SrigurubhyO namahA
After a wonderful guru pUrnimA, here I am. With the next mantrA in the thirumandiram. We were at the subsection where the sage speaks in humility with respect to the limits of knowledge in understanding the supreme.
So, here we are at mantrA 97.
மன்னிய வாய்மொழி யாலும் மதித்தவர்
இன்னிசை உள்ளே எழுகின்ற ஈசனைப்
பின்னை உலகம் படைத்த பிரமனும்
உன்னும் அவனை உணரலு மாமே. 3.6.97.
Power Of Prayer
By words spoken in Truth's luminous accents,
Rising on sweetest music's pious heights
Even Brahma who after Him created this our world,
All, all, seek His imperishable Light. 3.6.97.
Com - By words spoken in Truth's luminous accents, through the words of the vEdAs of everlasting fame Rising on sweetest music's pious heights the supreme IshA (lord) becomes manifest as nAdA in the sweet swarA (tone(s)) of the intoner. Even Brahma who after Him created this our world, even braHmA, the four faced creator who in the very distant past 'created' this phenomenal and gross (sthUla) world from the subtle (sUkshmA) principle, is ever meditating on the supreme siva All, all, seek His imperishable Light when such is the case, how then ;could it be possible that we as mere human beings (with all our limitations) can ever imagine comprehending this supreme? (Surely we never can).
* Here the words 'இன்னிசை உள்ளே எழுகின்ற' (translated as, Rising on sweetest music's pious heights) in the original refer to the fact that the supreme siva/IshA is manifest as the arising nAdA in the vEdic riks (the metered verses). That the vEdic mantrAs are resonant with precisely constructed sounds to produce specific energy patterns for specific ends is an accepted siddhAntA. Hence the import of the correct method for pronounciation and intonation for getting the swarA right with respect to the vEdic body.
The reference to braHmA ever meditating on this supreme is to highlight the fact that siva is ever existant as the supreme principle because of which everything else is. And it is due to the authority/instruction given by siva that the four faced braHmA (who only comes much later) is able to 'create' from the subtle essence this vast and varied phenomenal world.
Through the above verse the sage highlights the truth that though the supreme siva is manifest as nAdA in the vEdic corpus and can be 'felt' / 'experienced' through the various intonations, even the gods like braHmA who possess much higher intelligence and sattvic disposition than the average human being in our world, are still unable to fully understand the supreme and continue meditating on it ceaselessly (in a bid to finally reach Him). He finishes the verse by asking us a rhetorical question - If even the great gods are still unable to understand Him, then how would it be possible for a mere human to claim to understand the supreme?
Thus the sage sets out his position in humility by declaring right at the onset that it is not possible for us to ever completely understand this supreme as it is beyond All, while being verily the fabric of everything.
Thirucchitrambalam
An adventure set in the lofty heights (and dangerous depths)of Hindu thought. Insider tips? Relax, dissolve your preconcieved notions & get chanting.And by the way, dont believe all that you hear! A rudimentary knowledge of Sanskrit, Tamil and a fleeting accquaintance with the puranas and other such texts might come in handy. Wisdom takes courage.
Thursday, July 29, 2010
Thursday, July 22, 2010
Poor qualifications - mantrA 96
SrigurubhyO namahA
The second mantrA of this section is the 96th mantrA of the invocation. Here the sage expresses his lack of qualifications with regard to attaining liberation.
பாடவல் லார்நெறி பாட அறிகிலேன்
ஆடவல் லார்நெறி ஆட அறிகிலேன்
நாடவல் லார்நெறி நாட அறிகிலேன்
தேடவல் லார்நெறி தேடகில் லேனே. 2.6.96.
Poor Qualifications
I know not the way singers sing,
I know not the way dancers dance,
I know not the way seekers seek,
I know not the way searchers search. 2.6.96.
Com – I know not the way singers sing, I do not know to sing praises of siva as do those who follow the path of devotional singing, I know not the way dancers dance, neither do I know to dance in ecstasy(due to excessive devotion) as do those in the path of bhakti. I know not the way seekers seek, I do not know to seek after things as do those in the path of bhOga, I know not the way searchers search. And I do not know the way to enquire relentlessly as do those who due to g~nyAnA tread the path of tattva vichAranA.
* Here the sage speaks sadly of his inability to engage in any of the four methods/ paths to reach the supreme state of salvation. The first line refers to the path of japA (chanting) of mantrAs. The second speaks of the path of bhakti (bhakti yOgA) or devotion to the supreme. The third refers to the path of the karma yOgi who performs ordained actions desirous of fruit (karma phala) to finally reach salvation. And the fourth speaks of g~nyAna yOgA or the path of knowledge. All these are paths to the great goal of liberation or mukti and here the author laments his lack of qualifications to successfully engage in any of these paths and wonders how he will ever attain to liberation.
If such be the story for a perfected being like thirumUlar, I dread to even think of my own inabilities!
Here ends the 96th mantrA.
thirucchitrambalam
The second mantrA of this section is the 96th mantrA of the invocation. Here the sage expresses his lack of qualifications with regard to attaining liberation.
பாடவல் லார்நெறி பாட அறிகிலேன்
ஆடவல் லார்நெறி ஆட அறிகிலேன்
நாடவல் லார்நெறி நாட அறிகிலேன்
தேடவல் லார்நெறி தேடகில் லேனே. 2.6.96.
Poor Qualifications
I know not the way singers sing,
I know not the way dancers dance,
I know not the way seekers seek,
I know not the way searchers search. 2.6.96.
Com – I know not the way singers sing, I do not know to sing praises of siva as do those who follow the path of devotional singing, I know not the way dancers dance, neither do I know to dance in ecstasy(due to excessive devotion) as do those in the path of bhakti. I know not the way seekers seek, I do not know to seek after things as do those in the path of bhOga, I know not the way searchers search. And I do not know the way to enquire relentlessly as do those who due to g~nyAnA tread the path of tattva vichAranA.
* Here the sage speaks sadly of his inability to engage in any of the four methods/ paths to reach the supreme state of salvation. The first line refers to the path of japA (chanting) of mantrAs. The second speaks of the path of bhakti (bhakti yOgA) or devotion to the supreme. The third refers to the path of the karma yOgi who performs ordained actions desirous of fruit (karma phala) to finally reach salvation. And the fourth speaks of g~nyAna yOgA or the path of knowledge. All these are paths to the great goal of liberation or mukti and here the author laments his lack of qualifications to successfully engage in any of these paths and wonders how he will ever attain to liberation.
If such be the story for a perfected being like thirumUlar, I dread to even think of my own inabilities!
Here ends the 96th mantrA.
thirucchitrambalam
Tuesday, July 20, 2010
Thoughts on guru purnima 2010.
srigurubhyO namahA
The guru pUrnimA this year is fast approaching (it falls on the 25th of this month) and I seem to be getting at least 20 hits to my blog daily with the search string '' thoughts on guru purnima''! So, I am regurgitating an old post of mine from 2007 here pertaining to the topic. The images that accompanied the original post have not been included here - those who want to see the full post please click here . Those who want just the text, please read on.
Within the context of hinduism, the word/term Guru is a very special one, one pregnant with innumerable layers of meaning. It means both the Jnana (knowledge) and the imparter of such knowledge. In todays world almost all of us are aware of the word guru, we are exposed to some or other interpretation of the term. More often than not, the word guru is used to describe a persons mastery of any particular subject. However, the term has traditionally been used in a different sense.
As much as it is a noun, the word Guru is also an adjective and as such it means, 'heavy' - the opposite of laghu or light/weightless. The 'heavy' here does not describe the physical characteristic, rather the fact that the guru is 'heavy with knowledge' or 'heavy with spiritual knowledge' to be precise.
A more esoteric interpretation of the term Guru can be understood when we observe the root syllables that make up the word. The syllable 'gu' corresponds to darkness (the darkness of avidya or ignorance) and the syllable 'ru' corresponds to the one who takes away(that darkness of avidya). This beautifully shows us the interplay of darkness and light and conveys the meaning that because of his capacity to dispel the darkness and reveal the light, the guru is called guru.
Traditionally so much has been said about the guru in the various branches of Hindu thought. Much emphasis has been laid on the guru in all the systems, even to the extent that it is generally agreed that a guru is indispensable in the path to enlightenment or self realisation. And, believe me, not an ounce of exaggeration is there in such a statement. The guru is the embodiment of the supreme Brahman himself. As the subject (guru) is mightier than the mightiest, the ramblings of someone like me means nothing. Still, I would like to mention a few things in connection to the guru here (with Guru Purnima only around the corner). In a dialogue between Shiva and Parvathi, we can see a very deep and thorough description of the various qualities, attributes etc of a guru. From that text we find another interpretation of the term guru - the syllable 'gu' is the root representing the gunas (inherent qualities) of rajas, sattva and tamas and in this context means one who is beyond the action of the three gunas. The syllable 'ru' is the root of rupa (form) and in this context is to be understood as beyond all form. Thus Guru is someone who is capable of giving the wisdom that takes one beyond the gunas; to that transcendental place devoid of all form.
An interesting thing to note is the attitude of Hinduism towards one without a guru. In fact the word 'anaatha'/'anadhai' which is used today to mean an orphan or one without any family, actually means ''one without a guru''!! That is how important the guru is to the Hindu: that one without a guru is perceived to be very unfortunate indeed. However, a cursory reading of the text will make it exceedingly clear that it is but the highest of fortunes to have found a guru. It is not everybody's fate or destiny to obtain the grace of a guru. As the grace of the guru marks the beginning of the journey towards oneness and perfection.
The guru is capable of transmitting knowledge to the sishya (disciple) through siksha (teaching) or through diksha (initiation). The process of diksha transmits some of the gurus own spiritual powers to the disciple which will then enable the sishya to progress further on the path of realisation. In some traditions like the Srividya tradition, the guru is both the beginning and the end of the path. The guru is himself the path and the result of the path. The devata or deity and the mantra and the other methods and the guru and non different from each other. The sishya is also non different from the guru - as the sishya is but a sesha (part) of the guru and as such is non different from him. Thus the guru reveals the underlying oneness of the mantra,yantra the process (tantra), the devata (divinity) and the guru and the essential non difference of the sishya to the above mentioned.
One need not be taught what is the knowledge within, because each one is his own Guru. The sharira (body) and manas (mind), of the unit, which is known as a human being, do not realize that they have all these powers. To make him understand this, a Guru is required. That is why the Supreme Power does not teach you, only a Guru teaches you. The Supreme Power makes you feel that He is within you, but the Guru shows it to you and proves to you that He dwells within. Only when the Guru makes you realize this, you can feel it. This realization can be brought to you only by the Guru, not by God. Guru is the manifested God, Guru demonstrates the path, HE illuminates the darkness, and thereby becomes the purest reflection of one's highest aspirations. He is not the aspiration; he is the reflector of the aspiration.
The highest form of Guru is Lord Shiva Himself (Adi Dakshinamurthy), the ultimate knowledge, and the Guru is the manifestation of that knowledge. From that original guru a whole unbroken lineage of gurus have ensured the continuity and the transmission of the knowledge of the supreme Brahman. That unbroken lineage of gurus is called the guru parampara or the guru mandala. The mantras Gurumurthih, Gurumandala rupini, Dakshinamurthyswarupini, etc from the Lalitha sahsranama also illustrate that Amba Herself is in the form of the guru and the entire mandala or lineage of the gurus.
A teacher has a student whereas a Guru has a disciple, or a sishya. A sishya differs from the vidyaarthi (student), who goes to a teacher to attain the artha of the vidya. A sishya's place is in the heart of the Guru whereas the vidyaarthi's place is in front of the Guru. A sishya is not different from the Guru. A student is one who studies. He does not study other than what is taught, he does not know himself, he does not study his own self, he studies something else. Who would want to study? Only one who does not know. Who is that who does not know? The manas and sharira, which do not know anything, keep studying. The aathma need not be a student, because it knows everything.
There is also a difference between a teacher and a Guru. A teacher is not a Guru. The one who teaches what is taught is called a teacher. His knowledge of the taught is teaching, he has not attained it as shruthi (noble words echoed by the Supreme), he has acquired it from some book or some person. A Guru is one who leads you from darkness to light and one who transmits shruthi.
