18. HINDU RELIGION

D: What does ‘Hindu Religion’ refer to?

A: The word ‘Hindu’ has come to exist because of usage. Sanātana-dharma is its proper name.

D: Will Acharyal kindly clarify who a vaidika is?

A: He who follows the Vedic religion is a vaidika. He may follow the Sāṁkhya, Yoga, Naiyāyika, Vaiśeṣika, Mīmāṁsā or Vedānta school of thought. A person having the Veda as pramāṇa and intending to follow what is said in it is a vaidika.

D: Many people have not studied the Veda. They do not know what is said therein. That being the case, how can we call them vaidika-s?

A: They might not have studied the Veda but may still hold Vedic utterances as pramāṇa.

D: Some might not have heard much about the Veda. Are they vaidika-s?

A: Do they lead their lives according to the dictates of the Veda or not?

D: What does that mean?

A: Do they not follow some good tradition? How did that tradition come into being? Their forefathers inculcated it after an analysis of the aspects of dharma and adharma. They may be following certain regulations, such as, “I should not utter a lie. I should not harm others. I should lead my life thus.” The reason for this is that their parents have suitably trained them. Their grandfathers would have taught their fathers. Thus, tradition is responsible for their beliefs and practices. This has the Veda for basis. Hence, they know the teaching of the Veda in an indirect way. So, they can also be called vaidika-s.

D: If a person has no faith at all in the Veda, is he a vaidika?

A: I said that he who has faith in our Veda is a vaidika. If one does not follow the Vedic path then we call that one a bhraṣṭa (one who has fallen).

D: Some put restrictions on the use of public wells, tanks, prayer halls, etc. As a consequence, many are put to inconvenience. Is this proper?

A: No one should restrict the use of public wells, prayer halls, etc. There is nothing wrong in the Government punishing those who put such restrictions.

D: Some people oppress certain others saying that they are lowborn. Does this appear proper to Acharyal?

A: As I have already said, it is against dharma to harm another. Each person should follow his dharma. Be it sāmānya-dharma or viśeṣa-dharma, harming another is equivalent to abandoning one’s dharma. So, none should cause pain to others. If one does that, it only means that one is transgressing dharma.

D: In some places, the Government has taken over the temple lands. What can be done about this?

A: I am not for violent agitations. If we feel that such an action is improper, we can inform the Government. After all, are not those in the Government human beings? Why will they not realise the problems if properly informed? If the Government takes over the temple lands, it should also see to it that no inconvenience is felt in carrying out the pūjā-s. Other traditional temple practices and the welfare of the arcaka-s should be taken care of. If this is done we have no objection to the Government’s actions. If it does not cater to the temple’s needs in spite of taking over the lands, the Government is guilty of doing injustice to the temple constructed by devotees. The problem should be set right only by making the Government aware of this matter. If one indulges in violent agitations, the public will be put to difficulty and, rather than the Government conceding the demand, the situation may worsen.

D: Hindus consider the cow to be a sacred animal. Even then, cow-slaughter continues to take place in the country. Is it proper to agitate against this?

A: We all accept that the cow is a holy animal. Further, we also accept that we derive benefit by practising ahiṁsā. The cow is a docile animal. It provides us with milk. Is not even its excreta useful? So, protecting such an animal is advantageous to us. However, if one indulges in violent agitations to ban cow-slaughter will everything be set right? No. Cow-slaughter can come to an end only if each person decides to safeguard the cow that he owns even if it has grown old. If one drives it away because it has stopped yielding milk, what will be the fate of the cow? Taking a firm decision to safeguard the cow is superior to indulging in agitations. We see many people raise slogans calling for cow protection but most of that has just publicity value. At the same time, we can also see people who protect their cows by erecting sheds, etc. Their action goes without publicity. Of these two categories, the latter is superior to the former. Cow-slaughter should essentially be abolished. But we should also take proper care to know the procedure to be followed in eliminating cow-slaughter.

D: Hinduism speaks of what one should do for oneself. Is it not a self-centric religion? Nothing seems to have been mentioned about doing something for the sake of others. On the other hand, in Christianity, serving others has been prescribed. What is the opinion of Acharyal as regards this?

