Thursday

Hindu Literature & Ethics



Bhakti: Poems of Mystical Love

Jnanadev (b. 1275, India)


I honor the God and Goddess,
eternal parents of the cosmos.
The lover out of boundless love
takes the form of the beloved.
What beauty!
Both are made of the same nectar,
and share the same food.
Out of supreme love
they swallow each other up with longing,
but separate again
for the joy of being two!
They sit in one place, petals of the same blossom,
covered in one garment of light.
From the beginning of time
they have been together like this,
reveling in divine love.
I am the difference between them,
which they have created to enjoy this world!
But with one glimpse of their intimacy
I merge back into the bliss of their union.
Without that God, there is no Goddess;
without that Goddess, there is no God.
How sweet the nectar of their love!
The entire universe is too small to contain them:
yet they dwell happily together
in my heart, and in
the tiniest particle of this world!




from Jñānadev's 'Amṛta Anubhāva':
Union of Shiva and Shakti


I offer obeisance to the God and Goddess,
limitless primordial parents of the universe.

They are not entirely the same,
Nor are they not the same.
We cannot say exactly what they are.

How sweet is their union!
The whole world is too small to contain them,
Yet they live happily in the smallest particle.

These two are the only ones
Who dwell in this home called the universe.
When the Master of the house sleeps,
The Mistress stays awake,
And performs the functions of both.

When He awakes, the whole house disappears,
And nothing at all is left.

Two lutes: one note.
Two flowers: one fragrance.
Two lamps: one light.

Two lips: one word.
Two eyes: one sight.
These two: one universe.

In unity there is little to behold;
So She, the mother of abundance,
Brought forth the world as play.

He takes the role of Witness
Out of love of watching Her.
But when Her appearance is withdrawn,
The role of Witness is abandoned as well.

Through Her,
He assumes the form of the universe;
Without Her,
He is left naked.

If night and day were to approach the Sun,
Both would disappear.
In the same way, their duality would vanish
If their essential Unity were seen.

In fact, the duality of Shiva and Shakti
Cannot exist in that primal unitive state
From which AUM emanates.

They are like a stream of knowledge
From which a knower cannot drink
Unless he gives up himself.

Is the sound of AUM divided into three
Simply because it contains three letters?
Or is the letter 'N' divided into three
because of the three lines by which it is formed?

So long as Unity is undisturbed,
And a graceful pleasure is thereby derived,
Why should not the water find delight
In the floral fragrance of its own rippled surface?

It is in this manner I bow
To the inseparable Shiva and Shakti.

A man returns to himself
When he awakens from sleep;
Likewise, I have perceived the God and Goddess
By waking from my ego.

When salt dissolves,
It becomes one with the ocean;
When my ego dissolved,
I became one with Shiva and Shakti.


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Radha's Longing for Krishna (Madhava) 
~ Classical Sandkrit Poet Vidyapati, 1340-1430
Your moon-faced Love
Had never guessed
That parting hurts.
Radha is tortured,
Dreading You will leave.
Love has robbed her of all power,
She sinks clasping the ground.
Kokila birds call.
Startled, she wakes
Only to brood again.
Tears wash the make-up
From her breasts.
Her arms grow thin,
Her bracelets slide to the ground.
Radha's head droops in grief.
Her fingers scar the earth
Bleeding your Name!

_________
  
Mahadeviyakka (12th C. India)

"On Her Decision to Stop Wearing Clothes"

Coins in the hand can be stolen,
but who can rob this body
of its own treasure?

The last thread of clothing
can be stripped away,
but who can peel off Emptiness -
pure Nakedness covering all?

Fools, while I dress
in
the Jasmine Lord's morning light
I cannot be shamed.
What would you have me hide under silk
and the glitter of jewels?



Lalla Dev (14th C. India)


When my mind was cleansed of impurities,
like a mirror of its dust and dirt,
I recognized the Self in me:
When I saw Him dwelling in me,
I realized that He was the Everything
and I was nothing.

Mirabai (b. 1498 India)
Mira left her royal home to become a wandering poet, in love with Lord Krishna.

