Purusha Sooktam

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vedAhametam puruSHam mahAntam |

AdityavarNam tamasastu pAre|

sarvANi roopANi vicitya dheera: |

nAmAni krtvAbhivadan yadAste ||

 

(yat) That (dheera:) valorous puruSHa (Aste) who is, who has

(vicitya:) materialized (sarvAni) all (roopANi) forms, and (krtya:)

made (sarvAni) all (nAmAni) names, (abhivadan) and maintains all

of these, (etam) that (mahAntam) glorious (AdityavarNam)

sun-brilliant (puruSHam) puruSHa, (astu) who is (pAre)

beyond(tamas) darkness, (aham) I (veda:) Know him.

 

This verse is probably closest to the Sri Sampradaya visualization

of Sriman Narayana, as creator and maintainer of all, ( refer back to

'namo bhagavate tasmai krSHNaya adbhuta karmaNe roopa

nAma vibhedena jagat kreedati yo yata:'), full of kalyANa guNas

such as mahimA, brilliant as the sun, and beyond all darkness.

What is the advantage of knowing this then ? This is explained in

later verses. Also, in sAyaNa's commentary " mantradraSHtA

svakeeyam dhyAnAnubhavam prakatayati". This mantra is how

to visualize him for meditation, and thus to know him. Compare

this to Vishvamitra in the Ramayana " aham vedmi mahAtmAnam

rAmam satya-parAkramam / vasiSHto api mahAtejo ye ceme

tapasi sthitA:" - I know the great souled Rama, of deeds beyond measure,

powerful in truth, more brilliant than Vasishta, who

protected my yagnya well". Or Mandodari's praise of Rama as

Mahavishnu in the same, " tamasa: paramo dhAtA shankacakra

gadhAdara" - O Creator, who bears the Conch, the Disk, and

the Mace as weapons, who is Supreme above all darkness. The

image of the sun here is especially effective, as the tamas

referred to here is the darkness of the soul, ignorance and

inactivity.

 

I Know Him,

Glorious, Valorous,

Who Names, Forms,

And Keeps all this,

Bright as the Sun,

Beyond all Darkness.

 

***

 

dhAtA purastAdhyamudAjahAra |

shakra: pravidvAn pradishashcatasra: |

tamevam vidhvAnamrta iha bhavati |

nAnya: panthA ayanAya vidhyate ||

 

(ayaNaya) To moksha, liberation (na vidhyate) I know not of

(anya:) other (panthA:) paths. (yam) Whom (dhAtA) Bramha

(udAjahAra:) saw as the Supreme Being, and revealed (purastAt)

in the beginning, (yam) whom (shakra:) Indra (pravidvAn) knew

well, (pradishas-ca-tasra) in the four quearters, and everywhere,

(vidvAn) who knows (tam) Him (evam) in this manner (bhavati)

becomes (amrta:) immortal (iha) in this very birth.

 

In the beginnning, Bramha said to the puruSHa, "You are who

was before me.. You are my guide in this", naming him the cause

of himself, and all. Indra learnt of the glory of the parama

puruSHa from vAmadeva, and from the four directions -

Ranganathamuni.

 

The object of almost all vedic rites was to make life, or death, a

little less dangerous ( see, eg., Wendy Doniger-O'Flaherty). The

refrain of the mantras for these rites is 'Who knows this conquers

death'. Even the stories in several bramhaNas involves seers

'seeing and praising with this hymn or metre, and thereby

conquering death'. It is interesting to note that the goal is not life

eternal (chiranjeevitva) but a-mrta, or not-dying. This is a matter of

the soul rather than the body, a difference worth appreciating.

 

The puruSHa is manifested by the chanting of this mantra, to

who chants this, in thheir hearts. This is thebeginning - of the

world, of contemplation of the worlds, of knowledge. In this

knowledge, in knowing this by the heart, by the soul, is the beginning

of liberation. To know of no other way but this reflects

mahAvishvAsa - great faith. This, 'nAnya: panthA vidhyate

ayanAya' refrain is also found in several upanishadas.

 

Who the Creator saw

And revealed, as the Cause

Of whom Indra learnt

In all the quarters

Who knows him thus

Conquers death now.

I know of no other

Ways, than this.

 

***

 

yagnyena yagnya-mayajanta deva: |

tAni dharmANi prathamAnAsann |

te ha nAkam mahimAna: sacante |

yatra poorve sAdhyA: santi devA: ||

 

(yagnyena) By sacrifice (devA:) did the Gods (ayajanta)

sacrifice (yagnyam) to sacrifice. (tAni) The (dharmANi)

associated dharmas (Asan) became (prathamAni) the first.

(te mahimAna:) By the glory of these very dharmas (sacante)

will the great ones achieve (yatra nAkam) that heaven where

(poorve) the ones who were, before, (devA:) and the Gods

also called (sAdhyA:) the achievers, (santi) are.