I could carry on endlessly in this vein and quote from many more texts the exalted state of the Guru. But I would rather not - instead it would be my greatest pleasure if you, the reader, could be inspired by the few things in this post to ponder on the merits of the guru in your own inner being. Though, before finishing I would like to leave you with another interpretation of the famous sloka Gurur brahma.......
gurur brahma
Guru is Brahma, the creator, He creates the disciple. If there were no Guru, there would be no disciple. Gods were there and Gods will remain, but unless there is a Guru, disciples cannot be created and no one can reach God. We look at Guru only as a creator, who can give pleasures, blessings and identify him as Brahma. Most people are stuck with Guru as Brahma. They only want the Guru to create new things, they look for materialistic and spiritual benefits, they find only the glitter, and as a result only their moha (delusion) increases. Guru creates awareness of knowledge in a disciple and leads him towards it. This is Gurur Brahma.
gurur vishnu
Guru creates a disciple, gives certain intimation, warnings, tests in some ways and then vanishes. The disciple keeps on searching for the Guru, he presumes that the Guru has disappeared, as he is not physically visible. The Guru is aware that since he has created you, he also has to protect you. The disciple looks for the Guru or the knowledge, which will liberate him from the cycle of births and deaths. He looks for the Supreme Divinity, which is by no means an easy task: going through the karma yoga, the dhyaana marga, the bhakthi and the jnaana marga. The Guru has created this thought within you and in order to search for him, he makes you walk the path, clears the path, makes you experience the life and throughout the experience, he protects you. You realize that he is not merely a giver, but when you are in trouble, when you are faced with diseases and difficulties, he protects you even at the cost of his life! When all doors are closed, when there is no way out, when even God does not listen to your call, Guru Vishnu protects you! Through all the struggles, the Guru is always with you. This is Gurur Vishnu.
gurur devo Maheshwara
Ultimately you come to Lord Shiva! Guru has all the three virtues within Him. The knowledge is implanted in your mind, you are asked to contemplate, made to struggle, made to work hard, made to realize and ultimately reach the transcendental. Once you reach there, he enables your transcendence totally, he removes the veil of ignorance from you. In order to make you see your own Divinity, in order to make you understand that you yourself are the Supreme, he destroys what is not required for you. He is a destroyer because he destroys the darkness, the ignorance, the avidya from within you.Shiva is called the destroyer, but not in a negative sense. Without destruction, there cannot be construction. Unless the dirty water is thrown out, clean water cannot be filled in that place. New is neither an extension of old nor is it an addition; old has to be destroyed so that new can be created. If he did not transcend things, Brahma would not be able to create, Vishnu would not be able to protect. At the right time, transcendence has to take place. He does not destroy, He changes the bad to good, He balances. Knowledge alone can understand when a person finishes his karmas, and needs to be relieved. The place has to be vacated so that a new creation can take place. This is what Lord Shiva does! He has been entrusted with the responsibility of transcendence. He removes the obstacles in order to create and maintain dharma. This is Gurur Devo Maheswara.
Guru saakshaat Parabrahma
Who is the Parabrahma? The one who has created the universe, who has created the Brahma, Vishnu, and Mahesha, is Parabrahma. After passing through all the stages, after unconditional surrender, when he reaches the stage of HE AM I, the disciple suddenly finds saakshaat Parabrahma standing there! He immediately prostrates before the Parabrahma -- Guru saakshaat Parabrahma tasmai Sri Guruve Namaha!Then you realize that the Guru is the saakshaat Parabrahma! When you reach the Brahma, then the Parabrahma is visible. Parabrahma is the Supreme Divinity. Brahma cannot create the Guru, Vishnu cannot create the Guru, Maheswara cannot create the Guru, it is only the Parabrahma who can create the Guru. All the three are merged in the Guru, enabling the powers of the Parabrahma to be transmitted to him and through him.
Guru is beyond gender, beyond form, and is the Supreme Divinity. Guru is in your heart, in the heart of all living beings.
This offering brings the radiance of illumination to a greater enhancement. We knock on many doors in search of a Guru and return disappointed, we search for eternal love but it eludes us, we hunt for money and fame but it is only a temporary quest and even after attaining it, we are still dissatisfied and discontented. All these create the fear of losing; association with the Guru removes all illusions and thereby the fear of losing. A quote from the Baja Govindam- '' Satsangatve Nissangatvam - Sat sangatve - through the company of the good (the guru), Nissangatvam - (there arises) non-attachment.Nissangatve Nirmohatvam- Nissangatve - through non-attachment, Nirmohatvam - (there arises) freedom from delusion.Nirmohatve Nischalatattvam - Nirmohatve - through the freedom from delusion, Nischala - Immutable, Tattvam - Reality. Nischalatattve Jeevanmuktih - Nischalatattve - through the Immutable Reality, Jeevanmuktih - (comes) the state of 'liberated-in-life'.'' We attain peace and moksha when we do not have desires, when we do not have the fear of losing.
Meditate on all that the Guru has given you, on all that he has revealed, on all that he has removed and on all that he lived for; this Guru Purnima. Give thanks (a hundred million of them!) for his immeasurable compassion and his boundless wisdom. Revere the entire lineage, the guru mandala, going up from your own guru through to his guru and then to the gurus gurus guru and so on till the original Guru Dakshinamurthy. It is only as a result of the unbroken tradition of these self realised masters that we the people of todays world have any connection at all to the 'reality' of the spirit. May the grace of the Guru and the great gurus of the past flow like a mountain river to you and through you to the world around you.
Shree guru padhukam dhyayami pujayami namaha.
The guru pUrnimA this year is fast approaching (it falls on the 25th of this month) and I seem to be getting at least 20 hits to my blog daily with the search string '' thoughts on guru purnima''! So, I am regurgitating an old post of mine from 2007 here pertaining to the topic. The images that accompanied the original post have not been included here - those who want to see the full post please click here . Those who want just the text, please read on.
Within the context of hinduism, the word/term Guru is a very special one, one pregnant with innumerable layers of meaning. It means both the Jnana (knowledge) and the imparter of such knowledge. In todays world almost all of us are aware of the word guru, we are exposed to some or other interpretation of the term. More often than not, the word guru is used to describe a persons mastery of any particular subject. However, the term has traditionally been used in a different sense.
As much as it is a noun, the word Guru is also an adjective and as such it means, 'heavy' - the opposite of laghu or light/weightless. The 'heavy' here does not describe the physical characteristic, rather the fact that the guru is 'heavy with knowledge' or 'heavy with spiritual knowledge' to be precise.
A more esoteric interpretation of the term Guru can be understood when we observe the root syllables that make up the word. The syllable 'gu' corresponds to darkness (the darkness of avidya or ignorance) and the syllable 'ru' corresponds to the one who takes away(that darkness of avidya). This beautifully shows us the interplay of darkness and light and conveys the meaning that because of his capacity to dispel the darkness and reveal the light, the guru is called guru.
Traditionally so much has been said about the guru in the various branches of Hindu thought. Much emphasis has been laid on the guru in all the systems, even to the extent that it is generally agreed that a guru is indispensable in the path to enlightenment or self realisation. And, believe me, not an ounce of exaggeration is there in such a statement. The guru is the embodiment of the supreme Brahman himself. As the subject (guru) is mightier than the mightiest, the ramblings of someone like me means nothing. Still, I would like to mention a few things in connection to the guru here (with Guru Purnima only around the corner). In a dialogue between Shiva and Parvathi, we can see a very deep and thorough description of the various qualities, attributes etc of a guru. From that text we find another interpretation of the term guru - the syllable 'gu' is the root representing the gunas (inherent qualities) of rajas, sattva and tamas and in this context means one who is beyond the action of the three gunas. The syllable 'ru' is the root of rupa (form) and in this context is to be understood as beyond all form. Thus Guru is someone who is capable of giving the wisdom that takes one beyond the gunas; to that transcendental place devoid of all form.
An interesting thing to note is the attitude of Hinduism towards one without a guru. In fact the word 'anaatha'/'anadhai' which is used today to mean an orphan or one without any family, actually means ''one without a guru''!! That is how important the guru is to the Hindu: that one without a guru is perceived to be very unfortunate indeed. However, a cursory reading of the text will make it exceedingly clear that it is but the highest of fortunes to have found a guru. It is not everybody's fate or destiny to obtain the grace of a guru. As the grace of the guru marks the beginning of the journey towards oneness and perfection.
The guru is capable of transmitting knowledge to the sishya (disciple) through siksha (teaching) or through diksha (initiation). The process of diksha transmits some of the gurus own spiritual powers to the disciple which will then enable the sishya to progress further on the path of realisation. In some traditions like the Srividya tradition, the guru is both the beginning and the end of the path. The guru is himself the path and the result of the path. The devata or deity and the mantra and the other methods and the guru and non different from each other. The sishya is also non different from the guru - as the sishya is but a sesha (part) of the guru and as such is non different from him. Thus the guru reveals the underlying oneness of the mantra,yantra the process (tantra), the devata (divinity) and the guru and the essential non difference of the sishya to the above mentioned.
One need not be taught what is the knowledge within, because each one is his own Guru. The sharira (body) and manas (mind), of the unit, which is known as a human being, do not realize that they have all these powers. To make him understand this, a Guru is required. That is why the Supreme Power does not teach you, only a Guru teaches you. The Supreme Power makes you feel that He is within you, but the Guru shows it to you and proves to you that He dwells within. Only when the Guru makes you realize this, you can feel it. This realization can be brought to you only by the Guru, not by God. Guru is the manifested God, Guru demonstrates the path, HE illuminates the darkness, and thereby becomes the purest reflection of one's highest aspirations. He is not the aspiration; he is the reflector of the aspiration.
The highest form of Guru is Lord Shiva Himself (Adi Dakshinamurthy), the ultimate knowledge, and the Guru is the manifestation of that knowledge. From that original guru a whole unbroken lineage of gurus have ensured the continuity and the transmission of the knowledge of the supreme Brahman. That unbroken lineage of gurus is called the guru parampara or the guru mandala. The mantras Gurumurthih, Gurumandala rupini, Dakshinamurthyswarupini, etc from the Lalitha sahsranama also illustrate that Amba Herself is in the form of the guru and the entire mandala or lineage of the gurus.
A teacher has a student whereas a Guru has a disciple, or a sishya. A sishya differs from the vidyaarthi (student), who goes to a teacher to attain the artha of the vidya. A sishya's place is in the heart of the Guru whereas the vidyaarthi's place is in front of the Guru. A sishya is not different from the Guru. A student is one who studies. He does not study other than what is taught, he does not know himself, he does not study his own self, he studies something else. Who would want to study? Only one who does not know. Who is that who does not know? The manas and sharira, which do not know anything, keep studying. The aathma need not be a student, because it knows everything.
There is also a difference between a teacher and a Guru. A teacher is not a Guru. The one who teaches what is taught is called a teacher. His knowledge of the taught is teaching, he has not attained it as shruthi (noble words echoed by the Supreme), he has acquired it from some book or some person. A Guru is one who leads you from darkness to light and one who transmits shruthi.
