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ॐ राजाधि राजाय प्रसह्य साहिने

As a conclusion to a mangaLArati in any sodasha upachAra, we chant the following shlokam to glorify the Supreme Lord in the form of "kubera" - the Lord of all wealth and riches, the chief of the spirits of darkness, and the caretaker of the North direction. He is also called Vaishravana (वैश्रवण). He has three "pAdAs" representing the 3 principal desires: putrEsha (‘desire for offspring’), vittEsha (‘desire for wealth’), lokaisha (‘desire for fame and recognition’). He enables action through us by igniting the desire to perform. It is a way to acknowledge that whatever I performed till now is because of Him, who created the desire within me to peform the satkarma through satkAma. 

ॐ राजाधि राजाय प्रसह्य साहिने | नमो वयं वैश्रवणाय कुर्महे | समे कामान् काम कामाय मह्यम् | कामेश्वरो वैश्रवणो ददातु | कुबेराय वैश्रवणाय महाराजाय नमः |  

  • ॐ (Om): the sacred universal sound, OM, symbolizes the ultimate reality
  • राजाधि राजाय - to the king of kings 
  • प्रसह्य - the all-conquering 
  • साहिने - Oh "horseman"
  • नमो - salutations
  • वयं - we 
  • वैश्रवणाय - To Kubera
  • कुर्महे - we offer 
  • स - may He
  • मे - mine   
  • कामान् - desires, wishes 
  • काम कामाय - desire to desire  
  • मह्यम्  - to me  
  • कामेश्वरो वैश्रवणो - the Lord of desires, the one who grants desires, the vaishravana (Kubera) 
  • ददातु - give, grant, bestow
  • कुबेराय वैश्रवणाय महाराजाय नम - salutation / I bow down to that Kubera, the Vaishravana, the King of Kings

(I invoke) Om, the universal sound that symbolizes the ultimate reality! We offer our salutations to the all-conquering horseman, Kubera. May He, the Vaishravana, who is the source and the fulfiller of all desires, bestow all my desires. I bow down to that Kubera, who is the Vaishravana, who is the king of all kings.

It is important to note that the Lord is the reason for all the desires that we have. It is because that He exists within us that there is desire in us, otherwise we are nothing more than a dead tree. He enables the desires within us, and He fulfills the desires within us.

In Mahanarayana Unpaishad it is stated as follows:   

कामोऽकार्षीन्नमो नमः । कामोsकार्षीत् कामः करोति नाहं करोमि कामः कर्ता नाहं कर्ता कामः कारयिता नाहं कारयिता एष ते काम कामाय स्वाहा ॥ १॥ 

I bow down to the one who cause of all desires (one who ploughs and seeds desire within us). It is the desires that enables action not me. Desire is the doer, not me. Desires is the instigator of action, I am not the initiator, so I offer my oblations to that desire for the sake of desire (as a way to pay gratitude for the desires it causes).

Similarly, it is also acknowledged that it is the "passion", "zeal", "spirit" that enables action. 

मन्युरकार्षीन्नमो नमः । मन्युरकार्षीन्मन्युः करोति नाहं करोमि मन्युः कर्ता नाहं कर्ता मन्युः कारयिता नाहं कारयिता एष ते मन्यो मन्यवे स्वाहा ॥ १॥ 

I bow down to the one who ignites the passion. It is the passion that enables action, not me. Passion is the doer, not me. Passion is the instigator, not me. Therefore, I offer my oblations to the one who creates the passion for the passion that is created.  

The Lord confirms in the Gita: सर्वस्य चाहं हृदि सन्निविष्टो मत्त: स्मृतिर्ज्ञानमपोहनं च | वेदैश्च सर्वैरहमेव वेद्यो वेदान्तकृद्वेदविदेव चाहम् || 15||, that He is seated in the heart of everyone, and from Him comes the memory, awareness, and the reasoning faculty. In all the vedas He alone is to be known, He is the creator of vEdAnta, and He is the knower of everything. Because He is in the heart that we have desires, that we have memory, that we breathe, that we exist, that we are enabled to perform karma. Without Him, there is no memory, there is no awareness, there is not reasoning faculty, so there is no viveka, and no reasoned karma.  

We bow down to that Lord who enables us to be who we are and what we are. We pay gratitude to Him through this mantra, acknowledge Him for enabling the desire for satkarma within us. Hare Krishna!

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