Line by Line summarized meaning of the sanskrit verses in Shivananda Lahari discourse
Day 26 – August 27 – verse 52 and 53
Verse 52
Chātaka pakshi is the bird which drinks only the rain water as it drops from the sky. For this reason it eagerly awaits the rains. Here the mind is compared to this bird. Bhagavad padacharya says to the Lord that his mind called chātaka pakshi is eagerly awaiting for the rain of nectar; please shower this rain o compassionate Lord.
This is yet another beautiful verse wherein the meaning can be interpreted to mean both Lord Shiva and to the cloud (neela megha). In India clouds are worshipped as treated divine. It is because of these rains that we get water to drink, food to eat.
Karunyāmritha varshinaṃ ghanavipad-greeshmachiddhā-karmaṭham,
Vidha-sasya-phalodayāya sumanah-samsevya-micchā krithim,
Nrithyadbhakta mayūra madrinilayam chanchajjatā mandalaṃ,
Shambho vānchati neelakandhara sadā twām me manas chātakah
Neelakandhara:
1) O Lord who has a blue neck (kandhara means neck)
2)O water filled blue clouds (neelakam dhara)
Kam means water; neela means blue- that cloud which carries rain droplets.
How does this Neelakandhara appear?
Karunyāmritha varshinaṃ –
1) who showers the rain of nectar called compassion
2) Who (blue clouds) out of compassion shower rains
Divine Mother prayed to the Lord to revive Manmatha, who had been reduced to ashes. The Lord permitted her to revive him, but asked her not to give him a form. He should be in her form itself, the Lord said. Mother then with her compassionate looks revived this Lord. Creation began once again.
Ghanavipad greeshmachiddha karmaṭham –
1) O Lord who gives us relief from intense sufferings that can be compared to the unbearable heat during summer;
2) who (clouds) perform the karma of cutting through (cheda) the intense sufferings (Ghana vipad) caused due to extremely hot summers (greeshma)
Vidya sasya phalodayaya –
1) The Lord, due to whose shower of compassion, knowledge sprouts in us and fructifies;
2) The good rains, due to which the prosperous farmers encourage children to study/ acquire knowledge (vidya sasya)
Sumanah samsevyam –
1) That Lord, who is worshipped by the Devatas (sumanah);
2) Who is served by the kind hearted and compassionate (sumanah, good minded)
Farmer who are compassionate serve and worship the rain god. We should be grateful to these farmers, who undergo undue hardships in order to get a good crop. They are always looking at the sky awaiting the arrival of rain bearing clouds.
Iccha krithim –
1) The Lord who takes on any form (ākriti) as He wishes (Iccha);
2) Who can take on any shape (clouds)
Nrithyadbhaktha mayuram –
1) whose devotees dance like peacocks upon His arrival;
2) upon whose arrival, peacocks dance happily (rain bearing clouds)
Devotees mentally dance upon your arrival.
Adrinilayam –
1) who resides in the mountains (adri);
2) who appear as if they are resting upon the mountains (clouds)
In the body, Sahasrara is the Kailasa. When the mind and intellect are cool and composed, the Lord comes there to perform the ananda tandava. This is symbolically explained by stating that He lives in snow (cool places) and in mountains (mentally firm, non wavering).
Chanchajjata mandalam –
1) whose hair (jata, tuft) is wavy;
2) the lightening appears like your flowing jata.
Shambho – O giver of auspiciousness
Vānchathi sadā twām me manaschātakah –
1) the mind called Chataka bird is begging you (vānchati) to come and eternally reside within it;
2) We, the chataka pakshi birds are begging for timely rainfall.
Chataka pakshi drink this rain water directly and survive on it. we should not however drink it directly. This is because Rain water contains some chemicals which our stomach cannot digest. This is also against the shastra. Rain water should fall to the ground, be absorbed by the earth and only after it flows up again, we can drink it. If we catch rain water in jugs, we should boil it and then drink.
O Lord, you are eternally compassionate; you drank poison to save all the beings; can you not shower some of that compassion upon me? Like the chataka pakshi that eagerly awaits the rains, I am eagerly waiting for this shower of compassion from you.
Verse 53
In the previous verse, blue throated Shiva was compared to the dark blue rain bearing clouds. Here the blue throated Shiva is compared to the peacock. Neelakandhara and Neelakanta have same meaning.
Aakaśena shikhī samastha phaninām netrā kalapi natā
Anugraahi pranavopadeśa ninadaih kekeeti yo geeyate,
Syamām shaila samudbhavām ganaruchim drushtwa natantam muda,
Vedantopavane vihāra rasikam tam neelakantham bhaje.
Tam neelakantam bhaje – I pay my obeisance to Neelakanta
Neelakanta refers to Shiva as well peacock. This verse can be understood to mean Shiva as well as the peacock.
Ākaśena shikhī –
1) to whom space itself is His shikha (tuft);
2) in case of peacock it has a small plume (shikha) at the top of its head.
O Lord, You are all pervading – lingam ākasha murtim.
Samasta phaninām netra kalāpi–
1) Who has retained Adishesha (phani) as a decoration on His head;
2) Which has a snake shaped plume on its head
Natā Anugrāhi pranavopadeśa ninadaih –
1) Who graces devotees by initiating them into the Pranava mantra (panchakshari mantra), this is His form of Guru;
2) peacock sounds also resemble Pranava mantra.
kekeeti yogee yate – For this reason He is addressed as Kekī; peacock is known as Keki.
Ka means Brahma; Kekī means ‘who is always merged into Brahma’.
Syailo samudbhavam ganaruchim drushtwa natantham muda –
1) who dances blissfully when He comes across Mother Goddess Shyamala Devi;
2) the peacock dances at the sight of rain bearing clouds (shyama).
I see these commonalities between you and peacock. Shyamala Devi is black in colour – like the dark clouds.
Vedanthopavane vihara rasikam – who is fond of vihara/roaming in the sub- gardens known as Vedanta
About 100 kms from Rishikesh, there is an very special kshetra area known as Neelakanta kshetra. Lord Shiva had meditated in these caves. It is worth a visit. This cave is called Vashishta Guha. It is said that after drinking the poison, the Lord came and took rested there.
If we think of this form of Neelakanta or contemplate upon Him, poisons within us will be destroyed. When making sandal paste, we should think of Lord Neelakanta. Sandal paste has unique properties. Even in Tirupati reciting Shiva nama sandal paste is made.