10 Shivaratri Sandesh

SWAMI'S DISCOURSES ON LORD SHIVA
The terms Siva or Shankara mean Auspicious. Sam means Chitaananda (Blissful
Awareness). Kara means the one who causes it. Shankara means the One who causes
blissful awareness. Shankara is the One who confers Chitaananda on those who take
refuge in Him or adore Him.
The secret of Creation is evident from the description of the form of Siva. The
crescent moon on Siva's head symbolizes the consciousness in human beings, the
Ganga symbolizes the Life Force and the snakes on Siva's body represent the myriad
of living beings. He resides on a silver mountain. His dearest friend is Kubera,
the Lord of Wealth. Despite being endowed with all these, why was He obliged to
carry the begging bowl? To demonstrate to the world that every kind of wealth is a
hindrance to spiritual advancement, Siva renounced everything. It is through
renunciation Siva became the eternal embodiment of supreme bliss.
Iswara is also symbolized in the Linga Form, Lings is derived from the Sanskrit
root, Li, means Leeyathe, 'merges'; it is the form in which all forms merge. Siva
is the goal who blesses beings with the most desirable gift of meaning in the
universe. That is the end, the death, which one should strive for, the end which
Siva can vouch-safe.
Siva means, graciousness; auspiciousness; Mangalam. He is all graciousness, ever

auspicious, Sarva Mangalam. That is the reason why the epithet, Sri, which
indicates these qualities, is not added to the name Siva, Sankara, Eeshwara etc. It
is added to the number of Avatars, for they have taken on perishable bodies for a
specific purpose. They have to be distinguished from other humans, by the epithet,
Siva is eternally gracious, auspicious, Mangala and so the epithet is superfluous.
Siva is adored as the teacher of teachers, Dakshinamurti. The form of Siva is
itself a great lesson in tolerance and forbearance.
The Lord has another name. It is only when the love principle underlying this name
is rightly understood, the real form of the Cosmos can be recognized. That name is
Saambasiva. Saa means divinity. Amba refers to the cosmos. Siva means the Supreme
person (Purusha).
Easwara has yet another name: Yogasikha. The sky is His blue form. The directions
(Dik) are His garments. Hence He is known as Digambara. He is also known as
Panchaanana - the Five-headed One. The five are: Earth, water, fire, air and
aakaasa (space). His five heads represent the five basic elements (panchabhuthas).
Siva is also described as Bhuthanaatha - the Lord of all created beings. Bhutha
refers to creation. Easwara is the Lord of every creature in the universe. Hence,
the entire cosmos is reflected as an image in the Lord. Siva is known as
Subhankara- the one who is ever good (Subham).
The three eyes of Siva represent the three worlds (lokas). Siva's trident is
symbolic of the Past, the Present, and the Future, the three aspects of Time. The
three gunas (Satwa, Rajas, Tamas) are images of the Trinity - Brahma, Vishnu, and
Siva. The three worlds, the triune aspect of Time, the three gunas (qualities) are
the manifestations of the Easwara Principle.
It is for the well being of the world that Siva swallowed the Halahala poison.
Again, it is for the sake of the worlds good that Siva contained the Ganga in His
matted locks. Siva bears the moon on His head to confer peace of mind on mankind.
When man moulds himself on the pattern of Easwara, he will get rid of all his evil
tendencies and offer to the world what is good in him. That is the meaning of the
worship of Siva. It is only when man gives up utterly his bad thoughts, evil
desires and wicked deeds, he will be able to transform himself into divinity.
-Bhagawan Baba
Source: Divine Discourses
|Feb 23 1990| |Mar 5 1973|
Kind courtesy: www.eaisai.com/baba/
Lingam means simply "the sign", "the symbol"; it is just a mark, which indicates
merging (laya); that is to say, the passing away of the mind and all mental
agitations and all mental pictures, which means, this objective world. Shivaraathri
is the day on which the moon, the presiding deity of the mind, is as near Laya as
possible and so, just a little extra effort that day leads to full success; the
Saadhaka can thereby achieve complete Manonaashana (destruction of the mind). The
realisation is that everything is subsumed in the Lingam .
- From Bhagawan's 1963 Maha Shivarathri Discourse.
Om Sai Ram
The Pancha Bhoota Stalams or 5 temples celebrating Lord Shiva as the embodiment of
the primary elements are
Sri Kalahasti - Air

Tiruvannamalai - Fire
Chidambaram - Space
Tiruvanaikkaval - Water
Kanchipuram - Earth
Om Sai Ram
The 12 Jyotirlinga Shrines of Shiva
The Dwadasa Jyotirlinga shrines or the 12 shrines enshrining Shiva in the form of a
Jyotirlingam, have been held in great reverence since time immemorial
The southernmost of these is located at Rameswaram, while the northernmost is

located in the snowy heights of the Himalayas at Kedarnath.
Somnath is the foremost of the 12 Jyotirlinga Shrines of Shiva.It is located at

Prabhas Patan in Saurashtra in Gujarat.
Sree Sailam - Sree Sailam near Kurnool in Andhra Pradesh enshrines Mallikarjuna in
an ancient temple rich in architectural and sculptural wealth. Adi Sankaracharya
composed his Sivanandalahiri here.
Ujjain - Mahakaleshwar Jyotirlinga shrine The ancient and historic city of Ujjain
or Avanti in Madhya Pradesh is home to the Jyotirlinga shrine of Mahakaleshwar.
Omkareshwar: an island in the course of the river Narmada in Madhya Pradesh is

home to the Omkareshwar Jyotirlinga shrine and the Amareshwar temple.
Kedarnath - the Northernmost of the Jyotirlingas. Kedarnath, nestled in the snow

clad Himalayas is an ancient shrine rich in legend and tradition. It is accessible
only on foot, six months in a year.
Bhimashankar - Jyotirlinga Shrine is associated with the legend of Shiva destroying
the demon Tripurasura. Bhimashankar is located in the Sahyadri hills of
Maharashtra, accessed from Pune.
Varanasi - The most celebrated pilgrimage site in India The Vishwanath temple in
Benares in Uttar Pradesh is the goal of the thousands of pilgrims that visit this
ancient city. The Vishwanath shrine is revered as one of the 12 Jyotirlinga shrines
of Shiva.
Tryambakeshwar - The origin of the river Godavari is intimately linked with this
Jyotirlinga shrine near Nasik in Maharashtra.
Vaidyanath temple at Deogarh The ancient pilgrimage town of Deogarh in the Santal
Parganas area of Bihar is revered as one of the 12 Jyotirlingas of Shiva. Nageshwar
near Dwarka in Gujarat is one of the 12 Jyotirlinga shrines of Shiva.
Rameswaram: This vast temple in the island of Rameswaram, in Southern Tamilnadu

enshrines Ramalingeswarar, and is revered as the southernmost of the 12 Jyotirlinga
shrines of India.
Nageshwar near Dwarka in Gujarat is one of the 12 Jyotirlinga shrines of Shiva.
Grishneshwar Jyotirlinga Shrine is a temple located in the vicinity of the tourist

town of Ellora, which has several rock cut monuments
Saurashtre Somanaatham Cha Sree Saile Mallikarjunam

Ujjayinyaam Mahaakaalam Omkaare Mamaleswaram
Himalaye to Kedaram Daakinyaam Bhimashankaram
Vaaranaasyaam cha Viswesam Trayambakam Gowtameethate
Paralyaam Vaidyanaatham cha Naagesam Daarukaavane
Setubandhe Ramesham Grushnesam cha Shivaalaye
I find you reading and appreciating the Prema of the Rishis and the Gopis and the
Vanaras of past ages; but you ignore your present responsibility. For example,
examine, each one of you, how far have you profited by coming to Puttaparthi now or
so often in previous years? How far have you shown Prema to others, the Prema that
you find to be My All. Namasmarana, I have told you often, is the best exercise to
acquire Prema towards God and all that is great. But have you tried that recipe?
Has it become as essential for you as the very breath? That is the test of your
sincerity and of the success of your pilgrimage to Puttaparthi everytime.
Ref: SSS Vol II Ch 21 [Adhara and Adheya] p108.
Om Sai Ram
Shiva Mangalashtakam
[Mangala Octet on Lord Shiva]
Translated by P. R. Ramachander
[Mangala stotras are normally recited at the end of reciting several stotras or the
end of singing several songs or at the end of an auspicious function. The devotee
wishes auspiciousness to the Lord. Mangalam may also mean good wishes or wishes for
a happy ending.]
Bhavvaya Chandra choodaya,

Nirgunaya gunathmane,
Kalakalaya rudhraya
Neelagreevaya Mangalam. 1
Mangalam to him who has a blue neck,

Who makes things happen,
Who wears the crescent of moon,
Who is without properties,
Who is the soul of good conduct,
Who is the death to god of death,
And who has a very angry form.
Vrusha roodaya bheemaya

Vyagra charmambaraya cha,
Pasunaam pathaye thubhyam
Gowrikanthaya Mangalam. 2
Mangalam to the consort of Gowri,

Who rides on a bull and is gross,
Who wears the skin of a tiger,
And who is the lord of all beings.
Bhasmodhulitha dehaya
Vyala yagnopaveethine,
Rudrakshamala bhooshaya
Vyomakesaya Mangalam. 3
Mangalam to him who has the sky as hair,

Whose body is anointed with holy ash,
Who wears a holy thread of snake,
And who wears the garland of Rudraksha.
Soorya chandragni nethraya,

Nama kailasa vasine,
Satchithananda roopaya
Pramadhesaya Mangalam. 4
Mangalam to the god of the impassioned devotee,

Who has sun, moon and fire as his eyes,
Who lives on Mount Kailasa,
And has the form of real perennial joy.
Mrutyunjayaya sambhaya
Srushti sthithyantha karine,
Tryambakaya susahanthaya
Trilokesaya Mangalam. 5
Mangalam to the Lord of the three worlds,

Who helps us with victory over death,
Who is always with Goddess Amba,
Who does creation, upkeep and destruction,
Who is the lord of Trayambaka,
And who is extremely peaceful.
Gangadharaya somaya
Namo hariharathmane,
Ugraya tripuragnaya,
Vamadevaya Mangalam. 6
Mangalam to the god of the left,

Who carries river Ganga,
Who is the moon,
Who is the soul of Vishnu and Shiva,
Who is very powerful,
And who destroyed three cities.
Sadhyojathaya sarvaya
Divyajnana pradhayine,
Eesanaya namasthubhyam
Panchavakthraya Mangalam. 7
Mangalam to him who has seven necks,

Who is instantly born and faces north,
Who passes on holy knowledge to people,
And who is Lord Shiva whom I salute.
Sada shiva swaroopaya

Nama sthath purushaya cha,
Aghoraya cha ghoraya,
Mahdevaya Mangalam. 8
Mangalam to the greatest of Gods,

Who has a mien which is ever peaceful, (mien= bearing: dignified manner or
conduct )
Who is the true Purusha,
Who is fearful and not fearful.
Mangalashtakam ethad vai

Shambhorya Keerthayed dhine,
Thasya mruthyu bhayam nasthi
Roga peeda bhayam thadha. 9
He who sings the praise of Lord Shiva using Mangalashtakam daily,

Will not have fear of death and also fear of disease and bad times.
=====================================================
Adi Sankaracharya's
Shiva Manasa Pooja
[The mental worship of Lord Shiva]
Aaradhayami mani sannibham athma lingam,

Maayapuri hrudaya pankaja sannivishtam,
Sradha nadhi vimala chitha jalabishegai,
Nithyam samadhi kusmaira punarbhavai.
(This stanza does not appear in most of the texts of Shiva Manasa Pooja but appears
in Nirguna Manasa Pooja.
But the version which I consult includes it here as the first stanza)
I worship that Linga,

Which is in me as my soul,
Residing in the illusory lotus of my heart,
Getting bathed by the clear water,
Of the river of my devotion,
And worshipped daily by the Lotus,
Of my meditation for avoiding another birth.
Rathnai Kalpitham asanam, Himajalai snanam cha divyambaram,

Naana rathna vibhooshitham mruga madha modhanvitham Chandanam,
Jathi champaka bilwa pathra rachitham, pushpam cha doopam thathaa,
Deepam deva dayanithe pasupathe, hrud kalpyatham gruhyatham.
I offer you an imaginary throne made of precious jewels,

I offer you bath in the water of melted snow from the Himalayas,
I offer you holy silken cloth to wear,
I adorn you with very many precious jewels,
I offer you musk and sandal,
I offer you Bilwa and Champaka flowers,
And I offer you the holy lamp,
But all these I offer in the portal of my mind,
Please God who is merciful and who is the Lord of all beings,
Accept my offerings and bless me.
Souvarne nava rathna Ganda Rachithe, pathre Grutham Payasam,

Bakshyam pancha vidam Payo dadhiyutham, rambha phalam panakam,
Saaka namayutham jalam ruchikaram, karpoora gandojwalam,
Thamboolam manasa maya virachitham Bhakthyo prabho sweekuru
Sweet rice in a golden bowl inlaid with the nine jewels, the five kinds of food
made from milk and curd, bananas, vegetables, sweet water scented with camphor, and
betel leaves - I have prepared all these in my mind with devotion. O Lord, please
accept them.
I offer you Ghee and the sweet payasam in golden vessel ,

Decorated with nine type of precious gems,
I offer you five different dishes made of curd and milk,
I offer you panakam made of sweet fruits,
I offer you tasty sweet scented water to drink,
I offer you the lamp made of camphor along with tinkling bells,
And I offer you betel leaf and nut,
But these are offered by my mind with utter devotion to you,
So Lord Kindly accept and bless.
Chathram Chamarayoryugam vyajanagam, chaa darshakam nirmalam,

Veena bheri mrudanga kahala kala geetha nruthyam thada,
Sasthangam pranthi sthuthir bahu vidha, hyethat samastham maya,
Sankalpena samapitham thava vibho , poojam gruhana prabho.
I offer you a pretty stage,

I offer you couple of decorative fans,
I also offer you shining mirror,
I offer you Veena, kettledrums, Mrudanga and a very big drum,
I offer you song and dance,
I offer you full prostration,
I offer you several types of prayers,
But all these I offer you my Lord, in my mind
So Lord kindly accept this my worship.
Aathma thwam Girija Mathi sahacharaa, prana sarreram gruham,

Pooja theey vishayopa bhoga rachana, nidhra samadhi sthithi,
Sanchara padayo pradakshina vidhi, , sthothrani sarva giraa,
Yadyath karma karomi thathad akhilam, shambho thavaradhanam.
My soul is your temple my lord,
My activities are thine attendants,
My body is thine home,
My acts to please my senses are thine worship,
My act of sleep is the deep meditation on thee,
All my walks with my feet are thine perambulations,
What ever falls from my mouth are thine prayers,
Oh Lord, everything I say and do are thine forms of worship.
Kara charana krutham vaak kayajam karmajam vaa,

