White as Camphor

Below is a beautiful shloka, a popular short prayer, addressed to Lord Shiva which is commonly recited during arati rituals. This shloka is written in the trishtubh meter (4x11 syllables) and is often times cited to be from the Yajurveda. However, it is more likely part of a post-vedic composition. 

Nevertheless, this simple verse is beautiful and spiritual capturing in 44 syllables both philosophy and devotion. Lord Shiva is envisioned in a form white like camphor, garlanded by the king of serpents (a reference to Kundalini Shakti). He is both the essence of the universe and the indweller (antaryamin), who resides in the lotus of the heart. He is compassion personified! The verse ends as a salutation to the ever-inseparable Shiva-Shakti, Bhava and Bhavani, the very nature of all existence.

कर्पूरगौरं करुणावतारं 
संरसारं भुजगेन्द्रहारम् ।
सदावसन्तं हृदयारविन्दे 
भवं भवानीसहितं नमामि ॥

karpūragauraṁ karuṇāvatāraṁ 
saṁsārsāraṁ bhujagendrahāram |
sadāvasantaṁ hṛdayāravinde 
bhavaṁ bhavānīsahitaṁ namāmi || 

White as camphor, the very form of compassion,
Essence of the universe, garlanded by the serpent king, 
Forever residing in the lotus of the heart,
To Bhava-Bhavani together I bow.

Aum Namah Shivaya.

Atharvashira Upanisad

Atharvashira is a very old upanishad glorifying Lord Rudra-Shiva. This upanishad is made up of mantras for chanting and consists of teachings from the Atharvaveda in the form of a dialogue between the Devas and Lord Rudra in the first part presented below. The second part of the text is the doctrine as taught by the Pashupata sages on the nature and names of Lord Rudra, and the practice of the Pashupata Vrata, which we will examine in the future. There are a few recensions of this upanishad which differ slightly in content and verse numbering, but the core teaching is the same. The Atharvashira teaches an early form of monism common to the upanishadic era in which the Lord is both Creator and creation. He is Brahman, the abstract absolute reality taught in the principal upanishads.

There are a handful of very ancient Shaiva upanishads including the Nilarudra (part of the Atharveda Samhita Paippalada recension), Shvetashvatara, Atharvashira, Atharvashikha and Kaivalya. Indologists of the 19th century initially considered the Atharvashira not a very ancient text, but likely from the first millennium CE. However, on account of the fact that Atharvashira along with the Rudradhyaya is recommended in the Dharma Sutras (e.g., Gautama, Baudhayana, etc.) as purificatory hymns, it was realized that the Atharvashira is quite ancient indeed. Therefore, the Atharvashira must predate the Dharma Sutras, which are assigned the period of 600-300 BCE, and is currently dated to about the 5th century BCE. This places the Atharvashira in roughly the same time frame as the Shvetashvatara. Just like it is not known to which school of the Krsna Yajurveda (Katha or Taittariya) the Shvetashvatara belongs, so it is not known to which school of the Atharvaveda the Atharvashira belongs. It is entirely possible that upanishads of the Pashupata sages transcended the boundaries of Vedic schools.

Aum Namah Shivaya. 
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Peace Prayer

O Devas! May we hear with our ears what is auspicious,

May we see with our eyes what is auspicious, o praise-worthy ones,

May we have strong organs and healthy bodies,

May we live our lifespans allotted by the Devas.

May Indra of great glory bestow well-being unto us,

May Puṣān, the all-knowing, bestow well-being unto us,

May Tarkṣya, the destroyer of evil, bestow well-being unto us,

May Bṛhaspati ensure our welfare!

Aum, peace, peace, peace.

Aum! Once, the Devas resorted to the heavens and approached Lord Rudra and asked, “Who are You?”

He replied: “I alone was in the beginning, I am now, and I will be in the future. There is none but Me!”

He spread Himself out and pervaded all the quarters.

[He said]:

I am eternal and non-eternal,

I am the manifest and the unmanifest,

I am Brahman and non-Brahman!

I am the east, the west, the south and the north,

I am above and I am below,

I am the directional quarters and the cross quarters,

I am man and non-man, I am woman,

I am Gāyatrī and I am Sāvitrī,

I am triṣṭub, jagati and anuṣṭup; I am meter itself!

I am the Truth!

I am the three fires: gārhapatya, dakṣiṇa and āhavanīya,

I am cow and I am bull,

I am Rg, Yajur, Sāma and Atharvāṅgirasa,

I am the first, the superior and the best!

I am water and I am fire,

I am the secret and the forest (teachings),

I am the imperishable and the perishable,

I am the nourisher and the purifier,

I am the top, the center, the outside, and the front,

I am Light!

I am the form of all (beings) and all are equal to me.

He who knows Me knows all the Devas!

I nourish (the world) through My own light,

Brahman through Brahman,

Brāhmaṇas through brāhmaṇas,

Oblations through oblations,

Life through life,

Truth through Truth,

Dharma through Dharma!

Thereafter, the Devas ceased to see Lord Rudra in His own glory. They mediated, and began to praise Him with hands uplifted.

Aum!

