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In the Name of Shiva, the Most Glorious, the Most Obvious, the |
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SHRI SHIVA RAHASYA THE FOURTH LIGHT (Chapter
Four) 4 Wherein the Sages’ Vision of Lord Shiva’s Cosmic Dance and their Ascent to the Higher Worlds are revealed Sage
Vyasa said: 1.
Having heard His Word of Truth, the sages worshipped the Lord with
sacred mantras and chants and their prayers filled the Skies. The Three Worlds stood still and all was
bright as if swathed in a shroud of shimmering mist.
2. A vast expanse of water covered the Earth
and reflected the Sky so that one could tell not which was above and which
below. For, the two were as if one.
3. But after a time the sages perceived a
small light that was as if concealed between the Earth and Sky and shined at
first dark, then bright blue, silver and white.
4. They followed that shining light and
nearing it they found a secret passage whereby they entered the World that
lay beyond.
5. Near the entrance were two great Trees and
far afield a
6. Between the Mountain and the
7. A Voice that came out of that Light made
itself heard and spoke: I Am the Light of all lights. I Am That save Which nothing exists. I Abide in the heart of all creatures and
they together abide in Me.
8. I Am Shiva, the Stillness (Shi) Whereof all
Movement (Va) is born. As Water, Fire
and the Sun at once move and are still, so I, the Great Life both Move and
Stand Still.
9. I Move in the Form of the Radiant Gods and
myriads of living things; I Rest as My Infinite, Only-Existing Self. He who knows this, knows That Which Is
True. I Am the Highest Truth and Yoga
is the Path that leads to Me.
10. Having thus spoken, the Voice fell
silent. Out of the Pillar of Light a
great Ring of Fire came forth and encircled the World. In the midst of that
11. Verily, the Great Lord graciously proceeded
to demonstrate His Supreme Divine Nature by means of a Celestial Dance.
12. With their own eyes, the Yogis beheld the
Master, the greatest Treasure-House of Splendour, the Sovereign Lord,
ecstatically swaying and whirling in the clear Firmament like a Great Wheel
of Flaming Fire.
13. They saw the Lord of all living beings
swaying to the beat of His Infinite Heart.
The Lord Who is known only to those who are Self-possessed knowers of
Yogic Truth.
14. Assuredly, indeed, the Sovereign Lord of
the Universe (Vishva-Natha) Who,
having created the World through His Magic, impels it into action, was seen
enacting His Dramatic Dance of Life by the noble Sages.
15. They saw the Lord of Creatures (Pashu-Pati)
dancing, the Lord the memory of Whose Lotus-like Feet suffices to drive away
all fears born of delusion.
16. Shiva, the Great Yogi (Maha Yogi), was seen
in His Divine Brilliance as only those who have conquered sleep and controlled
their breath, who are calm and full of devotion, can see.
17. In the Firmament, they saw the Great Fiery
One, the Liberator, the Delighted Lord, Who is gracious to His devotees and
instantly liberates them from ignorance.
18. They saw the Lord's thousand heads,
thousand feet, thousand arms and thousand shapes, His matted hair embellished
by the Crescent Moon as diadem.
19. The Lord was wearing a tiger skin, holding
in His mighty hands a blazing trident and a drum, and having the Sun, Moon
and Fire as three eyes.
20. His Divine Brilliance had enveloped the
whole of the Cosmos; shining like ten million Suns, He stood there, terrible
and invincible in His appearance.
21. They saw the Lord, the Creator of the
Universe, dancing His Cosmic Dance while emitting World-Creating and
World-Consuming flames of fire.
22. They had a vision of the Greatest God (Maha
Deva), the true Embodiment of the Supreme Eternal Mystery, the Deity of
Celestial Beings, Master of all Souls, the Supreme Ruler (Parameshvara), the
imperishable Bliss and Light.
23. They saw the Wielder of the Bow of Heaven,
the Large-Eyed Lord, the Antidote to the Sorrows of Worldly Existence, the
Soul of Time, the God of Gods, the Slayer of Limited Time.
24. They saw the Lord of Goddess Amma, the
Great Deity Whose large eyes radiate Yogic Bliss, Who is the Abode of
Knowledge and Detachment, the Eternal Lord of the Yogic Wisdom Path.
25. The Sages who were well-versed in the Holy
Scriptures, saw the Lord of eternal Prosperity and Glory; the Lord Who is
difficult to approach yet is the support of Spiritual life; Who is honoured
by the Gods and worshipped by innumerable great Sages; Who lives in the heart
of Yogis capable of instantly becoming One with God; Who envelops Himself in
Yogic Magic and then illumines the path of Seekers after Truth; Who is the
source and origin of the Universe; Who is the Highest God and ever free from
all sorrows.
