MANIRATNA MALA

These are some of the questions and answers from the Maniratna Mala or the Prashnottar Mala which was written by Shri Adi Shankaracharya. These have been sourced from a book ‘Indian Saints and sages’ by Prof. Shrikant Prasoon published by Hindology Books.

Q	Who is a Slave?
A	He is a slave who indulges in physical pleasure.
Q	What is salvation?
A	Detachment from all physical longing is salvation.
Q	What is the worst hell?
A	Longing for body is the worst hell.
Q	What is heaven?
A	The state of no lust is heaven.
Q	What cuts of the worldly bondage?
A	Self-revelation according to the dictates of shruti cuts of the worldly bondage.
Q	What is the purpose of salvation?
A	The purpose of salvation is self-revelation.
Q	Where is the entrance to hell?
A	The entrance to hell is women and sex.
Q	How is heaven achieved?
A	Heaven is achieved only through non-violence; by saving and not killing other living beings.
Q	Who sleeps in peace?
A	He sleeps in peace who meditates on God.
Q	Who is awakened?
A	He is awakened who knows the good and the bad.
Q	Who are enemies?
A	Our own sense organs are enemies but if won over they turn to be friends.
Q	Who is a pauper?
A	He is a pauper who has uncontrolled lust.
Q	Who is rich?
A	He is rich who is fully contended.
Q	Though alive, who is dead?
A	He is dead who does not work.
Q	Who is living?
A	He is living who is aloof from physical pleasures.
Q	What strangles?
A	Fascination and ego strangles.
Q	What intoxicates like wine?
A	Women intoxicate like wine.
Q	Who is completely blind?
A	He is completely blind who has intense desire for sex.
Q	What is death?
A	Self-notoriety is death.
Q	Who is a preceptor (Guru)?
A	He is a preceptor who guides for betterment.
Q	Who is a disciple?
A	He is a disciple who is devoted to the preceptor.
Q	What is lasting disease?
A	The disease of worldly longing is a lasting disease.
Q	What is the panacea for it?
A	The sense of good and bad is the panacea for it.
Q	What is the best ornament among the ornaments?
A	Good character is the best ornament.
Q	What is the greatest pilgrimage?
A	One’s own pure mind is the greatest pilgrimage.
Q	What things should be despised at?
A	Gold and women should be despised at.
Q	What should one always listen to?
A	One should always listen to the teaching of the Guru and the Vedas.
Q	What are the ways of union with the Brahman?
A	Companionship of Saints; Charity; Thoughtfulness; and Contentment are the ways to get united with Brahman.
Q	Who is a Saint?
A	He is a Saint who is completely detached and is devoted to the Brahman as Shiva.
Q	What is fever in living beings?
A	Anxiety is fever in living beings.
Q	Who is a fool?
A	He is a fool who has lost his reasoning.
Q	With whom one should cultivate friendship?
A	One should cultivate friendship with a devotee of Lord Shiva.
Q	What is good life?
A	An error free life is a good life.
Q	What is knowledge?
A	That is knowledge that helps in getting united with the Brahman.
Q	What is wisdom?
A	That is wisdom that facilitates salvation.
Q	What is profit?
A	Self-revelation is profit.
Q	Who has won the world?
A	He has won the world who has won his mind.
Q	Who is the greatest warrior among the warrior?
A	He is the greatest warrior who is not affected by enticement of sex.
Q	Who has equanimity, patience and wisdom?
A	He has equanimity, patience and wisdom who is not enchanted by the winks of a coquette women.
Q	What is the poison of sensual earning?
A	All the sensuous elements are poison.
Q	Who is always aggrieved?
A	He is always aggrieved who is licentious and indulges in sensual pleasures.
Q	Who is lucky?
A	He is lucky who helps others.
Q	Who is respectable?
A	A devotee of Lord Shiva is respectable.
Q	What one should not do in all the circumstances?
A	One should not show lust for sensual pleasure and one should not commit sin in all the circumstances.
Q	What should the wise man do diligently?
A	The wise man should study scriptures and classics and perform religious deeds diligently.
Q	What is at the root of the Universe?
A	Anxiety is at the root of the Universe.
Q	Whom we should not accompany and with whom we should not leave?
A	We should not accompany or live with fools, sinful, wicked and malignant people.
Q	What should the person do immediately who wish to get salvation?
A	The person with a wish for salvation should be in the company of saints; be extremely cruel to longings and be totally devoted to god.
Q	What is the reason for poverty?
A	Asking from others is the reason for poverty.
Q	What is the root of importance?
A	The root of importance is non-asking from others.
Q	Whose life is ideal?
