The main central mantra chanted by a Śrī Vidyopāsaka is his Śrī Guru pādukā. Śrī Guru is the all causing force – ‘Śrī guruḥ sarvakāraṇabhūtā śaktiḥ’. His pādukā (or sandals) are placed on the head of śiṣya during initiation (śāmbhavī dīkṣa).
पादुका
पालनात्-दुरित-छेदात् कामितार्थस्य वर्धनात्|पादुकेति समाख्याता मम तत्त्वं तव प्रिये|
Pādukā
pālanāt durita-chedāt kāmitārthasya vardhanāt |
pāduketi samākhyātā mama tattvaṃ tava priye |
The word Pādukā means that which sustains (pālana), removes ill effects (durita chedāt) of disciples and multiplies the effects of desired goals (kāmitārthasya vardhanāt). Thus, this mantra is the first one to be chanted on waking up and last one to be chanted before retiring to bed.
The Mantra has a unique bīja called Ānandabhairava-bhairavī bīja. The uddhāra according to paraśurāma kalpa sūtra for Ānanda bhairava runs as: śiva śakti samvarta pupañcama purandhara varayūṁ. Decoding this śiva is ‘ha’; śakti is ‘sa’; samvarta – Final fire deluge, denotes last of alphabets ‘kṣa’; ‘pu-pañcama’ – fifth syllable of ‘pa’ series, which is ‘ma’; Purandhara is indra – his bīja ‘la’; va ra yūṁ as such. Thus, we find this bīja as hskṣmrvryūṁ, it is also called navātmeśvara bīja.
Ānanda bhairavī uddhāra: śakti śivādi varayīṁ, decoding same bījas, the order of first two is reversed, as said above, but ending with “yīṁ”, thus bīja is now shkṣmlvryīṁ, also called navātmeśvarī bīja.
Since utterance of all consonants without vowels will be difficult, sages have approved adding ‘a’ in all consonants.
Thus, we utter these bījas as हसक्षमलवरयूं hasakṣamalavarayūṁ and सहक्षमलवरयीं sahakṣamalavarayīṁ.
Dhyana of Ānanda bhairava- Ānanda bhairavī
सूर्यकोटिप्रतीकाशं चन्द्रकोटिसुशीतलं -अष्टादशभुजं देवं पञ्चवक्त्रं त्रिलोचनं
अमृतार्णव-मध्यस्थं ब्रह्मप्रेतोपरि-स्थितं वृषारूढं नीलकण्ठं सर्वाभरण-भूषितं
कपाल-खट्वाङ्गधरं घण्टा-डमरु-वादिनं-पाशाङ्कुशधरं देवं गदा-मुसल-धारिणं
खड्ग-खेटक-पट्टीश-मुद्गरं शूल-दन्तकं विचित्रखेटकं मुण्ड-वरदाभय पाणिनं
लोहितं देवदेवेशं भावये साधकोत्तमः-तस्योत्तुङ्गे सुधादेवीं चन्द्रकोट्ययुत प्रभां
हिमकुन्देन्दु धवळां पञ्चवक्त्रां त्रिलोचनां-अष्टादशभुजैःयुक्तां सर्वायुधकरोद्यतां
प्रहसन्तीं विशालाक्षीं देवदेवस्य सम्मुखीं
sūryakoṭi pratīkāśaṃ = (Meditate on the Lord) Brilliant like crores of Sun; candrakoṭi su-śītalaṃ = (the brilliance doesn’t not mean the fiery heat) cool like crores of Moon; aṣṭādaśa bhujaṃ = having eighteen hands; devaṃ pañca vaktraṃ tri-locanaṃ= The playful Lord has five faces with three eyes in each; amṛtārṇava-madhyasthaṃ= seated in the middle of an ocean of Nectar (Ambrosia); brahmapretopari-sthitaṃ= on the corpse of Brahma; vṛṣārūḍhaṃ = riding the ox; nīla-kaṇṭhaṃ= blue-throated; sarvābharaṇa-bhūṣitaṃ= wearing all ornaments; kapāla-khaṭvāṅgadharaṃ= in a pair of hands holds the skull and club with skull on top; ghaṇṭā-ḍamaru-vādinaṃ= in another pair of hands ringing the bell and playing the hand-drum shaped like hour-glass; pāśāṅkuśadharaṃ devaṃ = playfully holding the noose and goad; gadā-musala-dhāriṇaṃ = the mace and pestle; khaḍga-kheṭaka= the sword and shield; paṭṭīśa-mudgaraṃ= sharp edged axe and hammer; śūla-dantakaṃ = the trident and tusk of elephant; vicitra kheṭakaṃ muṇḍa= a weird looking shield and a chopped of head; varadābhaya pāṇinaṃ= hands showing gestures of dispelling fear and granting boons; lohitaṃ= red in hue; deva deveśaṃ = the Lord of Gods; bhāvaye sādhakottamaḥ= Thus shall a aspirant behold the Lord in his mind; tasyottuṅge= on his lap; sudhā devīṃ = Sudha Devi; candrakoṭi-ayuta prabhāṃ= brilliant like ten-thousand moons; himakundendu dhavaḻāṃ= white like the snow and jasmine; pañca vaktrāṃ trilocanāṃ-aṣṭādaśabhujaiḥyuktāṃ= having five faces with three eyes; sarvāyudha karodyatāṃ= holding the weapons (said above); prahasantīṃ = filled with fun and laughter; viśālākṣīṃ = big eyes (wide with wonder and joy); devadevasya sammukhīṃ= facing the Lord before him.
