kāvyakaṇṭha vāsiṣṭha śrī gaṇapati muni viracitam umāsahasram
Uma Sahasram
prathamaḥ stabakaḥ - āryāvṛttam
This opening Stabaka of Umā Sahasram presents the Divine Mother first in Her cosmic and formless dimension as Vyomaśarīrā — She whose body is the vastness of space — and then in Her gracious visible manifestation as Strīrūpā, the Divine Feminine Form. Beginning with a prayer to Umā to dispel the darkness and suffering of beings, Śrī Gaṇapati Muni progressively identifies Her as the unborn, immeasurable Mahāśakti, the Tapas-Śakti of the Supreme Being, the subtle power pervading the worlds, and the Kuṇḍalinī dwelling within embodied beings. Thus the title “Vyomaśarīrā, Strīrūpā ca” precisely reflects the movement of the verses: the same all-pervading Śakti whose cosmic body is space assumes, for divine līlā and the blessing of beings, the beautiful feminine form of Umā-Haimavatī.
A distinctive feature of this Stabaka is Muni's skill in reconciling Vedic cosmology, Purāṇic narratives and spiritual symbolism. Dakṣa, Aditi, Satī, the Dakṣa-yajña, the birth of Pārvatī from the mountain, and even the meaning of parvata are not treated merely as historical or mythological episodes; Muni uncovers within them deeper descriptions of the manifestation, concealment and re-emergence of Śakti. He even allows different traditional interpretations to stand together, while directing the reader toward their underlying spiritual truth. The concluding verses therefore invite those acquainted with śāstra to recognize in these Āryā verses the profound identity of Umā as Bhavamahiṣī, the consort of Śiva, and Ambikā, Mother of all the worlds.
The Stabaka also reveals Gaṇapati Muni's remarkable command of Vedic terminology, philosophical synthesis, mantra-inspired symbolism and compact poetic expression.
In the disciplined Āryā metre he moves effortlessly from metaphysics to cosmology, from subtle yogic doctrine to exquisite descriptions of the Goddess's form, and from familiar sacred legends to their esoteric significance. The result is an appropriate opening to Umā Sahasram: Umā is introduced not merely as a Goddess among deities, but as the primordial Power behind creation, the consciousness-force pervading the universe, and the compassionate Mother who becomes accessible to devotees in a radiant divine form.
॥ kāvyakaṇṭha vāsiṣṭha śrī gaṇapati muni viracitam umāsahasram ॥
prathamaṃ śatakam
prathamaḥ stabakaḥ - āryāvṛttam
vyomaśarīrā, strīrūpā ca
akhilajaganmātomā tamasā tāpena cākulānasmān ।
anugṛhṇātv anukampāsudhārdrayā hasitacandrikayā ॥ 1 ॥
