seeing shiva everywhere...

आत्मा त्वं गिरिजा मतिः प्राणाः शरीरं गृहम्।

पूजा ते विषयोपभोगरचना निद्रा समाधिस्थितिः॥

सञ्चारः पदयोः प्रदक्षिणविधिः स्तोत्राणि सर्वा गिरो।

यद्यत्कर्म करोमि तत्तदखिलं शम्भो तवाराधनम्॥ ४

शङ्कराचार्यविरचिते शिवमानसपूजायाम्॥

ātmā tvaṁ girijā matiḥ prāṇāḥ śarīraṁ gṛham|

pūjā te viṣayopabhogaracanā nidrā samādhisthitiḥ||

sañcāraḥ padayoḥ pradakṣiṇavidhiḥ stotrāṇi sarvā giro|

yadyatkarma karomi tattadakhilaṁ śambho tavārādhanam|| 4

śaṅkarācāryaviracite śivamānasapūjāyām||

Oh my Lord Shiva, Shankara, Shambho 

You are my soul

Your consort, the daughther of Himavan, that mother Girija is my own intellect

The pranas or the breaths of life that are circulating in me are your attendents and retinue.

My body is your temple and abode

Whatever I pursue in this life in fulfilment of my human desires is just the ceremonial pooja for you

My state of sleep is the trance I undergo in meditation about you.

Whenver I am walking around on my feet, I am doing pradakshinam or circumambulation around you

All the words uttered by me ever are praises for you

In that way, may it happen that whatever action I perform be treated as my continuous worship at your feet 

(This is the total Surrender to Shiva..)

From Shankaras Shivamaanasa pooja

ആത്മാ ത്വം ഗിരിജാ മതിഃ പ്രാണാഃ ശരീരം ഗൃഹം।

പൂജാ തേ വിഷയോപഭോഗരചനാ നിദ്രാ സമാധിസ്ഥിതിഃ॥

സഞ്ചാരഃ പദയോഃ പ്രദക്ഷിണവിധിഃ സ്തോത്രാണി സര്‍വ്വാ ഗിരോ।

യദ്യത്കര്‍മ്മ കരോമി തത്തദഖിലം ശംഭോ തവാരാധനം॥ ൪

ശങ്ക രാചാര്യവിരചിതേ ശിവമാനസപൂജായാം

എന്‍റെ ഉടയോനായ ഭഗവാനെ ശിവ, ശങ്കര ശംഭോ

അവിടുന്നു എന്‍റെ ആത്മാവാണ്

അവിടുത്തെ ദേവി, ഹിമവാന്‍റെ പുത്രി, ആ ഗിരിജയെന്ന എന്‍റെ അമ്മയാണ് എന്‍റെ ബുദ്ധി

എന്‍റെ ശരീരത്തില്‍ നിലകൊള്ളുന്ന ജീവന്‍ അവിടുത്തെ സേവകഗണങ്ങള്‍ ആണ് 

എന്‍റെ ഈ ശരീരം അവിടുത്തെ ആലയമാണ് 

ഞാന്‍ ഉറങ്ങുന്നത തന്നെയാണ് അവിടുത്തെ ധ്യാനവും അതില്‍ നിന്നുടലെടുക്കുന്ന സമാധിയും 

ഞാന്‍ ഈ ലോകത്തില്‍ ജീവിതം കഴിച്ചുകൂട്ടുവാനായും എന്‍റെ സ്വന്തം ആഗ്രഹങ്ങള്‍ പൂര്‍ത്തീകരിക്കുവാനായും എന്തെല്ലാം ചെയ്യുന്നുവോ അതെല്ലാം അവിടുത്തെക്കുള്ള പൂജയും ആരാധനയും ആണ് 

ഞാന്‍ എന്‍റെ കാലുകല്‍ നീട്ടി എവിടെയെല്ലാം നടന്നാലും അതെല്ലാം അവിടുത്തേക്ക്‌ ചുറ്റും ഞാന്‍ സമര്‍പ്പിക്കുന്ന പ്രദക്ഷിണം ആണ്.

എന്‍റെ നാവില്‍ നിന്ന് വീഴുന്ന എല്ലാ വാക്കുകളും അവിടുത്തെക്കുറിച്ചുള്ള സ്തോത്രങ്ങള്‍ ആണ് 

അപ്രകാരം ഞാന്‍ ഈ ഭൂമിയില്‍ എന്തെല്ലാം കാര്യങ്ങള്‍ ചെയ്യുന്നുവോ അതെല്ലാം ശ്രീ ശങ്കരനായ അവിടുത്തെ തൃപ്പാദങ്ങളില്‍ സമര്‍പ്പിക്കുന്ന പൂജ ആയിത്തീരട്ടെ. 

ഇതാണ് ഭഗവാന്‍ ശിവങ്കല്‍ ആത്മസമര്‍പ്പണം 

ശങ്കരന്‍റെ ശിവമാനസപൂജയില്‍ നിന്ന്

musings 128

Happened to read a post on family reunions and get togethers happening through social media contacts.

But I feel the issue is deeper

My comments..

Nice.. But a mild rejoinder...these are just external manifestations of mutual warmth..

And often we tend to feel such warmth for short times .

.I would call it short range goodwill..based on some messages or an emotional conversation.

