Shiva Mahimna Stotra

Shloka 36

Meaning:  Initiation, charity, austerity, pilgrimage, scriptural knowledge, and performance of rituals like homa and others – the benefit of none of these is equal to one-sixteenth of the benefits one gets by reciting the Shiva Mahimna Stotra.                                                                                              

Reflections: This is one of the concluding shlokas that encourage devotees to read, recite, and meditate on the Shiva Mahimna Hymn.

To learn, recite, and meditate on the essence of the hymns are spiritual practices of Bhakti Yoga. Because it is related to the heart, Bhakti Yoga is easier for many devotees compared to the other paths. Recitations or singing hymns help the mind focus on the form and qualities of the god or goddess mentioned in the hymns. By Lord Shiva’s grace, for many days, I had recited Shiva Mahimna Stotra eleven times while offering ‘Abhishekam’ in a quiet secluded Shiva temple of a village Pij, Gujarat, India. I still remember the spiritual environment created by the recitations which brought absorption and peace within. I used to forget the world around me.

Sri Ramakrishna said again and again that we have to develop love for God. If we do it with understanding, then by God’s grace, the recitation of God’s glories through bhajans, dhoons, and hymns helps us develop love for God.                                                                 

When we develop a love for God, then by God’s grace, we get all the benefits that one gets by practicing all the other three Yogas, performing rituals, giving in charity, going on pilgrimage, or doing any other spiritual practice.

It seems that in the earlier times in India, a hundred percent is compared to the moon shining with all its sixteen phases or ‘kalas’, meaning the moon fully shining with all its glories. Some books say that the fifteen kalas are visible and the 16^th is beyond our visibility.  The fifteen kalas are related to the fifteen days of the waning and waxing phases of the moon. In some books, we find the names of the sixteen kalas of the moon. They are amritaa,  maanadaa,  pusha, tusti, pusti, rati, dhriti, sasini (or sasichini), chandrika, kaanti (or kanta), jyotsna, sri, priti, angadaa, purnaa, and purnamritaa.  The readers can search on the internet or through any other means to get more information regarding these kalas.

Thinking of the above measurement, Pushpadanta tells us that if the benefit of recitation of the Shiva Mahimna Stotra is one hundred percent which is equal to the moon shining with all its sixteen kalas, then the benefit of any other spiritual practice is not equal to even moon shining with only one kala.

 Let us learn Shiva Mahina Stotra, reflect upon its essential meaning, and meditate on Lord Shiva who is nothing but Brahman, the Ultimate Reality.   

Shiva Mahimna Stotra

Shloka 35

Meaning:  There is no god superior to Mahesha (Lord Shiva). There is no hymn superior to Shiva Mahimna. There is no mantra superior to Aghora (Omkar) Mantra.  There is no ‘Tatva’ (Truth, the Ultimate Reality, or Goal) superior to the Spiritual Guru.                                                                                   

Reflections:  Most spiritual seekers, in their initial stage, select a form of God as a chosen ideal to focus their minds on and to develop a love for God. This chosen ideal is called an “Ishta deva’. Initially, one must consider this form as the best form of God. By doing this, the seekers develop spiritual roots and make spiritual progress. As the spiritual seekers make progress, they realize that this form is just a representation of the One God, Brahman, and the selection of an ‘Ishta deva’ was only for their spiritual progress and not to put down the other forms of God. Real ‘Ishta Nishtha’ (one-pointed devotion to one’s likable form of God) does not develop fanaticism. Rather, such a devotee understands and appreciates other people’s “Ishta Nishtha’. If I love my mother dearly, I understand and appreciate other people’s love for their mothers.

Swami Adiswarananda, Spiritual Head of New York’s Ramakrishna Vivekananda Center, used to say that ‘Ishta Nishtha’ helps develop spiritual roots. If there are no roots, there will not be any fruits.

Thus, the devotees of Lord Shiva initially should consider Him to be the most superior form of God. Similarly, they must consider the mantra related to Lord Shiva as the best mantra and Lord Shiva’s hymn as the best hymn. Many devotees worship Lord Shiva as Aghora.

Finally, Pushpadana says that there is nothing higher than the spiritual teacher. Proper spiritual guidance is extremely important.

In Viveka Chudamani (3),

Shri Shankaracharya says: “Three things, namely, a human birth, desire to realize God (One’s true divine identity), and spiritual guidance, are very difficult to get and they can only be acquired by God’s grace.”

We can read many scriptural books, but without proper spiritual guidance, we may not be able to grasp the essence of these books. Also, without seeing a real living example we may not know how to practice the essence of the scriptures. Thus, proper spiritual guidance is essential. A genuine spiritual teacher who has a direct experience of God (the Ultimate Spiritual Truth) or one who is sincerely doing proper spiritual practices can wake up our inner spiritual guide. This spiritual guide is our inner conscience which helps us decide what to do and what not to do for our spiritual progress.

Sant Kabir gives the highest honor to Guru, a spiritual teacher.

Sant Kabir says, “Guru and Govinda are standing together. To whom should I salute first? I will salute my Guru first because my Guru has shown me Govinda.”

Pushpadanta, in this shloka, is saying that there is nothing higher than a spiritual teacher. The spiritual teacher takes us to our Ishta deva and in the last stage, our mind along with our Guru merges into the Ishta deva and Ishta deva merges into Brahman.