Gita Rahasya -Tilak 312

Gita Rahasya -Tilak

CHAPTER X THE EFFECT OF KARMA AND FREEDOM OF WILL Therefore, Jaimini has made a collection of explanatory rules for bringing about harmony between these mutually contradictory ritualistic directions. The rules laid down by Jaimini are known as 'Mimamsa-Sutras' or the 'Purva-Mimamsa'; and, therefore, the ancient Karma-kanda came later on to acquire the name of the 'Mimamsaka-marga'; and, as that name is still in vogue v I have made use of it on various occasions in this book. But, it must be remembered that though the word 'mimamsa' came into vogue only in later times, this Karma-marga of sacrificial ritual has been current from very ancient times. The word 'mimamsa' occurs nowhere in the Gita, and that is why wa find in it the words 'trayi dharmi" , or, 'trayi-vidya' instead, Aranyakas and Upanisads are vedic treatises, later in point of time than the Brahmanas, which describe the sacrificial ritual laid down by the Srutis. As these. treatises maintain that sacrificial ritual is inferior, and that the Knowledge of the Brahman is superior, the religion described in these later works is known as 'Jnana-kanda'. Yet, as the different Upanisads contain different ideas, it was also necessary to harmonise them. This has been done by Badarayanacarya in his Vedanta-Sutras, which are also known as the Brahma-Sutras, or the Sarira-Sutras or the Uttara-Mimamsa. In this way, the Purva-Mimamsa and the Uttara-Mimamsa are at present the two treatises which deal with the Karma-kanda and the Jnana- kanda respectively. Strictly speaking, both these works funda- mentally discuss the meanings of Vedic expressions, that is to say, of the Mimamsa ; yet, it is usual to refer to the followers of the Karma-kanda as 'Mimamsakas', and to the followers of the Jnana-kanda as 'Vedantins'. The followers of the Karma- kanda! that is to say, the Mimamsakas say that the observance of the four months, and of the sacrificial ritual, such as, the Jyotistoma-yajna, etc. are the important doctrines of the Sruti religion; and that according to the Vedas, he alone will acquire Release who performs that Karma, Whoever he may be, he must not give up this sacrificial Karma; and if he does so, he must be taken to have abandoned the Sruti religion; because, the Vedic sacrificial ritual was created at the same time as the Universe, and the virtuous circle of men performing it and pleasing the deities, and the deities in return producing rain and the other things needed by men, has been going on from times immemorial.