Chapter 4.1f - Avañcaka-traya (the unfailing triad)

Haribhadrasūri states that the mitrā dṛṣṭi beholder is capable of accumulating yoga-seeds in highly pure manner in the last round of matter reception when his destiny to attain liberation gets ripened (tathābhavyatvaparipāka) Haribhadrasūri says that the soul, who has entered into the last round of matter reception, generally possesses following characteristics. He is extremely compassionate for those who are in misery. He has a feeling of non-antipathy towards the virtuous ones. Moreover he maintains propriety in his dealing with all without exception^[1] . Haribhadrasūri also says that such a soul, who is endowed with the three afore-mentioned qualities, is a great soul (mahātman) whose very sight is endearing (bhadramūrti)^[2] . He is called a great soul because he is going to do his spiritual welfare very soon by utilizing his energy (virya) for spiritual practices^[3] . Due to the unfailing triad (Avañcakatraya—avañcaka-traya), which will be explained later on, he gets associated with auspicious causes^[4] .

They are three^[5] -

1. The association with a saintly personage or preceptor (satyoga).
2. The spiritual activities (satkrīyā).
3. The result obtained in the form of the destruction of karmans (satphala).

These three causes become instrumental to attain liberation^[6] . When they unfailingly lead him to his spiritual welfare, they are called avañcaka.

The triad of avañcaka is as follows–

1. Yogāvañcaka –unfailing association.
2. Krīyāvañcaka –unfailing act.
3. Phalāvañcaka –unfailing fruit.

Haribhadrasūri defines each of them as follows:

1. Yogāvañcaka—unfailing association:

Yogāvañcaka is to come into contact with a saintly personage by considering him as a person of high virtues. Such a saintly person is the one who has accomplished his own spiritual welfare and whose mere sight makes people sinless^[7] .

A soul might have met saintly personages several times during his period of transmigration. He might have paid innumerable visits to them. However his act of visiting them has not become unfailing association. It is so because he has never visited them with high regards in his mind for them. Moreover, he has never acknowledged the virtuous personality of them. When the soul acquires the mitrā dṛṣṭi and possesses three characteristic marks (owned by a soul who has entered into the last round of matter reception), he looks at the saintly personage as a highly virtuous man. He regards the saintly personage for his asceticism. Due to all these good thoughts about the saintly personage, the subject in question’s meeting with him turns out to be unfailing association.

2. Krīyāvañcaka—unfailing act:

To make heartily obeisance, to sing glory, to serve physically–to do such mental, vocal and physical activities to the saintly personage is called unfailing act. Such an unfailing act results into the destruction of great sins^[8] .

3. Phalāvañcaka—unfailing fruit:

The subject in question’s obtainment of serially continuous (sānubandha) endeavor in spiritual activities, which results into the religious accomplishment is called the unfailing fruit^[9] . He acquires such an unfailing fruit by listening and following sermons delivered by the great personages^[10] . The subject in question, who has successfully experienced unfailing association and unfailing act, is going to gain the above mentioned unfailing fruit.

The unfailing contact, unfailing act as well as unfailing fruit are referred as the unfailing triad in the sacred texts^[11] . The unfailing triad is identified as the indistinct meditation (avyaktasamādhi) in the chapter on supreme meditation (samādhi) in the scriptures^[12] . The distinct meditation (vyaktasamādhi) is the supreme meditation which comes after practicing the fixing of mind (dhāraṇā) and meditation (dhyāna).

Haribhadrasūri defines the term avyaktasamādhi as:

“citrakṣayopaśamastathāvidha āśayaviśeṣa iti|”^[13]

Moreover he clarifies that the unfailing triad should be understood in the context of a saintly personage^[14] . For instance unfailing association means to make the contact with a saintly personage and act with anyone else. Further Haribhadrasūri uses an analogy of shooting an arrow to hit the target for explaining the nature of the unfailing triad^[15] . An act of shooting an arrow to hit the target consists of three stages. The first stage is to direct the arrow rightly for hitting the target. The second stage is to shot the arrow properly. The last and third stage is to hit the target successfully through shooting an arrow correctly. These three stages are compared with the unfailing contact, unfailing act and unfailing fruit respectively^[16] .

