Cidvilasastava by Amrtananda
by Brian Campbell and Ben Williams | 2023 | 36,420 words
This page relates 鈥榁erse 25: Arati鈥� of the English translation of the Cidvilasastava by Amrtananda (fl. 1325-1375 C.E.). This work combines the ritualistic worship of Shrividya with the philosophy of non-dualism, influenced by Pratyabhijna Shaivism. More specifically, the Cidvilasa-Stava outlines and provides the non-dual Bhavanas (i.e., creative contemplations that fuse the mind with reality) for several important steps in the ritual worship of Tripurasundari.
Go directly to: Footnotes.
Verse 25: 膧rati
Sanskrit text, Unicode transliteration and English translation of verse 25:
啶啷嵿啶оぞ 啶啶班じ啶班い啶多 啶氞た啶︵ぞ啶む啶え啷� 啶灌啶 啶嗋え啷嵿い啶班じ啷嵿く 啶す啶苦ぐ啶苦え啷嵿う啷嵿ぐ啶苦く啶距ぇ啷嵿さ啶ㄠぞ 啷�
啶膏ぞ啶ぐ啶膏啶ぎ啷� 啶囙す 啶膏啶掂た啶︵ぞ啶む啶え啶距ぐ啶距い啷嵿ぐ啶苦啶� 啶ぐ啶 啶囙う啶� 啶膏ぎ啷�啶班た啶むぎ啷� 啷� 啷ㄠカ 啷�pa帽cadh膩 prasarata艣 cid膩tmano hy 膩ntarasya bahirindriy膩dhvan膩 |
s膩marasyam iha sa峁僾id膩tman腻谤腻迟谤颈办补峁� param ida峁� sam墨ritam || 25 ||The ultimate [form of ritually] waving the flame [before the deity] is taught here as the union of the individual self, flowing outwardly through the fivefold channels of the sense faculties, with the nature of pure Consciousness.
Notes:
The flame is one of the most iconic items offered in any standard ritual worship and often consists in offering a lamp that holds five small flames, fueled by cotton wicks soaked in ghee (clarified butter). This type of five-flamed lamp is known as a 辫补帽肠补辫谤补诲墨辫补 and is pervasively found throughout Indic religious traditions that perform 辫奴箩腻. The ritual waving of a flame before the deity is likely based on an ancient Vedic practice of offering a flame to remove negativities (and the maleficent effects of planets) and was eventually instituted into temple and 辫奴箩腻 culture.[1] The practice of offering a flame is commonly known as 腻谤补迟颈, likely because the lamp offering was traditionally performed during the evening twilight hours to illuminate the deity before the days of electricity and hence took on the name 腻谤腻迟谤颈办补, as used in this verse. In this sense, showing the lamp to the various portions of the deity revealed their form and provided 诲补谤艣补苍补, the sacred gaze of the deity.[2] The 腻谤补迟颈 ceremony has since been implemented into the three standard times of 辫奴箩腻 following the three 蝉补苍诲丑测腻蝉 (see verse four), and performed during sponsored worship and special occasions.
In this verse, 础尘峁泃腻苍补苍诲补 contemplates the supreme form of offering 腻谤补迟颈 as the complete (and blissful) union of the individual self (as the lamp) experiencing the world through the five senses (of the five flames of the lamp), with pure consciousness.
Footnotes and references:
[1]:
See Geslani 2018, 95.
[2]:
See verse thirty-four.