Sravana nayanajam vaa maanasam vaa aparadham,
Vihithamavihitham vaa sarva methath Kshamaswa,
Jaya Jaya katunabdhe sri Mahadeva Shambho.
Please pardon Oh lord

All those acts committed by me,
By hands, by action, by body or
By hearing, by my sight, or by my mind,
Whether they are proper or improper..
Victory oh victory, Oh, ocean of mercy,
Oh, The greatest of Gods and Oh benevolent one.
Matha cha Parvathy Devi,

Pitha devo Maheswara,
Bandhava Shiva Bakthamscha,
Swadeso Bhuvana thray.
My mother is the goddess Parvathy,

My father is the Lord Shiva,
My friends are the devotees of Shiva
And my native place is all the three worlds.
===================================================================
Adi Sankaracharya's
Vakya Sudha
[also known as Bala Bodhani]
The Essence of the Teaching
Translated by Charles Johnston
E-Text Source: Advaita Vedanta Library
Seer and Seen

1. The form is seen, the eye is seer; the mind is both seen and seer. The changing
moods of mind are seen, but the witnessing Self, the seer, is never seen.
2. The eye, remaining one, beholds varying forms; as, blue and yellow, coarse and
fine, short and long; and differences such as these.
3. The mind, remaining one, forms definite intentions, even while the character of
the eye varies, as in blindness, dullness, or keen-sightedness; and this holds also
of hearing and touch.
4. The conscious Self, remaining one, shines on all the moods of mind: on desire,
determination, doubt, faith, unfaith, firmness and the lack of it, shame, insight,
fear, and such as these.
5. This conscious Self rises not, nor has its setting, nor does it come to wax or
wane; unhelped, it shines itself, and illumines others also.
The Personal Idea
6. This illumining comes when the ray of consciousness enters the thinking mind;
and the thinking mind itself is of twofold nature. The one part of it is the
personal idea; the other part is mental action.
7. The ray of consciousness and the personal idea are blended together, like the
heat and the hot iron ball. As the personal idea identifies itself with the body,
it brings that also a sense of consciousness.
8. The personal idea is blended with the ray of consciousness, the body, and the
witnessing Self, respectively -- through the action of innate necessity, of works,
and of delusion.
9. Since the two are bound up together, the innate blending of the personal idea
with the ray of consciousness never ceases; but its blending with the body ceases,
when the works wear out; and with the witnessing Self, through illumination.
10. When the personal idea melts away in deep sleep, the body also loses its sense
of consciousness. The personal idea is only half expanded in dream, while in waking
it is complete.
11. The power of mental action, when the ray of consciousness has entered into
union with it, builds up mind-images in the dream-state; and external objects, in
the waking state.
12. The personal form, thus brought into being by the personal idea and mental
action, is of itself quite lifeless. It appears in the three modes of
consciousness; it is born, and so also dies.
The Power of Glamor

13. For the world-glamor has two powers -- extension and limitation, or enveloping.
The power of extension brings into manifestation the whole world, from the personal
form to the universal cosmos.
14. This manifesting is an attributing of name and form to the Reality -- which is
Being, Consciousness, Bliss, the Eternal; it is like foam on the water.
15. The inner division between the seer and the seen, and the outer division
between the Eternal and the world, are concealed by the other power, limitation;
and this also is the cause of the cycle of birth and death.
16. The light of the witnessing Self is united with the personal form; from this
entering in of the ray of consciousness arises the habitual life -- the ordinary
self.
17. The isolated existence of the ordinary self is attributed to the witnessing
Self, and appears to belong to it; but when the power of limitation is destroyed,
and the difference appears, the sense of isolation in the Self vanishes away.
18. It is the same power which conceals the difference between the Eternal and the
visible world; and, by its power, the Eternal appears subject to change.
19. But when this power of limitation is destroyed, the difference between the
Eternal and the visible world becomes clear; change belongs to the visible world,
and by no means to the Eternal.
20. The five elements of existence are these: being, shining, enjoying, form and
name; the three first belong to the nature of the Eternal; the last two, to the
nature of the visible world.
21. In the elements -- ether, air, fire, water, earth; in creatures -- gods,
animals, and men, Being, Consciousness, Bliss are undivided; the division is only
of name and form.
Six Steps of Soul Vision

22. Therefore setting aside this division through name and form, and concentrating
himself on Being, Consciousness, Bliss, which are undivided, let him follow after
soul-vision perpetually, first inwardly in the heart, and then in outward things
also.
23. Soul-vision is either fluctuating or unwavering; this is its two-fold division
in the heart. Fluctuating soul-vision is again two-fold; it may consist either in
things seen or heard.
24. This is the fluctuating soul-vision which consists in things seen: a meditating
on consciousness as being merely the witness of the desires and passions that fill
the mind.
25. This is the fluctuating soul-vision which consists in things heard: the
constant thought that "I am the self, which is unattached, Being, Consciousness,
Bliss, self-shining, secondless."
26. The forgetting of all images and words, through entering into the bliss of
direct experience -- this is unwavering soul-vision, like a lamp set in a windless
place.
27. Then, corresponding to the first, there is the soul-vision which strips off
name and form from the element of pure Being, in everything whatever; now
accomplished outwardly, as it was before, in the heart.
28. And, corresponding to the second is the soul-vision which consists in the
unbroken thought, that the Real is a single undivided Essence, whose character is
Being, Consciousness, Bliss.
29. Corresponding to the former third, is that steady being, is the tasting of this
Essence for oneself. Let him fill the time by following out these, the six stages
of soul-vision.
30. When the false conceit, that the body is the Self, falls away; when the Self
supreme is known; then, whithersoever the mind is directed, there will the powers
of soul-vision arise.
31. The knot of the heart is loosed; all doubts are cut; all bondage to works
wither away -- when That is known, which is the first and the last.
The Three Selves

32. The individual self appears in three degrees: as a limitation of the Self; as a
ray of the conscious Self; and, thirdly, as the self imagined in dreams. The first
alone is real.
33. For the limitation in the individual self is a mere imagination; and that which
is supposed to be limited is the Reality. The idea of isolation in the individual
self is only an error; but its identity with the Eternal is its real nature.
34. And that song they sang of "That thou art" is for the first of these three
selves alone; it only is one with the perfect Eternal, not the other selves.
35. The power of world-glamor, existing in the Eternal, has two potencies:
extension and limitation. Through the power of limitation, Glamor hides the
undivided nature of the Eternal, and so builds up the images of the individual self
and the world.
36. The individual self which comes into being when the ray of consciousness enters
the thinking mind, is the self that gains experience and performs works. The whole
world, with all its elements and beings, is the object of its experience.
37. These two, the individual self and its world, were before time began; they last
till Freedom comes, making up our habitual life. Hence they are called the habitual
self and world.
38. In this ray of consciousness, the dream-power exists, with its two potencies of
extension and limitation. Through the power of limitation, it hides the former self
and world, and so builds up a new self and a new world.
39. As this new self and world are real only so long as their appearance lasts,
they are called the imaginary self and the imaginary world. For, when one has
awakened from the dream, the dream existence never comes back again.
40. The imaginary self believes its imaginary world to be real; but the habitual
self knows that world to be only mythical, as also is the imaginary self.
41. The habitual self looks on its habitual world as real; but the real Self knows
that the habitual world is only mythical, as also is the habitual self.
42. The real Self knows its real oneness with the Eternal; it sees nothing but the
Eternal, yet sees that what seemed the unreal is also the Self.
Freedom and Final Peace

43. As the sweetness, the flowing, and the coldness, that are the characteristics
of the water, reappear in the wave, and so in the foam that crests the wave;
44. So, verily, the Being, Consciousness, and Bliss of the witnessing Self enter
into the habitual self that is bound up with it; and, by the door of the habitual
self, enter into the imaginary self also.
45. But when the foam melts away, its flowing, sweetness, coldness, all sink back
into the wave; and when the wave itself comes to rest, they sink back to the sea.
46. When the imaginary self melts away, its Being, Consciousness, Bliss sink back
into the habitual self; and, when the habitual self comes to rest, they return to
the Self supreme, the witness of all.
========================================================
Adi Sankaracharya's
VAKYA VRITTI
Translated by Swami Chinmayananda
Published by Chinmaya Mission, Mumbai
An Exhaustive Explanation of the Statement

�That Thou Art� [Tat Twam Asi]
1. I bow down to that Pure Consciousness Divine � a shoreless ocean of happiness,
which is All-pervading (Vishnu), the Beloved of Shri, the all-knowing Lord of the
Universe, assuming endless forms and yet ever-free, having an inscrutable power to
become (apparently) the Cause of creation, maintenance, and dissolution of the
universe.
2. Again and again I Prostrate at the feet of my Guru, by whose grace I have come
to realise, �I alone am the All-pervading Essence (Vishnu)�, and that �the world of
multiplicity is all a super-imposition upon myself.�
3. Scorched by the blazing sun of the three miseries, a student � dejected with the
world and restless for release, having cultivated all the means of liberation
especially such virtues as self-control etc. � enquires of a noble teacher:
4. �Merely out of your grace and mercy, holy Teacher, please explain to me briefly
the means by which I may easily get liberated from the sorrows of this bondage-to-
change�.
5. The teacher said: �Your question is valid, and so very clearly expressed, I
shall answer it exhaustively to make it as vivid to you as though you are seeing it
near�.
6. Direct knowledge of that total identity between the individual-Self and the
Universal-Self, stemming forth from the Vedic statements such as �Thou art that�,
etc., is the immediate means to liberation.
7. The disciple said: �What is the individualised Self ? What, then, is the
Universal Self ? How can they both be identical ? And, how can statements like
�That thou art� discuss and prove this identity ?�
8. The teacher said: �I shall answer your question. Who else can be the individual
Self (Jiva) other than yourself, that asks me this question, �Who am I ?�. There is
no doubt about it. You alone are the Brahman.
9. The disciple said: Not even the word meaning do I fully grasp clearly; how can I
then comprehend the significance of the sentence, �I am Brahman� ?
10. The teacher said: �You have said the truth when you complained that the
knowledge and understanding of the meaning of the words employed in a sentence are
indeed the cause of the understanding of the full significance of the sentence. And
there are no two opinions about it.�
11. �Why do you not recognise your own Self, which is an embodiment of Eternal
Bliss-Essence, the Witnessing Light that illumines the inner equipments and their
functions ?�
12. �Give up the intellectual misconception that the Self is the body, etc., and
always meditate upon and think yourself to be the eternal Knowledge-Bliss � the
Witness of the intellect � a sheer mass of Pure Knowledge�.
13. �The body is not the Self, as like the pot, etc., the body also has form, etc.,
and again, the body is a modification of the great elements such as Akash, just
like the pot�.
14. The disciple said: �If, by the strength of these arguments, the gross-body is
considered as �not-Self�, then please exhaustively explain and directly indicate
the Self � as clearly as a fruit in hand�.
15. The teacher said: �Just as the perceiver of a pot is ever distinctly different
from the pot and can never be the pot � so too, you, the perceiver of your body,
are distinct from your body and can never be the body � this you firmly ascertain
in yourself.�
16. �Similarly be sure in yourself that you, the seer of the senses, are not the
senses themselves, and ascertain that you are neither the mind, not the intellect,
not the vital air (Prana).�
17. �Similarly be sure that you are not the complex of the gross and the subtle-
bodies, and intelligently determine, by inference, that you, the �seer�, are
entirely distinct from the �seen�.�
18. ��I am He�, the One because of whose presence alone the inert entities like the
body and the senses, are able to function through acceptance and rejection�.
19. ��I am He�, the One changeless, Innermost Self that moves the intellect, etc.,
as a magnet does the iron filings.�
20. ��I am He�, the One Entity in whose vital presence the body, senses, mind, and
Pranas, though inert in themselves, appear to be conscious and dynamic, as though
they are the Self.�
21. ��He am I�, the One Consciousness, which is the Self that illumines the
modifications in my mind such as �my mind went elsewhere, however, it has been
brought to rest now�, � �He am I� (So�ham).�
22. ��He am I�, the One Consciousness which is the Changeless Self that is directly
cognised, that illumines the three states of waking, dream, and deep-sleep, and
that which illumines appearance and disappearance of the intellect and its
functions � �He am I� (So�ham).�
23. �Know yourself to be the One Self, a homogenous mass of Consciousness, which is
the illuminator of the body and therefore quite distinct from it � just as a lamp
that illumines a pot is always different from the pot illumined. �I am a mass of
Consciousness� (Aham bodhavigraha).�
24. �Know yourself to be the One for whose sake beings and things such as children
and wealth � are dear, who is the sole seer and dearest of all. �He am I� �
ascertain thus and realise, So�ham.�
25. �Know yourself to be the One regarding whom there is always the anxiety, �May I
ever be; never cease to be�, as this Seer is the dearest of all. �He am I� � thus
assert and realise.�
26. �The Consciousness, the Self, which appears as the Witness, is that which is
meant by the word �thou�. Being free from all changes even the witnessing is
nothing but the illumining-power of the Self.�
27. �Totally distinct from body, senses, mind, Prana and Ego is that which is the
Self; therefore, It is absolutely free from the six-modifications, which all
material things must necessarily undergo. This Self is the indicative meaning of
the term �thou�.
28. �Having thus ascertained the meaning of the term �thou� one should reflect upon
what is meant by the word �that� � employing both the method of negation and also
the direct method of scriptural assertion.�
29. ��That�, which is free from all the impurities of the Samsara, �that� which is
defined by the Upanishads as: �Not large etc., having the qualities of
imperceptible etc., that is beyond all darkness created by ignorance�.
30. �Having no greater Bliss than Itself, a pure embodiment of External
Consciousness, and having �existence� for its specific definition, is the All-
Pervading Being � is the meaning indicated by the term �that�; so, the scriptures
declare in their songs.�
31. �That which is proved in the Vedas as All-knowing, All-powerful and Supreme
Lord, is Itself the Infinite Brahman� make sure of that Brahman in your own
understanding.�
32. �That which the scriptures have discussed through examples of mud etc., as that
by knowing which all else will become known � make sure of that Brahman in your
understanding.�
33. �That which the scriptures propose to prove as a limitless, and in order to
support that proposition, called the World of Plurality as Its effects .. make sure
of that Brahman in your understanding.�
34. �That which the Upanishads clearly establish as the sole object of deep
contemplation for those who are sincere seekers of liberation � make sure of that
Brahman in your understanding.�
35. �That which is heard of in the Vedas �as having entered each creature as its
individualised self�, and which is known, from the same sources, to be their
controller � make sure of that Brahman in your understanding.�
36. �That which the Upanishads declare as the sole paymaster for all action, and as
the very agent (prompter) in all actions, performed by each individualised ego �
make sure of that Brahman in your understanding.�
37. �The meaning of the terms �that� and �thou� have been discussed and finally
determined. Now we shall discuss the meaning of the commandment (Mahavakya) �That
thou art�. In this, the total identity of the meanings of �that� and �thou� alone
is shown.�
38. �What is meant by the sentence (commandment �That thou art�) is not arrived at,
either through its �sequence-of meaning� or as �qualified-by-something�. An
indivisible Being, consisting of Bliss only � this alone is the meaning of the
sentence, according to the wise.�
39. �What appears (anjati) as the Witnessing-Consciousness within, (the individual-
Self), is of the nature of Bliss, One-without-a-second; and the one that is the
Bliss within is none other than the individualised-Self the Witnessing
Consciousness within.�
40. �When, as explained above, the mutual identity between the two words �thou� and
�that� is comprehended, then the idea �I am not Brahman�, entertained by �thou�,
shall immediately end.�
41. �If as said, the depth-meaning of the term �that� is �Mass-of Bliss, without-
second�, and �thou� is the �Witnessing-Consciousness�, then what ? Listen: the
Inner-self, the Consciousness, that illumines all thoughts, remains as the All-
full, One-Mass-of Bliss, without-a-second.�
42. �The great statements, like �That thou art�, established the identity of what
is meant by the two terms �thou� and �That� in their deeper indicative-meaning.�
43. �How great statement discards the two qualified-meanings, and reveals what it
really means � this we have carefully commented upon already.�
44. �That which shines, as the object of the idea and the word �I�, is
Consciousness expressing in the inner equipments. This is the direct word-meaning
of �thou� (twam).�
45. �The Consciousness that is expressed through Maya, which then becomes the
�cause of the Universe�, which is described as omnipresent, etc.; that which is
known only indirectly (meditate); and which is having the nature of existence,
etc., -- that Eswara is the word-meaning of the term �That�.�
46. �In case we insist upon the identity of �that� and �thou� based upon the word-
meaning of these terms, then for one and the same factor we will have to attribute
contrary nature; the quality of being mediately and immediately known � and also
insist qualities of �existence of duality� and also of �absolute oneness�, for one
and the same factor. Identity between such contrariness is impossible hence
suggestive-meaning, �explanation by implication� has to be accepted.�
47. �If the direct word-meaning throws up an inconsistency with what is pointed out
by other proofs and evidences, the sense consistent with its word-meaning that is
intelligently suggested by the term, is to be accepted � and this is its
suggestive-meaning (lakshana).�
48. �In the statements like �that thou art� etc., the reject-accept method is to be
employed as in the sentence �He is this man�. No other method can be applied.�
49. �Until the direct personal experience of �I am Brahman� is gained, we must live
values of self-control, etc., and practice listening to teachers, or reading
scriptures, and doing daily reflection and meditation upon those ideas.�
50. �Through the grace of a spiritual teacher when a seeker gains a clear and
direct experience of the Supreme Self as expounded in the scriptures, he, the
realised, becomes free from all �ignorance�, which is the foundation for the entire
experience of this world of plurality.�
51. �No more conditioned by his gross and subtle bodies, free from the embrace of
the gross and subtle elements, released from the charm of actions, such a man gets
immediately liberated.�
52. �The liberated-in-life, due to the compelling force of those actions that have
begun to produce their results (Prarabdha), remains for some time to exhaust them�.
53. �The liberated-in-life comes to gain the State of Absolute Oneness, the never-
ending immeasurable Bliss, called the Supreme Abode-of-Vishnu, from wherein there
is no return.�
=================================================================
Adi Sankaracharya's
SADHANA PANCHAKAM
Translated by Swami Chinmayananda
Published by Chinmaya Mission, Mumbai
1. Study the Vedas daily.

