Meaning: O Deva (Lord Shiva)! Bhava, Sharva, Rudra, Pashupati, Ugra, Sahamahana, Bhima, and Ishana are your eight names. Shruti (scriptures) establishes that each of your eight names is noteworthy. You are the most beloved and refuge of all. I salute you with my heart and soul.
Reflections: In this shloka, Pushpadanta refers to the eight names and forms of Lord Shiva which have been mentioned in the Shiva Purana. Each of the eight names represents a special form of Lord Shiva. All the eight forms combined become the manifested form of Lord Shiva which is the whole universe. Let us learn the meaning and the significance of each name and form.
(1) Bhava (Water-Form): This name signifies the creation of the universe. Scientists also say that if there is water in a planet, then there is a possibility of a creation of life. Scriptures mention that the earth came out from the water. The Sanskrit word for the water is ‘Jala’. The ‘ja’ represents the creation of the universe and ‘la’ represents the dissolution of the universe. Thus, the word ‘jala’ tells us that the universe comes from the water and merges in the water. Therefore, the Lord Shiva’s name ‘Bhava’ represents the Water element of the universe.
(2) Sharva (Earth-Form): One who is a refuge of all or an abode of all is Sharva. The Earth holds us all and it is an abode of all of us. It gives us food and thus nourishes us. That is why, the Lord Shiva’s name ‘Sharva’ represents the Earth element of the universe.
(3) Rudra (Fire-Form): Rudra creates terror and punishes the wrong-doers. We find in the Shri Shuklayajurvediya Rudrashtadhyayi (5.1) the following:
“O Rudra! I salute you and your ‘manyu’. I salute to your mighty arms and your arrows.”
The literary meaning of ‘manyu’ is anger. Here the meaning is the punishment to the wrongdoers. The calamities of nature are the arrows of the Rudra. Since anger is like a fire that destroys everything, the Lord Shiva’s name Rudra represents the Fire element of the universe.
(4) Pashupati (Consciousness-Form): The word ‘pashu’ literally means animal. Our senses and the projected characteristics or all the material existence (kshetra) are also referred to as ‘pashu’. All the things which are bounded by ignorance are included in the category of ‘pashu’.
The Sanskrit word for bondage is ‘pasha’. Sri Ramakrishna used to say that ‘Pashabaddha Jiva’ and ‘Pashamukta Shiva’; meaning one who is bounded by ignorance and desires is called ‘jiva’ and one who is free from all the bondages is called ‘Shiva’.
When the Jiva becomes free from all its bondages, then It realizes its own divine nature as ‘Atman’ which is the same as Brahman. Lord Shiva is Brahman or Pure Consciousness. Thus, Lord Shiva is called ‘Pashupati’, the Lord of Pashus, or the Ultimate goal of Pashus.
(5) Ugra (Wind-Form): The word ‘Ugra’ represents the wind-form of Lord Shiva which supports us from inside and outside. It is vibrant and mighty.
(6) Sahamahana or Mahadeva (Moon-Form): ‘Mahana’ means supreme. ‘Sahamahana’ means along with the supreme. Thus, ‘Sahamahana’ reminds Lord Shiva’s another name ‘Mahadeva’, one who dwells with supreme power. The scriptures connect Mahadeva with the mighty mind and the mighty mind with the moon. Thus, ‘Sahamahana’ or ‘Mahadeva’ represents the Moon-Form of Lord Shiva.
(7) Bhima (Space-Form): The word ‘Bhima’ refers to something huge which covers everything. The sky is all pervading. Therefore, ‘Bhima” represents the ‘Space-Form’ of Lord Shiva.
(8) Ishana (Sun-Form): The word ‘Ishana’ stands for something that is luminous. It also means the controller or the supporter of all. It also refers to the intellect through which we get knowledge.
Thus, these eight names and forms of Lord Shiva cover 5 elements, mind, intellect, and Jiva. Each individual consists of these eight forms.
In the Bhagavad Gita, we find similar eight parts of Prakriti.
In Shrimad Bhagavad Gita (7.4), Shir Krishna says, “Earth, water, fire, wind, space, mind, intellect, and ego – these are My Eight-fold Prakriti.”
Shri Pushpadanta says that Lord Shiva, the Manifested Brahman, is most beloved to His devotee and the devotee salutes Him with his/her heart and soul.
Meaning: O Giver of Refuge (Lord Shiva)! Om consists of three letters A, U, and M. As separate letters, Om refers to the three Vedas (Rig, Yajur, and Sama), three states of Consciousness (Jagrata (waking), Svapna (dreaming), and Sushupti (dreamless sleep), three worlds (Bhur, Bhuvah, and Svaha), and the three gods (Brahma, Vishnu, and Mahesh). Thus, as separate letters, Om refers to You as the Saguna Brahman. On the other hand, as combined sound of Om (anahata nada), refers to You as the omnipresent absolute Nirguna Brahman which is represented by the Turiya, the fourth state of Consciousness.
Reflections: In this shloka, Pushpadanta brings out the essential part of the Vedas, namely Om or Pranava. He then mentioned that Lord Shiva is Om, the Saguna, and the Nirguna Brahman.
Shri Krishna in the Bhagavad Gita (7.8) said: “I am Pranava (Om) in all the Vedas.” Upanishads clearly state that Om is the Saguna and the Nirguna Brahman. Om is the first manifestation of the Absolute Brahman, so going backward from the manifested Brahman to the Unmanifested Brahman, Om is the final step before merging with the Absolute Unmanifested Brahman.
Sri Ramakrishna says that as a seeker of God advances in the spiritual path, his/her rituals like sandhya and others merge into the Gayatri Mantra, meaning he/she just recites the Gayatri Mantra. When the seeker advances further, the Gayari merges into Om. Then, the seeker merges with the Brahman.
Many seekers who follow the teachings of the Upanishads, just recite Om to realize Brahman. The following are a few quotations from the major Upanishads regarding Om.
Kathopanishad:
Upon being asked by Nachiketa, when Yama started to impart the knowledge of Brahman to him, this is what he said at first:
Yama said, “I will tell you the one which has been declared by all the Vedas as their goal, which is the aim of all austerities, and by desiring which people lead the life of celibacy. This is Om. (Kathopanishad 1.2.15)
“This syllable Om is indeed Brahman. It is the Supreme. Whosoever knows this Om obtains all that one desires. (Kathopanishad 1.2.16)
“Om is the best support. It is the final support. Whosoever knows this support is adored in the world of Brahma.” (Kathopanishad 1.2.17)
Mundakopanishad:
The essence of the Upanishads is Brahman, and the symbol of Brahman is Om.
Maharshi Angira instructs Shaunaka that by contemplating the meaning of Om and repeating its sound, one realizes that one’s self is the reflection of Brahman. The meditation on the Atman as such is denoted by the placing of the arrow upon the bow. The realization that the reflected consciousness is identical with Pure Consciousness is described as striking the mark. Thus, the beginners are advised to meditate on Brahman through the symbol Om.
Maharshi Angira tells Shaunaka the following:
“Om is the bow; the Atman is the arrow; Brahman is said to be the target. It is to be struck by an undistracted mind. Then the Atman becomes one with Brahman, as the arrow with the target.” (Mundakopanishad 2.2.4)
Om is the cause of Atman becoming one with Brahman. By constant repetition of Om, the mind gets purified, and one realizes that the Atman and Brahman are one.
Mandukya Upanishad:
The very first Mantra of the Mandukya Upanishad says the following:
“Om, the Word, is all this (i.e. the whole universe). A clear explanation of it is as follows: All that is past, present, and future is, indeed, Om. And whatever else there is, beyond the three-fold division of time – that also is truly OM.” (Mnadukya Upanishad, Manra 1).
Prashnopanishad:
“Then, Satyakama, the son of Sibi, asked Pippalada: Sir, if among people someone should here meditate on the syllable Om until death, which world, verily, would that person win hereby?” (Prashnopanishad 5.1)
“Pippalada replied: O Satyakama, the syllable Om is the Supreme Brahman and also the other Brahman (the first manifestation of the Absolute). Therefore, one who knows it, attains the one or the other, with its support.” (Prashnopanishad 5.2)
Shwetashwatar Upanishad:
“The (visible) form of fire, while it lies latent in its source (the firewood), is not perceived; yet there is no destruction of its subtle form. That very fire can be brought out again by means of (persistent) rubbing of the wood, its source. In like manner, Atman, which exists in two states, like fire, can be grasped in this very body by means of Om.” (Shwetashvatara Upanishad 1.13)
“By making the body the lower piece of wood, and Om the upper piece, and through the practice of the friction of meditation, one perceives the luminous Self, hidden like the fire in the wood.” (Shwetashvatara Upanishad 1.14)
Bhagavad Gita:
In the Bhagavad Gita, Shri Krishna mentions the three epithets of Brahman, namely Om, Tat, and Sat.
Shri Krishna said (Bhagavad Gita 17.23 and 24): “”Om Tat Sat” – this has been declared as the three-fold designation of Brahman. At the beginning of the universe, the Brahmins, the Vedas, and the Sacrifices were created by Brahman.”
“Therefore, the followers of the Vedas always utter “Om” when they begin the acts of sacrifice (Yajna), charity (Dana), and austerity (Tapa) enjoined by the scriptures.”
Sri Ramakrishna:
Sri Ramakrishna from his direct experience reveals the significance of Om in his own way.
He says, “The Absolute and the Relative belong to one and the same Reality. What is beyond speech and mind is born in the flesh, assuming various forms and engaging in various activities. From that one Om has sprung ‘Om Shiva’, ‘Om Kali’, and ‘Om Krishna’. Suppose the master of a house has sent out a small boy of the family to invite people to a feast. All look on the boy with great fondness and affection because he is the son or grandson of a prominent man.”
Sri Ramakrishna mentions that Om is the final stage before becoming one with Brahman. He says, “One who has realized God no longer performs religious duties such as the sandhya. In his case, the sandhya merges in the Gayatri. When that happens, it is enough for a person to repeat just the Gayatri mantra. Then the Gayatri merges in Om. After that, one no longer chants even the Gayatri; it is enough then to chant simply Om.
In this quote, he talks about the sound of Om. He says, “The sound Om is Brahman. The Rishis and Sages practiced austerity to realize that Sound-Brahman…’What will you gain’, some sages ask, ‘by merely hearing this sound?’ You hear the roar of the ocean from a distance. By following the roar, you can reach the ocean. As long as there is the roar, there must also be the ocean. By following the trail of Om you attain Brahman, of which the Word is the symbol. That Brahman has been described by the Vedas as the ultimate goal. But such a vision is not possible as long as you are conscious of your ego. A man realizes Brahman only when he feels neither “I” nor ‘you’., neither ‘one’ nor ‘many’.”
In the following quote, Sri Ramakrishna describes his own direct experience. He says, “(To Mahima) You explain Om with reference to A (creation), U (preservation), and M (dissolution) only. But, I give the illustration of the sound of a gong: ‘tom’, t—o—m. It is the merging of the Lila in the Nitya: the gross, the subtle, and the causal merge in the Great Cause; waking, dream, and the deep sleep merge in Turiya. The striking of the gong is like the falling of a heavy weight into a big ocean. Waves begin to rise; the Relative rises from the Absolute; the causal, subtle, and gross bodies appear out of the Great Cause; from Turiya emerge the states of deep sleep, dream, and waking. These waves arising from the Great Ocean merge again in the Great Ocean. From the Absolute to the Relative, and from the Relative to the Absolute…. I have clearly perceived all these things. It has been revealed to me that there exists an Ocean of Consciousness without limit. From It come all things of the relative plane, and in It, they merge again. Millions of Brahmandas rise in that Chidakasha and merge in It again.”
Pushpadanta says that Lord Shiva is Om and thus He is the Saguna as well as the Nirguna Brahman. Om Namah Shivaya.
Meaning: The great yogis who have total self-control, regulate their breaths, make their minds free from all the thought waves, and focus on the inner recess of their hearts, get a direct experience of the Ultimate Truth. With this realization, they feel as if they have taken a dip into a lake of nectar and experience infinite bliss within. As a result of this dip, their hairs stand on end and their eyes get filled with tears of joy. O Lord Shiva! This Ultimate Truth, known in the scriptures, is verily Yourself.
Reflections:
By mentioning ‘Yaminah’, Pushpadanta refers to the eight steps of Raja Yoga. They are (1) Yama, (2) Niyama, (3) Asana, (4) Pranayama, (5) Pratyahara, (6) Dharana, (7) Dhyana, and (8) Samadhi. After having mastery over the first seven steps, the yogi attains the final state of Samadhi in which the yogi experiences the Ultimate Truth.
Swami Vivekananda in his Raja Yoga had elaborately explained all these steps. These are spiritual practices for a yogi. Let us briefly remember what these steps are.
(1) Yama: It means self-control. There are five major controls have been mentioned for us to practice. (i) ‘Ahimsa’ – not to hurt anyone through thoughts, speech, and actions. (ii) ‘Satya’ – being truthful. (iii) ‘Asteya’ – non-stealing. (iv) ‘Brahmacharya’ – practicing celibacy and (v) ‘Aparigraha’ – to live a simple life with minimum means. It also includes not receiving any gift from anyone.
(2) Niyama: Like Yama, this is also for the moral training. It includes five things. (i) ‘Shaucha’ – practicing cleanliness of the body, surroundings, and mind. (ii) ‘Santosha’ – developing contentment. (iii) ‘Tapa’ – austerity. To bear without complaint whatever suffering comes in the practice of Yoga. (iv) ‘Swadhyaya’ – studying scriptures, and (v) ‘Ishwara-Pranidhana’ – self-surrender to God.
(3) Asana: Developing a posture in which one can comfortably sit for a long time to meditate. Bhagavad Gia describes sitting with crossed legs with back, neck, and head aligned in a straight line.
(4) Pranayama: To control the breathing through proper practice so it becomes smooth and slow in pace. Through this one can get control over ‘prana’, the vital forces, and then the mind.
(5) Pratyahara: Controlling the mind. First, observe and then know our mind. The more we know our mind, the better will be our control over it. Let not the mind wander around.
(6) Dharana: Learn how to focus our mind on one thing or at one point. For example, focus the mind on the lotus of the heart, which is filled with effulgent light, or focus the mind on the lotus in the brain as full of light, or focus on the various centers of Sushumna.
(7) Dhyana: Continuously focusing the mind on the Atman residing in the lotus of the heart is dhyana. It leads to the next state Samadhi.
(8) Samadhi: When the focus of the mind on the Atman is uninterrupted like an oil poured from one vessel to the other and is continuous and smooth, then we call it a state of Samadhi. Another analogy for the state of the focused mind on the Atman is the un-flickered flame of a candle in a windless environment. In that state, the mind disappears. There will not be any ‘I Consciousness’. Sri Ramakrishna says that a salt doll went to measure the depth of an ocean. As soon as it went in, it merged completely into the ocean. Thus, the ‘I’ of the person disappears in the Samadhi. After the Samadhi the person becomes enlightened. After this state one experiences infinite bliss within which is not dependent on any object.
Pushpadanta says that yogis realize this Atman in the inner recess of their hearts. Then they take a dip into this Satchidananda Atman. It is like taking a dip into a lake of bliss. As a result, they have goosebumps, and their eyes get filled with tears of joy. Upanishads say that all possible worldly joys combined will be like a drop of the joy that yogis experience by taking a dip into the lake of Sachidananda Atman. To acquire this infinite bliss, we have to practice all the needed steps, dive deep into the inner recess of our hearts, and realize the Atman. Pushpadanta says that this Atman or Brahman is Lord Shiva.
Once Sri Ramakrishna asked Narendra: “Suppose there were a cup of syrup, and you were a fly. Where would you sit to drink the syrup? Narendra said, “I would sit on the edge of the cup and stretch out my neck to drink it.” Sri Ramakrishna asked, “Why? What is the harm of plunging into the middle of the cup and drinking the syrup?” Narendra answered, “Then I should stick in the syrup and die.” Sri Ramakrishna said to him, “My child, that is not the nature of the Nectar of Satchidananda. It is the Nectar of Immortality. People do not die from diving into It. On the contrary, they become immortal.”
