संस्कृते लिखामः

श्रीमद्भागवतपुराणकथाः - कुन्तीस्तुतिः ३

2011-12-22T20:53:00.004+05:30

गोप्याददे त्वयि कृतागसि दाम तावद्
या ते दशाश्रुकलिलाञ्जनसम्भ्रमाक्षम् ।
वक्त्रं निनीय भवभावनया स्थिततस्य
सा माम् विमोहयति भीरपि यद्बिभेति ॥1.8.31
गोपी — the cowherd lady (Yasoda)
आददे — took up
दाम — rope
त्वयि — on You
कृतागसि — creating disturbances (by breaking the butter pot)
तावत् — at that time
ते — Your
या दशा — that situation
अक्षम् — eye
अञ्जन — ointment (disturbed)
अश्रुकलिल — being flooded with tears
सम्भ्रम — perturbed
वक्त्रम् — face
निनीय — downwards
भयभावनया — by pretentions of fear
स्थितस्य — standing
भीः अपि — (and ) even ‘fear’ personified
बिभेति — is afraid.
यत् — of whom
सा— that (plight of yours)
विमोहयति — bewilders
माम् — me
Krishna pretends to be afraid when his mother threatens with punishment after upsetting all the butter pots. In this aspect of being afraid, He can only pretend to be overcome with fear since He knows not what fear may actually feel like… Isn’t he the Lord who grants ‘अभयम्’ to all those surrender unto Him? Kunti is very amused by Krishna’s display of fear, all the more, because even fear personified is afraid of Him and his devotees.

श्रीमद्भागवतपुराणकथाः - कुन्तीस्तुतिः २

2011-12-13T05:30:00.001+05:30

जन्मैश्वर्यश्रुतश्रीभिर्एधमानमदः पुमान् ।

नैवार्हत्यभिधातुं वै त्वामकिञ्चनगोचरम् ॥1.8.26

पुमान् - the person

जन्म-ऐश्वर्य-श्रुत-श्रीभिः - (who) by the possession of birth, opulence, education and beauty

एधमानः - (and) progressively increasing

मदः - intoxication

वै - certainly

न एव - never

अर्हति - deserves

अभिधातुं - to address

त्वां - You

अकिञ्चनगोचरम् - who is easily approachable for the materialistically famished

Says Kunti, It is not possible for the self-important person, who is materially satiated, to remember the lord with as feeling and sincerity as the impoverished and suffering. Hence Kunti prays for calamities to beset her so that she may always remember the lord with total sincerity and a feeling of helplessness.

श्रीमद्भागवतपुराणकथाः - कुन्तीस्तुतिः

2011-12-11T05:30:00.002+05:30

Kunti, the mother of the Pandavas was one of Krishna’s aunts. Needless to say she loved Krishna, as Devaki or Yashoda might love Him. Apart from her मातृभावः, she had, early on in her life, begun to look up to Sri Krishna as the savior of her sons, Pandavas and Draupadi and their progeny. The Lord was with them, at all major instances, as the story unfolded. Here it was, after the war when Yudhishtira was proclaimed king. Just as the Lord was preparing to leave for Dwaraka after the Mahabharata war, He yet again, saved the unborn son of Uttarakumari, daughter-in-law of Arjuna, on whom the powerful brahma missile was released by Ashwattama. Kunti, overcome by emotion on hearing that their savior Sri Krishna had saved the unborn offspring of the Kuru dynasty, praises him with words of gratitude.

विपदः सन्तु ताः शश्वत्तत्र तत्र जगद्गुरो ।

भवतो दर्शनम् यत्स्यादपुनर्भवदर्शनम् ॥ 1.8.25

जगद्गुरो - O lord of the Universe

सन्तु - let there be

विपदः - calamities

शश्वत् - again and again

तत्र तत्र - here and there

भवतः - your

दर्शनम् - meeting

यत् - that

स्यात् - which is

अपुनः - not again

भवदर्शनम् - seeing the repetition of birth and death

In this verse, which is a part of Kunti’s stuti of Sri Krishna in Canto 1, Chapter 8 of श्रीमद्भागवतम्, she asks the Lord for more calamities in her life, since calamities give her the opportunity to see the Lord more often.

It may seem a contradiction that Kunti asks for more calamities in her life, since every being wishes for happiness in his/her life, but in Kunti’s case, she who has tasted the bliss of the Lord’s presence through each and every calamity, the word calamity loses its bitterness and implies that SriKrishna’s sweet presence would instead take its place.

वैराग्य पञ्चकम् - 1

2011-12-09T20:52:00.000+05:30

क्षोणीकोणशतांशपालनकलादुर्वारगर्वानल
क्षुभ्यक्षुद्रनरेन्द्रचाटुरचनाधन्यान् न मन्यामहे।
देवं सेवितुमेव निश्चिनुमहे योऽसौ दयालुः पुरा
धानामुष्टिमुचे कुचेलमुनये दत्ते स्म वित्तेशताम्॥1॥

क्षोणीकोण = Small part of the earth, शत अंश = one-hundredth (of that part), पालन कला = art of protecting, दुर्वार = uncontrollable, गर्व अनल = arrogance like fire, क्षुभ्यत् = agitated, क्षुद्र नरेन्द्र = small king, चाटु रचना = praises, धन्यान् = honoured ones, न मन्यामहे = we do not consider, पुरा = once, यः असौ = he who, दयालुः = kindhearted, धाना मुष्टिमुचे = for a hand-full of dry puffed rice, कुचेलमुनये = to the sage Kuchela, वित्तेशताम् = Status of Kubera, दत्ते स्म = gave, देवम् सेवितुम् एव = only to salute that lord, निश्चिनुमहे = we decided.

Sri Vedanta Deshika illustrates why we should pray to Lord Krishna.

Sri Desika says, "We do not bother ourselves with uncontrollable kings, who are very arrogant (like fire), due to the power of ruling a bit of the earth. We (the learned ones) will praise only that god, who gave the status of Kubera, the lord of wealth, to the sage Kuchela, in exchange for just one handful of flattened rice."

In those days, scholars would honor gods rather than beg from kings even in dire circumstances. Although we pray to Krishna only for moksha, worldly riches can be attained automatically by worshipping him.

कविः 11

2011-11-01T20:47:00.003+05:30

श्रीजगन्नाथ पण्डितः
अयं कविरेव पण्डितराजः इति विशेषेण प्रसिद्धः।पेरुभट्टाख्यस्य शास्त्रज्ञस्य पुत्रः श्रीजगन्नाथपण्डितः।अयं कविः भट्टोजिदीक्षित अप्पय्य दीक्षितयोः समकाले एव अवसत् इतिग्रन्थेभ्यः ज्ञातुं शक्यते। एष कविः दिल्लीनगरस्य राज्ञः शहजहानात् “पण्डितराज ” बिरुदः प्राप्तः।
अनेन कविना बहवः ग्रन्थाः विरचिताः। तेषु रसगङ्गाधरः दिङ्मात्रम् विज्ञेयः।
आलङ्कारिकाणाम् अलङ्कारः अयं ग्रन्थः। अप्पय दीक्षितेन विरचित
चित्रमीमांसायाः खण्डनरूपः “चित्रमीमांसा खण्डनम् ” इति ग्रन्थः।एवं भट्टोजि
दीक्षितेन विरचित मनोरामा खण्डन ग्रन्थः “मनोरमाकुचमर्दनम्”। सुधालहरी,
यमुनालहरी , अमृतलहरी, प्राणाभरणम् इत्यादयः ग्रन्था अपिअनेन कविना
लिखितः इति श्रूयते। कवेः अन्तिम कालः वाराणसी प्रदेशे एव असीत् इति
च श्रूयते॥

श्लकोऽयं मह्यं रोचते – 65

2011-10-16T19:01:00.002+05:30

त

तरङ्गफेनभ्रमबुद्बुदादि सर्वं स्वरूपेण जलं यथा तथा ।

चिदेव देहाद्यहमन्तमेतत् सर्वं चिदेवैकरसं विशुद्धम् ॥ (विवेकचूडामणि- 390 )

taraìgaphenabhramabudbudädi sarvam svaroopeëa jalam yathä tathä

cideva dehädyahamantametat sarvam cidevaikarasam viçuddham

Wave, foam, bubbles- all these are nothing but water in reality. So this body and all are nothing but consciousness- the one pure consciousness.

It is only the pure consciousness that appears in different forms

श्रीमद्भागवतपुराणकथाः - गजेन्द्रमोक्षः - 3(concluded)

2011-10-07T05:30:00.000+05:30

सोऽन्तःसरस्युरुबलेन गृहीत आर्तो
दृष्ट्वा गरुत्मति हरिं ख उपात्तचक्रम् ।
उत्क्षिप्य साम्बुजकरं गिरमाह कृच्छ्रान्
नारायणाखिलगुरो भगवन्नमस्ते ॥
सः – He (Gajendra)
अन्तःसरसि – in the water
उरुबलेन – with great force
गृहीतः – who was captured (by the crocodile)
आर्तः - severely suffering
दृष्ट्वा - on seeing
हरिं – Lord Vishnu
गरुत्मति – on the back of Garuda
उपात्तचक्रम् – with his discus ready
उत्क्षिप्य - raising
साम्बुजकरम् – his trunk along with a lotus flower
गिरमाह – uttered the words
कृच्छ्रात् – with great difficulty
नारायण – O Lord Narayana
अखिलगुरो – O Universal Lord
भगवन् – O Supreme person
नमस्ते – salutations to you

Gajendra, even though being an animal cried out to the Supreme Lord when he was mortally captured by the crocodile in the lake. His plea was to relieve him from his current pain and all future bondages. His stuti in the 8^th canto 3^rd chapter of Srimadbhagavatam, brims with Advaita philosophy. What also strikes the reader is his lack of anger towards his visible mortal enemy, the crocodile. Instead he directs his thoughts to relieving himself from bondage of births and deaths and surrenders to the Supreme Being, the Lord of the Universe, who treats all alike, who alone is capable of granting his wishes. This being said, Gajendra, even in his pain, offers a lotus flower to the Lord who has appeared to save him. Perhaps nothing more is reachable to him, it is truly moving that he thought of offering something very simple yet demonstrating his trust and affection to the Lord. Likewise, we are all small in stature, but no offering of love of ours to the Supreme being is too small. Guess that proves Its magnanimity all over again.

श्रीमद्भागवतपुराणकथाः - गजेन्द्रमोक्षः - 2

2011-10-05T05:30:00.001+05:30

मादृक्प्रपन्नपशुपाशविमोक्षणाय मुक्ताय भूरिकरुणाय नमोsलयाय |
स्वांशेन सर्वतनुभृन्मनसि प्रतीत प्रत्यक्दृशे भगवते बृहते नमस्ते |
मादृक् — like me
प्रपन्न — surrendered
पशु — an animal
पाश — from entanglement
विमोक्षणाय — unto He who releases
मुक्ताय — unto the Supreme, who is untouched by the contamination of material nature
भूरिकरुणाय — who is unlimitedly merciful
नमः — I offer my respectful obeisance
अलयाय — who is never inattentive or idle (for the purpose of my deliverance)
स्वांशेन — by Paramatma
सर्व — of all
तनुभृत् — the living entities embodied in material nature
मनसि — in the mind
प्रतीत — who are acknowledged
प्रत्यक्दृशे — as the direct observer (of all activities)
भगवते — unto the Supreme Personality of Godhead
बृहते — who is unlimited
नमः — I offer my respectful obeisance
ते — unto You.

