Ananda addiction

Problem

De-emphasization of pravRtti-dharma

“since a yati seeks and has perhaps attained ānanda the rest of knowledge seems useless to him. Hence, it is more an issue on part of those who go to him to seek advice on other matters, which he considers unimportant. … Moreover, with yati-s’ personalities exuding a type of ‘magnetic attraction’ due to their dwelling in the ānanda they tend to draw certain people towards them and fill them up with their teachings. With this rush to the mokṣa-śāstra more and more think that alone is dharma and that alone is vidyā. Pegged to the mokṣa-śāstra these yati-s cannot generate new knowledge or protect existing knowledge of importance. Hence, I would posit that the ascendancy of yati-s within the Hindu fold was the cause for the denudation of our dharma: a movement that took people away from action and concerns of the rāṣṭra.

[MT150918]

Examples

  • advaita-vedAnta
    • DharmajijnAsA is not a necessary condition for BrahmajijnAsA according to Advaita. [TW]
    • “ज्ञानकर्मणोर्विरोधं पर्वतवदकम्प्यं यथोक्तं न स्मरसि किम्?” - shankara commenting on IshAvAsyopaniShat 2.
  • nAmadeva, warkari singer, denouncing the 6 karmas and veda-recitation while praising nAma-kIrtana as a way to mokSha. [IMG]

Non-examples

  • On the other hand, bhakti traditions mostly “आज्ञायैवं गुणान्दोषान्मयाऽदिष्टानपि स्वकान् । धर्मान्सन्त्यज्य यः सर्वान्मां भजेत्स तु सत्तम: ॥“ (श्रीमद्भागवतम् ११.११.३२) and श्रीमद्भगवद्गीता १८.६६ (“सर्वधर्मान् परित्यज्य…”) should not be taken as endorsing abandonment of pravRtti-dharma (“कर्ममार्ग व अष्टाङ्ग-योग/साङ्ख्य/ज्ञान आदि मार्गों का परिहार करते हुए शुद्धभक्त्यधिकारी के लिये भागवतधर्म या भक्तियोग की एकमात्र करणीयता का विधान करना है”).

Even Anti-dharma activities

  • A yati immersed in Ananda may even take up anti-dharma activities (and enable others to follow his example).
  • ati-mArga cases
    • The later pAshupata-s, who lived on the fringes of Arya society as part of one of their vrata-s, took to performing acts which attracted disgust from the Arya-s (carrying emblems of brahma-hatyA, wearing ashes). This propensity for adhArmika behavior continued into various tAntrika systems. These then gradually returned to mainstream society, constructing popular temples and initiating disciples - leading to further weakening of the orthodox dharma.
    • parivrAjaka-s (originally followers of ati-mArga-s) undertook govrata, shvavrata etc.. [MT]

I could offer up the historical counter-claim epitomized by the advaita-vedāntin-s and naked paramahaṃsa-s par excellence anūpagiri gosvāmin and uṃrāvagiri gosvāmin. As you known only too well they were astra-dhārin-s of high rank and had amassed hand and field guns that would have made their cognates, the Negoro-ji bhikṣu-s, green with jealousy. The maharaṭṭa-s had inferior guns to an extent. Yet their service to the sanātana-dharma went no further than performing funerals for fallen Hindu warriors, many of them slain by the gosvāmin-s’ own guns. Instead, they devoted themselves in large part to furthering the cause of marūnmatta-s and cozying up with the English despite them showering obscenities on their nagnatvam. Certainly, the certainty of being mumukṣu-s and dwelling in ānanda had relieved them of all concerns sustaining the ārya-patha and the rāṣṭra.

[MT150918]

Responses and moderation

  • “A civilization like an organism can lay claim to success only if it can defeat such afflictions, continue surviving, and restore its past luster. I would say such a triumph did happen with the re-emergence of Empire at Saṃrāṭ Samudragupta aśvamedha.” [MT150918] (By the ashvamedha, the kShAtra-pride’s primacy, which implies dharma coming to the forefront, is clear.) But again, the likes of harShavardhana taking excessively to the bauddha-darshana are seen a few centuries later.
  • The concept of karma-yoga expounded in the bhagavadgItA moderates the dharma-negating effect of Ananda-pursuit to a great degree.
    • In the non-sannyAsi stage, people are encouraged to perform their dhArma-motivated karma-s with the right attitude (ishvArArpaNa-buddhi in effort + sAttvika tyAga of the fruit with prasAda-buddhi, contrasted with tAmasika tyAga of effort.)

Some social benefits of Ananda-addiction

  • The karma-yoga concept mildly deprecates kAma pursuit in favor of dharma. [BG2.42…]
  • Exceptional shoring up of the dharma when brAhma and kShatra have fallen.
    • samartha rAmadAsa
    • vidyAraNya, if it is false that he became a sannyAsi only long after establishment of vijayanagara.
    • “You may think of … the bāla-brahmacārin who slew several turuṣka-s with his sword on behalf of Kuṃbha in the fight against the Army of Islam, or of Baṇḍā vairāgin. This might be seen as an extension of the earlier role played by other sections of the ati-mārga as royal advisers – like Harita-Rāśī the pāśupata for Bāppā Rāval who drove out an early wave of marūnmatta-s.”[MT150918]
  • Preservation of veda-s, vedAnga-s and a degree of orthodoxy - since they provide knowledge and paths to Ananda.
    • Several Astika maTha-s have served to rally and promote the brAhmaNa orthodoxy to atleast a certain extant. Several veda schools are run by such maTha-s.

Origins of the Ananda-addiction

  • sampradAya-tree here.
  • The “supreme deity” concept gained prominent following as explained here, overtaking non-insistent personal preferences and “first among equals” aindra hierarchy.
    • Thence was inspired ati-mArga.
      • The later pAshupata-s, who lived on the fringes of Arya society as part of one of their vrata-s, took to performing acts which attracted disgust from the Arya-s (carrying emblems of brahma-hatyA, wearing ashes). One already sees how some weird quest leads to adharma. These then gradually returned to mainstream society, constructing popular temples and spreading their ideas.
    • By the time the upaniShad-s were produced, the quest for Ananda became more and more emphasized.
    • The fan-base of Ananda-pursuit was later greatly expanded by various bhakti-schools (popularized by the likes of bhagavadgItA).
  • Simultaneously there was an ancient shramaNa stream that rejected the veda-s and the vedic way. This later led to the jaina-s and the bauddha-s and their damaging ascetic pursuit of Ananda.