this Dharma protects one from great fear.)

the investiture with the sacred thread must somehow be done. With regard to Nitya Karma (scripturally-ordained actions which have to be regularly performed on recurring, fixed occasions), ancillary factors are not obligatory. This does not mean that the ancillary factors should be ignored. To illustrate, Sandhya Vandanam, which is a Nitya Karma, must be carried out. Suppose it is not possible to do it at the appropriate time on one evening. Then, even if the time be 10 at night, it must be performed. In like manner, even if the age of sixteen be exceeded, the investiture ceremony must be performed. However, in the case of rites done to consummate a particular desire, the ancillary portions must also be observed in toto. So says the Mimamsa Shastra.

In the light of all this, when we learn the Veda, we must do it the way it is learned traditionally. Then our learning bears fruit. In like manner, Vedanta must be learned in the proper way and must not be learned just by reading some book or by hearing some discourse. So, it is said:

Perform enquiry taking the nectar-like Upanishadic teachings which spring from the lotus mouth of the Guru as your basis. This is what My Paramaguru said. He did not say for whose sake He had uttered the three verses but, while speaking, He kept looking at My Guru’s face. So, My Guru obtained initiation by sight. Further, He obtained the advice contained in the words. He thought, “For whose sake did My Guru utter these verses? They are not applicable to Shivananda. Markandeya Brahmachari was also with Me but the verses do not apply to him either. So, it looks like My Guru said all this for Me. Let Me subject the words of My Guru to memory.” He memorized them. It was He who informed Me what His Guru had told Him; I copied the verses.

While My Paramaguru did not tell My Guru about His wanting to give Him Sannyasa or of His wanting to choose Him as His successor, He chanted the verses, containing valuable advice, while looking at My Guru’s face; He thereby brought about ripeness in My Guru’s mind. I shall speak later about My Guru’s receiving initiation into a Mantra, the advice He was given about knowledge, how He was summoned to His Guru, His subsequent effort to get knowledge and His tours.

Guru Part V

(Benedictory address delivered, in Kannada, at Bengaluru on 3.9.1987)

(Salutations to Lord Shiva, whose form is that of pure consciousness, who is a knower of the Vedas, who has divine vision, who is the cause of the attainment of liberation and who bears the crescent moon.)

(I salute Bhavani, the consort of Lord Shiva, whose hair is adorned with the crescent moon and who is a river of ambrosia quelling the heat of transmigratory existence.)

In accordance with the instruction of My Paramaguru, My Guru studied, prior to Sannyasa, in the Sadvidya Sanjeevini Patashala in Sringeri. Owing to the good fortune of the distinguished people of Bengaluru, My Paramaguru started an excellent educational institution at Bengaluru, prior to His returning to Sringeri after completing a tour. He named it Bharatiya Girvana Proudha Vidyabhivardhini Patashala and appointed Pandits versed in Vedanta and Poorva Mimamsa to teach students.

When the question arose as to who should be sent there as the students of the first batch, He chose those students studying in Sringeri who were highly intelligent. My Guru was amongst those selected.

Prior to sending Him, My Paramaguru initiated Him into a Maha Mantra. There is a Mantra called Neelakanta Tryakshari. He initiated Him into it and told Him, “Both for You and for those whom You shall teach, this shall constitute the means of earning God’s grace.”

(Acharyal, in His preceding benedictory address, explained how a Guru keeps the competence of a disciple in mind and takes steps to produce knowledge in the disciple. He threw light on some of the modes by which a Guru initiates a disciple; in particular, He took up initiation by sight and initiation by the mind. He also illustrated how a Guru teaches by explaining the advice given by His Paramaguru to His Guru. In the present benedictory address, Acharyal further illustrates how a Guru initiates and instructs a disciple; He does so by considering His Paramaguru’s initiation of and instructions to His Guru. Acharyal goes on to show, in the light of His Guru’s conduct, how a disciple should carry out, to the last letter, the instructions of his Guru.)

My Guru’s parents had no other children. Therefore, My Paramaguru sent them also to Bengaluru along with My Guru. Before My Guru departed, My Paramaguru advised Him, “You are studying but it must not be for the sake of money.” What for, then? For the sake of acquiring knowledge. The prime knowledge is the realization of the Self. That should accrue to You. That is why I am sending You for the advanced study of the Shastras. To acquire Self-realization, hearing the Truth from a teacher, reflecting on what is taught and absorption of the mind on the Truth are very essential. However, for the hearing and reflection to bear the fruit, the mind must be pure. For the mind to become pure, it is necessary to carry out the scripturally ordained practices properly. The Poorva Mimamsa Shastra is highly helpful in enabling one to understand the scripturally ordained actions. Therefore, first study the Poorva Mimamsa Shastra well as a student at Bengaluru.”

