Satyam is truth. Shivam is occurrence of ‘good’ or ‘auspicious’. Sundaram is serenely beautiful. When the combination of these three is mentioned, it refers to GOD Almighty, and GOD alone.
One of the early learning in the tradition is ‘Satyam Vada, Dharmam Chara’. Meaning of these two pithy sayings is – tell the truth and follow the righteous path. There are historical characters and leaders who we had who stuck to truth in the most dedicated fashion. It is also exhorted that ‘Satyameva Jayate’, meaning truth alone triumphs. Hence, there is a need to stick to the permanency of Satyam. Dharmam, people say is contextual. It is mentioned that dharmam is clarified and contextualized based on the ‘desha, kaala, and paristiti’. In other words, if the place is different, the dharma can be different (or generally it is). Similarly, as the Yugas change, the Yuga Dharma also changes. Similarly, there are qualifiers for the satyam and dharmam practice. If it comes to saving life etc. one may have the relaxation of terms is the communicated message from our epics.
GOD is all Shubham is the inferred meaning from ‘Shivam’. GOD is the embodiment of ‘all good’. In fact, in the evolution of our soul and our life’s learnings, ONLY good is happening is the inference. One may ask whether everything is Shubham? The plain answer is YES. We remember from Sankhya yoga chapter of Shri MadBhagavadgita that ‘vaasansi jeernani..’. As the degraded shirt is discarded for new, the old and debilitated body is shed, and new form is accepted. In the constant cycle of lives and deaths, where is the question of mourning? Difficult to implement? Yes.
Sundaram is personified and serene beauty. It is often said, beauty is in the eyes of beholders, it is often said. The assumptions, calculations, and attachment to the skin deep ‘fineness’ may qualify something as ‘Sundaram’. Thousand-year story is about Shri Ramanuja who was wonderstruck when Dhanurdasa was holding umbrella to his wife to ‘protect’ her from morning Sun. It was Dhanurdasa’s notion of beauty that got dispelled when he could ‘access’ the GOD Ranganatha’s grace. Thus, Sundaram too is graded.
In this new year, may we all realize and derive benefit of Satyam, Shivam, and Sundaram is the prayer.
Dr S Ainavolu is a Mumbai-based teacher of Management and Tradition. Intent is Nextgen’s learning and cultural education