Gajendra appeals to His mercy in relieving his (and of others similar to him) bondage in this mundane world. He reiterates that the Lord resides in all beings (including himself and the crocodile) and who is witness to all that happens. Most importantly, only he who is free from bondage himself can offer that to his others. Only the Lord can be called as a mukta. Luckily for Gajendra, (and for all of us) He is verily the ocean of mercy.

श्रीमद्भागवतपुराणकथाः - गजेन्द्रमोक्षः - 1

2011-10-03T05:30:00.002+05:30

Gajendra, the king of elephants lived in the mountain Trikuta. He wandered its peaks along with his herd. There was a lake and one day, he entered its cool fragrant waters to quench his thirst when he was caught by a crocodile. Gajendra’s herd tried to help him out but were unable to, and they walked away leaving him to face death alone. After a long time, being thus caught, even though being stout, he weakened in strength. However the crocodile being aquatic was going on strong. Gajendra pondered a while over his situation and decided to surrender to the Supreme soul whose devotees do not have any peril from Death.

He thought of the Supreme Godhead, about whom he had learnt in his previous birth. “I surrender unto You, O lord, who is all-pervading, who protects this Universe taking many avatars. Let that lord, who resides within all beings, protect me. I offer my respectful obeisance unto the Supreme Personality of Godhead, by whose illusory energy the jiva, who is part and parcel of God, forgets his real identity. I take shelter of the Supreme Personality of Godhead, whose glories are difficult to understand.”

Says Gajendra:

न यस्य देवा ऋषयः पदं विदुर्जन्तुः पुनः कोऽर्हति गन्तुमीरितुम् |
यथा नटस्याकृतिभिर्विचेष्टतो दुरत्ययानुक्रमणः स मावतु ||

na yasya devā åñayaù padam vidurjantuù punaù ko.arhati gantuméritum

yathä naöasyäkåtibhirviceñöato duratyayäkramaṇaù sa mävatu

यस्य — of whom
न — neither
देवाः — the demigods
ऋषयः — great sages
विदुः — can understand
पदं — position
जन्तुः — (unintelligent) living beings like animals
पुनः — again
कः — who
अर्हति — is able
गन्तुं — to enter (into the knowledge)
ईरितुं — or to express by words
यथा — just as
आकृतिभिः — by bodily features
नटस्य — of the artist
विचेष्टतः — dancing in different ways
दुरत्यय — very difficult
अनुक्रमणः — His movements
सः— may that Supreme Personality of Godhead
अवतु — may give His protection.
मा — unto me

The actions and movements of the Supreme God cannot be understood even by demigods and sages. What to say of mere animals like me!

श्रीमद्भागवतपुराणकथाः

2011-10-01T05:34:00.002+05:30

Stories from Bhagavatam

नूतनतया एकम् आवलिं श्रीमद्भागवतपुरणविषये आरब्धुम् इच्छा वर्तते। भागवते श्रीकृष्णस्य चरितं तस्य कथाः चैव प्रसिद्धाः। परन्तु तस्मिन् पुण्यपुराणे अनेकाः अन्यकथाः ज्ञानोद्धीपकाः स्फूर्तिदायकाः जीवनोद्धारकाश्च बह्व्यः सन्ति। ताः उद्धृत्य अत्र शुष्करूपेण लिखितुं प्रयतामहे।

A new series is underway with stories from Bhagavatapurana. We have invited a guest blogger, Aparna Ganapathy, who has completed her M.A. in Sanskrit, to contribute to this series.

Srimadbhagavatam is a very popular purana and is one among the principle 18 compiled by Sri Veda Vyasa. The purana owes its popularity to the stories and leelas of Lord Krishna which forms the 10th skandha of the total 12. The rest of the skandhas of Srimadbhagavatam contains many beautiful value based stories like that of Gajendra moksha, Prithu, Dhruva, the dasavataras, Sage Markandeya, etc.

This series will focus on the lesser known stories from Srimad Bhagavatam.

श्लकोऽयं मह्यं रोचते – 64

2011-09-27T21:05:00.001+05:30

ज्ञ

ज्ञाने मौनं क्षमा शक्तौ त्यागे श्लाघाविपर्ययः ।

गुणाः गुणानुबन्धत्वात्तस्य सप्रसवा इव ॥

jïäne mounam kçamä çaktou tyäge çläghä viparyayaù

gunäù guëänubandhatvät tasya saprasaväù iva

The above verse is from the 1^st canto of kälidäsa’s raghuvamça that describes the great qualities of king dilépa.

Opposite qualities remained naturally with one another, like good brothers, in the case of king dilépa. First let’s see the behaviour and attitude of people possessing great virtues in general.

A ज्ञानिन् or a knowledgeable person usually tempted to show off his knowledge when needed and at times even out of turn; a strong person likes to punish severely the inferior ones; a charitable person loves to boast of his charities.

But in the case of king dilépa it is totally different. The king though learned he was, was shy like a maiden, though powerful and courageous, he forgave his enemies and though generous and liberal while giving gifts he averse to refer them.

ज्ञाने- in knowledge , मौनम् - silence, शक्तौ- in power, क्षमा-forgiveness, त्यागे- charity, श्लाघाविपर्ययः - absence of boasting, तस्य गुणाः- His qualities, गुणानुबन्धत्वात् – associated with other qualities (of an opposite nature),

सप्रसवा इव – like brothers (born from the same source).

वैराग्यपञ्चकम् - प्रस्तावः

2011-09-04T19:34:00.004+05:30

Vairagyapanchakam is a small set of 5 verses written by Sri Vedanta Desika. An attempt has been made to explain these verses over the next few weeks.

Sri Vedanta Desika lived in Kanchipuram. Seeing his poverty, his childhood friend and a great advaitic scholar Sri Vidyaranya invited him to Vijaya nagara empire where he was a scholar honored by the royalty. But Sri Desika denied the offer as he was not interested in materialistic pleasure or riches. He thought it was better to praise the Omnipresent and Omniscient God than a mortal king.

Sri Desika replied to his friend Vidyaranya in 5 verses why he preferred the wealth of bhakti to perishable riches of kings.

शास्त्रं वदति -34

2011-08-12T22:39:00.002+05:30

Saastram speaks – 34

यदि चेदप्यसम्बन्धो मित्रभावेन वर्तते ।

स एव बन्धुस्तन्मित्रं सा गतिस्तत्परायणम् ॥

yadi cedapyasambandho mitrabhävena vartate

sa eva bandhustanmitram sä gatistatparayaëam

He, who remains as a good friend even without the blood relation, is said to be a relative, good friend, a real refuge and a protector.

यदि – If , असम्बन्धो अपि – Though not related, मित्रभावेन- friendly, वर्तते-remains , सः एव – He only is , बन्धुः – is a relative, तन्मित्रम् - friend, सा गतिः – refuge, तत्परायणम् - a protector.

भक्तिः - Bhakti or devotion

2011-07-17T09:36:00.003+05:30

What is Bhakti? It can be generally translated as devotion and Webster gives 'religious fervour' as its meaning. Does this mean that atheists cannot have devotion? How can explain this to different people from different walks of life? Most of all, how can we explain this to children who are influenced by what their parents think?

Theists - It is very easy to reach out to theists and say: devotion or bhakti is that belief that you have in God which directs certain actions (puja, prayers etc) in your everyday living.

Atheists - One has to leave out God equation and explain devotion in terms of concentration on activities close to one's heart.

Children - Now this is the tricky part. Children are always forever trying to assess what to take forward to their adult years. Some children don't want to believe in God because their parents don't believe and their acceptance is of utmost importance. Some children implicitly believe what their parents say. Yet others are skeptical and more inclined to go by what their teacher says.

का इयं भक्तिर्नाम? शङ्करभगवत्पादाः विवेकचूडामणौ वदति –
मोक्षकारणसामग्र्यां भक्तिरेव गरीयसी।
स्वस्वरूपानुसन्धानं भक्तिरित्यभिधीयते॥ 31॥
मोक्षसाधनाय ये ये मार्गाः वर्तन्ते तेषु भक्तिरेव श्रेष्ठा। सा च भक्तिः स्वस्य स्वरूपस्य अनुस्यूतचिन्तनमेव इति अभिधीयते।
“Among the different paths to attain moksha, bhakti is the greatest. And this bhakti is defined as the uninterrupted contemplation of one’s true nature”, says Shri Adi Shankara in his Vivekachudamani.

A very passionate and realistic definition of bhakti is given by Shri Madhusudana Sarasvati in Bhaktirasāyanam.
द्रुतस्य भगवद्धर्माद् धारावाहिकतां गता।
सर्वेशे मनसो वृत्तिः भक्तिरित्यभिधीयते॥3॥
Mind when it surrounds the Lord in a continuous manner is defined as bhakti.
चित्तद्रव्यं हि जतुवत् स्वभावात् कठिनात्मकम्।
तापकैर्विषयैर्योगे द्रवत्वं प्रतिपद्यते॥4॥
The mind is like wax, hard by nature. It melts due to various reasons like anger, lust, friendship, jealousy etc.
द्रवतायां प्रविष्टे सद् यत् काठिन्यदशां गतं।
चेतः पुनर्द्रुतौ सत्यामपि तन्नैव मुञ्चति॥8॥
At that point if the form of Shri Krishna or any Ishta devata is put in the mind, then when the wax hardens the form of the Lord cannot be removed from the mind. It remains there for ever.

श्लोकोऽयं मह्यं रोचते – 63

2011-06-28T10:41:00.003+05:30

जे

जेतारं लोकपालानां स्वमुखैरर्चितेश्वरम् ।

रामस्तुलितकैलासमरातिं बह्वमन्यत ॥

jetäram lokapälänäm svamukhairarciteçvaram

rämastulitakailäsamarätim baùvamanyata

The above çloka is from the 12^th canto of raghuvamça of kälidäsa.

räma thought highly of his enemy rävaëa, the conqueror of the guardians of the worlds, who had worshipped Lord çiva by offering his own heads and who had balanced the kailäsa mountain.

लोकपालानां – lokapäla or dik päla who guard the eight quarters, जेतारं - conqueror , स्वमुखैरर्चितेश्वरम् – who offered his head to lord çiva , तुलितकैलासमरातिं – enemy rävaëa ( who could move the kailäsa mountain itself), रामः - räma , बह्वमन्यत - consider great.

Why räma considered rävaëa as a great person, though he abducted sita.

Here poet kälidäsa quotes three incidents that justify räma’s thought process.

1 the lokapalas or dikpaalas are the eight, guarding the eight quarters. They are the इन्द्रो वह्निः पितृपतिर्नैर्ऋतो वरुणो मरुत्।

कुबेरः ईशः पतयः पूर्वादीनां दिशां क्रमात्॥ The great rävaëa conquered them easily.

