pachai maamalai pol mene

Saturday, January 28, 2012

More on Pranvam... the Para and Apara states

More on Pranvam... the Para and Apara states
परापर विभागेन प्रणवस्तु द्विधा मतः॥
Paraapara vibhaaghen pranavastu dwidhaa mataH..
Privanavam or AUM is considered in two ways as  Paraa, and Aparaa  as per suuthasamhita.
परं परतरं ब्रह्म प्रज्ञानन्दादिलक्षणं
प्रकर्षेण् नवं यस्मात् परं ब्रह्म स्वभावतः॥
Since the inner visualization of Pranavam endows us with prjnaana the enhanced knowleds, ectasy, etc, it is called partara Pranava.. And on each chanting we find a new rejuvenation and revelation on occasion after occasion.. it is essentially new on every moment of user or chanting so pranavam is also called Param.
सत्यम् ज्ञानमन्तम् ब्रह्म।  ॐ तत् ब्रह्म। ॐ आनदो ब्रह्म।   Satyam jnaanam anantham brahma, om tat brahma, om aanando brahma,  the Upanishads go one praising the Supreme Lord like this.. the pranavam is the embodiment of truth, incarnation of knowledge, manifestation of ecstasy,  and has only single quality of sublimity.  The brahmam cannot be conceived any other way,. It is truth because it originated once and it will be eternal and shine forth as such without any variation. Whatever other than is the creation of truth is all illusion.. and only the creation of truth AUM is the eternal truth.  That which has origin, growth and end are all mithya or illusory, and AUM which is not in that category is the everlasting truth.  The AUM can be conceived only by absolute knowledge.. and the state of absoulute knowledge is where  the jnaataa.. the knower,  jneyam.. that which is to be known  and jnaanam, the knowledge of that all become one and inseparable.. ( cf.. lalithasahasranaamam... jnana jnatru jeya ruupaa)  .. such state of sublime knowledge is called jnaanaaika rasam and AUM ultimately leads us to that sublime state.  In this case once the core is understood, then there cannot be any more thing to be known and there can be no one who would like to know anything more.  The reason for any sort of sorrow disappears in this state and and the divine ecstasy that manifests is unmixed with any sorrow or worldly feelings. This is also the manifestation of Paramaatma.  This state is called aanadaiikarasam... a state where there is only ananda.. and AUM provides this.  Satya jnaana and anada, are the three stages of perception, three vehilcles of perceiption, three results of perception of pure Omkaram.   Thus defined and untouched by Maayaa and the related tatwwas of Mahat etc, remais the Para Shiva swaroopam and that is Pranavam.  This is the para pranavam.

Without afftected by the vagaries of space-time the word AUM  oozes out ecstacy in its vocal form  and it is called Apara Pranavam.
अपरः प्रणवः साक्षात् शब्दरूपः सुनिर्म्मलः
प्रकर्षेन नवत्वस्य हेतुत्वाल् प्रणवः स्मृतः
परम प्रणवप्राप्ति हेतुत्वात् प्रणवोऽथवा॥
aparaH praNavaH saakSaat shabdaruupaH sunirmmalaH
prakarSena navatwasya hetutwaal praNavaH smR^itaH
parama praNavapraapti hetutwaat praNavo.athavaa..
The aparapranava is the manifestation of AUM in the vocal form.. It is in the form of sound and is blemishless.. Every chanting of AUM is the source of a new experience spiritually. And this Aparapranava is the step that leads to the parapranava where the supereme Brahmatattwam manifests before us.  In this manner also the Sabdhapranava is called Apara.


--
।श्रीकृष्णो रक्षतु।
|śrīkṛṣṇo rakṣatu|
Have a nice and happy day
with profound respect and warm regards
K V Ananthanarayanan
blog   http://kanfusion.blogspot.com/
त्यजन्तु बान्धवाः सर्वे निन्दन्तु गुरवो जनाःI
तदापि परमानन्दो गोविन्दो मम जीवनंII
let all my relatives abandon me, let the great people insult me, still I am in supreme bliss since my life  is GOVINDA alone.
Iकृष्णात् परं किमपि तत्वं अहं न जाने"I
लोकाः समस्ताः सुखिनो भवन्तु।
lokāḥ samastāḥ sukhino bhavantu|

Omkaaram or Pranavam... something more

Omkaaram or Pranavam... something more

अकारेणोच्यते विष्णुः सर्वलोकैक नायकः उकारेणोच्यते लक्ष्मीः मकारो जीववाचकः॥
Akaarenocyate VishnuH sarvalokaika naayakaH 
Ukaarenochyate lakshmiiH makaaro jeevacaachakaH

A further meaning to Omkaram.. The syllable  "A"  represents Vishnu the master of the universe.  The syallable "U" represents Lakshmi  and the syallable "M" represents the sound of life.. Hence AUM is nothing but the communion of the Purusha (Sahasrashiirshaa purushaH..) Vishnu and the Prakriti (see lakshmi ashtottaram.. prakriteem vikruteem vidyaam...) represents the Matha Lakshmi  and we know the syllable M represents the life, the motherhood...every language in the world calls the mother with a syllable "M". 
We can understand now how the blessed Krishna, Vishnu incarnate sang Pranavam in His flute and the Matha Lakshmi, the  prakriti in the shape of Radhika, Gopis and cows all got attracted to the Purusha.. and the communion between them is nothing but the process of life..The frivolous activity of Krishna and the damsels of Brinadaban, Krishan and the cows and their calve in that blessed grazing ground, attains sublime meaning here.
It is the union of jeevatma and paramaatma.. both representing the same in advaita philosophy an having subtle difference inter-se  in Vishitaadwaita and dwaita philosophies assuming its fullness in AUM
It will not be out of context to state  here  that as discussed earlier A represents the supreme soul and therefore it is also connoting Shiva the parabrahmam, and U is  nothing bus Uma... "umaa shailendra tanaya gauree gandharvasevitaa.". and M remains the live connection... so as in the concluding name in  Lalitha Sahasranaamam  "Shivashaktaikya roopinee..." is the Omkaram represented by the Uma-Shamkara Combination.  Shankaraacharaya  in fact underlines this unity when he states, "ShivaH Shakthya yuktho yadhi bhavati prabhavitum...."  Shiva is nothing without Shakthi and Narayana becomes powerful only in company of Lakshmi...
This great principle that the male and the female combine through the jeeva syllable "M"  is the greatest message of AUM kaaram.

