All posts in this series
- Aditya Hridayam – Introduction
- Aditya Hridayam – Part 3
- Aditya Hridayam – Part 2
- Aditya Hridayam – Part 1
सर्वदेवात्मको ह्येष तेजस्वी रश्मिभावनः ।
एष देवासुर-गणान् लोकान् पाति गभस्तिभिः ॥ 7 ॥Indeed, He is the very embodiment of all Gods. He is self-luminous and a reflector of all the rays. He nourishes and energizes the inhabitants of all the worlds as well as the host of Gods and demons by his rays.
सर्वदेवात्मको ह्येष (sarvadevatmako hyesa)- “Esha” means this. This term appears ten times in the text but it is not random. It is because of its ordered use we call it a “mantra”.
The Veda mantras describe Surya Ji primarily through the terms “Esha” and “Asau”.
During Sandhyavandanam the mantra “ Asau Adityo Brahma” is used. Asau means “here it is”. Both Esha and Asau are similar in meaning.
When describing Shiva, Vishnu, and Devi, we can’t use the terms esha and asau as they are not directly perceptible.
The above mantra means that Brahman the one who underlies everything is Aditya and therefore worthy of worship both externally and one who radiates within our individual soul (jivatma).
The concept of such unity is not difficult when we understand that our own body is one of unison. Despite, the body consisting of various parts and functions, we never consider the part as a separate whole rather we consider all parts to constitute one i.e. “I”. The same applies to the case of Brahman.
*The atheist with another attempt to counter this notion may posit the idea that with death, the conception of “I” dies. The skeptic fails to understand that such analogies are meant to convey the relationship because, in the personal sense, it is of course expected that the notion of “I” dies when the individual dies. However, one may also understand the concept through another analogy.
We should understand that the continuity of “I” exists even in the case of society through transcendentals. Conceptions like “order” and “duty” may change owing to spatio-temporal developments but the terms themselves are always constant, transcending the individual experience. An individual refines himself only if he recognizes that there is some truth that is understandable and must be followed and the same goes for conformity in society where it collectively follows an ideal. Therefore a society functions only based on stability brought about through the recognition of something higher than himself for which he and all strive to attain and this is that “I”. I follow my svadharma, I follow my jati dharma, I follow what is “right”, what is “true” so that it may destroy the shackles that bind me to mundane life.
This again indicates duty which is of course diversified when it trickles back down to the individual.
So when ‘sarvadevatmako hyesa’ is used it is telling us that he is not something ordinary rather when esha is used, it highlights him in comparison to everything else. Despite appearing as a star or a ball of fire, he is not simply that. He is sarvadevatmakah or one who encompasses all living beings i.e their soul (Atma). The soul itself has the quality of encompassment.
तेजस्वी (tejasvi) – This Tejas refers to his germinating potential (bija shakti or power contained in seed-form). The whole world is dependent on him in order to sustain itself and this is the case on the subtle level of atma. Just as a seed germinates on account of adequate stimuli, so too does the atma germinate on account of the stimulus, that is, Bhagvan explained previously as Sarvadevatmakah.
रश्मिभावनः (rasmibhavanah) – Creator of rays. Gabhastibhih also refers to rays and these rays are:
एष देवासुर-गणान् लोकान् पाति (esha devasuraganan lokaan paathi) – Paathi means one who rules. With his rays he rules over the devas, asuras and realms and protects them. The reason why rays are constantly mentioned is because a personal connection is established only through them.
In the vedas, Surya Bhagavan has the names Gopatih, Gopalah and Govindah. We have mentioned before that he exhibits a transcendental form similar to a man when Hiranymaya Vapuh (Golden body) was mentioned. This Supreme Body (Purusha) to better the world, descended in the form of Sri Krishna ji.
“Go” means life force (prana), veda mantras, and rays besides the general meaning of cow. The Veda in one instance mentions that solar rays while descending unto the earth appeared as if cows of diverse complexions (colors) descended.
One may ask why such a comparison is made and the response is that just as a cow nourishes us with its udder, so too does the sun with its rays.
Krishna ji herds these cows which translates to Surya ji herding his rays. With this insight, the term गभस्तिभिः (Gabhastibhih) refers to the rays that nourish this world. He nourishes the Devas and Asuras but there is an underlying meaning.
One can conclude that the entirety of our existence is centered on deva and asura understood if we derive its meaning the way the Gita explains in Chapter 16 titled “Daivasura Sampad Vibhaga Yoga”. Those who have the qualities of the devas are devas and those who have asuric qualities are asuras. However, no individual is purely one or the other rather he consists of both qualities.
Three gunas underlie all of creation including humans. They are satva, rajas and tamas. Satva represents the devas’ qualities while rajas and tamas represent asuric qualities. Though we should increase the former, the latter shouldn’t be discarded as they serve their purpose albeit with certain restrictions. This is observed in the case of sleep for example.
The rays we have focused till now convey some meaning about their origin and in the same way we may know about the qualities of Krishna ji by observing the cows he herds. If we observe the cows to be of proper weight appearing bulky and energetic, it is a physical manifestation of the herder’s effort or quality. We are not aware of who this herder is yet we can come to such a conclusion and in the same way, we understand who Surya ji is through his rays. Furthermore, by understanding our own behaviour and thought process, we can get insight into the imperceptible essence of our being free of all sorts of defects brought about by desire, greed, etc.
To be continued..
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