Śivaḥ kevalo’ham

Śaṅkara walked up to the mouth of the cave and stood with folded hands and closed eyes, thinking deeply of his long journey, its purpose, and praying that he should be accepted by this great Guru whom no one had seen in a long time. He reverentially prostrated at the mouth of the cave and then circumambulated the small hillock that housed the cave. After completing three rounds, he then stood at the mouth of the cave and beseeched the being within to accept him as his disciple. That being, Govinda Bhagavatpāda, who lived in a state that was beyond the clutches of the world, and for several years had not even stirred, leave alone spoken to anyone, spoke for the first time in many, many years because he realized that finally after his long wait for the arrival of the “child of Śiva” (as predicted by Vyāsa-Deva several hundred years ago), that day had come! However, he still wanted to test this child and therefore questioned the child. “Child, tell me who you are, introduce yourself to me”

Śaṅkara chose to introduce himself through what is known as the Nirvāṇa-Daśakam or Daśaślokī. Did he come up with this spontaneously or was he preparing himself for this test by fire is not clear in his biography – however, what is clear is the fact that he chose his words very carefully and delivered it in the best form possible which should tell the discerning reader that he had carefully planned for this moment and had thought about it during his long walk towards his destiny. This śloka is also marked by the hallmark that in a way defines all of Śaṅkara’s works – the repetitive reinforcement of a particular line or verse – in this Daśakam the last line is repeated ten times as the last line of each of the ten stanzas: “Tadeko’(a)vaśiṣṭaḥ śivaḥ kevalo’ham (स्तदेकोऽवशिष्टः शिवः केवलोऽहम्)” – “Tad-eko” “one” – the one, “avaśiṣṭaḥ” that alone remains, “Kevalah” – pristine and pure and without a second and with no trace of duality whatsoever, “Aham” – I am that, “Śivaḥ” – the supremely auspicious one “Śivam”.^[1] Each of the ten stanzas ends with this line – it’s a classic “negation-affirmation-combo” – negate all things ephemeral that we think are real and then affirm that which is the “REAL-real” – this is a Śaṅkara specialty and a recurring theme across many of his works. The other aspect to this śloka is how it moves from the macrocosm to the microcosm and from the gross to the subtle – negating all that is gross, ephemeral, and limited and then pointing to the one truth that alone remains after all superimpositions are removed – like the peeling of an onion – the core alone is real – the Śivam within.

Consider the first three stanzas:

न भूमिर्न तोयं न तेजो न वायुर्न खं नेन्द्रियं वा न तेषां समूहः।

अनेकान्तिकत्वात्सुषुप्त्येकसिद्धस्तदेकोऽवशिष्टः शिवः केवलोऽहम् ।।1।।^[2]

na bhūmirna toyaṃ na tejo na vāyuḥ na khaṃ nendriyaṃ vā na teṣāṃ samūhaḥ.

anekāntikatvāt suṣuptyekasiddhaḥ tadeko’vaśiṣṭaḥ śivaḥ kevalo’ham

“Not the earth, not the water, not the bright light, nor the wind, or the sense organs (that sense these) – I am not anyone of them or a combination of some or all of them. I am not that which is perceived in the waking and sleeping states. I am the “Self” that exists by itself, independent of all limiting adjuncts and devoid of all qualifications, I am that which abides by itself in its own Self, sometimes cognized in the state of deep sleep – Śivam.”

न वर्णा न वर्णाश्रमाचारधर्मा न मे धारणाध्यानयोगादयोऽपि।

अनात्माश्रयाहं ममाध्यासहाना त्तदेकोऽवशिष्टः शिवः केवलोऽहम्।।2।।^[3]

Na varṇā na varṇāśramācāradharmā Na me dhāraṇādhyānayogādayo’pi.