--
।श्रीकृष्णो रक्षतु।
|śrīkṛṣṇo rakṣatu|
Have a nice and happy day
with profound respect and warm regards
K V Ananthanarayanan
blog   http://kanfusion.blogspot.com/
त्यजन्तु बान्धवाः सर्वे निन्दन्तु गुरवो जनाःI
तदापि परमानन्दो गोविन्दो मम जीवनंII
let all my relatives abandon me, let the great people insult me, still I am in supreme bliss since my life  is GOVINDA alone.
Iकृष्णात् परं किमपि तत्वं अहं न जाने"I
लोकाः समस्ताः सुखिनो भवन्तु।
lokāḥ samastāḥ sukhino bhavantu|

Wednesday, January 25, 2012

thoughts on Omkara and Gayatri upasana contd...

thoughts on Omkara and Gayatri upasana contd...

The greateness of Omkaram is highlighted again by the following saying.
जपेन दहते पापं  प्राणायामैस्तथा मलं ध्यानेन जन्मनिर्यातं  धारणाभिश्च मुच्यते॥
japena dahate paapam praanaayamaistathaa malam dhyaanena janmaniryaatam dhaarnaabhischa muchyate... 

"The Omkara burns off our sins when we chant it,  physical and mental impurity is removed through praanaayama with omkaram, the sins accumulated through births are burnt of through meditation on omkarama and  by going through the eight steps of ashtangayoga with pranavam, one reaches emancipation from worldy existence for ever.. "
ॐ इत्येकाक्षरं ब्रह्म व्याहरन् मामनुस्मरन् यः प्रयाति त्यजन् देहं स याति परमां गतिं॥  ...गीतायां
OM ityekaaksharam brahma vyaaharana maamanusmaran yaH prayaati tyajan deham sa yaati paramaam gatim..  in Gita
"Uttening the one supreme work OM which is brhama itself and concentrating his mind on Me, if a person leaves his body in the end, he reaches the supreme state of immortality....."  Declared the Blessed Lord  Krishna in Bagavat gita.

The importance of Upasana of Gayatri is underlined in the following discussion.

यद्यपि परमेश्वरः सर्वत्र अभिन्नरूपतया  वर्त्तमानः  तथापि  गायत्र्युपासकस्य विशिष्टफफलप्रदः नान्यथा।  अयं दृष्टान्तः याज्ञवल्क्यने कथितः
गवां सर्पिः शरीरस्तं  न करोत्यङ्गपोषणं गायत्रीं जपतो नित्यं पुष्णात्यङ्गं सदाशिवः।
एवं सहि शरीरस्थः सर्पिवत् परमेश्वरः  विना चोपासनादेव न करोति हितं नृणां॥।
Even though Lord Shiva is present as Vishvamoorthy manifesting himself everywhere,  He identified in particular  the worshipper of Gayatri and bestows on him all the grace.  Yajnavalkya has given the following  example:-
"The butter or ghee present in the milk is inherent in the body of the cow.. But in that state the nutrient does nothing special to  nourish the body of the cow. But when the cow is milched, and the ghee is extracted and partaken, it nourishes human body  (or even the body of the cow itself).  Similarly Lord Sadaashiva even though present every where does not do anything particular for the benefit of the people unless they perform devout Upasana through Gayatri. For Gayatri Upasakaas  Bhagavaan Shambu is the greatest nourisher."

--

Sunday, January 22, 2012

thoughts on Omkaram.. continued

ब्रह्मणे त्वा महस इत्यात्मानं युन्ञ्जीत 
( brahmaNe twaa mahasa AUM ityaatmaanaM yun~njiita )

The self should be made one with the great Paramatma with the syllable OM,  is the exhortation from Taittariya Shruti  and is lending evidence to the concept that the basic function of OM is to bring about the unification of Jivatma and Paramatma. 

There is a rule that any mantra will have its effect only if it is chanted in conjunction with Pranavam.  I
n the text Braahmanasarvaswam, it is said,

प्रणवाद्याः स्मृता मन्त्राः चतुर्वर्ग्ग फलप्रदाःतस्माच्च निःस्सृतास्सर्वे प्रलीयन्ते तत्र वै
(ब्राह्मणसर्वस्वात्)  
(praNavaadyaaH smR^itaa mantraaH chaturvargga phalapradaaH
tasmaachcha niHssR^itaassarve praliiyante cha tatra vai  BraahmaNasarvaswaat)
Meaning "All mantras are meditated upon prefixing Om, and then alone they can give the four results or purushaarthaas, Dharma, Artha, Kama and Moksha.  
In fact all such mantras originate from Pranavam and submerge in it ultimately,"

कारश्च शब्दश्च द्वावेतौ ब्रह्मणः पुराकण्डं  भित्वाविनिर्यातौ तस्मान्माङ्गळिकवुभौ।
माङ्गळ्यं पावनं धर्म्म्यं सर्वकामप्रसाधनंॐ कारः परमं ब्रह्मः सर्वमन्त्रेषु नायकः।

AUM kaarashcha shabdashcha dwaavetau brahmaNaH puraa
kaNDaM bhitwaaviniryaatau tasmaanmaa~NgaLikavuabhau.
maa~NgaLyaM paavanaM dharmmyaM sarvakaamaprasaadhanaM
AUM kaaraH paramaM brahmaH sarvamantreSu naayakaH.

