10. Everything is Rama

Verse 10

அந்திமாலை உச்சிமூன்றும் ஆடுகின்ற தீர்த்தமும்

சந்திதர்ப் பணங்களும் தபங்களும் செபங்களும்

சிந்தைமேவு ஞானமும் தினம்செபிக்கும் மந்திரம்

எந்தைராம ராமராம ராமஎன்னும் நாமமே!

Translation:

Bathing in sacred waters at dawn, dusk and midday,

Performing water offerings at twilight, penances, chanting

The wisdom that resides in the mind, the mantra chanted daily is

Verily the name of my father, Rāma Rāma Rāma Rāma! 

Commentary:

            Civavākkiyar has been eulogizing the greatness of the five-lettered mantra namacivaya so far.  Now he describes the greatness of the word Rama.    Rā and mā are mystic seed-letters.  Rā is Agni bhija (the source of fire) that destroys all the sins. Mā is the amrita bija (source of amrta) that confers immortality.  Rā and mā are obtained by juxtaposing the vital letters from the aṣtākṣara mantra (aum namo Nārāyanāya) and the pancākṣari mantra (aum namah Śivāya).  Thus, the word Rama has the essence of these two most important mantras.  Hence, Civavākkiyar says that all the rituals performed, mantras chanted, wisdom gained are equivalent to chanting the word Rama. 

            In this context, it may be recalled that in Viṣnu Sahasranama stotra or thousand names of Lord Viṣnu, Lord Siva tells Parvati Devi that chanting the name Rama three times is equivalent to reciting the thousand names of Vishnu.  This can be explained in an interesting fashion as follows: among the Sanskrit letters, the letter ‘ra’ is the second letter in the anthastha varga that begins with ‘ya’.  The letter ‘ma’ is the fifth letter in the ‘pa’varga or ōshtya varga.  Thus, the word ‘rama’ is 5*2= 10.  Reciting Rama three times is then 10*10*10= 1000.  The word Rama is also obtained as a combination of Hara and Uma,viz. Śiva and Śakti (Hara+ Uma = Rama) a combination that represents the Ultimate Reality, Parama Śiva.

            The word ‘Rama’ also represents the samarasabhava or harmonious attitude of the Siddhas.  In the Yoga Kundalini Upanishad the term “Rama” refers to “mystics who rejoice in themselves”- the blissful experience.  These mystics are “svātmaramar”- those who enjoy their ātma. Civavākkiyar is one such mystic who uses the term Rama to refer to the blissful experience of the Ultimate Reality.

            Civavākkiyar uses the term Rama in several of his verses.  This has led to the opinion that these verses are not original by interpolations of the original composition (M. Arunachalam, Saiva Siddhanta vol IV, no.1 1971 pp 8-21).  However, this cannot be true.  Padma Purana says that term Rama refers to ramante yogino-nante brahmānande chidātmani (The one in whose memory yogis revel in the bliss of brahman).  This Brahman is the Ultimate Reality that the yogis contemplate on.