2 The ten- headed rävaëa performed penance at gokarna for ten thousand years, offering one head at the end of a thousand years. When he was about to cut off his tenth head, Brahma appeared before him and gave him the boon that he will not be killed by divine or semi- divine beings. So Vishnu has to come to the earth as räma, a human being, to kill rävaëa.

3 Once rävaëa had gone to kailäsa to seek the blessings of lord çiva. Nandin, the guard, stopped the entry of rävaëa. rävaëa enraged, wanted to lift the whole of kailäsa mountain, but çiva by merely pressing his thumb down kept kailäsa in its place.

It is also said –‘Never underestimate your enemy’.

श्लोकोऽयं मह्यं रोचते - 62

2011-06-03T19:57:00.005+05:30

जु

जुगोप आत्मानम् अत्रस्तो भेजे धर्मम् अनातुरः।
अगृध्नुः आददे सः अर्थम् असक्तः सुखम् अन्वभूत्॥(रघुवंशः सर्गः‍ 1 श्लोकः 21)
Jugopa ātmānam atrasto bheje dharmam anāturaḥ
Agṛdhnuḥ ādade saḥ artham asaktaḥ sukham anvabhūt

जुगोप – protected
आत्मानम् – himself
अत्रस्तो – without fear
भेजे – adhered
धर्मम् – dharma
अनातुरः – without being worried
अगृध्नुः – without being greedy
आददे – took
सः – He
अर्थम् – wealth
असक्तः – without attachment
सुखम् – happiness
अन्वभूत् – experienced

King Dilipa protected himself, not out of fear. Protecting oneself is the first and foremost duty of king.
He adhered to dharma not because he was worried. Performing dharma is inherently good and hence he adhered to the path of righteousness.
He took wealth not out of greed. He wanted to serve his people with the taxes that they paid him.
Further, he experienced happiness without attachment. In सांख्य philosophy, purusha or the soul is described as पुष्करपलाशवत् निर्लेपः – as unattached as a water droplet on palasha.

श्लोकोऽयं मह्यं रोचते – 61

2011-06-01T17:31:00.002+05:30

जी

जीवितावधि वनीयकमात्रैर्याच्यमानमखिलैः सुलभं यत् ।

अर्थिने परिवृढाय सुराणां किं वितीर्य परितुष्यतु चेतः ॥ (5, 81)

jévitävadhi vanéyakamätrairyäcyamänamakhilaiù sulabham yat ।

arthine parivåòhäya suräëäm kim vitérya parituñyatu cetaù ॥

दमयन्तीस्वयम्वरार्थं गच्छन्तः सुराः, मार्गे नलं दृष्ट्वा तमुद्दिश्य प्रार्थितवन्तः । तदा तेषां वचनानि श्रुत्वा नलः एवम् अचिन्तयत्- 'समस्तैरपि पात्रलक्षणरहितैः याचकैः प्राणपर्यन्तं याचितं यद्वस्तु मत्सकाशात् सुलभतया लभ्यते । परन्तु इदानीं याचकाय सुराणां प्रभवे इन्द्राय किं दत्वा मम च अन्तःकरणं सन्तुष्टं भवतु।'

The above verse is from sri Harsa’s Naishadham.

The gods meet Nala on the way as he proceeds to the city of kundina to attend Damayanti’s svayamavara. They greet Nala and announce that they have a favour to ask him. Nala’s heart overflows with sentiments of generosity and self sacrifice at the thought of gods coming to him as suppliants.

He says – ‘As anybody who seeks a favour from me will easily receive anything that he asks for up to my life, but now by giving which gift will my heart be content when the suppliant is the lord of gods?’

अखिलैः – By all, वनीयकमात्रैः – those who beg, याच्यमानं- by seeking, सुलभं यत्-easily , जीवितावधि – up to one’s life ,अर्थिने – one who seeks , सुराणां – of the gods, परिवृढाय- to the lord , किं वितीर्य- by giving , चेतः – my mind , परितुष्यतु – will be happy.

Sanskrit Quiz - 5 (Answers)

2011-04-02T19:44:00.002+05:30

1. Markandeya/मार्कण्डेयः
2. Satyavan/सत्यवान्
3. Nachiketas/नचिकेताः
4. Yudhishtira/युधिष्ठिरः
5. Nala/नलः

Sanskrit Quiz - 5

2011-03-26T21:37:00.002+05:30

भारतीय-ऐतिहासिक-कथासु पञ्च जनाः एव मृत्युदर्शनात् परं जीवन्तः आसन् इति प्रसिद्धम्। के ते?

In Indian mythological stories only five people are famous for being alive even after meeting death. Who are they?

Send the answers to aarathi.bala@gmail.com

शास्त्रं वदति -33

2011-03-25T23:31:00.001+05:30

Saastram speaks – 33

प्रियो भवति दानेन प्रियवादेन चापरः ।

मन्त्रं मूलबलेनान्यो यः प्रियः प्रिय एव सः ॥

priyo bhavati dänena priyavädena cäparaù

mantram moolabalenänyo yaù priyaù priya eva saù

In this world, people remain dear to us either by receiving gifts or by our pleasing words and can also make them dear to us by the force of ritual recitation of verbal charm or spell. But people who genuinely like us will always be close to us.

दानेन- by gifts, प्रियो भवति- are close, च - and, प्रियवादेन- by pleasing words, अपरः-Others, मन्त्रं मूलबलेन – by the magic spell, अन्यः - others, यः प्रियः – one who is close, प्रिय एव सः – will always be close.

We can relate ourselves to each and every verse of the text vidura neeti

शास्त्रं वदति- 32

2011-03-20T19:19:00.001+05:30

Saastram speaks – 32

यान्ति न्यायप्रवृत्तस्य तिर्यङ्कोऽपि सहायताम् ।

अपन्थानं तु गच्छन्तं सोदरोऽपि विमुञ्चति ॥

yänti nyäyapravåtasya tiryaìkopi sahäyatäm

apanthänam tu gacchantam sodaropi vimuïcati

If a person walks in the path of dharma even the animals would support him. But if he adopts the path of adharma, then his own brothers will desert him.

न्यायप्रवृत्तस्य- One who walks in the path of dharma or righteousness, तिर्यङ्कोऽपि- even the animals, (This word refers to animals as they go horizontally).

सहायताम् यान्ति – go for help , अपन्थानं तु- in the adharma way, गच्छन्तं- goes, सोदरोऽपि- even his own brothers, विमुञ्चति- leave.

The story of rämäyaëa will be the correct example for the above verse.Räma followed the path of virtue, hence the monkeys helped him. rävaëa adopted the wrong path so he lost the support of his own brother.

Sanskrit Quiz- 4 (Answers)

2011-03-10T14:54:00.002+05:30

Sakuntala, Anasuya, Priyamvada, Gowtami.

शकुन्तला , अनसूया , प्रियम्वदा , गौतमी

These five are the female characters from kaalidasa's Abhignyana sakuntalam .

शास्त्रं वदति-31

2011-03-04T10:17:00.001+05:30

Saastram speaks- 31

(This sloka is the continuation of the previous sloka)

सोऽस्य दोषो न मन्तव्यः क्षमा हि परमं बलम् ।

क्षमा गुणो ह्यशक्तानां शक्तानां भूषणं तथा ॥

soasya doño na mantavyaù kñamä hi paramam balam

kñamä guëo hi açaktänäm çaktänäm bhüñaëam tathä

That defect, however, should not be taken into consideration, as, forgiveness is a great power. Forgiveness is a virtue of the weak, and an ornament of the strong.

सः – That man(who has a forgivable nature) , अस्य- for him, दोषः- this fault or defect न मन्तव्यः- should nor care or consider, हि- because, क्षमा- forgiveness, परमं- great, बलम् – power or strength, हि – but, अशक्तानां- for an incapable or a weak person, क्षमा- forgiveness, गुणो- is virtue or a quality, शक्तानां- for capable people or for strong ones, क्षमा- forgiveness, भूषणम् – is an ornament (that embellishes or brightens their character)

‘क्षमा शस्त्रं करे यस्य दुर्जनः किं करिष्यति’ – ‘What can a wicked person do to him who carries the weapon of forgiveness in his hand.’

शास्त्रं वदति-30

2011-03-03T14:52:00.006+05:30

Saatram speaks- 30

एकः क्षमावतां दोषो द्वितीयो नोपलभ्यते ।

यदेनं क्षमया युक्तमशक्तं मन्यते जनः ॥ (47)

ekaù kçamavatäm doñaù dvitéyo nopalabhyate

yadenam kçamayä yuktam açaktam manyate janaù

The above verse is from ‘vidura neeti’

There is only one defect in forgiving persons—‘the quality of forgiveness present in them is wrongly assumed as incapability by others’.

क्षमवतां- a person who is of a forgivable nature, एकः- only one, दोषो- defect , द्वितीयो-second , नोपलभ्यते- is not to be seen, क्षमया युक्तं - with the quality of forgiveness , एनं- him, अशक्तं- incapable , मन्यते-assume, जनः – people

But, great men never bother or even consider the words of those inferior men. As they very well know that the ‘positives outweigh the negatives’.

Sanskrit Quiz- 4

2011-03-01T14:23:00.004+05:30

The letters are jumbled here:

श अ प्रि गौ कु न य त न् सू म् व मी त या दा ला

Clue: These are the four female characters from kaalidaasa’s famous drama.

Send the answers to gai1876@gmail.com

श्लोकोऽयं मह्यं रोचते – 60

2011-02-16T08:07:00.005+05:30

जि

जितरोषरया महाधियः सपदि क्रोधजितो लघुर्जनः ।

विजितेन जितस्य दुर्मतेर्मतिमद्भिः सह का विरोधिता॥ (16, 26)

jitaroñarayä mahädhiyaù sapadi krodhajito lagurjanaù

vijitena jitasya durmatermatimadbhiù saha kä virodhitä

पण्डितः स्वज्ञानेन अथवा पाण्डित्येन सर्वान् जयति। परन्तु गर्वेणालम्बितः मूर्खः प्रथमं स्वक्रोधेन जितः भवति परं रिपुणापि। एवं स्थितस्य मूर्खस्य मतिमद्भिः पण्डितैः सह का स्पर्धा भवेत्। मूर्खपण्डितयोः मैत्रीव स्पर्धापि न संगता इत्यर्थः ।

The above verse is from the 16^th canto of mägha’s çiçupälavadham.

The plot of this mahäkävyam is taken from the sabhä parva of the epic mahäbhäratam.

The story of this kävyam is: Lord Krishna was given the prime respect during the räja süya yagnya performed by King yudhiñöra. çiçupäla, who was also present in the court, was unable to accept the way in which Lord Krishna was worshipped and regarded by the paandavas. So, He at the outburst of his anger started abusing çri kriñëa. Finally, Kriñëa, who was patiently listening to him, killed him with the sudarçana cakram.

In this canto, çiçupäla sent a messenger who spoke insulting words addressing lord Krishna. But çri kriñëa did not react for any situation.

