जय जय शङ्कर हर हर शङ्कर॥
(jaya jaya śaṅkara hara hara śaṅkara॥
)
श्री गुरुभ्यो नमः (śrī gurubhyo namaḥ - salutations to the guru)
Today is the sacred महा अवतार जयन्ति (mahā avatāra jayanti - sacred incarnation anniversary) of His Holiness जगत् गुरु श्री आदि शंकराचार्य भगवर्पाद (jagat guru śrī ādi śaṁkarācārya bhagavarpāda). He is one of the noblest of saintly gurus who walked on earth. He is aptly respected as the जगत् गुरु (jagat guru - universal preceptor) because of his unparalleled contribution to universal religio-spiritual heritage. To quote Swami Vivekananda “India has to live, and the spirit of the Lords descended again. He who declared, "I will come whenever virtue subsides", came again, and this time the manifestation was in the South, and up rose that young brahmin of whom it has been declared that at the age of sixteen he had completed all his writings; the marvelous boy Shankaracharya arose. The writings of this boy of sixteen are the wonders of the modern world, and so was the boy. He wanted to bring back the Indian world to its pristine purity, but think of the amount of the task before him…. The greatest teacher of the Vedanta philosophy was Shankaracharya. By solid reasoning he extracted from the Vedas the truths of Vedanta, and on them built up the wonderful system of Jnana that is taught in his commentaries. He unified all the conflicting descriptions of Brahman and showed that there is only one Infinite Reality. He showed too that as man can only travel slowly on the upward road, all the varied presentations are needed to suit his varying capacity."
On this sacred day, I am reminded of the following verses often quoted by the Holy Sage of Kanchi, His Holiness ஸ்ரீ மஹா பெரியவா (sri mahaa periyavaa)
शास्त्रं शरीर मीमांसा देवस्तु परमेश्वरः।
आचार्यः शङ्कराचार्यः सन्थु मे जन्मानि जन्मानि॥
(
śāstraṁ śarīra mīmāṁsā devastu parameśvaraḥ|
ācāryaḥ śaṅkarācāryaḥ santhu me janmāni janmāni||
If, in every future birth, the sheer anchor of my faith and understanding is the religion of the Upamshads, If the God I worship is Parameshvara Himself, if the Guru who wil be my refuge is Sri Sankaracharya, it does not matter how many births I am to take. May these three be granted to me life after Life.
)
Yes, श्री आदि शंक्राचार्य (śrī ādi śaṁkrācārya) was one of the earliest pioneers in उत्तर मीमांस महा वेदान्त दर्शन (uttara mīmāṁsa mahā vedānta darśana) who gifted us with the philosophical treasure-house viz. केवल अद्वैत महा दर्शन (kevala advaita mahā darśana - supreme revelation of the absolute non-dualistic philosophy) very emphatically establishing that the सत्चितानन्द परब्रह्मन् (satcitānanda parabrahman – Omnipresent- Omniscient -Omnipotent Absolute Divinity) is the one and only नित्य कैवल्य सत्य (nitya kaivalya satya - eternal absolute reality). In other words, God is the ultimate all-inclusive reality. To borrow Swami Vivekananda's famous verses - "Each soul is potentially divine" and "Religion is the manifestation of (this potential) divinity already in man." Thus, श्री आदि शंक्राचार्य (śrī ādi śaṁkrācārya) established the inherent divinity in all phenomenal manifestation reflecting the wisdom of the महा वाक्य (mahā vākya - supreme declaration), as revealed in the Vedic Corpus
- तत् त्वम् असि (tat tvam asi - thou art that)
- अयम् आत्मा ब्रह्म (ayam ātmā brahma - this self is God)
- अहं ब्रह्मास्मि (ahaṁ brahmāsmi - I am Divine)
- प्रज्ञानम् ब्रह्म (prajñānam brahma – God is absolute wisdom)
In fact, in the small treatise वाक्य वृत्तिः (vākya vṛttiḥ), the आचार्य (ācārya - preceptor) preaches the spiritual significance of महा वाक्य (mahā vākya - supreme declarations) especially on तत् त्वम् असि (tat tvam asi - thou art that) & अहं ब्रह्मास्मि (ahaṁ brahmāsmi - I am Divine)
In a nutshell, श्री आदि शंक्राचार्य (śrī ādi śaṁkrācārya) helped drive home the spiritual message of Universal Divinity irrespective one’s caste, creed, religion, nationality etc. The following verses from his मनिषा पञ्चकम् (maniṣā pañcakam – five fold considerations) very clearly highlights his universal non-dualistic outlook.