Perform diligently the duties (karmas) ordained by them.
Dedicate all those actions (karmas) as worship unto the Lord.
Renounce all desires in the mind.
Wash away the hoards of sins in the bosom.
Recognise that the pleasures of sense-objects (samsar) are riddled with pain.
Seek the Self with consistent endeavour.
Escape from the bondage of �home�.
2. Seek companionship with Men of Wisdom.

Be established in firm devotion to the Lord.
Cultivate the virtues such as Shanti etc.,
Eschew all desire-ridden actions.
Take shelter at a Perfect Master (Sat-Guru).
Everyday serve His Lotus feet.
Worship �Om� the Immutable.
Listen in depth, the Upanishadic declarations.
3. Reflect ever upon the meaning of the Upanishadic commandments, and take refuge
in the Truth of Brahman.
Avoid perverse arguments but follow the discriminative rationale of the Sruti
(Upanishads).
Always be absorbed in the attitude (bhav) � �I am Brahman�.
Renounce pride.
Give up the delusory misconception � �I am the body�.
Give up totally the tendency to argue with wise men.
4. In hunger diseases get treated.

Daily take the medicine of Bhiksha-food.
Beg no delicious food.
Live contentedly upon whatever comes to your lot as ordained by Him.
Endure all the pairs of opposites: heat and cold, and the like.
Avoid wasteful talks.
Be indifferent.
Save yourself from the meshes of other peoples� kindness.
5. In solitude live joyously.

Quieten your mind in the Supreme Lord.
Realise and see the All-pervading Self every where.
Recognise that the finite Universe is a projection of the Self.
Conquer the effects of the deeds done in earlier lives by the present right action.
Through wisdom become detached from future actions (Agami).
Experience and exhaust �Prarabdha� the fruits of past actions.
Thereafter, live absorbed in the bhav - �I am Brahman� !
======================================================
12. Who is your enemy?

Laziness is your enemy.
23. What is ignorance?

Not getting trained in anything is ignorance.
28. What is hell?

It is being in the control of others.
39. What should be disregarded?

Bad people, other�s wife and other�s wealth.
40. What should you think of always during day and night?
You should think that there is no meaning in life and not about women.
52. What is wisdom?

Giving without asking is wisdom.
56. What is as transient as the lightning?

Company of bad people and friendship with women.
58. What is difficult to get in this world like, chinthamani-the wish giving gem?
The good four (chathur pathram)
59. What is Chathur pathram (the good four) which drives away the darkness of
ignorance?
1. Charity coupled with sweet words.
2. Knowledge without pride.
3. Valour with patience.
4. Wealth with sacrifice.
These four rare things are called the good four.
74. Who is valorous as Lord Sri. Rama?

That man who does not loose his stability in spite of arrows from the God of love.
75. What should occupy your thought day and night?

The feet of God and not this life
86. What is dearer than the soul?

Dharma of our caste and company of good people.
90. What is the army? (like the I Ching?)

Courage.
93. What is an unclean (untouchable) state?

The time when one takes loan and cannot repay.
99. How do you achieve things?

By austerity.
135. Who is the Lord of the world?

Sun God (He feeds the world)
138. Who is the teacher of the world (Jagatguru)?
Lord Shiva is the Jagatguru.
139. Where from one gets knowledge?

We get it from Lord Shiva.
142. What is Ajnana (ignorance)?

Forgetting of the soul is Ajnana.
148. What is magic?

This world is magic.
149. Which is similar to dreams?

What happens when we are awake is similar to dreams.
(we are omnipresent, present in both states Sanathana Mar 10)
150. What is truth?

Parabrahma (Supreme conceptual all pervading God)
159. Who is fit o be worshipped by the Brahmin?

Gayathri, Sun God, Fire and Lord Shiva who is within all these three.
160. What does Gayathri, Sun, Fire and Lord Shiva have?
It is the principle. (the Atma Principle?)
161. Who is God whom we can see?

Mother
162. Who is the teacher fit to be worshipped?

Father
165. Whose words would become true?

He observes penance of truth, penance of silence and patience
172. Who is the Godhead?

It is Maheswara the combination of Shiva and Vishnu.
173. What is the result of devotion to God?

Being able to see him everywhere.
175.From where were Vedas created?

From the letter �Om�.
I have Om on my ring
118. Who is the friend for a family man?

His wife.
119. Who is the family man?

He who does sacrifices.
What is the greatest luck for one with a body?

Absence of diseases.
138. Who is the teacher of the world (Jagatguru)?

Lord Shiva is the Jagatguru.
139. Wherefrom one gets knowledge?

We get it from Lord Shiva
159.Who is fit o be worshipped by the Brahmin?
Gayathri, Sun God, Fire and Lord Shiva who is within all these three.
160.What does Gayathri, Sun, Fire and Lord Shiva have?

It is the principle.
===========================================================
Nirvanashatkam
[Six Stanzas on Nirvana]
By Adi Sankara
Translated by Swami Vivekananda
I am neither the mind, nor the intellect, nor the ego, nor the mind-stuff;
I am neither the body, nor the changes of the body;
I am neither the senses of hearing, taste, smell, or sight,
Nor am I the ether, the earth, the fire, the air;
I am Existence Absolute, Knowledge Absolute, Bliss Absolute -
I am He, I am He. (Shivoham, Shivoham).
I am neither the Prana, nor the five vital airs;

I am neither the materials of the body, nor the five sheaths;
Neither am I the organs of action, nor object of the senses;
I have neither aversion nor attachment, neither greed nor delusion;

Neither egotism nor envy, neither Dharma nor Moksha;
I am neither desire nor objects of desire;
I am neither sin nor virtue, neither pleasure nor pain;

Nor temple nor worship, nor pilgrimage nor scriptures,
Neither the act of enjoying, the enjoyable nor the enjoyer;
I have neither death nor fear of death, nor caste;

Nor was I ever born, nor had I parents, friends, and relations;
I have neither Guru, nor disciple;

I am untouched by the senses, I am neither Mukti nor knowable;
I am without form, without limit, beyond space, beyond time;
I am in everything; I am the basis of the universe; everywhere am I.
==================================================
Adi Sankaracharya's
Nirguna Manasa Puja
Worship of the Attributeless Spirit
Translated by Swami Yogananda Sarasvati
The disciple said:

1. In the indivisible Satchidananda whose nature is only unconditioned, and which
is also the non-dual state, how is worship prescribed?
2. Where is the invocation (avahana) of the Fullness, and the seat (asana) of the
All-supporting How is there washing of the feet (padya), offering of water (arghya)
and sipping (achamana) for the limpid and Pure One?
3. How is there bathing (snana) for the Immaculate, and clothing (vasa) for the
womb of the universe? How is there a sacred thread (upavita) for Him who is without
lineage and caste?
4. How is there sandal paste (gandha) for the Unattached, and flowers (pushpa) for
the Odorless? What is the jewel (bhusha) of the Undifferentiated? What ornament
(alamkara) for the Formless?
5. What use of incense (dhupa) for the Spotless, or of lamps (dipa) for the Witness
of everything? What is here the food-offering (naivedyam) for Him who is satiated
only with His own bliss?
6-7. How does one prepare betel (tambula) for the Rejoicer of the universe? He
whose nature is self-luminous consciousness, that Illuminator of the sun and other
stars, who is sung by shrutis, how is there for Him the light- waving ceremony
(nirajana) What circumambulation (pradakshina) for the Infinite? What prostration
(pranama) for the non-dual Reality?
8. For Him who is unknowable by the words of the Vedas, what praise (stotra) is
prescribed? How is there the ceremony of dismissal (udavasana) for Him who is
established inside and outside?
The Guru said:

9. I worship the symbol of the Self (atmalinga) shining like a jewel and situated
in the heart-lotus within the city of illusion, with the ablutions (abhisheka) of
the unsullied mind from the river of faith, always, with the flowers of samadhi,
for the sake of non-rebirth.
10. I am the One, the Ultimate. Thus one should invoke (avahayet) Lord Siva. Then
one should prepare the seat (asana), that is thinking of the self-established Self.
11. I have no contact with the dust of virtue and sin. Thus should the wise one
offer washing of the fet (padya), that is such knowledge destroying all sins.
12. One should pour forth a handful of water which is the root - ignorance held
from time without beginning. This is verily the water- offering (arghya) of the
symbol of the Self.
13. Indra and other beings drink only the tiny fraction of a drop from the waves of
the bliss ocean of Brahman. That meditation is considered as the sipping
(achamana).
14. All the worlds are bathed verily by the water of Brahma's bliss which is
indivisible. That meditation is the ablution (abhishechana) of the Self.
15. I am the light of Consciousness without any veil. This thinking is the holy
cloth (sad vastram) of the symbol of the Self. Thus should think the wise one.
16. I am the thread of the garland of all the worlds which are in the nature of the
three gunas. This conviction is verily considered here as the highest sacred thread
(upavIta).
17. This manifold world mingled with numerous impressions is supported by me, and
by no other. This meditation is the sandal paste (chandana) of the Self.
18. With the sesamum-flowers in the form of renunciation of the activity of sattva,
rajas, and tamas, one should always worship (yajet) the symbol of the Self, for
attaing liberation while living.
19. With the non-dual Bel leaves devoid of the triple distinction between the Lord,
the guru, and the Self, one should worship (yajet) Lord Siva that is symbol of the
Self.
20. One should think of His incense (dhupa) as the giving up of all impressions.
The wise one should show the lamp (dipa) that is the realization of the luminous
Self.
21. The food-offering (naivedyam) of the symbol of the Self is the big rice pudding
known as the egg-universe of Brahma. Do drink the sweet nectar of bliss that is the
delightful beverage (upasechana) of Mrityu or Lord Siva.
22. One should remember that cleansing the remnants of ignorance with the water of
knowledge, is the washing of hands (hasta prakshalana) of the pure symbol of the
Self.
23. Giving up the use of the objects of passion, this is the chewing of betel
(tambula) of Lord Siva, the supreme Self who is devoid of the attributes beginning
with passion.
24. Knowledge on one's own nature of Brahman, most shining, and burning to
destruction the darkness of ignorance, that is here the waving of lights (nirajana)
of the Self.
25. The vision of the manifold Brahman is the ornament (alamkritam) with garlands.
Then one should remember the vision of the all- blissful nature of the Self, as the
handful of flowers. (pushpanjali).
26. Thousands of Brahma's mundane eggs revolve in me, the Lord, whose nature is
immovable and steady like a heap. This meditation is the circumambulation
(pradakshina).
27. I am verily worthy of a universal salutation. Apart from my true Self, none is
so worthy of salutation. This reflection is verily here the salutation (vandana) of
the symbol of one's own Self.
28. The idea of the unreality of duties is termed as the saintly act (sat kriya) of
the Self. Thinking of the Self as being beyond names and forms, this is the praise
of his name (nama kirtana).
29. The hearing (shravana) of that God is the thought of the unreality of things to
be heard of. The reflection (manana) of the symbol of the Self is the thought of
the unreality of things to be reflected on.
30-31. Knowledge of the unreality of things to be contemplated upon, is the deep
meditation (nididhyasana) of the Self. Devotedness to the Self by the absence of
all delusion and distraction, is named the perfect steadiness (samadhi) of the
Self; and not delusion of one whose mind rests on something else. This is called
the eternal reposeof the mind (chitta vishranti) in Brahman itself.
32-33. Thus performing till death or even for a moment this worship of the symbols
of one's own Self, which is expounded according to Vedanta, one who is well
concentrated should give up the illusion of all bad impressions, as dust from the
feet. Having shaken off the mass of ignorance and pain, one attains the bliss of
liberation.
================================================================
Shivashtakam
[The octet on Shiva]
By Adi Shankara Bhagawat Pada
Thasmai nama parama karana karanaya,

