saundaryalaharI - 4

[Guest guest]

shrI lalitAyai namah

 

tvadanyah pANibhAyamabhayavarado daivatagaNa

stvamekA naivAsi prakaTitavarAbhItyabhinayA

bhayAttrAtuM dAtum phalamapi ca vAnchAsamadhikaM

sharaNye lokAnAM tava hi caraNAveva nipuNau 4

 

lokAnAM : for all the worlds

sharaNye: who provides shelter (o bhagavatI)

tvat + anyah: other than You

daivatagaNah: the group of Gods

pANibhyAM: by the (two) hands

abhayavaradah: holding mudrAs of abhaya (dispelling fear) and

varada ( bestowing boons)

tvam ekA: only You

prakaTita + vara + abhIti: display of mudrAs of bestowing boons and

displelling fear

abhinayA: gesture

na + eva + asi: You do not do that ( the reason for that is)

bhayAt: from fear

trAtuM: to protect

vAnchA samadhikaM: more than what is asked (desired)

phalaM api ca: even boons

dAtum ca: to give

tava: Your

caraNau eva: feet even

nipuNau: proficient

hi: indeed

 

 

O Goddess: You are the refuge of all the worlds; the assemblage of

Gods, except You, dispel fear and bestow boons by gestures of their

hands (by holding vara and abhaya mudrAs). You alone do not display

the boon-bestowing and fear-dispelling gestures with Your hands. The

reason for this is obvious. Your feet, by themselves, are proficient

to protect those in the grip of fear and bestow boons more than what

is desired for the devotees.

 

 

Commentary:

 

The word 'abhaya' means freedom from fear. vara means granting of

desires. In general, we see the postures of hands of deities in

icons, statues etc. The right hand of deities usually has the

abhaya mudrA with fingers pointing upward and the left hand has

the vara mudrA, with fingers pointing downwards (indicating granting

of boons). In the case of deities with more than two hands, one of

the hands on the right usually has abhaya mudrA, and one of the hands

on the left has the vara mudrA. But these poses of hands are not found

in shrI devI's icons, statues or pictures. shrI devI has in her four

hands the sugarcane bow, pAsha, a~Nkusha, and arrows. She does not

need to keep Her hands in the vara and abhaya postures. Her feet are

proficient in affording immunity from fear and bestowing boons

transcending one's desires.

 

abhaya also may be interpreted as freedom from fear of the cycle of

births and deaths. The word vara may be interpreted as satisfaction

of all desires. This verse means then that worship of shrI devI's

feet will grant the four-fold puruShArthAs, dharma, artha, kAma,

moksha.

 

ekA: only one; shrI devI is the only one (emphasis on one) God who

does not have the hand gestures (of abhaya and vara).

 

sharaNye: sharaNArhe: one who deserves to be protected

 

bhayAt trAtuM: saMsArAt rakshituM: to protect from saMsAra

 

vAnchA samadhikaM phalam dAtum api ca: to give results for more than

what is desired

 

tava: Your

 

caraNau: feet are capable of satisfying more than the requested

desires, and to dispel fears; then there is no necessity for Your

hands to gesture the vara and abhaya mudrAs

 

The one who is the refuge for all the worlds is well beyond all

ordinary Gods. If She is just an ordinary God, She cannot be the

refuge for all the worlds.

 

In that way, this verse is a continuation of verses 2 and 3 where

the greatness of shrI devI's feet are described.

 

shrI Kuppuswamy's commentary on saundaryalaharI says that in the

Tanjavur district of Tamila Nadu, India, there is a sacred place

called Avadayarkoil, famous for its ancient temple built by the

great MANikkavAcakar. The moolavirAT of the temple is devI yogAmbikA

symbolized by only two feet, carved in stone, placed on a pedestal

and worshipped as devI. It seems the inner meaning of verse 4 of

saundaryalaharI is fully exemplified by the symbolic form of devI

here. I wonder if any on our List, who are residents of that part

of India, can expand on this temple and the moolavirAt and if there

is a kshetrapurANa for this place.

 

[Note: I find the translations that are given at

http://www.vidyavrikshah.org for this stotra to be useful. Please

add that URL as an additional reference to this presentation.]

 

 

Regards

Gummuluru Murthy

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