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Spiritual instructions

CHENNAI: The aim of the Vedas is to describe the nature of the Supreme Reality (Brahman) for the edification of mankind. But they admit to having failed to fathom the glory of the Almighty, and often depict Him in contradictory terms to drive home His transcendence. The Taittiriya Upanishad, for instance, declares, “When words return along with the mind, not attaining it...” to show that knowledge of Brahman transcends the mind and hence an intuitive experience beyond the realm of the senses and the intellect.

In his hymn Tirucchanda Viruttam, Tirumazhisai Azhwar uses paradoxical terms to highlight the fact that it is not possible describe the Supreme Being: “The sweet delight of Vedic chants, the substance of the Vedas too; the radiance beyond the word are all Thy manifestations. The great creator, lotus-born, the four-faced Brahma too can hardly speak a word or two in praise of all Thy glory!” Lest such descriptions made one think that knowledge of the Absolute was beyond one’s grasp, scriptural texts and mystics like the Azhwars hastened to clarify that spiritual knowledge (Atmavidya) could be easily grasped by the Lord’s bountiful grace, said Sri M.V.Anantapadmanabhachariar in his discourse.

Spiritual knowledge can be gained by the systematic study of the scriptures and they give prescriptions for spiritual progress. Besides such formal study, there are also many anecdotes related in tradition to give spiritual instructions. One such story is about a sage who visited the king of the land and he took upon himself the menial duty of announcing the time every hour during the night by striking a gong much to the king’s consternation for he wanted to lavish his hospitality on such an honoured guest. The intention of the saint became clear when after every hour the saint cautioned the citizens to be on guard, not against robbers who would loot their wealth but the lurking thieves within which drag one into the vortex of worldly bondage. First he told them to be wary of desire, anger and greed; next he cautioned that worldly life was one of sorrow to remind that human birth was very difficult to obtain and hence it should not be wasted in material pursuits.

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