Shanmatam means six religions. Namely Gaanapathyam, Kaumaaram, Souram, Shaivam, Vaishnavam and Shaaktam. Before the period of Adi Shankara there were 72 Religions. He sorted and gave us six in number. So he called as "Shanmatha Sthaapanaachaarya" (one who established six religions).
Gaanapathyam --- Mention Lord Ganesha as Prime deity. Found in some of the places in Maharashtra
Kaumaaram --- Mention Lord Skanda as Prime deity. Found Mostly in South India, Ceylon and Malaysia.
Souram --- Mention Lord Sun as Prime deity. Now its rare to see the followers of this Cult.
Shaivam --- Mention Lord Shiva as Prime deity.
Shaaktam --- Mention Goddess (Feminine Energy)as prime deity. Found Mainly in Kerala, Assam and Bengal.
:Brahma Samhita Ch 5 , verse 50 :
I adore the primeval Lord Govinda, whose lotus feet are always held by Ganesa upon the pair of trunk protruding from his elephant head in order to obtain power for his function of destroying all the obstacles on the path of progress of the three worlds.
In order to become free of all obstacles, at the beginning of endeavours the people offer prayers to Ganesa. Concerned that this should be done, the author speaks this verse.
The earliest reference to Ganapathi appears in the second book of the Rik Veda in the rik starting with Gananam tva Ganapatigum Havamahe (RV 2.23.1).
Ganapathi is evoked by the Vedic rik (Rik Veda. 4.50) ) associated with Brahmanaspati (Jestha rajam brahmanaam Brahmanaspathi...
The mantra ‘namo Ganebhyo ganapathibyaha vo namo' (16-25) that occurs in Shukla Yajurveda samhita refers to ganas, in plural, and says: salutations to you, Ganas and to the Lord of the Ganas.
The other early references are in Maithrayaniya samhita (2.9.1) and Taittariya Aranyaka (10.1.5) which appeal to an elephant faced (hasthi-mukha) , single-tusked (dantin) deity with a curved trunk (vakra tunda).He is also described as holding a corn-sheaf, a sugarcane and a club.
Gana means controllers, of elements. Pathi means protector. Thus Ganapathi is the Lord of the controllers of the Vital aspect of the creation. He is worshipped as the Lord of success and destroyer of evils and obstacles. He is the god of education, knowledge, wisdom and wealth.
sandhaanam skandanam caiva
paacanam daahanam tathaa
gamanam sosanam skandadhaat
vartha darsanaat iti
jumping, sputing, spilling, effusing, perishing, drying up and gathering together.
akranya ca yato skandad
adhikramena jagattrayam
tena skando yanaakhyaatah
sutaste girisambhave
Divine attraction (beauty – murugu – murugan in tamil) , conquering the three worlds , giving pleasure to Goddess Uma, He is known as Skanda.
Mahabharatha salya parva 41.85-7) refers to Kumara's varied parentage and his being considered as one, two or four or even as hundred or thousand:
kevidenam vyvasyanti pitaamta sutam vibhum
sanatkumaaram sarvesaam brahmajyotim tamaagrajam
kecin mahesvara sutam kecit putram
vibhaa vasoh
umayaah krttikaayaasca gangaayaasca vadantyut
ekadhaasca dvidhaas caiva caturdhaa ca mahaabalam
yoginaam isvaram devam
satadhaa ca sahasradhaa
The original Personality of Skandha kumara, is son of the universal father , Brahma. He is Sanat Kumaara , one of the four Kumaras the very first progeny in creation. He is seen differently as the son of Lord Siva, Agni, Goddess Uma, the six Krittika Goddesses, and Goddess Ganga.
His parents eagerly approached the unique baby with great affection. As they all wanted to meet him at the same time, Kumaaraa took four similar and resplendent forms, (samarupinah, bhaasvara-dehinah) and went to them with a spear in hand. Thus he approached and saluted Rudra as Skanda, Uma as Visaakha., Agni as saakha, and Gangaa as Naigamesa.
Thus He has one, double, quadruple, hexagon and even thousand forms .
Valmiki Ramayana , Bala kanda (sarga 36 & 37)
Sarga 37 verse 8 ,27):
Siva's tejas (sperm) was transferred to River Gangaa by Agni with the help of Vaayu. She bore it with great difficulty and deposited it in the Himalayan range, in one of her lakes sourrounded by saravna bushes of grass. At that time there was a brilliant glow all around. Bright dazzling metals like gold, silver and copper appeared. Born in that atmosphere, He came to be known as Saravana bhava (appeared from saravana bushes.
Immediately Indra and other gods arranged for the six Krttikaa stars, who represent a star cluster in the third mansion having Agni as its regent, the virgin mother Goddesses to nurse the child with their milk. They did so in the form of nymphs. Concluding the birth-story of Kumaara, Vaalmiki says that the gods called the child Skanda, being born from the emanation (spilling) of Siva's tejas through Agni .
He is the general of the army of devas, and wielding the Shakti spear , He destroyed the formidable demons lead by Surapadma , who had a benediction that only a kumara (child) can kill him.
