Gaurivallabha.. A Prayer to Shiva for Protection
गौरीवल्लभ कामारे कालकूटविषादन
मामुद्वरापदम्भोधेस्त्रिपुरघ्नान्तकान्तक
gaurīvallabha kāmāre kālakūṭaviṣādana
māmudvarāpadambhodhestripuraghnāntakāntaka
gaurīvallabha - O consort of Gauri
kāmāre - O foe of kāma (the god of lust and desire)
kālakūṭaviṣādana - O one who devoured the great poison of kālakūṭa
māmudvarāpadambhodheh - Uplift me from the ocean of calamities and dangers.
tripuraghna - O destroyer of three cities
antakāntaka - O destroyer of Death
A prayer on Lord Shiva seeking protection from all kinds of dangers and calamities. the prayer request Lord Shiva to uplift the devotee from the ocean of dangers and conflicts. the sloka praises Lord Shiva with 3 main epithets. Gauri Vallabha - the eternal consort and Lord of Gauri, kamare - the four of the deity of lust , and Kaala koota vishaadana - o n e who devoured the poison HalaHala.
These 3 epithets clearly describe and establish the incomparable prowess of the Lord.
Gauri is the personification of all nature. Shiva is her Lord and master. hence the entire nature is obedient to him.
The universe runs on his divine will. proves that the Lord is our protector who defends us from all physical dangers and the metaphysical.
kāma is the embodiment of lust , Desire and attachment. which is the root cause of all problems in the psychological plane. Desire leads to other bad qualities like greed , wrath, delusion, ego, selfishness, Pride and others. Lord Shiva has subdued the god of lust and defeated him by burning him to ashes with his third eye ( representation of wisdom) so when he is prayed to with this epithet, he defeats the lust and other qualities following it in the mind of the devotee and bless him with peace of mind calmness and intelligence .
the next epithet Describes Lord Shiva drinking the Great poison Haalaahala for the welfare of all the worlds gods humans and Demons show his unconditional love towards everyone and great strength which can Surpass the greatest venom of all time and live with an eternal mark unaffected , and the mark of the great poison turned into a mere decoration. the shows no danger can overpower him. thus he is the ultimate shelter for all of us in all situations. Let us take him as our sole asylum and surrender on his holy feet through this prayer.
May he save us , guide us and lead us in the path of light.
after the prayer for protection two epithets are chanted to praise him.
they are tripuraghna , and antakaantaka
tripuraghna - lord who destroyed the three demon cities
the three cities represent the three modes of material nature - ( satva , rajas and tamas ) the three bodily states ( jaagrat - awaken , svapna - dream and the sushupti.- deep sleep)
burning of the three cities are more philosophically explained in the upanishads )
antakaantaka - he who puts an end to death himself. death is one of the greatest dangers ( as perceived by the life forms ) though death and birth are two sides of the same coin endlessly tossed in cycles by the maaya ( the great delusion which is samsara)
Lord Shiva puts an end to death by blessing us with the ultimate wisdom of self realization.
the name tripuraghna and antakantaka (mrutyunjaya) has both material and spiritual benefits for being chanted with devotion.
five different aspects and forms of Shiva are remembered and prayed to through this shloka (sacred verse of praise)
