The Druid's Prayer

I chanced upon the Druid's Prayer several years ago.  For some reason, I never did think to put it up, although I do relate to it almost daily.  

Recently in a conversation with a dear friend, I gave the TL DR version:  Druids are reverent and worship nature.  The prayer however, captures it all for me:

Grant, O Nature thy Protection
And in Protection, Strength
And in Strength, Understanding
And in Understanding, Knowledge
And in Knowledge, the Knowledge of Justice
And in the Knowledge of Justice, the Love of it
And in the Love of it, the Love of All Existence
And in the Love of All Existence, the Love of Nature and All Goodness.

Peace
S

PS:  The prayer itself is supposedly composed by the Welsh visionary, Iolo Morganwg.  I am simply posting it here.  All copyrights belong to the respective owners of this work and not to me.

The Gruffalo Song by Julia Donaldson

Among one of Atri's favourite songs is the one about the little brown mouse and the Gruffalo.  Originally written by Julia Donaldson, the song is a masterpiece and among my favourite bed time reads for Atri. Here it is reproduced in entirety:

The Gruffalo Song:

A mouse took a stroll through the deep dark wood.
A fox saw the mouse, and the mouse looked good.

"Where are you going to, little brown mouse?
Come and have lunch in my underground house."

"It's terribly kind of you, Fox, but no –
I'm going to have lunch with a gruffalo."

"A gruffalo? What's a gruffalo?"
"A gruffalo! Why, didn't you know?

He has terrible tusks, and terrible claws,
And terrible teeth in his terrible jaws."

"Where are you meeting him?"
"Here, by these rocks,
And his favourite food is roasted fox."

"Roasted fox! I'm off!" Fox said.
"Goodbye, little mouse," and away he sped.

"Silly old Fox! Doesn't he know,
There's no such thing as a gruffalo?"

On went the mouse through the deep dark wood.
An owl saw the mouse, and the mouse looked good.

"Where are you going to, little brown mouse?
Come and have tea in my treetop house."

"It's terribly kind of you, Owl, but no –
I'm going to have tea with a gruffalo."

"A gruffalo? What's a gruffalo?"
"A gruffalo! Why, didn't you know?

He has knobbly knees, and turned-out toes,
And a poisonous wart at the end of his nose."

"Where are you meeting him?"
"Here, by this stream,
And his favourite food is owl ice cream."

"Owl ice cream! Toowhit toowhoo!"
"Goodbye, little mouse," and away Owl flew.

"Silly old Owl! Doesn't he know,
There's no such thing as a gruffalo?"

On went the mouse through the deep dark wood.
A snake saw the mouse, and the mouse looked good.

"Where are you going to, little brown mouse?
Come for a feast in my logpile house."

"It's terribly kind of you, Snake, but no –
I'm having a feast with a gruffalo."

"A gruffalo? What's a gruffalo?"
"A gruffalo! Why, didn't you know?

His eyes are orange, his tongue is black,
He has purple prickles all over his back."

"Where are you meeting him?"
"Here, by this lake,
And his favourite food is scrambled snake."

"Scrambled snake! It's time I hid!"
"Goodbye, little mouse," and away Snake slid.

"Silly old Owl! Doesn't he know,
There's no such thing as a gruffal...?"

...OH!"

But who is this creature with terrible claws
And terrible teeth in his terrible jaws?
He has knobbly knees, and turned-out toes,
And a poisonous wart at the end of his nose.
His eyes are orange, his tongue is black,
He has purple prickles all over his back.

"Oh help! Oh no!
It's a gruffalo!"

"My favourite food!" the Gruffalo said.
"You'll taste good on a slice of bread!"

"Good?" said the mouse. "Don't call me good!
I'm the scariest creature in this wood.
Just walk behind me and soon you'll see,
Everyone is afraid of me."

"All right," said the Gruffalo, bursting with laughter.
"You go ahead and I'll follow after."

They walked and walked till the Gruffalo said,
"I hear a hiss in the leaves ahead."

"It's Snake," said the mouse. "Why, Snake, hello!"
Snake took one look at the Gruffalo.
"Oh crumbs!" he said, "Goodbye, little mouse!"
And off he slid to his logpile house.

"You see?" said the mouse. "I told you so."
"Amazing!" said the Gruffalo.

They walked some more till the Gruffalo said,
"I hear a hoot in the trees ahead."

"It's Owl," said the mouse. "Why, Owl, hello!"
Owl took one look at the Gruffalo.
"Oh dear!" he said, "Goodbye, little mouse!"
And off he flew to his treetop house.

"You see?" said the mouse. "I told you so."
"Astounding!" said the Gruffalo.

They walked some more till the Gruffalo said,
"I can hear feet on the path ahead."

"It's Fox," said the mouse. "Why, Fox, hello!"
Fox took one look at the Gruffalo.
"Oh help!" he said, "Goodbye, little mouse!"
And off he ran to his underground house.

"Well, Gruffalo," said the mouse. "You see?
Everyone is afraid of me!
But now my tummy's beginning to rumble.
My favourite food is – gruffalo crumble!"

"Gruffalo crumble!" the Gruffalo said,
And quick as the wind he turned and fled.

All was quiet in the deep dark wood.
The mouse found a nut and the nut was good.

Great bed time read.  I told you!

Ulysses

Had an opportunity to read Lord Tennyson's Ulysses again, this AM. The closing lines.

We are not now that old strength which in old days

Moved heaven and earth, that which we are, we are

One equal temper of heroic hearts,

Made weak by time and fate, but strong in will

To strive, to seek, to find, and not to yield

Sublime and worth a ponder.

S

Sarasvati

In the ṛgveda, together with divine will, is another power that manifests itself in us ― the power of inspiration, manifested as the goddess sarasvatī. The hymns to sarasvatī first make their appearance in the poetry of ṝṣi madhuccandāḥ vaiśvāmitrāḥ and give us an insight into the character of this power within us.

