Sarasvathi: Part 3( Conclusion )

[Guest guest]

Dear BhakthAs :

 

We will continue with the Vedic origin of

Sarasvathi . All the four VedAs invoke Her as

the uniterrupted flow of divine Knowledge .

 

As mentioned earlier , this divine speech is

classified as a triad , ILA or IDA , Sarasvathi and

MahI or BhArathI . All these three Goddesses

occupy their specific places in the Barhi ( Place of

scared Yaj~nA ), which is also performed incessantly

inside our heart , where the Lord ( Sri HayagrIvan )

resides and presides .

 

Of the three Speech Goddesses , Sarasvathi is the most

fascinating from the Vedic Perspective . She is vigour ,

the cutting edge of the Vigorous ( Kavi ThArkika Simhams ):

 

pra NO dEvI Sarasvathi vAJEbhir VaajinivathI

-- Rg Vedam VI.61.4

 

She is the motivator/inspirer of everything that

is noble/auspicious and sacred ( pavithram )

and She kindles all of our mental faculties:

 

chOdayathrI sUnruthAnAm chEthanthI sumathInAm

-- Rg Vedam : I.3.11

 

She generates the waves in the Ocean of Cosmic mind

or the mahath TatvA :

 

mahO arNa: SarsvathI pra chEthayathi

kEthunA dhiyO visvA virAjathi --Rg Vedam: 1.3.12 & VI.61.8

 

For all these reasons , She is invoked by everyone

for Her blessings :

 

SarasvathIm dEvayanthO havanthE

SarasvathIm adhvarE taayamAnE

SarasvathI sukruthO ahavyantha

SarasvathI dhAsEshu vaarya dhAth

-- Rig Vedam X.17.7

 

(meaning ) : The true seekers of divine Knowledge

invoke the Goddess of Speech ; They worship Her

at the sacred altar. The virtuous people pray to

the Goddess of Speech . May the Divine Goddess of

Speech bestow Her blessings upon the dedicated devotees .

 

SarasvathIm yAmm pitharO havanthE

DakshiNA yaj~namabhinakshamANA :

--Rg Vedam : X.17.9

 

(Meaning ) : May this divine Goddess of Speech , whom our

illustrious forefathers have been invoking , come right

forward to our solemn service .

 

This divine knowledge ( revealed knowledge) thru

SarasvathI is meant for ALL , irrespective of caste ,

creed ,race or color :

 

yathE maam vaacham KALYAANEEM aavadhAni JanEbhya:

Brahma RaajAnyAmyAgum SUdrAya chayyArya cha

svayA chAraNAya --Yajur Vedam : XXVI.2

 

(Meaning ) : That I (Sri HayagrIvan ) to ALL

the people (My creation ) , address this

invocatory speech , to the Priest ( BraahmaNA ) ,

the King ( KshathriyA ) , SudrA , AaryA , VaisyA , to

one of our kin and to the stranger .

 

This is what Sri Mani VaradarAjan was referring to

about the scope of Bhakthi list and its membership .

Universal friendliness is implied here by the VedAs

thru its creator's words.

 

Sage Aurobindo of Pondichery , who has translated

the VedAs at a non-literal level concludes that

Sarasvathi is the word, the inspiration that comes

from Ritham ( the truth-consciousness) . Ritham is always

connected to Sathyam ( sathyam Jn~Anam anantham BrahmA ) .

In this context , Sage Aurobindo equates the triad

of Satyam -Ritham-Bruhath to the three speech goddess

triad , ILA-Sarasvathi-Mahi( Bruhath) .

 

According to Aurobindo , Sarasvathi represents

the inspired word ( Sruthi) , ILA represents the dhrushti

or inspired truth-Vision and Bharathi( Mahi-Bruhath) is

the larger Truth-Consciousness of that word and vision .

Altogether, the three Speech Goddesses can be connected to

another sacred Triad , Sath-Chidh-Aanantham ( SacchidhAnantham ),

which stands for divine existence , divine consciousness

and divine bliss .

