SrI: SrImathE SatakOpAya nama: SrImathE rAmAnujAya nama: SrImadh varavaramunayE nama:
avathArikai (Introduction)
Subsequently, piLLai lOkAchAryar mercifully explains that (i.e. what was highlighted in the previous sUthram).
sUthram 265
dhEhAthmAbhimAnigalukku udhdhESyar dhEhavardhakarAna manushyargaL, upAyam artham, upEyam aihikabhOgam; svathanthrarkku udhdhESyar svargAdhi bhOgapradhar, upAyam karmAnushtAnam, upEyam svargAdhi bhogam; anya SEshabhUtharkku udhdhESyar brahma rudhrAdhigaL, upAyam thath samASrayaNam, upEyam thath sAyujyam; upAyAnthara nishtarkku udhdhESyan dhEvathAntharyAmiyAna sarvESvaran, upAyam karma gyAna bhakthigaL, upEyam bhagavadhanubhavam; svaprayOjana pararkku udhdhESyan “nenjinAl ninaippAn yavan” engiRavan, upAyam svakIya svIkaram, upEyam svArtha kainkarayam.
Simple Explanation
The purpose for those who consider the body to be the self is people who nurture their body, means is wealth and goal is enjoyment in this world; the purpose for those who consider themselves to be independent is those who grant enjoyment such as heavenly residence etc, means is to perform their vaidhika rituals and goal enjoyment such as heavenly residence; the purpose for those who are devoted to others is brahmA, rudhra et al, means is to surrender unto such dhEvathAs and goal is to unite with them; the purpose for those who are focussed on other means, is sarvESvaran who is the in-dwelling super-soul of all dhEvathAs, means is karma yOgam, gyAna yOgam and bhakthi yOgam, goal is to enjoy bhagavAn; the purpose for those who are focussed on self-enjoyment, is the one who is said in thiruvAimozhi 3.6.9 as “nenjinAl ninaippAn yavan” (one who is thought about in the heart), means is the pursuit of bhagavAn by the individual, goal is service to bhagavAn which interests the self.
vyAkyAnam (Commentary)
dhEhAthmAbhimAnigalukku …
That is,
dhEhAthmAbhimAnigalukku …
For those who consider their body to be self, the purpose is people who give items of sustenance, nourishment and enjoyment and nurture the body well; the means to attain their desired goal is wealth such as gold etc; the dear goal is material enjoyment in this world, such as women, food, beverages.
svathanthrarkku …
For those who have learnt from SAsthram only up to the point that there is an AthmA who is greater than the body, who has knowledge, deeds and enjoyment, and thus consider themselves to be independent, the purpose is dhEvathAs such as indhra et al who will grant results such as heavenly existence which is beyond the current life, based on their pursuit of means; the means is karmAnushtAnam (practice of rituals) such as yAgams which lead to the result as said in “jyOthishtOmEna svarga kAmO yajEtha” (One who desires to reach heaven should perform jyOthishtOmam) etc; the goal is heavenly enjoyment which is greater than enjoyment allowed by SAsthram, in this world.
anya SEshabhUtharkku …
For those who are subservient towards others (i.e. dhEvathAs other than bhagavAn) who having heard from SAsthram that the world is subservient to dheyvam (god) agree to subservience, but hold on to the misunderstanding of having subservience towards others instead of going up to the supreme lord; the purpose is brahmA, rudhra et al who can be misunderstood to be supreme due to having one or more responsibilities such as creation, annihilation of the world; the means is the difficult surrender towards those who are difficult to be worshipped; the goal is to unite with them [brahmA, rudhra et al] to enjoy their pleasures equally. It is said in rahasya thraya sAram “sAyujyam ubhayOrathra bhOthavyasyA viSishtathA | sArshtithA thathra bhOgasya thArathamya vihInathA ||” (Here sAyujyam means having equal amount of enjoyment for both chEthana and ISvara; when the difference in the bliss disappears, that is known as sArshtithA).
upAyAnthara nishtarkku …
For those who have learnt from SAsthram that the true nature of AthmA is to remain exclusively subservient to bhagavAn, but still not knowing to pursue bhagavAn as the means to attain their goals, and pursuing other means, the purpose is ISvara who is antharyAmi of agni, indhra et al. While this [antharyAmi being the purpose] is naturally fitting for karma yOgam, and while there is focus on distinguished form of bhagavAn, for gyAna yOgam and bhakthi yOgam, since gyAna yOgam and bhakthi yOgam are also founded upon the karmAnushtAnams, and since gyAna yOgis and bhakthi yOgis will think that the antharyAmi emperumAn who is worshipped through the karmAnushtAnams has revealed his distinguished form, dhEvathAntharyAmi (being the in-dwelling super soul) should be considered as the purpose. The means is karma yOgam, gyAna yOgam and bhakthi yOgam which are individually highlighted in SAsthram as means for mOksham; when they are treated as means individually, the other two will be limbs (auxiliaries) for each of them. It is said in “gyAna bhakthyanvitham karma janakAdhishu dhruSyathE | karma bhakthyanvitham gyAnam prAyENa bharathAdhishu || karma gyAnAnvithA bhakthi: prahlAdha pramukAsrayA ||” (karma yOgam, supported by gyAna and bhakthi yOgams, is seen in janaka et al; gyAna yOgam, supported by karma and bhakthi yOgams, is seen in jadabharatha et al; bhakthi yOgam, supported by karma and gyAna yOgams, is seen in prahlAdha et al). Alternatively, as per the standards of vEdhAntham, bhakthi yOgam, supported by karma and gyAna yOgam, is explained as the primary means and the other two are said as means, being limbs for such bhakthi yOgam. The goal is experiencing of bhagavAn which is in the form of great bliss, as said in Sruthi (vEdham) – thaiththirIya AraNyakam 1.2 “sOSnuthE sarvAn kAmAn saha brahmaNA vipaSchithA” (jIvAthmA enjoys all the auspicious qualities of bhagavAn, along with him) and in upabruhmaNams (explanation for Sruthi) – SrIvishNu purANam 6.5.59 “nirasthAdhiSayAhlAdha sukabhAvaika lakshaNA | bhEshajam bhagavath prApthi rEkAnthAthyanthikI mathA ||” (The eternal enjoyment of bhagavAn which is in the form of bliss which is pure joy and is free from sorrow, will be a medicine for samsAram). In this SlOkam, “bhagavath prApthi” is explained by our AchAryas in their works as enjoying bhagavAn.
svaprayOjana pararkku …
For those who have understood the nature of means such as karma yOgam and abandoned them and are pursuing prapaththi (surrender) considering it to be easy to perform, the purpose is as said in in thiruvAimozhi 3.6.9 “nenjinAl ninaippAn yavan” (one who is thought about in the heart) – [that is] sarvESvaran who accepts the divine archA form based on the raw material which is desired by the devotees in their heart as his divine form and shows great attachment towards such form as he has towards his divine form in paramapadham which is not made of worldly matter; the means is the surrender which is considered by him as the means for the removal of unfavourable aspects and attainment of the favourable aspects; the goal is kainkaryam which is performed as enjoyment for the self [rather than bhagavAn].
adiyen sarathy ramanuja dasan
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