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47

piNDI-bhUtaM yad-antar-jalanidhi-salilaM yAti

tat-saindhav-AkyaM

bhUyaH prakshhiptam-asmin vilayam-upagataM nAma-rUpe jahAti

/

prAjnas-tadvat-parAtmany-atha bhajati layaM tasya ceto

himAMshau

vAg-agnau cakshhur-arke payasi punar-asRg-retasI dikshhu

karNau //

 

yad-antar-jalanidhi-salilaM : That water which is taken

from the sea

piNDI-bhUtaM : when solidified,

tat-saindhavAkhyaM : is known by the name of salt.

bhUyaH prakshhiptaM asmiN : When it is thrown back into the

sea

v ilayaM upagataM : and is dissolved,

jahAti : it abandons

nAma-rUpe : its name as well as form.

tadvat prAjnaH : So also the individual soul

parAtmani : (merges) into the Supreme Self.

atha : At that time,

cetaH : mind

layaM bhajati : is dissolved,

himAmshau : into the moon;

punaH : also,

vAk agnau : speech into fire,

cakshhuH arke : sight into the sun,

asRk retasI :blood and semen

payasi : into water, (and)

karNau dikshhu: hearing into the directions.

 

Note: Before one does a ritualistic puja, one sanctifies

oneself by uttering, among other things, a passage from

Yajur-veda beginning with “agnir-me-vAci-shritaH”. This

passage recalls how every subtle sense organ is to be

re-fixed back into its source so that when the puja takes

place the body and its contents are not any more physical,

but they are elevated to their divine sources. The Acharya,

in the above shloka, religiously follows the scheme

envisaged in this vedic passage. That is why he says, mind

is dissolved into the moon, speech into the fire, sight

into the sun, blood and semen into water and hearing into

the directions.

Look at the following lines from the vedic passage, in

order to understand the above comment.

 

agnir-me-vAci shritaH : Fire is seated in my speech

vAg hRdaye : Speech, in the heart

hRdayaM mayi : heart, in Me

aham-amRte : this ‘I’ in immortality

amRtaM brahmaNi: Immortality, in brahman.

 

vAyur-me prANe shritaH : Air is seated in my prANa

(life-breath)

prANa in the heart, heart in Me, ..., Immortality in

brahman.

 

sUryo me cakshhushhi shritaH : Sun is seated in my eyes

cakshur-hRdaye .... amRtaM brahmaNi.

And so on it goes for the following also:

 

Moon is seated in my Mind .....

The Directions are seated in my ears ....

Water is seated in my semen and blood ......

Earth is seated in my body ....

The Lords of the herbs are seated in my hairs .....

Indra is seated in my strength ....

Rain God is seated in my head ...

Lord IshAna is seated in my anger ...

Atman is seated in my Atman ...

--------------------------------

48

kshhIrAntar-yadvad-AjyaM madhurima-viditaM

tat-pRthag-bhUtam-asmAt

bhUteshhu brahma tadvad-vyavahRti-viditaM

shrAnta-vishrAnti-bIjaM /

yaM labdhvA lAbham-anyaM tRNam-iva manute yatra nodeti

bhItiH

sAndrAnandaM yadantaH sphurati tad-amRtaM viddhy-ato

hy-anyad-ArtaM //

 

yadvat : Just as

AjyaM : (ghee) butter

kshIrantaH : (is contained ) in milk

madhurima-viditaM : as indicated by the sweetness (of the

latter),

tat pRthak bhUtaM : but it becomes separate

asmAt : therefrom (when extracted),

tadvat : so also is

brahma : brahman

bhUteshhu : in all beings,

vyvahRti-viditaM : as indicated by the activity (of the

being),

shrAnta-vishrAnti-bIjaM : and is also the cause of rest

(vishrAnti) when one is tired --(i.e. when one is asleep).

yaM labdhvA : Attaining it,

manute : one considers

anyaM lAbhaM : any other gain

tRNam iva : as nothing but straw.

Yatra : Therein

Na udeti bhItiH : there springs up no fear.

Yat : Whatever

antaH sphurati : sparks within oneself

sAndrAnandaM : as concentrated bliss

tat amRtaM : that is immortality.

anyat : All else

ArtaM hi : is indeed transient.

viddhi ataH : Know it thus.

 

Note 1. Recall Gita VI – 22: And having attained Which, he

does not think of any other gain as superior to That; being

established in Which he is not shaken much by misery,

however powerful that may be.

 

Note 2. As a direct implication of the above quote from the

Gita, which the Acharya must have had in mind when he wrote

“yaM labdhvA lAbham-anyaM tRNam-iva manute” , he reminds us

of the consequence – namely, “there springs up no fear”.

Thus he has told us the connection between the above Gita

passage and the vedic quotes

“na bibheti kadAcaneti” (Tait. U. II-4-4) – ‘Never does he

fear’;

“atha so’bhayaM gato bhavati” (Tait.U. II-7-12) – ‘Thus he

reaches the state of fearlessness’;

“na bibheti kutashcaneti” (Tait. U. II-9-4) – ‘ He has no

fears from anywhere or anything’.

 

Note 3. “sAndrAnandaM yad-antaH sphurati tad-amRtaM”. This

word “sAndrAnandaM”

meaning ‘Bliss Concentrate’ is used in the literature only

to denote the Absolute Bliss associated with the

Transcendental Absolute. Recall

“sAndrAnand-Avabhod-Atmakam..” right in the beginning of

nArAyaNeeyaM, in the same context and with the same

meaning.

 

PraNAms to all students of Adi Shankaracharya.

profvk

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

=====

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 my webpages on Live Happily, the Gita Way at

http://www.geocities.com/profvk/gohitvip/contentsbeach11.html

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