The subject in question initially acquaints himself with a saintly personage, serves him, bows him down etc. the subject in question’s such initial level good activities results into the acquisition of the unfailing triad.

The subject in question’s loosened karmic bondage causes the undertaking of afore-mentioned primary level good activities. Hence it can be said that the lessened karmic bondages is the cause of good activities pertaining to a saintly personage. They become an important cause in realizing the unfailing triad to the subject in question. This is how it is mentioned in the sacred literature by experts on yoga^[17] . Thus, the same is mentioned by Haribhadrasūri in the Yogadṛṣṭisamuccaya.

Haribhadrasūri states that the soul, who has lessened karmic bondages, is capable of acknowledging the greatness of a saintly personage. Haribhadrasūri presents this fact by giving vyatireka as well as anvaya type of illustrations. While presenting this fact by vyatireka view-point Haribhadrasūri says that is it possible for a weaksighted person to see thing properly at any time? Just like it a soul with intense karmic bondages is incapable of recognizing nobility of a saintly personage^[18] .

Haribhadrasūri’s presentation of the above-mentioned fact, using anvaya viewpoint, is as follows. Just as a man, whose illness is almost cured, carries on his duties viz. earning livelihood etc. instead of getting disturbed by almost cured illness. Similarly the subject in question, who has substantially reduced his karmic bondages, involves himself in performing spiritual activities without getting influenced by rise of karmans^[19] .

The following two verses of the treatise Dvātriṃśad-dvātriṃśikā of Upādhyāya Yaśovijaya are worth referring here.

The verses are^[20] :

1. satsu sattvadhiyaṃ hanta male tīvre labheta kaḥ |
aṅgulyā naspaśṛेt paṅguḥ śākhāṃ sumahastaroḥ || 21.21 || 
2. vīkṣyatesvalparogasya ceṣṭā ceṣṭā'rthasiddhaye |
svalpakarmamalasyā'pi tathā prakṛ takarmaṇi || 21.22 ||

Footnotes and references:

[1]:

daḥु khiteṣu dayā'tyanta-madvaṣeो guṇavatsu ca |
aucityāt sevanaṃ caiva, savartraivā'viśeṣataḥ || 32 ||
   – Yogadṛṣṭisamuccaya (2010)

[2]:

evaṃvidhasya jīvasya, bhadramūrtermahātmanaḥ |
śubho nimittasaṃyogo, jāyate'vañcakodayāt || 3 ||

…., bhadramūrteḥ–priyadarśanasya,... || 3 ||
   –Yogadṛṣṭisamuccaya and its auto-commentary(2010)

[3]:

, mahātmanaḥ sadvīryayogena,.... || 33 ||
   –Auto-commentary on Yogaḍṛṣṭisamuccaya.

[4]:

, kimityāha-śubhaḥ praśastaḥ ka ityāha-nimittasaṃyogaḥ–sadyogādisaṃyogaḥ, sadyogādīnāmeva niḥśreyasasādhananimittatvāt jāyate | ku ta ityāha–avañcakodayāt - vakṣyamāṇasamādhiviśeṣodayādityatharḥ || 33 ||
   –ibid.

[5]:

śubhaḥ-praśastaḥ, ka ityāha-nimittasaṃyogaḥ–sadyogādisaṃyogaḥ,.... || 33 ||
   –ibid.

[6]:

, sadyogādīnāmeva niḥśreyasasādhananimittatvāta,्.............. || 33 ||
   –ibid.

