Monday, May 26, 2008
MANTRA SHASTRA
A Comprehensive Treatise on Mantra-Sastra
Swami Sivananda, The Divine Life Society, India, 1992, pp94-99.
A Bija-Akshara is a seed-letter. It is a very powerful Mantra. Every Devata has his or her own Bija-Akshara. The greatest of all Bija-Aksharas is OM or Pranava, for it is the symbol of the Para-Brahman or the Paramatman Himself. OM contains within itself all the other Bija-Aksharas. OM is the general source or the common seed from which all the particular sounds or secondary seeds proceed. The letters of the alphabet are only emanations from OM which is the root of all sounds and letters. There is no Mantra superior to or greater than OM. OM, as it pronounced ordinarily, is an outward gross form of the real subtle inaudible state of sound which is called the Amatra or the immeasurable fourth transcendental state. As the various Devatas are the aspects or forms of the One Supreme Being, so the various Bija-Aksharas or Bija-Mantras are so many aspects or forms of the Supreme Bija or Mantra, viz., OM. Even the letters 'A', 'U' and 'M' do not really give the transcendental or original state of sound. Even this triliteral sound is only an expression or manifestation of the highest primal Dhvani or vibration. The transcendental sound of OM is heard only by Yogins and not by the ordinary ear. In the correct pronunciation of OM the sound proceeds from the navel, with a deep and harmonious vibration, and gradually manifests itself by stages at the upper part of the nostrils where the Anusvara or the Chandrabindu is sounded.
Generally a Bija-Mantra consists of a single letter. Sometimes it constitutes several syllables. For example, the Bija-Mantra 'Kam' has a single letter with the Anusvara or the Chandrabindu which forms termination of all Bija-Mantras. In the Chandrabindu, Nada and Bindu are blended together. Some Bija-Mantras are made up of compound letters, such as the Mantra 'Hreem'. The Bija-Mantras have a significant inner meaning and often do not convey any meaning on their face. Their meaning is subtle, mystic. The form of the Bija-Mantra is the form of the Devata signified by it.
The Bijas of the five Mahabhutas or great elements, i.e., of the Devatas or the presiding intelligences of the elements, viz., Ether, Air, Fire, Water and Earth, are respectively Ham, Yam, Ram, Vam and Lam. The meanings of a few Bija-Mantras are given here, to serve as examples.
OM
OM consists of three letters: 'A', 'U' and 'M'. It signifies the three periods of time, the three states of consciousness, the entire existence. 'A' is the waking state or Virat and Visva. 'U' is the dreaming state of Hiranyagarbha and Taijasa. 'M' is the sleeping state or Isvara and Prajna. Study the Mandukyopanishad in detail in order to understand the meaning of OM.
HAUM
In this Mantra, Ha is Siva. Au is Sadasiva. The Nada and Bindu mean that which dispels sorrow. With this Mantra Lord Siva should be worshipped.
DUM
Here Da means Durga. U means to protect. Nada means the mother of the universe. Bindu signifies action (worship or prayer). This is the Mantra of Durga.
KREEM
With this Mantra Kalika should be worshipped. Ka is Kali. Ra is Brahman. Ee is Mahamaya. Nada is the mother of the universe. Bindu is the dispeller of sorrow.
HREEM
This is the Mantra of Mahamaya or Bhuvanesvari. Ha means Siva. Ra is Prakriti. Ee means Mahamaya. Nada is the mother of the universe. Bindu means the dispeller of sorrow.
SHREEM
This is the Mantra of Mahalakshmi. Sa is Mahalakshmi. Ra means wealth. Ee means satisfaction or contentment. Nada is Apara or the manifested Brahman or Isvara. Bindu means the dispeller of sorrow.
AIM
This is the Bija-Mantra of Sarasvati. Ai means Sarasvati. Bindu means the dispeller of sorrow.
KLEEM
This is the Kamabija. Ka means the Lord of desire (Kamadeva). Ka may also mean Krishna. La means Indra. Ee means contentment or satisfaction. Nada and Bindu mean that which brings happiness and sorrow.
HOOM
In this Mantra, Ha is Siva. U is Bhairava. Nada is the Supreme. Bindu means the dispeller of sorrow. This is the threefold Bija of Varma of armour (coat of mail).
GAM
This is the Ganesha-Bija. Ga means Ganesha. Bindu means the dispeller of sorrow.
GLAUM
This also is a Mantra of Ganesha. Ga means Ganesha. La means that which pervades. Au means lustre or brilliance. Bindu means the dispeller of sorrow.