26. The Firmament Itself was split asunder as
if a Great Veil had been removed from the Sky and they could look deep into
the heart of the All. And they saw the
All dancing to the beat of the Heart of the Lord. The All was dancing the Dance of Life at
the Sheer Pleasure of the Lord, the Great Life.
27. Having seen that Lordly Form in which the
identity of God's Transcendental and Immanent aspects became evident, the
Sages who were teachers of Spiritual Knowledge felt that they had attained to
the highest goal in their life.
28. Thus the congregation of great Sages, beholding
the Fiery God of Consciousness and Master of the Universe, meditated upon Him
Who was enshrined in their hearts.
29. They bowed down again and again, with
folded hands. Uttering the sacred
Sound OM, they saw the Lord abiding in the cave of their hearts and with
minds overflowing with joy they praised Him with the most beautiful songs.
30. We bow down to You, Who Alone are the
Highest Ruler, the Original Soul (Adi-Atman), the Lord of Life, the Fiery One
of infinite Yogic Power, You Who live in all hearts, Who are All-Wise, Holy
and One with the Supreme. (Holy, i.e.,
whole, complete, perfect.)
31. Having meditated in their heart on You, the
Perfectly Immovable Wise One Who are Greater than the greatest, the Sages of
tranquil mind and perfect self-control perceive You, the Pure, Sun-like God
Who Created the World.
32. The Universal Energy, the Mother of the
Universe, is born of You; though small like an atom, You pervade and
experience everything. Smaller than
the smallest atom, Greater than the greatest being, the wise ones declare
that You Alone are All. Indeed, You
Alone Exist!
33. Creation, Maintenance, Dissolution,
Obscuration and Liberation: These are Your Five Powers Divine whereby You bring
the Universe into being out of Yourself and cause it to revolve like a Mighty
Wheel of Flames. Unity is the Power
whereby You hold the All together like the rim upon a wheel. You Yourself are the All-Supporting Hub in
the midst of all.
34. Of You are the Scriptures born and in You
they have their ultimate support. You
are the Cause of all: You, Who are in our hearts, are the Director of the
Cosmic Drama. Everything moves
according to Your Supreme Command, You Who are the Original Soul and Innermost
Self of all.
35. You are the Master of the Cosmic Magic and
the Only Lord of all the Worlds. We
bow down to You and seek refuge in You Who are the very Soul of Yoga, of
Universal Unity, You Who Dance the Divine Dance.
36. Perceiving You Who Dance in the midst of
the Highest Heaven, we eternally remember your Glory. Ever relishing the Unique Bliss of Supreme
Reality, You Who live in the Soul of all, permeate all corners of the
Universe. Everything revolves round
You, yet though everything else moves, You are Ever-Still.
37. The sacred Sound OM, the Seed of
Liberation, is Your resonant symbol.
Imperishable though You are, You lie concealed in the Primordial
Nature. Such as You are, the wise ones
here declare that You Alone, the Self-Luminous One of Divine Powers are
Truth.
38. The Holy Scriptures perpetually sing Your
praises. The Sages whose sins have
been extinguished, bow down before You.
Ascetics immersed in the Supreme, with tranquil Souls, full of Truth,
merge into You, the Most Excellent One.
39. You, Who are beginningless and Whose Form
is the Universe, destroy the Earth at the end of Time. You also are the Highest Creator and Most
Excellent Preserver. Those who enter
You, the Self-Luminous One, who have attained stability and are for ever
free, experience the bliss of their Inner Self.
40. Although You are the All-Consuming Fiery
God of Consciousness, You create and protect the entire Universe with all its
forms. All these visible Worlds turn
to You as their Ultimate Goal and Abode.
Right Knowledge sets a man's mind right even as the arrow-maker makes
the arrow straight. But of all
Knowledge that of Supreme Shiva is best.
We therefore make obeisance to and seek refuge in none other but You.
41. Verily, Spiritual Knowledge is like to the
Tree of Heaven: It has many branches, it is infinite, and it is One: It
reveals You Alone Who are of Single Form.
By means of Your Supreme Knowledge Divine those saintly ones who take
refuge in You and who are eternally worthy of praise, cross the
42. They call You the Only Wise One, the
Supreme Saviour praised by the Scriptures, God, Fire and Lord; they call You
the Eternal Fiery One, the Divine Breeze that stirs the Sky of Consciousness
into Creating, the Fashioner of all created things, the life-bestowing Sun
God Of Many Forms.