A: My opinion is that this view is incorrect. How are we trying to attain mokṣa? By first cleansing the mind. Being merciful is essential to purify our minds. Hence if we cultivate mercy, we can purify our mind and as a result, attain good heights in meditation. Does not mercy imply reducing the pains of another person? It is therefore a glaring flaw to say that helping others has not been taught in the Hindu religion. Our śāstra-s say that we should get rid of ahaṁkāra (ego). Getting rid of egoism has been specified in all religions. Is it not? Hence, it is erroneous to say that Hinduism preaches egoism. Incarnations of the Lord have been spoken of in the Hindu epics. Why did the Lord incarnate? Was He in need of anything? No. He manifested only for the sake of others. We consider emulating Him as our aim. See the Bhagavadgītā:

(BG, XII.13)

In this verse, it is taught that there should be no hatred towards anybody and that we should be friendly and compassionate towards all. Our prayer is:

(SPSS, 1) (May everyone be happy.)

No differentiation between friend and foe is made. We pray for the well-being of all creatures.

Jñānin-s have no bondage whatsoever and to them, the world is an appearance. Still, they are usually rather compassionate. Even if a jñānin does not offer physical help, he is doing good to the world by his mere presence. Bodily help is not the only form of doing good.

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❑ Discourses of Acharyal

The Hindu religion represents a highly evolved way of life. Its most important principle is that a person will enjoy or suffer the consequences of his own acts. What a person does in previous births conditions his success, failure, pleasure and pain in subsequent births. Unfortunately, however, we do not remember anything about such past acts. This is not surprising considering that when we grow to manhood, we have no recollection of the mother’s milk which fed and nourished us in infancy even in this life. It is, however, necessary to hold fast to this principle of each person enjoying the fruits of his own actions, and to do good all the time.

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❑ Parables of Acharyal

People think that wealth will give them great happiness and the fulfilment of desires. For the sake of wealth, a person goes to the extent of doing what is improper. He does not feel inclined to give the Government what is due to it. So, it becomes necessary for him to prepare a false account. On getting caught, he pays a bribe to save his skin. He feels that somehow, he must amass more and more money. But then there crops up the problem of where he is to keep it. Therefore, he is forced to keep it in a box. That box has to be locked, and further, he has to take care to see that the box remains in a safe place.

When he performs sandhyāvandana, the thought of the box comes to his mind. When he sits for the worship of God, again, the thought of the box crops up in his mind. When does he finally become freed from this thought? Only on the day he dies and departs. His zealously-guarded wealth then completely passes to others without his knowledge.

Such a man would have loved to take his wealth with him to the next world. He might have thought, “I have somehow earned money and so far kept it with me. I do not at all want to part with it even after death. If possible, I would like to place it on my head and carry it with me.” To such a person, Nīlakanṭha Dīkṣita has given a humorous but valuable advice. He has said, “If you 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 puṇya. Regardless of whether or not you have a head after death, it is certain that the wealth will accompany you in the form of puṇya.”

The scriptures prescribe the giving of gifts to the deserving as an antidote for greed. So, charity apart from bringing about happiness in others greatly conduces to the spiritual well-being of the donor. A person who loses some money feels unhappy. But he feels happy, not sad when he voluntarily gives the same amount to a poor student who is not in a position to pay the examination fees. Charity can thus make not only the receiver but also the donor happy.

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❑ Incidents from Acharyal's Life

Hinduism accords very high importance for showing compassion to others. Acharyal was a living testimony for this great quality. His compassion can only be wondered at but not fully comprehended.

Acharyal had some breathing trouble and He was under the treatment of an Āyurvedic physician in Bangalore. He had told me that the medicine was giving Him great relief. Once when I went to have His darśana, He said that His trouble had recurred. I queried, “What about the Āyurvedic medicine?” Acharyal replied, “I stopped the Āyurvedic medicine because the physician is very old and he has to procure the ingredients for preparing the medicine with a great deal of difficulty. Of course, he does say he will prepare the medicine for Me. But I do not want him troubled!” His compassion was such that He was more concerned about His physician’s welfare than His own! [Dr.G.Lakshmipathy]

