Lalita Maha Tripura Sundari is Raja Rajeshwari, Adi Parashakti and Kamakshi who bestows us with the highest knowledge called Brahma Gnanam. The four purusharthas prescribed for us are Dharma (righteousness), Artha(wealth), Kama(desire), Moksha(liberation). Moksha is the highest purushartha which Jivatmas living on earth need to aim at by following a dharmic path. Adi Parashakthi is called Lalita, because she is playful and enchants the universe. Lalita also means one who is pleasing to the mind.
Lalitha Pancharathnam is composed by Adi Shankaracharya and it is a practice to meditate on Lalita, early in the morning as soon as one gets up and hence these stotras are known as pratasmarana stotras best suited to be chanted during early mornings.
प्रातः स्मरामि ललितावदनारविन्दं
बिम्बाधरं पृथुलमौक्तिकशोभिनासम् ।
आकर्णदीर्घनयनं मणिकुण्डलाढ्यं
मन्दस्मितं मृगमदोज्ज्वलफालदेशम् ॥१॥
prātaḥ smarāmi lalitāvadanāravindaṃ
bimbādharaṃ pṛthulamauktikaśobhināsam |
ākarṇadīrghanayanaṃ maṇikuṇḍalāḍhyaṃ
mandasmitaṃ mṛgamadojjvalaphāladeśam ||1||
Early in the morning, let us meditate upon Lalita, whose face is like a lotus flower. When we start meditating on any Devata, it’s recommended to visualize the name and form of that Devata in our minds. Devi’s lips are red in color like a bimba fruit. Her nose is shining with a nose-stud that is adorned with a large pearl. The eyes are so long that they extend up to her ears. The ears are shining with hanging gem-studded earrings. The shine of the ear rings gives additional radiance to the entire face. Devi’s gentle smile adds elegance to the face. Her forehead is shining as it is adorned with Kasturi tilak.
Devi’s sidelong glance holds special significance as it bestows enormous grace on devotees. This is reiterated by the poet Mooka Kavi who wrote Mooka Panchasathi, a magnum opus work on Mother Goddess Kamakshi. In one of his hundred shlokas from Kataksha Shathakam, he mentions the greatness of her glance in the following shloka,
सूक्ष्मेपि दुर्गमतरेपि गुरुप्रसाद-
साहाय्यकेन विचरन्नपवर्गमार्गे ।
संसारपङ्कनिचये न पतत्यमूं ते
कामाक्षि गाढमवलम्ब्य कटाक्षयष्टिम् ॥
sūkṣmepi durgamatarepi guruprasāda-
sāhāyyakena vicarannapavargamārge |
saṃsārapaṅkanicaye na patatyamūṃ te
kāmākṣi gāḍhamavalambya kaṭākṣayaṣṭim ||
“Let me progress in the path of liberation with Guru’s blessings, though it is subtle and tough to cross. Let me not get drowned in the samsara ocean and hence, I take firm support in your sidelong glance”.
प्रातर्भजामि ललिताभुजकल्पवल्लीं
रक्ताङ्गुलीयलसदङ्गुलिपल्लवाढ्याम् ।
माणिक्यहेमवलयाङ्गदशोभमानां
पुण्ड्रेक्षुचापकुसुमेषुसृणिदधानाम् ॥२॥
prātarbhajāmi lalitābhujakalpavallīṃ
raktāṅgulīyalasadaṅgulipallavāḍhyām |
māṇikyahemavalayāṅgadaśobhamānāṃ
puṇḍrekṣucāpakusumeṣusṛṇidadhānām ||2||
Lalita Devi is worshipped early in the morning whose arms are like the creeper of a Kalpaka tree. This is a wish-granting tree that is found in swarga loka. Similarly, Lalita Devi blesses us in abundance with her four arms. The fingers are compared to the tender sprouts coming out of the creeper and they are shining with the gem studded finger-rings. Her arms are shining in splendour with ruby studded gold bangles and armlets. She is holding a bow of red coloured sugar cane, arrows made of flowers, and goad (ankusha) in her hands. The front two hands hold a sugarcane bow and five flower arrows. The rear two hands hold rope and goad. Sugarcane bow symbolizes sweetness and it represents our minds. Five flower arrows symbolise softness and they refer to our five senses (indriyas) that get triggered with emotions. Bow and arrows represent Kriya shakti of Devi. Rope refers to attachment using which Devi pulls all of us towards her instead of materialistic attachments. This represents Iccha shakti of Devi while the goad or ankusha represents jnana shakti. Goad is typically used by mahouts to control elephants. Lalita Devi holds goad to subjugate us from sensory attachments.
प्रातर्नमामि ललिताचरणारविन्दं
भक्तेष्टदाननिरतं भवसिन्धुपोतम् ।
पद्मासनादिसुरनायकपूजनीयं
पद्माङ्कुशध्वजसुदर्शनलाञ्छनाढ्यम् ॥३॥
prātarnamāmi lalitācaraṇāravindaṃ
bhakteṣṭadānanirataṃ bhavasindhupotam |
padmāsanādisuranāyakapūjanīyaṃ
padmāṅkuśadhvajasudarśanalāñchanāḍhyam ||3||
Let us catch hold of her feet for our redemption, and hence our focus should always be on the feet be it Guru or any Devata. Her lotus feet are always engaged in fulfilling the desires of the devotees. Her feet are compared to a boat that helps us cross the ocean of samsara and escape from the cycle of birth & death. They take us to the supreme destination called Moksha.
