Bhu
Bhu
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NOTE: Please click the following link to enjoy the majestic rendition of the bhU sUkta verses by a veda ghoshTi, along with beautiful pictures. There are additional mantrams in this recitation that are not used in a VaishNava dinacaryAs. o p a INTRODUCTION BY SRI V. SADAGOPAN g d
that is recited by us
Tirumanjanams for SrIman nArAyaNan and other auspicious occasions. This sUktam is an eulogy to the infinite kalyANa guNams and nAmAs of BhUmi devi, the KshamA (Forbearance) amSam of SrI devi. She is very dear to Her Lord and He displays His love for Her by carrying Her on His thousand heads in AdiSesha rUpam, while He carries SrI devi only on His chest. That is the mode of expression of His affection (premai) for BhU devi. He took the VarAha avatAram to rescue Her from under the oceans, where She was held by an asuran. He destroyed the asuran and lifted His devi out of the ocean on His shoulder gently and placed Her on His left side forever as one of the ubhaya nAcchimAr. He adorned the name of BhU VarAhan to match that name with that of SrIdharan (VakshaH sthala lakshmIdharan). Our Lord's VarAha avatAram invokes the gigantic Lord taking the shape of a boar, diving into the vast ocean, killing the asuran HiraNyAkshan, who stole BhUmi devi and bringing Her back on His tusk (VishNu purANam 1.4.45-50, taittirIya samhitA:7.1.5 and taittirIya brahmaNa: 1.1.3.6. The taittirIya AraNyaka says that BhUmi devi was lifted from under the ocean by a black boar with hundred arms (krshNena Sata bAhunA). Satapata brAhmaNa also salutes this BhU VarAha avatAram (14.1.2.11). This avatAram of the Lord is thus Veda prasiddham. The compassionate BhUmi PirATTi had a great concern on behalf of us and begged Her Lord VarAha PerumAn to reveal a laghu upAyam (easy to practice means) for uplifting Their children suffering in samsAram. Her Lord responded with alacrity and used His devi as an excuse (vyAjam) to bless the baddha jIvans with two auspicious Slokams known as VarAha carama Slokams. The meanings and commentaries on these two Slokams are assembled as the 37th eBook in www.ahobilavalli.org and 80th e-book in www.srihayagrivan.org
Swami Desikan also composed a stuti with 33 Slokams to celebrate the vaibhavam of BhUmi PirATTi and named it as BhU stuti. (This stuti has been released as eBook # 2 in www.sundarasimham.org). This stuti has many echoes of BhU sUktam. In one of the Slokams of BhU stuti, Swami Desikan states that the living beings of this world are the object of mercy (anukampA) of BhUmi devi and get nourished through Her blessings. Swamy Desikan also points out that it is not only the cetanams that get nourished by Her compassion but Her Lord SrIman nArAyaNan also gets nourished by association with her (mAdhavi! tvat sangamAt haricandana: bhavati labdha posha:) and states that Her energized Lord goes about performing the many duties praised by the hundreds of branches of the Vedic tree. Our Lord indeed gets His nourishment to perform His duties such as jagat srshTi and rakshaNam. Swamy Desikan also says that among the five elements (PrthvI, water, Agni, Vaayu and ether), only PrthvI, the amSam of BhU devi has the five qualities such as taste, fragrance, shape, touch and sound (rUpa, rasa, gandha, Sabdam and sparSam). The rest of the four panca bhUtams have at best one or two of the five attributes only; as a result, BhUmi devi is the embodiment of mighty riches (Vasumati, VasundharA). Swamy Desikan reminds us that BhUmi devi has many other names by which her ananta kalyANa guNams are celebrated (anyAni ca nAmAni anya vimukhAni abidhAna vrttyA tava anubhAvam kathayanti). Some of these names besides PrthvI, Vasumati, KshamA and ViSvambarA are: sarvam sahA, avani, acalA, vipulA, anantA and daridhrI. Swamy Desikan instructs us that She is the first among the VyAhrtis following PraNavam (akAra vAcyan, BhagavAn) that is recited before performing GaayatrI mantra japam. nigamAnta mahA Desikan describes BhUmi PirATTi as the shore for the ocean of BhagavAn (vishNu jaladhe: velA iva) and that She is the ultimate limit for the rows of Bhagavat tattvams (tattva taranga pankte: viSrAnti bhUmi: asi). She has the vAllabhyam over Her Lord and through that vaSIkaraNa Sakti makes it easy for the sinners to approach Her Lord without fear. Exercising
by baddha jIvans.
