Shri Lalitha Sahasranamam: Namam 906: Shri Tattvadhika (ōṃ tatvādhikāyai namaḥ)

The Divine Mother transcends all Cosmic categories.

The Divine Mother is beyond all known and recognized tattvas.

In this universe, all natural happenings follow a set of procedures, which can be termed as tattvas. Samkhyas ( an ancient and dualistic orthodox school of Hindu philosophy, founded by Sage Kapila, that views reality as a combination of two eternal principles: Purusha (consciousness or spirit) and Prakriti (nature or matter) objects) have twenty-four tattvas, which comprise of five elements, their five objects (sound, touch, sight, taste, and smell), five organs of actions, five organs of knowledge and four kara Nangal (chit, mind, ahamkara (ego consciousness,) and jnana. Prusa tattva is twenty-fifth tattva. The Divine Mother is beyond all these tattvas.

Some say there are thirty-six tattvas representing the universe which is being created and changing continuously. These tattvas are the basis for the universal creation until the next pralaya happens. During pralaya maya (the Divine Mother) covers the universe and the related tattvas, Being root cause from creation to pralaya, these tattvas are functioning in different forms and later they disappear. Bodies are destroyed as they are separated from naturally happening tattvas. After pralaya, when recreation happens, tattvas regroup to function. When these tattvas disappear, the Divine Mother is still there witnessing the dance by Shiva. She was there before these tattvas were formed. Para-Shiva tattva is the highest level. She is the Chit shakti, who explains such para-Shiva tattva to the world.

Tattvas are listed differently in different systems of Philosophy. Samkhya adopted twenty-four tattvas. Thirty-six tattvas are generally recognized, they are, namely, the five elements like Akasa and their objects (sound, touch, sight, taste and smell), the five organs of knowledge, the five organs of action, the five pranas or vital airs, namely, prana, Aparna, vyana, udana, and samana, the five upapranas or auxillary airs, which are naga, kurma, krkara, Devadatta and Dhananjaya and six human Chakras, from Muladhra to Sahasrara; they all make a total of thirty-six. These categories exist only until the time of dissolution or pralaya. The Divine Mother transcends in all of them and exists even beyond the dissolution of the universe (pralaya).

The position and action of the ten pranas are: prana in the heart, Aparna in the arus, samana in the novel, udana in the throat, vyana in throughout the body, naga acts in vomiting, kurma in blinking of the eyes, krkara in causing hunger and Devadatta in yawning. At death, Dhananjaya covers the body and remains for a while without leaving.

The Divine Mother transcends all Cosmic categories.

 

C N Nachiappan

Singapore, 18 July 2022; updated 07.10.2025.

References: 

1.The Thousand Names of the Divine Mother published by Mata Amritanandam in California, USA, with Commentary by T. V Narayana Menon

2, Shri Lalitha Sahasranama Stostram published in Tamil by N. Ramaswami Iyer charities’ societies, Tiruchirappalli, India, with Commentary by C. V. Radhakrishna Sastry.

3. The Lalitha Sahasranamam published in Tamil by Shri Ramakrishna Thapovanam, Thiruipparaithurai, Trichy District, Tamil Nadu, India with commentary by Shrimath Swami Sith-bavandar.