At this context the poet mägha gives a general statement that “an intelligent person always controls his anger and wins over it. But a foolish man is always controlled by anger and is defeated by anger at every stage. Hence, it is impossible to even conceive a friendship or enmity between the learned and the ignorant.”

Poet mägha further says that not only friendship even enmity can never exist between Lord çri kriñëa and çiçupäla.

महाधियः- Intelligent or a great person, जितः - win, रोषरया- by anger (Great men faces the force of anger and win over it) , लघुर्जनः - an ignorant person , सपदि – immediately , क्रोधजितो- loses himself to anger, विजितेन- An ignorant who is won by anger , जितस्यदुर्मतेः –an ignorant who is a looser, मतिमद्भिः सह –with an intelligent person , का विरोधिता – where is the enmity?

An Epitome of virtue and an embodiment of vice can there ever be a meaningful conversation?

श्लोकोऽयं मह्यं रोचते – 59

2011-02-11T07:40:00.003+05:30

जा

जाने विसृष्टां प्रणिधानतस्त्वां मिथ्यापवादक्षुभितेन भर्त्रा ।

तन्मा व्यथिष्ठा विषयान्तरस्थं प्राप्तासि वैदेहि पितुर्निकेतम् ॥ (14, 72)

jäne visåñöäm praëidhänatastväm mithyäpaväda kñubhitena bharträ

tanmä vyathiñöhä viñayäntarastham präptäsi vaidehi piturniketam

The above sloka is from ‘Raghu vamsam’ of kaalidaasa.

The context here is : After the fourteen years exile Rama returns to the kingdom along with lakshmana and Sita and adorns the throne. One day Rama hears a scandal about Sita. Later on, she was abandoned near vaalmiki’s hermitage by Lakshmana, as directed by Raama.

Seeing Sita at the midst of the forest sage Vaalmiki says the following words- ‘ I know by the power of my meditation that you have been abandoned by your husband who is agitated by the false slander. Oh! Vaidehi do not be disturbed by any worries, you have come to the house of the father situated in another country.

त्वां- you, मिथ्या- false, अपवाद- blame, क्षुभितेन- agitated, भर्त्रा- by the husband, विसृष्टां- abondeoned, प्रणिधानतः – by his holy powers, जाने- I know, वैदेहि- O! Vaidehi,तत् मा व्यथिष्ठाः- do not be upset, विषयान्तरस्थं- in another place, पितुः – father’s निकेतं- house, प्राप्ता असि- have reached.

Firstly, Sage Vaalmiki tells Sita not to worry herself. As for her, he is in the same position as janaka. Sita can consider his abode as janaka’s abode itself, the only difference being that it was situated in a different country.

भर्त्रोपेक्षितानां पितृगृहवास एव उचित इति भावः – Father’s abode will be the safest place for a lady who was abandoned by her husband.

श्लोकोऽयं मह्यं रोचते – 58

2011-02-04T22:31:00.003+05:30

ज

जरेयं पिशाचीव हा जीवतो मे

वसामत्ति रक्तं च मांसं बलं च ।

अहो देव सीदामि दीनानुकम्पि

न्किमद्यापि हन्त त्वयोदासितव्यम् ॥

jareyam piçäcéva hä jévato me

vasämatti raktam ca mämsam balam ca

aho deva sédämi dénänukampin

kimadyäpi hanta tvayodäsitavyam

The above verse is from Adi Sankara’s ‘Vishnu bhujanga prayaata stotram’.

Adi Sankara says – The old age is attacking me like a demon and destroys my blood, bones, flesh and strength. And oh god! You are compassionate towards the distressed, but how come you seem to be not bothered at all?

इयं – This ,जरा – Old age , पिशाचीव – like a demon, हा जीवतो- When I am alive, मे – my ,वसाम् – अत्ति- eats the bone, रक्तं- blood, मांसं- flesh, बलं- strength, च- and, अहो देव- Oh god, सीदामि- trembling, दीन- distress, अनुकम्पिन्- merciful, अद्यापि – even now, हन्त त्वया – by you उदासितव्यम्- ignore me ( You should not ignore me) ।

Audio format

2011-01-29T11:13:00.002+05:30

We thank all the readers for your encouragement for this blog.We received a request from Dr.Aniruddha malpani to upload the slokas in the audio format. So, from now on we will try as much as possible to upload the slokas in the audio format as well.

वैराग्यशतकम् - 18

2011-01-29T10:10:00.000+05:30

अजानन् दाहात्म्यं पततु शलभस्तीव्रदहने
स मीनोऽप्यज्ञानाद्बडिशयुतमश्नुते पिशितम्।
विजानन्तोऽप्येते वयमिह विपज्जालजटिला-
न्न मुञ्चामः कामान् अहह गहनो मोहमहिमा॥18॥

ajānan dāhātmyaṁ patatu śalabhaḥ tīvradahane
sa mīno'pi-ajñānād-baḍiśa-yutam aśnute piśitam|
vijānanto'pi-ete vayamiha vipaj-jāla-jaṭilān-
na muñcāmaḥ kāmān ahaha gahano mohamahimā||18||

VS_018.mp3

अजानन् - not knowing
दाहात्म्यं - its burning power
शलभः - firefly
पततु - may fall
तीव्रदहने - in the intense fire
अज्ञानात् - out of ignorance
स मीनोऽपि - the fish too
अश्नातु - may eat
पिशितं बडिशयुतम् - the fleshy bait
विजानन्तः अपि - even when we know
वयमिह - we
न मुञ्चामः - do not forsake
कामान् - desires
विपत्-जाल-जटिलान् - complicated with dangers
मोहमहिमा - power of delusion
अहह - alas!
गहनः - is inscrutable

We can excuse simple beings like fireflies and fish because it is out of ignorance that they keep falling prey. Can there be any excuse given for us human beings who are quite intelligent and have a pretty good understanding of how desires can trap us into a vicious circle of birth and rebirth? Yet, if we keep falling repeatedly into the clutches of these dangerous desires, then it shows how powerful and enigmatic delusion can be.

Sanskrit Quiz -3 (Answers)

2011-01-21T14:59:00.003+05:30

The answers are

Raghuvamsa, Kumaarasambhavam, naishadham, Sisupaala vadham , Kiraataarjuniyam

रघुवंशः, कुमारसंभवः, नैषधम् , शिशुपालवधः , किरातार्जुनीयम्

Sanskrit Quiz – 3

2011-01-17T17:12:00.001+05:30

The letters are jumbled here:

रा शु ष जु कु व नै र नी मा घु र ल वं सं शः भ वः धम् शि पा कि धः तार् यम्

Clue: The great poetics of Sanskrit.

Send the answers to gai1876@gmail.com

sanskrit quiz - 2 (Answers)

2011-01-17T16:58:00.002+05:30

The answers are :

सीता , कैकेयी , कौसल्या , इन्दुमती , सुदक्षिणा

Seetha, Kaikeyi, Kousalya, Indumati, Sudakshina.

Shreevatsa R got all the answers correct .

Ujjwol Lamichhane got 4/5

Sanskrit Quiz -2

2011-01-13T22:23:00.001+05:30

The letters are jumbled here:

यी सु सी के द कौ न् क्षि इ कै ता णा ल् दु म स ती या

Clue: Queens of Raghu kula.

Send the answers to gai1876@gmail.com

शास्त्रं वदति- 29

2011-01-13T10:49:00.001+05:30

Saastram speaks -29

संतुष्टो भार्यया भर्ता भर्त्रा भार्या तथैव च ।

यस्मिन्नेव कुले नित्यं कल्याणं तत्र वै ध्रुवम् ॥

Happiness is ever lasting in that family, where the husband is pleased with his wife and the wife with her husband.

भर्ता – The Husband, संतुष्टो – happy , भार्यया- by the wife, तथैव च -Likewise ,भार्या- Wife, (संतुष्टो) भर्त्रा-by the husband , यस्मिन्नेव कुले – in which family, तत्र-there, नित्यं वै ध्रुवम् – always indeed, कल्याणं-prosperity or happiness,

श्लोकोऽयं मह्यं रोचते – 57

2011-01-11T18:54:00.003+05:30

छे

छेत्तुमिन्दौ भवद्वक्त्रबिम्बविभ्रमविभ्रमम् ।

शङ्के शशाङ्कमानङ्के भिन्नभिन्नविधिर्विधिः ॥

Tha above sloka is from the twentieth canto of sri Harsha’s naishadeeya charitam.

In the above sloka Nala describes the beauty of Damayanti.He says ‘ Oh ! Damayanti, the creator, during his creation, has differentiated between object to object and person to person’.

And he further says ‘ I think the moon was also created with a black spot in order to remove the confusion between the moon and your shining face’.

sanskrit quiz 1 (Answers)

2011-01-11T12:16:00.004+05:30

The answer is

भीमः , दुर्योधनः , कीचकः , हिडिम्बः , बकासुरः , जरासन्धः

Bhima-duryodhana,kichaka,hidimba,bakaasura,jarasandha

The Correct answer posted by anupama Santharam.

sanskrit Quiz -1

2011-01-04T12:23:00.004+05:30

The words are jumbled here:

मः भी नः यो दुर् ध कः च की डि म् बः हि रः ब सु का रा धः सन् ज

Clue : They are the six great warriors from the great epic. One among these six killed the remaining five.

Do not post the answer in the comment box. Send the answers to this email id: gai1876@gmail.com

शास्त्रं वदति – 28

2010-12-09T10:51:00.000+05:30

Saastram speaks -28

यं मातापितरौ क्लेशं सहेते संभवे नृणाम् ।

न तस्य निष्कृतिः शक्या कर्तुं वर्षशतैरपि ॥

yam mätäpitarou kleçam sahete sambhave nåëäm ।

na tasya niñkåtiù çakyä kartum varñaçatairapi ॥

The trouble and pain that the parents undergo on the birth of their children cannot be compensated even in hundred years.

मातापितरौ - parents , नृणाम् – people (children) , संभवे - on the birth, यं क्लेशं- that pain , सहेते- bear or undergo , तस्य निष्कृतिः- discharge of a debt or obligation, वर्षशतैरपि- even in hundred years, कर्तुं- to do , न- not , शक्या - possible .

श्लोकोऽयं मह्यं रोचते – 56

2010-12-08T12:23:00.001+05:30

छि
छिन्नमप्यतनु हारमण्डलं मुग्धया सुरतलास्यकेलिभिः ।
न व्यतर्किं सुदृशा चिरादपि स्वेदबिन्दुकितवक्षसा हृदि ॥ (18, 107)

The above sloka is from the eighteenth canto of sri Harsha’s ‘naishadiya charitam’.

The eighteenth canto starts with a description of nala’s palace but the main portion of this canto describes the love sport between Nala and Damayanti. The above verse is one from the same canto where the intimacy between the couple has been poetically fancied by the poet sri Harsha

शास्त्रं वदति -27

2010-12-06T11:16:00.001+05:30

Saastram speaks -27

न तेन वृद्धो भवति येनास्य पलितं शिरः ।

यो वै युवा-अप्यधीयानस् तं देवाः स्थविरं विदुः ॥

na tena våddho yenäsya palitam çiraù ।

yo vai yuvä- apyadhéyänas tam deväù sthaviram viduù ॥

A man is not honoured just because his head is grey. Though young if he has learnt the scriptures then the gods consider him as an honourable person.

