Tirumantiram

TANTRA SIX

(Verses 1573-1703)

41 DARSHAN OF SIVA GURU

1573: The Holy Guru is God Himself

He taught me the meekness of Spirit,

Infused in me the light of devotion,

Granted me the Grace of His Feet;

And after interrogation holy, testing me entire,

Revealed to me the Real, the Unreal and Real-Unreal;

Of a certain is Siva-Guru Lord Himself.

1574: Power of Guru Presence

Gathering the strands of my fetters

He knotted them together;

And then wrenched them off;

Freeing me thus from my fond body,

Straight to Mukti he led me-

Behold, of such holy potent

Is the Presence of the Guru Divine!

1575: Attainments Through Guru's Grace

The miraculous powers of Siddhis eight,

The immaculate purity of Saktis eight,

The baptismal act supreme that turns Jiva into Siva,

The mystic powers of occult Yoga,

Of Mantra, of Bhakti, and of Jnana,

All these shall you attain

If the Guru but his grace confers.

1576: Guru-Siva Parallelism

He is beyond worlds all

Yet, here below, He bestows His grace abundant

On the good and the devout,

And in love works for salvation of all;

Thus is the Holy Guru

Whose praise is beyond speech

Like unto Siva, the Being Pure.

1577: Compassionate Acts of Holy Guru

The Holy Guru is truly a Deva;

By his divine art he makes me perceive

All things in categories three;

By his sacred precepts sunders the bonds of Pasu-Pasa

And makes me drink of the milk of Mukti

All in benign compassion the Gurupara does.

1578: Discerning Holy Guru

The Guru comes, purifies and grants Godhood,

They see this not,

The witless ones of vision faulty;

But the holy ones take to him

In endearment as unto kith and kin,

And worship him as Lord Himself.

1579: All Good Attainable With Guru's Grace

To dissolve the false in the true,

To derive the omnipotent might of Truth,

To possess the bounty of splendorous Siva's Grace,

To realize the fantasy of the famed Siddhis eight

Who learns all these

But with Guru's blessing?

1580: Siva Guru Like Siva Grants Finite Liberation

Siva Jnani is none but Siva Himself;

And they who seek his feet as Siva's

Shall in sooth the wondrous Tattva mukti gain;

They shall no more be in the cycle of births;

Sure their reward, the Liberation Finite.

1581: Guru-God Identity

Guru is none but Siva-thus spoke Nandi;

Guru is Siva Himself-this they realize not;

Guru will to you Siva be,

And your Guide too;

Guru in truth is Lord,

That surpasses speech and thought, all.

1582: Think of Siva and Be Siva

Let all your thoughts be thoughts of Siva,

And the Lord by His Grace shall reveal all;

If your thoughts be Siva-saturated

In you shall He then close abide.

1583: Nandi is Peerless Luminosty

Of Himself He sought me in the Truth's Way

He the Blessed, the King of Kings,

Nandi, mine Father,

But they know not his intent;

To them that rejoice in Him

As the Nandi of heavenly might,

Verily is He the peerless luminosity

Of crimson twilight fire.

1584: Things That Flow From Guru's Grace

The Siddhis that are a veritable treasure-trove,

The Mukti that is salvation finite,

The heavenly Grace that vanquishes doubts and fears

And the Jnana that is essence of Vedas

All these,

When the Guru himself imparts not,

Never, never shall you learn.

1585: Jnana Easy With Sakti's Grace

Bhakti and Resoluteness Spiritual (Vairagya)

Are the seeds of State Transcendental;

In turn, these lead to Sivoham;

And in Sivoham shoots the Jnana for Mukti,

And that shoot yours easy shall be

If Sakti but Her Grace bestows.

1586: When God Reveals Himself

This life of pleasures here below

The Lord for you of yore ordained

That you may the Greater Pleasure attain;

Where your mind reaches to Him in resolve,

Then of Himself, He reveals to you.

1587: Siva Jnana Leads to Sivananda

When you realize the Jnana of Siva

You shall achieve the Siddhis luminous

When you realize the Jnana of Siva,

You shall attain the Mukti resplendent;

When your Jnana of Siva reaches to Siva Supreme,

Then shall it yield the Bliss of Sivananda.