No one knows my invisible life.
Pain and madness for Rama.
Our wedding bed is high up
in the gallows.
Meeting him, the dark healer,
is a world of hurt and joy!
I love the man who takes care of cows.
Cowherd and dancer.
My eyes are drunk,
worn out from making love
with him. We are one.
I am now his dark color.
People notice me, point fingers at me.
They see my desire,
since I'm walking about like a lunatic.
I'm wiped out, gone.
Yet no one knows I live with my prince,
the cowherd. The palace can't contain me.
I leave it behind.
I couldn't care less about gossip
or my royal name.
I'll be with him
in all his gardens.

* * *

I am mad with love
And no one understands my plight.
Only the wounded
Understand the agonies of the wounded
When the fire rages in the heart.
Only the jeweler knows the value of the jewel,
Not the one who lets it go.
In pain I wander from door to door,
But cannot find a doctor.
Says Mira: Harken, my Master,
Mira's pain will subside
When Shyam, the beautiful blue-eyed Lord,
comes to heal me.

* * *

Mira danced with ankle-bells on her feet.
People said Mira was mad;
My mother-in-law said I ruined the family reputation.
Rana sent me a cup of poison
and Mira drank it laughing.
I dedicated my body and soul at the feet of Hari,
my Beloved, Krishna.
I am thirsty for the nectar of his glance.

*   *   *   *
O friend, understand.
The body is like the ocean, rich with hidden treasures.
Open your innermost chamber
And light its lamp,
Within the body are gardens,
Rare flowers, peacocks; the inner music;
Within the body a lake of bliss,
On it, the white soul-swans take their joy.

_____________

by Meher Baba, 2oth C. Indian saint
Ever since I saw the Beloved's face,
its lines have etched themselves on my heart.
I still nurse the wound of separation within me --
it has left me broken.

Flowing tresses may be a snare and a net:
those are pagan tresses
whose lure, like the bulbul, has sprung from the head,
bogged in the heart.

When ego is erased, duality disappears:
God's lover is himself God.
This is the heart's only home
the heart in the lover, the lover in the heart.

O Seeker, you make a show of public worship,
then claim your share of desires.
The true lover carries within him, in secret,
the name of God.

Strange are the ways of the enlightened ones.
They weep and laugh in one breath,
scorn on the lip, grace in the heart,
profanity on the tongue, praise in the heart.

Some say God dwells in the temple,
others put him in the mosque.
What do you seek abroad, ignorant one?
Realize, oh Huma, God is within you.
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VEDIC PHILOSOPHY & ETHICS

A Reflection of the Vedic World View in Shakespeare


Mahavishnu dreaming the universe on the Ocean of Milk: The Universal theme that life is dream-like and illusory compared to the ultimate reality of pure Consciousness....

"Our revels now are ended. These our actors,

As I foretold you, were all spirits and

Are melted into air, into thin air:

And, like the baseless fabric of this vision,

The cloud-capp'd towers, the gorgeous palaces,

The solemn temples, the great globe itself,

Ye all which it inherit, shall dissolve

And, like this insubstantial pageant faded,

Leave not a rack behind. We are such stuff

As dreams are made on, and our little life

Is rounded with a sleep. "

Shakespeare, The Tempest, 4.1
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Gayatri Mantra: 'Lord's Prayer' of India

"We contemplate the glory of Light illuminating the three realms: earth, heaven, and Spirit. We worship the life-giving power, love, radiance, and grace of God. We pray for the divine light to illumine our minds and guide us in right living."
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Bhagavad Gita, Chapter 2: Duty as Devotion

Arjuna, warrior and prince of ancient India, is on the battlefield
in his chariot, surveying the troops before the fight. He is overcome by a wave of grief, and like Homer's Achilles is tempted to become a pacifist. But Arjuna's grief is not for those who have died: it is premonitory grief for those who are about to die. This should not be misinterpreted as cowardice. The Lord in the form of Krishna appears in the warrior's chariot and instructs him on the eternal Self (Atman) which does not perish even when the body perishes. He also teaches the essential Hindu doctrine of Dharma: Duty. There is no sin when a righteous warrior does his or her duty. In fact, doing one's duty with a mind established in the peace of God is the purest path to liberation. And this is as true for the warrior as for the "holy man."

