Thus Spake the Divine - He is Graceful to Come Forward Towards Us

Thus Spake the Divine

He is Graceful to Come Forward Towards Us

In this chapter, Poojyasri Maha Periyava substantiates the magnificent compassion of Brahmam using water as a metaphor.

When the ocean is motionless and devoid of any up and down movements of waves, and when there is a blow of wind, the droplets at the surface will appear as bubbles. These bubbles breakdown when there is another blow of wind. Paramatma is like the motionless ocean. Wind being Maya, we, human beings (Jeevatma), are the bubbles. When the grace of Acharya blows over us as a gentle breeze, just as bubbles break and droplets merge with the ocean, we also completely unify with the Paramatma.

Water in the ocean never becomes any less in its magnitude; it always remains the same. The water evaporates from the ocean and pours onto the earth as rain, which runs as a river, stream, waterway, or accumulates in a lake, pond, well etc. Ocean never drains, nor does it flood. The river and the pond, which are born out of the ocean, might drain, or there could be floods flowing from them.

However, there is not one drop less of water, not even one grain of water is less in the ocean, as against the magnitude of water, which was present at the time of its creation in the beginning. Some rich people would sell their lands and purchase a house; would sell their house and deposit the sale proceeds in the bank; would buy shares from the cash in the bank. But with all this, the total property would not alter. Only the forms of property change. If you add all these, the account would tally. Similarly, the entire water on this earth should be either in the ocean, or it should transform in the form of clouds, or it should take the form of rivers, lakes and ponds.

Paramatma has appeared in several forms. But still, as the ocean’s magnitude remains the same, He also maintains status quo, neither growing nor diminishing in size. It is only to us that He appears as ‘more’ or ‘less’. But if we attain the wisdom that whatever that exists is only one, then nowhere will arise the question of addition or deletion.

When elucidating the connection between Paramatma and Jeevatma using water as a metaphor, there should be special mention about rivers. When water from the ocean transforms as rain and from this rain there also emerge the lake, pond, pool and well. Water from all these sources does not again merge with the ocean.

But all the rivers, which too are a creation of this rain, run in search of the ocean and merge into it.

In the North, there is a river called Sone. “Sonam” in Sanskrit means “red”. This river runs through the red sand. Krishna River flows in Andhra Pradesh. “Krishna” means black. This river flows through the black sand. “Ganga” represents white. This also represents the region through which the river Ganga runs. All the three rivers merge in the same ocean. “Red” signifies Rajo Gunam (passion and motion); “black” signifies Tamo Gunam (inertia and darkness), and “white” signifies Sattva Gunam (light, bliss and goodness). Whichever characteristic of the above three the mind chooses to pass through, the attributes of Jeevatma follow suit. Howsoever it is, it has to necessarily merge with the ocean of Paramatma.

There is a saying that “water finds its level”. From the mountain top, the rain pours and the river flows from that. From the top of the mountain, the river flows swiftly with a high decibel noise. When it flows through the land, it makes low decibel noise. Eventually when it merges with the ocean, there is absolutely no noise at all. That is the point at which the river reaches its own level, and once it reaches its level, it becomes absolutely serene. The ocean moves forward, welcomes the river and absorbs it. On its part, the river, after manoeuvring itself from the erstwhile tumbling and noisy flow, becomes serene. That’s why the water tastes salty even little ahead of the estuary where the river merges with the ocean. Similarly, the expansive ocean of Paramatma would also come forward and absorb us into Him if we totally surrender to Him with absolute humility.

This article is a snippet from the Book Thus Spake the Divine, is available online at www.giri.in & across Giri Trading Agency Private Limited, A chain of Speciality Stores dealing in all kinds of products needed in Indian Culture & Tradition.