KSHRAUM
This is the Bija of Narasimha. Ksha is Narasimha. Ra is Brahma. Au means with teeth pointing upwards. Bindu means the dispeller of sorrow.
There are, like these, many other Bija-Mantras which signify various Devatas. 'Vyaam' is the Bija of Vyasa-Mantra, 'Brim' of Brihaspati-Mantra and 'Raam' of Rama-Mantra.
SRI VIDYA
Sri-Vidya is the great Mantra of Tripurasundari or Bhuvanesvari or Mahamaya. It is also called the Panchadasi or the Panchadasakshari, for it is formed of fifteen letters. In its developed form it consists of sixteen letters and is called Shodasi or the Shodasakshari. The aspirant should directly get initiation of this Mantra from a Guru, and should not start reading it for himself or doing Japa of it, of his own accord. This is a very powerful Mantra and, when it is not properly repeated, it may harm the Upasaka. So it is imperative that it should be got directly from a Guru who has got Siddhi of this Mantra.
The general rule is that this Mantra (Sri-Vidya) should be repeated after one's passing through certain stages of self-purification through other Mantras. In the beginning a Purascharana of Ganesa-Mantra should be done. Then Purascharanas of Gayatri-Mantra, Maha-Mrityunjaya-Mantra and Durga-Mantra (Vaidika or Tantrika) have to be done. After this the Panchadasakshari and the Shodasakshari have to be taken up for Japa.
The Bija-Mantras and the Sri-Vidya should not be repeated by those who are not well acquainted with them. Only those who have a very good knowledge of the Sanskrit language and who have been directly initiated by a Guru (who has Mantra-Siddhi) can take up the Japa of Bija-Mantras and the Sri-Vidya. Others should not approach these Mantras and should do only their own Ishta-Mantras which are easy to pronounce and remember.
Our ancestors are the ones who presented us our Kuladevatas.
And the ‘ beejamantras’ are the means they sought for getting these Kuladevata forms.
They attained the goals of their life by raising their serpent power through the regular practice or ‘Sadhana’.
They were Grihasthas.
In those days the entire folks of Sethuhimachalam were all Grihasthas.
Thus, when our ancestors who gave us the Kuladevatas, and who had realized their Kundalini or serpent power died, they were laid to rest in the Samadhi posture. Hence, keeping in mind their Kundalini power , a Chitrakoota stone was kept on top of their Samadhi. In course of time, these structures turned out to be the ‘Sarpakavu’ that we know. It is no wonder that the later generations have become blind, because they have not taken the pains to the greatness of our ancestral Rishis in their symbolic forms. Is it any wonder that many do not bear children and blame the cause on the Sarpadosha? People do not bear children to sustain the lineage as they have forgotten to revere their own parents. There are many people who believe that these‘Sarpakavu’ are blind superstitious beliefs. These people do not see or understand the great Hippocrates, but Hippocrates can readily accept us . Still the people don’t have the grace to accept Hippocrates. They simply blabber that all these theories are nothing but a mere hoax.
Exactly same is the case with the ‘Deshadevata’ too. This Deshadevata’ has been established to ward off all the negativities and problems of that particular locality in toto and to ensure peace, progress and paramount prosperity in that society. Look at this example. Suppose we are in need of some help in our house . Whom do we call instantly? Our neighbours of course. Because the neighbous helping hands are what we need at that time. Thus the local temples are the elements that make the binding bonds of our society stronger. So the basic principle behind this Kuladevata , Deshadevata and Sarpakavu are nothing but providers of the peace and prosperity of mankind and the enhancers of his strong social and spiritual bonds. And the Vedas form the main basis for all the above.threr is reffereces of kali in mundakopanishad.
It means that the seven ‘jihvas’(tongue-flames) viz ‘Kali’, ‘ Karali’ ‘Manojava’, ‘Sulohita’, ‘Sudhumravarna’, ‘Sphulingini’ and ‘Vishvaroopi are that of Agni.. Agni itself is Paramashiva and the ‘jihva’ is Parashakti. These same jihvas are the seven devatas who were kater called the Saptamatrukkal- the seven mothers. One of these seven mothers is Kali.We can see the long outstretched tongue in all the pictures and idols of Kali. The jihva or the tongue of Kali is the causative factor of this symbol. When ‘aahoothi’ falls into the Agni, we can see the blue flames. This itself is Bhadrakali.The weapons found in the hands of the Goddess depicts clearly each and every principle in the Sadhana technique. All the weapons in the hands of the Hindu Devataas are all in one way or the other, the mystified emotions depicting the various emotions of the human mind. Many try to write it off as the outcome of superstitious beliefs. But all these symbols are formulated by our Rishis of the Vedic period out of their highly subtle and great intellectual excellence in the scriptures. The great innate power of man which is latent in him is known as the Kundalini. It is asleep in our ‘mooladara’ like a serpent. This is what our ‘tantrashastra’ says. Tantrashastra says that this serpentine power wakes up and passes through his eight chakras. And this passing helps the innate power present in him to brighten up on its own. The Rig Veda is the scripture in which this Kundalini power was stated for the first time.