At that time, My Paramaguru also quoted a verse; that verse is well-known. It is:

(A wicked person’s learning leads to argumentation, wealth to arrogance and power to oppression of others. On the other hand, a good man’s learning is for acquiring knowledge, wealth for performing charity and power for protecting people in difficulty.)

An object is capable of yielding different results. How? Depending on the competence of the person who possesses it, the results differ. If milk is offered to a snake, it ends up as poison. If cow-dung which too comes from a cow, like milk, is used as a fertilizer for a tree, it gets transformed by the tree, which draws nutrients from the soil, into delicious fruit. Thus, a cow-product yields either deadly venom or delicious fruit depending on whether it is taken in by a snake or a tree. Likewise:

Learning is for the sake of argumentation. Whose learning? A wicked one’s. If a wicked man were to become a scholar, he would use his learning to constantly quarrel with others and would insist, “I am indeed great. My arguments remained unrebutted in the end. Your words are useless. I have won the debate.” Such a person aims at picking holes in the views of others.

On becoming highly affluent, a wicked man sees the world as trivial; his ego increases and he gets blinded by arrogance. In his pride he, as it were, ever walks with his eyes closed.

What is the nature of the Asuras? In the Chandogya Upanishad it is said that the Asuras once went to Brahma and asked for advice. Brahma said, ‘Da’. The Asuras said, “We have understood. You have given us advice keeping our nature in mind. If we encounter someone whom we find even slightly displeasing, we immediately raise our arms to strike him; this is our nature. We do not think of the final outcome of our act. We just use our might and inflict as much pain as possible. Later, we may have to regret what we have done and experience unhappiness. What, indeed, can be done? This is how we are. But this is not how we should be. So, by means of the abbreviation ‘Da’, You indicated, ‘Dayadhvam or be compassionate.’ This is the advice You have given us.”

On becoming powerful, a wicked one inflicts injury. But what is the benefit? Finally, he has to experience remorse; his victim is unhappy because of injury. This is not how the position should be.

Knowledge, wealth and power serve radically different ends when possessed by a noble one than they do when they are acquired by a wicked one.

“What is the subject matter of the scripture? How should I conduct myself? When I engage in Anushthanam (religious observance), what are the preceding and subsequent procedures to be carried out? How should I perform Anushthanam?” - the holy one learns the answers to such questions by studying the Shastra.

If God has graced us with wealth, we can spend it on horse-races; alternatively we can go on several jaunts by air and exhaust our wealth. Bhagavatpada, however, has advised as follows:

Wealth will necessarily leave us some time or the other. If someone were to take it away, we lament, “Alas! The money has gone.” On the other hand, if a poor student were to approach us for financial assistance and we were to give him some cash, we do not feel dejected. If charity is performed and that is how we part with money then we feel happy, the receiver achieves his end and further, we get Punyam (merit). While money has necessarily to be parted with and while, by performing an act of charity, we can gain happiness, do good to others and also obtain Punyam, we completely forget all this, go on hoarding wealth and then feel miserable on hearing that our money has been stolen. So, we should perform charity and thereby attain beatitude. This idea has been brought out by Bhagavatpada in a verse in Prabodha Sudhakara.

Power is meant to protect others. Assume that God has given us physical strength and that we know swimming. If someone were to lose his footing and fall into the river and we were to observe this, we must help the man and bring him to the river bank. Suppose someone is inflicting injury on another. If we can, we must help the one in distress.

(‘Kshatat Trayate or he protects from injury’: it is in this sense that the word ‘Kshatriya’ is widely known in the world.)

Kalidasa says that the Kshatriya got his name because he is one who protects the person who is suffering; if a Kshatriya does not protect then he is unfit to have that appellation. Hence, power, be it physical, mental or any other, is meant for looking after another. Only if it is used for shielding someone, does it find fulfilment.

My Paramaguru felt that My Guru was going far away and so experienced the need to give the above parting advice. The distance between Sringeri and Bengaluru was regarded as large. Nowadays, young people do not indicate distances in miles; only old people like Me continue to do so. When asked how many miles away a place is, young persons say, “It is a 5-minute distance” or “it is a 10-minute distance” or “it is a 25-minute distance.” What do they mean by, “25-minute distance”? Having continuously travelled by a motor vehicle, they mean that if the journey be undertaken by a motor vehicle, it would require 25 minutes; they do not specify the time needed for a journey by foot. Earlier, the distance from Sringeri to Bengaluru was considered very large and so My Paramaguru felt that My Guru was going far away; now it is just regarded as a “five or six-hour distance.”

Having given initiation into a Mantra as also advice, My Paramaguru sent My Guru to Bengaluru.

My Guru came to the big city from the relatively very small town of Sringeri. He was hardly familiar with going to shops and purchasing things. However, there was a man named Rama Rayar in Bengaluru who developed great affection for My Guru. Why? My Guru was inward-turned, intent on good conduct and free from longing. Who would not feel happy on seeing such a person? Rama Rayar made all the arrangements for My Guru and so My Guru was not put to difficulty at Bengaluru.

