This glorious prayer to the sandals/footwear of the Sri Guru has been composed by the colossus
We recently went through this great composition as we were taught by Swami Tejomayanandaji of Chinmaya Mission. I am therefore inspired to write this blog. I shall attempt to give the shloka meanings word-by-word and my own understanding.
1.
- नालीकनीकाशपदाधृताभ्याम् - the pair of footwear that bear the lotus-like feet (of the Guru)
- नारीविमोहादिनिवारकाभ्याम् - that remove the infatuation with women (/men) and so on,
- नमज्जनाभीष्टततिप्रदाभ्याम् - that confer fulfilment of a series of desires for devotees who bow down,
- नमो नमः श्रीगुरुपादुकाभ्याम् - to that sacred pair of footwear, our repeated obeisances.
- शमादिषट्कप्रदवैभवाभ्याम् - that have the glory of conferring Shama and other six-fold virtues to the seeker,
- समाधिदानव्रतदीक्षिताभ्याम् - that are vow-bound to confer Samadhi on the true seeker,
- रमाधवाङ्घ्रिस्थिरभक्तिदाभ्याम् - that grant us firm devotion to the feet of Narayana, Lord of Lakshmi,
- नमो नमः श्रीगुरुपादुकाभ्याम् - to that sacred pair of footwear, our repeated obeisances.
- नृपालिमौलिव्रजरत्नकान्तिसरिद्विराजज्झषकन्यकाभ्याम् - that are like a pair of divine mermaids shining in shimmering waters as they dazzle amidst a series of glittering crowns of a line of kings bowing down to the Guru for his grace,
- नृपत्वदाभ्यां नतलोकपङ्क्तेः- and that, equally, confer lordship to the line of even ordinary devotees bowing down to the Guru ,
- नमो नमः श्रीगुरुपादुकाभ्याम् - to that sacred pair of footwear, our repeated obeisances.
- अनन्तसंसारसमुद्रतार-नौकायिताभ्याम् गुरुपादुकाभ्याम् - that divine pair of footwear of the Guru that function as the boat to save us from the endless seas of worldly bondage,
- वैराग्यसाम्राज्यदपूजनाभ्याम् - and confer on us the kingdom of dispassion when worshipped,
- नमो नमः श्रीगुरुपादुकाभ्याम् - to that sacred pair of footwear, our repeated obeisances.
- पापान्धकारार्कपरम्पराभ्याम् - that are like a series of suns to dispel the darkness of sinful and ignorant acts,
- तापत्रयाहीन्द्रखगेश्वराभ्याम् - that are like Garuda, lord of birds, to the mightiest of serpents that are the three-fold troubles faced by mankind,
- जाड्याब्धिसंशोओषणवाडवाभ्याम् - that are like the mythical submarine fire that dries up the ocean of man's inertia in spiritual matters,
- नमो नमः श्रीगुरुपादुकाभ्याम् - to that sacred pair of footwear, our repeated obeisances.
- कवित्ववाराशिनिशाकराभ्याम् - that are like the moon who inspires the sea of poetic and spiritual insight to wax,
- दारिद्र्यदावाम्बुदमालिकाभ्याम् -that are like a series of rain-bearing clouds to put out the fire of misery and wretchedness of man,
- दूरीकृतानम्रविपत्ततिभ्याम् - that ward off the dangers faced by devotees,
- नमो नमः श्रीगुरुपादुकाभ्याम् - to that sacred pair of footwear, our repeated obeisances.
- नता ययोः श्रीपतितां समीयुः - those bowing down to which pair acquire immeasurable prosperity akin to Lakshmi's consort Vishnu,
- कदाचिदप्याशु दरिद्रवर्याः - even when they may be indeed the most wretched lot at present,
- मूकश्च वाचस्पतितां हि ताभ्याम् - and alike, a dumb mute becomes the lord of eloquence, bowing down to the pair,
- नमो नमः श्रीगुरुपादुकाभ्याम् - to that sacred pair of footwear, our repeated obeisances.
- कामादिसर्पव्रजभञ्जकाभ्याम् - the pair that destroy the serpentine enemies of man like lust,
- विवेकवैराग्यनिधिप्रदाभ्याम् - and graciously grant the immense wealth of discrimination and dispassion to the devotee,
- बोधप्रदाभ्याम् द्रुतमोक्षदाभ्याम् - that confer wisdom, and quickly enable liberation of the bound soul,
- नमो नमः श्रीगुरुपादुकाभ्याम् - to that sacred pair of footwear, our repeated obeisances.
- स्वार्चापराणामखिलेष्टदाभ्याम् - to the one dedicated to contemplation of the Self, they grant all desires (which will naturally be of a spiritual nature),
- स्वाहासहायाक्षधुरन्धराभ्याम् - they bear the immense weight of Lord Shankara himself (with fire as his third eye), as his footwear,
- स्वान्ताच्छभावप्रदपूजनाभ्याम् - and they on worship grant one infinite felicity of revelling in the Self,
- नमो नमः श्रीगुरुपादुकाभ्याम् - to that sacred pair of footwear, our repeated obeisances.
My thoughts on going through this prayer are as follows. God, as we intuit Him, in infinite glory, is beyond thought and perception for us. In His infinite grace, to redeem us, He manifests as the Guru in human form. The Guru is glory himself as he attracts us, gives us the right direction, insight, and liberation, constantly guiding us through this world of delusions and attractions and addressing our sense of being impoverished.
Even as we say this, we can at once see that even the Guru is thus beyond our comprehension. He is God in human form. The only thing we can express to him is devotion. But our devotion is in too small a measure even to reach him. So an immediate and ready opportunity presents itself to us: to worship his footwear! His footwear appear to be of material access, but indeed they hold within themselves all the power to grant us devotion, insight, and even liberation. Liberation from a sense of want and incompleteness, and liberation in the form of realising Sat-Chit-Ananda-Brahman. So it is an easy beginning for us to worship the Guru's padukas.
Om Tat Sat!
Postscript: Some versions of this Stotram have a different sequencing of verses. For example Chinmaya Mission. The sequence shown here is taken from the 1913 publication of Sri Vani Vilas Press, Srirangam. This press was set up by a disciple of the Sringeri Swamiji, the author of the Stotram. I therefore believe this is the original.
