The Concept Of Soul And Bondage In Saiva Siddhanta
Keywords:
Pati, Pasu, Pasa, Anava, Maya and KarmaAbstract
There are three perennial entities namely God (Pati), Soul (Pasu) and Bondage (Pasa) in Saiva Siddhanta which is one of the ancient religious traditions in South India. According to Saiva Siddhanta, the soul is eternal, capable of knowing both God and world. The bondage of soul is characteristically described as utter darkness and ignorance in Saiva Siddhanta. Saiva Siddhantin believes that there are three bondages (malas). They are anava, karma and maya. Anava mala is the primary mala which, through eternity, has remained with the soul, as though it is naturally connected. The other two malas begin to come and join the primary mala later on. Hence, ‘avava mala has been called sahaja (natural), and the other two akanatuka (those which joined later).’ Anava which obstructs the omniscience of the souls which is known as pratibandha, maya which limits the pervasiveness of the souls which is known as sambandha, and karma which ceaselessly follows the soul directing it towards enjoyment rather than towards attaining of release which is known as anubandha. However, while anava is wholly inimical to the soul, maya and karma are only partially inimical which helps the soul to come out of bondage. These impurities are found in the soul even as husk, bran and sprout are found in the paddy grain. Of these, anava is said to be the root impurity (mulamala) and is as connate to the soul as verdigris to copper. It is an attempt to bring out the concept of soul and its bondage in Saiva Siddhanta.
References
Balasubramaniuam, P. Special Lectures on Saiva Siddhanta. Annamalai Nagar: Annamalai Universtiy, 1959.
Devasenapathi, V.A. Of Human Bondage and Divine Grace. Annamalai Nagar: Annamalai university, 1963.
Manikkavasakar. Thiruvasakam, Eng. trans. by G.U. Pope, Madras: University of Madras, 1970.
Panniru Thirumurai Peruntirattu, Madras: The south India Saiva Siddhanta Works Publishing Society, 1961.
Ramanujachari, R. Saiva Siddhanta, Annamalainagar: Annamalai University, 1948.
Sachidanandam Pillai, S. Saiva Siddhanda, Annamalainagar: Annamalai University, 1952.
Sivajnanamunivar, Sivajnanamapadiyam (Eng.Trans.), K.Vajravelu Mudaliar, Madurai Kamaraj University, Madurai,1985.
Sivaraman, K. Savism in Philosophical Perspective, Delhi: Motilal Banarsidass Publishers Pvt. Ltd., 1973.
Umapati Sivacariyar, Tiruvarupayan & Arunmuraittirattu (With an English rendering) Devasenapathi V.A., Tamil University, Tanjore, 1987.
Umapati Sivacriyar, Sivaprakasam, The South India Saiva Siddhanta works Publishing Society, 1969.
Downloads
Published
Issue
Section
License
Copyright Notice
Submission of an article implies that the work described has not been published previously (except in the form of an abstract or as part of a published lecture or academic thesis), that it is not under consideration for publication elsewhere, that its publication is approved by all authors and tacitly or explicitly by the responsible authorities where the work was carried out, and that, if accepted, will not be published elsewhere in the same form, in English or in any other language, without the written consent of the Publisher. The Editors reserve the right to edit or otherwise alter all contributions, but authors will receive proofs for approval before publication.
Copyrights for articles published in World Scholars journals are retained by the authors, with first publication rights granted to the journal. The journal/publisher is not responsible for subsequent uses of the work. It is the author's responsibility to bring an infringement action if so desired by the author.
