Adhi Sankara has written very many great Stotras (prayers) but here is a unique prayer, which is not only a prayer but a summary of all the philosophy that he has taught. Even during his time, this stotra was difficult to comprehend and it became necessary for one of his disciples, Sureshwaracharya to write a commentary called Manasollasa to this stotra. There are a large number of books and commentaries on this commentary itself.
Dakshina Murthy Stotram in Hindi:
शान्तिपाठः
ॐ यो ब्रह्माणं विदधाति पूर्वं
यो वै वेदांश्च प्रहिणोति तस्मै ।
तंहदेवमात्म बुद्धिप्रकाशं
मुमुक्षुर्वै शरणमहं प्रपद्ये ॥
ध्यानम्
ॐ मौनव्याख्या प्रकटितपरब्रह्मतत्वंयुवानं
वर्शिष्ठान्तेवसदृषिगणैरावृतं ब्रह्मनिष्ठैः ।
आचार्येन्द्रं करकलित चिन्मुद्रमानन्दमूर्तिं
स्वात्मरामं मुदितवदनं दक्षिणामूर्तिमीडे ॥
वटविटपिसमीपे भूमिभागे निषण्णं
सकलमुनिजनानां ज्ञानदातारमारात् ।
त्रिभुवनगुरुमीशं दक्षिणामूर्तिदेवं
जननमरणदुःखच्छेद दक्षं नमामि ॥
चित्रं वटतरोर्मूले वृद्धाः शिष्याः गुरुर्युवा ।
गुरोस्तु मौनव्याख्यानं शिष्यास्तुच्छिन्नसंशयाः ॥
ॐ नमः प्रणवार्थाय शुद्धज्ञानैकमूर्तये ।
निर्मलाय प्रशान्ताय दक्षिणामूर्तये नमः ॥
गुरुर्ब्रह्मा गुरुर्विष्णुः गुरुर्देवो महेश्वरः ।
गुरुस्साक्षात् परं ब्रह्मा तस्मै श्री गुरवे नमः ॥
निधये सर्वविद्यानां भिषजे भवरोगिणाम् ।
गुरवे सर्वलोकानां दक्षिणामूर्तये नमः ॥
चिदोघनाय महेशाय वटमूलनिवासिने ।
सच्चिदानन्द रूपाय दक्षिणामूर्तये नमः ॥
ईश्वरो गुरुरात्मेति मूत्रिभेद विभागिने ।
व्योमवद् व्याप्तदेहाय दक्षिणामूर्तये नमः ॥
अङ्गुष्थतर्जनीयोगमुद्रा व्याजेनयोगिनाम् ।
शृत्यर्थं ब्रह्मजीवैक्यं दर्शयन्योगता शिवः ॥
ॐ शान्तिः शान्तिः शान्तिः ॥
विश्वन्दर्पण दृश्यमान नगरी तुल्यं निजान्तर्गतं
पश्यन्नात्मनि मायया बहिरिवोद्भूतं यथानिद्रया ।
यस्साक्षात्कुरुते प्रभोधसमये स्वात्मानमे वाद्वयं
तस्मै श्रीगुरुमूर्तये नम इदं श्री दक्षिणामूर्तये ॥ 1 ॥
बीजस्यान्तति वाङ्कुरो जगदितं प्राङ्नर्विकल्पं पुनः
मायाकल्पित देशकालकलना वैचित्र्यचित्रीकृतम् ।
मायावीव विजृम्भयत्यपि महायोगीव यः स्वेच्छया
तस्मै श्रीगुरुमूर्तये नम इदं श्री दक्षिणामूर्तये ॥ 2 ॥
यस्यैव स्फुरणं सदात्मकमसत्कल्पार्थकं भासते
साक्षात्तत्वमसीति वेदवचसा यो बोधयत्याश्रितान् ।
यस्साक्षात्करणाद्भवेन्न पुरनावृत्तिर्भवाम्भोनिधौ
तस्मै श्रीगुरुमूर्तये नम इदं श्री दक्षिणामूर्तये ॥ 3 ॥
नानाच्छिद्र घटोदर स्थित महादीप प्रभाभास्वरं
ज्ञानं यस्य तु चक्षुरादिकरण द्वारा बहिः स्पन्दते ।
जानामीति तमेव भान्तमनुभात्येतत्समस्तं जगत्
तस्मै श्री गुरुमूर्तये नम इदं श्री दक्षिणामूर्तये ॥ 4 ॥
देहं प्राणमपीन्द्रियाण्यपि चलां बुद्धिं च शून्यं विदुः
स्त्री बालान्ध जडोपमास्त्वहमिति भ्रान्ताभृशं वादिनः ।
मायाशक्ति विलासकल्पित महाव्यामोह संहारिणे
तस्मै श्री गुरुमूर्तये नम इदं श्री दक्षिणामूर्तये ॥ 5 ॥
राहुग्रस्त दिवाकरेन्दु सदृशो माया समाच्छादनात्
सन्मात्रः करणोप संहरणतो योஉभूत्सुषुप्तः पुमान् ।
प्रागस्वाप्समिति प्रभोदसमये यः प्रत्यभिज्ञायते
तस्मै श्री गुरुमूर्तये नम इदं श्री दक्षिणामूर्तये ॥ 6 ॥
बाल्यादिष्वपि जाग्रदादिषु तथा सर्वास्ववस्थास्वपि
व्यावृत्ता स्वनु वर्तमान महमित्यन्तः स्फुरन्तं सदा ।
स्वात्मानं प्रकटीकरोति भजतां यो मुद्रया भद्रया
तस्मै श्री गुरुमूर्तये नम इदं श्री दक्षिणामूर्तये ॥ 7 ॥
विश्वं पश्यति कार्यकारणतया स्वस्वामिसम्बन्धतः
शिष्यचार्यतया तथैव पितृ पुत्राद्यात्मना भेदतः ।
स्वप्ने जाग्रति वा य एष पुरुषो माया परिभ्रामितः
तस्मै श्री गुरुमूर्तये नम इदं श्री दक्षिणामूर्तये ॥ 8 ॥
भूरम्भांस्यनलोஉनिलोஉम्बर महर्नाथो हिमांशुः पुमान्
इत्याभाति चराचरात्मकमिदं यस्यैव मूर्त्यष्टकम् ।
नान्यत्किञ्चन विद्यते विमृशतां यस्मात्परस्माद्विभो
तस्मै गुरुमूर्तये नम इदं श्री दक्षिणामूर्तये ॥ 9 ॥
सर्वात्मत्वमिति स्फुटीकृतमिदं यस्मादमुष्मिन् स्तवे
तेनास्व श्रवणात्तदर्थ मननाद्ध्यानाच्च सङ्कीर्तनात् ।
सर्वात्मत्वमहाविभूति सहितं स्यादीश्वरत्वं स्वतः
सिद्ध्येत्तत्पुनरष्टधा परिणतं चैश्वर्य मव्याहतम् ॥ 10 ॥
॥ इति श्रीमच्छङ्कराचार्यविरचितं दक्षिणामुर्तिस्तोत्रं सम्पूर्णम् ॥
Sri Dakshinamurthy Stotram Meaning:
I praise and salute that Dakshinamrthy,
Who faces the south,
Who explains the true nature of the supreme Brahman,
Through his state of silence,
Who is young in looks,
Who is surrounded by disciples who are old Sages,
Whose minds are fixed on Brahman,
Who is the greatest of teachers,
