Aug 26, 2008

Stanza-013

रुद्रो बहुशिरा बभ्रुरविश्वयोनिः शुचिश्रवाः ।

अमृतःशाश्वतस्थाणुर्वरारोहो महातपाः ॥

രുദ്രോ ബഹുശിരാ ബഭ്രുര്‍് വിശ്വയോനിഃ ശുചിശ്രവാഃ

അമൃത ശാശ്വതസ്ഥാണുര്വരാരോഹോ മഹാതപാഃ

ருத்ரோ பஹுசிரா பப்ருர்விஸ்வயோனி சுசிச்ரவா

அமிருத சாசுவதஸ்தாணுர் வராரோஹோ மஹாதபா

ರುದ್ರೋ ಬಹುಶಿರಾ ಬಭ್ರುರ್ ವಿಸ್ವಯೋನಿಃ ಶುಚಿಶ್ರವಾಃ

ಅಮೃತಃ ಶಾಶ್ವತಸ್ತಾಣುರ್ವರಾರೋಹೋ ಮಹಾತಪಾಃ

రుద్రో బహుశిరా బభ్రుర్ విశ్వయోని శుచిశ్రవాః

అమృత శాశ్వతస్థాణుర్వరారోహో మహతపాః

Rudro bahu-siraa babhrur visvayonis-suchi-sravaah-
amritah saasvatah-sthaanur- varaaroho mahaatapaah

114. Rudrah - One who makes all people weep, at the time of death or during the total dissolution, the One who makes all weep is Rudrah. From a devotee’s standpoint the same term is interpreted as the One who liquidated all sorrows is Rudrah. Bhagavan declares Himself to be “Among the Rudras, I am Sankara –(Geeta Ch. 10, St. 23). According to the Vedic terminology there are 11 Rudras; this eleventh “Rudra” is called as Sankara: Sam-karoti-iti = Sankarah - “One who blesses all with Auspiciousness (Sam).”
115. Bahusiraah - One who has many heads. The Purushasooktam of the Rig Veda describes the Cosmic Form of the Lord with a narration, “The Purusha of thousand heads, thousand eyes and thousand feet…….” In Geeta a similar description of the Universal Form of the Lord is found in Chapter XI. Again in the Geeta Chapter XIII when the Lord was describing the Infinite Goal to be known (Jneyam), He describes It as “Everywhere legs, everywhere hands, every- where eyes, everywhere His face”. Thus, He whose personal manifestations constitute the universe is known as “One who has many heads.”
116. Babhruh - One who rules over the worlds. “Like a King” -Atmabodham gives this analogy. He in whose presence all the instruments of perception, feeling and knowing continue their coordinated activity is the Self, the Atman, who is Great Lord Vishnu.
117. Visvayonih - One who is the Total Cause from which alone the entire world of experiences (visvam) has emerged out. The womb (yoni) from which thoughts and actions had risen is called Visvayonih.
118. Suchisravaah - One who has beautiful and efficient ears (Sravas): “Everywhere are His ears”-(Geeta Ch. 13, St. 13) meaning thereby He is the Hearer in all ears. The term Sravas not only means ears, but it also means “names” -so Suchisravas can mean ‘One who has Divine and Sacred names’. Thus, the devotee can invoke Him with thousands of His names when He can readily listen in and rightly understand the exact purity and the real depth of devotion in the devotee. Also the term can be used to indicate the One whose “names” are worthy of being heard by seekers.
119. Amritah - One who is Immortal and Immutable. Mritam = dead. The Infinite is Ajarah, Amarah and Avyayah. It can also mean as One who is of the nature of Nectar (Amritam) - a sure cure for those who are suffering from malady of ignorance. Amritah also means Moksha; and thus it is indicated, He is the ever-liberated-the Pure State of Being.
120. Saasvata-sthaanuh - One who is both permanent (Saasvatah) and irremovable (Sthaanuh). He is the One who remains Changeless, because Immortal; who remains the same in all periods of time, because permanent (Saasvatah); and who remains changeless in His nature or Consciousness (Sthaanuh). This is a single term (Saasvata-sthaanuh) and, therefore, we must add the meanings together- Permanent and Changeless; Permanently Changeless Factor in lire is Vishnu.
121. Vararohah - He who is the most Glorious (Vara) Destination (Aaroha). The Seat of the Self is the most Glorious because the imperfections of the world-of-matter (Prakriti) are not there in the Spirit (Purusha). Liberation from the thraldom of matter is the arrival of the Infinitude of the Self. “He never returns”, thunders the Chandogya Upanishad (8-15-1) three times in one and the same breath, assuring us that one who has reached the Seat of Vishnu, beyond the frontiers of the intellect, there is for him no more any return ever into the ego-centric life of tensions of sorrows.
122. Mahaatapaah - One of great Tapas. The term tapas in Sanskrit has three meanings: Knowledge’ (Jnaana), ‘Prosperity’ (Aisvarya) and also ‘Might’ (Prataapa). It is in the presence of Consciousness that we come to know all our experiences. ‘Conscious of’ a thing or an idea is the ‘Knowledge of’ the thing or the idea. That about which I am not conscious of, I have really no knowledge of it. All knowledges, of all bosoms, in all living creatures, everywhere, at all times, cannot be without the play of Consciousness upon the respective objects of knowledge, and hence this Consciousness is indicated in the Upanishads as Pure Knowledge, in the light of which alone all knowledges are possible. All achievements and prosperity (Aisvarya), all might and power of the living creatures can express themselves through them only when they are alive. This great truth is Maha Vishnu. “Whose Tapas is of the nature of Knowledge” (Mundaka- Upanishad. 1-1-9).

Followers

Credits

Inspiration & courtesy:
Contribution of Shivkumar Kalyanaraman, Professor, Department of ECSE, Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute, Troy, New York, U.S.A.

Sanskrit script Courtesy:
Shri. N. Krishnamachari