Ramakrishna said, “Therefore I say, dive deep. Don’t be afraid. By diving deep into God, one becomes immortal.”
Let us pray to Lord Shiva to help us become capable of diving deep into this inner recess of our heart, into the ocean of Satchidananda, and become one with Him. Om Namah Shivaya.
Meaning: O Destroyer of Kamadeva! Dwelling joyfully in the cremation grounds, being friendly with ghosts and demons, wearing the ashes of burnt dead bodies on yourself and having a garland of human skulls makes you look externally as inauspicious, but O the Giver of Boons! You are supremely auspicious to your devotees who meditate on you.
Reflections: In the previous shloka 23, Pushpadanta gave a pleasant picture of Lord Shiva as Ardhanarishwara, being half Shiva and half Shakti (Parvati). In this shloka he gives totally a different picture of Lord Shiva.
Even after reading Pushpadanta’s comments in the previous shloka If anyone still has a doubt about Lord Shiva’s character by looking at the form of Ardhanarishwara, this shloka definitely destroys that doubt by looking at the Shiva who is completely filled with Vairagya (dispassion) and whose mind is fully withdrawn from the transient world.
Before we reflect on the Lord Shiva’s form described in this shloka, let us try to remember all the forms of Lord Shiva described in the shlokas 1 through 23 of the Shiva Mahimna Stotra. It helps us to meditate on Lord Shiva.
About Lord Shiva’s Various Forms:
(1) In the shloka – 2, Pushpadanta says that You are incomprehensible, but, when You manifest with your divine form, whose mind and speech do not get attracted to You? Meaning, Your form, eventually, attracts everyone’s mind and speech.
(2) In the shloka – 3, Pushpadanta says that You have created nectar-like Vedas. Can the speech of even Brihaspati, the teacher of the Devas, amaze you? Meaning, even Brihaspati’s attempt falls short in describing you.
(3) In the shloka – 7, Pushpadanta says that all religious paths lead to you. Here Lord Shiva has been described as Brahman, the Ultimate Reality.
(4) In the shloka – 8, by making a list of a few items Lord Shiva possess, Pushpadanta gives us a picture of Lord Shiva and His surroundings. Lord Shiva’s slightest graceful look gives abundance of wealth to His devotees, but for himself, He keeps only (i) Nandi (Bull), (ii) a club weapon, (iii) an axe, (iv) tiger-skin cloth, (v) ashes, (vi) snakes, and (vii) a human skull. He remains mostly introvert and in a blissful state. He does not need many things to be happy.
(5) In the shloka – 10, Pushpadanta described the form of Lord Shiva as an infinite luminous pillar of fire that appeared in front of Brahma and Vishnu who were fighting for their superiority.
(6) In the shloka – 14, Pushpadanta gives a picture of Lord Shiva drinking poison to save the world.
(7) In the shloka – 15, Pushpadanta tells us how Lord Shiva burnt Kamadeva, the god of love, to ashes with the fire of His knowledge coming out from His third eye.
(8) In the shloka – 16, we find Lord Shiva was dancing to save the world, but His mighty form created a havoc in the universe. His dancing movements of His mace-like arms were hitting and breaking the planets, His long-matted hairs were breaking the heaven, and His feet movements were shaking the earth.
(9) In the shloka – 17, we have the picture of Lord Shiva as Gangadhara. The mighty Ganga trapped in the Jata (hair) of Lord Shiva and after her prayer, when He moved one of His hairs, then Ganga came out like a little stream. It is like the auspiciousness of Lord Shiva coming out from His head to bless humanity in the form of Ganga.
(10) In the shloka – 18, we have another picture of Lord Shiva who is ready to destroy the demon Tripura. He could have destroyed Tripura with an ease of destroying a blade of grass, but as an act of play, He made the earth as His chariot, sun and moon as its two wheels, Brahma as the charioteer, mountain Meru as His bow, and Vishnu, who holds a discus in hand, as His arrow.
(11) In the shloka – 22, we see Lord Shiva as a hunter. With the swift of a hunter, He shot an arrow to Brahma who was running like a dear.
(12) Lastly, in the sholka – 23, Pushpadanta gave us a pleasant and loving picture of Lord Shiva as ‘Ardhanarishwara’, half Shiva and half Shakti.
After giving the pictures of all these various forms of Lord Shiva, in this shloka – 24, Pushpadanta gives us a picture of Lord Shiva who is filled with Vairagya and who is teaching us the transitoriness of the world.
Cremation Ground: Lord Shiva enjoys meditating in the cremation ground. People’s minds get easily filled with Vairagya (dispassion) in the cremation ground. When a person goes to cremate the body of a near and dear one, he/she starts thinking of the ultimate end of the body in the world. One start thinking of the purpose of life. If after all the running around in life for wealth, worldly pleasures, power, position, and to fulfill various other worldly desires, the body dies and it is going to be cremated, then one sees no purpose of all these efforts.
In the cremation ground, spiritually minded people think that the life is short. We don’t know when the body will fall off. So, it is wiser to focus our minds more on realization of Atman before it falls. Thus, Lord Shiva, by staying in the cremation ground teaches us the urgency to realize Atman and to do service to humanity.
Being friendly with ghosts and demons: Who hang around in the cremation ground? Ghosts and demons. If we want to meditate in the cremation ground, then we must have a friendship with all those who stay there. Because of fear, people hate all the spirits who live in that ground. Lord Shiva is fearless. The fear of all fears is death. One who has conquered death has no fear of anything.
Also, Lord Shiva is compassionate. He embraces all and hates none. He is a friend of all including ghosts and demons. For Lord Shiva, everyone has a part to play in the universe and everyone has a possibility to improve and move on towards the Ultimate Goal, to be one with Brahman.
Wearing the ashes of the dead bodies:
When I came to USA in December 1971, on February 16, 1972, I found several people wearing ashes on their foreheads. In India, I have seen many devotees wearing ashes (vibhuti bhashma) on their foreheads every day. I was surprised to see similar things in USA. Upon inquiry, I found that it was Ash Wednesday. I was happy to see this connection. I told my non-Indian American friend that Lord Shiva wears ashes on his forehead. Lord Shiva reminds all that this body is temporary and when it is cremated after death, it will turn into ashes.
Body is a useful instrument. Sri Ramakrishna says that human body is a mold. When we realize that everything inside the body and the body itself is nothing but Atman (Pure Consciousness), then its job is done. We must keep our body healthy and clean and use it to realize the above-mentioned goal of life. Too much pampering and decorating the body is a wastage of time.
Wearing a garland of human skulls:
A human skull is like the base. Inside the skull and on the skull a human face is made. It has eyes, ears, nose, mouth, and brain. People’s charms of the faces and the developments of brains make them look different, but the skulls are basically same. By wearing a garland of skulls, Lord Shiva shows that all beings externally look different, but they are basically same.
Looking inauspicious, but being auspicious:
Being in the cremation ground surrounded by ghosts and demons, and wearing ashes on the body and a garland of human skulls make Lord Shiva’s look as inauspicious. But Lord Shiva’s name is “Bholanath”, a very simple-minded person. Because He loves all and always thinks about the good of all, He can be easily pleased. His very name “Shiva” means auspicious.
Auspicious means bringing success in our spiritual practices. Lord Shiva mostly is in meditative mood. Thinking of Him inspires us to get absorbed in meditation and become one with Brahman. Thus, Lord Shiva is most auspicious.
Scriptural study and prayers:
Spiritual teachers say that when we study scriptures, we have to think that we are going to live for hundred years, but when we sit for prayer, we have to think that the death may come the very next moment, and we don’t have much time to waste. Thus, we must focus our mind fully in our prayer without wasting any time.
Swami Vivekananda’s thoughts on death:
Swami Vivekananda had expressed very clearly what Lord Shiva is teaching us through his external look presented by Pushpadanta in this shloka.
Shri Surendra Nath Das Gupta wrote the following (from the Complete Works of Swami Vivekananda):
“One day, with some of my young friends belonging to different colleges, I went to the Belur Math to see Swamiji (Swami Vivekananda)….He asked us, “What is the grandest of all the truths in life?..As none put forth any reply, he exclaimed in his inspiring language:
Swamiji said, “Look here – we shall all die! Bear this in mind always, and then spirit within will wake up. Then only, meanness will vanish from you, practicality in work will come, you will get new vigor in mind and body, and those who come in contact with you will also feel that they have really got something uplifting from you.”…
I asked, “But Swamiji, will not the spirit break down at the thought of death and the heart be overpowered by despondency?
Swamiji said, “Quite so. At first, the heart will break down, and despondency and gloomy thoughts will occupy your mind. But persists; let days pass like that – and then? Then you will see that new strength has come into the heart, that the constant thought of death is giving you a new life and is making you more and more thoughtful by bringing every moment before your mind’s eye the truth of the saying, ‘Vanity of vanities, all is vanity!’
Swamiji Continued, “Wait! Let days, months, and years pass, and you will feel that the spirit within is waking up with the strength of a lion, that the little power within has transformed itself into a mighty power! Think of death always, and you will realize the truth of every word I say. What more shall I say in words!””
Happiness and miseries; life and death:
In the Karma Yoga, Swami Vivekananda says, “The only way of getting out of misery is giving up the idea of happiness, because these two are linked to each other. On one side there is happiness, on the other there is misery. On one side there is life, on the other there is death. The only way to get beyond death is to give up the love of life. Life and death are the same thing, looked at from different points. So, the idea of happiness without misery, or life without death, is very good for school-children; but the thinkers sees that it is all a contradictions in terms and gives up both.”
Bhagavad Gita:
Shri Krishna says in the Bhagavad Gita (2.27),
“Anything that is born, its death is certain, and anything that dies, its birth is certain. Therefore, O Arjuna, you should not grieve over a situation that is unavoidable.”
In the next shloka of the Bhagavad Gita (2.28), Shri Krishna says,
“O Bharata! All beings are unmanifest in their beginning, manifest in their middle state, and unmanifest again in their end. Why, then, lament for them?”
Initially, we were one with the Brahman that is Unmanifested, in the middle we take forms as beings, and in the end we again merge in the Brahman. Therefore, we should not lament in losing these forms.
Shri Krishna says that this Atman (Brahman) cannot be destroyed by the weapons, fire cannot burn it, water cannot drown it, and wind cannot blow it. It is eternal and that is our true nature.
We never die:
In Raja Yoga Swami Vivekananda says, “When by analyzing his own mind, man comes face to face, as it were, with something (Atman) which is never destroyed, something which is, by its own nature, eternally pure and perfect, he will no more be miserable, no more unhappy. All misery comes from fear, from unsatisfied desire. Man will find that he never dies, and then he will have no more fear of death. When he knows that he is perfect, he will have no more vain desires, and both these causes being absent, there will be no more misery – there will be perfect bliss, even while living in this body.”
What we learn:
Lord Shiva’s external look described in the shloka 24 of the Shiva Mahimna Stotra seems inauspicious, but it teaches us great lessons and helps us attain the goal of human life, God-realization. Thus, this inauspicious look is in reality auspicious. May Lord Shiva bless us to attain this goal.
Meaning: O Puramathana (Lord Shiva)! Mother Parvati saw that in front of her, Kamadeva, the god of lust, who was holding a bow in his hands, was burnt to ashes within seconds. But, despite this, if she thinks that you are attracted by her beauty because you kept her on your left side, then, O Shiva who has total self-control! O Giver of the boons! women are self-deluded.
Reflections: In the 15th shloka of Shiva Mahimna Stotra, we mentioned that Brahma gave a boon to the demon Tarakasura that he could be killed only by the son of Lord Shiva. For that reason, all the gods sent Kamadeva, the god of lust, to break Lord Shiva’s Samadhi and infuse lust in his mind, so Shiva and Parvati can have a son. But, Lord Shiva, who has total self-control, immediately burnt Kamadeva to ashes with his fire of Knowledge. At that time, Mother Parvati was around Lord Shiva. She witnessed this scene.
In the 21st shloka of the Shiva Mahimna Stotra, we learned that Mother Sati was born as Mother Parvati. She wanted to marry Lord Shiva, so she did lots of austerities to please Lord Shiva. As Lord Shiva remains mostly in Samadhi, it was not easy to please Him. But Mother Parvati’s determination, sincerity, commitment, and severe austerity pleased Lord Shiva. Not only did Lord Shiva agree to marry Mother Parvati, but to express His love for Her, He gave her a place on His left side.
This is symbolic. Lord Shiva is called “Ardhanarishwara”. In the picture of Ardhanarishwara, we find the right half is Lord Shiva and the left half is Mother Parvati. This tells us that Brahman and Its power Shakti or Maya are inseparable. Sri Ramakrishna said that in the inactive state, we call the Ultimate Reality Brahman, and when It is in the active state of creation, preservation, and dissolution of the universe, we call It Shakti or Maya. Mother Parvati is the power of Lord Shiva.
Now, Pushpadanta gives a human touch to Lord Shiva and Mother Parvati by bringing a ‘loving tease’ in their relationship which usually we find between husband and wife. Pushpadanta says that Mother Parvati witnessed Lord Shiva burning Kamadeva, the god of lust, to ashes within a fraction of a second, like burning a blade of grass. Despite this, if Mother Parvati, by looking at the Ardhanarishwara Form of Lord Shiva, thinks that He was infatuated by her beauty, then definitely she is self-deluded.
Through this, Pushpadanta also sends a message to all other people who, by looking at the Ardhanarishwara Form, think that Lord Shiva is infatuated with the beauty of Mother Parvati. Pushpadanta tells them to remember that Lord Shiva has total self-control and He burnt Kamadeva to ashes within a fraction of a second. Only out of love, Lord Shiva gave Mother Parvati a place on His left side.
Many times, we make mistakes and misunderstand the behavior of gods and goddesses or of spiritual teachers by projecting our own human weaknesses into them. Many people thought that Sri Ramakrishna was a crazy man. They used to call him “Pagal Bhattacharya”. Little did they know about the high spiritual state of Sri Ramakrishna. Similarly, people are interested in gossiping about the behavior of spiritual teachers. A sincere devotee and a spiritual seeker should stay away from such gossip. It spoils our minds and we do not get any benefit out of it. On the other hand, we should not be totally blind in following spiritual teachers’ guidance. We have to be alert and try to understand the spiritual guidance and keep our eyes open. Sri Ramakrishna asked his disciples first to watch him day and night to check whether he was practicing what he was preaching, and then follow his guidance. All genuine spiritual teachers say the same things. They are unselfish and guide others on the spiritual path out of love.
Notice that, in this shloka, Pushpadanta addressed Lord Shiva as (1) Puramathana, the destroyer of the Tripura. The three cities represent three gunas; Sattva, Rajas, and Tamas. Lord Shiva destroyed these cities means He is beyond the three gunas. (2) Varada, the giver of the boons. Lord Shiva out of compassion gives boons to the devotees and fulfills their desires. He fulfilled the desire of Mother Parvati to marry her. (3) Yama Nirata, one who enjoys self-control. Lord Shiva has total self-control. With these three names Pushpadanta made it clear that only out of love, Lord Shiva kept Mother Parvati on His left side in the Ardhanarishwara Form.
Let us pray to Lord Shiva to help us acquire total self-control.
Meaning: O Lord Shiva! Lustful Brahma wanted to have a lustful act with his own daughter. Out of fear, the daughter became a hind and ran. Brahma took the body of a stag and ran after her. To punish Brahma for his unethical motive, O Lord, with the swift of a hunter you took a bow in your hand and shot an arrow at Brahma. The fearful Brahma thinking about the pain of being pierced by the arow ran into heaven. But, even today, the arrow is not giving up its chase of Brahma.