She is seen and enjoyed by the yogis through their eyes of samAdhi (munibhi:
samAdhi nayanena paSyanti). She showers the wealth equivalent to Kuberan for those who seek such wealth (tvAm sabhUtim samcintayan dhanadAdhikAran s a labhate). Of all the anugrahams that BhUmi PirATTi can confer, nothing can d a excel the one in which She stays as the upAyam (means) for accessing Her Lord g
o and interceding with Him to bless the jIvans (kshame! nitya aparAdha nivahAt p a cakitasysa is the n janto: mukunda caraNau gantum tvam . embodiment of blemishless compassion (anagha anukampA) and takes a vow on o r g SaraNam). She
Her own to protect the suffering jIvans (tanu bhrtAm rakshA vidhau mahatIm
apekshAm svayam vitanushe). Swamy Desikan concludes the BhU stuti with a
moving appeal for Her to place him at the sacred feet of the Lord (sarvam sahe!
In the BhU stuti, Swamy Desikan pays tribute to BhUmi PirATTis KshamA
anukampA) no
SaraNAgati (varAha
at Her sacred
mahishIm prapadye).
viSvasya
mAtaram
viSvambarAm
aSaraNa:
SaraNam
Swamy Desikan compares Her to the divine wish granting celestial kalpaka
creeper (sankalpa kalpa latikA) and recognizes Her as the ultimate boundary of
all tattvams (tattva taranga pankte: viSrAnti bhumi: asi). The Kavi simham states that BhUmi PirATTi is beyond the words of praise (vAcAm abhUmi) and yet She is easy to approach (bhUmi: asi) by the devotees, who seek Her protection. She has immense power over Her dear Lord and intercedes successfully on behalf of Her children suffering from the ills of tApa trayam. dAsan, Oppiliappan Koil VaradAchAri Sadagopan
bhUmi devi tAyAr with SrI Oppiliappan in sesha vAhanam tiruviNNagaram (Thanks: www.oppiliappan.org)
UsUm!
bhUsUktam
. hir> Aaem!.
%pSwe te deVyidte=imadma*ayadxe.
|| hari: om || s a bhUmirbhUmnA dyaur-variNA antariksham mahitvA | a g upasthe te devyadite agnim annAdam annAdyAyAdadhe || 1 Meaning Oh BhUmi PirATTi! You are called BhUmi because you are rich in all kinds of wealth. You are vast in Your breadth and length, lofty through Your vaibhavam and are resplendent and glorious in the milky way as well in all the space that is d
desired by all! Oh Devi, whose source (mother) is 'aditi ' implying a good force as opposed to the evil force as You are ever ready to help us by being nearby, because of your unlimited compassion (nirhetuka-dayA) and your ever-forgiving
middle of You between the sky and the earth, I invoke you through AdhAna
Comments:
assess Your expanse. You shine forth in a manner that is respected by every
----------------------- Page 12----------------------one. Your qualities of compassion and forbearance elevate You to dizzying
heights. You cannot be divided into finite pieces by anyone. We offer the Agni
that is capable of consuming the Havis for You producing the food that
nourishes us.
g r o . n a
p o g a d a s
SrI bhUmi devi is lofty through Her vaibhavam SrI BhUmi devi tAyAr with SrI Oppiliappan - tiruviNNagaram
Meaning:
With His rays, the radiant Sun comes to our side like the food giving protective
8 ----------------------- Page 13----------------------Mother and blesses us with the fields rich in crops and ascends to the sky and
blesses us from there with the rain like the Father who nourishes us.
Comments:
In the 12th Slokam of BhU stuti, Swamy Desikan refers to the dhana dhAnya
BhUmi PirATTi (bhUteshu yat tvat abhimAna viSesha pAtram, tat eva posham
bhajati). The three rainfalls in a month, the abundance of foods from crops are
of
various soma
yAgams
by
srautis. One such soma yAgam among the seven is athirAthram, which is a
twelve day long yAgam done for loka kshemam. Such a yAgam is taking place
from April 4-15, this year (2011) at Panjal, a Vaishika village near Trisoor, Kerala, India.. The last time the athirAthra yAgam was performed at Panjal was s a
thirty five years ago. Please enjoy reading about the details of the preparation d a for this rare yAgam the g and the meticulous planning to perform o sampradhAyic are in p way at http://wn.com/athirathram2011 (Item a English). . o r izam ivrajit vak! ptay iziye, g n 3 to 5 it in
TySy vh *ui>.
SiSriye |
Meaning:
With the movement (sancAram) of the sUryan, the world shines with light for
thirty nAzhikais (12 hours). May my speech in the form of eulogy reach Him as
He moves rapidly in the sky! Oh Lord Preceptor sUrya! May Thou chase away my
aparAdhAms and blemishes with the lustre of Your rays! May You be cool to me
and favour me with health for eloquence in speech and May Thou accept the
The upcoming fifth mantram will refer to the close relationship between Agni
and sUryan and the links of the sAdhaka to both. One of the Rg veda mantrams
To Thee day by day, O Agni, in night and light, we by the thought come bearing
During the day (light), it is the Sun, who transfers His radiance to Agni during
the night. g r o . n a p o g a d asya prANAt apAnatyanta: carati rocanA | VyOyn! mih;> suv>. ASy a[adpanTyNtrit raecna,
Meaning:
His (sUryans) lustre spreads from morning to evening, in between the earth and
the sky and moves inside and out through the vital airs and invigorates as a life-
giver by ( Bhumi) Devi's grace. He reveals the great world of svargam for those
dear to Him.
