श्रीः
ॐ नमो भगवते श्रीरमणाय
Sri Arunachala Ashtakam (Eight verses)
The fundamental teaching of Bhagavan was to find the center and to stay anchored there. As long as ahankara / jeeva bodha / individuality exists, aatma bodha cannot happen. Therefore the method suggested by Bhagavan was the Naan Yaar vichara to root out the I thought and rest in the aatma.
As and when thoughts arise, one should ask 'to who do they arise'. The answer is 'to me'. Then ask 'Who am I'. By tracing the source of the I thought, one reaches the heart. The I thought dissolves in the source. This destruction of ahankara allows aatma-sphuranam. False identification of the aatma with the non-self like the body and mind, ends, because all thoughts get destroyed on the constant pursuit of the I thought. The aatma alone exists. The world is an appearance, not in the sense of an illusion, but as a reflection of the aatma-svarupam. The jnani sees the world as his own self.
By abiding there, one is saved from dualities like inside, outside, birth, death, light, darkness, happiness and sorrow. This methodology has been explained by Bhagavan in detail in the Arunachala Ashtakam.
1. அறிவறு கிரியென அமர்தருமம்மா;
அதிசயமிதன் செயல் அறிவரிதார்க்கும்;
அறிவறு சிறுவயததுமுதல் அருணா-
சலமிக பெரிதென அறிவினிலங்க.
அறிகிலன் அதன்பொருள் அது திருவண்ணா-
மலையென ஒருவரால் அறிவுற பெற்றும்;
அறிவினை மருள் உறுத்தருகினில் ஈர்க்க;
அருகுறும் அமயமிதசலமா கண்டேன்.
What a hill, it stands as if insentient (அறிவறு கிரியென), but its actions are mysterious. From my early childhood Arunachala was shining in my mind as the greatest. Even when I came to know that it was Tiruvannamalai, I did not realise its supreme truth (அறிகிலன் அதன்பொருள்). Having enchanted me, it drew me towards itself and I saw it to be a hill.
Bhagavan reveals that he had experienced Arunachala sphuranam even as a child, without realising its meaning.
2. கண்டவன் எவனென கருத்தினுள் நாட;
கண்டவன் இன்றிட நின்றது கண்டேன்;
கண்டனன் என்றிட கருத்தெழவில்லை;
கண்டிலன் என்றிட கருத்தெழுமாறென்?
விண்டிது விளக்கிடு விறல் உறுவோன் ஆர்;
விண்டிலை பண்டு நீ விளக்கினை என்றால்;
விண்டிடாதுன் நிலை விளக்கிட என்றே;
விண்தலம் அசலமாய் விளங்கிட நின்றாய்.
When I searched within to see who was the seer, the seer vanished. I saw that which remained (நின்றது கண்டேன்). The ego (jeeva, ahankara) which could have said "I saw" did not arise, so how could the thought "I did not see" arise (it could not)! Who has the ability to reveal this by speaking about it (விண்டிது விளக்கிடு விறல் உறுவோன் ஆர்?), when you yourself (as Sri Dakshinamurthy) revealed this without speaking, in ancient times? To reveal your true form as the aatma-anubhuti, you shone as a hill, rising from the earth to the sky.
This verse makes Bhagavan's realisation crystal-clear. When he heard the name Arunachala, he recognised this to be Paramatma. He surrendered to this divine force. As soon as he saw the physical form, the mind turned inwards. Since he was ready to receive knowledge from his guru Arunachala, the instant he turned within and enquired 'Who is the seer?', his individuality was extinguished. There was no jeeva to explain the state, but only pure awareness remained.
This absence of perceived identities and conditioning, is Yoga. He perceived the self and the mind was absent. This is why he says there was nobody to say "I saw" or "I did not see". Arunachala had revealed himself to be the true nature of all, by mouna-vyakhya.
Indeed, this is an explanation of मौनव्याख्याप्रकटितपरब्रह्मतत्त्वम् - Brahma tattvam revealed by silence, which is the experience of a jnani.
