श्रीः
ॐ नमो भगवते श्रीरमणाय
Sri Arunachala
Aksharamanamalai – Garland of Chaitanya-pushpam
தருணாருணமணி கிரணாவலிநிகர் தருமக்ஷரமண மகிழ்மாலை
தெருணாடிய திருவடியார் தெருமரல் தெளியப் பரவுதல் பொருளாகக்
கருணாகரமுனி ரமணாரியனுவகையினாற் சொலியது கதியாக
அருணாசலமெனவகமேயறிவொடும் ஆழ்வார் சிவனுலகாள்வாரே.
- (Muruganar Swami)
This Aksharamanamalai, which is equivalent to the rays of the sun (which removes darkness), was given to us by Bhagavan Sri Ramana Maharshi, who was the ocean of compassion, and who was immersed in bliss, to remove the ignorance from the minds of us, his devotees. Those who take it as their sole refuge, will realise their oneness with Arunachala and rule in Shiva-loka (by becoming one with Him - by attaining aatma-sakshatkara).
Introduction to Bhagavan’s teaching
Bhagavan Ramana’s teaching was to attain peace
through knowledge of the self, which is attained by self-enquiry. The experience
‘I am”, which is a part of every worldly experience, should be scrutinized and
the I should be traced back to the source from which it springs. Through this enquiry,
the mind is falsified and the false individual self is given up. Only when the
individuality / ego is given up, the self-luminous aatma manifests – this is
the substratum on which the entire world is built and sustained.
When my true nature is realised, the feeling
of ‘incompleteness’ that is entrenched in me, disappears. This feeling made me
desire objects and compelled me to act with the aim of being happy by attaining
them. When I realise that I am complete and free and my nature is happiness
itself, the false idea that I will become happy by gaining objects, is
destroyed. My goal has been achieved by abiding in the self, free from external
anchors such as karma and its results. Now I can continue to perform my duties
but not motivated by desire for happiness but as an expression of the joy that I
experience within. My ego has been destroyed and I work because it is my duty
to. I have been able to turn my extroverted mind from external objects, and towards
the ‘seer’ or the witness, which is the self. My mind is now placed in the self
and I am delinked from the cycle of thoughts, ego-driven desire and action. This
is what is described by Bhagavan Sri Krishna in Gita 6.25 as आत्मसंस्थं मनः
कृत्वा न किञ्चिदपि चिन्तयेत् – placing the mind in the self, do not think of anything.
Bhagavan famously said in response to a question from a devotee as to whether he should renounce everything, ‘the renouncer too”. Bhagavan Sri Krishna says in the Gita – तं विद्याद् दुःखसंयोगवियोगं योगसंज्ञितम्। in # 6.23 – Know that severance from that which gives sorrow, is Yoga. This Yoga is the goal of the spiritual seeker – severance from attachment to that which gives me sorrow and drives me into ego-centered action.
This path is the path of surrender of the
individual self to Ishvara. Devotion plays a role in this path because true
bhakti is nondual bhakti that we have for our own self. Ishvara exists as our own
aatma and by the strength of ananya-bhava with Ishvara, we give our
individuality up to him and remain one with him. Bhagavan says in “Who am I” –
giving up one’s self to God means remaining constantly in the self without giving
room for any thoughts other than that of the self. This is not a self-centered
way of living, because the idea here is to renounce the ego, which is at the
heart of all self-centered thinking and action. A person on the spiritual path,
endeavours to let go of his attachment to his ego and other conditioning such as
the body and senses and instead turn all actions towards Ishvara, who is the
self within.
My primary relationship is with Ishvara. To
make this relationship eternal, I must move to the highest plane, which is of
oneness with him. This is done by letting go of all ignorance-driven conditionings,
both gross and subtle (attachment to the body, senses, mind, intellect) and anchoring
myself in the pure existence-consciousness. Any form of Ishvara which is
external to me, is transient and liable to disappear – it is inert, finite and
perishable. Ishvara is conscious, infinite and eternal. Therefore to truly
realise him, I have to get a vision of him as my own true nature. Bhagavan sings
in Upadesha saram # 25 –
वेषहानतः स्वात्मदर्शनम् । ईशदर्शनं स्वात्मरूपतः
॥
One who gives up conditioning (upadhis),
realises the self. True God-realisation is realisation of God as one’s own
self.
Aksharamanamalai is a part of the Arunachala Stuti-panchakam – 5 devotional texts rendered by Bhagavan which also incorporate knowledge in them (Aksharamanamalai, Navamanimalai, Arunachala Padigam, Arunachala Ashtakam and Arunachala Pancharatnam).
To summarize, the basic philosophy of all spiritual paths is the removal of aham/mama-abhimanam – I and mine. When it dies down due to knowledge that the I / ego / body / intellect, is not the self, it is the jnana marga. When it dies down / culminates in Ishvara’s svarupam, it is the bhakti marga. Both jnana and bhakti paths have been combined in this monumental work, making it very appealing to all sadhakas looking for guidance from a realised sage.
காப்பு: / Invocation
அருணாசலவரற்கு ஏற்ற அக்ஷரமணமாலை சாற்றக்
கருணாகர கணபதியே கரம் அருளிக் காப்பாயே
May Lord Ganesha bestow upon me His grace by
which I may offer this garland, which is fit for Arunachala.
Introduction to Aksharamanamalai
Bhagavan Ramana composed the Aksharamanamalai while
he was staying in Virupaksha cave, on the request of his devotees who wanted a
composition to be rendered while begging for alms.