In Sringeri, My Guru had the practice of sitting in the Vidya Shankara temple on every Pradosha day and performing the mental worship of God in its entirety, in accordance with the Shiva Manasa Puja Stotram. Where was He to go and sit for such worship in Bengaluru? He wanted a place that was a little far away from the Math and isolated. So, He went to the Gangadhareshwara temple in Gavipura. Now it is not isolated and is in the midst of a populated area. Earlier, if one were to proceed to that temple - when I was young I have been there - it was like leaving the city and going to a village. Seated there, My Guru used to do mental worship.

His Guru had told Him that the Poorva Mimamsa Shastra is studied to gain familiarity with scripturally ordained rituals and had asked Him to concentrate on His studies. Accordingly, He spent long hours studying Mimamsa books, such as Bhatta Deepika. He was taught by Vaidyanatha Shastry, a Mimamsaka Shiromani (crest jewel amongst those versed in Mimamsa); this was not a mere title, for he was indeed a pre-eminent Mimamsaka. It used to be said that studying under him was so delectable a treat that only a scholar could truly appreciate it.

(Only a scholar knows the labour of a scholar to achieve scholarliness.)

While My Guru was studying at Bengaluru, My Paramaguru completed His final tour and returned to Sringeri. My Paramaguru felt, “This body will not last. What I had to do, I have completed. So, I must now perform My final duty of nominating a successor to the Sharada Peetham.” He then thought of sending for My Guru. He called Srikanta Shastry and told him, “I want to accept a successor-disciple. What do you think?”

“Why rush things?”

“The thought came to Me and so I told you. Who do you think should be ordained?”

Shastry named a great Pandit. The Guru said, “Only Brahmacharis have been adorning the Peetham. Why are you referring to a householder? It is not known what worldly ties will attach themselves to him. Therefore, he is not suitable.”

Shastry then mentioned the name of a highly intelligent person. The Guru said, “Instead of giving him Sannyasa it would be much better if the Peetham were left vacant.”

“Why? He is well-born and is known to all of us.”

“Be silent. His conduct itself is not good. No more names are necessary. Fetch Narasimha. “

“But He is far away.”

“Do as I told you.”

Krishna Shastry, who was there, came to Bengaluru and informed My Guru’s parents about the command that had been given. My Guru was their only son. So their minds did not agree. “Krishna Shastry has said that this is the Guru’s command. What is there greater than that?”, they reasoned ; such was their noble nature. “We have nothing to say in the face of the Guru’s command, though our minds are not fully reconciled. Do as you wish in accordance with the Guru’s command”, they said.

My Guru was a scholar in His own right; He had studied Mimamsa till the completion of a large portion of the Bhatta Deepika. He was about 18 years of age and as such old enough to think and decide matters independently. Still He asked no questions. “My Guru has commanded Me to come to Sringeri. Hence I must go”, was all that He felt. “What about My parents?”, “What will be My future?” - no such thoughts arose in His mind.

In those days, it was necessary to cover part of the distance from Bengaluru to Sringeri by train and to then travel by bullock-cart. While My Guru and Krishna Shastry were going by cart, another cart approached in the opposite direction. A man, who was a Math employee, was travelling in it. On seeing Krishna Shastry, he began to shed tears. Krishna Shastry asked, “Why are you crying?”

“What shall I say?”

Krishna Shastry became frightened and asked, “What happened?”

“The... Guru... has left His mortal body.”

Krishna Shastry felt as if the ground had vanished under him. His mind became blank about what he should do. He even asked My Guru what to do. Someone else in My Guru’s place might have said, “What is the need now to go?”; yet another person might have had some such thought or the other. My Guru only felt, “My Guru has sent for Me. This man is taking Me. He is an elder and is following the Guru’s command.”

After My Guru reached Sringeri He was, in accordance with the scriptural injunctions and the Math tradition, given Sannyasa and made a pontiff. The Mysuru King of that time, Mummudi Krishnaraja Wodeyar, approved and gave the necessary help.

In that situation, My Guru did not think, “He in response to whose resolve I was brought is Himself not there.” His contention was, “He had said that I be brought. To fulfil His command, I have come and taken Sannyasa.”

In being a pontiff, there is great strain; lot of dealings are there. If one were to think of all that, one would feel like running away. But My Guru never had such a thought. He Himself said, “At that time, there was ground for mental distraction. But I had none. I thought, ‘Let us wait and see what will happen by the Guru’s will’.”

He subsequently arranged for the foremost of Nyaya scholars, Virupaksha Shastry, to take lessons for Him. He learned Advaita Vedanta in the mornings and the Nyaya Shastra in the afternoons. In three years itself, He completed His studies of both the Shastras. In the line of pontiffs of the Sringeri Math, there flowed a torrent of knowledge and austerity and He added to it. In this fashion, My Guru mastered the Shastras and adorned the Sharada Peetham.