But such warmth must be nurtured and kept vibrant for ever.

It is not difficult.

In fact everyone would respond with equal warmth.

Usually the first step is all that is necessary.

Someone should initiate that

However I am aware that in Hindu culture there is a compulsory dictum that relatives of certain levels should all assemble together if some family or social functions are to be conducted..each person having a role to play. The relationship is the test And not personal equation or familiarity or fondness.

And if something unfortunate happens to anyone among such kin all celebrations should stop for all others too.

And in this matter the present closeness in terms of relationship is not a criterion at all.

Even if a brother of his offspring is not in talking terms with me for years, still I cannot have a happy function at home if that estranged brother or kin has faced some fatal disaster.

Blood is always blood.

musings 127

Just a very funny thought..

My faith, my religion, all originated and grew under the feet of a small Pullayar (Ganaptahy)stationed just at the western end of our street..

In 1959 as a boy of six years or so, I landed up in the agraharam, and at that time my grand uncle..who was partially blind was the priest cum servant of the temple.. and the lord has for his castle a very plain temple and did have the luxurious lighting of a single oil wick lamp for a few minutes for the whole day

and some cooked rice as naivedyam once a day.. brought by the priest himself..

I would accompany the priest every day.. for two reasons..

First, out of affection for the old mama..

Second, if someone visited the temple with two plantains, the priest would have the right to keep with him one of them after offering the naivedyam , and I would get that fruit..

Devotion, bhakthi or whatever you call it was not in my mind, and I did not understand what it was..

Then in May 69 I was initiated into upanayanm, and then I started performing ritualistic poojas too for that pullayar.. especially because my uncle would often officiate as bhoktha in Shraddhams and on such days he was prohibited from entering he sanctum..

(His princely monthly salary at that time was five rupees,, and he had to provide food and oil for lamp for the temple from out of that salary)

My love affair with the Lord started in that innocent and unobtrusive fashion.. and perhaps my first offer to Him was with broomsticks when I cleaned the precincts of the temple

But whether I like it or not the affair took very deep roots..

From a useless urchin, I became a student, a graduate, a post graduate and so many things..

The assistance of Pillayar by way of eatable prasadms and His Divine grace was the mainstay in my life..

Now that Pillayar has grown in stature,

His temple looks very nice.. many devotees throng to his presence..

And He is invariably bountiful to anyone..

Yes, He is gracious even to a casual passer by who would have just stopped to pick some pieces of broken coconut pieces lying before His temple..

Often, I get angry with this glutton of a god..

If there is a frustration of any sort, the first one I would approach with bad words is this manifest God and Friend of mine who also appears as a stone..

Many times, I have promised before Him that I would not interfere in His affairs.. and He need not do that in mine too..

But either of us has not succeeded in that.

The love-hate relation is as strong now almost half a century earlier.

In fact, I rarely offer any material things to this Pullayar..

Rather I find happiness in exploiting Him by taking away eatables, like piece of coconuts, payasam etc free of cost..from His temple.

The mindset of an old priest never changes.. and pilfering from the Deity's place is the birthright of such persons..

But I am not afraid of Him..

If He wanted to punish me, He has so many more valid reasons for that..

If He loves me,He has no compelling reason for that..

I am arrogant, vain, avaricious and bad mouthed..

But I know He loves me..

It is His greatness..

My only prayer to Him..

Pullayarey. Oh my lord let us be friends as long as I live..

You are Immortal and perhaps I am immoral..

musings 126

There are only two ways of existence..

maybe we can simply shut off our minds,, be it through yoga or with the help of drugs, dope or hooch..

Or we can live normally..

the normal life exposes us to the pleasing things outside and the not so pleasing things too.

And we are programmed normally by our Maker to respond to such situations genuinely.. laugh where you feel like laughing and cry where you feel like crying..

It is not of great benefit if we suppress any of our emotions..

I do not say we should succumb to macabre temptations..

I do not say we should kill, injure, loot, shout at others and be unfair..

We have to be normal and natural where we can be like that.. without much stress..

If we see Shastras of Hinduism, or for that matter any literature and tenets of any religion, we will find that the society, and the religion provides for enjoyment and also for grieving or mourning..

Even the heros and Gods made it merry when everything pointed to happiness and plenty.

And every hero cried and openlly acknowledges mental agony when there was reason to do so

In Valmiki Ramayanam, the grief of Rama when he comes to know of the departure of Dasaratha, His grief on loss of Sita.. all are described very genuinely..

Kalidasa immortalized the grief of Rati.. the wife of Kamadeva.. after her lovely husband perished to the fire of the third eye of Shankara.. Rativilaapam.. in Kumarasambhavam is a classic..

We see such situations in Kadambhari of Bhana Batta..

The western literatue also abounds in such situations..

And when Sita was reported as safe in Lanka by Hanuman, the monkeys in his company celebrated the happiness by drinking and evan causing damage to the Madhuvanam protected with ambitiously and with great care by their king Sugriva,,

Even now the reading of Madhuvana Bhangam appearing in the Sundarakandam of Valmikirmayanam is considered a very pious act which would bring great happiness to all..

The best way seems to be to live without masks.. Of course civilization often puts fetters on that spontaneity..

But let us wear umbrella only when it rains..

and once in a while we can afford even to dance in a street when the heavens are pouring cats and dogs..