Verse 9: Devi and Boon of Immortality

கருத்தன எந்தைதன் கண்ணன,வண்ணக் கனகவெற்பின்
பெருத்தன, பால் அழும் பிள்ளைக்கு நல்கின, பேர் அருள்கூர்
திருத்தன பாரமும், ஆரமும், செங்கைச் சிலையும், அம்பும்,
முருத்தன மூரலும், நீயும், அம்மே. வந்து என்முன் நிற்கவே.

karuttaṉa ĕntaitaṉ kaṇṇaṉa,vaṇṇak kaṉakavĕṟpiṉ
pĕruttaṉa, pāl aḻum pil̤l̤aikku nalkiṉa, per arul̤kūr
tiruttaṉa pāramum, āramum, cĕṅkaic cilaiyum, ampum,
muruttaṉa mūralum, nīyum, amme. vantu ĕṉmuṉ niṟkave.

Translation: Śiva, my father has your bosoms ever as his point of focus in His mind and those bosoms are also like his eyes. Your golden mountain-like heavy bosoms have nourished the child who cried for milk. With those gracious bosoms adorned with necklaces, the crimson-hued hands holding the bow and arrow, alongside a gracious smile, you (mother) and Śiva (father) please come before me.

When Bhattar refers to Śiva having His focus set on the bosoms of Devi, it subtly refers to esoteric practices that are supposed to be undertaken by the aspirant. When Śiva did His practices in the Devi Sādhana, He should have been utilising a technique known as Kāmakalā dhyana, which involves the focus on an inverted triangle and manifesting the energy of Devi inside it. More subtle details on what this inverted triangle is and how the meditation should be done etc, should be learnt only from a practicing Guru.

The other interpretation here is that, when Śiva always has His focus on the bosoms of Devi, it refers to the meditation on the heart cakra. Focusing on the heart cakra is sure to bring the manifestation of divine grace, as there is no differentiation between Śiva and Śakti, when Bhattar refers to focusing on the bosoms of Devi, it also refers to Śiva meditating on his heart cakra and in that act, He subtly teaches His disciples on how to meditate. The emphasis on the word “karuttaṉa” elucidates the contemplation of what the bosoms of Devi represent and not the gross form of it.

Similarly, one’s focus on the heart cakra is not meditating on imaginative petals and colours or the bījakṣaras of the heart cakra, instead, it is to meditate on what the heart cakra represents, i.e the seat of Ātmā or Brahman in the body. Śiva meditating here refers to meditating on His own Self, that is none other than Devi, that is the reason that the choice of words “ĕntaitaṉ kaṇṇaṉa” which roughly translates to the apple of one’s eye. This also subtly conveys that the aspirant should always have his eyes on Brahman as his ultimate goal and nothing else should distract him.

In the below verses of Tirumantiram, Tirumular attests that one who meditates on Devi will realize that Her bosoms contain Nectar, and many do not know that. She is inherent in the flame of a lamp, the energy behind the flame, She is also the one who is inside everyone and can be realised if the attention is turned inwards. Thus it is important to understand that wherever the bosoms of the divine mother are mentioned, it is implicit that they represent immortality and wisdom.

1139. ஆறி யிருந்த அமுத பயோதரி
மாறி யிருந்த வழியறி வாரில்லை
தேறி யிருந்துநல் தீபத்து ஒளியுடன்
ஊறி யிருந்தனள் உள்ளுடை யார்க்கே

Translation: Devi is the only source of nourishment to the entire Creation. There are incidents from mythology on how She had appeared and provided food to the devotees, fed milk to children and also to guide devotees out of danger. There is a notable incident in the life of the saivite saint Tirugnana Sambandar. When the saint was three years old and crying due to hunger near the temple pond of Sirkali, Devi appeared there and fed him with Her milk. It is believed from then on, the child Sambandar started composing poems on the divine couple and later came to be known as Tirugnana Sambandar. As the bosoms of Devi represent the wisdom of Brahman or Śiva, the milk represents the grace of Śiva jñāna or Brahma jñāna. Hence the child could start composing poems immediately.

tava stanyaṃ manye dharaṇidharakanye hṛdayataḥ
payaḥ pārāvāraḥ parivahati sārasvatamiva .
dayāvatyā dattaṃ draviḍaśiśu-rāsvādya tava yat
kavīnāṃ prauḍhānā majani kamanīyaḥ kavayitā – Saundarya Lahari # 75

There is also a reference in the above Saundarya lahari verse on Devi feeding milk to a Dravidian child. The verse states that after consuming the milk, which is overflowing like an ocean of milk, I the Dravidian child, became one of the great poets. Similar to the Tirugnana sambandar’s story, there is a legend that is often quoted in the Śaṅkara’s history that when he was hungry and crying for milk, the all-compassionate divine mother breastfed him and after which, he obtained all the knowledge and became prominent among great poets.

There also is a subtle interpretation in terms of the word “Dravida Sisu”, the word Dravida generally represents the southern direction of the country. The southern direction also represents the direction of Yama the god of death and Pitrus – the forefathers. Souls reaching the abode of Yama are sure to transmigrate and be born again in the world according to one’s karmic balance. Hence any soul that is moving towards transmigration can also be called as “Dravida Sisu” as all the souls are Her children. A darvida sisu crying here symbolically represents the pangs of pain due to transmigration and hunger refers to the need for ultimate wisdom to understand the true nature of Self, both of which can only be provided by Para Śakti.

Also, the knowledge of the Self once obtained, should be sustained with repeated affirmations.  The meditation of Devi’s bosoms also refers to the middle portion of Pañcadasi or Mahasoḍaśi. The perpetual connection of mind to mantra alone will lead one to the realization of the divinity of self. The following Śiva sutra and commentary from Śrī Ravi Guruji also mentions that perpetual awareness of divinity is immanent to liberation. Śrī Ravi Guruji has advocated the practice of repeated affirmation to achieve unity with Śiva consciousness. Here is an excerpt from his works on Śiva Sutras.

Śuddha-tattva-sandhānād-vāpaśuśaktiḥ शुद्धतत्त्वसन्धानाद्वापशुशक्तिः (sūtrā 16)

Śuddha – pure; tattva – principle; sandhānāt - perpetual awareness; vā – or; (apaśuśaktiḥ = a + paśu + śaktiḥ) a –devoid of; paśu – individual soul; śaktiḥ - power.

Or by perpetual awareness of the Pure Principle, the individual soul or the aspirant becomes devoid of the power that binds.

When an aspirant repeatedly affirms through sādhana or practice, his consciousness also becomes pure by pushing aside the differentiated perception that binds an individual. This is what a yogi does.

When Bhattar refers to the bosoms of Devi, he implicitly calls in for the perpetual awareness of the self. This can be understood in the following lines of Abirāmi Andhādhi where he welcomes Devi with Her arms holding the sugarcane bow and arrow. The bow represents the mind and arrows the senses, when they are perpetually connected or surrendered to the Divine Mother, it paves the way to the dawn of Śiva’s consciousness. That is the reason Bhattar says to Devi “Neeyum” - which means you also. The wordplay indicates that Devi along with Śiva should come and stand in front of him.  In short, the perpetual awareness of the knowledge that Devi provides through the connection that emanates from Her mantra form. Likewise, the meditation on the heart cakra - Kāmakalā dhyāna, will lead the aspirant towards the realisation of Śakti, who reveals the ultimate wisdom, i.e the Śiva consciousness to the aspirant.

This article is wirtten by Shri Arun who can be contacted at arun.radhakrishnan25@gmail.com