When My Paramaguru was alive, numerous devotees were greatly devoted to Him. Seeing His learning, austerity and compassion, they wondered, “Will such a person ever be seen again? Will the glory of the Peetham remain?” Many had such doubts. However, on observing My Guru, their doubts were set at rest and they felt, “What a scholar! What a person established in the Truth! What a master of His senses! What an inward-turned One!”

Kalidasa has said:

If one lamp were to light another lamp, what would be the difference between the two lamps? Only the one who lighted the second lamp would know, “I lit it.” To an observer, both would only appear to be lamps with no distinction discernible. Similar was the case of My Paramaguru and My Guru. By My Guru’s spiritual power, His fame grew.

He then started on a tour. Srikanta Shastry, who arranged the tour, was himself doubtful and prayed, “He has not dwelt in the presence of His Guru for long. He has not been involved with many people. I am taking Him on this tour. O God, it is up to You to see that everything takes place properly.” However, when people heard the discourses My Guru gave while He toured, noted His analysis of the import of Shastraic passages, saw His worship of God and so on, they remembered the words of the Madhaviya Shankara Vijayam:

(The figure of Shiva, Dakshinamurthi, moves about in the world in the form of Shankaracharya.)

They reflected, “We were not there in Bhagavatpada’s life-time. But He must have been like this”; so, they felt happy. You may ask Me, “Do You believe this?” I do.

When I was in Delhi (in 1982), My disciple (His Holiness Sri Bharathi Theertha Mahaswamigal, the present pontiff of the Sringeri Sharada Peetham) was with Me. He conducted Himself the way a disciple should. On the occasion of the Vidwat Sadas (assembly of scholars convened to analyze the import of scriptural passages), He showed that He was more scholarly than the most erudite of the scholars who came. Wherever I went, He followed Me in accordance with:

(When the Guru goes, the disciple must follow.)

When performing Puja He held the Lingam, wiped it, placed it in the Puja Mandapam and even rang the bell the way I did. I told Him, “What is this? You are doing things the way I do them. Should You not do them in a new way?” “It is sufficient if I do what You do”, He replied. Dr. Mandana Mishra, a scholar and a distinguished person, told Me, “Till now, I have seen many people. We have read that Shankara’s disciples went with Him. How was He? How were His disciples? I was only conjecturing. Now I have come to the conclusion that they must have been like this. It is so satisfying.”

Recently, when I was in Madras (in the last quarter of 1986), several reporters came and asked various questions. First they asked Swamigal (His Holiness Sri Bharathi Theertha Mahaswamigal) questions. Thereafter, they came to Me. I replied them. They opined, “It would have been sufficient if we had met one of them. Even in their words there are no differences. We do not know if they had had a discussion.”

The reason for the similarity in the replies was His having been with Me for long; with His power of intelligence, He thought, “How should I behave for things to turn out right?” His discourses too are like that. Earlier, if He were seated next to Me and He spoke after Me, He used to utter the same verse as I had done and speak on similar lines. I became angry and said, “What is this, Swamigal! What is the need to seat You here to say whatever I say?”

“Should I not speak like that?”

“No. You must speak something new.”

“In that case I shall speak accordingly from tomorrow.”

He was prepared to do that too. What I observed is what I am saying.

Since My disciple can resemble Me, by considering the line of preceptors of the Sharada Peetham, it could be said in the case of My Guru:

(The figure of Shiva, Dakshinamurthi, moves about in the world in the form of Shankaracharya.)

My Guru graced everyone for a long time. I shall later speak about further details of His life.

Guru Part VI

(Benedictory address delivered, in Kannada, at Bengaluru on 5.9.1987)

(Ignorance is destroyed and great tranquility results. Even a single conversation yields fruit here and in the world attained after death. Close association bestows some form of greatness. The words of the pure ones give rise to limitless fruit.)

What is the greatness of a truly blessed one’s life? About this, a poet has said:

By merely seeing a saint, the ignorance that is in our heart is destroyed. Further,

Lack of peace constantly torments us like a flame. But the sight of a saint totally eradicates discomposure and generates great mental tranquillity.

Even if we converse with him on a single occasion, that conversation yields fruit. What kind of fruit?

Magnificent benefit is obtained not only in this world but also in the hereafter. In the Bhagavata, it is said that even the words of a great man about his wanton misdemeanours serve as advice for us. Therefore, no matter what a saint may speak, it confers Punyam on us.

If we have the association of such a sage and dwell for long in his presence, greatness is produced in us.

If we live in the presence of such a saint, get the opportunity of hearing his words and we act according to them, then it is not possible at all to specify any limit to the beneficial result that accrues.

