LALITHA SAHASRANAMAM 694 - 700

Sāgara-mekhāla (694)

She wears the girdle made of oceans. The famous saying of Kaṭha Upaniśad (I.ii.20) “aṇoḥ aṇīyān mahataḥ mahīyān” which means that the Brahman is smaller than the smallest and bigger than the biggest. Irrespective of the size of beings, they all come from the Supreme Self. In this context, this nama describes Her as bigger than the biggest. That is why Vak Devis talk about oceans, the huge water bodies forming Her girdle. Being the controller of the universe, this nama says that She is in the form of earth, one of the planets of this universe and the entire water bodies of the planet earth forming Her girdle.

From nama 684 Rājarājeśvari till this nama described the qualities of Rājarājeśvari.

Dīkṣitā (695)

A guru can give dīkṣā to his disciples. Dīkṣā is also known as initiation. In Sri Vidya cult, first a mantra is initiated and depending upon the progress of the disciple dīkṣā is given purely at the discretion of guru. At that time a dīkṣā name is also conferred on the disciple like ‘Anandananda’, ‘Krishnananda’, etc. Generally, dīkṣā is given based upon one’s knowledge that is required to realise the Brahman. This nama says that She gives dīkṣā to Her disciples, in Her capacity as guru. Her status of guru was already discussed in nama 603 gurumūrti. During initiation of mantra, sins of the disciple are destroyed. As She is an embodiment of compassion, She gives dīkṣā to Her devotees in order to absolve them of their sins. (This interpretation contradicts the Law of Karma which is also known as the Law of the Lord, wherein we have discussed, that the Brahman does not overrule His own laws. Sometimes, poetization permits these types of descriptions.) This nama probably says that the guru who initiates is in Her form as Sri Vidya cult does not differentiate between guru, mantra and devata. These three are considered as a single entity.

Daitya-śamani (696)

She is the destroyer of demons. Demons mean evil forces (anger, lust, etc) operating within, thereby preventing Self-realisation. She destroys such evil forces. The very thought of Her is capable of destroying mental adversities.

Sarva-loka-vaśankari (697)

She subjugates all the worlds. Gayatri mantra talks about three worlds, bhur, bhuvah and suvah. But the Brahhma Gayatri mantra refers to seven worlds. They are bhūh, bhuvah, suvah, mahah, janah, tapah and satyam. Satya (Truth) loka (world) is the abode of the Brahman and bhūh is the earth. One has to move from the lowest world of bhūh to the highest world of Satya. These worlds mean the different levels of consciousness. Since She is the Supreme administrator of the universe, Her authority of subjugation is implied.

Sarvārtha-dātri (698)

She is the bestower of all human desires. There is a specific way of leading human life through puruśārthas which means the end of human life. The end becomes complete only if one lives as per puruśārthas which comprises of dharma (righteousness), artha (wealth), kāma (desire) and mokṣa (the liberation). These are known as caturvidha puruśārthas. Literally speaking puruśārthas mean ‘what is sought by men’. Out of these four, dharma and mokṣa are the purpose of Vedas as they explain their true nature and guide one to properly understand these two. These two are therefore considered as supreme among the four puruśārthas and considered as spiritual in nature. The other two puruśārthas, artha and kāma do not necessarily mean lower values. But the path of pursuing these two makes all the difference. If they are pursued with passion and desire, they become dangerous and if they are pursued for the purpose of simpatico existence, they are considered as benevolent.

This nama says that She is the provider of all such puruśārthas. She provides this as the Supreme empress or Rājarājeśvari (nama 684) and Sri Matā (nama 1).

Sāvtitri (699)

She is in the form of Devi Sāvtitri. Gāyatri mantra consists of vyahrti of bhur, bhuvah and suvah and 24 lettered Gāyatri mantra. This 24 lettered Gāyatri mantra is known as Sāvtitri.

Shiva is known as ‘Savitā ’ meaning the Creator and His wife is Sāvtitri. Sun is also known as Savitā and Sāvtitri. There is an Upanishad called ‘Sāvtitri Upanishad’. It says Agni is Savitā and air is Sāvtitri. God of water Varuna is Savitā and water is Sāvtitri. Air is Savitā and akāś is Sāvtitri. Therefore, it can be understood that Savitā and Sāvtitri are the combined factors of Creation and mean Shiva and Shakthi. She is addressed in this nama as the Creator. This nama also means Her purity and hence She is worshipped by all gods and goddesses. Purity of thought and action is reflected in the body of a person, particularly his face making him worthy of worship.

Saccid-ānandā-rūpini (700)

She is in the form of sat-chit- ānandā. These three qualities constitute the Brahman. Sat means the existence, Chit means pure consciousness and ānandā means infinite bliss. In reality, these are not the constituents of the Brahman, as Brahman is without any attributes. They are the three fold aspects of the Brahman. But at the human level, they appear as separate attributes due to illusion or maya. They succeed one after another during spiritual quest. First, the existence is realised, second the level of consciousness is improved to higher planes by purifying it and finally bliss is realised. This is the reason for realising them as individual attributes in a human being. In the Brahman they remain united as a single aspect.

This nama reaffirms Her status as the Brahman.