Traditional meaning of the Ānanda bhairava Ānanda bhairavī bija:
‘ha’ denotes śiva and ‘sa’ denotes śakti. ‘kṣa’ is the meru (the akṣamāla japa will have kṣa as the meru- ‘ka’ is śakti tatava the cit śakti(movement) and ‘ṣa’ ṣaṇda is jada śakti(inertia), thus we find Meru as a mixture of cit and jada śakti), denoting the vastness, huge centre point, which is also called māya – the differential knowledge. ‘ma’ is the jīva. ‘la’, ‘va’, ‘ra’, ‘ya’ are denoting the elements earth (prthvi), water(jala), fire(agni) and air(vayu) respectively. The first element –space is inferred. ‘ūṁ’ is the left ear in the mātṛkā nyāsa, signifying the śakti pradhāna knowledge as heard from the preceptor.
On the whole reading above interpretations in a single line; jīva denoted by ‘ma’ in the universe denoted by the elements ‘la va ra and ya’, aspires to realize the unity of śiva śakti ‘ha sa’ in the same universe seen by him, by crossing over the māya denoted by ‘kṣa’ with the help of scriptures heard by him from the preceptor, denoted by ‘ūṁ’.
Another aspect: the nine sounds (Nava nādas) aboवe ājñā from bindu to unmani are also represented by the single syllables of this bīja. They are:
Haṁ unmanyākāśānandanātha
Saṁ samanākāśānandanātha
Kṣaṁ vyāpakākāśānandanātha
Maṁ śaktyākāśānandanātha
Laṁ dhvanyākāśānandanātha
Vaṁ dhvani-mātrākāśānandanātha
Raṁ anāhatākāśānandanātha
Yaṁ indvākāśānandanātha
Ūm bindvākāśānandanātha
These are meditated above the ājñā cakra to braṁharandhra and while meditating aspirant will feel different sounds at each stage, these sounds are Guru in that they re-enforce śraddhā of aspirant to move further, that’s why they are found in anuttarāmnāya, which is experience of sādhana path.
In the Ānandabhairavī bīja: ‘sa’, ‘ha’, ‘kṣa’ and ‘ma’ are taken to mean as above. ‘la’, ‘va’ ‘ra’ and ‘ya’ are the pañca tattvā or Pañca ‘M’akarās by which the elements are used by the aspirant with the meditation on the kāmakalā bīja ‘īm’. It is also the left eye in mātṛkā nyāsa, left denoting the śakti pradhāna and eye denoting the practical usage.
Now putting it in a single line we find the aspirant denoted by ‘ma’ using the panca tattva ‘la va ra and ya’ in the manner said by the kāmakalā ritual manual (īm) to cross over the māya (meru) to realize the unity of śiva śakti in this universe ‘sa-ha’. Here the śakti is said first since this upāsana though is śiva śakti sāmarasya develops an individual through rituals and meditations which are śakti aspect.
Reading through the kaṭapayādi code, we find both of them decipher to one, since it is the same consonant syllable at the end – ‘ya’. Thus advaita, oneness of aspirant, guru and deity being established by chanting of both of these bīja mantras are denoted.
Thus, we find an identity of Ānandabhairava bīja with Guru; hence we find the same as the ṛṣi of this mantra and Ānandabhairavī with the self, full of bliss (Sadānanda Pūrṇa svātmaiva paradevatā Lalitā), hence we find same as Upāsya devatā Lalitā.