(In His first benedictory address, Acharyal explained that a Guru, who has realized the Supreme and is free from the bondage of transmigratory existence, is not only able to confer knowledge, and hence liberation, on a disciple but is also able to make the disciple fit to be a Guru. In the succeeding benedictory addresses, Acharyal explained in detail the role played by a Guru and the manner in which a disciple should conduct himself. He illustrated His points by considering the Guru-disciple relationship between His Paramaguru and His Guru.

In this benedictory address, Acharyal concludes what He introduced in His first gracious discourse about a Guru making his disciple fit to be a Guru.)

I have seen in My Guru’s case all that has been mentioned in the above verse. Many speakers have narrated well their experiences with Him. Some others have raised scriptural topics and reconciled the scriptural declarations with My Guru.

There is what is known as “Yathokti Alankara”; the description is literal with nothing added to enhance flavour. In an alternative mode of description, poetic fancy plays a role. For instance, it is said:

(The tops of the mansions of this city touch the lunar orb.)

The houses of the city may be about 100 feet high. There is, however, no elegance in blandly stating, “The buildings are 100 feet tall.” On the other hand, there is a poetic appeal in saying that the houses are so high that they reach up to the moon. Unlike this, I have given a strictly literal account in the past few days of what I have learned from My Guru. Further, I spoke, of the beneficial results that were experienced because of Him. The reason for My speaking of the power that inhered in Him and of what I have experienced is to enable others to worship Him and obtain the same benefits.

In the verse that I cited, it is said that if one were to be in the presence of a great soul:

(Even a single conversation yields fruit here and in the hereafter.)

If one were to get an opportunity, even on a single day, to converse with such a person, his words would confer great fruit. Many used to go to My Guru to have their sufferings quelled. Sometimes, they failed to explicitly indicate their desire and left with the thought, “I was unable to put across my problem.” However, at the time of their going home, they found that the grief that was in their mind had vanished. This was a matter of experience. In the case of many, My Guru gave the appropriate response even before a problem was posed. How did this happen? If asked, My Guru said, “Sharadambal graced thus.” That is all that My Guru would say. His knowledge, qualities, such as mind control, establishment in the Self and compassion to beings serve as ideals. If we imbibe these, even to a little extent, our lives would become purposeful.

Ordinarily, if we undertake some task in deference to the command of a great person and subsequently there is reason to doubt whether the undertaking will be fulfilled or not, our mind becomes dejected. My Guru was desireless. Thus, when He was summoned by My Paramaguru and, on the way to Sringeri learned that His Guru had shed the body, the only thought He had was, “I have come in response to the command of My Guru. It is not for Me to think about what is to happen”; He Himself said so. His mind did not get distracted in the least. This was how His mind was even prior to His taking Sannyasa and becoming a pontiff.

Egoism is normally the prime enemy of man. An egoist goes to the extent of opining:

(I teach the entire world.)

Even though My Guru was a consummate scholar, He did not have the slightest egoism. However, when someone made a response imperative, He demonstrated His ability to respond appropriately.

(Though knowing, a wise man should conduct himself in the world like a dull-witted one.)

One may know much but one should not parade one’s knowledge. This was His mental attitude. However, for the good of others, He undertook tours; He taught many for the sake of imparting knowledge; He caused persons to get established in the knowledge of the Self and made their lives meaningful. The Lord has said:

(O Arjuna! Four types of virtuous men worship Me - the distressed, the seeker of knowledge, the one desirous of wealth and the knower of the Truth, O Foremost of the Bharatas.)

All the four types of people approached Him and He eradicated the suffering of the distressed, imparted knowledge to the seeker of knowledge, graced the seeker of wealth with affluence and when it came to a knower of the Truth, He considered him as His own. There was no distinction at all between the knower and Himself, as far as He was concerned. How?

(The one Vishnu is in you, me and elsewhere.)

He had such a distinction-free disposition. For a long time, He served Sharadambal in the Math and obtained satiation. He then thought that His attainment of the realization of the Self would become purposeful if He shed the load of pontifical activities as, otherwise, there would be a lot of distractions. So, He resolved to give Sannyasa to a disciple and to train him. He accordingly informed Srikanta Shastry. Impelled by God, Srikanta Shastry took Me to Sringeri.

In the beginning, My Guru taught Me a hymn on Lord Shiva which commences with:

He got Me to memorize it. Later He gave Me Sannyasa. At that time, He told Srikanta Shastry, “Hereafter I will not sit in a palanquin and will not come for functions.” Shastry wondered, “What is all this? What is to be done now?” My Guru’s point was, “I have chosen a Swamigal. So, why should I come for any function?”

Shastry said, “This decision is not acceptable to good people. I know of Your extreme dispassion. However, in accordance with the worldly custom followed in the Math, You must come in a palanquin, donning royal robes, along with Your disciple.” My Guru then said, “Oh! So, in accordance with the worldly custom, I have to come, is it? All right.” I learned this directly from My Guru; Srikanta Shastry also said so. What indeed was the extent of His dispassion! He found pontifical functions such a burden that He readily averred, “I have prepared one to handle the Math activities”, though at that time He had only given Me Sannyasa and not yet trained Me.