The richness of the vedic symbolism is again depicted here - in that of the ocean ― the chosen image of infinite and eternal existence; and that of the river ― the image of a stream of conscious being.

पावका नः सरस्वती वाजेभिः वाजिनीवती
यज्ञं वष्टु धियावसुः

pāvakā naḥ sarasvatī vājebhiḥ vājinīvatī
yajñaṁ vaṣṭu dhiyāvasuḥ

May the purifying sarasvatī, with plentiful types of plenitudes
Rich in the substance made by thoughts, desire our yajña

madhuccandāḥ first hearkens to sarasvatī to purify and remove the layers of falsehood embedded in our emotions, will and action. sarasvatī is capable of giving us everything in all possible forms and plentifully, as ascribed by the Sanskrit word, vāja ― the plenitude of all forms. She is also rich in dhiyāvasuḥ ― the substance of thought and invoked to bless our [inner] pilgrim-sacrifice.

The vedic idea was that the subconscient darkness and the ordinary life of ignorance held concealed in it all that belongs to divinity. The secret riches are recovered by destroying the powers of falsehood and ignorance.

चोदयित्री सूनृतानां चेतन्ती सुमतीनाम्
यज्ञं दधे सरस्वती

codayitrī sūnṛtānāṁ cetantī sumatīnām
yajñaṁ dadhe sarasvatī

She is the impeller of auspicious truths and the awakener of all happy thoughts
May that sarasvatī uphold the yajña

sarasvatī makes us become more conscious so that we do not turn to the paths of falsehood, creating in us right states of emotion and right movements of thought ― impelling the truth to manifest in our emotions, will and action; the vedic word, sumatīnām, especially meaning the happiness in our thoughts accompanied by a gladness in our souls.

महो अर्णः सरस्वती प्र चेतयति केतुना
धियो विश्वा वि राजति

maho arṇaḥ sarasvatī pra cetayati ketunā
dhiyo viśvā vi rājati

sarasvatī awakens the great flood [of truth] by the revelation in the consciousness
She illumines entirely all thoughts

By her constant awakening and impulsion ― collectively called ketu, or perception, sarasvatī brings into our active consciousness, the truth-consciousness itself, what the ancient vedic ṝṣi referred to as maho arṇaḥ or great ocean.

So ends the first hymn of the ṛgveda to sarasvatī, the power of inspiration.

Peace
S

The Leader of our Journey

The ṛgveda, as I believe, is the record of our human fathers, pitaro manuṣyaḥ, who have conquered immortality by the work, and having reached this goal, are invoked to assist a later mortal race in the same divine achievement. It is the great journeys – from mortality to immortality – from falsehood to the truth – that our ancestors accomplished, opening the way for their descendants.

The imagery is also very clear. The following excerpt from one of Sri Aurobindo’s works is relevant. Here he speaks about the ṛṣi vasiṣṭha who invokes the divine powers in VII.42 and VII.52 of the veda.

In the first, he sings, “Ease of travelling for Thee is the path, O agni and known to Thee from of old. . . . Seated, I call the births divine.” This path is between the home of these divine powers and our earthly mortality down which the divinities descend, through the antarikṣa, the vital regions to the earthly sacrifice and up which the sacrifice and man by the sacrifice ascends to the home of the divine. agni yokes his steeds, the flames of the divine force he represents, which bear the hero within us that performs the journey.

The 52nd hymn is more significant. It first runs – आदित्यासो अदितयः स्याम – ādityāso aditayaḥ syāma – O, sons of the infinite mother, may we become infinite beings. It goes on to say – सनेम मित्रावरुणा सनन्तो भवेम द्यावापृथिवि भवन्तः – sanema mitrāvaruṇā sananto bhavema dyāvāpṛthivi bhavantaḥ – possessing may we possess you, o mitrā and varuṇā, becoming may we become you, O heaven and earth – evidently, in the sense that we are to possess and become the infinities or children of aditi.

In this journey, it is our great friend, agni, who guides us. He is both beginning and end, leading us from the start, helping and supporting us through the journey, till we at last reach his abode. He shows us vājasya panthaṁ – the path to the plenitude; ṝtasya pantham –the path of righteousness and asuryam ā aruhat – makes us climb to greatness.

I was recently reading maṇdala 5 of the ṛgveda which contains the hymns of the atri ṛṣi. My principal affinity towards the atri ṛṣi stems from the fact that their work comprises divinising life – as our journey progresses, the states of inconscience and darkness are dispelled and give way to conscious awareness. The fourth hymn sung by ṛṣi vasuśruta invokes agni – the divine will, priest, warrior and leader of our journey and one of my own beloved deities.

त्वामग्ने वसुपतिं वसूनामभि प्र मन्दे अध्वरेषु राजन्
त्वया वजं वाजयन्तो जयेमाऽभि ष्याम पृत्सुतीर्मर्त्यानाम्

tvāmagne vasupatiṁ vasūnāmabhi pra mande adhvareṣu rājan
tvayā vajaṁ vājayanto jayemā'bhi ṣyāma pṛtsutīrmartyānām

O agni, wealth-master of riches, I direct my delight towards thee in the pilgrim-sacrifice
O king, replenishing thee may we conquer the plenitude, may we overcome the battle hosts of the mortals

हव्यवाळग्निरजरः पिता नो विभुर्विभावा सुदृशीको अस्मे
सुगार्हपत्याः समिषो दिदीह्यस्मध्रक् सं मिमीहि श्रवांसि

havyavāt agniḥ ajaraḥ pitā no vibhuḥ vibhāvā sudṛśīkaḥ asme
sugārhapatyāḥ sam iṣaḥ didīhi asmadhrak saṁ mimīhi śravāṁsi

The ageless agni, who carries the offering, is our father. He is pervasive in his being, perfect in vision and extended in light
Accomplished in works of the master of the house, blaze out your forces – form the inspirations of knowledge and turn them towards us