[7]:

sadbhiḥ kalyāṇasampanai-rdarśanādapi pāvanaiḥ |
tathādarśanato yoga, ādyāvañcaka ucyate || 219 ||

sadbhiḥ kalyāṇasampanai rviśiṣṭairviśiṣṭapuṇyavadbhiḥ, darśanādapi pāvanaikhalokanenā'pi pavitraiḥ, tathā tena prakāreṇa guṇavattayā vipayaryābhāvena darśanaṃ tathādarśanam........ || 219 || 
   –Yogadṛṣṭisamuccaya and its auto-commentary(2010)

[8]:

teṣāmeva praṇāmādi-kriyāniyama ityalam |
kriyāvañcakayogaḥsyānmahāpāpakṣayodayaḥ || 220 ||
...| ayaṃ ca mahāpāpakṣayodayonīcaurgotrakarmakṣayakṛ diti bhāvaḥ || 220 ||

[9]:

phalāvañcakayogastu, sadbhya eva niyogataḥ |
sānubandhaphalāvāpti-rdharmasiddhau ___________ satāṃ matā || 221 ||
   – Yogadṛṣṭisamuccaya

[10]:

niyogataḥ–avaśyaṃtayā sānubandhaphalāvāptiḥ tathāsadapu deśādinā, dharmasiddhau viṣaye satāṃ matā iti || 221 ||
   –Yogadṛṣṭisamuccaya and its auto-commentary(2010)

[11]:

yogakriyāphalākhyaṃ yata,् śrūyate'vañcakatrayam |
..................................................... || 34 ||

yogakriyāphalākhyaṃ yata-् yasmāt śrūyate'vañcakatrayamāgame “yogāvañcakaḥ kriyāvañcakaḥ phalāvañcakaḥ” iti vacanāt |.... || 34 ||

   – Yogadṛṣṭisamuccaya and its auto-commentary(2010)

[12]:

| avyaktasamādhirevaiṣa, tadadhikāre pāṭhāta,्.... || 34 ||
   –Yogadṛṣṭisamuccaya and its auto-commentary(2010)

[13]:

See pg: 18, line: 16, Auto-commentary on verse 34 of the Yogadṛṣṭisamuccaya (2010)

[14]:

, śrūyate'vañcakatrayam |
sādhūnāśritya.... || 34 ||
   – Yogadṛṣṭisamuccaya

[15]:

yogakriyāphalākhyaṃ yata,् śrūyate'vañcakatrayam |
.... parama-miṣulakṣya kriyopamam || 34 ||
   –ibid.

[16]:

paramamavañcakatrayaṃ, svarūpatastvetad iṣulakṣyakriyopamaṃ, śarasya lakṣyakriyā tatpradhānatayā tadavisaṃvādinyeva, anyathā lakṣyakriyātvāyogāt | evaṃ sādhūnāśritya yogāvañcakastadyogāvisaṃvādī | evaṃ tadgandanādikriyā tatphalaṃ cā''śrityaiṣa evameva draṣṭavya iti || 34 ||
   –Yogadṛṣṭisamuccaya and its auto-commentary(2010)

[17]:

etadapi yannimittaṃ tadabhidhātumāha–
etacca satpraṇāmādi-nimittaṃ samaye sthitam |
.... tathā bhāvamalālpatākarmasambandhayogyatālpatā,
ratnādimalāpagamejyotsnādipravṛttivaditi yogācāryāḥ || 35 ||
   – Yogadṛṣṭisamuccaya and its auto-commentary(2010)

[18]:

prakṛ tavastūpodvalanāyavyatirekasāramāha–
nā'smin ghane yataḥ satsu, tatpratītirmahodayā |
kiṃ samyag rūpamādatte, kadācinmandalocanaḥ || 36 ||
   – Yogadṛṣṭisamuccaya

[19]:

adhunā'nvayasāramadhikṛ tavastusamarthanāyaivā''ha -
alpavyādhiryathā loke, tadvikārairna bādhyate |
ceṣṭate ceṣṭasiddhyarthaṃ, dhṛtyaivā'yaṃ tathā hite || 37 ||

... dhatृ yaiva dharmayonirūpayā, etacca “dhṛtiḥ śraddhā sukhā vividiṣā vijñaptiriti dharmayonayaḥ” iti vacanāt |
tadanayā hetubhūtayā,... hite-hitariṣaye dānādau ceṣṭata iti || 37 ||

   - Yogadṛṣṭisamuccaya and its auto-commentary (2010)

[20]:

Part-5, Pg: 1459, Line: 3 and Pg: 1460, line: 4.