1588: How Tirumular Ended Birth Cycle

All this space infinite

I cognized and realized;

Adoring with devotion replete

I received His Grace Divine;

Now am I past all rememberance of Ignorance exceeding,

For ever have I bidden adieu to birth recurring.

1589: How Tirumular Met the Lord

He is the Lord of all living creation

Yet naught they know of His State Existent;

I cut the tangle that separated Him from me,

And lo! I met the Lord, the seed of all causal phenomenon.

2 GRACE OF GURU'S FEET

1590: Guru Blesses With His Hand on My Head

Rise in loving praise of Lord

And having risen, in piety melt for Him;

Then the godly Guru comes

-He who had scorned Pasa's fetters-

And lays his hand on your head,

And lo! in you wells up

The rapturous Grace of His Holy Feet.

1591: Grace of Feet is Kingdom Won

Even as mine Master granted me the Grace of His Feet,

He had made me the head of all;

And investing me with the regalia-might of Jnana-sword,

He placed on my head the Crown of Grace Abounding,

And thus proclaimed:

"May you forever hold sway over this Land of Deliverance"

-All these He did, descending on earth, here below.

1592: Guru is God in Human Form

He assumed human form,

Discarding divine forms four,*

And Himself as exalted Guru came,

Signifying the Mudra of Jnana;

He, Nandi, my goodly Saviour

Blessed me;

It was He who of yore

Planted His Feet of Grace on me.

1593: Guru United Me in Sivam

There was neither speech, nor feeling

Neither self, nor Over-self;

Like unto a sea where no wave lashes,

He made me unite in Sivam;

And he granted me the Boundless Form

That transcends the states four, Nada and rest,

And lo! it was beyond all words.

1594: Gurupara Worked for My Redemption

My divine preceptor Nandi

Seized life's forms all three;

He assumed the Mudra of Jnana

And drew me to his Feet so godly;

Bereft of speech, I melted in bliss

Thus did He work my redemption eternal.

1595: How Guru Transformed Jiva Into Siva

He cleansed me of my blemishes,

Transformed me into Sivam Supreme,

And immersed me into His bliss infinite;

Bliss that is beyond, beyond words!

The fire of His Grace scorches not

Yet drank dry the three seas of mine impurities;

And annihilating my primal ego to its traces

He granted me His Feet of Grace;

And there does he abide, forever, in me.

1596: Guru's Acts of Grace Beyond Description

Into my bosom, on my eyes, over my head

He gently planted His loving Feet

Nandi, my Lord Supreme;

He laid me the Path,

He showed me the Truth,

He settled the course of my Destiny

Truly, truly, all that I can not describe.

1597: Master Nandi Ended My Birth-Cycle

He placed his haloed Feet on my head

He fixed his benign gaze on me

And he granted me the Form Mighty,

He, mine Nandi Great;

I saw him, my monarch, in Guru Form,

And saw the end of all births to come.

1598: Greatness of Jnana of Holy Feet

Jnana of Holy Feet makes you Siva,

Jnana of Holy Feet takes you to world of Siva,

Jnana of Holy Feet free you from imprisoned impurities,

Jnana of Holy Feet is Siddhi and Mukti too.

1599: When True Enlightenment Comes

When the Master blesses you not thus

With the grace of His Feet on your crown,

The Karma of yore shall distort your thoughts;

Only when the resplendent Lord of milk-white brow

Places his blessed Feet on you,

Only then, arr you truly instructed.

1600: Grace of Feet Granted Soul's Liberation

I reached the cool umbrage of His triumphant lotus Feet,

That standing as a crimson pillar of flame,

Defied the grasp even of godly Mal;

And there, the Primal One saw

The eternal denoument of the fleshly cage

That held my soul a hoary captive.

1601: Grace of Feet Exceeds Kingly Greatness

The crowned monarchs at best may sway the worlds three;

But they who reached His Holy Feet

Their joy no bounds shall know;

Know this:

The heavenly beings attired in kingly diadems

But turned his vassals;

And thus became for ever blemishless free.

1602: Truth of Hallowed Feet is End of Vedas

I treasured His hallowed Feet

In the depths of my heart;

And so, shunned the deceitful course of scorching senses,

I swam past the dangerous swirls of twin Karma,

And I tasted the nectar of Truth

-The end of all Vedas.

1603: Lord's Feet is Goal of the Pure

The sages of yore bore full on their crown

The Lord's Feet twain;

They are blissful and hoary

This earth has known;

And the goal of the Pure Ones

That walk the Path of Truth;

May you reach those Feet.

