Introduction

In Chapter 1 the prevailing state of adharma at the time of Śaṅkara-avatāra was discussed and the rationale and need for an avatāra-puruṣa were clarified. In Chapter 2 the prelude to Śaṅkara-avatāra and Śaṅkara’s parents were covered and in Chapter 3 the promise of the descent was detailed. They can be read here, here, and here.

Chapter 4 discusses the victory of Kumārila Bhaṭṭa over the Buddhists and Sivaguru’s premonition.

Darkness and Light

The entire agrahāram^[1] participated in the preparations for the pūjā. All of them seemed to intuitively anticipate something momentous – a palpable and distinct feeling that seemed to be reflected in all aspects of nature and in all things around the agrahāram. Besides, Sivaguru and Āryambha were genuinely liked and respected by all members of the agrahāram – Sivaguru’s scholarship, Āryambha’s devotion towards her husband, and the couple’s friendly nature meant that all their neighbors pitched in to help with the preparations. Garlands were hung at the entrance to the agrahāram and the little Sri Kṛṣṇa temple^[2] was beautifully decorated.

Even as the preparations were going on, Sivaguru started to feel the constant presence of a dark shadow that seemed to accompany him everywhere. They say that all things are “pairs of opposites” – happiness is often followed by sorrow and light by darkness and perhaps it was only this and nothing more – so saying, Sivaguru dismissed it initially, but soon the darkness became a living presence, and he realized that the darkness meant something, and it was telling him something that he must pay heed to. That night as he lay in bed, the darkness lay down with him and then merged with him – the light of the day became one with the dark of the night and from then on the brooding premonition that had haunted Sivaguru for several weeks became a part of him – he knew now with a certainty that comes to those who are nearing their own death that he wouldn’t live for a very long time. He would see the birth of his boy but he wouldn’t be around to see him ascend to the dizzying heights of Dharma, he wouldn’t be there to share in the joy that a father feels when his son or daughter achieves the pinnacle of glory.

He kept the knowledge of his impending early death to himself. He did not want to burden his wife with the weight of this news, particularly at a time when they were on the threshold of a new beginning in their life. He participated enthusiastically in the preparations for the pūjā – a select group of Brahmanas would officiate and conduct the pūjā. Then they would be served food and after the Brahmanas had eaten, then all the guests would be fed and then finally Sivaguru and Āryambha would eat the food, taking it as prasāda from Wadakkunathan.

After the completion of the pūjā and the Brahmanas and the guests had left, it was already late evening and the sun was sinking slowly into the Pūrṇa in a haze of brilliant red, orange, and gold. It was then that Sivaguru and Āryambha sat down to have the “prasāda.” As they finished their meal, cleaned the house, and retired for the night, they were both extremely happy and pleased at all that had transpired and they talked in whispers about the last two months, the mandala-vratha-pūjā, the vision of Mahādeva, his promise – that night as they slept in each other’s arms, the Śakti of Śiva descended and entered the womb of Āryambha.

For now, Sivaguru had forgotten about the dark premonition and keenly looked forward to the arrival of that dawn that would signal not just the beginning of a new day but also the beginning of a new life…

When the Lion roars, even the elephants retreat

 

Kumārila Bhaṭṭa had walked for several weeks. On the way, he had visited several temples and worshipped there, seeking the blessings of the Devas and Devis in his quest to save the Dharma and reestablish the pristine truth of the Vedas. He had also engaged a few scholars in arguments and debates and in the process, honing and sharpening his skills and debating points for the impending trial by fire that awaited him in the capital city ruled by King Sudhanvan.

Kumārila Bhaṭṭa had one advantage over his Buddhist opponents and he intended to use that advantage to the fullest – he had made a deep and careful study of Buddhist philosophy in addition to his deep study and practice of the Vedas and Mīmāṃsā.

In time Kumārila Bhaṭṭa reached the capital city of King Sudhanvan. As was the practice of the day, he was welcomed and received with great honor and respect by the King. It did not matter that the King was a practitioner of Buddhism, the fact that Kumārila Bhaṭṭa was a scholar par excellence was enough for the King to welcome him with respect and offer him a seat of honor. It was still a time when points of difference were settled through debate and argumentation, discussion, and analysis. The sword as a means to settle ideological and religious differences would come later; but for now “Viveka” was the scalpel of discernment that would be the primary means to differentiate the victor from the vanquished. Furthermore, the “cancel culture”^[3] that is in vogue today was unknown to the verbal combatants of the day.

