LALITHA SAHASRANAMAM
@ S. Subramaniam
षट्चक्रोपरि सम्स्थिता (108)
Shat-chakra Upari Samsthita (108)
Meaning
Devi, in her Union with Lord Shiva in the Sahasrara, is above the rest of the six chakra-s starting from Muladhara to Ajna chakra-s. As Sahasrara is above the other six cakra-s, hence this namah meaning Devi dwels above the six chakras.
Interpretation:
The Namah, for easy understanding, needs to be split as Shat-Chakra + Upari + Samsthita.
Shat Chakra or the Six Chakras refer to the six chakras of Kundalini such as Muladhara, Swadhisthana, Manipura, Vishukti, Anhahata and Ajna. Upari means above and samsthita means to dwell or to reside. Thus, the namah conveys the meaning that Devi resides, albeit temporarily, above the Six Chakras.
Quote from Soundarya Lahari:
The worship of Devi or the mediating upon Devi in the Six chakras have been covered in a series of slokas by Adi Shankara in Soundarya Lahari.
The great sage then concludes that if one can wake up this snake and lead it through each of the Shat Chakra step by step and make it reach the Sahasrara, one attains ultimate redemption and sees the ultimate truth behind everything.
Author's Notes:
Some scholars offer a different interpretation to the namah. According to them, the above meaning of this namah would be contradictory to the meaning of namah assigned to Mooladharaika Nilaya which states that Devi's abode is the base Chakra Mooladhara. It is located at the bottom and therefore doesn't lie above the six chakras.
Hence, by the term Chakra we should understand the five elements such as earth, water, sky, fire and air and add mind to them to make it Six in numbers. Therefore Shatchakra Upari Samsthita should mean Devi is beyond the reach of the five basic elements and the mind. It is She who controls all these six chakras.
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