Reflections:
This shloka teaches us how Lord Shiva as Brahman protects the righteousness on earth and punishes even Brahma for an unethical motive. This is how ultimately righteousness prevails on earth for the good of humanity to survive. When the earth is filled with only unrighteousness, then it is an indication of the time of dissolution of humanity.
This shloka also teaches us not to underestimate the power of lust.
Shri Krishna says in the Bhagavad Gita (16.21),
“Lust, anger, and greed are three gates to hell which bring destruction of an individual soul. Therefore, these three should be avoided.”
In the Gospel, Shri Ramakrishna told his devotees, again and again, to renounce ‘lust and greed’. These two are great forces that bring the human being’s mind down to the lower level. They do not let the mind rise to a higher level which brings Knowledge, Peace, fulfillment, and Bliss. Initially, lust and greed may bring some pleasure, but they bring tons of miseries. People do all kinds of evil things motivated by lust and greed. Anger follows lust and greed.
That is the reason that in the Hindu scriptures, many stories tell us how great personalities fell from their higher level of consciousness due to lust and greed, especially lust. Whenever a man was performing severe austerities, Indra, the king of gods thought that he was trying to take away his position. So, Indra sent beautiful girls to deviate the mind of the man from spirituality, and most of the time he succeeded.
Let us remember two stories of Devarshi Narada.
(Note: The following two stories have been written to learn the important lesson they teach us. These stories have different versions. For the exact wording of the stories, please go through the Hindu scriptures.)
Narada conquering lust:
Devarshi Narada is a great Rishi and a beloved devotee of Lord Vishnu. Once Narada was meditating. Indra sent lots of distractions including the Kamadeva, the god of lust. But nothing disturbed Narada’s meditation. When Narada conquered the god of lust, he was very happy and proud of himself. He got up from his meditation and immediately went to Lord Shiva to tell him about it. Lord Shiva was very happy listening to Narada about his victory over the lust. Then, Lord Shiva told Narada that this was a very interesting experience, but he should not tell this to Lord Vishnu. However, Narada was so proud of himself that he went to Lord Vishnu and bragged about his victory over the lust. Lord Vishnu admired him and smiled.
To teach Narada and all of us a lesson, Lord Vishnu created a situation. Mother Lakshmiji became a princess of a king. The king announced that his daughter was going to select her husband in a big “Swayamvara” ceremony. Narada was passing by, and he found out about this event. Out of curiosity to see the princess, he went to the king’s palace. The king received him with honor and asked him to see the palm of his daughter and give advice about what kind of husband she should select. Narada, looking at the palm of the princess, mentally fell in love with her, and mentally he decided that he would like to marry this princess. He thought that Lord Vishnu was very handsome and if he got the beauty of his face, then definitely the princess would select him as her husband. He went to Lord Vishnu and told him his wish. Lord Vishnu told Narada that he had conquered the lust a while ago, and how come now he was eager to marry. Narada said, “At this moment this is my decision, and I want the face of Hari. Please grant me that boon.” Lord Vishu said, “So be it.”
Narada was extremely happy and on the day of the “Swayamvara,” he dressed up nicely and stood in the line of princes who wanted to marry the princess. Mother Lakshmiji as princess came with a garland of flowers to select her husband. She went to each one, listened to the candidate, looked at the candidate, and moved on. Narada was sure that he would be selected. When the princess came to Narada, she laughed at him and moved on. Narada was confused and disappointed. He didn’t know why the princess laughed at him. Then, he found that the princess put the garland on the neck of a handsome man and chose him as her husband. After that, both, the princess, and the handsome man, disappeared.
Upon someone’s suggestion, Narada looked at his face in the pool of water and found that he had a ‘monkey face’. Narada was enraged. He felt that he was cheated by Lord Vishnu. He had asked for the handsome face of Hari (Vishnu), instead Lord Vishnu took another meaning of Hari, which means monkey. He ran to Lord Vishnu and found that the princess was none other than Mother Lakshmiji and Lord Vishnu was wearing the garland. Narada’s anger knew no bounds. He cursed Lord Vishnu and Mother Lakshmiji that they both would be born as human beings on earth, both would go through the pain of separation from each other, and monkeys would help them to be united. Lord Vishnu accepted the curse with a smile. He said for the good of the world, we will go through this. Later, Lord Vishnu was born as Sri Rama, and Mother Lakshmiji was born as Mother Sitaji.
Thus, the power of lust deluded even Devarshi Narada who had easy access to Lord Vishnu. What to talk about ordinary people. Therefore, we should never think and boast that ‘we have conquered the lust’.
Narada’s experience of Maya:
Shri Krishna says in the Bhagavad Gita (7.14):
“My divine Maya, made of the three gunas, is very difficult to overcome. Only those who take refuge in Me can cross over this Maya.”
Once Narada asked Shri Krishna, “What is Maya?” Shri Krishna said, “You will find out yourself. Let us go for a walk.” They both walked and walked into a deep forest. Finally, Shri Krishna said that he was very tired and thirsty. He could not walk anymore. He asked Narada to bring some water for him.
Narada walked around and found that there was a small village nearby. He went to the doors of a house and said, “Om Namo Narayanaya”. The doors opened and a beautiful girl greeted him. The girl was so charming that Narada forgot all about the water and got engaged in a conversation with her. He found that the girl was the daughter of the parents who owned the house and was not married. The girl invited him inside the house. Her parents welcomed Narada with lots of love and offered him food and water. In the conversation, the parents mentioned that they are looking for a young man for their daughter to get married. Narada was overjoyed and said that if it was okay with the daughter and the parents, then he would be happy to marry her. They were all happy. Narada and the girl got married. Narada started working to make money. He built a house near a river. Several years passed. Narada and his wife had a couple of children. They were living happily.
One day, the weather changed suddenly. A big storm came and brought torrential rain for several days. Everything was flooded. The river swelled and it started flowing with a strong current. Houses, animals, and people started drowning in the river. Narada’s house was filled with water, and they were dragged into the river by its current. Narada kept his two children in his two arms and his wife was holding him around his neck. Thus, Narada was trying to swim in the forceful river. At one point his wife could not hold him and she was dragged away by the powerful current of the river. Slowly, he started losing his grip on his children. One by one he lost both of his children. Narada was struggling to remain on the top of the water. Finally, he lost his consciousness. When he was awake, he found himself on the bank of the river lying in the sand. He was profusely crying for losing everything. At that time, he heard the voice of Shri Krishna, “Did you get my water?” He was dumbfounded. What did he experience? Was that experience real? How many years passed? He saluted Shri Krishna and said, “Now I know what Maya is.”
Another Story about the Dominance of Lust:
In the shloka 22 of the Shiva Mahimna Stotra, Pushpadanta is referring to a story of how lust deluded even Brahma, the creator of the universe.
It seems to me that after looking at constellations, someone had made this story to show the power of lust.
Brahma is the creator of the universe. He creates things and people from his mind. He created many people, men, and women. But then they should have their children for the creation to continue. The story goes that first, he created 10,000 people. He asked them to do spiritual practices first and then raise families. Narada went to all of them and told them that to remain absorbed in God’s Consciousness is blissful. He told them not to get involved in marriages and raising families. They all renounced and didn’t marry. Brahma was upset.
Brahma then created another set of people. He also created Kamadev, the god of lust, and a beautiful girl, called Sandhya. Brahma gave a boon to Kamadeva that to whom he shot his arrows, their minds would get filled with lust. In an assembly, Kamadeva started shooting his arrows toward all, including his father Brahma. Everyone’s mind was filled with lust. Brahma’s mind also got filled with lust and he looked at his daughter with lustful eyes. Sandhya got afraid and to save herself she became a hind and ran. Brahma under the influence of the lust became a stag and ran after her. Lord Shiva saw this and he was disgusted. He scolded Brahma. Lord Shiva wanted Brahma to come back to his senses and stop chasing Sandhya. So, he, with the swiftness of a hunter, shot an arrow which started chasing Brahma. The fearful Brahma ran to heaven to save himself from this arrow. The arrow is still chasing Brahma even today.
Brahma came back to his senses and got ashamed of himself. He was angry with Kamadeva for polluting his mind and he cursed him that he would be burnt to death by Lord Shiva.
The mental forces of lust and anger are very strong. For most of the people, it takes years of spiritual practices to control them. People easily become victims of these forces. That is why Shri Krishna says in the Bhagavad Gita (5.23):
“A person is a Yogi and acquires happiness who can withstand the force of lust and anger in this life before his/her body falls off.”
In the spiritual path, just controlling lust and anger is not enough. One must develop a love for God, or an intense desire to realize Atman, one’s true divine identity. If one develops intense love for God or an intense desire to realize Atman, one can easily control lust because he/she will not be interested in sensual desires as they drag one away from God or Atman. Similarly, when one intensely seeks God or Atman, one moves towards Oneness in which case one does not want to hurt anyone.
Also, we must remember that we should not dwell much on the lust stories even if they are teaching us some lessons because our mind plays tricks and enjoys thinking of the stories rather than learning lessons. We must read and think of the stories that increase our love for God, intensify our Viveka (sense of discrimination between right and wrong), and renunciation, and encourage us to acquire Knowledge about Atman.
Meaning: Daksha Prajapati was the host of the yajna. He was the lord of all beings and an expert in performing yajnas. The yajna was conducted by the rishis and the devas were attending the yajna. O giver of refuge (Lord Shiva)! Even though You are always eager to give rewards to the yajnas, you destroyed Daksha Prajapati’s yajna. Because one who performs a yajna without any faith definitely brings destruction to the yajna.
Reflections:
Shri Krishna in the Bhagavad Gita (17.28) says,
“Without faith whatever sacrifice or gift is made, whatever austerity is practiced, whatever ceremony is observed, it is all called ‘Asat’ (not beneficial). It will not give any favorable result in this life or the next life.”
Daksha Prajapati’s yajna was not only devoid of faith, but he performed his yajna to insult Lord Shiva. Let us briefly remember the story behind this yajna.
The Story of Daksha Prajapati’s Yajna:
Once, in Prayaga, there was a big gathering of the devas, rishis, and others. Brahma and Shiva were also present there. At that time, Daksha Prajapati entered the hall. All, except Brahma and Shiva, stood up to give an honor to Daksha Prajapati. It seems Lord Shiva must have felt Daksha’s inflated ego and wanted to teach him a lesson.
Considering Brahma as his father, Daksha saluted him. Daksha thought of himself as higher than Lord Shiva. So, he was angry at Shiva for not giving him honor. Daksha abused Lord Shiva in front of all. Lord Shiva remained quiet and peaceful. Daksha’s anger grew more like a fire. He was not satisfied with his abuse. He wanted to do something more.
After some time, Daksha organized a yajna to insult Lord Shiva. He invited all the devas, rishis, and many other people except Lord Shiva. He did not even keep a place for Shiva. On the day of the yajna, Lord Shiva’s wife, Sati, saw everyone going to her father’s yajna. She was surprised to find out that she and Shiva were not invited to the yajna. Sati expressed her desire to go to see this yajna. Lord Shiva knew the reason for not being invited. He told Sati not to go to the yajna. But Sati felt an intense desire to go to the Yajna and see what was going on. She went to the yajna. Forget about receiving her cordially, no one in the yajna, including her father Daksha, even looked at her. She found that there was no seat kept for her husband Lord Shiva. She felt it was a great intentional insult to both. She could not bear it. To stop the yajna, she jumped into the fire of the yajna. The news of Sati’s giving up her life went to Lord Shiva. He sent his disciple Virabhadra to destroy the Yajna. Virabhadra and his army destroyed the whole yajna and killed those who opposed him.
Pushpadanta says that Lord Shiva is usually eager to reward the results of yajnas as it was mentioned in the previous shloka-20 of the Shiva Mahimna, but this yajna he destroyed because it was done for a malicious reason. It was clear that there was no faith in the performance of the yajna. In the end, out of compassion, Lord Shiva gave Daksha his life back. Mother Sati was born as Mother Parvati and married to Lord Shiva.
Reflections continue:
Sri Krishna says in the Bhagavad Gita (17.3);
“The faith of each person is per his/her natural disposition. O Bharata (Arjuna)! A person is made of his/her faith. As is the faith, so is the person.”
In Chapter 17 of the Bhagavad Gita, Shri Krishna describes three kinds of faiths: Sattvika (superior), Rajasika (mediocre), and Tamasika (inferior).
People with superior faith have high regard for the noble virtues. Their ideals are gods or people who exemplify such virtues in their lives. Such people also practice these noble virtues in life. These virtues are beneficial to humanity.
People with mediocre faith have high regard for material glories, like wealth, power, position, worldly skills, external appearances, and others. These people have high regard for gods or people who exhibit material glories.
People with inferior faiths are whimsical. They want inferior kinds of sensations. Such people worship spooky things that are terrifying and imaginaries, like ghosts, evil spirits, and others.
Knowingly or unknowingly, people have faith in many things, but in the spiritual path, they become skeptical. Swami Adiswarananda (Spiritual Head of Ramakrishna Vivekananda Center, New York) used to say that we have faith in the advertisements, carpenters, plumbers, doctors, pilots, and others, but we don’t have faith in the scriptures or spiritual teachers. Strangely, we have faith in the words of selfish-minded people, but not in the words of totally unselfish spiritual teachers.
In the spiritual path, one needs faith in God or Divinity, or Some Power that creates, preserves, and dissolves the universe, or some higher level of state of existence or of consciousness. Vedanta calls It Brahman, Pure Consciousness, or Sat-Chit-Ananda (Existence-Knowledge-Bliss Absolute). Vedanta says that the universe which we grasp by our senses and mind is limited by space, time, and causation. It is projected on the infinite and unlimited Brahman. In other words, Brahman appears as the limited universe due to an illusion created by the power of Brahman. What is in the macro is in the micro. The true nature of an individual is infinite and unlimited Atman (Pure Consciousness) and out of an illusion we think we are individuals limited by our body and mind. Atman is the same as Brahman.
To accept the fact mentally that (i) my true identity is divine Atman, (ii) Brahman is appearing as the universe out of illusion, and (iii) Brahman is Atman, is considered faith in the Vedanta.
Swami Vivekananda says that according to the old religions, a person is an atheist (faithless) who does not believe in God. But, according to the new religion, a person is an atheist who does not believe in himself/herself, meaning who does not believe that his/her true nature is divine, Atman.
We suffer, get filled with fear, limit ourselves, and do all kinds of evil things because we don’t have faith in our true divine identity. This lack of faith creates a ‘false ego’ like that of Daksha and it brings our destruction even though we perform religious rituals.
Shri Krishna says in the Bhagavad Gita (4.39):
“One who is full of faith and zeal and has subdued his senses obtains Knowledge; having obtained Knowledge, he/she soon attains the Supreme Peace.”
To attain fulfillment in our life, we must first develop a genuine faith in our true divine identity through readings of the scriptures, or the teachings of realized spiritual teachers and reflecting upon their meanings. Then, if we follow the guidance of the scriptures and the realized spiritual teachers to do spiritual practices, we will be able to realize the Atman, ‘our true divine identity’ which we believed in. After the direct realization of Atman, the faith and the fact become one. Then, we don’t need to present reasons for having our faith. If we are enjoying sunlight on a cloudless day and someone asks us to prove that the sun exists, then we just smile and say ‘I don’t need to prove it. I am enjoying it.’
One important thing is that we must hold on to the faith we had started with until we get the direct experience. Doubts and questions come to the mind to test our faith. At that time, our own conviction, spiritual teachers’ guidance, and our sincere prayers help us to hold on to that faith.
Sri Ramakrishna told a mythological story which has a great significance. Once a man wanted to cross the ocean. He asked Vibhishana what to do. Vibhishana wrote something on a piece of paper and tied it to the man’s cloth. He told the man that he can now walk on the water and cross the ocean easily. Vibhishana told him not to look at the paper to see what had been written on it. The man started walking on the water. He reached halfway and a curiosity arose in his mind to see what was written on the paper. He could not resist. He untied the knot, took out the paper, and saw it. It was just written ‘Rama’. He thought, ‘What? Just ‘Rama’? He lost his faith and then got drowned.
