THE INDISPENSABLE requisites of a work worth studying are four in number and are collectively called Anubandha Chatushtaya. They are:
1. Vishaya - A subject to be dealt with. In Vedanta it is Brahman.
2. Sambandh - A connection between the work as a whole and the subject dealt with. Here it is exposition. The four important Sambandhas are: Pratibhataka-Pratibhandhya Bhava Sambandha, Janak-janniya Bhava Sambandha, Kartru-kartavya Bhava Sambandha and Prabhaga-prapya Bhava Sambandha.
The relation between the work and the subject is Pratibhataka-pratibhadhya Bhava Sambandha. Narration is Pratibhatakam. That which is told is Pratibhadhyam. The Grantha is Prati-bhatakam. The subject that is treated is Pratibhadhyam.
The relation between the Grantha and Jnana is Janaka-jaaniya Bhava Sambandha. That which generates is janniyam; the Grantha is Janakam as it generates Jnana through Vichara (enquiry); Jnana is Janniyam, as it generated through Vichara.
The relation between the Adhikari or qualified person and the subject is Kartru-kartavya Bhava Sambandha. He who does an act is the Kartru (actor). That which is done is Kartavya. That Adhikari who does Vichara is Karta. Vicharais Kartavya.
The relation between the Adhikari and the fruit is Prabhaga-prapya Bhava Sambandha. He who obtains the fruit is Prabhaga. That which is obtained is Prapyam.
3. Prayojana - A benefit to be obtained by studying it. Here it is Moksha. This is of two kinds, viz., Parama-Prayojana and Avantara-Prayojana. The Parama-Prayojana is Moksha whose Svarupa is the complete eradication of all kinds of miseries (Sarva Duhkha Nivritti) and the attainment of supreme Bliss (Paramananda Prapti). Complete eradication of misery is Atyanta-Nivritti. Anartha means an evil. Avidya and its effect, the gross and the subtle worlds and the three bodies, viz., causal, subtle and gross and other Dharmas or characteristics, viz., birth and death are the causes for the misery. Hence they are Anartha. Avantara-Prayojana is the direct means (Sakshat Sadhana) for the attainment of the Parama-Prayojana. It is the Dridha-aparoksha Brahma Jnana (steady direct knowledge of Brahman or realisation of the identity of Jiva and Brahman). The Parama-Prayojana or the highest benefit that is obtained from the plantain is its fruit. That which is obtained in the middle, before the fruit is obtained, is the plantain leaf. This is Avatara-Prayojana.
4. Adhikari - A qualified student. Here it is one who is endowed with the four means of salvation. i.e., Sadhana Chatushtaya, viz., Viveka, Vairagya, Shad-sampat and Mumukshutva, who has removed Mala (impurities of the mind) by Nishkama Karma Yoga and Vikshepa (tossing of mind) by Upasana, who has Chitta Suddhi and one-pointed mind and who is endowed with Yukti (reason), Samartha (ability) and Buddhi (sharp intellect). Adhikaris are of two kinds, viz., Kritopasaka and Akritopasaka. He who has done full Saguna Upasana and who is endowed with perfect one-Pointed mind is a Kritopasaka. He will be equipped with all the Sadhanas mentioned in the scriptures. He who has done imperfect Upasana of Saguna Brahman is an Akritopasaka. He has only partial concentration of mind. He is equipped with only a few Sadhanas. He has Viparita-Bhavana though he possesses knowledge of Brahman by study of Vedantic Literature. He must practise constant and intense meditation.