1604: Lord's Feet is All

Verily are they, all mantra and all medicine;

All tantra and all giving;

All beauty and all pure way;

Mine Holy Father's Feet Twain.

3 JNATHRU, JNANA, JNEYA
(KNOWER, KNOWLEDGE AND KNOWN)

1605: Goal of Sivananda is Ambrosial Bliss

Do incessant seek the goal of Sivananda,

There the Primordial Pasa enmeshes you not;

When it ever envelops you,

You but throw your egoity out and stand firm;

Yours shall then be the ambrosial bliss eternal.

1606: Knower-Knowledge-Known Relationship

To them that pursue the Object of Knowledge

Shall be vouchsafed Knowledge and its attributes;

The Subject that seeks the Object shall in the Object merge;

They that have cognised the Object of Knowledge

Through Knowledge

Have the Knowledge of union with the Object.

1607: You and He

The two categories-You and He

See them both in you and He;

Offer the flower "you" at the Feet of He;

Then no more be it proper to say: "You and He."

1608: Nandi Redeemed Me in Jneya

He rid me of Tattvas six and thirty,

He elevated me;

And enveloped me in the infinite

Expanse of the Spirit;

He imparted me the State of Permanence

He transformed me into Siva Divine;

And through the Subject-Object identity

Dispelled my ignorance

Thus He redeemed me

He, Nandi of blessed memory.

1609: Knowledge and Ignorance

Even unto the witless here below

That know not knowledge from ignorance,

Was I; He taught the distinction between the two

And made me know my Self;

He transformed me into Para

And intimated me into very Siva;

He, Nandi of hallowed name.

1610: Wonders Nandi Showed

"May you have," He said:

"The vision that eye has seen not,

The message that ear has heard not,

The rapture that cloys not,

The union that had been not,

The Nada that ceases not,

The Bodha that arises at Nada's End,

All these, may you have," He said,

He, the Nandi of immortal fame.

1611: Mauna's Emanations

They that have mastered the Divine (Silentness) Mauna

Shall reach the very bliss of Mukti;

And all Siddhis of themselves seek them

Into the Silent Word would in perfection evolve;

Mastering Mauna thus,

They shall gain the power

For the five divine acts to perform

Creation, Preservation, Dissolution,

Obfuscation and Grant of Grace.

1612: Sunder Bonds of Birth at Feet of Guru

Having achieved divine Mudras* three,

Directed breath into the Centers three,*

And coursed its rhythm in finger-measure four,

-They who sat thus in yoga,

Joyous at lumniscent Guru Feet,

Have for ever sundered bonds all,

And never be born and dead again.

1613: In Jneya is the Primal Form of the Spirit

As he holds Mudras three of divine potent

The Jnani Supreme attains Higher Forms Three;

And in rapturous dance he enters Jneya

And himself the Primal Form of Spirit becomes;

The Jiva that is Jnathru (Knower).

4 RENUNCIATION

1614: God is Reached by Renunciation

Beyond birth and death,

Reached by renunciate tapas

Is He, my Lord of resplendent glory!

Sing His praise! Incessant pray!

The Heaven's Lord shall show you the Dharma's Land.

1615: Renunciation Leads to Light

A myriad times are they born and dead,

In a million folly they forget this;

And in the darkness of Mala are close enveloped;

When at last the hidden Grace of Siva bursts forth,

And chases the Night away,

Then is the moment for the soul to renounce;

When it does then, a radiant Light it becomes.

1616: The Renunciate Lord Sunders Birth Bonds

He is Dharma, He is birthless, kinless;

In the wilds he abides, by alms he lives;

Know you, He has renounced all;

And to all those who renounce,

He sunders their bonds of birth

You insensate ones! Know thus.

1617: The Renunciate Shall Walk in the Straight Path

He laid the path, and planted the thorns along;

When you from the path deviate

The thorns of temptation shall prick you;

They that deviate not,

Them the thorns prick not.

1618: Stand Steadfast in the Goal of Tapas

Spotting my failings, demanding tribute of me,

The five senses in ambush held me;

That indeed is not of my seeking;

Firm in tapas, I stand;

Seeking the hallowed Feet of the dancing Lord,

That on the sacred bull rides.

