Shankara Period

Health and Happiness - Dr Dwarakanath

Adi Shankara in his own exponential way treads the troubled waters with ease. Shankara outlined the problems of human’s path to realization and also gave the solution to it. Shankara says that the company of the good weans one away from false attachments; from non-attachment comes freedom from delusion, when the delusion ends, the mind becomes unwavering. From an unwavering and steady mind comes Jeevan mukti (liberation even in this life). It is very clear from what has been said so far that to live in attachment is, certainly, an ill rewarding existence. To waste one's life in lust is definitely dissipating oneself in all faculties. We have to withdraw from all such activities and spend the energy so conserved in seeking and serving god. The best, easiest and the only way for such a conduct is to associate our self with good and enlightened. This provides occasion for us to practice withdrawal from desire and attachment. As desires and attachments become less and less, the delusion diminishes and calmness and equanimity descends upon us. As we have understood from the earlier commentaries, desire and delusion wrap the mind and cloud the perception, obstructing the power to discriminate between the good and the bad, between the lofty and the low. Desire and attachment are the cause of delusion and delusion leads to confusion. As the mind ceases to agitate, internal purity ensues. At this stage, one reaches the state of equilibrium and enjoys divine peace. It is a step by step struggle like the elements of good slowly occupies the place vacated by the elements of bad and evil thoughts, as we occupy our self in satsang. So, we must always cherish the company of the devotees of God to attain salvation at the end.
 

More than 300 works—commentary, expository, and poetical—written in the Sanskrit, are attributed to Shankara. His masterpiece is the Brahma-sutra-bhashya, the commentary on the Brahma-sutra, which is a fundamental text of the Vedanta school. The commentary on the Mandukya-karika was also composed by Shankara himself. It is very probable that he is the author of the Yoga-sutra-bhashya-vivarana, the exposition of Vyasa’s commentary on the Yoga-sutra, a fundamental text of the Yoga school. Long live the works of Shankara.

We are coming to the conclusion of my perception and analysis of Shankara’s Bhajagovindham. It is said in Upanishads that it takes life after life for us to inch towards the Moksha- the realization. But the Upanishads were pre – Shankara period. Shankara like teachers, out of their love and compassion towards humanity have shown us a clear path for Moksha. The possibility for Moksha for us is brighter if we understand the meaning of life and the correct path to our destiny. Shankara’s other greater works will be analysed in future. I am waiting for my call, the next area of philosophy to analyse. As always when it is time the topic appears in the mind, we just have to be aware for the signs appearing and tread the path towards ‘Happiness’. Let us meet next week with a new area of analysis. 

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