He who is Rudra, He is the Lord. He is Brahmā; we salute Him again and again.

He who is Rudra, He is the Lord. He is Viṣṇu; we salute Him again and again.

He who is Rudra, He is the Lord. He is Skanda; we salute Him again and again.

He who is Rudra, He is the Lord. He is Indra; we salute Him again and again.

He who is Rudra, He is the Lord. He is Agni; we salute Him again and again.

He who is Rudra, He is the Lord. He is Vāyu; we salute Him again and again.

He who is Rudra, He is the Lord. He is Sūrya; we salute Him again and again.

He who is Rudra, He is the Lord. He is Soma; we salute Him again and again.

He who is Rudra, He is the Lord. He is the Grahas (senses) eight; we salute Him again and again.

He who is Rudra, He is the Lord. He is the Pratigrahas (sense objects) eight; we salute Him again and again.

He who is Rudra, He is the Lord. He is Bhū(-loka); we salute Him again and again.

He who is Rudra, He is the Lord. He is Bhuvaḥ(-loka); we salute Him again and again.

He who is Rudra, He is the Lord. He is Svaha(-loka); we salute Him again and again.

He who is Rudra, He is the Lord. He is Mahaḥ(-loka); we salute Him again and again.

He who is Rudra, He is the Lord. He is Pṛthivī (earth); we salute Him again and again.

He who is Rudra, He is the Lord. He is Antarīksa (atmosphere); we salute Him again and again.

He who is Rudra, He is the Lord. He is Dyaus (heavens); we salute Him again and again.

He who is Rudra, He is the Lord. He is Āpas (water); we salute Him again and again.

He who is Rudra, He is the Lord. He is Tejas (fire); we salute Him again and again.

He who is Rudra, He is the Lord. He is Kāla (time); we salute Him again and again.

He who is Rudra, He is the Lord. He is Yama (Ruler over death); we salute Him again and again.

He who is Rudra, He is the Lord. He is Mṛtyu (death); we salute Him again and again.

He who is Rudra, He is the Lord. He is Amṛtaṁ (immortality); we salute Him again and again.

He who is Rudra, He is the Lord. He is Ākāśaṁ (space); we salute Him again and again.

He who is Rudra, He is the Lord. He is Viśvaṁ (the universe); we salute Him again and again.

He who is Rudra, He is the Lord. He is Sthūlaṁ (gross); we salute Him again and again.

He who is Rudra, He is the Lord. He is Sūkṣmaṁ (subtle); we salute Him again and again.

He who is Rudra, He is the Lord. He is Śuklaṁ (white); we salute Him again and again.

He who is Rudra, He is the Lord. He is Kṛṣṇaṁ (black); we salute Him again and again.

He who is Rudra, He is the Lord. He is Kṛtsnaṁ (the entirety); we salute Him again and again.

He who is Rudra, He is the Lord. He is Satyaṁ (the Truth); we salute Him again and again.

He who is Rudra, He is the Lord. He is Sarvaṁ (All); we salute Him again and again.

Bhū is Thy beginning, Bhuvaḥ Thy middle, and Svaha Thy head.

Thou art the form of the universe,

Thou art the one Brahman, Thou hast bifurcated and trifurcated – Thou art growth!

Thou art tranquility and nourishment,

Thou art the offered and the unoffered oblation,

Thou art the gift and the ungifted,

Thou art all and the non-all,

Thou art the universe and the non-universe,

Thou art the deed and non-deed,

Thou art the highest and non-highest,

Thou art the final aim!

Atharvaśiropanisad I-IIIa.

Aum Namo Bhagavate Rudrāya

Conversion of King Sushila

It has long been suspected that Sage Shvetashvatara, the author of the Shvetashvatara Upanishad, was a Pashupata ascetic. Reading the upanishad, one certainly does get that impression based on the overt Pashupata terminologies and the teachings therein. Since Sage Shvetashvatara predated Guru Lakulisha (fl. 1st century CE) by half a millennium or more, we can safely assume he taught a form of Pashupatism prior to the advent of the Pashupata Sutras and the reform of the sect. In essence then, Sage Shvetashvatara is the earliest known teacher of Pashupata Shaivism. However, we know virtually nothing of the sage.

What we do know of him comes from a section of the Kurma Purana which relates the story of a king named Sushila, who is born in the line of Manu. The story relates how the pious king encounters the sage in a holy forest and then becomes his disciple, essentially embracing the Pashupata sect as an ascetic. In the story, Sage Shvetashvatara tells the king that he initiated this branch of knowledge, viz Pashupata doctrine, by which yogins attain Shiva. Moreover, the king joins a large hermitage with many disciples from different walks of life.