Arjuna said: My heart is overcome by the weakness of pity, and my mind is confused about Dharma (Duty). I request You to tell me, decisively, what is better for me. I am Your disciple. Teach me who has taken refuge in You. (2.07)
I do not perceive that gaining an unrivaled and prosperous kingdom on this earth, or even lordship over the gods will remove the sorrow that is drying up my senses....(2.08)
I shall not fight! (2.09)
Then Lord Krishna, as if smiling, spoke these words to the despondent Arjuna in the midst of the two armies:(2.10)

You grieve for those who are not worthy of grief, and yet speak the words of wisdom. The wise grieve neither for the living nor for the dead. (2.11)

There was never a time when I, you, or these kings did not exist; nor shall we ever cease to exist in the future. (2.12)

Just as the Atma acquires a childhood body, a youth body, and an old age body during this life, similarly Atma acquires another body after death. The wise are not deluded by this.

The contacts of the senses with the sense objects give rise to the feelings of heat and cold, and pain and pleasure. They are transitory and impermanent. Therefore, (learn to) endure them, O Arjuna. (2.14)

Because the calm person, who is not afflicted by these feelings and is steady in pain and pleasure, becomes fit for immortality, O Arjuna. (2.15)

There is no nonexistence of Sat* (Truth) and no existence of the Asat (Illusion). (2.16)

Know that Truth, by which all this universe is pervaded, to be indestructible. No one can destroy the indestructible. (2.17)

Bodies that house the soul may cease, but the soul itself is eternal, imperishable. Therefore, fight, O Arjuna! (2.18)

The one who thinks that Atma is a slayer, and the one who thinks that Atma is slain, both are ignorant, because Atma neither slays nor is slain. (2.19)

The Atma is neither born nor does it die at any time, nor having been it will cease to exist again. It is unborn, eternal, permanent, and primeval. The Atma is not destroyed when the body is destroyed. (2.20)

O Arjuna, how can a person who knows that the Atma is indestructible, eternal, unborn, and imperishable, kill anyone or cause anyone to be killed? (2.21)

Just as a person puts on new garments after discarding the old ones, similarly Atma acquires new bodies after casting away the old bodies. (2.22)

Weapons do not cut this Atma, fire does not burn it, water does not make it wet, and the wind does not make it dry. (2.23)

This Atma cannot be cut, burned, wetted, or dried up. It is eternal, all pervading, unchanging, immovable, and primeval. (2.24)

The Atma is said to be unmanifest, unthinkable, and unchanging. Knowing this Atma as such you should not grieve. (2.25)

If you think that this (body) takes birth and dies perpetually, even then, O Arjuna, you should not grieve like this. (2.26)

Because, death is certain for the one who is born, and birth is certain for the one who dies. Therefore, you should not lament over the inevitable. (2.27)

All beings, O Arjuna, are unmanifest before birth and after death. They are manifest between the birth and the death only. What is there to grieve about? (2.28)

Some look upon this Atma as a wonder, another describes it as wonderful, and others hear of it as a wonder. Even after hearing about it no one actually knows it. (2.29)

O Arjuna, the Atma that dwells in the body of all (beings) is eternally indestructible. Therefore, you should not mourn for any body. (2.30)

Considering also your duty as a warrior you should not waver. Because there is nothing more auspicious for a warrior than a righteous war. (2.31)
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ETERNITY OF MOTHER DIVINE ACCORDING TO THE VEDAS
from 'Commentary on the Bhagavad Gita,' chapter 4, verse 1, by Maharishi Mahesh Yogi

"The Divine Mother is ultimately responsible for all that is, was and will be in the entire cosmos. The eternity of absolute Being is conceived (by Veda Vyasa and the ancient Rishis) in terms of innumerable lives of the Divine Mother, a single one of whose lives encompasses a thousand life-times of Lord Shiva.

