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Re: Some solutions for Sri.Srikanth's query

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R. Skrintha • January 23, 1997 


Dear Sri Sampath Rengarajan and other Bhagavathas,

Dear Sri Sampath, thanks a lot for your patient reply. I am sure that you 
speak with the authority of scriptures and our Poorvacharyaas. In contrast, 
much of what i have to say is based on my reflections on what have been 
uttered by Mahaans, what i have read, and also on my personal expreiences.

Sri Sampath wrote:-

>>> If Lord Sriman narayana has
>>desired that the varnasara darmam has to be dumped or changed his messengers
>>would have done so.

>>Can the fact of many beings not having attained the Lotus Feet of the Lord
>>be taken as evidence that the Lord has not desired it?

[...]
>theory of non linearity to this. Let me submit my small inference here. The
>fact is such that many of the souls *here*, have taken birth to serve sriman
>narayana in this boolOgam. 

But does the Lord _need_ our services? I rather think the _jeevas_ need
Him to need our services!! Please, if i may say so, herein lies part of the 
said non-linearity! 

>>Surely not!! The fact
>>that some situation is not otherwise than it is is not necessarily evidence
>>that the Supreme, in His infinite patience, did not desire it otherwise.

>If this is implied to dumping varnasara darmam, all i had to say is that my
>achaaryaaLs can never be wrong. 

Actually, i am sorry, i didn't mean anything specific. I only wished to point
out that an absence of direct evidence could perhaps not be taken as evidence
of absence. 

Furthermore, our dharma consists of a ritualistic/social part and of a deep
philosophical part. The ritualistic and social aspects have a temporal scope. 
But it is the latter that allows one to refresh the soul thru His Name and 
Form, and guide it greater perfection, and gives one Peace of mind.

>I agree that i am very ignorant as compared to many other baagwathaaLS who are
>reading poorvaachaaryaaLS work throughly.

I am considerably unread. If anything in what i have said is quite gross,
please treat it as my personal opinion, formed from a wrong understanding
of our scriptures.

>> No,  only that the nature of the relationship of the jeevas to the Brahman
is >> mysterious, and the logic that determines many events of the jeeva's life
is >> of "non-linear" type!!

>The realtionship is mysterious to many who are not aware of poorvaachaaryaaLS
>works (that narrate this relationship) and including those who are otherwise
>speculating and thinking that they can attempt to *define* this relationship
>with the material (math) knowledge they have gained. 

It is recorded in YOga-Vaasishtam, that when Sri Rama asked Sage Vasishta,
" Why has this imperfect world come out of the perfect Brahman ?", Muni
answered rather obliquely, "Oh Rama, in the mind of a pure Jnaani, such a query
does not arise" !! Even Vasishta deemed it best to leave unsaid the nature of
that Truth to Rama Himself. 

I try to answer this question by reminding myself that the very enquiry that
i make is made thru His faculty as crystallized in me, as also in everyone.
Thus, when one enquires about Him, it is He who thru the much impoverished
agency of human thought is enquiring Himself. When one sees something, it is
He who thru the much impoverished agency of human sight is seeing Himself as
manifested as this world.... Thus at all times, at all places, the Brahman 
alone acts on Himself. This is just like a non-linear field (eg., gravitation)
that is non-linear by virtue of acting on itself. Analogously, the Brahmic
field, too, acts of, by and for Itself!! Thus, the actions of Sriman
Narayana may not always lend themselves to easy interprettation in the
"linear" worldview of the jeevas!

Your personal opinion/criticism, or ones from
our Scriptures that you would find it apt to quote in this regard would be
much welcome, for they can only serve to remove my ignorance!

>If the knowledge is a
>(muth knowledge  (meaning that the knowledge is gained from achaaryaaLS muth
>schools) it may help.  For a surrendered soul it (this realtionship) is not
>that complicated.

I very much agree with u. Acutally, part of the mystery lies in its
simplicity, as it seems to me! 

>As an aside I want to make *one more* "solution" for your "non-linear" problem.
>If it is not *very* nonlinear then please try piecewise linear approach by
>making it into "several pieces" of "linear type". 

Your clever extension of the analogy is very illustrative. Perhaps it is not
wasteful to draw scientific analogies, after all!! But, please allow me to 
remark that the atomized mind of the individual jeevas might actually already
be implementing the solution you propose. Unable to grasp the Truth about Him
in its entirety, the restricted mind of the jeeva tries to limit the
illimitable Supreme, makes "piece-wise linear" what is perhaps afterall a
"non-linear whole", etc.

>Sri Ranganaayikaa samethra sri Ranganatha swami paadhukE charaNam
>Sampath Rengarajan

HARI OM
Srikanth