विशां कविं विश्पतिं मानुषीणाम् शुचिं पावकं घृतपृष्ठमग्निम्
नि होतारं विश्वविदं दधिध्वे स देवेषु वनते वार्याणि

viśāṁ kaviṁ viśpatiṁ mānuṣīṇām śuciṁ pāvakaṁ ghṛtapṛṣṭhamagnim
ni hotāraṁ viśvavidaṁ dadhidhve sa deveṣu vanate vāryāṇi

The seer, master of men, lord of the human people, pure and purifying with its back of light
Set within you, agni, as the omniscient priest of the call, he shall win our desirable things in the godheads

जुषस्वाग्न इळया सजोषा यतमानो रश्मिभिः सूर्यस्य
जुषस्व नः समिधं जातवेद आ च देवान् हविर्द्याय वक्षि

juṣasvāgna iḻayā sajoṣā yatamāno raśmibhiḥ sūryasya
juṣasva naḥ samidhaṁ jātaveda ā ca devān haviḥ adyāya vakṣi

Take pleasure in us, o agni – of one mind with ilā, the goddess of revelation, labouring with the rays of the sun
Accept with pleasure our fuel, o knower of all things born and bring the gods to us to partake in our sacrifice

जुष्टो दमूना अतिथिर्दुरोण इमं नो यज्ञमुप याहि विद्वान्
विश्वा अग्ने अभियुजो विहत्या शत्रूयतामा भरा भोजनानि

juṣṭo damūnā atithiḥ duroṇa imaṁ no yajñam upa yāhi vidvān
viśvā agne abhiyujo vihatyā śatrūyatām ā bharā bhojanāni

A cherished guest domiciled in our gated house, come to the sacrifice of ours as the knower
O agni, slaying all [hostile energies*] who assail us, bring to us the enjoyments of those who make themselves our enemy

[*all hostile energies that attack the soul of man possess certain energies which he needs and has to wrest from them in order to arrive at his perfect plenitude]

वधेन दस्युं प्र हि चातयस्व वयः कृण्वानस्तन्वे स्वायै
पिपर्षि यत् सहसस्पुत्र देवान्त्सो अग्ने पाहि नृतम वाजे अस्मान्

vadhena dasyuṁ pra hi cātayasva vayaḥ kṛṇvānaḥ tanve svāyai
piparṣi yat sahasaḥ putra devān saḥ agne pāhi nṛtama vāje asmān

Chase the destroyer from us with your blow; make a free space for growth for your own body
When, o son of force, you are carrying the gods; guard us in the plenitude, o agni, mightiest deity
वयं ते अग्न उक्थैर्विधेम वयं हव्यैः पावक भद्रशोचे
अस्मे रयिं विश्ववारं समिन्वास्मे विश्वानि द्रविणानि धेहि

vayaṁ te agna ukthaiḥ vidhema vayaṁ havyaiḥ pāvaka bhadraśoce
asme rayiṁ viśvavāraṁ saminva asme viśvāni draviṇāni dhehi

May we worship thee with our words, o agni; worship thee with our offerings, o purifier, o happy light
Bring into us the treasure in which are all desirable things; establish in us substance of every kind of riches

अस्माकमग्ने अध्वरं जुषस्व सहसः सूनो त्रिषधस्थ हव्यम्
वयं देवेषु सुकृतः स्याम शर्मणा नस्त्रिवरूथेन पाहि

asmākam agne adhvaraṁ juṣasva sahasaḥ sūno triṣadhastha havyam
vayaṁ deveṣu sukṛtaḥ syāma śarmaṇā naḥ trivarūthena pāhi

Accept our pilgrim-sacrifice, o agni; accept our offering, o son of force [and] holder of the triple worlds [of your session]
May we be doers of good deeds before the godheads; protect us with a triple armour of peace

विश्वानि नो दुर्गहा जातवेद सिन्धु न नावा दुरिताति पर्षि
अग्ने अत्रिवन्नमसा गृणानोऽस्माकं बोध्यविता तनूनाम्

viśvāni no durgahā jātaveda sindhu na nāvā durita ati parṣi
agne atrivat namasā gṛṇāno asmākaṁ bodhi avitā tanūnām

Carry us through all difficult passages, o knower of all things born; through all calamities like a ship over the ocean
O agni, voiced by us with our obeisance, even as did the [sage] atri, awake and be the guardian of our bodies

यस्त्वा हृदा कीरिणा मन्यमानोऽमर्त्यं मर्त्यो जोहवीमि
जातवेदो यशो अस्मासु धेहि प्रजाभिरग्ने अमृतत्वमश्याम्

yah tvā hṛdā kīriṇā manyamānaḥ amartyaṁ martyaḥ johavīmi
jātavedaḥ yaśaḥ asmāsu dhehi prajābhiḥ agne amṛtatvam aśyām

I think of thee with a heart that is thy singer, and mortal, I call to thee immortal
Establish the glory in us, o knower of all things born, by [the children of] my works, may I win immortality, o agni

यस्मै त्वं सुकृते जातवेद उ लोकमग्ने कृणवः स्योनम्
अश्विनं स पुत्रिणं वीरवन्तं गोमन्तं रयिं नशते स्वस्ति

yasmai tvaṁ sukṛte jātaveda u lokam agne kṛṇavaḥ syonam
aśvinaṁ sa putriṇaṁ vīravantaṁ gomantaṁ rayiṁ naśate svasti

O knower of all things born, doer of greats deeds for whom you shall make that happy other world
Reaches in peace a wealth, in which are the horses of swiftness, the ray-cows, the son and the heroes**

[**the ancient vedic symbols of the Horse, Cow, Son and Hero recur here as well. The vital powers are the motive forces that bear us on our journey and symbolised by the horse; the herds are the illuminations that come to us from the Truth, the herding rays of the sun of Light, symbolised by the cow; the sons are the new soul-formations comprising the divine personality within us; and the heroes are the mental and moral energies within us that resist the assault of ignorance, division and falsehood]

So ends a hymn to the Divinity that knows all successive births of the soul in its ascending plans of existence.