Brahma Samhita Ch 5 , verse 52 :
The sun who is the king of all planets, full of infinite effulgence, the image of the good soul, is the eye of this world. I adore the primeval Lord Govinda in pursuance of whose order the sun performs his journey mounting the wheel of time.
Commentary by Srila Jiva Gosvami
Here the word "caksuh" means "he who manifests". In the Bhagavad-gita (15.12) Lord Krsna declares:
"The splendour of the sun, which dissipates the darkness of the whole world, comes from Me. And the splendour of the moon and the splendour of fire are also from Me."*
In the Sruti-sastra it is said:
"Out of fear of the Supreme Personality of Godhead, the wind blows. Out of fear of the Supreme Personality of Godhead, the sun rises."
The sun is here called "the eye of this world" because it is the eye of the Lord's universal form (virat-rupa).
Sun is one of the principal Divinities of the Vedas, also prominent in the epics and Puranas.
There is a particular category of devas known as the 'adityas', of which there are twelve. One of these adityas becomes the sun god for a particular period of time, and then another one will take the post after him.
when an aditya becomes the sun god he is empowered by Lord Narayana. This is why he is known as Surya Narayana
The Supersoul present in the heart of Surya is unique : He is described as resplendent form with a golden moustaque and two handed, unlike the four handed form in the heart of other living entities.
the sun god is the administrator of the universe. By the diffusion of Surya's energies of heat and light he manages the entire universe. Everything that functions and moves within the universe is empowered by his heat and light.
As the giver of life, Surya is worshiped during harvest festivals everywhere. Esoterically, the sun represents the point where the manifest and unmanifest worlds meet or unite. In yoga, the sun represents the masculine force, pingala. Surya also signifies the Self within.
to the All ancient pantheons contain a deity associated with the sun, so that the reverence and worship paid to the sun was ritually universal even where lunar worship may have predominated. With the Souras, sun worship was the dominant religious theme although a pantheon of other deities was not excluded.
It is not the visible orb which is worshiped as the solar divinity, but the spiritual powerful or Being within , the controller of physical sun, which is His abode.
Saivites revere Surya, the Sun God each morning as Siva Surya. Smartas and Vaishnavas revere the golden orb as Surya Narayana. As the source of light, the sun is the most readily apparent image of Divinity available to man.
In the Vedic description of the course of souls after death, the "path of the sun" leads liberated souls to the realm of Brahman; while the path of the moon leads back to physical birth.(confirmed in the Bhagavad Gita Ch.Sloka)
The Vedic mantra for Surya is- "Om aasatyena rajasa vartamano niveshyan amritam matrayam ca. Hirnmayena savita rathena devo yati bhuvanaani vipashyan"
The puraanic mantra is - " japakusuma sankasham kashyapeyam mahahutim . Tamohari sarvapapaghnam pranatosmi divakaram "
A well-known Hindu mode of worship of Surya is done at the rising (and also setting) of the Sun, known as Surya Namaskara (Sun Salutation). Twelve yogic postures are assumed in order with twelve sacred Sun mantras uttered for each and repeated once (left and right sides) to make twenty-four, corresponding with each hour of the day.
It is considered most auspicious by Hindus to do twelve cycles of this (to represent the solar year). Its origins have been traced back to the time of the Ramayana
The Gayatri Mantra is also associated with Surya. Another hymn associated with Surya is the Aditya Hridayam, recited by the great sage Agastya to Rama on the battlefield before fighting with Ravana.
In Hindu religious literature, Surya is notably mentioned as the visible form of God that one can see every day.
The Sun spreads His specific rays that make six seasons. He dispels all the darkness and the evil forces behind it constantly, protecting all the living beings with wisdom.
Sun god has three consorts, viz., Ushas, Chaya and Padmini. They control three levels of Solar energy, Gayatri, Savitri and Sarasvati . They deliver the great triangle energies, Adhi daivic, Adyatmic and Adi boutic (realms of physico-chemical, biological and psychological. The three consorts further take charge of the three ‘gunas’ of material nature, ‘sattwa, Rajas and Tamas’ – (Rhythm mobility and inertia.)
Surya is also the original teacher of the Vedas. Thus he has two functions, one in administration and one in education. As the lord of the solar system He sends His septenary forces and substances to all parts of the solar kingdom, thus binding it into a single organic individual.
Brahma Samhita Ch 5, verse 46
The light of one candle being communicated to other candles although it burns separately in them, is the same in its quality. I adore the primeval Lord Govinda who exhibits Himself equally in the same mobile manner in His various manifestations.
Commentary by Srila Jiva Gosvami
In this verse guna-avatara Visnu is described . The reason the guna-avataras have the same powers as the Lord Himself is given in these words:
"So they may manifest the material world, the guna-avataras are given powers like those of the Supreme Lord."
Vishnu worship is based on vedic Vaikasana agamas , and Pancaratra agamas revealed by Lord Vishnu Himself.
Lord Vishnu appeared as Vaikhanasa rishi and imparted the Vedic Agama known as Vaikhanasa.
Bhishma, says in The Mahabharata, Santi Parva
Section CCCXL : Narada on meeting Nara and Narayana , the manifestations of Vishnu , in Himalayan Badrinath, directly heard from Him Pancaratra Agamas, which are in harmony of the processes of sankhya and Yoga and perfectly in consistent with Vedas.
