[Chaturamnaya] Tattvabodha of Adi Sankaracharya - 35

[S Jayanarayanan]

8. Liberation - Freedom from bondage
 
A Jivanmukta or jnAnI has a strong
conviction like 'I am not a man', 'I am not the
body', 'I am unattached' and he has the vision
of pure Consciousness or Brahman in all beings.
He does not differentiate from one being to
another and is established in sat-cit-Ananda
svarUpam. He does not have any sense of doer-
ship or does not claim result for any of his
actions. With the advent of knowldege of Self,
his sancita is burnt. He has to live through his
prArabdha because prArabdha karma should be
exhausted. But, the pleasures and sufferings of
his own prArabdha does not affect him because
he has no happiness or sorrow. He is always in
Ananda or equanimity. Since there is no
association from the results of action, AgAmi has
no effect on his kAraNa SarIiram. But, whatever
actions are done by a jivanmukta with their subtle
results, are distributed to others since he disowns
them. The merits are distributed to those who
praise him, adore him or worship him. And, the
demerits (if any) are distributed to those who
criticize him, abuse him or hurt him. His
sUkshma SarIram (subtle body) departs when the
prArabdha is exhausted and sthUla SarIiram (gross
body) dies. There is no kAraNa SarIiram since
the sancita karma is burnt and a jivanmukta is
also a videhamukta (no gross body) after the
prArabdha is exhausted. Thus, the knower of the
Self is free from the cycles of birth and death
and he is one with the Brahman or Ananda.
 
 sa~nchita.n karma brahmaivAhamiti nishchayAtmakaj~nAnena nashyati .
 
The sancita karma is destroyed by the firm
Knowledge 'I am brahman'.
 
 AgAmi karma api j~nAnena nashyati
 
And the AgAmi karma is also destroyed by Self
Knowledge.
 
 ki.ncha AgAmi karmaNA.n
 nalinIdalagatajalavat j~nAninA.n sambandho nAsti .
 
And the jnAnI is not affected by it just as a lotus
leaf is not affected by the water on it.
 
 ki.ncha ye j~nAnina.n stuvanti bhajanti archayanti tAnprati
 j~nAnikR^itaM AgAmi puNya.n gachChati .
 
In addtion, those who praise, worship and adore
the jnAnI, the results of the good actions of the
jnAnI, go to them.
 
 ye j~nAnina.n nindanti dviShanti duHkhapradAna.n kurvanti tAnprati
 j~nAnikR^ita.n sarvamAgAmi kriyamANa.n yadavAchya.n karma
 pApAtmaka.n tadgachChati .
 
Those who abuse, hate or cause sorrow to a jnAnI,
the results of the unspeakable future sinful actions
of the jnAnI, go to them.
 
 tathA chAtmavitsa.nsAra.n tIrtvA brahmAnandamihaiva prApnoti .
 
Thus, the knower of the Self, having crossed
samsAra, attains Supreme Bliss here itself.
The author concludes the prakaraNam with
a quote from the Sruti and smriti to affirm the
fruit of this Knowledge. Sruti says 'one who
realizes Atman is free from sorrows'.
 
 tarati shokamAtmavit iti shruteH .
 
Thus the Sruti affirms : 'The knower of the Self
goes beyond all sorrows'.
 
Smriti says 'It does not matter if a jnAnI
sheds his gross body in a holy place like KaaSi
or in a caNDaala's house because he is free from
dehAbhimAnam (association with the body or the
notion 'I am the body') after Self-realization. It
is a belief from religious teachings that one
should die in a sacred place. But, for a jnaani it
is immaterial because he has no sancita karma
to attach with another subtle and gross body.
 
 tanu.n tyajatu vA kAshyA.n shvapachasya gR^ihe.atha vA .
 j~nAnasamprAptisamaye mukto.asau vigatAshayaH . iti smR^iteshcha .
 
Let the jnAnI shed his body in kASi (a sacred place)
or in the house of a dog-eater (caNDAla), (it is
immaterial because), at the time of gaining
Knowledge (itself) he is liberated being freed from
all results of actions. So asserts the smriti too.
 
 iti tattvabodhaprakaraNa.n samAptam .
 
Thus ends the prakaraNa called tattvabodha.
 
Source material:
1.	Tattvabodha of Sankaracharya, Central
Chinmaya Mission Trust, Bombay. 1995.
2.	Tattvabodha - Lectures by Swami
Paramarthananda, Madras.
 
 
(Concluded)