I could carry on endlessly in this vein and quote from many more texts the exalted state of the Guru. But I would rather not - instead it would be my greatest pleasure if you, the reader, could be inspired by the few things in this post to ponder on the merits of the guru in your own inner being. Though, before finishing I would like to leave you with another interpretation of the famous sloka Gurur brahma.......
gurur brahma
Guru is Brahma, the creator, He creates the disciple. If there were no Guru, there would be no disciple. Gods were there and Gods will remain, but unless there is a Guru, disciples cannot be created and no one can reach God. We look at Guru only as a creator, who can give pleasures, blessings and identify him as Brahma. Most people are stuck with Guru as Brahma. They only want the Guru to create new things, they look for materialistic and spiritual benefits, they find only the glitter, and as a result only their moha (delusion) increases. Guru creates awareness of knowledge in a disciple and leads him towards it. This is Gurur Brahma.
gurur vishnu
Guru creates a disciple, gives certain intimation, warnings, tests in some ways and then vanishes. The disciple keeps on searching for the Guru, he presumes that the Guru has disappeared, as he is not physically visible. The Guru is aware that since he has created you, he also has to protect you. The disciple looks for the Guru or the knowledge, which will liberate him from the cycle of births and deaths. He looks for the Supreme Divinity, which is by no means an easy task: going through the karma yoga, the dhyaana marga, the bhakthi and the jnaana marga. The Guru has created this thought within you and in order to search for him, he makes you walk the path, clears the path, makes you experience the life and throughout the experience, he protects you. You realize that he is not merely a giver, but when you are in trouble, when you are faced with diseases and difficulties, he protects you even at the cost of his life! When all doors are closed, when there is no way out, when even God does not listen to your call, Guru Vishnu protects you! Through all the struggles, the Guru is always with you. This is Gurur Vishnu.
gurur devo Maheshwara
Ultimately you come to Lord Shiva! Guru has all the three virtues within Him. The knowledge is implanted in your mind, you are asked to contemplate, made to struggle, made to work hard, made to realize and ultimately reach the transcendental. Once you reach there, he enables your transcendence totally, he removes the veil of ignorance from you. In order to make you see your own Divinity, in order to make you understand that you yourself are the Supreme, he destroys what is not required for you. He is a destroyer because he destroys the darkness, the ignorance, the avidya from within you.Shiva is called the destroyer, but not in a negative sense. Without destruction, there cannot be construction. Unless the dirty water is thrown out, clean water cannot be filled in that place. New is neither an extension of old nor is it an addition; old has to be destroyed so that new can be created. If he did not transcend things, Brahma would not be able to create, Vishnu would not be able to protect. At the right time, transcendence has to take place. He does not destroy, He changes the bad to good, He balances. Knowledge alone can understand when a person finishes his karmas, and needs to be relieved. The place has to be vacated so that a new creation can take place. This is what Lord Shiva does! He has been entrusted with the responsibility of transcendence. He removes the obstacles in order to create and maintain dharma. This is Gurur Devo Maheswara.
Guru saakshaat Parabrahma
Who is the Parabrahma? The one who has created the universe, who has created the Brahma, Vishnu, and Mahesha, is Parabrahma. After passing through all the stages, after unconditional surrender, when he reaches the stage of HE AM I, the disciple suddenly finds saakshaat Parabrahma standing there! He immediately prostrates before the Parabrahma -- Guru saakshaat Parabrahma tasmai Sri Guruve Namaha!Then you realize that the Guru is the saakshaat Parabrahma! When you reach the Brahma, then the Parabrahma is visible. Parabrahma is the Supreme Divinity. Brahma cannot create the Guru, Vishnu cannot create the Guru, Maheswara cannot create the Guru, it is only the Parabrahma who can create the Guru. All the three are merged in the Guru, enabling the powers of the Parabrahma to be transmitted to him and through him.
Guru is beyond gender, beyond form, and is the Supreme Divinity. Guru is in your heart, in the heart of all living beings.
This offering brings the radiance of illumination to a greater enhancement. We knock on many doors in search of a Guru and return disappointed, we search for eternal love but it eludes us, we hunt for money and fame but it is only a temporary quest and even after attaining it, we are still dissatisfied and discontented. All these create the fear of losing; association with the Guru removes all illusions and thereby the fear of losing. A quote from the Baja Govindam- '' Satsangatve Nissangatvam - Sat sangatve - through the company of the good (the guru), Nissangatvam - (there arises) non-attachment.Nissangatve Nirmohatvam- Nissangatve - through non-attachment, Nirmohatvam - (there arises) freedom from delusion.Nirmohatve Nischalatattvam - Nirmohatve - through the freedom from delusion, Nischala - Immutable, Tattvam - Reality. Nischalatattve Jeevanmuktih - Nischalatattve - through the Immutable Reality, Jeevanmuktih - (comes) the state of 'liberated-in-life'.'' We attain peace and moksha when we do not have desires, when we do not have the fear of losing.
Meditate on all that the Guru has given you, on all that he has revealed, on all that he has removed and on all that he lived for; this Guru Purnima. Give thanks (a hundred million of them!) for his immeasurable compassion and his boundless wisdom. Revere the entire lineage, the guru mandala, going up from your own guru through to his guru and then to the gurus gurus guru and so on till the original Guru Dakshinamurthy. It is only as a result of the unbroken tradition of these self realised masters that we the people of todays world have any connection at all to the 'reality' of the spirit. May the grace of the Guru and the great gurus of the past flow like a mountain river to you and through you to the world around you.
Shree guru padhukam dhyayami pujayami namaha.
In humility - mantrA 95
SrigurubhyO namahA
With the next mantrA in the series, the sage begins a new sub section titled 'avai adakkam' - which in effect is a small section where the sage speaks of siva's powers while remaining in an attitude of humility.
6.அவையடக்கம்
ஆரறி வார் எங்கள் அண்ணல் பெருமையை
யாரறி வார்இந்த அகலமும் நீளமும்
பேரறி யாத பெருஞ்சுடர் ஒன்றதின்
வேரறி யாமை விளம்புகின் றேனே. 1. 6.95.
6 .IN HUMILITY
Infinite Greatness!
Who can know the greatness of our Lord!
Who can measure His length and breadth!
He is the mighty nameless Flame;
Whose unknown beginnings I venture to speak. 1.6.95.
Com – Who can know the greatness of our Lord! Who can ever understand the glory and the greatness of my Lord siva? Who can measure His length and breadth! And who can there be who could encompass by mind or deed the vast expanse that is the body of siva? He is the mighty nameless Flame; He (siva) is like a mighty pillar of light that possesses no attributes (of name and form) for Himself Whose unknown beginnings I venture to speak. (And yet) without even knowing the root of this supreme I still venture to speak (i.e. reveal the rest of the body of the thirumandiram).
* This mantrA is the first of four in this subsection where the sage speaks of the supreme with humility. Though the sage is an enlightened siddhA who abides in the highest state of self realisation, he acknowledges in these four mantrAs the limits of his abilities while singing the glory of the supreme siva.
So when the sage raises the question of there being someone who understands the glory of siva, he is alluding to the idea of the supreme tattvA. The vEdAs speak of this principle as ‘braHmam’ or ‘parambraHmam’. The siva who is spoken as ‘Ekam’, ‘sat’, ‘chit’ ‘AnandA’, the one who is the medium where the world(s) seemingly arise, rest and dissolve in. This supreme is akin to the ocean in whose waters the waves are born, stay for a period and disappear back into. Thus the sage here rightly asserts that there is none who can understand the greatness of this supreme principle.And again in the next line where he declares that there could be none who can understand the length and breadth of siva, he is alluding to the same idea of braHmam. The Sanskrit word has its root in the dhAtu ‘br’ which connotes an incredible vastness. The ‘sarvavyApaka shaktI’ or the All pervading nature of this supreme tattvA means that it is impossible for one to understand its limits as there are none. Thus we see here, the essence of the advaita system of philosophy revealed. The sage speaks of the One, the undivided, the eternal - the parabraHmam. In the final line of this mantrA the sage uses the words ‘vErariyAmai’ in a superbly effective fashion. The Tamil word vEr means root (of plants, trees etc) and suggestively implies lower/under the ground regions.
According to Hindu thought there are 14 worlds/planes of existence within what is known as smasArA. Of these 14, seven are known as ‘lOkA’s’ or worlds and seven are known as ‘talA’s’ or planes. The 7 lOkA’s are worlds of higher sattvic composition (as they ascended from the earth plane to the satya lOkA) and the seven talA’s are descending deeper and deeper into tamas as they go down. These are the pAtAla’s/ under worlds. So when the sage declares that he is about to speak of this supreme principle through the thirumandiram, even though he does not understand Him perfectly (due to his not being aware of the root), he achieves two things at the same time –Firstly, he brings across the message of humility by acknowledging the limits of his knowledge with regard to siva and secondly he beautifully suggests that he is beyond the taint of any tamas! As the lower talA’s (which are what are implied by the word ‘vEr’) are realms of tamas and the sage, as has been revealed before, is a denizen of the highest realm of consciousness, his lack of familiarity with this region is only natural!
With the next mantrA in the series, the sage begins a new sub section titled 'avai adakkam' - which in effect is a small section where the sage speaks of siva's powers while remaining in an attitude of humility.
6.அவையடக்கம்
ஆரறி வார் எங்கள் அண்ணல் பெருமையை
யாரறி வார்இந்த அகலமும் நீளமும்
பேரறி யாத பெருஞ்சுடர் ஒன்றதின்
வேரறி யாமை விளம்புகின் றேனே. 1. 6.95.
6 .IN HUMILITY
Infinite Greatness!
Who can know the greatness of our Lord!
Who can measure His length and breadth!
He is the mighty nameless Flame;
Whose unknown beginnings I venture to speak. 1.6.95.
Com – Who can know the greatness of our Lord! Who can ever understand the glory and the greatness of my Lord siva? Who can measure His length and breadth! And who can there be who could encompass by mind or deed the vast expanse that is the body of siva? He is the mighty nameless Flame; He (siva) is like a mighty pillar of light that possesses no attributes (of name and form) for Himself Whose unknown beginnings I venture to speak. (And yet) without even knowing the root of this supreme I still venture to speak (i.e. reveal the rest of the body of the thirumandiram).
* This mantrA is the first of four in this subsection where the sage speaks of the supreme with humility. Though the sage is an enlightened siddhA who abides in the highest state of self realisation, he acknowledges in these four mantrAs the limits of his abilities while singing the glory of the supreme siva.
So when the sage raises the question of there being someone who understands the glory of siva, he is alluding to the idea of the supreme tattvA. The vEdAs speak of this principle as ‘braHmam’ or ‘parambraHmam’. The siva who is spoken as ‘Ekam’, ‘sat’, ‘chit’ ‘AnandA’, the one who is the medium where the world(s) seemingly arise, rest and dissolve in. This supreme is akin to the ocean in whose waters the waves are born, stay for a period and disappear back into. Thus the sage here rightly asserts that there is none who can understand the greatness of this supreme principle.And again in the next line where he declares that there could be none who can understand the length and breadth of siva, he is alluding to the same idea of braHmam. The Sanskrit word has its root in the dhAtu ‘br’ which connotes an incredible vastness. The ‘sarvavyApaka shaktI’ or the All pervading nature of this supreme tattvA means that it is impossible for one to understand its limits as there are none. Thus we see here, the essence of the advaita system of philosophy revealed. The sage speaks of the One, the undivided, the eternal - the parabraHmam. In the final line of this mantrA the sage uses the words ‘vErariyAmai’ in a superbly effective fashion. The Tamil word vEr means root (of plants, trees etc) and suggestively implies lower/under the ground regions.
According to Hindu thought there are 14 worlds/planes of existence within what is known as smasArA. Of these 14, seven are known as ‘lOkA’s’ or worlds and seven are known as ‘talA’s’ or planes. The 7 lOkA’s are worlds of higher sattvic composition (as they ascended from the earth plane to the satya lOkA) and the seven talA’s are descending deeper and deeper into tamas as they go down. These are the pAtAla’s/ under worlds. So when the sage declares that he is about to speak of this supreme principle through the thirumandiram, even though he does not understand Him perfectly (due to his not being aware of the root), he achieves two things at the same time –Firstly, he brings across the message of humility by acknowledging the limits of his knowledge with regard to siva and secondly he beautifully suggests that he is beyond the taint of any tamas! As the lower talA’s (which are what are implied by the word ‘vEr’) are realms of tamas and the sage, as has been revealed before, is a denizen of the highest realm of consciousness, his lack of familiarity with this region is only natural!
Saturday, July 17, 2010
Night and day yearn for Him - mantrA 94
srigurubhyO namahA
The 94th mantrA is the last one in this section titled 'thirumUlar varalAru', where the sage reveals further about his state of being.
பிதற்றுகின் றேனென்றும் பேர்நந்தி தன்னை
இயற்றுவன் நெஞ்சத்து இரவும் பகலும்
முயற்றுவன் ஓங்கொளி வண்ணன்எம் மானை
இயற்றிகழ் சோதி இறைவனு மாமே. 22.5.94.
Night And Day Yearn For Him
Unceasing, I prattle daily Nandi's name,
By day praise Him in thought and ;by night as well,
Daily I yearn for my Master, the Light-Hued,
The Lord of the uncreated Radiant Flame. 22.5.94.
