Purusha Sooktham - A translation attempt.

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Statutory warning :

 

I planned this series initiall for alt.religion.vasinava, so a lot

of this may be old hat to people on our mailing list. However, this is

more for *me* recieveing your comments, and criticisms, which will be greatly

appreciated. Caveat lector =)

 

That said...

 

 

*****

 

 

Invocation to the Acharyas :

----------------------------

 

lakshmeenAtha samArambhAm nAthAyamuna madhyamAm |

asmadAcArya paryantAm vande guruparamparAm ||

 

That wondrous lineage of preceptors, that starts with Sriman

Narayana, and came through Nathamuni down to my own

Acharya, I salute that.

 

Invocation to Vishvaksena (sEnai mudaliAr)

---------

 

yasyadvirata vaktrAdhyA pArishadyA parashcatam |

vighnam nighnanti satatam viSHvaksenam tamAshraye ||

 

An Introduction to the Purusha Sooktham.

------

 

* Where is the Purusha Sooktham in the 'Shruthi's ?

 

Hindu religious sources are classified as 'Shruthi's or

'Smrithi's. Shruthi - that which is heard, is of the nature

of divine revelation. We believe that the Vedas, hymns

composed by seers and sages beginning, as best as we

date them in 3000 BC, were sung under divine inspiration

This is why they are 'Shruthi's. These sages "heard" them

as the voice of the Divine.

 

Only two bodies of hymns are recognized as divinely

composed. One being the Vedas, and the other, the

Tiruvaaymozhi of Kaari Maaran Sadagopan, or

Sri Nammaazhvaar, which are recognized

as equivalent to the 4 Vedas in the Ubhaya Vedanta

school, Srivashnava Tradition. The six compositions

of Kaliyan Neelan, or Sri Thirumangai Aazhvaar, are

recognized as the 6 vedangas.

 

Smrithi is that which is remembered, and includes

a large part of the commentary of the Vedas, different

Puranas, epics, and other sources.

 

The Purusha Sooktham (PS) is one of the Pancha

Sookthams of the Srivaishnava Sampradaya, or tradition.

The other four are the Narayana Sooktham, Sri Sooktham,

Bhu Sooktham, and the Nila Sooktham.

 

The PS is seen earliest in the Rg Veda,

as the 90th Sooktham of its 10th mandalam, with 16

mantrams. Later, it is seen in the Vajasaneyi Samhitam

of the Shukla Yajur Vedam, the Taittriya Aranyakam of

the Krishna Yajur Vedam, the Sama Vedam, and the

Atharvana Vedam, with some modifications and

redactions.

 

In South India, the PS, Vishnu Sooktham,

Sri Sooktham, and Narayana Sooktham are generally

chanted together in paarayanam.

 

The Sri Rudram, PS, Upanishads,

the Gita, and the Vishnu Sahasra Naamam are also

recommended for daily paarayanam - chanting.

 

Since the PS is seen in all Vedas,

it is cited as the essence of all Shruthis, by Veda

Vyasa in the Mahabharatha. Shaunaka, Apasthamba,

and Bodhayana have also written concerning the

use of the PS.

 

* What does the Purusha Sooktham talk about ?

 

The Purusha in the title of the P.S. refers to the

Parama Purusha, Purushottama, Narayana, in

his form as the Viraat Purusha. He was the source

of all creation. It describes this form of his, as

having countless heads, eyes, legs, manifested

everywhere, and beyond the scope of any limited

method of comprehension. All creation is but a

fourth part of him. The rest is unmanifested.

 

Purusha as Brahma remained inactive, and

Aniruddha Narayana, one of the four aspects

of Narayana in the first tier at the base of the

Vishaaka Yoopa, asked him " Why do you

do nothing ? Because of not knowing",

Brahma replied. " Perform a yagnya. Your

senses, the Devas, shall be the ritviks. Your

body shall be the havis. Your heart, the altar.

And I shall be he who enjoys the havis-

offering. From your body sacrificed, shall you

create bodies for all living creatures, as you have

done in kalpas before this". - Thus says the sAkalya brAmhaNA.

 

This yagnya was called "Sarvahut" - the offering

of all. The act of creation itself grew out of Yagnya,

the rite of sacrifice. Who was worshipped at this

sacrifice ? It was the Purusha. Who performed it ?

Brahma, the creative aspect of the Purusha. Who

were the Ritvik priests ? The devas, who are the

Purusha's senses. Who was tied as the beast of the

sacrifice ? Brahma, again. What was barhis, the altar

of the sacrifice ? All of nature.. Who was the fire ?

The Purusha's heart. What was sacrificed ? Again, the

Purusha himself, his great body that contained all of

creation.

 

In a way, this is a message of love, that the Purusha

would consume himself in the fire of creation, to

create all the worlds. From this sacrifice did all

of creation emanate. This is central to the message

of the PS.

 

"vedAhametam purusham mahAntham

Aditya varNam tamasas parastAt

tam evam vidhvaan amrta iha BHavati

na anya: panthA vidhyate ayanaaya"

 

This great Purusha, brilliant as the sun, who

is beyond all darkness, I know him in my

heart. Who knows the Purusha thus,

attains immortality in this very birth. I

know of no other way to salvation.

 

* What about this translation attempt ?

 

The redaction I have attempted to translate is based to a

large part on thiestic tradition and approach, rather

than a critical approach. This is because this is the way

this wonderful cosmogenical song speaks to me. My

sources for the translation are to put it mildly, a

hodgepodge. I have little skill in Sanskrit myself, and

have had to borrow heavily from these sources :

 

- Purushasuktha Bhashya of Ranganaathamuni.