"The flow and the roar of Omkaram came out of the throat of Brahma virtually shattering it.  
It is capable of providing us with all maangalyam.. meaning all the exalted aims of life,    
and so the flow and the sound of Omkaram are both called harbingers of mangalam.    
Provider of Mangalam, purifier of the self, the quintessence of virtues or Dharma, and the provider of all just and rightful desires, 
Omkaram is called the forerunner or leader of all the manthras. "

 यथा पर्ण्णं पलाशस्य शङ्कुनैकेन धार्यतेतथा जगदिदम् सर्वं  ॐ कारेणैव धार्यते।
याज्ञवल्क्यात्
yathaa parNNaM palaashasya sha~Nkunaikena dhaaryate
tathaa jagadidam sarvaM  AUM kaareNaiva dhaaryate.
yaaj~navalkyaat

Yaajnavalkya praised Omkara like this.  " Just as the three leaves in  a palasa stalk is held together by a single source ( palasa leaves occure in groups of three)  the three worlds bhu, bhuva and suvaH are also held together only by pranavam.
                                                          More to follow.....


--

Saturday, January 21, 2012

the five mothers

गुरुपत्नी राजपत्नी ज्येष्ठपत्नी तथैव च
पत्नीमाता स्वमाता च पञ्चैते मातरस्मृता॥२३॥
नीतिसारे
gurupatnī rājapatnī jyeṣṭahpatnī tathaiva ca
patnīmātā svamātā ca pañcaite mātarasmṛtā||23||
nītisāree

This is a very important reminder from Niitisaaram, an ancient text which give very apt advice on lifestyle management.

The wife of the preceptor or the teacher, the wife of the elder brother, the queen of the land, mother of the wife and once own mother are all equal in status as mother.
Elsewhere it is said that mother earth and dhaatree, who gives the children breastmilk even though they are not natural mothers are also placed on the same pedestal.

Long live mother-in-laws.

Friday, January 20, 2012

Discussion of Omkaram...The Inseparability of Jeevatma and Paramatma and their absolute oneness is denoted by Pranavam

Discussion of Omkaram...The Inseparability of Jeevatma and Paramatma and their absolute oneness is denoted by Pranavam

The word  अवरक्षणे   avaraskahane is from अकारं  akaaram  meaning protection in an exhaustive way which is the function of the triumvirate  Brahma, Vishna and Shiva,  or Iswara as a whole. 

 Only people who indulge in vilification of Vishnu or Shiva against one another would try to explain अकारं Akaram representing either of the the gods exclusively in contempt of the other.  
Such interpretation is irrelevanant and sinful.  
Here we have to realize that अ  is to be construed as an integral part of omkaram  (अ  उ  म  A U Ma ).  
The dictum तस्य वाचकः प्रणवः  tasya vaachakaH pranavaH  reinforces this idea.   
The pronouncement, Om tat sat  given byP arabrahmam was understood in three ways by great men

ॐ तत्सदिति निर्द्देशो ब्रह्मणस्त्रिविधः स्मृतः  ब्राह्मणास्तेन वेदाश्च  यज्ञाश्च विहिताः पुरा    OM  tatsaditi nirddeso brahmanaH trividho smrutah, braahmanaasten vedaashcha yajnaashcha vihitaah pura… Omkaram  signifies (1)  Brahmanas themselves,
 (2)the Vedas 
and (3) the Yajnaas.

The following Vakyam too underlines the supremacy of Omkaram. 

ॐ इत्येकाक्षरं ब्रह्म   ॐ इति ब्रह्मा प्रसौति
(Om ityeakaaksharam Brahma, Om  iti Brham prasauti ) 
"Om is the single word denoting the supreme,  the Brahma created the world  with the word OM "
Again
अकारो वै सर्वा वाक् (akaro vai sarvaa vaak)  the root of all words is Akaara,  is the shrutivaakya.  
The word is the source or Kaaranam  and Karanatwam   requires power, knowledge and compassion for protection.. and all these are possessed only by the Paramaatman.

Hence that Paramaatman is the word  A.  

U karam represents the cognitive faculty.  
U means the world "also"  

 In the vedic sentence  
तदेवाग्निस्तद्वायुस्तद्सूर्यस्तदुचन्द्रमा 
(tadevaagnistadvaayustadsuuryastadu chandrama)   
"that is Agni, that is Vayu, that is Sun and that is also the  Moon"   here tadu chandrama connotes, it is also moon.   U is used there to signify 'also'(tad U chandramaa).  

When we start counting from "Ka" in Devanagarai alphabet, the Twetyfifth letter is Ma.
प्रऋतिमहदहङ्काराश्च मात्त्रस्च् भूतान्यम्पि हृदपि दशाक्षी पुरुषः पञ्चविंशः
Prakriti, Mahat,Ahankaram five Matras, fivebhutas,  Hridayam and the five Karmendriyas and five jnaanedrityas and the Purusha constitute the number twentyfive and that number is represented by Ma. 
 In fact the Parmatma the Purusha, who stands along with the  the 24 tattwas as above is  denoted by Makaaram.  
So  M---the Jeevaatma  and  A The parmatma are U, meaning that they  are the same is the essessence of pranavam. 

In mathematical parlance  AUM  parmatma Union Jeevatma is the tattwa.. this is the Advaita tattwaa of Pranavam.


--

Thursday, January 19, 2012

Procedure before starting Gayatri Japam

Sage Saunaka has prescribed the following procedure before one sits for chanting gayatri after the water oblations during sandhyavandanam.
आ ब्रह्मलोकादाशेषादालोकालोक पर्वतात्
ये वसन्ति द्विजा देवाः तेभ्यो नित्यं नमो नमः
इति मन्त्रं  ससुच्चार्य नम्स्कुर्यात्सुरद्विजान्॥
अपसर्पन्तु ये भूताः ये भूतः भुवि संस्थिताः
ये भूतः विघ्नकर्तारः ते गच्छन्तु शिवाज्ञया॥
तलेन वामपादस्य भूमौ खातत्रयं चरेत्।
उग्रभूतपिशाचाद्याः ये च वै भूमिधारकाः
एतेषामविरोधेन ब्रह्मकर्मसमारभे
सङ्कल्प्येवं जपेत्सम्यक् मन्त्रार्थगतमानसः
कुशाजिनाम्बरेणाढ्यं कल्पयेदासनं बुधः॥
ābrhmalokādāśeṣādālokāloka parvatāt
ye vasanti dvijā devāḥ tebhyo nityaṁ namo namaḥ
iti mantraṁ  sasuccārya namskuryātsuradvijān||
apasarpantu ye bhūtāḥ ye bhūtaḥ bhuvi saṁsthitāḥ
ye bhūtaḥ vighnakartāraḥ te gacchantu śivājñayā||
talena vāmapādasya bhūmau khātatrayaṁ caret|
ugrabhūtapiśācādyāḥ ye ca vai bhūmidhārakāḥ
eteṣāmavirodhena brahmakarmasamārabhe
saṅkalpyevaṁ japetsamyak mantrārthagatamānasaḥ
kuśājināmbareṇāḍhyaṁ kalpayedāsanaṁ budhaḥ||