Com - Unceasing, I prattle daily Nandi's name I am ever involved in singing the praises of the One who goes by the name Nandi By day praise Him in thought and; by night as well, daily I remain in meditation, day and night keeping Him (nandi) in my heart. Daily I yearn for my Master, the Light - Hued, I strive constantly to reach/merge my Lord and master, the One who is self luminous (swayam prakAsha) The Lord of the uncreated Radiant Flame He is ever existent, naturally in the form of pure light.
* The word 'pidhatrudhal' in the tamil original translated as prattle signifies a state of Ecstasy born of deep devotion and communion with the supreme. In this state the experiencer speaks of things that are contextual and those that are totally out of context. A kind of a divine madness akin to the experiences described by the sufi mystics in wonderful poetry.
The above mantrA is fairly simple in that the words are not used with an intention to convey multiple layers of meaning. The simple message of the mantrA is that the sage remained always engaged in the thoughts of sivA, he spoke always (both when in context and when outside the context) of sivA, and remained ever immersed in the meditation of sivA as the supreme effulgence -i.e. jyOthi swarUpA .
This mantrA forms the close of the fifth sub division of the first tantrA of the thirumandiram. The next sub division is (the sixth) titled ' avai adakkam' which is a traditional style which speaks highly of all the virtues of the Lord while at all times bearing in mind one's own limitedness. It is an expression of humility.
Here ends the 94th mantrA of the invocation of the thirumandiram and with it the fifth sub division termed ' thirumUlar varalAru'.
Thirucchitrambalam
The 94th mantrA is the last one in this section titled 'thirumUlar varalAru', where the sage reveals further about his state of being.
பிதற்றுகின் றேனென்றும் பேர்நந்தி தன்னை
இயற்றுவன் நெஞ்சத்து இரவும் பகலும்
முயற்றுவன் ஓங்கொளி வண்ணன்எம் மானை
இயற்றிகழ் சோதி இறைவனு மாமே. 22.5.94.
Night And Day Yearn For Him
Unceasing, I prattle daily Nandi's name,
By day praise Him in thought and ;by night as well,
Daily I yearn for my Master, the Light-Hued,
The Lord of the uncreated Radiant Flame. 22.5.94.
Com - Unceasing, I prattle daily Nandi's name I am ever involved in singing the praises of the One who goes by the name Nandi By day praise Him in thought and; by night as well, daily I remain in meditation, day and night keeping Him (nandi) in my heart. Daily I yearn for my Master, the Light - Hued, I strive constantly to reach/merge my Lord and master, the One who is self luminous (swayam prakAsha) The Lord of the uncreated Radiant Flame He is ever existent, naturally in the form of pure light.
* The word 'pidhatrudhal' in the tamil original translated as prattle signifies a state of Ecstasy born of deep devotion and communion with the supreme. In this state the experiencer speaks of things that are contextual and those that are totally out of context. A kind of a divine madness akin to the experiences described by the sufi mystics in wonderful poetry.
The above mantrA is fairly simple in that the words are not used with an intention to convey multiple layers of meaning. The simple message of the mantrA is that the sage remained always engaged in the thoughts of sivA, he spoke always (both when in context and when outside the context) of sivA, and remained ever immersed in the meditation of sivA as the supreme effulgence -i.e. jyOthi swarUpA .
This mantrA forms the close of the fifth sub division of the first tantrA of the thirumandiram. The next sub division is (the sixth) titled ' avai adakkam' which is a traditional style which speaks highly of all the virtues of the Lord while at all times bearing in mind one's own limitedness. It is an expression of humility.
Here ends the 94th mantrA of the invocation of the thirumandiram and with it the fifth sub division termed ' thirumUlar varalAru'.
Thirucchitrambalam
nAdAntA - mantra 93
srigurubhyO namahA
God Within Vedic Hymns
The pranavA (om) is itself composed of 5 separate entities / stages - a, u , ma, bindu (depicted as the dot on the crescent) and nAdA (depicted as the crescent). The tantrAs relate these five aspects to five different states of consciousness -
The 21st mantrA in this section is the 93rd mantrA of the invocation. In this mantrA the sage reveals the nature of the state of consciousness that he is established in and in the process he awakens the reader to certain esoteric concepts pertaining to nAdA or sound/harmonics.
இருக்கில் இருக்கும் எண்ணிலி கோடி
அருக்கின்ற மூலத்துள் அங்கே இருக்கும்
அருக்கனும் சோமனும் ஆரழல் வீச
உருக்கிய ரோமம் ஒளிவிடுந் தானே. 21.5.93.
God Within Vedic Hymns
In the countless measures that are in Veda Rig,
He indwells with His radiant locks;
The Sun and Moon with their splendid argent rays,
In vain they melt the waxing lustre of His glowing locks.21.5.93.
Com - In the countless measures that are in Veda Rig, there exist countless mantrAs in the Rig vEdA In vain they melt waxing lustre of His glowing locks. and all of those countless mantrAs are dissolved (finally) into the subtle (sUkshma) essence known as the pranavA (om). The Sun and Moon with their splendid argent rays, and at the peak of the above said pranavA the Sun and the Moon reveal their respective lustre and light in the form of the Atma jyOthi (self light) He indwells with His radiant locks and in that highly subtle state, there exudes an effulgence of golden light rays.
* This mantrA has to be understood in light of sAdhanA involving the ascent of kundalini and gradually lifting the individual into ascending states of intelligence/consciousness. When the sivashaktI normally resident in the mUlAdhArA is focused upwards it will finally culminate in the experience of pranavA (om) and its peak state. The countless mantrAs that are mentioned here as being in the Rig vEdA have to be understood as metaphors for all mantrAs. When looked at separately, these mantrAs are set in various measures (chandas), they are dedicated to various dEvatAs (divinities), have different uses and applications, are articulated differently - there are many differences in them.
But in reality all the countless mantrAs that exist in this world are all nAdamayA - i.e. they are finally understandable as nAdA (I dont know whether to use the word sound or harmonic to describe nAdA). The final limit of the realm of nAdA is also the final limit of the pranavA (om). This is because the om is the seed nAdA for all else and all other sound/harmonic is finally absorbed into the pranavA. It is apt to note that the scriptures have unanimously declared that the essence of the vEdAs is the gAyatrI (mantrA) and the essence of gAyatrI is the pranavA (om) and thus the pranavA is the essence of all mantrAs.
The stage where the pranava nAdA ends is known as nAdAntA (the end or final limit of nAdA). The seers who have reached this height describe that at this stage, amidst the effulgence of the sOmA (moon) sUryA (sun) and agni (fire) mandalAs, the supreme Atma jyOthI (self effulgence) becomes manifest at the peak of the pranavA.
The pranavA (om) is itself composed of 5 separate entities / stages - a, u , ma, bindu (depicted as the dot on the crescent) and nAdA (depicted as the crescent). The tantrAs relate these five aspects to five different states of consciousness -'a' - is connected to the jAgrat avasthA or the waking state of consciousness.
'u' - is connected to the swapna avasthA or the dream state of consciousness.
'ma' - is connected to the sushupti avasthA or the deep sleep state of consciousness.
'nAdA' - is connected to the turiyA avasthA or the transcendental fourth state of consciousness.
'bindu' - is the turiyAthItha avasthA or the state beyond even the fourth state.
I must also note here that the 'a' represents the agni mandalA or the orb of fire, the 'u' represents the sUrya mandalA or the solar orb and the 'ma' represents the sOma mandalA or the lunar orb. The exact location of these spheres in the human etheric body and their bIjAs and constituents need to be learnt from a competent guru.
Thus with the above information it becomes clear that the state known as nAdAntA is one which is effectively beyond/transcendent to all the above mentioned five aspects. At this state there is a lack of modulation, or flux in consciousness - there is simply a seamless state of being.
Through the above mantrA the sage reveals that he was ever established in this transcendental state of awareness (of nAdAntA) and he sort of describes the 'topography' of such a realm by indicating the atmic effulgence and the state where its perception becomes possible. So we know that the sage is well capable of fulfilling his role in bringing this tamizh marai (the thirumandiram) to the peoples of the world. It is also clear that prior to his descent from kailAs to the southern land, he was established in the abode of sivA as atma jyOthi in the supreme realm beyond the pranavA.
Here ends the 93rd mantrA of the invocation in the thirumandiram.
thirucchitrambalam
Friday, July 16, 2010
sadAsivA state - mantrA 92
srigurubhyO namahA
Continuing the series, we will now see the next mantrA which is the 20th in this section and is the 92nd mantrA since the start.
நந்தி அருளாலே மூலனை நாடிப்பின்
நந்தி அருளாலே சதாசிவன் ஆயினேன்
நந்தி அருளால்மெய்ஞானத்துள் நண்ணினேன்
நந்தி அருளாலே நானிருந் தேனே. 20.5.92.
Form-Formless: Sadasiva State
With Nandi's Grace I sought the Primal Cause,
With Nandi's Grace I Sadashiv became,
With Nandi's Grace Truth Divine attained,
With Nandi's Grace I so remained.20.5.92.
Com - With Nandi's Grace I sought the Primal Cause with the compassionate grace of nandi (the sage's guru) the siva guru I was able to seek and reach the rudran in the mUlAdhArA (root chakrA) With Nandi's Grace I Sadashiv became Then again with the grace of the guru I became the sadAshiva mUrthy With Nandi's Grace Truth Divine attained due to the supreme grace of the siva guru I attained the true knowledge (enlightenment) With Nandi's Grace I so remained and through the grace of the siva guru I remained so in the state of supreme attainment.
* Here the tamil word 'mUlan' refers to the form of sivA in the mUlAdhArA (root chakrA) known as rudran. This manifestation resides in the mUlAdhArA. The term 'sadAshivan' refers to the form of sivA in the ag~nyA chakrA or the third eye centre.
So, from the above mantrA it becomes clear that due to the grace and guidance of the sage's guru (nandI), he was able to attain the darshanA of the mUrthy (manifestation) in the mUlAdhArA and gradually through the steady path and the ever present guidance of the guru he was able to unite with the sadAshiva mUrthy, the manifestation in the third eye centre. The third eye centre is the realm of the real knowledge, that which is beyond duality and is thus unlimited by space or time.
Thus the sage makes clear that he remains established in the true centre of being, ever united to the higher self in the unwavering realm of intuitive awareness. The two reference points (the root and the third eye) given here are the bottom and the top of the scale thus clearly suggesting the gradual awakening due to the grace of the guru.
Here ends the 92nd mantrA of the invocation section of the thirumandiram.
thirucchitrambalam
Continuing the series, we will now see the next mantrA which is the 20th in this section and is the 92nd mantrA since the start.
நந்தி அருளாலே மூலனை நாடிப்பின்
நந்தி அருளாலே சதாசிவன் ஆயினேன்
நந்தி அருளால்மெய்ஞானத்துள் நண்ணினேன்
நந்தி அருளாலே நானிருந் தேனே. 20.5.92.
Form-Formless: Sadasiva State
With Nandi's Grace I sought the Primal Cause,
With Nandi's Grace I Sadashiv became,
With Nandi's Grace Truth Divine attained,
With Nandi's Grace I so remained.20.5.92.
Com - With Nandi's Grace I sought the Primal Cause with the compassionate grace of nandi (the sage's guru) the siva guru I was able to seek and reach the rudran in the mUlAdhArA (root chakrA) With Nandi's Grace I Sadashiv became Then again with the grace of the guru I became the sadAshiva mUrthy With Nandi's Grace Truth Divine attained due to the supreme grace of the siva guru I attained the true knowledge (enlightenment) With Nandi's Grace I so remained and through the grace of the siva guru I remained so in the state of supreme attainment.
* Here the tamil word 'mUlan' refers to the form of sivA in the mUlAdhArA (root chakrA) known as rudran. This manifestation resides in the mUlAdhArA. The term 'sadAshivan' refers to the form of sivA in the ag~nyA chakrA or the third eye centre.
So, from the above mantrA it becomes clear that due to the grace and guidance of the sage's guru (nandI), he was able to attain the darshanA of the mUrthy (manifestation) in the mUlAdhArA and gradually through the steady path and the ever present guidance of the guru he was able to unite with the sadAshiva mUrthy, the manifestation in the third eye centre. The third eye centre is the realm of the real knowledge, that which is beyond duality and is thus unlimited by space or time.
