Samarasyam (Equipoise)
Written by: atmanandanadha
"sama prdhanou samasatvou samoutayoh"
- sruthi
Samarasa is a concept that denotes literally one-taste or one-flavour, symbolizing equipoise in feelings, nay the mind at rest. The word samarasa is often used in scriptural literature to suggest higher truth and the supreme bliss of harmony. It means the essential unity of all things, of all existence, the most perfect unification, and the highest consummation of oneness. Brihadaranyaka upanishad asserts that there was one unitary, indivisible, and original universal self which phenomenally envisaged itself as a subjective side and an objective side of itself, the cosmic positive and the cosmic negative, the consanguinity of which was duality and correlativity. The universe was basically a single cosmic atom (brahmanda), which split into two parts by a big-bang what may be called the cosmic subject and the cosmic object. Brihadaranyaka upanishad further explains that the two cosmic parts are commensurable to male and female companions, in which context, one rushes towards the other partner to come in unity with it while the other intends to dodge the connect, since such a association is not achievable as the other actually cannot stand apart from that which seeks the contact. It is further explained by the upanishad that the bipolar entirety reduces itself to minor and minor aggregates, from celestials in the heaven down through flora and fauna and even the lowest of beings like insects, etc., thus making out that this bipolar pull suatains far and wide in genesis from the apical to the nethermost of conceived elements. Maharshi Yajnavalkya says that each unit of life is actually like a split-pea, in which one cannot easily say whether the peanut is one whole or two parts merged together. Philosophically it is the struggle of the two parts of the one-whole to unite themselves into a single unit of existence.
savai naiva reme tasmadekaki na ramate;
sa dvitiya maicchat. Sa haitavanasa yatha
stripumansou samparishvaktou sa imameva
atmanam dvedha patayat; tatah patisca
patnica bhavtam; tasmaditdamardhavrigalamiva
sva itiha smaha yajnavalkyah; tasmadayamakasah
striya puryat eva; tam samabhavat, tato
manushya ajayanta.
- brih. up. 1.4.3
Not being happy to remain as a singular entity, he desired to mate; he became as big as spouces entwining each other; he parted this very body into two and from that came husband and wife. Therefore, said yajnavalkya, this body is one-half of oneself, like one of the two halves of a split-pea. Therefore this space is indeed filled by the wife; he was united with her; and from that men were born.
sarvopeta ca taddarsanat
- brahma sutra 2.1.30
It being endowed with multifarious powers (sakti), the brahman revealed this phenomenal creation
vikaranatvanneti cettaduktam
- brahma sutra 2.1.31
Supreme and sublime brahman is to be known only by the vedas’ alone, but not from reasoning. This brahman is omnipotent even though it is devoid of organs.
lokavattu leela kaivalyam
- brahma sutra 2.1.33
Creation for brahman is a mere pastime like what is seen in the world.Although the creation of the universe appears to us to be a stupendous task, yet to god it is just lila as his sakti is infinite.
Sankara bhagavatpada says that the phenomenal world is only the name and form view, that which is imagined by our ignorance. Siva is the possessor of power (sakti). Without siva, sakti has no existence and without sakti, siva has no expression. It is through sakti that the impersonal supreme being (nirguna siva) becomes the personal being (saguna siva). Siva is the soul of sakti, and sakti is identical with siva. Siva is sat-cit-ananda; sakti is sat-cit-anandamayi. Siva and sakti are one and neither is higher than the other. Sakti is chidrupi of sat-siva. The co-equal nature of siva and sakti is evenly pre-eminent and equally fundamental in this universe.
sivaabheda va siva tadabhedasya pravrittinimittata ca…
yadha sivah tadha devi yadha devi tadha sivah
tasmat abheda buddhaiva siveti kadhayatyumam…
uma sankarayorbhedo nastyeva paramardhatah
dvidhasou rupamasthayi sthita eko nasamsayah…
- linga puranam
Uma and sankara are truly in equipoise, though apparently perceived in duality are as one-whole. Both siva and sivaa are equal and indistinguishable.
cinmatrasraya mayayah saktyakare dvijottamah
anupravishta ya samvit nirvikalpa svayamprabha
sadakara parananda samsarocchedakarini
sa siva paramadevi sivabhinna sivamkari
- suta samhita
That maya-sakti which rests on the receptacle of jnana-sakti, which is devoid of uncertainty and doubt, which is self effulgent, which is absolute consciousness, which is supreme bliss, that which can put end to samsara (wheel of birth and death).
pavakasyoshnateveyam bhaskarasyeva didhitih
candrasya candrikeveyam sivasya sahaja sive
- agama
Like heat to fire, brightness to the sun, moon-light to the moon, siva is inseparable and in natural state of disposition with siva.