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Acharyal never stood on prestige and was ready even to lend personal help. One night His attendant, Malnad Venkatesa, was having difficulty in sleeping on account of mosquitoes. However, exhaustion got the better of him and he fell asleep. Being a very early riser, Acharyal woke up prior to His attendant. On seeing the sleeping Venkatesa, Acharyal noticed a lot of mosquitoes hovering around him. Our Guru used His handkerchief as a fan and waved them away. Then He started to move on. The breeze stirred the sleeping one from his slumber. He woke up and was startled to see Acharyal passing by. He realised that it was Acharyal who had chosen to drive away the mosquitoes that were biting him without feeling such an act was infra dig for a pontiff of a very prestigious Math. [Excerpted from Crest Jewel of Yogis]

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Handicapped people merited Acharyal’s special attention during darśana time. On an occasion, when Acharyal was giving tīrtha-prasāda, He beheld a lame man walking down the road leading from the present Private Secretary’s office to Sacchidananda Vilas. The man had come for receiving tīrtha but as he was slow he was afraid that the distribution might end before he reached. He need not have entertained any such worries. Realising that the man would have to struggle to climb the steps leading to Sacchidananda Vilas, Acharyal called out to him to remain where he was. Asking His attendant to follow Him with the vessel containing tīrtha, Acharyal rapidly descended the flight of stairs and approached him. Our Guru made tender enquiries and conversed with him for a few minutes. Then He lovingly gave him tīrtha. The lame man had tears of joy flowing down his cheeks as the holy water entered his mouth. [Excerpted from Crest Jewel of Yogis]

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A poor devotee, who was very keen on performing pāda-pūjā, invited Acharyal to grace his house. He did not have the adequate funds needed for the purpose and so the Math staff informed him that he could not do the pūjā. When Acharyal had been to a house for pāda-pūjā, this man came there and stood at a corner gazing longingly at Acharyal. Acharyal noticed him and beckoned to him. He then asked, “What is troubling you?” The hapless man poured forth his tale of woe. Acharyal cheered him up and told him to go to his house and be prepared. The moment the pāda-pūjā was completed and prasāda had been distributed, Acharyal informed His staff that He proposed to go to the poor man’s house. Since the time was short, the man was not able to make much arrangements but Acharyal did not mind, for was He not gracing the man’s house as did Lord Kṛṣṇa Vidura’s ? The pāda-pūjā proceeded smoothly. At the end of it, Acharyal asked His Private Secretary to hand over Rs. 250 to the poor man. Then, Acharyal gave him prasāda and left. Thus, not only did Acharyal visit the man’s house free of cost, but also helped him monetarily. [Excerpted from Crest Jewel of Yogis]

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❑ Experiences of Devotees

Acharyal once graced our home in Bangalore. We were occupying the first floor of the house, but since Acharyal was unwell at that time, I had made arrangements for the pūjā downstairs. After the pāda-pūjā was over and Acharyal was about to leave, I just informed Him that I was actually occupying the first floor of the building. Acharyal immediately asked, “Why did you not tell Me earlier? I would have come upstairs! Anyway, the next time I visit Bangalore, I shall definitely come upstairs to your house!” We could only marvel at His compassion, when, on His next trip to Bangalore, He made it a point to grace my home. As He was too ill to climb up the staircase, He was carried to the first floor in a chair! [Smt.S.Suryanarayana]

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A lady who was hardly 30 years old, lost her husband who was the only son of his parents, in an accident. The responsibility of looking after her two young sons fell on her shoulders. One day, she requested Acharyal for a private audience with Him. He asked her to come and see Him the next morning and told me also to come. When she met Him the next morning, the lady asked Acharyal, “Why is it that I have to undergo so much suffering? I have not committed any sin. Why then should I suffer? Now that my husband is dead, who will look after me?” Despite His busy schedule, Acharyal spent His time consoling her. He explained to her that the whole world is impermanent. He then proceeded to say that one suffers due to one’s own karma. There is nobody who does not undergo suffering. He advised, “Your children are like your eyes. It is your duty to bring them up well. As for you, you are academically well-qualified. You could take up a teacher’s job somewhere. That would fetch you sufficient money to meet the needs of your family. My blessings are with you. Come for the pūjā ...” No sooner had Acharyal blessed her with such soothing words than she felt a great peace enveloping her and her miseries vanishing. Her morale increased manifold and she resolved that she would do as per Acharyal’s advice. She came to the Math regularly. By Acharyal’s grace she and her children are doing fine now. [Sri K.S.Sankaran]