Thus the sage makes clear that he remains established in the true centre of being, ever united to the higher self in the unwavering realm of intuitive awareness. The two reference points (the root and the third eye) given here are the bottom and the top of the scale thus clearly suggesting the gradual awakening due to the grace of the guru.
Here ends the 92nd mantrA of the invocation section of the thirumandiram.
thirucchitrambalam
From Kailas to Earth - Mantra 91.
sri gurubhyO namahA
The next mantrA in the thirumandiram series is the 91st mantrA.
Since it has been a while since the other mantrAs of this section were published on this blog, it might be of use to revisit the basics! The last 18 mantrAs, this and the few to follow are all from the initial invocation and belong to the section known as 'thirumoolar varalAru' (the history of thirumoolar, the sage who is the author of this text). Thus aptly this section deals with the history of thirumoolar, the reasons behind his composing this text, his spiritual lineage/ paramparA, the virtues of this text etc. In the last couple of mantrAs the sage reveals that he was initiated in the shaivA tradition through his guru (nandhI) and in mantrA 88 he clearly describes this in detail. In this mantrA the sage reveals that it is on the instruction of his guru that he undertook the task of composing this text.
விளக்கிப் பரமாகும் மெய்ஞ்ஞானச் சோதி
அளப்பில் பெருமையன் ஆனந்த நந்தி
துளக்கறும் ஆனந்தக் கூத்தன்சொற் போந்து
வளப்பில் கயிலை வழியில்வந் தேனே. 19.5.91
From Siva's Seat To Earth
Thus expounding I bore His Word
Down Kailas's unchanging path,
The Word of Him, the Eternal, the Truth Effulgence,
The Limitless Great, Nandi, the Joyous One,
He of the Blissful Dance that all impurity dispels. 19.5.91
Com - The Word of Him, the Eternal, the Truth Effulgence, if one were to begin describing the state of the unmanifest core ''agOchara vindhu'' then it has to be said that it is a state which is supreme (param) and one which is effulgent consciousness or chaitanyA The Limitless Great, Nandi, the Joyous One, such a supremely blissful nandi (state of consciousness) is possesed of limitless glory. He of the Blissful Dance that all impurity dispels. Thus expounding I bore His word due to the command of Him (sivA) who is the blissful dancer (natarAja mUrthy) remaining ever without motion Down Kailas's unchanging path I have come down from the glorious realm of Kailas to this earth.
* The word 'thulakkarudhal' in the original tamil refers to being without any motion/ activity. Thus the juxtaposition of the 'blissful dancer' next to 'remaining without activity' is to describe the state of unmanifest absolute (refer the previous mantrA). This is because the swarUpa shivA or shivA in self state is pure consciousness without any activity.
Here the sage makes clear that he used to live in the lofty realms of Kailas before his advent to the tamil land. And he also mentions that it was due to the command of shivA that the sage left his abode in Kailas to visit the southern land (in order that he may bequeath the world with the gem that is the thirumandiram).
Here ends the 91st mantrA of the invocation.
The next mantrA in the thirumandiram series is the 91st mantrA.
Since it has been a while since the other mantrAs of this section were published on this blog, it might be of use to revisit the basics! The last 18 mantrAs, this and the few to follow are all from the initial invocation and belong to the section known as 'thirumoolar varalAru' (the history of thirumoolar, the sage who is the author of this text). Thus aptly this section deals with the history of thirumoolar, the reasons behind his composing this text, his spiritual lineage/ paramparA, the virtues of this text etc. In the last couple of mantrAs the sage reveals that he was initiated in the shaivA tradition through his guru (nandhI) and in mantrA 88 he clearly describes this in detail. In this mantrA the sage reveals that it is on the instruction of his guru that he undertook the task of composing this text.
விளக்கிப் பரமாகும் மெய்ஞ்ஞானச் சோதி
அளப்பில் பெருமையன் ஆனந்த நந்தி
துளக்கறும் ஆனந்தக் கூத்தன்சொற் போந்து
வளப்பில் கயிலை வழியில்வந் தேனே. 19.5.91
From Siva's Seat To Earth
Thus expounding I bore His Word
Down Kailas's unchanging path,
The Word of Him, the Eternal, the Truth Effulgence,
The Limitless Great, Nandi, the Joyous One,
He of the Blissful Dance that all impurity dispels. 19.5.91
Com - The Word of Him, the Eternal, the Truth Effulgence, if one were to begin describing the state of the unmanifest core ''agOchara vindhu'' then it has to be said that it is a state which is supreme (param) and one which is effulgent consciousness or chaitanyA The Limitless Great, Nandi, the Joyous One, such a supremely blissful nandi (state of consciousness) is possesed of limitless glory. He of the Blissful Dance that all impurity dispels. Thus expounding I bore His word due to the command of Him (sivA) who is the blissful dancer (natarAja mUrthy) remaining ever without motion Down Kailas's unchanging path I have come down from the glorious realm of Kailas to this earth.
* The word 'thulakkarudhal' in the original tamil refers to being without any motion/ activity. Thus the juxtaposition of the 'blissful dancer' next to 'remaining without activity' is to describe the state of unmanifest absolute (refer the previous mantrA). This is because the swarUpa shivA or shivA in self state is pure consciousness without any activity.
Here the sage makes clear that he used to live in the lofty realms of Kailas before his advent to the tamil land. And he also mentions that it was due to the command of shivA that the sage left his abode in Kailas to visit the southern land (in order that he may bequeath the world with the gem that is the thirumandiram).
Here ends the 91st mantrA of the invocation.
Wednesday, July 14, 2010
Basic spiritual categories - Thirumandiram mantra 90
srigurubhyO namahA
Here we are! As prompted by a rush of pure spiritual inspiration, I return to the project started a long time back. The english commentary to the wonderful text called Thirumandiram. A bit more than a year back (april 2009 to be exact), for reasons too numerous to explain here I had to discontinue work on the english commentary of the text. I am afraid I might have lost the interest of quite a few regular readers in the meantime due to lack of activity in this blog. There were a good few readers who visited the blog frequently in the hope that there would be more of the mantrAs translated, but their hopes were in vain. A general lack of creativity and more particularly a taste for silence in the interim are to blame, if you must point the finger at something.
I begin from where I left off so abruptly - Just in case the passage of time has clogged your memory, we were on the 89th mantrA of the invocation (17.5.89) - as if it was only yesterday! Here below is the next mantrA in the series.
நேயத்தை ஞானத்தை ஞாதுரு வத்தினை
மாயத்தை மாமாயை தன்னில் வரும்பரை
ஆயத்தை யச்சிவன் தன்னை யாகோசர
வீயத்தை முற்றும் விளக்கியிட் டேனே. 18.5.90
Basic Spiritual Categories
So impelled, streamed out of me in measures full
The Jneya, the Jnana, and the Jnathuru,
The Maya, and the Parayaya that in Mamaya arise,
The Siva and the Agochara Veeya. 18.5.90
The word agOchara vIyA refers to the unmanifest and untangible energy that is at the very root of all manifestation, like a tiny seed. This is otherwise known as swarUpa sivA - i.e. sivA in His own self state.
Here we are! As prompted by a rush of pure spiritual inspiration, I return to the project started a long time back. The english commentary to the wonderful text called Thirumandiram. A bit more than a year back (april 2009 to be exact), for reasons too numerous to explain here I had to discontinue work on the english commentary of the text. I am afraid I might have lost the interest of quite a few regular readers in the meantime due to lack of activity in this blog. There were a good few readers who visited the blog frequently in the hope that there would be more of the mantrAs translated, but their hopes were in vain. A general lack of creativity and more particularly a taste for silence in the interim are to blame, if you must point the finger at something.
I begin from where I left off so abruptly - Just in case the passage of time has clogged your memory, we were on the 89th mantrA of the invocation (17.5.89) - as if it was only yesterday! Here below is the next mantrA in the series.
நேயத்தை ஞானத்தை ஞாதுரு வத்தினை
மாயத்தை மாமாயை தன்னில் வரும்பரை
ஆயத்தை யச்சிவன் தன்னை யாகோசர
வீயத்தை முற்றும் விளக்கியிட் டேனே. 18.5.90
Basic Spiritual Categories
So impelled, streamed out of me in measures full
The Jneya, the Jnana, and the Jnathuru,
The Maya, and the Parayaya that in Mamaya arise,
The Siva and the Agochara Veeya. 18.5.90
Com - The Jneya that which is known, the Jnana that intelligence which knows (i.e. the knowledge), and the Jnathuru the knower, The Maya the true nature of the power known as mAyA and the Parayaya that in Mamaya arise, and the multitude of the different shaktIs/powers that arise out of the shuddha (pure)mAyA mAmAyA The Siva and the sivA who is manifest in the above mentioned collective of shaktIs and the Agochara Veeya and the unmanifest sivA in His own self nature who is as a seed to all the later manifestations So impelled, streamed out of me in measures full have all been thoroughly detailed and explained by me in this book.
* mAyA here refers to that which is known as ashuddha mAyA or impure mAyA. To those who are familiar with the tattvAs as ennumerated in the sankhyA system or as followed by the srividyA traditions, this is the level of mAyA as kanchukA (cage bars) which due to its powers of veiling and distorting etc results in the delusion of multiplicity/duality etc when there is but one. Hence it is termed as ashuddha or impure mAyA.
* mAyA here refers to that which is known as ashuddha mAyA or impure mAyA. To those who are familiar with the tattvAs as ennumerated in the sankhyA system or as followed by the srividyA traditions, this is the level of mAyA as kanchukA (cage bars) which due to its powers of veiling and distorting etc results in the delusion of multiplicity/duality etc when there is but one. Hence it is termed as ashuddha or impure mAyA.
The word agOchara vIyA refers to the unmanifest and untangible energy that is at the very root of all manifestation, like a tiny seed. This is otherwise known as swarUpa sivA - i.e. sivA in His own self state.
From the above mantrA it becomes clear that the sage intends to reveal to us the very essence of all knowledge - the tattvAs. These are the basic categories/ units and understanding and working through these is a must for spiritual progress. The knowledge of these tattvAs will eventually enable the distinction between the knower and the known to dissolve making knowledge free from any limitations. It can also be inferred from the context of this mantrA that the sage has himself recieved this knowledge in the appropriate manner (i.e. through dIkshA) and is thus capable of transmitting the same to his disciples through the medium of dIkshA and further instruction through this book.
Here ends the 90th mantrA of the invocation of the thirumandiram.
thiruchitrambalam
TuriyA state with rasamani gutikA
SrigurubhyO namahA
pArad/pAradA, also known in the south as rasamani is often spoken of as the 'seed of ShivA' in the alchemical writings and in the works of the tamil siddhAs. This rasamani is a strange substance - in as much as it is something from which its own intrinsic nature is taken away, and in its place a quality that is quite opposite to it is revealed. Rasamani is solidified mercury - yes, solidified mercury. As most of us know from our school lab level of chemistry, mercury is a liquid metal and by its nature flows wantonly. If the solidified mercury is the seed of shivA, then the plain elemental mercury is like the 'seed of men' - it flows incessantly, breaking itself into a million beads and corroding everything it comes in contact with along the way. pArad or rasamani on the other hand, is a mercury that has been first purified of its highly toxic nature through a series of samskArAs (ritual/alchemical steps) and finally 'gathered' together as a solid ball by the addition of some magical herbs or in some cases silver.
In the age of the internet, one would be forgiven in thinking that this pArad is a highly available substance as there are many websites that claim to sell 'real' solidified mercury in a multitude of forms - balls,bells,cups,lingams,statues, and even srichakrAs! Every astrologer in India has jumped on the pArad bandwagon and list off an array of pArad items to placate planets, gods and evil spirits. And dont even get me started on the many New age gurus who have supposedly made and installed huge 200 kilo lingams in solid mercury! I digress, so let me come back to the point. Anyway, if we go by the writings of the early alchemists themselves and observe texts such as the rasa siddhAntA, and that of the siddars of the bOgar lineage etc, it becomes evident that it is a herculean task to transform elemental mercury into pArad or rasamani.
