Verse 46

Sanskrit text, Unicode transliteration, Word-for-word and English translation of verse 46:

अत्रास्ते शिशुसूर्यसोदरकला चन्द्रस्य सा षोदशी शुद्धा नीरजसूक्ष्मतन्तुशतधाभागैकरूपा परा ।
विद्युत्कोतिसमानकोमलतनूर्विद्योतिताधोमुखी नित्यानन्दपरंपरातिविगलत्-पीयूषधाराधरा ॥ ४६ ॥

atrāste śiśusūryasodarakalā candrasya sā ṣodaśī śuddhā nīrajasūkṣmatantuśatadhābhāgaikarūpā parā |
vidyutkotisamānakomalatanūrvidyotitādhomukhī^[1] nityānandaparaṃparātivigalat-pīyūṣadhārādharā || 46 ||

Here is the excellent (supreme) sixteenth Kalā of the Moon. She is pure, and resembles (in colour) the young Sun. She is as thin as the hundredth part of a fibre in the stalk of a lotus. She is lustrous^[2] and soft like ten million lightning flashes, and is down-turned. From Her, whose source is the Brahman, flows copiously the continuous stream of nectar^[3] (or, She is the receptacle of the stream of excellent nectar which comes from the blissful union of Para and Parā).^[4]

Commentary by Śrī-Kālīcaraṇa:

Verses 41 and 42 speak of the presence of Amā-kalā, Nirvāṇa-kalā, and Para-Bindu, within the triangle in the pericarp of the Sahasrāra. He now desires to describe them by their distinctive attributes, and speaks in this verse of the distinctive features of Amā-kalā.

“Excellent or supreme” (Parā)—She is Cit-Śakti. In the Prabhāsa-khaṇḍa occurs the following passage: “The excellent Māyā who maintains the bodies of all that have bodies.” This is attributive of Amā.

“The sixteenth Kalā of the Moon” (Candrasya ṣodaśī [ṣoḍaśī?]).—By this we are to understand that he is speaking of Amā-kalā.^[5]

“Pure” (Śuddhā)—i.e., stainless.

“She resembles” etc., (Śiśu-sūrya-sodara-kalā).—By this the redness of this Kalā is indicated.

“Thin as the hundredth part of a fibre in the stalk of the lotus” (Nīraja- sūkṣma-tantu-śatadhā-bhāgaika-rūpā).—Thin like a hundredth part of the fibre in the lotus-stalk split length-wise.

“Whose source is the Brahman” (Nityānanda-paraṃpara).—Nityā- nanda=Pūrṇānanda=Brahman.

“Flows” etc., (Ati-vigalat-pīyūṣa-dhārā-dharā).—If the last two compound words be read as one long compound word, as follows, Pūrṇānanda- paraṃparāti-vigalat-pīyūṣa-dhārā-dharā, the meaning, of it will be as given within brackets at the end of the verse. Ānanda will then mean the joy of union, and Paraṃ-Parā will then mean Śiva and Śakti.

Para=Bindu-rūpa, Śiva; Parā=Prakṛti, Śakti. Ānanda is the joy which arises from the union of the two, and from such union flows the nectar of which Amā-kalā is the receptacle.

Footnotes and references:

[1]:

[pūrṇā iti vā]

[2]:

Kālīcaraṇa reads “Vidyotitā,” but Śaṃkara reads “Nityoditā,” “constantly shining”.

[3]:

Alternative reading of Commentator: “Nityānanda-paraṃparātivigalat-pīyūṣa-dhārā-dharā.” Paraṃparā may mean “in a continuous course,” or Paraṃ may mean Śiva and Parā-Śakti. This difference in meaning is due to the different ways in which these words may be read.

[4]:

Parā, according to Śaṃkara, may mean Parā, Paśyantī, Madhyamā, and Vaikharī collectively. Para and Parā are the Bindu-rūpa Śiva and Śakti.

[5]:

Viśvanātha says that this Amā-kalā is Urdhva-śakti-rūpā, or the upward (towards the Brahman) moving Śakti.