Saturday, September 20, 2008

Gossamer Dreams - Threads of Illusion

Sri gurubhyo namaha.



'' Searching through the fabric of Eternity
In vain.
Countless wombs of endless diversity
And pain.
The One is Two and the Two become Many
Yet again.
Nothing to lose and nothing here to gain,
Joy is a dream and so is the pain.


Standing beyond, the Triad laid bare
The prize, for those only who dare.
With vision -
Of a kingdom beyond Delusion.
Expansive states of shining Mind -
Fruits of untying the threads that bind.
Ye, luminous dancing Dragon flies -
Now Red, now White, then shining bright
Until the torrential descent of Light.


Spirit to Matter and Matter to Spirit
The fools cry 'Fate', while the wise say 'Merit'.
The wheel keeps on turning, day and night
Churned by the yearning, there is no end in sight.
Yesterdays deeds make Tomorrows seeds
Consumer now but later the Feed.
An eternal past and immortal future -
Compassion of God or is this my torture ?


All is clear when I kindle the flame,
There is nothing to see and no one to blame.
O Butterfly wings
And gypsy rings -
Hark, the birth of the King of Kings.


THAT I AM - There is no other any
The One is Two and the Two become Many.''

Monday, September 15, 2008

Bliss to Humanity - Mantra 85

Sri gurubhyo namaha.

The eighty fifth mantra of the Thirumandiram proclaims the philosophy of the siddha masters. Their compassion for mankind and their un reverential attitude towards the (then) established 'spiritual politics' makes them stand out.

யான்பெற்ற இன்பம் பெறுக இவ் வையகம்
வான்பற்றி நின்ற மறைப்பொருள் சொல்லிடின்
ஊன்பற்றி நின்ற உணர்வுறு மந்திரம்
தான்பற்றப் பற்றத் தலைப்படுந் தானே. 13.5.85.
Bliss To Humanity
All the world may well attain the Bliss I have;
Who hold firm to the Heavenly secret the Books impart,
Who chant the hymns that thrill the flesh
And swell the heart,
They, sure, take their place in foremost rank. 13.5.85

ComAll the world may well attain the Bliss I have In order to help the people of the world to attain the state of Bliss that I have attained as a result of my meditation (thinking) of Siva, Who hold firm to the Heavenly secret the Books impart when I begin to speak of the secret of the supreme Siva who resides in the Akaashaa (ether) in the form of pure consciousness, Who chant the hymns that thrill the flesh And swell the heart, it is found that it is the mantra that causes sensations in the body. They, sure, take their place in foremost rank And when one attempts to identify with those sensations (in the body) through constant practise, Siva comes and unites with them.

* Hymns that thrill the flesh refers to the mantra that causes sensations in the body. That is, when one thinks and meditates on the hidden Siva, it causes certain sensations to be felt and sensed in the head region. When we seek (desire) and attain the many sense objects that are external (worldly) we experience a sensation of joy/happiness. Similarly, when we meditate on the all pervading Lord, constantly by saturating the mind with His thoughts, there arise certain vibrations (Spandam) as a result of the union of the object of meditation (namely, Siva) and the one who meditates. These vibrations are the signs through which the Siva announces His arrival and His fixing of Himself in the mind of the devotee. [This will be explained in greater clarity when commenting on the mantra 1542 ]. Through the above mantra the sage instructs all the people of the world to constantly meditate on Siva and revel in the Bliss that is born as a result.

The philosophy ''All the world may well attain the Bliss I have'' (Yaan petra inbam peruga ivvvayagam) is perhaps the best indicator of the universal and the unbiased attitude of the siddars. They were (as mentioned in the introduction to this commentary) and still are one of the most compassionate wise men/women who at all times strived to reach out and pass on the hard earned wisdom and its miraculous siddhis or powers to all people of this world without reservations. Unlike the modern guru, they sought nothing in return for this compassion. Unlike the Brahmin hierarchy of yore, they had no bias based on one's birth and place in the caste system. Unlike their contemporaries in spiritual heights from other parts of the world, they had no elitist attitudes when it came to the crunch. Though the siddars spent most of their time away from human habituation and company (being to the most part invisible even if they walked about towns and villages) and did not subscribe entirely to the clear cut varnA or caste system, they attempted to 'reach out' to the common man plenty. The clearly visible urge and the ever present urgency to freely distribute the glories of their meditative and absorptive heights is seen from even the most cursory of glances at the siddha texts. They were also pioneers in 'de mystifying' the complex Hindu thought and practises by detailing them in a very down to earth language (as against the highly terse and aphoristic nature of the Sanskrit texts) and often using crude or 'unrefined' language in the process. This apparent disregard for the established 'norm' in such systems coupled with the kind of 'target audience' for these words became very important reasons for the Brahmin elite and other scholars to disregard the siddha thought and system (even though it was as valid and as detailed as other schools of thought).