 

Sage Aurobindo goes on to combine the three divine

principles of SacchidAnantham ( Sath+Chidh+Aanantham )

to three human realiites , (viz) , Mind (manas) , Life ( PrANA )

and body (SarIrA ) . So far we have got Six connected

as a result of uniting mind et al at the INDIVIDUAL

LEVEL TO Divine consciousness et al the SacchidhAnantham level .

They still do not hold together . A glue to hold them is

missing . That glue is the Ritham Brihath or MahArNavam

principle , which is the cosmic intelligence of the Vedic

Texts standing as the code for Sarasvathi .The proof for

this has been provided by two verses from Rg Vedam's

First canto ( I.3.11-12 ) :

 

Manthram (Rk) 1 :

 

chOdhayathrI sUnruthAnAm chEthanthi sumathInAm

Yaj~Nam dhadhE SARASVATHI (Rg vedam :I.3.11)

 

(Meaning ) : Sarasvathi, Oh Divine Speech ! You

provide inspiration for those , who delight in

truth. You instruct the diligent . Please

bless us in our efforts to perform the Yaj~nam .

The Yaj~nam here refers to the noblest act performed

without attachment ( nishkAma Karmam )and expectation

of fruits .This Yaj~nam is in the spirit of the defenition

of Sathpatha BrAhmaNam : Yaj~nO vai MahimA ( SB: VI.2.3.18) .

 

The next manthram ( Rg Vedam I.3.12 ) salutes what

Sarasvathi does thru Her blessings , when prayed to :

 

mahO arNa; Sarasvathi prachEtayathi kEthunA

dhiyO visvA virAjathi

 

(Meaning ) : Sarasvathi in Her role as the divine-speech

"sets in motion all the energies of the soul and intellect ".

She enlightens the wisdom of all devotees , who are

saadhakAs ( seekers of Truth ) .

 

SELECTED SALUTATIONS TO SARASVATHI FROM THE OTHER VEDAAS

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

 

There are many salutations to Sarasvathi as the divine

speech in Vedams other than Rg Vedam , which we have

quoted mostly so far .

 

1.Saama Vedam : UttarArchika Saaman :XIV .1

 

tisrO vaacha udhIrathE gAvO mimanthi dhEnava:

HarirEthi kanikradhath

 

( Meaning ) : The three divine speeches ( ILA ,

Sarasvathi and Bhaarathi) urge us as the inviting

milch-kline bending their udders for their calves.......

 

2. Yajur Vedam : Canto-XXVIII.8

 

hOthA ----hOtharyaja

 

(Meaning ) : Here , the hOthA is asked to pay his

homage to the three venerable speeches , ILA ,

Sarasvathi and Bhaarathi, and cultivate them for

gaining the boons of divine knowledge .

 

3.Yajur Vedam : XXIX.8

 

Here , the link is made between the three divine speeches

(Vaaks ) and their correlates . The prayer to ILA , Sarasvathi

and Bhaarathi as divine speeches is to place the aarAdhakan

among the Immortals ( nithya SUris ) . The correlations

are as follows :

 

BhArathI --the speech of AadithyAs full of Information & vigor

Sarasvathi- The Speech of RudrAs full of Divine knowledge

ILA--The speech of the Vasus full of Vedic eulogies.

 

There are 8 Vasus , Eleven RudrAs and twelve AadithyAs

according to SaasthrAs .

 

ATHARVA VEDAM : XVIII: HYMN IV-47 (4479TH MANTHRAM )

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

 

Sarasvathi yaa saratham yayAthOkthai:

svadhAbhirdEvi pithrubhirmadhanthee

sahasrArgameedE athra bhAgam

raayaspOsham yajamAnAya dEhi

 

(Meaning ) : Oh Sacred Sarasvathi ( Vedic Speech )!

Thou respondeth warmly to those who eulogize You .

