[Advaita-l] The Advaitin's Shanti Mantra - Shvetashvatara Up. Shiva Purana

[V Subrahmanian]

Here is a Shanti Mantra that Advaitins chant as part of their daily study
of Vedanta:
This one is from the Shvetashvatara Upanishad:

यो ब्रह्माणं विदधाति पूर्वं
यो वै वेदांश्च प्रहिणोति तस्मै ।
तं ह देवं आत्मबुद्धिप्रकाशं
मुमुक्षुर्वै शरणमहं प्रपद्ये ॥ १८ ॥ 6.18


Meaning of the mantra:

I, the aspirant after liberation, take refuge under the Paramatma who
created the Chaturmukha Brahma and blessed him with the Vedic knowledge,
who impels the inner organs of all beings.

This mantra is part of the Shanti mantras Advaitins chant before and after
their daily Vedantic study. In this mantra, the one who blesses the
four-faced Brahma, is Rudra.  This would be clear to anyone who studies the
Shvetashvatara Upanishat.

The following mantras, from this Upanishad, say the same as the above
mantra:

यो देवानां प्रभवश्चोद्भवश्च
विश्वाधिपो रुद्रो महर्षिः ।
हिरण्यगर्भं जनयामास पूर्वं
स नो बुद्ध्या शुभया संयुनक्तु ॥ ४ ॥ 3.4
यो देवानां प्रभवश्चोद्भवश्च
विश्वाधिपो रुद्रो महर्षिः ।
हिरण्यगर्भं पश्यत जायमानं
स नो बुद्ध्या शुभया संयुनक्तु ॥ १२ ॥ 4.12

Brahma being created is the purport of the above mantras.

In this link is the full reading of the text of this Upanishad:

https://advaitasharada.sringeri.net/display/moola/svt

Shankara has cited this Upanishad and the above first stated mantra several
times in his Brahma Sutra Bhashya.

Veda Vyasa has summarized/rephrased the entire Shvetashvatara Upanishad in
this Chapter of the 7th Section of the Shiva Maha Purana:

https://sa.wikisource.org/s/hyj

One who studies both the above provided texts in the two links above would
realize that the Shiva Purana eminently reflects the
Shvetashvataropanishad.

रुद्दुःखं दुःखहेतुर्वा तद्रावयति नः प्रभुः ॥ 36ab
रुद्र इत्युच्यते सद्भिः शिवः परमकारणम् ॥ 36cd
Shankara, in his commentary to the Vishnu Sahasra Nama, for the name
'Rudra', has cited the above verse from the Shiva Purana.  The verse says
Rudra is the Supreme Cause of the creation.


न तस्य कश्चित् पतिरस्ति लोके
न चेशिता नैव च तस्य लिङ्गम् ।
स कारणं करणाधिपाधिपो
न चास्य कश्चिज्जनिता न चाधिपः ॥ ९ ॥ 6.9

The above verse from the Upanishad says: There is no Lord in the world (for
Rudra), No Ruler for Rudra, there is no indicatory mark, linga, for Shiva.
He is the Cause, the Lord of the jivas (who are lords of the sense/motor
organs). There is no progenitor or boss for Rudra.

One who is familiar with the Sri Rudram of the Yajur Veda would quickly
notice the several mantras almost all of them verbatim cited in the
Shvetashvatara Upanishad.

एको हि रुद्रो न द्वितीयाय तस्थु -
र्य इमांल्लोकानीशत ईशनीभिः ।
प्रत्यङ् जनास्तिष्ठति सञ्चुकोचान्तकाले
संसृज्य विश्वा भुवनानि गोपाः ॥ २ ॥ 3.2.

The above mantra says Rudra is the Cause of creation. Rudra is One without
a second. [It may be noted that Sri Ramanuja, finding this Upanishad and
the above mantra in particular, detrimental to his philosophy, has made an
attempt to 'convert' the Rudra to Vishnu in his Vedartha Sangraha. However,
for Advaitins, since the Upanishadic Brahman is not a finite individual,
vyakti, who is different from other individuals, gods or humans or any
other, but the all-pervading tattva, there is no compulsion to enter into
such gymnastics.]

It may also be noted that no Vaidika has labeled the Shvetashvatara
Upanishad a 'taamasic' Upanishad.

One can read the English  translation of the Shve. Upanishad here:

https://www.shankaracharya.org/svetasvatara_upanishad.php

Om Tat Sat