Here the sage uses this as a first line for this mantra and highlights the concept of universal brotherhood and egalitarianism.

Immortal Vedas - mantra 84

Sri Gurubhyo namaha.

This is the eighty fourth mantra of the Thirumandiram where the sage reveals that the words which make up the body of scripture known as the Vedas and the meanings of those words are ever revealed by the grace of the supreme Siva.


சித்தத்தின் உள்ளே சிறக்கின்ற நூல்களில்
உத்தம மாகவே ஓதிய வேதத்தின்
ஒத்த உடலையும் உள்நின்ற உற்பத்தி
அத்தன் எனக்குஇங்கு அருளால் அளித்ததே. 12.5.84.
Immortal Body
Of Books that glow and thrill the heart,
The Vedas stand in truth unsurpassed,
The Lord who, the center holding,
Bodied forth the Vedic chants;
Likewise in His Grace to me gave this body-temple to hold.

ComThe Vedas stand in truth unsurpassed, Of the Vedas that have been held as the best of Of Books that glow and thrill the heart,all the books that delight the soul and bestow incomparable wisdom Likewise in His Grace to me gave this body-temple to hold the Lord out of His grace towards me (in this body) Bodied forth the Vedic chants revealed the body (of the Vedas) namely the word/sound The Lord who, the center holding and the meaning (of the word) that is born out of the body of the Vedas.

* The term ‘body of the Vedas’ refers to the words/sound that the Veda is composed of and the term ‘which is born from within the body’ refers to the meaning of the words. That is to say that the Lord out His grace, revealed the words and the meaning of the words that make up the Vedas. In this mantra the concept that shabdha (word/sound) and its artha (meaning) are in a state of constant union or sAmarasya is detailed. In the tantra sastras it is explained in much clearer detail as to how the shiva (shabdha or sound) and shakti (artha or meaning) are forever united in a state of co equality.

Tuesday, September 09, 2008

From Kailash to Earth - mantra 83

Sri gurubhyo namaha.

A beautiful mantra occurs as the eighty third mantra and it describes the astral journey undertaken by Thirumular to reach this our earth from the lofty heights of Kailash in the Himalayas. One of my personal favourites!

செல்கின்ற வாறறி சிவமுனி சித்தசன்
வெல்கின்ற ஞானத்து மிக்கேள் முனிவராய்ப்
பல்கின்ற தேவர் அசுரர்நரர் தம்பால்
ஒல்கின்ற வான்வழி யூடுவந் தானே. 11.5.83.
From Kailas To Earth
I sought the way countless Devas, Asuras, humans take
To scale the heights; all wisdom conquered;
Thus a Shiv Muni I grew and Siddha true,
Came down here through the cerulean blue. 11.5.83

ComTo scale the heights, Came down here On my way down from the great Kailash (the Himalayan abode of Siva) a Shiv Muni I grew I came thinking and meditating on Siva. all wisdom conquered Siddha true I was a great muni (sage) versed in the knowledge of conquering the Siddha named Manmatha (God of Desire). through the cerulean blue I came down here (to earth) through the astral pathway in the sky, I sought the way countless Devas, Asuras, humans take similar to the sky that resides in its subtle aspect in the (thirty three crore) Devas, Asuras and humans.

* Sivan Muni means one who meditates and thinks of Siva constantly. Conquering the Sidhasan (line one) means the knowledge capable of winning/ conquering Kama or Desire. Through the above mantra, the author tells us that he came down to earth from the abode of Siva by travelling through the astral pathway in the sky.

Ninenty million yugas - mantra 82

Sri gurubhyo namaha.

The eighty second mantra uses a word with multiple meanings to suggest transcendence of body as well as extreme longevity.


ஞானத் தலைவிதன் நந்தி நகர்புக்கு
ஊனமில் ஒன்பது கோடி யுகந்தனுள்
ஞானப்பா லாட்டி நாதனை அர்ச்சித்து
நானும் இருந்தேன்நற் போதியின் கீழே. 10.5.82.
Through Ninety Million Yugas
While Time's unbroken chain trailed its nine Yuga's length,
Wisdom's Mistress into Nandi's City passed,
And bathed His Feet in Wisdom's loving stream;
And I sat and watched, under the sacred Bodhi tree. 10.5.82

Com – Wisdom's Mistress into Nandi's City passed I entered the city of Siva, where He is together with Parashakti, the Mistress of knowledge/wisdom While Time's unbroken chain trailed its nine Yuga's length transcending the junction where the nine terminations (kodi) meet. And bathed His Feet in Wisdom's loving stream There, I worshiped the Lord by performing the Abishekam (bathing) using the milk of wisdom And I sat and watched, under the sacred Bodhi tree and I remained there absorbed in the supreme wisdom of Siva.