A	His life is ideal who won’t take birth again.
Q	Who is immortal?
A	He is immortal who does not die again.
Q	What is the worst enemy among the enemies?
A	Sex, Anger, Falsehood, Desire and lust are the worst enemies.
Q	Who is never satisfied even after excessive indulgence in sensual pleasure?
A	Desire never gets satisfied.
Q	What is the cause of pain?
A	Affection is the cause of pain.
Q	What a wise man should do when death is very close?
A	The wise man finding death very close should meditate on him who takes off the fear of death with complete devotion and dedication.
Q	What is the purpose of day and night?
A	The ephemeral quality of the world and the self like Shiva are the purpose of day and night.
Q	What are good deeds?
A	They are good deeds that Lord Krishna loves.
Q	In whom one should doubt?
A	One should doubt the oceanic world.
Q	What are the provisions for the journey?
A	Religion is the provision for the journey.
Q	Who is a scholar?
A	He is a scholar who has learning and reasoning.
Q	What is poison?
A	Insult to elders is poison.
Q	What is enchanting like wine?
A	Affection enchants like wine.
Q	Who is a robber?
A	The sensuous group is the robber.
Q	What is the creeper that lives on others?
A	Lust for sensuousness is the creeper that depends always on others.
Q	Who is an enemy?
A	Lack of endeavor is enemy.
Q	What is instable like drops of water on a lotus leaf?
A	Youth, wealth and Age are instable like the drops of water on lotus leaves.
Q	Who is as clean as the rays of moon?
A	The saints are as clean as the rays of moon.
Q	What is hell?
A	Slavery is hell.
Q	What is pleasure?
A	Renunciation of all companies is pleasure.
Q	What is truth?
A	Truth is that which helps the living beings.
Q	What does the living being love?
A	All living beings love life.
Q	What is real charity?
A	The charity without expectation is real charity.
Q	Who is a friend?
A	He is a friend that stops one from committing a sin.
Q	What is ornament?
A	Moral character is ornament.
Q	What is the ornament of speech?
A	Truth is the ornament of speech.
Q	What is destructive?
A	Pride is destructive.
Q	What gives pleasure?
A	The friendship of gentlemen gives pleasure.
Q	Who succeeds in destroying all bad habits?
A	He succeeds who has relinquished everything.
Q	Who is blind?
A	He is blind who has indulged in bad deeds.
Q	Who is deaf?
A	He is deaf who does not listen to good advice.
Q	Who is dumb?
A	He is dumb who does not speak sweetly at right time.
Q	What is deadly?
A	Foolishness is deadly.
Q	What is precious?
A	Charity at right time is precious.
Q	What pinches till the death?
A	Secret sins pinch till the death.
Q	Who is a Sage?
A	He is a Sage who has good moral character.
Q	Who is vile?
A	He is vile who has lost his character.
Q	Who is able to win the world?
A	He is able to win the world who speaks the truth and has tolerance and forgiveness.
Q	What is grievous and sorrowful?
A	Miserliness of wealthy is grievous and sorrowful.
Q	What is praiseworthy?
A	Benevolence is praiseworthy.
Q	Who is worthy of respect among the scholars?
A	He is worthy of respect among the scholars who is gentle by nature.
Q	What are the four gentle qualities that good men usually praise?
A	Charity with sweet words; Knowledge without pride; Valour with forgiveness; and Wealth with sacrifice are the four gentle qualities that good men usually praise.
Q	What should be the aim of day and night?
A	Chanting the hymns to God should be the aim of day and night.
Q	Who is blind with eyes?
A	The atheists are blind with eyes.
Q	Whom should all remember?
A	All should always remember the God.
Q	What should the wise man not say?
A	The wise man should not say scandalous and false things.
Q	How does one get salvation?
A	One gets salvation only through devotion to God.
Q	Who is God?
A	He is God that releases from ignorance.
Q	What is ignorance?
A	The inaction of soul is ignorance.
Q	Who is illusory?
A	God is illusory.
Q	What is magical?
A	The things of the world are magical.
Q	What is dream like?
A	The awakened actions are dream like.
Q	What is truth?
A	Brahman is the truth.
Q	Who is the God present before us?
A	Mother is the God present before us.
Q	Who is respectable and like teacher?
A	Father is respectable and like a teacher.
Q	What is like all the Gods?
A	The active and wise Brahmin is like all the Gods.
Q	What is the gain from devotion to god?
A	Realisation of God and union with him or getting his abode is the gain from devotion to God.
Q	What is salvation?
A	The annihilation of ignorance is salvation.
Q	What is most important in the Vedas?
A	Omkâr is the most important in the Vedas.

