JaneSmith105
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It is true that atman does not die. That means, we should not grieve even if a close friend/family member dies. And surely, the wise do not grieve for the living or the dead (Bhagavad Gita) since they don't see someone being born to die. Anything born has to die, but Brahman is not born. And a jnani sees only Brahman everywhere.
However, for a person who is not a jnani (i.e one who has not wiped out his/her vaasanas which constitute one's perceived avidya), death is real. [What causes these vaaasanas ? Desire, selfish work and expectation of results of the work leads to transmigration (Vivekachudamani)]. Thus, except for a person who has realized the Self, death/birth/ successes/failures are real. He/she is told not to be enamoured by it and look upon everything as Brahman to purify the mind (again, Vivekachudamani) and wipe out avidya.
In a dream, one is hungry and eats. Only _after waking up_ can the person say that he need not have eaten in the dream and could have still survived. So long as one in the dream, one has to follow the rules. Thus, so long as there is an even slight hint of duality, we have to follow dharma.
We cannot fault Savitri for trying to get back Satyavan. For her, death was real. She was able to see Yama and walk with him only because of her penance. She was not, yet, a jnani. When Yama spots her walking behind him, he gives her a wish (anything other than satyavan's body), she asks for the health and wealth of her inlaws. He again gives her one more wish and she asks for the sons for her father. For the final wish, she asks Yama for children and Yama grants it. Savitri calmly points out that she cannot beget children without Satyavan and Yama proceeds to remove the noose from the neck of Satyavan.
When Yama gave her two wishes, she did not ask anything for herself when she could have got practically anything she wanted. The same is the story of Yama and Nachiketa. He also does not ask Yama for personal benefits. This shows how magnamious she was, it shows a high maturity if someone asks things for others benefit and shows she is not selfish.
Secondly, what is the jungle and the realm of the dead where all sort of wild things are mentioned when Savitri follows Yama ? It is an allegory. The wild things were the lust, anger, jealousy ... and when one follows the Guru/God, he/she is attracted by all these but one who follows unperturbed is a true yogi. What are the wishes ? Siddhis. Anyone who practices yoga to attain siddhis is ignorant, as Patanjali point out. Thus, though Siddhis are offered/attained, the true purpose of realizing the Self should never be lost. Like Savitri, who only wanted to get back Satyavan and nothing else, everything else in the realm of the mind should be ignored for a higher purpose (liberation). For the final wish, Yama gave her children i.e happiness. But only a person who has regained Satyavan (attained liberation) can be happy. So, the end of the story can be written as
Yama : Ask for anything but Brahma GYAna
Savitri : Give me happiness.
Yama : ok.
Savitri : But I cannot be happy without Brahma GYAna. All other pleasures are ephemeral.
How is Brahma GYAna given ? By removing the noose tying Satyavan's neck. Who is Savitri ? Daughter of Sun God i.e Light. We are all Light, but have forgotten the purpose of "attaining" Satya (Truth). Because of the noose. The noose called avidya weaves over Satya as maya and till the noose is removed the Self is not apparent though it is Here and Now.
And marriage, according to Hinduism (atleast from what I have read) is not 'Until death do us apart,..' but continues on to several births and rebirths. For example, during the kanya dana of the vivaha (marriage ceremony), the bride's father takes her hands and places them in the groom's, transferring his responsibility for her to the groom. The groom then gives assurance her father that he will true to her and not false in dharma, artha, or kama. The ritual of agni pradakshina follows, where the bride and groom walk around the sacrifical fire seven times (why seven ? There is a legend involving Shiva and Parvati). During the pheras, the bride stands upon a stone, to signify firmness and that she will be faithful to her husband always. As Yama says, this can be assumed to last only till death, but there is certainly no mention of it.
Therefore, the story of Satyavan and savitri also shows that if one follows dharma according to the rules strictly, even Yama cannot escape from the stronghold of dharma.
