PANCHAKSHARA MAHA MANTRA

PANCHAKSHARA MAHA MANTRA

http://rajaputhran.sulekha.com/blog/post/2007/07/the-shiva-panchakshara.htm
COURTESY:RAJAPUTHRAN

I WENT THRU THE BLOG AND AM NOW PROVIDING THE LINK AND ALSO THE CONTENT I WISH ALL OF US SHOULD KNOW.FORGIVE ME FOR COPYING BUT THE INTENTION IS TO SHARE AND UNDERSTAND THE CONCEPT.PLEASE FOLLOW HIS BLOG.

In my younger days, I used to sit before the family deity, and accompany my Grand Father and repeat the following Mantra about eleven times, or as many times as my grand father wanted me to recite:

Namashivaya, Narayanaya, Achyuthaya, Ananthaya, |
Govindaya, Gopalaya, Sri Maha Ganapathaye Namaha: ||

Did not know much about it, but felt that by praying to the deities, nothing bad would happen. Later it became a real study of the Slokas, when I could spell it correctly and pronounce it faultlessly. In fact he was my guru, in matters spiritual.

After my Upanayanam (thread-ceremony), he initiated me into the Panchakshara, NA-MA-SHI-VA-YA. To be repeated eleven times, just like that. One word, repeated eleven times, did not take much of my evening time, not more than a few minurtes, but what was bothersome was the application of vibhuthi.

It was a must, after cleaning of the limbs and face, as he felt then only one could attune oneself with the family deity, which to us is the Panchayathana Deities. Actually that was not a bother. The problem lay with the locality Bengali boys. If we went out with the Vibhuthi marks, they would jibe at us, saying that Madru is going, and call behind us "Yeh Madrassi, Kothai Jachcho ?" ( where are you going? ) So to avoid that type of trouible, I used to wipe off the marks of the vibhuthi from my forehead and fore arms, before stepping out of the house and go to the youth club.

Then one day, I head the legendary singer Srimathi M.S. Subbulakshmi sing the Shiva Panchakshara, the lyrics written by Adi Shankara, in Sanskrit. It was amazing. You can hear her rendition at this site.

http://www.musicindiaonline.com/music/devotional/s/album.447/language.10

The lyrics and its meaning, as usual, I have taken from Sri P.R. Ramachander.

Nagendra haraya Trilochanaya,
Basmanga ragaya maheswaraya,
Nithyaya shudhaya digambaraya,
Tasmai nakaraya namashivaya. 1

My salutations to the letter 'Na' , which is Shiva,
Who wears as garland the king of snakes.
Who has three eyes,
Who wears ash all over Him,
Who is the greatest Lord,
Who is forever,
Who is the cleanest,
And who wears the directions themselves as dress.

Mandakini salila chandana charchithaya,
Nandeeswara pramadha nadha maheswaraya,
Mandara pushpa bahu pushpa supoojithaya,
Tasmai makaraya namashivaya. 2

My salutations to the letter 'Ma' , which is Shiva,
Who is bathed by waters of Ganga,
Who applies sandalpaste all over him,
Who has Lord Nandi as his chieftain,
Who is the greatest lord,
And who is worshipped by Mandhara and many other flowers.

Shivaaya gowri vadanara vinda,
Sooryaya daksha dwara naasakaya,
Sri neela kantaya vrisha dwajaya,
Tasmai sikaraya namashivaya. 3

My salutations to the letter 'Si' , which is Shiva,
Who is peace personified,
Who is like Sun to the Lotus face of Gowri,
Who destroyed the fire sacrifice of Daksha,
Who has a blue neck,
And who has a bull in his flag.

Vasishta kumbhodhbhava gowthamadhi.
Munendra devarchitha shekaraya,
Chandrarka vaiswanara lochanaya,
Tasmai vakaraya namashivaya 4

My salutations to the letter 'Va' , which is Shiva,
Who is worshipped by great sages like
Vasishta, Agasthya and Gowthama,
As also the devas,
And who has sun, moon and fire as his three eyes.