On Character

As a kid, one of the important lessons about life that was often taught to us was to build character. The word was never defined clearly and at best we were given examples from the Ramayana or the Aesop’s fables or fighters and martyrs of the freedom struggle to identify who a person of character was. I was never a smart kid and therefore such vague lessons in those days used to confuse me more. Had it not been for the interesting stories, the attempts of my school teachers would have gone down the drain because the stories left an everlasting impact on my impressionable mind that character is some sort of ideal state of mind to aim for.  

As an adolescent the word became more intriguing to me with regard to the vagaries of meanings and its spread in terms of permitted and not permitted behavioral norms. To tell a lie was still considered bad but a lie told with an intention to help another was accepted as good. To kill a man was also considered bad but to kill with an intention to save oneself or another was considered good. Overnight money became the focus of all activity which was never ever mentioned in our school texts. Most of my friends felt privileged to be admitted into an ordinary school but many parents were stressed about admission of their wards into privileged school which would ensure a bright i.e. rich future for them. Every previous acceptable behavior all of a sudden underwent subtle changes. Smartness and competitiveness was expected from every youngster because ominous signs were visible that the economic cake was not big enough for all to enjoy. Character was slowly getting merged into economics.

I too was bitten by the money bug and took up CA course without verifying my compatibility to the profession. The childhood imagination about character was literally murdered and a new meaning took its place as new fundas became acceptable to society. To dream big is good but the jury is still not decided on how much one can stoop to achieve the dreams. To make a strong impression on another is acceptable and there cannot be any boundaries for the means to such ends because then for that you have a concept called Caveat Emptor or Buyers Beware. To convince and convert another into ones line of thought is a legitimate economic exercise and one is permitted to use argument, quid-pro-quo, force or discriminatory policies to achieve the goal. Maybe it was my fertile imagination that privileges both positive and negative was meant to be based on merits and specific criteria because over a period of time they became economic tools in the hands of the powerful and wealthy to retain and amass more power and wealth. Greed, power, strong image and wealth have now become the new synonyms for character. Even where rules are enacted a modern person of character explores loop holes or bends them to an extent acceptable and possible so as to justify a certain image.  

The Maharaja

I was at Vadodara recently on an audit assignment and took time out to visit the Gaekwad palace built by Sayajirao Gaekwad III. It is called the Lakshmi Vilas Palace, construction of which took 12 years and completed in 1892. Moving through the palace precincts was an enchanting experience and it made a statement about the man who built it. Apparently a lot of personal and state wealth would have gone into its construction but one gets the feel that the man behind it always had his people in mind. The palace was built by Europeans architects and designers but the structure is a combination of Asian and Western motifs representing the major religions in India; Islam, Hindu and Christianity. Going through the Porch, Entrance, Reception Room, Weapons Room, Coronation Room, Durbar Hall, etc., I somehow became very curious about the personality of the Maharaja and searched about him on the net. Information that was thrown up told a fascinating story and which I shall try to keep short and simple.

 The Gaekwads were primarily Marathas from the Maharashtra region and the name meant people who herd cows for a living. Following the death of Sir Khanderao Gaekwad the popular Maharaja of Baroda, in 1870, his brother Malharrao who was a gross tyrant and cruel character and had been imprisoned earlier for conspiring to assassinate Khanderao was prevented from succeeding him. Khanderao's widow, Maharani Jamnabai was already pregnant with a posthumous child; the succession was delayed until the gender of the child could be proven. The child proved to be a daughter, and so Malharrao ascended the throne. However very soon Malharrao for his misdeeds was deposed by the Secretary of State for British India and exiled to Madras, where he died in obscurity. With the throne of Baroda now vacant, Maharani Jamnabai called on the heads of the extended branches of the Gaekwad dynasty to come to Baroda and present themselves and their sons in order to decide upon a successor.

Shri Sayajirao Gaekwad was born at Kavlana as Shrimant Gopalrao Gaekwad on the 10 March 1863. His branch of the Gaekwad dynasty was a cadet branch descended from a morganatic marriage of the first Raja of Baroda and so was not expected to succeed to the throne. His father Kashirao and his three sons presented themselves to Jamnabai where Gopalrao unhesitatingly stated "I have come here to rule". He was selected by the British Government as successor and was accordingly adopted by Maharani Jamnabai. He was also given a new name, Sayajirao. He was the Maharaja of Baroda State from 1875 to 1939. Young Sayaji was hardly 12 years old at that time and was groomed in administrative skills by Sir T. Madhava Rao and an English gentleman F. A. H. Elliot under whose able guidance he became a great statesman, educator, and ruler with foresight and with a will to provide welfare to his people and is notably remembered for reforming much of his state during his rule.