न- not, तेन- by that, वृद्धो- old , भवति- becomes, येनास्य- by which, पलितं-grey, शिरः- head, यो वै- who, युवा अपि – though young , अधीयानः – learned (learnt the Vedas) , देवाः- the gods , तं- him , स्थविरं- aged, विदुः- know or consider.

There is a term called ‘ज्ञानवृद्धः’ in Sanskrit. Though a person is young by age but given due respect due to the depth of knowledge.

कविः 10

2010-12-05T12:25:00.009+05:30

वेदान्त देशिकः
सप्तशतवर्षात्पूर्वम् काञ्चीपुरतुप्पुल् ग्रामे श्रीवेङ्कटनाथः समजनि ।
सः स्व प्रतिभया वेदन्तदेशिकः अभवत् । एकदा सः स्व गुरुणा मातुलेन अप्पुल्लालेन सह ‘ नडदूर् अम्माल् ’ इति नाम्ना प्रसिद्ध-आचार्यस्य उपन्यासार्थं जगाम। तत्र तेजस्विनं देशिकं दृष्ट्वा श्री अम्माल् –
“प्रतिष्ठापित वेदान्ताः प्रतिक्षिप्त - बहिर्मतः त्रैविद्यामान्यास्त्वम् भूरि कल्याण भाजनम् ” इति आशीः ददुः।
श्री देशिकः अष्टाविंशत्यधिक स्त्तोत्रग्रन्थान् , चतुर्दशवेदान्त ग्रन्थान्, द्वौ अनुष्ठानग्रन्थौ , चतुर्काव्यग्रन्थान् , अष्टव्याख्यानग्रन्थान् , द्वात्रिंशत् रहस्यग्रन्थान् , एकं नाटकं च संस्कृते अरचयत्। अनेन आचार्येण द्रविडभाषायामपि द्विचत्वारिंशत् ग्रन्थाः विरचिताः। विशिष्टाद्वैतसिद्धान्तः सर्वत्र प्रचारितः। अनेन विरचितं ‘हंस संदेशः’ इति महाकाव्यं कालिदासप्रणीतं मेघदूतमिव भवति। अत्र श्रीरामः सीतां प्रति हंसं प्रेषयति।
पादुकासहस्रम् इति काव्ये अष्टोत्तरसहस्र श्लोकाः सन्ति।द्वात्रिंशत् पद्धतिः अत्र विद्यन्ते।भगवतः पादुकयोः वर्णनं सर्वेषु श्लोकेषु दृश्यते। एवम् अयं ग्रन्थः एकस्यां रात्रौ एव श्रीदेशिकेन लिखितः । अस्य आचार्यस्य यादवाभ्युदयम्
(काव्यं ) , तत्वमुक्ताकलापः ,अधिकरणसारावली, शतदूषणी, चतुश्लोकीभाष्यं , श्रीमद्रहस्यत्रयसारम् , अडैक्कलपत्तु (द्रविडभाषायां) इति एते प्रसिद्धाः ग्रन्थाः। स्तोत्रेषु हयग्रीवस्तोत्रं , श्रीस्तुतिः , सुदर्शनाष्टकम् एवं दयाशतकं च सर्वैः अनुदिनं पठ्यन्ते।
श्रीसुदर्शनभट्टेन विरचितं श्रुतप्रकाशिकानाम श्रीभाष्यव्याख्यानं अचार्यवर्यैः श्रीवेदान्तदेशिकैरेव परिरक्षितं तथा प्रकाशितं च।
श्रीमद्वेदान्तदेशिकस्य पुत्रः स्व गुरोः श्रीमद्वेदान्तदेशिकमङ्गलाशासने - एवं वदति

श्रुतप्राकाशिका भूमौ येनासौ परिरक्षिता ।
प्रवर्तिता च पात्रेषु तस्मै श्रेष्ठाय मङ्गलम्॥
सांस्कृतीभिर्द्रामिडीभिः बह्वीभिः कृतिभिर्जनान्।
यस्समुज्जीवयामास तस्मै सेव्याय मङ्गलम्॥
एवम्
वेदे सञ्जात खेदे मुनिजन वचने प्राप्तनित्यावमाने
संकीर्णे सर्ववर्णे सति तदनुगुणे निष्प्रमाणे पुराणे।
मायावादे समोदे कलिकलुष वशाच्छून्यवदेऽविवादे
धर्मत्राणाय योऽभूत् स जयति भगवान् विष्णुघण्टावतारः॥
“विष्णोः घण्टावतारः एव श्रीवेदान्त देशिकः” इति गुरुम् अपि च पितरं विशेषयति
कुमारवरदार्यः।

cut and paste the link below to read about vedanta desika in english
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Vedanta_Desika

शास्त्रं वदति –26

2010-12-04T12:00:00.000+05:30

Saastram speaks – 26

विद्यया एव समं कामं मर्तव्यं ब्रह्मवादिना ।

आपद्यपि हि घोरायां न तु एनाम् इरिणे वपेत् ॥ (2, 113)

vidyayä eva samam kämam martavyam brahmavädinä ।

äpadyapi hi ghoräyäm na tu enäm iriëe vapet ॥

ब्रह्मवादिना – by a teacher , विद्यया एव समं – along with his knowledge, कामं मर्तव्यं – can die , हि - but, घोरायां - terrible , आपद्यपि- calamity or distress , न तु - should not, इरिणे- a saline soil ( a field unfit for sowing) , वपेत् - sow .

Even in times of terrible distress a teacher of veda should rather die with his knowledge than sow it in barren soil. The teacher should see whether the disciple is fit enough to learn the scriptures.

कविः – 9

2010-12-03T17:40:00.002+05:30

भासः

संस्कृतसाहित्ये कवेः भासस्य प्रशस्तिप्रकटने कालिदासादि कवीनां प्रशंसापूर्वकवचनान्येव साधु। अलमतिप्रसङ्गेन। कालिदासः स्वस्य मालवाग्निमित्रनाटकस्य प्रस्तावनायां कविभासमधिकृत्य एवं वर्णयति-

‘प्रथितयशसां भाससौमिल्लकविपुत्रादीनां प्रबन्धानतिक्रम्य वर्तमानकवेः कालिदासस्य क्रियायां कथं परिषदोऽस्याः बहुमानः। ‘

अत्र वर्ण्यमाणानां भाससौमिल्लकविपुत्रादीनां त्रयाणां कवीनां मध्ये कविभासस्यैव प्रथमं स्थानं दत्तं कविश्रेष्ठैः कालिदासैः ।

‘बाणोच्छिष्टं जगत् सर्वमिति’ यशसा विख्यातेन बाणभट्टेन ‘हर्षचरितस्य’ प्रस्तावनायां भासविषये एवं आलिख्यते-

‘सूत्रधारकृतारम्भैः नाटकैर्बहुभूमिकैः ।

सपातकैर्यशो लेभे भासो देवकुलैरिव ॥ ‘

नानाप्रकारकथाभिः तथा बहुपात्रयुक्तानि नाटकानि कविभासैः विरचितानि इति अस्मात् श्लोकात् ज्ञायते। यद्यपि बहुभिः कविभिः भासस्य यशः प्रकटितं तथापि दौर्भाग्यवशात् एतादृशस्य महाकवेः जन्मादिविषये यु्क्तिपूर्वकविषयाः अनुपलब्धाः। भासः इति शब्दोऽपि तस्य गोत्रनाम एव न तु यथार्थनाम।

संस्कृतसाहित्ये भासकृतानि त्रयोदशनाटकानि प्रसिद्धानि वर्तन्ते। तानि च

स्वप्नवासवदत्तम् , प्रतिज्ञायौगन्धरायणम् , अविमारकम्, चारुदत्तम् , बालचरितम्, मध्यमव्यायोगम् , पञ्चरात्रम्, दूतवाक्यम् , दूतघटोत्कचम् , कर्णभारम् , ऊरुभङ्गम् , प्रतिमानाटकम्, अभिषेकनाटकम् ।

एतेषां नाटकानां संख्याः, मूलानि, अनन्तानि तथा विविधानि पात्रकल्पनानि च भासस्य विषये कालिदासबाणभट्टादीनां प्रशंसावाक्यानि समर्थयन्ति ।

Poet -9

Bhaasa

Bhaasa was a reputed dramatist of ancient India whose plays were popular even in the days of kaalidasa. High praise has been bestowed on him by kaalidasa in the introductory part of his drama maalavikaagnimitram - ‘प्रथितयशसां भाससौमिल्लकविपुत्रादीनां प्रबन्धानतिक्रम्य वर्तमानकवेः कालिदासस्य क्रियायां कथं परिषदोऽस्याः बहुमानः। ‘ Of the three authors referred to in the above line (Bhaasa, soumilla and kaviputra) Bhaasa is given the first place.

Baanabhatta the famous author of kaadambarii, refers to bhaasa in the introduction of his srIharashacharitam –

‘सूत्रधारकृतारम्भैः नाटकैर्बहुभूमिकैः ।

सपातकैर्यशो लेभे भासो देवकुलैरिव ॥ ‘

The above reference says that bhaasa wrote many plays with a variety of characters and incidents.

It is really unfortunate that we do not know anything about the personal history of this great author. Even the word bhaasa does not appear to be his real name, but only his gotra name.

The following thirteen works were written by bhaasa-

Svapnavaasavadattam, Pratignya yougandharaayanam, Avimaarakam, chaarudattam, Baalacharitam, Madhyama vyaayogam, Pancharaatram, Doota vaakyam, Doota ghatotkacham, Karnabhaaram,Uru bhangam, Pratimaa naatakam and Abhisheka naatakam.

मञ्जुरामायणम् -8

2010-11-16T22:21:00.000+05:30

अपूजयत् स पादुकामथोऽभिषिच्य भक्तिमान्
अनेकलोकमानिताम् अशेषमङ्गलास्पदम् ।
लघुर्गुरुर्निरन्तरं स पञ्चचामरोत्तमैः
लघुर्गुरुर्निरन्तरं भवेत् स पञ्चचामरम् ।।

apūjayat sa pādukāmatho'bhiṣicya bhaktimān
anekalokamānitām aśeṣamaṅgalāspadam|
laghurgururnirantaraṁ sa pañcacāmaraiḥ
laghurgururnirantaraṁ bhavet sa pañcacāmaram||

अथ – then
सः भक्तिमान् – He, Bharata the devotee (of rama)
अनेकलोकमानितां – honoured by all world
अशेषमङ्गलास्पदम् – repository of all auspicious things
पादुकाम् – paduka /sandals
अभिषिच्य – after coronating it
लघुर्गुरुर्निरन्तरं – always slowly and swiftly
स अपूजयत् – he worshiped
पञ्चचामरोत्तमैः – with the best fans

Bharata was a such a sincere devotee of his brother Rama that he made Rama’s paduka as king. Lord Rama’s paduka is honored by all the worlds and is a repository of all auspicious things. Bharata worshiped it ever slowly and swiftly, waving broad with the best chaamara or fans.