जाग्रत्स्वप्न सुषुप्तिषु स्फुटतरा या संविदुज्जृम्भते
या ब्रह्मादि पिपीलिकान्तथनुषु प्रोथा जगत् साक्षिणी।
सैवाहं न च दृश्य वस्त्विति दृढप्रज्ञाऽपि यस्य अस्ति चेत्
चण्डालोऽस्तु स तु द्विजोऽस्थु गुरुरित्यषा मनीषा मम॥
ब्रह्मैवाहमिदं जगच्च सकलं चिन्मात्र विस्तारितं
सर्वं चैतदविद्यया त्रिगुनयाऽशेषं मया कल्पितम्।
इत्थं यस्य दृढा मतिः सुखतरे नित्ये परे निर्मले
चण्डालोऽस्तु सतु द्विजोऽस्तु गुरुरित्यषा मनीशा मम॥
(
jāgratsvapna suṣuptiṣu sphuṭatarā yā saṁvidujjṛmbhate
yā brahmādi pipīlikāntathanuṣu prothā jagat sākṣiṇī|
saivāhaṁ na ca dṛśya vastviti dṛḍhaprajñā'pi yasya asti cet
caṇḍālo'stu sa tu dvijo'sthu gurur ityaeṣā manīṣā mama||
Oh! Let’s learn that the indwelling (pratyag) atman is distinctly shining with in all the three states; namely the wakeful, the dreaming and the deep sleep states. It is the invisible thread embedded in us and it is the witness with in all from the Creator up to the tiny ant. It is not a cognizable object in spite of any amount of material intelligence. It is very much the same in one and all irrespective of any caste, creed or kind! My firm understanding is that the great one who inculcates this concept is the real preceptor.
I am none other than a part and parcel of the Brahman (The Absolute). I am dwelling on the pure and infinite Brahman and I am the very Brahman. This universe is glittering with infinite glow by the power of the chaitanya or unlimited sentient energy of the Absolute. Apparently the universe is assumed (by us) to consist of diverse and different things, due to (our) ignorance (avidya or nescience) borne out of the three gunas (Sattva, Rajas and Tamas). He who firmly believes with perfect understanding of this unity in diversity, for me, he is the adorable great Master, irrespective of whether he is a Brahmin or an outcaste. This is my perfect understanding.
)
Moreover, according to श्री आदि शंक्राचार्य (śrī ādi śaṁkrācārya), it is our अविद्या (avidya -ignorance) that hides our Divine potential and limits us to the confines of अहंकार (ahaṁkāra - self arrogation) leading to the disparities between अहं (ahaṁ - self / subject) & इदं (idaṁ - non-self / object).
In my humble opinion, श्री आदि शंक्राचार्य (śrī ādi śaṁkrācārya) is truly a जगत् गुरु (jagat guru - universal preceptor) in this sense as well. He helped us realize that all kinds of disparities are temporary and unity is the permanent reality. With the dawn of spiritual enlightenment (wisdom), differences across all phenomenal manifestations across the world can potentially be integrated into the कैवल्य अद्वैत एकत्वम् (kaivalya advaita ekatvam - absolute non dual singularity). Interestingly, recent discoveries in modern physics also echoes a similar concept of absolute cosmic singularity.
Of course his contribution to spirituality does not end here. He is also one of the greatest pan-Indian holistic synthesizers of heterogeneous theological / philosophical schools viz. वैदीक (vaidīka - vedic), तान्त्रिक (tāntrika - tantrik), आगम (āgama - agamic), पुराण (purāṇa - mythological) etc. into a homogeneous system of Hindu philosophy. He also wisely incorporated the learning and best practices from योग (yoga), सांक्य (sāṁkya), वैशेषिक (vaiśeṣika), न्याय (nyāya), पूर्व मीमांस (pūrva mīmāṁsa), उत्तर मीमांस (uttara mīmāṁsa), as well as ,help in a two way wisdom adoption with (both from & to) other popular heterodox religions of his times - Buddhism, Jainism etc., into mainstream Hinduism. To quote Dr. Sarvepalli S Radhakrishnan, "Sankara present to us the true ideal of philosophy, which is not so much knowledge as wisdom, not so much logical learning as spiritual freedom. For Sankara, as for some of the greatest thinkers of the world like Plato and Plotinus, Spinoza and Hegel, Philosophy is the austere vision of eternal truth, majestic in its freedom from the petty cares of man's paltry life. Through the massive and at the same time subtle dialectic of Sankara there shows forth a vivid, emotional temperament, without which philosophy tends to become a mere game of logic. A master of the strictest logic, he is also master of a noble and animated poetry which belongs to another order. The rays of his genius have illumined the dark places of thought and soothed the sorrows of the most forlorn heart. While his philosophy fortifies and consoles many, there are, of course, those to whom it seems to be an abyss of contradiction and darkness. But whether we agree or differ, the penetrating light of his mind never leaves us where we were....Sankara appeared, at one and the same time, as an eager champion of the orthodox faith and a spiritual reformer. He tried to bring back the age from the brilliant luxury of the Puranas to the mystic truth of the Upanishads. The power of the faith to lead the soul to the higher life became for him the test of its strength. He felt impelled to attempt the spiritual direction of his age by formulating a philosophy and religion which could satisfy the ethical and spiritual needs of the people".