 

Ranganaathamuni is also known as Periya Jeeyar

in the Srivaishnava Sampradaya.

 

- Hymns from the Rig veda, by Jean Le Mee

New York, 1975

 

- Hymns from the Vedas, by Avinash Chandra

Bose. Bombay, 1966

 

- "Anna" ' s translation into Tamil of the

Purusha Sooktham. Madras, 1986.

 

- Rg bhAshya samgraha - Chanana, ed., Orient

Punlishing House, Delhi, 1965.

 

* How about transliteration

 

a, A, i, ee, u, oo, e, ai, o, ou, -m, :

 

- for the vowel sounds

 

k, kh, g, gh, G

p, ph, b, bh, m

t, th, d, dh, n - the soft dental t-s

T, TH, D, DH, N - the aspirates, or palatal t-s

c, ch, j, jh, ny

 

y, r, l, v,

s, sh, SH, h,

ksh, tr, gny

and R (RSHi) and L (neeLa etc.)

 

- for the consonants

 

Hopefully, that works. And now,

on with the show !

 

 

The 'lineage' of the Purusha Suktham

---

 

Each hymn or mantra is identified with three factors as its

'lineage', or 'qualification'. This is called the "RSHi -

chandas - devatA. The RSHi, is the seer who "saw" the

hymn, or chant, and praised with it. He inspires the mind

with the mantra. And so, in the RSHi's honor, the forehead

is touched iwth the fingers of the right hand while

mentioning this in the samkalpa - the statement of intent

to chant the mantra.

 

chandas is the metre, the rhythm of the chant, associated

with vAk, the power of speech. chandas is the means by

which the hymn flows, and 'walks'. To honor the chandas,

and vAk, that resides in the tongue, we touch the mouth,

or lips, in samkalpa.

 

devatA is the diety the chant is addressed to, whose

praises are sung in it. devatA should be manifested

(avAhaneeyam) in the heart, should reside there to

illumine the singer. To honor the devata, we touch the

chest in samkalpa.

 

asya sri puruSHa sookta mahA mantrasya

sriman nArAyaNo RSHI:

antya triSHtup shiSHta anuSHtubhah: chanda:

avyakta mahatAdi lakshaNo ya: puruSHa: sa devatA

 

"For this great hymn, the Song of Purusha,

Narayana himself was the seer who saw it..

triSHtup and anuSHtubh among its metres,

And the puruSHa who alone adorned the unmanifest universe, its Diety"

 

Having said this, we invoke peace. shAnti, peace, is

a universal goal. When it is combined with the praNava,

Om, it is a prayer for peace for all creation.

 

Here then is the shAnti pATHa, the invocation to

peace, of the PS.. A wonderful prayer for all time,

and all people.

 

 

The Invocation to Peace in the puruSHa sooktam.

-------------

 

shree:

 

shree puruSHa sooktam

 

shAnti pATHa:

 

tacchamyo-rAvrNeemahe | gAtum yagnyAya |

gAtum yagnyapataye | daivee: svastirastu na: |

svasti mAnushebhya: | oordhvam jigAtu bheSHajam |

sham no astu dvipade | sham chatushpade |

om shAnti: shAnti: shAnti: ||

 

(AvrNeemahe) We seek (tat) that which (chamyo) gives

us peace from sorrows, present and future. We seek

(gAtum) growth (yagnyAya) for the rite of sacrifice

and (gAtum) growth for (yagnyapataye) patron of the

rite, the yajamAna. (daivee: svasti) The grace of the Gods

(astu) be (na:) unto us. (svasti) Well being (mAnushebhya:)

to all mankind. (bheshajam) May plants, like medicinal herbs

(jigAtu) flourish and grow (oordhvam) upwards. (sham)

Good (na: astu ) come unto us from (dvipade) creatures that

go on two feet (sham) and good from (chatuSHpade) those

that go on four feet. (shAnti:) Peace.

 

This prayer for peace is quite large in its scope, including

all of creation, humans, plants, and animals, like this

prayer. It is very human-centered. It asks that sham, good,

also meaning mangaLam, be unto humans with all

living creatures, animals and plants.. Literally, may flora

and fauna be well disposed towards us. Also the Gods. But

for plants and animals to be well disposed twards us, they

must flourish.. this is what this prayer asks for. Vedic life

was centered around the rite of sacrifice, at least for the seers

who composed hymns like this. The greatness of sacrifices

is sung all through the vedas and the brAhmaNas. The

very Gods derive their strengths, to grant boons, from the

mantras of praise uttered at sacrifices.. viz. varam deva

balam, devam mantra balam, mantram brAmhaNa balam.

The food of the gods is havis, the offering at these rites,

and Agni, the divine fire, speeds between heaven and earth

carrying havis to the gods. In return, the Gods granted

boons, power, and blessed foods such as prShadAjyam,

(yogurt mixed with clarified butter), madhuparkam

(honeyed milk) and the soma juice. This is why the seers

ask that sacrifices flourish, and may the yajamAnas

prosper.

 

"Free translation" - I have tried to make this reflect,

in English, the flow of the mantra.

 

Sorrows that are, and sorrows to be

We seek that which grants us

Peace from these

May the rite flourish,

And those who keep it..

The grace of the Gods

Be with all mankind..

May the earth be covered

With growing green

And good come to us

>From all creation

>From beings that go

On two feet and four..

May the three-fold peace

Embrace the Land..

 

 

- Sundar