saundaryalaharI

[Guest guest]

sa kuMkuma vilepanAmaLika chumbi kastUrikAM

samanda-hasitekshaNAm sa-shara-chApa-pAshAnkushAM

asheshha-janamohinIM aruNamAlya-bhUshhAmbarAM

japAkusuma-bhAsurAM japavidhau smaredambikAM

 

shrutismr^tipurANAmAlayam karuNAlayaM

namAmi bhagavatpAdam shankaraM lokashankaraM

 

shankaraM shankarAchAryaM keshavam bAdarAyaNaM

sUtrabhAshhyakr^tau vande bhagavantau punah punaH

 

 

namaste.

 

I always consider all my actions to be at Shri LalitA's behest,

including taking up this project of writing on saundaryalaharI.

Am I eligible for writing on saundaryalaharI? Can a work like

saundaryalaharI be discussed in a medium like the internet?

It is true that I would certainly learn by taking up this

monumental task. I am sure it would help in the vanquishing

of the ego. May be, after I initiate the project, some learned

person from the group will emerge as a guru and teach us all

vidyopAsana. In any case, I take initiating this project here

is at Shri LalitA's command and I am simply following Her command.

There are many scholars here well-versed in saundaryalaharI and

I would request them to add additional points to the material

that I will be putting here (if this project is continued;

please see below).

 

SaundaryalaharI is the great masterpiece of Shri Shankara. It is

sometime expressed in two parts; AnandalaharI, comprising the

first 41 verses and saundaryalaharI, the second part, comprising

59, 60 or 62 verses depending on the edition we see. In north India,

the two parts are referred to separately. However, it is traditional

in south India to refer the total work as saundaryalaharI.

 

There are stories associated with the source of saundaryalaharI.

One story goes that Shankara bhagavatpAda - who is Ishwara-incarnate -

paid a visit to KailAsa, clad in the robes of a mendicant, and took the

mantra-shAstra placed by the DevI on the throne of Ishwara. While the

AcArya was about to leave KailAsa, Nandikeshwara, who is on duty,

snatched the book from his hands. After grappling with him for a while,

the AcArya succeeded in retaining a portion of the book, which contained

the first forty-one stanzas. The remaining stanzas (59, 60 or 62) were

added by him to complete the work. Another story attributes this stotra

to Lord Shiva Himself as praising the paradevatA - Shri Shankara

bhagavtpAdA brought it to the world for the good of the humanity.

Traditionally, the whole saundaryalaharI is attributed as composed

by Shri Shankara bhagavatpAda. In any case, certainly, there is divine

inspiration in the composition of this masterpiece. It is in exquisite

Sanskrit. All the 103 verses of this classic are set in the ShikhariNi

metre. This hymn is the expression of ShrIchakra rahasya. For

vidyopasakAs, this is a highly respected stotra.

 

There are about 36 commentaries in sanskrit on saundaryalaharI. All these

commentators (except one) consider this to be the work of Shri Shankara

bhagavtpAdA and all these commentators present it as proving advaita

philosophy. In the course of this presentation, the following four

commentaries will be closely followed:

 

1. SaundaryalaharI of ShrI Shankara bhagavatpAda: by Pandit S. Subrahmanya

Sastri and T.R. Srinivasa Ayyangar; Theosophical Publishing House, Adyar,

Madras, 1977

 

2. SaundaryalaharI of Shri Shankara bhagavatpAdAchArya: editor A. Kuppuswami;

Nag Publishers, Delhi, 1991

 

3. Shri Shankara bhagavatpAda viracita SaundaryalaharI (in Telugu); by

BrahmashrI Tummalapalli Ramalingeswararao Sarma; Balasaraswati Book Depo,

Kurnool, 1998

 

4. SaundaryalaharI (in Telugu); by Shri Bommakanti Venkata Subbrahmanya

Sastry; Shri Sitarama Book Depo, Rajahmundry, 1992.

 

Further, in the course of this presentation, it will be shown to be

consistent with the advaita philosophy.