1619: When Grace Blossoms, Tapas Ceases

The ploughman ploughed; the heavens poured;

And by the ploughman's ploughing, in time it flowered;

The ploughman then to the ploughwoman left,

As unto her eyes the flowers are,

To watch, and guard and tender;

The ploughman thus for ever ceased

All efforts at ploughing further.

1620: Liberation is for the Renunciate Alone

The Lord renounced all;

He is the Shining Light above;

He is the Friend of all,

Who have surmounted Death's days;

He is devoid of desires;

The guiding light of all those

Who Darkness renounced;

Only to those who abandoned this world,

Will His Feet within reach be.

1621: When Distractions of Senses Cease

One the serpent (Jiva), Five its hoods (Senses)

The Four (Antakaranas) fill the thorny hole of enjoyment;

In its twain body, subtle and gross

It raised its hoods and danced away;

Then into a single hood it merged (Kundalini)

Into the very body within.

1622: None Knows How He Comes

The Primal Lord is the first of Renunciates;

In that thought is little comfort

Not that easy may He come by;

Many, many lives may it take

For Siva's Feet to reach;

Who knows how and when

The Loved One comes?

1623: The Yogi Espied the Mystic Flower in the Cranium

The Mystic Exit opened,

And the nine orifices were sheathed in armour

Of Sakti of lily-wreathed tresses;

The Captain that is the breath of life

Climbed the mast of Negation Bitter,

And looked atop from the cranium roof;

And lo! beheld the budded vine bloom,

As in temple lofty and sacred.

5 TAPAS

1624: Blessings of the Placid Mind

The heart of the holy trembles not in fear,

All passions stilled, it enjoys calm unruffled;

Neither is there death

Nor pain, nor night nor day,

Nor fruits of Karma to experience;

That truly is the state of the desire-renounced.

1625: Only the Blessed Know Greatness of Tapas

The mystery of life, the origin of earth,

The might of pure deeds of tapas

Who knows them all

But they that receive Lord's Grace?

The rest know naught of tapas supreme.

1626: Tapasvin Ends Birth

The Tapasvins many that live by alms

Have no life hereafter;

On them shall be showered

All blessings of Spiritual wealth;

They that perform tapas incessant

Attain the power to end

All births to be.

1627: Tapasvins Remain Impervious to Temptations

Transfixed in mind and tortured in body

Stout of heart, they perform tapas splendorous;

Even though the Celestial King

And others, however mighty, descend to them,

And tempt them,

Their determined thought on Siva firm remains.

1628: Only Tapasvins Can Approach Lord

He hides and yet hides not;

He appears not to the naked eye;

He of the spreading matted locks;

The gold-hued;

None but they of hard tapas may near Him;

Do hasten and Him adore,

He, the mighty one of the white moon crest.

1629: When Mind Reaches Lord, He Reveals

The life of bliss hereafter to be

He made me reach now and here,

He-the Primal One:

When the mind transfixed reaches God,

He of Himself reveals, sure.

1630: Tapas Alone is Imperishable Wealth

Amidst the tumult of raging hatred, they perished,

The kings, their ministers and their elephantine hordes;

But fixing their sights on divine Jnana and universal love,

The tapasvins immortals became, their eyelids batting not.

1631: Inward Look of Tapas Ends Birth

Come apart from the clever argumentation of contending theology,

And for a brief brief while, look inward;

That one look shall drive the nail into the coffin of birth

And forever end its cycle recurring.

1632: When Tapas is Needed

Tapas you need, if Jnana you aspire;

Tapas you need not, when Jnana Samadhi you attain;

Tapas you need not, when you are in Sahamarga of Yoga;

Tapas they seek not, who the Self to transform

Know not.

6 ABUSE OF TAPAS

1633: When You Need not Renounce

You need not pray, if the Soul of Souls enters in you;

You need not adore, if Siva abides true in you;

You need not die, if Samadhi you attain,

You need not renounce, if you go not the way of senses.

1634: To Reach the Actionless State is Above All

You need no shouting

When in understanding you withdraw,

You need no speaking

When in Samadhi you are seated;

You need no baptismal rites

When you stand detached;

You need no meditation,

When you have reached actionless state.

1635: Fruit of Tapas

They who perform tapas true

Shall know the fruit thereof

They who speak truth pure

Shall know its fruit thereof

They who stand in righteous way

Shall enjoy the fruit thereof

They who are great on earth

Shall reap heaven's fruit.