Thus, in the spiritual path, we must hold on to the faith we had started with until we have a direct experience. Regular spiritual practices and holy company help us nurture this initial faith and help make it stronger.
Meaning: O Lord Shiva! You always remain alert to give the fruits (rewards) of the Yajnas (religious rituals) to the performer as soon as it is completed. How can the completed ritual itself give the fruit (reward) without the worship of the Lord? Therefore, being convinced that You are the giver of the fruits (rewards) of the Yajnas (rituals), people become enthusiastic to perform Yajnas keeping faith in the Vedas.
Reflections: There are two theories about receiving rewards or punishments for our actions. Some people think that every action determines its result. Therefore, there is no need for God to keep a record of all our actions and then give us rewards or punishments. Some people think that if they perform the Yajnas described in the Vedas, then they go to heaven without any additional help from God. These are the views of the atheists.
The devotees of God think differently. Pushpadanta brings out the devotees’ point of view. In this shloka, he asks, ‘How does a material work by itself give a result without any divine intervention or a play of Consciousness?’ Pushpadanta’s answer is, ‘It cannot’. Consciousness which gives strength to a person to perform any ritual, which knows the motive behind the action, gives the appropriate result of the action. Lord Shiva is Pure Consciousness and as ‘Ishwara’ (God or Lord) is the ‘Karma Phala Data’, the giver of the fruits, or results, or rewards of the actions.
A person may think, ‘I eat, so I get strength’. Thus, eating is an action, and getting strength is the result. In this case, why do I need God to get the result of my action? But, the devotee asks, ‘Who gives us strength to eat?’, ‘Who gives us food?’, and ‘Who digests the food?’
Shri Krishna in the Bhagavad Gita` (15.13 & 14) says,
“Entering in the earth, I (God) sustain all beings by My energy, and becoming the sapid moon, I nourish all herbs (which give us food). As the fire Vaishwanara (fire in the stomach), I enter the bodies of all living creatures, and mingling with the vital forces, prana, and apana, I digest all the four kinds of food.”
Thus, devotees think that nothing happens without the help of God.
Many devotees perform rituals to fulfill their worldly desires. In Hinduism God is one, called Brahman, but has many forms according to the likings of the devotees. Devotees worship various forms of God. The fulfillment of their desires, the results of their worship, comes from Brahman through these forms. This thought has been expressed in the following shloka of the Bhagavad Gita.
Shri Krishna says, “A devotee having faith in a form of God worships that form. This form fulfills the devotee’s desires. However, the truth is that I (Brahman) fulfill the devotee’s desires through that form.” (Bhagavad Gita 7.22).
According to Puspadanta, Lord Shiva is the Brahman and He gives the rewards to the devotees through various forms.
Apparent Contradiction:
We just learned that Brahman fulfills the desires of the devotees through the forms of God they worship. The following shloka of the Bhagavad Gita says that God does not connect the result and an action.
Shri Krishna says, “Brahman (Pure Consciousness) does not create the ‘doer-ship’ or ‘the actions’ for the people to perform in the world. Also, It does not connect the fruits (results) with the actions. It is the Prakruti (the power of Brahman) that does all this.” (Bhagavad Gita 5.14)
It looks like there is a contradiction between the two statements. But this contradiction is apparent. Sri Ramakrishna explains that Brahman and Its Power, called Shakti, are inseparable. When Brahman is engaged in Creation, Preservation, and dissolution, we call It Shakti and when It is inactive, we call It Brahman. Thus, Brahman, Pure Consciousness, or Sat-Chit-Ananda (Existence-Knowledge-Bliss Absolute) is not doing anything. It is the Shakti, the Power of Brahman, that does all the work in the universe.
From the duality point of view, in a human being, there is Atman and there is body-mind-existence which consists of all the senses through which a person perceives the universe and performs all the activities. Atman and Brahman are the same. Atman, as Pure Consciousness, is inactive. It does not do anything. But in its presence intellect gets illumined and with that, the mind and the senses perform all the activities. Due to ignorance a ‘Jiva’ is formed which thinks that ‘I am a separate individual with body and mind, and I have desires to enjoy the world’. This Jiva, a reflection of the Atman in the mind goes through experiences of joys and sorrows. When Knowledge comes that the Jiva is a reflection of the Atman and it had created an illusion of having a separate existence, then the Jiva merges with Atman or Brahman. At that time there is no duality.
Shri Krishna says this in the Bhagavad Gita (18.61),
“God dwells in the hearts of all beings. O Arjuna! God’s Maya (Power) causes them to revolve as though mounted on a machine.”
We find in the Bhagavad Gita, sometimes Shri Krishna talks from the Advaita (Nonduality) point of view and sometimes from the Dvaita (duality) point of view. The Advaita point of view is the Ultimate Reality (Paramarthika Satya). It says there is only one Existence, Sat or Brahman. Out of illusion the universe and all beings are projected in the Brahman. Brahman appears as the universe with all beings. The Dvaita point of view is a Relative Reality (Vyavaharika Satya). In that, God exists and the universe with all beings exists. We need both, the Advaita and the Dvaita. The Ultimate Reality removes all our worldly problems and makes us one with Brahman. This destroys all our imaginary bondages and makes us free. It also makes us experience the infinite Bliss within. However, most of the time we are aware of our separate existence with our body and mind. In that state, the Duality philosophy helps us how to think and live in the world with sanity and strive for the Ultimate Reality.
Thus, the contradictions are apparent and not real. The God’s power Shakti, or Prakruti, or Maya explains the world’s existence and its activities in a sensible way.
From this point of view, God or Ishwar or Brahman seen through Its Power Maya, gives the results of our actions. Space, time, and causation exist in the realm of Maya. The causation, the chain of cause and effect, or the chain of action-result-action is infallible. Therefore, people think that every action has its sure effect, and there is no need for God. However, Brahman or Atman is beyond the Maya and therefore It is beyond space, time, and causation. When we become one with Atman or Brahman, we also go beyond all these limitations and laws.
Swami Vivekananda expresses this thought in the ‘Song of the Sannyasin’. He says,
“Who sows must reap,” they say, “and cause must bring
The sure effect: good, good; bad, bad; and none
Escapes the law – but whoso wears a form
Must wear the chain.” Too true; but far beyond
Both name and form is Atman, ever free.
Know thou art That, sannyasin bold! Say,
“Om Tat Sat, Om!”
That is why, in the Bhagavad Gita (7.22), first Shri Krishna said that He, as Brahman, gives rewards to the devotees of their worship through their chosen deities, but immediately afterward in (7.23) He says the following:
Shri Krishna says, “Those who worship various forms of God are not matured and the rewards of their worship are short-lived. Those who worship various forms of God, they attain these forms, while those who worship Me (as Brahman) come to Me.”
Here also we find the duality and non-duality points of view. Those who perform rituals for worldly rewards remain in the world and go through the cycles of joys and sorrows, and the cycles of births and deaths. On the other hand, those who perform actions to realize Brahman attain Brahman and become free from all the bondages. They get liberated and experience the inner unbroken Bliss.
Meaning: O Destroyer of Tripura (Lord Shiva)! Lord Vishnu was worshipping you by offering one thousand lotuses at your feet. He found that one lotus was missing. He then offered one of his lotus eyes to complete the one thousand lotus offering. His intense devotion then turned into a disc (Sudarshana Chakra) that he holds. This disc remains always alert to protect the three worlds.
Reflections:
Various Forms of Brahman:
In Hinduism, God is one, which is called, Brahman. This Brahman appears in many forms according to the devotees’ likings. Shri Krishna says in the twelfth chapter of the Bhagavad Gita (12.5):
“The path is very tough for those whose minds are set on realizing the Unmanifested (Formless God). It is very difficult to realize the Unmanifested for people who have body-consciousness.”
If we think that we have a body, then God also has a body. Realized spiritual teachers say that for most of the devotees, it is easy to begin focusing one’s mind on God with form and then realize that this form is just a representative of the Infinite Brahman. Finally, at one point, these forms dissolve into the Unmanifested Brahman.
Vishnu, Shiva, Brahma, Rama, Krishna, Kali, Durga, and others are various forms that represent the same formless infinite Brahman. No form is higher or lower. There are books for each of these forms describing the glories of that form through stories or hymns. In these books, all other forms of Brahman become subordinate to the form of the books. Thus, in the Shiva Mahimna Stotra, Lord Shiva is the main form of Brahman and all other forms like Vishnu, Brahma, and others worship Lord Shiva. In the books about the form of Lord Vishnu, Lord Shiva worships Lord Vishnu.
Many times, the immature devotees of Lord Shiva and Lord Vishnu don’t understand this point and they fight with each other claiming that their form of God is superior. It is like John tells Jack that his mother is superior, and he should worship his mother. Jack tells John the same thing asking him to worship his mother. Both the mothers are great. As mothers they are different, but the motherhood is the same. Thus, due to the devotees’ likings, the God’s forms are different, but the Godhood (Brahman) is the same.
The story of the offering of one thousand lotuses:
Every day Lord Vishnu offered one thousand lotuses to Lord Shiva along with the thousand names of Lord Shiva. One day, to test the devotion of Lord Vishnu, Lord Shiva invisibly stole one of the thousand lotuses. Lord Vishnu was completely engrossed in the offering. He didn’t notice this act. At the end of the offering, he found that one lotus was short. He was in a dilemma. To get up in the middle of an offering is an insult to Lord Shiva and so is not to offer one thousand lotuses. What to do? Suddenly, He realized that people call Him ‘Pundarikaksha’, meaning ‘lotus-eyed’. Without much thinking further, He plucked his one eye and offered it to Lord Shiva.
Lord Shiva was immediately pleased. He appeared to Lord Vishnu and granted Him his eye and a disc (Sudarshana Chakra) which remains constantly circling in His hand protecting all the three worlds. Shri Pushpadanta says that Lord Vishnu’s devotion turned into this Sudarshana Chakra. This story teaches us that a true devotee out of his/her love for God is ready to sacrifice anything even if it costs his/her life.
Devotee’s Sufferings:
Lord Shiva’s stealing one lotus is symbolic. It shows that God tests devotees through various challenging situations. If the devotees successfully go through these situations, their devotion becomes pure, and it shines like gold that has passed through a fire.
Most beginner devotees have this question: “Why do devotees have to suffer even though they pray to God?” Many prayers say ‘O God! You are the remover of devotees’ suffering.’ Such prayers create a feeling that God removes all the sufferings of the devotees and as a result, devotees do not have to suffer at all. Many devotees lose their faith in God when suffering comes despite their prayers.
When devotees advance in their spiritual path and develop a deeper understanding, they realize that happiness and suffering are part of life. One cannot avoid them. All people must go through joys and sorrows whether they pray to God or not. The devotees’ suffering becomes more striking because people say, ‘Oh! These devotees prayed to God, but they had to suffer so much!’
From the advanced devotees’ point of view, God is the doer of everything. God gives happiness and God gives sorrow. We must accept what God gives us and go through the circumstances holding on to God. During this painful time, we must hold on to God more firmly because there is no other alternative. Only God can give us strength to bear all the sufferings.
There is a story that Rama wanted to take a bath in the ocean. So, he put his arrows on the sand and pushed his bow in the sand to keep it vertical. After his bath when he lifted his bow, he saw it was tainted with blood. He dug into the ground and saw that his bow had pierced the back of a big frog. Rama felt sorry for the frog. He asked the frog why it had not screamed or complained about this. The frog said, “O Rama! If anyone else is giving me pain, then I pray to you. But, when you give me pain, to whom should I pray?”
Another example is of a mother and a child. A child ate dirt. The mother becomes angry and worried that this habit of eating dirt will harm the child in the future. Out of love and anger, she beats the child. The child holds the mother’s sari or cloth and cries. Sometimes the mother also cries while beating.
Sincere devotees do not seek suffering, but they know very well that many times in happiness they forget God, while in suffering they remember God more. Saint Kabir said a wonderful thing:
“Everyone prays to God during suffering. No one prays to God when one is happy. If one prays to God when one is happy, then there will not be sorrow anymore.”
Prayers and spiritual practices give us inner bliss which does not depend on any worldly object, and they give us inner strength to go through sufferings.
Devotees feel that through suffering God is testing their faith and devotion. Time passes. Good days pass and so do the bad days. When the devotees go through a painful time holding on to God, their faith and devotion to God deepen and become more mature. Such faith and devotion lead the devotees to realize God.
Even the incarnations of God suffer. Shri Rama, Shri Sitaji, Shri Krishna, Sri Ramakrishna, Holy Mother Sri Sarada Devi, Swami Vivekananda, and others went through many miseries. They showed that when we take a human form, we cannot avoid suffering. It is a part of life.
If we think of ‘suffering’ as a natural situation that arises in our life and ‘pain’ as the impact of the situation that we inflict on our mind, then we can say that ‘suffering is unavoidable, but the pain is optional’. Pain depends on how we take the situation. The pain of the marathon runner, mother giving birth to a child, studying for the test, doing exercises, and in other such cases, people bear it with joy.
Devotees take suffering as ‘prasad’ from God and bear it remembering God. Many times, suffering comes with a greater purpose. Sri Ramakrishna’s throat cancer brought the ‘devotees of the inner circle’ (devotees with strong faith in Sri Ramakrishna) closer to each other, to Sri Ramakrishna, and to God which resulted in the form of Sri Ramakrishna Math and Mission guiding and inspiring millions of people in the path of God-Realization and Unselfish Service to Humanity. In this shloka, Lord Vishnu’s devotion turned into “Sudarshana Chakra” which protects the three worlds.
From the Jnana Yoga (The Path of Knowledge) point of view, ‘Everything is Brahman, Pure Consciousness. Brahman has no happiness or miseries. When out of ignorance (Maya) an individual thinks that he/she is separate from the Brahman and has a body and mind, then that individual (Jiva) becomes happy or sad according to one’s desires being fulfilled or not fulfilled. Happiness and sorrows are like nightmares created by the mind. The only remedy is to wake up and realize that everything is Brahman and the various situations, and the happiness and the miseries are all projected onto Brahman due to Maya.
However, it is very difficult for most of the people to remain always established in Brahman. Therefore, when the mind comes down to the body-mind-consciousness, the attitude of the devotees is very practical and helpful.
Meaning: O Lord Shiva! To burn (destroy) the demon Tripura, who was like a blade of grass to you, why did you make such a big show of having the earth as your chariot, moon and sun as its two wheels, Brahma as the charioteer, mountain Meru as your bow, and Vishnu, who holds a discus in hand, as your arrow? Truly, the plans of the Lord, who wants to play with the objects that are under His total control, are not dependent on others.
Reflections:
In the reflections of Shloka 15 of the Shiva Mahimna Stotra, we talked about the story of Tarakasura. He was terrorizing gods and all the good people in the world. He had a boon that only Lord Shiva’s son could kill him. After a fierce fight, Kartikeya, Lord Shiva and Mother Parvati’s son killed Tarakasura.
The Story of Tripura:
Tarakasura had three sons, Tarakaksha, Vidyunmali, and Kamalaksha. They were very upset by their father’s death. Just like their father, they started performing severe austerities to please Lord Brahma. After many years of austerity, Lord Brahma was pleased and asked them what they wanted. Three sons asked for a boon that no one could kill them, and they became immortal.
Lord Brahma said that he can’t give immortality, and therefore they have to ask something else. After some thought, they asked, “Please build three cities in three spaceships filled with all possible worldly enjoyments: one golden spaceship for Tarakaksha, one silver spaceship for Kamalaksha, and one iron spaceship for Vidyunmali. These spaceships can go anywhere and cannot be conquered by anyone. Only after one thousand years, they aligned in a straight line at a particular time for a fraction of a second. If we have to die, then give us a boon that we die only when someone shoots all the three cities with one arrow.” Brahma with the help of Maya, the power of Brahman, made three such cities and gave them.
