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by
Jankinath Kaul 'Kamal'
 Very
little is known about Utpala, the great mystic
Saint of Kashmir, except that he might have lived
somewhere in Nauhatta (Navyut) in Srinagar. From
some authors on Kashmir Shaivism and his
contemporaries we find that he was a Brahmin and
lived a married life around the middle of 900 A.D.
He was the son of Udayakar.
Utpaladeva
must have been a precocious boy with a sharp
intellect and a quest for learning. This becomes
evident from the fact that he was taken as a
disciple by the great philosopher. Siddha
Somananda, whose great work Shivadrishti, the
Pratyabhijnya Shastra (Philosophy of Recognition),
inspired him to write the Ishwar Pratyabhijnya
Karikas. It is stated in the Shivadrishti that
Utpala was motivated to write the Karikas on the
request of his son, Vibhramakara. Therein he
summarized the teachings of his master and this
work is spoken of as "the reflection of
wisdom taught by Somananda". Kashmiri's
Persian-knowing scholars have termed it is
Khird-e-Kamil (wisdom of the sage).
Mass
of Literature
Together
with the various commentaries there grew up a mass
of literature around these Karikas (also called
Sutras) of Utpaladeva. Thus, Pratyabhijnya assumed
such an important position that the whole system
of the Kashmir Shaiva philosophy has come to be
known, outside Kashmir also, as the Pratyabhijnya
Darshana. Even at present scholars from foreign
lands taking up research work in the Pratybhijnya
school of thought come to Kashmir to seek help and
guidance from Shaivacharya Swami Lakshman Joo, the
living Yogi and Jivanmukta (liberated while
assuming body) at Ishaber, Nishat (Srinagar).
Although
Ishwar Pratyabhijnya is heavy to study, yet it is
a perfect work on philosophy. It is not only a set
of philosophic doctrines but contains instructions
on practical Yoga also. This is preached for the
aspirants of highest calibre who have developed
acute awareness. None of the means (Shambhavopaya,
Shaktopaya and Anavopaya) is recognised in this
philosophy. Only the five functions are to be
followed. The doctrine advocates <verse>.
No
Impurity
Since
there is no existence of impurity, whence can
there be any erosion. It is only a change in the
point of view. Nothing has happened to Shiva; no
Jiva-bhava has been assumed by Him.
Somananda
has explained the doctrine to Utpala with the
following example:
A
girl and a boy whose marriage has been fixed by
their relatives and who have not seen each other
happen to sit together along with their friends
and relatives at a fair. The girl happens to serve
refreshments to the boy. As a matter of course,
there is no special feeling between the two. But,
when an acquaintance comes and hints at the
would-be marriage of the couple, at once feelings
of love run through both the boy and the girl. The
girl recognizes her lover. Such is the recognition
of Jiva with Shiva. This is Pratyabhijnya
philosophy in the nutshell, as preached
comprehensively by Utpala. He sat and wrote these abstruse
aphorisms on the philosophy in calm
moments. This was his self-introspection.
Tradition
has it that Utpala, in the later period of his
life, would often be in ecstasy. He would sing
rapturous notes, intensely musical and pregnant
with meaning. These, verily, reveal the heart of
Utpala. His poems give expression to the
philosophical doctrines of Kashmir Shaivism known
as Trika system of philosophy in a devotional
form. These occupy the same place in this system
as the Vedanta Stotras do in the Vedanta
philosophy.
Adi
Sankara
Utpala's
philosophy is as deep as that of Adi Sankara,
though, perhaps, more devotional. He believes in
self-surrender and love. He uttered his poems in
ecstasy which were noted and written down by his
disciples. He was so deep in divine rapture that
he had no body consciousness and when he came to
it once and found almond blossoms strewn on the
ground, he uttered; "O Shiva, Bhaktas have
adorned You with flower wreathes. Only I fall back
in adoring You", and instantly went into
Samadhi. Again, while running in divine ecstasy,
his locks would get entangled in the low-hanging
branches of trees and he would feel that Shiva was
catching hold of him. He would then sit there and
be in meditation for long periods.
Utpala's
poetic works were compiled by his disciples - Sri
Rama and Adityaraja. Later a great scholar,
Vishwavasta, divided these into 20 Stotras
assigning a heading to each. It is also said that
Utpala himself had assigned the headings
Sangrahastotra, Jayastotra and Bhaktistotra to
13th, 14th and 15th Stotras.
This
great work came to be known as Shivastotravali (a
rosary of hymns to Shiva). Commentary in Sanskrit
has been written to this work of Utpala by
Kshemraja, the fourth in line of disciples. Utpala
was followed by his pupil Lakshmangupta, who was
the guru of Abhinavagupta.
Shivastotravali
(or Utpala-Stotravali) is so soul- stirring that
once you read these Shlokas, you will continue to
sing and muse on them. The ringing music in your
ears will make you shed tears of joy and forget
yourself. Kashmir's Persian scholars have termed
it as Jnoon-e-Kamil (divine ecstasy of the sage).
A stir is experienced while singing:
<verses>
"O
Lord'! Stand by my side and listen to the
definition in brief of pleasure and pain. What is
union with The is pleasure and what is separation
from Thee is pain."
Isolational
Joy
Here
you have the feeling of isolational joy that you
experience by listening to the shrill voice of a
morning bird or the continuous flow of a
waterfall. Utpala, for all purposes, was a loving
and pure- hearted mystic. As the chief
characteristic of his language is symbolism, he
appeals to all sections of people. He has the
power to penetrate human feelings and enraptures
one with his dynamic touch. His great utterance to
this effect is:
<verses>
"O
Lord! I may have increased desire for the
objective world like other people but with this
difference that I shall look upon it as Thyself
without any idea of duality."
The
available works of Utpaladevacharya are as
follows:
Pratyabhijnya
Karikas (or Sutras);
Shivastotravali
(with Kshemaraja's Sanskrit commentary and Hindi
commentary by Swami Lakshman Joo); and
Ishwara-Siddhi
and Ajadapromatri-Siddhi.
Source:
Koshur
Samachar
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