Book Review

ATMADARSANA - by N C Kumaran
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Published by Nitya Books, Narayana Gurukula, Fernhill P.O. Nilgiris 643 004. 2003, Paperback, pp. xxii + 100, Rs.100.

The realization of Atman is Atmadarsana, says the learned author. The subject is dealt with through nine chapters and five appendices. The I-consciousness, conditioning factors of the human mind, ‘arivu’ (in Tamil, knowledge) constitute the core of Atmadarsana. The appendices provide excerpts from contributions of the ‘guru traya’ (Narayana guru and his `wisdom successors’ Nataraja Guru and Guru Nitya Chaitanya Yati) and one Swami Mangalananda.

According to the author, Narayana Guru provides a rapprochement among the philosophies of the three earlier gurus––Shankara, Ramanuja and Madhva. It is also mentioned that the ‘guru traya’ restated and revalued Advaita Vedanta of olden times to suit the idiom and climate of their times. For this, the author refers to their works. ‘The Integrated Science of the Absolute’ and ‘Psychology of Darsanamala’ and the commentaries on Upanishads and Bhagavad Gita.

The concept of ‘arivu’ occupies a major portion of the book. Arivu (knowledge) is equated with adimahas (Primeval Reality), also described as ‘epistemology of gnosis’ and as ‘consciousness that assumes the form of all bodies’. In Narayana Guru’s 15-verse poem on arivu, the guru exhorts the seeker to establish ‘bipolarity with Supreme Being that transcends the triple modalities of nature, sattva, rajas and tamas, as aparaprakriti.’ A chapter ‘How Yoga Mimamsa (Dialectics) Helps’ is devoted to the usage of dialectical methodology in Vedanta literature. These and similar exercises are given in abundance for the contemplation of a thinker.

P S Sundaram, Mumbai

© "The Vedanta Kesari" (April, 2005) published by Sri Ramakrishna Math, Mylapore, Chennai 600 004. Website:sriramakrishnamath.org.

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