Rudram

Shri Rudram Shri Rudram, also known as Rudraprashna, is a hymn devoted to Lord Shiva. It is part of the Yajur Veda and one of the great est of the Vedic hymns for all round ben e fits and to remove all doshas and difficulties. Shri Rudram has two parts. The first part, chap ter 16 of the Yajurveda, is known as Namakam because of the repeated use of the word “namo” in it. The sec ond part, chap ter 18 of the Yajurveda, is known as Chamakam because of the repeated use of the words “chame”. Rudram is divided into 11 sec tions called Anu vakas. In the first Anu vaka, Rudra is asked to turn away his ghora rupa (fierce appearance) and to keep his and his fol low ers’ weapons at bay. Hav ing been paci fied, Rudra is requested to destroy the sins of those for whom it is being chanted. Apart from being a hymn devoted to Lord Shiva, Shriru dram also con tains many hid den secrets in coded for mat. For exam ple the verses con tain coded instruc tions for prepar ing var i ous ayurvedic med i cines. This first Anu vaka is chanted to destroy all sins, obtain lead er ship and divine benev o lence, pro tec tion from famine, free dom from fear,obtain food, and pro tect cows, for absence from untimely fear of death, of tigers, thieves, from mon sters, dev ils, demons. It is also chanted as a shield (kavacha) for vir u lent fever, to cure dis eases, fetal dis or ders, abso lu tion from evils stars and bad karma, for the ful fil ment of ones desires, sump tu ous rain fall, fam ily pro tec tion, bless ings with good chil dren, ful fill ment of all mate r ial desires and the destruc tion of enemies. In the sec ond Anu vaka, Rudra is prayed to as one who per vades the earth and as the green foliage and her itage of med i c i nal herbs. He is asked to loosen the bonds of sam sara . This Anu vaka is chanted for the destruc tion of ene mies, pos ses sion of wealth, get ting kingdom (get ting job) and pos ses sion of intelligence. In the third Anu vaka Rudra is described as the Lord of thieves who exists in every thing. He is Sar vatma — the self of all. In this con text, we who are unen light ened have stolen the immor tal sta tus of the Self and replaced it with our own lim ited con cep tion of ego. And in turn it is Rudra who will come and steal our igno rance from us,restoring us to our nat ural sta tus of enlight en ment. This Anu vaka is also chanted for the cure of diseases. In the fourth Anu vaka, Rudra is described as the cre ator and worker of all kinds. He is the cause of both the sig nif i cant and minor. This Anu vaka is chanted for the cure of tuber cu lo sis, dia bet ics and leprosy. In the fifth Anu vaka Rudra’s exis tence in run ning waters is praised and his five activ i ties are described (cre ation of the uni verse, preserva tion of it, destruc tion at the time of Pralaya, bondage in igno rance and the release of mok sha. In the sixth Anu vaka Rudra is iden ti fied with time (Kalarupa). He is described as the source of the dif fer ent worlds, Shrutis (Vedas) and its essence in Vedanta. The fifth and sixth Anu vakas are chanted for the expan sion of one’s own assets, vic tory against ene mies, bless ings for a son with the stature of Rudra, avoid ance of a mis car riage and easy child birth, avert ing dif fi cult astrol ogy and pro tection of one’s own son.

