SrI: SrImathE satakOpAya nama: SrImathE rAmAnujAya nama: SrImadh varavaramunayE nama:
The AchArya now begins to establish the characteristics of knowledge that were mentioned earlier, starting with its nithyathva (eternity).
A doubt naturally arises: If knowledge is eternal, how can people commonly say, “Knowledge has arisen in me,” or “My knowledge has disappeared,” as though knowledge is subject to origination and destruction?
To remove this doubt, the AchArya first raises the question that an inquisitive student (thajjigyAsu) would ask.
sUthram 66
ஜ்ஞாநம் நித்யமாகில் ‘எனக்கு ஜ்ஞாநம் பிறந்தது, நஶித்தது‘ என்கிறபடியென்னென்னில்.
gyAnam nithyamAgil ‘enakku gyAnam piRandadu, naSiththadu’ engiRapadi ennennil.
Meaning
If knowledge is eternal, how can it be said, “Knowledge has arisen in me,” or “My knowledge has perished”?
Explanation
The doubt regarding the eternity of knowledge
The AchArya now begins to establish the nithyathva (eternity) of knowledge.
An inquisitive student raises the following doubt:
If knowledge is truly eternal, how can ordinary experience speak of it as something that is born at one time and destroyed at another, saying,
“Knowledge has arisen in me.”
or
“My knowledge has disappeared.”
Such expressions seem to indicate that knowledge is subject to origination (uthpaththi) and destruction (vinASa).
The AchArya raises this question in preparation for resolving it in the next sUthram.
adiyen vAsudhEva rAmAnuja dhAsan
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