1636: Tapas is the Yearning of Heart

In oneness of mind I did tapas

And witnessed Lord's triumphant Feet;

In eagerness of quest I did tapas

And witnessed Siva-State;

That alone is tapas

That you perform in the yearning of heart;

What avails the tapas of those,

Who thus perform not?

1637: Follow Tapasvins and Meet God

Swimming across the seven seas of the mind

The tapasvins true their heaven reached;

Let them that are tossed in the sea of births about

Listen but to their Commandments holy,

Then can they see Nandi, face to face, for sure.

1638: Light of Tapas is Light of Self

Unsheath your sword of Jnana from mind's scabbard,

Flash it across the bonds of pasa, hacking them twain;

And watch your Self, lest senses five run wild;

Then, shall light that is of tapas born

Become light of the Self.

1639: Tapas Gives Bhakti and Mukti

In intimacy He stands within us;

Pray that He grant you Bhakti;

Prostrate that He grant you Mukti;

Truly, it is tapas that makes Munis divine.

1640: Tapas is the Supreme Means

I gathered the tender leaves and flowers variegated

I wove a garland

All for my Father;

Yet I saw not the gushing waters of Grace;

I scanned the lofty lores of scriptures

And my heart ebbed low;

But I stood in tapas

And touched Cranium heights

Lo! met mine Lord.

1641: Tapas is Single-mindedness

To the devout tapasvins, who in dishevelled locks sit

Lord lets no harm happen,

He His Grace lends;

And you look at tapas

Of those that all trials overcame,

Know you, it is by their oneness of mind in tapas

They blocked the births to come.

1642: They That Shun Tapas Hunger Forever

In fear they ran from the croc' in the river

And on the bank they fell into the embrace of the bear

Thus are they the ignorant of scriptures,

Who from austere tapas run away

For food and in hunger roam for ever.

1643: Tapas is Control of Senses

Inside the body-sack

The tiny calf of senses jumps about

For the fruit to ripe and for the ripened fruit to eat;

They that can tether the lusty legged calf to the yard

Shall no more have pulls within;

Their thoughts will in oneness center.

1644: Tapas is Thought Becoming Siva

If your thoughts be all of Siva

You need no more penance perform;

If your thoughts find a kin

With those that have Siva Bliss tasted,

Then shall you be one with Siva;

Then is truly Siddhi and Mukti;

But your thoughts shall be of all Siva

Only by tapas intense.

47 JNANA FLOWS FROM GOD'S GRACE

1645: Fruits of Lord's Grace

If you have Lord's Grace, you have all riches;

If you have Lord's Grace, you have true Jnana;

If you have Lord's Grace, you have greatness too;

If you have Lord's Grace, you shall be the great God Himself.

1646: Jnana is Beyond Five Siva Tattvas

They go about the world

Exuding Jnana that is beyond Tamil mandalas; Five

Tamil mandalas are but Siva Tattvas;

There it is the blossoming mind

And attainment of Lord's Jnana.

1647: Jnana is Knowledge of Good and Evil

Good and evil, they are two in this world

As they seek God, some Jnanis know them;

As you cognize them two and uproot them

Then shall you perceive Lord's Abode Beyond.

1648: God Grants His Grace of Himself

At the hour ripe He of Himself appears

And blesses you with His Grace;

A Benevolent Force, He stands as life-center of world

Still standing by you, He ends your birth to be,

Lo! He stood before me, and bestowed Mukti on me.

1649: Things That Come of Siva's Grace

By Siva's Grace some become Devas

By Siva's Grace some equal Gods

By Siva's Grace Karmas near not;

When you have Siva's Grace,

You shall enter His Kingdom, indeed.

1650: Grace Decides Your Birth To-Be

The Holy One, the Immaculate One, Mine Father!

I sought His matchless Feet

And lo! Jnana shone forth as a beacon light;

You remain an earthly being

Or a Heavenly Being become;

All, as my Lord's Grace dawns.

1651 Grace Unites Soul in God

They mount the Body-Chariot

And Mind, the Charioteer takes the rein;

It is Illusion's-Chariot

That strange fantasies produces;

And they realize it,

And mount the Chariot of Love instead

And receive Grace of the Pure One,

They shall sure be drawn

In the triumphant Chariot of Unity

And be one in God, obliterating I and He.