‘Kunam Nama’. This statement can be seen in the Rig Veda (10. 136. 7) The words mean –“ She who is curved in a very impossible way. As a continuation, there are two mantras in the Atharva Vedam ( 10- 2 -31 , 32), which clearly states what the eight chakras are
“ Ashtachakra navadvaara
Devaanaam poorayodhya”.
...............................................................................................................................................
What is the mystery behind Sarpakavu ?
…………………………………………………
What is meant by ‘Kuladevata’ ?
The Rishis were well aware of the intellectual ability of the future generation. Consequently, they thought of ways and means to inspire the future generations to get engrossed in ‘Sadhana.’ They told the next generation to utter certain sounds (viz) ‘aim’, ‘hreem’, ‘kleem’ and so on. These sounds did not have any apecific meaning, but while listening to such sounds, certain changes take place in the brain and in the nervous system. They made each and everyone do ‘japa’( which includes such sounds) which naturally made remarkable changes in them.
As they progressed in their japas, various novel ideas began to appear distinctly in their thought process, which other people had never thought of till then. Their weakness and shortcomings began to nullify. Of course, they may be various other causes for weakness and problems like the environment, the soil, the climate, the earth, etc. All these factors affect and influence our brain and also our body language.These conditions led to grave and marked changes in ourselves. Hence the great Rishis , using their foresight asked people to utter such words, which though meaningless, are immensely powerful .The utterance of such words were advised with a view to produce strong, healthy , happy and great personalities and thereby creating healthy , happy and strong families by completely getting rid of all the negative and weakening aspects of personality development.
These sounds mentioned above became causative factors in making incessant changes in the nerves, brain, blood vessels and the inner radiance of those who utter them. These immensely powerful sounds are called ‘Beejamatram’. On chanting this‘Beejamatram’, an extremely powerful radiance is produced within ourselves. This same radiance is what is visualized by the modern practitioners of Yogasana , as the radiance at the centre called ‘Bhoomimadhya’. Naturally the radiance begins zooming within us, the moment we start the mantra Sadhana. This amazing power aspect also relieves us of our weaknesses and shortcomings. Modern physics has discovered that the sounds uttered can be changed into various forms. This is what the ancient people also did in those days. All the four-headed Devatas, that we have today are all the resultant forms obtained by the utterance of such Beejaksharas. There is a state involved out of these Beejakshara utterances.
Thus , there was a time once, when we had sustained our affluence by performing the Beejakshara japas very well conscious of the amazing changes that could made in us. That is the reason why our country was overflowing with affluence in all respects. Some people say that their ‘Tharavadu’ (ancestral home), was a storehouse of everything. But what about their condition today ? .Totally pathetic, with almost nothing. On the verge of destruction and extinction. And if they are well of, then they suffer from such poor health that, they don’t even have a time free from visiting doctors and hospitals.
The state of most people today is that they have nothing in spite of having everything.
Have you ever paused for a moment to think ,why is it so? It is only because, all those Devataas and mantras which were capable of attaining paramount progress and prosperity for us , have vanished into thin air. Thus in order to redeem and revive us from all our difficulties and setbacks, our ancient Rishis who had propounded the mantras for us, themselves gave forms also for those mantras. This Devataa formed is the Kuladevata. Each family has its own problems and setbacks .The solution then prepared by the Rishis for each family is called ‘Kuladevata ’ (family deity).
Once, while giving a speech, I happened to talk about the Kuladevata. Soon after the speech, a person approached me. and placed his problem. That is his father died of cancer. His son, that is the elder brother of the person conversing, also died of the same disease. People said that this is a genetic disorder and that it is hereditary. Now, his mother was also afflicted with cancer. This could never happen if it is hereditary. So immediately I advised him to find out the location of his Kuladevata. He returned after two days. It seems, they had constructed a toilet at the site meant for the Kuladevata. Naturally ,it is no wonder that they are afflicted with such fatal diseases like cancer.
