9. Beyond the beyond

Verse 9

அரியும்அல்ல அயனும் அல்ல அப்புறத்தில் அப்புறம்

கருமைசெம்மை வெண்மையைக் கடந்துநின்ற காரணம்

பெரியதல்ல சிறியதல்ல பற்றுமின்கள் பற்றுமின்

துரியமும் கடந்துநின்ற தூரதூர தூரமே.

Translation:

Not Hari, not Brahma, it is beyond the beyond,

The cause that stood beyond blackness, redness and whiteness,

Not big, not small, hold on to it, hold it,

That which stood beyond turiya- far, far verily far.

Commentary:

            According to the Siddhas, the Ultimate Reality, which is formless and quality-free, includes all forms and qualities.  It is beyond the beyond.  The three colors, black, red and white represent the three energy channels or nādis, ida (black), pingala (red) and suṣumna (white).

The three colors also represent the three qualities, sattva (white), rajas (red) and tamas (black) indicated by Brahma, Viṣṇu and Rudra. Civavākkiyar says that the Ultimate Reality is the primal cause which is beyond these three qualities (and hence beyond the holy triad) also.  Brahma, Vishnu and Rudra also represent the three realms or mandalas, Surya mandala, Chandra mandala and Agni mandala respectively.  These realms are present from foot to navel, navel to neck and from neck to forehead respectively in the human body.  The Ultimate Reality, as the kundalini Shakti, crosses these three realms and goes beyond them to reach the sahasrara cakra.  It goes even beyond that cakra and reaches the state of realization, the state of Supreme consciousness.  Thus, it is beyond the beyond.

            The color white represents prakāśa (wisdom/effulgence- Śiva) aspect and red, the vimarśa (experience/ bliss- Śakti) aspect of Godhead.  The prakāśa and vimarśa are the first emanations, the state of duality of the Ultimate Reality.  It is the state of wisdom and bliss.  The color black includes all other colors.  It is the ultimate state of union. It represents the state of union of the male and female aspects, the wisdom and bliss aspects of the Ultimate Reality.  Thus, the Absolute is beyond all these three states.

 

             Consciousness comprises of the four states jāgrat (wakefulness), swapna (dream state), suṣupti (beyond the dream state) and turiya (supreme consciousness).  Realization about the Ultimate Reality occurs at the turiya state.  However, the Ultimate Reality is beyond even this state.  It is the ‘turiyātīta’. 

            Tirumular describes this quality of the Ultimate Reality in Tandiram eight of his Tirumandiram.  In mandiram 2936, he calls the turiyātīta state, mona samādhi.