The process involves many smaller process that are both chemical and metaphysical. The adept who is trying to accomplish this task must be one who is of the yOgic disposition and be blessed by the rasEshwarI vidyA to achieve the end result. Moreover he should be one who knows patience as the outer transformation of elemental mercury into rasamani is nothing more than an indicator of the inner transformation of the alchemist himself. Like the transformation of base metal/lead into gold is often times a metaphor for the inner transformation of the embodied soul into its higher self, the gathering together of mercury is a sign of the gathering together of the latent energies of the siddhA. Few are those who can really achieve this goal in the traditional way and they are perfected beings or siddhAs. With the advances we have made in the current age in the area of metallurgy it is now a commercially viable prospect to make crude amalgams of mercury with silver (this is much easier than solidifying mercury through the use of sacred herbs) which is what most of the marketed quality of pArad today is.
I have been lucky enough to have in my possession a siddha gutikA of rasamani - it is a small ball of solidified mercury that has been produced by the traditional siddha methods of yore by a devotee of rasEshwarI vidyA in Rajasthan. The rasamani is saturated with super natural powers and as a result there is much that it can accomplish. It is not my purpose here to list the various properties and virtues of rasamani, so I refrain from doing so. What I intend to tell you now though is about a curious incident that occur ed last night.
The said rasamani has been lying without use for nearly a year now in my pUja altar. Prompted by some unknown agency, I took it out of the box yesterday in the morning and after bathing the gutikA in some fresh water I proceeded to rub it with some vibUthy. After my morning pUja, I wore the gutikA as I have done before around my neck and went about my daily business. Nothing of note there and nothing else of note transpired through the day. But what happened in the night was different. Try as I might, I was unable to sleep when in bed. As usual I continued my japA mentally in bed and after a while realised I was still awake! The mind was still, fresh and wonderfully focused on the japA. There was no sense of fatigue or the need to sleep. It was a straight projection to a state of turiyA or transcendental awareness throughout the night for me. I was in a state where I was definitely not asleep and was fully aware of myself lying down and my immediate environment, yet I was aware of them only as an awareness and had no 'identification' with any of it. It was as if I was watching myself lying there but this watching had no effect on me. Thus I lay for a few hours until about 2am, mentally repeating the japA all the while. The sense of 'awakeness' heightened further and a feeling of lightness and what I can only describe as 'extreme awakeness' flooded me totally.
I got out of bed and went downstairs into the pUja room to try and make use of this sudden window into a state of deep mindfullness. Once there I remained seated on my AsanA for the rest of the night immersed in the same state of mind. I was fully aware of myself sitting and my body remained seated without any conscious effort on my part to keep it propped up. Even though the mind was awake, it was as if all the extensions (i.e. the senses and the cognitive faculties)were suspended. A mildly euphoric state. And one where the main noticeable feature was the lack of anything to notice. I remained so till about half five in the morning.
This morning I am inspired to start work on the thirumandiram commentary again! The last post on the text was more than a year ago, and it feels like the right time to start on that again now. Hopefully, I will continue for a bit this time!
Wednesday, April 28, 2010
Jupiter's transit into Pisces
sadgurupAdukA jayathI
Of the navagrahAs (9 planets/celestial bodies) that are taken into consideration in the vedic astrology (jyOthisha shAstrA), only four are considered to be benovalent or beneficial (shuba grahA). They are Jupiter (guru), Venus (shukra), Moon (chandrA) and Mercury (budhan). Out of the above four, the moon is split in its benefic effects - the waxing moon is beneficial and the waning moon is ashuba. Mercury too is varied in its benefic effects - when in conjunction/aspects with a beneficial or positive planet its effects are positive and when in conjunction/aspect with a malefic or negative planet its effects are negative. Thus we find that Jupiter and Venus are the only two totally beneficial (shuba grahAs) influences and the other five (i.e. sun,mars,Saturn, rAhu & kEtu) are considered to be entirely malefic (pApagrahAs).
Our Purana's mention Jupiter as the dEva guru (celestial preceptor) and Venus as the asura guru (preceptor of the demons). With this in mind, we can understand the saying '' குரு பார்க்க கோடி நன்மை '' (Infinite blessings accrue as a result of Jupiter's aspects), as guru or Jupiter is the most beneficial and spiritually brilliant influence on our lives.
It takes Jupiter nearly one year to move from one sign to the next. The sun moves this distance in one month,Saturn travels this distance in 2 and a half years and the moon in 2 and a half days. But as mentioned above it takes Jupiter about one year to move from one sign (travel through completely) to the next. The transit of Jupiter (benefic) and the transit of Saturn (malefic) are of great import in analysing the effects of the planets in a persons life and we traditionally see the phalam (fruits/effects) of these two transits in regular astrological publications as they are capable of being the agents of much change.
This years transit of Jupiter occurs on the 2nd of May (02 - 05 -10), Sunday at around 10:40pm IST, and during this transit he moves from kumbhA into meena rAsI (Pisces). Pisces is one of Jupiter's own houses (Sagittarius being the other own house of Jupiter). After entering Pisces on the 2nd of may, Jupiter will remain there until his next transit in may 2011, when he will enter mEsha rAsI (Aries). Jupiter is a very beneficial planet and his transits usually produce good results. The fact that this transit takes Jupiter into his own house (Pisces) is an added advantage - like a great double whammy or two for the price of one!! Planets usually produce dramatic results during transits and they are in a highly exalted state in their own abode.
Jupiter's presence in the 2, 5, 7,9 and 11th rAsi/house from ones own janma rAsI (natal moon sign) usually produces good results and his presence in the 3,6,8, and 12th house from the janma rAsi produces not so good results and when present in 1 (own janma rAsI),4 and 10th house produces results that are neither overly good or overly bad. This is a generic statement and due consideration has to be given for other planets and their aspects etc before full predictions of the results are offered.
As this transit brings Jupiter to a watery sign (Pisces) which is also his own sign, we can expect a considerable increase in our ability (both as individuals and as a collective society) to be empathic towards the pain and suffering of others. There will be an increase in tolerance and compassion towards others generally and an upsurge in spiritual activity and worship. Just as well - as this year 'vikruthI' in general is not so promising as there are trends suggesting jagatbhIthI (general fear and unrest in the world). At least with the celestial guru (Jupiter) fixed firmly in a great sign and aspecting the 5th, 7th and 9th signs from Pisces, we have plenty of good energy thrown in to the mix!
With prayers to the lotus like feet of the supreme guru dakshinAmUrthy, who is adidEvathA (god) of Jupiter, and with a million namaskArAs (prostrations) to the lotus feet of my own guru, I wish all of you all the very best of everything life has to offer. May this transit produce all the conditions necessary for each one of us to raise ourselves from our soul destroying negative patterns, and may all the obstacles to our personal spiritual and material growth over the coming year be removed through the overflowing compassion of the guru (Jupiter).
'' guravE sarva lOkAnAm bhIshajE bhava rOginAm
Of the navagrahAs (9 planets/celestial bodies) that are taken into consideration in the vedic astrology (jyOthisha shAstrA), only four are considered to be benovalent or beneficial (shuba grahA). They are Jupiter (guru), Venus (shukra), Moon (chandrA) and Mercury (budhan). Out of the above four, the moon is split in its benefic effects - the waxing moon is beneficial and the waning moon is ashuba. Mercury too is varied in its benefic effects - when in conjunction/aspects with a beneficial or positive planet its effects are positive and when in conjunction/aspect with a malefic or negative planet its effects are negative. Thus we find that Jupiter and Venus are the only two totally beneficial (shuba grahAs) influences and the other five (i.e. sun,mars,Saturn, rAhu & kEtu) are considered to be entirely malefic (pApagrahAs).
Our Purana's mention Jupiter as the dEva guru (celestial preceptor) and Venus as the asura guru (preceptor of the demons). With this in mind, we can understand the saying '' குரு பார்க்க கோடி நன்மை '' (Infinite blessings accrue as a result of Jupiter's aspects), as guru or Jupiter is the most beneficial and spiritually brilliant influence on our lives.
It takes Jupiter nearly one year to move from one sign to the next. The sun moves this distance in one month,Saturn travels this distance in 2 and a half years and the moon in 2 and a half days. But as mentioned above it takes Jupiter about one year to move from one sign (travel through completely) to the next. The transit of Jupiter (benefic) and the transit of Saturn (malefic) are of great import in analysing the effects of the planets in a persons life and we traditionally see the phalam (fruits/effects) of these two transits in regular astrological publications as they are capable of being the agents of much change.
This years transit of Jupiter occurs on the 2nd of May (02 - 05 -10), Sunday at around 10:40pm IST, and during this transit he moves from kumbhA into meena rAsI (Pisces). Pisces is one of Jupiter's own houses (Sagittarius being the other own house of Jupiter). After entering Pisces on the 2nd of may, Jupiter will remain there until his next transit in may 2011, when he will enter mEsha rAsI (Aries). Jupiter is a very beneficial planet and his transits usually produce good results. The fact that this transit takes Jupiter into his own house (Pisces) is an added advantage - like a great double whammy or two for the price of one!! Planets usually produce dramatic results during transits and they are in a highly exalted state in their own abode.
Jupiter's presence in the 2, 5, 7,9 and 11th rAsi/house from ones own janma rAsI (natal moon sign) usually produces good results and his presence in the 3,6,8, and 12th house from the janma rAsi produces not so good results and when present in 1 (own janma rAsI),4 and 10th house produces results that are neither overly good or overly bad. This is a generic statement and due consideration has to be given for other planets and their aspects etc before full predictions of the results are offered.
As this transit brings Jupiter to a watery sign (Pisces) which is also his own sign, we can expect a considerable increase in our ability (both as individuals and as a collective society) to be empathic towards the pain and suffering of others. There will be an increase in tolerance and compassion towards others generally and an upsurge in spiritual activity and worship. Just as well - as this year 'vikruthI' in general is not so promising as there are trends suggesting jagatbhIthI (general fear and unrest in the world). At least with the celestial guru (Jupiter) fixed firmly in a great sign and aspecting the 5th, 7th and 9th signs from Pisces, we have plenty of good energy thrown in to the mix!
With prayers to the lotus like feet of the supreme guru dakshinAmUrthy, who is adidEvathA (god) of Jupiter, and with a million namaskArAs (prostrations) to the lotus feet of my own guru, I wish all of you all the very best of everything life has to offer. May this transit produce all the conditions necessary for each one of us to raise ourselves from our soul destroying negative patterns, and may all the obstacles to our personal spiritual and material growth over the coming year be removed through the overflowing compassion of the guru (Jupiter).
'' guravE sarva lOkAnAm bhIshajE bhava rOginAm
nidhayE sarva vidyAnAm dakshinAmUrthayE namaha ''
Tuesday, April 20, 2010
Walk with my wife.
srigurubhyO namahA
'' Still April morning.
Playing tag with the heron -
silently, fish swim. ''
Saturday, April 17, 2010
Hindu time calculations.
sadgurupAdukA jayathI
With the arrival of the new (vikruthi) year, it seems as if people are contemplating the indications that lie for the year ahead! It seems to be a popular topic as I have been asked about the upcoming year and its charecteristics, predictions, more context of the year cycles etc by different members of this group during different conversations over the last 2 or 3 days. In this post I will mention a little bit about the qualities and the features of this year and also shed a bit of light on the hindu idea of time and creation. Be warned that the topic is vast and technical, and I am only shedding minor light on this here as it is beyond my abilities to go into greater detail.
First things first! Prior to looking at the year at hand it is apt to see the context. So we will start (like with everything) at the begenning.
According to our dharmA (the vEdic cosmology), creation is cyclic in nature. ''srishti: sthUlikaranam'' - i.e. creation is merely grossification (of something that already 'exists', albeit in a subtle and imperceptible, formless form). With this concept in mind we will need to see the idea of creation. Thus we have a creation for which there is no begenning (anAdhI) and to which there is no end (anantaH). One which 'appears' and 'disappears', one which is 'revealed' and 'veiled' periodically in a cyclic manner. As we all know, the hindu creator is known as Brahma. This Brahma is the one tasked with srishtI or the act of making tangible and manifest the universe(s). The exact method of bringing forth this phenomenal world is another tangent and one beyond the scope of this discussion and for fear of moving away from the main topic at hand and of elaborating this post to a great degree, I will refrain from digression.
