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Re: The why of creation.

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mani2 • May 2, 2002 


--- In bhakti-list@y..., "vaidhehi_nc"  wrote:
 
> Dear Krishna,
> 
>              I made a statement explicitly saying that "off-handedly
> (without referring to the text)" in those two AzhwAr's pasuram,we 
> recognize "praLaya". If I'm right(my tamizh has become weak due to 
> lack of touch)amalan means world and adipirAn means the 
> First/Beginning Cause/God. 

Dear Vaidhehi,

'amalan' comes from the Sanskrit 'amala' or 'a+mala', 
meaning he who is without any defect or flaw. Amalan
refers to the Pure Stainless Lord. As an interesting
comparison, 'amalatva' or absolute purity is one of
the essential attributes of the Supreme in Sri Ramanuja's
philosophy (svarUpa-nirUpaka-dharma).

I am not a scholar of the Nalayira Divya Prabandham,
but I am pretty sure whenever the Alvars refer to
creation they mean emanation in the Vedantic sense,
and not ex nihilo creation a la Christianity or Islam.
Emanative creation is a fundamental axiom of nearly
all Eastern religions including the many varieties of
religious thought in India.  The idea of ex nihilo
(out of nothing) creation is absent in India to my
knowledge.  The very idea of something coming from
nothing is inconceivable in this context, and I would
be very surprised if the Alvars would be exceptions
to this general trend.

For example, Nammalvar is quite clear that when 
the Lord creates the universe, He *becomes* the universe --
  'kaDal ~nAlam ceydEnum yAnE ennum,
   kADal ~nAlam AvEnum yAnE ennum ...'

These words are said by the nAyikA (lovelorn heroine)
who in her ecstatic anubhava identifies so much with
her lover (the Lord) that she experiences the act of
creation itself.  The second line in this poem explains
that not only does the Lord create (ceydEnum), but
he also *is* (AvEnum) the entire universe.  I find 
little support in the Divya Prabandham for a different
type of creation.

Now, as to the "why" of creation -- strangely enough
this question is never really asked by any of our Vedantic
philosophers such as Sankara, Ramanuja, etc., as far
as I know.  It's merely accepted that the jIva is forever
embroiled in samsAra out of beginningless karma (anAdi
mAyayA suptaH according to the gaudapAda kArika, an axiom
accepted by all schools of Vedanta).  In fact, if I am
not mistaken this very vAkya is quoted in the introduction
to several of the traditional commentaries on the Divya
Prabandham.

ramanuja dasa,
Mani



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