prAtah sankalpa gadyaM - 1

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Hari Sarvottama Sri Gurubhyo namaha

Vayu Jeevothama

 

SOURCE:

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Pratas-Sankalpa Gadyam, Sarva-Samarpana Gadyam & Gayathri

By Srimushnam V Nagarajachar, Published by Devarnama Bhajana Sangha,

Srirangam, 1972.

 

pUjyAya rAghavendrAya satyadharmaratAya cha |

bhajatAM kalpavR^ixAya namatAM kAmadhenave ||

 

shrIsudhIndrAbdhisambhUtAn.h rAghavendrakalAnidhIn.h |

seve sadAGYAnsaukhyArthaM santApatrayashAntaye ||

 

|| shrImaddhanumabhImamadhvAntargatarAmakR^iShNAvedavyAsAtmaka

shrIlaxmIhayagrIvAya namaH ||

 

atha shrImandrAghavendra yati shiromaNibhiH virachitaM

 

 

NOTE: The whole text of Pratah Sankalpa Gadyam is one sentence, as also

the other work, Sarva Samarpana Gadyam. If the text is shown as passages &

numbered, it is all for the convenience of easy reading by laymen &

therefore imaginary.

 

 

THE GIST & EXPLANATORY NOTES:

 

SANKALPA:

 

The word 'Sankalpa' is a common usage among Hindus & it presupposes that

gods stand as Karma-Sakshins - witnessing everything we do. We proclaim to

them that we intend to perform a religious rite implying thereby that their

blessings are sought for. No religious rite is performed without sankalpa.

It begins with the mentioning of the place & date & ends with the

declaration " I will do this " .

 

manasA saMkalpayati, vAchA abhilapati, karmaNA cha upapAdayati-

(hArItasmR^iti)

 

The mind first resolves to do. The resolution is then spoken out. The act

itself follows immediately. Sankalpa strictly applies to the mental

resolution. Loosely, it is applied to the vocal pronouncement also.

 

nitya naimittikAdau karmaNi saMkalpavidhiH mAnasaH, vAchikaH, kAyikachcha

dharmashAstre nirUpitaH ||

 

Dharma Shastras insist that sankalpa is a must for all religious ceremonies

& therefore, Sri Raghavendra begins the day with sankalpa. The usual

recital of the place & date beng a daily routione, it is left to the

individual readers & the main body of the sankalpa alone is spoken of in

this work.

 

Sri Raghavendra Theertharu as a sanyasin, voices the sankalpa. There arises

the

question whether a sanyasin is expected to perform any duty at all.

 

According to other schools of thoughts, Sanyasins have no duties. Sri

Madhva, on the other hand, establishes that no Dharma Shastra grants a

total exception of duties to a Sanyasin & that he is as much a Karma Yogi as

any Grihastha is supposed to be. No doubt, the Sanyasin does not perform

Agnihotra like a householder. But his sacrificial fire is within. When

entering into Sanyasa Ashrama, he duly withdraws his fres of the past

Ashrama into his own body. He is bound to study to teach & to meditate.

These are his fires. This is what Sri Raghavendra Theertharu himself says

in Gita Vivriti.

 

'yaterapi daivamevApare yaGYaM ityAdinA agnikriyayoH uktatvAt.h

sanyAsAshramasvIkArakAle, pUrvAshrama svIkR^itAgneH Atmani

samAropaNA~nchaso.api sanyAsI yogI cha bhavatyeva | (gItAvivR^iti- 6-1)

 

yogI cha means karmayogI cha

 

Hence it follows that it is the privilege & the duty of religious leaders

like saints & sages to lead the society. While showing us a noble way of

life & while himself setting out for his day's duty, Sri Raghavendra

Theertharu observes the vedic principles & begins the day with a sankalpa.

 

SUMMARY OF THE TEXT:

 

The text abridged in its own words, read as:

 

1. asmat.h AdigurUNAm.h

2. shrImadAnandatIrtha shrImaccharaNAnAM antaryAmin.h sItApate

shrIrAmachandra

3. tvadAGYayA tvatprasAdAt.h tvanniyatena shrImukhyaprANena preritaH san.h

4. tvatsaMsmR^itipUrvakaM tvatpUjAtmakaM karma yathAshakti kariShye

 

On getting up from bed with devout thoughts of you, Oh, Sitapati Sri

Ramachandra! I shall perform my day's duty to the best of my ability- as

though it is your very worship. I shall perform my duty with the awareness

that I am doing it as prompted by you Oh, Sri Ramachandra, the in dweller in

the sacred heart of my Adi Guru Sri Ananda Theertha.

