Sri Rudram Commentary.doc

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Foreword

Some twenty years back (January 1991) , I ga e a ser!es o" #ectures on Sr! Rudram at t$e %!ndu &em' e at ueens , *+ A 'art!c!'ant !n t$ose sess!ons assemb ed a t$ose ecturemater!a s and 'ersuaded me to re ease t$em as a "u monogra'$ on t$e -eda Mantrams o"

Sr! Rudram I 're'ared a $and wr!tten manuscr!'t and a most "orgot about !t t$erea"ter Few mont$sback , anot$er "r!end asked a "ew .uest!ons about t$e -eda /$Agam as'ects o" Sr! Rudramand I remembered t$e co'!ous ecture notes "rom two decades ago I t$oug$t t$ose notes on

SrI Rudram m!g$t be use"u to t$e students o" -eda mantrams and t$e Ast!kaa commun!ty Iam re eas!ng t$ose notes now as a Monogra'$ I $a e been once aga!n 'ersuaded to re ease

t$!s study on Sr! Rudram as a se "0stand!ng book "or t$e bene"!t o" -a!d$!kAs %ere !t !s&wenty years ater (December 211) 3

Dur!ng February 222 , I $ad t$e great good "ortune o" 'er"orm!ng 4ra'att!5Sara*Agat$! att$e sacred "eet o" Sr! #aks$m! *aras!m$an as gu!ded by %% Sr!mat$ A6$ag!ya S!ngar ,

t$e re!gn!ng 4eetAd$!'at$! o" Sr! A$ob! a Ma&$am I cons!der t$!s /$Agyam o" 'er"orm!ng 4ra'att! at t$e sacred "eet o" Sr! #aks$m! *aras!m$an as t$e ery best t$!ng t$at cou d

$a''en to me !n t$!s wor d Sr! #aks$m! *aras!m$an !s t$e ArAd$ya de ata! o" Sr! Rudran ,w$o 'er"ormed Sara*Agat! t$roug$ %!s own Mantra Raa7a 4ad$a st8tram and Sr! Rudram

!s t$e +a7ur -eda /$Agam t$at 'ra!ses t$e -a!b$a am o" t$at Sar a7n an , SrI Rudran

Sri Rudram is the holiest of all prayers dedicated to Lord Siva. It is found in the middle of YajurVedam and provides the home for the Sacred Manthram known as Panchakshari used y theworshippers of Lord Siva !SrI Rudran" .

Sri Rudram has een descri ed y some of the Vedic scholars as #Yajusham Saaram$% or theessence of the entire Yajur Vedam. It has &'( Manthrams$ or)ani*ed in eleven +nuvakaas orchapters. Sri Rudram is also known Rudr,panishad and Sata Rudreeyam. -he latter name isassociated with the fact that the pasana Moorthy of Sri Rudram is praised in all the &/&

ranches ! Sakas " of Yajur Vedam as inferred from the comment of Sri 0hatta 0haskara$ acele rated commentator ! /$as$yakarar " of Sri Rudram.

0esides Sri 0hatta 0haskara$ Sri Sayana$ Sri + hinava Sankara and$ most recently$ 0rahma SriMutthu 1rishna Sastri)al have written commentaries on Sri Rudram. 0rahma Sri Sastri)al2scommentary is in -amil and was pu lished appro3imately 4ifty5five years a)o as a %!t$a

/$as$!n! release from -anjavoor. Sri Sayana2s commentary$ on the other hand$ dates ack to the

era of the Vijaya 6a)ara empire. -he + hinava Sankara2s 0hasyam includes the listin) ofappropriate R!s$!s !Sa)es"$ :$andas !Meters" and De at$aas !7odheads" for each of the &'(Manthras as re8uired for the individual Veda Mantrams . -he present commentary in 9n)lish is

ased on the a ove ori)inal sources in )eneral and on 0rahma Sri Mutthu 1rish6a Sastri)al2scommentaries in particular.

-he purpose of addin) yet another commentary on Sri Rudram is to address the needs ofoverseas Residents of Indian ori)in$ who worship Lord Siva at the many :indu -emples and in

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their own homes across the landscape of the many continents. It is sincerely hoped that this pu lication would serve the )oals of )ainin) a fuller appreciation y them of the majesty and eauty of Sri Rudram as a Veda 0h+)am .

+s a Sri Vaish6avan and a Prapannan totally committed to 1aayika $ Vaachika and Maanasa1aimkaryams to Sriman 6aar+ya6an $ I have een moved y the Prapatti made y Sri Rudran

to :is Supreme Master $ Sriman 6ar+ya6an in the Mantra Raaja Padha St,tram and in+hir0udhnya Samhita .Lord Sri Rudra5Sivan is reco)ni*ed and revered as a Parama 0haa)avta $Prapannan and a Sarvajn;an y Paramaik+nti Sri Vaish6avaas includin) Swamy <esikan . SriRudran emphasises in :is Sara6+)athi that :e is a dh+sa h tan !lie)e" of Sri Lakshmi

6arasimhan .

I am deeply )rateful to 1umari +diti 0anerjee $ who edited the manuscript with )reat care andenriched the mono)raph with eautiful ima)es of SrI Rudra5Sivan . -his mono)raph is releasedfor the enefit of all Ved+ him+nis. Vedam is profound and the meanin)s of Veda mantramscan e interpreted at many levels . 4or instance $ #Sivan # can mean one who is auspicious in a)eneral sense or it could refer to the Lord of Parvati havin) :is home in the snowy peak of the:im+lay+s in a particular sense .

Let us now enjoy the individual Veda Mantrams of Sri Rudram of the Yajur Vedam .

,ppiliappan 1oil Varad+ch+ri Sada)opan

6andana Samvatsaram $ -hai Month $ Sukla Paksha =haturti $ Sataya 6akshatram

>anuary $ &?$ @/&A

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Met$ods "or t$e Rec!tat!on o" Sr! Rudram

-here are num er of traditional methods for the recitation of Sri Rudram and for performin) SriRudra :omam. Vedic scholars follow mainly four methods$ which are known as Sri Rudram$Sri Rudraikadasini$ Maha Rudram and +thirudram.

Sr! Rudram Met$od;

-his is also known as the 9kaadasarudram. :ere$ one recites the && +nuvaakams of Sri Rudramand follows that with the recitation of the first +nuvaakam of =hamakam. -he entire SriRudram is recited a)ain followed y the Parayanam of the second +nuvaakam of =hamakam.-his method consists thus of the recitation of Sri Rudram && times and the recitation of each ofthe && +nuvaakams of SrI Rudram and =hamakam once.

Sr! Rudra!kadas!n! Met$od;

-his method re8uires the recitation of Sri Rudram &@& times and the 4aarayanam !recitation" of=hamakam && times. -his Sri Rudraikadasini is e8uivalent to the performance of && 9kaadasaRudrams. Sri Rudraikaadasini is also known as La)hu Rudram. ,ne5tenth of La)hu Rudramshould also e performed as :omam.

Ma$a Rudram Met$od;

-his consists of performin) && La)hu Rudrams and is therefore e8uivalent to &AA& recitations ofSri Rudram and &@& recitations of =hamakam. ,ne5tenth of Maha Rudram should also e

performed as Sri Rudra :omam.

At$! Rudram Met$od;

-he performance of +thi Rudram re8uires the recitation of Sri Rudram &B$'B& times !&& 3 && 3&& 3 &&" and =hamakam &$AA& times. -his enormous task is achieved in shorter time periods ythe simultaneous recitation of Sri Rudram for &@& times y &@& Pundits and the Parayanam of=hamakam for && times y the same assem ly of scholars. -here are some differences in thenomenclature of Rudram$ Rudraikadasini$ La)hu Rudram$ Maha Rudram and +thi Rudram

ased on the total num er of recitations of Sri Rudram and =hamakam. In one method$ Rudramconsists of one recitation of Sri Rudram followed y =hamakam once. -he recitation of SriRudram for && times and =hamakam once constitutes the performance of RudraikadasiniC La)huRudram consists of an &&5time multiplier of Rudraikadasini and so on.

Sri Rudram praises Lord Siva2s multifaceted attri utes. :is ,mniscience$ :is ,mnipotence$ :is,mnipresence$ :is enevolence and :is fearsome features are the su ject of Sri Rudram. -heuni8ue place of Sri Rudram in the Vedic tradition is indicated y the )enerally held elief that itis superior to the sections that constitute the entire Vedas$ vi*.$ 1arma$ pasana and >n;+na1aandams. -he lon)5lastin) enefits of the recitation of Sri Rudram has een ela orated ysacred reli)ious te3ts such as Maharnavam$ Sootha Samhitha$ Puranas such as 1oorma andLin)a$ Smrithis such as +dhri$ Ya)nyavalkya and Satatapa$ Ithihasam such as Maha 0haratham

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et al. Sri Rudra Parayanam is always accompanied y the recitation of =hamakam. -he prayersenshrined in =hamakam re8uest Lord Siva for various lessin)s after pleasin) :im with arecitation of Sri Rudram. <aily paaraayanam of Sri Rudram5=hamakam has een recommended

y the sa)es to )et the lessin)s of Lord Siva. It is particularly recommended for recitation onPradhosam days and Maha Sivarathri ni)ht.

-he followin) passa)e from Soothasamhita descri es the enefits that accrue from the recitationof Sri RudramD

Rudra Ja'! -!muc$yat< Ma$a 4aataka 'anc$araat$samyak Jn Anam c$a #ab$at< t<na Muc$yeta /andanat$anena Sad$rusam Ja'yam naast! Sat$yam Srut$ou Smrut$ou

It states that the reciter of Sri Rudram )ets release from the ca)e of )reat sins. :e also reali*es0rahma >n;+nam and he )ets freed ultimately from the onds of Samsara. -he passa)e assertsthat there is no recitation in the Vedas or Smrithis that e8uals Sri Rudram in terms of the

auspicious lessin)s that a reciter can hope to )et.May the full lessin)s of Lord Siva shower on those who perform Sri Rudra5=hamaka VedaPaarayanam and enhance their >n;+nam to seek Moksha Sukham from Sriman 6aar+ya6an $the one and only Moksha <aayakan E

%!erarc$!ca Re at!ons$!' /etween Sr!man *aarAya*an and Sr! Rudran

4or the Vaish6av+s $ who have performed Prapatti to Sriman 6aar+ya6an as their Para<evatai $ :e is the one and only one $ who can )rant them Supreme 0oon of Moksham . It istherefore important to e fully clear a out the hierarchical relationship etween Sri Rudran and

Sriman 6aar+ya6an . Let us now study riefly those links . 4or details $ I would like the readersto refer to the Si3th =hapter of Srimad Rahasya -raya Saaram of Swamy Vedantha <esikanentitled # Parad9vat+ Paaram+rthyaadhik+dhik+ram # ! e ook F (& $ Pa)e A? to B? D n+m+sfrom GAB to G?G of httpDHHwww.sundarasimham.or) H +dditional information ased on Srutis and

panishads on the Supermacy of Sriman 6aar+ya6an over all those d9vat+s created y :im isalso availa le at e ooks B/ and B& of the Srihaya)rivan e ook series$ =hitra Saaram! httpDHHwww.srihaya)rivan.or) " .

-he essence of the teachin)s y the illustrious Sri Vaish6ava +ch+ryan $ Swamy <esikan for aPrapannan to remem er is D !&" +ny one lackin) knowled)e a out who is the Parad9vatai ! theSupreme 7od" can not ecome a Paramaik+nti !@" +ny one who is not a Paramaik+nti can not

)ain Moksham without delay.!A" Sriman 6aar+ya6an is that Para d9vatai over all )odsHdevat+slike 0rahma $ Rudra $+)ni $ Indhran et al !B" 0rahma $ Rudran and others are created y Sriman 6aar+ya6an and they )ained their status throu)h uni8ue +raadhanams to Sriman 6aar+ya6an .!?" -hey !0rahma$ Rudr+dhis are influenced y Vish6u Maayaa and are 1arma vasy+Ls!'"-hey )ain their >n;+nam from Sriman 6aar+ya6an and serve :im ! " -hey can not )rantMoksham to any one . -his power is strictly reserved y Sriman 6aar+ya6an to :imself !G"0rahma $ Rudhran et al are Sriman 6aar+ya6an2s attri utes ! viS9sha6ams" !(" -heir+ch+ryan is Sarw9Swaran $ Sriman 6aar+ya6an (10) A t$oug$ sAstrams at some ' aces

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!dent!"y Rudran , Sooryan and ot$er De atas as grantors o" Moks$am , !t !s meant to !nd!catet$at t$ey grant t$e Jn Anam to seek Moks$am "rom Sr!man *aarAya*an , t$e!r Su'reme

#ord Let us study now the links etween Sriman 6aar+ya6an and Sri Rudhran throu)h thestudy of Mantra Raaja Padha st,tram .

Sr! Rudram and Mantrara7a 4ad$a stotram o" #ord S! A on %!s Master Sr! #aks$m! *aras!m$an D

SrI Vaish6av+s consider Rudran as the )randson of Sriman 6aar+ya6an $ who created chatur5mukha 0rahman first C -hat 0rahma in turn created Rudra5Sivan as :is son . In the Vaish6avaMatham ! Visisht+dhvaita <arsanam"$ Sriman 6aar+ya6an is the Supreme 0ein) ! Para0rahmam" and Supreme doctrine ! Para -attvam". Sriman 6aar+ya6an is the indweller $ener)i*er and commander of all devat+s includin) 0rahmaa $ Siv+ $ Indhran et al. -hesedevat+s attain their lofty positions throu)h austere penances to :im and have lon) ut finitelives .-here are many 0rahm+s and Rudr+s over the chathur Yu)ams. Lord 6araya6an is theinstructor of all the four Ved+s and their meanin)s to =hathurmukha 0rahma to ena le 0rahma

to perform :is assi)ned duties of creatin) the n+ma5roopa Prapancham. Rudra5Sivan isreco)ni*ed as the ,ne who has een assi)ned the duties of samh+ram or destruction of theworld and its ein)s at the end of the universal delu)e . -he word Siva is interpreted yVaish6av+s as one who is +uspicious . :is Saastra >n;+nam ac8uired from intense penancehas earned :im!Rudran" the title of Sarvajn;an or ,mniscient ,ne. Swamy <esikan reco)ni*es:im as a Sarvajn;an. Sivan in :is +hir0udhnya Samhitai descri es :imself as the daasanHlie)eof Lord 6rsimhan . Rudran is therefore reco)ni*ed as a Prapannan and Parama 0h+)avathanand as one who is very dear to Lord Sriman 6ar+ya6an . 4or those interested to know morea out Sivan2s Vai havam as a Sara6a)atan to Lord 6arasimhan $ the two e ooks on Mantrar+jaPadha St,tram ! e ookF B@ in httpDHHwww.srihaya)riavan.or) and 6rsimha Poorva -aapini

panishad $!e ook F B'" in the same series would e useful as source references .

Let us now study riefly the Mantra Raaja Padha St,tram itself lessed to us y Sri Rudra5Sivan$ when :e performed Sara6+)athi at the Lotus feet of Sri 6rusimhan $ the fourth avat+ram ofSriman 6aar+ya6an.

-he Mantrar+ja Padha Sto-ram is uttered y Lord Sanakara!Sivan" :imself and descri ed astattva nir6ayam y :im . In the && th sl,kam of the Mantra Raaja Padha Stotram $ Rudra5SivansaysD# daasa h t+D svatassarv9 hy+tm+naD Pram+tmanaD $ at,ahamapi t9 d+saD iti matvaanam+myaham #. :ere Rudra5Sivan says D # +ll devotees of Parama Purushan 6arasimhan seek:is sacred feet as their refu)e for protection . +diy9n follows this )roup of lessed Prapann+sand perform Sara6+)athi at Your feet with the mood ! h+vam" as Your servant.% Rudran states

here that :e is conductin) :imself as the servant of Lord 6arasimhan and as one who has performed Prapatti to :im as his !SrI Rudran2s" Master. As a Vedic Text , Sri Rudram isrecited by all Vaidhikaas . Sri 6rusimha Poorva -apini upanishad ela orates the meanin)s ofthe individual Padhams of Sri Mantra Raajam or the 1in) of Mantr+s . :ere Sri Rudran salutesSri 6arasimha Moorthy in :is role !SrI 6rusimhan" as :is supreme devotee and eulo)i*es Lord

6arasimhan in a movin) manner . :ere is the Mantra Raajam lessed to us y Lord Rudran D

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u)ram veeram Mah+ Vish6um jwalantam sarvat,mukham 6rusimham heesha6am hadram mrutyumrutyum nam+myaham

The commentary on the arious !adhams chosen by Sri Rudran that preceded "isSara#Agathi $ill be co ered no$ %

&" )ramD:ere Rudra5Sivan $ who :imself is a )reat warrior as saluted y the mantrams of SrIRudram $ offers :is hi)h salutations to Lord 6rusimhan as the 4ierce ! )ram" and unmatchedwarrior . Lord 6arasimhan is very hot in destroyin) :is enemies . -aittireeya 0ru)huvalli !&/.B"refers to :is incompara le power to destroy :is enemies this way D # -adh 0rahma6aD parimaraityup+seeta%. -his mantram asks one to worship :im !SrI 6rusimhan" as the fierce destroyin)4orce ! Parimara" of our enemies.

@"VeeramD:ere$ Sri Rudran reco)ni*es the Veeryam !Valour $ :eroism" of Lord 6arasimhan.Vish6u Sooktam pays tri ute to the Veeryam of the Lord as D # Vish6,rnukam Veery+6i

prav,cham #. Sri 6rusimha -aapaneeya panishad offers its commentary on this Mah+ Veeran

further D

# Yasm+n svamahimn+ sarv+n l,k+n $ sarv+n d9v+n $ sarv+n +tmanaD $ sarv+6i h t+niviramati $ vir+mayati $ ajasram srujati $ visrujayati $ vaasayatiJtasm+d uchyat9 Veeram iti%

!Meanin)"D 4rom :is own loftiness!sva5mahimn+" $ :e provides rest $ creates incessantly $)rows and a sor s all worlds $ all d9v+s$ all >eevans and all h t+s. :ence :e is called Veeran.

A"Mah+ Vish6umD 6e3t $ Rudran identifies 6rusimhan as Mah+ Vish6u $ who pervades ande3ists in all vastus $ oth inside and outside ! Sarva Vy+pi". -aittareeya panishad refers to theVish6u Vy+pti asD #tat srushtvaa tadh9v+nupr+viSat $ tadhanupraviSya saccha tyacch+ havat #

-he mantram states that after anuprav9Sam !enterin) inside" $ :e remains as what is e3plicitlyseen and as what is not e3plicitly seen ! vyakatam and avyaktam". -herefore $ :e is saluted asMah+ Vish6u y Sri Rudra5Sivan.

B">walantamD Lord 6arasimhan is self5luminous ! svayam jy,thi". :e is the li)ht of li)hts ! Say9va >y,thish+m >y,thiD" . Kith :is radiance $ all other lustrous odies shine !sarv+6i

h t+ni sva t9jas+ jwalati $ jw+layati ".

?"sarvat,mukham D Sv9tasvatara panishad !A.A" refers to :is sarvath,mukhatvam this way D:e has the eyes every where $ mouth every where and hands every where. :e has no indhriyams

ut :e )oes every whereC :e has no eyes ut :e sees every thin)C :e has no ears ut :e hears

every thin) and :e is every thin). :ence Sri Rudran salutes :im!Sri 6rusimhan" asSarvath,mukhan.

'"6rusimhamD +mon) the animals $ the lion is the most powerful and superior one. 7it+ch+ryanrefers to it D # Mru)+6+m cha Mru)h9ndhraD #.=om inin) that form with that of a man $ theLord took :is avat+ram as 6arasimhan in deference to the oons )iven y 0rahma devan to:ira6yakasipu. :is e3traordinary form was fri)htenin) to +sur+s ut :is devotees take joy inseein) :im and worshippin) :im . Sri Rudran refers to this adh huta form of 6rusimhan here.

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"0heesha6amD 4or fear of :im $ the wind lows $ the Sun shines . -hey follow :is orders withfear and respect.-he =hild haktan $ Prahl+dhan did not display any fear after :ira6yasamh+ram $ while the assem led d9v+s and even Mah+ Lakshmi were afraid to approach )ra

6arasimhan . :e is 0heesha6am to the enemies of :is 0haa)avat+s $ while ein) a sula han to

:is devotees .

G"0hadramD :e is Sarvath, hadran $ auspicious in every way . :e is Raama hadran $Ramaa hadran and Maal,lan. :e is auspicious and lesses one and all with auspiciousness! 0hadhr, h tvaa 0hadram dadh+ti" .:is attri ute as a Man)aLa Moorthy is saluted y SriRudra5Sivan here.

("MrutyumrutyumD :e is the ,ne $ who has the power to remove mruthyu !death" andapamruthyu ! untimely death" of :is hakt+s ! mruthyum apamruthyum cha Maarayati" . :e isthe Mruthyu for the enemies of :is hakt+s.

&/" 6am+miD nama Dsa0dham refers to Sara6+)athi in all aspects . Lord Rudra5Sivan performsSara6+)athi at the sacred feet of Sri 6rusimhan with the namaD sa0dham . #namaD # has threekinds of meanin)s as )iven y +hir udhnya Sivan :imself D !a" s-h lam ! "sookshmam and !c"Param . Sth lam meanin) is ased on Vy+karana s+stram and refers to the jeevan prostratin)

efore the Lord and performin) Prapatti . -he sookshma meanin) is derived from niruktam andrefers to the jeevan and anythin) related to it ! Maam cha madheeyam cha" are not its property!na mama" ut that of the Lord. -he Param meanin) is ased on akshara 6i)a6<u and it pointsout the the phalan of the Self5surrender ! Prapatti" performed at the sacred feet of the Lord is theLord :imself. -he sl,kams of +hir0udhnya Samhitai ! @5A@" e3plain in detail the manymeanin)s of the #namaD # sa0dham and their links to Sara6+)athi .

SrI Mantra Raaja Padha St,tram and the 6rusimh+nushtup mantram housed inside it isrecommended y Sri Rudra5Sivan as the ripened and delecta le fruit from the Veda5+)ama1alpaka Vruksham !sarva ni)amaa)ama rasm+layam" and invites us as rasik+s to enjoy thatfruit of Prapatti to Sriman 6aar+ya6an and sets an e3ample to us y :is own Sara6+)athi toLord 6arasimhan ! nam+myaham". :is e3hortation is D # Pi0ata h9 Rasika SrInrusimhat+paneeya rasam+layam #.

&ith this contextual understanding o' the special relationship bet$een Sri Rudra(Si anand Sriman #aarayana(#arasimhan , let us study the indi idual mantrams o' Sri Rudram .&e should also remember t$o more ancient upad)sams % * #aarasimha Vapus(SrImAn+esa a% !urush ttama% * and * Sar a de a namaskAram +esa am pratigacchati *.

Srimath A-hagiyasingar Thiru adiga ) Sara#am ,Dhaasan , ppiliappan +oil VaradAchAri Sadagopan

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Sr! Rudram

Sri Rudram has && chapters ! Anu akams " in all. In the first +nuvakam$ the an)ry Rudra isre8uested y the Vedam to shed :is an)er and asks for :is lessin). 4rom the second to the

ninth +nuvakams$ Sri Rudra is praised and salutations are rendered to :im. In the tenth and theeleventh +nuvakams$ an appeal is made to oth Sri Rudra and his retinue ! Rudra =anams " fortheir lessin)s and protection.

&$e F!rst Anu akam

&$e F!rst Mant$ram

Sri Rudra has oth fri)htenin) and tran8uil features. -he tran8uil feature is referred to asag$oram $ and the fri)htenin) feature$ known as g$oram $ith its fierce and intimidatin)weapons. :e only )ets an)ry at us when we trespass the prescri ed codes of ehavior outlined inthe Vedas and Saasthraas. Khen we do thin)s that are not enjoined y the Sruthis or Smr ithis$:e )ets an)ry at us and punishes us to )et us ack to the ri)hteous ways. :is fierce aspect ismeditated on in connection with the first manthram of Sri Rudram$ which is as followsD

*amast< Rudra Manya a Ut8ta !s$a < nama$ *amast< astu d$an an< /aa$ub$yamuta t< *ama$ (1)

!meanin)"

-10-



hE Rudra ,hE RudraE

tE ManyavE namah My o eisance to Your an)er.

tE ishavE namah My o eisance to Your arrow.

TE dhanvanE namah astu Let my pra6+mams e for Your ow.

atha tE Baahubhyaam namah 4urther$ let me pay my respects to oth of Your handswhich carry the mi)hty ow and arrows.

-his mantram like all other Sri Rudra Mantrams has its own R!s$! $ meter !c$andas " and pertinent 7odhead !d e ataa ". -he R!s$! $:$andas and d e ataa for the first mantram are +tr9ya$anushtup and Sri Rudran$ respectively.

