The next in the series, the forty ninth mantra of the Thirumandiram. In this mantra one of the foundation pillars of the Shaivaite thought regarding the Pathi, Pasu and Pasam is described. This is quite a technical matter and would be best learnt from a guru belonging to such lineage for the actual effect of this discrimination to lead to the state of mukthi or liberation. It is worthy of note that the system /school called Trika or Kashmir Shaivism also explains this concept in great detail and readers are referred there. Also worthy of note is that this triad is explained as the knower, known and the knowing/knowledge, etc in other systems.
நரைபசு பாசத்து நாதனை உள்ளி
உரைபசு பாசததுஒருங்கவல் லார்க்குத்
திரைபசு பாவச் செழுங்கடல் நீந்திக்
கரைபசு பாசம் கடநது எய்த லாமே.49.
Sea Of Bondage
Who, on the Lord, Shakti-Consort, meditate,
And take the way of Pasu-Pasa,
They swim across the foaming sea of Sin,
And, swimming, reach the shore of Pasu-Pasa. 49.
Com - Who, on the Lord, Shakti-Consort, meditate When one meditates on Siva who is the Lord of the timeless Pasu (lit – cow. Here representing the jiva or soul) and Pasam (noose – here representing the things that bond the soul and keep it tethered) And take the way of Pasu-Pasa, he is able to understand the nature of the two which are called Pasu and Pasam. They swim across the foaming sea of Sin With this understanding; he is able to navigate through the ocean of sins that is committed by the Pasus in the journey called life. And, swimming, reach the shore of Pasu-Pasa As a result of it, they reach the other shore that is beyond the Pasu – Pasam cycle – that is, they will attain to Mukti or Liberation.
* Pasu (lit – cow) – The soul or jiva is referred to as Pasu as it is tethered (tied to), meaning the jiva is not free but is bound to the cycle of birth and death as a result of karma. Pasam (lit – noose) – Just as the soul is compared to the tethered cow, the impurities that cause the soul to be tied down in the first place are collectively called Pasam. The three impurities namely, Ahamkara (ego/ I ness), Karma (the aggregate of actions committed knowingly and unknowingly taken along with their effects) and Maya (Delusion) are the agents that are the cause of the soul’s being tied. And when one understands the above mentioned things and becomes aware of their powers to chain the soul, he stops to be Pasu – that is, he is no longer a tied or tethered animal, but is free from the cycle of repeated birth and death. The word ‘sea of sin’ refers to the widespread and immense body of sin (wrong action), that has been committed throughout time by the multitude of Pasus (tied jivas) who come into existence wave upon wave. This collective sin is said to be bubbling and foaming to highlight the powerful currents that it possess, which make it easy for the unaware jivas to drown in a seemingly endless cycle of birth and death. Though figuratively used, the simili of the sea touches on the ocean of samsara and also descriptively indicates the multitude of jivas that are being born like the infinite waves that are endlessly born on the surface of the ocean. Another interesting aspect to notice is that like the waves of the sea are not an external or outer product (as in there is no difference between the waves and the sea apart from motion), the jiva(wave) too is not really different to the Siva(ocean).
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