The three brothers were enjoying all the possible worldly pleasures. After some time, the worldly pleasures made them forget the divine qualities they had acquired through austerities and their demonic qualities started overpowering them. They started to harass and torture gods and all good people. The gods could not bear the sufferings and they all went to Brahma to find a solution. Brahma said that no one could defeat them, and they would have to die. However, no one except Lord Shiva is capable of killing them.
The gods went to Lord Shiva and requested him to help them. Pushpadanta says that for Lord Shiva to destroy these Tripura (three cities) was easier than to burn a blade of grass, but for His Lila (play), He made the earth as His chariot, moon and sun its two wheels, Brahma as the charioteer, mountain Meru as His bow, and Vishnu as an arrow. At the proper time, He shot the arrow and destroyed Tripura and with that all the three demons.
There is an analogy associated with the three cities. We have three bodies: gross, subtle, and causal. Our ego resides in all three bodies. Our association with these bodies creates all our problems. To attain the highest Knowledge or the state of Samadhi, we have to destroy the ego from all three bodies. The arrow of Lord Shiva is the Knowledge of Atman or Brahman which can destroy this ego or the illusion.
Lord Shiva as Brahman is the Lord of the universe:
We learn from this shloka that Lord Shiva as Brahman is the creator, the preserver, and the dissolver of the universe. The whole universe is Brahman’s Lila, a play. Just like on a nice sunny summer day a boy or a girl goes to the beach and makes a variety of objects with the wet sand, plays with them, and in the evening destroys all the forms, Brahman with Its power creates the universe, plays with it, and at the end of the cycle dissolves It.
Realized people experience that there is only one existence behind the names and forms of the universe which the Vedanta calls it as Brahman. Actually, Brahman appears as the objects of the universe with different names and forms endowed with various qualities. It is like in an ocean many waves appear, remain in the ocean for a while, and then dissolve in the ocean.
Another analogy is that Brahman has become the hall, the stage, the light, the characters, and the drama that is played through all the activities of the universe. Realized beings see that as the Atman or Brahman, being the witness consciousness they see this drama including themselves as the characters. Realizing this state, they can go through the joys and sorrows of life with a calm mind.
Pushpadanta says that Lord Shiva as Brahman controls all the objects of the universe and can use them as He wants for His play.
Ignorance:
Sri Ramakrishna says that (i) ‘Me and Mine’ is ignorance, and (ii) “I am a doer.’ Is ignorance.
Me and Mine:
As we had discussed before, in Reality, everything is Brahman. Out of ignorance or Maya or delusion, we think that we are little individuals with body and mind, separate from Brahman. Because of this delusion, we enjoy worldly pleasures and also go through intense suffering. With this ego of ‘Little I’, we select a few things of the universe and claim that ‘these things are mine’. Actually, nothing belongs to us, not even our body and mind. We have no control over the many systems of the body and the function of the brain. We have not been asked what form of body we should have and in which environment we will have our birth. Brahman is the creator, preserver, and dissolver of all the objects, and everything is Brahman.
I am the Doer:
Another ignorance is that ‘I am the doer.’ Our ‘Little I’, consisting of body and mind, thinks that ‘I am a doer’. Saints and Yogis who have gone deeper in analyzing this ‘Little I’, found that it is ‘A projected I’ on the Brahman out of ignorance. When we understand this fact, then we realize that the Power of Brahman is working through all the beings and Brahman is the doer of everything.
Questions:
A few questions naturally arise. How many can truly realize that ‘everything is Brahman’? The state of seeing ‘everything as Brahman’ is called Samadhi. When a person attains Samadhi, he/she remains absorbed in Brahman. How then that person can perform any action? How does such a person survive without eating or drinking water? Most people cannot attain Samadhi. How should these people live in the world?
Answers:
It is true that rare people attain the state of Samadhi and remain in that state. Also, when one is in that state, he/she is not aware of one’s body and has no desire to eat or drink. Knowledgeable people say that such a person drops off the body in 21 days. However, this is an extreme example. When Sri Ramakrishna’s mind used to rise to the state of Samadhi, he used to keep a desire in mind, like ‘I want to drink water’. Because of this simple desire, his mind used to come down from the state of Samadhi to the body level and he would ask for water.
Most people cannot attain the state of Samadhi and those who attain Samadhi may not remain in that state all the time. How should people who are trying to attain Samadhi live in the world? Sri Ramakrishna clearly showed the way. He said that such people continue to do spiritual practices, keep Holy Company, and think that everything belongs to God and they are the caretakers. He gave an example of a governess or a nanny who takes care of the children of the owner of the house as if they were her children but knows that they are not her children. Regarding the doer-ship, he used to sing a bhajan which says ‘O God as the Universal Mother! You are Self-willed. You are the redeemer. Everything happens according to your wish. You do everything, but people think that they are doing things. At your wish, you tie people with the world, give the highest Knowledge to some, and help a lame person climb the mountain. O Mother! I am a machine, and you are its operator. I am a house, and you are the indweller. I am a chariot, and you are the charioteer. I do move according to your wish.’
Two Ways of Living:
We have two choices to live our lives: (1) Ignorance Oriented Life (IOL), or (2) Knowledge Oriented Life (KOL). The choice is ours.
(1) In IOL, ignorance is the ignorance of the Atman. We believe that we are just our body and mind and there is no soul behind them. Here are a few major problems in this kind of life. First, we limit ourselves and our potential. The body is going to die one day, so the fear of death constantly haunts us. Second, our life will not have any higher meaning except acquiring the pleasures of the body and mind. We get some pleasure, but we have to go through lots of suffering. We get bored by what we have and never become satisfied. Third, we become selfish and disconnected from other people. Thus, we will be depriving ourselves of unselfish love.
(2) In KOL, the Knowledge is Brahmavidya or Atmavidya, the knowledge of Brahman or Atman. Knowing means realizing Brahman or Atman. Here are a few major advantages to this kind of life. First, believing that my true identity is Atman, we, as Atman, become immortal. It does not matter that the bodies come and go. Atman can take many bodies. Thus, there is no fear of death. Second, by connecting with Atman we open the door of an infinite power and potential. This helps us in the critical time of our lives. Third, Atman is blissful. When we experience the presence of Atman within, our life becomes filled with bliss which does not depend on any object of the world. Fourth, we see the same Atman in all beings and thus feel Oneness with all. This Oneness fills our life with unselfish love. We unselfishly love all and so we receive unselfish love in return.
The Great Devotee Hanuman’s Practical Approach:
Once Lord Rama asked Hanuman how he looks at Him. Hanuman said,
“When I am aware of my body, I think of myself as a servant and you as my Master. When I am aware of myself as a living entity, I think of myself as a part and you as the Whole. When I am aware of myself as Atman, I see no difference in me and you. This is my firm conviction.”
Here are the practical hints on how to live in the world in our different awareness levels. As long as we have body consciousness we perform our responsibilities as God’s work and offer their results to God. This way we develop a love for God and acquire the Knowledge of Atman.
Divine and Demonic Qualities:
From the stories of Tarakasura, Tripura, Ravana, and others, we learn that demons were actually devotees before. They perform severe austerities, more than many human beings, realize some forms of God, and acquire great power and prosperity through boons. However, at some point, they yield to lust, greed, egotism, and anger and eventually, they become demons. They forget that divine qualities bring joy and peace while demonic qualities bring self-destruction.
In the sixteenth chapter of the Bhagavad Gita, Shri Krishna clearly describes the divine and the demonic qualities. He said that the divine qualities make us free from all our bondages, while the demonic qualities bind us and make us slaves to our senses and the objects of the world. People with divine qualities attain peace and bliss within, while people with demonic qualities have an unlimited amount of suffering.
It is good to keep in mind the lists of divine and demonic qualities and make sure that we develop and nourish the divine qualities in us and stay away from the demonic qualities.
The Divine Qualities:
The following are the divine qualities or virtues. These virtues are inter-connected. If a person practices one of these qualities with proper understanding, then the other qualities follow.
(1) fearlessness, (2) purity of mind, (3) being established in the True Knowledge of the Self and acquires ability to focus the mind on the Self, (4) gives in charity, (5) control on one’s senses, (6) sacrifice or unselfish service (7) study of the scriptures and habit of reflecting upon their teachings in order to practice them, (8) austerities – bearing the pain caused due to spiritual practices (9) being simple minded (lack of crookedness), (10) not to hurt anyone through thought, speech and action, (11) being truthful, (12) devoid of anger, (13) renunciation – ability to renounce what comes in the way of spiritual development (14) peaceful nature, (15) not to think or talk about ills of others, (16) compassion towards all beings, (17) not being greedy, (18) having gentle nature (not being rude), (19) modesty; feeling shame in doing unrighteous things, (20) not restless (21) possessing an aura of divinity (22) forgiveness, (23) ability to hold on to spiritual practices until realization of one’s divinity, (24) purity – external and internal, (25) having no animosity towards anyone and (26) not craving for special honor or respect.
The Demonic Qualities:
The following are the demonic qualities that conceal the divinity of a person and lead one to ignorance and destruction:
(1) Pretension, (2) Arrogance, (3) Being egotistic, (4) Lack of control over anger, (5) Rudeness, (6) Ignorance, (7) Being confused between “what should be done,” and “what should not be done,” (8) Lacking purity (9) Being unrighteous (10) Being untruthful
(11) People with demonic qualities think that the world is devoid of truth, has no moral basis, is without God, and is a creation of a combination of male and female elements having no other cause except the fulfillment of lust. Having such views these lost souls with little understanding and fierce actions rise as the enemies of the world for its destruction.
(12) Being filled with hypocrisy, pride, and arrogance, and giving themselves up to insatiable desires, they hold false views through delusion and act with impure resolve.
(13) Living with infinite worries that last till their deaths and thinking that ‘acquiring pleasures of body and mind is the only goal of life,’ they crave sense-pleasures.
(14) Being slaves of thousands of hopes of worldly desires and filled with lust and anger, they are busy collecting money for sense pleasures through unethical means.
(15) People with demonic qualities think that “Today I have gained one thing and later on I will fulfill another of my longings. I have collected a large amount of money and in the future, I will collect more. I have killed this enemy, and I will kill more in the future. I am the Lord of the Universe. I enjoy the world. I am endowed with all the cleverness. I am powerful and I am happy. I am rich and I am from a ‘high family.’ There is no one equal to me. I give to charity, perform religious rituals, and I will enjoy the world.” Thus, being deluded by ignorance, caught in the net of ‘attachment’, with messed-up minds, and craving for sense pleasures they fall into a hell, meaning live very low-level human lives.
(16) Considering themselves great, drunken by wealth and worldly respect these arrogant people perform religious rituals whimsically for their worldly pleasures. They do not properly follow scriptural injunctions.
(17) Minds being filled with ego, pride in their physical strength, arrogance, worldly desires, anger, and jealousy they torture Me (the Self) which lies in themselves and others.
Meaning: The flow of the water of the river which had spread all over the sky, whose beauty had been enhanced by the foam created by the groups of stars, and which made the whole universe as an island, that flow of water looks like a droplet on your head. From this, we can definitely imagine how mighty and huge is your divine form.
Reflections: Let us briefly remember the story of Ganga coming down to earth.
Ganga coming on earth: King Sagar performed Ashwamegha Yajna to prove his imperial sovereignty. As a part of this ritual, a horse with a message and an army go around the earth. The message is to all the kings telling them that they either accept this sovereignty or keep the horse and invite a fight. Indra, the king of Devas, didn’t want this to happen, so he stole the horse and left it at the ashrama of a Sage Kapila. The Sagar’s 60,000 sons searched for the horse and finally, they found it at Sage Kapila’s ashrama. Sage Kapila was absorbed in deep meditation. The notorious sons thought that he had stolen the horse and so they rudely disturbed Sage Kapila in his meditation. Sage Kapila opened his eyes and looked at them. His yogic look has such a power that all 60,000 sons were burnt and turned to ashes.
King Sagara’s grandson Amshuman humbly requested Sage Kapila to show him a way to liberate his uncles. Sage Kapila told him that only the water of the River Ganga could liberate them. Then, King Amshuman started performing austerities to please Ganga. But Ganga was not pleased. His son King Dilip also performed austerities and could not please Ganga. Finally, his son King Bhagiratha pleased Ganga with his austerities. Ganga said that she could fall from heaven on earth, but her force will destroy the earth. So, find something that bears my impact. King Bhagiratha said that Lord Shiva will bear your impact. King Bhagiratha pleased Lord Shiva with his severe austerities and requested him to bear the force of Ganga.
The story goes that Ganga fell on Lord Shiva’s head thinking that Lord Shiva may not be able to withstand her force. But Ganga got trapped in Lord Shiva’s Jata (tied hair) and could not find a way out. Finally, Lord Shiva moved one of his hairs and made a hole from which Ganga came out and started flowing on the earth.
Bhagiratha led Ganga to Sage Kapila’s ashrama and brought redemption to his 60,000 great granduncles.
Reflections continued: In this shloka, we experience Pushpadanta’s beautiful poetic vision, his command of the Sanskrit Language, and his devotion and vision of Lord Shiva.
I vividly remember the whole thrilling experience the first time I saw the Himalayas. I was going on a bus with a group of people who had not seen the Himalayas before. The driver informed us that we were going towards the Himalayas and we must keep an eye up high in the sky in the direction of the bus. After a while, we saw an outline of mountains in the clouds. The outline was very high. We were not sure whether these were mountains or clouds forming lines. For a while, we were going back and forth saying ‘These are clouds’, ‘oh no, these are mountains.’ Finally, when it was confirmed that all these lines up in the sky were the Himalayas, we all intuitively cheered and clapped with great joy. We could not believe how high these mountains were.
When I read this shloka of Shiva Mahimna, I felt that at night the Milky Way filled with stars is like the Ganga, the Himalayas Mountain is like Lord Shiva, and as the Milky Way touches the mountain, the Ganga is pouring its water on the head of Lord Shiva. Then, Lord Shiva moved one of his hairs and made a hole. This hole is like Gangotri from where Ganga started coming down.
Godly things uplift our minds from these little bodies and minds and their problems to a state of tranquility and bliss. Grand Canyon, Niagara Falls, Oceans, Mountains, and other natural things remind us of the grandeur of the Creator. By seeing them, we temporarily forget our little selves. Through this shloka, Pushpadanta reminds us of the mighty form of Lord Shiva. The Ganga, which is wide and flowing with powerful current on the ground at Rishikesh, Haridwar, and other places, and then becomes like an ocean at Ganga Sagara, looks like a droplet at the Himalayas which is like the head of Lord Shiva. It seems that Pushpadanta had this vision of Lord Shiva. By reciting this shloka and thinking of the Mighty Form of Lord Shiva we can also uplift our mind from our bodies, minds, and their worldly problems and feel tranquility and bliss.
Lord Shiva’s one name is Gangadhara, one who holds Ganga. It seems to me that Ganga coming out from Lord Shiva’s head signifies the compassion and grace of Lord Shiva flowing through India to purify, bless, and spiritually uplift people.
Shri Shankaracharya writes in his Shri Ganga Stotram,
“O Ganga! O Jahnavi! You uplift the fallen people. Your waves break the Himalayas, the king of the mountains, and shine as they flow. You are the mother of Bhishma and the daughter of the Sage Jahnu. Because you purify all people, you are a blessed one in all the three worlds.”
When Bhagiratha requested Ganga to come down on the earth, Ganga mentioned two of her concerns; (i) who would bear the impact of her force, and (ii) people would wash off their sins in her and where should she deposit all these sins.
The answer to her first concern was that Lord Shiva would bear the impact of her force. The answer to the second concern was given by Bhagiratha in Shrimad Bhagavatam. Bhagiratha said, “People of renunciation, tranquil, immersed in Brahman and capable of purifying the whole world would come to you as pilgrims and purify you when they take a deep in your water.”