-he <hyaana Slokam for the first manthram is D

Aakar*a >r? s$t< D$anus$! Jwa ant$eem d< eem!s$um b$aswat$! santad$aanamd$yaay<n Ma$esaam ma$aneeya -es$am de yaayut$am +od$atanum +u aanam -he slokam visuali*es an an)ry Rudra with the cord of :is ow drawn up to :is earsC the ow isadorned y a resplendent arrowC Sri Rudran is seen as the most eautiful male soldier in the

prime of :is life. :is <evi is seen ne3t to :im in that fi)htin) appearance. -he slokam asks usto meditate upon that fierce aspect of Maheswaran. -he ooks such as Rudra 1alp+r6avamdescri e the ways to do japam on each of the mantrams of Sri Rudram with d$yaanam $anganyaasam and karanyaasam . -he japam ased on these mantras is said to confer special

enefits to the practitioner. 4or instance$ when the first mantram is recited &&$/// times in the prescri ed manner. the devotee has the a ility to rise in status in society$ lose all his sins and )etSri Rudran2s full lessin)s.

&$e Second Mant$ram

-he second Rudra Mantram re8uests the an)ry Rudra seated on a chariot with :is <evi to shed:is an)er and less the devotee. -he mantram is as followsD

+aa ta Is$u; S! atamaa S! am /ab$oo a t< d$anu; S! aa Sara yaa +aa ta a tayaa n8 Rudra mruDaya ( )

!meanin)"D

hE Rudra - ,h$ RudraE

t9 Yaa Ishuh Sivathamaa Babhoova, tayaa Nah Mṛ daya- Let us e free of worries$ thanks to thatarrow$ which is the most auspicious one in Your hand.

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tE Yaa hanuh Sivam Babhoova tayaa Nah Mṛ daya- Let us e comforted y the very same owin Your hands that looks auspicious.

tava Yaa Saravyaa Sivaa Nayaa Nah Mṛ daya- 0y the auspicious arrow ca)e that You wear$ letus )et the enefits of prosperity and peace of mind.

:ere$ the devotee looks at the an)ry Rudran$ who is ready to shoot the arrow from :is ow. :etherefore prays to Lord Paramasivan to convert these terrifyin) weapons into tran8uil jewelrytype of adornments and to remove the fear from his mind. :e prays to Lord Rudra to transform:is intimidatin) weapons into sym ols of peace and decoration and there y allay the an3ieties ofthe devotee. -he <evataa for this mantram is Sam huC the Rishi and chandas are the same as forthe first mantram. -he <hyaana Slokam that )oes with the second manthram of Sri Rudram is as followsD

d$yaayet$ d< am Sasm!t$am Syand$anast$am

d< yaa Saard$am t<7asaa d$ee'yamaanam Is$ !s$ aa ankr? t$aab$yaam b$u7aab$yaam Sooraakaaram StUyamaanam Suraug$a!

!meanin)"D !"t us m"ditat" on Sri Rudran #ith $is b"auti%u& smi&", surround"d by th" r"tinu" o% "vas o%%"rin' th"ir rais"s, r"stin' on $is hariot #ith $is #i%" #hi&" ho&din' th" arro# andbo# in $is hands* !"t us m"ditat" on this '&o#in', b"auti%u& %orm o% Sri Rudran*

-he second mantram is known as Maha Mantram$ since the uninterrupted recitation of this issaid to remove poverty in the home and the nation. It is recommended that this japam should edone for &@ days continuously$ when one is awake. Prosperity in this world is assured y the

proper recitation of this mantram.

&$e &$!rd Mantram

In this mantram$ the devotee asks for the lessin)s of release from the cycles of irth and death.-he mantra is as followsD

+aa t< Rudra S! aa tanUrag$oraa'aa'akaaS!neetayaa *astanu aa Santamayaa =!r!Santaab$!c$aakaSee$! (@)

-he Rishi$ chandas and <evathaa for this mantram are 1asyapar$ Swaratanushtu and Sam hu.In this mantram$ the form of Sri Rudran without any weapons is ein) invoked. In the previousmantram$ the =$oraa aspect was invoked and in this mantra$ the Ag$oraa aspect is revered.

-he prayer enshrined in this mantram isD Rudra *a$ Ab$!c$aakaSee$! !#,hE Rudra$ pleasemake us understand the 0rahma >n;+nam$ the true knowled)e that is the lastin) one throu)hYour lessin)s represented y Your holy ody. -his prayer for 0rahma >n;+nam is at the heartof the messa)e contained in the mantram .%"

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:ere$ the auspicious ody of the Lord is descri ed as S! aa Ag$oraa and A'aa'akaaS!n! . SriRudra s ody and lim s without weapons is very tran8uili*in) ! Ag$oraa " and nonintimidatin).It is also capa le of )ivin) auspiciousness ! S! aa " on this earthC in addition$ that auspicious ody$when seen y the devotees$ assures them of places in Siva Lokam. -he conferral of that lessin)known as # mukt$! in Siva l,kam # arises from that liss5)ivin) si)ht of the Lord2s ody. -he

auspicious oon5)ivin) Sri Rudran is addressed as 7iriSantaa y the Vedam.

-he word 7iriSantaa has een interpreted in a num er of ways. ,ne interpretation is that theresident of 7iri named 1ailasa conferrin) :is lessin)s on all livin) thin)s and )ivin) themhappiness and comfort. # >a! aas< =!rau *!t$yaa !rb$Ut$8 ya$ 4raa*!b$ya$ Sam tan8t! sa=!r!Santa$ $% is the interpretation of one of the 0hashyakaaras. -he second interpretation is$#=!rau (-ede) t!s$tannart$aru'e*a Sam tanot! .% :ere$ Rudran is reco)ni*ed as the innermeanin) of the Vedas and there y conferrin) :is lessin)s on :is devotees. 7iri is anothername for the Vedas. -he third interpretation of the naamam$ 7iriSantaa$ for Sri Rudran is as theone who is the conferrer of helpin)s$ when meditated as the heart of Pranavam. # 4rana <t!s$tan D$yeyaru'e*a n!rat!Saya /ra$mAnand$a #aks$a*am Sam tanot! $% is the

correspondin) interpretation y one of the 0hashyakaarars. Sri Rudran2s ody is hailed as+paapakasini$ which means that :is ody$ when seen$ removes all the sins ! 4aa'am " andthere y )ives Atma Jn Anam .

-he third mantram descri ed a ove is also recited for the well ein) of the cows. -he <hyaanaSlokam for this mantram is a eautiful one$ evokin) the peaceful aspects of Lord Rudran sappearance and presence. -he sloka is as followsD

sm<raananam c$andra ka aa atamsam=ang$ad$aram Sa! a Sutaa sa$aayam3&r! 8c$anam basma b$u7anga b$oos$a*amd$yaay<t 4asoonam 4at$!mees!taaram33

:ere$ the smilin) face of Lord Rudra$ with the di)it of the moon and 7an)a <evi on :is tresses$is invoked. :is presence$ adorned y 7auri <evi$ sittin) ne3t to :im and :is !boot$! 5clad odyand the decoration of snakes on :is neck and arms are praised. :e is reco)ni*ed as the one whois the Lord of all 'asus !cows or Jee ans " in Saiva Siddh+ntam .

&$e Fourt$ Mant$ram

-he fourth manthram of Sri Rudram a)ain appeals to Sri Rudran not to shoot the arrow at the poor sinners$ ut to make the arrow nondestructive and there y protect the world. -he mantramis as followsD

+aam!s$um =!r!Santa $aste /$!b$ars$aryasta < S! aam =!r!tra taam >uru Maa %!msee; 4urus$am Jagat ( )

!meanin)"D

hE +irisantha - ,hE the inner meanin) of the Vedas ,

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hE +irithra- ,hE Lord residin) in 1ailasam$

urusham a'at maa hims""h- Please do not hurt me and my friendsE Please do not destroy ourearthly wealth$ eitherE

Yaam ishum astavE hastE Bhibharshithaam Ishum Sivaam .uru- Please make auspicious thatarrow which you wear in Your hand to shoot at the sinners.

Protection from disasters ! An!s$ta 4ar!$aram " arisin) from the an)er of Lord Rudran is prayedfor throu)h this mantram.

&$e F!"t$ Mant$ram

-he fifth mantram of the +nuvakam prays for freedom from disasters and reali*ation of desiredcomforts on this earth. -he mantram is as followsD

S! <na -ac$asaa t aa =!r!saacc$a -adaamas! +at$aa na; sar am!77agadayaks$magum Sumanaa asat (B) -his prayer is also addressed to Sri Rudran as 7irisa$ the resident of the holy mountain known as1ailasam. It says -ayam -adaamas! $ i.e.$ we e) You for this lessin). -he lessin) that isasked is that of the secret knowled)e a out the ri)ht way to praise :im so that the world will e

populated y healthy$ happy communities of people and herds of cows. & aa Acc$aa S! <na-ac$asaa +ataa Asat$a tataa >uru is the prayer. #Ke do not know the ways to praise withauspicious words to reach You. Please teach us$% is the re8uest. -he effect of that prayer is# Sar am Jagat !t$ ayas$mam Sumanaa$ Asat$, It! -adaamas! $%D #,hE 1ailasa 6athaE Pleaseteach us the ways of praisin) You that would make this world full of a healthy$ happycommunity of all livin) ein)s.N

-he fourth and fifth mantrams to)ether constitute one mantram. -he Rishi for it is 7authamaCthe chandas is 7ayathriC and the <evathaa is Rudran. -he <hyaana Slokam for the fourth andfifth manthram is as followsD

Sangraam!k<ena a'us$aa 'ra !raa7amaanam De am 'urat$raya !naasana mand$a$aasam Da!tyaan d!d$aks$umac$a es ara c$aa'a 'aa*!md$yaay<t$ 'urar!mat$a b$oom! rat$ad$!rooDam -his slokam descri es the appearance of Lord Paramasivan$ when :e was a out to perform-ripura Samharam. +t that time$ 0hoomi ecame :is chariot$ Meru Mountain ecame :is ow$Vish6u ecame the tip of :is arrow and SrI Rudran was dressed in attle attire and was desirousof destroyin) the +suras and their three cities. :e was smilin) in anticipation of :is heroicdeed. -he slokam recommends that we meditate on this fierce aspect of Sri Rudran. -herecitation of the fourth and fifth mantrams to)ether for @& days is said to ward off untimelydeath.

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&$e S!Ct$ Mantram -he si3th mantram is a profound one$ which is said to remove ills from evil forces$ poison andfever. :ence it has een called as a #shield% ! >a ac$am " y 0odhayana Maharishi. -he Rishi

for the mantram is 1a6varC the chandas is +nushtupC and the <evataa is Sam hu. -he <hyaanaSlokam is as followsD

:$andraard$a mau !m kaa aar!m yaa a yagny8'a eet!nam Jwa at0 'aa aka sankaasam d$yaay<t de am tr! oc$anam :ere$ reference is made to the three5eyed Lord$ who wears the half5moon on :is hair. :e iswearin) a )reat serpent as :is sacred thread and is shinin) as a urnin) piece of em er. -hesloka words visuali*e Rudran with these characteristics.

-he mantram correspondin) to this dhyana slokam is as followsD

ad$ya 8c$adad$! aktaa 'rat$am8 da! y8 b$!s$ak A$eegumscc$a sar aan 7amb$ayan sar aamscc$a yaatud$aanya$ ( )

Let the Supreme Lord ! 4rat$ama$ " speak for me with compassion !a d$ya oc$at " is the prayer.-he rest of the mantram speaks a out the 8ualities of that Supreme Lord. :e is descri ed asad$! akt$aa $ Da! ya$ $ /$!s$ak . ad$! akt$aa is one who ends over ackward to speak !orintervene" on ehalf of :is devotees. Da! ya$ means one who is the inner force of all the<evasC /$!s$ak means one who is the doctor$ curin) all diseases of the ody and mind. :e isalso re8uested to destroy all pain5causin) animals such as snakes$ scorpions$ etc.$ and those thatcause harm such as thieves. :e is further implored to remove hidden evil forces such asraaks$asaas and )hosts and other inauspicious entities. -he portion of the mantram referrin) tosuch a prayer is # Sar aan a$eegumscc$a Sar aascc$a +aat$ud$aanya$ Jamb$ayan

4ratama$ ad$ya 8c$at .% It has een stated that the recitation of this manthram ?/$/// timeswill confer the powers re8uested in this mantram.

&$e Se ent$ Mantram

-he seventh Rudra mantra praises Sri Paramasivan in one of :is ei)ht forms$ which is that of theSun. Lord Paramasivan is known to have G forms constituted y earth ! 4r!t$ ! "$ Kater$ 4ire$Kind$ 9ther$ Moon$ Sun and Master ! ya7amaanan ". -he ei)ht forms lead to :is name as +shtaMoorthi$ who deli)hts in ein) worshiped on the ashtami day of the month. -he seventh of theei)ht forms is that of Sun$ whose rays envelop all the corners of this universe. 0y focusin) onthe Soorya Moorthi$ Siva2s pervasive presence in all nooks and corners of this world isemphasi*ed. In the form of the Sun$ Lord Paramasivan is the witness to the activities ofeverythin) on this earth and nothin) escapes :is notice. Such Solar aspect of Lord Maheswaranis descri ed y the followin) seventh mantramD

Asau yastaamr8 Aruna uta /ab$russumanga a$+e$ c$e maagum Rud$rA ab$!t8 d!ks$usr!t$aa$ sa$asraS8 a!s$aagum $eDa eema$< (E)

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!meanin)"

Th" aus i ious Rudra d"s rib"d in r"vious mantraas a "arin' as /dithyaa is o "ry r"d inhu" at da#n a &itt&" &at"r, as th" da#n ro'r"ss"s, $" ta "s a vio&"tish r"d hu" a %"# minut"s

&at"r, $" assum"s a 'o&d"n-y"&&o#ish oran'" o&or r"s"mb&in' that o% 'o&d- o "r a&&oy* In a&&th"s" %orms, $" a "ars b"%or" us "v"ry mornin' as th" most aus i ious r"s"n "* $" r"a h"sout to "v"ry orn"r o% th" "arth and dir" tion as thousands o% /dityaas throu'h th" s r"adin' o%

$is rays*

-he mantram salutes all those thousands of Rudras and asks -hem to hold ack -heir an)er and protect the people who recite the Sri Rudram.

-he words of the seventh mantram containin) these thou)hts is as follows in +nvaya 1ramamD

+!maam Am!t$a$ D!ks$usr!t$aa$ Sa$asrasa$

+e c$a Rudraa$ +es$aam %eda$ A a eema$e

In the seventh mantram$ a pacific overture is made to Sri Rudra to calm :im down from :isan)ry state caused y :is disapproval of the conduct of human ein)s$ which are prohi ited ythe Ved+s and the s+str+s.

&$e <!g$t$ Mantram

In the ei)hth mantram$ :e is approached for the conferral of oons. :e is praised as the one whois inside the disc of the Sun and as the lustre that is seen y the learned as well as the simple

people every day. -his mantram relatin) also to the +ditya Roopam of Sri Rudran is as followsD

Asau y8a asar'at! nee agree o ! o$!ta$uta!nam =o'aa AdruSannadrusaannuda$aarya$Uta!nam !swaa b$oot$an! sa dras$to mr? Dayaat$! na$ ( ) In the first line of this mantram$ Sri Rudra2s odily features and lustre are referred to. -he

luish5 lack of :is neck ! nee agree a$ " arisin) from the drinkin) of the poison durin) thechurnin) of the milky ocean is first mentioned. 6e3t$ :is coppery red color as the risin) Sun inthe mornin) is alluded to y the term$ ! 8$!ta$ . :e is reco)ni*ed as travelin) in the sky withthe characteristic luish5 lack hued neck and coppery red5colored ody as +dityaa.

Khile :e is travelin) across the sky$ :e is seen y the illiterate cowherds ! go'aa$ " and innocentwater5 earin) women. # =o'aa$ Uta!nam (Ad!tya ru'am) AdrusaanG Uda$aarya; (A'!) A!nam

AdrusaanG A!nam (Ad!tya s aru'am Rudram) -!swaab$oot$aan! A'! Adrusaan %, says themantram. 9ven the cows and the sheep in the pasture see :im course throu)h the sky in theform of +dityaa$ accordin) to the mantram. May this auspicious form of Sri Rudra seen y oneand all confer on us :is lessin)s and keep us happy$ is the prayer ! sa drus$ta$ na$ mr? dayaat! "housed in this ei)hth mantram. Aa/aa a =o'a am is a term that is normally used in literature todescri e the simple and illiterate people and those who do not pretend to e scholars. -he

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universal reco)nition of the aspect of Sri Rudran as the Sun 7od or the force ehind it is alludedto here. -he seventh and ei)hth manthras are considered as one mantra from the point of the <hyaanaSlokam 8uoted elowD

Manda aantara gatam $!ra*mayam /$raa7amaana-a'us$am Suc$!sm!tam

:$andad$eed$!t!makanD!ta0d$yut!m:$!ntay<n mun!0sa$asra se !t$am

!meanin)"D I m"ditat" u on that Rudran, #ho is insid" th" dis o% th" Sun, #ho has a shinin'body, #ho has a smi&"-%i&&"d %a ", #ho is surround"d by thousands o% raisin' sa'"s, #ho hasundiminish"d &ustr" and has stron' as #"&& as nourishin' rays*

-he seventh and ei)hth manthras have in common the Rishi !Maruthvan" and <evathaa !Sri

Paramasivan in the form of +dithyan". -he only difference is in the =handas of the twomanthras. -he seventh manthram has +asthara Pankthi as =handas$ and the ei)hth manthramhas >a)adhi =handas as its meter. It has een stated that the recitation of these two mantrams forsi3teen days would rin) rain in times of drou)ht.

&$e *!nt$ Mantram

-he ninth manthram also praises the 6eelakanta aspect of Sri Paramasivan. -his mantramreco)ni*es :im as the one with thousands of eyes ! Sa$asraaks$an " and as the one who showers:is sincere devotees with whatever they re8uest. +s a result of these oon5)ivin) 8ualities$ Sri

6eelakanta Rudran )ets the namaskara6am as MeeDus$< *ee agree aaya nama$ ast$u . -hismantram also offers its pranaamams to the chieftain in the immediate retinue of Lord

6eela)reevan !0lue5throated Lord". -hat passa)e is At$o Asya Sat$ aana$ y< t<b$ya$ A$am *ama$ A$am Akaram . -he word MeeDus$< has een derived from the thou)ht that :enourishes the earth and its ein)s like a dark rain cloud. -his mantram has the +nushtup=handas and has Sam hu as oth Rishi and <evathaa.

-he ninth mantram itself flows as followsD

namo astu *ee agree aaya sa$asraaks$aaya meeDus$< At$o ye asya sat$ aan8$am t<b$yoakaran nama$ (9)

-he <hyaana Slokam for this mantram cele rates not only Swami 6eelakantan ut also :isconsort Paarvathi as Srimat Simhaasaneswari. -he slokam takes the followin) shapeD

Saracc$andra 4rakaasena -a'us$aa Seet$a a d$yut!m D$yaay<t$ s!m$aasanaaseenam Umayaa sa$!tam S! am

In the a ove <hyaana slokam$ Sri Rudran s cool efful)ence is praised. -hat cool radiance is saidto produce incompara le happiness on the assem led devotees. :is seet$a a d$yut$! !cool

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7yot$! " is only matched y the coolness of Paarvathi <evi seated ne3t to :im on the S!m$aasanam $ with :er heart drenched in cool compassion and mercy for the devotees.

-he repetition of the ninth Sri Rudra Manthram is said to confer the lessin)s of 7odly children$with deep devotion to Sri 1ailasa 6athan.

&$e &ent$, < e ent$ and &we "t$ Mant$rams

-he ne3t three Sri Rudra Manthras !tenth$ eleventh and twelfth" are )rouped as one$ and therecitation of these three would result in the destruction of one2s internal and e3ternal enemies.-he common Rishi$ =handas and <evathaa for these three mantrams are 6arada$ +nushtup andRudran$ respectively.

-he <hyaana slokam connects with the c$at$ru0naasanam !destruction of one2s enemies"o jective of these three mantrams in the followin) mannerD

ud$yat b$aaskara kot! 'rakaasam aadee'ta da$ana moord$aanamb$ees$ana b$u7anga b$oos$am d$yay<t ! !d$ayud$am Rudram

-he <hyaana slokam visuali*es Sri Rudra with the lustre of crores of Sooryas and with a headthat linds one ecause of the housin) of fire !+)ni" there. :e is seen as wearin) the decorationsmade up of terrifyin) serpents. :e is also reco)ni*ed in the form of a warrior with manyweapons.

-he mantrams which are linked with the a ove <hyana slokam are as followsD

4ramunc$a D$an anast am0ub$ayoraart$!nayor7yaam+aascc$a t< $asta !s$a a$ 4araa taa /$agawo a'a (12)

a atatya D$anust$ agum sa$asraaks$a sat<s$ud$e *!seerya sa yaanam muk$aa S! o na$ sumanaa b$a a (11)

-!7yam D$anu$ >a'ard!n8 !Sa y8 /aa*a aagum uta Anesannasyes$a a aab$urasya n!s$angat$! ; (1 ) In the first of these three mantrams$ an appeal is made to the 7u6a Sam'oorna /$agawaanRudran to undo the cord tyin) the two ends of the ow. -he mantram asks the 0ha)awaan:imself to undo the cord and to hide the fearsome ow. -he mantram asks the Lord to removethe arrows away from si)ht. Jyaam t$ am 4ramunc$a t< %ast$e +aa Is$a a$ taa :$a 4araa-a'a $ is the prayer housed in the tenth mantram.

In the ne3t mantram$ an appeal is made to the 0ha)awaan Rudran with a resplendent arrow ca)eto dull the ed)es of :is sharp arrows and to undo the cord that links the two ends of the ow for

prayo)am. -he mantram asks the Lord to come efore devotees with a tran8uil and auspiciousform and to think of the well ein) of the fri)htened hakthas. -he prayer is$ Sa$asraaks$a

Sat<s$ud$< na$ S! o b$a a3 *a$ sumanaa b$a a3 !,hE Lord havin) thousands of eyesE ,hE

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0ha)awaan with thousands of arrow ca)esE Please cast aside your weaponsE Please take theauspicious anu)raha form and have your kind thou)hts shower on usE" In the twelfth mantram$ once a)ain the prayer is to escape from the fierce weapons of SriRudran. -he mantram prays for the ow ! 4!naakam " of the Lord to e devoid of its cordC the

arrow ca)e to e devoid of arrows and the knife to e missin) from the knife case.

&$e &$!rteent$, Fourteent$ and F!"teent$ Mantrams

-he ne3t triad of the mantras !&Ath$ &Bth and &?th" formin) a unitary )roup follows acomplementary thou)ht to that of the previous triad of mantras. In the precedin) triad$ an appealwas made for removal of Lord2s weapons ! u'a sam$aaram ". In the current triad$ those weaponsare invoked to protect the devotees throu)h their power. -he ni)rahaa power of the knife$ owand arrows are invoked to destroy the dan)ers that the devotees face in their lives. In this triad ofmantrams that form the conclusion of the first +nuvakam of Sri Rudram$ one meets alternatelysupplications and salutations focusin) on the fearsome weapons and the powerful hands that hold

these weapons for destruction of the enemies and for the protection of the devotees. -he threemantrams housin) such thou)hts are as followsD

+aa t< $et$!r meedus$tama $ast< bab$oo a t< d$anu$tayaasmaan !swatast amayaks$amyaa 'ar!/b$u7a (1@)

namast< ast Ayud$AyAnAtatAya d$rus$*a < Ub$aab$yaamuta t< namo /aa$ub$yaam ta a d$an ane (1 )

'ar!t< d$an ano $et$!rasmaan ru*aktu !S ata$at$8 ya Is$ud$!sta aar< asmann!d$e$! tamm (1B)

:ere Vedam prays #t am Asmaan -!swat$a$ 4ar!bb$u7aH $ i.e.$ #,hE Lord$ you should protectus from all kinds of dan)ers.% &$e d$an ana$ $et$!rasmaan 4ar! runaktu O Let -hy arrow

placed in the ow protect us from the collections of sins that are our enemies. Please destroythem and spare us$ is the heart of this prayer. Vedam addresses 0ha)awaan as MeeDus$tama tosi)nify that :e always )ives more than what one asks forE Vedam identifies :is weapons asinstruments for protectin) and preservin) the health and well ein) of :is devotees. Vedamclearly descri es the power of the weapons of Sri Rudran and at the same time appeals forrestraint in their use. Vedam says # Anaatataaya d$rus$*a < ast Aud$aaya nama$ ast$u .% Itdescri es that the weapons are in a state of rest$ althou)h they can e used any time to causedeath and destruction of e3traordinary nature ecause of their supreme power. -he Vedamfurther praises the hands of the Lord$ which can inflict such dama)e throu)h these weapons ystatin)$ # t) ub$aab$yaam /aa$ub$yaam *ama$ .% -he Vedam offers its salutations to the

ow and arrow ca)e and asks the Lord to direct them to the enemies !collection of sins" of thedevotees. -he Vedam asks the power of the weapons to e deflected to the comple3 )roup ofsins that stand etween the Lord and :is devotees. -he Vedam also prays for the protection ofthe powerful and fearsome arrow of the Lord y invokin)$ #t9 d$an ana$ $<t! asmaan

4ar! runaktu .% -he last three mantraas of the first +nuvakam have Sri Paramasivan as commonRishi and <evatha. -heir =handas is +nushtup. -heir <hyaana Slokam is as followsD

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4ranamadamara sang$a mau ! ma aa >usuma Ra7oaruna 4aada 4adma +ugmam Ana aratam anusmared$ b$aa aanyaa Sa$a 7agataam '!t$aram '!naaka'aa*!m

-he slokam visuali*es the holy feet of the Lord$ which is reddened y the pollens of flowersfrom )arlands adornin) the heads of <evas when they prostrate at the Lord2s feet. -he slokamhails Sri Rudrran as the father of the universe who is forever associated with Sri Paarvathi$ whileholdin) the ow named Pinaakam in :is hand.

