Shaivism
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Three core principles: pasu, pathi, paasa
Sarala Rajagopalan, October 24, 2017: The Hindu
There are three core principles in Saiva Siddhanta. They are pasu, pathi and paasa. Pathi refers to God; pasu is the individual jivatma; and paasa refers to ego, illusion and karma.
Ego, illusion and karma are hurdles that stand in the way of our liberation. Those who cannot free themselves from the three hurdles exhibit certain undesirable traits, elaborated Sarala Rajagopalan in a discourse. They are avaricious and can never have enough of anything.
When we have a long list of desires and seek to fulfil all of them, it is inevitable that we are going to be disappointed. And when we are so particular about attaining something, even a minor setback seems unbearable to us. The result is that we become miserable.
And having spent our entire lives in the pursuit of wealth, we are too worn out to even think of God, when we are no longer able to earn.
But the man who loves God intensely will realise that love is God. The ignorant think that love and God are different. But the realised soul knows that love is God, and God is love. This is pointed out by Saint Thirumoolar. He says love and God are indistinguishable. They are one and the same.
God is the embodiment of love. We have to make ourselves worthy to receive His grace, and when we prepare ourselves for a life of devotion, God Himself comes to us. Manickavachagar, because of his love for Lord Siva, was in a state of wonder, not knowing how to reach Him. But the Lord steadied and calmed him, and gave Manickavachagar the rare boon of seeing His feet.
Manickavachagar celebrated this kindness of the Lord through his Thiruvachagam. Manickavachagar had no thoughts or time to spare for anything or anyone but Lord Siva.
And the Lord reciprocated the saint’s love for Him.