"One life of Lord Shiva consists of a thousand life-spans of Lord Vishnu. One life of Lord Vishnu equals a thousand life-spans of Brahma, the Creator. A single life-span of Brahma consists of one hundred years of Brahma. Each year of Brahma comprises 12 months of Brahma, and each month comprises thirty days of Brahma.

"One day of Brahma is called a Kalpa. One Kalpa equals the time of fourteen Manus. The time of one Manu is called a Manvantara. One Manvantara equals seventy-one Chaturyugas. One Chaturyuga comprises the total span of four Yugas: Sat-yuga, Treta-yuga, Dvapara-yuga and Kali-yuga.

"The span of the Yugas is conceived in terms of the duration of Sat-yuga. Thus the span of Treta-yuga is equal to three quarters of that of Sat-yuga; the span of Dvapara-yuga is half that of Sat-yuga; and the span of Kali-yuga one quarter that of Sat-yuga. The span of Kali-yuga equals 432,000 years of human life."
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Bhagavad Gita, Chapter 18: The Secret of Surrender
The secret of devotion, revealed at the end of Krishna's conversation with the warrior, Arjuna, on the battlefield of Keshetriya, an excerpt from the final chapter of the Gita, which is itself just one small chapter at the center of the epic, 'Mahabharata
.'
 
By following his qualities of work, every man can become perfect. Now please hear from Me how this can be done.


By worship of the Lord, who is the source of all beings and who is all-pervading, man can, in the performance of his own duty, attain perfection.


It is better to engage in one's own occupation, even though one may perform it imperfectly, than to accept another's occupation and perform it perfectly. Prescribed duties, according to one's nature, are never affected by sinful reactions.


Though engaged in all kinds of activities, My devotee, under My protection, reaches the eternal and imperishable abode by My grace.


In all activities just depend upon Me and work always under My protection. In such devotional service, be fully conscious of Me......


If you become conscious of Me, you will pass over all the obstacles of conditional life by My grace. If, however, you do not work in such consciousness but act through false ego, not hearing Me, you will be lost.....


The Supreme Lord is situated in everyone's heart, O Arjuna, and is directing the wanderings of all living entities, who are seated as on a machine, made of the material energy.


O scion of Bharata, surrender unto Him utterly. By His grace you will attain transcendental peace and the supreme and eternal abode.


Thus I have explained to you the most confidential of all knowledge. Deliberate on this fully, and then do what you wish to do.


Because you are My very dear friend, I am speaking to you the most confidential part of knowledge. Hear this from Me, for it is for your benefit.


Always think of Me and become My devotee. Worship Me and offer your homage unto Me. Thus you will come to Me without fail. I promise you this because you are My very dear friend.


Abandon all varieties of religion and just surrender unto Me. I shall deliver you from all sinful reaction. Do not fear.

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'Chandogya Upanishad': Creation from Nothing
 The 'Upanishads' are the summation of the Hindu Vedas, giving the supreme view of Vedanta, the final perspective on the unity of consciousness, where the enligthened one experiences subject and object as merged in one continuum of bliss. The Upanishads are believed to have been written down in about 500 BCE.

There lived once Svetaketo. To him his father Odalaka Aruni said: "Svetaketo, go to school; for no one belonging to our race, dear son, who, not having studied, is a Brahman by birth only." Having begun his apprenticeship when he was twelve years of age, Svetaketo returned to his father, when he was twenty-four, having then studied all the Vedas. He was conceited, considering himself well-read, and stern.