-he first anuvakam thus concludes with salutations to the power of Lord Sankara and :isfearsome weapons throu)h &? mantrams and asks for :is eternal protection.

&$e Second Anu akam

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-his chapter has &A mantrams. -he <hyaana Slokam for all of the mantrams is one and the sameand is as followsD

Mukt$aa ankr? t$a sar aangam!ndu0gangaad$aram %aram D$yaay<t$ ka 'a t$aro moo e samaaseenam sa$omayaa

!meanin)"

!"t us m"ditat" on aramasivan #ho is sittin' und"r th" .a& a a Tr"" a&on' #ith 2ma "vi,#"arin' b"auti%u& "ar&s on a&& &imbs and a&so #"arin' th" di'it o% th" Moon, and +an'a "vion $is tr"ss"s*

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In the second +nuvakam$ Sri Rudram praises the many auspicious properties of LordParamasivan. +ll of the mantrams are known as ayat, 6amaskaara Mantrams since theyhave namaskara6ams on oth sides of the mantram.

&$e F!rst Mant$ram

-he first mantram of this +nuvakam is as followsD

namst< astu /$aga an0 !S <SwarAya Ma$Ad< Aya &rayam/akAya&r!'urAntakAya &r!kA Agn!0kA aaya >aa Agn!rudrAya

*ee aka*DAya Mrutyum7ayAya Sarw<swarAyA Sad$AS! Aya Sr!manma$Ad< AyA nama;

!Meanin)"D My salutations to 0ha)av+n Rudr+ $ the Lord of the niverse $ the )reatest d9v+with three eyesE My salutations to the demons who took the form of the three cities and is of theform of trik+laa)nis as well as ein) the fire at the time of the ultimate delu)e E My additional

salutations for the Lord with lue throat $ who won over the Lord of death as the )reat Lord ofall$who is always auspiciousE

-he second )roup of mantrams are as folows D

*amo %!ra*ya baa$a < s<naany< d!saam c$a 'at$aye nama$ (1)

-he three focus items to illustrate the )lory of Lord Paramasiva are %!ra*ya /aa$a e nama$ $s9 naany< nama$ $ and D!saam c$a 'ataye nama$ . -he salutation as %!ra*ya/aa$u refers tothe one who has )olden5hued hands or for one who is wearin) a lot of )olden ornaments on :ishands. -he other Veda Manthras such as the followin)D

Aa'ra*akat$ sar a ye a su ar*a; %!ra*ya baa$a < ara*yaaya yata; 'asya 4asyat< rukma ar*am

form the asis for the Sri Rudra Manthra$ %!ra*yabaa$a e nama$ . It has een pointed out thatthe +ntaarathitya Vidyaa section of the =hando)ya panishad descri es the worship of 7oldenRudran. :e is the one to e worshiped for )ettin) the supreme lessin)s.

-his second mantra of the second +nuvakam )roup seems to point out that this aspect of worshipof Lord Rudran as the )olden5hued one is consistent with the spirit of the =hando)ya

panishad2s +nthaaraditya Vidyaa.

In this manthram$ the military aspects and the hierarchy of that military system is also denoted y the choice of the words s enaany< nama$ and D!saam c$a 'atay< nama$ . Sri Rudran isreco)ni*ed here as the supreme commander of the army made of <evas$ 7andharvas andhumans. :e is the Lord of all these armies. :e is also the supreme commander of the chieftainsof directions$ such as$ 4ire$ Vayu$ Yama$ Varuna and others.

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&$e Second Mantram

-he second mantram pays further o eisance to Sri Rudran in the form of a tree$ whose leavesrepresent various Rudraas with the different mi3es of saatvika$ raajasa and taamasa 7unas. -hismantram also reco)ni*es Lord Sri Rudran as the leader of the two5footed and the four5footed.

-he mantram is as followsD

*amo -r? ks$eb$y8 %ar!keSeb$ya; 4asUnaam 4atay< *ama$ ( )

>ust as the hair is on the top of the head$ leaves are on the top of the tree. :ence the Vedic passa)e here relates to the r?ks$am !tree" and the keSam !hair". +ll the panishads and the7eetha also compare the samsaram to a tree. -heir source of comparison is from Vedam$ whichis the root of all panishads and the 7eetha.

-he connection etween Veda Purusha !Sri Rudran" as a tree and its leavesJwhich are <evasand ManushasJhas een descri ed in our Saasthraas and Puraanaas fre8uently.

In this mantram$ Sri Rudran is also worshipped as # 4asunaam 4at$aye *ama$ %. :e isreco)ni*ed as the Lord of all Jee a Raas!s . :e induces them to en)a)e in various karmaas andalso releases them from the onds associated with their karmaas$ when :e is pleased with them.-hus$ :e controls their destinies$ and as such the namaskara6am as Pasupathi is appropriate.

&$e &$!rd Mantram

-he third mantram of the second +nuvakam is

*ama sas'!n7araaya t !s$eemat< 'ateenam 'atay< nama$ (@)

Sri Rudran is hailed here as the Lord of oth the Veda5prescri ed methods of worship and others ased on -antras$ some of which are not sanctioned y the Vedas. -o permit one and all toapproach :im . Lord Mahesa )ave us oth the Vaidhika and -aantric ways to worship :im . :eis the resplendent knowled)e ase that shines as the source for all approaches to reach :im andto )et :is full lessin)s. Indeed$ there is none that is not connected to :im. :is >n;+anaSwaroopam as a uni8ue eam of li)ht is revered throu)h the choice of t !s$!mat$e nama$ as thesalutation. -he namaskara6am 4ateenaam 4ataye *ama$ reco)ni*es :is links to the Veda5sanctioned and the -antric approaches. :is infinite compassion led :im to less us with othapproaches$ so that one can choose the approach that is more comforta le to one2s sta)e ofspiritual development and intellectual a ilities.

-he third namaskara6am enshrined in this mantram is Sas'!n7araaya nama$ . :ere$ the hue ofLord Paramasivan is compared to that of a youn) lade of )rass$ which has the com ination ofyellowish5red !)olden" color when the sun2s rays strike it.

&$e Fourt$ Mant$ram

-he fourth manthram of the second +nuvakam is as followsD

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*amo /$ab usaaya ! yaad$!ne0annaanaam 'at$aye nama$ ( )

Sri Rudran2s vahanam is referred to here$ and :e is saluted as the one who is seated on the ull!0ha luSaaya nama$ " revered as 6andikeswara.

:e is also saluted as Annaanaam 4at! $ i.e.$ Lord of all the foods that are eaten y the livin) ein)s. +t the same time$ :e is reco)ni*ed as the one who hurts those with unaccepta le ehavior ! Dus$taas " with the very same food for which :e is the Lord. +s the Lord of 4ood$ :enourishes the odies of those with Sadaachaara and hurts those with <uraacharaa.

&$e F!"t$ Mant$ram -he fifth manthram salutes Sri Rudran as namo %ar!k<Saaya nama$ C namo U'a eet!n<

*ama$ and namo 4us$taa*aam 4atay< nama$ . -he mantram itself is as followsD

*amo %ar!keSaayo'a eet!n< 'us$taa*aam 'ataye nama; (B)

In the previous mantram$ :e was saluted as Annaanaam 4ataye nama$ C eatin) of the ri)ht kindof food sanctioned y Lord Siva )ives one nourishment and wealth known as Pushti. 0ecauseLord Siva controls food directly and the nourishment wealth arisin) from the consumption offood indirectly$ :e is hailed here as 4us$taanaam 4ataye nama$ . -he Pushtis representin)spiritual knowled)e and material wealth can e split up in to followin) &/ su divisionsD

!&" -aak 4us$t! !7ift of Speech"

!@" >n;+ana 4us$t! !7ift of <iscriminatin) 1nowled)e"

!A" Sareera Indr!ya 4us$t! !7ift of healthy lim s and sound ody"

!B" =ru$a >s$et$ra 4us$t! !7ift or lessin) of happy H healthy home"

!?" D$ana D$anya 4us$t! !0lessin)s of wealth and )rains"

!'" 4ra7aa 4us$t! !0lessin)s of children and family"

! " 4asu 4us$t! !0lessin)s of herds of cow"

!G" =raama 4us$t! !0lessin)s of distur ance5free peaceful community for residence"

!(" D$arma 4us$t! !0lessin)s of a community steeped in Veda +acharams andri)hteousness"

!&/" a6 !maat! 4us$t! !-he )ift of mysterious powers involvin) the con8uest of space andtime$ et al"

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-his mantra also hints that the Lord controllin) food supply and nourishment is :imself very fitand healthy as indicated y the namaskara6am $ *amo %ar!kesaaya nama$ . -hrou)h thissalutation$ :e is reco)ni*ed as an eternal youth typified y :is )ray5free$ lack tresses. 0y thisnamaskara6am$ tri ute is paid to :is odily eauty and youth. -he ne3t namaskara6am of thismantram reco)ni*es :im as one who is supremely austere in conduct of special practices. :e is

referred to in this conte3t as U'a eet$! $ and the namaskaaram is U'a eet$!ne nama$ . :e issaluted as a 0rahmin with yagno'a eet$am for practicin) rituals sanctioned y Vedas.

&$e S!Ct$ Mant$ram

-he si3th manthram cele rates :is lordship over the universe and :is role as the instrument ofdestruction of the tree of samsara$ the never5endin) cycles of irths and deaths. -he mantram isas followsD

*amo b$a asya $<tya! 7agat$aam 'atay< nama$ ( )

Kith :is lessin)s$ one )ets >n;+anam for )ainin) Moksham and :e acts as a weapon to strikedown the samsara tree ! $a asya $<tya! nama$ ". In an earlier section$ :e was hailed asPaSupati$ ecause :e was the one who ound the livin) ein) to the tree of samsara. :ere$ :e isreco)ni*ed as the one who releases the livin) ein) from the chains of samsara y cuttin) thechains and the tree. -his is the reference ehind the salutationD *amo Jagataam 4atay< nama$ .

&$e Se ent$ Mant$ram

-he seventh manthram cele rates :im as the one who drives the misfortunes and sorrows!Rudran" of samsara and as the one who attaches the cord to his ow to protect the world and its

ein)s ! *amo Aatataa !ne *ama$ ". :e is also hailed here as the protector of holy places and

punya kshethrams ! *amo >s$et$raa*aam 4at$aye *ama$ ". -he full te3t of the seventhmanthram is as followsD

*amo Rudraayaatataa !ne >s$et$raa*aam 4ataye *ama$ (E)

&$e <!g$t$ Mant$ram

-he ei)hth manthram praises Sri Rudran as the Lord of the 4orests and as the charioteer of theuniverse. :e is also praised as the )reat internal eacon of li)ht$ which cannot e harmed yanyone or anythin). -his mantram is as followsD

*amassootaaya %antyaaya -anaanaam 4atay< *ama$ ( ):ere$ the chariot is e8uated to the universe and Sri Rudran is reco)ni*ed as the master charioteerto )uide the course of the universe in the form of the chariot.

&$e *!nt$ Mantram

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-he ninth mantram reco)ni*es :im as the Lord of all the -rees in this universe and descri esthat :is color is $ red while :e plays the role of the Lord of all -rees. -his mantram also payso eisance to Lord Rudran as the lofty Lord who is protectin) everyone and everythin) yspreadin) :imself everywhere. -his mantram throu)h the prayer$ *amo Sta'ataye nama$ $reco)ni*es that :e is !s at8mr?ta a$ $ i.e. spread out in all the nooks and corners of :is

universe. -he full mantram is as followsD

*amo Ro$!taaya st$a'ataye r? ks$aa*aam 'atay< nama$ (9)

&$e &ent$ Mant$ram

In the tenth manthram$ Sri Rudran is descri ed as the ori)inator of the seven crores of mantramsthat constitute the Mantra Saastraam. :e is also reco)ni*ed as the Swami of the secret

panishads and -antrams. :is awareness of all the activities at all corners of the universe is paid tri ute to$ and :e is compared to a master merchant who has all the commercial intelli)enceto carry on his successful usiness. :is lordship over mountains$ rivers$ forests and ushes is

also e3plained throu)h the passa)e *amo >aks$aa*aam 4atay< nama$ . -he full mantram isas followsD

*amo mantr!*< aa*!7aaya kaks$aa*aam 'atay< nama$ (12)

:is Mahaa mantra Swaroopam and :is pervasiveness in all manthras are referred to in thesalutation *amo Mantr!*< *ama$ . -he namaskaaram$ *amo -aan!7aaya nama$ $ refers to:is awareness of all human activities everywhere$ just as a successful merchant dealin) incommodities will know a out the detailed intelli)ence on the product movement andmerchandisin) of those commodities. Lord Rudra2s sarvajn;atvam is implied here.

&$e < e ent$ Mant$ram

-he eleventh manthram identifies Sri Rudran as the force ehind the )rowth of every livin) unitin this universe. :e is also identified as the resident in the heart lotus of :is devotees. :is

protection of all the medicinal her s and :is conferral of the curative powers to them isreco)ni*ed throu)h the namaskaaram$ *amo 8us$ad$eenaam 'ataye nama$ . :is a ility to

protect and nourish each and every one of the livin) ein)s of this universe is descri ed throu)hthe salutation$ *amo b$u antay< *ama$ . :is close association with :is devotees y havin):is home in their heart lotuses is descri ed y the namaskaaram$ *amo -aar! askr? d$aayanama$ . -he complete manthram is as followsD

*amo b$u antay< aar! askr? t$aaya0ous$ad$eenaam 'atay< nama$ (11) &$e &we "t$ Mant$ram

-he twelfth manthram reco)ni*es :is sam$ara swaroo'am in terms of :is ein) the ultimateand invinci le warrior. :is loud scream alone was sufficient to destroy Manmathaa. Such is :is

power of destruction that$ in the Mahaa haratham Kar$ +rjunaa saw Rudran destroyin) all of

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his enemies$ althou)h the arrows nominally came from +rjunaa2s ow. :e is the force ehindany death or destruction. -he mantram connected with samhara activities is as followsD

*ama ucc$a!r gos$aayaakrandayat< 'ateenaam 'ataye nama$ (1 )

Khen Sri Rudran confronts the +suraas and other enemies of :is$ :e lets out a powerful screamand the mantram reco)ni*es that terrifyin) sound and salutes$ *amo Ucc$a!r =os$aaya *ama$ .Sri Rudran lets out the scream and throws himself into the fi)ht and destroys :is enemieswithout fail. -hat skill in war is reco)ni*ed throu)h the namaskaaram$ # *amo ucc$a!r

gos$aaya aakrant$ayate 'ataye nama$ .% In the missin) word of this mantram$ ! 'at$eenaam "$:is role as the commander5in5chief of the foot soldiers of the army is alluded to y thesalutation$ *amo 'ateenaam 'atay< nama$ . -his mantram reminds us that :e is the force

ehind the foot soldiers and that :e already has destroyed :is enemies throu)h :is loud scream$and the foot soldiers sym olically finish the destruction.

&$e &$!rteent$ Mant$ram

In the final mantram$ :is auspicious protective 8ualities are descri ed. :is compassion for theinnocent and :is concern for the welfare of :is devotees are dramatically descri ed y thechoice salutations$ *ama$ >r? tsna eet$aaya nama$ and *ama$ Sat aanaam 4atay< nama$ .:is affection for :is devotees causes :im to run after them$ whenever they )et into anydifficulties. -his namaskaaram$ which is a movin) one$ takes the form of *ama$ D$aa at$e

*ama$ . Like a cow runs after her calf$ Lord Rudran is known to follow :is devotees to makesure that :e will e close y to protect them as they en)a)e in their daily activities. -he te3t ofthis manthram is as followsD

*ama$ >r? tsna eet$aaya d$aa at$e sat aanaam 'atay< nama$ (1@)

0y the term$ >r?t$sna eet$aaya nama$ $ the mantram reminds us a out :is all5pervasive natureC:is indwellin) in all livin) ein)s and thin)s and as resider in every nook and corner of :isuniverse is alluded to y the namaskaaram$ *ama$ >r? t$sna eet$aaya . :is role as theyajamanaa of all the innocent sadhus of the universe is descri ed y another salutationD *ama$sat aanaam 'atay< nama$ .

+s mentioned earlier$ all of the thirteen manthrams of the second +nuvakam have the same<hyaana slokam. -he recitation of the second +nuvakam after the invocation of Sri Rudramthrou)h the <hyaana slokam will result in the destruction of all of our internal and e3ternalenemies and delivers us material wealth and success in our various endeavors.

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&$e &$!rd Anu akam

-his +nuvakam has & +vaanthara Yajur Mantrams. -he recitation of this anuvakam for ?$///times after Praajapatya 1richra anushtaanam is known to remove the prevalent infectiousdiseases in the nation and the destruction of all sins caused y lust and )reed as well as thedestruction of one2s enemies. -he first ei)ht mantras develop the theme that Sri Rudran is noneother than Sarveswaran$ who is the indweller of all the human ein)s independent of theirintellectual status or professional callin). -hese ei)ht mantras focus on thieves and develop thetheme that :e is the antaryaami of the thieves as well and their Lord. :e is there in them as>eeva Swaroopam and Iswara Swaroopam. Lord as the supreme principle pervadin) all of :iscreations cannot ut e in them$ even if some of them happen to e en)a)ed in derisive activitiessuch as thievery. -he hope of Iswaran is that the people en)a)ed in such activities not permitted

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y saasthraas can still receive :is lessin)s$ once they repent and approach :im as prodi)al sonsapproachin) their father. Vedam is ela orate in the description of the various kinds of thievery

practised y these misled men and asserts that Iswara is still their Lord and owner. -heSam andham !relationship" etween SrI Rudran and the >eevathma is indicated in these Gmantrams dealin) with :im as the Lord of -hieves. ,ne should not interpret these verses as

indicators of SrI Rudran ein) as the head of thieves who en)a)e in the normal kinds of thievery.-he a normal and uni8ue kind of thievery practiced y Sri Rudran is when :e steals the heartsof :is devotees$ includin) those of former thieves. Since :e is such an uncontested e3pert instealin) the hearts and minds of :is devotees$ there is no 8uestion a out :is paramount titlealluded to as the Lord of -hieves.

-he <hyaana Slokam for all of the & +vaanthara ! e3traneous" Yajur Manthrams of the third+nuvakam is one of the most eautiful pieces of literature. +ctually$ the slokam is more in theform of a 7adhyam and cele rates the 1irata !hunter" and the 0hairava aspect of Maheswaran.,ne can focus on the <hyaana Slokam after studyin) the meanin) of the & manthrams.

&$e F!rst Mantram

-he first mantram descri es the dual aspects of Maheswaran$ which permits :im not only tofor)ive the mistakes of :is devotees$ ut also to punish firmly those who rise a)ainst :im ymind$ ody or speech. -he te3t of the mantram is as followsD

*ama$ Sa$amaanaaya *! yaad$!na Aa yaad$!neenaam 4ataye *ama$ (1)

0y the salutation # *ama$ Sa$amaanaaya $% Sri Rudram cele rates Sri Rudran2s 8ualities ofcontrollin) :is enemies and for)ivin) the trespasses of :is devotees ecause of :is enormousaffection for them. 0y the salutation$ # *! yaad$!ne *ama$ $% Sri Rudram pays tri ute to thee3traordinary capa ility of Sri Rudran to pulveri*e :is enemies. In the final salutation of thefirst mantram$ the commander5in5chief status of Sri Rudran and :is leadership of :is army to

punish the wicked is alluded to. -his salutation is$ # *ama$ A yaad$!neenaam 4ataye *ama$ .%:e is thus reco)ni*ed as the commander of the heroic army of Siva 7anaas containin) fiercefi)hters such as +)hora Veera hadran$ who destroyed the <aksha Prajaapathi2s ya);nam at the

ehest of Sri Rudran.

&$e Second Mantram

-he second mantram e)ins to focus on the theme of :is ein) the chieftain of thieves. -hemantram itself is as followsD

*ama$ >akub$aaya *!s$ang!n< Ste<naanaam 4ataye *ama$ ( )

:is sarva saakshi aspect is descri ed in this and the ne3t si3 manthras$ as :is relationship to thethieves is ein) developed. :e is saluted as # >ak$ub$aaya nama$ $% meanin) #:ail to the chiefof thieves.% :is appearance in :is role as the chief of thieves is ne3t descri ed when Sri Rudramsalutes :im as # *!s$ang!n< nama$ %. -his salutation reco)ni*es :im as the one who wields thesharp5 laded sword in :is hands. :e is ne3t addressed as # St<naanam 'ataye nama$ %. :ere$

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Vedam hails :im as the Lord of the -hieves$ who hides and waits to am ush :is victims. St<na$ refers to one who conceals himself while performin) a theft. In contrast$ &askara$ isone who openly commits a theft. -he intent of the mantram is to remind us that Iswaran issupremely skillful in every activity and is not ereft of leadin) the skills of even thieves. It is :ewho watches over and later redeems the soul of the thieves who knowin)ly or unknowin)ly are

en)a)ed in sinful acts. 0y the Lord2s )race$ the thief mends his wayC that is when his heart isstolen y the Lord. + former thief has no power in preventin) the theft of his heart when theleader amon) the thieves :imself makes a strike for his heart.

&$e &$!rd Mantram

-he third mantram focuses on the Lord who elon)s to the cate)ory of &askara$ . Maheswara issaluted in this manthram as # &askaraanaam 4ataye nama$ .% -he appearance of thecommander5in5chief of thieves ! &askara$ " is descri ed as havin) a ow and an arrow in :is

hand and an arrow ca)e on :is ack. -he militaristic attire of Sri Rudran is saluted as# *!sang!na Isud$!mat$e nama$ .% -he whole manthram is as followsD

*amo *!sang!na Isud$!mat< taskaraa*aam 4atay< *ama$ (@)

&$e Fourt$ Mant$ram

-he fourth manthram continues to descri e other kinds of thieves$ for whom Sri Rudran is alsocommander5in5chief. -he fourth manthram is as followsD

*amo -anc$at< 4ar! anc$at< St$aayoonaam 4atay< *ama$ ( )

-hree kinds of thieves and their specialties in thievery are descri ed here. Lord Maheswara isidentified as the leader of them as well$ esides St$enaa$ and &askaraa$ .

-he first of the three kinds of thieves is -anc$at$a$ . -his type of thief will e faithful to hismasters$ ut will cheat and ro some of them occasionally. -he second kind of thief is

4ar! anc$at$a$ . -his one cheats and ro s everyone. -he last of the triad of thieves mentionedhere is St$aayoo$ . :e is the one who is an insider and ro s in day or ni)ht without revealin)himself and y etrayin) the trust placed in him as an honored mem er of his community. LordMaheswaran is saluted as the 'at$! !leader" of all of these three types of thieves.

-he respective salutations are as followsD

*amo -anc$at< 4atay< *ama$ *amo 4ar! anc$at< 4atay< *ama$ *amo St$ayoonam 4atay< *ama$

&$e F!"t$ Mant$ram

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-he ne3t manthram cele rates the Lord playin) the role of chieftain of another triad of thieves.

*amo n!c$<ra < 4ar!c$araayaara*yaanaam 4at$ay< *ama$ (B)

-he first of the salutations is *amo *!c$era e 4at$ay< *ama$ . -he rest are as followsD *amo

4ar!c$araaya 4at$ay< nama$ and n amo Aaranyaanaam 4at$ay< *ama$ . -he first kind ofthief is the kind who is stayin) at his superior2s house and idin) for his time to commit a theft.-he second kind of thief is the one who roams around the a*aar committin) ur)laries. -hethird type is the one who lives in forests to waylay unwary travellers. -he Rudram salutes SriRudran as the chief of this triad of thieves as well.