She bestows on us what she considers good for us and this is based on the theory of karma accumulated from previous births. However, we need to continue worshiping Devi because the impact of the harm which we are about to go through will be reduced due to the compassion of Devi. Paadaravindha Shathakam from MookaPanchasathi includes hundred slokas praising the glory of Devi’s feet.
Brahma Deva (padmasana – who is seated on lotus) and Indra who is the head of Devas offer worship at Her lotus feet. Her feet have the marks of lotus, ankusha, flag and Sudarshana chakra that are considered as a part of samudrika lakshana for a woman. In Srimad Bhagavatam, Krishna’s feet are considered to have these marks and similarly in Ramayanam, Rama has these foot marks.
प्रातः स्तुवे परशिवां ललितां भवानीं
त्रय्यन्तवेद्यविभवां करुणानवद्याम् ।
विश्वस्य सृष्टिविलयस्थितिहेतुभूतां
विद्येश्वरीं निगमवाङ्मनसातिदूराम् ॥४॥
prātaḥ stuve paraśivāṃ lalitāṃ bhavānīṃ
trayyantavedyavibhavāṃ karuṇānavadyām |
viśvasya sṛṣṭivilayasthitihetubhūtāṃ
vidyeśvarīṃ nigamavāṅmanasātidūrām ||4||
The above shloka contains a hymn of praise that is sung in the early morning on Lalita Devi who is the consort of Shiva and supreme consciousness residing within each one of us. The word ‘Shiva’ itself means auspiciousness. Devi is a form of all three vedas, upanishads and she is faultless in her compassion. Initially, there were only three vedas and the fourth Veda came into existence later. Gnana of Parabrahman comes at the last part of three Vedas, Upanishads. The purpose of Upanishads is to show the presence of Devi and establish her as the Parabrahma Swaroopini.
पञ्च-प्रेतासनासीना पञ्चब्रह्म-स्वरूपिणी ।
pañca-pretāsanāsīnā pañcabrahma-svarūpiṇī |
In the above Lalita Sahasranama, it is reinstated that she is the personification of five Brahma svarupas (Brahma, Vishnu, Rudra, Easwara and Sadasiva). The Divine Mother now retains these deities as Her seat. This indicates clearly that She is Parabrahma Swaroopini.
She is the cause of creation, sustenance and merger of the universe. Adi Shankara Bhagavatpada describes in his following 93rd shloka of Soundaryalahari,
जगत्त्रातुं शम्भोर्जयति करुणा काचिदरुणा |
jagattrātuṃ śambhorjayati karuṇā kācidaruṇā |
Her redness is due to the supreme compassion of Shiva in order to sustain this universe. Devi’s redness is attributed to the quality of compassion and sustenance or protection she carries out.
She is the head of all the universe and she is known as Srividya Parameshwari. She is beyond the purview of Vedas, speech and mind.
प्रातर्वदामि ललिते तव पुण्यनाम
कामेश्वरीति कमलेति महेश्वरीति ।
श्रीशाम्भवीति जगतां जननी परेति
वाग्देवतेति वचसा त्रिपुरेश्वरीति ॥५॥
prātarvadāmi lalite tava puṇyanāma
kāmeśvarīti kamaleti maheśvarīti |
śrīśāmbhavīti jagatāṃ jananī pareti
vāgdevateti vacasā tripureśvarīti ||5||
Now, this shloka suggests that the best worship of Devi is chanting her sacred names. In Kali yuga, chanting the divine name is considered to be the most sacred and one of the easiest ways to attain God. I am reminded of a great sage who lived in Thiruvannamalai during the mid-twentieth century, Yogi Ram Suratkumar whose principal teaching is chanting the divine name of God.
Here Lalita Maha Tirupura Sundari is known by different names Kameshwari (queen of desires), Kamala (who is sitting on Lotus and grants prosperity), and the supreme Eshwari, the consort of Maheshwara. Shambhavi is a consort of Shambhu who is ever auspicious and she is the Mother Goddess. She blesses us with the power of speech. In the below nama from Lalita Sahasranama, it is mentioned that Lakshmi, Goddess of wealth and Saraswathi, Goddess of Knowledge are fanning Devi. Therefore, it is generally believed that if we worship Devi, we are bound to get the blessings of Lakshmi and Saraswathi as well.
सचामर-रमा-वाणी-सव्य-दक्षिण-सेविता |
sacāmara-ramā-vāṇī-savya-dakṣiṇa-sevitā |
Tripureswari – She is the mistress of three cities, Tripura. She is the one who transcends the three entities for example meditator, object of meditation and process of meditation. It also refers to the three states – waking state, dream state, and state of deep sleep. It can also mean the three qualities – sattva, rajas and thamas.
Benefit of reciting Lalita Pancharathnam
यः श्लोकपञ्चकमिदं ललिताम्बिकायाः
सौभाग्यदं सुललितं पठति प्रभाते ।
तस्मै ददाति ललिता झटिति प्रसन्ना
विद्यां श्रियं विमलसौख्यमनन्तकीर्तिम् ॥६॥
yaḥ ślokapañcakamidaṃ lalitāmbikāyāḥ
saubhāgyadaṃ sulalitaṃ paṭhati prabhāte |
tasmai dadāti lalitā jhaṭiti prasannā
vidyāṃ śriyaṃ vimalasaukhyamanantakīrtim ||6||
By reciting these five slokas of Lalita Panchakam during early mornings in praise of the Divine Mother, Lalita Devi gives us good luck and fortune. Mother Goddess Lalita bestows her compassion faster and showers upon us the knowledge, wealth, great happiness, and endless fame.
