Vasishtasangrah sarga 22: pujakramah

[Jaldhar H. Vyas]

[This section is called Pujakramah  or the procedure of worship.]

poojanam dhyaanamevaantah naanyatastyasya poojanam || 27 ||

His worship is only meditation[1] within.  Nothing else is worship. (27b)

tasmaat tribhuvanaadhaaram nityam dhyaanena poojayet |
chidroopam sooryalakshaabham samastaabhaasabhaasanam || 28 ||

Therefore the support of the three worlds, eternal, of the form of
consciousness, who shines with the splendor of 100,000 suns,  the
illuminator of all appearence should be worshipped by means of meditation.(28)

icchaadishakteyah tasya chintaneeyaah shareeragaah |
anantah sa paraadhaarah sattaamaatraikavigrahah || 29 ||

His powers such as Will etc. should  be meditated upon as residing in the
body.  He is infinite, the ultimate support (of everything), whose only
(true) form is pure Being.

vivaartatajagajjaalah kalo'sya dvaarapaalakah |
sarvatrekshanashaktyaadhyam sarvatoghraanshaktikam || 30 ||

He has spread the net of the world.  Time is His gatekeeper.
Posessing the power to see everything, posessing the power to smell
everything, (30)

sarvatah sparshasanyuktam sarvato rasanaanvitam |
sarvatra shravanakirnam sarvatra mananaanvitam || 31 ||

possessing the power to touch everything, posessing the power to taste
everything, posessing the power to hear everything, posessing the power to
cognize everything, (31)

sarvato mananaateetam sarvatra paramam shivam |
iti sanchintya devesham archayet vidhivat tatah || 32 ||

yet always beyond cognition, the supreme auspiciousness.
Thinking of Him thus, He should be worshipped according to the rules.[2](32)

svasamvidaatmaa devo'yam nopahaarena poojyate |
nityam akleshalabhyena bodhena svena poojyate || 33 ||

This God who is of the nature of ones own consciousness is not worshipped
by offerings.  He is worshipped by ones understanding which is always
available without trouble[3]. (33)

baahyasampoojanam proktam etat uttamaatmanah |
idaaneem sampravakshye'ham antah poojanamaatmanah || 34 ||

This is the highest external worship of the Atma[4].  Now I will explain
to you the internal worship of the Atma.(34)

[to be continued]

[1] Dhyana

[2] of the shastras.

[3] Even if a person is ready and willing to perform a paerticular ritual,
the materials may not be available, the time may not be right etc.  But
mental worship requires no other outside accessories.

[4]  The reader may by now be a little confused as to what exactly is
being prescribed in this passage.  It starts of by apparently saying
meditation is the only real worship.  Then it says that one should follow
the rules of the shastras (which teach ritual worship.)  But then it again
says it is understanding not offerings which are important yet this is
still external worship.

What is being asked for is a shift in view between the idea of God being a
seperate person who can be bargained with by means of ritual offerings to
perform certain services, to the idea that God, is the all-pervasisve,
eternal ground of all being including the worshippers own self.  Worship
is still important but the focus is now not on the worshipper but on God.
it becomes an investigation into the nature of God and Self.  When this is
understood then _and_only_then_ can the rituals and rules of the shastras
be abandoned.

--
Jaldhar H. Vyas <jaldhar at braincells.com>

--
bhava shankara deshikame sharaNam

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