We will look at the सिद्धान्त-शैव understanding of तिरोधान & अनुग्रह (Concealment & Grace).

To recap first, in this thread below, we had a brief look at the three types of insentients: मल, कर्म & माया.

Barring 1st 2, all insentients in existence are products of माया. https://twitter.com/ghorangirasa/status/1373526824412573696

As seen here, we have 2 types of माया—शुद्धमाया & अशुद्धमाया. It is the latter that is deemed a bond/पाश. So, let us restate the bonds that afflict the souls: मल, कर्म & अशुद्धमाया.

So, how do these bonds figure in the five acts of परमशिव? What are these five acts? https://twitter.com/GhorAngirasa/status/1373526814065270788

It is well-known that in सिद्धान्त-शैवम्, परमशिव performs 5 acts:

1. सृष्टि - Generation/“Creation” - After a महाप्रलय, परमशिव once again stirs up शुद्धमाया/बिन्दु, creates worlds for very exalted souls & gives them बिन्दु-made bodies to enjoy these worlds & supreme offices.

1. Cont’d: One of these souls is अनन्त, the highest of an exalted group of the 8 विद्येश्वर-s, who all reside in ईश्वरतत्त्व. They are almost equal to परमशिव in their brilliance, omnipotence & omniscience, with each, starting from अनन्त, a little more exalted than the next one.

1. Cont’d: भगवान् अनन्त’s body is made of शुद्धमाया/बिन्दु. His own world is made of बिन्दु. He is never sullied by अशुद्धमाया. However, he is the one who stirs up that अशुद्धमाया & kickstarts the creation of these lower worlds.

1. Cont’d: अशुद्धमाया comprises of everything from the 1st product/evolute of अशुद्धमाया (कलातत्त्व) all the way down to पृथिवीतत्त्व (not to be confused with our itself, which is just a tiny part of our ब्रह्माण्ड, which itself is contained within पृथिवीतत्त्व).

1. Cont’d: In ब्रह्माण्ड, we have the opportunities for performance of पुन्य & पाप & enjoyment of the fruits of such पुन्य & पाप.

देव, गन्धर्व, यक्ष, रक्ष, असुर, नाग, पिशाच, मनुष्य & other स्थावरजङ्गम-These births are only available in this ब्रह्माण्ड, in this पृथिवीतत्त्व.

1. Cont’d: This ब्रह्माण्ड is supported by 100 रुद्र-s. Beyond पृथिवीतत्त्व, we have worlds in जल, अग्नि, वायु, आकाश, अहंकार, बुद्धि, गुण, प्रकृति & पुरुष तत्त्व-s, reached by souls who have also become रुद्र-s.

All of them are ultimately subservient to भगवान् अनन्त.

1. Cont’d: Every सिद्धान्ती worth his salt must know the following maxim by heart:

शुद्धेऽध्वनि शिवः कर्ता।प्रोक्तोऽनन्तोऽसिते प्रभुः॥

In the शुद्धाध्वन् (made of बिन्दु), शिव is the creator/agent while अनन्त is the master in the अशुद्धाध्वन् (made of अशुद्धमाया).

1. Cont’d: शिव initiates the generation of the शुद्धाध्वन् (pure course of worlds) from बिन्दु, selects a soul to be अनन्त who initiates the generation of अशुद्धाध्वन् (impure course of worlds) from अशुद्धमाया.

1. Cont’d: Thus, very briefly, we have seen how सृष्टि is structured in the सिद्धान्त & how it is initiated by परमशिव by His eternally inseparable & unlimited शक्ति.

Why he has अनन्त be in charge of अशुद्धाध्वन्?

1. Cont’d:

1. It befits His supreme majesty.

2. Out of His spontaneous grace, he gives these offices to very exalted souls so that they may wear off their residual impurity (मल) & attain a perpetual & complete realization of their innate equality with परमशिव.

1. Cont’d: So, to return to the original topic:

How is सृष्टि an expression of शिव’s अनुग्रह/grace?

1. सृष्टि allows ordinary souls like us to work out our कर्म through consumption. ++

1. Cont’d:

2. It allows the विद्येश्वर, मन्त्र, मन्त्रेश्वर & भुवनपति souls, (who have transcended कर्म, to occupy exalted posts, gradually develop परमवैराग्य & attain true मुक्ति (full equality with परमशिव).

Thus, शिवशक्ति is pure grace even during the सृष्टि phase.

2. स्थिति - Maintenance

Insentient products of अशुद्धमाया (मायेय) can’t take care of themselves. Sentient beings are not of unlimited strength. So, how does the सृष्टि last?

2. Cont’d: परमशिव’s शक्ति compassionately does स्थिति so that the objectives of sentient entities stated before (Souls of different states being able to work their way towards maturation/पक्व) can be fulfilled. Therefore, this स्थिति is also अनुग्रह only.

3. संहार - Dissolution

This is the reverse of सृष्टि. This occurs in several stages. From the dissolution of लोकत्रय (भूलोक, भुवर्लोक & स्वर्लोक) to dissolution of ब्रह्माण्ड; to upto प्रकृतितत्त्व, to upto अशुद्धमाया, upto dissolution of शुद्धाध्वन् into बिन्दु.

3. Cont’d:

From श्रीमन्-मृगेन्द्र

भोगसाधनमाक्षिप्य कृत्वा कारण संश्रयम्।
तच्च सात्मकमाक्रम्य विश्रमायावतिष्ठते॥
भविनां भवखिन्नानां सर्वभूतहितो यतः।
स्वापावसानं आसाद्य पुनः प्राग्वत्प्रवर्तते॥

3. Cont’d: The 4 products (तनु-करण-भुवन-भोग) described below are absorbed into their cause, अशुद्धमाया at the end of स्थिति at a time determined by परमशिव.

Why does he do this?

To give some rest, to give some sleep to the souls which have been suffering in संसार/भव. https://twitter.com/ghorangirasa/status/1373526811582210052

3. Cont’d: So even संहार is nothing but परमशिव’s boundless अनुग्रह. Now what else does he do during this time?

From श्रीमन्-मृगेन्द्र

स्वापेऽप्यास्ते बोधयन् बोधयोग्यान्
रोध्यान् रुन्धन् पाचयन् कर्मिकर्म ।
मायाशक्तीर्व्यक्तियोग्याः प्रकुर्वन्
पश्यन् सर्वं यद्यथा वस्तुजातम् ॥

Even during this universal “sleep” state, परमशिव imparts illuminating wisdom to those fit for such wisdom. (“...बोधयन् बोधयोग्यान्...”)

Thus, we find an allusion in the द्राविड-स्तोत्र of श्री-अप्पर् to the idea of शिव imparting the आगम during the “great स्वाप” (sleep). https://twitter.com/ghorangirasa/status/1274326585722560512

But the verse also says, “रोध्यान् रुन्धन्”.

He also blocks/binds/covers (रुन्धन्) those who are [fit] to be blocked/covered (रोध्यान्).

Block, bind or cover what? To block a soul from gaining freedom from the three bonds of मल, कर्म & माया.

Or, to actually bind it to those 3.

Wait, why would परमशिव, whose very form is अनुग्रह, do that? Why would he veil our vision of the truth?

So far, we have seen how 3 of परमशिव’s acts (सृष्टि, स्थिति & संहार) are actually nothing but अनुग्रह in guise.

We will soon look at the fourth act, तिरोधान, the act of concealment.

Many introductory books often define it as the opposite of अनुग्रह. But what is it really?