First the Brahmana should offer multiple.pranaams to all the gods and twiceborns who are living in the terrain between Brahmaloka to Patala (the fourteen worlds) and between  Loka mountain and Aaloka mountain.  After chanting the manthra  Aabrahmalokaad... (as above). 
Then he should chant the mantra "the devils and demons which inhabit the earth and cause impediments to good actions may remove themselves from here in the name of the order of Lord Shiva" and should forcibly hit the earth with his left heel thrice. 
Then he should chant the mantra that  I am starting the worship of Brahmam, without causing any inconvenience and without incurring the wrath of the spirits who hold this earth aloft and make it worth inhabitataion..
He should perform the japa fully understanding the meaning of the manthra fully and unequivocally.  He should sit in the seat of Darbha and wear the skin of black antelope and appropriate clothes during the chanting.  

It is clear that we should have the blessings of all our fellow human beings and gods if we have to start and complete a good action to its happy conclusion.  We can always expect the evil forces that will come in the way of good actions.  They are driven away by threat of the anger of Lord Shiva and also of physical force.  Besides some spirits are always present in nature protecting and keeping the world aloft.  Their natural movements and actions should not be disturbed by our actions, whether good or bad. So the intention not to cause any inconvenience to them is delclared here.  The wearing of Krishaajinam is restricted to brahmachaaris by convention now.

Saturday, January 14, 2012

Lord Krishna From Vrindavan -

 Lord Krishna From Vrindavan



















































 


 
 
 
 

 

 




--
।श्रीकृष्णो रक्षतु।
|śrīkṛṣṇo rakṣatu|
Have a nice and happy day
with profound respect and warm regards
K V Ananthanarayanan
blog   http://kanfusion.blogspot.com/
त्यजन्तु बान्धवाः सर्वे निन्दन्तु गुरवो जनाःI
तदापि परमानन्दो गोविन्दो मम जीवनंII
let all my relatives abandon me, let the great people insult me, still I am in supreme bliss since my life  is GOVINDA alone.
Iकृष्णात् परं किमपि तत्वं अहं न जाने"I
लोकाः समस्ताः सुखिनो भवन्तु।
lokāḥ samastāḥ sukhino bhavantu|

Makarasankranti Pongal Wishes

Friends,  My best wishes to all of you with family and near and dear on Makarasankranti and Pongal .. May the sweetest Grace of that nomad of Brindaban be with all of us.

--

Tuesday, January 10, 2012

Our mind is very hard, like a diamond

Our mind is very hard, like a diamond, and a classy diamond will be very transparent. But if the mind is to realize its worth, it should melt at the thought of Krishna. Just think of Him and heat up the mind to the appropriate molten form..ask that Krishna with the tiny feet (my god ! the tiny feet which could not find space enough to measure its third step while measuring the universe) to put a foot mark on the molten mind and with Him standing or even after He is gone take it back to its normal diamond-like hardness. The footmark is made there. Our life is blessed for ever. The mind should again melt only when Guruvayurappan wants to step on it.

Sunday, January 08, 2012

Lack of Selfishness

09-12-2006

Lack of Selfishness



I would seem to put to this group something that is too personal and not relevant to the group at all. If you feel so, please ignore this.Today Our marriage completes 19 years. I do not propose to use this forum to send a message to my wife because she will never see this, and she is not interested in groups or in computer either. I just thought how a typical Iyer woman spends her life even today. It was no romantic or idyllic match for us, but a match more dependent on idlis and dosas. But she was absolutely faithful in spite of the eccentric fellow that I was, with ungodly duty hours. If I am to leave for work on a day at 3A.M., she would wake up at 2A.M and cook a small meal for me, and when I return home 24 or 48 hours later again at a time when only ghosts will walk along the road, she will be waiting for me. I am not an attractive or charismatic man, and by any standards an under-performer.( I often wonder she would have abandoned me had she not been a typical Brahmin Mami ). She is in fact more educated than me and she earns sufficiently for herself through her job. We have a boy of 18 years who is as bad a devil as me demanding too much from his mother. Silently and happily she does everything. What I wrote above are personal. But I feel her attitude in life has been shaped like this because she grew up in a Brahmin family in a typical agraharam where human relations count a lot and reading Dale Carnegie or Stephen Covey is not necessary to learn the basics of life, but the advise of an old grandmother or great grandmother is taken as the gospel truth.I write this as a tribute to every Brahmin woman who builds up her exclusive world around her little family and can make it a heaven or hell (God forbid!) by her actions. Sure, Brahmin life is very different from others even in these modern times. Whatever we learned for thousands of years cannot be unlearned in a few years of ultramodern life. We men will brag and debate on various issues but the rock-like platform is provided by our own faithful (if I may be permitted to say, faithful to a fault) females. Thanks.