Peace
S

PS: Sri Aurobindo's writing quoted above and the poetic translation of the hymn 5.4 above (c) Sri Aurobindo Ashram Trust 1998.

Another Hymn to mitra

I had written about mitra earlier here. This morning I read another hymn revealed to gāthino viśvāmitra about this divinity. Originally contained in the ṛgveda, this hymn also finds place in the daily sandhi rites of the hindus. Some of us would recognise this powerful prayer:

मित्रस्य चर्षणीधृतः श्रवो देवस्य सानसिम्
सत्यं चित्रश्रवस्तमम्
मित्रो जनान् यातयति प्रजानन् मित्रो दाधार पृथिवीमुत द्याम्
मित्रः कृष्टीरनिमिषाऽभि चष्टे सत्याय हव्यं घृतवद्विधेम
प्र स मित्र मर्तो अस्तु प्रयस्वान् यस्त आदित्य शिक्षति व्रतेन
न हन्यते न जीयते त्वोतः नैनम-हो अश्नोत्यन्तितो न दूरात्

mitrasya carṣaṇī dhṛtaḥ śravo devasya sānasim
satyaṁ citraśravastamam
mitro janān yātayati prajānan mitro dādhāra pṛthivīm uta dyām
mitraḥ kṛṣṭīra animiṣā abhi caṣṭe satyāya havyaṁ ghṛtavat vidhema
pra sa mitra marto astu prayasvān yasta āditya śikṣati vratena
na hanyate na jīyate tvotaḥ nainama-amho aśnoti antito na dūrāt

The audition (śravas) of the godhead (devasya) mitra, the upholder of all strivers is steadfast (dhṛtaḥ); [mitra grants us] a true (satyaḥ) audition (śravas) that is of infinite variety (citra) and excellent (tamaḥ)
Knowing (janān) everything, mitra guides (yāta yati) all persons (prajānan); mitra supports (dādhāra) earth (pṛthivīm) and heaven (dyām)
mitra watches all strivers all around (abhi) with an unwinking (animiṣā) eye
To the true one (satyāya), an oblation (havyaṁ) rich in clarity (ghṛtavat) let us offer (vidhema)
O mitra, may the mortal (marto) have a pleasant and abundant offering (prayasvān); who O aditya endeavours to follow (yasta vratena) your law (śikṣati)
Aided by you, he is neither slain (na hanyate) nor oppressed (na jīyate), sin or affliction (nam) does not (nai) come to him either from near (antito) or from far (dūrāt)

Peace

S

What The Thunder Said. . .

Among my favourite pieces of scriptural literature is the brihad-aranyaka upaniṣat, which I personally call the great (brihad) forest (aranyaka) of wisdom. Summed up by Chitrita Devi, a Bengali scholar, “this upaniṣat has mingled love with knowledge, forests with cities and the practicality of daily life with the hope of immortality.”

In this upaniṣat, I discovered a central character, a sage called yagnavalkya, a great teacher and a colorful personality, known for the famous yagnavalkya-smriti authored by him– a smriti which forms the basis of hindu family law in India today.

I admire his several dialogues with various people throughout the brihad-aranyaka upaniṣat and the manner in which he applies his acquired knowledge for the help of others, a quality that I try and emulate in my daily endeavours. yagnavalkya teaches us more than any other teacher or sage about what the upaniṣats mean by freedom, in his own universal albeit inimitable style.

However, what I am writing about today is on three principal virtues as enunciated in the brihat-aranyaka. The famous English poet, T S Eliot wrote a poem called, The Wasteland, which speaks about a human soul seeking its release. In this poem, in a section called, “What The Thunder Said”, he speaks of three words – dAmyata, datta and dayadhvam – originally from the brihad-aranyaka upaniṣat*.

त्रयाः प्राजापत्याः प्रजापतौ पितरि ब्रह्मचर्यम् ऊषुः देवा मनुष्या असुराः उषित्वा ब्रह्मचर्यं देवा ऊचुः ब्रवीतु नो भवान् इति तेभ्यो हैतद् अक्षरं उवाच द इति व्यज्ञासिष्टा इति व्यज्ञासिष्मा इति होचुः दाम्यत इति न आत्थेति ॐ इति होवाच व्यज्ञासिष्टेति ।
अथ हैनं मनुष्या ऊचुः ब्रवीतु नो भवान् इति तेभ्यो हैतद् एवाक्षरं उवाच द इति व्यज्ञासिष्टा इति व्यज्ञासिष्मा इति होचुः दत्त इति न आत्थेति ॐ इति होवाच व्यज्ञासिष्टेति ।
अथ हैनं असुरा ऊचुः ब्रवीतु नो भवान् इति तेभ्यो हैतद् एवाक्षरं उवाच द इति व्यज्ञासिष्टा इति व्यज्ञासिष्मा इति होचुः दयध्वम् इति न आत्थेति ॐ इति होवाच व्यज्ञासिष्टेति ।
तदेतदेवैषा दैवी वागनुवदति स्तनयित्नुः द द द इति दाम्यत दत्त दयध्वम् इति तदेतत्त्रयं शिक्षेत् दमं दानं दयां इति ॥

trayāḥ prājāpatyāḥ prajāpatau pitari brahmacaryam ūṣuḥ devā manuṣyā asurāḥ uṣitvā brahmacaryaṁ devā ūcuḥ bravītu no bhavān iti tebhyo haitad akṣaraṁ uvāca da iti vyajñāsiṣṭā iti vyajñāsiṣmā iti hocuḥ dāmyata iti na āttheti om iti hovāca vyajñāsiṣṭeti
atha hainaṁ manuṣyā ūcuḥ bravītu no bhavān iti tebhyo haitad evākṣaraṁ uvāca da iti vyajñāsiṣṭā iti vyajñāsiṣmā iti hocuḥ datta iti na āttheti om iti hovāca vyajñāsiṣṭeti
atha hainaṁ asurā ūcuḥ bravītu no bhavān iti tebhyo haitad evākṣaraṁ uvāca da iti vyajñāsiṣṭā iti vyajñāsiṣmā iti hocuḥ dayadhvam iti na āttheti om iti hovāca vyajñāsiṣṭeti
tadetadevaiṣā daivī vāganuvadati stanayitnuḥ da da da iti dāmyata datta dayadhvam iti tadetattrayaṁ śikṣet damaṁ dānaṁ dayāṁ iti

The triple offspring of prajāpati, the Creator – gods (devā), men (manuṣyā) and demons (asurā) – lived with their Father as students to obtain sacred knowledge.