Deepthojjwalitha pingala lochanaya,
Nagendra hara krutha kundala bhooshanaya,
Brahmendra Vishnu varadaya Nama Shivaya. 1
I salute that Shiva, who is the real cause of causes,

Who has reddish brown eyes which shine like light,
Who wears garlands and ear drops made of the king of snakes,
And who is the one who gives boons to Brahma and Vishnu.
Srimath prasanna sasi pannaga bhooshanaya,

Shailendraja vadana chumbitha lochanaya,
Kailasa mandara mahendra nikethanaya,
Loka trayarthi haranaya nama shivaya. 2
I salute that Shiva, who always wears,

The clear moon and the snake as ornaments,
Whose eyes are kissed by the daughter of the mountain,
Who lives in the Kailasa peak and Mahendra mountain,
And who defeats the sorrow of the people of three worlds.
Padmavadatha mani kundala govrushaya,

Krishnagaru prachura chandana charchithaya,
Basamanushaktha vikachothpala mallikaya,
Neelabhja kanda sadrusaya namashivaya. 3
I salute that Shiva, who has neck of the colour of blue lotus,
Who wears ear rings made of Padma raga, who rides on a bull,
Who applies fragrance of aloe and coats himself with plenty of sandal paste,
And who applies ash on his body and wears a garland of opened lotus flowers.
Lambathsa pingala jata makutothkataya,

Damshtra karala vikatothkata bhairavaya,
Vyagara jinambaradharaya manoharaya,
Trilokya natha namithaya namashivaya. 4
I salute that Shiva who is saluted by lords of the three worlds,

Who has large matted crown of hair of reddish brown colour,
Who appears fierce and fearful due to his pointed teeth,
And who is very pretty wearing the hide of a tiger.
Daksha prajapathi maha makha nasanaya,

Kshipram maha Tripura dhanava gathanaya,
Brahmorjithordhwaga karoti nikrunthanaya,
Yogaya, yoganamithaya namashivaya. 5
I salute that Shiva, who is yoga and is saluted by yogis,

Who destroyed fire sacrifice conducted by Daksha prajapathi,
Who quickly killed the great asura called Tripurasura,
And who cut off the fifth head of Brahma, who was proud
Samsara srushti ghatana parivarthanaya,

Raksha pisacha gana sidha samakulaya,
Sidhoragagraha ganendra nishevithaya,
Sardhoola charma vasanaya Nama Shivaya. 6
I salute that Shiva, who wears the skin of a tiger,

Who keeps on destroying and creating the world,
Who takes care of the different demons and crowds of sidhas,
And who is served by sidhas, serpents, planets and chiefs of ganas.
Basmanga raga krutha roopa manoharaya,
Soumyaavadatha vanamasrithamasrithaya,
Gowri kataksha nayanardha nireekshnaya,
Go ksheera dhara davalaya nama shivaya. 7
I salute that Shiva, who is as white as a stream of cow�ss milk,

Who applies ash all over him but is bewitchingly handsome,
Who is the support for those pious people who take shelter in forests,
Who with half closed eyes sees the side long glance of Gowri.
Adithya Soma Varuna anila sevithaya,

Yagnagni hothra vara dhooma nikethanaya,
Rik sama veda munibhi sthuthi samyuthaya,
Gopaya gopa namithaa nama shivaya. 8
I salute that Shiva, who takes care of a bull and is venerated by it,
Who is served by Sun, moon, the god of rain and the god of fire,
Who lives in places sanctified by the smoke of fire sacrifices,
And who is sung by sages well learned in Rik and Sama Veda.
Shivashtakamidham punyam ya padeth shiva sannidhou,

Shivalokamapnothi shivena saha modhathe.
He who reads this octet on Shiva,

In front of the temple of Shiva,
Would reach the world of Shiva,
And would be happy along with Shiva.
==============================================================
Adi Sankaracharya's
Tattva Bodha
Translated by Charles Johnston
The Awakening to Reality
To the Master, the World-Soul, the Master of seekers for union, obeisance; to the
teacher, the giver of wisdom. To fulfill love for those who would be free, this
Awakening to Reality is addressed to them.
The Four Perfections

We shall tell of the way of discerning reality, the perfection of freedom, for
those who are fitted by possessing the Four Perfections.
What are the Four Perfections?
-- The Discerning between lasting and unlasting things; No Rage for enjoying the
fruit of works, either here or there; the Six Graces that follow Peace; and then
the Longing to be free.
What is the Discerning between lasting and unlasting things?
-- The one lasting thing is the Eternal; all, apart from it, is unlasting.
What is No Rage?
-- A lack of longing for enjoyments here and in the heaven-world.
What is possession of the Perfections that follow Peace?
-- Peace; Self-Control; Steadiness; Sturdiness; Confidence; Intentness.
What is Peace?
-- A firm hold on emotion.
What is Self-Control?
-- A firm hold on the lust of the eyes and the outward powers.
What is Steadiness?
-- A following out of one's own genius.
What is Sturdiness?
-- A readiness to bear opposing forces, like cold and heat, pleasure and pain.
What is Confidence?
-- Confidence is a reliance on the Voice of the Teacher and Final Wisdom.
What is Intentness?
-- One-pointedness of the imagination.
What is the Longing to be free?
-- It is the longing: "That Freedom may be mine."
The Discerning of Reality

These are the Four Perfections. Through these, men are fitted to discern Reality.
What is the Discerning of Reality?
-- It is this: the Self is real; other than it, all is fancy.
Self, Vestures, Veils, Modes

What is the Self?
-- He who stands apart from the Physical, the Emotional, and the Causal Vestures;
who is beyond the five Veils; who is witness of the three Modes; whose own nature
is Being, Consciousness, Bliss -- this is the Self.
The Three Vestures

What is the Physical Vesture?
-- Being formed of the five creatures fivefolded, born through works, it is the
house where opposing forces like pleasure and pain are enjoyed; having these six
accidents: it is, is born, grows, turns the corner, declines, perishes; such is the
Physical Vesture.
What is the Emotional Vesture?
-- Being formed of the five creatures not fivefolded, born through works, the
perfection of the enjoyment of opposing forces like pleasure and pain, existing
with its seventeen phases: the five powers of knowing; the five powers of doing;
the five lives; emotion, one; the soul, one; this is the Emotional Vesture.
The five powers of knowing are: Hearing, Touch, Sight, Taste, Smell. Hearing's
radiation is Space; Touch's, Air; Sight's, the Sun; Smell's, the Twin Physicians;
these are the powers of knowing.
Hearing's business is the seizing of sounds; Touch's business, the seizing of
contacts; Sight's business, the seizing of forms; Taste's business, the seizing of
tastes; Smell's business, the seizing of odors.
The five powers of doing are: Voice, Hands, Feet, Putting-forth, Generating.
Voice's radiation is the Tongue of Flame; Hands', the Master; Feet's, the Pervader;
Putting-forth's, Death; Generating's, the Lord of Beings; thus the radiations of
the powers of doing.
Voice's business is speaking; Hands' business is grasping things; Feet's business
is going; Putting-forth's business is removing waste; Generating's business is
physical enjoying.
What is the Causal Vesture?
-- Being formed through ineffable, beginningless unwisdom, it is the Substance and
Cause of the two Vestures; though unknowing as to its own nature, it is yet in
nature unerring; this is the Causal Vesture.
The Three Modes

What are the Three Modes?
-- The Modes of Waking, Dreaming, Dreamlessness.
What is the Mode, Waking?
-- It is where knowledge comes through Hearing and the other knowing powers, whose
business is sound and the other perceptions; this is the Waking Mode.
When attributing itself to the Physical Vesture, the Self is called the Pervading.
Then what is the Mode, Dreaming?
-- The world that presents itself in rest, generated by impressions of what has
been seen and heard in the Mode Waking, is the Mode Dreaming.
When attributing itself to the Emotional Vesture, the Self is called the Radiant.
What then is the Mode, Dreamlessness?
-- The sense that I perceive outwardly nothing at all, that rest is joyfully
enjoyed by me, this is the Mode Dreamlessness.
When attributing itself to the Causal Vesture, the Self is called the Intuitional.
The Five Veils

What are the Five Veils?
-- The Food-formed; the Life-formed; the Emotion-formed; the Knowledge-formed; the
Bliss-formed.
What is the Food-formed?
-- Coming into being through the essence of food, getting its growth through the
essence of food, in the food-formed world it is again dispersed, this is the Food-
formed Veil -- the Physical Vesture.
What is the Life-formed?
-- The Forward-life and the four other Lives, Voice and the four other powers of
doing; these are the Life-formed.
What is the Emotion-formed Veil?
-- Emotion, joining itself to the five powers of knowing -- this is the Emotion-
formed Veil.
What is the Knowledge-formed?
-- The Soul, joining itself to the five powers of knowing -- this is the Knowledge-
formed Veil.
What is the Bliss-formed?
-- This verily is the Substance not quite pure because of the unwisdom that gives
birth to the Causal Vesture; in it are founded all joys; this is the Bliss-formed
Veil.
Thus the Five Veils.
By saying: "Mine are the lives; mine is emotion; mine is the soul; mine is the
wisdom"; these are recognized as possessions. And just as a bracelet, a necklace, a
house and such things separated from one's self, are recognized as possessions, so
the Five Veils and the Vestures, recognized as possessions, are not the Self (the
Possessor).
What then, is the Self?
-- It is that whose own-nature is Being, Consciousness, Bliss.
What is Being?
-- What stands through the Three Times (Present, Past, Future) -- this is Being.
What is Consciousness?
-- The own-nature of Perceiving.
What is Bliss?
-- The own-nature of Joy.
Thus let a man know that the own-nature of his own Self is Being, Consciousness,
Bliss.
II
We shall speak now of the way the four-and-twenty natures are developed.
The Primitive Seven

Dwelling together with the Evolver in glamor, who is the very self of the three
potencies: substance, force, and space.
From this glamor, shining ether came forth.
From shining ether, breath came forth.
From breath, fire came forth.
From fire, the waters came forth.
From the waters, earth came forth.
Their Substantial Parts

Now, among these five natures:
From the substantial part of shining ether, the power of hearing came forth.
From the substantial part of breath, the power of touch came forth.
From the substantial part of fire, the power of seeing came forth.
From the substantial part of the waters, the power of taste came forth.
From the substantial part of earth, the power of smelling came forth.
From the united substantial parts of these five natures, the inner powers -- mind,
soul, self-assertion, imagination -- came forth.
Mind is the very self of intending and doubting.
Soul is the very self of affirmation.
Self-assertion is the very self of attributing selfhood.
Imagination is the very self of image-making.
The regent of mind is the Moon.
The regent of soul is the Evolver.
The regent of self-assertion is the Transformer.
The regent of imagination is the Pervader.
Their Forceful Parts

Now, among these five natures:
From the forceful part of shining ether, the power of voice came forth.
From the forceful part of breath, the power of handling came forth.
From the forceful part of fire, the power of moving came forth.
From the forceful part of the waters, the power of engendering came forth.
From the forceful part of earth, the power of extruding came forth.
From the united forceful parts of these natures, the five lives -- the upward-life,
the forward-life, the uniting-life, the distributing-life, the downward-life --
came forth.
Their Spatial Parts Of these five natures, from their spatial parts, the five-
folded five elements come forth.
What is this five-folding?
It is this: taking the spatial parts of the five primitive natures -- one part of
each -- these parts are each first divided in two; then one half of each part is
left alone, on one side, while the other halves of each are each divided into four.
Then to the half of each nature, is joined the fourth of the half [the eighth] of
each of the other natures. And thus five-folding is made.
From these five primitive natures, thus five-folded, the physical vesture is
formed. Hence the essential unity between the clod and the Evolving Egg.
The Life and the Lord

There is an image of the Eternal, which attributes itself to the vestures, and is
called the Life. And this Life, through the power of Nature, regards the Lord as
separate from itself.
When wearing the disguise of Unwisdom, the Self is called the Life.
When wearing the disguise of Glamor, the Self is called the Lord.
Thus, through the difference of their disguises, there is an appearance of
difference between the Life and the Lord. And as long as this appearance of
difference continues, so long will the revolving world of birth and death continue.
For this reason the idea of the difference between the Life and the Lord is not to
be admitted.
But how can the idea of unity between the self-assertive, little-knowing Life, and
the selfless, all-knowing Lord, be accepted, according to the famous words, that
thou art; since the genius of these two, the Life and the Lord, is so opposite?
This is not really so; for 'Life attributing itself to the physical and emotional
vestures' is only the verbal meaning of thou; while the real meaning of thou is
'pure Consciousness, bare of all disguises, in dreamless life.'
And so 'the Lord full of omniscience and power' is but the verbal meaning of that;
while the real meaning of that is 'pure Consciousness stripped of disguises.' Thus
there is no contradiction in the unity of the Life and the Lord, since both are
pure Consciousness.
The Free-in-Life
And thus all beings in whom the idea of the eternal has been developed, through the
words of wisdom and the true Teacher, are Free-in-life.
Who is Free-in-life?
Just as there is the firm belief that 'I am the body,' 'I am a man,' 'I am a
priest,' 'I am a serf,' so he who possesses the firm conviction that 'I am neither
priest nor serf nor man, but stainless Being, Consciousness, Bliss, the Shining,
the inner Master, Shining Wisdom,' and knows this by direct perception, he is Free-
in-life.
The Three Modes of Deeds