This Brahma is, though the creator, still bound by the limits of time. The allocated life span of Brahma is 100 BrahmA years. To understand the immense nature of the time scale of BrahmA, we need to go from the ground up - i.e. from our own human perspective!
The full life span allotted to the human (in kali yugA) is 100 years. Some ancient texts of AyurvEdA and certain schools hold this to be 120 years and this is known as pUrnAyu or full/whole life span. The older systems of calculating time were based on the lunar progressions and thus one human year (samvatsarA) can be understood as 12 lunar months (mAsAs). A lunar month consists of approximately 29.5 days and is divided into 2 pakshAs or segments - the shukla pakshA (waxing/bright half) and the krishna pakshA (waning/dark half). Each pakshA consists of 15 thithIs (prathipad or prathamI to amAvasyA or pUrnimA). A thithI or lunar day can be defined as the time taken for the longitudinal angle between the moon and the sun to increase by 12 degrees. Thus there are roughly 360 days in a lunar year.
The solar measurements as elucidated to stunning detail in the sUrya siddhAntA, is slightly different. Around the time of its publication (some say around 2 century AD), the Romans and the Babylonians were already using a Julian or sun based calendar. The day is composed of 24 hours and each hour is further divided into 60 equal parts called minutes. The minute itself is further divided into 60 equal parts called seconds. The second, thus was the smallest division of time. In the sUrya siddhAntA however, an even more minute division of time is shown.
Counting from a respriration (prAnA), we have the following. 6 respirations make a vinAdi and 60 vinAdIs make one nAdi. In tamil this is known as nAzhigai. 60 such nAdis make one sidereal day(i.e day and night = 24hrs). There are also other systems of calculation of time -
One paramAnus (the interval of blinking) = 4 seconds (approx).
One vighatI = 6 paramAnus (i.e. 24 seconds approx)
One ghatI = 60 vighatIs (i.e. 24 minutes approx)
One muhUrtA = 2 ghatIs (i.e. 48 minutes approx)
One nakshatra ahOratram (one sidereal day) = 30 muhUrtAs (i.e. 1440 minutes or 24 hrs)
30 days = 1 month
6 months = 1 ayanA (there are 2 ayanAs in the year - uttarAyanA (northerly) and dakshinAyanA (southerly))
2 ayanAs = 1 year.
The purAnAs and the vEdA offer an even more minute understanding of time. Though we do not use such miniscule measures on a daily basis, they are revealed in the scriptures. Starting from a trasarEnu (extremely subtle) which is said to be the combination of 6 celestial atoms! The time that is needed to integrate 6 such trasarEnus is known as truti ( 1/1687.5th of a second!!) These measures are way smaller than even a nimEshA or the time taken for a blink of an eye. As 100 trutis make one vEdhA. 3 vEdhAs make one lavA. 3 lavAs make one nimEshA or the blink of an eye!And so on to make the full period of a day. Anyway, I digress.....
One human year that is made of 2 ayanAs is equal to one day(incl night) of the dEvAs or the celestial beings. That is, one ayanA is the day and the second ayanA is the night. The time of the dEvAs(celestials) and the asurAs (their 'darker' cousins) is mutually oppossed - i.e. day for dEvAs is night for asurAs and night for dEvAs is day for asurAs.
30 such dEvA days make one dEvA month (much like our own!). So we have now on this time scale - 30 human years = one dEvA month. 12 such dEvA months make one dEvA year or divine year. Which if we calculate, is equal to (30X12 = 360 human years). The life span of the dEvAs is 100 dEvA years. Which in human time is 360 X 100 or 36,000 human years.
Next in order, we can see the description of yugAs (roughly translated as epochs?). The hindu system reveals that there are 4 yugAs, which proceed in a cyclic fashion. They are
satya yugA or krita yugA
trEtA yugA
dwApara yugA
kali yugA
These four yugAs are not equal - i.e. their duration is varied. The first yugA known as satya yugA is the longest period and as it proceeds the time span of each yugA gets lesser and lesser. We will next see how many years these yugAs are composed of -
satya yugA = 4800 dEvA varshAs or dEvA years = 17,28,000 human years.
trEtA yugA = 3600 dEvA years = 12,96,000 human years.
dwApara yugA = 2400 dEvA years = 8,64,000 human years.
kali yugA = 1200 dEvA years = 4,32,000 human years.
One cycle of these four yugAs is known as one chaturyugA or mahAyugA. Thus, we see that
one chaturyugA = 12,000 divine years = 43,20,000 human years!
In the bagawad gItA, we see the statement ''"sahasra-yuga paryantam ahar-yad brahmano viduh", - which reveals that 1000 mahAyugAs/ chaturyugAs is one day of brahmA. In more simpler (if such a thing is possible!) terms - we have seen above that 4.32 million human years makes one chaturyugA. So with 1000 such chaturyugAs we will have 4.32 billion human years (432 thousand crore) to be one day of brahmA. This period is known as kalpA. brahmA's night is also of the same duration as his day. So we can see that 2 kalpAs (i.e. 864 thousand crore human years) is one sidereal day of brahmA.
2 kalpAs = 1 day (and night) of brahmA = 2,40,00,000 dEvA years = 2,40,00,000 X 360 human years
30 brahmA days = 1 brahmA month = 259.2 billion human years.
12 brahmA months = 1 brahmA year = 3.1104 trillion human years.
brahmAs full life span is 100 brahmA years. This period of 100 brahmA years is divided into 2 parArdhAs of 50 brahmA years each.
100 brahmA years (the life span of brahmA) = 311.04 trillion human years!!
Now coming back to the time called kalpA, which is one day of brahmA - the creation/manifestation of the universe begins at the dawn of brahmAs day and culminates at the start of brahmAs night. The universe is veiled or dissolved during the period of his night. So for one kalpA the world is manifest and for the same period (1 kalpA) the universe lies dissolved. The next morning of brahmA He goes about the business of creating/revealing the universes again.....and so on for 100 brahmA years.
1 kalpA = 1 day of brahmA = 1000 chaturyugAs = 1,20,00,000 dEvA years = 4.32 billion human years.
This day of brahmA is divided into 10,000 parts known as charanAs and we can see that satya yugA has 4 charanAs, trEtA has 3, dwAparA has 2 and kali has 1 charanA.
71 chaturyugAs (or cycles of the above mentioned 4 yugAs) = 1 manvantarA .
Each manvantrA is ruled by a manU. During his 1 day brahmA creates 14 such manUs, who rule the 14 manvantrAs in each kalpA.
At the end of each manvantrA (71 chaturyugAs) we have something known as sandhi kAlA. This period of time known as sandhi kAlA is of the same duration as on satya yugA (4800 dEvA varshAs or dEvA years = 17,28,000 human years). During this period of time, the earth lies submerged in water and is brought forth yet again at the end of the sandhi kAlA. There is also something else known as Adi sandhi which is also equal to 17,28,000 human years which occurs at the begenning of the kalpA.
So we now have the kalpA which consists of - 1X Adi sandhi + 14 manvantrAs + 14 sandhIs
kalpA = 14 manvantarAs + 15 sandhIs (each composed of 4 charanAs)
kalpA = 994 chaturyugAs + 60 charanAs = 994 chaturyugAs + 6 X 10 charanAs (note each chaturyugA has 10 charanAs)
kalpA = 994 chaturyugAs + 6 chaturyugAs = 1000 chaturyugAs.
Now that the vast context of time is set, we can proceed to see our present position in this frame. Those of you who have paid some attention to the mantrA in the samkalpA (shubhE shObanE.....) will be able to realise what those terms like shwEtavarAha kalpE etc mean!!
Our current brahmA is 50 years old (50 brahmA years) already. Meaning 50 brahmA years out of his allotted 100 have already elapsed. We are currently in the first day of his 51st year. (refer - dwitIya parArdhE, meaning 2nd parArdhA where we have already seen 1 parArdha = 50 brahmA years). The current day of brahmA (i.e. current kalpA) is known as shwEtavarAha kalpA (refer - shwEtavarAha kalpE). Within this one day of brahmA, the rule of 6 manUs has already elapsed (we saw before that each kalpA has 14 manUs, who each rule for a period known as manvantrA), and we are now in the period of rule of the 7th manU who is known as vaivasvathA. So this seventh manvantrA is known as vaivasvatha manvantrA (refer . vaivasvatha manvantrE) . Within this particular manvantrA the period equal to 27 chaturyugAs (i.e. full cycles of all 4 yugAs) has already elapsed and in the 28th chaturyugA the satya, trEtA and dwApara yugAs have also elapsed. Thus we are currently in the kali yugA period of the 28th chaturyugA (refer. ashtAvimshadadimE kaliyugE). According to the experts in such calculations this current kali yugA began in the year 3012 BC (in the julian system of numbering), on the midnight of the 18th of febraury.
Thus we have that 5112 years have already passed in the current kali yugA and the 5113 rd year in kali has just been born. And if we were to do the sums to calculate the age of the current brahmA in human years :
3.1104 trillion human years = 1 brahmA year
155.52 trillion human years = 50 brahmA years (which have elapsed)
1.973 billion human years = 6 manvantrAs already past including the relevant sandhi kAlAs of this current kalpA/day.
116.640000 million human years = 27 chaturyugAs that have also elapsed in the current manvantrA.
3.888 million human years = the 3 yugAs that have already elapsed in the current chaturyugA (the 28th).
5112 human years = the time elapsed since the birth of the current kali yugA.
So the current age of the present brahmA = 155.52 trillion human years!!
In case your head is reeling from all this complicated math, I leave you with something to cheer you up.
According to our sAstrAs, there is simply no end to the worlds. We are in effect immortal - really! And as we saw before 1 kali yugA has 4,32,000 human years and we are only a mere 5112 years gone into it. So there are 4,26,888 human years before even a temporary end of the world while we switch to the next yugA in the current manvantrA. Even our current manU (the 7th one of 14 such manUs), has only exhausted 27 and with the end of this current yugA, will have exhausted 28 chaturyugAs out of his allotted 71 - so that leaves us 43 more chaturyugAs under the same manU vaivasvathA, before a long sandhI period where the earth will stay submerged in water until the birth of the next manvantrA. Then we have 7 more manUs to go only within this day (kalpA) of brahmA!! After a similarly long night of brahmA, we will proceed to the 2nd day of our current brahmAs 51st year.....and then the 3rd day and so on. Finally,after almost another 155.52 trillion human years this present brahmAs time of 100 years will be up. That means nothing to you and me, as after this brahmA there will simply be another brahmA who will also live 100 brahmA years and we'll be back again to enjoy the fruits of our accumulated karmA!!
The next time you wish for eternity - please think! It really is a long long time!
With the arrival of the new (vikruthi) year, it seems as if people are contemplating the indications that lie for the year ahead! It seems to be a popular topic as I have been asked about the upcoming year and its charecteristics, predictions, more context of the year cycles etc by different members of this group during different conversations over the last 2 or 3 days. In this post I will mention a little bit about the qualities and the features of this year and also shed a bit of light on the hindu idea of time and creation. Be warned that the topic is vast and technical, and I am only shedding minor light on this here as it is beyond my abilities to go into greater detail.
First things first! Prior to looking at the year at hand it is apt to see the context. So we will start (like with everything) at the begenning.
According to our dharmA (the vEdic cosmology), creation is cyclic in nature. ''srishti: sthUlikaranam'' - i.e. creation is merely grossification (of something that already 'exists', albeit in a subtle and imperceptible, formless form). With this concept in mind we will need to see the idea of creation. Thus we have a creation for which there is no begenning (anAdhI) and to which there is no end (anantaH). One which 'appears' and 'disappears', one which is 'revealed' and 'veiled' periodically in a cyclic manner. As we all know, the hindu creator is known as Brahma. This Brahma is the one tasked with srishtI or the act of making tangible and manifest the universe(s). The exact method of bringing forth this phenomenal world is another tangent and one beyond the scope of this discussion and for fear of moving away from the main topic at hand and of elaborating this post to a great degree, I will refrain from digression.
This Brahma is, though the creator, still bound by the limits of time. The allocated life span of Brahma is 100 BrahmA years. To understand the immense nature of the time scale of BrahmA, we need to go from the ground up - i.e. from our own human perspective!