Comments:
The world perceptible to human kind is dividable into three spheres:- Earth,
A form of Fire (agni) is recognized in each of the spheres. His names are Agni
10 ----------------------- Page 15----------------------in this world, Vaayu in the intermediary space/world and sUryan in the sky/
PrajApati (the Lord of Progeny). Agni, Vaayu and sUrya come from this totality,
PrajApati. The chAndogya mantrams (4.17.1-3) attest to the origin of the three
(Agni, Vaayu and sUryan): The Lord of progeny, for the sake of the world,
entered into meditation (dhyAna). From the heat (born of His thought) the
essence of the three worlds/spheres sprang forth. From Earth came Fire, from
space, wind and from the sky came the Sun. The above BhU sUkta mantram
refers to this relationships among the three spheres and the Lord of Progeny,
s a d a
g o p a n . o r g
SrI BhUmi devi tAyAr and SrI Oppiliappan in sUrya prabhai Thanks: www.oppiliappan.org
sukLpme tv punSTvaeIpyamis.
Meaning:
might your
industriousness/entrepreneurship, You sow the seed and pour water for the
vow to eulogize You in a way that will please You. Please accept our worship as
scriptures, the sun's brilliance is transferred to the fire from the evening
twilight to the morning twilight-hence the sun is fire! Supporting kAlidAsa's g r o . n a p Comments: teja: savitrA hutASana:) words in the first verse of the fourth canto of raghuvamSa - dinAnte nihitam
o g a d The usage of the powerful word manyu in this mantram reminds us of the a s upAkarmA, where we do the kAmokArshIt manyorakArshIt mantra japam to
Meaning:
Because of your anger from which emanated the earth and grew, May you
sustain it! May the vasus, rudrAs, AdityAs and ViSvadevAs come together and
Comments:
After paying tribute to the power of sankalpa Sakti of the Lord to create and
next protect what was created, the sAdhakan begs for the restoration of
bhagavat bhakti, which he discarded in anger. He repents now and seeks the
help of the ashTa vasus, ekAdaSa rudrAs, the twelve AdityAs and the universal
brahmavarcasa: pitrNAm Srotram cakshurmana: || 7 || g o p Meaning: n . She might be addressed VasundharA, o by Her many names: medinI, devI, r VasudhA, VaasavI (as indrA as a representative, activates) but She is for sure g a
with Brahma varcas (spiritual splendour) and is the ear, eye and the mind of the
pitrs (manes).
Comments:
Swamy Desikan's BhU stuti Slokams provide the meanings for the many names
of BhU devi and salutes the doctrines linked to BhU devi as the divine consort
of
in the Sundarasimham
series, http://
www.sundarasimham.org).
r o . n a p o g a d a s
Meaning:
The goddess of Earth (Mother Earth) is pregnant (En-ceinte) with the whole
universal gold egg, as the best creator and the best sustainer.
Comments:
The definition for the nAmA, bhUmi in taittirIya brAhmaNa is: That, which
became. She is the creator of all the wealth (vasu-s) for the created beings as
s samudravatI sAvitrI ha no devI mahyangI | 9 d a Meaning: o p a May you reach and reside in my tongue to make it truthful! You (She as the n . Mother Earth) comprise of all the seas and hence You are called 'samudravatI ', o r and You are named 'sAvitrI ' since You are associated with the Sun by Your g g a
wonderful brightness. You are our presiding deity benevolent, self-luminous and
Comments:
This is a moving tribute to BhUmi devi by the mantra-drashTA. BhUmi devi with
the oceans as Her garland (samudravatI) and as one of the three vedic hymns
You are the great Mother Earth (who bears everything without a grudge or
tirukkOlam - and on the horn of the great boar, varAha) on the top of every
creation and fearlessly in every sacrifice (as also like yaj~no vai vishNu:) thus
assuring the prapannAs complete protection from morbid and mundane fears
dictator).