His father said to him: "Svetaketo, as you are so conceited, considering yourself so well-read and so stern, my dear, have you ever asked for that instruction by which we hear what cannot be heard, by which we perceive what cannot be perceived, by which we know what cannot be known ? "

"What is that instruction, Sir?" he asked.
"Fetch me a fruit of the Nyagrodha tree."
"Here is one, Sir."
"Break it."
"It is broken, Sir."
"What do you see there?"
"These seeds, almost infinitesimal."
"Break one of them."
"It is broken, Sir."
"What do you see there?"
"Not anything, Sir."
The father said: "My son, that subtle essence which you do not perceive there, of that very essence this great Nyagrodha tree exists. Believe it, my son. That which is the subtle essence, in it all that exists has its self. It is the True. It is the Self, and you, Shvetaketo, are That. "

"Please, Sir, inform me still more," said the son.
"Be it so, my child," the father replied.
"Place this salt in water, and then wait on me in the morning."
The son did as he was commanded.

The father said to him: "Bring me the salt, which you placed in the water last night." The son having looked for it, found it not, for, of course, it was dissolved.
The father said: "Taste it from the surface of the water. How is it?"
The son replied: "It is salt."
"Taste it from the middle. How is it?"
The son replied: "It is salt."
"Taste it from the bottom. How is it?"
The son replied: "It is salt."
The father said: "Throw it away and then wait on me.
He did so; but the salt exists forever.
Then the father said: "Here also, in this body, you do not perceive the True, my son; but there indeed it is. That which is the subtle essence, in it all that exists has its self. It is the True. It is the Self, and you, Svetaketo, are it."
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Yamas & Niyamas of Astanga Yoga

The Yoga system has eight "limbs", according to the sage Patanjali. They must all be practiced together in an integrated system of physical, moral and spiritual growth that encompasses the whole person. The eight limbs of Yoga ("astanga Yoga") are: Moral restraints and commandments, Postures, Breath control, Sense control, Concentration, Meditation, and Union with God.

The Yamas (restraints) and Niyamas (commandments) are very close to the Ten Commandments of the Bible. These moral rules are intended to accompany physical and spiritual practices.

Yamas
* Sexual abstinence (except in marriage)
* Non-violence
* Non-lying
* Non-stealing
* Non-coveting

Niyamas
* Truth
* Study of scriptures
* Devotion to one's chosen form of God
* Self-discipline
* Contentment
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Yoga-Vishishta

Scholars speculate about the author of this monumental scripture. It is a dialog between the sage, Vishishta, and a king named Rama. It is held to be the greatest aid in scripture study for a yogi, or anyone seeking liberation from the bondage of ignorance.May God bless them with success. "One should study at least a small part of this scripture daily. The beauty in this scripture is that its student is not abandoned to despair; if something is not clear in the first instance, a further study of the scripture makes it clear." (VI.2.175) What follows are just two of those short passages, but they could be studied for a lifetime...

I.
Rama said: Lord, during the cosmic dissolution, this world which is clearly seen now - where does it go?

Vasistha said: From where does the son of a barren woman come, and where does he go? A barren woman's son has no existence, ever. Even so, this world as such has no existence, ever. This analogy baffles you only because you have taken the existence of the world for granted.

Consider this: Is there a bracelet-ness in the golden bracelet, is it not just gold? Is there a thing called sky independent of the emptiness? Even so, there is no "thing" called the world independent of Brahman the absolute.

Just as coldness is inseparable from ice, what is called the world is inseparable from Brahman. Water in the mirage does not come into being and go out of existence; even so this world does not come out of the absolute nor does it go anywhere.

The creation of the world has no cause, and therefore it has had no beginning. It does not exist even now; how can it reach destruction? If you concede that the world has not been created out of Brahman but assert that it is an appearance based on the reality of Brahman, then indeed it does not exist and Brahman alone exists.

It is like dream: in a state of ignorance the intelligence within oneself appears as numerous dream-objects, all of which are nothing other than that intelligence.

Even so, in what is known as the beginning of creation, such an appearance happened; but it is not independent of Brahman, it does not exist apart from Brahman, hence it does not exist.

Rama said: Holy sir, if that is so, how is it that this world has acquired such a sense of reality?

As long as the perceiver is, the perceived exists, and vice versa, and only when both these come to an end is there liberation.
If there is a clean mirror, it reflects something or other all the time: even so in the seer this creation will again and again arise. However, if the non-existence of creation is realised then the seer ceases to be. But, such a realisation is hard to get!

