Subramhanya bhujangam – 33

And we are here, at the last shlokam of this wonderful work on Lord Murugan, composed by Saint Adi Shankara, set in the bhujangam metre. As any other devotional work, this also has the phalashruti or the results or benefits attained by chanting or listening to this work. The benefit of reciting or listening to

Subramhanya bhujangam – 31

We are in the last leg of this work. In this shloka, Adi Shankara offers his salutations and respects to everything that is associated with Murugan. “I bow to your peacock and also to your spear (vEl); I bow to the goat and your rooster; I offer obeisance to the sea and the temple at

Subramhanya bhujangam – 26

“Service to mankind is service to god” is a saying that insists on working for humanity is indeed a way to please God. But it is also possible to dedicate all our actions to God and be of service to God. In the shloka 26 in Subramhanya bhujangam, Adi Shankara mentions that whatever he does,

Subramhanya bhujangam – 25

“A healthy mind in a healthy body” is an adage that we hear often. In the last two shlokas or verses, we prayed to Murugan to help us get rid of any mental worries and afflictions. We are now moving from the prayer for mental health and wellness section to physical health section of this

Subramhanya bhujangam – 19

This shloka which immediately follows the pAdAdi kEsha varNana shlokas (9 to 18) is a collection of epithets or nAmAs of Murugan. Adi Shankara implores Murugan to protect him. Adi Shankara calls out to Murugan with various names and apt descriptions – “KumAra, the son of IshA, Guha, Skanda, the chief of the Army of

Subramhanya bhujangam – 13

The verse 13, which is about the incomparable beauty of Lord Subramhanya’s face, is an example of stunning poetic beauty and also one with a tinge of humour. In poetry, the most common object of comparison for a beautiful face is moon. But the beauty of Murugan’s face(s) cannot be compared even to that charming

Subramhanya bhujangam – 10

The previous shloka was a meditation on Lord Murugan’s lotus like feet. We saw how there were parallels between the lotus flower and His feet and also how our minds, afflicted by the woes of samsara were compared to bees. This shloka, verse 10 of Subramhanya bhujangam is a prayer on Lord Skanda’s waist or

Subramhanya bhujangam – 9

We are starting with the pAdAdi kEsha varNana from this shloka 9. What is pAdAdi kEsha varNana? pAda – foot; kEsha– hair; varNana – description, describing someone from toe to head. This is handled in many works. We have 10 shlokas (9 to 18) that describe the beauty of the parts of body (for lack