On the occasion of enquiry into the import of Shastraic passages during the annual Vidwat Sadas, if someone spoke something new, He used to be immensely pleased. There is a Nyaya text called Shatakoti. On an occasion, there was an enquiry into the import of some of its passages. A logical fallacy discussed in the text is called Satpratipaksha. (If, in an inference, that which is established on some ground can be negated on another ground then the first reason is subject to the defect of Satpratipaksha. For instance, it may be said, “Sound is eternal because it is audible.” The eternality of sound is negated by the inference, “Sound is perishable because it is a product, like a jar.” Here the first ground of audibility is defective; the fault is Satpratipaksha.)

In the text, there is reference to Satpratipaksha in terms of Abhava (non-existence) and Bheda (difference). One form of Satpratipaksha is Bheda Ghatita or that which stems from difference. There is a definition which involves both Abhava (non-existence) and Bheda (difference). The following incident pertains to it.

My Guru, in the early stages, used to make Me memorize what I was to say in the assembly to enquire into the import of Shastraic passages. He felt great joy even if I just spoke what I had practised to say. During My talk based on Shatakoti, I once finished stating all the refinements relating to the definition involving Abhava. However, one defect occurs in it. So, I deeply thought over the matter and incorporated Bheda into the definition. When I began speaking thus, My Guru’s face became small. Presumably, He was wondering what was going to be said by Me, off the beaten track. I, however, was confident that I was expounding correctly. As I proceeded, My Guru’s face broke into a delightful smile and soon He was all smiles and His eyes sparkled with joy. He became very happy indeed.

On returning after the assembly was over, He asked Me, ‘“Who told You about this new refinement?” “No one told Me. Keeping what Your Holiness had told Me in mind, I conjectured further and involved both Abhava and Bheda”, I replied. To this He said, “This had been mentioned by Virupaksha Shastry. However, it did not come to My mind. I am very happy that You have said it.” In fact, that day, He was so pleased that He did not even allow Me to go from His presence. Even if He saw an iota of knowledge in another, He experienced supreme happiness.

A characteristic of My Guru was that He recognized that no matter how we conduct ourselves, some right and wrong events will occur around us. I was then a boy and used to uninhibitedly express Myself. He used to advise Me, “You must not remark thus.” Yet, the situation was such that it was difficult to ignore. Mantreshwara Sharma told My Guru, “Because of Your compassion You have suffered a great deal. What about Your disciple?” To this My Guru replied, “He is not like Me. He is ever carefree and happy.” It was so.

I used to climb trees and used to swim and enjoy Myself. My swimming, however, got Him worried and if I was slow in coming out of the water in response to His call, He used to think, “Oh! What will happen?” I have been in danger too. But, at that age, it was not possible for Me to avoid swimming in an uninhibited manner even in rough waters; on seeing the river, I could not resist jumping in. Any repentance was only after a swim. Particularly, on noting the tight situations I had got into, My Guru used to say, “Do not go into the river.” Obediently, I used to respond, “Yes, Mahaswami; I shall do as You say.” Yet, on seeing water, I forgot all this. If asked, “Why did You swim?”, I, who did not know how to tell a lie, used to respond, “I did not do anything in the water that would have been the cause of fear.” “There is no need for either fear or a swim”, He used to say.

Nowadays I do not go for a swim and, in fact, when I see someone swimming uninhibitedly, I even remark, “Why are you unjustifiably going into the water?” When young, I was different. My Guru brought Me up with such great affection that He, who was established in the Self, used to worry about any danger I might face in the river.

When many difficulties occurred in the Math, I said, “Why stay in the Math at all?” He used to humorously reply, “It is Your fate that You have to stay.” When I responded, “But there is difficulty in doing so”, He said, “If You run away from problems, where is the role of discrimination? By experiencing a tight situation, let the action of the past birth responsible for it yield fruit and exhaust itself. One is truly a man only if he accomplishes the task he has undertaken even though he may have to experience problems to achieve his end. If You run away from difficulties, it would not be praiseworthy.”

(Fearing obstacles, lowly ones do not begin what must be done. Middling ones start what must be done but give up when thwarted by difficulties. The best men, though repeatedly impeded by adverse circumstances, do not give up what they have undertaken.)

“It is one thing not to take up a task. Now, the task is on hand. Let happiness or unhappiness be there; it must be accomplished,” He continued.

He brought Me up with great involvement. During His lifetime, in His loving care, I indulged in frolic. Now, however, I have given up such activity and I do not do things which people can make fun of.