He also helped in consolidating the huge corpus of Vedic scriptures and streamlining their underlying philosophic essence by writing भाश्य (bhāśya - commentaries) on the प्रस्थान त्रयी (prasthāna trayī – triple sources) of orthodox Hindu scriptures viz.
- दसोपनिषद् (dasopaniṣad) as the उपदेश श्रुति प्रस्थान (upadeśa śruti prasthāna – injunctive revelatory sources)
- ब्रह्म सूत्र (brahma sūtra) as the न्याय युक्ति प्रस्थान (nyāya yukti prasthāna – deliberative / logical instrument sources) &
- श्रीमद् भगवद्गीता (śrīmad bhagavadgītā) as the साधन प्रस्थान (sādhana prasthāna – procedural / practitioner sources) respectively.
Again, through his दिग्विजय यात्र (digvijaya yātra – pilgrimage to conquer the four directions) by travelling across the length and breadth of भारतव्रश (bhāratavraśa – Indian sub-continent) including the four directional corners of India viz. चार् धाम् (cār dhām – four abodes). Eventually, he is known to have established आम्नाय विद्यामठ (āmnāya vidyāmaṭha – traditional / orthodox monastic schools) across India. He then formally designated chosen four of his principle disciples, entrusting them the responsibility of heading and manage these establishments.
- गोवर्धन पिठं (govardhana piṭhaṁ) as the पूर्व आम्नाय (pūrva āmnāya – eastern tradition) at जगन्नाथ् पूरि (jagannāth pūri) in Orissa headed by आचार्य पद्मपाद (ācārya padmapāda) as its first प्रथम पीठाधिपति (prathama pīṭhādhipati – first chairperson)
- श्री शारदा पीठं (śrī śāradā pīṭhaṁ) as the दक्षिन आम्नाय (dakṣina āmnāya – southern tradition) at शृङ्गेरी śṛṅgerī) in Karnataka, headed by सुरेश्वराचार्य (sureśvarācārya) as its first प्रथम पीठाधिपति (prathama pīṭhādhipati – first chairperson).
- द्वारक पीठं (dvāraka pīṭhaṁ) as the पश्चिम आम्नाय (paścima āmnāya – western tradition) at द्वारक dvāraka) in Gujarat, headed by हस्तामलकाचार्य (hastāmalakācārya) as its first प्रथम पीठाधिपति (prathama pīṭhādhipati – first chairperson)
- ज्योतिर्मठ्पीठं (jyotirmaṭh pīṭhaṁ) as the उत्तर आम्नाय (uttara āmnāya – northern tradition) in Uttarkhand headed by तोटकाचार्य (toṭakācārya) as its first प्रथम पीठाधिपति (prathama pīṭhādhipati – first chairperson.
By establishing these monastic orders श्री आदि शंक्राचार्य (śrī ādi śaṁkrācārya) also played a pivotal role in integrating the pan Indian cultural belief systems across Hindus into common identity as one religion - Hinduism. Thus, in terms of theological contribution he plays the unparalleled role of analyzing the inherent polytheistic nature of Hindu DNA and formally consolidating the most popular theologies into an integrated into षण्मत देवत संप्र्दाय(ṣaṇmata devata saṁprdāya - sixfold theological deity tradition) viz. शैवं (śaivaṁ), शाक्तं (śāktaṁ), कौमारं / स्कन्दं (kaumāraṁ / skandaṁ), गणपत्यं / वैनायकं (gaṇapatyaṁ / vaināyakaṁ),वैष्णवं (vaiṣṇavaṁ) & सौरं (sauraṁ) thereby establishing the स्मार्त संप्र्दाय (smārta saṁprdāya) and paving the way for inter-faith harmony and removing theological sectarian disputes within Hinduism. In fact, he is rightly eulogized as निखिलपाषण्डषण्डकण्टकोत्पाटनेन विशदिकृत्वेदवेदान्तमार्गषण्मतप्रतिष्टाप्काचार्याः। (nikhilapāṣaṇḍaṣaṇḍakaṇṭakotpāṭanena viśadikṛtvedavedāntamārgaṣaṇmatapratiṣṭāpkācāryāḥ|)
In simple words, he established that the one and only निर्गुण परब्रह्म (nirguṇa parabrahma) as the सगुण परमेश्वर (saguṇa parameśvara) reveals Himself in multiple theological नाम (nāma - name), रूप (rūpa - form), कल्याण गुण (kalyāṇa guṇa – auspicious qualities) & पुराण (purāṇa - mythology)
His own life and works serve as the greatest testimony to his non-sectarian & truly secular theological ideology. For example in his devotional mystical renderings he has impartially worshiped and eulogized all the principle deities listed above. He eulogized महा विष्णु (mahā viṣṇu) through his famous मोह मुद्गर (moha mudgara) - more popularly identified by its opening verses भज गोविन्दम् (bhaja govindam - chant Govinda)", wherein, he refers to the same परब्रह्म (parabrahma – supreme divinity) that he glorifies as "परमशिव (paramaśiva)" in शिवानन्द लहरी (śivānanda laharī) which in turn is the same परब्रह्म (parabrahma – supreme divinity), now glorified as "पराशक्ति (parāśakti)" in सौन्दर्य लहरी (saundarya laharī) and as "षण्मुख (ṣaṇmukha)" in his श्री सुब्रमण्य भुजङ्गम् (śrī subramaṇya bhujaṅgam). This is another feather in his cap and that is why he is adored as