It is now five years later.. but I have had no reason to change my views...rather they are reinforeced.  I am just republishing the above post...even without editing it for spelling mistakes if any. 08-01-2012   K V Ananathanarayanan

It is further eight  years later...  I have absolutely no reason to  change my views  in any way.. 
kvananthanarayanan

How to call a great man a monkey

कुर्वन् शाखासु सञ्चारं
जनयन् द्विज सध्वसं
पश्चात् बालद्विजोऽद्य
अयमागतो राम वानरः॥
kurvan śākhāsu sañcāraṁ
janayan dvija sadhvasaṁ
paścāt bāladvijo'dhya
ayamāgato rāma vānaraḥ||
(this is a chaatuslokam.. the authorship is hazy)
How to call a great man a monkey
About two  hundred years ago there lived in Thrikkandiyur (the place from where Narayana Bhattathiri and Thunjathu ezhuttassan also hailed from ) one great Sanskrit Scholar by name Kaikkulangara Rama Variar. He was erudite in all disciplines of the language like tarka, vyakarana, etc and also a scholar in four Sakhas (Vedas). The brahmins were jealous of him and were also very wary of his scholarship because it would make inroads into their source of income as poets and teachers. They wanted to call him a monkey but their innate decency did not permit it. So one poet among them announced the arrival of Variar thus.

A monkey called Rama is arriving.. he always jumps from one branch of a tree to another, he makes the birds panicky, but is having all the younger birds flying behind him.
The sakha means the Vedas, dwija also connotes brahmin because he is twice born, one natural birth and the second the initiation, and the bird which is once born as an egg and then comes out of the egg is also a dwija. The natural tendency of younger birds is to follow a monkey in his jump from branch to branch. The young brahmins had started the studentship of this Rama (Variar) abandoning their brahmin teachers.
And the nambudiris called the variar  Vanara, a man with caste name starting with the word Va..
So the sloka would also mean,
Here comes the man with Va, the Rama (variar) who frequently expounds the substance of the four vedas, and in this process is causing awe and disturbance even to brahmins, and the younger boys of the brahmin community are now running after him for education, forsaking their traditional brahmin preceptors.

The nobility of a learned man shows even when he is rebuking someone else.


--

Saturday, January 07, 2012

Have care for the mother matru panchakam of Adi Shankara

आस्तां तावद्देयम् प्रसूति समये दुर्वार शूल व्यथा
नैरुच्यं तनु शोषणं मलमयी शय्या च सांवसरी
एकस्याऽपि न गर्भभारभरणक्लेशस्य यस्य क्षमो
दातुं निष्कृतिमुन्नतोपि तनयः तस्यै जनन्यै नमः॥१॥
गुरुकुलमुपशृत्य स्वप्नकाले तु दृष्ट्वा
यति समुचित वेषं प्रारुदो मां त्वमुच्चैः
गुरुकुलमथ सर्वा प्रारुदाते समक्षं
सपदि चरणयोस्ते मातुरस्तु प्रणामाः॥२॥
अंबेति तातेति शिवेति तस्मिन्
प्रसूतिकाले यदवोच उचैः
कृष्णेति गोविन्द हरेमुकुन्देति
अहो जनन्यै रचितोयमञ्जलिः।३॥
न दत्तं मातस्ते मरणसमये तोयमपि या
स्वादा या नो देया मनणदिवसे श्राद्ध विधिना
न जप्तो मातस्ते मरण समये तारकमनु
अकाले संप्राप्ते मयि कुरु दयां मातरतुलां॥४॥
मुक्तामणिस्त्वं  नयनं ममेति
राजेति जीवेति चिरं स्तुता त्वं
इत्युक्तवत्या तव वाचि मात
ददाम्यहम् तण्डुलमेष शुल्कं॥५॥
āstāṁ tāvaddeyam prasūti samaye durvāra śūla vyathā
nairucyaṁ tanu śoṣaṇaṁ malamayī śayyā ca sāṁvasarī
ekasyā'pi na garbhabhārabharaṇakleśasya yasya kṣamo
dātuṁ niṣkṛtimunnatopi tanayaḥ tasyai jananyai namaḥ ||1||
gurukulamupaśṛtya svapnakāle tu dṛṣṭvā
yati samucita veṣaṁ prārudo māṁ tvamuccaiḥ
gurukulamatha sarvā prārudāte samakṣaṁ
sapadi caraṇayoste māturastu praṇāmāḥ||2||
aṁbeti tāteti śiveti tasmin
prasūtikāle yadavoca ucaiḥ
kṛṣṇeti govinda haremukundeti
aho jananyai racitoyamañjaliḥ|3||
na dattaṁ mātaste maraṇasamaye toyamapi yā
svādā yā no deyā manaṇadivase śrāddha vidhinā
na japto mātaste maraṇa samaye tārakamanu
akāle saṁprāpte mayi kuru dayāṁ mātaratulāṁ||4||
muktāmaṇistvaṁ  nayanaṁ mameti
rājeti jīveti ciraṁ stutā tvaṁ
ityuktavatyā tava vāci māta
dadāmyaham taṇḍulameṣa śulkaṁ||5||
 
Maathrupanchakam by Shankara Bhagavatpaada

This is a heartrending sob emanating from the mundane heart of the greatest ever recluse  and propouder of advaita philosophy  which considers everything in the apparent world as myth and unreal.  Sankara has written great treatises and many stotras of Gods are attributed to Him.  But in this quintet  he praised no God, and propounds no philosophy.  Simply a tribute of tears to His mother who left her mortal coils in his absence and he could reach her only to see her dead body. 
This cry would reverberate all  over the Universe.  For the believer or non-believer,  for the theist or atheist, for the the genius or the nitwit, for the rich or the poor, the mother, the biological mother who gave birth to him is the eternal presence of Divinity.  There can never be any compensation or repayment for what our mother has done to us.  There is no pain more intense than what the mother suffers when we eject ourselves out of her body.  Has she ever hated us for giving her such pain?