43. You are the Supreme Ever-Existing One That
ought to be known in their heart by all.
You are the Ultimate Receptacle of this Universe. You are the Changeless One Who Protects the
Eternal Law of Life. You are the Most
Excellent Being, the Infinitely Good One.
44. You Alone are the All-Pervading God of
Preservation, the Four-Faced Deity of Creation and the Divine Fire of
Annihilation. In truth, You are the
Master of everything that is. As
Primordial Nature, You are the Material Basis of all. You again, as Supreme Master, are the Lord
of All.
45. The wise ones declare that You are the
Original Soul, the One Without A Second, shining like the Midnight Sun beyond
the mists of ignorance. They call You,
Consciousness Itself, the Unmanifest, of Limitless Form, the Void, the
Firmament, the Supreme beyond the Material World and its attributes.
46. Your Form is inconceivable. It is beyond the reach of thought and
speech. Within It, all these Worlds
appear as in a Great Dream. Yet, O
wonder! It abides ever unchanging, stainless and unique. You Alone shine within Yourself as all
things.
47. Seeking shelter with You, we make obeisance
to You, the Merciful Lord of Yoga, the Greatest One, the All-Powerful, Origin
and Goal of all, Ancient One Incarnated as the Creator God. O Mighty One! Lord of all Creatures! be
gracious unto us.
48. Enchanted by the Ever-Revolving Wheel of
Existence, all beings are bedazzled and perplexed. Yet the memory of Your Lotus-like Feet
burns up the seed of worldly life and renders it powerless like parched
grain. You are the Cause of the Great
Fever of Existence and its Only Antidote.
This being so, with controlled body and concentrated mind, we meditate
upon You, the Highest and Only Lord, the Boundless Ocean of Effulgent
Bliss. Verily, equal to Yourself are
the wise ones who know the Secret of Your Mighty Wheel!
49. Obeisance to the Great Source, Who
originated the Three Worlds; to the God of Time, to You, Who Destroy
Ignorance with Your Arrows of Light.
Obeisance to You, the Fiery One with matted hair. Obeisance to Shiva, the Great Lord!
50. This having been said, the Bull-Bannered Lord
with matted locks joyfully withdrew His Cosmic Form into Himself and resumed
His former appearance, seated peacefully upon the summit of the Mountain at
the root of the Tree of Life.
51. On seeing the Origin of All, the Lord of
everything past, present and future, present before them as if nothing had
occurred, the Sages were filled with wonder and bowed down before Him. Then, raising their brows that bore the
mark of salutation, they uttered these words.
52. O Eternal Lord! O Master of Past, Present and Future! O God Whose emblem is the Mighty Bull! the
Vision of Your Divine Person fills us with infinite joy.
53. Through the power of Your Grace, there is
born in our heart an unswerving devotion to You, the Supreme Master, the
Stainless One.
54. O Lord of Peace! we have bathed in the
Nectar of Your Sacred Words and have fed upon the Light of Your Vision
Sublime. Our eyes have become open. Our hearts have been lifted up. Our bodies have been rendered free from sin
and perfect. Our Souls are mighty and
wise. Yet we crave to know more.
55. O Enlightener of the unenlightened! do
grant us the delight of learning about Your Supreme Glory Divine, O Highest
One!
56. Hearing their words the Lord, Who Bestows
all kinds of wondrous powers upon Yogis who are adepts of Unity with Him,
gazed with great compassion upon them and rising from His royal seat, led
them deep into the Mountain through a cleft that lay hidden in the wall of
rock.
57. Going by a secret path, they came to a Great
Vault that arched overhead like the Sky wherein they were befittingly
received and saluted by the Assembly of Holy Immortals and the Lord Himself
showed them the Wonders of the Higher Worlds.
58. First He showed them the World of the Planets,
the Earth, Moon, Sun and countless myriads of Stars, where mortal men live
their daily lives. Next they were
taken by the Lord up to the Astral World where disembodied Souls go in their
dreams; whereto they go when this life comes to an end; and where they abide
before they are reborn on Earth. In
that World also there lived the First Woman and Man before they descended
into the earthly World and there too the Souls meet their departed
forefathers. It is therefore also
known as the Ancestors' World (Pitar Loka) to the wise.