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Sri Meenakshisundaram had lost his vision in one eye when he was only 35 years of age. He was managing with the other eye. The damaged eye was however, giving him incessant trouble due to burning sensation and continuous flow of tears. Panic gripped him as he thought, “What if the vision in the other eye is also affected? How will I have darśana of Acharyal? How can I perform pūjā to Īśvara (Acharyal had blessed him earlier with pañcāyatana-pūjā)?” When Acharyal was camping at Madras in the year 1971, Sri Meenakshisundaram duly approached Him and expressed the troubles he was forced to endure. Acharyal closed His eyes for a moment. Then He said, “Know this for certain that you will not lose your vision in the eye that is normal now. Regarding the eye that is troubling you, chant verses 42 and 43 of the Soundaryalahari. Everything will be fine.” Acharyal’s instructions were promptly carried out. By Acharyal’s compassion, the devotee (who later came to be known as Sri Shankarananda Bharathi) had retained his vision in one eye, while the troubles in the damaged eye left him for good.

[Sri K.Srinivasan]

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Before sitting down to receive the mantropadeśa from Acharyal, my husband found it difficult to do namaskāra because of a wound near the knee. Acharyal immediately noticed this and asked what the matter was. Explaining that he must have hurt himself in the bus to Bangalore, my husband showed Acharyal the wound which had by then become septic and highly inflamed. It was rather gory to look at and obviously, quite painful. Acharyal suggested that we warm rice flour and tie it with a cloth over the injured area. Acharyal then gave him Pañcākṣarī-upadeśa and blessed me unexpectedly, with the Bālā-mantra-upadeśa, before proceeding for some function. Subsequently, my husband seated himself there away from the crowd, as the wound was hurting him. A little later, a person came up to him with prasāda and the message, “Acharyal has sent this pañcāmṛta for you, since you would find it difficult to come and get it!” This made us wonder if there is any limit to Acharyal’s compassion. In the evening, we returned to the place where we were put up. But we could not manage to get any rice flour that night. The next morning, however, we were in for a pleasant surprise as there was no sign of the inflammation - the wound was completely cured! We went to Acharyal and told, “We could not carry out the treatment that Acharyal had suggested. Nevertheless, the wound has got cured completely by Acharyal’s grace.” Acharyal simply smiled.

[Smt. Kantimathi Krishnan]

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The following took place on 19.9.1989. Acharyal shed His body on 21.9.1989.

Acharyal was unwell that day. Some orange juice was what was to be His intake that afternoon. The attendant on duty was, however, unfamiliar with the use of the juice extractor. He ended up preparing juice mixed with significant solid residues. Though Acharyal noted this, He raised no objections. Sri H.N. Shankar, the then Deputy Administrator of the Math, however, suggested that the juice be filtered out. Acharyal guided the attendant and soon pure orange juice was ready, with not a drop spilt or left behind. Unexpectedly, Acharyal told Sri Shankar to taste it and see how he found it. As Acharyal never concerned Himself with the tastiness or otherwise of what He consumed, this was unusual. Sri Shankar poured a little juice into his palm, swallowed it and reported, “It is nice.” “As it is tasty, have some more,” said Acharyal and directed His attendant to fetch a clean tumbler. Half the juice readied was poured into the tumbler. Sri Shankar drank it. Not stopping with having given away half of what was to be His meagre intake, Acharyal happily instructed Shankar to consume the balance too. With no choice, Sri Shankar obeyed. What served that afternoon as the substitute for Acharyal’s liquid diet was His joy in fully giving away to a disciple what the disciple found nice.

[Based on the reminiscences of Sri H.N.Shankar]

Acharyal was extremely forbearing. Even when in excruciating pain, He never lamented, yelled out or made any of the sounds such as “Ah!” that people normally do. Instead, He just uttered the Lord’s name and that too without any prayer for relief. The following incident took place a few days before Acharyal cast off His body. Acharyal was unwell and in much discomfort. Sri Giridhara Sastry, the then Administrator of the Math, slept in a room next to that of Acharyal to personally attend to Him. Though not summoned by Acharyal, he happened to wake up in the middle of the night. He noiselessly entered Acharyal’s room to see how Acharyal was. Acharyal, who had not slept due to pain, promptly noticed him and asked, “Did I disturb your sleep by My utterance of the Lord’s name?” Sri Giridhara Sastry replied in the negative but was struck by the extent of Acharyal’s compassionate concern even at the time when He was in agony.