Now, many scholars are of the opinion that the Shvetashvatara Upanishad is likely not the work of a single author, but of several authors, and represents a compilation. This may indeed be the case. If one carefully reads the text, the first chapter itself reads like an independent work with an concluding verse. It may be, as illustrated in the story of King Sushila, that Sage Shvetashvatara had many disciples and the upanishad was a compilation of his teachings at the hermitage. This would also explain one of the last passages of the upanishad which identifies the sage by name and refers to him from a third person perspective:

Through the power of austerity and through the grace of the Lord, the Sage Shvetāshvatara realised Brahman and proclaimed the highly sacred knowledge, supremely cherished by the company of seers, to sannyasins of the most advanced stage. (VI.22)

 

It is not a stretch of the imagination to consider that Sage Shvetashvatara was the founder of the Pashupata system and had many followers. In fact, the Linga Purana (I.7.30-35) provides a list of 28 yogacharayas of the kaliyuga, which begins with Shveta and ends with Lakulisha. It is presumed that Shveta here is Sage Shvetashvatara. If Lakulisha (fl. 1st century CE) was 28th in line from Shveta, then that would put Sage Shvetashvatara somewhere before 600 BCE. 

With this in mind, we read the below passage from the Kurma Purana. 

Aum Namah Shivaya. 

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To Shikhandin, a son was born who became famous by the name Sushila. He was righteous, endowed with beauty and a master of the Vedas and the Vedangas. He studied the Vedas duly and virtuously and was established in penance. As good fortune would have it, that knower of Dharma became inclined towards renunciation. Eager that he was in the study of the Vedas and the performance of penance he resorted to holy centres.  

Once he went to the higher plateau of the Himalayas frequented by the siddhas. There he saw a holy forest named Dharmavana, which affords the achievement of Dharma — a place accessible to the yogins and inaccessible to the haters of Brahman. A very holy and pure river named Mandakini flowed there. It was endowed with clusterous growth of red and blue lotuses and was bedecked with the hermitages of the siddhas. On its southern bank, he saw a beautiful and very holy hermitage occupied by leading sages and yogins and felt delighted. He took his holy dip in the water of Mandakini. He propitiated the divine Pitris (manes). He then worshipped Mahadeva with red and blue lotuses and other flowers. He meditated on Ishana stationed in the orb of the Sun after joining his hands together in reverence over his head. Looking at the radiant Sun, he eulogised the Supreme Ruler. He propitiated Girisha (God Shiva) by means of (reciting) the Rudradhyaya and Charita (narrative) of Rudra, as well as by many different kinds of hymns of Shambhu taken from the Vedas.

In the meantime (while praying) he saw the great sage Shvetashvatara coming. He was the most excellent among the great devotees of Pashupati (God Shiva). He had applied bhasma (ashes) all over his limbs. The loin cloth was the only covering garment he had. His body was emaciated due to the performance of penance. He was wearing a white sacred thread. 

After concluding his eulogy of Sambhu, Sushila bowed down his head at Sage Shvetashvatara's feet. His eyesight was rendered blurry due to tears (of joy). With palms joined in reverence, he said, "I am contented and blessed as I have seen the leading sage and yogin, the holy Lord, the most excellent among the knowers of yoga with my own eyes. Ah! My fortune is indeed great. My penances have become fruitful. What shall I do? O sinless one, I am your disciple. Save me.” 

Sage Shvetashvatara blessed the king of very good conduct and gentle behaviour. He accepted him as his disciple, for he had wiped off all his sins, thanks to his penance. The clever sage made him perform all rites pertaining to sannyasa and then bestowed on him the divine knowledge for which the holy rites had been laid down in his own branch of the Vedas. He gave Sushila the entire essence of the Vedas, that secures the release of the Pashu (individual soul) from the pasha (the binding noose of avidya). The rite is famous as antyashrama (the last stage of life) and has been performed by Brahma and others. 

Glancing at all his disciples, those who resided in that hermitage, brahmanas, kshatriyas, vaisyas, etc., who were all interested in maintaining celibacy, the sage said thus: “It is only after studying the branch of knowledge initiated by me that the yogins attain Mahadeva after meditating on the universe as the creation of the Lord. It is here that the Lord Mahadeva sporting along with His Consort, Uma, occupies the place, with a desire to bless the devotees. Formerly, Narayana himself, the Creator of the entire universe, propitiated Mahadeva here with a desire for the welfare of the worlds. It is after propitiating Lord Ishana, the Lord the Devas, that Devas and Danavas attained great miraculous powers here. It was here itself that Marici and all other sages perceived Maheshvara through the power of their penance and attained eternal perfect knowledge. Hence, O leading king, you too stay here practising penance and yoga. You stay with me permanently and thereby you will attain Siddhi."

After addressing thus, the leading wise sage meditated on Lord Shiva, the wielder of the Pinaka bow. He then imparted precisely the great mantra for the achievement of all his objectives. That mantra suppresses all sins. It is the essence of the Vedas. It yields liberation. It is the holy mantra beginning with the word Agni. It has been initiated by the sages. 

At this instant King Sushila, endowed with faith, became a devotee of Pashupati and was engaged in the study of the Vedas. He applied the sacred ashes (bhasma) all over his body. He lived on roots, fruits and bulbous roots. He was quiescent and had full self-control. He subdued his anger and resorted to the procedure of renunciation.

Kurma Purana I.14.23-50

Source: The Kurma-Purana Part I. Motilal Banarasidass Publishers, Pvt. Ltd., 1998. (translation edited for clarity)