59. Thence the Sages proceeded to the World of
Sleep (Nidra Loka) which is the Dark Void whereto Souls go when in their
deepest rest; where they abide before descending to the Lower Worlds (Astral-
and Earth-World); and through which they pass when by the Grace of Shiva
(Shiva Prasada) they go up to the Higher Worlds. Having thus left behind the World of
Sleeping Souls, they ascended to the Threefold World of Power where the
Awakened Ones by the Command of Shiva work many a righteous deed: Souls who
have attained the Plane of Pure Vision, work by the Divine Power of Action;
those who have attained the Plane of Higher Vision work by the Divine Power
of Knowledge; and those who have attained the Plane of Perfect Vision work by
the Divine Power of Will. Thus they
all carry out Shiva's Will, each according to his Spiritual Attainment.
60. Last, the Sages entered the Highest World
of all: the Infinite, Ever-Existing World of Supreme Intelligence and Bliss
which is the True Abode of Shiva, wherein Souls ever abide in Eternal Unity
with Him. Having graciously granted
them a Vision of the Seven Worlds, the Lord made the Sign of Ultimate Reality
and spoke: O you who are endowed with Wisdom! all the Worlds and their great
wonders you have just beheld have their existence within Me. They arise, endure and subside like unto
waves within Me, the Great Only-Existing Ocean of Life. They who know this, know the Highest Truth. Commentary to Chapter Four
10. In the midst of that 33. Creation, Maintenance,
Dissolution, Obscuration and Liberation: These are Your Five Powers Divine
whereby You bring the Universe into being out of Yourself and cause it to
revolve like a Mighty Wheel of Flames: The Shiva Purana explains:
"This Wheel of the Universe is glorified in the Scriptures as a
Five-Spoked Wheel. It consists of the
Five Divine Acts, Creation and the rest which flow from Shiva's Own
Power. It is called a Wheel because it
incessantly revolves with each Dissolution and Re-Creation like a whirling
Firebrand" (Kailasa Samhita
42. They call You the Only Wise One, the Supreme Saviour praised by the
Scriptures: Lord Shiva is called Saviour (Taraka) in the Mahabharata and
other Scriptures because as the Supreme Eternal Being Who is Ever Changeless,
He saves all beings by graciously bringing them over the turbulent waters of
worldly existence into His Divine Presence Which is like an Infinite Island
of Peace. For this reason He is also
referred to as Maker of Fords for crossing over (Tirthankara), Lord of Fords
(Tirthadeva), Bestower of Fords (Tirthada), etc.
45. Shining like the Midnight Sun beyond the mists of ignorance: The
Midnight Sun is the Sun as he is visible at
48. Verily, equal to Yourself are the wise ones who know the Secret of
Your Mighty Wheel: Wheel or Circle (Chakra) stands for the Pulsing
Activity of the Supreme Lord and its five phases which succeed one another
like the spokes of a wheel. This
cyclic movement begins with the Act of Obscuration or Veiling (Vilaya)
whereby Shiva conceals His Divine Nature from that which is to constitute
Creation. This stage corresponds to
that of Emptiness (Shunyata) immediately preceding Creation as described in
Commentary to 2:72 (a). Second comes
Shiva's Manifestation or Emission (Sarshti) of the Universe out of
Himself. Third, the stage of
Maintenance, Preservation or Duration (Sthiti) of the Created Universe. Fourth, Shiva's Dissolution or Absorption
(Samhara) of Creation into Himself.
And fifth, Grace (Prasada) or the Act of Liberation (Anugraha) whereby
the Souls are awakened to Shiva's World of Light and re-united with
Himself. Together, they constitute
Shiva's Fivefold Act (Pancha-Kartya) whereby He continuously creates and dissolves
the World. The Secret of this Wheel of
Divine Activity consists not only in the mere intellectual understanding of
its fundamentals but in the actual realisation of these five phases as they
take place in every experience or activity of one's own consciousness. Every thought, feeling and sense perception
arises from the Tranquil Sea of Consciousness, is held before oneself for a
while and then returns to its original source. Becoming engrossed in any of these and
forgetting one's Self as the Source of all is the act of obscuration. Remembering the Self is liberation. Thus the Five Acts are constantly performed
by all.
52. O God Whose emblem is the Mighty Bull: The Bull has been a symbol
of Divine Power from earliest prehistoric times and was seen as such by most
religious traditions of the Ancient World.
In Ancient Egypt,
56. Hearing their words the Lord… led them deep into the Mountain through
a cleft that lay hidden in the wall of rock: Going into a mountain and,
in particular, entering a cave situated near the summit of a mountain
symbolises entrance into a higher state of consciousness or higher dimension
of reality.
58. He showed them the World of the Planets, etc.: The Seven Worlds
correspond to the seven levels of experience which are mastered through inner
knowledge of the Seven Energy Centres or Chakras in the human body. End of Chapter 4 and Commentary |