How was His mind? This is revealed by His following advice. When staying in Narasimha Vanam in Sringeri, I used to go every evening to behold Sharadambal and used to remain there for some time. On My return, My Guru once asked, “You have crossed the river and come. What thought arose in Your mind?”

“What thought?”, I wondered and replied, “There were various objects which I saw.”

“What was new?”

“Nothing. I saw what was visible.”

“Must You see whatever is in the range of Your vision?”

“If the eyes be kept closed to avoid seeing things then it is not possible to walk.”

“You must see and yet not see.”

“How is that possible?”

To this, He said, “This is how it should be:

(When walking, the contemplation must be, ‘I am a wave in the ocean that is the Self.’)

When we get up from a seated position and start walking, the feeling should not be, ‘I am walking and going somewhere.’ In the big ocean - the Self - a wave has arisen. That wave is moving forward. There is no difference between the wave and the ocean. When walking, one should contemplate that one is a wave in the ocean of the Self; ‘I am a wave in the ocean of bliss’.”

I was surprised at His advice. He went on, “At all times - even when You talk to someone - repeat this idea in the mind.” With practice, even when I talked, this repetition went on; this I know from direct experience.

What should be the thought when one is seated? He advised:

(Contemplating when seated, “I am a gem strung on the string of consciousness.”)

In the thread of knowledge, a gem has been strung. The gem cannot be removed; the thread is made of unbreakable consciousness. I am that gem. Contemplation must be done in this manner.

Whenever some object is seen, the stress should not be on the perception of the object. One must feel, “Aha! Consciousness per se is devoid of objects. However, that consciousness has now, as it were, got associated with objects. The fullness of the Self has increased. On receiving a blow, we become markedly aware of the body. In the same way, there is particular manifestation of the Self when objects are seen. Even normally, we have awareness of the body but this awareness is enhanced when we are beaten. In the same way, though consciousness is ever manifest, special perception of the Self occurs when objects are seen.”

When lying down one must contemplate, “I am now immersed in an ocean of bliss” and this feeling must be retained; it is very good. Whoever wants can test the difference between simply lying down and going to sleep and sleeping after voluntarily eradicating thoughts from the mind. While lying down, one should generate a feeling of bliss and continue to retain it till sleep overtakes one. The great joy this approach to sleep will give will become clear once it is experienced for a few days.

He who spends his life in this fashion is, amongst people, the firmly inward-turned one desirous of liberation.

Therefore, when walking, sitting, standing and even when lying down, this is how we must conduct our life. This is the advice My Guru gave Me.

My Paramaguru had great faith in reading Atma Vidya Vilasam on every Pradosha day. My Guru too had the practice. I also used to do so though now I do not; right now, however, I feel that I must again commence the practice of reading Atma Vidya Vilasam on every Pradosha day. Contemplation of the verses of that poem gives, to a great extent, the experience of the Self. During My Guru’s lifetime, if I failed to read Atma Vidya Vilasam on some day, He used to say, “Read.” Once, He asked Me to give the meaning of:

(After dissolving, by the intellect, the five elements (earth, water, fire, air and Akasha) in an order which is the reverse of that of their origination, the sage remains calm, beholding the Self, which is the residue.)

This means “having dissolved the five elements.” Sugar, which is a modification of the element “earth”, dissolves in the element “water”, but stone, mud, etc., which, like sugar, are modifications of earth, do not so dissolve.

This is all the meaning that is superficially discernible. Recognizing this, My Guru Himself explained the import. He quoted the following verse of Bhagavatpada’s Brahmanuchintanam:

(Earth is to be dissolved in water, water in fire, fire in air and this air in Akasha. Even this space has to be merged in the unmanifest cause of the five elements and that unmanifest must be merged in the pure Absolute. I am that pure Absolute, the Dissolver of all.)

Mud does not dissolve in water. But this is not the dissolution that is spoken of. What else? In the reverse order of the origination of the five elements of the universe, an effect merges into its cause; that cause, in its turn, merges into its cause. Earth has no existence apart from its cause, water. This is the dissolution of earth in water that is spoken of in the Brahmanuchintanam verse and implicitly indicated in the Atma Vidya Vilasam verse. Water, in its turn, has no existence apart from its cause, fire. This is the dissolution of water in fire. Finally, only the Self, which is the ultimate cause, is what remains as the residue of the dissolution process. It is this contemplation on the Self that is referred to in the words:

What is the consequence of such contemplation? It is said, in Brahmanuchintanam:

(If even for an instant, a man thinks of his Self as, “I am Brahman”, that thought destroys his greatest sin, just as sunrise dispels darkness.)

He advised Me, “Contemplate in the fashion indicated in the Atma Vidya Vilasam verse.” By His explanation, He created interest in it. When the Shastra is taught, He said, one way is to explain a text line by line. Another is to expound the lines along with one’s experience. It was worth seeing this in His teaching; it gave great joy.

