Golden Lay Verses

Verse 282 (மந்திர வைப்பு)

தமிழ் பாடல்

மதிவளை மதிபதி வசிகண பதியே

சிவசிவ சிவைசிவை யருளயன் விதியே

சிவதிரு வசிமக ளுடனரி யருளே

சிவசிவ சிவைசிவை யருளயன் விதியே

சிவநெறி ருதிரினி ருதிரன திசையே

Transliteration

MadhivaLai madhipathi vasigaNa pathiyE

Sivashiva sivaishivai yaruLayan vidhiyE

Sivathiru vasimaga LuDanari yaruLE

Sivashiva sivaishivai yaruLayan vidhiyE

Sivaneri rudhirini rudhirana dhisaiyE

Literal Translation

O Lord of the moon-ring (or mind’s net), Lord of the Moon, Lord of the vasi-gaṇa (the troop/host under subduing or enchantment):

“Siva, Siva; Sivai, Sivai”—O decree/ordinance (vidhi) that is grace.

O grace—(to be) known/recognized with Siva’s sacred Vasi-maiden (or: with Siva’s holy Vasi-makal, with Ari/Hari).

“Siva, Siva; Sivai, Sivai”—O decree/ordinance that is grace.

In the Siva-way/path: Rudrini; in the direction/quarter of Rudra.

Interpretive Translation

You who rule the lunar principle—mind/intellect and its enclosing ‘ring/net’—and who command the forces that can subdue and bind, establish in me the very ‘law’ of grace.

Through the paired invocation “Siva—Sivai,” let grace be realized in the inseparable presence of Siva with his feminine power.

Lead the practitioner on Siva’s inner path where Rudrini (the feminine Rudra-power) operates—toward the Rudra-direction, i.e., the current/quarter aligned with Rudra’s transformative force.

Philosophical Explanation

The verse is structured like a mantra rather than a narrative: repeated vocatives (“Siva, Siva; Sivai, Sivai”) function as japa, using sound to invoke a nondual polarity—Siva as pure consciousness and Sivai as its inseparable power (Śakti). In Siddhar idiom, this pairing is not merely devotional; it signals that liberation/medicine/alchemy require the union of principle and power.

“Moon” language (madi/mathi) typically encodes the mind and its cool, reflective cognition; a “ring/net” (valai) can imply the mind’s enclosure—either the circular orbiting of thoughts or the net of fascination that traps awareness. Calling Siva the “lord of the moon” therefore points to mastery over mind and breath (since lunar symbolism often overlaps with ida-nādi and cooling prāṇa).

The phrase “vasi-gaṇa” can be read as (a) hosts that are ‘brought under control’ (vasi = subdue/enchant; gaṇa = troop), implying governance over sense-forces, inner impulses, or subtle beings; or (b) a cryptic allusion to Vasi/Vasiṣṭha-lineage. In either case, it frames the addressed deity as the one who can command binding powers—turning them from bondage into disciplined yogic force.

“Vidhi” is deliberately double-edged in Tamil-Sanskritic usage: it can mean fate/ordinance, ritual injunction, or even the Creator (Brahmā). By calling Siva “vidhi that is grace,” the verse folds determinism into compassion: what appears as ‘law/fate’ is, at the realized level, arul (grace) itself.

The closing line introduces “Rudrini / Rudra’s direction.” Rudrini may indicate a Śakti-form of Rudra, a named current/nādi in subtle anatomy, or a blood/heat-coded power (rudhira association) used in Siddhar medical-alchemical symbolism for transformative vitality. “Direction” (thisai) can mean a literal quarter (a Rudra-dik) or a yogic ‘bearing’—the orientation of practice toward the fierce purifying principle that dissolves impurities and grants siddhi.

Overall, the verse compresses a practice-instruction into an invocation: conquer the lunar mind, bring the inner forces under rule, and realize grace as the living ordinance of the Siva–Sivai unity, moving in alignment with Rudra/Rudrini’s transformative current.

Key Concepts

  • Siva–Sivai (Śiva–Śakti inseparability)
  • Mantra/japa structure and sonic invocation
  • Moon symbolism: mind/intellect; ida-like cooling principle
  • Valai (ring/net): bondage or cyclical thought; enclosure of mind
  • Vasi / vashīkaraṇa: subduing, control; mastery of sense-forces or occult hosts (gaṇa)
  • Arul (grace) as soteriological force
  • Vidhi: ordinance/fate/ritual law (and possible Brahmā sense)
  • Rudra / Rudrini: transformative/purifying power; possible nāḍī or Śakti-form
  • Thisai (direction/quarter): orientation of inner practice

Ambiguities or Multiple Readings

  • “மதி” (madi/mathi) can mean moon, intellect, or mind; the verse may address cosmic Chandra or the inner ‘lunar’ mind-principle.
  • “வளை” (valai) can be a ring/orbit (lunar circle) or a net/snare (mental entanglement).
  • “வசிகண” (vasi-gaṇa) can indicate ‘hosts under subduing/enchantment’ (vashīkaraṇa) or a cryptic reference to ‘Vasi’ (e.g., Vasiṣṭha/lineage), or even controlled sensory collectives.
  • “விதி” (vidhi) can be ordinance/law, fate, ritual prescription, or Brahmā; the line may imply that what seems like fate is actually grace.
  • “யருளயன்” in the refrain can be read as “arul-ayan” (grace-bestower), or as involving “Ayan” (Brahmā) in a compound, leaving the theological target intentionally blurred.
  • “அரி” (ari) in line 3 can mean ‘know/recognize’ (verb) or ‘Hari’ (Viṣṇu), yielding either an instruction (‘know grace’) or a triadic theological hint (Śiva–Śakti–Hari).
  • “ருதிரினி” (rudhirini/Rudrini) can be a feminine Rudra-power (Śakti), a named subtle channel/current, or a blood/heat-coded alchemical vitality; the verse does not resolve which level is primary.
  • “திசை” (thisai) can mean literal direction/quarter (dik) or an inner orientation/stage in yogic movement.