The self-luminous self of all, Arunachala, rises and shines as a hill, in order to provide sincere seekers with an external anchor for upasana. The unexplainable experience of the divine in the proximity of Arunachala, aligns with this idea. When a vibhuti or a manifestation of the divine is recognised outside, yoga manifests within the seeker, since false identities are destroyed. The seeker surrenders to the divine as a result and is now ready for knowledge. Therefore, recognition of the vibhuti is an importat step in the journey towards the self. Bhagavan Sri Krishna says in Chapter 10 -
एतां विभूतिं योगं च मम यो वेत्ति तत्त्वतः।
सोऽविकम्पेन योगेन युज्यते नात्र संशयः।।10.7।।
The one who knows my glory and power, is endowed with unwavering yoga - about this, there is no doubt.
3. நின்னையான் உருவென எண்ணியே நண்ண;
நிலமிசை மலையெனும் நிலையினை நீதான்;
உன் உரு அரு என உன்னிடில்; விண் நோக்கு-
உற உலகலை தரும் ஒருவனை ஒக்கும்;
உன் உரு உனலற உன்னிட முந்நீர்;
உறு சர்க்கரை உரு என உரு ஓயும்;
என்னையான் அறிவுற என்னுரு வேறு;
ஏது இருந்தனை அருணவான்கிரியென இருந்தோய்.
When I approach you, thinking of you as having a form, you appear as a hill on earth. One who considers you as formless and contemplates on you (உன் உரு அரு என உன்னிடில்), is like a person who wanders all over the earth looking for the all-pervading space. When the mind dwells on you without thought, as a formless reality, the mind dissolves like a sugar-doll placed in the ocean. When I understand my own self (என்னையான் அறிவுற), what truly is my own form but you, who stand towering as the Arunachala hill!
How does one meditate - this is the question answered by Bhagavan here. If we meditate on Ishvara as a name and form, we will always associate Ishvara with that name and form. To meditate or contemplate, we need the mind, which is nothing but thoughts. Thoughts have to have a form because the mind works based on identities like I am this body, I am meditating etc.
So the question arises - how does one meditate on Ishvara without a form? When one can think of Ishvara without thinking - உன் உரு உனலற உன்னிட, the mind loses its individuality and separate identity. The primal thought is always the I-thought. I am this person, I am doing this, etc, is the first thought. Bhagavan's method was vichara as to 'Who am I' - when this is done, the I thought is done away with, by focussing on the self (which is a witness to all thoughts including the I-thought), the mind ceases to exist as a separate entity. When Bhagavan says chumma iru, this is the purport of 'just being'. The sugar-doll has melted in the ocean. There is only one - which is Arunachala. I cease to exist, only Arunachala does. The destruction of jeeva bodha, is the manifestation of svarupa-bodha.
4. இருந்தொளி உனை விடுத்தடுத்திடல் தெய்வம்;
இருட்டினை விளக்கெடுத்தடுத்திடலே காண்.
இருந்தொளிர் உனை அறிவுறுத்திடர்க்கு என்ரே
இருந்தனை மதம் தொறும் வித வித உருவாய்;
இருந்தொளிர் உனை அறிகிலர் எனில் அன்னார்;
ரவியின் அறிவறு குருடரே ஆவார்;
இருந்தொளிர் இரண்டற எனதுளத்தொன்றாய்;
இணை அறும் அருணமாமலை எனும் மணியே.
Ignoring you, who are ever-present as the self, as sat (இருந்து) and cit (ஒளி), and seeking an external God instead, is like searching for darkness using a light. You appear as the God of various religions (in various forms - வித வித உருவாய்) only to reveal your own truth. Those who do not know you, are indeed blind people who do not know the (existence of the) sun. Abide and shine in me, as my self, as one without a second, O peerless gem called Arunachala!
When we ignore the "I am" which shines in each and every worldly and mystical experience, which shines through all states of waking, dreaming and deep sleep, which shines through all stages like childhood, youth and old age, and which is the true form of Ishvara, and instead we search for Ishvara outside us, we will never see him as he truly is - which is as one's own self. Bhagavan says it is akin to not being able to see the sun. Everything around me draws its existence from me, the self-luminous aatma.
Kathopanishad says तमेव भान्तमनुभाति सर्वं तस्य भासा सर्वमिदं विभाति॥ (2.2.15) - When he shines, everything shines after him. By his light, all these shine.
The source of the light is the self. There is no need for another source of light to illumine it. This is the main message conveyed in this shloka.