When they completed their studies, the gods asked him, “Please instruct us, O venerable One”. To which prajāpati uttered one syllable da and asked them “Have you understood?” The gods replied, “We have understood. You said to us dāmyata, control yourselves.” He said, “Yes, you have understood.”

Then men said to Him, “Please instruct us, O venerable One”. To which prajāpati uttered the same syllable da and asked them “Have you understood?” The men replied, “We have understood. You said to us datta, give.” He said, “Yes, you have understood.”

Then the demons said to Him, “Please instruct us, O venerable One”. To them also, He uttered the same syllable da and asked them “Have you understood?” The demons replied, “We have understood. You said to us dayadhvam, be compassionate.” He said, “Yes, you have understood.”

This very thing, the heavenly voice of thunder repeats, da, da, da, that is control yourselves, give and be compassionate. One should practice this same triad – self-control, charity [to the best of one’s ability] and mercifulness.

Peace
S

(* V.2.i-iii of the upaniṣat)

The Four Kings, Part 2

Continuing from where I had left of earlier. . .

The second King, complementary to varuna is mitra, the harmonizer. It is he who effects the right unity of which varuna is the substance. An opening verse of the rg veda seeks their combined assistance for attaining a rich and bright intellect. In mitra and varuna, we find a vast harmony, by them we increase in ourselves purity without defect and a love that is faultless in its wisdom.

To paraphrase Sri Aurobindo, “. . . mitra’s psychological function is one of love and compassion, a divine friend and a kindly helper of mankind, . . .whose assistance is founded on harmony. . . He brings within our reach the divine enjoyment and leads us to the perfect happiness. . . It is said of him that all perfected souls are firmly fixed “to the bliss of this Beloved in whom there is no hurt.” He fashions in gods and men impulsions whose actions spontaneously fulfil all the soul’s seekings. . .”

Again, his vigilance and perfect ordinances create in us sumatiṁ, meaning “a happy rightness of mind and feeling accompanied by a gladness in our soul” a state of grace, we might almost say. This summarily is his law of working – the well-accorded happiness of the Truth. It is upon Truth and divine Knowledge that harmony and perfect temperament are founded – they are formed, secured and guarded by . . . mitra and varuna.

As the vedic phrase goes, “mitrasya dharmabhiḥ mitrasya dhāmabhiḥ”, mitra’s dharma is the law that holds things together and to which we hold; dhāma, the staus is the placing of the law in a founded harmony, one that creates for us our plane of living and the character of our consciousness, action and thought.

Among the several such in the rg veda to these two kings, I found the hymns of the atri ṛṣis among the more eloquent.

At 5.62.6, the ṛṣi śrutāvit ātreyaḥ exhorts both varuna and mitra thus:

अक्रविहस्ता सुकृते परस्पा यं त्रासाथे वरुणेळास्वन्तः ।
राजाना क्षत्रमहृणीयमाना सहस्रस्थूणं बिभृथः सह द्वौ ॥

akravihastā sukṛte paraspā yaṁ trāsāthe varuṇeḻāsvantaḥ
rājānā kṣatramahṛṇīyamānā sahasrasthūṇaṁ bibhṛthaḥ saha dvau

You protect the beyond for the doer of perfect works, without sparing any effort
You deliver him and he dwells within the wide revealing of knowledge
Kings of hero-force free from passion, together you uphold a thousand-pillared strength

Again at 5.64.6, the ṛṣi ārcanāna ātreyaḥ prays to these two Kings for the formation of a wide world within.

युवं नो येषु वरुन क्षत्रं बृहच्च बिभृथः।
उरु णो वाजसातये कृतं राये स्वस्तये ।।

yuvaṁ no yeṣu varuna kṣatraṁ bṛhacca bibhṛthaḥ
uru ṇo vājasātaye kṛtaṁ rāye svastaye

With the might and the vastness which is brought by you two, O Varuna
Form in us the wide world for the conquest of our plenitudes
For bliss (and) for our soul’s happiness

In 5.65.1-.6, the ṛṣi rātahavya ātreyaḥ invokes these two increasers of truth in our being to lead us to the plenitude and vastness of our true existence.

यश्चिकेत स सुक्रतुर्देवत्रा स ब्रवीतु नः ।
वरुणो यस्य दर्शतो मित्रो वा वनते गिरः ॥

ता हि श्रेष्टवर्चसा राजाना दीर्घश्रुत्तमा ।
ता सत्पति ऋतावृध ऋतावाना जनेजने॥

ता वामियानोऽवसे पूर्वा उप ब्रुवे सच ।
स्वश्वासः चेतुना वाजाँ अभि प्र दावने ॥

मित्रो अंहोश्चिदादुरु क्षयाय गातुं वनते ।
मित्रस्य हि प्रतूर्वतः सुमतिरस्ति विधतः ॥

