Gita Rahasya -Tilak
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CHAPTER I
INTRODUCTORY
As Ramanujacarya belonged to the Bhagavata religion, he ought to have naturally realised that the Gita enunciated the Energistic path of Karma-Yoga. But as at the date of Jlainauujacarya, the Karma-Yoga of the original Bhagavata religion had practically come to an end it had acquired a Qualified-Monistic ( visistadvaita ) form in its philosophical aspect, and principally a Devotional form from the point of view of the mode of life, Ramanujacarya drew the further conclusions that although jnana, karma and bhakti (Devotion) are all three referred to in the Gita, yet the doctrine enunciated in the Gita is in essence Qualified-Monistic from the point of view of philosophy, and of Devotion to the Vasudeva from the point of view of mode of life; and that the Path of Action ( karma-nistha ) was something which led to Path of knowledge (jnana-nistha) and was not something indepen- dent [1]. But although Ramanuja- carya had effected a change in the cult of Samkara by substituting the Qualified-Monism for Non-Duality and Devotion for Renunciation, yet if Devotion is looked upon as the highest duty of man from the point of view of mode of life,, then the lifelong performance of the worldly duties pertaining to one's particular status, becomes an inferior mode of life ; and on that account the interpretation put on the Gita by Ramanujacarya must also be looked upon as in a way in favour of Renunciation of Action. Because, when once the mind has become purified as a result of an Energistic mode of life, and man has attained Realisation ( jnana), whether he, thereafter, adopts the fourth stage of life and remains steeped in the contemplation of the Brahman or he is steeped in the unbounded loving worship of the Vasudeva is just the same- from the point of view of Action (karma) ; that is to say, both are Renunciatory. And the same objection applies to the other cults which came into existence after the date of Ramanuja- carya. Although Ramanujacarya may have been right in. saying that the theory of the Non-Reality of Illusion is wrong and that one ultimately attains Release only by devotion to the Vasudeva, yet looking upon the Parabrahman and the Conscious Ego (jiva ) as ONE in one way, and different in other ways is a contradiction in terms and an inconsistency. Therefore, a third school which came into existence after the date of Sri Ramanujacarya, is of the opinion, that both must be looked upon as eternally different from each other and that there never can be any unity between them, whether partial or total, and therefore, this school is known as the Dualistc school. The protagonist of this school was Sri Madhvacarya, alias Srimadanandatirtha. He died in Saka 1120 ( 1198 A.D. ) and according to the Madhva school, he was then 79 years old. But Dr. Bhandarkar has in the English Book "Vaisnavism, Saivism, and other sects" recently published by him, established on the authority of stone inscriptions and other books [2]that Madhvacarya must ha taken to have lived from Saka 1119 to 1198 [3]. Madhvacarya has shown in his commentaries on the Prasthana-trayl (which includes the Gita) that all these sacred books are in favour of the theory of Duality. In his commentary on the Gita, he says that although Desireless Action has been extolled in the Gita, yet Desireless Action is only a means and Devotion is the true and ultimate cult, and that when once one has become perfect by following the Path of Devotion, whether one thereafter performs or does not perform Action is just the same. |
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