In the sev enth Anu vaka his all-pervading pres ence in waters, rains,clouds, storms and its var i ous forms are described. This Anu vaka is chanted for the increase of intel li gence, improve ment of health, wealth, prog eny, clothes, cows, sons, edu ca tion, lands, longevity and obtain ing liberation. In the eighth Anu vaka Rudra is described as He who illu mines other Gods and con fers pow ers on them. He is seen as ever present in holy rivers and He who can absolve all sins. This Anu vaka is chanted for the destruc tion of ene mies and pos ses sion of ones own kingdom (lands). In the ninth Anu vaka the strength and power his atten dants is cel e brated because they illu mine the gods and the world and con trol the forces of the uni verse. This Anu vaka is chanted for obtain ing gold, a good wife, a job, and the bless ings of a son who will be devoted to Lord Shiva. In the tenth Anu vaka Rudra is again asked to shed his fury and shower benev o lence by his dis play ing his Pinaka bow with out arrows and to grace fully appear with his tiger skin on his body with pleas ing coun te nance ready to shower boons upon his devo tees. This Anuvaka is chanted for pos ses sion of wealth, cure of dis eases, removal of fear, get ting rid of the enmity of pow er ful peo ple, absence of fear from all liv ing beings, hav ing the vision of Bhairava (Shiva in his most fear ful aspect), absence from dan gers and fears, bless ings and the abso lu tion of sins. In the eleventh Anu vaka Rudra’s accom plish ments are pro fusely praised and his benev o lence is invoked with uncon di tional salu ta tions. This Anu vaka is chanted for bless ings of one’s prog eny, the enhance ment of longevity, vis it ing of sacred places, and acquir ing knowledge of past, present and future. After pray ing and iden ti fy ing Rudra with every thing in the Namakam, the Chamakam is recited, in which the devo tee iden ti fies him self with Lord Shiva and asks him to give him everything. These excel lent prayers are intended for the bulk of the peo ple and every thing to be cher ished in the world is included in this ascend to the state of jnani to attain mok sha i.e. eter nal hap pi ness. Chamakam assures grant ing of what all you ask in a full-throated man ner unabashed. The cre ator makes no dis tinc tion between the things of the world and the other world. Both belong to him and desire born out of Virtue is really man i fes ta tion of divin ity and Dharma. Chamakam fur nishes com pletely the ideal of human hap pi ness and defines in the high est degree the desires and do not delimit to be asked or to be granted. In the first Anu vaka prayer is made to keep fit in the human being his vital i ties inter nal and sen sory organs and mind hale and healthy,a long and peace ful and happy old age. The sec ond Anu vaka promi nence and lead er ship, com mon sense,intellectual acu men, capa bil ity to face try ing cir cum stances, spir i tual ele va tion, worldly splen dor and enjoyments. The third Anu vaka devel ops innate urge of God and med i ta tive flights and spir i tual ecstasy, ser vice to Divin ity and human ity and a condi tion where the world wants him and he wants the world for upliftment. The fourth Anu vaka assures of cour tesy, fit ness of the body and the best food for the body, cosy and comfort. The fifth Anu vaka asks for the Navarat nas, the pre cious stones and all the ani

mals to sub-serve his inter est and the qual i fied mate ri als best in their form for his rituals. The sixth Anu vaka empha sizes the impor tance of Indra as a co-sharer in the offer ings to the other Gods. Thus makes him big to get the major obtain ers of havis among all Gods and his spe cial honor and supremacy. The sev enth and eight Anu vakas lists the var i ous instru ments nec es sary for some and sac ri fices in the homa kunda, the site of offerings to the fire God with sva hakara. The ninth Anu vaka is the prime prayer con sists of all the con tents of four Vedas. The tenth Anu vaka invokes all the bio log i cal species to co-operate in his daily wealth and also for the sac ri fi cial fire. It also involves higher spir i tual ele va tions, and makes it as Jnana Yajna. The eleventh Anu vaka brings out the long list of bene dic tions asked for in the odd divine num ber and even human num ber ing. Chamakam roots are firmly implanted in the worldly desires ulti mately lead ing to the divine ful fill ment. It is prayed that the Divine is immor tal, infi nite and is the cause of earth and heaven, space and time, reborn after the end of every thing and is the pre sid ing deity. chamakam namakam chaiva purusha suk tam tathaiva ca | nityam trayam prayun jano brah maloke mahiyate || He who ever recites Namakam and Chamakam along with Purusha Suk tam daily will be hon oured in Brahmaloka. Courtesy: Makesh Ramachandran, Bangalore