 

The entire text has only one predicate (kariShye) & it is placed at the fag

end of the text in passage 44. kArayiShye in passage 45 is also another

predicate, but it is only the causal form of the former. We have,

therefore, to start from the end & proceed to the beginning. The text can,

in that order, be divided into four sections as follows:

 

SECTION 4: (Passages 44 & 45)

 

These two passages spell out the sankalpa or the resolve to be made on

rising up from bed.

 

SECTION 3: (Passages 36 to 43)

 

Since the sankalpa & our actions are prompted by Sri Mukhya prana, his

greatness is spoken in these passages.

 

SECTION 2: (Passages 17 to 35)

 

Sri Mukhyaprana, in turn, is prompted by the Will of Lord Sri Ramachandra &

therefore, the ultimate supremacy of Sri Ramachandra is described in these

passages.

 

SECTION 1: (Passages 1-16)

 

Since Sri Ramachandra is the antaryami or the indweller in the sacred heart

of Sri Madhvacharya who is the Adi Guru of the author, & since all the

actions are to be dedicated to the Lord through one's own Guru, the text is

begun with the glorification of Sri Madhvacharya, the human form of Sri

Mukhya prana.

 

 

 

PRATAH SANKALPA GADYA

 

 

1. OM laukika- vaidika -bhedabhinna - varNAtmaka- dhvanyAtmaka-asheSha-

shabdArtha R^igAdi

sarvavedArtha viShNumantrArtha puruShasUktArtha gAyatryartha vAsudeva

dvAdashAxara mantrAntargata-

Adya aShTAxarArtha shrImannArAyaNa aShTAxaramantrArtha vAsudeva

ddvAdashAxaramantrAntargata antyacaturaxarArtha vyAhR^ityartha mAtR^ikA

mantrArthapraNavopAsakAnAM

 

THE GIST:

 

Giving a brief, beautiful & illuminating exposition on the significance of

the sacred syllable Om or Pranava, the author Sri Parimalacharya brings out

in the above passage, how the Upasana of Pranava is the highest & most

intricate form of meditation. Upasana of pranava is to meditate upon the

Supreme Being a symbolised in the VyAhritis, Narayana Ashtakshara Mantra,

Vasudeva DwAdasakshara Mantra, Gayathri, Purusha Sooktha, Vishnu Mantra &

the four vedas. Sri Mukhyaprana is the only one, who has attained absolute

perfection in the Upasana of Pranava & he is therefore, the supreme & the

foremost among those who have secured for themselves an exalted place in the

kingdom of God. Such a great Mukhyaprana appeared on earth in the form of

Sri Madhva.

 

PRANAVA OR OM

 

Explanatory Notes: After a long night of Pralaya, at the dawn of creation,

the Lord revealed Himself in the sound of Pranava & therefore 'Om' is the

first sound & the first seed of knowledge to come out, comprising in it, all

the knowledge about the animate & inanimate objects in the whole of this

Universe. From Pranava came out the VyAhritis (bhUH, buvaHa, svaH). The

bud of VyAhriti flowered into Gayatri & the elaboration of Gayatri is

Purusha Suktha. Purusha Suktha expounding itself, expanded into four vedas.

Thus, Pranava (OM) is the mother of every alphabet, syllable, word &

sentence, be it a vedic utterance or non vedic. In short, all the sounds

whether sensical or not sensical, such as the sounds from clouds & ocean

waves, had their origin in Pranava.