Vasistha said: Rama, I shall presently dispel your doubts with the help of a parable. You will then realise the non-existence of creation and lead an enlightened life in this world.


II. (from Yoga Vashishta V. 50)
The mind is the hub around which this vicious cycle revolves , creating delusion in the minds of the deluded .

It is by firmly restraining that hub through intense self-effort and keen intelligence , that the whole wheel is brought to a standstill .

When the hub's motion is stopped , the wheel does not revolve : when the mind is stilled , illusion ceases .

One who does not know this trick and does not practice it , undergoes endless sorrow ; the moment the truth is seen , behold! the sorrow comes to an end .

The disease of the perception of this world-illusion is not cured except through the mastery of the mind which is its only remedy
Abandon all other activities like pilgrimage , gifts and austerities , and bring the mind under your control for your ultimate good .

This world-appearance abides in the mind , even as there is space within the pot ; if the pot is broken , the illusory division of space vanishes ; and if the mind ceases to be , the concept of a world within the mind also ceases to be .
Live in the present , with your consciousness externalised momentarily but without any effort : when the mind stops linking itself to the past and to the future , it becomes no-mind .

If from moment to moment your mind dwells on what is and drops it effortlessly at once , the mind becomes no-mind , full of purity.
Consciousness free from the limitations of the mind is known as the inner intelligence : it is the essential nature of no-mind , and therefore it is not tainted by the impurities of concepts and percepts .

That is the reality , that is supreme auspiciousness , that is the state known as the supreme self , that is omniscience.

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 Hindu Ethics: Five Types of Suffering
(A talk by Vedic Pundit Shri Shri Ravi Shankar)

These qualities are the sources of misery and the obstacles to knowing God, the obstacles to peace and light within. They are the five Kleshas: 1) ignorance, 2) egotism, 3) craving, 4) aversion, 5) fear.

1) The first cause of suffering is ignorance or avidya.
When your consciousness is filled with ignorance, then there is restlessness, dull-minded unhappiness, and anxiety. Misery is because of ignorance. Ignorance is giving importance to something not worth the importance. Ignorance is thinking something that is changing to be permanent or imagining something to be joyful which is not joyful.

Just like, when someone passes a comment about you. It is just a word that came from the person´s mouth and vanished. But thinking it is a permanent thing, keeping it in your mind is ignorance.

2) Asmita means "me, I" and is the second cause of suffering.
What people think about me? What do I want from them? How do I take advantage of them? Do they think I am good or bad? All these concerns are asmita. They give nothing but misery. They give you misery because of not being one with your own real existence. This asmita eats you up. That is the cause of your suffering.


3) The third is raga or craving.

4) Fourth is dwesha, meaning aversion or hatred.

5) Fifth is abhinivesha or fear.

These are the five sources of misery. But there is a pure consciousness deep down in you that is devoid of these five factors. Though outwardly you are miserable, and you are craving for outward things, if you really go to the core of your existence, deep down, in the very center point of you, you are free from that misery, completely free.

You may be hating somebody on the outside, but from the center of your existence there is no hatred. There is fear only on the outside. There is ignorance only on the outside, but when you come to the core of your existence, there is no fear. There is no ignorance there. In fact, there is no you there: no ego crying, "Me, me! Mine, mine!'

When these Kleshas are eliminated even from the outer body, then whatever is in the center becomes eminent, so obvious. The Lordship in you blossoms. God in you is manifested. So God is that purusha, that being which is devoid of sufferings or misery.
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Disciple or Companion

"Knowledge has an end. Knowledge completes. So also does discipleship. For the disciple is aimed at acquiring Knowledge.

"Once you cross the water, however nice the boat is, you get off the boat. After twelve years, the disciple completes his studies. The master does a ceremony called Samavartha, where he tells the disciple that he is ending the discipleship and asking him to behave at par with him, and let the Brahman dynamically manifest.