वयं मित्रस्यावसि स्याम सप्रथस्तमे ।
अनेहसस्त्वोतयः सत्रा वरुणशेषसः ॥

युवं मित्रेमं जनं यतथः सं च नयथः ।
मा मघोनः परि ख़्यतं मो अस्माकमृषीणां गोपीथे न उरुष्यतम् ॥

yaściketa sa sukraturdevatrā sa bravītu naḥ
varuṇo yasya darśato mitro vā vanate giraḥ

tā hi śreṣṭavarcasā rājānā dīrghaśruttamā
tā satpati ṛtāvṛdha ṛtāvānā janejane

tā vāmiyāno'vase pūrvā upa bruve saca
svaśvāsaḥ cetunā vājām abhi pra dāvane

mitro aṁhościdāduru kṣayāya gātuṁ vanate
mitrasya hi pratūrvataḥ sumatirasti vidhataḥ

vayaṁ mitrasyāvasi syāma saprathastame
anehasastvotayaḥ satrā varuṇaśeṣasaḥ

yuvaṁ mitremaṁ janaṁ yatathaḥ saṁ ca nayathaḥ
mā maghonaḥ pari khyataṁ mo asmākamṛṣīṇāṁ gopīthe na uruṣyatam

Sri Aurobindo has translated this entire verse and I merely reproduce it here.

"He who has awakened to the knowledge, becomes perfect in will
Let him speak for us among the gods
Varuna of the vision and Mitra take delight in his words

They are the kings most glorious in light and most far in their hearing
They are the masters of being in all creatures
They are the increasers of the Truth in us for the truth is theirs.

Travelling on the path, I call to them, the two together, the ancient and first
As we travel with perfect steeds, we call to them, the perfect in knowledge
For the giving of the plenitudes

Even out of our narrow existence, Mitra conquers for us the vastness
He conquers the path to our home
For the perfect mind is of Mitra when he hastens forward through to the goal and harmonises all

May we abide in the increasing of Mitra which gives us our perfect breadth
Then we are free from hurt and sin
Fostered by thee, children of Varuna

You two, O Mitra, set this [human] travelling on your path and wholly you lead him
Set not your hedge around our lords of plenitude and our seers of the truth
Guard us in our drinking of the light"

Thus are we exhorted to labour and travel for this bright and beautiful lord, who comes into us with luminous force and bears in his wideness all the gods – Mitra, the blissful one, the possessor of purified understanding, who sets and leads all mortal creatures upon the path and the Second King.

Peace
S

PS: Sri Aurobindo's writing quoted above (c) Sri Aurobindo Ashram Trust 1999

Of Madhurashtakam in Odissi and Freestyle Gotipua

I have been traveling to remote parts of India this last week, interspersing these journeys with brief stopovers in several cities. A few days ago, we were in Bhubaneswar, the capital city of Orissa. While I was there, I had the opportunity to witness an odissi dance performance by students of Guru Gangadhar Pradhan, the founder director of the Orissa Dance Academy.

The odissi performance comprised both free style and themed dances with the incredible footwork and facial/bodily expressions of the dancers themselves telling the stories in rhythmic form. I was happy to watch the ardhanārīśvara performance executed flawlessly by a dancer.

What however captured me through the rest of the evening was the rendition of madhurāṣṭakam. I simply adore this devotional song, having first heard it rendered by that doyen of carnatic music, M S Subbulakshmi, several years ago. The melody and her voice are still in my memory. The song itself was composed by Sri Vallabhacharya in the 16th century. It is dedicated to Krishna – and speaks about the “honey-sweetness” of his persona and all his actions – in eight verses, hence the term, madhurāṣṭakam. It runs as follows:

अधरं मधुरं वदनं मधुरं नयनं मधुरं हसितं मधुरम्।
हृदयं मधुरं गमनं मधुरं मधुराधिपतेरखिलं मधुरम् ॥ १
वचनं मधुरं चरितं मधुरं वसनं मधुरं वलितं मधुरम्।
चलितं मधुरं भ्रमितं मधुरं मधुराधिपतेरखिलं मधुरम्॥ २
वेणुर्मधुरो रेणुर्मधुरः पाणिर्मधुरः पादौ मधुरौ।
नृत्यं मधुरं सख्यं मधुरं मधुराधिपतेरखिलं मधुरम् ॥ ३
गीतं मधुरं पीतं मधुरं भुक्तं मधुरं सुप्तं मधुरम्।
रूपं मधुरं तिलकं मधुरं मधुराधिपतेरखिलं मधुरम् ॥ ४
करणं मधुरं तरणं मधुरं हरणं मधुरं रमणं मधुरम्।
वमितं मधुरं शमितं मधुरं मधुराधिपतेरखिलं मधुरम् ॥ ५
गुञ्जा मधुरा बाला मधुरा यमुना मधुरा वीची मधुरा।
सलिलं मधुरं कमलं मधुरं मधुराधिपतेरखिलं मधुरम् ॥ ६
गोपी मधुरा लीला मधुरा युक्तं मधुरं मुक्तं मधुरम्।
दृष्टं मधुरं शिष्टं मधुरं मधुराधिपतेरखिलं मधुरम् ॥ ७
गोपा मधुरा गावो मधुरा यष्टिर्मधुरा सृष्टिर्मधुरा।
दलितं मधुरं फलितं मधुरं मधुराधिपतेरखिलं मधुरम् ॥ ८

adharaṁ madhuraṁ vadanaṁ madhuraṁ nayanaṁ madhuraṁ hasitaṁ madhuram
hṛdayaṁ madhuraṁ gamanaṁ madhuraṁ madhurādhipaterakhilaṁ madhuram

vacanaṁ madhuraṁ caritaṁ madhuraṁ vasanaṁ madhuraṁ valitaṁ madhuram
calitaṁ madhuraṁ bhramitaṁ madhuraṁ madhurādhipaterakhilaṁ madhuram

veṇurmadhuro reṇurmadhuraḥ pāṇirmadhuraḥ pādau madhurau
nṛtyaṁ madhuraṁ sakhyaṁ madhuraṁ madhurādhipaterakhilaṁ madhuram

gītaṁ madhuraṁ pītaṁ madhuraṁ bhuktaṁ madhuraṁ suptaṁ madhuram
rūpaṁ madhuraṁ tilakaṁ madhuraṁ madhurādhipaterakhilaṁ madhuram