nikhileṣu pravahantīṃ nirupādhivimarśayogadṛśyormim ।
ajarāmajāmameyāṃ kāmapi vande mahāśaktim ॥ 2 ॥
sā tattvataḥ samantāt satyasya vibhostatā tapaśśaktiḥ ।
līlāmahilāvapuṣā haimavatī tanuṣu kuṇḍalinī ॥ 3 ॥
paramaḥ puruṣo nābhirlokānāṃ satya ucyate lokaḥ ।
paritastataḥ sarantī sūkṣmā śaktistapo lokaḥ ॥ 4 ॥
antargūḍhārthānāṃ puruṣāgnerdhūmakalpa udgāraḥ ।
śaktijvālāḥ paritaḥ prānteṣvabhavajjano lokaḥ ॥ 5 ॥
atisūkṣmadhūmakalpaṃ lokaṃ tatamākhyayā'nyayā nākam ।
etaṃ tato'pi sūkṣmā vyāptā'ntarataḥ parā śaktiḥ ॥ 6 ॥
dhūmāntaroṣmakalpā śuddhajvālōpamā ca yā śaktiḥ ।
tāṃ divamāhuḥ kecana paramaṃ vyomāpare prāhuḥ ॥ 7 ॥
udgīrṇadhūmakalpo yo'yamapāro mahāñjano lokaḥ ।
vyomāntarikṣagaganaprabhṛtibhirabhidhābhirāhustam ॥ 8 ॥
prānteṣu ko'pi śakteḥ pṛthagātmā viyadupādhisaṅgena ।
paramātmano vibhaktaḥ svayamabhimantā viniṣpede ॥ 9 ॥
dakṣaḥ parokṣamuditaḥ panthā eṣa tviṣāṃ jano lokaḥ ।
tadgarbhe labdhātmā kathitā dākṣāyaṇī śaktiḥ ॥ 10 ॥
satyāḥ prāgapi śakteḥ prādurbhāvaḥ sa kīrtyate prathamaḥ ।
īśābhimānamayyāḥ pṛthagabhimānitvaniṣpattyā ॥ 11 ॥
ākāśasya sutaivaṃ lakṣaṇayā vastutaḥ prasūḥ śaktiḥ ।
aditerdakṣo dakṣādaditiriti śrutirabādhaivam ॥ 12 ॥
jagatāṃ mātāpitarau satībhavau ke'pi paṇḍitāḥ prāhuḥ ।
aditiprajāpatī tāvapareṣāṃ bhāṣayā viduṣām ॥ 13 ॥
divyapumākṛtimīśe bibhrati līlārthamasya ramaṇāya ।
divyavanitākṛtiṃ sā babhāra mātā ca bhuvanānām ॥ 14 ॥
bhāsurahemābharaṇāṃ bahuśobhāmīśvarapramodakalām ।
mūrtiṃ pāvanakīrtiṃ tāṃ haimavatīmumā māhuḥ ॥ 15 ॥
tasya prathamaḥ sākṣī bhuvanajuṣāṃ nayanaśālināṃ madhye ।
vapuṣaḥ kilādisudṛśo nirupamapuṇyo nilimpapatiḥ ॥ 16 ॥
pallavamṛdu vedigatajvalanapavitraṃ mahārghamaṇikāntam ।
navacandrakhaṇḍasaumyaṃ śivasudṛśastatsmarāmi vapuḥ ॥ 17 ॥
kecana gaurīṃ devīṃ śītādrerdevatātmano jātām ।
kathayanti striyamuttamalāvaṇyāsvādito gaṇyām ॥ 18 ॥
satyaiva bhavatu seyaṃ kathā tathā'pi prabhāṣitāṃ bhaktaiḥ ।
tāṃ mūrtimādisudṛśo jānīyātkamapi tejoṃśam ॥ 19 ॥
manyante ke'pi ghanaṃ parvatamuktaṃ nigūḍhayā vācā ।
prādurbhavati gabhīradhvaniraviṣahyā yataḥ śaktiḥ ॥ 20 ॥
ākāśo golebhyo yadvitarati nijarajaścayādannam ।
neśāya kīrtyate sā saṃsāre dakṣayāgakathā ॥ 21 ॥
vyāptā'pi yannigūḍhā bahirīkṣakabudhyapekṣayā naṣṭā ।
śaktiryāge tasminnavasānaṃ taduditaṃ satyāḥ ॥ 22 ॥
parvatanāmno vaidikabhāṣāyāṃ yadiyamatibalā śaktiḥ ।
ghanato bhavati vyaktā tadabhihitaṃ pārvatījananam ॥ 23 ॥
tejoṃśataḥ śivāviha himācale'nugrahāya bhūmijuṣām ।
datto yatsānnidhyaṃ līlācāritramanyadidam ॥ 24 ॥
etāsāmāryāṇāṃ jānantaḥ śāstrasammataṃ bhāvam ।
jānīyurbhavamahīṣīṃ bhuvanānāmambikāṃ devīm ॥ 25 ॥