Thus by the direct knowledge that 'I am the Eternal,' he is freed from all the
bonds of his deeds.
How many modes of these 'deeds' are there? If counted as 'deeds to come,' 'deeds
accumulated,' and 'deeds entered on,' there are three modes.
The pure and impure deeds that are done by the body of the wise, after wisdom is
won, are called 'deeds to come.'
And what of 'deeds accumulated'? The deeds that are waiting to be done, sprung from
seeds sown in endless myriads of births, are 'deeds accumulated.'
And what are 'deeds entered on'? The deeds that give joy and sorrow here in the
world, in this vesture, are 'deeds entered on.' Through experiencing them they
reach cessation; for the using-up of deeds entered on comes through experiencing
them. And 'deeds accumulated' reach cessation through wisdom, the very self of
certainty that 'I am the Eternal.' 'Deeds to come' also reach cessation through
wisdom. For, as water is not bound to the lotus-leaf, so 'deeds to come' are not
bound to the wise.
For those who praise and love and honor the wise, to them come the pure 'deeds to
come' of the wise. And those who blame and hate and attack the wise, to them come
all the unspeakable deeds, whose very self is impurity, of the wise man's 'deeds to
come.'
The End
Then the Knower of the Self, crossing over the circling world, even here enjoys the
bliss of the Eternal. As the sacred books say: The Knower of the Self crosses over
sorrow.
And the sacred traditions say: Whether he leave his mortal form in Benares or in a
dog-keeper's hut, if he has gained wisdom, he is free, his limitations laid aside.
Thus the Awakening to Reality is completed.
=============================================
Rudraksha Jabala Upanishad
Om ! Let my limbs and speech, Prana, eyes, ears, vitality

And all the senses grow in strength.
All existence is the Brahman of the Upanishads.
May I never deny Brahman, nor Brahman deny me.
Let there be no denial at all:
Let there be no denial at least from me.
May the virtues that are proclaimed in the Upanishads be in me,
Who am devoted to the Atman; may they reside in me.
Om ! Let there be Peace in me !
Let there be Peace in my environment !
Let there be Peace in the forces that act on me !
Hail Om! I praise the Effulgent State of Absolute Peace, belonging to Sri
Maharudra, which is to be known through the Rudraksha Jabala Upanishad.
May the virtues that are proclaimed in the Upanishads (reside) be in me,
Let me be perfect.
May I never deny Brahman, and may He Brahman never deny me.
Sunday, February 22, 2009

Chamakam
The Chamakam is an extremely ancient prayer that comes to us from the Yajurveda. In
the days of old, the priest of the Vedic sacrifice (yajna) would chant this long
supplication to the Divine while pouring oblations into the holy fire. These days,
as yajna rituals are rare, the Chamakam is mostly chanted in temples of Shiva
following the other famous Yajurvedic prayer known as Sri Rudram or Rudradhyaya. In
essence, the Chamakam supplicates the Divine to provide all the necessary things
for humanity's continued survival and prosperity. Though the reciter repeatedly
says me meaning "to me" (grant me), it should be understood that the supplication
is on behalf of humanity, and not the individual.
A translation of the Chamakam is posted here. However, no translation can ever

capture the mystifying beauty of the Vedic mantras in the original language (proto-
Sanskrit). Also, it must be noted that several items being beseeched are those
specific to ancient Vedic rituals and do not have names in modern languages. As the
Vedic rituals were considered crucial for the well-being of all humanity, praying
for the necessary items and correct performance of the ritual plays a central role
in the hymn.
Chamakam Mantras
Holy Krsna Yajurveda, Taittiriya Recension IV.7.1-11
||Aum||
Anuvak I � III
Prayer for body, mind and spirit
O Lord! O Agna-Vishnu, praises be unto Thee!

May Thou bestow goodness unto us,
May my words of praise ensure upon us pure food,
A keen desire to relish, digest and absorb it.
[Grant us] holy sacrifices, vedic mantras with proper intonations,
Vedic incantations with captivating and impelling sounds,
The capacity to hear well, mental awakening and perfection,
The ability to attain divine abodes of the Devas,
The proper functioning of prana, apana, and vyana vital airs,
Mental acumen, the power of proper speech, a sound mind,
Keen eyesight, sharp hearing, fine functioning of the senses,
Strength, vigor, ability to overcome foes, longevity,
Respectable old age, a seasoned spirit, a good body,
Happiness, the ability to safeguard the body, excellent limbs,
Good bones, well-set joints, and an excellent, noble body. ||1||
[Grant us] the a cherished old-age,
The eminence to become overlord among men,
And the mental strength to combat resentment,
And anger � both internal and external.
Drinking waters, success over foes,
And great fame, so valued by others.
Abounding wealth, progeny, grandeur,
Worldly possessions and personal excellence.
[Grant me] Truth, faith, land, wealth, glamour,
A charming body, sport and physical activity,
And the enjoyment that comes from all these.
What I have earned through inheritance,
Through proficiency in scripture,
Through shared rites and rituals,

Now and into the future.
Prosperity in the past and in the future,
Comfortable resting places and well-guarded paths,
And the material and spiritual benefits in this life and the next.
A pleasant life journey, with the ability to use everything I have
With a balanced intellect, wisdom and dexterity,
So that I may manage difficult situations successfully. ||2||
[Grant us] the happiness of this world and the next,
All materials dear and worthy of possession,
Material and spiritual welfare, prosperity, comfort,
Name, fame and fortune and riches,
Proper guidance from elders and support from all,
The capacity to protect all belongings earned and bequeathed,
Undaunted courage, chivalry, valor, steadfastness,
The pleasure and honor to embody Vedic knowledge,
The profundity to impart the same to all others,
Proper command, obedience and service from progeny,
And the capacity to excel in agricultural deeds.

Ardent desire to conduct spiritual rituals
And thereby gain the fruits of the holy acts.
Freedom from bodily ailments, proper medicines,
Prolonged life, circumvention from untimely death,
The lack of enemies and fear, good conduct,
Bountiful sleep, and glorious dawns. ||3||
Anuvak IV � V
Prayer for well-being man and society

[Grant us] food, good reception and proper hospitality,
Milk, sweet-tasting bountiful juices, ghee and honey,
The blessing of sharing food and drink with others,
Abundant agriculture, rains-a-plenty, cultivable lands,
Lush tall trees and foliage, flower beds, gold and rare gems,
The blessing of grandchildren, the feeling of oneness and security,
Protection, a well-nourished and maintained body,
Abundance of cereals, millets, grains, and legumes
[May we be] without hunger, fully satisfied,
Blessed with ever-growing paddies, barley, black grams,
Sesame seeds, green grams, castor seeds, white and lentils,
Bushy millets, excellent roots and readily available forest grains. ||4||
[Grant us] stones, various mountain ranges,
River basins, hillocks, sands, medicinal herbs,
Tall and fruit-bearing trees, gold and silver,
Lead, tin, steel, bronze and copper.
Fire, water, creepers, fine foliage, green vegetation,
Cultivable products, stray growth millets,
Sacrificial animals wild and domestic,
Wealth � both acquired and inherited,
Progeny and property, worldly benefits,
All accompanying benefits, incomes,
Valued belongings, comfortable dwellings,
Shelter for our children-folk,
And the ability to perform sacred rituals,
Sacrificial rites and enjoying the fruits thereof.

[May we be] assured harmony, happiness and prosperity
The ability to achieve desired goals and finally obtain liberation. ||5||
Anuvak VI
Prayer to Indra, the indwelling-God, in association with all Devas
[We offer unto] Agni and Indra, Soma and Indra;
Savita and Indra; Sarasvati and Indra;
Pushan and Indra; Brihaspati and Indra;
Mitra and Indra; Varuna and Indra;
Tvasta and Indra; Dhata and Indra;
Vishnu and Indra; the Ashvins and Indra;
The Maruts and Indra; the Visvedevas and Indra;
The Earth and Indra; Antariksha (atmosphere) and Indra;
Dhyaus (heaven) and Indra; the directions four and Indra;
The space above and Indra; Prajapati and Indra. ||6||
Anuvaks VII � XI
Prayer for proper Vedic rituals for the benefit of society
[May we be granted] the amsu, the rasmi, the adhabya;
The adhipati, the upamsu, the antaryama,
The vessels for Mitra-Varuna, the twin Ashvins,
The pratiprastana, the shukra, the manthi,
The Agramana, the Vaishvadeva, the Dhruva,
[And be blessed by] the Vaishvanara, the Ritugrahas,
The Atigrahas, Indra-Agni, the Vishvedas, the Maruts,
The Great Indra, Aditya, Savita, Sarasvati,
Pushan, Patnivata and the Hariyojanas. ||7||
[May we be granted] idmas (sticks), barhis (grass),

Vedis (altar), the money, the raised platform,
The vessels for soma, the stones to press soma,
The wooden ladles, the offering pits,
The wooden vessels, the lighting place of fires;
The elevated place for keeping the offering;
The place for the wives of the priests
And the raised seating place for the chanters;
The place to keep the rice and cooked offering,
The auspicious ablution and the ritual to invoke the Gods. ||8||
[Grant us] the sacrificial fire, the pravarga for soma,
The Arka, Surya and Prana rituals,
The Ashvamedha ritual, the Deities Aditi and Diti,
The heavens, the pointing finger,
And all necessities for performing yajnas.
[Grant us] the powerful mantras of the Rig, the Sama,
The mantras of Stoma and the Yajus,
The diksha to perform rituals,
The sacred oaths and disciplines, the rains,
And the Brihat and Ritantara hymns to perform yajnas. ||9||
[Grant us] protection of calves in the wombs of the cows,
New born and one-and a half year old male and female calves,
Two year old male and female calves,
Two and half year old male and female calves,
Three year old males and female calves
Four-year-old male and female calves
Five year old male and female calves
The majestic breeding bulls, the virgin cows
And the cows which have not borne,

The newly delivered ones, and the load-pullers.
[And may] all these be granted unto us,
Along with a life full of sacrifices,

With prana, apana, vyaana vital airs,
Eyes and ears, mind, speech, and intellects,
So we can perform sacrifices with perfection. ||10||
[May we be granted] the one, the three, the five,
The seven, the nine, the eleven, the thirteen,
The fifteen, the seventeen, the nineteen, the twenty-one,
The twenty three, the twenty five, the twenty seven,
The twenty nine, the thirty one, the thirty three;
And the four, the eight, the twelve, the sixteen, the twenty,
The twenty four, the twenty eight, the thirty two,
The thirty six, the forty, the forty four, and the forty eight.
[May we endowed with] food and continuity of its production,
The urge to enjoy all this; the Sun and the skies above.
O Ye, the Supreme, the Infinite, the All-pervading like the sky,
Who art Time, and present at the end of universal dissolution;
O Ye, who exists as the universal form, the Indweller of all,
The immortal, the Ruler of All; Be Thou merciful unto us. ||11||
Final Prayer
The divine Devas are implored through the mantras of Kamadhenu.
Manu is the sacrificer, Brihaspati is the reciter of the mantras.
Let these praises of Vishvedevas and Mother Earth save us from suffering.
May my sweet thoughts bring forth sweet actions and sweet fruits thereof,
May my sweet offerings bear fine and worthy speech,
May my words please Divinity and gladden men who lend their ears,
May the Devas enlighten me and render unto me sweet speech,
May the forefathers be pleased, may they bless and protect me.
Let there be peace, peace and peace.
=====================================================================0
.
Ever-Auspicious
The Shiva in me is the Shiva in you,

That Shiva in us all, that is Shiva truly!
That Shiva, that inscrutable Shiva, that Supreme
He who is not a He, nor She, nor both, nor neither
That is Shiva, all-pervasive, all-knowing, all-Being One.
Aum Shivaya.
The Shiva in this world is the Shiva in the next,

That Shiva in all the worlds, that is Shiva verily!
That Shiva, that boundless Self Divine, that Infinitude
He who is neither here, nor there, nor everywhere, nor nowhere
That is Shiva, ever-resplendent, ever-blissful, ever-auspicious One.
Aum Shivaya Namah.
Agnideva � 2010. All rights reserved.
Sunday, February 28, 2010

Light of Lights
This is That, the Truth of things: as from one high-kindled fire thousands of
different sparks are born and all have the same form of fire, so, O fair son, from
the immutable manifold becomings are born and even into that they depart.
The Purusha is divine, the formless, even He is the outward and the inward and He
the Unborn; He is beyond life, beyond mind, luminous, Supreme beyond the
immutable. Life and mind and the senses are born from Him; and the sky, and the
wind, and light, and the waters and earth upholding all that is. Fire is the head
of Him and His eyes are the Sun and Moon, the quarters His organs of hearing and
the revealed Vedas are His voice, air is His breath, the universe is His heart,
Earth lies at His feet. He is the inner Self in all beings.
From Him is fire, of which the Sun is the fuel, then rain from the Moon, herbs upon
the earth, and the male casts his seed into woman: thus are these many peoples born
from the Purusha. From Him are the hymns of the Rigveda, the Sama, and the Yajus,
initiation, and all sacrifices and works of sacrifice, and dues given, the year and
the giver of the sacrifice and the worlds, on which the moon shines and the sun.
And from Him have issued many Gods, and demi-gods and men and beasts and birds, the
main breath and downward breath, and rice and barley, and askesis and faith and
Truth, and chastity and rule of right practice. The seven breaths are born from Him
and the seven lights and kinds of fuel and the seven oblations and these seven
worlds in which move the life-breaths set within with the secret heart for their
dwelling-place, seven and seven. From Him are the oceans and all these mountains
and from Him flow rivers of all forms, and from Him are all plants, and sensible
delight which makes the soul to abide with the material elements.
The Purusha is all this universe; He is works and askesis and the Brahman, supreme
and immortal. O fair son, he who knows this hidden in the secret heart, scatters
even here in this world the knot of the ignorance. Manifested, it is here set close
within, moving in the secret heart, this is the mighty foundation and into it is
consigned all that moves and breathes and sees. This that is that great foundation
here, know, as the Is and Is-not, the supremely desirable, greatest and the Most
High, beyond the knowledge of creatures.
That which is the Luminous, that which is smaller than the atoms, that in which are
set the worlds and their peoples, That is This - it is Brahman immutable: life is
That, it is speech and mind. That is This, the True and Real, it is That which is
immortal: it is into That that thou must pierce, O fair son, into That penetrate.
Take up the bow of the Upanishad, that mighty weapon, set to it an arrow sharpened
by adoration, draw the bow with a heart wholly devoted to the contemplation of
That, and O fair son, penetrate into That as thy target, even into the Immutable.
OM is the bow and the soul is the arrow, and That, even the Brahman, is spoken of
as the target. That must be pierced with an unfaltering aim; one must be absorbed
into That as an arrow is lost in its target.
He in whom are inwoven heaven and earth and the mid-region, and mind with all the
life-currents, Him know to be the one Self; other words put away from you: this is
the bridge to immortality. Where the nerves are brought close together like the
spokes in the nave of a chariot-wheel, this is He that moves within, - there is He
manifoldly born. Meditate on the Self as OM and happy be your passage to the other
shore beyond the darkness.
The Omniscient, the All-wise, whose is this might and majesty upon the earth, is
this Self enthroned in the Divine city of the Brahman, in his ethereal heaven. A
mental being, leader of the life and the body, has set a heart in matter, in matter
he has taken his firm foundation. By its knowing the wise see everywhere around
them That which shines in its effulgence, a shape of Bliss and immortal. The knot
of the heart-strings is rent, cut away are all doubts, and a man's works are spent
and perish, when is seen That which is at once the being below and the Supreme.
In a supreme golden sheath the Brahman lies, stainless, without parts. A Splendour
is That, It is the Light of Lights, It is That which the self-knowers know. There
the sun shines not and the moon has no splendour and the stars are blind; there
these lightnings flash not, how then shall burn this earthly fire? All that shines
is but the shadow of His shining; all this universe is effulgent with His light.
All this is Brahman immortal, naught else; Brahman is in front of us, Brahman
behind us, and to the south of us and to the north of us, and below us and above
us; it stretches everywhere. All this is Brahman alone, all this magnificent
universe.
Mundaka Upanishad (II:1:1-10; II:2:1-12) of the holy Atharvaveda

