The works of Ādi Śaṅkarācārya

Lalitātriśatībhāṣyam

p. 218

p. 218

सवसौख्यपात्री ।सुखिन भाव सौख्यम् , सर्वाणि चतानि प्रियमोदप्रमोदानन्दशब्दवाच्यानि ।इष्टदर्शनजन्यसुख प्रिय ।तल्लामजन्य मोद ।तदनुभवजन्य प्रमोद ।आनन्द समष्टि ।जीव भोक्ता ।तानि ददातीति तथा ।सर्वप्रकारै स्मरणादिमि सौख्य ददातीति वा ।सर्वेषामाब्रह्मस्तम्बपर्यन्ताना यथाकर्मोपासन प्रत्यक्षेण दृश्यमानज्ञानेश्वर्यादिसहित सुख ददातीति वा तथा ।एष ह्यवानन्दयाति' इति श्रुते ॥ॐ सर्वसौख्यदात्र्यै नम ॥सर्वविमाहिनी ।सर्वान् विमोहयतीति अन्यथा ग्राहयसीति वा तथा ।'अज्ञानेनावृत ज्ञान तन मुह्यन्ति जन्तव 'अनृतेन हि प्रत्यूढा ' इति श्रुतिस्मृतिभ्या अज्ञानावरणशक्तिकार्यं मोहनादिसत्ताप्रकाशादिप्रधानाधिष्ठानत्वेनउपचारात् सर्वं माहयतीत्युच्यत ।अयो दहतीतिवत् ॥ॐ सर्वविमोहिन्यै नम ॥सर्वाधारा सर्वगता सर्वावगुणवर्जिता ।सर्वारुणा सर्वमाता सर्वभूषणभूषिता । ।सर्वाधारा ।सर्वस्याधारा 'ब्रह्म पुच्छ प्रतिष्ठा' इतिश्रुते ।सर्वेषा हृदयानि आधार अभिव्यक्तिस्थान उपासनाय

In plain words

She is the vessel of all joy. Joy is the very state of being happy, expressed in degrees as the pleasure of seeing what we love, the gladness of possessing it, the delight of experiencing it, and the supreme, undivided bliss that unites them all. The individual soul is the one who experiences these; and because She bestows them, She is called the Giver of All Joy. Alternatively, She is so named because She grants happiness through every path, even through simple remembrance. Or because She directly bestows the joy of wisdom and divine sovereignty upon all creatures—from the creator Brahma down to a blade of grass—in accordance with their actions and contemplation. For as the Upaniṣad declares: 'This supreme bliss alone sustains all life.' Om, bow to Her who bestows all joy. She is the cosmic illusionist who bewilders all. She is called so because She veils the truth, causing minds to perceive things falsely. As the scriptures teach, 'Wisdom is shrouded in ignorance, and so creatures are led astray,' and 'They are carried away by untruth.' Figuratively, She is said to delude all because She is the ultimate conscious foundation that gives life and light to the veiling power of ignorance—just as we say 'the iron burns' when it is actually the fire within it that burns. Om, bow to Her who deludes all. She is the foundation of all, present everywhere, free from every blemish, glowing with the crimson light of compassion, the mother of all, adorned with every cosmic beauty. She is the foundation of all: the absolute support of everything, as the scripture says, 'Brahman is the grounding tail.' And She makes the hearts of all beings Her dwelling place, revealing Herself there for those who contemplate Her.

Close to the Sanskrit

She who is the vessel of all happiness. Happiness is the state of being happy; and all those are denoted by the words priya, moda, pramoda, and ānanda. Happiness born from seeing the desired is priya. That born from obtaining it is moda. That born from experiencing it is pramoda. Bliss is the collective aggregate. The individual soul is the enjoyer. Because she gives those, she is thus called. Or, because she gives happiness by all means such as remembrance. Or, because she gives happiness accompanied by knowledge and sovereignty, which is directly perceived according to the actions and worship of all beings from Brahma down to a blade of grass. As the scripture says, 'Indeed, he attains this bliss.' Salutations to the Bestower of All Happiness. She who thoroughly deludes all. Because she deludes all, or because she causes them to perceive otherwise, she is thus called. By scripture and traditional texts like 'Knowledge is covered by ignorance, thereby creatures are deluded' and 'For they are carried away by untruth,' she is said to delude all figuratively, by being the primary substratum of the existence and manifestation of the effects of the veiling power of ignorance, just as we say 'the iron burns.' Salutations to the Deluder of All. The support of all, the all-pervading, the devoid of all defects, the completely crimson, the mother of all, the adorned with all ornaments. The support of all: the support of everything, as the scripture says 'Brahman is the tail, the support.' The hearts of all are the support, the place of manifestation, for the purpose of worship.