The specialty of this sloka lies in the fact that the meter of this verse – PanchaChamara is indicated with its definition in the last quarter of the verse. It has sixteen syllables of alternating लघु and गुरु. In meter vowels are counted as syllables. Short vowel is लघु. Long vowel and short vowel followed by combined consonant is गुरु.

शास्त्रं वदति – 25

2010-11-14T08:01:00.002+05:30

शास्त्रं वदति – 25

आत्मानाम गुरोर्नाम नामातिकृपणस्य च ।

श्रेयस्कामो न गृह्णीयात्ज्येष्ठापत्यकलत्रयोः ॥

ätmänäma gurornäma nämätikåpaëasya ca

çreyaskämo na gåëéyät jyeñöhäpatya kalatrayoù

आत्मानाम – name of the self, गुरोर्नाम – name of the guru or preceptor, नामातिकृपणस्य – name of a stingy person, श्रेयस्कामो – who is desirous of his prosperity, ज्योष्ठापत्यः – the first born, कलत्रयोः – of the spouse, न गृह्णीयात् –does not say or utter .

One who is desirous of his prosperity should not utter his own name, the name of his preceptor, name of a stingy person, name of the first born, name of the spouse.

P.S. आत्मानाम – ätmänäma , (A person should not utter his name) This may be quite weird, as the question arises that how an individual survive without uttering his own name ?

Probably it could be like this: A person has two other names apart from the colloquial name. Between the two names he utters the ‘sarman’ name while doing the ‘abhivaadye’. And as a gesture, during ‘abhivaadaye’, he closes his ears, so that he will not hear his own name.

श्लोकोऽयं मह्यं रोचते - 55

2010-11-11T10:16:00.003+05:30

छा

छायाशरीरे प्रतिबिम्बगात्रे यत्स्वप्नदेहे हृदि कल्पिताङ्गे।
यथात्मबुद्धिस्तव नास्ति काचिज्जीवच्छरीरे च तथैव मास्तु॥ (विवेकचूडामणि - 163)॥

chāyāśarīre pratibimbagātre yatsvapnadehe hṛdi kalpitāṅge|
yathātmabuddhistava nāsti kācijjīvaccharīre ca tathaiva māstu|| (vivekacūḍāmaṇi - 163)||

Just as you would not identify yourself with your shadow, your reflection, your dream-body or the body in your imagination, so too, you should not identify yourself with your living body.

A simple solution for a very difficult step towards self-realisation!

श्लोकोऽयं मह्यं रोचते - 54

2010-11-02T14:42:00.005+05:30

छ

छन्दश्शाखि–शिखान्वितै-र्द्विजवरै-स्संसेविते शाश्वते
सौख्यापादिनि खेदभेदिनि सुधासारैः फलैर्दीपिते ।
चेतः पक्षिशिखामणे त्यज वृथा संचार मन्यैरलम्
नित्यं शंकर-पादपद्म-युगली-नीडे विहारं कुरु ॥
chandaśśākhi-śikhānvitair-dvijavarais-saṁsevite śāśvate
saukhyāpādini khedabhedini sudhāsāraiḥ phalairdīpitaḥ|
cetaḥ pakṣiśikhāmaṇe tyaja vṛtha saṁcāra manyairalam
nityaṁ śaṁkara-pādapadma-yugalī-nīḍe vihāraṁ kuru||

The above sloka is from ādi śaṁkara's śivānandalaharī.

Adi Shankara says, ‘Oh mind why do you dwell unnecessarily when you can surrender yourself at the feet of lord Shiva; by whom all your obstacles will be removed and will be blessed with the four पुरुषार्थ’s namely धर्म, अर्थ, काम and मोक्ष.’

In the above verse Adi Shankara compares the mind to a bird.

Let us see how the words are applicable for the mind-

चेतः शिखामणे – Oh mind, शंकर-पादपद्म-युगली-नीडे- under the lotus like feet of lord çiva (who is the antarätmä and is like a nest), नित्यं - always, विहारं कुरु - reside, वृथा- unnecessarily, संचारं- dwelling , त्यज- leave.

Oh mind, छन्दश्शाखि शिखान्वितैः – the branches of the scriptures र्द्विजवरैः – by the best among the Brahmins, संसेविते – followed, The following words are the adjectives for the feet of çiva शाश्वते - eternal, सौख्यापादिनि- that which gives pleasure, खेदभेदिनि – removes the obstacles , सुधासारैः फलैः – by the fruits (धर्म, अर्थ, काम and मोक्ष) , दीपिते- shines, अन्यैः अलम् – it is enough

To the bird

पक्षि-शिखामणे- Oh bird, नीडे- in the nest, नित्यं - always, विहारं कुरु - reside, वृथा- unnecessarily, संचारं- dwelling, त्यज- leave , सुधासारैः फलैः

छन्दश्शाखि शिखान्वितैः- by branches of the tree, र्द्विजवरैः – by the other birds, you will be blessed with the सुधासारैः फलैः – juicy fruits, अन्यैः अलम् – it is enough .

Adi Shankara in his work soundaryalahari describes the feet of the goddess as

सुधाधारासारैः चरणयुगलान्तर्विगलितैः
प्रपञ्चं सिञ्चन्ती पुनरपि रसाम्नाय महसः ।
अवाप्य स्वां भूमिं भुजगनिभमध्युष्टवलयम्
स्वमात्मानं कृत्वा स्वपिषि कुलकुण्डे कुहरिणि ॥

श्लोकोऽयं मह्यं रोचते - 53

2010-10-24T07:22:00.004+05:30

चो

चोलकेरलपाण्ड्यानां पश्यन् अनुगतिं प्रभुः।
चकार पुनराधानं धर्म्यं हुतभुजामिव॥ (यादवाभ्युदयः 22-209)

colakeralapāṇḍyānāṁ paśyan anugatiṁ prabhuḥ|
cakāra punarādhānaṁ dharmyaṁ hutabhujāmiva|| (yādavābhyudayaḥ 22-209)

Satyaki saw the kings of chola, kerala and pandya follow his instructions and so, reestablished them on the throne as (subsidiary) kings, just as how the domestic fires of agnihotra are placed back after being followed thro' with vedic mantras.

yādavābhyudayaḥ is a kavya written by Sri Vedanta Desika. It is further enhanced by Sri Appayya Dikshita's commentary. In 24 cantos, the poet describes the story of Krishna from his birth to end. The context here is - after the killing of Shishupala, Krishna marries Bhama, brings her the parijata tree, kills Paundraka and Kashi king and starts discussions on digvijaya. This happens before the Kurukshetra war. All kings of yadu dynasty agree to Krishna's decision on sending Satyaki on the journey of conquest.

The slokas within this may seem very simple, yet, without Sri Appayya Dikshita's commentary it is difficult to understand some inner meanings. For eg, here the poet says 'धर्म्यं पुनराधानं' - according to dharma, satyaki reestablished the kings. What is that dharma? Commentary here - आश्रितसंरक्षणरूपत्वात् धर्मादनपेतं तेषां तत्तद्देशे पुर्निधानं चकार. The dharma here is 'protecting those who have surrendered'. This same dharma was followed by Rama when he reestablished Vibhishana as the king of Lanka.

श्लोकोऽयं मह्यं रोचते -52

2010-10-22T19:24:00.003+05:30

चे

चेतःक्षीरपयोधिमन्थनचलद्रागाख्यमन्थाचल-
क्षोभव्यापृतिसम्भवां जननि ते मन्दस्मितश्रीसुधाम्।
स्वादं स्वादम् उदीतकौतुकरसं नेत्रत्रयी शाङ्करी
श्रीकामाक्षि निरन्तरं परिरमत्यानन्दवीचीमयी॥

cetaḥkṣīrapayodhi-manthana-calad-rāgākhya-manthācala-
kṣobha-vyāpṛti-saṁbhavaāṁ janani te mandasmitaśrīsudhām|
svādaṁ svādam udītakautukarasaṁ netratrayī śāṅkarī
śrīkāmākṣi nirantaraṁ pariramatyānandavīcīmayī||4 - 97||

Poets describe with colors, for eg, anger is red; Smile, laugh, fame and truth are white in color.

Goddess Kamakshi's mind is like the milk-ocean, which is being churned by desire/manthara mountain. From this oean rises her smile which is like nectar. Siva's 3 eyes which resemble the waves of happiness, take pleasure in drinking this nectar again and again. When Kamakshi thinks about lord Siva, desire in her mind makes her smile beautifully. Lord Siva in turn looks at her with all three eyes and experiences immense pleasure.

शास्त्रं वदति – 24

2010-10-20T15:21:00.004+05:30

Saastram speaks -24

पूर्वे वयसि तत् कुर्यात् येन वृद्धसुखं वसेत् ।

यावज्जीवेन तत् कुर्यात् येन प्रेत्य सुखं वसेत् ।। 58 विदुरनीतिः

pürve vayasi tat kuryät yena vèdhasukham vaset

yävajjévena tat kuryät yena pretya sukham vaset

Do that when you are young which may ensure a happy old age, and do that (good deed) during your whole life here which may enable you to live happily hereafter.

पूर्वे _ in earlier, वयसि – years, तत् कुर्यात् – do that ,येन- by which, वसेत् – live , वृद्धसुखं - during old age.

यावज्जीवेन- whole life ,तत् कुर्यात् – Do that, येन- by which, वसेत् – live, प्रेत्य सुखं – haapily after death.

According to our sanathana dharma it is believed that death does not mean destruction, but the existence of the soul continues elsewhere, where happiness or misery results according to one’s merits and de-merits performed in this world.

शास्त्रं वदति – 23

2010-10-04T11:54:00.003+05:30

Saastram speaks -23

आचिनोति च शास्त्रार्थान् आचारे स्थापयत्यपि ।

स्वयम् आचरते यस्मात् तस्मादाचार्य उच्यते ॥

äcinoti ca çästrärthän äcäre sthäpayatyapi

svayam äcarate yasmät tasmädäcärya ucyate

The above verse says the lakshana for an aachaarya or preceptor.

He who teaches the meanings of the scriptures, puts them into practice himself, and establishes others in those aachaaras.

यः – A teacher, शास्त्रार्थान् – meanings of the scriptures , आचिनोति -imparts, अपि च – and as well, आचारे स्थापयति- practice it, यस्मात्- from which, स्वयं- he himself , आचरते -follows, तस्मात् आचार्य उच्यते – only then he is called as aachaarya ।

p.s. this sloka is taken from the book ‘AchArya’s call’. This book has the discourses of kAnchi mahAswAmigal.

These are the various terms used for a teacher.

गुरुः – गुं रुणद्धि - One who removes the ignorance which is like the darkness.

आचरते इति आचार्यः – one who follows what he preaches.

अध्यापयति इति अध्यापकः – one who teaches.

पाठयति इति पाठकः – one who teaches.

शिक्षयति इति शिक्षकः - one who teaches.

