நீத்தார் பெருமை
NEETTHAAR PERUMAI
GREATNESS OF THOSE
WHO HAVE RENOUNCED EVERYTHING
INTRODUCTION
After propitiating the Gods who control our lives on earth,
after extolling the greatness of Nature which is next in level to God in
sustaining us; after explaining that ‘Dharma or the righteous way of being is
the must for a man/woman of the world’, Shri Valluuvar now pays his obeisance
to all the realized Sages of the world by offering them the primary and the
first portion of his work.
(21)
ஒழுக்கத்து நீத்தார்
பெருமை விழுப்பத்து
வேண்டும் பனுவல்
துணிவு
OZAKKATTU NEETTHAAR PERUMAI VIZAPPATTU
VENDUM PANUVAL THUNIVU
The ‘greatness of those who have
renounced everything,
by following the rules of strict discipline’,
has to occupy a revered and primary
place in the treatise.
(Who deserves the first place in all the texts describing
Dharma?
Who else but those realized Sages, who stand as Gods in
human forms on this earth, sanctifying the very ground they step on?
Why, because they have renounced everything?
What? House? Family? Wealth?...? No!
They don’t have to renounce these pictures painted on empty
space by our senses,
These Sages have renounced the very idea of ‘I’ that every
ordinary man holds on to like a leech.
What else is there to renounce after the very ‘I’ that
connects you to the body and the world gets destroyed?
These Sages live in the state of the Supremacy itself, with
a costume-shadow of a shape connecting them to this world. They are Gods
walking on earth to lift the humanity from the state of utter ignorance to the
exalted state of knowledge.
They live happily in an ordinary world-stage like a Janaka
ruling the kingdom or they live as Vasishta or Vaalmiki in the solitude of
forests and mountains. They do not covet name, fame or wealth. They do not have
desires or wants.
They are happy wherever they are.
Salutations to these great men, who have renounced
everything including the ‘I’, which feat - an ordinary man cannot even think of
as possible.)
(22)
துறந்தார் பெருமை துணைக்கூறின் வையத்து
இறந்தாரை எண்ணிக்கொண்டற்று
THURANDAAR PERUMAI THUNAIKKOORIN
VAIYATTHU
IRANDAARAI ENNIKONDAARRU
Extolling the greatness of those who
have renounced everything,
is like counting the number of dead in
the world.
(Is it possible to mark out their greatness in a few
two-lined verses?
Shri Valluvar does not think it possible.
What can you say of those who have attained the Supreme
state of the Self (Brahman- the supremacy, the essence of all) which is beyond
the grasp of words.
These Sages exist in a state beyond death. They are not
identified with the body at all.
So they never die even if the body dies.
In fact, they look at the body as some inert object like a
tree or a living pet that needs maintenance. Other than that they are not
conscious of the body at all.
These Sages are nameless; formless; deathless.
While all the ignorant beings of the world go through
various births as per the results of their actions on earth, these Sages never
again get bound with the inert body-identity.
What to say of their greatness?
Can you ever count the number of all those dead?
You can go on counting the number of the dead- - all species
of earth - say from the beginning of the creation itself; and it will continue
to the future also endlessly. It is an impossible task, as number itself may
die off, before you count all the dead.
So is the greatness of these realized men who have renounced
all; it is endless.
It cannot come into words.)
(23)
இருமை வகைதெரிந்து
ஈண்டு அறம் பூண்டார்
பெருமை பிறங்கிற்
றுலகு
IRUMAI VAGAI THERINDEENDARAM POONDAAR
PERUMAI PIRANGIRRULAGU
The greatness of those who have taken to
the life of renunciation,
in this life,
by analyzing well the differences
between the two ways of life,
transcends the level of this world.
(How did these men of the world raise themselves to the
state of the Supremacy?
They had the power of discrimination.
They had the intellectual capacity to see the two paths
lying in front of them – one leading to utter doom and the other to the
eternity of God-state.
The first path ordained that they renounce all that was
connected to the world including their own ego. The second was a life filled
with anxieties, desires, wants and suffering.
These wise men chose the first.
It was of course hard to renounce all mentally.
You can easily pretend to renounce the family life; don
saffron cloth to mark you as different; and live a luxurious life of fame,
wealth and glory with millions of followers worshiping you as God on earth. But
this is not the path followed by the true Sages who have dispassion as their
essence.
They may not wear a saffron cloth; they may not live in a
forest or mark themselves as different. They live ordinary lives like ordinary
men; but without attachment to anything like a Rama or a Krishna .