In sahasrara (candraloka), siva and sakti are honoured as the ancient pair, the eternal parents of the universe; and their samarasya is magnificently described with a proclamation that - each is the end attained by the penance of the other.
paraspara tapassampat phalayita parasparou
prapanca matapitarou pranchou jayapati stumah
- chandralokam
Saura samhita says that the sakti which is separate from brahman is not different from brahman itself. Such being the case, it is called separable sakti only by the ignorant that are unaware of this supreme equality (samarasya).
brahmanobhinna saktistu brahmaiva khalunapara
tadhasati vridha proktam saktirityavivekibhih
sakti saktimator vidvan bhedabhedastu durghatah
- saura samhita
sivecchaya parasaktih siva tattvaikatam gata
tatah parispuratyadow sarge tailam tiladive
- vayaviya samhita
siva and sakti are in perfect equipoise. Parasakti, under the influence and will of siva, is in perfect unity with siva-tatva.
This primeval and elemental union is like that of the oil and the sesame seed, says the vayavya samhita.
yadhaikam pavana spandam ekamoushnyanalou
yadha cinmatram spandasaktisca tadhaivaikatma sarvada
- vasishta ramayanam
Siva is ever pure, unattached; yet the source, substratum, support, primal cause for this universe. By his simple gaze sakti is vitalised to create. Siva’s mere presence makes sakti keep up the play of her five cosmic functions (lila). The whole world is a mere vibration or spanda (vibration) in siva consciousness. The inseparability of siva and sakti is as that of wind and air, heat and fire. Siva, the absolute brahman, who was like a calm, ripple-less, vibration-less peaceful lake, has just been moved from within (spandanam). The first ripple, the first vibration, the first movement was that of intense spandana of desire (kama) from within the cit-sakti splitting it into two, the willing power (iccha-sakti), and the acting power (kriya-sakti); consequently unfolding creation. The final name of the rahasya-nama is lalitambika, the unified principle of siva and sakti (sivasaktaikya rupini). Union here is the state of supreme equality, the being absolutely without any difference. It is impossible to distinguish the difference between sakti and the possessor of sakti.
In inward worship (antaryaga), the aspirant’s mind acts as a mani, a crystal. The sadhaka who is qualified in the practice of the four-fold sadhana as prescribed by sankara bhagavatpada, whose mind is crystal like and cleansed of all impurities can alone achieve the inward union. The agamas identify the samarasa principle of kameswara-kameswari mithuna (in pairing) as panca-murti (tatpurusha, aghora, vamadeva, sadyojata,isana). Siva-sakti samarasya as parama is eulogised in panca-mantra (panca is five), as it represents panca-tatva, paanca-dhatu, panca-jnanendria (organs of perception), panca-karmendria (organs of action), panca tanmatra, panca-avstha (mental states).
- Kameswara-kameswari is tatpurusha (tasya tasya purishu vasati iti tatpurusha) since their abode is sadhaka’s body.
- Kameswara-kameswari is aghora (ghorah na bhavati iti aghorah) as they are benevolent at the sadhaka.
- Kameswara-kameswari is vama (vamanat vama) as they bequeath dharma, artha and kama to the sadhaka.
- Kameswara-kameswari is sadyojata as worlds with all animate and inanimate projects as per their iccha.
- Kameswara-kameswari is isana as all beings are under the rule of their sovereignty.
This mithuna, a divine pairing of kameswara-kameswari, conducts the whole world under it’s celestial almightiness in five-fold mechanism of creation, sustenance, destruction, concealment and benediction (srishti-sthithi-laya-tirodhana-anugraha). These divine competences are also known as brahma, vishnu, rudra, maheswara and sadasiva. Tantra sastra considers the universe to be a manifestation of pure consciousness. While manifesting, consciousness appears to divide itself into two parts which cannot exist without one another. One part of this seemingly divided consciousness remains as a static, formless quality (kameswara), and the other part is a dynamic, creative aspect (kameswari). Tantra expedition is to know both of them as one. Through a process of laya-yoga, the two are eventually experienced in their state of union (samarasya). One way of describing the entire journey in self-realisation is tracing the manifestations of sakti to the point where siva and sakti are seen as indistinguishable.
One text of the prapancasara tantra says that the para-bindu divides into two parts, of which the right is bindu, the male, purusha or ham, and the left visarga the female, prakriti or sah, making the combined hamsah. Hamsah is the union of prakriti and purusha and the universe is hamsah
- ‘the garland of letters’ sir john woodroffe
Kameswara is the transcendental supreme being and kameswari is the manifested, immanent aspect of the supreme being. Summarily sakti-tatva is an operational negation of siva-tatva. Actuating as the will of siva, sakti is the pure and blissful consciousness of siva, undividable and identical. Mahakavi kalidasa in his wax-lyrical raghuvamsa eulogised siva-sakti as the primordial parents of the universe, and as inseparable as in the relation of word and meaning (vak-ardha).
