CHANDI PATH

Understanding some of our prayers properly can be very enlightening. My favourite prayer is the prayer from Durga Saptashati or Chandi Path. This prayer is recited on many occasions in bits and pieces i.e. only a few shlokas are recited. If the entire prayer is taken it actually describes the strong forces of interaction within humanity. This prayer is by devas to Devi – the Energy Principle of God, to come and help them to defeat two great ‘rakshashas’ (Monster) Shumbh and Nishumbh. The prayer is a long one but the shlokas that are normally recited starts with the following verse:

Ya Devi sarva bhuteshu, Vishnumayeti shabdita, Namas tasyay, namas tasyay, namas tasyay namo Namah

That Devi who is known as the Maya of Vishnu in all the living things, we bow down to her again and again.

The verses then continue to enumerate different aspects of this Energy Principle and bowing down to all these different aspects. The following aspects are addressed in the prayer:

Chaitanya, Budhhi, Nidra, Kshudha, Chhaya, Shakti, Trushna, Kshanti, Jati, Lajja, Shradhha, Kanti, Laxmi, Vriti, Smriti, Dayaa, Tushti, Matrum, Bhranti

The verses are all the same except that one aspect is mentioned after another i.e.

Ya Devi Bhuteshu, Buddhi rupen sansitha, Namas tasyay, namas tasyay, namas tasyas namo Namah

Ya Devi Bhuteshu, Nidra rupen sansitha, Namas tasyay, namas tasyay, namas tasyas namo Namah

Ya Devi Bhuteshu, Kshudha rupen sansitha, Namas tasyay, namas tasyay, namas tasyas namo Namah

Ya Devi Bhuteshu, Chhaya rupen sansitha, Namas tasyay, namas tasyay, namas tasyas namo Namah

And so on

Let us just put these aspects together and examine them. As they are listed above, each one is a driving force of life.
Chaitanya, Budhhi, Nidra, Kshudha, Chhaya, Shakti, Trushna, Kshanti, Jati, Lajja, Shanti, Shradhha, Kanti, Laxmi, Vriti, Smriti, Dayaa, Tushti, Matru, Bhranti

Chaitanya – the life force; Budhhi – intellect; Nidra – sleep; Kshudha – hunger; Chhaya – shelter (or shadow); Shakti – energy (or power); Trushna – thirst; Kshanti – forgiveness; Jati – gender; Lajja – shame; Shanti – peace; Shradhha – faith; Kanti – light; Laxmi – wealth; Vriti – natural tendency (nature of a person); Smriti – memory; Dayaa – kindness; Tushti – contentment; Matru – motherhood; Bhranti – illusion.

One can see immediately that these are very important aspects of life and the ancient rishis (sages) have shown the pervasiveness of all these aspects in all beings on earth. Therefore when we say this prayer to Devi, we are praying for the whole of mankind since the prayer says that Devi is omnipresent in life in the form of say kshudha (hunger) and we bow down to that aspect of Her divinity. The whole concept of this prayer is truly fantastic. Some rishi must have looked at life and meditated on it for a long time to have come up with prayers such as this so many hundreds of years ago! And yet it is so simple! It has very often been said that our prayers have always had much deeper meaning than what appears on the surface. All the above attributes of Devi are in fact the basic factors that spur life into action – sleep, hunger, intellect, shelter, energy, thirst, forgiveness etc. Such lofty and universal prayers are rarely found in other religions. If we accept that these scriptures were written at least 2500 years ago, then we can see the very high evolution of Hindu culture at the time.

Hinduism is a straightforward way of life. It lays a lot of emphasis on personal spiritual development. It follows that the prayers that the ancient rishis recited daily were for all and universal in nature since the prayers were mainly for the reaching an enlightened state of being through meditation and looking inwards so seek God. This is why they are considered applicable to the whole of mankind irrespective of the religion they follow. We should not only learn the Sanskrit prayers and their proper meanings but apart from using them in our daily prayers and puja, we should make an effort to use these prayers at interfaith congregations. These small prayers open a door to people’s heart and will appeal to them immediately. The listeners will be encouraged to find out more about Hinduism and our purpose will be served.