1652 Tapasvins Will Receive Grace Even Hereafter

If born in body in the Other World

Tapasvins will pursue tapas there;

And will there reach Lord's Feet

And receive His Grace for sure.

1653 God is Beauty

Form within Sun-Stone is red hot ember,

Form within Moon-Stone is pearly drop of water,

Form within Fire-Stone is crackling fire,

Form of Lord that holds fire aloft

Is Beauty Surpassing.

1654 I shall hold fast unto Nandi

With love and yearning, I seek my Nandi,

Seeking Him, as Siva the Supreme, I will meet Him;

And then will I seize hold of His valorous Feet

And for ever hold to them,

Until He liberation grants.

8 FALSE ROBES

1655 Men of false robes know not Siva

You fools! With false robes you deceive people

Your pretension but helps you gorge yourself fast with food;

Well may you sing and dance and weep and wail

And thus may Siva seek,

Yet never, never shall you glimpse His Feet.

1656 Men of false robes bring famine

When those that have not acquired Jnana

Don the holy robes

And go about the land begging,

And evil ways pursuing,

The rains fail and famine strikes the land;

Better by far, these evil men are de-robed straight.

1657 Let Government lead people in the way of Virtue

A land's weal and woe are in its people

Out of good deeds and evil do they spring;

And so,

If the ruler unceasing leads the multitude in virtue's way,

That land in prosperity waxes ever.

1658 Why they don the Holy Robes

The lowly-born don the robe

That they may the high become;

The high-born don the robe

That they may the Gods become;

To infamy-born are the knaves in robes

That they be disrobed and cast away.

1659 Tapas--True and False

They who perform false tapas enter hell

They shall not become the holy ones;

False tapas is deceit and vain effort

A ruse for worldly enjoyment;

Only by Truth of Jnana can tapas firm abide.

1660 Discerning eyes see through false robe

They don the false robe their bellies to fill;

They don the true robe and receive exalted oblations above;

Even if false robes are donned to simulate the true,

The discerning see through, and make themselves free.

9 ROBES OF TAPAS

1661 True robe befits only true Tapasvins

The true tapasvins are the truly robed;

The sinful are but murderous hunters;

These are not for holy robe entitled;

None but tapasvins true deserve robe true.

1662 The insignia of Siva Yogins

To smear holy ashes is first step to tapas;

Rings of copper in ears, and garland of rudraksha beads around neck

--These too are other emblems to Siva reach;

Thus do the blemishless Siva Yogins for tapas prepare.

1663 Other insignia of Siva Yogin

A waist strip for an under-vest,

A long tunic for body's wrap,

A matted hair lock done in peacock style,

Ashes smeared all over,

A begging bowl of human skull shape

A cowl staff of hard cane

--Thus is Siva Yogi accoutred.

1664 Ten appurtenances of Siva Yogins

Kundala the ears to adorn,

Kamandala the water to hold,

Kandika the neck to fill

A conch to blow, a bowl to beg

And a Kappara to hold the ashes

The correct sandals and Yogic seat

The Yoga sash and Yogic staff

--These ten consist Siva Yogi's appurtenances.

10 HOLY ASHES

1665 Chant "Aum" and unite in Param

Fools know not what thread and tuft are;

Thread is but Vedanta, and tuft is Jnana;

Brahmins true who live in accord thus,

Shall see Jiva in Siva uniting;

Chant sacred mantra "Aum"

And lo! the Two merge forever in One.

1666 Power of Holy Ashes

The sacred ashes of Siva

Who has bones for His garland

Are an armour indeed impregnable;

For them who in joy smear it

Karmas take flight,

And Siva-state comes seeking;

And they shall reach His handsome Feet.

1667 Holy Ashes elevate to Brahma Status

The holy ash shall make you a king

And all regalia shall you have;

They that are in its fire purified

Shall in truth be transformed divine;

Reaching the Feet of the Eternal, the Immaculate

They shall attain Brahma's form

And ever be of Order Divine.

11 ROBES OF JNANA

1668 Jnana is All; not robes

Sans Jnana, robe but leads to hell

Sans robe, Jnana yet leads to Mukti;

When they seek Jnana,

They shall seek Lord and pray,

Their hearts robed in Jnana way.