Who shows the Chinmudhra by his hand,
Who is the personification of happiness,
Who is in the state of extreme joy within himself,
And who has a smiling face.
Similar to the image of a town as seen in the mirror,
When one sees the image of the world within him,
The world appears as if it is outside.
It is similar to his seeing due to illusion,
During the state of sleep,
That the one real fact appears as many different truths,
And he realizes, when he wakes up and sees the reality,
That he is really the one and only one soul.
Salutation to the God facing the south,
Who is the greatest teacher.
Like the germ inside the seed is its part,
But becomes different after development
The many places and time which are before us,
Are drawn by illusion in the board of life in a peculiar manner,
By a great savant or an expert Siddha,
Who can create them as per their will,
Salutation to the God facing the south,
Who is the greatest teacher.
He who exists as the real light of truth,
And shines in the false world of appearance,
And He who teaches disciples the great saying,
“Thou art that” after realizing its import,
Gets away from this cycle of life and death.
Salutation to the God facing the south,
Who is the greatest teacher.
Like the light emanating from a lamp,
Kept in a pot with many holes,
Goes out in all directions,
In the person in whom the wisdom goes out
Through the openings of ear, eye, mouth and thought,
And when that person realizes that ‘I know myself”,
This whole universe shines after Him alone,
Who shines in the consciousness as the knower.
Salutation to the God facing the south,
Who is the greatest teacher.
Those great philosophers, who think that,
The body, the soul and the fickle intellect,
The concept of emptiness and all other nothingness,
Are nothing but themselves,
Are similar to the women children, blind and ignorant.
It is only He who can destroy, this veil of ignorance,
And wake us up from this state of deceit.
Salutation to the God facing the south,
Who is the greatest teacher.
Similar to the Sun when being masked by the serpent Rahu,
Knows that it was existing, once the eclipse is over
That man whose senses are suppressed
When he is asleep,
Because of the veil of illusion,
Realizes that he was in a state of sleep,
When he wakes up.
Salutation to the God facing the south,
Who is the greatest teacher.
Salutations to him who shines and exhibits,
Himself by the beatific Chinmudhra of the hand,
That he exists within the humans as self,
Forever and non changing,
Even during the changing states of childhood, youth and old age
And even during the states of sleep, dream and wakefulness.
Salutation to the God facing the south,
Who is the greatest teacher.
The world sees as cause and effect,
The differences between us and our lord,
The distinction between teacher and the taught,
The distinction between father and son,
And so the man is confused by illusion,
And believes in these differences,
During the times of dream and wakefulness.
Salutation to the God facing the south,
Who is the greatest teacher.
To the sake of which supreme Brahman,
The universe is shining as self,
Which is Movable and immovable, with its aspects?
Of water, fire, air, space,
The sun, moon and the individual soul,
And also to those who examine the truth behind,
The meaning of this universe and find,
That it Consists of nothing but,
The God who is every where.
Salutation to the God facing the south,
Who is the greatest teacher.
The concept of the Athma,
Which is explained in this poem of praise,
Hearing which, understanding which,
Meditating which and singing which,
One would attain the state of godliness,
And the great state of self-realization,
And also you would get the eight powers of occult,
Without any problems in between.
Also Read:
Sri Dakshinamurthy Stotram Lyrics in English | Hindi | Marathi | Bengali | Kannada | Malayalam | Telugu | Tamil