श्लोकोऽयं मह्यं रोचते -51

2010-09-25T13:56:00.004+05:30

चू

चूर्णिताशेषकौरव्यः क्षीबो दुःशासनासृजा ।

भङ्क्ता सुयोधनस्योर्वीर्भीमोऽयं शिरसाञ्चति॥

cürëitäçeñakouravyaù kçébo duççäsanasèjä

bhaìktä suyadhanasyorvérbhémoyam çirasäïcati

The above sloka is from the fifth act of the drama venisamhara of bhatta narayana.

The plot of the drama is taken from Mahabharata. The context here is: Bheema and arjuna salute dhritarashtra and gaandhari addressing them in insulting terms.

Bheema says: “ I am Bheema, the pounder of all the kauravas, who is intoxicated with the blood of Dussasana and who is to break the thigh of Duriyodhana. I offer my salutations.”

अयं-This, भीमः-Bheema, शिरसा-by bending his head, अञ्चति-offers his salutations, This Bheema by whom , अशेषाः-all, कौरव्यः-kauravas, चूर्णिताः-killed, असृजा – by the blood ,दुःशासन- of dussasana, क्षीबः- intoxicated, सुयोधनस्य-of Duriyodhana, ऊर्वि-thighs, भङ्क्ता-will break.

Bheema could not have saluted the old couple in a more insulting manner. He was uncontrollably intoxicated. He believed that the arrogance of Duriyodhana manifested because of his father’s kingship. Moreover, the wicked deeds of Duriyodhana was so high to overpower the patience of any man with self respect.

श्लोकोऽयं मह्यं रोचते – 50

2010-09-23T09:53:00.003+05:30

चु

चुलुकिततमः सिन्धोर्भृङ्गैः करादिव शुभ्यते

नभसि बिसिनीबन्धोरन्ध्रच्युतैरुदबिन्दुभिः ।

शतदलमधुस्रोतःकच्छद्वयीपरिरम्भणा-

दनुपदमदःपङ्काशङ्काममी मम तन्वते ॥

culukitatamaù sidhorbåìgaiù karädiva çubhyate

nabhasi bisinibandhorandhracyutairudabindubhiù

çatadalamadhusrotaùkaccdvayéparirambhanä

danupadamadaùpaìkaçaìkämamé mama tanvate

The above verse is from the 19^th canto of naishadiya charitam of sri Harsha.

In the above verse the poet says “the bees shine in the sky like water drops falling from the sky. Then by clinging to the two sides of the nectar dripping from the lotus, the bees give me an impression of mosses floating on top of an ocean”.

Sun heats the water from the ocean and showers it as rain. Here, The poet describes that the sun drinks the ocean of darkness through his palm and showers as water drops through the space between his fingers and metamorphically compares the bees on the sky to the water drops.

Sun चुलुकित-drank, तमः- the darkness, सिन्धोः- of the ocean, करात्- through his palm, बिसिनीबन्धोः- sun (बिसिनी-lotus, बन्धोः- friend),रन्ध्र- space between the fingers, च्युतैः- dropped, उदबिन्दुभिः- water drops, इव- like, भृङ्गाः-the bees, नभसि- in the sky, शुभ्यते- shine ।

अनुपदं- after this, शतदल- lotus (शत- hundred, दल – petals; the flower with hundred petals) ,मधुस्रोतः- the flow of nectar, कच्छद्वयी- both the sides, परिरम्भणात्- clinging, अमी- these bees, पङ्कशङ्कां मम तन्वते - give me the impression that they are the mosses.

The sun rises destroying the darkness, the bees come out of their nest and proceed towards the lotuses to relish the nectar. This is a very normal scenario. But the secret of the magic spell present in the words of a poet can change a normal scenario into a commendable description.

मञ्जुरामायणम् – 7

2010-09-18T16:38:00.003+05:30

अवधीरितराज्यवैभवः भरतो भ्रातृसमीक्षणाकुलः ।
सहसा सजटः सवल्कलः सहसैन्यः प्रविवेश काननम् ।।

भरतः = Bharata
अवधीरित = relinquishing
राज्यवैभवः = luxury of kingdom
भ्रातृसमीक्षणाकुलः = desirous of seeing brother Rama
सहसा = at once
सजटः ( धृत्वा ) = wore matted hair
सवल्कलः = and bark garments
प्रविवेश = entered
काननम् = forest
सहसैन्यः = along with his army

Desirous of seeing his brother Rama, Bharata, relinquishing the luxury of the kingdom, immediately wore matted hair and bark garments and entered the forest with his retinue.

वैराग्यशतकम् - 17

2010-06-19T05:33:00.002+05:30

एको रागिषु राजते प्रियतमादेहार्धहारी हरो
नीरागेषु जनो विमुक्तललनासङ्गो न यस्मात् परः।
दुर्वारस्मरबाणपन्नगविषव्याविद्धमुग्धो जनः
शेषः कामविडम्बितान्न विषयान् भोक्तुं न मोक्तुं क्षमः॥१७॥

eko rāgiṣu rājate priyatamā-dehārdha-hārī haro
nīrāgeṣu jano vimukta-lalanāsaṅgo na yasmāt paraḥ|
durvāra-smara-bāṇa-pannaga-viṣaya-vyāviddha-mugdho janaḥ
śeṣaḥ kāmaviḍambitānna viṣayān bhoktuṁ na moktuṁ kṣamaḥ||17||

Among the attached, Siva who has given half of his body to his beloved as 'ardhanArI', reigns supreme. Among the dispassionate too he is the foremost, as he does not have any attachment towards women. The rest of mankind struck by Manmatha's arrows are neither able to completely satiate themselves nor able to forsake the pleasures.

Detachment does not necessarily mean forsaking family. Dharma, in the four पुरुषार्थs is to be connected with all other three - artha, kaama and moksha. This would lead us practically to the pursuit of 3 पुरुषार्थs, namely, righteous acquisition of wealth, righteous pursuit of desire and righteous path of liberation. A famous example of one who did not pursue the righteous path of renunciation would be Buddha - he shirked his responsibility towards his family, left them to the care of the royal household to pursue his journey to the truth.

There cannot be any better example than Shiva who enjoys the fame of being the best of sages, while giving half of his body to his beloved Parvati.

शास्त्रं वदति – 22

2010-05-14T19:54:00.000+05:30

Saastram speaks -22

यथा खनन् खनित्रेण नरो वार्यधिगच्छति।
तथा गुरुगतां विद्यां शुश्रूषुरधिगच्छति ॥

A man digs the ground with a spade obtains water, Likewise a student obtains the knowledge which lies hidden in his teacher by doing service to him.

यथा- As , नरो- A man , खनित्रेण- by a spade , खनन् - digs , वार्यधिगच्छति – obtains water . तथा – Like wise , A student , गुरुगतां- in the preceptor , विद्यां- knowledge , शुश्रू षुः – by doing service, अधिगच्छति- gets.

श्लोकोऽयं मह्यं रोचते – 49

2010-05-08T07:28:00.003+05:30

ची

चीयते बालिशस्यापि सत्क्षेत्रपतिता कृषिः।

न शालेः स्तम्बकरिता वप्तुर्गुणमपेक्षते ॥

The above sloka is from the drama ‘mudraa raksasam’ of ‘vishaakhadatta’.

The context here is:- The sUtradhAra or the stage manager enters the stage to begin the drama with the above verse.

In the above verse the author compares himself to a farmer. He says a seed will be sprouted automatically if sown in the correct field. It does not matter whether the farmer is an expert or a novice. The abundant and luxuriant growth of rice does not depend on the quality of the farmer.

Likewise, the author compares himself to an ordinary farmer and the work written by him is compared to the seeds and the stage where the drama was going to be played as the correct field due to the extinguished audience. Hence, the author concludes with complete modesty that in the midst of scholars even a normal drama becomes successful irrespective of the author.

बालिशस्यापि- though an amateur , सत्क्षेत्रपतिता- correct field, कृषिः- seed (the word कृषिः means ploughing but secondarily the word conveys seed, चीयते- grows , शालेः- of the rice, स्तम्बकरिता- abundant growth , न- does not, वप्तुर्गुणमपेक्षते- depends the quality of the sower.

MudrA rAksasam is a political drama and deals with the story of chanakya uprooting the nanda dynasty and coronating chandragupta as the king. Though the poet Vishakadhatta cannot be compared to kAlidAsa or BhAravi but many verses and dialogues are really commendable.

श्लोकोऽयं मह्यं रोचते – 48

2010-05-04T17:27:00.003+05:30

चि
चित्रकूटवनस्थं च कथितस्वर्गतिर्गुरोः ।
लक्ष्म्या निमन्त्रयाञ्चक्रे तमनुच्छिष्टसंपदा ॥

The above verse is from the 12th canto of kAlidasa’s ‘raghuvamsa’.

Bharata after hearing the news of Dasaratha’s death and rama’s exile proceeded towards chitrakuta to bring back rama along with Lakshmana and sita.
Bharata also wanted to give the kingdom back to rama and he wanted rama to enjoy the royalty whose glory had not been enjoyed by another.

गुरोः – father’s (of Dasaratha), कथितः – was informed, स्वर्गतिः- the death ,भरतः – Bharata, चित्रकूटवनस्थं- rama who stays in chitrakuta, तम् (रामम्) - to rama, अनुच्छिष्टसंपदा – kingdom which was not enjoyed by another, लक्ष्म्या- and wealth, निमन्त्रयाञ्चक्रे - invited.

श्लोकोऽयं मह्यं रोचते – 47

2010-05-01T09:09:00.003+05:30

चा
चाम्पेयगौरार्धशरीरकायै
कर्पूरगौरार्धशरीरकाय।
धम्मल्लिकायै च जटाधराय
नमः शिवायै च नमः शिवाय ॥
cämpeya gaurärdha çarérakäyai
karpüra gaurärdha çarérakäya
dhammillakäyai ca jatädharäya
namaççiväyai ca namaççiväya

The above verse is from Adisankara’s ‘ardhanaari stotram’.

In the above verse Adi sankara describes both siva and pArvati who are in the ‘ardha naareeswara’ form. He compares pArvati’s white complexion to the champaka flower. And siva to the colour of the camphor. He further describes pArvati’s braided and ornamented hair decorated by flowers. And Lord siva with his matted hair.

Adisankara prostrates before Lord siva and goddess pArvati.

चाम्पेय- champaka tree,गौर- white, अर्ध – half, शरीरकायै- to the body of pArvati. कर्पूर- white, गौर- white , अर्ध- half, अर्ध – half, शरीरकाय – to the body of siva, धम्मल्लिकायै – to the goddess with the braided and ornamented hair, च – and , जटाधराय- to the Lord with matted hair. नमः – I surrender , शिवायै- to the wife of siva, च- and, नमः- I surrender, शिवाय- to Lord siva.

Ardha naareeshavara stotram is set of eight slokas describing siva and pArvati who are seen together in one form.

श्लोकोऽयं मह्यं रोचते – 46

2010-04-27T22:16:00.003+05:30

च
चक्षुर्विमोहयति चन्द्रविभूषणस्य कामाक्षि तावककटाक्षतमःप्ररोहः ।
प्रत्यङ्मुखं तु नयनं स्तिमितं मुनीनां प्राकाश्यमेव नयतीति परं विचित्रम् ॥

The above is the fifty ninth verse in the kataaksha satakam of mooka pancha sati of mUka kavi.

