Sanskrit Pearl of the day:
अक्षराणि परीक्ष्यन्ताम् अम्बराडम्बरेण किम् ।
शंभुरम्बरहीनोऽपि सर्वज्ञः किं न कथ्यते ॥
- अप्पय्यदीक्षित
Transliteration:
akṣarāṇi parīkṣyantām ambarāḍambareṇa kim ।
śaṃbhurambarahīno'pi sarvajñaḥ kiṃ na kathyate ॥
- appayyadīkṣita
Meaning of the subhAShita:
Scrutinize the vidyā. What is the point in (inspecting) the flashy robes? Even though He is digambara (one whose robes are the 4 directions), isn't Lord Shiva considered a sarvajna (all-knowing)?
Commentary:
Language is the dress of thought. One's mindset and thinking can be gauged through his speech. Working on that is a much better effort than time spent in superficial appearance and attire. One can be the best dressed in town, but the minute he opens his mouth to speak, his language can be foul, uncultured, uneducated or misinformed! His clothes can earn him only so much value. But after that, it is his learning and the culture imbibed that factor in.
Lord Shiva is never in flashy robes or jewelry. His robes are elephant/tiger skin and snakes are His jewelry, at best! But isn't He worshipped and revered as all-knowing and all-pervading! It is His knowledge that carries more weight. 'akṣara' also means - immutable, imperishable. Lord Shiva stands for that immutable knowledge of the Self. The perishable body, its appearance and accessories don't come into account when the imperishable is given the highest regard!
There may be those that dress better or eat better, but those that enjoy and appreciate the value of learning, sleep better! Think about it - elegance is not as much in putting on a new dress as it is imbibing good values.
pada vigrahaH:
अक्षराणि परीक्ष्यन्ताम् अम्बर-आडम्बरेण किम् ।
akṣarāṇi parīkṣyantām ambara-āḍambareṇa kim ।
शंभुः अम्बर-हीनः अपि सर्वज्ञः किं न कथ्यते ॥
śaṃbhuḥ ambara-hīnaḥ api sarvajñaḥ kiṃ na kathyate ॥
Lord Shiva is never in flashy robes or jewelry. His robes are elephant/tiger skin and snakes are His jewelry, at best! But isn't He worshipped and revered as all-knowing and all-pervading! It is His knowledge that carries more weight. 'akṣara' also means - immutable, imperishable. Lord Shiva stands for that immutable knowledge of the Self. The perishable body, its appearance and accessories don't come into account when the imperishable is given the highest regard!
There may be those that dress better or eat better, but those that enjoy and appreciate the value of learning, sleep better! Think about it - elegance is not as much in putting on a new dress as it is imbibing good values.
pada vigrahaH:
अक्षराणि परीक्ष्यन्ताम् अम्बर-आडम्बरेण किम् ।
akṣarāṇi parīkṣyantām ambara-āḍambareṇa kim ।
शंभुः अम्बर-हीनः अपि सर्वज्ञः किं न कथ्यते ॥
śaṃbhuḥ ambara-hīnaḥ api sarvajñaḥ kiṃ na kathyate ॥
akSharaaNi parIkShyantaam ambaraaDambareNa kim ।
shaMbhurambarahIno.pi sarvaj~naH kiM na kathyate ॥
- appayyadIkShita
akSharaaNi parIkShyantaam ambara-aaDambareNa kim ।
shaMbhuH ambara-hInaH api sarvaj~naH kiM na kathyate ॥
अक्षराणि परीक्ष्यन्तामम्बराडम्बरेण किम्।
ReplyDeleteशम्भुरम्बरहीनोऽपि सर्वज्ञः किं न कथ्यते॥
@lalitaalaalitah, thought you were mentioning the punctuation in the commentary earlier. To put the poorNaviraamas in the shloka now, would be difficult. To keep the consistency across the board, would have to skip that for now. It is a good thought, but too late to implement :(. Hopefully when I find some time in the future.
ReplyDeleteAs you wish.
ReplyDeleteBut, it will be always better to improve at the point you came to know. Is keeping consistency so important?
@lalitaalaalitah, as per your suggestion, had started putting the poorNaviraamas at the end of the verses. But the older ones were left as is at that time. Now while including the audio, the viraama-s have also been added to the verses. Just a few more to go :). Thank you _/\_
DeleteIt has been a pleasure to go thru' all these pearls of wisdom. May your good work continue
ReplyDeleteMurthy
@Murthy, thanks for your good wishes.
ReplyDeleteIf it is not too much trouble, Would it be possible to provide word by word meaning also?
ReplyDeleteAt this time, I am working on the 3rd volume of Sanskrit Pearls book. Hence will not be able to provide word by word meanings. Sorry about that. But will keep it in mind and hopefully sometime in the future, will try to include that section.
Delete