5. மணிகளில் சரடென உயிர்தொறும் நாநா-
மதம்தொறும் ஒருவனா மருவினை நீ தான்.
மணி கடைந்தென மனம் மனமெனும் கல்லின்;
மறுவறக் கடையநின் அருளொளிமேவும்.
மணியொளி எனப்பிறிதொரு பொருட்பற்று
மருவுறலிலை;
நிழல் படிதகட்டின் விண்-
மணியொளி பட நிழல் பதியுமோ; உன்னின்
மறுபொருளருண நல் ஒளிமலையுண்டோ.
You alone exist (as the substratum) in each and every jeeva (உயிர்தொறும்) and in each of the many religions, as the string in a garland. Like how a gem is polished (மணி கடைந்தென), if the mind is polished on the stone called mind (by turning inwards, towards the self), your luminous grace will shine forth (அருளொளி மேவும்). Like how the glow of a gem does not get tainted by the colour of any object, such a mind will not get attached to any external object. Can any image appear again on a photographic plate on which the light of the sun shines once? (Similarly, when the mind has been cleansed by the light of knowledge, no vasanas or impressions can be created by the presence of external objects any more). Apart from you, is there anything, o luminous Arunachala!
Bhagavan uses the example of the string which threads the garland of gems to communicate that Arunachala is the substratum on which the entire universe is created, resides and subsumes into. Bhagavan Sri Krishna says in the Gita -
मत्तः परतरं नान्यत् किञ्चिदस्ति धनञ्जय।
मयि सर्वमिदं प्रोतं सूत्रे मणिगणा इव॥ (7.7)
Dhananjaya, there is nothing else higher than or other than me. All this is strung on me like pearls on a string.
The other example Bhagavan uses is that of a photographic plate on which the image of an object can be formed only as long as it is unexposed to sunlight. If bright light falls on it, the image is destroyed and no new image can be formed thereafter. Similarly, when the light of knowledge dawns, the impressions and tendencies carried by the mind, are all destroyed and no new vasanas can create an impression on it again. In this clear and serene mind, knowledge is steady and unruffled. Vichara purifies the mind of vasanas and makes it ready to reflect the aatma.
6. உண்டொரு பொருளறி ஒளியுளமே நீ
உளது உனிலலதிலா அதிசயசக்தி;
நின்றணு நிழல்நிறை நினைவறிவோடே
நிகழ்வினைசுழலில் அந்நினைவொளி ஆடி;
கண்டன நிழல் சுக விசித்திரம் உள்ளும்
கண்முதல் பொறி வழி புறத்தும் ஓர் சில்லால்;
நின்றிடும் நிழல்படம் நிகர் அருள் குன்றே
நின்றிட சென்றிட நினைவிட என்றே.
You alone exist - the one reality (பொருள்), the light of consciousness (ஒளி), the heart (உளமே நீ). In you, there is a strange power not different from you (உளது உனில் - in you, அலது இலா - not different from you, அதிசயசக்தி - a wonderful force). From that force, subtle thoughts arise and due to the force of prarabdha (நிகழ்வினைசுழலில்), they appear as shadowy pictures inside the mind and as the world outside as projected by the sense organs. This is similar to a movie being projected by a lens.
Whether they appear or cease to appear, they do not exist apart from you. They are transient but the 'I' is the eternal substratum.
Here, Bhagavan explains the role of the chidabhasa or reflected consciousness which creates the world of names and forms. The nondual consciousness, which the one light that illumines everything, reveals objects and gives us our experiences. The chidabhasa is the reflected consciousness which resides in the mind and body. The world of objects, and the body, mind and intellect cannot be perceived without consciousness. In Manisha Panchakam, Shankaracharya says -
या तिर्यङ्नरदेवताभिरहमित्यन्तः स्फुटा गृह्यते
यद्भासा हृदयाक्षदेहविषया भान्ति स्वतोऽचेतना।
तां भास्यैः पिहितार्कमण्डलनिभां स्फुर्तिं सदा भावयन्
योगी निर्वृतमानसो हि गुरुरित्येषा मनीषा मम॥ (4)
The Self or pure consciousness is experienced clearly within by animals, men, and gods as ‘I’. It is by the reflection of this pure consciousness that the mind, senses and body, which are all insentient, appear to be sentient. External objects are perceived only because of this consciousness. This self is, however, concealed by the very mind, senses and body which are illumined by it, just as the sun is concealed by clouds. The yogi who, with a calm mind, always meditates on this Self is my Guru. This is my conviction.
