(A Q&A taken from the FAQ section of the Sarma Sastrigal's book titled 'The Great Hindu Tradition')
Qn.
Qn.
Aren’t sanyasis supposed to have relinquished everything temporal and dedicate themselves totally to
worship? From this standpoint, how proper is the involvement of Sri Sri
Jayendra Saraswati Swamigal, in social causes and his voicing of
opinions on national issues and public matters?
Ans.
Ans.
We
have no authority or qualification to comment on the actions of our
Guru, the Head of our religion. Our job is to seek Guru kataksha (the
blessings of the Guru) unquestioningly and with no doubt about what he
is doing. Let us do our job, with the confidence that he is doing what
he is ordained to do. This is needless confusion with matters that do
not concern us.
Let me quote Kanchi Maha Swamigal on this subject, from the popular Tamil book: ‘Deivaththin Kural’:
“There are four types of Sanyasis: kuteechaka, baheetaka, hamsa and paramahamsa. Advaita sanyasis belong to the fourth variety i.e. Paramahamsa.
These swamis, who belong to the Adi Sankara Bhagavad Pada mutts, occupy the peetha of the mutt for an important responsibility viz. expounding the dharmas to ordinary people of the religion The paramahamsa sanyasi cannot be totally devoid of any contact with humanity and be only in the perennial quest of God. He has the office job of communicating religion and its manuals to people in the other ashrams and administrate the math to which he belongs. To this extent, therefore, some changes in his day to day life are inevitable”.
We should consider ourselves fortunate that we are living at the time of Sri Sri Jayendra Swamigal and getting direct advice from him on the conduct of our lives according to Hindu dharma. One cannot question the wisdom of Maha Swamigal in selecting Sri Sri Jayendra Saraswati Swamigal as his successor.
Equally, one has no business questioning the acts of our Acharyal. It is my unshakeable belief that what he is doing is in consonance with the Yuga Dharma and that we should follow in his footsteps without doubt or confusion. Sri Sri Jayendra Swamigal has traversed the length and breadth of India – entirely by foot – three times - with social consciousness and keeping in mind the variegated society of India today.
He has moved with people of all languages and regions and spoken to them in their tongue in his task of propagating Hindu dharma across the nation.
We know very little about the life of this great, multifaceted personality. His experience, his work and his approach have several dimensions: religious, spiritual, ritualistic, Vedic, knowledge-oriented – and worldly. Each one of these dimensions has a meaning and a purpose.
To recapitulate, the Sri Mutts of Bhagavad Padal have been established for a specific purpose, of propagating our religion. So the sanyasi who heads the Mutts and other Sanyasis who belong to the Mutts are not ordinary sanyasis who can be content with japa and tapa. Their approach and actions have to be in sync with the Yuga dharma of the particular period.
And it has always been that way, over the centuries.
It is no different now.
If we understand and appreciate this truth, things become clear and simple.
Let me quote Kanchi Maha Swamigal on this subject, from the popular Tamil book: ‘Deivaththin Kural’:
“There are four types of Sanyasis: kuteechaka, baheetaka, hamsa and paramahamsa. Advaita sanyasis belong to the fourth variety i.e. Paramahamsa.
These swamis, who belong to the Adi Sankara Bhagavad Pada mutts, occupy the peetha of the mutt for an important responsibility viz. expounding the dharmas to ordinary people of the religion The paramahamsa sanyasi cannot be totally devoid of any contact with humanity and be only in the perennial quest of God. He has the office job of communicating religion and its manuals to people in the other ashrams and administrate the math to which he belongs. To this extent, therefore, some changes in his day to day life are inevitable”.
We should consider ourselves fortunate that we are living at the time of Sri Sri Jayendra Swamigal and getting direct advice from him on the conduct of our lives according to Hindu dharma. One cannot question the wisdom of Maha Swamigal in selecting Sri Sri Jayendra Saraswati Swamigal as his successor.
Equally, one has no business questioning the acts of our Acharyal. It is my unshakeable belief that what he is doing is in consonance with the Yuga Dharma and that we should follow in his footsteps without doubt or confusion. Sri Sri Jayendra Swamigal has traversed the length and breadth of India – entirely by foot – three times - with social consciousness and keeping in mind the variegated society of India today.
He has moved with people of all languages and regions and spoken to them in their tongue in his task of propagating Hindu dharma across the nation.
We know very little about the life of this great, multifaceted personality. His experience, his work and his approach have several dimensions: religious, spiritual, ritualistic, Vedic, knowledge-oriented – and worldly. Each one of these dimensions has a meaning and a purpose.
To recapitulate, the Sri Mutts of Bhagavad Padal have been established for a specific purpose, of propagating our religion. So the sanyasi who heads the Mutts and other Sanyasis who belong to the Mutts are not ordinary sanyasis who can be content with japa and tapa. Their approach and actions have to be in sync with the Yuga dharma of the particular period.
And it has always been that way, over the centuries.
It is no different now.
If we understand and appreciate this truth, things become clear and simple.
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