&$e S!Ct$ Mant$ram

In the si3th manthram$ another triad of thieves is descri ed and the Lord2s su*erainty over themis saluted. -he mantram takes the followin) formD

*ama$ Sr? kaa !b$y8 7!g$agum Sad$b$y8 Mus$*ataam 4atay< *ama$ ( )

-he three kinds of thieves mentioned are as followsD

!&" -he armed ro er who harms others while protectin) himself throu)h his weaponsa)ainst counter attacks. -his type of thief is Sr?kaa !

!@" -he one who harms animals while committin) ro ery. -his one is *!d$agumsa$ .

!A" -he type who does not attack anyone ut commits property theft$ such as stealin) others)rains stored in fields.

-he salutations to Iswaran as the Lord of this triad of thieves are as followsD

*ama$ Sr? kaa !b$yo 4atay< *ama$ *ama$ 7!g$agumsad$b$y8 4atay< *ama$ *ama$ Mus$*ataam 4atay< *ama$

&$e Se ent$ Mant$ram -he te3t of the seventh manthram is as followsD

*amo as!mad$b$y8 *akt$amc$arad$b$ya$ 4rakr? ntaanaam 4at$aye *ama$ (E)

-he words as!mad$ $ *aktamc$ara$ $ and 4rakr?ntaa$ descri e the a ove three kinds of thievesand this manthram salutes the 'at$! of all these three types of thieves.

!Meanin)"D Salutations to him $ who sports the sword in his hand$ who roams around in the ni)htto steal and to him$ who is the leader of those who cause odily harm and steal .

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&$e <!g$t$ Mant$ram

-he ei)hth manthram is the last of the manthrams in this +nuvakam to salute the Lord as theleader of the thieves. :ere$ the manthram descri es the two kinds of thieves en)a)ed in cheatin)

and ro in) people of their fields and houses. ,ne type stays in the villa)e and cheats themwhile occupyin) posts as civil servants. -his kind of thief a uses the privile)es of his office andsteals the wealth of fellow villa)ers )radually. -his kind of thief looks like the rest of thevilla)ers for all intents and purposes e3cept that this type of thief wears the official dress.=orrupt politicians of the modern day are )ood e3amples of this type of thieves. -he other kindlives outside the villa)e in forests and caves and lands on the villa)e on forays to steal thevilla)ers2 property periodically.

-hese two types of thieves focusin) on the villa)ers are known as >u un7anaa$ . -he typewearin) the official tur an is descri ed as Us$nees$!na$ . -he type which commits rovin)ro ery from its mountain or forest ase is descri ed as =!r!c$araa$ . -he te3t of the whole

manthram descri in) these types of thieves is as followsD

*ama us$*ees$!n< =!r!c$araaya >u un7aanam 4atay< *ama$ ( )

&$e *!nt$, &ent$ and &we "t$ Mant$rams

In the remainin) nine manthras of the third +nuvakam$ salutations are made to the prowess ofSri Rudra in :is warrior form. -ri ute is paid to the Sarvaantharyaamin !indweller" andSarvavyapi !all5pervasive" aspects of Sri Rudra. -hese mantraas are 8uite rief ut profound inmeanin).

4rom mantraas ( to &@$ we come across the descriptions of Sri Rudran in :is fierce warrior form.-he ninth mantram for instance salutes SrI Rudran with ow and arrow in :is hands. -hemantram itself is as followsD

*ama Is$umadb$yo D$an aa0 !b$yascc$a -o *ama$ (9)

Khile descri in) the fierce and terrifyin) ! =$ora " forms of Sri Rudran$ the mantrams performdual salutations ! ub$ayat$o namaskaarams " to make sure that Sri Rudra at least catches one orthe other of the Pranaamams. -hat is why we see the +ksharam ! o" in the mantrams toemphasi*e the ub$ayat$o namaskaarams . :ere$ Sri Rudran is visuali*ed as holdin) the arrowin one hand ! Is$umad$b$ya$ " and the ow ! D$an a !b$ya$ " in the other hand. -he tenth mantram takes us up one more step like the unfoldin) of a scene into different dynamicframes.

In this mantram$ Sri Rudran is visuali*ed as tyin) the cord to the ow and puttin) the arrow onthe cord for aimin) at the tar)et. :is act of tyin) the cord is saluted as Aatan aaneb$ya$ a$nama$ . -he act of settin) the arrow on the cord for delivery is saluted as 4rat!dad$Aneb$ya$

a$ nama$ . -he whole manthram is as followsD

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*ama$ Aatan aan<b$ya 4rat!dad$Aneb$yascc$a -o *ama$ (12)

-he eleventh manthram continues to descri e the ne3t step in the lossomin) of Sri Rudran2sskills as a Master +rcher. -his manthram is as followsD

*ama$ Aayacc$adb$yo -!sru7adb$yascc$a -o *ama$ (11)

:ere$ salutation is made to Sri Rudran as :e is pullin) the cord to set the tension for releasin)the arrow. -he two namaskaarams are # Aayacc$adb$ya$ a$ nama$ % and #-!sru7adb$yascc$a

a$ nama$ .% In one salutation$ :e is praised for drawin) the cord and in the other for releasin)the arrow.

-he twelfth manthram descri es the final sta)e of the delivery of arrow$ which relates to the power to land the arrow in the direction of the tar)et and hittin) the tar)et precisely. -hismanthram is as followsD

*amosyadb$yo !d$yab$d$yascc$a -o *ama$ (1 )

:ere$ # Asyad$b$ya$ a$ nama$ % refers to :is unfailin) skill in hittin) the tar)et successfully.

&$e &$!rteent$, Fourteent$, F!"teent$, S!Cteent$ and Se enteent$ Mant$rams

-he remainin) ? manthras of this +nuvakam praises :is pervasive presence in all livin) ein)sand in all sta)es of their activities.

-he thirteenth manthram salutes Sri Rudran as the one who is seated and as the one who isrestin). -his manthram is as followsD

*ama Aaseeneb$ya$ Sayaaneb$yascc$a -o *ama$ (1@)

-he portion of the manthram payin) respect to the seated form of Sri Rudran is # Aaseeneb$ya$a$ namo nama$ .% -he other portion of the manthram salutes the restin) form of Sri Rudran as

# Sayaaneb$yascc$a a$ namo nama$ .% -he fourteenth manthram pays its re)ards to Sri Rudra in :is wakeful ! 7aagradb$ya$ " andsleepin) ! s a'adb$ya$ " states. -he manthram correspondin) to this namaskaranam is asfollowsD

*ama$ S a'adb$yo Jaagradb$yascc$a -o *ama$ (1 )

-he fifteenth mantram salutes Sri Rudran s stationary and mo ile forms. +s :e stays put!t!s$tadb$ya$ "$ :e is salutedC as :e runs ! d$aa adb$yascc$a " after the devotees to save themfrom their misfortunes$ :e is a)ain saluted. -his mantram payin) its respect to the stationary anddynamic forms of Sri Rudran is as followsD

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*amast!s$tadb$yo D$aa adb$yascc$a -o *ama$ (1B)

-he si3teenth manthram of the third +nuvakam salutes Sri Rudran as a leader of an assem ly of people and as the various mem ers in that assem ly. :ere$ the analo)y is to the sun in the skywhich is reflected in a river or in a well or in a pot of water. -he same sun is seen everywhere

althou)h it looks like there are many individual suns. -his mantram is as followsD *ama$ sab$aab$ya; sab$aa'at!b$yascc$a -o *ama$ (1 )

-he namaskaarams are *ama Sab$aab$ya$ , Sab$aa'at$!b$yascc$a namo nama$ .

-he final manthram of this +nuvakam salutes :im as ein) the indweller of the poor and therich. -he analo)y is to As a$ !horses" and As a'at!b$ya$ !riders or owners of horses". -hehorse carries its owner to places of usiness so he can accumulate wealth. -he horse itself doesnot share that wealth$ e3cept that it )ets fed. -he horse does not plan for the ne3t day2s work tomake wealth$ ut the horse owner does.

-he mantram containin) these thou)hts on the Viswa antaryaamitvam of Sri Rudran is asfollowsD

*amo As eb$yoscc$a 4at!b$yascc$a -o *ama$ (1E) +ll of the & manthras of the third +nuvakam are treated as one unitary manthram. +s such$they share their Rishi$ <evathaa and =handas. -he =handas is 0ruhathi. -he Rishi and the<evatha is SrI Rudran :imself.

-he <hyanam for this +nuvakam is enshrined in the followin) eautiful passa)eD

Roo'a +ou ana Sam'annaa Moort$e a -ana De at$aa 4us$'!t$aneka 4unnaaga Sa$akara S!Soo'ama$ 4anc$a -!msat$! *aks$atra Maayura >r? at$a Sek$ara$ Aka anga Sarat 4oorna :$andra /!mb$a Samaanana$ 4raat$ar -!bbudd$a 4admab$am -asaanam c$arma >oma am Sa yaa'asa ya !d$rut$a Ma a -!boos$!ta$ D$araa >adamba 4un7ena *ab$!desa 4ra am/!naa Aa7angam 4reks$aneeyena 4reks$aneeyo'! Satrub$!$ /$oo D$arasya c$a :$aar/ang! >anyaa ankaara Sob$!t$aa AadarSa Moort$!$ S$ob$anaamanyaa *areer a *!rma aa&asya %aste D$anur Datt a Saramekam c$a *!rma am&ad$eeyamamsa Maa am yaaS !s$tam -aamena /aa$unaa

Sugand$! 4us$'asta/agamaagraayaagraaya 4a*!naa$-ee7yaamano Mandamandam -ana 'a a a saaka$aya

Sama r?tt$o /a aka!scc$a S ab$!scc$ab$! Mano$ara!$=acc$adb$!ragrat$o Dr? 't$a! D$yaat$a yo Jagaataam =uru$

< am Roo'o Ma$ate7aa >!taara -a'ureeswara$

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-he eautiful form of Sri Rudran as 1irata 0hairavan is saluted throu)h the <hyana sloka. :e ismovin) a out the forest in the )ar of a hunter accompanied y his consort 0hairavi. -hemeanin) of the slokas is summari*ed elowD

:e is rimmin) with youthful stren)th and eauty$ and :e looks like a forest )od. :e looks in

:is eauty as youn) saplin)s of punna)a and man)o trees with their full lossoms of flowersC :eis wearin) peacock feathers in :is tressesC :e is also adorned y @? nakshatras !stars" in :iscoiffure. :is face is like a full moon in its eauty and it is free of any lemish. :e is wearin) adress made of animal skin$ which makes :im look like the just5 lossomed mornin) lotus in its

eautyD on the left and ri)ht side of :is ody$ :e is wearin) the eautiful yellow flowers knownas 1onrai. 4rom :is waist onto :is ankles$ :e is wearin) a dress made of katham a flowersC:is eauty is such that even :is enemies are overcome y it. :e reminds one of the fullydecorated woman possessin) all the A@ saamudrika lakshanams of eauty ecause of :isoverpowerin) presence.:e has )iven :is ow and arrow to :is consort and with that freed hand of :is$ :e is restin) itover :er shoulder in a posture of em race. Kith :is other !ri)ht" hand$ :e is holdin) a unch of

flowers close to :is nose to enjoy their fra)rance. Khile :e moves around the forest in thecompany of :is consort$ the )entle ree*e caused y the movement of the leaves cools :im. :eis surrounded y powerful do)s and little children$ as :e moves around as a hunter in the forest.-he verses say that we should meditate on this form of the lustrous teacher of the universe.

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&$e Fourt$ Anu akam

-here are &B mantras in this +nuvakam. -hey cele rate Sri Rudran$ who is pervasively presentin all livin) ein)s and thin)s. -he ener)y ehind all the activities of human ein)s in all their

professions is also identified with the supreme ener)y of Sri Rudran empowered y Sri 6arasimhan ! Mantra Raaja Padha stotram" . -he ima)ination of the Vedam in listin) thevarieties of Sri Rudran$ immanent in all activities$ is e3traordinarily impressive.

&$e F!rst Mantram

-he first mantram refers to +m al$ who destroys +suras from all four sides !ri)ht$ left$ up anddown" y hittin) them. She also destroys them throu)h :er various forms as Varahi$ <handaMatha$ <ur)a$ =haamundi and others. Sri Rudran says that it is Sri Rudran$ who is ehind allthose destructive !samharam" activities. -he first mantram is as followsD

*ama$ Aa yaad$!neeb$yo ! !d$yanteeb$yascc$a o nama$ (1)

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-he namaskaaram # Aa yaad$!neeb$yo *amo *ama$ % refers to the skills and ener)y of the<evis$ who attack the +suras from all the four sides. -he other namaskaaram$#-! !d$yant$eeb$yascc$a a *amo *ama$ % refers to Sri Rudran ein) in the form of SamharaMoorthis$ appearin) as women and hittin) the +suras with many kinds of weapons.

&$e Second Mant$ram

-he second manthram identifies Sri Rudran with the +nu)raha Sakthis of <evathas such as theseven Maatrukas$ who are nothin) ut the +msas of Sri Raja Rajeswari. -he correspondin)salutation is #u ga*aab$ya$ -a$ *amo *ama$ %. -he other salutation contained in thismanthram refers to the an)ry <ur)a with :er ferocious aspects ! ugra ka as ". She takes pleasurein attackin) and destroyin) the enemies who harm the ri)hteous people. -he portion of thesecond manthram referrin) to Sri Rudran ein) the power ase of ferocious <ur)a is #t rugum

%at$eeb$ya$ -a *amo *ama$ %. -he whole manthram is as followsD

*ama uga*aab$yastrugum %at$eeb$yascc$a o nama$ ( )

&$e &$!rd Mantram

-he third mantram refers to Sri Rudra ein) the force ehind the scholars and pundits who makea livin) throu)h their intelli)ence and those who are the enefactors of such scholars and pandits.-his mantram is as followsD

*amo =r? tseb$yo =r? tsa'at!b$yascc$a o nama$ (@)

-he term =r?tsa$ refers to one who is oth a scholar and a materialist as opposed to adisinterested scholar. -he kin)s and other rich men who offer protection to such worldlyscholars are known as =r?tsa'at!$ .

&$e Fourt$ Mantram

-he fourth mantram refers to the various communities of craftsmen and artisans and pays tri uteto Sri Rudran as their protector. -he mantram is as followsD

*amo -raat<b$yo -raata'at!b$yascc$a o *ama$ ( )

-he term -raat$a denotes the many kinds of )uildsmen and their assem ly.

&$e F!"t$ Mantram

-he fifth mantram salutes Sri Rudran as the Lord protector of all the retinue !7anaas" that follow:im. :e is reco)ni*ed here as the 4at! !commander and protector" of the Siva 7anaas. -hemantram correspondin) to this salutation is as followsD

*amo =a*eb$yo =ana'at!b$yascc$a o *ama$ (B)

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&$e S!Ct$ Mantram

-he si3th mantram ela orates on the appearances of the 7a6aas for whom Lord Rudran is thecommander5in5chief. -his mantram is as followsD

*amo -!rU'eb$yo -!Swaru'eb$yascc$a -o *ama$ ( )

-!rU'am refers to the u)ly and fri)htenin) features of some of the Siva 7anaas in their ferocious!7hora" aspect. -!swaru'am refers to the multitudinous forms and features of the Siva 7anaas$who serve the Lord in all corners of :is universe. Vir pam can e interpreted as !gat$amru'am or !kaaram ru'am . If we follow the first definition$ Lord Rudran can e understood as+r pi or without any set form or shape ! 6ir)una 0rahmam concept" . -he second definitionrefers to :is pervadin) this universe in many ferocious forms.

&$e Se ent$ Mantram

-he seventh mantram is associated with the ei)ht types of wealth known as a6 !mat$yas$tasam'at$ . -he ei)ht types are an!ma !shrinkin) of one2s ody"$ ma$!maa !enlar)in) one2s ody"$ag!ma !li)htenin) of one2s ody to fly off"$ gar!maa !densifyin) one2s ody so no force can

move it"$ as!t$ am !a ility to seduce others or to let them follow"$ e!swaryam ! ein) a leader"$ 'raa't$! !)ettin) what one wishes" and 'rakaamyam !to e at any place one wants". Sri Rudranis referred to as the force ehind the one lessed with a6ima and other related powers. :e isalso saluted as the Lord of those who are not fortunate to have the animathi sakthis. -hemanthram is as followsD

*amo Ma$adb$ya$ >s$u ak<b$yascc$a o *ama$ (E)

Ma$adb$ya$ are those who have the sakthis such as a6imaa . >s$u eka$ are those who are notfortunate to have a6imathi sakthis.

&$e <!g$t$ Mantram

-he ei)hth mantram pays tri ute to Sri Rudran as the one who is seated on a chariot and as theone who is walkin) with :is own feet without the enefit of )oin) from place to place with thechariot. -his mantram is as followsD

*amo rat$!b$yo arat$<b$yascc$a o *ama$ ( )

&$e *!nt$ Mantram

-he ninth mantram relates to Sri Rudran as the one who is the form of the chariot and as the riderof that chariot. -his can also mean Sri Rudran is the form of this ody and one who directs it toen)a)e in various activities. -his mantram takes the fol&owin) formD

*amo Rat$eb$yo Rat$a'at!b$yascc$a o *ama$ (9)

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&$e &ent$ and < e ent$ Mantrams

-he ne3t two mantras relate to the military aspects of the force of Siva$ which ener)i*es andmana)es such activities. -he tenth and the eleventh mantrams dealin) with armies !footsoldiers" and cavalry are as followsD

*amass<naab$ya$ Senaan!b$yascc$a o *ama$ (12) *ama$ >s$att$rub$ya$ Sangra$eetrub$yascc$a o *ama$ (11)

Sri Rudran is reco)ni*ed as the assem led armies and their commander in the tenth mantram.-he ne3t mantram reco)ni*es :im as the force ehind the mechanics who fi3 the chariots and asthe ones who pull to a halt the horses that are ound to a chariot. 9arlier$ Sri Rudra wasaddressed as the one who was seated in the chariot. -he many forms of Sri Rudran! Sar aatmaka$ " prevalent in every act and function of life is alluded to here. It is hinted thatnothin) can move or function without :is ener)y and force.-he Vaish6ava para meanin) is thatSriman 6araya6an inside Sri Rudran empowers :im .

&$e &we "t$ and &$!rteent$ Mantrams

-he ne3t two mantrams descri e :is force ehind four other artisans followin) their respective professions. -hese mantrams are as followsD

*amastaks$ab$yo rat$akaareb$yascc$a o *ama$ (1 ) *ama$ >u aa eb$ya$ >armaareb$yascc$a o *ama$ (1@)

-he indwellin) aspects of Sri Rudran ehind carpenters$ chariot decorators$ potters and metalsmiths is alluded in the a ove two mantrams. In every one of them$ Vedam sees Sri Rudranen)a)ed and en)a)in) the artisans in their chosen fields of work.

&$e Fourteent$ and F!"teent$ Mantrams -he ne3t two mantrams pay re)ard to Sri Rudran as the activatin) force ehind ird5hunters$fishermen and weapon5smiths. -he two mantrams are as followsD

*ama$ 4un7!s$teb$yo *!s$aadeb$yascc$a o *ama$ (1 ) *ama$ Is$ukr? db$yo d$an akr? db$yascc$a o *ama$ (1B)

4un7!s$ta$ is the one who spreads a net on the floor of the forest to catch the irds for foodC *!s$aad$a is also a hunter H fora)er$ ut he catches fish. In )eneral$ the term *!s$aad$a standsfor a tri esman$ who has no a)ricultural skills.

-he a ove mantram salutes Sri Rudran as the power ehind the knowled)e and skills of all thea ove craftsmen.

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&$e S!Cteent$ and Se enteent$ Mantrams

-he remainin) two mantrams of this +nuvakam refer to other huntsmen concentratin) on woodsand their assistants$ who put collars on the huntin) do)s and dra) them to the hunts. ,ne of the

two mantrams refers to the +tma =haithanyam of Sri Rudran shinin) throu)h in such a lowlyanimal as a do) and salutes Sri Rudran who protects that lowly do) as well. -he two mantramsare as followsD

*amo Mr? gayub$ya$ S an!b$yascc$a o nama$ (1 ) *ama$ S ab$ya$; S a'at!b$yascc$a o nama$ (1E)

-he various references to Sri Rudran ein) the +tma =haithanyam !informin) intelli)ence" indo)s and horses and all classes of craftsmen only ela orates on the Mahavakyam$ # A$am

/ra$masm! % and #&$at$ t am0as! %. Sri Rudram throu)h these passa)es cele rates the conceptof Sarva advaitham. 0y statin) # *ama$ S ab$ya$ $% one does not e8uate the ody of Sri Rudran

to a do)$ ut rather refers to the chaitanyam resident in the do)2s ody as the same as theParameswara =haithanyam. -he cele rated 0ha)avad 7eetha passa)e$ # Sun!cc$a! a S a'aakec$a 4and!t$aa$ Sama Dars!na$ $% underlines this principle. -his 7eetha passa)e states that thetruly learned person looks with e8uanimity on the do) and the do)5eatin) chandala. -he knowerof the Self ! Atman " accordin) to the 7eetha sees nothin) ut the 0rahma =haithanyam ineverythin) of this universe. Such a person is not deluded y outer appearances or difference inoccupations pursued y the human ein)s to make their livin)s.

-he different mantrams of the 4ourth +nuvakam really state that the 0rahma =haithanyam)ivin) names and forms to various o jects of creation is the one and only$ undivided unitary

principle. Like the reflection of the Sun seen on the waters of 7an)a and the one seen on theunclean waters of the pond in a slum are nothin) ut reflections of the same sun. In a similarfashion$ the power of Sri Rudran is reco)ni*ed as the shinin) force ehind each and every livin)o ject$ independent of its form$ shape or rank. -he mantram reminds us that we should not emisled y outer appearances$ ut should reco)ni*e the underlyin) force that form the commondenominator amon) all the #diverse% ein)s$ associated with Sriman 6aar+ya6an2s creation.

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&$e F!"t$ Anu akam

-he limitless )lories of Sri Rudran and :is personal presence are cele rated in this +nuvakam.

&$e F!rst Mantram

-he first mantram is a cele rated one and is as followsD

*amo /$a aaya c$a Rudraaya c$a (1)

Ke see two c$a in this and other mantrams. -he aksharam c$a stands for #also%. -he a ove passa)e punctuated y it means that the salutations are not only for /$a a ut also for Rudra .-hese types of dual namaskaarams are known as anyat$o namaskaara mantra$ .

0y the salutation$ *amo /$a aaya $ reference is made to Sri Rudran as the ori)inator of thisunivese. 0y the salutation$ *amo Rudraaya c$a $ reference is also made to :is )reat 8ualitiesthat wipe away the sorrows of samsara and less one with moksham and freedom from the cyclesof irths and deaths.

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&$e Second Mantram

-he second mantram praises two other cele rated attri utes of Sri Rudran. ,ne is that :e issar an and the other is that he serves as 4asu'at$! . +ptly$ the mantram reminds us a out the

a ove two 8ualities throu)h the salutationD

*ama$0Sar aaya c$a 4aSu'ataye c$a ( )

Sar aaya c$a nama$ means a salutation to the Lord$ who attacks and destroys everythin) andevery ein) at 'ra ayam . :is 8ualities as Samhara Moorthi are cele rated throu)h thisnamaskaram.

4asu'ataye nama$ means that he is the Lord of all the jeevans known as 'asu . -he destiny ofthese jeevans is intricately tied to :im as their one and only overlord.

-he a ove two mantrams have a profound si)nificance since they descri e Rudran as theSupreme 7od who en)a)es in Pancha 1rithyams or five deeds. -hese five activities of :is are=reation ! Sr!s$t! "$ Protection and Maintenance ! St$!t$! "$ <estruction ! Sam$aram "$ :idin) thetruth ! &!rod$anam " and finally Moksham ! Anugra$am ".

-he namaskaram aimed at 0 $a an reco)ni*ed throu)h the namo /$a aaya portion of themantram refers to :is ! Sr!s$t! " creative aspect . *amo Rudraaya refers to :is +nu)raha aspect.

*ama Sar aaya refers to :is Samhara aspect. *ama 4asu'at$aye refers to :is aspect ofconcealin) his form throu)h Maya ! &r!od$anam " and Maintenance ! St$!t$! ".

