Verse 8
काते कान्ता कस्ते पुत्रः
संसारोऽयमतीव विचित्रः ।
कस्य त्वं कः कुत आयातः
तत्त्वं चिन्तय तदिह भ्रातः ॥
• Kaate Kantha – where did your wife come from
• Kasthe Putra – who is your son?
• Samsaro yam theeva – this samsara
• Vichitra – is strange
• Kasya – from
• Tvam – you
• Ka krutam – have
• Aayath – come
• Tattvam chintaya – think about this tattvam
• Tadahi braatha – please brother.
• Kaantha means beloved. Kanthi means lustre, brilliance. Amman name is kanthimathi Amman. Kaantham also means attraction. Who can be beloved for husband? Wife or husband.
• Kaate kaantha? Who is your wife? How long have you been living with her? One day or other we cannot be together? Did you know her before your birth? Did you miss her before you were born? Did you know her? It is part of time, and to exhaust her prarabdha and yourself, you joined together, travel together and then depart. It is just like a bus where you travel and people get down.
• Kasthe putra? Shastram does not say that you should ignore your children, but have concern, do your duty but don’t get attached to anything. Commitment is a must which should be based on their commitment to dharma. That’s why we call a wife a saha dharmini. Be together in order to learn how to be without. One’s commitment to dharma will only protect a person.
• Ayam samsara vichitra – this samsara itself is vichitra. You don’t know why you were born, why you got married, why you have this children? No. We do not know any of these reasons, yet we continue to live helplessly and don’t have to choice. I just have to accept what is there as I cannot change anything. If I try, I might be successful or not, that itself is not sure.
• Kasya tvam? Who do you belong to? You were only born through them but not of them. They did not have a choice about giving birth to you.
Verse 9
सत्सङ्गत्वे निस्सङ्गत्वं
निस्सङ्गत्वे निर्मोहत्वम् ।
निर्मोहत्वे निश्चलतत्त्वं
निश्चलतत्त्वे जीवन्मुक्तिः ॥ ९॥
From satsanga, company of good people, comes non-attachment, from non-attachment comes freedom from delusion, which leads to self-settledness. From self-settledness comes Jivan mukti
• Satsangatve – when you join likeminded people who are interested in knowing the truth
• Nissangatve – then you grow out of the attachment from worldly pleasures
• Nirmohatvam – Because of this you become free from moham or longing, craving
• Nischalatvam – then your mind becomes steady and does not wander
• Nishcalitve – once you attain steadiness
• Jeevan mukti – you attain jeevan mukti
The word ‘Sat’ means that which is real or there is truth that exists eternally. Brahman or consciousness is the only truth and the rest are ‘asath’. Here Adi Sankara says that when you develop bondage with like-minded people who are seekers of spiritual knowledge or ‘sangath’ or association. Tvam means you and hence the word ‘satsang tvam’ means your association with like-minded people who are interested in knowing the truth or spiritual realization.
Nis-sangatvam means the opposite where you get disconnected with other groups due to your involvement or pursuit of knowledge. There is only limited time and when your seeking shifts from outside joy or finding happiness from external objects to finding happiness in the understanding of the truth of yourself then naturally you have to let go something. This is what is said here. Because of this dis-association you move away from ‘moha’ or craving for happiness when you get the vision that you are happiness personified. Nir-mohatvam means you slowly get less and less craving for happiness from external objects.
Naturally when your craving stops or you are able to manage it, your mind becomes calm. ‘Chala’ means that which wanders and here the mind is said to be the wanderer. Nis-Chala-tvam means your mind stops wandering as you are not fuelling the thoughts any more that fans other desires. Now your mind is focussed and hence less distractions.
When your mind becomes steady, your resolution is firm (nischaya) and your path is clear. Because of this vision now being clear to you, you get ‘jivan mukti’ which is liberation in this janma itself while you are alive. You don’t need to get krama mukti where a person passes away while the seeking is there and the study is incomplete. So it is fairly easy to get this provided you have a guru or a teacher who gives this vision to you, you put in efforts and commitment to get this knowledge and pursue this till your end.