Comments:
BhUmi devi is the saha dharma cAriNi of yaj~na VarAhan. All the vessels used
in the Yaj~nams are found in the different limbs of this Yaj~na VarAha mUrti. g r As the consort of the Yaj~na VarAhar and as One who was rescued from the o n. prison of HiraNyAkshan by Her Lord, BhUmi devi has limitless bhakti for Her a Prabhu. She worships Her Lord at the uttara Kuru varsham with His mantram p
o and stotram (SrImad bhAgavatam: 5.18.33 and 5.18.39). namaskaraNams g a d a s kincottareshu kurushu priyayA dharaNyA,
Her
Here, BhaTTadiri refers to Yaj~na VarAha mUrti being worshipped by His dear
consort BhUmi devi with powerful and glorious mantrams and stotrams (mahita
mantra nuti prabhedai:). BhUmi devi salutes Her Lord as omkAra rUpi, as One
Yaj~nam and kratu, as One whose limbs house big yaj~nams, as One who is
with His patni, BhUmi devi. He performs the Yaj~nam as yajvA for those who
are unable to conduct that Yaj~nam. He also acts as Yaj~nAngan and helps
the Yaj~nam
sraddhA and Yaj~nopakaraNams and He becomes this way the Yaj~na vAhanan.
With all these help assisted at the same time by His dharma patni, He brings
plays all these roles because He first created the Yaj~nam as yajn~a krt for
devi's role is saluted by this mantram. (Refer also to the nAmAs in SrI VishNu
vayumtI jlzynI iyNxa, s a raja sTyNxae pirmeidnI ae pirx< gay, a g indrapatnI vyApinI surasaridiha p a vAyumatI jalaSayanI SriyandhA | . o r rAjA satyandho parimedinI Svo paridhattam gAya | 11 g n o d
Meaning:
and the divine river (mandAkinI/gangA) here on the earth, thus purifying the
errant/erring
everyone to be alive. she reclines on the water (payodhi), holds the riches in
abundance associated with the goddess of fortune. You are truly alive, on the
Comments:
drashTA.
17 ----------------------- Page 22----------------------upendran is a name for VishNu. indirA therefore is the name of MahA LakshmI
(indra patnI). Like Her Lord, She has vyApti, the pervasive presence
everywhere vyApya
nArayaNa:
(surasaridha) and destroys the sins of errant souls. She is dynamic in movement
like the fast flowing winds (vAyumatI) in the antariksham. Her Lord is jala
Sayanan and She is therefore jala Sayani and seeks the ocean as Her abode
(jala sayanI). As a glorious consort of sarva VyApi, BhU devi shares the
abundance
nArAyaNa.
g r o
. n a p o g a d a s
mahIm devIm! SrI bhUmi devi tAyAr and SrI Oppiliappan - tiiruviNNagaram
Meaning:
that mAdhavI, who is dear to Maadhavan (Her Lord ) and who is the dearest
friend of LakshmI devi. Our salutations are to BhUmi PirATTi, who has
a Aae< xnuxRrayE ivhe svRis(E c xImih, a g tae xra caedyat!. p a n om dhanurdharAyai vidmahe sarvasiddhyai ca dhImahi | o r tanno dharA pracodayAt || 13 || g . o d
Meaning:
We worship Her by knowing Her as One who (wields the bow and looks also like
a bow, lean in the middle) is adorning the bow. For that purpose we meditate
upon the One who blesses us with all success (sarva siddhi). May that dharaNi
dharA/BhUmi devI, prompt us for that meditation! (We worship Her for the
g r o . n a p o g a d a s
As a Mother, she carefully listens to all our appeals for ever and she is the
hidden and holy river of nectar; and as a bhaktA, aDiyEn never misses hearing
tIcImenahiv;a yjam>,
mahIm devIm vishNu-patnImajUryAm | a d pratIcImenAgum havisha yajAma: | g o tredhA vishNururugAyo vicakrame | a n . mahIm divam prthivImantariksham | 15 r g Meaning: o p a
Let us all pray to this Goddess of Earth, the consort of Lord VishNu especially
in sacrifices (yaj~na) by offering the oblations of food (havis) which will in turn,
come back to us as Her grants. Lord VishNu with the gigantic stature (by
incarnating as trivikrama) treaded the three steps (the great strides) and
measured the fourteen worlds inclusive of the Earth (mahIm prthivIm) and the
tCae[Eit v #CDmana,
. hir> Aaem!.
|| hari: om ||
Meaning:
devotees' prayers with a great care and involved interest sans pains and
transfers the holy eulogies to make the Lord, our Master hear and bless us
nigamanam
g In all the above bhUsUkta mantrAs, the underlying current is that Goddess r o . Mother Earth is in tune with every aspect of Lord SrIman nArAyaNa and n a worshipping Her amounts to (is as good as) worshipping Him directly! Let us p o pray to Goddess kshamA (with Her attitude of patience/forbearance with us). g
a d a s SrI bhUmi devi sameta SrI SrInivAsa parabrahmaNe nama: hari: om!
NOTE: Please click the following link to enjoy the majestic rendition of the
bhU sUkta verses by a veda ghoshTi, along with beautiful pictures. There
VaishNava dinacaryAs.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YiCKf-Nz8yo
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