-hese two manthras also remind one of the principles ehind 6ataraja$ the dancin) 7od$ whichis none other than the Lord of Paarvati sym oli*in) Pancha 1rithyams in :is dancin) pose. It is appropriate to di)ress here to comment on the importance )iven to Pancha 1rithyams inSaiva Siddhantham$ which cele rates Sri Rudram. In this Siddhantham !tradition"$ 7od does notcreate jeevans. :e creates the odies that house the jeevathmaas. -hus$ :e performs :is first ofthe five acts known as =reation. :e protects the odies that :e created throu)h the second of:is acts$ known as Sthithi. +t the conclusion of the cycle of those odies$ :e destroys them andthere y performs :is third act$ known as Samharam. +ll of the a ove acts take place on thisearth dealin) with the odies of livin) ein)s.

-he fourth and fifth acts known as -irodhanam and +nu)raham deal with the >eevathma and notwith their temporary shell$ which is the ody. 0y perfectin) the >eevathma inside$ :e prepares itto ecome fit to reach :is holy feet. -his act is known as -irodhanam. :e then lesses the>eevathma in its state of perfection and lesses it to join Siva Sayujyam. -his final act is knownas +nu)raham.

In the ody of the <ancin) 7od$ one witnesses the sym ols of the Pancha 1rithyams descri eda ove. -he Damarukam !little drum" on the upper ri)ht hand sym oli*es the act of creation$throu)h the notes it emanates. -he irth of limitless creatures and their irth cry is indicated y

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the sounds emanatin) from the play of the damarukam . -he hand )esture known as Ab$aya Mudra seen on the lower ri)ht hand side sym oli*es the protective !Sthithi" aspect of Panchakritya. ,n the upper left hand is +)ni$ which is nothin) ut Pralaya 1ala +)ni denotin)Samharam. 0y endin) :is ri)ht le) and placin) it on the ent ack of the <emon Muyalahan$Sri 6ataraja indicates the -irodh+nam aspect of :is Pancha krithyam. -his act prepares the

>eevathma to ecome perfect and there y 8ualify for +nu)raham$ which is sym oli*ed y thelifted left foot. -his 1unchita Padam is the lessin) for all jeevans to )et the release from theendless cycles of irth and death in Saiva siddh+ntam. -hrou)h the e3ercise of all of :is five acts represented y his lim s$ Sri 6ataraja Moorthy isworshipped with the salutation$ # 8m 4anc$akrt? ya 4aarayanaaya *ama$a .% -his Pancha1rithyam formin) the asis of Saiva Siddhantham is the su ject of the first two manthrams of thefifth +nuvakam.

&$e &$!rd Mant$ram

-he third manthram salutes 6ataraja as the luish5throated 6eela 1anta in reference to :isdrinkin) the potent poison that came out of the milky ocean$ when it was churned y the asuraasand devaas. :is eautiful white neck$ prior to swallowin) the poison is also saluted in thismanthram as followsD

*amo *ee agree aya c$a S!t$!kanDaaya c$a (@)

-he merciful aspect of Sri Rudran to protect the world from the cruel effects of the poison iscele rated here.

&$e Fourt$ Mant$ram

-he fourth manthram salutes Sri Rudran as the one with eautiful matted hair ! Jata " and also asthe one in the form of a Sanyasi with clean5shaven head. >a'art$! means one with an assem lyof matted hair. -he Paramahamsa or the Sanyasi form of SI Rudran is indicated y thesalutation$ -yu'at$a kesa c$a nama$ . Khen Lord Sankara appeared in this world with the fourVedas$ he took the form of +di Sankaracharya$ the sanyasi with shaven head. -he Vedas saythat the truly li erated wear +tma >n;+nam as tresses of the hair$ indicatin) that they do notkeep their hair or sacred thread in the Sanyasa +shrama. -his is accordin) to +dhvaita sany+si2scode of conduct . -he Vaish6ava sany+sis keep their tufts and Sikh+s . Since Sri Rudran is the)reatest interpreter of 0rahma Vidya as Sri <akshinamoorthy ! /ra$mad$!'at$!r

/ra$amano'at$! "$ :e is ,ne of the )reatest of sanyasis and acharyas.

-he mantra is as followsD

*ama$ >a'ard!n< c$a -yu'takeSaaya c$a ( )

&$e F!"t$ Mantram

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-he fifth mantram praises :is ViSwa Roopam. :is power as a supreme warrior wieldin) many ows in the form of Pranavam$ Vedam$ Meru Mountain and Pinakam is also praised in thismantram. -he te3t of this manthram is as followsD

*amas0sa$asraaks$aaya c$a Satad$an an< c$a (B)

0y the naamam Sahasraksha$ Vedam points out that Sri Rudran has thousands and thousands ofeyes. :e witnesses throu)h them all the activities of the humans and livin) ein)s. -hus$ :eknows a out everythin) #under the sun% and acts as ViSwa Saakshi.

Satad$an ane nama$ c$a refers to the incident of -ripura Samharam$ where Meru Mountain ecame :is ow and Vishnu ecame the arrow. -his namaskara6am also reminds one ofanother time$ where Pranavam ecame :is ow and Saavitri <evi ecame the cord of such ow.Lord Rudran places ferocious Ast$ras !arrows" like 4aasu'atam on :is ow and destroys theenemies of the world.

&$e S!Ct$ Mant$ram

-he si3th manthram praises SrI Rudran who is resident in 1ailasa Mountain ! =!r!Saaya c$anamo nama$ " and who appears in the form of Vishnu Rupa ! S!'! !s$taaya *ama$ ". Vedam atone place says Vishnu and Sivan are one throu)h the assertionD -!s$nu$ S!'! -!s$ta$ . -here isnot much space to comment on the deeper meanin)s of this Sruti passa)e here . -his si3thmantram relatin) this thou)ht is as followsD

*amo =!r!saaya c$a S!'! !s$taaya c$a ( )


-he a ove manthram touched on the Rudra and Vishnu aspects of Supreme 0rahman. -hesu se8uent manthram touches on the creative aspects associated with :$at$ur Muk$a /ra$mathrou)h the salutation$ *amo Meedus$tamaaya c$a . Meedus$tamaa refers to 0rahma$ whocreates the universe in the role of %!ranya =arb$a . ,ne of the Rudra 7ayatri manthras found inMaha 6arayana panishad shows us the connection etween 0rahma and Rudra. -he passa)eof the panishad is as followsD

-edaat$manaaya -!d$ma$e %!ranya =arb$aaya d$eema$! &anno /ra$ma 4rac$odayaat

-he same Maha 6arayana panishad$ which has many passa)es on Sri Rudran$ e3plains theidentity etween Rudra and 0rahma in another section even more e3plicitly as followsD

>adrudraaya 4rac$et$ase Meedus$tamaaya &$a yase-oc$ema Sant$amam %r!de

Sar o$yes$$a Rudrast$asma! Rudraaya *amo Ast$u

-he meanin) of the a ove panishadic passa)e is$ #Ke sin) a hymn to the most praiseworthy$who creates these universes and who is endowed with the hi)hest knowled)e. :e rains o jects

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to the devotees in a undance. :e is the most powerful one who resides in the heart center.Indeed$ all this is Rudra. Salutations e to Rudra who is an em odiment of such )loriousattri utes.% -he seventh mantram containin) reference to Meedus$taman is as followsD

*amo MeeDus$tamaaya c$es$umate c$a (E)

0esides Meedushtaman$ the mantram also salutes Sri Rudran as the one who has the most powerful arrows such as 4asu'at$ast$ram throu)h the salutation$ *amo :$es$umat$e c$a .-he salutation for Sri Rudran as Is$umat$e c$a nama$ refers to his <ivya +sthrams.

&$e <!g$t$ Mantram -he ei)hth mantram salutes the Da$arakasa Moort$! $ who resides in the heart cave as a tiny

presence. :e is also saluted as -aamana Moort$! $ the one with small lim s. -his mantram

takes the followin) formD

*amo %raswaaya c$a -aamanaaya c$a ( )

-he term %raswaaya nama$ refers to the tiny entity in the Da$araakaSam or %rdayakaSa .-he panishad testifies that there is none who is smaller than the Paramathma ! At$a$ 4aram

*aanyadaneeyam Sa %! 4araat$'aram " and provides support for the word$ %raswan .

&$e *!nt$ Mantram -he ne3t mantram cele rates the Mahadevan or 0rahadeeswaran who is immense in ma)nitude! 4araat$'aram +anma$at$o Ma$aant$am " . -his manthram also cele rates :is 1alyana7unas and offers its salutation to :is immensity and virtues. -his mantram is as followsD

*amo /r? $ate c$a -ars$eeyas< c$a (9)

-he word$ /r? $at $ esides meanin) /ra$mandam also means 4ara /ra$mam $ which is eternaland pervasive at all places and times. -he word$ -as$eerya$ $ refers to :is many auspicious8ualities.

&$e &ent$ Mant$ram

-he tenth manthram praises :is ancient nature and :is enevolence in )ivin) valued oons.-his manthram is as followsD

*amo r? dd$aya c$a Sam rd$ ane c$a (12)

:e is called -r?dd$a $ ecause :e is the oldest amon)st 7ods and$ as such$ is worshiped y all ofthem. :e is also worshiped y special stotrams and mantrams such as Sri Rudram. :ence :e issaluted$ # *amo Sam rd$ ane c$a .%

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&$e < e ent$ Mantram

In the eleventh mantram$ :e is cele rated as Ad$!nat$an . :e is saluted as Agr!yaa $ i.e$ one whowas present efore the creation of this universe. :e is also saluted as 4rat$aman $ i.e.$ one who

is the first amon) all 7ods. -his mantram is as followsD

*amo Agr!yaaya c$a 4rat$amaaya c$a (11)

&$e &we "t$ Mantram

*ama Aasa e c$a a7!raaya c$a (1 )

is the twelfth mantram of the fifth +nuvakam. :is pervasive presence in all thin)s and livin) ein)s of this universe as well as :is a ility to )et anywhere and everywhere is saluted here.

&$e &$!rteent$ Mantram -he thirteenth mantram praises Sri Rudran as the one who is in the swift flowin) waters as wellas in the calm ut hu)e collection of waters such as a vast lake. -his mantram is as followsD

*amas0Seegr!yaaya c$a Seeb$yaaya c$a (1@)

&$e Fourteent$ Mantram

-he fourteenth mantram reco)ni*es :im as ein) inside the waves of the oceans and as the onewho is in the 8uiet waters of the pond. -his mantram is as followsD

*ama 8ormyaaya c$aa as anyaaya c$a (1 )

&$e F!"teent$ Mantram

-he fifteenth and final mantram of this +nuvakam praises further the power of Sri Rudran whichis manifested everywhere in this universe. -his mantram is as followsD

*amas0srot$asyaaya c$a Dwee'yaaya c$a (1B)

-he salutation$ *ama$ Srot$asyaaya c$a $ refers to Sri Rudran ein) in the flow of smallstreams. -he second salutation$ *ama$ Dwee'yaaya c$a $ refers to :is presence in theconfluence of rivers. Khere the river splits into two$ :e is considered to e residin) at that spot.-his salutation can also e interpreted to mean that :e is the resident of sacred Dwee'ams suchas Jamb$u Dwee'am .

-he Supreme and the penetratin) power of Sri Rudran and :is Viswaroopam is cele rated in thefifth +nuvakam. -his +nuvakam has a joint <hyaana Slokam with the ne3t !si3th" +nuvakam.

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-his chapter has another &? manthrams. -he <hyaana Slokam is as followsD =aur! >araambu7a *yast$a Swarna Sa! a Saraasanam

Is$u %astam Rat$aaroodum *ara *aaree &anum Smaret$

-he +rdha 6ari Swaroopam of Sri Rudran is saluted here. :e is descri ed as 6ara 6aari -anu$with half of :is ody ein) male and the other half ein) female in its attri utes. :e is seen as ein) seated on a chariot. -he hand associated with the +m al part of :is ody is descri ed ascarryin) the Meru Mountain ent as a ow. -he Iswaran part of :is ody is seen carryin) a

eautiful arrow to launch from the ow held y +m al.

&$e F!rst Mant$ram

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-he first manthram cele rates :im as the scholar who leads everyone in education$ wisdom andscholastic attainments ! *amo Jy<s$taaya *ama$ " and the one who is not ! *amo >an!s$taaya

*ama$ ". -he full manthram com inin) the salutation to the a ove polar opposites to illustratethe Sarva antaryaamitvam of the Lord in one and all is as followsD

*amo Jyes$taaya c$a >an!s$taaya c$a (1)

-he Vaish6ava5para commentary would attri ute this #Sarva antary+mitvam # to the a)adita7atanaa sakti of Sriman 6aar+ya6an as the indweller of SrI Rudran .&$e Second Mant$ram

-he second mantram praises the Lord as the one who was present efore creation as well as theone who is present as Samhara Moorthi at the time of Mahaa Pralayam !)reat delu)e". :e is

present as :ira6ya 7ar haa at the time efore creation and as 1alaa)ni at the time of MahaaPralayam. -he mantram is as followsD

*ama$ 4oor a7aaya c$aa'ara7aaya c$a ( )

&$e &$!rd Mantram

-he third mantram cele rates Lord Rudran in the form of a youth and a small oy. -hismantram focuses on the period etween =reation and <estruction which is the middle period ofSthithi. -his mantram focusin) on the middle period is as followsD

*amo Mad$yamaaya c$aa'aga b$aaya c$a (@)

Mad$yamaa also refers to the middle sta)e etween Sa!sa am and yu a$ i.e.$ childhood andadulthood. -he namaskaara6am$ *amo a'aga b$aaya c$a $ refers to a little oy efore the sta)eof Mad$ayamaa . -he form of 0ala Su rama6yan can e related to *amo A'aga b$aaya c$a .

&$e Fourt$ Mantram

-he ne3t manthram continues to praise :im as the asis of all o jects of this universe. :ere$ themantram salutes :im as havin) the form of the calf that comes into the world from the rear sideof the cow. +dditional salutation is made to :im for e3istin) in the form of the roots of thetrees$ which appear at the ottom side of the trees. Ke are also reminded that :e is the root ofmercy sustainin) the tree of life. :e can also e viewed as the root of the -ree of Vedas. -hefourth mantram containin) these thou)hts is as followsD

*amo Jaganyaaya c$a /ug$n!yaaya c$a ( )

&$e F!"t$ Mantram

-he fifth mantram cele rates further the thou)ht that :e is the indweller of every livin) thin)and non5livin) thin) in this universe. -his mantram is as followsD

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*amassob$yaaya c$a 4rat$!saryaaya c$a (B)

Sob$a has een interpreted to mean the world of human ein)s or manus$ya okam . -he term$ 4rat$! sara$ $ has een interpreted y 0hasyak+raas in two ways. In the first case$ it represents irds$ animals and humans who can transport themselves from place to place. :ere$ the meanin)

is that :e is the dweller in such a Jangama 4rabanc$am . -he second meanin) of 4rat$!sara$is the sacred thread that is tied on the hands of a ride or ride )room as Raks$a /$andanam atthe time of the weddin). :ere$ Sri Rudran is said to e present as a protector on those auspiciousoccasions.

&$e S!Ct$ Mantram

-he si3th mantram cele rates :im as the resident Lord of +ama #okam to mete out the punishment for the sinners ! *amo +aamyaaya c$a " and as the resident Lord of Swargam!heaven" to reward the ones who have earned their places throu)h their )ood deeds. -he fullmanthram is as followsD

*amo +aamyaaya c$a ks$<myaaya c$a ( )

,ther interpretations for the words +ama$ and >s$ema$ have also een su))ested y thecommentators. -he word +ama refers to the one who appears at the last moment of one2s life! 4raana -!yoga >aa am ". -he word >s$ema$ is associated with one$ who throu)h lessin)s$removes the sufferin)s of the departin) soul and confers the lessin)s of Moksham. -he story ofMarkandeya and the Lord s intervention as Mr?t$yun7aya is illustrative of the concepts outlined

y this manthram from a Pur+6ic perspective .


-he seventh manthram salutes :im as ein) the resident of a fertile field of )rains ! *amaUr ayaaya c$a " and also as the resident of a arren harvested field ! *ama$ >$a yaaya c$a ".-he thou)ht here is that :e is the Lord of plenty and the opposite of that attri ute. -his mantramis as followsD

*ama$ Ur aryaaya c$a >$a yaaya c$a (E)

&$e <!g$t$ Mant$ram

-he ne3t manthram cele rates :im as the one praised y the Veda Manthras in the 1arma1andam section$ and also$ as the one whose Swaroopam is attempted to e defined y the

panishads$ which appear as the concludin) section of the Vedas. -he inner meanin) is that all portions of the Vedas praise Lord Rudran throu)h their passa)es of Mantrams ! *ama$ S okyaaya c$a ". -he 6amaskara6am$ *ama$ A asaanyaaya c$a $ refers to :im not only as theo ject of praise y the panishads$ ut also as the supreme force$ which is at the side of >eevans$durin) their last moments on this earth. -he full mantram takes the followin) formD

*ama$ S okyaaya c$aa asaanyaaya c$a ( )

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-he ninth manthram is as followsD

*amo anyaaya c$a kaks$yaaya c$a (9)

:e is saluted here as the one who is in the form of the trees of the forest as well as the creepersand little plants in the ushes.

&$e &ent$ Mantram

-he tenth mantram cele rates :im as the sound force and its echo. -his mantram is as followsD

*ama$ Sra aaya c$a 4rat$!sra aaya c$a (12)

+dditional meanin) )iven to Sra a$ is that :e is the one who is #oka 4ras!dd$an $ a well5

known entity in this world. -he word 4rat!sra a$ has een interpreted to mean that :e is theultimate answer to all the mysteries and 8uestions of life.

&$e < e ent$ Mantram

-he eleventh mantram is as followsD

*ama Aasus$<*aaya :$aaSurat$aaya c$a (11)

:ere$ :is warrior aspect leadin) an army and :is own chariot are cele rated. Asus$ena meansthe one who is at the head of a rapidly movin) army and who has the ownership of such a fastarmy. Asurat$a$ means one who drives his chariot rapidly in a attle field to destroy swiftly hisenemies or the one who rushes in a fast chariot to respond to the call of his devotees who are indan)er.

&$e &we "t$ Mantram

-he twelfth mantram salutes :im as the valorous one ! Suran " and as the one who tears asunderthe unri)hteous ones ! A ab$!ndat$e c$a *ama$ ". -he full manthram is as followsD

*ama Sooraaya :$aa ab$!ndat< c$a (1 )

&$e &$!rteent$ Mantram

-he thirteenth mantram of the si3th +nuvakam salutes Sri Rudran as a warrior a)ain. :e iscele rated as the one wearin) the attle armor ! arma " and as the one who protects the specialsection in a chariot ! Rat$am " where the driver of the path has to take refu)e ! aroot$am " intimes of dan)er durin) the attle. -his mantram is as followsD

*amo arm!n< c$a aroot$!ne c$a (1@)

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-he term$ aroot$am $ has also een interpreted as a eautiful house$ denotin) :is residence in1ailasa.


-he fourteenth mantramD

*amo /! m!n< c$a >a ac$!n< c$a (1 )

continues to praise the warrior form of Sri Rudran. In the previous mantram$ :e was worshippedas # *amo arm!ne$ c$a %. -his mantram praises :im as # *amo /! m!n< c$a >a ac$!n< c$a .%Varma and 1avacham refer to the attle armor that a warrior wears over his ody and lim s.Varma refers to the protection worn from neck to waist and 1avacham refers to the metal shirtworn as protection from neck to heel.

&$e F!"teent$ Mantram

-he fifteenth and the last mantram of the si3th +nuvakam praises Sri Rudran as the one who iscele rated y the Vedas and also as the one who commands :is armies known for theirillustrious valor. -he fifteenth mantram is as followsD

*ama$ Srutaaya c$a Sruta0s<naaya c$a (1B)

-he recitation of the &? mantrams of the si3th +nuvakam for && days without interruption is saidto result in lon) life$ defeat of one2s enemies$ irth of ri)hteous children and material prosperity.

&$e Se ent$ Anu akam

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-his chapter also praises Sri Rudran as the all5powerful force$ who is the Sarva +ntharyaami ofall livin) ein)s. -he <hyaana Slokam for the +nuvakam$ which is made up of &' manthrams$is as followsD

Jatab$!r #amb$amaanaab$!r *r? t$yant$am Ab$aya 4rad$am De am Suc$!sm!t$am D$yaayet$ -yagra :$arma 4ar!s$krut$am !meanin)"

3" shou&d m"ditat" on Sri Rudran in th" %orm o% Natara4a, dan in' #ith $is &on' matt"d hair*3" shou&d m"ditat" on his /bhaya $astham, body ov"r"d #ith ti'"r s in and $is smi&in'

ount"nan "*

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Recitation of this +nuvakam as one Maha Mantram is said to less one with intelli)ence$ lon)life$ health$ wealth$ children and Siva Saayujyam .

&$e F!rst Mantram

-he first mantram cele rates *aadant$a Swaroo'am . -he manthram is as followsD

*amo Dundub$yaaya c$aa$ananyaaya c$a (1)

:e is saluted as the sound inside the percussion instrument known as /er! -ad$yam . -hissalutation is$ # *amo Dundub$yaaya c$a .% :e is also reco)ni*ed as the stick$ which is used to

eat the skin of /er! -ad$yam to raise the sound. -he salutation is$ # *amo Aa$ananyaayac$a .%

&$e Second Mantram

-he second mantram praises :is prowess in the attlefield. -he mantram itself is as followsD

*amo D$r? s$na < c$a 4ramr? saaya c$a ( )

-he namaskaaram$ # D$r?s$na e *ama$ % pertains to :is mi)hty skills that result in :is notleavin) the attlefield without defeatin) :is enemies. :is indefati)a le stamina and power arealluded to here.

-he salutation$ # *amo 4ramr? saaya $% refers to :is intimate knowled)e a out the stren)th andweakness of the army of :is enemy. -his knowled)e certainly helps Sri Rudran to defeat :isenemies.

&$e &$!rd Mantram

-he third mantram continues to focus on :is knowled)e and :is helpful nature. -he manthramis as followsD

*amo Dootaaya c$a 4ra$!taaya c$a (@)

:e is praised as a skillful diplomat and messen)er ! dootaa " in that :e knows very well how toe3press :is thou)hts to others and to analy*e other2s messa)es while en)a)ed in ne)otiations on

ehalf of others.

-he namaskaaram$ # *amo 4ra$!t$aaya $% refers to :is help to :is devotees$ when they ask :imto perform some service for them. 4or instance$ when Sundara Moorthi 6ayanar asked his friend!m!t$ran "$ Sri -hya)araja Peruman of -hiruvarur$ to )o on a mission to calm down his an)rywife$ he went and helped out. :ere$ 6aayanar acted as thou)h he was the master ! +a7amaan " ofthe Lord of -hiruvarur -emple and the latter o li)ed his friend.

&$e Fourt$, F!"t$ and S!Ct$ Mantrams

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-he fourth and fifth manthrams praise once a)ain Sri Rudran2s sword ! *!s$ang!ne *amo

*ama$ "$ :is powerful arrow ca)e ! Is$ud$!mat$e namo nama$ "$ :is sharp5tipped arrows!&ees$nes$a e nama$ " and :is many ferocious weapons ! nama$ Aayud$!ne c$a ". -he te3t ofthe fourth and fifth manthrams are as followsD

*amo n!s$ang!*< c$es$ud$!mat< c$a ( ) *amasteeks$nes$a < c$aayud$!n< c$a (B)

-he si3th mantram also cele rates :is special weapon systems and superior ow in the followin)wayD

*ama$ S aayud$aaya c$a sud$an an< c$a ( )

&$e Se ent$ t$roug$ F!"teent$ Mantrams

4rom manthras to &?$ we come across the varied salutations of Sri Rudra ased on :is ein) asmall field path as well as the road hi)hway$ :is presence in many forms of water collected in asmall rivulet or a torrent or in a mi)hty river or in a pond or in a roadside ditch or in a well ofwater. :e is also reco)ni*ed as the water inside the clouds of the rainy month or in the clouds ofclear type associated with the autumn season. :e is also saluted as the wind that drives thoseclouds around. :is antaryaamitvam is thus cele rated once a)ain.

-he seventh manthram states that :e is in the form of the narrow path etween fields over whichone has to walk )in)erly ! *ama$ Sr? utyaaya ". :e is also seen to e present in the form of roadhi)hways that are easy to travel in ! *ama$ 4atyaaya c$a ". -he whole manthram is as followsD

*ama$ sr? utyaaya c$a 4at$yaaya c$a (E) -his mantram could also e interpreted to mean that :e can e reached y the hi)hway ofVaidhika Mar)am or y the narrow and tortuous -antric Mar)am not all of which are sanctioned

y the Vedas. -he ne3t ei)ht mantrams !G to &?" relate to :is presence in different forms of water and thecloud as well as the wind that aid in producin) the water. -hese mantras are as followsD

*ama$ >aaDyaaya c$a *ee'yaaya c$a ( ) *ama$ Sood$yaaya c$a Sarasyaaya c$a (9) *ama$ *aad$yaaya c$a -a!Santaaya c$a (12) *ama$ >oo'aaya c$a c$aa aDyaaya c$a (11) *amo -ars$yaaya c$aa ars$ayaaya ya c$a (1 ) *amo Meg$yaaya c$a -!d$yutyaaya c$a (1@) *amo Id$r!yaaya :$aata'yaaya c$a (1 ) *amo -aat$yaaya c$a Res$m!yaaya c$a (1B)

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-hese mantrams salute Sri Rudran in all these forms of water$ clouds and wind. I will )ive themeanin) of the &' namaskaarams contained in the a ove G mantras elowD

!&" *ama$ >aatyaaya c$a means one who is in the small ody of water associated with a

narrow canal.

