Sri LalithAsahasranAma The great Stotra and a Treasure of AncientKnowledge
- In Religion
- 01:46 PM, Oct 09, 2016
- Santhi Pasumarthi
During, many Hindu temples and homes reverberate with prayers to the mother Goddess. The most well-known prayers chanted during this time include ‘Chandi Paath’ in the North(aka Durga SaptaShati and Devi Mahatmyam) and ‘Sri LalitaSahasranAma’(LSN) in the South. While the former is also recited in the south, it’s the Sahasranamam that is ubiquitous.
Sri Lalitha
Sri LalitaSahasranAma literally means the thousand names of Sri Lalitha and is an important text in Srividya. This is from Brahmanda Purana and is a part of Lalithopakhyana or the story of Sri Lalitha and happens in a conversation between the great sage Agatsya and Lord Hayagriva. The Rishis for this stotra are the 8 Vagdevis starting with Vashini(also mentioned in Khadgamala Stotram). Comprising 183 shlokas it contains exactly 1000 names. Its well-known there are no fillers for fitting the meter and no name is repeated in this Stotra.
The goddess Lalitha referred here literally means the ‘playful one’. This entire creation is her play. Starting with the name ‘SrimAtA’, the stotram describes her physical form, her attributes, actions and her grace and also tells her story using just names thereby revealing a comprehensive Tatva of the Devi. This is surely magical when looked at as a work of poetry. It also gives us a lot of knowledge of various subjects mentioned in our ancient scriptures.
Trends
Taking a cursory look at the kinds of names, 27 end in ‘RupA’ and 40 end in ‘rUpini’ indicating she is all-pervading in names and forms. 12 names end in NilayA and 22 end in the suffix ‘sthaa’ if we are interested in where she resides. The word ‘priyA’ comes 24 times telling us what she likes. The suffix ‘dA’(giver) is in 25 names. The prefix ‘ni’ comes around 40 times to guide us what she is not/devoid of (nirupamA, nireeshwarA etc).
Number 5
She is seated on PanchabrahmAsana(nama- Panchabrahmasanasthita) with Brahma, Vishnu, Rudra, Ishwara and Sadashiva forming the legs and the base. The Pancha Brahmas do 5 main important krutyas
When she takes Brahmarupa she is Srishtikartri, as Govindarupini she is Goptri, as Rudrarupa- she is Samharini, as Ishwari she is TirodhAnakari, as Anugrahadaa she is ‘sadAshivA’.
In these forms, she is constantly doing creation, sustenance, destruction, obscuring the creation into a beeja form and then liberation (Panchakritya-Parayana).
She pervades the 5 koshas/sheaths (Panchakoshantarasthitaa) that make up the Sthula, Sukshma and Karana Shariras(physical, subtle and causal bodies). The sheaths are Annamaya, Pranamaya, Manomaya, VignAnamaya and Anandamaya.
She is Panchayagnapriyaa- the one who likes pancha yagnas viz. Deva, Pitr, Manushya, Bhuta and Brahma yagnas(worshipping devas, ancestors, humans, all beings and Brahman). Pancha is a recurring number in LSN. She holds 5 arrows each representing the Tanmatras(the subtle aspects of the primordial elements or panchabhutas) viz. Shabda(space), Rasa(water), Rupa(fire), Sparsha(air), Gandha(Earth). The mother who has these arrows and Manorupa-ikshukodanda(sugarcane bow called mind) surely controls all Prakriti inside and outside us.
LSN starts with describing her form in detail and goes on to subtler aspects. Towards the middle, she is described as parA, pashyantI, MadhyamA, VikharIrUpA which are the 4 stages of speech.
parA pratyakchitIrUpA pashyantI paradevatA |
madhyamA vaikharIrUpA bhakta\-mAnasa\-haMsikA
She is Gayatri(the mantra) , Vyahriti(the invocations that precede Gaytri) and SandhyA.
She is in the pairs of opposites (Vidya-avidyA swarupini), Chit-shakti and Chetana rupa(consciousness) on one hand and jada Shakti and jadAtmikA(passive and not conscious) on the other. While she is in all forms, she is also ‘nAmarUpa-vivarjita’. While she is triguNAtmikA she is also nistraigunyA.
The various Chakras
Right at the middle of LSN, there is knowledge given on seven Chakras, the seven Dhatus they are associated with and how mother is visualized and propitiated in each Chakra.
Vishuddhi chakranilaya – One head with 3 eyes. Likes Payasa(pAyasAnnapriyA) and is in the Tvak(skin- Tvakshtaa)
anAhtAbjanilayA -2 heads, likes snigdhodana(food with lot of ghee n other fats) is in the blood(rudhirasamsthitaa)
maNipoorAbjanilayA – 3 heads, likes GudAnna(jiggery rice) and is in the maamsa(flesh/muscle)
swadhishtAnAmbuja-gatA – 4 heads, likes dadhyanna(curd rice) and is in medha(fat)
moolAdharAmbujArUDhA – 5 heads, likes mudgodana(khichdi/pongal with moong dal) and is asthi(bones)
AgnAchkarAbjanilayA – 6 heads, likes haridrAnna(yellow rice) and is in majja(marrow)
SahasradalapadmasthA(Sahasrara chakra) – head everywhere, likes sarvaudana(mixed rice) and is in Shukla
She is in the form of IchhAshakti, GnAnashakti and KriyAshakti(The power of desire, knowledge and action); TrivarganilayA- trivarga meaning Dharma, Artha and Kama and also muktidA. In yoga, TriputI refers to the triad of Knower-Known-Knowledge. She is all three(Triputi EkAkAra) which is revealed by the name dhAna-dhyAtru-dhyeya-rUpA.
Beyond the worldly
Later half of LSN extolls mother as formless and the ultimate. Eg: SarvopAdhivinirmuktA(devoid all limitations/impositions), KalpanArahitA(devoid of imagination), SatyagnAnAnandarupA(whose form is truth and knowledge). She is also given the name Paramjyotih(a neuter gender noun in Samskritam) and is called ParAtpara(beyond the parA).
LSN is unique in the sense that while extolling the mother, it gives us pointers on how to reach her (BhaktigamyA, dhyAnagamyA), how to pray her (64 upacharas, panchayagnyas, dashamudrAs ) and her mercy for devotees ( bhayApahA, dukhahantrI, sukhapradA). There are also the long but very reassuring compounds like
KarAnguLinakhotpanna-nArAyaNadashAkritih- the one who created the 10 forms of Vishnu from her finger nails.
SamsArapankanirmagna-samudhharanapanditA - The one who is adept at rescuing people who have fallen in the dirt called Samsara.
TapatrayAgnisamtapta-samAhladanachandrikA - Delighting moonlight for the ones who are burning in the fire of tApatrayAs
janmamrityujarAtapta-janavishrAntidAyinI – The reliever of people burnt by janma-mrityu-jarA
nAma sankeertanam is considered the most easy way to reach divine in Kaliyuga. LSN confirms the same in the names - ‘nAmapArAyaNapreetA’ and ‘StotrapriyA’(She delights in the chants of her name)!!
The Phalashruti aptly says ‘anena sadrusham stotram na bhUto na bhavishyati’( there hasn’t been and there won’t be a Stotra like this).
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