The Natural Spiritual Pedagogy

Forgetting BEING and Falling 


The highest spiritual development is that of encountering BEING , interrogating Him on the most important metaphysical questions getting replies and living the most authentic life with the metaphysical illuminations thus received. In the history of Indian Metaphysical Thinking we find this a revolutionary departure from earlier developments where spiritual exegetics and logical investigations were proposed as the source of Axiomatic Truths and as developed in the Vedic Vedantic Jain and Buddhist traditions. In the Tevaram and Divviya Prabantam, no where do we find references to the Vedas or even the Agamas as authoritative. There are also no subtle logical investigations as the Nayyayikas or the astute Buddhists and Jains. The source of Axiomatic Truths is BEING Himself and NOT the scriptures or various kinds of logical measures. The interpretive understanding of scriptures cannot be conclusive as there can be “conflict of interpretations”, Similarly there cannot be a logical measure or PramaaNa that is universally applicable- in the choice of PramaaNas, the different schools of Indian philosophy do not agree among themselves leading to an uncertainty that cannot be resolved at all. 



It is perhaps as the result of such failures that Saiva mystic poets beginning with Punitavati ( 5th cent AD?) turned to BEING Himself and entered into a DIALOG with Him and recovered the very ancient Icon Thinking to LEARN what BEING Himself teaches as the Guruparan, the Great Guru to the mortal souls and to redeem them blessing them with Njaanam Thus there is a natural Spiritual Pedagogy that is available as already there in the cosmic processes but which the ordinary human mind is incapable of appreciating and benefiting because of the essential atomism of the mind. They seek substitutes in the scriptures and in the words of great souls and remain distracted from participating in the natural Spiritual Pedagogy already there. 

They become forgetful of BEING and that He is there dancing away and in that illuminating the human mind. Now Sundarar understands this human weakness and sees himself as a victim of such a delusions where he remains forgetful of BEING and His dance and because of which he sees himself as FALLEN and hence spent many days in this fallen state and hence inauthentic and false. They were the BAD days that now he does not want to consider at all. He just wants to forget that he ever lived like this asserting that now he has recovered himself 

But what has helped to recover thus? 

It is the Namaccivaaya Mantra that even during days of the great FALL remained in his unconscious and which he puts by saying that his tongue continued to recite it even though he has forgotten it. 


The Mantra Hymn of Sundarar- 2 

Tevaram 7: 48 


 

இட்ட உன்னடி ஏத்துவார் இகழ்ந்திட்ட நாள் மறந்திட்ட நாள் 

கெட்ட நாள் இவை என்றலாற் கருதேன் கிளர் புனற் காவிரி 

வட்ட வாசிகைக் கொண்டு அடி தொழுதேத்து பாண்டிக் கொடுமுடி 

நட்டவா உனை நான் மறக்கினும் சொல்லும் நா நமச்சிவாயவே

உரை: 

இருளை கிழித்து அங்கே பொருளகள் நின்று நிலவுமா நடம் புரியுமா இட்ட உன் அடிகளை மெய்யாக ஏத்திப் பணிவார் , அவ்வாறு செய்யாத என்னை இகழ்ந்து வெறுத்திட்ட நாள் உண்மையில் உனை நான் பல ஏமாற்றங்கள் காரணமாக மறந்திட்ட நாளுமாகும். ஆயினும் இன்று உண்மை உணர்ந்து இந்த நாட்களெல்லாம் கெட்ட நாள் என்பதால் அவற்றை நான் நலமே வாழ்ந்த நாட்கள் என்று இம்மியும் கருதேன். காவிரி நதியின் பொங்கி வழிகின்ற வெள்ளம், வட்டமான மாலைகள் கொண்டு உன் அடித்தொழுதேத்தும் பாண்டிக் கொடுமுடி எனும் திருதலத்தில் எழுந்தருளி அருள்பாலிக்கும் , யாண்டும் ஆடிக்கொண்டே இருக்கும் நட்டவா ! இப்படி உன்னை அவ்வப்போது நான் மறக்கினும் எனது உள் மனம் மாறவாதிருப்பதின் எனது நா நமச்சிவாய என்னும் உன் திருப்பெயரை சொல்லிக் கொண்டே இருக்கும் காண். 

2. 

idda unnadi eettuvaar ikazntidda naaL maRantidda naaL 

kedda naaL ivai enRalaaR karuteen kiLar punaR kaaviri

vadda vaacikaik koNdu adi tozuteettu [aaNdik kodumudi

naddavaa unai naan maRakkinum collm naa namaccivaayavee


Meaning: 

O My Lord who have installed yourself dancing and making the world present against the engulfing Darkness! Those days in which those who worship praising your greatness have criticized me are those days in which I became forgetful of you. These fallen days are the evil days and now I would prefer not to think of them at all. O my Lord who has residence in the temple of PaaNdik Kodumudi where the flood waters of Kaviri worship your divine feet offering circular garlands of sweet smelling flowers! Let me tell that though I became forgetful of you, but my tongue kept on reciting your name as Namaccivaaya. 




Dr Loganathan Krishnan @ Ullaganar