Hymn-Sri Dakshinamurthy Stotram-Adi Sankara (M. Venkataraman)

Glimpses from Indian spirituality, mythology and way of life.

This hymn is composed by Adi Sankara, the proponent of the Advaita system of Philosophy. The popularity of this hymn is not merely due to its poetic style but also because it brings about this philosophy briefly and effectively.

Guru occupies a very important place in Hindu way of life. The word Guru cannot be easily translated though roughly it may be said that the word represents a teacher. Dakshinamurthy is a form of Lord Shiva where he is stated to have manifested as a young boy imparting spiritual wisdom to the aged disciples. Another interesting aspect is that he conveyed the Supreme Truth through silence.

The supreme Brahman is the Truth. That is what we call God. It is the only reality.

This Universe is like the reflection of a mirror. It is the projection of Brahman. Prior to its projection, this Universe was present in Brahman in an un-manifested way. This un-manifested form gets manifested in various forms by the will of this Supreme Brahman. The unreal universe appears to be real and multiform through the power of Maya.

In fact, Brahman is the indwelling spirit in every being and is known as Atman. This indwelling spirit is changeless throughout the various states of the human being. Just as the brilliance of the sun exists even when intercepted by planet Rahu during eclipse, this indwelling spirit remains though clouded by Maya.

Just as a person on awakening becomes aware that he was asleep earlier and that whatever dreams which he had were unreal, a person who awakens to the consciousness of the Self recognizes his previous state of ignorance as unreal. The identity of the Brahman and the Atman will be apparent after self-illumination. He who destroys this delusion caused by maya and makes us aware of this indwelling spirit is Dakshinamurthy, who is embodied in the auspicious Guru. The embodiment of Dakshinamurthy in the Guru, by whose grace and grace alone the illumination becomes apparent is saluted in the fourth line of each sloka in the hymn.

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