I remember two teachings from the Gospel of Sri Ramakrishna about purification given in two different contexts. These teachings give us some insight into taking deep into the Ganga.
Sri Ramakrishna said, (1) “Suppose a man becomes pure by chanting the holy name of God, but immediately afterward commits many sins. He has no strength of mind. He doesn’t take a vow not to repeat his sins. A bath in the Ganga undoubtedly absolves one of all sins; but what does that avail? They say that the sins perch on the trees along the bank of the Ganga. No sooner does the man come back from the holy waters, the old sins jump on his shoulders from the trees.”
(2) “The truth is that one must reap the result of the prarabdha karma. The body remains as long as the results of past actions do not completely wear away. Once a blind man bathed in the Ganga and as a result was freed from his sins. But his blindness remained all the same.”
One thing is true, Mother Ganga had attracted so many great souls to her. They feel blessed by taking a bath in Ganga.
Swami Vivekananda said, “Who knows? What wonderful relationship is this between Mother Ganga and the Hindus? Is it mere superstition? Maybe. They spend their lives with the name of Ganga on their lips, and they die immersed in the waters of Ganga, people from far-off places take away Ganga water with them, keep it carefully in copper vessels, and sip drops of it on holy festive occasions. Kings and princes keep it in jars, and at considerable expense take the water from Gangotri to pour it on the head of Shiva at Rameshwaram! The Hindus visit foreign countries – Rangoon, java, Hong Kong, Madagascar, Suez, Aden, Malta – and they take with them Ganga water and the Gita.
The Gita and the sacred waters of the Ganga constitute the Hinduism of the Hindus. The last time I went to the West, I also took a little of it with me, fearing it might be needed. And whenever opportunities occurred, I used to drink a few drops of it. And every time I drank, in the midst of the stream of humanity, amid that bustle of civilization, that hurry of frenzied footsteps of millions of men and women in the West, the mind at once became calm and still, as it were. That stream of men, that intense activity of the West, that clash and competition at every step, those seats of luxury and celestial opulence – Paris, London, New York, Berlin, Rome – all would disappear and I used to hear that wonderful sound of “Hara, Hara”, to see that lonely forest on the sides of the Himalayas, and feel the murmuring heavenly river coursing through the heart and brain and every artery of the body and thundering forth, “Hara, Hara, Hara!”
Sri Ramakrishna loved Mother Ganga so much. He has to see Mother Ganga every day. Shri Shankaracharya expressed his intense desire to be near Ganga in humbling words in the Shri Ganga Stotram:
“O Mother Ganga! It is better either to remain in your water being a turtle or a fish, or be a feeble Chamaeleon and live on your bank, or to take birth in a poor and unclean lower cast family and live on your bank than to be a king born in the higher cast family but living far away from you.”
Lord Shiva’s mighty form described in this Shiva Mahimna Shloka reminds us of the Purusha of the Purusha Suktam and the Universal Form of Shri Krishna shown to Arjuna. Both the pleasant and the unpleasant things exist in the universal form. We are happy to see the pleasant things in the universal form, but get disturbed or scared, just like Arjuna, seeing the unpleasant things in it. We have to accept both things and if we cannot bear the unpleasant aspect of the universe we have to pray like Arjuna.
Arjuna said, “I rejoice that I have seen what was never seen before, but my mind is also troubled with fear. O Lord of devas, the abode of all, be gracious and please show me your pleasant divine form.” Bhagavad Gita (11.45)
Let us meditate on the mighty form of Lord Shiva and his compassion and grace which is flowing in the universe as Ganga.
Meaning: Being struck by your dancing feet the earth all of a sudden becomes bewildered thinking that it is going to be destroyed. Even Lord Vishnu’s domain gets shaken up in fear by the broken planets hit by the dancing movements of your mace-like arms. Heaven feels miserable when its edges get beaten by the end of your untied hair. O Lord Shiva! You dance to protect the world, but truly your mighty form creates all the troubles.
Reflections: My friend’s daughter was learning Bharata Natyam, and she decided to have an Arrangetram, the graduation dance performance, after two years. She started practicing dances in her living room. After a day or two, her father took a few days off from his work and finished his basement so that his daughter could practice her dances there. He told me that he was worried about his living room floor which may give in, all the pictures on the wall which may fall, and a few fragile glass decors may fall and break.
If a young daughter’s dance can create such havoc in a house, what to talk about when a mighty universal form of God starts dancing in the universe. In the scriptures, the Lord’s universal form has been described as follows. They say that Its body is the whole universe, the earth is Its feet, space is Its naval, the wind is Its breathing, the sun and moon are Its eyes, directions are Its ears, and Its head is beyond this universe. This whole universe is only a quarter of Its form, the other three-fourths form is invisible.
In this Shiva Mahimna shloka, Shri Pushpadanta identifies Lord Shiva with the Universal Form of the Lord, so we can feel and imagine Him dancing as a human being. He asks us to imagine what happens when the Lord’s huge feet strike the earth. Definitely, the earth feels that it is going to be destroyed. Also, imagine His long powerful mace-like arms moving around in space hitting and breaking the planets and His untied hair moving in space reaching out to the end of this visible universe and breaking its edges. Actually, Lord Shiva dances to protect the universe, but His Mighty Form creates havoc in the universe.
There is a legend that a demon wanted to destroy the whole universe. He started doing severe austerity to please Lord Brahma, the Brahman’s form that created the universe. At one point, Brahma had to reveal to the demon and ask him what boon he wanted. The demon asked for a power by which he could destroy the whole universe. Brahma was in trouble. He cannot refuse to give the boon as he had promised him. Brahma wanted to buy some time. It must have been morning. Brahma told the demon to come to the Brahma Loka in the evening and ask for this boon. Brahma said that this was his only chance to get that boon. Then, Brahma ran to Lord Shiva for help. Lord Shiva told Brahma not to worry. He said that he would come to the Brahma Loka in the evening and take care of the problem. Before evening, Lord Shiva came to the Brahma Loka and started dancing. Lord Shiva’s other name is Nataraja, the King, or the Lord of Dance. There are famous images of Lord Shiva as Nataraja. His dances included their dramatic aspects. Lord Shiva performed beautiful and engaging dances. The demon came to ask for the boon, but he was overwhelmed by Lord Shiva’s dances and forgot all about the boon. The evening passed and the demon lost his chance for the boon. Thus, Lord Shiva danced to save the universe.
These stories and the images of Lord Shiva’s dance are symbolic. Actually, all activities of the universe are like Lord Shiva’s Lila, or Play, or Dance. Some acts look pleasant to us and some look unpleasant. We enjoy the pleasant acts. But when we see unpleasant acts, we get scared or upset and complain to God why God is acting that way.
Sri Ramakrishna says, “You ask why? Brahman (God) does not act in consultation with others. It is Brahman’s pleasure. Brahman is self-willed. Why should we try to know the reason for Brahman’s acting this way or that? You have come to the orchard to eat mangoes. What is the good of calculating how many trees there are in the orchard, how many thousands of branches, and how many millions of leaves? One cannot realize Truth by futile arguments and reasoning.”
Every act in this universe has thousands or millions of reasons. How can we understand all these reasons with our limited minds? Sri Ramakrishna said that five gallons of milk would not fit into one-gallon bottle. Every day tons of research papers are published in thousands of fields. Most of them solve a problem or two, but these solutions raise more questions or problems. This is what Sri Ramakrishna refers to as counting the trees, branches, and leaves. Coming to the orchard is having a human life, and eating mangoes is to realize the Truth, the Ultimate Reality and get fulfillment in life.
This does not mean that when we see someone suffering, we just think that ‘it is God’s play’ and we become insensitive and inactive. We must try to remove the suffering of the people to the best of our ability and if we cannot do anything, we pray to God to remove this suffering. This will connect us with all, and it will lead us to Oneness, which is the Truth.
Thus, this shloka teaches us to become aware of the Mighty Universal Form of God and to realize that all the activities of the universe are nothing but God’s dance or play (Lila).
Meaning: O Lord of the Universe (Shiva)! Kamadeva, the god of lust, whose pointed arrows never return with failures in the whole universe which includes Devas, Danavas, and human beings, became just a memory because he considered you as an ordinary Deva like others. Truly, it is not beneficial to disrespect a person who has total self-control.
Reflections: In this shloka, Shri Pushpadanta refers to a story from the scriptures. Let us look into this story.
The Story in the Scriptures:
Whenever anyone does intense austerity, Indra, the king of the gods or Devas, always worries that this person may take away his throne and his kingdom. So, he finds various ways to disrupt his/her austerity. For him, one of the sure ways is to send Kamadeva, the god of lust, to deviate the minds of the person. Most of the time he is successful.
Indra has a reason to do this because the Daityas or Danavas being the eternal enemies of the Devas had performed the austerity in the past and were successful in driving out Indra and the Devas from their kingdom and had harassed them.
According to the Puranas, Kashyapa was the grandson of Brahma. He married the daughters of Daksha. One of them was Diti. One group of sons of Diti and Kashyapa were known as Daityas or Danavas and they were always in fight with the Devas.
One of the Kashyapa and Diti’s sons, Vajranga, didn’t want to fight with the Devas and wanted to live a spiritual peaceful life. He was living such a Sattvika life. He got married to Varangi. They had a son named Taraka. Varangi wanted their son Taraka to be the strongest person in the world, to take away the kingdom of Indra and the Devas, and to harass them. Taraka did lots of severe austerities and pleased Lord Brahma. When Brahma said that he was pleased and that Taraka could ask for any boon, Taraka asked that he be the strongest person in the world, and that he could not be killed by anyone except the son of Lord Shiva. Taraka knew that Lord Shiva was always merged in Samadhi, and he was not going to have a son.
With the power of that boon, he conquered all three worlds, snatched away the kingdom of Indra and the Devas, and started harassing them. No one could defeat him and definitely no one can kill him. With this success and power, his demonic qualities dominated his mind and forced him to do harmful things. He then became known as Tarakasura, the Demonic Taraka. Harassed Devas went to Brahma and asked him to find a way to stop Tarakasura’s tortures. Brahma said that he was helpless. He has given a boon to Tarakasura and only Lord Shiva’s son can kill him. Devas told him that Lord Shiva mostly remains in Samadhi and He is not interested in marrying. Brahma told Indra and other Devas to go to Kamadeva, the god of lust, and ask him to bring Lord Shiva’s mind to the world and make him think of getting married. Indra called Kamadeva and asked him to do the same.
Kamadeva went with pride to do his job. He was very confident about his powerful arrows which have never returned without success. He went with his friend Spring where Lord Shiva was meditating. Both of them created a very lustful environment around Lord Shiva. Finding that nothing is bringing Lord Shiva’s mind down, Kamadeva finally shoots his powerful arrows at Lord Shiva. That broke Lord Shiva’s meditation. He opened his eyes, and felt the lustful environment, but immediately realized that this was the work of Kamadeva. He opened his third eye of Knowledge. From that came a fire of discrimination and it burnt Kamadeva.
Reflections continue: Shri Pushpadanta is referring to this story of the scriptures in this shloka and describes the state of Lord Shiva’s mind and His power. Afterwards, Kamadeva’s wife Rati, Indra, Devas, Brahma, and Vishnu came to Lord Shiva and requested him to help out humanity by getting married. They said that Parvati, the daughter of Himalaya, was performing austerities to marry him.
Lord Shiva said to them that he had burnt Kamadeva to set up an example to the Devas and spiritual seekers not to yield to the lust. He said that lust and anger are the doors to hell. They don’t let the mind rise beyond the body and mind and they drag it to the lowest level which is filled with vices. If they want to make spiritual progress and attain the highest blissful state ‘Samadhi’, they have to control lust and anger.
We find this thought in the Bhagavad Gita. When Arjuna asked, “Under what compulsion does a person commit sin?” Then Shri Krishna replied,
“Know that the lust and anger, created by Rajas, are our enemies. They are all-devouring and are the cause of all sin.” Bhagavad Gita (3.37)
Lord Shiva said that he is blissful within and sees no need to get married, but to help out humanity and was pleased by the devotees’ prayers, he will marry Parvati. Later, their son Kartikeya killed Tarakasura and brought peace to the world.
Lord Shiva also set up an example as a householder. He didn’t keep many belongings and remained in a meditative state when He was alone, and when He was with Mother Parvati, they both enjoyed spiritual discourses.
Less than one percent of humanity renounces the world to realize God and to serve all. Most of the ninety-nine percent of people remain in the world. Among them, those who like to realize God, have to struggle hard. Sri Ramakrishna said that householders also can realize God, but it is hard for them. Day and night they are surrounded by an environment that is filled with lust and greed. Every now and then, they have to go into solitude, away from this environment, and think about what is permanent and what is not permanent. By reflection, they should realize that God or Brahman is the Ultimate Reality, and this world is for a few days. After one or two children, husband and wife should help each other in their spiritual path and live like brother and sister. Householders should earn money honestly and live a simple life. They have to develop detachment and offer all the results to God. The path of detachment has been described in the Bhagavad Gita. Sri Ramakrishna said that ‘Holy Company’ also helps to withdraw minds from worldly thoughts and focus on God.
Another lesson we learn from this shloka is ‘not to disrespect any person, in particular, one who has total self-control’. Saints and spiritual seekers practice having total self-control. One sign of sainthood is to have total self-control. By being disrespectful to the Saints, we actually harm ourselves. Nothing happens to the Saints. Kamadeva considered Lord Shiva as an ordinary person and with his pride he was disrespectful to Him by shooting arrows at Him. As a result, he was burnt to death. Shri Pushpadanta uses proper poetic phrases saying that Kamadeva, whose other name is ‘Smara” (one who exists in memory) became ‘Smartavyatma’ and became a subject of memory.
Meaning: O Lord with three eyes (Shiva): When the Devas and the Danavas (Asuras) were scared to death seeing the untimely destruction of the universe approaching all, you showered your grace on them by drinking the deadly poison. Because of that act, a dark stain appeared on your throat. Doesn’t that stain add to your beauty? Truly, even the deformation is praiseworthy for the one whose hobby is to remove the fear of the universe.
Reflections: Shri Pushpadanta refers to the churning of the ocean story. It is an interesting story, and it brings out Lord Shiva’s compassion for humanity and readiness to help all even at the cost of his life.
The churning of the ocean story: Once Devas defeated Danavas and then they became arrogant. Danavas are also referred to as the Asuras or the Daityas. Indra, the king of the Devas, was riding on an elephant. At that time Rishi Durvasa gave a garland to Indra. Out of arrogance, he placed the garland on the elephant. The garland attracted bees, so annoyed by the bees, the elephant threw it on the ground and crushed it under its feet. Rishi Durvasa saw this insult of his gift, so he cursed that Indra and all the Devas be bereft of strength and wealth. Thus, they lost their power and Danavas took away their kingdom and obtained control over the three worlds.
Then, Devas took refuge at the feet of Lord Vishnu, offered Him their prayers, and asked His advice. Lord Vishnu advised them to be friendly with the Danavas and with their help churn the ocean to get the Amruta (nectar) which would make them strong. Devas followed Lord Vishnu’s advice, developed a friendship with the Danavas, and both of them decided to churn the milky ocean.
With the help of Lord Vishnu, they brought Mandara Mountain from its base to the ocean. They requested Vasuki, the king of the serpents, to become a rope to help in churning the ocean. They wrapped Vasuki around the mountain. Danavas held the mouth part of Vasuki and Devas held its tail part. By Lord Vishnu’s grace, the churning was not harming Vasuki at all. During the churning, the Mandara mountain started sinking into the ocean as it had no solid base to support it. Again, Lord Vishnu in the form of a huge turtle supported the mountain. Now, the churning of the ocean began.
