10th Chapter Nataka Deepa (The Lamp of the Theatre)
Saibaba encouraged reading of holy books such as Bhavartharamayana, Eknath Bhagavatham, Jnaneshwari, Panchadasi etc.. Baba's great devotee G.K.Khaparde used to read and explain to others, Panchadasi, a great Vedantik textbook. Now let us ponder on the background and the message of the holy text.
Panchadasi was written by Swamy Vidyaranya in the 14th century. His name was Madhava Tirtha before taking sanyasa and he was instrumental in establishing the famous Vijayanagara Empire. At the age of 75, he took sanyasa and became the Sankaracharya of Shringeri Pith. Swami Vidyaranya was verily a forest of knowledge and wrote many famous texts.
Panchadasi is a Vedantic book of Prakaranas (definitions), precisely explaining the message of the Upanishads; taking the seekers to the peeks of knowledge. It has fifteen chapters and hence is called Panchadasi. Roughly speaking the first five chapters (Viveka Prakaranas) talk of the discrimination of the real and the unreal (Sat-Vidya). The next five (Dipa Prakaranas) deal with the awareness aspect of the Reality (Chit-Vidya). The last five (Ananda Prakaranas) deal with the bliss aspect (Ananda-Vidya). How ever, each chapter is complete in explaining the Truth.
As Panchadasi gives a better understanding of the theme of the Upanishads, let us determine the theme first. An insect caught in the whirlpool of a river can only be saved by a compassionate soul watching its plight. Thus, the compassionate Guru comes along lift us out of this rigmarole of life through the knowledge of Vedanta, indicating a blissful state. Now let us go into the meaning of the 10th Chapter, Nataka Deepa (The Lamp of the Theatre). One should read these verses very slowly for a better understanding of the intended message.
1. Before the projection of the world the Supreme Self, the secondless, all-bliss and ever complete, alone existed. Through His Maya He became the world and entered into it as the Jiva, the individual Self.
2. Entering the superior bodies like that of Vishnu, He became the deities; and remaining in the inferior bodies like that of men He worships the deities.
3. Due to the practice of devotions in many lives the Jiva desires to reflect upon his nature. When by enquiry and reflection Maya is negated, the Self alone remains.
4. The duality and misery of the secondless Self, whose nature is bliss, is called bondage. Abiding in Its own nature is said to be liberation.
5. Bondage is caused by want of discrimination and is negated by discrimination. Hence, one should discriminate about the individual and supreme Self.
6. He who thinks 'I am' is the agent. Mind is his instrument of action and the actions of the mind are two types of modifications in succession, internal and external.
7. The internal modification of the mind takes the form of 'I'. It makes him an agent. The external modification assumes the form of 'this'. It reveals to him the external things.
8. The external things (that are cognized by the mind in a general way, their special qualities having been jumbled up) are cognized by the five sense-organs quite distinctly as sound, touch, color, taste and smell.
9. That consciousness which reveals at one and the same time the agent, the action and the external objects is called 'witness in the Vedanta. (To be continued)
Inspired by Sainath maharaj. May Saibaba's Divine Light of compassion ever be upon us!
(Ref: Swami Tejomayananda, Chief of Chinmaya Mission, Swami Swahananda, Ramakrishna Mission)
(Contributed by Syamasundar Davuluri, Houston, TX)
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