"My mother, how can one describe the pain you suffered as I was extricating myself out of your uterus..And how can I thank you for sharing my bed for one year after I was born, my function being just to drain you of your blood by sucking your breast dry, and make the surrounding dirty by urine, vomit and other discharges. Feeding me and not finding time for fending for yourself and having lost all appetite, you became weak and emaciated but you never allowed me to suffer.., And now however big and great I am how can I give back anything for such sacrifice without equal?   1

You sent me to the abode of the teacher to get me educated, but the only thing that existed in your thought and spirit was me.  You had nightmares seeing  me in dreams  in the ochre clothes of an ascetic and to reassure yourself that nothing like that has happened you ran to the Gurukula barefooted, wailing all the way, and on seeing me there with my fellow students, you again let out wails of rapture and misery put together and the whole gurukula wept with you.   What can I do for you now other than prostrate on the barren road you traversed for me again and again?  2

You were crying out with unbearable pain, oh my father, oh my mother, of Lord Shiva, as you were giving birth to me.. Now chanting the names of  Krishna, Govinda, Mukunda  and Hari,  I am making my final obeisance to you. 3

I did not have the fortune of  pouring sacred waters on your mouth while your life was departing,  I have nothing to offer as tasty food and other presents on the date of death according to the rules of Sraadhdha,(I am a penniless  mendicant), I was not present to chant the Taraka mantram (Rama Nama) at your ears while your vital energies were departing,  and finally I have come before you after everything is over,  my dear dear mother, have your  infinite  mercy on me. 4

With all the affection that only a mother can have  you addressed me   ever and ever   as your precious gem, your eyes, your prince, your life.  and now on that affectionate mouth I am offering a handful of rice as the price for everything.  5

Those who have lost the mother will feel the incessant ache for ever.  My appeal to those who are lucky to have their mothers is.. Have care for the mother.
Nothing is more precious for a living being than its mother.
--

മാതൃപഞ്ചകം ശങ്കരഭാഗവത് പാദര്‍ രചിച്ചത്
 ആസ്താം താവദിയം പ്രസൂതി സമയേ ദുര്‍വാര ശൂലവ്യഥാ
 നൈരുച്യം തനു ശോഷണം മലമയീ ശയ്യാ ച സാംവത്സരീ
ഏകസ്യാഽപി ന ഗര്‍ഭഭാരഭരണക്ലേശസ്യ യസ്യ ക്ഷമോ
 ദാതും നിഷ്കൃതിമുന്നതോഽപി തനയഃ തസ്യൈ ജനന്യൈ നമഃ॥൧॥

 ഗുരുകുലമുപസൃത്യ സ്വപ്നകാലേ തു ദൃഷ്ട്വാ
 യതി സമുചിതവേഷം പ്രാരുദോ മാം ത്വമുച്ചൈഃ
 ഗുരുകുലമഥ സര്‍വ്വാ പ്രാരുദാതേ സമക്ഷം
 സപദി ചരണയോസ്തേ മാതുരസ്തു പ്രണാമാഃ॥൨॥

അംബേതി താതേതി ശിവേതി തസ്മിന്‍
പ്രസൂതികാലേ യദവോച ഉച്ചൈഃ
കൃഷ്ണേതി ഗോവിന്ദ ഹരേമുകുന്ദേതി
അഹോ ജനന്യൈ രചിതോഽയമഞ്ജലിഃ।൩॥

 ന ദത്തം മാതസ്തേ മരണസമയേ തോയമപി
 യാ സ്വാദു വാനോ ദത്താ മരണദിവസേ ശ്രാദ്ധ വിധിനാ
ന ജപ്തോമാതസ്തേ മരണ സമയേ താരകമനു
 അകാലേ സംപ്രാപ്തേ മയി കുരു ദയാം മാതരതുലാം॥൪॥

മുക്താമണിസ്ത്വം നയനം മമേതി
രാജേതി ജീവേതി ചിരം സ്തുതാ ത്വം
ഇത്യുക്തവത്യാ തവ വാചി മാത
ദദാമ്യഹം തണ്ഡുലമേഷ ശുല്കം॥൫॥