Because our Rishis had prepared and given this Kuladevata, all the problems-mental, financial, health, physical and of the family could be got rid of. Nowadays, many people approach an astrologer for a solution when they are confronted with a problem.When the astrologer analyses the problem, he tells them that the person concerned does not have the grace of his Kuladevata. But many of us including the solution seeker may answer that we don’t have a knowledge of such a Devataa., for the practice of Kuladevata worship has been totally wiped out from our families, perhaps since four to five generations. But at least a few still continue this practice with total dedication and devotion and achieve their best results in all respects.
What is multi - God worship?
Now let us take the following example. Imagine that there is a girl of marriageable age in a house .Her .marriage has not been solemnized yet. So obviously the prayers of the members of that house will be directed towards getting her married as soon as possible. For them, God should appear before them in the form of a bridegroom. That is why the pooja offered as ‘Swayamvara Parvathidevi’. This ‘Swayamvara Parvathidevi’ is a specific power aspect of Eeshwara., that makes possible a marriage to be solemnized. This technique to realize or achieve the specific power of Eeshwara is called ‘tantra’ . And the application of various sound vibrations for this purpose is called ‘ mantra’.
Exactly similar are the various aspects of God also. For the moneyless, He is money; for the hungry , He is food; for the restless, He is peace; for the ignorant, He is wisdom. People pray to God for wealth and riches. Here Lakshmi is the wealth aspect of Eeshwara. Sreedevi and Sreelakshmi are such techniques devised to attain this Divine grace suited to one’s needs. The temples, ‘kavukal’ etc are also in fact such perfectly devised ways and means to attain the omniscient Divine grace congenial to one’s needs and purposes. Still a problem may arise in our mind as to “ I too go to temples. Yet I have not benefited in any way. Why ?” This question gains great significance and the answer is also readily available. But that very answer is the cause for the total failue of the present day Hindu. Because, not paying heed to this answer led to the decline of tis noble and ancient culture called Hinduism, to such a deplorable state as we see today.
Uni God principle first originated in the Vedas
Sword
We need the efficiency to resist them. And this leather shield is the weapon to resist them .So the
sword is to annihilate the obstacles in life and the
leather shield is to resist them
In short, it means that the weapons of this deity are the symbols of success made in life by the Keralites. The trident which symbolizes will power, power of knowledge and the power to act or create. Kapalam which contains knowledge the ‘somam’ which contains the knowledge, the sword capable of annihilating the obstacles and the shield which helps to resist them. These are the weapons of the family deity or Kuladevata of Kerala. According to the entomology of the word Kuladevata, it originated from the word ‘kaulam’ Those who follow the Kaula practice belong to the ‘Kulams’. The state in which Siva and Parvathy are in separable. Thus the Kuladevata is the inspiration to achieve success in life by awakening the innate creative potential in oneself. This fact is mentioned in the text called ‘Sivasukta’. The interpretation ‘Vimarsini’ by Kshemarajan on the Sivasukta also states this fact clearly.
However, the strong propaganda that no Aacharanam is necessary has indeed made a deep impact on us . We generally say that God dwells at the bosom of each and everyone. But without grasping the deeper inner meaning, the propaganda spread like wildfire that if God is dwelling in our hearts then there is no need of lighting the lamp., no need of doing pooja and so on .If God dwells in our hearts, then what is the problem of visualizing him everywhere? If God dwells in our hearts, then you can see Him wherever you look for Him. One who cannot take the trouble of looking for Him goes on saying that God need only dwell in the heart , because of the fact that he cannot do anything except sit idle.
To experience God anywhere and everywhere, one should experience Him in one’s own heart. How can you see Him there? There is only one answer. You have to spend at least a few minutes a day to identify Him. The Vedas proclaim that God is omnipotent or that God is everywhere.
“ Sarvam khallwatham Brahma
Ekam satvipraha bahudhavadanthi
Ekam santham bahudha kallayami ”
One can see many declarations as mentioned above .Brahman is everywhere. The very one is named in a variety of ways by the rational minds. In short we can say that God is visualized in many ways and forms.
Trishulam - The Trident
of Bhira is ‘ Rudra’ . The trident has three prongs. This text
clearly staes that the trident represents these three
qualities namely- will power, the power of knowledge
and the power to perform .
The names – ‘ ichchashakti’ , ‘jnanashakti’, ‘ kriyashakti swaroopini’, in the Lalithasahasranaamam, also makes this idea clear.