 

The words of Sri Raghavendra Theertha in the above passage, bear a direct

reference to the shlokas of Prakasa-Samhitha quoted below:

 

oMkAraH prathamaM vyakto babhUva bhagavanmayaH | (74)

akArAdyaiH sarvavarNaiH vAchyA ete prakIrtitAH | (90)

ekapa~nchAshat.h varNarUpo mAtR^ikAmantra iiritaH || (91)

nArAyaNAShTavarNaishcha chaturvyAhR^itibhiH kramAt.h |

vAsudeva dvAdashArNamantro.abhUt.h mahadAtmakaH || (92)

gAyatrI brahmAR^iShikA dviguNAt.h dvAdashAxarAt.h | (94)

gAyatryAH pauruShaM sUktaM sUktAnmantrastu vaiShNavaH | (95)

puMsUktAt.h sarvavedAnAM vyaktirAsIditi shrutiH || (98)

prakAshasaMhitA-adhyA

 

As detailed in the first passage of Pratah Sankalpa Gadya, the Upasana of

Pranava Mantra (meditating on OM) presupposes a thorough understanding of

the real meaning of the following:

 

a. The mAtR^ikAmantras (They are 51 in number- 16 vowels from a to aH & 35

consonants from ka to xa. Each alphabet is called a varNa & each is

considered a mantra in itself.

b. the vyAhR^iti: are bhUH, bhuvaH, svaH (or suvaH for yajur vedins)

c. aShTAxaramantraH- oM namo nArAyaNAya

d. dwAdashaxaramantraH- oM namo nArAyaNAya

e. gAyatrI : tatsaviturvareNyaM bargo devasya dImahi, dhiyo yo naH

prachodayAt.h

f. PurushasUktha

g. viShNumantra- oM namo viShNave namaH

h. The four Vedas.

 

DWA- DASAAKHARA MANTRA: ITS FORMATION

 

Ashta Akshara Mantra combined with VyAhritis, resulted as Dwaadashakshara

mantra. The first 8 letters (Adya aShTAxara) of Vasudeva mantra bear the

significance of the 8 letters of Narayana Mantra. The remaining last 4

letters (antyachaturaxara) of Vasudeva Mantra signifys the potentialities of

4 letters of VyAhritis. Thus the Narayana Mantra plus the Vyahritis is the

Vasudeva Mantra, otherwise called Dwadasakshara mantra. This is explained

in Prakasa Samhita in these words:

 

nArAyaNAShTavarNaishcha chaturvyAhR^itibhiH kramAt.h

vAsudeva dvAdashArNamantro.abhUt.h mahadAtmakaH

 

dhvanyAtmaka shabdAH means sounds coming from the clap of hands, from

Shanka, drums, clouds, sea waves etc...etc....

 

VARNAS:

 

varNAtmaka shabdAH means spoken sounds..

 

Varna means a letter or an alphabet. According to Shabda Shastra, " Varnas

are the ethereal sound vibrations of the alphabet. They are eternal &

omnipresent. In the course of articulation, the action of the vocal organs

does not create the alphabet. They are eternal & omnipresent. In the

course of articulation, the action of the vocal organs does not create the

alphabet given expression to but only discloses & exhibits what remains

embedded in the Akasic record. In pronouncing a letter, we speak of it as

the same as was uttered by us or others before. This recollection of

identity would be a delusion, if the letter be but a momentary product born

& dead with the pronouncement. As already explained, the entire range of

Varnas had their origin in Pranava " OM " .

 

Coming back to the text, there is no greater mantra than pranava & there is

none to equal Sri Mukhya Prana in meditating upon or understanding Pranava

in its absolute perfection. Others enjoy the benefits of Pranava Upasana,

proportionate to their degree of perfection in Upasana.

 

On rising up from bed, the first thought of Sri Raghavendra Theertharu goes

to his upaasana Murti Sitapati Sri Ramachandra to whom he dedicates his

day's work. Since the dedication has to be made through one's own Guru,

the author begins the text with an adoration to his Adi Guru Sri Ananda

Theertharu, an avatara of Sri Mukhya prana. In as much as the greatness of

the Guru lies in the greatness of the Mantra he had chosen for Upasana, Sri

Raghavendra Theertharu begins the text with the glorification of Pranava &

in the next passage, he adores the personality of Sri Madhvacharya.

 

shrImadrAghavendratIrtha gurvantargata shrI bhAratIramaNa

mukhyaprANAntargata sItApati shrI rAmachandra charaNAravindayoH samarpyate

shri kR^iShNArpanamasthu