vivekachUdAmani

[Vaidya N. Sundaram]

11)
 chittasya shuddhaye karma na tu vastuupalabdhaye .
 vastusiddhirvichaareNa na ki.nchitkarmakoTibhiH

 Karma is intended for purification of the mind, not for understanding
the nature of an object. Knowledge can be obtained only by reflection;
not even a little bit of it can be known by performing even a crore of
karma's.

 (His Holiness discusses both sides of the argument here for clarity,
although he does not directly elaborate on the actual verse.)
 It is obvious from verse 10 that yogArudhatva is obtained by giving up
ALL forms of karma, even the nitya karma's. It may be objected by quoting
the sruti, where the sruti says: "One should perform the agnihotra
sacrifice, the darsa and purnamAsa sacrifices all through life (Taitt).
Similar verses are to be found in the Isa. Up. also. So, the argument is
that giving up all karmas is a sin.
 The counter argument and the coreect way of reading them is: The sruti
statements are directed only to a person of impure mind, i.e., to aperson
who has not cultivated complete detachment. A mantra of the Isa. Up says:
"For one who thinks of himeself as a mere man (without awareness of the
Atman), there is no other go except to do the karma."
 Again it is said: na karmanA na prajayA dhanena tyAgenaike
amrtatvamAnasuh; samnyAsayogAdyatayassuddhastvAh | Those rare spirits
attained immortality not by karmas, not by progeny, not by gifts but these
holy ones of pure nature did so by the force of their samnyAsa.
 Similarly, the srutis clearly say that sacrifices and other karmas are
inferior and are like weak boats . To consider them as superior is to get
further entangled.
 Sruti texts like yadahareva virajet tadahareva pravjet: "One should
become a samnyAsin the moment one gets vairAgya", which prescribe the
adoption of samnyAsa, are in place here and they discountenance the
performance of karmas.
 Hence it is clear from Sri BhagavatpAda's this sloka, that karmas do not
possess the capacity to lead to the supreme objective of liberation and
that, as means to purification of mind, they are external auxiliaries.



                      Vaidya N. Sundaram
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 Kandavar Vindilar      : Those who have seen (Brahman) have not spoken
  Vindavar Kandilar     :   those who speak (about It) have not seen (It)
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    satyakAma, satyasaMkalpa, Apatsakha, kAkutsa, shrIman nArAyaNa
        puruShottaMa, shrI ranganAtha, mama nAtha, namostute.
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