Yaksha swaroopaya jada dharaya,
Pinaka hasthathaya sanathanaya,
Divyaya devaaya digambaraya,
Tasmai yakaraya namashivaya. 5

My salutations to the letter 'Ya' , which is Shiva,
Who takes the form of Yaksha,
Who has a tufted hair,
Who is armed with spear,
Who is forever filled with peace,
Who is godly,
Who is the great God,
And who wears the directions themselves as dress.

Phalasruthi
Panchaksharamidham punyam,
Ya padeth Shiva sannidhou,
Shivaloka mavapnothi,
Shive na saha modathe .

Those who read these holy five letters great,
In the temple of Shiva,.
Would go to the world of Shiva,
And be forever happy with Him.

Translated by P R Ramachander.
http://www.geocities.com/ramya475/GeneralIndex.htm

"Whoever repeats this Shiva Panchakshara Stotra composed with the five holy letters before Lord Shiva, he attains that supreme abode of His and enjoys the Eternal Bliss."

In Hinduism, many of us consider the word Shivam as whole without any division. Poornam, Mangalam, are its other synonyms. In other words auspiciousness and perfection, because it refers to Lord Shiva, who is Perfection Personified and does not depend on any external resources to attain that pefection. Naturally because of this self-perfection, Shiva is in a state of Eternal Bliss.

Panchakshara, the supreme mantra of the shaivites, is referred as the Holy Five Syllables, or in English "Homage to Lord Shiva". In the entire state of Tamilnadu, this Panchakshara has a special connotation. It is extolled as the Tirumoolar Tirumantiram. He extols the word NAMASHIVAYA or the the five (pancha) sacred syllables NA MA SHI VA YA thus:

NA=The concealing grace ("waiting" for the individual to mature).
MA=The three MALAS (chains) Anava (primal ignorance/ego), Karma (cause & effect) and Maya (illusory or temporal nature of existence).
SHI=Siva/Shiva
VA=The revealing grace (spiritual awakening).
YA=The soul (Jivatma)

Still dissatisfied, Tirumoolar goes one step further and give this explanation: "His feet are the letter Na. His navel is the letter Ma. His shoulders are the letter Shi. His mouth, the letter Va. His radiant cranial center aloft is Ya. Thus is the five-lettered form of Siva."
While meditating it can be chanted as SHI VA YA NA MA without in any way lessening the importance of the Panchakshara.
This five letter mantra stands in the middle of the Vedas, the shata rudriyyam or rudra suktam. The Vedaha Samhita, hails Lord Shiva, as the Lord of the three worlds, and salutes him as

"namah: shivaya cha shivataraya cha"

The subtle meaning of this supreme mantra of all shaivaites is that "By negating my ahankara ( my ego), I am realizing that everything in me is HIS".

Namaha = not mine. Shivaya = ( that which ) belongs to Shiva.

In the Krishna Yajur Veda, Taittiriya Samhita 4.5.8). the importance of this Mantra is expressed thus:

Namastaraya namah shambhave cha mayobhave cha,
namah shankaraya cha mayaskaraya cha,
namah sivaya cha sivayataraya cha.

Meaning:
"Homage to the source of health and to the source of delight. Homage to the maker of health and to the maker of delight. Homage to the Auspicious, and to the more Auspicious"

I have studiously avoided mentioning the omkara AUM. Lot of people chant Om Namashivaya, which then becomes a shadakshara. A mantra with six letters. People who know the Mooladhara Mantra OM also know that it is in itself a Panchakshara Mantra (akara, ukara, makara, bindhu, natham).

BENFITS OF CHANTING THE PANCHAKSHARA MAHA MANTRA.

Whoever you are, whenever you have the time, whatever be the situation you are in, recite the Panchakshara. There are no restrictions of caste, creed, colour or any gender bias. In effect there are no restrictions. All it requires is sincerity of purpose. It is a kavacha mantra, which protects one from one's bad karmas. It could also protect one from committing sins, manasa, vacha and karmanaha.
It is said that "we tend to become what we keep thinking about" The holy Panchakshara, if chanted properly and regularly makes you believe that Lord Shiva, is a Perfection Personified and may be you would emulate him unconciously and attain Celestial Bliss.
You may not believe me. Our Vedic Texts, stipulate that even if one does not chant any other mantra, other than the Panchakshara Maha Mantra, then he is eligible for the immense grace of of the Supreme Lord, who is none other than Lord Shiva.