Due to the churning, the very first thing that came out from the ocean was concentrated deadly poison, called Halahala or Kalakuta. Its fiercely penetrating fatal fumes started spreading all over. No one wanted to drink the poison. All thought that the poison would spread all over and the world would come to an end. Terror-stricken, all the devas ran to the Kailasa where Lord Shiva was staying with Devi Parvati. They started praying to Lord Shiva,
“O Lord of the Lords! Thou great Divinity, Self, and the protector of the worlds! Save us from the poison that threatens the life of the three worlds. Thou art the master of the destinies of all beings, of their bondage and liberation. Wise people worship Thee as the Great Spiritual Teacher and remover of the sufferings of those who seek Thy shelter.” (Shrimad Bhagavatam 8.7.21-22)
Seeing the miserable condition of the Devas, the merciful Lord Shiva, the friend, and well-wisher of all, felt extremely pained and said to Parvati, “O Bhavani! See the pitiable plight of beings harassed by the poison Kalakuta produced at the churning of the ocean. So, I am going to drink this poison. May all beings be saved by it.” With the approval of the Devi, Lord Shiva drank the poison.
Shrimad Bhagavatam (8.7.43) says, “The deadly poison showed its destructive power even on this Divine Being, the Lord of the worlds. It turned Lord Shiva’s throat blue. But the poison remained only at the neck as a decoration proclaiming Lord Shiva’s passion for the welfare of others.”
Note: Up to this part of the story is relevant to the Shiva Mahimna Shloka-14. But, in order to complete the story of the churning of the ocean, I will summarize its remaining part.
Summary of the remaining part of the ocean churning story:
According to Shrimad Bhagavatam, after the poison Kalakuta, the following nine things came out of the ocean by its churning. Different people kept different things.
Kamadhenu, a celestial cow. Brahma took the cow and then gave it to the Rishis.
Ucchaisravas, a horse. The Danava Bali kept it.
Airavata, a white four-tusked elephant. Indra took the elephant.
Kaustubha, a gem of the species of Padmaraga. Lord Vishnu adorned his neck with that gem.
Parijata, a celestial tree. Devas took it to the Indraloka, the abode of Indra.
Apsaras, heavenly artists and dancers. They chose Gandharvas as their companions.
Ramaa (Mother Lakshmi) emerged from the ocean. She married Lord Vishnu.
Varuni, the presiding deity of liquors. Danavas took possession of Varuni.
Finally came Dhanvantari with a pot of Amruta (nectar). Dhanvantari was a part of Lord Vishnu who promulgated Ayurveda, the science of health.
As soon as Danavas saw the pot of nectar, they stole it from Dhanvantari and ran away. Then, they were fighting among themselves regarding who would drink it first. The weaker Danavas wanted to create a problem. They said that Devas also deserve an equal share of the nectar. Meanwhile, Lord Vishnu appeared in the form of a beautiful woman called Mohini and enchanted the Danavas. Infatuated Danavas asked Mohini to settle their quarrel. Mohini took the pot and asked Devas and Danavas to sit in separate lines. She then started pouring Amruta (nectar) into Devas’ containers which Devas drank.
One Danava Swarbhanu sat among the Devas in disguise. He sat between the Sun and the Moon. When Swarbhanu was drinking the nectar, the Sun and Moon realized who he was. They told Mohini about his cheating. Swarbhanu drank the nectar, but before the nectar went below his throat, Mohini cut his head with a disc. The head became immortal, and it is known as Rahu. His body was known as Ketu. Rahu and Ketu cause eclipses.
After Devas drank the nectar, the pot was empty. At that time, Mohini revealed to all that she was nothing but Lord Vishnu. Then, Lord Vishnu disappeared. Danavas fought with the Devas to defeat them. But, with the power of nectar, Devas were much stronger and they defeated the Danavas.
Back to the Shiva Mahimna Shloka-14:
Churning the ocean is a symbol of our inner struggle. When we try to realize the Ultimate Reality (our true Divine Identity), then in our spiritual path, churning starts in the form of an inner struggle between our divine and demonic qualities. It is also a struggle between our worldly desires which we have cherished so far and have worked for them and the new desire to make spiritual progress.
In our spiritual path, we may get some initial joy from our spiritual practices, but as we go further, we face terrible resistance that arises from our doubts, our own worldly desires, external obstacles, and the resistance that may come from family members, relatives, and friends, the pain of not making spiritual progress, and our own puny ego. This is like Kalakuta poison. In the life of Lord Buddha, we find that just before Nirvana, Mara attacked him with doubts, questions, and temptations. Lord Buddha defeated Mara with his strong determination and sincerity. We have to overcome this stage as all the realized beings have done. God’s grace and the Knowledge of the Ultimate Reality destroy these poisonous obstacles.
Swami Vivekananda Says that Unselfishness is God. Realization of God means attaining Oneness. In that state, one realizes that the One Existence which Vedanta calls Brahman has become the universe and all its beings.
In the Bhagavad Gita (18.20), Shri Krishna says, “The knowledge by which one indestructible Substance (Brahman) is seen in all beings, undivided in the divided – know that it is the Sattvika (superior) knowledge.”
If we remove the external differences of all beings and things, then what remains is ‘pure existence’, or Atman, or Brahman. At that time the little self which consists of body-mind, disappears. As a consequence, we experience other people’s joy as our joy and other people’s miseries as our misery.
Shrimad Bhagavatam (8.7.44) says, “Realized beings feel the sufferings of others as their own. Such fellow-feeling is the highest form of worship of the Supreme Being (Brahman), who is the soul (Atman) of all.”
Lord Shiva felt the pain and saw the worries of all the people, and he decided to drink the poison to make them free from their worries. This is the act of Oneness.
We find in the world that where there is love, or attachment, or fulfilment of selfish motives, people swallow the poison of insults and misbehavior of other people. For example, when children do not get what they want, they get angry at their mothers and little ones even kick them. But the mothers forgive their children and continue to love and serve them. Husbands and wives go through many adjustments and swallow unpleasant verbal exchanges and acts to continue their marriage relationships. In the jobs, employees who have difficulties finding other jobs tolerate and swallow their boss’s misbehavior. Without swallowing the poison of insults and misbehavior, the world cannot go on. When swallowing does not happen, then the anger comes out in a destructive form, and it does bring destruction. However, only a few people, out of their unselfish love for all, swallow insults and misbehavior of other people to do good to them.
Lors Shiva showed that the sign of unselfish love is to feel the pain of other people’s sufferings and swallow the poison by forgiving and forgetting their inappropriate behavior which came from their ignorance, poor judgments, and lack of self-control. This fellow feeling and swallowing out of love is only possible when one feels Oneness among all. When swallowing is done without feeling Oneness, it brings harmful physical and mental reactions. Let us try to achieve this Oneness.
Meaning: O Giver of Boons (Lord Shiva)! Banasura acquired so much wealth that it tarnished even the glories of Indra’s supreme wealth. Also, he brought the three worlds under his control. It is not a surprise for Banasura to acquire this wealth and power because he bowed down at your feet. Who does not rise after taking refuge at your feet?
Reflections: Bana has imbibed divine and demonic qualities from his lineage and has nurtured both in his life. Let us look into his lineage.
Brahma’s son was Marichi. Kashyapa, the son of Marichi, was a great soul. He married Daksha’s daughter Diti. Kashyapa and Diti’s sons were Hiranyakashipu and Hiranyaksha. In Shloka 11, we learned that Hiranyakashipu and Hiranyaksha were the gatekeepers, called Jaya and Vijaya, of Lord Vishnu.
Hiranyakashipu’s son was the great devotee, Prahlada. We know how Hiranyakashipu tried to stop Prahlada from taking the name of God and when Prahlad didn’t obey, he tried to kill his own son. Finally, Lord Narayana came in the form of Narasimha and killed Hiranyakashipu.
Thus, in these stories demonic and divine personalities were intertwined.
Prahlada’s son was Virochana. The kind Virochana was known for his charity. Virochana’s son was Bali. He is also known as Mahabali. He has given his kingdom of the three worlds and himself to Lord Vishnu who came as a dwarf Brahmin and asked for a land covered by his three steps.
Bana was Bali’s son. Bana was a devotee of Lord Shiva. With his devotion and special worship, he pleased Lord Shiva. When Lord Shiva asked him for a boon, Bana requested him to protect him, and his city, called Shonitapura. Since Lord Shiva protected him, he became invincible. He conquered the three worlds and acquired much more wealth than Indra, the king of devas.
Shri Pushpadanta says that Bana acquired all this wealth and power because he bowed down to Lord Shiva. This is the glory of Lord Shiva who is very compassionate and gives boons to all who take refuge at his feet.
We all know that wealth and power do not give us infinite bliss, supreme knowledge, fearlessness, and liberation. Wealth, power, and other material gains give us limited happiness and lots of miseries. Happiness and miseries go together. We cannot have happiness without misery. Only Knowledge and Devotion can give us everything that fulfills our life. Therefore, we recite the following mantra at the beginning of our spiritual practices:
“May my resolves be accomplished. May my good wishes be fulfilled. May I begin this spiritual practice to acquire the knowledge of the Ultimate Reality and devotion to God.”
One more thing we can learn from this shloka is to surrender ourselves at the lotus feet of God. Our ‘little ego’ is the cause of all our problems. If we surrender that ego and pray to God to reveal Itself in our heart, and we do our spiritual practices, then one day we will achieve the highest that a human being can attain in human life.
Meaning: O Tripurhara (Lord Shiva)! King Ravana easily conquered the three worlds, destroyed all the enemies, and still, his hands were craving to fight more wars. This is the result of his determined devotion to you out of which he offered a garland of his ten lotus-like heads at your feet.
Reflections: In Shrimad Bhagavata Purana there is a story that four great sages, the sons of Brahma, named Sanaka, Sanandana, Sanatana, and Santkumara, went to Vaikuntha, the abode of Lord Vishnu. Their minds always remain in the Consciousness of Brahman. They had no body consciousness. The gatekeepers, Jaya and Vaijaya, of Vaikuntha, didn’t understand their state of mind and they stopped these sages from entering Vaikuntha, saying that they were not properly dressed.
The sages felt that these gatekeepers had body consciousness and they did not belong in Vaikuntha. They should be born on earth. So, they cursed them saying ‘Go and be born on earth’. The gatekeepers were scared and worried about being separated from Lord Vishnu. They started praying to Lord Vishnu and asked him to nullify the curse. Lord Vishnu appeared and told the gatekeepers that this curse could not be nullified.
However, seeing the sincere repentance of the gatekeepers, Lord Vishnu gave them two choices: You two be born on earth as Lord Vishnu’s devotees and live for seven lives, or be born as Lord Vishnu’s enemies and live for three lives and be killed by the Lord. They thought for a while and decided that it was better to come back to Vaikuntha sooner after only three lives and not seven. This way they spent less time away from Lord Vishnu. Another version says that the sages eased the curse by giving them three lives on earth.
Thus, in their first life, Vijaya was born as Hiranyaksha, and Jaya was born as Hiranyakashipu. Both were killed by Lord Varaha and Lord Narasimha respectively. In their second life, Jaya was born as Ravana, and Vijaya was born as Kumbhakarna, and both were killed by Lord Rama. In their third life, Jaya was born as Shishupala, and Vijaya was born as Dantavaktra, and both were killed by Lord Krishna.
Now, we see that Ravana was originally a gatekeeper of Lord Vishnu. Also, Ravana’s father was a great sage Vishrava who was a son of sage Pulastya, one of the ten Prajapati and one of the mind-born sons of Brahma. Ravana’s mother was from a demonic family. Her name was Kaikesi. Thus, Ravana had both divine and demonic backgrounds.
There is a story that at a young age, Ravana was attracted by a plane of his stepbrother Kubera. His mother told him that Kubera was the richest man in the world, and he had acquired this wealth by the grace of Lord Shiva. She told him that she would be pleased if he (Ravana) obtained the grace of Lord Shiva and acquired such wealth. Ravana had this deep desire in his mind. When he grew up, he decided to obtain Lord Shiva’s grace. He took the ‘Shiva Panchaskhara Mantra’ from his grandfather and started severe austerity to please Lord Shiva. After much austerity, Lord Shiva was not pleased. Maybe Lord Shiva knew his intention. Ravana performed a ‘Yajna’, but still Lord Shiva was not pleased. As a final resort, Ravana started offering his heads one by one to Lord Shiva. The story goes that when Ravana was offering his last head, Lord Shiva was pleased and gave him his desired boon.
After that, he attacked all the existing kings and took away their kingdoms. He killed all his enemies, and his hands were craving for more wars. He even took away his stepbrother Kubera’s kingdom Sri Lanka and acquired all his wealth. Shri Pushpadanta says that the root cause of the Ravana’s success was his determined devotion to Lord Shiva.
In the Bhagavad Gita (16.21), Shri Krishna says,
“Lust, anger, and greed are three doors to hell. They ruin the self. Therefore, a person should avoid all these three.”
In the Gospel of Sri Ramakrishna, we find that Sri Ramakrishna again and again warns all the spiritual seekers that ‘lust and greed’ are the two major enemies or the major obstacles in the path of God-realization. We see what happened to Ravana even after realizing Lord Shiva.
After acquiring wealth and power, Ravana became arrogant. He lost the sense of ‘right’ and ‘wrong’. Being possessed by ego, anger, and lust, he kidnaps Mother Sitaji and brings the destruction of himself, his family, and all the people around him. We will find one of his arrogant acts in the next shloka of Shiva Mahimna Stotra.
Meaning: O Puramathana (the destroyer of Pura – Lord Shiva)! Someone says that this universe is eternal. Another person says that this universe is not eternal. While someone else says that this universe is eternal and not eternal, having a contradictory characteristic. By listening to all this, I am shocked and now, I am not ashamed to sing your glories. Truly, verbosity is shameless.
Reflections: Shri Pushpadanta tells us how people have different views about the universe. There are various philosophies like Sankhya, Patanjali, Vaisheshika, Naiyayika, Charvaka, Bauddha, Jain’s, and others. They have their own views about the universe.
Some say that this universe is eternal. The soul (Jiva), universe (Jagat), and God (Ishwara) are eternal. The things of the universe don’t die but are recycled.
A group of materialists say that this universe is not eternal. When a person dies, that is the end of the person. Similarly, one day this universe will come to an end. There is nothing permanent here.
Some people say that in this universe, there are a few things that are permanent and other things are impermanent. Thus, both contradictory things exist in the universe.
The followers of Buddha say that the universe is constantly changing. Thus, there is nothing permanent. If we tie a light at the end of a small string and we move that string around then it creates a circle of light. In reality, there is no circle of light. The constantly moving thing creates an illusion of a continuous circle. Similarly, this constantly changing world creates an illusion of a continuous eternal world.
Advaita Vedanta says that this universe is an illusion. Just as in the dark, we see a rope as a snake, similarly, due to the darkness of ignorance we see Brahman, the Ultimate Reality, as a universe with names and forms.
Then, many scientists have different views about the universe.
People live according to their philosophy or views about their lives and the universe. Such philosophy or view develops a faith in those ideas.
Shri Krishna in the Bhagavad Gita (17.3) says:
“O Bharata (Arjuna): The faith of each person is in accordance with his/her disposition. A person is made of his/her faith. As is the faith, so is the person.”
As long as a philosophy is not harmful to oneself and the people and a person sincerely thinks that it is a convincing philosophy to the person, then we cannot say that it is a wrong philosophy. People have different viewpoints according to their mental capacity, surroundings, and time. With mental development, acquiring more knowledge, and a change of surroundings or situations, their view of life and the universe changes. Generally, a person has a different view of oneself, other people, and the universe at the age of five and at the age of fifty. We cannot say that the view of a five-year-old person is wrong.
These different philosophies or comprehensions of the Truth are like taking photos of a house from various angles and levels. The photos taken from the front, from the sides, from the back, or from the drone look different. We cannot say any photo is wrong. If this happens regarding a small house, what to talk about the view of the universe.
In Bhagavad Gita (15.3), Shri Krishna says,
“Its (Universe’s) true form is not comprehended here, nor its end, nor its origin, and nor even its existence.”