The worldly men always grope in the darkness of ignorance
and attachments.
The realized Sages live in knowledge and dispassion.)
(24)
உரனென்னும் தோட்டியான் ஓரைந்தும் காப்பான்
வரனென்னும் வைப்பிற்கோர்
வித்து
URANENNUM THOTTIYAAN ORAINDUM KAAPPAAN
VARANENNUM VAIPPIRKOR VITTHU
He alone, who controls the five senses
with the ‘goad’ namely, ‘firmness of
mind’,
becomes the seed for the excellent state.
(What is the first step in attaining such a state?
Sense-control!
The five senses eye, ear, nose, tongue, skin are known as
organs of knowledge and the other five senses of speech, hand, feet,
procreating organs, excretory organs are known as organs of action.
The five senses of knowledge help us understand the nature
of the world we live in; the five senses of action help us in performing
actions in the world.
The actions done by organs of action do not bind a man;
because they can mechanically do things without the direct supervision of the
mind. But the organs of knowledge act always connected to the mind and present
the picture of the world to us.
The ignorant man has the imagination that the world
presented by the senses to be oozing with pleasures and develops, likes and
dislikes for the objects of the world.
How can inert objects contain any essence of pleasure? But
the ignorant man thinks he gets pleasure only by the possession of the objects;
and runs after them madly like the deer chasing the mirage waters.
This makes him do many sinful and selfish actions which
builds up the bad results for his actions. That leads him to take birth again
and again to reap the results of his actions.
He keeps on increasing his desires for sense pleasures;
keeps on doing wrong actions and goes on
from birth to birth, lost in the dark forest of ignorance.
So if you want to get out of all this, the only way left to
you is sense-control; or rather, mind-control.
There is no use sitting in a lotus-posture and closing the
eyes; that is not sense-control. Mind, which is full of desires and wants, will
be dwelling on the sense objects even if you are physically away from them.
Get rid of the desires completely; restrain the organs of
knowledge from chasing pleasures in the inert objects; keep on working with the
organs of action; this is the path towards Supremacy, known by the famed title
of ‘Karma Yoga’.)
(25)
ஐந்தவித்தான் ஆற்றல்
அகல்விசும்பு ளார்கோமான்
இந்திரனே சாலுங்
கரி
AINDAVITTHAAN AARRAL AGALVISUMBULAARKOMAAN
INDIRANE SAALUNKARI
The great king Indra is a suitable
example
of those who have the strength to curb
their senses.
(Indra the king of heavens has access to all the pleasures
that are ever possible. But without losing control, he abstains from pleasures
and rules all the three worlds without flaw. Since he controls his senses, he
is called Indra and so he occupies the highest post as the ruler of the three
worlds.)
(26)
செயற்கரிய செய்வார்
பெரியர் சிறியர்
செயற்கரிய செய்கலா
தார்
SEYARKARIYA SEYVAAR PERIYAR SIRIYAR
SEYARKARIYA SEYKALAADAAR
Those who do extraordinary deeds are
indeed the excellent ones;
those who cannot do so, are very lowly
beings.
(Controlling the five senses of knowledge accompanied by the
mind is an extraordinary feat. Those who can do it are indeed extraordinary
beings; others are just animals in human form.)
(27)
சுவை ஒளி ஊறு ஓசை நாற்றமென்று ஐந்தின்
வகை தெரிவான் கட்டே
உலகு
SUVAIYOLI OOROSAI NAARRAMENRAINDIN
VAGAI THERIVAAN KATTE ULAGU
The world is indeed understood by him,
who knows the true nature of the five
senses namely
taste, sight, touch, sound, and smell.
(A man understands the world through the five senses of
knowledge.
But the ignorant man does not know that; he thinks that
pleasure and pain are innate in the objects like woman, food etc.
So he uses the senses not for perceiving the world; but for
enjoying the world.
As actually there is no pleasure or pain innate in the
objects, he does not get any pleasure. He goes on searching for more pleasures
which are not there. He is like a deer which sees the mirage in the desert and
runs after it, only for falling into the hot sand-holes to wither in pain and
die.
The Sage, who has dispassion, understands the truth that
there is no pleasure in the inert objects of the world. He uses his senses only
as a camera to perceive the world. He is not attracted by the mirage waters. He
knows that the mirage is unreal. He remains calm and quiet in the desert of the
world; he gets his nectar from his own Self, which is his true essence. He is
always happy.