7. இன்றகமெனும் நினைவெனில் பிற ஒன்றும்
இன்று; அதுவறை பிற நினைவெழில் ஆர்க்கெற்கு.
ஒன்றகம் உதிதலம் எதுவென உள்ளாழ்ந்து;
உள தவிசுறின் ஒரு குடைநிழற் கோவே.
இன்றகம் புறமிரு வினையிறல் ஜன்மம்
இன்புதுன்பிருளொளி எனும் கனவிதயம் -
மன்றகமசலமாய் நடுமிடமருண-
மலையெனும் எலையறும் அருளொளி கடலே.
If the thought I does not arise in the mind, no other thing will exist (பிற ஒன்றும் இன்று). Until that (அதுவறை) - until the I thought ceases to arise, if other thoughts arise (பிற நினைவெழில்), one must enquire "To who" (ஆர்க்கு) do they arise? The answer is "To me" (எற்கு). On scrutinizing where it arises from (உதிதலம் எதுவென உள்ளாழ்ந்து), one merges within. One reaches the throne of the heart, the sovereign ruler (உள தவிசுறின் ஒரு குடைநிழற் கோவே; உள தவிசு = simhasanam of the heart) on diving within. The dream of dvandvas, like inside and outside (அகம் புறம்), good and bad karma, birth and death, pleasure and pain, light and darkness, will not exist. The boundless ocean of grace called Arunachala will dance motionlessly in the heart (இதயமன்றகம்) as the throb of I. The import of this motionless dance, has been explained in the first verse of Sri Arunachala Navamanimalai. (https://vedantalearning.blogspot.com/2025/12/sri-arunachala-navamanimalai.html?m=1)
Here, Bhagavan gives us our sadhana, the prakriya for self-enquiry - of tracing the I thought. When we first wake up, the Aham-vritti (I thought) arises. Only thereafter, other thoughts arise.
Bhagavan does not ask us to control the thoughts. The only thing to do, is to follow the thoughts - this is aatma-vichara. This is done by going inwards - antarmukham or chinmukham. When the source is reached, I thought / jeeva bhava / ahankara / abhimanam does not arise any more, the hridaya-simhasanam is reached, he is the real emperor, the samrat. He is truly free because he sees nobody and nothing as other than him. He has reached the state of eternal peace, having gotten rid of desires which lead to the I thought arising.
8. கடலெழும் எழிலியால் பொழிதரும் நீர்தான்
கடல்நிலை அடைவரை தடைசெயின் நில்லாது.
உடல் உயிர் உனில் எழும் உனை உறுவரையில்
உறு பல வழிகளில் உழலினும் நில்லாது.
இடவெளி அலையினும் நிலை இலை புள்ளுக்கு
இடம் நிலமலதிலை; வரு வழி செல்ல;
கடன் உயிர் வருவழி சென்றிட இன்ப
கடலுனை மருவிடும் அருணபூதரனே.
Water which was showered by clouds which arose from the ocean, does not stop until it reaches the ocean. Likewise, the jeeva (உயிர்), which arose from you (உனில் எழும்), does not stop until it reaches you. It wanders on many paths until it reaches you. The bird, even though it flies in the sky, has its resting place on land, will go back the way it came. Likewise the jeeva goes back and finds its resting place in you, Arunachala, the ocean of bliss, who supports the world.
The jeeva arises from the aatma, by identifying with the body, mind and intellect, which provide its identity as 'I'. It does not rest until it goes back to the aatma. Prarabdha takes us through different paths in various janmas, but the only search is for peace. This happens when the mind rests in its source.
It is not possible to find restfulness in the physical body, mind or intellect. This is why shruti tells us to transcend the koshas (let go of wrong identities with the koshas) and locate the source.
Antarmukhata / turning inwards is the way to attain this state. Locating the thread of the I thought, takes us through to the source. The result of this knowledge, is svasthata or vishranti - contentment and inward restfulness, peace.
सर्वं श्रीकृष्णार्पणमस्तु
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