Sahana Vavatu

Description

Note: Shanti mantra from Taittiriya, Katha Upanishad and Shvetashvatara Upanishads.

Excerpt from the book ‘Prayer Guide’ by Swami Dayananda Saraswati
Sa ha navavatu. Sah ha nau avatu. Sah means Isvara, the Lord. So, may the Lord ha, definitely, indeed, avatu, protect and bless, nau, both of us. The word ‘om’ is also derived from the same root as avatu, the root av. Av is used in the sense of protecting. Om means the one who protects being a source of blessing. Thus the Lord’s name is om. You can also say he is the one who sustains everything. May that Lord bless both of us, teacher and student.

Sa ha nau bhunaktu. Sah, that Lord, ha, definitely, indeed, bhunaktu, nourish, nau, both of us. The root bhuj in the verb bhunaktu is also in the sense of protection. It does not mean eating here; in that case, the verb would have a different ending, the atmane-pada ending. The sense here is only of nourishing. May he nourish both of us with knowledge. May the Lord indeed, ignoring all my omissions and commissions, being blind to them, bless us and nourish us both. Both, student and teacher, seek Bhagavan’s blessing.

Saha viryam karavavahai. Saha, together, karavavahai (may we) exert for virya, samarthya (capacity to gain knowledge). Whatever is required to gain this knowledge, may we make an effort for that. On the part of a student the capacity consists of certain conditions, commitment, sraddha, background knowledge, the power of retention and recollection. The teacher also needs commitment, health, time and so on. May we both enjoy the respective required qualifications.
Tejasvinavadhitam astu: tejasvi nau adhitam astu. Whatever sastra is studied, adhitam, by both of us, communicated by one and gained by the other, let it not remain mere words; astu, let it be tejasvi, meaningful, nau, for us. Tejas means brilliance. Let the understanding not be vague, but brilliant like the sun that is not obscured by the clouds. You cannot miss the sun even when the clouds are there. It is not like inference in which you infer the presence of the sun upon seeing the silver lining of the clouds. The sastra is not a matter for inference. It is ‘I’ and has to be understood very clearly. Therefore, let what is studied be brilliantly clear, free from any vagueness, much less error.

Ma vidvisavahai: A dvesha is any kind of dislike or misunderstanding. May we not be subject to this misunderstanding. Let nothing come in between us so that this communication is complete.

Om santih santih santih: We chant santi three times. There are not three types of santi. There is only one santi, but there are three types of problems that can deny santi. Let there be freedom from those problems. Let problems not arise from the forces over which we have no control, adhidaivika; from the beings around us, adhibhautika; or from factors centred on ourselves, adhyatmika. The first set of problems comes from sources over which we have no control whatsoever, like cyclone. We can only protect ourselves from it. Let there not be obstacles from such sources over which we have no control. That is one santi. The second source of asanti is any kind of disturbance from the external world, political, social or domestic which is an obstruction to our pursuit. We pray for santi from these obstacles that we do not want to have. The third santi is to take care of problems centred on oneself. There can be physical problems, like an inability to sit comfortably for some time, physiological problems like indigestion, and so on. The mind itself can pose a problem.

I pray that all the three capacities, physical, deha; physiological, prana; and mental, manah, be available to me in a manner that is conducive to my pursuit of this knowledge, vidya. In chanting these three santis, I pray for freedom from these three possible obstructions.