The 7th century Saivite saint Thiru-jnana-sambandhar,
sang that the Arunachala hill is “ஞானத்தபோதனரை வா என்று அழைக்கும் மலை”- “the hill which attracts those involved in
the penance of knowledge”. Arunachala is not merely a physical structure; it is
Shiva himself. It has always attracted and continues to attract people
interested in jnana-tapas.
It pulls at the sadhaka’s heart, quietens his mind,
and makes him unmoving / achala like itself. The sadhaka becomes dissolved /
laya with Arunachala’s svarupam, which is also his own aatma-svarupam.
Recognising the oneness of Ishvara, Guru and one’s own aatma is at the heart of
Vedanta – knowledge of one’s true nature, removes the ills that cause sorrow.
For Bhagavan, Arunachala was guru-svarupam and he merged with Arunachala the very minute he saw him. He never swerved from that state thereafter. He stayed in his guru’s sannidhi until he left the body.
Arunachala as a Vibhuti
How does a hill become guru-svarupam ? Is it not a physical structure ?
Bhagavan Sri Krishna presents his vibhutis in Chapter 10 of the Gita. The purpose of listing the vibhutis, is to provide seekers with an anchor to meditate upon. When a vibhuti is recognised, the seeker surrenders to it and is drawn inwards on the journey of discovering the self. When the reality is realised as the only one that is, individuality is destroyed. One's own nature is seen to be the nature of Ishvara. Arunachala is a manifestation of the divine. The irresistible pull one feels in its proximity, stands testimony to this.
Ishvara is seen in several forms and roles – as father, mother, nourisher, as the fruit of all actions, as Om, etc. We attribute names and forms to the one reality of Ishvara. Bhagavan speaks to his Ishvara with the appropriate bhava for all these names and roles. In each verse, a particular emotion is seen - he pleads, cajoles, coaxes, is angry, is a bhakta, is a jnani, an earnest seeker. Aksharamanamalai appeals to each sadhaka - it has something for each person irrespective of where he is in his spiritual journey. At some point, it strikes a chord with the sincere seeker and that is when Arunachala manifests as one’s own sadguru, as not different from the Self.
In fact, Bhagavan had not even realised that Arunachala was a hill, though from a young age he was instinctively aware that “Arunachala” was something beyond the greatest. When he heard a relative mention that he had returned from Arunachala, it was beyond him to understand how one could reach and return from the param-tattvam.
In the Arunachala Ashtakam, Bhagavan
describes his first vision of the hill while travelling to Tiruvannamalai from
Madurai, as –
அறிவினை மருள் உறுத்து அருகினில் ஈர்க்க அருகு உரும்
அமயம் இது அசலமாய் கண்டேன் – having enchanted my mind, it drew me near, and
when I came near, I saw it to be a hill (achala).
கண்டவன் எவனெனக் கருத்தினுள் நாட, கண்டவன் இன்றிட நின்றது கண்டேன் – When I turned inwards and asked ‘who is seeing?’, I saw the real
self without ahankara. Bhagavan had no aavaranam due to sadhana performed in
previous births, and the aatma manifested automatically in the very presence of
his sadguru. From that moment of realisation, he lived in the sannidhi of his guru until he left his body.
Akshara-maNa-malai means:
- Bridal garland of aksharams / letters. The most common translation of this
word is this. The bridal garlands are exchanged in a traditional wedding,
symbolising the union between the bride and the groom. By offering this bridal
garland, the sadhaka unites with Aruachala, the guru.
The spiritual
angle here is - Ishvara places the garland of anugraha, krupa on the sadhaka and
starts him off on his spiritual quest. The sadhaka’s sadhana (in the form of
self-enquiry) is the garland he places in turn, on his shoulders.
- Garland made with the eternal Chaitanya-pushpam - Aksharam is that which is
eternal, ie, the aatma. चैतन्यार्घ्यसमाराध्या / चैतन्यकुसुमप्रिया are Devi’s
names in Lalitha Sahasranamam – The self is the arghya / pushpam that is
presented to her. Aatma’s fragrance (maNam) is in the garland. When this garland
is worn, Arunachala becomes my own svarupam. Aksharamanamalai is the garland which unites me with the eternal.
Bhagavan shed tears of joy while composing these verses. One is often moved to tears while chanting and contemplating this work. He did not write a commentary for it – he said that when one does parayanam sincerely, it becomes its own commentary. He also said that it was not a product of the intellect, to be explained with words. (From Sri Ramana Nootrirattu Urai - Commentary by Smt. T.R. Kanakammal)
With great compassion for the sake of others, Bhagavan’s devotee Muruganar Swami has written a commentary for it, into which he pours out his devotion for Bhagavan, and provides insight into how it felt to be in Bhagavan’s presence. Smt.T.R Kanakammal, who found herself drawn to Bhagavan at a young age, took him as her refuge, and left her physical body also at his samadhi on his 130th jayanti day in the year 2010. She has blessed us with her commentary in which she clearly presents Bhagavan's facets as the greatest jnani and the greatest bhakta. The emotion with which she writes, prove that Bhagavan and his devotees are no different from each other.
With the blessings of Guru and Bhagavan, I have tried to capture the brief essence of the verses over the next few blogs. While the meaning is deep and cannot be captured in a few words, this is merely a sincere attempt by a bhakta, for the sake of internalising the teaching.
The underlying emotion which is unmistakably felt right through Aksharamanamalai, is the appeal of a shishya to the Guru, for his grace in his own jnana-vichara. If we do anusandhanam of these glorious verses with this in mind, we will get to the goal by destroying our ignorance of the self.
यत्र योगेश्वरः कृष्णो यत्र पार्थो धनुर्धरः । तत्र श्रीर्विजयो भूतिर्ध्रुवा नीतिर्मतिर्मम ॥
सर्वं श्रीकृष्णार्पणमस्तु
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