!@" *ama$ *ee'yaaya c$a means one who is in the place where the roarin) waters of mi)htytorrents reak. -he allusion could e to :is )atherin) the roarin) waters of 7an)a on :istresses at the re8uest of 0ha)iratha s family.

!A" *ama$ Sood$yaaya c$a means one who is present in mud pools.

!B" *ama$ Sarasyaaya c$a means one who is present in the waters of the pond.

!?" *ama *aad$yaaya c$a means one who is found in river waters.

!'" *amo -a!Sant$aaya *ama$ means one who is found in the waters )athered in the form oflittle ditches.

! " *ama$ >oo'aaya c$a means one who is found in the waters of wells.

!G" *ama$ A atyaaya c$a means one who is in the waters of i) depressions in the landscape.

!(" *ama$ -ars$yaaya c$a means one who is present in the rain waters.

!&/" *ama$ A ars$yaaya c$a means one who is present in arid air$ devoid of rain waters. -hishas also een interpreted as one who is in the waters of the ocean$ which does not dependon rain for its e3istence.

!&&" *amo Meg$yaaya c$a means one who is present in the rainy clouds.

!&@" *amo -!d$yutyaaya c$a means one who is present in the li)htnin) emanatin) from thewater5laden cloud.

!&A" *amo Id$r!yaaya c$a means one who is reco)ni*ed in the spotless white clouds of theautumn season.

!&B" *amo Aata'yaaya c$a means one who makes :is residence in the warmth of the sun$ orone who is ehind the warmth of the sun2s rays throu)h :is efful)ence.

!&?" *amo -aatyaaya c$a means one who is the life force of the winds.

!&'" *amo Res$m!yaaya c$a means one who is present in the torrential rains and winds of 'ra ayam $ when the world ends.

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&$e S!Cteent$ Mantram

-he final mantram of the seventh +nuvakam is as followsD

*amo -aasta yaaya c$a -aastu'aaya c$a (1 )

+fter citin) the death and destruction associated with Ma$a 4ra ayam in the previous manthramand fri)htenin) us$ Sri Rudram calms us down y descri in) the tran8uil aspects of LordMaheswara. 0y the namaskaaram$ *amo -aast$a yaaya $ Sri Rudran is reco)ni*ed as theindweller of domestic animals such as cows and horses. 0y the namaskaaram$ *amo-aast$u'aaya $ :e is reco)ni*ed as the protector of the land on which one2s residence is uilt.:e is saluted for protectin) us from the rava)es of earth8uake$ and the under)round water thatcan destroy the foundations of the place of residence.

+ll these &' manthrams of the seventh +nuvakam are treated as one Maha Manthram. -he Rishifor this Maha Manthram is RomesarC the chandas is Maha +nushtupC the <evathaa is Sri Rudran

:imself.

&$e <!g$t$ Anu akam

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-he Rudram has && +nuvakams in all. +fter praisin) the antaryaamithvam and valor of SriRudran in the first +nuvakams$ Sri Rudram comes to the heart of the matter !i.e.$ the SivaPanchakshari" in the ei)hth +nuvakam.

-his +nuvakam is one of the most sacred sections of Sri Rudram$ since it contains the holy

Panchakshari Manthram known as 6amah Sivaaya. :is supremacy is also pointed out here. :isattri utes as the driver of sorrow of Samsaram is also saluted here as *ama$ Rudraaya c$a . -here are & manthrams in this +nuvakam. -here is no particular <hyaana slokam for this+nuvakam.

&$e F!rst Mantram

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-he first mantram salutes ma Maheswaran who drives all of our sorrows throu)h :is lessin)s.-he mantram is as followsD

*amas0somaaya c$a Rudraaya c$a (1)

-he Svetasvatara panishad passa)e e3plains the salutation$ *ama$ Rudraaya c$a . -hepanishad e3plains$ # Rut$am Samsaaradukk$am Draa yateet$! Rudra$ .% :e is cited here asthe one who can drive away the samsaric ills and sorrows. 0y the meditation of SrI Rudrran$ onecan )et the freedom from the oppressive sorrows of Samsaara . :is role as the #end5maker%!antaka " of sorrows is descri ed in Maha 6araayanopanishad as

4raanaanaam =rant$!ras! Rudro Maa -!saantaka$t<naannenaanyaayas a

*amo Rudraaya -!s$naa e Mr? tyur m< 4aa$! :ere$ an appeal is made to Rudra as the kin)pin ! indin) knot" of the reaths and or)ans of

senses functionin) in the ody. -he panishadic passa)e eseeches :im to enter thesupplicant2s ody and stay there as the indin) knot of reaths and senses$ which support one2sco)nition$ intellect and emotion. :e is asked to enter the devotee2s ody to drive away hissorrows and to nourish him with the food consumed as well as to protect him from accidents$diseases and death.

-he other salutation of the first mantram of the 9i)hth anuvakam is *ama$ Somaaya c$a . :ere$the word Somaa refers to one who is always seen with ma <evi. It has een hinted that theanu)raha power of Sri Rudran is primarily due to the )race of :is consort$ ma. -he passa)efrom 1aivalyopanishad 8uoted elow supports this special power of SrI Rudran$ ecause of thehelp of ma <eviD

Umaasa$aayam 4arames aram 4rab$um &r! oc$anam *ee akantam 4rasaant$am D$yaat$ aa Mun!rgac$$at! /$ootayon!m Samastasaaks$!n &amasa$ 4arast$aat$

She is known as +di Parasakthi for that reason. She has een saluted as the one who )ives the lessin)s of the understandin) of 0rahma Vidya. It has een stated clearly in the Puranas thatthe association with ma <evi confers Parameswaran the power of )ivin) Siva Saayujyam to thedevotees. -he slokam from one of the Puranaas in support of this line of thou)ht is as followsD

4aar at$! 4aramaa De ! /ra$ma !d$yaa'radaay!neetasmaatsa$a &ayaa Saktyaa $rud$! 4asayant$! +e S! amt<s$aam Saas at!kee S!dd$!rneteras$aama'! Srut!

-he Purana Slokam very clearly 8uotes the Vedas as sayin) that the lessin)s of Siva Saayujyamare conferred y Lord Siva only ecause of :is to)etherness with :is consort$ Paarvathi$otherwise known as ma. -he word ma is made up of the variations of Akaram and

Makaram which constitute the 4rana a !,m" Sabd$am . :ence$ ma is known as the essenceof Pranavam and therefore is called 4araasakt$! by De ! ors$!''ers . :ence$ Lord Sivanaffiliated with this 4araasakt$! and /ra$ma -!dyaa Swaroo'!n! draws his +nu)raha Sakthi

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from :er. -hus$ the salutation *ama$ Somaaya c$a takes special meanin)$ when looked in thisconte3t.

-he second mantram asserts what another section of Vedam preaches as Ad$yant$amastam+ant$amaad!t$yam ab$!d$yaayan . -his portion of Vedam points out that a devotee can o tain

prosperity and y meditatin) on +adityan !Soorya 6aar+ya6an" at <awn and <usk as theSupreme 0rahman.

&$e Second Mantram

In the second manthram$ the worship of Lord Rudran as the Para 0rahmam dwellin) inside+adithyan at <awn is descri ed. -he second mantram is as followsD

*amastaamraaya c$aarunaaya c$a ( )

-he color of the risin) Sun at first is coppery redC after a few minutes$ that color mellows to a

finer tint of red known as +runam. -he Rudropanishad passa)e 8uoted a ove indicated that SriRudra2s supreme lessin)s are o tained y meditatin) on :is +ntaryaamitvam inside the Sun atthe time of dawn and dusk. +nyone who misses the meditation at dusk and dawn can o tain the

lessin)s of Lord Rudra durin) the +runodhyam period$ when :e is sli)htly past the time of<awn. -his is the messa)e )iven y the second mantram2s salutation$ *ama$ Arunaaya c$a .

&$e &$!rd Mant$ram

-he third manthram is as followsD

*amasSangaaya c$a 4aSu'ataye c$a (@)

*ama$ Sangaaya c$a and *ama$ 4asu'at$aye c$a are the two salutations enshrined in thismantram. 0y the choice of the word S angan $ Sri Rudram reminds us that :e is the one who)ives happiness to all creatures on this earth and eyond.

-he 1aivalyopanishad Manthram descri es :im as Aad$aaram0aanandamak$a*dabod$am+asm! ayam +aat$! 4urat$rayanc$a . :e is reco)ni*ed as the su stratum$ the indivisi le liss5consciousness principle and one in which the three planes of consciousness )o into dissolution orattain #ayam . -hat Pasupathi is the Aac$aaryendra $ who protects and )ives the lessin)s ofsupreme knowled)e to :is devotees y sittin) under the Pupil tree as <akshinamoorthy. -hat iswhy :e$ who is the em odiment of pure knowled)e and the inner meanin) of 4rana am issaluted as *ama$ Sangaaya c$a and in the followin) way as Pasupathi !Li erator of the ondsof Jee ans "D

8m *ama$ 4rana aart$aaya Sudd$a7n a!kamoort$aye *!rma aaya 4rasant$aaya Daks$!naamoortaye *ama$

&$e Fourt$ Mant$ram

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-he fourth manthram of this +nuvakam praises :is fri)htenin) aspect and :is Ugra >a aas .,ut of fear for :im the wind lowsC /$ees$aasmaadut$a 4a at$e $ is the statement of the

panishad. :is ferocious attri utes which strike fear at the heart of :is enemies are referred tohere. In :is role as 7aja Samhaara Moorthy$ 1aala 0hairavan $ -ripura Samhaaran$ 0aka

6ethra :aran !one who pulled out the eye of Suryan$ when :e offended :im"$ 1apali !one who plucked the head of 0rahma and used it as his /!ks$a vessel"$ :is attri utes are ferocious to lookat. -he Ugra >a aas that :e radiates throu)h these forms and the terror :e causes durin) theseoccasions are saluted as followsD

*ama$ Ugraaya c$a /$eemaaya c$a ( )

&$e F!"t$ Mant$ram

-he fifth manthram praises further :is Ugra S aru'am $ which is very much evident in attlefields. -his manthram is as followsD

*amo Agre ad$aaya c$a dUr< ad$aaya c$a (B)

:e is reco)ni*ed as the )reat warrior$ who kills :is enemies y confrontin) them in face5to5face attle. :e is also reco)ni*ed as the one who destroys the stren)th and power of :is enemieseven efore they en)a)e in attle. :e saps them of their stren)th even while :e is far. Lord1rishna e3plains the power of Sri Rudran to +rjuna in the Santhi Parvam of the Maha0haratham as followsD

+ast$u t< so grat$e +aat! +udd$e Sam'ratyu'ast!te&amm -!dd$! Rudram >aunt$eya Lord 1rishna says$ #,$ +rjuna$ as the attle started$ there was an efful)ence which was movin)in front of you. :e was Rudran. You only sent your arrows and thou)ht you destroyed yourenemies with those arrows. :e has already killed them. You only hit them afterwards. -heenemies #killed% y you were already slain y :im.% Sri 1rishna then continues to praise SriRudran and asks :is friend$ +rjuna$ to worship Sri mapathi with a pure heart as followsD

*!$ataan &ena -a! 4ur am %at$a aanas! -a! R!'un A'rameya'rab$aa am &amm De ade am0umaa'at$!m /$a7as a 4rayat$o *!t$yam -!s esam %aram0a yayam

&$e S!Ct$ Mant$ram

-he si3th mantram points out that those who insult :im due to their arro)ance )et punishedseverely. -his mantram is as followsD

*amo %antr< c$a %aneeyas< c$a ( ):ere is a description of two e3amples of those who with their clouded senses take on Sri Rudranand )et strai)htened out. ,ne e3ample is provided y the )reat Siva 0haktha known as Raavana.

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:e ecame very arro)ant ecause of his wealth and the power that he possessed. :e for)ot thatit was Sri Rudran who lessed him with such riches in the first place. ,ne day$ he decided toshake up the 1ailasa Mountain$ which is the residence of SrI Rudran. :e put his hand under themountain and tried to lift it. Sri Rudran pressed :is own toe and Ravana2s hand was dulycrushed. Ravana was properly humiliated and repented for his misdeed and arro)ance. :e

prayed to Sri 1ailasa 6athan$ who took pity on him and released him from his sufferin)s. -hemi)hty e)o of Ravana was destroyed y Sri Sankara. -his aspect of the punishment )iven y:im to arro)ant ones is saluted as # *amo %ant$re c$a .%

-he second e3ample of an arro)ant offender was <aksha Prajaapathi$ who was the father5in5lawof the Lord. Khen <akshan deli erately insulted the Lord of the niverse y withholdin) the$a !s entitled to :im in a yagn am $ Sri Rudran sent Veera hadran to cut the head of theoffender. Veera hadran$ who was nothin) ut one hair from the matted locks of Sri Rudran$ toredown the yaaga saa a $ fouled up the Agn! >untams $ and tortured the assem led <evas andRishis who were witnesses to the insults of <akshan durin) the ya)n;am. -his aspect of theLord2s punishment of the rude and arro)ant is saluted y Sri Rudram as # *amo %aneeyase c$a .%

&$e Se ent$ Mantram

-he seventh manthram salutes Lord Rudran as the one who is in the form of the limitless )reenleaves populatin) the trees. -he passa)e in Rudram compares the dense )reen colored leaves ontrees ! %ar!keSa$ " to the hair tresses on the jatai of Sri Rudran. -he mantram containin) thiscomparison and thou)ht is as followsD

*amo -r? ks$eb$yo %ar! >eseb$y8 (E)

-he leaves are enormous on the trees and they collect the Sun2s rays and provide food andnourishment to the trees. -he reference to trees and their leaves is associated with the use of theleaves of the Palaasam$ Vilvam and pupil trees in the :oly Ya)n;ams. -he reference is also tothe 1alpa)aa treeC which is the tree under which Sri Rudran is seated and :e resem les the1alpa)aa tree in fulfillin) the wishes of all :is devotees. -he reference is also to the -ree of theVedas$ whose leaves are the <evas and >eevans. Its ranches are the Sakaas of the Vedas. -hus$a comparison of Sri Rudran to a -ree and its )reen leaves is apt.

&$e <!g$t$ Mantram

-he ei)hth manthram is a sin)le salutation ecause of the hoariness of the thou)ht associatedwith it. -his manthram is as followsD

*amas0taarAya c$a ( )

:ere$ Sri Rudran is worshipped as Pranava Swaroopi or the em odiment of the meanin) ofPranavam. :e also helps the >eevans in crossin) &aarayat$! !the ocean of samsaaram" and landsthem in S! a Saayu7yam . In fact$ throu)h :is merciful intervention$ :e confers four kinds ofMukthis on :is devotees. -hose who perform Siva Pooja o tain Saaroo'ya Mukt$! . -hosewho recite :is names to the accompaniment of musical instruments ! nama sangeertanam "

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o tain Saamee'ya Mukt$! C those who en)a)e in conversation with Siva 0hakthaas and thosewho have friendship with Siva 0hakthaas attain Saa okya Mukt$! and those who meditate on:im$ o tain Saayu7ya Mukt$! . Such is :is mercy$ which )ets us across the ocean of samsaara.

Khen a devotee prays intensely such as *!tyaanandaaya *!rma a !7aana !gra$aaya *ama$,

*!ra ad$!karunaaya *amo *!ra ad$! !b$a aaya t<7as<rast$u *ama$ :e takes that jeevan y hand and transports him ! taaryat$! " across the Maaharnavam of Samsaram. -his mantramindicates that one should worship Sri Rudran for o tainin) any one of the a ove four types ofMukti.

&$e *!nt$ Mantram

-he ninth mantram points out that Sri Rudran is the cause ehind the pleasures one enjoys othin this universe and the other. :e is reco)ni*ed as the force ehind all the pleasures that a human

ein) is heir to$ when they meditate on Sri Rudran. -his mantram is as followsD

*amas0Samb$a < c$a May8b$a < c$a (9)

-he naamam$ Samb$u$ $ denotes the one who is the root cause of all the pleasures of thisuniverse$ health$ wealth and family. 6othin) fri)htens human ein)s more than the prematureloss or death of their own kith and kin efore their own time. -he profound sorrow re)istered yhuman ein)s when their parents$ children or wives die hurts them deeply. -he +tharva VedaMantram 8uoted elow and the same mantram seen in VajaSaneyi Samhita appeal to Rudra$ asthe source5cause of happiness in this world and asks :im not to injure$ hurt or take away theelders$ children and relativesD

Maa *o Ma$aantamuta Maa *o Arb$akam Maa *a Uks$antamuta Maa *am Uks$!tam Maa *o -ad$ee 4!t$aram Mot$a Maat$aram 4r!yaa Maa *astanu ato Rud$ra Reer!s$a$

-his mantram is also seen in Mahaa 6aarayana panishad in its ?@nd section. -he e3actmeanin) is as followsD #,hE Rudra$ injure not our parents and elders$ our children$ our child5producin) adults capa leof procreation$ the fetus we have placed in the mother2s wom . Please do not hurt our dearselves either.%

-his appeal is made to Rudran in :is role as Sam hu.

Ke come across a similar prayer in Ri) Veda. -hat ṛ is in the form of a vivid prayer of afri)htened man to Rudra as Sam hu to spare his children and )randchildren$ relatives$ his cattle$and horses as well as other worldly possessions. -his disconsolate man appeals to Sam hu evento spare his enemies from Rudra2s an)er and in return promises to worship the Lord witho lations and reverence. -his same mantham is seen a)ain in Vajasneyi Samhita with a sli)htvariation. -he ṛ of the Ri)veda is also seen in Mahaa 6aarayanopanishad and is as followsD

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Maa *ast8k< tanaye Maa *a Aayus$! Maa *o$ =os$u Maa *o aSwes$u Reer!s$a$

It is Rudra who rules over death$ destruction and samsaric illness. :ence$ the term #Sam hu% is

used in Sri Rudram in the conte3t of its meanin)s outlined in the Vedic passa)es referred toa ove.

-he second half of the ninth manthram of the 9i)hth +nuvakam is *ama$ Mayob$a e c$a .:ere$ the reference is to the lisses of +amushmikaa !other worldly" kind. ,ne who surrendershimself to Srirudran totally in this world and offers salutations )ains the other world due to the

lessin)s of the Lord. -his kind of samar'an is known as s aatmaanam 'arames are ekat ena(kr?t$am) samar'anam . +s a result of this samar'anam $ the devotee and sadhakan attains the8ualification for the state of non5return to this earth ! na c$a 'unaraa artate " and )oes eyondall sorrow as stated y the =hando)ya panishad passa)e$ #t aarat! Sokam Aatma !t %. :e

ecomes an +atmavit$ thanks to the lessin)s of Mayob$a an and ecomes$ accordin) to the

Mundaka panishad$ # /ra$ma !t /ra$ma! a /$aasat! %. Such is the power of the lessin)s of Mayob$a a due to the anu)raham of Moksha5daayaka Mukundhan that connects to thesalutation$ # *ama$ Mayob$a < c$a .%

&$e &ent$ Mantram

-he tenth manthram ela orates on the meanin) of the previous mantram associated with theearthly pleasures ! I!$!ka Suk$am " and the other worldly ! Aamus$m!kaa Suk$am ". In thisearth$ a child receives its protection and pleasures from its parents. -he pleasures associatedwith the other world comes throu)h the lessin)s of +acharya and a proper understandin) of theSaasthraas throu)h the help of the +acharya. -he tenth mantram states that Sri Rudran is presentin the form of parents to assure happiness$ nourishment and protection in this universe. -hemantram salutes Sri Rudran in this role as *amassankaraaya c$a .

-he name Sankaraa denotes one who lesses one with various Manga ams on this earth andeven eyond. Sri Rudran also lesses one with Siva Saayujya Sukham with the role of+acharya$ sym oli*ed y the 7uru Mandala$ startin) with <akshina Moorthy Swaroopam. -he+acharya imparts the true meanin) of Saasthraas and helps the disciple to understand 0rahmaVidya . -he Lord is known as the # -!swaroo'a Ac$arya % or the =osmic -eacher. Khen :eimparts knowled)e directly for attainin) the path to Moksham$ :e is saluted as *ama$

Mayob$a < c$a as in the previous manthram. Khen he imparts knowled)e indirectly throu)han +acharya comin) in the 7uru Mandalam$ then he is saluted as *ama$ Mayaskaraaya c$a .-he importance of 7uru 0hakthi and the reco)nition of one2s 7uru !+acharya" as the Lordhimself is underlined in the followin) passa)es of the panishads and SaasthraasD +asya De e 4araa /$akt$!$ +at$a De e tataa =urautasya! t< >at$!taa %yartaa$ 4rakaasant$e Ma$aatmana$5Swethaswatara panishad !'5@A"!meanin)"

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/ stud"nt, #ho has su r"m" trust and d"votion to th" !ord, and th" sam" m"asur" o% trust andd"votion in his +uru, to him a&on" th" tru" m"anin's o% th" #ords o% Saasthraas and 5"das #i&&b" om" &"ar*

Such a student of the saasthraas and Vedas is known to e one who is srotr!yan bra$man!s$tan $

or one who is well5esta lished in the 0rahman. :e understands the Vedas and their meanin)s ecause of havin) such a trust in his 7uru as stated y =hando)ya panishad passa)e$# Ac$arya aan 4urus$o -eda .% -he student with this clear understandin) ecomes tran8uilthrou)h the insi)ht )ained$ meditates$ and ecomes one with the + solute thanks to his 7uru2s)race$ which is the same as the Lord2s )race. Mundaka panishad e3plains this phenomenon asfollowsD

JnA na 'rasaadena -!s$udd$a0sat astatastu tam 'aSayat! *!s$ka am D$yAyamAna$

-he )race of the immediate +acharya derivin) his power from the =osmic +charya is saluted

throu)h the Rudram passa)e of the tenth manthram$ *ama$ Mayaskaraaya c$a . Khile theninth manthram referred to the direct lessin)s of Sri Rudran to attain Sukham in this and theother earth$ the tenth manthram refers to Lord Rudran causin) earthly and heavenly Sukhamthrou)h others such as parents and +charyaD

*amas0Sankaraya c$a Mayaskaraaya c$a (12)

&$e < e ent$ Mant$ram

-he eleventh manthram ! <kadas!n! " is the center piece of Sri Rudram$ and it is also the center)em of the Yajur Vedam. -he Yajur Vedam itself is considered one of the most sacred amon)the four Vedas. -he portion of Sri Rudram found in the middle of Yajur Vedam ! Sata

Rudreeyam " is reco)ni*ed as the most sacred section of the sacred Yajur Vedam. -he eleventhmanthram of the ei)hth chapter is the heart of the sacredness of the Yajur Vedam accordin) tothe followin) passa)esD

Ad$yaayam Sata Rudreeyam +a7us$aam Saaramuttamam-!d$yaasu Srut$!r0ut$krus$taa Rudra!kaad!S!nee Sruto&atra 4anc$aaks$aree &asyaam S! a It$yaks$arad ayam

-he a ove 8uotations state that the Sri Rudram is the essence of Yajur Vedam and is the mostsacred. In Sri Rudram containin) && chapters$ the Panchakshara Manthram !eleventh manthramof the Gth chapter" is the most sacred containin) the @ +ksharas that form the word Siva. -he+a)amaas treat the naamam$ Siva$ as >eeva Rathnam or the life5)ivin) )em of a principle. -hePanchakshari is *ama$ S! aaya or S! aaya *ama$ . -he eleventh manthram of Sri Rudram isas follows and serves as the ori)in of PanchakshariD

*ama$ S! aaya c$a S! ataraaya c$a (11)

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:e is reco)ni*ed elsewhere in the Vedas as the one who causes all auspiciousness$ when onemeditates on :im ! S! a y<ko d$y<ya$ S! akara$ ". :e has also een descri ed in the Vedic

passa)es as the +)ni who urns our sins ! 4aa ako Asmab$yam S! o /$a a " and as the pathwayon this earth to )ain Siva Saayujyam ! 4ant$aanassant$u t< S! aa$ ". -his auspiciousness5conferrin) Lord ! S! akara$ " )ives the Supreme auspiciousness ! S! atara$ " eyond what the

Vedas and other routes can )ive. :ence$ :e is reco)ni*ed as the Supreme amon) those thatconfer auspiciousness and is saluted hence in this mantram throu)h the namaskara6am$ *ama$ S! ataraaya c$a . -his eleventh mantram thus forms the asis of Saiva Siddhaantham due to therichness of the meanin)s incorporated in it.