निखिलपाषण्डषण्डकण्टकोत्पाटनेन विशदिकृदवेदवेदान्तमार्गषण्मतप्रतिष्टापकचार्याः।
(nikhilapāṣaṇḍaṣaṇḍakaṇṭakotpāṭanena viśadikṛdavedavedāntamārgaṣaṇmatapratiṣṭāpakacāryāḥ|-
one who swept of the thorns that encumbered the various forms of worship of the six manifestations of God).
Moreover in my humble opinion, he also deserves to be called as the Father figure playing the role of the original seed of पवित्र वटवृक्ष वेदान्त दर्शनस्य (pavitra vaṭavṛkṣa vedānta darśanasya - Holy Banyantree of final philosophical wisdom) from which all other branches and even other genetically mutated Vedantic seeds evolved eventually, just as one biological species evolves from another species eventually. For example, the sacred विशिष्टाद्वैत दर्शन (viśiṣṭādvaita darśana - doctrine of qualified nonduality) of श्री रामानुजाचार्य (śrī rāmānujācārya) & द्वैत दर्शन (dvaita darśana - doctrine of duality) are but honorable examples of such philosophical evolution. Although there could be many ideological differences between these schools and the one of Shankara, yet he has laid the common foundation stone.
We can compare this with the evolution of modern physics wherein the contribution of one scientists leads to the other. For example, Sir Isaac Newton's revolutionary theories on the laws of mechanics and gravity are his humble learning and respectful deviations from the works of his predecessors like Aristotle, Rene Descartes, Galileo Galilee, and Johannes Kepler etc... In fact, Newton himself acknowledges this when he humbly admits “I have seen farther other men, it is because I have stood on the shoulders of giants” Similarly, Albert Einstein made his astounding discoveries of Relativistic physics standing on the shoulders of Newton.
You might argue that these schools are fundamentally contradicting with each other as one talks about monism, while other qualified monism and the third complete duality. How can we say they have a common ground? Well if you think deeply u can find the common thread tying all these doctrines together. Of course one may have to deep dive into their philosophies to see the common truth underlying the apparent differences. Here is my two cents for you.
श्री आदि शंक्राचार्य (śrī ādi śaṁkrācārya) very carefully worded his school of philosophy as अद्वैत दर्शन (advaita darśana - non-dualistic philosophy) and not as एकत्व दर्शन (ekatva darśana - monistic philosophy). In other words, द्वैत (dvaita - duality) is hidden parameter in the philosophy of अद्वैत (advaita - nonduality) disguised as the अनिर्वचनीय माया (anirvacanīya māyā – ineffable /indeterminable mystery) and hence द्वैत (dvaita - duality) and विशिष्टाद्वैत (viśiṣṭādvaita - qualified non duality) are potentially derivable from it. This is a very important point for us to understand and appreciate the genius in श्री आदि शंक्राचार्य (śrī ādi śaṁkrācārya).
Thus, on this eventful day of his महा अवतार जयन्ति (mahā avatāra jayanti - sacred incarnation anniversary) I feel blessed in contemplating on his life and contribution to spirituality I offer my humble salutations at his holy feet recollecting the golden verses
श्रुति स्मृति पुराणानां आलयं करुणालयं।
णमामि भगवत्पादं शन्करं लोक शन्करं।
ष्रिमछन्कर भगवद्पाद सद्गुरुभ्यो नमः॥
(
śruti smṛti purāṇānāṁ ālayaṁ karuṇālayaṁ|
ṇamāmi bhagavatpādaṁ śankaraṁ loka śankaraṁ|
ṣrimachankara bhagavadpāda sadgurubhyo namaḥ||
I Salute Shankara Bhagavat Pada,
the bestower of blessedness on the world,
the repository of all the wisdom that is contained in the sacred texts,
and the incarnation of grace.
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