Anātmāśrayāhaṃ mamādhyāsahānā Ttadeko’vaśiṣṭaḥ śivaḥ kevalo’ham

“Not the Varna (that I was born into), not the Varṇāśramadharma (the stages of life – Śaṅkara as we know had leapfrogged from Brahmacaryaāśramadharma to Sannyāsāśramadharma skipping the Gṛhastha, Vānaprastha stages in between), nor am I the methods that lead to the truth such as meditation/contemplation, study and reflection, practice of yoga and so on. All of these are means to the end and not the end in themselves.  When all superimpositions and obligatory duties no longer bind you, then the Self alone shines forth as both the means and the end – I am that auspiciousness – Śivam”

न माता पिता वा न देवा न लोका न वेदा न यज्ञा न तीर्थं ब्रुवन्ति।

सुषुप्तौ निरस्तातिशून्यात्मकत्वा त्तदेकोऽवशिष्टः शिवः केवलोऽहम्।।3।।^[4]

Na mātā pitā vā na devā na lokā Na vedā na yajñā na tīrthaṃ bruvanti.

Suṣuptau nirastātiśūnyātmakatvā Ttadeko’vaśiṣṭaḥ śivaḥ kevalo’ham

In the third stanza of his response, Śaṅkara rejects the pleasures of the other worlds, like Svarga for example because he knows that the pleasures that one can enjoy there are also ephemeral and not permanent. The whole purpose of his Saṃnyāsa at such a young age was to find the truth within and share that secret with the rest of humanity. Therefore, the rejection of all that he considered obstacles on the path to that truth.

“They say that in the state of deep sleep (Suṣupta) neither father nor mother, or the many worlds or the devas and other beings that are said to live there, exist. Even the Vedas, yajñās, and pilgrimages are but paths leading to that divine truth. Beyond all of these shines that eternal truth – auspicious and pure – that truth am I – Śivam”

[Note: Link to all the ten verses can be accessed from the references section of this chapter]^[5]

Thus, did Śaṅkara introduce himself to his Guru over the course of ten stanzas – a carefully curated and calibrated response to what was a trick question. Many had come to the mouth of this cave and tried to get the being within to accept them as his disciple – for hundreds of years none had succeeded until now, when this young boy, barely 10 years old had walked thousands of kilometers to stand here and had delivered an absolute discourse on Vedanta in response to what many would consider a straightforward question “Who are you?” This is what separates the greats from the truly greats, the mortals from the immortals, and the ordinary from the divine.

As soon as Śaṅkara had finished speaking, a pair of feet appeared at the foot of the cave – only the feet were visible outside the mouth of the cave that was only a cubit in width. This was Govinda Bhagavatpāda’s unique way of signaling that he had accepted the boy as his disciple. Śaṅkara held onto the feet of his Guru with both hands while laying prostrate on the ground and the Guru pulled him through the mouth of the cave and into the bowels of his dwelling place.

Brahmarākṣasa

We pick up the threads of the story of Gauḍapāda, the Guru of Śaṅkara’s Guru, Govinda Bhagavatpāda who had received all of the knowledge of the Mahābhāṣyaṃ from Patañjali Mahaṛṣi but had been cursed to live the life of a Brahmarākṣasa^[6]. Patañjali Mahaṛṣi was intimately aware of the crucial role that Gauḍapāda had to play in the future – particularly in facilitating the advent of Śaṅkara-avatāra. Therefore, he gave him an opportunity at Vimochana or redemption from this curse – he would be freed from the curse the moment a deserving disciple came to him and answered all the questions that he would put to that person. These questions were also given by Patañjali Mahaṛṣi to Gauḍapāda.