karaṇaṁ madhuraṁ taraṇaṁ madhuraṁ haraṇaṁ madhuraṁ ramaṇaṁ madhuram
vamitaṁ madhuraṁ śamitaṁ madhuraṁ madhurādhipaterakhilaṁ madhuram

guñjā madhurā bālā madhurā yamunā madhurā vīcī madhurā
salilaṁ madhuraṁ kamalaṁ madhuraṁ madhurādhipaterakhilaṁ madhuram

gopī madhurā līlā madhurā yuktaṁ madhuraṁ muktaṁ madhuram
dṛṣṭaṁ madhuraṁ śiṣṭaṁ madhuraṁ madhurādhipaterakhilaṁ madhuram

gopā madhurā gāvo madhurā yaṣṭirmadhurā sṛṣṭirmadhurā
dalitaṁ madhuraṁ phalitaṁ madhuraṁ madhurādhipaterakhilaṁ madhuram

I’ve added a few pictures of the performance below.





The odissi performance was followed by the gotipua performance. Gotipua, I was reliably informed, is the precursor to odissi and is performed by boys dressed in female garbs and costumes. The word literally means goti – one, pua – boy in Oriya. The gotipuas lead a life of rigorous training and exercise under the supervision of their teachers. These young dancers are able to execute several acrobatic postures, a hallmark of gotipua, flawlessly. We watched four young lads, all under 10-years of age, perform dances like thayee nata, pallavi, abhinaya and bandha nrutya, leaving us spellbound in time.

All told, an evening well spent experiencing one of India’s ancient dance forms.

Peace
S

Conduct Me By The Right Path

हयो न विद्वाँ अयुजि स्वयं धुरि
तां वहामि प्रतरणीमवस्युवम् ।
नास्या वश्मि विमुचं नावृतं पुनर्विद्वान्
पथः पुर एत ऋजु नेषति ॥ ५.४६.१

hayo na vidvān ayuji svayaṁ dhuri
tāṁ vahāmi prataraṇīmavasyuvam
nāsyā vaśmi vimucaṁ
nāvṛtaṁ punar
vidvān pathaḥ pura eta ṛju neṣati [5.46.1]

The one who knows attaches himself to his task, like a horse to a chariot.
I also bear that task whose goal is farther beyond and leads to safety.
I seek no release, neither see a way of turning back therefrom.
May he, who knows the way, conduct me by the right path.

Onward and upwards. . .

Peace
S

Agni

Recently, I was in a brief online discussion with a friend about agni. agni is a cosmic force, beyond the physical fire that we are familiar with, the greatest of all the cosmic powers that manifest themselves in humankind. Vedic tradition speaks of this great impersonal power present in all of us, on several occasions in the ṛg veda. What I am writing about today is the opening hymn from the first mandala of that veda, composed by the ṛṣi madhuccandaḥ vaiśvāmitraḥ and comprising nine stanzas.

Before I proceed further about agni, let me attempt to explain what it represents. agni is the cosmic power of will united with wisdom. It is this cosmic power that works in all of us, to summon the other divine powers - mind, action, life energies, bliss, and revelation and so on - also manifest in us. Hence the application of the epithet hotāraṁ or summoner to agni.

The vedic seers had a methodical approach in their entire yajña or spiritual journey - an approach that seeks to awaken each aspect of the cosmic power that is dormant in us, in an orderly sequence, what I would term as a sort of building-blocks approach in realising sat cit ānanda, the divinity in all of us.

In the words of Sri Aurobindo:

". . . [these cosmic powers] represent each some essential puissance of the Divine Being. . . they recognise in the soul of man their brother and ally and desire to help and increase him by themselves increasing in him so as to possess his world with their light, strength and beauty."

In invoking these powers, the question then arises to whom shall we first offer our sacrifice?

It is to agni first, for without his presence the sacrificial flame cannot burn on the altar of our soul. Full of intellect and purified in discernment, he is the perfect friend born of heaven and earth who establishes the bliss, the pure and sublime mediator between heaven and earth. It is agni who is present in the course of our adhvara, the journey, right from its commencement through its entire course, before he finally leads us to his own home of Beatitude.

The opening nine verses of the ṛg veda hold the key to approaching this deity.

अग्निमीळे पुरोहितं यज्ञस्य देवमृत्विजम्।
होतारं रत्नधातमम् ॥
अग्निः पूर्वेभिरृषिभिर् ईङ्यो नूतनैरूत।
स देवाँ एह वक्षति ॥
अग्निना रयिमश्नवत् पोषमेव दिवेदिवे।
यशसं वीरवत्तमम् ॥
अग्ने यं यज्ञमध्वरं विश्वतः परिभुरसि।
स इद्देवेषु गच्चति ॥
अग्निर्होता कविक्रतुः सत्यश्चित्रश्रवस्तमः।
देवो देवेभिरागमत् ॥
यदङ्ग दशुषे त्वं अग्ने भद्रं करिष्यसि।
तवेत्तत्सत्यमाङ्गिरः ॥
उप त्वाग्ने दिवेदिवे दोषावस्तर्धिया वयम्।
नमो भरन्त एमसि ॥
राजन्तमध्वराणां गोपामृतस्य दीदिविम्।
वर्धमानं स्वे दमे ॥
स नः पितेव सूनवे अग्ने सूपायनो भव।
सचस्वा नः स्वस्तये ॥

agnimīḻe purohitaṁ yajñasya devamṛtvijam
hotāraṁ ratnadhātamam
agniḥ pūrvebhirṛṣibhir īṅyo nūtanairūta
sa devām eha vakṣati
agninā rayimaśnavat poṣameva divedive
yaśasaṁ vīravattamam
agne yaṁ yajñamadhvaraṁ viśvataḥ paribhurasi
sa iddeveṣu gaccati
agnirhotā kavikratuḥ satyaścitraśravastamaḥ
devo devebhirāgamat
yadaṅga daśuṣe tvaṁ agne bhadraṁ kariṣyasi
tavettatsatyamāṅgiraḥ
upa tvāgne divedive doṣāvastardhiyā vayam
namo bharanta emasi
rājantamadhvarāṇāṁ gopāmṛtasya dīdivim
vardhamānaṁ sve dame
sa naḥ piteva sūnave agne sūpāyano bhava
sacasvā naḥ svastaye