[Of course, there are other ways to escape Yama, besides following him in the realms of dead. See Vishnu Purana where Yama mentions people he wouldn't (or rather cannot) touch].
However, for a person who is not a jnani (i.e one who has not wiped out his/her vaasanas which constitute one's perceived avidya), death is real. [What causes these vaaasanas ? Desire, selfish work and expectation of results of the work leads to transmigration (Vivekachudamani)]. Thus, except for a person who has realized the Self, death/birth/ successes/failures are real. He/she is told not to be enamoured by it and look upon everything as Brahman to purify the mind (again, Vivekachudamani) and wipe out avidya.
In a dream, one is hungry and eats. Only _after waking up_ can the person say that he need not have eaten in the dream and could have still survived. So long as one in the dream, one has to follow the rules. Thus, so long as there is an even slight hint of duality, we have to follow dharma.
We cannot fault Savitri for trying to get back Satyavan. For her, death was real. She was able to see Yama and walk with him only because of her penance. She was not, yet, a jnani. When Yama spots her walking behind him, he gives her a wish (anything other than satyavan's body), she asks for the health and wealth of her inlaws. He again gives her one more wish and she asks for the sons for her father. For the final wish, she asks Yama for children and Yama grants it. Savitri calmly points out that she cannot beget children without Satyavan and Yama proceeds to remove the noose from the neck of Satyavan.
When Yama gave her two wishes, she did not ask anything for herself when she could have got practically anything she wanted. The same is the story of Yama and Nachiketa. He also does not ask Yama for personal benefits. This shows how magnamious she was, it shows a high maturity if someone asks things for others benefit and shows she is not selfish.
Secondly, what is the jungle and the realm of the dead where all sort of wild things are mentioned when Savitri follows Yama ? It is an allegory. The wild things were the lust, anger, jealousy ... and when one follows the Guru/God, he/she is attracted by all these but one who follows unperturbed is a true yogi. What are the wishes ? Siddhis. Anyone who practices yoga to attain siddhis is ignorant, as Patanjali point out. Thus, though Siddhis are offered/attained, the true purpose of realizing the Self should never be lost. Like Savitri, who only wanted to get back Satyavan and nothing else, everything else in the realm of the mind should be ignored for a higher purpose (liberation). For the final wish, Yama gave her children i.e happiness. But only a person who has regained Satyavan (attained liberation) can be happy. So, the end of the story can be written as
Yama : Ask for anything but Brahma GYAna
Savitri : Give me happiness.
Yama : ok.
Savitri : But I cannot be happy without Brahma GYAna. All other pleasures are ephemeral.
How is Brahma GYAna given ? By removing the noose tying Satyavan's neck. Who is Savitri ? Daughter of Sun God i.e Light. We are all Light, but have forgotten the purpose of "attaining" Satya (Truth). Because of the noose. The noose called avidya weaves over Satya as maya and till the noose is removed the Self is not apparent though it is Here and Now.
And marriage, according to Hinduism (atleast from what I have read) is not 'Until death do us apart,..' but continues on to several births and rebirths. For example, during the kanya dana of the vivaha (marriage ceremony), the bride's father takes her hands and places them in the groom's, transferring his responsibility for her to the groom. The groom then gives assurance her father that he will true to her and not false in dharma, artha, or kama. The ritual of agni pradakshina follows, where the bride and groom walk around the sacrifical fire seven times (why seven ? There is a legend involving Shiva and Parvati). During the pheras, the bride stands upon a stone, to signify firmness and that she will be faithful to her husband always. As Yama says, this can be assumed to last only till death, but there is certainly no mention of it.
Therefore, the story of Satyavan and savitri also shows that if one follows dharma according to the rules strictly, even Yama cannot escape from the stronghold of dharma.
[Of course, there are other ways to escape Yama, besides following him in the realms of dead. See Vishnu Purana where Yama mentions people he wouldn't (or rather cannot) touch].