The list of his exceptional economic and social contribution is very long and a few can only be highlighted here. Sayajirao was the first Indian ruler to introduce, in 1906, compulsory and free primary education in his state, placing his territory far in advance of contemporary British India. His economic development initiatives included playing a key role in the development of Baroda's textile industry, founding of the Bank of Baroda which still exists and is one of India's leading banks.  During his reign a large narrow gauge railway network was set up in Baroda State with Dabhoi at its focal point. Sayajirao envisioned a water supply scheme for Baroda in 1892 at Ajwa that would use gravity to supply drinking water to the people of Baroda and is still in use to this day. The large public park originally called Kamati Baug and now called Sayaji Baug was his gift to the City of Baroda. On the occasion of the Diamond Jubilee of his accession to the throne, he set apart large funds out of his personal as well as of the state funds for setting up a University in Baroda for the benefit of students from the rural areas of his state. He recognised talent from among his people and supported education and training of persons who in his opinion would shine in life. Those persons whom he patronised included Dr. Babasaheb Ambedkar, Dadabhai Naoroji, and Sri Aurobindo.  The Maharaja was a noted patron of the arts. During his reign, Baroda became a hub for artists and scholars. The celebrated painter, Raja Ravi Varma, was among those who spent substantial periods of time at his court. Sayajirao was also a patron of Indian classical music. Ustad Moula Bux founded the Academy of Indian Music under his patronage. This Academy is now the Faculty of Performing Arts of the Maharaja Sayajirao University of Vadodara. Apart from Ustad Moula Bux, Sayajirao’s court boasted great artistes like Ustad Inayat Khan and Ustad Faiyyaz Khan. In 1914, the first All India Music Conference was held in Baroda. He built a rich public library, banned child marriage, worked on removal of untouchability and introduced legislation on divorce. He identified himself with the people and shaped their cosmopolitan attitude and progressive, reformist zeal.

Sayajirao was a man of wisdom and foresight coupled with wealth and power. He was an exceptional soul who understood the meaning of his own life and worked tirelessly for the betterment of his subjects. Knowing that he got his status through the benevolence of the British he refrained from entering the freedom struggle inspite of the fact that he was urged to do so by many.  On a personal front Sayajirao initially married Chimnabai of Tanjore (Chimnabai I) on 6 January 1880, his first wife who died young from tuberculosis, and he remarried on 28 December 1885 another Maratha lady from Dewas, Shrimant Lakshmibai Mohite, who became Chimnabai II. Children from both his wives have maintained the dignity of the man and his legacy. After a long and eventful reign of 63 years, Sayajirao Gaekwad III died on 6 February 1939, one month shy of 76.

PERPETUAL UNCERTAINTY

We humans have made our lives a constant struggle against every form of change. Every activity that we undertake is some sort of counter to the natural and daunting presence of uncertainties of change in every sphere of life. It’s a fight against the inevitable and so one-sided. Let us take a simple example of our fight against ageing. All of us would love to remain young forever; our youth is likened to vibrant hair, flawless skin, spring in our steps, confident laugh, positive thoughts and a general absence of pain and regret. We know that if and when we have enjoyed a certain phase of life with some or all the above experiences, it was never meant to last forever. Yet we pine to prolong the experience of youth as much as we can. People use the science of chemistry to convert chemicals into beauty products as well as medicines. While the latter can surely be attributed to relieving pain and disease the former is only a scam to appear beautiful against the natural forces. Undoubtedly they support the fearful mind up like crutches simply because we are unwilling to accept that we are really sick in the head. Moving further, instead of accepting and enjoying the moment as it comes to us we adopt a lot of dodging tactics and even stressful behavior which does more harm than the original event. Even a minor failure is unacceptable what do we talk of major ones, loss of money or face in unbearable, an affront whether unintentional is also unacceptable, a small discomfort is hated, any natural event which becomes a cause for unhappiness is treated with disdain and alarm bells ring for unfolding circuitous circumventions. We understand very well that the good has to coexist with the bad, a fall follows a raise, profit and loss are two sides of the same coin, that these are very natural and cannot be avoided. Yet we leave no stone unturned to try and skirt away from the bad events. We can lie, we can kill, we can run away, we can project an illusion, we can do so many things to perpetuate the best events and try and avoid the worst ones. Well, the only outcome that happens is we lose our health and peace of mind on one hand and the unavoidable also happens. We spend so much of our energies on such futile thought and behavior that we successfully accentuate the anxiety and it is this stress that does us harm. Let us accept that life is constant change in its original basic structure. There is nothing which can be called permanent. Everything is in a state of flux, everything around us is continuously changing. When the natural things change, the unnatural man made things are bound to change. Growth will be followed by destruction and then again there will be growth.  Uncertainty of change is a part and parcel of every individual even if it be a saint or a multi-billionaire or a beggar. None can avoid this and every common / uncommon act in that direction is bound to fail. Life would be simpler and happier if this fact can be accepted.