Adhikarana IX — The Nirapeksha devotee

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35. And the scripture shows (that a Parinishthita devotee) is not overpowered (by the faults of not performing the acts of his Ashrama, when immersed in the meditation of the Lord). — 464.

In the Brihadaranyaka Upanishad, IV., 4. 23, it is thus said:

Evil does not overcome him, he overcomes all evil. Evil does not burn him, he burns all evil. Free from evil, free from spots, free from doubt, he becomes a (true) Brahmana; this is the Brahma-world, O King! thou hast attained it, thus spoke Yajnavalkya.

This text of Brihadaranyaka Upanishad declares that a Parinishthita devotee is not overpowered by the evils caused by the non- performance of the duties appropriate to one’s own Ashrama, if such omission is due to being absorbed in the hearing the praises of the Lord, etc. Therefore, it follows, that the worship of the Lord, hearing His praises, sinking Hymns to His honour, etc., have preference over ritualistic Pujas.

In the previous portion under Sutra III., 4. 2, the Purvapakshin, Jaimini, raised an objection to the effect that one should never abandon Karmas, and he quoted the Vishnu Purana to the effect that Vishnu was the highest person and that the best method of propitiating Him was by the due discharge of the duties of one’s own Ashrama. That verse is repeated here.

Vishnu, the Highest Person, should be worshipped by a man who is devoted to the duties of his caste and order. There is no other way which can cause His satisfaction.

That verse does not mean that the Lord Vishnu requires a man to perform the duties of one’s own Ashrama to the exclusion of worshipping Him. On the contrary, it means, that a person leading a household life and following the rules of good conduct laid down for his caste and Ashrama, must worship also the Lord, because such worship is the cause of satisfaction of the Lord. It does not mean that Karma is the cause of satisfaction, but worship. The emphasis in that verse is not on the words «the man devoted to the duties of his caste and Ashrama», but on the word «Aradhyate» («should be worshipped»).

That this is the proper meaning of that verse, we find from a preceding passage of the same Purana. In II., 13, verses 7-11, we find the following description of the God-immersed King Bharata:

7. O Maitreya! that mighty King, with mind fixed on the Lord, dwelt for a long time in Shalagrama.

8. That best of all the virtuous men obtained great excellence in virtues like those of harmlessness and the rest, and in controlling his mind.

9. He always used to recite the names of the Lord, such as O Yajnesha (Lord of sacrifice)! O Achyuta (immutable)! O Govinda! O Madhava! O Ananta (endless)! O Keshava! O Krishna! O Vishnu! O Hrishikesha!

10. O Maitreya ! he did not utter even in his sleep, any name but that of the Lord. He did not think on anything but on the Lord, and the attributes of the Lord, and the meaning of His names.

11. That Yogi and ascetic King, free from attachment, did not perform any ritualistic Karmas except bringing fuel (for sacrifice), plucking flowers and Kusha, for offering to the Lord.

These verses of the Vishnu Purana show that the King Bharata was so absorbed in the worship of the Lord that he did not perform any ritualistic Karmas. Consequently, when in the same Purana we find a statement in III., 8. 9, that Vishnu is worshipped best by that man who discharges the duties of his caste and order, we must construe that verse in consonance with the preceding verses of the same Purana. Thus it is established that a Parinishthita need not perform the duties of his Ashrama and Varna, if he cannot find time for them owing to his being employed in the worship of the Lord. For the Lord Himself says that if His Bhaktas omit to perform ritualistic Karmas they incur no guilt in the Padma and the Adi Puranas it is thus said:

If men devoted to me and doing my work, omit to do the ritualistic work, that omission is rectified by the three hundred millions of great Rishis.

Those who renouncing all other Karmas, constantly recite My name, their ritualistic work is done hy (by?) great Rishis devoted to the Lord.

Having thus shown the effect of Vidya with regard to the devotees who lead a household life, and having also shown that they may, after the rise of Vidya, perform Karmas at their option, the author now shows the same two facts with regard to those devotees who are not householders, who are not in any Ashrama, and who are called the Nirapeksha. In the Brihadaranyaka Upanishad we find the account of a great female sage called Gargi Vachaknavi who was a knower of Brahman, but who was not a householder, for she was an unmarried lady. In the Brihadaranyaka Upanishad we find (III., 8. 1) Gargi asking the following question from Yajnavalkya:

Then Vachaknavi said: ‘Venerable Brahmanas, I shall ask him two questions. If he will answer them, none of you, I think, will defeat him in any argument concerning Brahman’. Yajnavalkya said:

Doubt: Now Gargi was a person who was in no Ashrama, and still find her examining Yajnavalkya. The question then arises, can Vidya be acquired without following any particular Ashrama?

Purvapaksha: Vidya cannot be acquired without following any particular Ashrama, because the due discharge of the duties prescribed for a particular Ashrama, is the cause of the origination of Vidya; and if a person has no Ashrama, he cannot discharge any duties, and how can Vidya arise in such a person?

Siddhanta: The nest Sutra answers this doubt.

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