SAIVA-SIDDHANTA

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whence
THE TWO GEMS. 75
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which again is the mere echo of our Saint Manikkavachakar s
words.
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This peculiarity of the soul we have been discussing above,
has a tremendous bearing in connection with various philosophi
cal schools. The ancient Buddha and the modern Agnostic
would not postulate this other support and resting place of the
soul. And we find they are landed in Nihilism accordingly.
The moment of perfection is the moment of annihilation to the
Buddhist. Nay>
with his modern Apostles, Mrs. Annie Besant
for example, the cry of the Vedas,
there is no return,
there is no return" is merely a vain cry. There is no such
thing as final perfection, beatitude or Moksha. The soul must
roll on ever and anon, subject to the never-ceasing and everrecurring
evolution due to the moral necessity connected with
the central and most precious doctrine of the exoteric Vedanta,
the doctrine of Samsara." Here of course we see the phenomenon
of extremes meeting. The Veduntist could not deny the
possibility of the soul, attaining the so-called rnoksha, re
curring back into the cycle of evolution, as the orginal
retrogression of Brahman into Gods and men, brutes and worms
is itself not explicable by him. The Agnostic not believing in
God, examines into the nature of the mind or soul and
perceiving how intimately it is connected with matter, denies
of course, its separate personality and independent existence ;
and hence his denial of the soul s immortality and future
existence, when once its mortal coil is broken. In the .case of
the Vedantist, however, this peculiarity
of the soul will alone
furnish the excuse for his theory. And we ha\e heard honest
Vedantists admit this as the only explanation
of Sri Sankara
s
otherwise untenable position. When in union, with God, the