Viveka Choodamani Verses: 388 & 389

Have been reading the past few weeks, on the jewels from Adi Shankara from his book Viveka Choodamani.  It is an amazing compendium on the essence of spirituality and needs deeper thinking and analysis (mananam).  

In verses 388 & 389, Adi Shankara explains very clearly and in simple words that Self is the ‘Tri-murtis’ and all Devatas that Self is everywhere (all directions). 

The verse 388 says that Self is the Brahma, Vishnu and Maheshwara, which depicts the forces of creation, maintenance and dissolution of the universe.  It also says other powers such as Indra, Varuna etc. that symbolize nature is also the universal Self.  Everything in this cosmos is Self and nothing exists except the Self.  It goes as below.

स्वयं ब्रह्मा स्वयं विष्णुः स्वयमिन्द्रः स्वयं शिवः । 
स्वयं विश्वमिदं सर्वं स्वस्मादन्यन्न किंचन ॥ ३८८ ॥

svayaṃ brahmā svayaṃ viṣṇuḥ svayamindraḥ svayaṃ śivaḥ | 
svayaṃ viśvamidaṃ sarvaṃ svasmādanyanna kiṃcana || 388 ||

The next verse (389) is more powerful in its meaning.  Sri Shankara here says that Self is inside and outside as well as in all the directions.

अन्तः स्वयं चापि बहिः स्वयं च
स्वयं पुरस्तात्स्वयमेव पश्चात् । 
स्वयं ह्यावाच्यां स्वयमप्युदीच्यां
तथोपरिष्टात्स्वयमप्यधस्तात् ॥ ३८९ ॥

antaḥ svayaṃ cāpi bahiḥ svayaṃ ca
svayaṃ purastātsvayameva paścāt |
svayaṃ hyāvācyāṃ svayamapyudīcyāṃ
tathopariṣṭātsvayamapyadhastāt || 389 ||

Typically we understand the directions as four – N, E, W, S, but our scriptures indicate space ‘above’ and ‘below’ too as the other dimensions of the directions.  So Self is in all the directions as well as inside us too.

Hari Om.