 

Here then is the importance of the sacrifice. The two words

yAga and tyAga are both related, and may be translated as the

one word, sacrifice, giving us a clue to the nature of the rite. The

world is established by sacrifice - the puruSHa giving his all,

which is his self, his body, to form this world, the lives on it,

giving them name and form. Why did this happen ? The

nAsadiya sookta relates, when neither being nor non-being was

(na sat Aseet, na asat Aseet), the One breathed, without air. But

then, "kAmastadagre samavartatAti" - desire first moved it.

desire to be. And in its being, the world is. This One, we call

puruSHa, Sriman Narayana, God. And this is sat - Existence,

along with Knowledge and Bliss, part of the nature of the

divine. So the next time someone tells you St. Augustine was

the first to define God as the verb "to be", you can refute them

with this.. =).

 

All that is, is born of this love, this desire. And all was given

(sarvahut) to bring this about. This is the nature of this being.

 

This is the sacrifice, whose results were the beginning of all.

This is why the verse says "tAni dharmAni prathamAni Asan" -

these dharmas became the first. They are the fruits of the

sacrifice, that provide us the means to our own liberation,

our very own stairway to heaven.

 

By Sacrifice did the Gods

Sacrifice to Sacrifice

By the fruits of this,

The first harvest,

Do the great ones

Ascend to where the Gods

The first ones,

Those who made straight the way

Are.

[Guest guest]

It is generally accepted that the term "atyatishtat dasha angulam"

in dicates that "PUrusha stands beyond infinity or ananta"

 

there is a peculiar yogic reasoning and explanation of the "dasha angulam"

or in english it is "10 length units".

 

This universe is explained to be contained in a 10fold sheath as explained

in vishnu puraana - I will not quote the verses of vishnu purana here

 

the sheaths are:

 

1. bhu - the place where all beings are stationed - say it is the land

(predominantly)

2. aapa- the water that surrounds the earth (which is roughly 10 times land

area)

3. vanhi- the expanse of energy - heat or heat required for beings to stay -

roughly 10 times amount of water

4. the expanse of atmosphere (vayu) - 10 times previous

5. akasha - space --- which surrounds atmosphere

6. ahankara - ie. a philophic concept "ego" not same as the english term

supposed to be the original matter from which the pscho physical universe is

born - for example mind comes from - saatvi ahankara. ahankara is of 3

types - saatvi, raajasic, and taamasic.

7. mahat - that surrounds ahankara - (mahat is supposed to be the space and

content that allows - buddhi or intellect to pervade) - (complicated concept-

needs pages to go into details)

8. avyakta - the un manifest principle - moola prakriti - or cause state of

universe.

9. Akshara - the soul principle (the imperishable)

10. Tamas - darkness - (a state realizable through yoga) - a veil type of

principle which hides Purusha or (God) from perception by souls (Akshara)

"ie. our jnana cannot perceive God - with difficulty we can perceive ourselves

ie. soul but God is hidden due to a tamas principle"

11 - the eleventh principle is "Purusha"

 

This is supported by other upanishads:

 

subalopanishad - I will quote only the last few sentences :

 

avyaktam akshare leeyate, aksharaha tamasi leeyate, tamaha pare deve

ekee bhavati - ( quoting from memory - may have mistakes)

 

"rough meaning -In yogic realization, Avyakta leads to akshara, akshara leads

to tamas and tamas

becomes one with the Lord - deva (purusha)"

 

The issue I want to bring to notice is that these 10 principles may not be

tightly bound to physical correlates, but they have great significance to

the "Yogic perception". The Gayathri mantra details and Ashtanga yoga goes

into further details. I have just given a rough idea here, since I havent

spent time reviewing the verifying the information with other texts.

 

 

One is reminded of the sloka in 15th chapter Bhagawadgita,

dvaavimou purushou loke kshara akshara eva cha

ksharaha sarvaani bhutani kootastho akshara uchyate

uttamaha purusha stu anyaha - param aatmeti udaahritaha

 

Yasmaat ksharam ateetoham aksharaatapi uttamaha

atosmi loke vede cha prathithaha purushottamaha

 

Yo maam evam asammoodaha janati purushottamam

sa sarva vid bhajati maam sarva bhaavena bharatha

 

Lord Krishna says :

""

meaning - "there are two principles said hitherto - Kshara (perishable matter)

(these are 8 fold), akshara (imperishable - soul), the Uttama purusha is

different from these principles - this principle is "ParamatmaIshwara" or

God. since I (Lord Krishna) is beyond the kshara (matter) and akshara (souls)

I am known in the world and in the Vedas as "purushottama". One who knows

me as said here, without any doubt or delusion is a knower of all, and he

obviously, will pray to me with utmost devotion knowing that I am everything

to him, ""

 

The 8 principles of kshara or prakriti is well enumerated in 7th chapter as

bhoomi (earth) aaapa (water) anala (fire or energy) vaayu (air) kham (space)

manas (mind) buddhi ( intellect - also called mahat sometimes), Ahankara

(root material principle)

 

There may be some differences in these principles (ie. in actual enumeration)

but they are insignificant and not important.

 

 

***************************

 

I owe these meanings to my Gurus - Sampath Iyengar (My grandfather)

and Dr. N.S. Anantha rangachar ( who incidentally has written a very

informative but small book on "purusha sookta", in addition to about 40

books on vedanta)

 

Asmad gurubhyo namaha

 

Krishna