Please bless these YajamAnAs , " the self-sustaining

elders " of this world engaged in saluting You

with thousand-fold wealth and nourishing annam

and other riches in the form of mani-fold streams

of Knowledge .

 

THE MANY NAMES OF SARASVATHI

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

 

Bharathi --Eloquence

MahA VidyA -Transcendent Knowledge

Maha VaaNi- Transcendent Word

AaryA--The Noble and revered One

Braahmi-- The power behind the immense One

Kaama DhEnu- The wish granting Cow

Bija Garbhaa-- Womb of the elements of divine speech

 

KarapAtri's Sri Bhagavathi Tattvam and Harsha

CharithA give a beautiful decription of

Sarasvathi Devi as a beautiful Goddess clad

in white and sitting on a white lotus with

a VeeNA , Pusthakam , Japa MaalA and ankusam

and occasionally with a conch and a bow et al

( VishNU Chinnams in general and that Of

Sri HayagrIvA in particular) .

 

Her AarAdhanam

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

On the Sarasvathi PoojA day , books , Sri Sookthis

and musical instruments are dusted , placed on an

altar and She is invoked and saluted as the embodiment

of Vedic speech and Divine Knowledge by many .

 

The paramikAnthins follow the direction of Swami

Desikan and recognize Her as having the power of

Divine Speech due to the anugraham of Sri HayagrIva

BhagavAn . They perform a special AarAdhanam for

BhagavAn HayagrIvA ( VaajI vakthrA VaasydEvasya

Moorthy: )that day .Their reasoning is that Sarasvathi ,

DakshINA Moorthy and Sages VyaasA , ParAsarA and

VaalmIki shine as great ones due to a small speck

of the power of Sri HayagrIvan .

 

Sri HayagrIva BhagavAn has been saluted

by Swami Desikan as possessing Manthra Mayam SarIram

( HayagrIva Manthra SvarUpi) .This VaagIsvaran

creates the names and forms of the prapancham

from moola Prakruthi .BhagavAn's right hand carries

the Jn~Ana Mudhrai; the left hand holds the Japa Maalai.

Sarasvathi dEvi carries the Japa maalai and pusthakam

like Her anugraha dhAthA , Bhagavaan HayagrIvan .

The eulogy of BhagavAn as shown by Swami Desikan

connects the power of Vaak or divine speech :

 

tvAm chinthayan tvanmayathAm prapanna:

tvaam udhgruNan SABDHAMAYENA DHAAMNAA

 

Sabdha MayEna DhAmnA gets us into the enjoyment

of the unfolding of a multimedia image that

is the effulgence(light ) in the form of manthrAm

( sound-Sabdha Mayam )of the BhagavAn , who is

the VaagIsvaran .

 

I will conclude this posting with a salutation

for Sri HayagrIvan thru the DhyAna SlOkam for

him composed endearingly by Swami Desikan :

 

vyaakhyA mudhrAm kara sarasijai:

pusthakma sankha chakram

bibrath bhinna spatika ruchirE

pundarIkE nishaNNa:

amlAna SrI: amrutha visadhai: amsubhi:

plAvayan maam

aavirbhUyaath anaga mahimA

maanasE VaagadhIsa :

 

( Meaning ) : Lord HayagrIvA has Sudarsanam

and Paanchajanyam in two of His uplifted hands ;

In the two other hands closer to us , he holds

a Book and Jn~Ana MudhrA . He is seated on a

beautiful White Lotus and makes us wonder , whether

He is a piece of white crystal (Spatikam ).

His effulgence never diminishes . There is

no limit to the auspicious glories of this Lord ,

who is free of any blemish, whatsoever.

He is the first Lord of Divine knowledge .

May the cool nectar like nourishing white rays

of the Lord fall on me and cool me and May

He reside in my heart cavity always .

 

Sri HayagrIva Para BrahmaNE Nama:

Oppiliappan Koil Varadachari Sadagopan