&$e &we "t$ Mantram -he twelfth mantram of this +nuvakam is as followsD

*amas0teert$aaya c$a >oo yaaya c$a (1 )

Sri Rudran is reco)ni*ed here to e present in the form of the sacred rivers such as the 7an)a$ 6armadaa$ 7odhaavari$ 1aaveri$ et al. :e is also saluted as the one who is seated on the anksof the a ove sacred rivers$ such as Sri Viswanatha on the ank of the 7an)a in Varanaasi.

&$e &$!rteent$ Mantram

-he thirteenth mantram ela orates on the thou)ht ehind the previous mantram y statin) that:e is on oth anks of the sacred rivers. :is Pervasive Presence is hinted at here a)ain. -hethirteenth mantram is as followsD

*ama$ 4aaryaaya c$aa aaryaaya c$a (1@)

*ama$ 4aaryaaya c$a refers to :im ein) on this side of the riverC *ama$ A aaryaaya c$arefers to :im ein) on the other side of the river. If :e is also of the form of the river and asone on oth anks of the river$ we conclude that :e is everywhere.


-he fourteenth Mantram salutes :is mantra and >n;+na Swaroopam. -his mantram is asfollowsD

*ama$ 4ratara*aaya c$8uttara*aaya :$a (1 )

Since Panchaakshari Mantram is housed in this +nuvakam$ there is no surprise that thefourteenth manthram praises him as *ama$ 4rat$ara*aaya c$a . :e is saluted here as the onewho is in the form of Panchaakshari Manthram and helps to destroy the sins of those who reciteit. -he second salutation$ *ama$ Uttaranaaya c$a $ refers to his >n;+ na Swaroo'am $ which onmeditation helps to cross the ocean of samsaaram.

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&$e F!"teent$, S!Cteent$ and Se enteent$ Mant$rams

-he fifteenth 6amskaaram refers to :is anugra$aas to two types of >eevans$ who follow strictlythe rules of the 1arma 1handaa of the Vedaas. -hese >eevans do not have the 0rahma>n;+nam$ ut follow rituals associated with yaa)aas and ya)nyaas. -hey do not have the mantra

upadesam and other anu)rahams. -hese >eevans )o to svar)am and return after their Punyamsdecline to this earth throu)h another irth. Sri Rudram is saluted here with *ama$ Aataaryaayac$a to indicate that :e lesses those jeevans which return to swim in the ocean of samsaaram.:e is also praised as the Prerakan !protector" for the >eevans of the earth who perform the rituals

prescri ed y 1arma 1haandam. :e is therefore salutes as *ama$ Aa aad$yaaya c$a . -hemeanin) of the word Aa aad$ya$ is descri ed y one of the 0hashyakaraas as followsD

A am 4ur*am +at$aa /$a at$! &at$aa >arma'$a amatteet! A aada$ Jee a$ &atra /$a a$ K A aad$ya$

-he te3t of the fifteenth manthram is as followsD

*ama$ Aataaryaaya c$aa aad$yaaya c$a (1B)

9arlier$ Sri Rudran was reco)ni*ed as ein) in the form of rivers. -here is sand at the ottomand flood on topC there is also youn) )rass on the anks of the river$ where Sri Rudran resides.-he ne3t two manthrams reco)ni*e Sri Rudran ein) in the youn) )rass on the anks of the river! *ama$ Sas$'yaaya c$a ". :e is reco)ni*ed as ein) in the froth and foam of the water! *ama$ 4$enyaaya c$a ". :e is reco)ni*ed as ein) in every )rain of sand at the ottom of theriver ! *ama$ S!katyaaya c$a "C :e is reco)ni*ed as ein) in the swift movin) current of the riveras well ! *ama$ 4ra aa$yaaya c$a ". -he summation is that :e is present everywhere.

-hese two concludin) manthrams of this +nuvakam are as followsD

*ama$ Sas$'yaaya c$a '$<nyaaya c$a (1 ) *amass!kat$yaaya c$a 4ra aa$yaaya c$a (1E)

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&$e *!nt$ Anu akam

-his +nuvakam also cele rates the -!swaant$aryaam!t am !Presence in a =osmic and pervasiveform" of Lord Sri Rudran.

&$e F!rst and Second Mantrams

-he first two mantrams in this conte3t areD

*ama$ !r!*yaaya c$a 4ra'at$yaaya c$a (1) *ama$ >!gums! aaya c$a >s$aya*aaya c$a ( )

:is many residences are praised in these two mantrams. :e is saluted as the resident of8os$ara /$oom! ! Ir!nam "$ i.e.$ :e is reco)ni*ed as a resident of saline land. Ir!nam can also e

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interpreted as arren or dreary or desert land. 0y this salutation$ it is meant that no place$however low and undesira le as a place of residence$ is unappealin) to :im. :e is there$ too$ andeverywhere. -he salutation housin) this thou)ht is *ama$ Ir!nyaaya c$a . -he ne3t salutation$ # *ama$ 4ra'at$yaaya c$a $% reco)ni*es :im to e at the pathways$ which

are worn out y the travel of people of this universe. People travel often to fertile$ non5dreary places that )ive them pleasure. -his portion of the mantram says that :e is at all these desira le places$ as well as in the pathway leadin) to such places.

-he second mantram talks a out the stones in the pathway leadin) to the desert or attractivelands. -he namaskaaram is # *ama$ >!gumS! aaya c$a .% :e is spread out everywhere so thatone is not sure a out :is places of residence !i.e.$ in pathways and tracks strewn with smallstones or oulders or rock crystals !s 'at!kam "". Rudram says that :is pervasive presence in allroadways ! samayaac$araas " cause one to dou t and dispute whether :e is here or there. Inactuality$ the wise know that :e is in every one of the pathways.Salutations to :im who is of theform of one who lives in dryland /kigumSilaa0 and to :im who is of the form of one who lives

in )ood palces /kshaya#Aya cha0.

&$e &$!rd Mantram -he third mantram descri es :im as the one with matted hair doin) penance and as the one whoappears in front of :is devotees with eautiful tresses of hair. -his mantram is as followsD

*ama$ >a'ard!n< c$a 4u astay< c$a (@)

&$e Fourt$ and F!"t$ Mantrams

-he ne3t two mantras salute Sri Rudran as a resident in the different sections of a house. -hethird and fourth mantrams identifyin) him with a place of residence and :is sections are asfollowsD

*amo =os$tyaaya c$a =ru$yaaya c$a ( ) *amasta 'yaaya c$a =e$yaaya c$a (B)

:e is reco)ni*ed as the one who is in the section of the house where cows are tied !cowshed"throu)h the salutation ! *amo =os$tyaaya c$a ". :e is reco)ni*ed as the support in cots$ where

people sit or sleep throu)h the namaskaarams$ *ama$ &a 'yaaya c$a . :e is seen as the residentof the upper floor !story" of the house throu)h the salutation$ *ama$ =e$yaaya c$a . :is

pervasive presence as Vaasthu Purushan in all parts of the house is reco)ni*ed y thenamaskaram$ *amo =r!$yaaya c$a .

&$e S!Ct$ Mantram -he si3th mantram e3plains to us that :e is residin) in hard5to5reach places such as caves in themountains and places a undant with thorny ushes as well as shru s that are hard to penetrate.-his mantram is as followsD

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*ama$ >aaDyaaya c$a =a$ ar<s$taaya c$a ( )

-he reference in # *ama$ >aatyaaya c$a % is to the one who resides in lands thick with thornyunder ush and rush which are difficult to cross. :is residence in the caves of mountains as a

Raja Yo)i in deep meditation is descri ed throu)h the namaskaram$ # *ama$ =a$ r<s$tayac$a .% -his same namaskaaram can also e interpreted to mean that :e is the resident of thecaves of our heart.

&$e Se ent$ Mantram

-he seventh mantram reco)ni*es :im as the one who has :is seat of residence in deep ponds ordeep trenches of a river ed ! *amo %r? dyyaaya c$a ". :e is also seen in the melted water of thesnow ! *amo *! es$'yaaya c$a ". -he whole manthram is as followsD

*amo %r? dyyaaya c$a *! es$'yaaya c$a (E)

&$e <!g$t$ Mantram

-he ei)hth mantram cele rates :im as the one who is resident in su atomic dust ! Renu H de ris"and as the one who is in i) places of dust that is visi le to the eye. -he su atomic dust as a

place of :is residence is saluted throu)h # 4aagumsa yaaya c$a .% :is residence in i))er particles visi le to the eye is reco)ni*ed throu)h the salutation$ # *ama$ Ra7asyaaya c$a .% -hewhole manthram is as followsD

*ama$ 4aagumsa yaaya c$a Ra7asyaaya c$a ( )

&$e *!nt$ and &ent$ Mantrams -he ninth and tenth mantrams continue to pay respects to Sri Rudran2s Sarvaantharyaamithvamin the followin) wayD

*ama$ Sus$kyaaya c$a %ar!t$yaaya c$a (9) *amo #o'yaaya c$o aa'yaaya c$a (12)

:e is seen accordin) to the a ove mantras inside dried5up trees$ in trees full of life in fallowland$ where even tiny lades of )rass do not )row. -he correspondence etween mantrams of SriRudram and :is places of residence is as followsD Salutation e to :im$ who is O nama$ Sus$kyaaya c$a O inside the dried5up trees. Salutation tothe one who populates the )reen trees full of vitality and lifeE O *ama$ %ar!t$yaaya c$a .Salutation to :im who is on hard patches of land$ where nothin) can )row O *ama$ #o'yaayac$a . Salutation to :im who is in O *ama$ U a'yaaya c$a O slender ladesE

&$e < e ent$ and &we "t$ Mant$rams

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-he ne3t two manthrams are cele ratin) :is presence in )reen leaves of the trees$ in the dried5up pile of fallen leaves under the tree$ and on the )round that forms a ed for the leaves and on theriver with eautiful waves. -hese mantrams are as followsD

*ama$ 8or yaaya c$a soormyaaya c$a (11)

*ama$ 4arnyaaya c$a 'arnasad$yaaya c$a (1 )

:is presence in land and water is reco)ni*ed throu)h the eleventh and the twelfth mantrams. -herespective salutations are as followsD

*ama$ 8or yaaya c$a O Salutations to the one who populates this earthE

*ama$ Soormyaaya c$a O Salutations to the one who is in the waters of the river with eautifulwavesE

*ama$ 4ar*yaaya c$a O Salutations to the one who is present as leaves of a livin) treeE

*ama$ 4ar*asad$yaaya c$a O Salutations to the one who is in the heap of dried leaves$ restin)under the treeE

+t one sta)e of penance$ the Rishis eat only dried up$ fallen leaves as their food. Sri Rudran isfond of such Rishis for their austerity. :ence$ :e could e understood as the life5)ivin) food tothose Rishis$ who meditate and do penance to )et :is lessin)s.

&$e &$!rteent$ and Fourteent$ Mantrams -he thirteenth and fourteenth mantrams come ack to salutin) :is ferocious aspect$ which isinvoked in connection with punishin) the unri)hteous and sinnin) human ein)s. -he twomantrams are as followsD

*amo A'aguramaa*aaya c$Ab$!gnate c$a (1@) *ama Aak$!k$adate c$a 4rak$!k$adat$e c$a (1 )

-he four namaskaranams associated with the a ove two mantrams salute the dus$ta n!gra$amaspects of Sri Rudran. :e intimidates the sinners and punishes them in four ways. -he form thatfri)htens them and rin)s them ack to their senses is the one that carries weapons in its hands.It is saluted as *amo A'aguramaanaya .

-he form that uses the weapons to punish the sinners is saluted as *ama Ab$!gnat$e c$a .

-he form that uses the weapons to hurt minimally is saluted as *ama$ Aak!dat$e c$a . -heform that uses the weapons to cause mi)hty dama)e and serious pain is saluted as *ama$

4rak!dat$e c$a .

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:is four forms representin) increased levels of violence efittin) the de)rees of an)er inresponse to the ma)nitude of the sins of sinner are eautiful descriptions of Sri Rudran2sferocious form.

+ hinava Sankara 0hashyam states that the <hyaana Slokam for the A& manthras startin) from

the first manthram of the ei)hth +nuvakam ! *amassomaaya c$a Rudraaya c$a " to thefourteenth manthram of the ninth +nuvakam is the same Dhyana Slokam that is associated withthe third +nuvakam startin) with # Ru'a +au ana Sam'anna K Moort$a e -anade at$a % andendin) with # < am Ru'o Ma$aat$e7aa >!raat$a a'urees$ ara$ % Sri 0hatta 0haskara on the other hand cites another <hyaana Slokam for the a ove A&manthrams. -he su))ested <hyana Slokam y him is as followsD 4!naka 4aan!m /$oot$esamUd$yat sooryaayud$a d$yut$!mG /$oos!t$am /u7aga!$ D$yaayet$ >ante kaa am

>a'ard$!nam .

:is ferocious aspects are covered in the a ove <hyaana Slokam. :is lustre is descri ed as

e8uivalent to the lindin) rilliance of tens of thousands of Suns. :e is seen as wearin) themi)hty ow known as Pinaaka on :is hand$ and ferocious snakes are seen as ornaments on :islim s. :e is seen in the company of :is fri)htened retinue of 7anas. :is matted hair and the

luish5 lack patch on :is neck due to the drinkin) of the poison add more fear to the eholder.-he slokam asks the devotee to meditate on the a ove fearsome form of the Lord to stay awayfrom sins. It has een pointed out that e3traordinary wealth$ kin)ly position and Moksham could e attained

y recitin) the A& manthrams alon) with the a ove <hyaana Slokam.

&$e F!"teent$, S!Cteent$, Se enteent$, <!gteent$ and *!neteent$ Mant$rams -he remainin) five manthrams of the 6inth +nuvakam praise the activities of the Rudra7anaams which punish the sinners on ehalf of their Lord. -he manthrams are as followsD

*amo a >!r!keb$y8 De aanaagum %rdayeb$ya8 (1B) *amo -!ks$ee*akeb$ya8 De aanaagum %rdayeb$ya$ (1 ) *amo -!c$!n at$keb$ya$ De aanaagum %rdayeb$ya$ (1E) *ama Aan!r$at$eb$ya$ De aanaagum %rdayeb$ya$ (1 ) *ama$ Aamee atkeb$ya$ De aanaagum %rdayeb$ya$ (19)

-he common passa)e in the a ove manthrams is De aanaagum %rdayeb$ya$ . -his refers tothe Rudra 7anaams that are visi le only to the eyes of the <evas and unseea le y us humans.+lthou)h they are invisi le to us$ these Rudra 7anaas carry out the order of their Lord and

punish the sinners in de)rees of cruelty appropriate to the ma)nitude of their sins. -he fivemantrams descri e the activities of the Rudra 7anas in this conte3t as followsD

De aanaagum %rdayeb$ya$ >!r!keb$yo *ama$ O Salutations to the Rudra 7anaas visi le onlyto the <eva2 s eyes$ who cause harm to the sinners accordin) to their dictates of conscienceE

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De aanaagum %rdayeb$ya$ -!s$eenakeb$ya$ *ama$ O Salutations to the Rudra 7anaas$ who eat up the sinners and cause pain in many waysE

De aanaagum %rdayeb$ya$ -!c$!n atkeb$ya$ *ama$ O Salutations to the Rudra 7anaas$ whosearch out those who deserve punishment and those who need lessin)s ased on their paapams

or punyamsE

De aanaagum %rd$yeb$ya$ Aan!r$at$eb$ya$ *ama$ O Salutations to the Rudra 7anaas$ whoare determined to deliver the ri)ht amount of punishment to the sinners in proportion to theirsinsE

De aanaagum %rdayeb$ya$ Aamee at$keb$ya$ *ama$ O Salutations to the Rudra 7anaas$who are roamin) this universe to attack the sinners y circlin) over themE

-he a ove five manthrams are considered to)ether as one Maha Manthrams$ whose Rishi$=handas and <evathaa are +)ni$ <hrshtup and Rudran respectively. -he <hyaana Slokam for

these five manthras is as followsD

-!swata$ 4aa*! 4aadam &am -!swat$oks$! S!ro Muk$am Jwa ant$am -!swamaa rt$ya &e7oraaseem S! am Smaret$

!meanin)"

!"t us m"ditat" on th" as " t o% !ord aramasiva #ho is r"s"nt in a&& orn"rs o% th" univ"rs"#ith $is in%init" "y"s, hands, &"'s, h"ads and %a "s* !"t us m"ditat" on this radiatin' ba&& o% &i'ht#hi h is o u yin' "v"ry orn"r o% this "arth*

-he recitation of the a ove five manthrams is said to assure one immense wealth$ scholarship$Lordship over this earth and enjoyment of many eautiful thin)s . -he Rudra 1alpam e3plains tous the various Prayo)ams of these five mantrams to o tain the a ove lessin)s.

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&$e &ent$ Anu akam

4rom the second to the ninth +nuvakam$ Sri Parameswaran was saluted y Sri Rudram. In thetenth +nuvakam$ an appeal is made to :im and :e is asked to less the devotees and not to harmthem. Most of the mantrams of the tenth anuvakam have their own <hyaana slokams.

&$e F!rst Mantram :ere Lord Rudran is addressed y four of his names Dra'e $ And$asas'at$e $ Dar!drat $ and

*ee a #o$!ta $ and then an appeal is made to him not to hurt the son or )randson$ as well as thecattle and other property. -he first manthram is as followsD

Draa'< and$asas'at< Dar!drannee a o$!ta+es$aam 4urus$aa*aames$aam 4aSoonaam

Mab$<rmaaro m8 +es$aam >!mc$anaamamat$ (1)

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-his mantram prays to the auspicious ! S! a" form of Rudran to remove all sorrows caused yillness and poverty. +ppeal is also made to o tain the lessin)s of Moksham. -his mantram isas followsD

+aa t< Rudra S! aa tanoo$ S! aa -!swaa$a b$<s$a7ee S! aa Rudrasya b$es$a7ee tayaa no mrda 7ee as< ( ) In this manthram$ the Siva or the most auspicious aspect of Rudran is praised for conferrin) thefollowin) two kinds of lessin)sD

!&" Removal of the diseases of the ody and mind and the removal of poverty durin) one s lifeon this earthC

!@" =onferral of +tma >n;+nam to overcome the cycles of irth and death and there y attain SrIVaikun-ham .

Sri Rudran is e8uated in this mantram to a powerful doctor$ who cures the illnesses of physicaland mental ori)in and makes us enjoy the lessin)s of life on this world and the other.

:is auspicious ody ! S! aa &anoo " is considered to take two forms to serve as two kinds ofdoctors to cure the a ove two types of illnesses and diseases. ,ne form is saluted as -!swaa$ab$<s$a7! and the other Rudrasya b$<s$a7! . In the doctor2s role fittin) the description ofViswaaha h9shaji$ all the physical diseases$ economic illnesses are cured y this SowmyaMoorthi. In the other role descri ed as Rudrasya h9shaji$ :e drives away the sorrows ofSamsara and )ives knowled)e ! /ra$ma Jn Anam " and confers :is lessin)s to attain SivaSayujyam. -his movin) prayer askin) Sri Rudran for :is lessin)s to enjoy health andhappiness in this life is an e3ample of Vedam2s deep interest in the pleasures of the world y us.Many times$ those who are superficially ac8uainted with Vedam and its messa)es elieve that itis too much o sessed with morose roodin)s on e3ercises in self5denial and a stractotherworldly matters. In this Manthram$ we meet the word # S! aa % three times. -he +nvaya 1ramam involvin) theusa)e of the word # S! aa % three times is as followsD

Rudra3 -!swaa$a b$<s$a7ee S! aa S! aa +aa t< tanoo$ Rudrasya b$<s$a7ee S! aa &ayaa na$ 7ee ase mrda$

!meanin)"

6h, Rudra, your aus i ious body #hi h is no#n as 7sivaa8 that ur"s at a&& tim"s "v"ry i&&n"ssand a%%&i tion su h as ov"rty, dis"as", "t a&, &"t that b"n"%it- on%"rrin', boon-'ivin' body o%imm"ns" aus i iousn"ss 'rant us %r""dom %rom y &"s o% birth and d"ath* !"t it ma " our &i%" onthis "arth a most &"asurab&" "9 "ri"n " as #"&&, mar "d by %r""dom %rom su%%"rin's su h asdis"as"s and ov"rty*

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-he 0hatta 0haskara and Sayana 0hasyams interpret &a as< as the mi)hty one havin) uni8ue powers to remove all ills. -he + hinava Sankara 0hasyam on the other hand interprets &a as<to mean &a'as< and e3plains that this namaskaram refers to Sri Rudra2s >n;+na Sakthi ased on:is immense power arisin) from his penances.

-he namaskaram >a'ard!n< can mean literally the one with matted hair or sym olically the onewho can accomplish thin)s$ which are eyond the powers of others. -he 8uotation associatedwith this namaskaram to illustrate :is prowess is as revealed from the act of receivin) theroarin) 7an)a Pravaham in :is matted hair and preventin) it from destroyin) the world with itsforce. -he namaskaram 1shayadveeraya refers to the fact that there is no one who is compara le to:im re)ardin) his valor. -he mantram2s first half states # &a ase >a'ard!ne >s$yad eeraya

Rudraaya Imam Mat$!m 4rab$araama$e %. Manasika Pooja and <hyaanam to this mi)htyRudra is offered throu)h the a ove passa)e. -he second half$ # +ata *a$ Samasad !'adec$at$us$'ade -!swam 4us$tam =raame Asm!nnananaanut$uram %$ states that the Siva pooja

is ein) done in the prescri ed manner to assure Sri Rudra2s lessin)s on the people$ animals andall the creatures of the villa)e so that they could e free from disease and ecome stron) and possess vitality.

&$e Fourt$ Mant$ram

-he fourth manthram prays to SrI Rudran to less the people with the same oons that Manu )otand there y enjoyed the material wealth in oththe worlds . -his thou)ht is e3pressed in thesecond half of this manthram as # 4!t$aa Manu$ +at$ Sam c$a +oscc$a &a a 4ra*eet$au

Aaya7e &at$ Rudra Asyaam % in prose order !anvayakramam" . -he first half of the mantram re8uests material wealth$ freedom from want and release from thecycle of irth and death. -he second half reminds Sri Rudran that the re8uest for the wealth onthis earth and release from samsaric sufferin)s are the same lessin)s that he conferred on ManuPrajaapathi$ who is the father of human ein)s in that he wrote the <harma Saastraas and thecodes of conduct for the human ein)s. -he whole mantram is as followsD

Mrdano Rudrot$a n8 Mayaskrd$! >s$ayad eeraaya namasaa -!d$ema t<+acc$am c$a +oscc$a Manuraaya7< 4!taa tadaSyaama &a a Rudra 4ra*eet$au ( )

-he first half the manthram has three su prayers uilt in as an inte)rated prayer. -hey are asfollowsD

Rudra *a Mrda$ !,hE RudraE Please less us with whatever we need to make our livescomforta leE"

8ta *a$ Maya$ >rud$! !4urther$ please confer on us Siva Saayujya Sukham after our lives onthis earth are overE"

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>s$ayad eeraaya t< namasaa -!d$ema !4or You who destroy all of our powerful sins on si)ht$we offer our profound salutationsE"

-he third and the fourth manthram of the -enth +nuvakam have the same <hyaana Slokam. -heRishi$ =handas and <evathaa for the two manthras are Markandeyar$ >a)athi and Sri Rudran.

-he <hyaana Slokam is as followsD

D! ya S!m$aasanaaseenam StUyamaanam Ma$ar!s$!b!$! 4rasanna -ad$anam D$yaayet$ Somam Somaard$a Sek$aram

-he meanin) of this slokam is #Ke should meditate on Sri Rudran accompanied y Parvathi<evi$ while we visuali*e :im as ein) seated on :is eautiful Lion -hrone with the half5moonon :is coiffure and listenin) to the st,trams of the )reat sa)es.% -he recitation of this third andfourth mantram assures the safety of cattle and irds.

&$e F!"t$ Mant$ram

-his mantram e)s Sri Rudran not to hurt the elderly$ children and youth of the family. It furtherappeals to :im not to harm the child in the form of em ryo or the mother or the father or the

person who is prayin) for the a ove oons.