The will power or desire is very necessary to achieve success in life. Majority of people commit suicide just because they are not able to confront the minor problems in their life. One who has will power will never be affected by these problems, and will easily overcome them. Tremendous will power is needed to make life a joyful celebration.. Then, there will only be success in our life. Today, there are various classes on personality development conducted all over our country.But the basic lessons, regarding all this are learnt from the family deity. The first prong in the Kuladevata’s hand represents will power. The second prong denotes the power to perform. Nowadays we can see a procession of unemployed people all over the country. Those who do not have the will power or intense desire, will not have the power to perform or create also.It is with intense determination that we should enter our field of work and we should be determined to achieve success in life. The third prong of the trident represents the power of knowledge. Without knowledge, we cannot do anything with originality. Kuladevata advises us to be active and not to waste our time being inactive. The trident, which is the second aspect of Bhadrakali, thus helps the Sadhaka to ascend the ladder of success in life.
The mystery behind the skull-garland of Bhadrakali
When Sadhana is performed with deep and true intensity, nectar starts exuding from the Brahmarantras situated in the brain. This flowing nectar is called ‘Somam’.There is a mention in the RigVeda about this.( Rig 10 – 5 – 3 ). It is generally believed that ‘Somam’ is the crushed juice of the raw herbs. This is drunk by the common man. But the somam known to Vedic exponents is beyond the reach of the common man. This somam is the causative factor for the origin of language. At another context in the Rig Veda ( Rig 10 -7 -14 ), which states as follows – One cannot understand the meaning of the word in spite of looking at the word, another cannot hear it , in spite of listening to it, but the one who has understood the true meaning is the blessed one. For him, the Goddess of learning throws open and offers Her Real Self. In other words, she offers her genious( pratibha), just like an exhilarated, devoted wife, who is longing to attain her beloved during the mating period. Those who worship Bhadrakali achieve such pratibha( genious). There is an excellent description about this Mahabharata ( Vanaparvam – 229 ). The word ‘pratibha’ means – light, that light which is produced in the intellect of the listener , by the word which travels from the producer of the word and enters the listener’s intellect.. This is the flower which is blossomed out of this Sadhana. Again at another context in the Rig Veda ( Rig -10 – 125 – 5 ), listen to the Goddess of words-“ It is me and me alone, who says this fact which is dear to human beings, and the Devas ; Listen; He whom I desire, I will make him brilliant and powerful, the knower of all Vedas, a Rishi and a genious.”
It was for acquiring this genious , that all the people of India performed Sadhana. When this practice deteriorated, our decline started.. The transformation Bhadrakali to the family deity, the kapalam in the hands of the Bhadrakali and the ‘somarasam’ contained in the kapalam-all these were nothing but a euphemism (beautiful, figurative usage of the language). It is because of the same reason that we have references in the Lalithasahasranaamam as follows-
Sarvajnayai Namah
Vaagwadinai Namah
Vidyayai Namah
Srividyayai Namah.
Vettakkorumakan
‘ Lalithasahasranaamam’, there is a usage- “Hridayavananthare”, which means , towards the interior of the forest of the heart. To be more specific, the heart is considered to be a wild forest. There are animal instincts lying hidden in every man, to some extent , what so ever. It gets transformed into selfishness, narrow-mindedness, cruelty and various other thoughts. The Sadhaka-the spiritual seeker, brings God into this forest, to share with Him, his visual flow of thoughts and feelings. To put it simply, the devotee sitting in this dense forest called heat, is actually a rustic, and one who is communicating with none other than the Eeshwara in rustic form. The Sadhana or meditation on this rustic form of Shiva has created the above said ‘Vettakkorumakan’ form.
The story of the Yakshi that dwells in the palm tree
Secret of harinama keerthanam:an ancient treatise in malayalam
This Kundalini and the eight chakras finds a place in all the shastras, beginning from the great ocean of Vedas to the ‘Harinamakeerthanam’ chanted at dusk. These Brahmajnanis
were able to visualize God in various ways and at various realms. They were also able to bring down this endless divine grace and use it in the most simple ways to bring amazingly abundant prosperity in their daily lives, by overcoming the day to day obstacles that they confronted.
About Me
Blog Archive
-
▼
2008
(60)
-
▼
May
(19)
-
▼
May 26
(12)
- MANTRA SHASTRA
- The above mentioned invocation makes the implicati...
- What is the mystery behind Sarpakavu ?
- What is meant by ‘Kuladevata’ ?
- What is multi - God worship?
- Uni God principle first originated in the Vedas
- Sword
- Trishulam - The Trident
- The mystery behind the skull-garland of Bhadrakali
- Vettakkorumakan
- The story of the Yakshi that dwells in the palm tree
- Secret of harinama keerthanam:an ancient treatise ...
-
▼
May 26
(12)
-
▼
May
(19)