There are three superlative hymns of praise on lalitha tripurasundari –
- Aryaa dvisati (lalita stava ratnam)- a 200-sloka piece by durvasa;
- Soundaryalahari (41 sloka anandalahari; 51 sloka soundaryalahari) composed by sankara bhagavatpada;
- Muka pancasati (a 500 sloka work) by the poet muka.
sivah saktya yukto yadi bhavati saktah prabhavitum
na cedevam devo na khalu kusalah spanditumapi
atastvam aradhyam harihara virincadibhirapi
pranantum stotum va katham akritapunyah prabhavati
- soundaryalahari 1
Sakti is the creator of all duality; hence of the universe. Lalita is the connecting cord between advaita and all that is dvaita; siva and sakti. The identity between siva and sakti is explicitly oneness. Siva and sakti are like the lamp and its light, the flower and its fragrance, honey and its sweetness, milk and its whiteness, word and its meaning. They cannot be separated from each other. This siva is only a close fit to the advaitic brahman. Whenever there is a mention of sakti, there must be a locus-standi (asraya) for it. Siva brahman is the asraya for sakti. Srividya advocates that kameswara is the absolute brahman, and in conjunction with kameswari, the personified esoteric principle of volition (iccha) of siva, projects into the unfathomable universe of names and forms. Vedanta portrays brahman only as the absolute, and all universe including time and space, which appear to be real, are described as relative, and resting on the brahman canvas. Modern Physics restricts to and characterizes only relativeness, but does not say what is absolute. Pratyabijna-sastra (trika school) endeavours ‘to know a thing truly as it is’, by focussing on the three essential principles – pasu, pati, pasam. They postulate that siva and sakti together is para-brahman, and the universe is a reflection (abhasa) of that para-brahman due to the presence of sakti. All duality consequently projects from the para-brahman because of spandana (vibration) from within. Siva and sakti are non-separate (abhinnam), and pratyabijna is the realisation that siva is atman. With a desire to become, para-brahman transformed into saguna-brahman, hence the couple kameswara – kameswari actuate unleashing their five cosmic functions (panca-kritya) for the world to arise and go on from there. Thus the primordial volition to produce multiplicity out of the supernal couple is the kama; but the act of separating the created multiplicity from the reality of the creator is maya (divine illusion).
Siva sakti samarasya posture can effectively be visualised in ardhanarIsvara; half siva and half sakti form. The right side is siva, and the left is sakti. Absolute brahman gets reflected (abhasa) in the mirror of maya-sakti projecting itself as the saguna brahman (kameswari) that transacts panca-kritya in the universe of names and forms. Kameswara, the undifferentiated, supreme, noumenal, transcendental and limitless consciousness becomes limited, phenomenal and mundane, and projects as the universe of beings and matter. This expansion is evolution, and is through 36 fundamental principles (tatva) of kameswari (maya). The first five tatva are pure maya, and the latter 31 are impure maya. Siva tatva is the first; next three are cit-sakti, jnana-sakti, vidya-sakti tatva, and correspond to the three dimensions of cit. The preliminary non-dual siva- sakti the aspect is cit; the seed-knowledge of duality for expansion or evolution is jnana tatva; and the awareness of both of its non-dual aspect and its potential for sprouting out into multiplicity is vidya tatva. The fifth in order is kriya tatva, which is the executing part. These are pure tatva of maya that conduct the five cosmic functions (panca-kritya - creation, maintenance, destruction, obscuration and grace); followed by pure-impure principles further limiting consciousness; and finally disguised by impure principles needed for sustenance on earth. Thus this expansion in a way is descent (pravritti) of jiva from the absolute brahman under the mystic manipulation of maya sakti, which also veils and limits consciousness. The invariable endeavour of jiva is to go back to its source which is nivritti or moksha (involution). Expansion of brahman is evolution and the merging into brahman is involution, and both are possible only by the divine grace of kameswari thus making sadhana imperative in our life. The optimum benediction from kama-kameswari is grace, for which the premier thing that the upasaka can do is surrender. Kama-kameswari as rudra is dharma; as vishnu is the world; and as brahma is knowledge. By meditating on this great samarasa ardhanariswara, all our sins are shattered, and immortality reached.
rudra is man; uma is woman - prostrations to him and her.
rudra is brahma. uma is sarasvati - prostrations to him and her.
rudra is vishnu. uma is lakshmi - prostrations to him and her.
rudra is surya. uma is shadow - prostrations to him and her.
rudra is candra, uma is nakshtra - prostrations to him and her.
rudra is ahar, uma is nisa - prostrations to him and her.
rudra is yajna, uma is vedi - prostrations to him and her.
rudra is agni, uma is svaha - prostrations to him and her.
rudra is veda, uma is sastra - prostrations to him and her.
rudra is tree, uma is creeper - prostrations to him and her.
rudra is scent, uma is flower - prostrations to him and her.
rudra is artha, uma is vak - prostrations to him and her.
rudra is linga, uma is pitha - prostrations to him and her.
The aspirant should worship rudra and uma with these mantras, O my son, suka! With these hymns, you should meditate on the eternal para-brahman, which is beyond the reach of the senses, which is pure existence, knowledge and bliss and which cannot be understood either by the speech or by the mind. After knowing this, there is nothing more to be known, because everything is the form of that, and there is nothing separate from that.
- rudra upanishad