* The Tamil word Kodi (crore) also means termination/knot/end. Thus, the term nine crore Yuga refers to the nine terminations in the body – namely, the seven chakras along with Vindhu (sperm/ light) and Nada (sound). The term unbroken (i.e. without defects) refers to the transcending of the above mentioned nine terminations. Note – Abishekam is the ritual process where the idol/yantra of the deity is bathed using different liquids (like milk, water, oil, honey, curd, etc). Here the author compares the physical ritual to the bathing of Siva (in consciousness) with pure wisdom, compared here to milk to illustrate its purity. The above mantra shows that the author has transcended the body (which is the junction where the nine terminations meet) and remains fixed in the highest Siva.

Monday, September 01, 2008

Agamic truths in Tamil - mantra 81

Sri gurubhyo namaha.

The eighty first mantra of the Thirumandiram asks a very important question - what besiges people to take on many and repeated births?

பின்னைநின்று என்னே பிறவி பெறுவது
முன்னைநன் றாக முயல்தவம் செய்கிலர்
என்னைநன் றாக இறைவன் படைத்தனன்
தன்னைநன் றாகத் தமிழ்செய்யு மாறே. 9.5.81.
Agamic Truths In Tamil
What availeth thee now to be born,
If to the Lord, the mead of penance you deny?
The Lord made me, my task assigned,
In sweetest Tamil His Glory to expound. 9.5.81.

ComWhat availeth thee now to be born,What is the reason for many to hesitatingly suffer future births? If to the Lord, the mead of penance you deny? It is because they did not attempt their best to perform pure penance and worship in their past lives. (Because I performed pure and true penance) The Lord made me, my task assigned, the Lord bestowed me with true wisdom and graced me with this birth, In sweetest Tamil His Glory to expound so that I may compose this Agama in praise of Siva in the sweet language called Tamil.

* It is to be noted here that the Tamil language was already flourishing before the arrival of Thirumoolar to the Tamil country. But there were no texts in Tamil script that revealed and explained the great Agamic truths – they were available only in the Sanskrit script. It is to be understood that Thirumandiram is the first text that explained the Agamas and their essence in the Tamil language. (Refer 87 and 90). Through the above mantra the author tells us that his birth, through which he expounded the agamas in Tamil, was a result of penance performed in his previous lives.

Kayakalpa - Mantra 80

Sri Gurubhyo namaha.

The next mantra of the Thirumandiram talks about the years Thirumular spent in the physical body through Kayakalpa siddhi.


இருந்தேன் இக்காயத்தே எண்ணிலி கோடி
இருந்தேன் இராப்பகல் அற்ற இடத்தே
இருந்தேன் இமையவர் ஏத்தும் பதத்தே
இருந்தேன் என்நந்தி இணையடிக் கீழே. 8.5.80.
Countless Years In Mortal Body
Remained thus prisoned in mortal coil for ages beyond count;
Remained in space where day nor darkness is;
Remained in places where Devas offered praise,
Remained immutably fix't at Nandi's holy Feet and true. 8.5.80.

ComRemained thus prisoned in mortal coil for ages beyond count I lived for an extraordinary (very long) period of time in this same physical body. Remained in space where day nor darkness is I remained in a state where there is neither day nor night, namely the state of Self illumination. Remained in places where Devas offered praise I remained fixed in a place which is worthy of the praise of even the Devas. Remained immutably fix't at Nandi's holy Feet and true I remained firmly seated (under) the holy feet of my Guru, Nandi (Siva).

* The comment that the author lived for a very long period in his physical body, hints at his achieving the Kayakalpa Siddhi – i.e. the absolute state of the physical body, where it is imperishable. The space where there is neither day nor darkness refers to the state where the solar and lunar nadis are powerless to operate. Here it is to be understood that the sun represents intellect and the moon represents feelings/sensation. Thus, it is the state of self illumination where the intellect and the feelings of the self are no longer operational. [For more details refer to mantra 1528]. Hence it is clear from the above mantra that the author remained fixed for countless years in his body, in the state of self illumination, seated under the feet of his Guru Nandi.