Meaning and elaboration
Meaning: Salutations To The one who is imperishable, unchanging, and eternally constant.
Elaboration
The name Avyaya (Avyāya) derives from the Sanskrit root 'vyaya,' meaning "decay," "expense," "loss," "change," or "expenditure," with the prefix 'a,' which denotes negation. Thus, Avyaya literally translates to "that which does not decay," "unexpending," "unchanging," "imperishable," or "indestructible."
Imperishability (A-vyaya) This name highlights Kalabhairava's eternal and timeless nature. As the manifestation of Shiva associated with Kāla (Time), he is paradoxically beyond time's destructive influence. Everything in the material world is subject to birth, growth, decay, and death, representing 'vyaya.' Kalabhairava, as Avyaya, is the ultimate principle that transcends this cycle. He is not born, does not age, and does not perish. He represents the unbroken continuity of existence, the substratum upon which all transient phenomena arise and dissolve.
Unchanging and Constant Avyaya also implies an unchanging, firm, and steadfast reality. In a cosmos characterized by constant flux and transformation, Kalabhairava, as Avyaya, signifies the immutable truth. He is the constant factor amidst all variables, the stable foundation underlying the dynamic universe. This attribute signifies his unwavering justice, his consistent enforcement of cosmic law, and his eternal presence, unaffected by the ebb and flow of creation and destruction.
The Supreme Being Philosophically, Avyaya is a term often used to describe Brahman, the ultimate reality, which is beyond all attributes and modifications. By identifying Kalabhairava as Avyaya, the hymn posits him as this supreme, unmanifest, and eternal consciousness that is the source and ultimate end of all existence. His imperishable nature ensures that even after the dissolution of all things, he remains, awaiting the next cycle of creation.
-