"Sakha is a companion in life and death; it never ends. In the path of love there is neither beginning nor end. Sakha only wants the beloved. He doesn't care about the Knowledge or liberation. Love is incomplete because of longing. And so it is infinite, for infinity can never be complete.

"Arjuna was a sakha to Krishna and although Krishna was the perfect Master he was a sakha too.

"What are you, a shishya (disciple) or a sakha (companion)?"


~ Sri Sri Ravi Shankar
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Guru Paduka Strotam
Stanzas to the Feet of the Guru, by Adi Shankara
(A devotional classic of Hindu literature written by Indias greatest philosopher.)

Anantha samsara samudhra thara nauka yithabhyam guru bhakthithabhyam,
Vairagya samrajy adha poojanabhyam, namo nama sri guru padukhabyam.


Salutations and Salutations to the sandals of my Guru,
Which is a boat, which helps me, cross the endless ocean of life,
Which endows me, with the sense of devotion to my Guru,
And by worship of which, I attain the dominion of renunciation.

Kavithva varasi nisagarabhyam, dourbhagya davam budha malikabhyam,
Dhoori krutha namra vipathithabhyam, namo nama sri guru padukabhyam.


Salutations and Salutations to the sandals of my Guru,
Which is the ocean of knowledge, resembling the full moon,
Which is the water, which puts out the fire of misfortunes,
And which removes distresses of those who prostrate before it.

Natha yayo sripatitam samiyu kadachidapyasu daridra varya,
Mookascha vachas pathithamhi thabhyam, namo nama sri guru padukhabyam.


Salutations and Salutations to the sandals of my Guru,
Which make those who prostrate before it,
Possessors of great wealth, even if they are very poor,
And which makes even dumb people in to great orators.

Naleeka neekasa pada hrithabhyam, nana vimohadhi nivarikabyam,
Nama janabheeshtathathi pradhabhyam namo nama sri guru padukhabyam.


Salutations and Salutations to the sandals of my Guru,
Which attracts us, to lotus like feet of our Guru,
Which cures us, of the unwanted desires,
And which helps fulfill the desires of those who salute.

Nrupali moulee brajarathna kanthi sariddha raja jashakanyakabhyam,
Nrupadvadhabhyam nathaloka pankhthe, namo nama sri guru padukhabyam.


Salutations and Salutations to the sandals of my Guru,
Which shine like gems on the crown of a king,
Which shine like a maid in the crocodile infested stream,
And which make the devotees attain the status of a king.

Papandhakara arka paramparabhyam, thapathryaheendra khageswarabhyam,
Jadyadhi samsoshana vadaveebhyam namo nama sri guru padukhabyam.


Salutations and Salutations to the sandals of my Guru,
Which is like a series of Suns, driving away the dark sins,
Which is like the king of eagles, driving away the cobra of miseries,
And which is like a terrific fire drying away the ocean of ignorance.

Samadhi shatka pradha vaibhavabhyam, Samadhi dhana vratha deeksithabhyam,
Ramadhavadeegra sthirha bhakthidabhyam, namo nama sri guru padukabyam.


Salutations and Salutations to the sandals of my Guru,
Which endows us, with the glorious six qualities like sham,
Which gives the students, the ability to go in to eternal trance,
And which helps to get perennial devotion to the feet of Vishnu.

Swarchaparana makhileshtathabhyam, swaha sahayaksha durndarabhyam,
Swanthachad bhava pradha poojanabhyam, namo nama sri guru padukhabyam.


Salutations and Salutations to the sandals of my Guru
Which bestows all desires of the serving disciples,
Who are ever involved in carrying the burden of service
And which helps the aspirants to the state of realization.

Kaamadhi sarpa vraja garudabhyam, viveka vairagya nidhi pradhabhyam,
Bhodha pradhabhyam drutha mokshathabhyam, namo nama sri guru padukhabyam.


Salutations and Salutations to the sandals of my Guru
Which is the Garuda, which drives away the serpent of passion,
Which provides one, with the treasure of wisdom and renunciation,
Which blesses one, with enlightened knowledge,
And blesses the aspirant with speedy salvation.