In the first, the ṛṣi aspires adoringly for agni, described variously as purohitaṁ, the one who goes in front, the lord of the yajña and ṛtvik. The word "ṛtvik" has a special connotation. The word ṛtu in the veda means the Order of the Truth and its arranged law, time and circumstance. The ṛtvik is one who performs a sacrifice in accordance with the natural law and season. agni is also hotāraṁ, the summoner capable of bringing the gods to our sacrifice. He is also ratnadhātamam, the person who establishes excellent felicities in us, the human aspirants.

madhuccandaḥ then describes agni in the second verse as "the one adored by ancient (pūrvebhiḥ) and new (nutanaiḥ) seers too, [who] brings the gods here [to the sacrifice]. "Here" is a place within us, in a deep sense both physical and metaphysical. As I read this verse again, I realise that to call agni a mere physical flame is to ascribe to this force a pedestrian meaning and acknowledge the poverty of my own expression.

It is through agni that one enjoys (aśnavat) an inner plenitude, an inner felicity of being (rayim). This inner felicity increases (pośameva) day by day (dive-dive) and the force that it is endowed with enables us to overcome obstacles that prevent the enjoyment of bliss. This force is therefore aptly described as glorious (yaśasaṁ) and full of heroic power (vīravattamam).

The veda views the entire concept of sacrifice as adhvara or journey. The word adhvara is derived from adhva or path and ra meaning to move. This journey is the gradual transformation of the material body culminating in all sided perfection. It is agni who charts for us the path of ascent in our yajña-pilgrimage. The ṛṣi acknowledges that the yajña-pilgrimage that is surrounded on all sides by agni is the only one that reaches the gods.

The fifth mantra of the first sūkta describes an additional faculty that agni possesses - kavikratuḥ i.e. seer-will. kavya is seer-wisdom, revealed by supraphysical experience and kratuḥ is the will associated with wisdom together with the force that makes its execution possible. agni is kavikratuḥ, who possesses the power to grant us a true (satyaḥ) audition (śravas) that is of infinite variety (citra) and excellent (tamaḥ). A god (devo), he comes with the gods (devebhiḥ āgamat). This mantra again serves to reinforce my belief that this force is not physical in nature.

madhuccandaḥ lauds agni in the sixth. agni, or aṅgiraḥ - one possessed with a glowing quality of preeminence , alone creates a truth (satyaṁ) for the giver (dāśuṣe), [which Truth] is bhadraṁ or an auspicious happiness. agni is a creator of happiness that is combined with spiritual good.

I believe that the veda veils its message in a subtle manner. The seventh mantra translates as follows: "To you O Agni, day by day (dive-dive), in the night and in the light (dośāvastaḥ), we approach (emasi) carrying (bharanta) our obeisance (namo) by our thought (dhiyā)". The means to seek this cosmic force within us is through a meditation that is continuous. Continuity of meditation is not measured by the time spent on the act itself. It is measured by the quality of the attitude that we bring to this act, a quality that continues under all circumstances, of illumination and otherwise as well. That is the true purport of this verse.

agni, the master or overlord of the pilgrim-yajña (rājantamadhvarāṇāṁ), is the luminous (dīdivim) guardian (gopaṁ) of the Truth. His power of manifestation increases (vardhamānaṁ) in his own home (sve dame). agni's home is described elsewhere in the ṛg veda as satyam ṛtam bṛhat. satyam, the Absolute Truth is also ṛtam, the Truth in action in consonance with the natural law and therefore it is not bounded by any limitations, physical or psychological, hence it is bṛhat or vast. agni, is the guardian of manifested Truth.

Finally, we pray for agni to be of [ever] easy access to us, like a father is to his son, to cling to us so that we may maintain our happy state. With divine will constantly in us, false consciousness which is a basis of misery, is eliminated.

Disinterested, sleepless and invincible, the divine will force agni works in the world as a universal soul of power housed in all beings. agni vaiśvānara, the greatest, most powerful, most brilliant and most impersonal of all cosmic deities - he claims no primacy, he seeks no separate end, merely content to be a worker for man, indeed he is man’s greatest helper, our most beloved friend. To him, we offer our oblations first.

Peace
S

PS: Lest I forget, this friend of mine, Anu Iyer is also a great teacher in her own right and she indirectly spurred me into writing this piece. Call it homework from a summoner of a different sort!!!

An English Hymn from G K Chesterton

A great writer whose work I chanced to remember this morning. The first verse from Hymn, which I find very relevant to this day and age:

O God of earth and altar bow down and hear our cry

Our earthly rulers falter, our people drift and die

The walls of gold entomb us, the swords of scorn divide

Take not thy thunder from us but take away our pride

How To Write A Chinese Poem

The usual Chinese poem, I am told, is four lines and the composition runs thus so...

The first line contains the initial phrase, the second line is the continuation of that phrase. The third line turns from this subject and begins an entirely new one. The fourth line brings the first three lines together...

My two Renmimbi Yuan (or is it two bits, nah, we'll stick with the Yuan) on this poetic style:

Been working a decade in book keeping and finances
Somehow managed to delineate GAAP* and CRAP**
Earthquakes destroy all in their wake
But I ain't no shattered accountant, yet!!!

For the uninformed reader
*GAAP - Generally Accepted Accounting Principles
**CRAP - Cleverly Rigged Accounting Ploys

And with apologies to D Adams, I may just win a galactic award for worst poetry yet (finishing behind the Vogons and that lady in Sussex, of course)...