Digest of Paramacharya's Discourses on Soundaryalahari (DPDS-37)

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V. Krishnamurthy

A Digest of Paramacharya’s Discourses on Soundaryalahari -

37

(Digest of pp. 950-958 of Deivathin Kural, 6th volume, 4th

imprn.)

 

In the sahasra-nAma ( (poem of )one thousand names) of

Lalita there is a long series of names which describe the

divine form from head to foot. Naturally the hands have a

due place there. But the hands and the weapons held in

them are talked about even before the head-to-foot

description starts. The weapons are not said to be just

held, but they are built into an esoteric description. The

weapons pAsham, ankusham, bow and arrow are each given a

philosophical meaning. The ‘pAsham’ (noose) is called

‘rAgam’ (desire) there.

 

‘rAga-svarUpa-pAshADhyA’: Desire is the noose which binds.

So She has the noose of Desire in Her hands. But the

desire is not the wrong desire, it is the desire that

binds one to ambaal. At that point there shoud be no hate

or dvesham. That is why there is an ankusham (spear). And

then there are the bow and arrow to help us bind our mind

and senses to the Ultimate. Only after this the darshan of

ambaal in Her head to foot physical form will be obtained.

But even before that form is visible, what one sees is the

vast spread of the red colour everywhere. So the name that

occurs just before the first name in the head-to-foot

description is ‘nijAruNa-prabhA-pUra-majjat-brahmANDa

manDalA’, meaning, ‘She immerses the entire universe in Her

crimson effulgence’. The same idea is said in the second

line of Shloka 18:

divaM sarvAM urvIM aruNima-nimagnAM.

In several places in the Soundaryalahari, we find the same

descriptions as in Lalita SahasranAma almost in the same

words.

 

The forehead of ambaal is like an inverted half-moon :

dvitIyaM tan-manye makuTa-ghaTitaM chandra-kalashaM (Shloka

46);

ashhTamI-chandra-vibhrAja-daLika-sthala-shobhitA (L.S.)

 

If She opens Her eyes, it is Creation; if She closes them,

it is Dissolution:

nimeshonmeshAbhyAM praLayam-udayaM yAti jagatI (Shloka 55);

unmeshha-nimishhotpanna-vipanna-bhuvanAvaLiH (L.S.).

 

Not even a tree bearing precious gems (vidruma-latA) can

equal the enchanting lips of ambaaL:

 

dantachhada-rucheH pravakshye sAdRshyam janayatu phalaM

vidruma-latA (Shloka 62);

nava-vidruma-bimba-shrI-nyakkAri-radanacchadA

(Lalita-sahasranama).

 

The jingling of the gems in the anklets of ambaal’s feet is

described in both almost in the same words:

 

Subaka-maNi-manjIra raNita- ... charaNa-kamalaM (Shloka

91);

sinjAni-maNi-manjIra-maNDita-shrI-padAmbujA (L.S.)

 

The idea that ambaaL’s very speech can beat the sweetness

of the vINA-music of Goddess Sarasvati, epitomised in the

Lalita-shasranama line

nija-sallApa-mAdhurya-vinirbhatsita-kacchapI,

is developed in a whole Shloka No.66 of Soundaryalahari.

 

While giving examples and analogies to various parts of the

form of ambaal, when it comes to the chin of ambAL, both

the Lalita sahasranama and the Soundaryalahari, say that

it is devoid of all analogies:

Katham-kAram brUmas-tava chubukam-aupamya-rahitaM (Shloka

67);

anAkalita-sAdRshya-chubuka-shrI-virAjitA (L.S.)

 

Before the radiance of the pair of lotus feet of ambaal,

the real lotus pales into insignificance, according to the

Lalita-sahasranama line:

 

pada-dvaya-prabhA-jAla-parAkRta-saroruhA.

 

This idea is developed elaborately in Shloka 87 where the

Acharya shows in how many ways the divine feet pales the

lotus into insignificance. Lotus withers away in snow. But

ambaal, whose house of birth as well as the house of

marriage both are in Himalayas, the feet are always

excelling in snow. Lotus droops during night; but the

divine feet beam with freshness. The lotus has the Goddess

Lakshmi within it (and would not give it!), whereas the

divine feet of ambaal dispense wealth and prosperity (that

is, Lakshmi) to all who touch them. Thus the divine feet

are always one up, -- so ends the Shloka (#87) “himAnI

hantavyaM ....”.

 

While the Acharya has done stotras on Vishnu and Shiva

giving a head-to-foot description of the deities, he has

shown great originality in the fund of his innovative

descriptions and analogies. Then why did he not do it here

in the case of ambaal? Why did he have to borrow from the

Lalita Sahasranama? It shows only the Acharya’s humility

and the high pedestal on which he places the

Lalita-sahasranama.

 

Now let us follow the main trend of our coverage of

Soundaryalahari. In Shloka 21 he talks about the flood of

absolute bliss in brahman that is experienced by one who

has reached the apex in KunDalini yoga. This flood is

legitimately called by him ‘AhlAda-lahari’. ‘AhlAda’ means

happiness, joy, bliss.

 

And now comes one of the most easy-worded, but profoundly

meaningful Shloka, #22.

To be continued.

Thus spake the Paramacharya

 

praNAms to all advaitins and Devotees of Mother Goddess

profvk

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

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Prof. V. Krishnamurthy

My website on Science and Spirituality is http://www.geocities.com/profvk/

You can access my book on Gems from the Ocean of Hindu Thought Vision and

Practice, and my father R. Visvanatha Sastri's manuscripts from the site.

Also see the webpages on Paramacharya's Soundaryalahari :

http://www.geocities.com/profvk/gohitvip/DPDS.html