1669 Perfect Jnanis speak not

They of lowly Jnana in vain assume robes;

Filled with Grace, they of true Jnana covet it not;

The bigots of faiths are of evil Jnana;

The perfect of Jnana speak not.

1670 They Need No Paths

Neither for Siva Jnanis, nor for Siva Yogins

Is it meet superfluous ways to adopt;

In sooth, needless indeed are the sadhanas Four* for them,

When they can see the Peerless One

Within themselves full.

1671 Siva Jnanis are Quiescent

They howl about unto dogs at foot of gallows;

They peck about like vultures at carrion;

They frisk about like monkeys in merriment

They of false Jnana;

But quiescent are the Siva Jnanis true,

Dead to the world, though living in body and senses.

1672 Siva Jnanis alone are of the Holy Order

They truly are of Holy Order

Who have attained Sivajnana;

They truly are of Holy Order,

The rest are not;

Nor their robes holy;

They are never, never by reckoning any.

1673 All becomes the Jnani

Even the gayest attire becomes the Jnani,

Albeit his own robe is of Siva Yogin;

Whatever robe he adopts, that shall aid him to Jnana,

Nothing is becoming him, and not-becoming him.

1674 Jnani is a class apart

The Siva Jnani that seeks deliverance through Jnana

Is a shrine unto himself, unique of status;

He observes mauna, and so is a Mukta and Siddha;

How can other tapasvins be like unto him?

1675 Stages in Liberation process

The annihilating of the Self

The Self becoming He

The identity in Siva

The Mudra setting the state ultra,

All these and the rest they had,

They who received deliverance at Feet of Nandi.

12 SIVA ROBE

1676 Liege-robe of Siva

By Hara's Grace they become His liege-men;

Within the body mansion, they seek His golden throne;

Darkness dispelled, they know of deeds none, good and bad;

Thus they stand steadfast in the liege-robe of Siva.

1677 The robe is not for Soul

The robe is for the body; not for the Soul

When the body falls, the garb with it falls;

Those that know not that the Soul within the body is real,

Are tossed about like a log caught in wavy sea.

1678 They of Siva-Robe are action-less

Sans illusions, sans ignorance, sans intelligence,

Sans the embraces of fish-eyed damsels and their attachment

Themselves as themselves, in solitude remain one in Siva-Sakti;

Thus are they, the Holy ones in Siva's robe.

1679 Why the robe? Seek Nandi Yoga Way

What avails thee, vain men, these holy robes?

Rein fast the fleeting mare of the twin breath;

And seek Nandi, Our Lord Beloved,

You shall attain sure the Bliss you crave.

13 THE UNFIT

1680 Blind leading the Blind

They seek not the Guru that blindness cures

They seek the Guru that cures not blindness;

The blind and the blind in a blind dance shuffled

And the blind and the blind in a deep pit together fell.

1681 They seek Worldly Pleasures

From out of mind, mirror of illusion rises

Think of it, even its shadows they see not

And nothing they do for the fruits of Karma to drop;

The temptations of the backyard drain, they go after.

1682 They know not the Mystery of Body

You beckon them, but they hearken not

The ignorant multitude they are;

The mother's milk flows sweet in the mouth,

But even the dear and near know not

How the mother's breast becomes so;

Verily, it is the Formless Being that shapes this body-form.

1683 Realize Lord in Purity of thought, word and deed

The lips utter one thing;

The mind thinks another;

And the deed does a third,

Thus you behave not;

Gracious Lord! You Rock of Ages!

I know You as the Fire-hued Lord,

And having known that

None dares know me as creature insensate.

1684 Banish False Disciples

These reprobates of the five deadly sins

Full deserve the pious ruler's punishment severe;

When he fails and banishes them not

The land to fell famine a prey falls.

1685 Tapas consumes Karma

They who stand in tapas

Consume away all Karma

In Siva they stand;

Even Celestials know this not;

They who know not Siva in tapas-standing,

Stood in tangle of births to endless sorrow condemned.

1686 Qualities unbecoming Tapasvins

Feeling, thinking, doing

Eating, tasting, hurting

Falling, rising, boasting

These come not

To those who walk in God.

1687 Inner Vision ends Births

They glimpse not the Dawn,

Nor the Spaces Vast;

Nor the Vision in Spaces;

Close your inner eyes hard

And then see;

Behold, there is the Light

That brings not another day!