As soon as the instructions were completed, Gauḍapāda immediately turned into a fearsome Brahmarākṣasa. He flew away from that place and started to live on an old and gigantic pipal tree near the banks of the Narmada. The reason he chose this particular place was that this was a junction, the meeting point for those who traveled from the North to the South and vice versa – i.e., this was the junction of Gauda Deśa and Drāvida Deśa. Sitting on that tree he haunted several travelers, accosting them and luring them with falsehoods. He would then put his questions to them – the questions he had been taught by Patañjali Mahaṛṣi. Many were the people who failed to answer his questions and many were those who were killed and eaten by him. This went on for hundreds of years and Gauḍapāda in the form of the Brahmarākṣasa waited patiently, feeding on the bodies and souls of those who were not destined to progress any further, till one day a young boy shining with Brahmatejas^[7]arrived at the “junction of life” where the Northern road met the Southern road and the Brahmarākṣasa knew at that very moment that the time had come. He disguised himself as a Brāhmaṇa and stood in the way of that young boy…

For those who ask how it was possible for someone of the stature of Gauḍapāda to kill and feed on other human beings, it must be understood that in Dharma nothing is black or white or for that matter many shades of gray as some point out – it is sometimes black and at other times white, it can also be many shades of gray and then can also explode into a multicolored canvas like the brilliant display of a peacock’s plumage. Dharma is contextual and many-layered. The dharma of a Rākṣasa is not the same as the Dharma of a Deva or Manuṣya, or for that matter of a Kinnara^[8] or a Kiṃpuruṣa^[9]. Gauḍapāda was simply following the accepted Dharma of a Brahmarākṣasa and participating faithfully in the divine līlā of the cosmos.

To be continued…

Postscript

In chapter-1, the prevailing state of adharma at the time of Śaṅkara-avatāra was discussed and the rationale and need for an avatāra-puruṣa were clarified. In chapter 2 the prelude to Śaṅkara-avatāra and Śaṅkara’s parents were covered and in chapter-3 the promise of the descent was detailed. Chapter-4 was about the victory of Kumārila Bhaṭṭa. Chapter-5 is about Maṇḍana Miśhra and Bhārati’s love for each other and the descent of Śaṅkara. Chapter-6 is about the death of Śaṅkara’s father and the marriage of Maṇḍana Miśhra and Bhārati. Chapter-7 is about the genius of Śaṅkara and how as a five-year-old he composed the Kanakadhārā stōtram. In chapter-8, events preceding and foreshadowing Śaṅkara’s Saṃnyāsa are covered. In chapter-9 continues the process of Śaṅkara’s Saṃnyāsa and also summarizes the different types of Saṃnyāsa and how it is taken up depending on the context. In Chapter-10, Śaṅkara starts his life as a saṃnyāsi and takes his first steps toward his Guru, his destiny. Chapter-11 is a prequel and traces the events that lead up to Śaṅkara’s meeting with his Guru and the brief events that trace the lives of Gauḍapāda and Govinda Bhagavatpāda.

Go to the links below to read the chapters:

Chapter-1

Chapter-2

Chapter-3

Chapter-4

Chapter-5

Chapter-6

Chapter-7

Chapter-8

Chapter-9

Chapter-10

Chapter-11

…………………..

 

[1] The Voice of God, Volume-5

[2] Available at: Dasa Shloki- Verse 1 – Dasa Shloki – 1-Na bhūmirna toyaṃ (shlokam.org). Last Accessed: March-21, 2023.

[3] Availabe at: Dasa Shloki- Verse 2 – Dasa Shloki – 2-Na varṇā na varṇāśramā (shlokam.org). Last accessed: March 21, 2023.

[4] Available at: Dasa Shloki- Verse 3 – Dasa Shloki – 3-Na mātā pitā (shlokam.org). Last Accessed: March 21, 2023.

[5] Full text of Shloka: Available at: Dasa Shloki- Verse 1 – Dasa Shloki – 1-Na bhūmirna toyaṃ (shlokam.org). Last Accessed: March 21, 2023.

[6] A group of beings similar to Paisāchas and belonging to the Rākṣasa-Jāthi. Usually, a Brahmin who has completed his Veda adhyayana (studies) but has now fallen into evil ways. These beings move around in disguise and beguile and fool other Brahmins, lead them away and then kill and feed on them.

[7] Brahmatejas – shining with the luster of supreme knowledge, someone who is ready to receive the knowledge of Brahman (as in this case)

[8] A sect of Devas who are known as celestial singers

[9] A class of divinities, born out of Brahma’s shadow very similar to the Kinnaras