He alone knows the true nature of the senses.)
(28)
நிறைமொழி மாந்தர்
பெருமை நிலத்து
மறைமொழி காட்டி
விடும்
NIRAIMOZI MAANDAR PERUMAI NILATTU
MARAIMOZI KAATTIVIDUM
The greatness of the profound words of
the noble,
will be revealed in their esoteric words of
instructions.
(Whatever is uttered by the Sages, who have renounced
everything and have realized the true essence of their being, is true and will
be real. They can never utter anything that is not real, and if they utter
anything by chance, that becomes true and real.
Ordinary men are ignorant of their true essence and act only
in the mind-level, unlike the realized Sages, who act in the ‘Self-level’ or
Supremacy level.
These Sages have no ego and they are not identified with the
physical body or the mind. They never act selfish. They never pretend. They
never hide their thoughts.
Their minds are very pure and empty of all thoughts. So
whatever thought rises in their mind is equal to a thought of God; it
immediately becomes real.
Hence, their words are always fulfilling and truthful.
When these Sages come down to the level of ordinary beings
and put their thoughts in texts, then their words are akin to Vedic Mantras,
the profound words which contain the secret meaning of the Self. Their texts
are the Vedas which conceal within them the path towards the highest goal in
life, that is, liberation or the attainment of true knowledge.
These Sages who look ordinary and talk ordinary, create
Vedas like Brahma, in each and every word they use for instructing the world.
Their greatness thus gets revealed in their works. )
(29)
குணமென்னும் குன்றேறி
நின்றார் வெகுளி
கணமேயுங் காத்தல்
அரிது
GUNAMEENUM KUNRERI NINRAAR VEGULI
KANAMEYUNKAATTHAL ARIDU
Though the anger does not stay even for
as long as a second’s time
in those who stand at the peak of
virtues,
it still is unbearable.
(Then don’t these Sages have emotions at all? Don’t they
love their family, children and all? Don’t they get anger etc?
Of course when they live in the world, they have to use the
emotions like tools.
Emotions do not control them; but they control the emotions.
Though they remain calm and quiet in the basic level like
the deep ocean, they will exhibit emotions like ordinary persons akin to the
waves seen on the surface of the ocean. Did not Rama cry for Seetaa when she
was taken away by Raavana? Did he not vow in anger to kill the wicked Raavana?
Emotions in their finest form exist in these great men. They
are not stones or Zombies.
But it is rare that they ever get angry at anything or
anybody.
They love all like their own Self. Yet some wrong action of
someone might raise a true anger in them, for the good of the world. Even that
slight anger will vanish off like a wave; but that one second-anger has the
power to destroy all the three worlds. The world cannot bear it. Such is the
power of their virtue.)
(30)
அந்தணர் என்போர்
அறவோர்மற் றெவ்வுயிர்க்கும்
செந்தண்மை பூண்டொழுக
லான்
ANTHANAR ENBOR ARAVORMARREVVUYIRKKUM
SENTHANMAI POONDOZAGALAAN
Those noble men alone
who are compassionate towards all the
beings of the world,
are true Brahmins.
(The realized Sage alone is worthy of being called a
‘Brahmin’.
The term ‘Braahmana’ means a person who resides always in
the state of the ‘Brahman’. That is why Lord Brahma is also referred to as a
Braahmana, because he is always in the knowledge of Brahman, the Supremacy,
which exists as the essence of all the beings.
‘Brahmin’ is not a term denoting caste.
In the ancient days, some people chose to study the Vedas at
all times and devoted their whole life to the realization of Brahman.
They contemplated on the Supreme as referred to in the
Gaayatri Mantra (created by Sage Vishvaamitra) and realized Brahman as their
Self, their true essence.
They were known as Brahmins.
However as men deteriorated, the Vedic study became a farce
and a mockery; where no one bothered to understand the meanings of Vedas.
The ignorant, greedy descendents of the realized Sages
called themselves as Brahmins and started acting wicked and arrogant; bringing
in the virus of caste system.
Nowadays there are no Brahmins anywhere.
All are ignorant and chase wealth and pleasures.
According to Shri Valluvar, a Brahmin is a person who loves
all the beings as his own Self. He understands the suffering of the ignorant
and tries to lift them to his own level of happiness, by instructing them about
the path to liberation.
He who loves all as his own Self alone is true knower of
Vedas and deserves the name of Brahmin.
All others belong to just one other category - the
ignorant.)
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