When we read or hear all these views of the universe, we get overwhelmed. Pushpadanta said that he was overwhelmed by people’s various views about the universe and now, he does not feel bad composing this hymn and expressing his feelings.
Scriptures say that when a person gets full comprehension of the Ultimate Truth, then he/she becomes quiet. Sri Ramakrishna gave a wonderful example explaining this fact. He said when a person is fetching water from a well, the pot makes a sound when it is being filled with the water. When the pot gets completely filled with water, it does not make a sound. At that time the person pulls the pot with the rope and brings the pot to the ground. Then, he/she pours it into another pot. At that time the water makes a sound. Similarly, when one does not have complete knowledge of Brahman, one talks about it a lot. It is like the pot is getting filled with water. When one gets complete knowledge of Brahman one becomes quiet because the words cannot express the infinite bliss and the experience of the Truth. But then that knowledgeable person teaches his/her students. At that time, he/she talks about it. This is similar to pouring water from one pot to the other.
Shri Pushpadanta says, ‘Truly, verbosity is shameless.’ In a way, everyone is expressing their feeling about the Infinite according to one’s own understanding. Those who say, ‘God does not exist.’, they are also expressing their understanding of God. They have some idea of God, and they don’t see it in existence.
Note: When I was searching for something on the Internet, I found Swami Sarvapriyananda’s talk on Shiva Mahimna, given on February 18, 2023. The following is the link. You may like it.
Meaning: O Giver of the Boon (Lord Shiva)! Your household properties include (i) Nandi (Bull), (ii) a club weapon, (iii) an axe, (iv) tiger-skin cloth, (v) ashes, (vi) snakes, and (vii) a human skull. But the devas (gods) enjoy an abundance of wealth given by you out of your grace. Truly, one who enjoys bliss by focusing one’s mind on the Self within never gets deluded by the temptations of worldly pleasures.
Reflections:
We can learn four things from this shloka: (1) Simple living and high thinking, (2) Remain focused on the Atman lying within, (3) No worldly attractions like wealth, sense-pleasures, power, position can disturb the blissful mind of a person who is established in the Atman, and (4) the interpretations of the symbols of Shiva’s belongings.
(1) Simple living and high thinking: Lord Shiva’s household belongings are minimal and simple. He looks like a poor God. But that is not the case. Pushpadanta says that when Lord Shiva gets pleased with the prayers of gods and out of pleasure his eyebrows get stretched a little the devas receive tons of wealth. Thus, Lord Shiva can have all the wealth of the world, but he keeps minimum things for his living, and on the other hand, he keeps his mind always focused on Atman or Brahman.
We see in the world that many Saints are capable of acquiring any amount of wealth, power, and high worldly positions, but they do not go after them and remain focused on the Atman.
The householders also can perform their responsibilities following the teachings of the Bhagavad Gita, live a simple life, but keep the mind focused on the goal of realizing the divinity within and manifesting it in their thoughts, speech, and actions and do unselfish service to humanity. Sri Ramakrishna said that when the householders are busy with work, they should hold on to God with one hand and perform responsibilities with the other hand. When they are free, they have to hold on to God with both hands.
(2) Remain focused on the Atman lying within: We find Lord Shiva is absorbed in meditation in most of his pictures and statues. His face is serene and beaming with bliss. Pushpadanta used the word “svatmarama” to describe Lord Shiva. He is always focused on the Atman within. Thus, he is a great yogi and encourages us to be a yogi. The following shlokas of the Bhagavad Gita describe yoga and the state of a yogi which gives us a picture of Lord Shiva:
Bhagavad Gita (6.20-21):
Shri Krishna says, “That in which the mind restrained by the practice of concentration; rests calm;
that in which seeing the Self (Atman) through the self (pure intellect), one rejoices in one’s own Self;
that in which one experiences the boundless joy beyond the reach of the senses and grasped only by the understanding (the special knowledge); and
that in which being established, one never departs from Reality;…”
Here is another shloka:
“The yogi, who is happy within, who rejoices within, and who is illumined within attains freedom in Brahman, becoming one with Brahman.” (Bhagavad Gita (5.24))
(3) The Bliss of Atman:
Shri Pushpadanta teaches what we can learn from Lord Shiva. He says, if like Lord Shiva, we remain absorbed in the Atman within, then we will experience infinite bliss, and no worldly temptation will delude our minds.
Shri Krishna says in the Bhagavad Gita (6.28):
“Thus (by the practices of meditation) making oneself ever steadfast, the yogi, freed from sins, easily enjoys the touch of Brahman, which is exceeding bliss.”
Scriptures teach us that all the joy of the world combined together is equal to a fraction of the bliss experienced by a realized soul.
We can see this from the lives of realized souls. I heard an interesting story from a Saint. He said that a Sadhu was sitting on the bank of a river and enjoying the cool breeze on a hot summer day. One passerby came, saluted him, and said, “I am a diamond merchant and I want to give you a special gift.” He took out two very precious diamonds and gave them to the Sadhu. The merchant said, “You can have all the luxuries of the world from the money you get from these two diamonds.” The Sadhu smiled and started playing with these two diamonds as if he is playing with two small pebbles. After a few minutes, he threw one diamond as far as he could in the river like a child’s play and started laughing. The merchant was shocked, and he said, “Sir! Where did you throw the diamond in the river? I can go and get it back.” The Sadhu took the other diamond and through it in the direction of the first one and said, “There it is.”. The merchant could not believe what he saw, and then he left in dismay. Sadhu taught him that compared to the inner bliss one gets by dwelling on the Atman, the two diamonds are nothing more than two pebbles.
Sri Ramakrishna wanted to make sure that the money would not deviate his mind from his spiritual goal. So, as a spiritual practice, he took a few coins in one hand and dirt in the other hand, sat at the bank of the river Ganga, and tried to feel that there was no difference between the two. He repeated a few times, ‘money, dirt’, ‘dirt, money’ and when he did not feel any difference between the two, he threw both of them in the river. He knew that money was needed to maintain the living, but it should not deviate the mind from our spiritual pursuit.
One Marwari businessman wanted to give Rs. 10,000 to Sri Ramakrishna. At that time, this amount was huge. But Sri Ramakrishna was happy with what he had, and he didn’t accept the money. Once Mathur Babu, Rani Rasamani’s son-in-law, expressed his wish to transfer an estate to Sri Ramakrishna’s name so that Sri Ramakrishna enjoys the money produced by the land for his entire life. Sri Ramakrishna became angry and chased Mathur Babu out saying, “O Rogue! Do you want to make me a worldly man? Get out of here.”
Such examples teach us that compared to the inner bliss experienced by being absorbed in the Atman the worldly pleasures are very trifles.
(4) Symbols and their interpretations:
In the Hindu scriptures, many things are symbolic. Those who cannot make efforts to find the deeper meanings of these symbols, they get confused and think that Hindu gods and goddesses and the things around them are primitive. On the other hand, people make various interpretations of the symbols according to their mindsets. Thus, there is a wide range of interpretations, and we cannot say which one is correct. Actually, the interpretations reflect the spiritual state of the interpreter. A person with a higher spiritual state, a higher consciousness state than the state of only material and body-mind existence, sees spiritually uplifting meanings behind the symbols. A person bound by the material body-mind existence sees a much lower-level interpretation of the symbols.
It is not that someone sits down one day and makes all the symbols. These symbols have evolved over a period of hundreds or thousands of years from a cultural or a religious tradition. A highly evolved spiritual soul visualizes the Ultimate Reality in a certain way and expresses it in one’s own way to his/her disciples. Then, over a period of time, many followers also had the vision of Ultimate Reality through that expression and this expression became a symbol. From various spiritual souls, these symbols develop in a culture or a religious tradition. To laugh at any symbol reflects our own mental, moral, and intellectual immaturity. If we don’t understand the meaning behind a symbol, it should not matter.
The symbols help us in our spiritual practices, especially in our meditation to focus and uplift our minds. That is all that matters.
Lord Shiva’s seven household belongings are also symbolic. Here are a couple of interpretations of the symbols that I have read, heard, or thought about them.
(1) Nandi (Bull): Nandi is considered Lord Shiva’s pet. Nandi is always sitting outside Lord Shiva’s temple facing Lord Shiva’s image. Nandi represents devotees of Lord Shiva. It represents Jiva with the ego of body and mind. Shiva rides on the Nandi meaning Shiva controls Jiva.
Another way to look at Nandi (Bull) is to be the most useful animal for farmers in farming. In earlier times, most people had farms and their living was completely dependent on farming. Farmers loved bulls dearly. Thus, Lord Shiva becomes the god of most common people. Shiva’s temples are always open. Many of Shiva’s temples don’t even have doors as there is nothing there to steal like ornaments or any precious things.
(2) A club weapon: This represents a staff more than a weapon. It symbolizes that Lord Shiva is the controller of the whole universe. By following the command of Lord Shiva, the sun, moon, earth, planets, and all continue to do their jobs. Those who do not follow the command, get punished by the law.
(3) An axe: In earlier times, people used an axe to cut trees. In the fifteenth chapter of the Bhagavad Gita, Lord Krishna describes this universe as an upside-down tree. Actually, it is the universe developed in the minds of people due to attachment created by our ignorance. Lord Krishna says that in order to attain the highest knowledge and to be free from all bondages one should cut this tree with a weapon of detachment. Thus, this axe represents detachment. Lord Shiva is absorbed in meditation and shows us to become detached from the world created out of delusion.
(4) A tiger-skin cloth: Tiger is a ferocious animal. It represents mainly lust and also all the other five enemies of a spiritual seeker, which are anger, greed, delusion, ego, and jealousy. Lord Shiva wears tiger-skin cloth and sits on it. This shows that Lord Shiva has total control over all of these six enemies and is teaching devotees to do the same.
(5) Ashes: Lord Shiva adorns his forehead and the body with ashes gathered in the cremation ground showing us that this body is ultimately going to turn to ashes. Therefore, think about the priorities of life. Don’t spend too much time pampering the body and decorating it. The goal of human life is to acquire the highest knowledge of our true divine identity which will give us everything we are seeking, like fulfillment, infinite bliss, knowledge, freedom from all bondages, and love for all. We have to take care of the body to help us as an instrument to achieve this highest goal.
(6) Snakes: Lord Shiva adorns himself with snakes. There are a couple of interpretations for this.
(i) When poison comes out from the churning of the ocean, according to the rule, someone has to drink it. Devas and demons ran away from the poison. No one on earth was ready to drink it. Finally, Lord Shiva agreed to drink the poison to save the world. He drank it and held it on his neck with his yogic power. The poison remained there which made his neck dark blue (nila) and had a burning sensation. A snake’s body is cool by nature, so the snake gave him some relief. Lord Shiva’s other name is ‘Nilakantha’, a God with a blue neck.
(ii) Snakes represent the worldly pleasures that bite us with their attractions and then we get the poison in the form of the painful consequences. Lord Shiva has total control over these worldly pleasures.
(iii) Except for the snake charmers and the snake controllers, all are afraid of the snakes. Generally, if people see a snake, their natural instinct is to kill it before it kills them. There is a story that King Janmejaya, whose father Parikshita died of a snakebite, was angry at snakes. He held a fire ritual in which he started burning all the snakes of his kingdom. Later, a saintly person convinced him to stop this ritual. Thus, people hate snakes. Lord Shiva welcomes snakes as his adornment. It is a symbol that Lord Shiva loves all, especially those who are neglected and hated by society.
(7) A human skull: Again, like ashes, the skull reminds the end of a person’s body. Men or women of different colors, cultures, forms, intelligence, and skills look alike as the skulls. Lord Shiva wears a garland of skulls considering all people equal.
Meaning: O Supreme Lord! Can the universe made up of various parts be without birth or origin? Can creation happen without the creator? Without the Lord who else even attempts to create the world? Therefore, the people who doubt your existence are really dull-minded.
(Note: There are two interpretations of the line, “Anisho va kuryat…”.
(1) “If someone else, other than the Lord, had created the universe, then what material that person had used to create it?.”
(2) “Without the Lord who else even attempts to create the world?”
I preferred the interpretation (2)).
Reflections:
The scriptures teach us that whatever has a name and form is perishable. A thing with name and form has a beginning and an end.
Upanishads clearly say that Brahman is the cause of the creation, preservation, and dissolution of the universe. There are various quotes from the Upanishads, and the Bhagavad Gita stating that the world functions because of the power of Brahman.
Kathopanishad (2.3.2-3) says:
“Whatever there is – the whole universe – vibrates because it has gone forth from Brahman, which exists as its Gound. That Brahman is a great terror, like a poised thunderbolt. Those who know It becomes immortal.” (Kahtopanishad 2.3.2)
“From the terror of Brahman, fire burns; from the terror of It, the sun shines; from the terror of It, Indra, Vayu, and Death, the fifth, function.” (Kathopanishad 2.3.3)
Kenopanishad Story:
There is a story in the Kenopanishad. There was a fight between gods and demons. The gods became victorious. They said to themselves, “Verily, this victory is ours; verily, this glory is ours only.”
At that time a mysterious Being appeared at the door. The gods wanted to find out who that Being was. They sent Agni, the fire god, to find it out. The Being asked, “Who are you?” The fire god said, “I am Agni”. The Being asked, “What power do you have?” Agni said, “I can burn everything.” The Being put a straw before him and said, “Burn this.” Agni tried all his power, but he could not burn it. He went back and said, “I could not find out who that Being is.”
The gods sent Vayu, the wind god, to find out who that mysterious Being was. Vayu went to the Being. The Being asked, “Who are you?” The wind god said, “I am Vayu”. The Being asked, “What power do you have?” Vayu said, “I can blow away everything.” The Being put a straw before him and said, “Blow this.” Vayu tried all his power, but he could not even move the straw. He went back and said, “I could not find out who that Being is.”
The gods asked their king Indra to find it out. When Indra went to the Being, the Being disappeared, and Indra saw in the very region of the sky a glorious woman Uma. Indra asked her, “Who was that mysterious Being?” Uma said, “That was Brahman. By the victory of Brahman alone you have obtained glory.”
Uma is the Power of Brahman. She taught the gods that only because of the power of Brahman they had won the war. The gods were just the instruments of Brahman. Thus, through the power of Brahman alone, the world is functioning.
Sri Ramakrishna used to say in Hindi:
‘Without God’s will, not even a leaf moves.’
The Alternative:
If skeptical people think that there is no power working in the universe, then the other choice is to think that everything is happening by accident or by chance. For example, we have to accept that our eyes, ears, hands, legs, hearts, digestive systems, and other body functions are happening by chance or by accident. We have to assume that the functions of the sun, moon, earth, planets, etc. are happening accidentally.
Since everything in the universe is working so precisely, to think that it is happening by accident or by chance is really ridiculous.
Creation without the Creator:
The universe didn’t just fall from the sky – there is a creator. To say that there is no creator is like saying that there is a painting on a canvas without a painter, there is a song sung without a singer, there is a book published without a writer, etc. If someone says that a computer can do all of these, but behind the computer there is a human mind.
Since the universe is working so precisely, nothing other than the Lord is capable of even thinking to create this universe.
Human brains have amazing power. Among them, the power of the brightest brains the world has ever produced and the ones that are going to come in the future are beyond our comprehension. How powerful must be the brain that has created all these brains?
The Power of God:
Shri Krishna says in the Bhagavad Gita that wherever you see a special power, that is My (Lord’s) Power. He said that the whole world is created by one small fraction of My Power.
“Whatever glorious, or attractive, or powerful thing exists anywhere, know that it is a manifestation of a spark of My (Lord’s) splendor.” (Bhagavad Gita 10.41)
“Or, O Arjuna, what need is there for you to acquire this detailed knowledge? I support the whole universe with a fraction of Myself.” (Bhagavad Gita 10.42)
Pushpadanta states that those people who don’t think deeper, don’t study scriptures and reflect upon their sayings, but simply deny or doubt the existence of the Lord must be dull-minded.
mahendrajani 