Translated by Sri Aurobindo
-----The Mundaka is a very ancient text that comes to us from the upanishadic era
(800-400 BCE). By this time, the Vedic hymn collections were already of hoary
antiquity and the esoteric principles hidden therein were being lost. A new
generation of sages took it upon themselves to reveal again the esotery of the holy
hymns to their disciples and put in written form this ancient knowledge. The body
of teaching of these enlightened sages and the traditions which were founded upon
these teachings are called Vedanta, the very essence of the holy Veda.
In the above text of the Mundaka we find an elaboration of Purusha Sukta, a key
hymn from the Rigveda. Purusha in essence is a personification of the infinite
Divine Being, who is both the Creator and the fabric of creation. Personified He is
called Purusha or Ishvara, God; sometimes prefixed by Parama- (supreme). In Shaiva
tradition, Ishvara is called Shiva, or more aptly Sadashiva, the benevolent, all-
knowing Lord. Fully realized, that Sat, the formless, the immutable Reality is
called Brahman in the Vedanta, and Parashiva/Paramashiva in the Shaiva texts.
Once all polemics and argumentative mental states melt away, what is left is pure
peace and unity. As the name would suggest, what yokes together the tradition of
the Agama-Tantra with that of Vedanta is Yoga.
Aum Namah Shivaya.
=======================================
Dakshinamurti
Dakshinamurti and the Dakshinamurtis
Dakshinamurti is a term often met with in Shaivism and Shaivite iconography.

Generally, the term Dakshinamurti is translated loosely as "the One facing south,"
but a more apt translation would be "Favorable Form." The term originally referred
to the southern benevolent face of the Panchamukha (five-faced) Shiva Lingam. At
the temple of Pashupatinath in Nepal, for example, the southern face of the Shiva
Lingam is still called Dakshinamurti. Alternatively, any Linga icon facing
southward may also be called Dakshinamurti. An example of this is the Mahakala
Jyotirlingam in Ujjain.
Apart from these above rare usages, the term Dakshinamurti, now, is generally
associated with specific anthropomorphic forms of Lord Shiva. In the Shaivite
tradition, Dakshinamurti is not a singular iconographic form, but a class of forms,
all of which are yoga murtis, wherein Shakti is not separately represented but is
implicit within the representation of Shiva. While there are several Dakshinamurti
forms, three are prominent:
1. Yoga Dakshinamurti - Shiva as the idyllic Himalayan Yogi in meditation.

2. Jnana or Vyakhyana Dakshinamurti - Shiva as the divine Teacher under a banyan
tree.
3. Vinadhara Dakshinamurti - Shiva as the divine Teacher of music and arts, holding
a lute.
Of these three, the Yoga Dakshinamurti is perhaps the most represented and
recognized form of Shiva, and the Vinadhara Dakshinamurti is rarely seen. In common
usage, however, when one says Dakshinamurti, the image that comes to mind is that
of Jnana or Vyakhyana Dakshinamurti, the idyllic Teacher. It is to this form that
the rest of the article is dedicated.
Jnana/Vyakhyana Dakshinamurti
I contemplate, for the attainment of the highest end,
The Supreme Guru, the Lord of Bhavani,

The serene-faced Primal Being,
He who is spoken of in all the Vedas,
Whose hands shine with the symbol of wisdom,
With a book and fire and a serpent,
Bedecked with garlands of pearls,
And a crown blazing forth brilliant,
With the digit of the moon,
Resides at the foot of a fig tree,
And removes the ignorance of all.
~ Dakshinamurti Upanishad the Krsna Yajurveda (Mantra 14)
The landscape of ancient India was dotted with numerous centers of Shiva worship.
In that the region known as Tamilakam was no different. Within this region, two
important and competing kingdoms flourished - the Cholan kingdom to the north and
the Pandyan kingdom to the south. In the kingdom of the Cholas, in the city of
Chidambaram, a magnificent universal form of Shiva called Nataraja was realized.
Around the same time, in the city of Madurai, within the kingdom of the Pandyas,
yet another magnificent form of Shiva called Dakshinamurti was realized. While in
Madurai, Shiva sat in perfect stillness, in Chidambaram, Shiva stood in perpetual
motion.
Like the ever-famous Nataraja, Dakshinamurti is a highly exalted and deeply

mystical form of Shiva conveying Him as the Lord of Yoga and the embodiment of all
knowledge - worldly and spiritual. In the Dakshinamurti icon we find the Lord in
perfect stillness and perpetual serenity. He sits under the banyan tree, the tree
of knowledge, facing southward. In His upper hands, He holds a drum representing
the sound of creation and a flame representing the fire of dissolution. In one of
His lower hands, He holds the holy Vedas, and the other is raised in jnana mudra,
imparting knowledge upon the world. Under His foot is the Apasmara Purusha, the
personification of ignorance.
Dakshinamurti is the great unseen Master, the eternal Teacher. It is from Him that
the holy Vedas and the holy Agamas, and indeed all knowledge has flowed down
through the ages and through the sages. He teaches without words and imparts
without letters. He guides without speaking and blesses without blinking. His
teachings are imparted upon all whose minds are pure and whose hearts are full of
devotion. He impels especially those who are on the path of renunciation, those who
have given up worldly life to realize Divinity within. He is the Ocean of
compassion and Source of the stream of endless consciousness that flows through
all.
In all traditions of Dharma, we have unbroken lineages of gurus and teachers. Each
of these gurus was instructed and initiated by gurus before them, who were in turn
instructed by their own gurus all the way back to remote antiquity. But who was the
first Guru, the original source of knowledge? In theistic Dharma traditions, the
Lord Himself is considered the Primal Guru, the Adi Guru; the Guru of all gurus;
the Jagadguru, the universal Master; or Waheguru (to borrow a term from Sikhism).
It is from the Lord that all knowledge descended down, later to be condensed into
volumes of holy books. It is this principle that is embodied most perfectly and
beautifully in the form of Dakshinamurti. He is the Bestower of all knowledge
(jnana) and Origin of all explanations (vyakhyana). Such is the beauty and esotery
of Lord Shiva-Dakshinamurti.
Legend of the Four Kumaras
In the beginning, it is said, the Creator, Prajapati-Brahma, Himself was born from
the supreme Unborn Divine Being, Ishvara, who is called Shiva in Shaivism. The
Creator was the firstborn being, and the Golden Germ (Hiranyagarbha) of all further
creation.
In the beginning of creation did Brahma, having worshipped Shiva,

Attain the power to create and was delighted at heart.
~ Dakshinamurti Upanishad (Mantra 20)
Brahma then began to create. His first creations were his four mind-born sons -
Sanaka, Sanandana, Sanatana and Sanatkumara (Sanatsujata) - known collectively as
the Kumaras. The four Kumaras were instructed to further create beings in this
world, but the Kumaras were not interested in worldly life. Their only interest was
the pursuit of the Divine. They did not obey their Father's command and instead
sought a life of renunciation and meditation.
Seated at the foot of Shiva-Dakshinamurti are these four Kumaras, the founders of
the path of renunciation followed by sages and sannyasis everywhere. Forever do the
Kumaras look upon Lord Shiva-Dakshinamurti, the Supreme, the Eternal, the
Unchanging, the Fountainhead of all knowledge. Esoterically, the four Kumaras
represent the four components of the antahkarana ("inner organ") - manas (sensory
mind), buddhi (intellect), ahamkara (ego) and chitta (mind stuff) - ever given to
and focused on realizing the Divine Reality within.
Aum, Obeisances to Him who is the very meaning of Omkara,

The Form of pure knowledge, who is serene and without flaw,
To Lord Dakshinamurti obeisances be.
~ Dakshinamurti Stotra, Dhyana Shloka 5
Aum Dakshinamurtaye Namah.
=================================================
The Blessed Lord said:

Listen, O [Garuda], and I will explain to you what you have asked, even by the
hearing of which a man is released from the world of change.
There is the Shining One, Siva, who has the nature of Supreme Brahman, who is
partless, all-knowing, all-doing, Lord of all, stainless and secondless, Self-
illumined, beginningless and endless, beyond the Beyond, without attributes, Being
and Knowing and Bliss. That which is considered the individual is from a part of
Him.
These, like sparks of a fire, with beginningless ignorance, separated and encased
in bodies by beginningless karma, are fettered by forms of good and evil, giving
happiness and misery � with nationality of body, length of life, and fortune born
of karma. In every life obtained, they have also, O Bird, a higher and more subtle
body, the linga(-deha), lasting until liberation.
The unmoving things, worms, goats, birds, animals, men, the righteous, the thirty-
three Devas [of the Vedas], and also the liberated, according to their order,
having worn and cast aside the four sorts of bodies thousands of times, one becomes
a man by good deeds, and if he becomes a knower he attains liberation. The
embodied, in the eighty-four hundred thousands of bodies before attaining human
birth, can obtain no knowledge of the truth.
Through millions of myriads of thousands of births sometimes a being obtains human

birth, through the accumulation of merit. He who, having obtained a human body,
difficult to get, and a step to liberation, does not help himself over � who in
this world is more sinful than he? The man who, having obtained this highest birth
and superior senses, does not understand what benefits the soul is [termed] a
�slayer of Brahman�.
Without a body, nobody obtains the object of human life; therefore should he guard
his body as wealth and perform meritorious deeds. He should always guard his body,
which is the means to everything. Living, he should make every effort to protect
it, in view of welfare. A village again, a field again, wealth again, a house
again, good and evil actions again � the body never again.
The wise always adopt means for the preservation of the body; even those afflicted
with diseases such as leprosy do not wish to give it up. It should be guarded for
the sake of duty; duty for the sake of knowledge; knowledge for the sake of Yoga-
meditation � then he is soon released.
Excerpted from:
The Garuda Purana
Chapter XVI: 5-21
Trans. E. Wood and SV Subrahmanyam [1911].
===============================================
When listening to Vedic hymns being chanted, one ought not concentrate too much on
understanding the words or the meaning. It is far more important to close one's
eyes, mediate, and allow one's mind to be transformed by the divine vibrations
therein.
Aum Namah Shivaya, and a blessed Maha Shivaratri to all my readers.
=======================================================
Daksha's Supplication
Anyone who is familiar with the Tradition of Shiva is undoubtedly also familiar
with the story of Daksha's Yajna. The story of Daksha's Yajna is one of the most
famous Puranic Shaivite myths. Though it is a story with esoteric meaning, we will
not, here, analyze this story. Suffice it to say that many Shaivite books and
scriptures relate or allude to this story or events therein. In that, the epic
Mahabharata is no exception.
What makes the Mahabharata epic unique among ancient books is that it was written
by generations of writers over a period of a few hundred years (ca. 400 bce-400
ce). As a result, there are numerous interpolations and perhaps dozens of sections
omitted from Sanskrit critical editions. The below prayer, here termed "Daksha's
Supplication", appears to be from such an omitted part of the epic. Daksha's
Supplication is found within an inserted section of 435 verses between chapter 274
and 275 of Book XII (Shanti Parva) of the Mahabharata.
As is evident below, Daksha's Supplication is a lengthy, 234-verse prayer to Shiva