As Kumārila sat on the throne of honor, he realized that in honoring him, the atmosphere for a debate and a contest of wits was being nullified – this would mean the failure of his mission. He realized that he would have to say or do something provocative to start the debate and that is exactly what he did.

At that precise moment, an Indian Cuckoo (Kokila or Koel) started its characteristic call – a “Kuhoo-Kuhoo-Kuhoo” call that is repeated in a crescendo five or six times. Kumārila immediately seized on this opportunity to fire his first salvo. He seemingly addressed the cuckoo, but his words were aimed at the King and the Buddhist monks assembled there: “Oh Kokila! How beautiful and sweet to the ears is your voice. Your sweet music would have been heard by all assembled here but for the disturbance caused by the cawing cacophony of the crows…” He had called the Buddhists crows and that naturally angered them which is exactly what he wanted.

He then proceeded to cut branch after branch of the Buddhist teachings and drop it into the fire of Vedic knowledge using the axe of Viveka  – this caused consternation, anger, and fear in the minds of the Buddhist scholars as all their arguments were being destroyed by this visiting scholar. As the debate proceeded, it got noisier and angrier and the debating points, accusations, and counteraccusations flew thick & fast and back & forth.

The reddening faces of the Buddhist monks and their angry protestations and points were being met with the razor-sharp and calm responses of Kumārila. As the debate proceeded late into the evening and the shadows lengthened, the Buddhist voices one by one fell silent. It was clear now to all who had assembled there that Kumārila had won the debate. Kumārila then proceeded to start explaining the subtle meaning of the Vedas to King Sudhanvan.

Sudhanvan listened to this with rapt attention and at the end of it told everyone assembled there that in the interest of fairness, he would ask for one final test: “Wordy contests can be won by those who have mastery over knowledge and debating skills, true tests are tests of character and therefore I propose the following test” – “I will accept the religion of that party as true, who can jump off the top of that mountain and remain alive.” As all the people stood aghast, Kumārila readily agreed, saying: “If the Vedas are true, then I shall be protected”. The next day in the presence of the entire city and all the citizens watching in awe, Kumārila climbed up the mountain, closed his eyes, uttered a prayer, and jumped off the mountain. He landed on the ground and stood up unhurt. However, even this did not convince his opponents who argued with the King that this was a magic trick that had been perpetrated on everyone and that the King should conduct another test.

The King was angry, but he still agreed reluctantly and decided to set a test that would put the result beyond all doubt. He placed a poisonous snake inside a pot, covered it, and then presented it to the assembly and challenged both parties to identify the contents of the pot. Both parties asked for a day’s time. Kumārila spent the night in meditation. Early in the morning, he had a vision of Viṣṇu who whispered into Kumārila’s ears, the answer he had to give to the King the next day.

The next day all the participants assembled at the palace and the king placed the pot in the middle. The Buddhists declared that it contained a snake. Kumārila declared that it contained the murti of Viṣṇu reclining on the great snake Ādiśeṣa. The King’s face turned white on hearing this and he looked enquiringly at Kumārila who only smiled back in response. At that moment, the king heard a disembodied voice exhorting him to go ahead and open the pot. When he did that, out came a beautiful murti of Viṣṇu reclining on Ādiśeṣa!

The lion had roared, and the elephants had to retreat…

King Sudhanvan immediately declared that henceforth the Vedas would be Pradhāna and he himself as well as all his subjects would come back into the fold of Sanātana Dharma. The King further declared that those Buddhists who continued to oppose this decision would be banished from the kingdom. Thus was Dharma dragged back from the brink of oblivion. Kumārila had made the first and most significant inroads and paved the way for the descent of Śaṅkara.

To be continued…

 

References:

[1] A row of houses running north to south on either side of a walkway (road) with a temple at the center dedicated to the village god or sometimes two temples on either side – one to Mahādeva and the other to Viṣṇu – like two pendants in a garland with the houses forming the beads of the garland. Read more here: (99+) Agraharams: The origin and evolution of a unique housing pattern in Kerala | Sharat Sunder Rajeev – Academia.edu. Last Accessed: January 12, 2023.

[2] Today, this beautiful Kṛṣṇa temple can still be visited and is located on the banks of the river Pūrṇa and to the west of the Sringeri Mutt situated there amidst lush greenery and sylvan serenity. Kṛṣṇa was also one of the family deities of the family.

[3] Social and cultural atmosphere of shaming, public boycotting, and withdrawing of support, privileges, positions, job opportunities for those who don’t agree to a majoritarian and/or currently prevalent world view.