 

 

Appropriateness of discussing saundaryalaharI on the medium of internet:

 

Before I start on verse 1 or before I continue on this project, I would

like to hear the members' views on the appropriateness of putting this

discussion on the internet. As mentioned above, saundaryalaharI is about

ShrIchakrarahasya. This being a secret and very potent mantra, I am not

sure if the upAsana itself can be discussed in a medium like the internet.

I am not knowledgeable about ShrIvidyA upAsana and I would not even venture

into discussing that. I am envisaging that my weekly or fortnightly

(hopefully regular) writings will concentrate on the pratipadArtha and

meaning of the verse, shrutI references to points made, and a brief

commentary where applicable. I would like to hear from the members and

the moderator whether even that is an excess, taking into account the

secretive nature of devI upAsana. In saying the above, I have in

mind the verse lines from ShrILalitAtrishatI:

 

.....

nAvidyAvedino bruyA nabhaktAya kadAcanA

na shaThAya na dushTAya na (a)viswAsAya karhicet

yo brUyA trishatIm nAmnAm tasyAnartho mahAn bhavet

ityAgnA shankarI proktvA tasmAd gopyamidam tvayA

......

 

On the other hand, the following also need to be taken into account.

The devotees of Shri DevI may be roughly divided into two classes:

the samayin-s or those who believe in the sameness of the Shakti and

Shiva, and the Kaula-s or those who worship the KaulinI, i.e. the

Shakti, which resides in the MUlAdhAra.

 

The form of the worship of the samayin-s is exclusively internal.

They believe in the rousing of the KunDalinI, the grossest form

of the Cit and its being worked in successive stages by upAsanA,

tapas and mantrajapa through the six chakrA-s, which are the

centres of energy, on to the thousand-petalled lotus. This is

where the Sat and the Cit abide and where the unification of the

jeevAtman and the paramAtman is to be effected. The foremost

exponent of samayAcAra is Shri Shankara bhagavatpAda.

 

The form of worship of the kaula-s is mainly external. They worship

the KunDalinI, even without rousing her from sleep and are satisfied

with the attainment and enjoyment of purely temporal objects, believing,

at the same time, that with the rousing of the KunDalinI, they attain

liberation.

 

While I am envisaging that my discussion of saundaryalaharI contains

only the meaning of the verses, followed by references to Shruti here

and there, yet, to understand the first forty one verses, ShrI-chakra

description has to be included. I am not sure that I am eligible to

write such description and whether such description can be put on the

internet. I leave it to the learned members to advise me on this matter.

 

 

Regards

Gummuluru Murthy

-------

[Guest guest]

Namaste,

 

I don't know anything about whether is it okay to post this, I will leave

this up to the learned scholars, but I would love to read these posts, if the

membership and moderators approve it.

 

Jai Sri Ma,

Parvati

[Guest guest]

There is no shaastric injunction prohibiting the discussion of

saundaryalaharii.

 

OTOH, both lalitaa sahasranaama and lalitaa trishati is very

clear in the phala shruti that it should be given only to those

who are initiated to shriividya. Which means one who is not

initiated to shriividya can not even chant this. Even though many

thousands (including me) violate this by learning it from printed

books and reading it, the only hope is ambaaL will forgive this,

as we do it out of love for HER.

 

I would request shrI Prof. Murthy to go ahead with his discussion

and use his discretion in deciding what should be held back.

 

I thank him sincerely for this series.

 

With respects,

Ravi

[Guest guest]

>OTOH, both lalitaa sahasranaama and lalitaa trishati is very

>clear in the phala shruti that it should be given only to those

>who are initiated to shriividya. Which means one who is not

>initiated to shriividya can not even chant this. Even though many

>thousands (including me) violate this by learning it from printed

>books and reading it, the only hope is ambaaL will forgive this,

>as we do it out of love for HER.

 

There is, imho, lot of difference between reading it, learning it

and chanting it. For example, upanishads can be learnt by

anyone (including translations) but they can not chanted by

everyone. Both the shaastras and modern saints like Ramana

Maharshi and Shankara math swamigal are clear about this.

Many of the sahasranamas are taken from either the

itihasas or the puranas and there is usually no bar on anyone

reading this. Having said this, it should be noted that several

incidents (including devi gita) say that they should be revealed

only to Bhakta-s.

 

Giridhar