in His universal form. The prayer glorifies the Lord using almost every attribute,
epithet and description imaginable. It is written as a prayer sung by Daksha-
Prajapati to supplicate Shiva's fury. Judging by the age of the Mahabharata,
coupled with references to the Sri Rudram and the Shvetashvatara Upanishad, we may
assume that this prayer was composed by Pashupata ascetics.
While there are hundreds of hymns and prayers honoring Shiva in dozens of texts,
this hymn captures a clear and beautiful image of ancient Shaivite thought from a
time either before or during the composition of the Shaiva Puranas. It is a
beautiful blending of Shaiva mythology and theology as taught by Pashupata sages.
In its essence, what we find in Daksha's Supplication are the two core teachings:
(a) In Shiva, in the Lord, all opposites, all contradictions cease and a sense of
completeness is realized; and (b) Shiva is All, and All is Shiva. The unity in
Divinity principle that is implicit in Daksha's Supplication remains a key feature
of all Shaiva thought to this day.
-----
Daksha's Supplication
Yudhishthira said, �It behoveth thee, O sire, to tell me those names by which
Daksha, that progenitor of creatures, adored the great Deity. O sinless one, a
reverent curiosity impels me to hear them.�
Bhishma said, �Hear, O Bharata, what the names, both secret and proclaimed, are of
that God of Gods, that Deity of extraordinary feats, that Ascetic of secret vows.�
Daksha said:
I bow to Thee! O Lord of all the Devas to the Destroyer of the forces of the
Asuras.
Thou art the Paralyser of the strength of the celestial Chief Himself.
Thou art adored by both Devas and Danavas.
Thou art thousand-eyed, Thou art fierce-eyed, and Thou art three-eyed.
Thou art the Friend of the ruler of the Yakshas.
Thy hands and feet extend in all directions to all places.
Thy eyes also and head and mouth are turned on all sides.
Thy ears too are everywhere in the universe,
And Thou art Thyself everywhere, O Lord!
Thou art shaft-eared, Thou art large-eared, and Thou art pot-eared.
Thou art the Receptacle of the ocean.
Thy ears are like those of the elephant, or of the bull, or like extended palms.
Salutations to Thee!
Thou hast a hundred stomachs, a hundred revolutions, and a hundred tongues.
I bow to Thee!
The utterers of the Gayatri sing Thy praises in uttering the Gayatri,
And the worshippers of the Sun adore Thee in adoring the Sun.
The Rishis regard Thee as Brahma, as Indra, and as the (illimitable) firmament
above.
O Thou of mighty form, the ocean and the sky are Thy two forms.
All the Deities dwell in Thy form even as kine dwell within the fold.
In Thy body I behold Soma, and Agni, and the Lord of the Waters,
And Aditya, and Vishnu, and Brahma, and Brihaspati.
Thou, O illustrious One, art Cause and Effect,
And Action and Instrument of everything unreal and real,
And Thou art Creation and Destruction.
I bow unto Thee that art called Bhava and Sharva and Rudra.
I bow unto Thee that art the Giver of boons.
I bow always unto Thee that art the Lord of all creatures.
Salutations to Thee that art the Slayer of Andhaka.
Salutations to Thee that hast three matted locks,
To Thee that hast three heads,
To Thee that art armed with an excellent trident;
To Thee that hast three eyes and that art, therefore, called Tryambaka and
Trinetra!
Salutations to Thee that art the Destroyer of the triple city!
Salutations to Thee that art called Chanda, and Kunda;
To Thee that art the (universal) egg and also the bearer of the (universal) egg;
To Thee that art the Holder of the ascetic's stick,
To Thee that hast ears everywhere,
And to Thee that art called Dandimunda!
Salutations to Thee whose teeth and hair are turned upwards,
To Thee that art stainless and white, and that art stretched all over the universe;
To Thee that art red, to Thee that art tawny, and to Thee that hast a blue throat!
Salutations to Thee that art of incomparable form, that art of dreadful form,
And that art highly auspicious!
To Thee that art Surya, that hast a garland of Suryas round Thy neck,
And that hast standards and flags bearing the device of Surya.
Salutations to Thee that art the Lord of spirits and ghosts,
To Thee that art bull-necked, and that art armed with the bow;
To Thee that crushest all foes,
To Thee that art the personification of chastisement,
And to Thee that art clad in leaves (of trees) and rags.
Salutations to Thee that bearest gold in Thy stomach,
To Thee that art cased in golden mail,
To Thee that art gold-crested,
To Thee that art the Lord of all the gold in the world!
Salutations to Thee that hast been adored,
That deservest to be adored, and that art still being adored;
To Thee that art all things, that devourest all things,
And that art the Soul of all things!
Salutations to Thee that art the Hotri (in sacrifices),
That art the (Vedic) mantras uttered (in sacrifices),
And that ownest white flags and standards.
Salutations to Thee that art the navel of the universe,
That art both cause and effect in the form of the five primal elements,
And that art the Coverer of all covers.
Salutations to Thee that art called Krisanasa,
That art of thin limbs, and that art thin.
Salutations to Thee that art always cheerful
And that art the personification of confused sounds and voices.
Salutations to Thee that art about to be stretched on the Earth,
That art already stretched, and that standing upright.
Salutations to Thee that art fixed, that art running, that art bald,
And that bearest matted locks on Thy head.
Salutation to Thee that art fond of dancing
And that strikest Thy puffed cheeks making Thy mouth a drum.
Salutations to Thee that art fond of lotuses that blow in rivers,
And that art always fond of singing and playing on musical instruments.
Salutations to Thee that art the Eldest-Born,
That art the foremost of all creatures,
And that art the Crusher of the Asura Vala.
Salutations to Thee that art the Master of Time,
That art the personification of Kalpa;
That art the embodiment of all kinds of destruction, great and small.
Salutations to Thee that laughest awfully and as loud as the beat of a drum,
And that observest dreadful vows!
Salutations for ever to Thee that art fierce, and that hast ten arms.
Salutations to Thee that art armed with bones and that art fond of the ashes of
funeral pyres.
Salutations to Thee that art awful, that art terrible to behold,
And that art an observer of dreadful vows and practices.
Salutations to Thee that ownest an ugly mouth,
That hast a tongue resembling a scimitar, and that hast large teeth.
Salutations to Thee that art fond of both cooked and uncooked meat,
And that regardest the gourded Vina as highly dear.
Salutations to Thee that causest rain, that helpest the cause of righteousness,
That art identifiable with the form of Nandi, and that art Righteousness' Self!
Salutations to Thee that art ever moving like wind and the other forces,
That the Controller of all things,
And that art always engaged in cooking all creatures (in the cauldron of time).
Salutations to Thee that art the foremost of all creatures,
That art superior, and that art the giver of boons.
Salutations to Thee that hast the best of garlands,
The best of scents, and the best of robes,
And that givest the best of boons to the best of creatures.
Salutations to Thee that art attached,
That art freed from all attachments,
That art of the form of yoga contemplation,
And that art adorned with a garland of Akshas.
Salutations to Thee that art united as cause and disunited as effects,
And that art the form of shadow and of light.
Salutations to Thee that art amiable, and that art frightful,
And that art exceedingly so.
Salutations to Thee that art auspicious,
That art tranquil, and that art most tranquil.
Salutations to Thee that art of one leg and many eyes,
And that hast only one head; to Thee that art fierce,
To Thee that art gratified with little offerings,
And Thee that art fond of equity.
Salutations to Thee that art the Artificer of the universe,
And that art ever united with the attribute of tranquility.
Salutations to Thee that bearest a foe-frightening bell,
That art of the form of the jingle made by a bell,
And that art of the form of sound when it is not perceptible by the ear.
Salutations to Thee that art like a thousand bells jingled together,
And that art fond of a garland of bells,
That art like the sound that the life-breaths make,
That art of the form of all scents and of the confused noise of boiling liquids.
Salutations to Thee that art beyond three Huns, and that art fond of two Huns.
Salutations to Thee that art exceedingly tranquil,
And that hast the shade of mountain trees for Thy habitation.
Thou art fond of the heart-flesh of all creatures,
That cleansest from all sins,
And that art of the form of sacrificial offerings.
Salutations to Thee that art of the form of Sacrifice,
That art the Sacrificer himself,
That art the brahmana into whose mouth is poured the sacrificial butter,
And that art the fire into which is poured the butter inspired with mantras.
Salutations to Thee that art of the form of (sacrificial) Ritvijas,
That hast Thy senses under control,
That art made of Sattva, and that hast Rajas also in Thy make.
Salutations to Thee that art of the banks of Rivers,
Of Rivers themselves, and of the Lord of all Rivers (the ocean)!
Salutations to Thee that art the Giver of food,
That art the Lord of all food, and that art identical with him that takes food!
Salutations to Thee that hast a thousand heads and a thousand feet,
To Thee that hast a Thousand tridents uplifted in Thy hands, and a Thousand eyes!
Salutations to Thee that art of the form of the rising Sun,
And that art of the form of a child,
That art the protector of attendants all of whom are of the form of children,
And that art, besides, of the form of children's toys.
Salutations to Thee that art old, that art covetous,
That art already agitated, and that art about to be agitated.
Salutations to Thee that hast locks of hair marked by the current of the Ganges,
And that hast locks of hair resembling blades of Munja grass!
Salutations to Thee that art gratified with the six acts,
And that art devoted to the performance of the three acts.
Salutations to Thee that hast assigned the duties of the respective modes of life.
Salutations to Thee that deservest to, be praised in sounds,
That art of the form of sorrow, and that art of the form of deep and confused
noise.
Salutations to Thee that hast eyes both white and tawny, as also dark and red.
Salutations to Thee that hast conquered Thy vital breaths,
That art of the form of weapons, that rivest all things,
And that art exceedingly lean.
Salutations to Thee that always discoursest of religion,
Pleasure, profit, and emancipation.
Salutations to Thee that art a Sankhya, that art the foremost of Sankhyas,
And that art the Introducer of the Sankhya-Yoga.
Salutations to Thee that hast a car and that art without a car (for Thy journeys).
Salutations to Thee that hast the intersections of four roads for Thy car;
To Thee that hast the skin of a black deer for Thy upper garments,
And that hast a snake for Thy sacred thread.
Salutations to Thee that art Isana, that art of body as hard as thunderbolt,
And that art of green locks.
Salutations to Thee that art of three eyes,
That art the Lord of Ambika, that art Manifest, and that art Unmanifest.
Salutations to Thee that art Desire, that art the Giver of all desires,
That art the Killer of all desires,
And that art the discriminator between the gratified and the ungratified.
Salutations to Thee that art all things, the Giver of all things, and the Destroyer
of all things.
Salutations to Thee that art the hues which appear in the evening sky.
Salutations to Thee that art of mighty strength, that art of mighty arms,
That art a mighty Being, and that art of great effulgence.
Salutations to Thee that lookest like a mighty mass of clouds,
And that art the embodiment of eternity!
Salutations to Thee that art of well-developed body,
That art of emaciated limbs, that bearest matted locks on Thy head,
And that art clad in barks of trees and skins of animals.
Salutations to Thee that hast matted locks as effulgent as the Sun or the Fire,
And that hast barks and skins for Thy attire.
Salutations to Thee that art possessed of the effulgence of a thousand Suns,
And that art ever engaged in penances.
Salutations to Thee that art the excitement of fever
And that art endued with matted locks drenched with the waters of the Ganges
Characterised by hundreds of eddies.
Salutations to Thee that repeatedly revolvest the Moon, the yugas, and the clouds.
Thou art food, Thou art he who eats that food,
Thou art the Giver of food, Thou art the Grower of food,
And Thou art the Creator of food.
Salutations to Thee that cookest food and that eatest cooked food,
And that art both wind and fire!
O Lord of all, the Lords of the Gods,
Thou art the four orders of living creatures.
Thou art the Creator of the mobile and immobile universe,
And Thou art their Destroyer!
O foremost of all persons conversant with Brahma,
They that are conversant with Brahma regard Thee as Brahma!
The utterers of Brahma say that Thou art the Supreme source of Mind,
And the Refuge upon which space, wind, and light rest.
Thou art the Riks and the Samans, and the syllable OM.
O foremost of all Deities!
Those utterers of Brahma that sing the Samans constantly sing Thee,
When they utter the syllables Hayi-Hayi, Huva-Hayi, and Huva-Hoyi.
Thou art made up of the Yajus, of the Riks, and of the offerings poured on the
sacrificial fire.
The hymns contained in the Vedas and the Upanishads adore Thee!
Thou art the Brahmanas and the Kshatriyas, the Vaisyas, and the Sudras,
And the other castes formed by intermixture.
Thou art those masses of clouds that appear in the sky;
Thou art lightning; and Thou art the roar of thunder.
Thou art the year, Thou art the seasons,
Thou art the month, and Thou art the fortnight.
Thou art Yuga, Thou art the time represented by a twinkle of the eye,
Thou art Kashtha, Thou art the Constellations, Thou art the Planets, Thou art Kala.
Thou art the tops of all trees, Thou art the highest summits of all mountains.
Thou art the tiger among the lower animals, Thou art Garuda among birds,
And Thou art Ananta among snakes.
Thou art the ocean of milk among all oceans,
And Thou art the bow among instruments for hurling weapons.
Thou art the thunder among weapons, and Thou art Truth among vows.
Thou art aversion and Thou art desire;
Thou art attachment and Thou art stupefaction (of judgment);
Thou art forgiveness and Thou art unforgiveness.
Thou art exertion, and Thou art patience;
Thou art cupidity; Thou art lust and Thou art wrath;
Thou art victory and Thou art defeat.
Thou art armed with mace, and Thou art armed with shaft;
Thou art armed with the bow,
And Thou bearest the Khattanga and the Jharjhara in Thy hands.
Thou art He who cuttest down and piercest and smitest.
Thou art He who leads (all creatures) and he who gives them pain and grief.
Thou art righteousness which is marked by ten virtues;
Thou art wealth or profit of every kind; and Thou art pleasure.
Thou art Ganga, Thou art the oceans, Thou art the rivers, Thou art the lakes,
And Thou art the tanks.
Thou art the thin creepers, Thou art the thicker creeping plants,
Thou art all kinds of grass, and Thou art the deciduous herbs.
Thou art all the lower animals and Thou art the birds.
Thou art the origin of all objects and acts,
And Thou art that season which yields fruits and flowers.
Thou art the beginning and Thou art the end of the Vedas;
Thou art the Gayatri, and Thou art OM.
Thou art green, Thou art red, Thou art blue, Thou art dark,
Thou art of bloody hue, Thou art of the colour of the Sun,
Thou art tawny, Thou art brown, and Thou art dark blue.
Thou art without colour, Thou art of the best colour,
Thou art the maker of colours, and Thou art without comparison.
Thou art of the name of gold, and Thou art fond of Gold.
Thou art Indra, Thou art Yama, Thou art the Giver of boons,
Thou art the Lord of wealth, and Thou art Agni.
Thou art the eclipse, Thou art the fire called Chitrabhanu,
Thou art Rahu, and Thou art the Sun.
Thou art the fire upon which sacrificial butter is poured.
Thou art He who pours the butter.
Thou art He in honour of whom the butter is poured,
Thou art the butter itself that is poured,
And Thou art the puissant Lord of all.
Thou art those sections of the Brahmanas that are called Trisuparna,
Thou art all the Vedas; and Thou art the sections called Satarudriya in the Yajus.
Thou art the Holiest of Holies, and the auspicious of all auspicious things.
Thou animatest the inanimate body.
Thou art the chit (consciousness) that dwellest in the human form.
Invested with attributes, Thou becomest subject to destruction.
Thou art Jiva, that is He who is never subject to destruction when uninvested with
attributes.
Thou art full yet Thou becomest liable to decay and death in the form of the body,
Which is Jiva's accompaniment.
Thou art the breath of life, and Thou art sattva,
Thou art rajas, Thou art tamas, and Thou art not subject to error.
Thou art the life breaths called Prana, Apana, Samana, Udana, and Vyana.
Thou art the opening of the eye and shutting of the eye.
Thou art the act of sneezing and Thou art the act of yawning.
Thou art of red eyes which are ever turned inwards.
Thou art of large mouth and large stomach.
The bristles on Thy body are like needles.
The beard is green.
Thy hair is turned upwards.
Thou art swifter than the swiftest.
Thou art conversant with the principles of music both vocal and instrumental,
And fond of both vocal and instrumental music.
Thou art a fish roving in the waters,
And Thou art a fish entangled in the net.
Thou art full, Thou art fond of sports,
And Thou art of the form of all quarrels and disputes.
Thou art Time, Thou art bad time,
Thou art time that is premature,
And Thou art time that is over-mature.
Thou art the killing, Thou art the razor (that kills), and Thou art that which is
killed.
Thou art the auxiliary and Thou art the adversary,
And Thou art the Destroyer of both auxiliaries and adversaries.
Thou art the time when clouds appear,
Thou art of large teeth,
And Thou art Samvartaka and Valahaka.
Thou art manifest in the form of splendour.
Thou art concealed in consequence of being invested with maya.
Thou art He who connects creatures with the fruits of their acts.
Thou hast a bell in Thy hand.
Thou playest with all mobile and immobile things (as with Thy toys).
Thou art the Cause of all causes.
Thou art Brahman (in the form of Pranava),
Thou art Swaha; Thou art the bearer of the Danda,
Thy head is bald, and Thou art he who has his words, deeds and Thoughts under
control.
Thou art the four Yugas, Thou art the four Vedas,
Thou art He from whom the four (sacrificial) fires have flowed.
Thou art the Director of all the duties of the four modes of life.
Thou art the Maker of the four Orders.
Thou art always fond of dice.
Thou art cunning.
Thou art the Chief of the spirits distributed into ganas, and their Ruler.
Thou art adorned with red garlands and attired in robes that are red.
Thou sleepest on the mountain-breast, and Thou art fond of the red hue.
Thou art the Artisan; Thou art the foremost of artists;
And it is Thou from whom all arts have flowed.
Thou art the tearer of the eyes of Bhaga;
Thou art Fierce, and Thou art He who destroyed the teeth of Pushan.
Thou art Swaha, Thou art Swadha,
Thou art Vashat, Thou art Salutation's form,
And Thou art the words Namas-Namas uttered by all worshippers.
Thy observances and Thy penances are not known to others.
Thou art Pranava; Thou art the firmament bespangled with myriads of stars.
Thou art Dhatri, and Vidhatri, and Sandhatri, Vidhatri,
And the Refuge of all things in the form of the Supreme cause,
And Thou art independent of all Refuge.
Thou art conversant with Brahma, Thou art Penance, Thou art Truth,
Thou art the Soul of brahmacharya, and Thou art Simplicity.
Thou art the Soul of creatures, Thou art the Creator of all creatures,
Thou art absolute Existence, and Thou art the Cause
Whence the past, the present, and the future, have sprung.
Thou art Earth, Thou art firmament, and Thou art heaven.
Thou art eternal, Thou art self-restrained, and Thou art the great God.
Thou art initiated, and Thou art not initiated.
Thou art forgiving; Thou art unforgiving;
And Thou art the Chastiser of all who are rebellious.
Thou art the lunar month, Thou art the cycle of the yugas (i.e., Kalpa),
Thou art destruction, and Thou art creation.
Thou art lust, Thou art the vital seed, Thou art subtile, Thou art gross,
And Thou art fond of garlands made of Karnikara flowers.
Thou hast a face like that of Nandi,
Thou hast a face that is terrible, Thou hast a handsome face,
Thou hast an ugly face, and Thou art without a face.
Thou hast four faces, Thou hast many faces,
And Thou hast a fiery face when engaged in battles.
Thou art gold-stomached (i.e., Narayana), Thou art (unattached to all things like)
a bird,
Thou art Ananta (the lord of mighty snakes), and Thou art Virat (hugest of the
huge).
Thou art the Destroyer of Unrighteousness, Thou art called Mahaparshva,
Thou art Chandradhara, and Thou art the Chief of the spirit-clans.
Thou lowedst like a cow, Thou wert the Protector of kine,
And Thou hast the Lord of bulls for Thy attendant.
Thou art the Protector of the three worlds,
Thou art Govinda, Thou art the director of the senses,
And Thou art incapable of being apprehended by the senses.
Thou art the foremost of all creatures,
Thou art fixed, Thou art immobile,
Thou tremblest not, and Thou art of the form of trembling!
Thou art incapable of being resisted,
Thou art the destroyer of all poisons,
Thou art incapable of being borne (in battle),
And Thou art incapable of being transcended,
Thou canst not be made to tremble,
Thou canst not be measured,
Thou canst not be vanquished,
And Thou art victory.
Thou art of swift speed,
Thou art the Moon,
Thou art Yama,
Thou bearest (without flinching) cold and heat and hunger and weakness and disease.
Thou art all mental agonies, Thou art all physical diseases,
Thou art the Curer of all diseases,
And Thou art those diseases themselves which Thou curest.
Thou art the destroyer of my Sacrifice which had endeavoured to escape in the form
of deer.
Thou art the advent and the departure of all diseases.
Thou hast a high crest.
Thou hast eyes like lotus-petals.
Thy habitation is in the midst of a forest of lotuses.
Thou bearest the ascetic's staff in Thy hands.
Thou hast the three Vedas for Thy three eyes.
Thy chastisements are fierce and severe.
Thou art the Destroyer of the egg (whence the universe springs).
Thou art the Drinker of both poison and fire,
Thou art the foremost of all Deities,
Thou art the Drinker of Soma,
Thou art the Lord of the Maruts.
Thou art the Drinker of Nectar.
Thou art the Master of the universe.
Thou shinest in glory,
And Thou art the Lord of all the shining ones.
Thou protectest from poison and death,
And Thou drinkest milk and Soma.
Thou art the foremost of the protectors of those that have fallen off from heaven,
And Thou protectest him who is the first of the Deities.
Gold is Thy vital seed.
Thou art male, Thou art female, Thou art neuter.
Thou art an infant, Thou art a youth,
Thou art old in years with Thy teeth worn out,
Thou art the foremost of Nagas,
Thou art Sakra,
Thou art the Destroyer of the universe, and Thou art its Creator.
Thou art Prajapati, and Thou art adored by the Prajapatis,
Thou art the Supporter of the universe,
Thou hast the universe for Thy form,
Thou art endued with great energy,
And Thou hast faces turned towards all directions.
The Sun and the Moon are Thy two eyes,
And the Grandsire is Thy heart.
Thou art the ocean.
The Goddess Saraswati is Thy speech
And fire and wind are Thy might.
Thou art day and night.
Thou art all acts including the opening and the shutting of the eye.
Neither Brahma nor Govinda nor the ancient Rishis,
Are competent to understand Thy greatness,
O auspicious Deity, truly.
Those subtile forms which Thou hast are invisible to us.
Rescue me and, O, protect me as the sire protects the son of his loins.
O, Protector! I deserve Thy protection.
I bow to Thee, O sinless One!
Thou, O illustrious One, art full of compassion for Thy devotees.
I am always devoted to Thee.
Let him be always my Protector who stayeth alone on the other side of the ocean,
In a form that is difficult to be apprehended,
And overwhelming many thousands of persons!
I bow to that Soul of yoga who is beheld in the form of an effulgent Light,
By persons that have their senses under control,
That are possessed of the attribute of sattva,
That have regulated their breaths,
And that have conquered sleep.
I bow to Him who is endued with matted locks,
Who bears the ascetic's staff in his hand,
Who is possessed of a body having a long abdomen,
Who has a kamandalu tied to his back,
And who is the Soul of Brahma.
I bow to Him who is the Soul of water,
In whose hair are the clouds,
In the joints of whose body are the rivers,
And in whose stomach are the four oceans.
I seek the protection to Him who, when the end of the Yuga comes,
Devours all creatures and stretches himself (for sleep)
On the wide expanse of water that covers the universe.
Let him who entering Rahu's mouth drinketh Soma in the night
And who becoming Swarbhanu devoureth Surya also, protect me!
The Devas, who are mere infants
Ad who have all sprung from Thee after Brahma's creation,
Enjoy their respective shares (in sacrificial offerings).
Let them (peacefully) enjoy those offerings made with Swaha and Swadha,
And let them derive pleasure from those presents -- I bow to them.
Let those Beings that are of the stature of the thumb,
And that dwell in all bodies, always protect and gratify me.
I always bow to those Beings who dwelling within embodied creatures
And make the latter cry in grief without themselves crying in grief,
And who gladden them without themselves being glad.
I always bow to those Rudras who dwell in rivers, in oceans,
In hills and mountains, in mountain-caves, in the roots of trees,
In cow-pens, in inaccessible forests, in the intersections of roads,
In roads, in open squares, in banks (of rivers and lakes and oceans),
In elephant-sheds, in stables, in car-sheds, in deserted gardens and houses,
In the five primal elements, and in the cardinal and subsidiary directions.
I bow repeatedly unto them that dwell in the space amidst the Sun and the Moon,
As also in rays of the Sun and the Moon, and them that dwell in the nether regions,
And them that have betaken themselves to renunciation,

