Thread by @AdiShloka

II Sri Adi Śaṅkarācārya - श्री आदि शङ्कराचार्य II
Sōpānaṁ 26 : Gokarṇā

ञ्चित्कालमुमामहेश भवतः पादारविन्दार्चनैः
कञ्चिद्ध्यानसमाधिभिश्च नतिभिः कञ्चित्कथाकर्णनैः।
कञ्चित् कञ्चिदवेक्षनैश्च नुतिभिः कञ्चिद्दशामीदृशीं
यः प्राप्नोति मुदा त्वदर्पितमना जीवन् स मुक्तः खलु॥

#Thread

{श्रीशिवानन्दलहरी -८१}
“One who offers flowers at the feet of Parameśvara for a while ;
who is absorbed in meditation & samādhi for a while ; who does prostrations for a while ;
who speaks about, & listens to the stories of the Bhagavān for a while ;
who visits mandir’s &

glorifies the Bhagavān for a while ;
who thus spends all his waking hours in various forms of worship, & surrenders himself to the Bhagavān, is indeed Jīvanmukta.”

Kāla, Swabhāva, & Karma ( time, inherent tendencies, & action ) are all Synonyms.
One who does not remain vigilant

in these will get trapped in the web of Māya.

Men perform actions prompted by their Swabhāva (Inherent tendencies} within the limitations & soon of time, & accumulate various Vāsanas & Samskāras (deep habits of Mind & Body that get embedded within).

These Samskāras turn

into Prābdhakarma (destiny), which in turn creates Time for its Manifestation.

Thus these become interdependent & bind the Ātman.

The Magnificient process by which one breaks the chain of Ignorance created by the mutual interaction of Time, Mind & Action, is Yoga.

This is done by offering all thoughts & actions that arise within the life span of a person to the Bhagavān.
As a sādhana this is done by spending all the waking hours in worshipping & meditating, with Body & Mind.

Gokarṇā :

From Śrisailam, they passed through various sacred

places of worship & reached Gokarṇā on the western coast.
There is a mandir dedicated to Bhagavān Shiva as Gokarṇeśwara.
Acharya worshipped the Bhagavān with reverence.

Acharya’s glory had spread everywhere.
They listened to Acharya’s words with devotion & reverence.

Leaving Gokarṇā, Acharya reached Hariharapura (known as Harihar today) with disciples.

Mookāmbika :

Mookāmbika is a mandir with a strong presence of Śakti - the Divine Mother.
The mandir is situated near the mountain - Kutakāchala, in the midst of dense forests.

The river Sowparnika flows nearby.
Hence the Devi has manifested Herself in all the 3 forms, i,e. As Durga, Lakshmi & Saraswathi.

In Śankara Vijaya the mandir is extolled as :
“ सिद्धिस्तलम् साधक सम्पदम् “ - “the place where seekers find Spiritual fulfilment “.

जपो जल्पः शिल्पं सकलमपि मुद्राविरचना
गतिः प्रादक्षिण्यक्रमणमशनाद्याहुतिविधिः ।
प्रणामस्संवेशस्सुखमखिलमात्मार्पणदृशा
सपर्यापर्यायस्तव भवतु यन्मे विलसितम् ॥
{सौन्दर्यलहरी -२७}

‘O Mother! May all that I bubble, be the chant of your name, the movements of my body,

the various mudras ; my walk, the circumbulation,
What I eat, the oblation in the sacrificial fire ; &
my lying down, the Salutation.
Thus, because I have surrendered myself to You, may my entire joyful activities be Your Worship. ॐ.”

Thus distilling the whole essence of

experience in a single verse, Acharya stopped the discourse.

From there Acharya walked towards the hill called Vichitramoolam.
It was a dense forest where even eagles dared not fly ; a place where, once upon a time, the terrible reigned.

It was also the place that had witnessed the divine power of Mother Durga. Acharya, with the disciples, walked along the path shown by the tribals, & crossing the mountain through a pass, reached a village.

Thus ends the twenty-sixth Sōpānaṁ.

I ओम् तत् सत् I
I Om Tat Sat I