[Based on the reminiscences of Sri H.N.Shankar]

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During one of my visits to Sringeri in the 70’s, Acharyal, who is a personification of compassion, vouchsafed to me a highly cherished blessing. I was to depart from Sringeri for Madras and I was feeling absolutely miserable at having to leave Acharyal’s physical presence. I could not hide this sentiment from Him. Acharyal asked, “Am I this body alone that I am not with you in Madras?” I said, “I do understand but still am feeling awful. How I wish I never had to go. Yet, Acharyal has ordered me to complete my studies properly and so, I must leave. I really long to see and talk to Acharyal wherever I am just as I am able to do so now.” Acharyal was silent for a while and then said, “Very well. It shall be as you wish. I shall appear before you just as you see Me now. Whatever you wish to ask Me at that time you can do so and I shall reply to you just as I am doing now. So, you can go to Madras without feeling the pangs of separation. I shall be with you.” So unlimited was His mercy!

[A disciple]

Acharyal had the innate ability to effortlessly render the tenets of Hindu philosophy thoroughly intelligible.

A devotee took a group of foreigners including a christian priest to Sringeri and had the darśana of Acharyal. His Holiness started chatting with them in His customary cordial style. The foreigners too, freely voiced their doubts about Hinduism and its various tenets including idol worship. Acharyal responded to their queries with convincing answers. The topic then shifted to Advaita philosophy. Acharyal gave a lucid explanation of the non-dual philosophy. Noticing the priest’s inability to grasp the subject, Acharyal resorted to catechism to drive home the points that He expounded earlier.

Acharyal : Who are you?

Priest : I am so and so.

Acharyal : No, I did not ask your name. Who are ‘you’?

Priest : I am so and so’s son.

Acharyal : No, no, not that. Who are ‘you’?

Priest : I am the priest of………church.

Acharyal : I did not mean that. Tell me who ‘you’ are.

Priest : (Confused…) I don’t know!

Acharyal : (Smiling) See, this is the problem! We do not know who we really are! Your name, relationship to someone else and your profession – all these pertain to your body and not to you. Now, tell me, what are you called when you are starving?

Priest : A hungry man?

Acharyal : Correct. What are you known as when you are overeating?

Priest : A glutton?

Acharyal : Yes. That’s right. Well, when you are travelling?

Priest : A traveller?

Acharyal : Yes, indeed. Now consider this. Descriptions like hungry man, glutton and traveller are based on actions, again, pertaining to your body. Do you get the feeling that you are a different man every time you are called by a different name?

Priest : No, it is “I” that is known by various names and relationships.

Acharyal : There you are! ‘You’ are that unchanging common entity behind all these changing names and forms. That indeed is your true identity.

Then, His Holiness expounded the unreality of the universe according to the tenets of Advaita and the underlying supreme reality - the substratum of all names and forms. The delighted christian priest profusely thanked His Holiness and was happy that he had received a valuable teaching that day.

[Sri Venkatarama Sastry]

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Once when Acharyal was camping in Delhi, a delegation of the residents from a colony came for His darśana to request Him to visit the colony and bless the foundation-stone-laying ceremony for a temple. When they presented this information to the executive member of the organising committee, he dissuaded them saying that Acharyal had a hectic schedule of visiting a large number of houses for accepting pāda-pūjā and bhikṣā-vandana. He also persuaded the delegation not to reveal the intention of their visit to Acharyal while having His darśana.

When the delegation went to Acharyal for His darśana, His Holiness asked who they were and the purpose of their visit. The delegation introduced themselves as residents of a nearby Hindu locality and that they had come to invite His Holiness for the bhūmi-pūjā for a temple in their locality. At this moment, the gentleman who had asked the delegation not to mention the purpose of their visit to His Holiness, intervened, reminding Acharyal of His busy schedules on the prescribed date. Acharyal remarked, “The purpose of establishing this Math by Śaṅkarabhagavatpāda is to uphold Sanātana-dharma and inculcate faith in God and not for merely visiting houses for accepting pāda-pūjā and bhikṣā which generates revenue for the Math. Therefore, visiting this temple site is My top priority.” On the set date, His Holiness promptly blessed the invitees as well as all other residents of the colony with His visit to the site for laying the foundation stone.

[Sri K.C. Mahadeva Iyer]

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