And other superior practices for the sake of the Supreme.
I bow always unto them that are unnumbered, that are unmeasured,
And that have no form, unto those Rudras, that is, that are endued with infinite
attributes.
Since Thou, O Rudra, art the Creator of all creatures,
Since, O Hara, Thou art the Master of all creatures,
And since Thou art the indwelling Soul of all creatures,
Therefore wert Thou not invited by me (to my sacrifices).
Since Thou art He who is adored in all sacrifices with plentiful gifts,
And since it is Thou that art the Creator of all things,
Therefore I did not invite Thee.
Or, perhaps, O God, stupefied by Thy subtile illusion I failed to invite Thee.
Be gratified with me, blessed by Thyself,
O Bhava, with me possessed by the quality of rajas.
My mind, my understanding, and my chitta all dwell in Thee, O God!
Mahabharata, Book XII [Shanti Parva]
Section between chapters 274 and 275: verses 155-388
Trans. Kisari Mohan Ganguli
Aum Aum Aum Shivaya Namah.
======================================================
Friday, February 13, 2009

Date of Maha Shivaratri
As most may be already aware, the festival of Maha Shivaratri (the great night of
Shiva) is rapidly approaching. In the year 2009, Maha Shivaratri will fall on
February 22 (North and South America, Pacific) or February 23 (Europe, Africa,
Asia, Australia).
Without doubt, Maha Shivaratri is one of the greatest festivals in the Hindu
calendar, and the holiest day for all Shaivites. In a given solar year, there are
actually twelve (or thirteen) Shivaratris, one per lunar month. Shivaratri occurs
whenever the fourteenth lunar day of the waning moon (krsna paksha chaturdashi) is
in effect at midnight local time.
Of the twelve (or thirteen) Shivaratris of the year, only one is considered Maha
(great) Shivaratri. Within the lifetime of anyone reading this, Maha Shivaratri
will fall sometime between February 12-March 13 when the Sun is in the sidereal
constellation Kumbha (Aquarius).
Per the purnimanta mode of reckoning the Hindu calendar, the lunar date of Maha
Shivaratri is defined as: Phalguna Krsna Chaturdashi ~ the fourteenth lunar day in
the dark half (waning moon) in the month of Phalguna. The purnimanta mode is in
vogue in Northern and Central India, parts of Orissa, Nepal and among Hindus in
Pakistan.
Per the amanta mode of reckoning the Hindu calendar, the lunar date of Maha
Shivaratri is defined as: Magha Krsna Chaturdashi ~ the fourteenth lunar day in the
dark half (waning moon) in the month of Magha. The amanta mode is in vogue in
Southern, Eastern and Western India, Sri Lanka, Bangladesh and among Hindus in
South-East Asia.
Regardless of which reckoning mode one uses, the date and time of Maha Shivaratri
is exactly the same. The two reckonings are, in fact, two ways of saying the same
thing. The two systems only differ in how they define lunar months - whether they
go from full moon to full moon (purnimanta) or new moon to new moon (amanta).
However, it must be remembered that Maha Shivaratri, like all festivals on the
Hindu calendar, does not necessarily fall on the same day throughout the world. One
must observe this festival according to its actual occurance in your time zone.
As was stated at the beginning of the post, in all time zones that cover North and
South America and the Pacific, Maha Shivaratri is to be observed on Sunday,
February 22, 2009. In all time zones that cover Europe, Africa, Asia and Australia,
Maha Shivaratri is to be observed on Monday, February 23, 2009. Full celebrations
generally begin around 6 pm on the given date, and continue on until 6 am (or local
sunrise) on the following day.
Invocation:
bhadra? kar?ebhi? sru?uyama deva bhadra? pasyemak?abhirya jatra? .

sthiraira?gaistu??uva?sastanubhivyasemadevahita? yadayu? ..
O Devas! May we hear with our ears only that which is auspicious,
May we see with our eyes only the auspicious, O worship-worthy Ones!
May we praise Ye with steady body and limbs,
And may we enjoy the term of life allotted to us by the Devas.
~Holy Rigveda I.89.8
Aum Namah Shivaya.
=====================================

10 Shivaratri Sandesh

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10 Shivaratri Sandesh

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SWAMI'S DISCOURSES ON LORD SHIVA

Siva means, graciousness; auspiciousness; Mangalam. He is all graciousness, ever

- From Bhagawan's 1963 Maha Shivarathri Discourse.

Sri Kalahasti - Air

The 12 Jyotirlinga Shrines of Shiva

The southernmost of these is located at Rameswaram, while the northernmost is

Somnath is the foremost of the 12 Jyotirlinga Shrines of Shiva.It is located at

Omkareshwar: an island in the course of the river Narmada in Madhya Pradesh is

Kedarnath - the Northernmost of the Jyotirlingas. Kedarnath, nestled in the snow

Rameswaram: This vast temple in the island of Rameswaram, in Southern Tamilnadu

Nageshwar near Dwarka in Gujarat is one of the 12 Jyotirlinga shrines of Shiva.

Grishneshwar Jyotirlinga Shrine is a temple located in the vicinity of the tourist

Saurashtre Somanaatham Cha Sree Saile Mallikarjunam

Ref: SSS Vol II Ch 21 [Adhara and Adheya] p108.

Bhavvaya Chandra choodaya,

Mangalam to him who has a blue neck,

Vrusha roodaya bheemaya

Mangalam to the consort of Gowri,

Mangalam to him who has the sky as hair,

Soorya chandragni nethraya,

Mangalam to the god of the impassioned devotee,

Mangalam to the Lord of the three worlds,

Mangalam to the god of the left,

Mangalam to him who has seven necks,

Sada shiva swaroopaya

Mangalam to the greatest of Gods,

Mangalashtakam ethad vai

He who sings the praise of Lord Shiva using Mangalashtakam daily,

Aaradhayami mani sannibham athma lingam,

I worship that Linga,

Rathnai Kalpitham asanam, Himajalai snanam cha divyambaram,

I offer you an imaginary throne made of precious jewels,

Souvarne nava rathna Ganda Rachithe, pathre Grutham Payasam,

I offer you Ghee and the sweet payasam in golden vessel ,

Chathram Chamarayoryugam vyajanagam, chaa darshakam nirmalam,

I offer you a pretty stage,

Aathma thwam Girija Mathi sahacharaa, prana sarreram gruham,

Kara charana krutham vaak kayajam karmajam vaa,

Please pardon Oh lord

Matha cha Parvathy Devi,

My mother is the goddess Parvathy,

Seer and Seen

The Power of Glamor

Six Steps of Soul Vision

The Three Selves

Freedom and Final Peace

An Exhaustive Explanation of the Statement

1. Study the Vedas daily.

2. Seek companionship with Men of Wisdom.

4. In hunger diseases get treated.

5. In solitude live joyously.

12. Who is your enemy?

23. What is ignorance?

28. What is hell?

39. What should be disregarded?

52. What is wisdom?

56. What is as transient as the lightning?

74. Who is valorous as Lord Sri. Rama?

75. What should occupy your thought day and night?

86. What is dearer than the soul?

90. What is the army? (like the I Ching?)

93. What is an unclean (untouchable) state?

99. How do you achieve things?