Jeevanmuktananda Lahari – Bliss of the Liberated

Jeevanmukthananda Lahari, translated to “Waves of Bliss of the living Liberated” is a hymn composed by Adi Sankaracharya, describing the outlook and conduct of a liberated person. Sankaracharya(788 to 820 AD), the great Sanyasi who expounded the philosophy of Advaita had made unparalleled contributions to spirituality and literature, reorganization of the social order, and national integration. Advaita elucidates how each one is divinity embodied, thus making all equal. Everyone is potentially divine—as Swami Vivekananda professed, carrying forward the philosophy. A person who has realized this Truth in his lifetime is a Jeevanmukta. From the hymn Jeevanmukthananda Lahari we get a clear perception of such a person’s attitude toward the material world, even while enjoying the bliss of his essential ever-free nature. He can see others and the world with equanimity and appreciate the place of freedom and rights of all beings. The hymn is an outpouring of Sankaracharya’s philosophy.