ശങ്കരഭാഗവത് പാദരുടെമാതൃപഞ്ചകം അദ്വൈതത്തിന്‍റെ വക്താവും ഭാരതം കണ്ട ഏറ്ഉറവും ന്നതനായ സര്‍വ്വസംഗപരിത്യാഗിയും യതിവര്യനുമായ ശങ്കര ഭാഗവത്പാദരുടെ മാനുഷികമായ ഹൃദയത്തില്‍ നിന്ന് തന്നെ വിട്ടുപോയ അമ്മയുടെ സ്മരണയില്‍ ഉതിര്‍ന്നുവീഴുന്ന തേങ്ങലുകള്‍ ഈ മാതൃപഞ്ചകത്തില്‍ നമുക്ക് കേള്‍ക്കാം ശങ്കരന്‍ എഴുതാത്ത സ്തോത്രങ്ങള്‍ ഇല്ല..
ശങ്കരന്‍ വ്യാഖ്യാനിക്കാത്ത തത്ത്വശാസ്ത്രം ഒന്നുമില്ല.
പക്ഷെ ഈ അഞ്ചു ശ്ലോകങ്ങളില്‍ അദ്ദേഹം ഒരു ദൈവത്തേയും സ്തുതിക്കുന്നില്ല. ഒരു തത്ത്വശാസ്ത്രവും മുന്നോട്ടു വയ്ക്കുന്നില്ല. സന്ന്യാസിയായ താന്‍ ലോകത്ത് എവിടെയോ അലഞ്ഞുതിരിഞ്ഞു നടക്കുമ്പോള്‍ തനിക്ക് കാത്തുനില്‍ക്കാതെ ജീവന്‍ വെടിഞ്ഞ തന്‍റെ മാതാവിന് വേണ്ടിയുള്ള കണ്ണീരില്‍ കുതിര്‍ന്ന അഞ്ജലി.. അമ്മയുടെ ചേതനയറ്റ ശരീരം കാണുവാന്‍ മാത്രം എത്തിയ ശങ്കരന്‍റെ ഹൃദയഭേദകമായ വാക്കുകള്‍ .
അമ്മ എന്ന പരിപാവനത നിലനില്‍ക്കുന്നിടത്തോളം കാലം ഈ വരികള്‍ ലോകം മുഴുവന്‍ മാറ്റൊലി കൊള്ളും.
 വിശ്വാസിയാനെങ്കിലും അവിശ്വാസി ആണെങ്കിലും, ബുദ്ധിജീവി ആണെങ്കിലും തിരുമണ്ടന്‍ ആണെങ്കിലും, ധനികന്‍ ആണെങ്കിലും യാചകന്‍ ആണെങ്കിലും, ഒരാള്‍ക്ക്‌ തന്നെ പത്തുമാസം ഉദരത്തില്‍ ചുമന്ന് നൊന്തുപെറ്റ അമ്മ ഒരു ഉദാത്തമായ സത്യമാണ്. ആ സത്യം ദൈവികമാണ്. ഒരാള്‍ക്കും ഒരിക്കലും സ്വന്തം അമ്മയുടെ സ്നേഹത്തിനു ത്യാഗത്തിനും പ്രതിഫലമായി എന്തെങ്കിലും തിരിച്ചു നല്‍കുവാന്‍ സാധ്യമല്ല. അവളുടെ ഗര്‍ഭപാത്രം പൊട്ടിച്ചു നാം പുറത്തു ചാടുമ്പോള്‍ അവള്‍ അനുഭവിച്ച വേദന എല്ലാ ഊഹങ്ങള്‍ക്കും ചിന്തകള്‍ക്കും അപ്പുറമാണ്..
ആ വേദന കൊടുത്ത നമ്മെ നമ്മുടെ അമ്മമാര്‍ എപ്പോഴെങ്കിലും വെറുക്കാറണ്ടോ?
 ശങ്കരന്‍ പറയുന്നു
1   എന്‍റെ അമ്മേ, അവിടുത്തെ ഗര്‍ഭപാത്രത്തില്‍നിന്ന് ഞാന്‍ ജനിച്ചു വീഴുമ്പോള്‍ അമ്മ അനുഭവിച്ച വേദനയ്ക്ക് കൈയും കണക്കുമുണ്ടോ? ഞാന്‍ ജനിച്ച ശേഷം ഒരു വര്‍ഷത്തേക്ക് എന്റെ ഒപ്പം കിടന്ന എന്‍റെ ശല്യം എല്ലാം അനുഭവിച്ച അമ്മയോട് ഞാന്‍ എങ്ങനെ നന്ദി പറയാനാണ്? ആ ഒരു വര്‍ഷം മുഴുവന്‍ എന്‍റെ തൊഴില്‍ അമ്മയുടെ മുലയിലൂടെ അവിടുത്തെ രക്തം കുടിച്ചു വറ്റിക്കുക എന്നതായിരുന്നില്ലേ? കിടക്കുന്നിടമെല്ലാം മലവും മൂത്രവും ചര്‍ദ്ദിയും കൊണ്ട് ഞാന്‍ നിറച്ചിരുന്നു. എന്നെ ഊട്ടാനല്ലാതെ മറ്റുള്ള ഒരു കാര്യത്തിനും സമയം കണ്ടെത്താനാവാതെ, സ്വന്തം ആരോഗ്യം ശ്രദ്ധിക്കാതെ, ഭക്ഷണത്തോടുള്ള രുചിയെല്ലാം നശിച്ച് എന്റെ അമ്മ അവശയായി നിന്നു. പക്ഷെ എന്നെ ഒരിക്കലും വിഷമിക്കാണോ കരയാനോ അമ്മ അനുവദിച്ചില്ല.. അതിനുള്ള കാരണം ഒരിക്കലും ഉണ്ടാവാതെ ശ്രദ്ധിച്ചു. ഇന്ന് ഈ മകന്‍ എത്ര ഉന്നതിയില്‍ എത്തിയെങ്കിലും ആ ത്യാഗത്തിനു കുറച്ചെങ്കിലും പ്രതിഫലം തരാന്‍ പറ്റില്ല എന്നാ സത്യത്തിനു മുമ്പില്‍ ഞാന്‍ പകച്ചു നില്‍ക്കുകയാണ്.

2   വിദ്യാഭ്യാസത്തിനായി അമ്മ എന്നെ ഗുരുകുലത്തിലേക്ക് അയച്ചു. പക്ഷെ അമ്മയുടെ ജീവിതത്തിലെ ഓരോ നിമിഷത്തിലും എന്നെക്കുറിച്ചുള്ള ചിന്തകള്‍ മാത്രമായിരുന്നു. എന്റെ അമ്മ സ്വപ്നത്തില്‍ ഞാന്‍ കാഷായവസത്രം അണിഞ്ഞു സന്ന്യാസിയായി നില്‍ക്കുന്നതായി കണ്ടു ആ സ്വപ്നം സത്യമല്ലെന്ന് തീര്‍ച്ചയാക്കുവാന്‍ വേണ്ടി നഗ്നപാദയായി ആര്‍ത്തു കരഞ്ഞുകൊണ്ട്‌ ഗുരുകുലതിലേക്ക് ഓടിക്കിതച്ചു വന്നു. അവിടെ എന്‍റെ സഹപാഠികളുമായി കൂട്ടം കൂടി നില്‍ക്കുന്ന എന്നെ കണ്ടു ആനന്ദവും ദുഃഖവും ഇടകലര്‍ന്നു വാവിട്ടു കരഞ്ഞ എന്‍റെ അമ്മയെക്കണ്ട് ആ മുഴുവന്‍ ഗുരുകുലവും അമ്മയോടൊപ്പം കരഞ്ഞു. ആ അമ്മ അങ്ങിനെ ഒടിവന്ന ആ പാതയില്‍ കിടന്നുരുണ്ടു നമസ്കരിക്കുകയല്ലാതെ ഞാന്‍ എന്ത് ചെയ്യാനാണ് 

3  എനിക്ക് ജന്മം നല്‍കുമ്പോള്‍ എന്‍റെ അമ്മ വേദനകൊണ്ട് പുളയുകയായിരുന്നു. വേദന സഹിക്കാനാവാതെ എന്‍റെ അമ്മെ, എന്‍റെ അച്ഛാ, ശിവ, ശിവ എന്നൊക്കെ ഉറക്കെ വിളിച്ചു കൂവുകയായിരുന്നു. എന്ന് ഞാന്‍ കൃഷ്ണ, ഗോവിന്ദ, മുകുന്ദ, ഹരി എന്നൊക്കെ ജപിച്ചുകൊണ്ട്‌ എന്‍റെ അമ്മക്ക് അന്ത്യാഞ്ജലി അര്‍പ്പിക്കുന്നു