O! mother kAmakshi, the beauty of your katAksha or eye sight, dims the eye sight of the lord who has the moon on his head and who is enchanted by your grace. Oh Devi! , It is really surprising that the same eye sight of yours removes the ignorance in the form of darkness present in the minds of the rishis and munis and directs them in the path of liberation or moksa.

कामाक्षि- O Devi kAmAkshi, तावक - your, कटाक्ष- eye sight, तमःप्ररोहः- which is black and emits the darkness , विमोहयति – fascinates or dims, चक्षुः – eyesight , चन्द्रविभूषणस्य- Lord siva who has the moon on his head.

स्तिमितं- closed , प्रत्यङ्मुखं मुनीनां-rishis who always think about the inner self and meditate upon the goddess, नयनं तु – the eyes , नयतीति- leads them in the path of , प्राकाश्यमेव – brightness in the form of moksa or liberation , परं विचित्रम् - It is really surprising.

कविः – 8

2010-04-26T15:00:00.001+05:30

माघः – 8
एकदा वृद्धो विद्वान् पृष्ठः - “कान् ग्रन्थान् पठित्वा एतादृशं ज्ञानं प्रप्यते भवता” इति । सोऽपि विद्वान् “मेघे माघे गतं वयः” इति प्रत्यवदत्। अर्थात् कालिदासस्य मेघदूतखण्डकाव्यं तथा माघस्य शिशुपालवधमहाकाव्यं च पठनेन तस्य सम्पूर्णवयः समाप्तम्। तस्य ज्ञानं च तावेव ग्रन्थौ पठित्वा वर्धितम्।
कालिदाससदृशं हि गण्यते माघः पण्डितैः। अस्ति च अपरा उक्तिः माघस्य प्रशस्तिप्रकटने।

उपमा कालिदासस्य भारवेरर्थगौरवम् ।
दण्डिनः पदलालित्यं माघे सन्ति त्रयो गुणाः ।

कालिदासस्य उपमाप्रयोगे कौशलं, भारवेः अर्थगौरवं तथा कवेः दण्डिनः पदलालित्यं च इति एते त्रयः विद्यन्ते माघे इति श्लोकार्थः । ये अपरिमितागणितगुणाः कालिदासभारविदण्डिषु विद्यन्ते ते सर्वे गुणाः एकत्र सन्ति माघे।

कविकुलकमलदिवाकरमहाकविमाघस्य पितुः नाम दत्तकः आसीत्। पितामहस्य नाम सुप्रभदेवः तथा च अयं राज्ञः श्रीवर्मलस्य धर्मसचिवः आसीत् । महाकविमाघस्य जन्म गुजरातप्रदेशस्य ‘श्रीमाल’ इति नगरे अभवत्। महाकविमाघस्य स्वचरितकविवंशवर्णनात् एतत् हि ज्ञायते ।
अनेन कविना प्रणीतं शिशुपालवधं नाम महाकाव्यं महाभारतस्य सभापर्वताधारेण अस्ति। इदं विंशस्सर्गयुक्तं महाकाव्यम् । युधिष्ठिरेण कृते राजसूययज्ञे कस्य प्रथमपूजा कर्तव्या इति चर्चायां, सहदेवेन भगवतः श्रीकृष्णस्यैव प्रथमपूजा इति उच्यते । एतत् तु सर्वैः सभाङ्गनैः अङ्गीक्रियते। परन्तु तत्रत्यः शिशुपालः एतन्नाङ्गीकरोत्। सः शिशुपालः भगवन्तं श्रीकृष्णं निन्दितवान् । सभायामुपस्थिताः सर्वे ताः निन्दाः असहमानाः स्वीयान् अस्त्रान् स्वीकुर्वन्। एतान् सर्वान् दृष्ट्वा अन्ते भगवान् श्रीकृष्णः स्वयं शिशुपालं हन्ति।

Poet – 8
Maagha

SisuipAlavadha, the one among the mahakavyas, was written by the poet maagha. He was born in the city srimaala in Gujarat. He is the son of Dattaka and grandson of Suprabhadeva, who served as the minister in the court of the king sri Varmala. These are the details available on the life and ancestory of maagha.
The mahaakaavyam sisupaalavadha consists of twenty acts and the plot was taken from the ‘sabhaa parvata’ of ‘mahabhaarata’. During the Raajasooya sacrifice, king Yudhishtra and others decided to honour Lord Krishna first. But, Sisupaala disagreed and started abusing lord Krishna. At the end Lord Krishna killed Sisupaala with his weapon chakra. This is the story of the mahaakaavyam.

Here is a famous quote on Maagha -

उपमा कालिदासस्य भारवेरर्थगौरवम् ।
दण्डिनः पदलालित्यं माघे सन्ति त्रयो गुणाः॥

“Kalidasa is famous for his upama or similes, Bhaaravi for the word-meanings, Dandi rules with his usage of words in the poetry and Maagha has all the three virtues!”

श्लोकोऽयं मह्यं रोचते – 45

2010-04-19T08:06:00.002+05:30

घो
घोणोन्नतं मुखमपाङ्गविशालनेत्रं नैतद्धि भाजनमकारणदूषणानाम् ।
नागेषु गोषु तुरगेषु तथा नरेषु नह्याकृतिः सुसदृशं विजहाति वृत्तम् ॥

The above is the sixteenth sloka from the ninth act of sudraka’s mrchchakatikam.

The context here is: Charudatta was wrongly implicated for the murder of Vasantasena.

At this context the judge says the following….

“Faces with huge nose, large eyes stretching till the ears are less likely to commit crimes. Animals which belong to the above category are elephants, cows, buffalos and horses.
The author expresses that the murder of vasantasena cannot be committed by charudatta who ascribes to the above features".
Face reflects one's mind.

घोणोन्नतम्- Huge nose, अपाङ्गविशालनेत्रम् – eyes stretching till the ears, एतत् मुखम् – a face with above said features, अकारणदूषणानाम्- committing sin without a reason, भाजनम् न हि – is not fit to do a mistake, तथा- as, नागेषु- among elephants,गोषु- cows, तुरगेषु- horses and , नरेषु –men, सुसदृशं- according to, आकृतिः – one’s form, वृत्तम्- behaviour, न-do not, विजहाति- leave .

कविः – 7

2010-03-04T15:44:00.001+05:30

भारविः
संस्कृतसाहित्ये महाकविकालिदासस्यानन्तरं महाकवेः भारवेः द्वितीयं स्थानं वर्तते। अयं कविः दाक्षिणात्यब्राह्मणो आसीत्। महाकविदण्डिना रचित अवन्तिसुन्दरिकथानुसारेण अयं कविः दक्षिणस्य अचलपुरग्रामनिवासिनः पण्डितः नारायणस्वामिनः पुत्रः आसीत्। अस्यैव अन्यनाम दामोदरः तथा च अयं चालुक्यवंशस्य राजा विष्णुवर्धनस्य सभायामासीत् इत्यपि श्रूयते। कवेः भारवेः व्यक्तिगतजीवनस्य विषये एतदेव ज्ञायते।
भारविना रचितं किरातार्जुनीयम् महाकाव्येषु एकमस्ति। अष्टादशसर्गयुक्तस्य अस्य काव्यस्य कथावस्तु महाभारतस्य कथाधारेण भवति। अस्य काव्यस्य प्रतिसर्गस्य आरम्भं ‘श्री’ इति पदेन भवति, तथा च प्रतिसर्गस्य अन्तं ‘लक्ष्मी’ पदेन भवति।
अर्जुनः एव अस्य काव्यस्य नायकः भवति। कुरुक्षेत्रयुद्धात् पूर्वं अर्जुनः पाशुपतास्त्रार्थं शिवं ध्यात्वा तपः करोति। तदा भगवान् शिवः किरातरूपेण आगत्य अर्जुनं परीक्ष्य तं पाशुपतास्त्रं ददाति। अयमेव अस्य काव्यस्य सारांशः।
भारवेः शैल्यां शब्दप्रयोगाः कठिनाः परन्तु यदि विभज्य अर्थो ज्ञायते तर्हि अतिसरलः इव दृश्यते। तस्मादेव अस्य कवेः वचः नारिकेलफलसममिव विद्वांसः वदन्ति।

नारिकेलफलसन्निभं वचो भारवेः सपदि यद्विभज्यते।
स्वादयन्तु रसगर्भनिर्भरं सारमस्य यथेप्सितम्॥
Poet – 7
Bhaaravi
see the link below
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bharavi

श्लोकोऽयं मह्यं रोचते – 44

2010-02-23T18:00:00.002+05:30

घृ
घृतक्षीरद्राक्षामधुमधुरिमा कैरपि पदैः
विशिष्यानाख्येयो भवति रसनामात्रविशेषः ।
तथा ते सौन्दर्यं परमशिवदृङ्मात्रविशेषः
कथंकारं ब्रूमः सकलनिगमागोचरगुणे ।।

Tha above sloka is from Adi sankara’s Ananda lahari

Like words cannot describe the pleasant taste of ghee, milk, raisins and honey,Whose sweet taste can only be enjoyed by the tongue,Oh Goddess, how can we the ordinary people describe your beauty?that can be seen only by God Shiva.

घृत- ghee, क्षीर – milk, द्राक्षा- raisins, मधु- honey, मधुरिमा- taste or sweetness,
कैरपि पदैः विशिष्य – by any words, अनाख्येयो भवति – inexplicable, रसना – tongue ,मात्रविशेषः – only knows the taste.
तथा – Likewise, Oh Devi ,सकलनिगमागोचरगुणे- whose qualities can be understood only by the Vedas, ते- your, सौन्दर्यं- beauty, कथंकारं – how do , ब्रूमः – we say,
परमविशिवदृङ्मात्रविशेषः – as the beauty of the goddess can be seen only by the eyes of Lord siva.

If Adisankara himself cannot describe the beauty of goddess, then where are we meaner mortals?
Adi sankara in the beginning verse of ‘soundarya lahari’ says that one should have done some merit even to chant the name the goddess.
प्रणन्तुं स्तोतुं वा कथमकृतपुण्यः प्रभवति ।

शास्त्रं वदति- 21

2010-02-16T16:43:00.002+05:30

Saastram speaks - 21

दिवसेनैव तत् कुर्यात् येन रात्रौ सुखं वसेत् ।
अष्टमासेन तत् कुर्यात् येन वर्षाः सुखं वसेत् ।। 57 विदुरनीतिः

The above sloka is from vidura nIti.

Do that during the day by which you can be happy in the night. Do that during the eight months of the year which may enable you to spend the year happily or the rainy season happily.

दिवसेनैव- during the day, तत् कुर्यात् – to that, येन- by which, रात्रौ – during the night, सुखं- happily, वसेत् – live, अष्टमासेन- in the eight months, तत् कुर्यात्- do that, येन- by which, सुखं- happily, वसेत्- live, वर्षाः- whole year or the rainy season.