Shat-cakra-nirupana (the six bodily centres)

by Arthur Avalon | 1919 | 46,735 words | ISBN-10: 8178223783 | ISBN-13: 9788178223780

This is the English translation of the Shat-cakra-nirupana, or “description of the six centres”, representing an ancient book on yoga written in the 16th century by Purnananda from Bengal. This book investigates the six bodily centres famously known as Chakras. The text however actually forms the sixth chapter of the Shri-tattva-cintamani, compiled...

Verse 3

Sanskrit text, Unicode transliteration, Word-for-word and English translation of verse 3:

विद्यन्माला-विलासा मुनिमनसिलसत्-तन्तु-रूपा सुसूक्ष्मा
  शुद्धज्ञनप्रबोधा सकल-सुख-मयी शुद्ध-बोध-स्वभावा ३
ब्रह्म-द्वारं तदास्ये प्रविलसति सुधाधारगम्य-प्रदेशं
  ग्रन्थि-स्थानं तदेतत् वदनमिति सुषुंनाख्य-नद्या लपन्ति ॥ ३ ॥

vidyanmālā-vilāsā munimanasilasat-tantu-rūpā susūkṣmā
  śuddhajñanaprabodhā sakala-sukha-mayī śuddha-bodha-svabhāvā
|
brahma-dvāraṃ tadāsye pravilasati sudhādhāragamya-pradeśaṃ
  granthi-sthānaṃ tadetat vadanamiti suṣuṃnākhya-nadyā lapanti
|| 2 ||

She[1] is beautiful like a chain of lightning and fine like a (lotus) fibre, and shines in the minds of the sages. She is extremely subtle; the awakener of pure knowledge; the embodiment of all Bliss, whose true nature is pure Consciousness.[2] The Brahma-dvāra[3] shines in her mouth. This place in the entrance to the region sprinkled by ambrosia, and is called the Knot, as also the mouth of Susuriinā.

Commentary by Śrī-Kālīcaraṇa:

By this Śloka she is further described:

Fine like a (lotus') fibre and shines” (Lasat-tantu-rūpā)—She is luminous, albeit fine like the fibre in the lotus-stalk; she shines because of the presence of Kuṇḍalinī.

Embodiment of all bliss” (Sakala-sukha-mayī).—Sukha is here used as the equivalent of Ānanda, which means Spiritual Bliss. She is the source of all Bliss.[4]

Whose true nature is pure consciousness” (Śuddha-bodha-svabhāvā).—Śuddha-bodha is Tattva-Jñāna, She whose Nature[5] is pure Consciousness.

Brahma-dvāraṃ[6] is the entrance and exit of Kuṇḍalinī in her passage to and from Śiva.

Her mouth” (Tadāsye)—the mouth of Brahma-nāḍī, the orifice in the mouth of Hara.

This place” (Tadetat)—i.e., the place near the entrance.

The entrance to the region sprinkled by ambrosia” (Sudhā-dhāra-gamya- pradeśaṃ).—The region which is sprinkled by the ambrosia (Sudhā) which flows from the union[7] of Parama-Śiva and Śakti, and which is attained by the help of Śiva and Śakti dwelling ṃ the Mūlādhāra.

Knot” (Granthi-sthānaṃ).—The place of the union of Suṣuṃnā and Kanda.[8]

Is called”—that is, by those versed in the Āgamas.

Footnotes and references:

[1]:

That is, Citriṇī, the interior of which is called the Brahma-nāḍī.

[2]:

Śuddha-bodha-svabhāvā.

[3]:

See Commentary.

[4]:

Because, according to Viśvanātha, She drops nectar, and therefore contains all kinds of bliss. Śaṃkara says it is also capable of the interpretation “It is blissful to all”.

[5]:

Sva-bhāvā is interpreted by Kālīcaraṇa to mean one’s nature. Śaṃkara interprets the word to mean the Jñāna which is the Paramātmā, or, in other words, divine or spiritual Jñāna. According Śaṃkara, the reading is Śuddha-bhāva-svabhāvā.

[6]:

Door of Brahman.

[7]:

Sāmarasya, a term which is ordinarily applied to sexual union (Strīpuṃ-yogāt yat saukyaṃ tat sāmarasyaṃ)—here and elsewhere, of course, used symbolically.

[8]:

The root of all the Nāḍīs; see v. I, ante.

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