saundaryalaharI - 7

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shri lalitAyai namaH

 

kvanatkA~ncIdAmA karikalabhakumbhastanabharA (natA)

parikshINamadhye pariNatasaraccandravadanA

dhanurbANAn.h pAshaM-sR^iNimapi dadhAnA karatalaiH

purastAdAstAM naH puramathiturAhopuruShikA 7

 

 

kvanat.h kA~ncIdAmA: one who has (is adorned by) a jingling girdle

string

kari kalabha: young elephant

kumbha: temples (mastaka)

stanabharA (natA): weight of the breasts (slightly bent under the

weight of the breasts)

parikshINa madhye: one who is slim (slender) in the waist

pariNata: fully developed

sharat.h candra vadanA: with face like the autumn full moon

dhanur.h bANAn.h pAshaM sR^iNiM api: bow, arrows, noose and

a~Nkusha also

dadhAna: holding

karatalaiH: in the hands

purastAt.h: in front

naH: of us

astAM: let Her manifest, dwell, settle comfortably

puraM mathitu: the one who churned the three cities (shiva)

aho puruShikA: the I-consciousness (the ahaMkArarUpinI of shiva)

 

 

May Thou; with breasts like the temples of a young elephant;

with a slender waist adorned by a jingling girdle-string;

with face blooming like the autumnal full moon;

with four hands holding bow, arrows, noose and the goad;

may Thou, the pride of shiva, manifest, settle comfortably before us.

 

 

Commentary

 

This verse serves as an introduction to the forthcoming verse

'sudhAsiMdhormadhye' and portrays the Divine Mother in Her gross

(sthUla) form in distinction to the subtle (sUkshma) and sublime

(para) forms. In this gross form, physical features such as hands,

feet etc are attributed to the divine form. This facilitates

contemplation by the sAdhaka.

 

The devotees meditate on shrIdevI's form and worship Her mentally

in the various cakrAs inside the human body. At each end of the

spinal cord (merudanDa) that runs from the skull downwards

to the anus, there is a thousand-petalled lotus. The one at the

lower end is called the kula-sahasrAra, and the other at the upper

end, almost at the centre of the brain, is known as the akula-

sahasrAra. Between these two thousand petalled lotuses and along

the spinal cord (merudanDa), there are six lotuses. They are

(1) mUlAdhAra - a four-petalled lotus, a little above the anus,

(2) svAdhiShThAna - a six-petalled lotus at the root of the genital

organ, (3) maNipUraka- a two-petalled lotus at the navel,

(4) anAhata - a twelve-petalled lotus in the heart region,

(5) vishuddhi - a sixteen-petalled lotus in the region of the neck,

and (6) AjnA - a two-petalled lotus between the eye-brows.

 

Satisfied with the devotee's worship, shrIdevI manifests Herself

to the sAdhaka in the maNipUraka cakra. From there in Her upward

move to the akula-sahasrAra (the upper thousand-petalled lotus),

she is conducted through the anAhata cakra. Her manifestation in

the maNipUraka cakra and Her stay in the anAhata cakra are described

in this verse.

 

This form of shrIdevI is the most popular and appealing one to the

devotees of the Divine Mother. There are four modes of worship of

shrIdevI: meditation upon (i) sthUla (gross) form, (ii) sUkshma (subtle)

form, (iii) sUkshmatara (subtler), and (iv) sUkshmatama (subtlest).

LalitAsahasranAma, the thousand names of shrIlalitA describe these four

modes of worship. From lalitAsahasranAma, the forty names of shrIlalitA

from the twelfth name (nijAruNaprabhApUramajjadbrahmAnDa-manDalA) to the

fifty-first name (sarvAbharaNabhUShitA) describe the sthUla form of

shrIdevI. The three names from eighty-five

(srImadvAgbhavakUTaikaswarUpa-mukhapa~NkajA) to eighty-seven

(shaktikUTaikatApannakaTyadhobhAgadhAriNI) describe the subtle form.

Names eighty-eight and eighty-nine (mUlamantrAtmikA and

mUlakUTatrayakaLebarA) describe the subtler form. Names ninety to one

hundred and eleven (from kulAmr^itaikarasikA to bisatantutanIyasI)

describe the sUkshmatama (sublime) form which is the kunDalinIrUpa of

shrIdevI.

 

KvanatkA~ncIdAmA: jingling girdle-string - belt-like gold waist ornament

(called vaDDAnam in Telugu) with small tinkling gold bells attached.

 

pariNata sharat-candra-vadanA: shrIdevI's face is compared to the

autumnal full moon (of the sharad R^itu with the intention of bringing

out the glory, calmness and grace of Her form. The sharad R^itu is the

quietest part of the year in India with fairly uniform temperature throughout.

This period, extending roughly from October to December will have usually

clear skies with the moon shining brightly at night. Autumnal full moons

are special in mid-latitudes also. Here shrIdevI's face is compared to

this autumnal full moon. Also, compare shrIlalitAsahasranAma name

sharaccandranibhAnanA

 

dhanurbANAn pAshaM sR^iNimapi dadhAnA karatalaiH: This line mentions the

weapons in shrIdevI's four hands. She carries in Her lower left arm the

sugarcane bow with a string of bees, in Her lower right arm the five

arrows of Kamala, Raktakairava, KahlAra, IndIvara and SahakAra flowers,

in Her upper left arm the pAsha, noose and in Her upper right arm the

a~Nkusha, goad [souvarNam pashA~Nkushau vAma dakshiNayorthyeyau).

 

The weapons, adorning the four hands of shrIdevI are in their sthUla

(gross) form. These weapons may alse b expressed in the sUkshma (subtle)

and para (sublime) forms also. The subtle form of these weapons is said to

be their mantrAs. The sublime forms are: for the bow the manas; for the

five arrows, the five tanmAtrAs (sound, touch etc); for the pAshA,

the passion; and for a~Nkusha, the anger.

 

BhAvanopanishad says:

 

rAgaH pAshaH; dveSho a~NkushaH; shabdAdi pa~ncatanmAtraH pa~nca puShpabANAH;

mana ikshudhanuH.

 

LalitAsahasranAma says:

 

rAgaswarUpapashADhyA krodhAkArA~NkushojjvalA

manorUpekshukodanDA pa~ncatanmAtrasAyakA

 

purastAdAstAM naH: in front of us; i.e., in our hR^idayakamala, moving

from maNipUraka on to the anAhata of the heart lotus, while we are

meditating on devI.

 

PuramathiturahopuruShikA: The words puramathitu and ahopuruShikA literally

mean the pride of shiva. The basic devI mantrAs (three bIjAs) as a whole

are called tripuram. Shiva is said to have churned the milk of the three

bIjAksharAs with his mind as the churning instrument. As a result arose

the butter of shrIdevI's person (AkAra, swarUpa). Because of this, shiva

is known as tripuramathana. This expression also suggests the inseparable

association of shiva and shakti, as already seen in verse 1. The compound

word ahopuruShikA indicates pride incarnate or I-consciousness of shiva.

 

This verse, giving the sthUla form of shrIdevI provides an excellent focus

for meditation on saguna brahman.

 

[Additional references used for the commentary on this verse:

 

Atma vijnAnamu (Science of the soul) in Telugu by shri swami

Yogeswaranandji Maharaj, shri Sarada Yoga Mandir, Vijayawada

 

Spiritual Science by Swami Vishadananda, Ramakrishna Ashrama, Ottapalam]

 

 

Regards

Gummuluru Murthy

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