Even ordinary Sannyasis say, “When I die, make a Samadhi (tomb) for me. Build a temple there, perform worship, feed all who come and give discourses about me.” Saying so is commonplace even for one who is not a pontiff.

My Guru said that a person who came to My Paramaguru to learn was very dispassionate. Someone asked that man, “Why should you not take Sannyasa?” The man replied, “No, Sannyasa must not be taken; there is no elegance in it. Till the time of taking Sannyasa, there is dispassion. On taking Sannyasa, it goes away. So long as it is not taken, the feeling, ‘Oh! I have not yet taken Sannyasa’, is there. After taking it, the feeling, ‘Is this all there to Sannyasa? Let me become a householder again’, crops up.” The dispassion of many Sannyasis may be open to doubt but how was My Guru?

When I was young, My Guru told Ramachandra Shastry on several occasions, “Ramachandra, when I leave the body let what is done in Kashi be done to it. In Kashi, there is a practice of covering a dead body with a cloth and throwing it into the water. Do like that with My body; then it shall become the food of some creature. There is no need to do anything else.” Ramachandra Shastry used to wonder, “What is this that the Guru has said.”

My Guru was devoid of pride of the form, “I am a pontiff. These things must be done for Me.” What a contrast between Him and Sannyasis who want memorials built for them after their death!

In the Vivekachoodamani, it is said that though we tie a bell around the neck of a cow and decorate the animal, the cow does not care whether the bell or the decorations remain or not. It is the person who tied the bell who is keen that it should not fall off. Similarly, My Guru was unconcerned with His body. My Guru felt, ‘We have obtained a human birth, familiarity with the Shastra and the association of a sage. God has given us the power to think. We must therefore strive to attain knowledge. What is the use of involving oneself with mundane matters?”

My Guru did not go even once to the Math vault and behold the precious objects there. Still, Srikanta Shastry prepared a hand-written book listing the contents of the vault; it is there even now. If asked about the items of the vault, My Guru used to say, “It is all listed in the book.”

“Will You see the contents of the vault?”

“I should not get involved in all that.”

“Why?”

“What is the point in seeing the contents? Officials are there and they will attend to them.”

He was so very dispassionate. Dispassion is said to be extreme, middling and mild. What is mild dispassion? When some problem crops up, one temporarily feels, “What is the need for this world?” Extreme dispassion is that in which, owing to the company of a sage, one feels, “This world must be renounced this very instant.” If a person had fire on his head, he would rush to put it out. That is the type of dispassion that must be there. My Guru’s dispassion was such.

What prayer should be made in the presence of such a Guru. Bhagavatpada has said:

(O Shambhu! What is there that I should make known to You, who are intent on giving what one lacks and preserving what one has, who are engaged in conferring all higher good, who give instructions about means to seen and unseen ends, who are all pervading, inside and outside, who are all-knowing and who are compassionate? I ever think in my mind, “You are my innermost Self.”)

In this way, if we go to a Guru, rather than ask, “This must happen”, “That must happen”, it is sufficient to say, “If the thought that I exist comes to your mind, then I shall be uplifted.” Nothing else is necessary. Yet, in the case of many people,

(Though having obtained a Kamadhenu (a divine cow that confers all that is desired), they use it for ploughing.)

On obtaining a Kamadhenu, a man felt, “If it is coupled to a plough, the fields can be ploughed. Thereafter, seeds can be sown.” Another rightly pointed out, “What is the necessity for all this? It is sufficient if you sit in front of the Kamadhenu and ask what you wish; your desire shall be fulfilled. The one who obtained the Kamadhenu said, “I did not know this.”

It is not necessary to ask the Guru for anything. If his glance falls on us it is sufficient. If he were to bless, “Let this man become a noble one”, it is enough; we will obtain good results.

For the past seven days, an occasion was created to remember the life of My Guru, His qualities and the beneficial results obtained from Him and to think of what there is for us to learn from His life. This is a task pleasing to God. May My Guru’s grace be on all. May all be the recipients of beatitude - praying thus to Him, I conclude My address.

हर नम: पार्वतीपतये हर हर महादेव ।

जानकीकान्तस्मरणं जय जय राम राम ॥

(My obeisance to the ascetic whose mind is absorbed in consciousness and the lustre of whose feet dispels the blinding darkness of ignorance.)

(I prostrate before the pair of lotus feet of the glorious, foremost of Gurus by paying obeisance to which even a dullard becomes akin to the Guru.)

(To those in the darkness of ignorance, He is the sun that is infinite and also within. To the multitude of drooping lilies that are the hearts of scholars, He is the full moon. To those trapped in the forest of sense objects and without a friend in the path to the Supreme, He is the flaming torch that lights the way. Victorious is the luminous Guru who confers joy on all.)

These are some of the verses composed by Acharyal on His Guru. They have been culled from His letters to His Guru, penned in the late 1930s.

• Translator