 4   എന്‍റെ അമ്മയുടെ ജീവന്‍ പിരിയുമ്പോള്‍ ആ തൊണ്ട നനയ്ക്കുവാന്‍ ഗംഗാജലം നല്‍കാനുള്ള ഭാഗ്യം എനിക്ക് ഉണ്ടായില്ല . എന്‍റെ അമ്മയുടെ സ്മരണക്കായി സ്വാദുള്ള ഭോജ്യങ്ങള്‍ നല്‍കി ശാദ്ധം ചെയ്യുവാന്‍ എനിക്ക് ശക്തിയില്ല. ( ഞാന്‍ നിസ്സ്വനായ സന്ന്യാസിയാണല്ലോ) അവിടുത്തെ ജീവന്‍ പിരിയുമ്പോള്‍ ആ ചെവിയില്‍ താരകമന്ത്രം (ശ്രീരാമനാമം) ഉരുവിടാന്‍ ഞാന്‍ അവിടുത്തെ അടുക്കല്‍ ഉണ്ടായിരുന്നില്ല. എല്ലാം കഴിഞ്ഞ ശേഷം ജീവന്‍ വെടിഞ്ഞു നിശ്ചേതനയായി കിടക്കുന്ന അമ്മയുടെ മുമ്പില്‍ ഞാന്‍ നിസ്സഹായനായി നില്‍ക്കുന്നു. അമ്മെ എന്നില്‍ കരുണ ഉണ്ടാവണേ

5   ഒരു അമ്മയ്ക്ക് മാത്രം നല്‍കാന്‍ പറ്റുന്ന സ്നേഹത്തോടെ എന്‍റെ അമ്മ എന്നെ എന്‍റെ മോനെ, എന്‍റെ മുത്തേ എന്‍റെ കണ്ണേ, എന്‍റെ രാജകുമാരാ എന്‍റെ ജീവനേ എന്നൊക്കെ എത്ര തവണ വിളിച്ചിട്ടുണ്ട്.. ആ വദനത്തില്‍ ഞാന്‍ ഇപ്പോള്‍ ആ സ്നേഹത്തതിന്നെല്ലാം വിലയെന്നപോലെ ഒരുപിടി അരി വാരിയിടുന്നു.

അമ്മയേക്കാള്‍ ഉയര്‍ന്ന ദൈവികത ഇല്ല അമ്മയുടെ സ്നേഹത്തിനു പകരം വയ്ക്കാന്‍ ഒന്നും ഇല്ല അമ്മയെ സ്നേഹിക്കുക.. വേറെന്തു പറയാന്‍

Thursday, January 05, 2012

Ambi Mama



I have no celebration for  Vaikunta Ekadasi today because my Ambi Mama passed away yesterday.. my own eldest maternal uncle, must be more that ninety.  I am in Trivandrum and  with difficulty to travel I could not go to Coimbatore to see him for the last time.  Must go to see the elderly mami within ten days. 

He was a good man ultimately.. people who can  do no harm to  others apart from just shouting  angrily without any rancour in mind can  be really termed as good. 
He was an employee of Government of Kerala and had lived for more years than his service to draw pension, and now leaves mami to draw family pension also. 
But the greatest quality to be given credit  is that in spite of being a clerk and superintendent in the Public Works Department, where one can get rewarded even for just simply occupying the seat, the man was surprisingly clean..one can say with absolute conviction that he did not take benefits either in cash or kind for favours done.. Indeed a great achievement for a government servant and a PWD employee.
He was childless..This fact has nagged him for about 56 years of married life.. He adopted a nice girl.. but still..
He was blind for the past twenty years or so.  Even earlier  right from childhood he was wearing highly negatively powered glasses for short-sight . a family heirloom for at least fifty percent of our family members. 
But his lack of vision did not impair his capacity to speak out.  Even when he knew that his was an isolated voice, he would shout incessantly if he smelt someone was dirtying the municipal road.  The people in the agraharam gave him the title "Public Road" for this quality. But such public heckling never bothered him.  He could not sleep without calling a spade a spade, however unpleasant his words were. 
I have inherited many of his characteristics, perhaps excepting his stinginess( understandable as he was born in a big poor family of eight siblings)  and short-sight . But being the wrong birds of the same feather, we were not at all friendly with each  another.  When I was a small boy he would shout at me.  But when I grew into a postgraduate and a gazetted officer ( he was never destined to be one)  he would not face me but shout at me to his heart's content ensuring that I was present somewhere in the earshot. 
After migrating to trivandrum,  I have not seen him for the past ten years.. Not even talked to him all these years.  Still I was conscious of his presence as a Jambavan in our family..
He lost his three immediately following siblings one above and two below earlier.  My mother is now the senior-most  (at eighty three or four) in the line.  That realization  adds pace to my heartbeats.
I have no health to run to Coimbatore before the funeral, but my mind feels the  void  created by the vacancy of my own Ambi Mama,  Sekharipuram Vaidyanatha Iyer Vaidyanathan
Take him under your protective Grace, Krishna.

Sunday, January 01, 2012

sandhya vandanam

an old text on sandhyavandhanam is made available in the web by a friend in google books  it is a treasure. circulated.
[PDF] 

The Sandhyavandanam of Rig, Yajus, and Sâma Vedins

xa.yimg.com/kq/groups/.../name/sandhyavandanam00aiyagoog.pdf
।श्रीकृष्णो रक्षतु।
|śrīkṛṣṇo rakṣatu|
Have a nice and happy day
with profound respect and warm regards
K V Ananthanarayanan
blog   http://kanfusion.blogspot.com/
त्यजन्तु बान्धवाः सर्वे निन्दन्तु गुरवो जनाःI
तदापि परमानन्दो गोविन्दो मम जीवनंII
let all my relatives abandon me, let the great people insult me, still I am in supreme bliss since my life  is GOVINDA alone.
Iकृष्णात् परं किमपि तत्वं अहं न जाने"I
लोकाः समस्ताः सुखिनो भवन्तु।
lokāḥ samastāḥ sukhino bhavantu|