1688 No Grace for false Disciple

He thinks not of sundering soul's fetters,

Nor of annihilating world's desires;

He strives not to Mukti attain,

Nor aught of Tattvas and the way ahead;

But takes a wayward course,

A disciple exceeding mad;

To him is not the gift of Grace granted.

1689 Other blemishes of false Disciples

He thinks not of ending Fetters Five

Nor of deliverance from incessant lust immersed;

A mean liar, fears neither birth nor death

Verily, a stranger to Grace shall be

He, the disciple false.

14 THE FIT DISCIPLE

1690 They who find the Path

Scriptures to guide them,

The Disciples Fit

Find the blemishless Guru;

They know their job and so find the Path;

The rest are to destruction destined.

1691 Lord! Grant me Your Grace

You, Supreme Lord!

Seeking You, I lost all sense of fear;

Now I wander not,

And seek not another's company;

Shatter, Lord, my Karmas

Uproot them from my very thoughts

And kick them off;

Grant me Your Grace.

Own me,

And make me Your slave forever.

1692 Grace comes to those who contain their Thoughts in God

Even as your frame still pulsates with life,

You envision high

Para the Seed of seeds;

And rally your thoughts to oneness

And stand thus in love and accord;

To such that do, He grants His Grace.

1693 Seek a proper Guru

When you seek a Guru

Seek you one, holy and pure;

And then give him your all--

Your body, life and wealth;

And in constancy learn clear,

Not a moment distracting,

You shall sure reach Siva's State.

1694 Auspicious Days for receiving Instruction

In the asterisms of Swati and Visakha

In the conjunction of Lagnas Vrischika and Kataka,

Of the Guru, the holy precepts you receive;

Except it be them who stand in the path of virtue

The Primal One knows none.

1695 Pure thoughts lead to Grace

When your discipline perfect be,

Your thoughts crystal pure be;

And there the beauteous Lord reside be;

Then shall Karmas all

Rooted deep unto undying weeds,

Disappear;

And you shall glimpse the Grace

Of the valorous Feet of Lord Holy.

1696 Attributes of Good Disciple

A sattvic he is;

His thoughts centered on Finite Truth;

His vision clear through conflicting faiths;

Abhorrent of recurring cycle of births;

Straight in Dharma's path he easy walks;

He, sure, is disciple good and true.

1697 Yet other qualities of Good Disciple

He scans that which divides the Real and the Unreal

He melts in the soul of his being

And with Siva's Grace to guide,

He receives Jnana in devotion true;

And he humbles himself before Lord

And seeks the bliss of His Sakti;

He is the fit one, the disciple good and true.

1698 The Power of Guru's Feet

"Oh! my Holy Master!

Do grace me with your feet on my head,"

--Thus, I prayed, this day;

And as he placed his feet

All births to vanish;

This body that was blessed thus

Received Grace of Arul Sakti

And I became a Jnani ripe,

Forever, blemish devoid.

1699 What comes of touch of Guru's Feet

He is the master of the difficult paths four;

He is the seeker incessant of Jnana divine;

And as he placed his feet on my head,

Higher and higher, my ardour in Jnana soared,

Higher and higher, my love for Gurupara welled up.

1700 Rules of Instruction

Impart divine knowledge only to those fully ripe to receive it,

Taking the disciple gently to the limits of the Infinite Vast;

You facing east or south, your disciple facing west or north

Thus instruct, the Sakti of Lord centered in mind.

1701 How the Jnana Guru Instructs

He humbles before Divine Guru

In postures five ordained;

He bewails his faults,

Praises Master's virtues;

Guru then shows the way of deliverance from mortal prison

And imparts Siva Jnana

He is truly the Guru that is of Sanmarga (Jnana Guru).

1702 True Disciple humbles before the Renunciate Vedantin

Vedanta is the way of renouncing desires;

And so, divert your life's course

And take to Siddhanta-Vedanta Way

And humble your head at the feet of Guru

That has renounced all in the Vedanta way.

Then verily are you disciple true.

1703 Good Disciple follows Guru like a shadow

O! disciple true!

In virtue, truth, compassion, discrimination and love

You pursue the Holy Feet of Guru true

Constant as unto a shadow;

You then gain the nectar of Finite Jnana in its crystal clarity,

And witness the many miracles it brings in train.

TANTRA SIX ENDS