Yama’s Abode
Yama’s abode is very far away. Those who have accumulated punya have nothing to fear there. But the sinners have every reason to be scared. The righteous enjoy the trip to Yama’s abode, but the sinners suffer a lot. The sinners suffer from hunger and thrist and weep throughout the journey. Yama’s servants continually beat them with whips and weapons. The road is lined with mud, fire and hot sands. Hail, burning ? , stones and weapons shower down. In some places there are blistering winds. Parts of the road are dark and bristle with sharp thorns.
One has to climb mountains and creep through caves. The sinners accordingly suffer throughout the journey. Yama’s servants goad and prod them along, pulling them with nooses tied around their necks. Weights are attached to the bodies of the sinners so a sto make the journey even more difficult. Blinders are sometimes put on the eyes so that the sinners can’t see. They fall into pits and holes. It is during this journey that sinners become penitent for their past misdeeds. But by then it is too late.
The righteous have no cause to fear the journey. They travel in great comfort. Those who have donated food get delicious meals along the way. Those who have donated water slake their thirst with condensed milk. Thse who have donated clothes get wonderful clothes to wear. Those who have donated land or houses do not have to walk at all. They travel in vimanas (space vehicles) and are served by apsaras (dancers of heaven). This is also true of those who have donated horses, chariots or foodgrains.
Upon reaching Yama’s abode, people are taken before Yama. Yama has four hands and in three of these hands he holds a shankha (conch shell), a chakra (bladed discus) and a gada (mace). The righteous are welcomed by Yama and sent off to enjoy the fruits of their punya.
But the sinners tremble before yama’s stern visage. He treatens them with his sceptre (kaladanda). His voice thunders. The righteous get to see Yama’s pleasant appearance, while his terrible appearance is reserved for the sinners. This terrible manifestation has twenty-two arms, bloodshot eyes and fearsome teeth.
Chitragupta is Yama’s companion and keeps account of all good deeds and sins. He tells the sinners, “You are evil, you have many sins to your credit. Suffer in hell, repentance now will serve no purpose.”
The sinners are then taken to hell (naraka). After they have served their sentences in hell, they are born again.
They are first born as trees, herbs, grass and creepers. They are thereafter born as worms. When these lives are over, they are born as animals. It is only after several lives that they get to be born as humans again. But ther are different gradations in the human lives as well. The sinners progressively graduate from being born as tanners to being born as outcasts, hunters, washermen, potters, blacksmiths, goldsmiths, weavers and traders. Some are born rich, others are born poor. Some are born hale, others are born diseased and malformed. Each birth is determined by the actions of one’s earlier lives.
Bliss
The world is full of miseries. How does one rise above the illusions of the world, how does one free oneself from these miseries? How does one attain bliss(moksha)?
It is Vishnu who provides bliss, Brahma creates the world on Vishnu’s orders and Shiva destroys it also on Vishnu’s instructions. The entire universe is completely identified with Vishnu. Vishnu has no form, nor is he without form. He is the source of all dharma. It is from him that all the elements originate. Humans who worship him become like gods.
True knowledge consists of the realization that Vishnu is everything. In this sense, bliss can be achieved through knowledge (jnana). Knowledge needs the bedrock of faith (bhakti) to support it. Good actions (karma) give rise to faith in Vishnu. In fact, actions are the first step towards attaining knowledge. There are very few people who can embark on the path of knowledge straight away. In the final stage of knowledge, one realizes that Vishnu is everywhere in the universe and that there is therefore no difference between oneself and other living beings. This sense of union with Vishnu is referred to as yoga.
A person who is for this sort of supreme knowledge is known as a mumukshu. There are certain traits that enable one to identify a mumukshu. He has no sense of anger or hate, he is not addicted to the senses and he evinces pity towards all living beings. His mind is perpetually preoccupied with thoughts of Vishnu.
There is another way of expressing the idea behind yoga. The divine soul is known as the paramatman and it has no form. As opposed to this, there are human souls known as jivatmans. These are attached to individual bodies and egos. Yoga tries to overcome this illusion and establishes the union between the jivatman and the paramatman. It is true that the human soul is confined by the shackles of the body, but it is the overcoming of this illusion that is important. This sense, the sense of the union between human souls and the divine soul, is true or supreme knowledge, referred to as brahma jnana. (The word brahman is used synonymously with paramatman, although the latter is loosely translated as the divine soul and the former as the divine essence.)
The path of yoga is aided by eight techniques. The first of these is known as yama (self-control). This requires non-violence, truthfulness, love, pity and control over the senses. Jealousy and envy also have to be given up. The second technique is niyama (practice). This requires meditation, chanting incantations, reading sacred texts and cleanliness. Yama and niyama purify the mind and the body and thus enable one to meditate on the true nature of Vishnu. But meditation requires a proper posture and this the third technique of asana (posture). There are thirty major postures that are recommended for someone who is practising yoga. The fourth technique is pranayama (controlling one’s breath). The control over one’s breath aids the process of meditation.
The fifth technique is known as pratyahara (withdrawal). This means the withdrawal of the mind from all sorts of sensual pleasures. The sixth technique is known as dharana (retention). One visualises the identity of the paramatman and the jivatman, and retains the image of the identity in one’s mind. It helps to concentrate one’s mind on an image of Vishnu seated on a lotus flower. When one meditates continuosly on this image, that constitutes the seventh technique of dhyana (contemplation). There are three objects that are involved in the process of meditation¾ the person who is doing the meditating, the object of meditation and the act of meditation. When all sense of distinction between these three objects is lost, the contemplation can be regarded as complete. When the final point of contemplation is reached, one attains the eighth and final technique of samadhi (intense bliss). The brahman is fixed in the mind of such a person and he loses all other senses.
Devamali
A person who is devoted to Vishnu is eternally blessed.
Many years ago, a brahmana named Devamali lived in the land of Raivata. He was learned in the Vedas, pitiful towards other living beings, and devoted to Vishnu. But unfortunately, he had many sons, friends and a wife to take care of. Making a living was difficult and Devamali was constrained to trade in objects that no brahmana should touch. He also interacted with outcasts. He thus committed many sins.
After some years, two sons named Yajnamali and Sumali were born to Devamali. With great care and perseverance, the father taught the sons how to make money.
By then, Devamali himself had made a lot of money and had accumulated a lot wealth. One day, he sat down to count his wealth and discovered that he had millions and millions of coins. He thought to himself, “I had made a lot of money; look at the number of coins I have accumulatd. Unfortunately, I have had to do this through evil means, by means of trading in objects that I should not even have touched. But is it not strange that, despite all my riches, my thirst for more wealth remains unsatiated? This conclusively proves that it is the craving for riches that is the root of all evil. One continues to want more wealth even if one’s teeth decay and one’s skin gets wrinkled. A person who wants peace should give up all hankering after riches. I think tha tI have had enough. I should now start to think about the life that comes hereafter.”
Thinking this, Devamali resolved that he would devote himself to the path of dharma. He divided his riches into four parts. He retained two parts for himself and distributed the remaining two parts to his sons Yajnamali and Sumali.
With a view to acquiring punya, Devamali constructed temples and gardens and had ponds constructed. He went to the banks of the Ganga and donated alms. In this fashion, he exhauted all his wealth. Eventually, he went off to perform tapasya in the forest known as vadrikashrama. In the hermitage there lived many sages. Devamali joined them in their meditations. He contemplated on the true nature of the brahman.
The sages gave Devamali plenty of good advice. One particular sage named Jananti taught Devamali the techniques of yoga. It was through the practice of yoga that Devamali was freed of all his illusions.
