Vivekachudamani – 19

Select verses 105 to 108 (end)

Verse 105

iti srutva gurorvakyam, prasrayena krtanatih |

sa tena samanujnatah, yayau nirmuktabandhanah ||576||

Hearing the words of the guru, the disciple prostrated to him with reverence, and obtaining his permission, went his way, freed from bondage.

Verse 106

gururevam sadananda-sindhau nirmagnamanasah |

pavayan vasudhaṃ sarvam, vichachara nirantaram ||577||

And the guru, his mind immersed in the ocean of eternal Bliss, forever wandered about, verily blessing the whole world.

Having imbibed the teaching of guru, the sishya takes leave of him, saluting him with love and respect and grateful to be free of the bondage of samsara.  And the guru also, with his mind fully immersed in the ocean of eternal bliss, moves about blessing the whole world with his wanderings and guiding the seekers who approach him. He guides them and heaves no sigh of relief or shows no sign of sadness when they leave him and goes about “his wanderings”, happy in himself.

Verse 107

ityacharyasya sishyasya, samvadenatmalakshanam |

nirupitam mumukshunam, sukhabodhopapattaye ||578||

Verse 108

samsaradhvani tapabhanukirana-prodbhutadahavyathakhinnanam

jalakanksaya marubhuvi, bhrantya paribhramyatam|

atyasannasudhambudhim sukhakaram, brahmadvayam darsayanti

esa sankarabharati vijayate, nirvanasandayini ||580||

Thus, by means of a dialogue between the teacher and the disciple, the true nature of the Self (Athma) has been indicated for the easy comprehension of seekers after liberation.  For those who are afflicted in this samsara by the burning pains caused by the scorching sun rays of the three-fold sorrows (adhyatmika, adhidaivika, and adhibhautika), and those who, in delusion, roam in a desert in search of water, for them this is the glorious message of Sankara pointing out the Ocean of Nectar, the non-dual Brahman, within easy reach, in order to lead them to liberation.

             Guru’s teaching is over and the sishya has left.  Sri Sankara concludes here with the remarks that the Self-knowledge is unfolded for the easy understanding on the part of mumukshus seeking Moksha as the only purushartha.  This knowledge has been revealed with the help of reason so that one can easily assimilate the knowledge.  It talks only about what the Sruthi says and uses the reasoning followed by sampradaya and is in the form of guru-sishya samvada.  And the last verse of the work praises the work as showing the way to the spiritual seekers struggling in samsara, afflicted by the taapa-traiam; namely taapas of adhibhauthikam, adhidaivikam and adhyatmikam.  Taapas are like the rays of the tropical sun.  For those spiritual seekers wandering in the desert of samsara, scorched and dehydrated by the taapa-triam, this work of Sri Sankara serves as a guide to an ocean of nectar that will not only appease their thirst but also relieve them of all other afflictions.  In Swami Chjnmayananda’s words, “This book is all one needs to lead the spiritual life and bring it to its glorious culmination.”

Acknowledgement

While concluding the series of blogs on Vivekachudamani I wish to record my deep debt of gratitude to the speeches and writings on Vivekachudamani, of:

1)    Swami Dayananda Saraswathi

2)    Swami Chinmayananda

3)    Swami Paramarthmananda  &

4)  Swami Gurubhakthananda

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