-his mantram is as followsD

Maano Ma$aantamuta maa n8 arbakam Maa na Uks$anta muta Maa na Uks$!tam Maa noa ad$!$ 4!taram mota Maataram 4r!yaa Maa nastanu o Rudra reer!s$a$ (B)

-he two re8uests are Maa *a Reer!s$!$ $ Maa *a A ad$!$ *a$ Uks$!t$am (Ma$ant$am, Arb$akam, Aks$ant$am) . Maa Reer!s$!$ is the first set of prayers$ where the re8uest is madenot to harm the em ryo$ elderly$ children and youth throu)h diseases. -he second prayer is *a$

4!t$aram (Mat$aram, 4r!ya$ &$anu a$) Maa A ad$! . -his relates to the re8uest not to causeconcern to the mothers$ parents and the supplicants throu)h Sri Rudran2s an)er. -he Rishi$ =handas and <evathaa for this manthram are 0r)hu$ >a)adhi and Sri Rudran in theform of Sri 6andikeswaran.

-he <hyaana Slokam meditates on the form of Sri Rudran with the youn) crescent moon on :ishair$ with the retinue of 7anaas and shinin) like a risin) sun and havin) the roopam of

6andikeswaran.

-he <hyaana Slokam itself is as followsD

/a endu Makutam De am &arunaad$!tya -!gra$am D$yayennand$eeswaraakaaram =an<Swara Samaa rut$am

-he recitation of this mantram is said to confer tran8uility and peace of mind for all familymem ers.

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&$e S!Ct$ Mantram

-his mantram has Sri Rudran as Rishi and <evathaaC its =handas is >a)adhi. -his mantram dealswith Sri Rudran$ who has split :is ody into && forms known as 9kaadasa Rudraas. -heseforms are worshiped in the 0aisaak -emple on top of +a)un) mountain in the island of 0aali.

-he <hyaana Slokam for this manthram isD

Dad$aanam <kaadasat$aa -!b$a7ya de$am -!sudd$a S'at!ka 4rakaasamt<7omayam Soo !nam Indumau !m -!c$!ntayetad$tya Sad$a! a Rudram

!meanin)" D 3" shou&d m"ditat" on th" %orm o% Rudra, #hi h has th" &ustr" o% ur" rysta& #ith atrid"nt in its hand, #ith th" di'it o% th" moon on its hair and #hi h has s &it its"&% into 11

subdivisions* -he recitation of this mantram is said to confer the richness fit for a kin)$ success in usiness$

)am lin) and the destruction of all sins.-he si3th mantram2s te3t is as followsD

Maanast8k< tanaye Maa na Aayus$! Maa no =os$u Maa no aSwes$u Reer!s$a$-eeranmaa no Rudra b$am!t8 a ad$eer$a !s$mant8 namasa -!d$<ma t< ( )

:ere$ the supplicant offers Saru$ Purodaasam as havis in yaa)aas to Lord Siva and in return asks:im not to hurt the children$ youth or themselves throu)h premature death. -he supplicant alsoappeals to the Lord not to harm the servants or cattle !cow and horses" for any lapses ino servances such as the offerin) of havis to :im.


-his manthram has +dhri as the Rishi$ <hr ushtu as =handas and Sam hu as <evathaa. -herecitation of this manthram is said to result in a lon) life and material prosperity to the reciter.

-he <hyaana Slokam is as followsD

>ur a*am sann!d$au De yaa De am Aanandataanda am %ut$aasanad$aram D$yayet$ ta'ta >aanc$ana Sann!b$am

:ere$ :e is visuali*ed as the dancin) 6ataraja in front of Sivakama Sundari$ with a lustre similarto molten )old. +)ni is also seen on one of the hands of the Lord performin) the happy =osmicdance.

-he te3t of the seventh mantram is as followsD

Aaraatt< gogna uta 4oorus$agn< >s$ayad eeraaya sumnamasm< t< astu Raks$aa c$a no ad$! c$a de a /roo$ayataa c$a na$ sarma yacc$a D$ !/ar$aa$ (E)

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4rakat!ta 4ara /ra$ma &at am " and with his chin5mudra ! Ac$aaryendram >araka !ta:$!tmudramaannt$aru'am " as followsD

-ata !ta'!0samee'e /$um!b$aage *!s$annaa Saka amr?t$!c$anaanaam Jaanadaat$aaramaaraat$

Sri Rudran is supposed to e seated under the )olden peepal tree ! -ata !ta'! "$ which is nothin) ut Maha Vishnu. Sri Rudran is asked y this manthra to hide :is weapons in that tree and come efore the devotees in his Sowmyaa and >n;+na Moorthi form. In this form$ the fierce Pinakamtakes the shape of a veena seen in the hands of <akshinaa Moorthi. -his mantram prays to theMan)ala Moorthi of Parameswaran in the form of <akshinaamoorthi. &$e < e ent$ and &we "t$ Mant$rams

-his manthram and the ne3t one still focus on the fri)htenin) 8ualities of Sri Rudran2s weaponsand their awesome powersC the two mantrams ask Sri Rudran to keep the weapons pointed at the

enemies of the devoteesJ oth internal and e3ternalJor at least pointed away from the directionof the devotees.

-he two mantrams are as followsD

-!kar!d$a -! o$!t$a *amast< Ast$u /$agawa$+aast< Sa$asragum $<tay8nyamasm!nn! a'antu taa$ (11)

Sa$asraa*! Sa$asrad$aa /aa$u osta a $etaya$&aasaameeSaano /$aga a$ 4araac$eenaa Mukaa kr!d$!$ (1 )

9ach of the manthras has its own Rishis$ chandas and <evathaas. 4or instance$ the eleventhmanthram has Pulasthyar as Rishi$ <hr shtup as =handas and Sam hu as <evathaa. -he <hyaanaSlokams are also different for each of the manthras. -he eleventh mantram meditates on thecalm$ happy and eautiful Sri Rudran in the dress of a ride)room and surrounded y the retinueof <evas.

-he slokam is as followsD

4rasanna ad$anam saant$am c$ar!tot a$amandanam Amb$aya sa$!tam d$yayet$ sura sanga!rab$!s$tutam :e is seen here with Parvathi <evi in the marria)e )ar and :is mood is one of happycele ration. :urtin) anyone with :is ferocious weapons is far from :is thou)hts. -he eleventhmantram appropriately prays to maa Maheswaran and states t9 +aa$ Sa$asra $<taya$ &aa$

Asmaat$ Anyam *! a'ant$u $ i.e.$ let Your thousands of destructive weapons hit ouraccumulated sins$ which are our enemies and spare us in the process. 4or that welcome act ofyours ! -!kar!d$a3 -! o$!t$a3 /$aga a$3 t< *ama$ Ast$u "$ ,h Lord$ our namaskara6ams areto you. -he three sam hodanams ! -!kar!d$a, -! o$!t$a, and /$aga a$ " are complimentarysalutations. 0y Vikaridha$ the mantram reco)ni*es Sri Rudran2s capa ilities to destroy sins$

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diseases and poverty. 0y Vilohitha$ it refers to the white ! s'at!ka sankasam " lustre of :is ody.0y the term 0ha)ava$ the mantram pays compliment to :is si3 cele rated attri utes such as0alam$ -ejas$ +iswaryam$ et al.

-he japam of the eleventh manthram is said to create communal harmony$ cooperation and

freedom from fear for the community.

-he <hyaana slokam for the twelfth manthram cele rates Sri Rudran as the Lord$ adorned withall kinds of eautiful jewelry and weapons. In this form$ :e is reco)ni*ed as the cause ofdestruction of all sins of the devotees. -he <hyaana Slokam is as followsD

Sar a 'aa'a$aram De am, sar aab$arana b$oos$!tam Sar aayud$a d$aram d$yayet$ Sar a oka Ma$eswaram

-he +nvayakramam !prose order" for the twelfth manthram is as followsD

/$aga a$ &a a /aa$a o$ Sa$asraan! $et$aya$ Sa$asrad$aa Is$aa a$ &aasaam Muk$ aa$ 4araac$eenaa >rd$! ,h$ Lord$ in oth of your hands$ there are thousands of weapons ristlin) in thousands of waysand poised for hittin) our tar)ets. You$ who is all powerful ! <esaana$ " should aim their tipsaway from us and send them in other directions. Please do not direct them at us and there yspare us.

-he recitation of the twelfth mantram of the tenth anuvakam with its <hyaana Sloka will protectthe reciter from all kinds of disasters for which one is least prepared.

&$e < e ent$ and F!na Anu akam o" Sr! Rudram-86-



In the tenth +nuvakam$ appeals were made directly to Sri Rudran. In the eleventh +nuvakam$appeals are made to his +msa 0hoothas$ vi*.$ the thousands of Rudra 7anaas$ which e3ecute :isorders. -he Vedas and Puranas praise the 7anaas of Sri Rudran as the ones that punish orreward the human ein)s in proportion to their sins or )ood deeds.

-here are thirteen manthras in the eleventh +nuvakam. -here are three <hyaana Slokams

associated with these thirteen manthras.

&$e F!rst Mant$ram

Sa$asraan! Sa$asraS8 y< Rudra ad$! b$oomyaamt<s$agum Sa$asra yo7ane a ad$an aan! tanmas! (1)

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+ ove is the te3t of the first manthram$ which praises the thousands of Rudra 7anaas$ who roamthis universe at the ehest of Sri Rudran to reco)ni*e and react to the )ood as well as the addeeds of the humans. -hey are descri ed as Lords of the universes y the dele)ated power of SriRudran in this manthram ! /$oomyaam Ad$! ".

-hrou)h the prayer em odied y this manthra$ a statement is made that the cords of the ow! ow strin)s" of these Rudra 7anaas have een left untied and the ows in such a status are leftthousands of miles away from the worshippers of Sri Rudran. -his manthram asks for theremoval of fear ased on the thou)ht that the ows of the Rudra 7anaas mi)ht e used a)ainstthe worshipers. -he manthram asks the Rudra 7anaas to untie the ow strin)s of their ows$throw them away in the lue yonder and then approach the devotees of Sri Rudran in a pacificmanner.

-he distancin) etween the ferocious ows of Rudra 7anas and the >eevans is descri ed y thefollowin) passa)e of the first manthram$ which will appear repeatedly in the te3t of manthramsof the eleventh +nuvakam up to the ninth manthramD

t<es$agum sa$asra yo7an< a ad$an aan! tanmas!

-he positionin) of the ows in their operative states out of harm2s way is a concept that iscomfortin) and therefore$ it is repeated in all of the nine mantrams of the eleventh anuvakam$startin) from the first one.

In the previous anuvakas$ Sri Rudran :imself was saluted so :e can e kind to the devotees. Inthis +nuvakam$ the manifested forces of :is aspects$ the Rudra 7anaas$ are ein) praised so thatthey can e kind to the devotees in their roles as jud)es of human deeds$ )ood as well as ad.-he spirit of the eleventh +nuvakam finds its echo in the followin) +tharva Vedaa verseD

/$a aas$ar aa !d$am /ra$mo Rudram 4asu'at$!sc$a +a$ Is$uryaa <s$aam sam !d$a &$a *a$ Sant$u Sad$aa S! aa$

!meanin)" D !"t us rais" th" di%%"r"nt %"atur"s o% +od, as Bhavaa, Sharvaa, Rudraa and th" !ord o% th" Sou&s* May #" und"rstand th" %or "s o% th"s" as " ts; May th"y b" "v"r ind andaus i ious to us* !+tharva Veda I$ :ymn VI$ Verse (". -he reference to the many Rudras also is made once a)ain in another verse of +tharva Vedam.:ere$ the =reator !Sri Rudran" is asked to protect the devotee throu)h the Rudras !Rudra 7anaas"from the southerly direction and from the ri)ht side. -he +tharva Veda verse from I 1andais as followsD

Somo Ma Rudra!daks$!naaya D!saa$ 4aat$u &$asm!nkrame&$asm!nurye &$aam 4uram 4ra!m!

Sa Maa Raks$atu Saa Maa=o'aayat$u &$asmaa Aat$maanam 4at! D$ad$e S aa$aa

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-he si3th manthram salutes the chieftains of the armies of Rudra 7anaas. +mon) the Rudraas$there are some hierarchiesC one such unit of the army is known as 0aala 7raham. -hecommander of that unit is reco)ni*ed and saluted in the si3th manthram as a prototype of othercommanders throu)h the vakyam +e /$utaanaam Ad$!'ataya$ . -he rest of the mantramdescri es their appearance. -he mantram states that some of these leaders have heads that are

clean5shavenC others have heads adorned y matted hair ! Jata ". -hese Rudraas are saluted andthe mantram states that it has cast asunder their ows out of harm2s way.

-he seventh mantram ! +e Ann<s$u -! !d$yant$! 4aatres$u 4!/at8 7anaan " praises theRudraas associated with the food and drinks that people use. -he Rudraas are reco)ni*ed as

ein) indwellers in the food we eat or in the milk and evera)es that we drink or in the vesselsthat are used to serve the food and drinks. -he Rudraas are thus associated with the cause of

punishment throu)h food and drinks to those of unri)hteous conduct.

-he ei)hth manthram pays its homa)e to those Rudraas who protect the people who follow the path sanctioned y the Vedas ! a!d$!kam " and the one which does not have the ri)or of Veda

Mar)am ! #auk$!kam ". -hese Rudraas protect and nourish the people who are of ri)hteousconduct throu)h the lessin)s of food. -hey also punish those who do not follow the a ove paths y turnin) their food into to3ic poisons and harmin) them. -he mantram containin) thesethou)hts is as followsD

+e 4at$aam 4at$!raks$aya +e a/r? ud$aa +a yud$a$

-he word 4at$aam is same as the #Pantha% used in Purusha SookthamD # *anya 'ant$aaayanaaya !d$yat< %. +ll the approaches to 7od are referred to here. -he Rudra 7anaas arereco)ni*ed here as the protectors ! 4at$! Raks$aya$ " of these Vaidhika and loukika approaches.-hey are also descri ed as +e a/ruda$a !i.e.$ the a)ents who )ive us the food and viands andthere y nourish and protect as we enter and travel in oth the types of approaches". -hey arealso reco)ni*ed as the forces$ # +a yud$a %$ that destroy those who sin y not followin) the a ove

paths. 0y destroyin) those who are practitioners of unri)hteous deeds$ the Rudra 7anaas protectthe Vaidhika and Laukhika Mar)as$ which are the sanmar)aas.

-he ninth manthram ! +e &eert$aan! 4rac$arant$! Sr? ukaa ant$o *!s$ang!na$ " salutes thoseRudra 7anaas havin) knives with sharp lades in their hands and other weapons$ and they arereco)ni*ed as travellin) throu)h the waters of sacred rivers such as 7an)a$ Yamuna$ 7odhavari$

6armada$ Saraswathi$ =auveri$ et al. Sr?ukaa stands for weapons with very sharp ed)es and points and *!s$anga$ stands for swords. -hese Rudra 7anaas are associated with the power to less them ! teert$a yatr!kaa " with either lessin)s or otherwise. -he )ood ones followin) theri)hteous paths )et their lessin)s and the waters nourish them and remove their sinsC theunri)hteous are harmed y the weapons in the hands of the Rudras$ who dwell in the waters ofthe rivers$ sacred ponds and reside on the anks of these waters.

&$e &ent$ Mantram

-he tenth mantram prays to the Rudraas who are limitless eyond the thousands ! sa$asran!sa$asraso ye Rudraa$ " of Rudra 7anaas mentioned in the first mantram of this +nuvakam and

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In addition to the a ove &A mantrams of the eleventh +nuvakam$ it is customary to recite thefollowin) mantrams in Sri Rudra Paarayanam. +ll of these additional mantrams also salute thedifferent attri utes of Sri Rudran.

&rayam/akam ya7aama$e sugand$!m 'us$t! ard$anam8or arukam! a bandananmr!t$yor muks$eeya maamrutaat$ (1) !meanin)"

3" sa&ut" th" thr""-"y"d Sri Rudran, #hos" body oss"ss"s "9<uisit" natura& "r%um"* 3" sa&ut" $im #ho "nhan "s th" str"n'th o% a&& &ivin' b"in's throu'h $is b&"ssin's* 3" o%%"r $a !sto $im* !i " a ri " u umb"r s&i s out o% its &a " in th" r"" "r, &"t us "asi&y and "%%ort&"ss&y

s&i out o% th" bonds o% Samsara and attain Moks$am * -he second mantram in the au3iliary )roup salutes the aspects of Sri Rudran which )ive the

urnin) power for Agn! $ wettin) and thirst58uenchin) power for water$ and the curative powersfor medicinal her s. -his mantram offers its salutations to Sri Rudran$ who is pervasively present as the cuttin) ed)e of the ener)y that performs various activities. -his aspect of :isuniversal presence is saluted as # +o Rudra$ -!s$ aa /$u anaa -! esaa &asma! Rudraaya

*amo Ast$u %. -he full manthram is as followsD

y8 Rudro Agnau yo a'su ya 8s$adees$u y8 Rudro -!S aa /$u anaa A ! esa&asma! Rudraaya *amo Ast$u ( )

Since Sri Rudran is everywhere$ the mantram salutes :is universal presence to attainauspiciousness.

-he third manthram advises the worshipper to respect Sri Rudran throu)h pooja andaaraadhanam to o tain peace of mind and lon) life ! Ma$e Saumanasya Asuram De am Rudra+aks$ a, *amob$!$ Du asya ". :ere$ the word asuram stands for Sri Rudran who is e3tremelystron) and powerful or for :im who e3pands the devotee s life span on this earth. -he mantramasks the devotee to praise ! Stu$! " Sri Rudran$ who is distin)uished y the possession of the estarrows and ow and as the indweller of all curative medicinal her s. Such a Man)ala Vi)rahammust e your o ject of prayer$ says the mantram$ whose te3t is as followsD

tamus$tu$! ya$ S !s$u; sud$an aa yo -!swasya >s$ayat! /$<s$a7asya+aks$ aama$e Soumanasaaya Rudram *amob$!r De amasuram Du asya (@)

In this stothram$ three ver s O Stu$!, +aks$ a and Du asya 1 are used. Stu$! stands for recited prayer throu)h the ton)ue ! kay!ka namaskaram "$ yaks$ a stands for worship throu)h manasa 'oo7a and Du asya stands for the honors done to Sri Rudran throu)h e3ternal aaraad$anam $involvin) the lim s of the ody. :e is descri ed to us here as the supreme protective force whosaves us from all kinds of misfortunes with ow and arrows. :e is reco)ni*ed as the enevolentforce drivin) away poverty$ sickness and short life span.

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-he fourth au3iliary mantram descri es the lessed hand of a devotee of Sri Rudran$ who usesthe hand to perform Aaraad$anam $ Ab$!s$ekam and other u'ac$arams . -he mantram is asfollowsD

Ayam m< $ast8 /$aga aanayam m< /$agawattara$ Ayam m< -!swab$es$a78yagum S! ab$!marSana$ ( )

-he )lory of the hand that is fortunate to perform 'oo7a $ a ankaram and ab$!s$ekam for LordRudran is revealed here. -he Siva 0hakthaa states here that his hand that touches the auspiciousvi)raham of Paramasivan is truly lessed ! Me Ayam %ast$a$ S! a Ab$!marsana$ Ayam

%ast$a$ /$aga aan ". My hand that takes part in the Ab$!s$ekam $ A ankaaram and Aaraad$anam is e3traordinarily fortunate and is powerful to cure all diseases ! Me Ayam %ast$a$ /$aga att$ara$, Me Ayam %ast$a$ -!s ab$es$a7a$ ". -hrou)h this revelation$ theSiva 0hakthaa is e3hortin) others to join in the Aaraad$ana of Lord Rudran for )ettin) :is

lessin)s that are incompara le in their power and reach.

-he fifth au3iliary mantram prays for attainin) :is auspicious lessin)s throu)h performance ofri)hteous deeds. Such o servance should help in the elimination of misfortunes that could comefrom the usa)e of the thousands of death5yieldin)$ destructive weapons found in the hands of SriRudran. -his mantram has the followin) te3tD

+e t< sa$asramayudam 'aasaa Mrt$yo Martyaaya $anta < taan +agnasya Maayayaa Sar aana a ya7aama$e (B)

:ere$ Sri Rudran is reco)ni*ed as Samhaara Moorthi and is addressed as Mrt$yo E -he weaponsin :is hands are for destroyin) the jeevaraasis$ when their time is up or even efore their allotted

time$ if they perform unri)hteous acts. -he weapons are seen as thousand fold ! sa$asram " andten thousand fold ! ayud$am " in :is tens of thousands of hands. 0y doin) the proper ri)hteousdeeds such as aaraadhanam and yaa)aas ased on Sri Rudram ! +a7asya Maayayaa "$ weeliminate the destructive power of your weapons ! sar aan a aya7aama$e " away from us. -hesat$karmaas and sadaac$arams are said to e the antidotes a)ainst the fury of Sri Rudran smultifold weapons.

-he si3th au3iliary mantram is a short one and is as followsD

Mrtya e S a$a K Mrtya e S a$a ( )

-his mantram states that this homam is performed to Sri Parameswaran$ who is in the form ofdestructive force known as Mr?tyu or >a asam$aara Moort$! .

-he seventh mantram prays to :im for protection a)ainst the ills of samsara and the te3t of thismantram is as followsD

8m *amo /$aga at< Rudraaya -!s$*a e Mr? tyur m< 4aa$! (E)

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:ere$ salutation is made to Sri Rudran y reco)ni*in) :im as the supreme force that pervades alluniverses ! -!s$na e *amo *ama$ " and as the 0ha)awaan with si3 7unas such as stren)th$valor$ et al. -he 7od who removes or drives away the sorrows !Rudran" is asked to protect theworshipper y eliminatin) the onda)e of samsaaram . Vedam can take the li erty to alter the

!bakt$!s . -herefore$ instead of sayin) Maam 4aa$! $ Vedam says m) 4aa$! .

-he ei)hth and the final au3iliary mantram invites Sri Rudran$ who is the indin) knot of life aswell as the loosener of that knot$ to reside in the ody of the devotee. 0y such residence$ SriRudran is asked to take satisfaction in the food that the devotee eats and to protect him throu)hthat offerin). :e is asked to remove the &aa'a &rayams ! Aad$yaat$m!kam $ Aad$! Da! !kamand Aad$! /owd$!kam " and to less the devotee with supreme happiness. -hat 4arameswaran $who inds the forces of the ody to)ether to ener)i*e the human ein)s in all their activities$ isthe same Lord of death and destruction. Such a powerful Parameswaran is re8uested to sanctifyour odies throu)h his residence inside us and to protect us.

-he spirit of this mantram is echoed in one of the Sivananda Lahari verses of Sri +di Sankara.

-his verse with its profound meanin)s is as followsD

4a'ot$ 'aat$a !moc$anaaya Ruc$!ra!swaryaaya Mrt$yun7aya St$ot$ra D$yaana nat$! 'rat$aks$!na sa'aryaa okanaa karnane J!$ aa c$!tta s!rong!gra$ast$a nayana Srot$ra! a$am 4raart$!t$a$ Maam Aagya'aya &$ann!n!roo'aya Mu$urmaame a Maame a c$a$

-he word5for5word meanin) of this verse is )iven elow to identify with the movin) prayer of+di Sankara where he asks Lord of the universes to en)a)e all his lim s in service to him.

Mrt$yun7aya !,hE Parameswara who destroyed Yama <harman"$ 4aa'ot$'aat$a !moc$anaaya !for removin) the dan)ers that could efall one due toaccumulated sins"$ Ruc$!ra!swaryaaya !for the peace of mind and independence from ills ofsamsara"$ 7!$ aa0c$!tta0ang!0$ast$a0nayana0srot$ra!$ ! y my ton)ue$ mind$ head$ foot$ hands$eyes and ears"$ stotra0d$yaana0nat$! 'rat$aks$!na0sa'aryaa okanaa karnana 'raart$at$a$ !Iappeal to You to permit me to en)a)e in acts of praisin) You$ meditatin) on You$ prostratin) toYou$ performin) 'oo7a to You$ visuali*in) You$ and hearin) Your auspicious stories". At$a

Maam Aagya'aya !therefore$ please command me to en)a)e in acts that cele rate You throu)hevery one of my lim s and facultiesC Please reside in me and watch over me and command me to

perform all such auspicious activities". Me A ac$a$ Mema! a !Let me not e found deficient inmy prayers$ meditations$ salutations$ circumam ulations$ aaraad$anams $ and listenin) of Yourholy stories. Let my mind and ody e ever disassociated from such acts not revolvin) aroundYou. My ton)ue is for sin)in) Your )loriesC my mind for meditatin) on Your >a yaana=unaas C my head is for prostratin) efore Your holy feetC my feet are for )oin) around Yourholy templeC my hands are for doin) arc$anaa for Your Arc$aa Moort$y C my eyes are fordevourin) Your eautiful Manga a -!gra$am C my ears for listenin) a out Your holy storiesdescri ed in 4uraanaas and U'an!s$ads . Khen I en)a)e my lim s in service to You$ my sinswill e destroyed and I will there y attain salvation and Mukt$! ."

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