Brahma Samhita Ch 5 , verse 45
Just as milk is transformed into curd by the action of acids, but yet the effect curd is neither same as, nor different from, its cause, viz., milk, so I adore the primeval Lord Govinda of whom the state of Sambhu is a transformation for the performance of the word of destruction.**
Commentary by Srila Jiva Gosvami
In this verse Mahesha (Lord Siva) is described. Here an example of cause and effect is given. In this sense the cause (Govinda), is like a cintamani jewel, which also remains unchanged after the effect of gold, because His potencies are inconceivable.
The Saivas recognise twenty-eight Agamas, of which the chief is Kamika. Each Agama has Upa-Agamas (subsidiary Agamas). Of these, only fragmentary texts of twenty are extant.
Deriving their inspirations from the Vedas and Upanishads the Shaiva Agamas declare that the Supreme Reality-the Brahman manifests itself in two ways as Para Brahman and Sabda Brahman, the former identified with Parasiva and the later with Sadasiva. As the Supreme is beyond the reach of mind and speech he is called Parasiva. Sadasiva, the Sabda Brahman is of the form of pranava – the sacred syllable “Aum”.
All the alphabets and their derivations emanated from sound form of Sadasiva. Ajitagama :
Vyoma rupat Parat Sivat Sabdah. Tato aksharah, Tasmat sabda rasi
Lord Shiva, the father of the whole creation, (combined with Mahamaya the mother of creation) receives the souls and the seeds of universes as Shambu and impregnates Mahamaya . In this process , Lord Shiva shines as a gigantic Linga with effulgent hallow, on the great Yoni .
From this process, the unlimited Universal seeds grow into their optimum size and the souls take their positions according to their previous karma. Thus Lord Shiva is the creator and the Supreme Father of all living beings.
This Shambu , is the form that is worshiped as the Holy Shiva linga in the Shiva Temples according to Shaiva Agamas.
As Sadashiva, He manifests as
1) the five aspects of intelligence – consciousness, the inner senses, identity, intelligence and mind
2) the five perceiving senses – ears, eyes, skin, tongue and nose
3) the five acting senses – hands, legs, speech system, digesting system and procreating system
4) the five sense objects – sound, sight, touch, taste and smell
5) the elements – sky, fire, wind, water and earth
In each universe He manifests himself as 11 Rudras, ten Rudras monitoring ten aspects of time (in eight directions and both top and bottom spheres of the universe) and the main Rudra in the planet of Kailasa , on the banks of milk ocean . Emanating fire from His third eye, that becomes the universal flood later, He dissolves the creation when its due time is over.
The Brahma Samhita (prayers by Lord Brahma to Lord Govinda) , Chapter 5. verse 44 :
External potency Maya who is of the nature of the shadow of the cit potency, is worshipped by all people as Durga, the creating, preserving, and destroying agency of this mundane world. I adore the primeval Lord Govinda, in accordance with whose will Durga conducts herself.**
Commentary by Srila Jiva Gosvami :
The abodes of Devi, Mahesa, and Lord Hari were described in the previous verse. (the mundane world is Devi Dhama. Next above that, is Mahesa-dhama (the abode of Mahesa). Above Mahesa-dhama is placed Hari-dhama (the abode of Hari), and above them all is located Krsna's own realm named Goloka. I adore the primeval Lord Govinda, who has allotted their respective authorities to the rulers of those graded realms.) In the Sruti-sastra it is said:
"O Supreme Personality of Godhead, You are supremely powerful and independent. With unblinking eyes, Durga and the Devas attentively place offerings before You."
The Upanishad says: ‘parasya saktir vividhaiva sruyate, svabhavaiki jnana bala kriya ca’
God has different energies and different manifestations. Shakti , The Divine Mother is associated with the qualities of compassion and forgiveness. In spiritual realm She is the pleasure potency and in the material realm the Mother of all, and Maha maya.
There are 64 saakta tantras to worship Devi.
They glorify Sakti as the World-Mother. They dwell on the Sakti (energy) aspect of God and prescribe numerous courses of ritualistic worship of the Divine Mother in various forms.
There are seventy-seven Agamas. These are very much like the Puranas in some respects. The texts are usually in the form of dialogues between Siva and Parvati. In some of these, Siva answers the questions put by Parvati, and in others, Parvati answers, Siva questioning.
The Agamas teach several occult practices some of which confer powers, while the others bestow knowledge and freedom. Sakti is the creative power of Lord Siva.
There are four major aspects of the Mother Divine. Maheshwari, Maha Kali, Maha Saraswati, and Maha Lakshmi.
Maheshwari : the aspect of immensity, vastness and profundity
Maha Kali : aspect of aspiration, dynamic power of transformation, the Warrior, fighting all the time against the hostile forces, against human imperfection, limitation, bondage and death.
Maha Saraswati : aspect of perfection, knowledge and wisdom.
Maha Lakshmi : aspect of sweetness, beauty, fragrance and harmony.
Courtesy: Atma Tattva Das
