Summary
Basavanna asks whether his mind has not been caught birth after birth. He asks whether it has not been bound again and again, whether it has not sunk into the ocean of becoming, whether it has not been carried within the turning of becoming, and whether it has not been cast down.
The movement of the vachana is a cry from repetition. Basavanna does not describe one isolated fall. He sees repeated bondage across becoming. He then turns to Kudalasangama Deva as the One without birth and asks Him to hear and bestow grace.
Imagery & Symbolic Relevance
“Birth after birth” is the opening movement. It shows that the condition is repeated, not momentary.
The mind being caught and bound is the first image of bondage. Basavanna places the mind itself within this repeated fastening.
The ocean of becoming is the next image. It shows depth, vastness, and danger. The mind is not merely standing near the ocean; it has sunk into it.
The turning within becoming gives the next movement. The speaker sees that the mind has not remained free, but has been carried within the revolving condition of becoming.
The being cast down completes the description of helplessness. The repeated questions show that Basavanna is not arguing; he is exposing the condition before Kudalasangama Deva.
The final address to the Birthless One gives the vachana its contrast. The speaker is caught in birth after birth, but Kudalasangama Deva is without birth. Therefore the prayer is not for explanation, but for hearing and grace.
Lingayoga
In Lingayoga, the relevance of this vachana lies in the movement given by the source: the mind is seen as caught and bound across repeated becoming, sunk in the ocean of becoming, carried within its turning, and cast down.
The practice-point is direct: when the seeker recognizes repeated bondage, he must turn to Kudalasangama Deva, the Birthless One, and ask for grace.
Editorial Commentary
This vachana should be read as a cry arising from the recognition of recurrence. Basavanna does not soften the condition or claim self-mastery over it. He names the repeated bondage of the mind and contrasts it with Kudalasangama Deva, who is without birth. The force of the vachana lies in this contrast: the one caught in becoming seeks grace from the One beyond becoming.
Related Vachana
Supporting Vachana
Pranalingi Sthala Vachana 871 — Where Bondage Ends Through Guru’s Grace
Pranalingi Vachana 871 supports this vachana by asking where bondage and bhava-bondage remain when previous birth is brought to cessation through Guru’s grace. There, the concern is the loosening of bondage through grace, the removal of wavering, and steady remembrance of Kudalasangama Deva. Sharana Vachana 68 carries this concern into a sharper cry: the mind is seen as repeatedly caught in birth after birth, sunk in the ocean of becoming, and in need of grace from the Birthless One.
Advancing Vachana
Aikya Sthala Vachana 1093 — The Garland of Devotion
Aikya Vachana 1093 advances this teaching by showing the removal of becoming and bondage. In Sharana Vachana 68, Basavanna cries from within repeated becoming and asks the Birthless One for grace. In Aikya Vachana 1093, the bhavas that had come are removed, the garland of becoming is cut, bhava-knowledge is diminished, bhakti-knowledge is strengthened, and there is no more becoming or bondage. Thus the Sharana-stage cry from the ocean of births advances into Aikya as freedom from bhava and bondage before Kudalasangama Deva.
