saundaryalaharI - 8 (contd. 2)

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shrI lalitAyai namaH

 

commentary (contd.):

 

verse 8 again:

 

sudhAsindhormadhye: stands for the baindavasthAna, the quadrilateral

seat of the bindu, which is the essential one and brings the forty-three

triangles of shrIcakra into its scope, this shrIcakra forming the mansion

of shrIdevI.

 

suraviTapivATI parivR^ite: The five triangles pointing upward may be

said to represent the five rows of kalpa trees forming a fence around

the mansion.

 

shivAkAre ma~nce: The ma~nca or seat on which shrIdevI is seated

is described thus: According to purANAs, brahma, viShNu, rudra and

IshAna are shrIdevI's servants and they assume the form of the four

legs of the cot on which shrIdevI is seated - brahma being the

southeast leg, viShNu the southwest, rudra the northwest and

IshAna the northeast leg. Paramashiva, the nirguna brahman, is the

all-witness transcending the three guNAs.

 

dhanyAH katicana: blessed are the few; few are those rare souls

who through internal (or external) worship of shrIdevI, who through

their affinity to the pa~ncadashAksharI, who through the pure life

they lead during their last incarnate existence in this world, and

these are the few that are really blessed because they have

discharged the duties incumbent upon humans and they are ready

to being merged with satcitAnanda.

 

bhajanti tvAM: worship You, i.e., worship You in shrIcakra.

shrIcakra has also alternate name viyat cakra. viyat is AkAsha

or space. This is samaya form of worship, internally in the

etheral space, dahara, of the heart. Samaya form of worship

requires a very high degree of concentration of the mind and

a strict control over the senses (the entire worship is done

mentally in the heart). In this mental worship, meditation of

shrIdevI in the form of shrIcakra has to be done in the

shapeless AkAsha. [The mode of worship indicated in this verse

is of the form of shrIdevI, as abiding in Her mansion shrIcakra.

She assumes the special form described in the previous verse.]

The meditation is on this form. This meditation is on the union

of shakti and shiva in their inseparable, creationistic aspect.

The essence of this meditation is the union of cit-shakti

with brahman. shiva is samaya and shrIdevI is samayA. samam yAtIti

samayaH. The identity of shiva and shakti is five-fold. They are:

 

adhiShTAna sAmya: similarity in abode

anuShTAna sAmya: oneness in activity, such as creation

avasthA sAmya: equality in state, for e.g. dancing

nAma sAmya: similarity in name

rUpa sAmya: similarity in form, color etc

 

Kameshwara sUri interpreted this verse in a unique (alternate) way

as follows:

 

sudhAsindhoH: - himAcalamArabhya setuparyantaM madhyadeshe - from

the himalayas, the abode of the white glaciers to the

southern ocean

suraviTapivATI: full of pilgrim centres, such as shrIsaila and other

places that are reputed to bestow the heart's desires

of pilgrims (like the kalpa trees)

maNidvIpe: places that are specially fitted for meditation

nIpovanavati: surrounded by kadamba trees

cintAmaNi gR^ihe: temples studded with cintAmaNi gems

shivAkAre ma~nce: - atidhavalatvAtsphaTika ramaNImaya tayA

shivasadR^isomancyata iti ma~nce pujye kailAsa -

as Mount KailAsa which is as white as crystal and thus

resembles shiva in aspect

paramashivaparya~NkanilayAM: blessed as being placed on the lap of

the divine couple, pArvati and parameshwara

cidAnandalaharIM.h : the stotra by name AnandalaharI describing the

pure cit aspect shrIdevI

 

 

Thus, various commentators read in this verse worship of shrIcakra in

diverse ways and this verse is considered as one of the pivotal verses

of this great stotra.

 

 

Regards

Gummuluru Murthy

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