The full life span allotted to the human (in kali yugA) is 100 years. Some ancient texts of AyurvEdA and certain schools hold this to be 120 years and this is known as pUrnAyu or full/whole life span. The older systems of calculating time were based on the lunar progressions and thus one human year (samvatsarA) can be understood as 12 lunar months (mAsAs). A lunar month consists of approximately 29.5 days and is divided into 2 pakshAs or segments - the shukla pakshA (waxing/bright half) and the krishna pakshA (waning/dark half). Each pakshA consists of 15 thithIs (prathipad or prathamI to amAvasyA or pUrnimA). A thithI or lunar day can be defined as the time taken for the longitudinal angle between the moon and the sun to increase by 12 degrees. Thus there are roughly 360 days in a lunar year.
The solar measurements as elucidated to stunning detail in the sUrya siddhAntA, is slightly different. Around the time of its publication (some say around 2 century AD), the Romans and the Babylonians were already using a Julian or sun based calendar. The day is composed of 24 hours and each hour is further divided into 60 equal parts called minutes. The minute itself is further divided into 60 equal parts called seconds. The second, thus was the smallest division of time. In the sUrya siddhAntA however, an even more minute division of time is shown.
Counting from a respriration (prAnA), we have the following. 6 respirations make a vinAdi and 60 vinAdIs make one nAdi. In tamil this is known as nAzhigai. 60 such nAdis make one sidereal day(i.e day and night = 24hrs). There are also other systems of calculation of time -
One paramAnus (the interval of blinking) = 4 seconds (approx).
One vighatI = 6 paramAnus (i.e. 24 seconds approx)
One ghatI = 60 vighatIs (i.e. 24 minutes approx)
One muhUrtA = 2 ghatIs (i.e. 48 minutes approx)
One nakshatra ahOratram (one sidereal day) = 30 muhUrtAs (i.e. 1440 minutes or 24 hrs)
30 days = 1 month
6 months = 1 ayanA (there are 2 ayanAs in the year - uttarAyanA (northerly) and dakshinAyanA (southerly))
2 ayanAs = 1 year.
The purAnAs and the vEdA offer an even more minute understanding of time. Though we do not use such miniscule measures on a daily basis, they are revealed in the scriptures. Starting from a trasarEnu (extremely subtle) which is said to be the combination of 6 celestial atoms! The time that is needed to integrate 6 such trasarEnus is known as truti ( 1/1687.5th of a second!!) These measures are way smaller than even a nimEshA or the time taken for a blink of an eye. As 100 trutis make one vEdhA. 3 vEdhAs make one lavA. 3 lavAs make one nimEshA or the blink of an eye!And so on to make the full period of a day. Anyway, I digress.....
One human year that is made of 2 ayanAs is equal to one day(incl night) of the dEvAs or the celestial beings. That is, one ayanA is the day and the second ayanA is the night. The time of the dEvAs(celestials) and the asurAs (their 'darker' cousins) is mutually oppossed - i.e. day for dEvAs is night for asurAs and night for dEvAs is day for asurAs.
30 such dEvA days make one dEvA month (much like our own!). So we have now on this time scale - 30 human years = one dEvA month. 12 such dEvA months make one dEvA year or divine year. Which if we calculate, is equal to (30X12 = 360 human years). The life span of the dEvAs is 100 dEvA years. Which in human time is 360 X 100 or 36,000 human years.
Next in order, we can see the description of yugAs (roughly translated as epochs?). The hindu system reveals that there are 4 yugAs, which proceed in a cyclic fashion. They are
satya yugA or krita yugA
trEtA yugA
dwApara yugA
kali yugA
These four yugAs are not equal - i.e. their duration is varied. The first yugA known as satya yugA is the longest period and as it proceeds the time span of each yugA gets lesser and lesser. We will next see how many years these yugAs are composed of -
satya yugA = 4800 dEvA varshAs or dEvA years = 17,28,000 human years.
trEtA yugA = 3600 dEvA years = 12,96,000 human years.
dwApara yugA = 2400 dEvA years = 8,64,000 human years.
kali yugA = 1200 dEvA years = 4,32,000 human years.
One cycle of these four yugAs is known as one chaturyugA or mahAyugA. Thus, we see that
one chaturyugA = 12,000 divine years = 43,20,000 human years!
In the bagawad gItA, we see the statement ''"sahasra-yuga paryantam ahar-yad brahmano viduh", - which reveals that 1000 mahAyugAs/ chaturyugAs is one day of brahmA. In more simpler (if such a thing is possible!) terms - we have seen above that 4.32 million human years makes one chaturyugA. So with 1000 such chaturyugAs we will have 4.32 billion human years (432 thousand crore) to be one day of brahmA. This period is known as kalpA. brahmA's night is also of the same duration as his day. So we can see that 2 kalpAs (i.e. 864 thousand crore human years) is one sidereal day of brahmA.
2 kalpAs = 1 day (and night) of brahmA = 2,40,00,000 dEvA years = 2,40,00,000 X 360 human years
30 brahmA days = 1 brahmA month = 259.2 billion human years.
12 brahmA months = 1 brahmA year = 3.1104 trillion human years.
brahmAs full life span is 100 brahmA years. This period of 100 brahmA years is divided into 2 parArdhAs of 50 brahmA years each.
100 brahmA years (the life span of brahmA) = 311.04 trillion human years!!
Now coming back to the time called kalpA, which is one day of brahmA - the creation/manifestation of the universe begins at the dawn of brahmAs day and culminates at the start of brahmAs night. The universe is veiled or dissolved during the period of his night. So for one kalpA the world is manifest and for the same period (1 kalpA) the universe lies dissolved. The next morning of brahmA He goes about the business of creating/revealing the universes again.....and so on for 100 brahmA years.
1 kalpA = 1 day of brahmA = 1000 chaturyugAs = 1,20,00,000 dEvA years = 4.32 billion human years.
This day of brahmA is divided into 10,000 parts known as charanAs and we can see that satya yugA has 4 charanAs, trEtA has 3, dwAparA has 2 and kali has 1 charanA.
71 chaturyugAs (or cycles of the above mentioned 4 yugAs) = 1 manvantarA .
Each manvantrA is ruled by a manU. During his 1 day brahmA creates 14 such manUs, who rule the 14 manvantrAs in each kalpA.
At the end of each manvantrA (71 chaturyugAs) we have something known as sandhi kAlA. This period of time known as sandhi kAlA is of the same duration as on satya yugA (4800 dEvA varshAs or dEvA years = 17,28,000 human years). During this period of time, the earth lies submerged in water and is brought forth yet again at the end of the sandhi kAlA. There is also something else known as Adi sandhi which is also equal to 17,28,000 human years which occurs at the begenning of the kalpA.
So we now have the kalpA which consists of - 1X Adi sandhi + 14 manvantrAs + 14 sandhIs
kalpA = 14 manvantarAs + 15 sandhIs (each composed of 4 charanAs)
kalpA = 994 chaturyugAs + 60 charanAs = 994 chaturyugAs + 6 X 10 charanAs (note each chaturyugA has 10 charanAs)
kalpA = 994 chaturyugAs + 6 chaturyugAs = 1000 chaturyugAs.
Now that the vast context of time is set, we can proceed to see our present position in this frame. Those of you who have paid some attention to the mantrA in the samkalpA (shubhE shObanE.....) will be able to realise what those terms like shwEtavarAha kalpE etc mean!!
Our current brahmA is 50 years old (50 brahmA years) already. Meaning 50 brahmA years out of his allotted 100 have already elapsed. We are currently in the first day of his 51st year. (refer - dwitIya parArdhE, meaning 2nd parArdhA where we have already seen 1 parArdha = 50 brahmA years). The current day of brahmA (i.e. current kalpA) is known as shwEtavarAha kalpA (refer - shwEtavarAha kalpE). Within this one day of brahmA, the rule of 6 manUs has already elapsed (we saw before that each kalpA has 14 manUs, who each rule for a period known as manvantrA), and we are now in the period of rule of the 7th manU who is known as vaivasvathA. So this seventh manvantrA is known as vaivasvatha manvantrA (refer . vaivasvatha manvantrE) . Within this particular manvantrA the period equal to 27 chaturyugAs (i.e. full cycles of all 4 yugAs) has already elapsed and in the 28th chaturyugA the satya, trEtA and dwApara yugAs have also elapsed. Thus we are currently in the kali yugA period of the 28th chaturyugA (refer. ashtAvimshadadimE kaliyugE). According to the experts in such calculations this current kali yugA began in the year 3012 BC (in the julian system of numbering), on the midnight of the 18th of febraury.
Thus we have that 5112 years have already passed in the current kali yugA and the 5113 rd year in kali has just been born. And if we were to do the sums to calculate the age of the current brahmA in human years :
3.1104 trillion human years = 1 brahmA year
155.52 trillion human years = 50 brahmA years (which have elapsed)
1.973 billion human years = 6 manvantrAs already past including the relevant sandhi kAlAs of this current kalpA/day.
116.640000 million human years = 27 chaturyugAs that have also elapsed in the current manvantrA.
3.888 million human years = the 3 yugAs that have already elapsed in the current chaturyugA (the 28th).
5112 human years = the time elapsed since the birth of the current kali yugA.
So the current age of the present brahmA = 155.52 trillion human years!!
In case your head is reeling from all this complicated math, I leave you with something to cheer you up.
According to our sAstrAs, there is simply no end to the worlds. We are in effect immortal - really! And as we saw before 1 kali yugA has 4,32,000 human years and we are only a mere 5112 years gone into it. So there are 4,26,888 human years before even a temporary end of the world while we switch to the next yugA in the current manvantrA. Even our current manU (the 7th one of 14 such manUs), has only exhausted 27 and with the end of this current yugA, will have exhausted 28 chaturyugAs out of his allotted 71 - so that leaves us 43 more chaturyugAs under the same manU vaivasvathA, before a long sandhI period where the earth will stay submerged in water until the birth of the next manvantrA. Then we have 7 more manUs to go only within this day (kalpA) of brahmA!! After a similarly long night of brahmA, we will proceed to the 2nd day of our current brahmAs 51st year.....and then the 3rd day and so on. Finally,after almost another 155.52 trillion human years this present brahmAs time of 100 years will be up. That means nothing to you and me, as after this brahmA there will simply be another brahmA who will also live 100 brahmA years and we'll be back again to enjoy the fruits of our accumulated karmA!!
The next time you wish for eternity - please think! It really is a long long time!
Thursday, April 01, 2010
Haiku
Srigurubhyo namaha.
Apparently, a Haiku must have a word (or more) in it to specify the season it was written in! It could be the obvious words like spring,summer etc or it could be something that is a clear reference to the season like snow, golden leaves, etc. There are examples of even more oblique references to seasons with the use of specific moods etc. I never knew that. I have always fancied myself a Haiku poet! I often find myself thinking of my everyday activities and the numerous moods that life brings in the metre of Haiku's. Five, Seven, Five. Five, Seven, Five.
The familiar rhythm. The Haiku is like a lovers heartbeat. Odd yet strangely symmetrical. Unlike the ballads and epic poems which wax lyrical for eons on end, the Haiku is like a stolen kiss. Discreet and quick. It is as if the brevity of a Haiku is inversely proportional to the depth of its message. They manage to set the scene, introduce the characters, and get to the climax (or anticlimax, as the case may be) all within the allocated 17 syllable quota. Like short films or short stories that strangely manage to deliver a better resonance when compared to a novel or feature length film, the Haiku is a potent medium of communicating thought. It is no surprise that there exists a voluminous collection of Zen teachings and observations immortalised and passed on through Haiku's.
Another thing that I recently learnt about the Haiku is that it has to be clearly divided into two parts. Though there must also be a clear connection between the two distinct parts, as if the two parts are entwined in an embrace that lasts an eternity.
Keeping in mind these newly learned concepts that are fundamental to a 'proper' Haiku, a humble attempt by yours truly -
'' Cherry blossoms bloom.
Though the discontent and gloom-
leave for love, no room. ''
Friday, February 26, 2010
Marriage.
Sri gurubhyo namaha.
' If I had just shoved a knife into her heart the day I met her, I would be a free man by now!' He said, as he introduced his wife with nothing more than the above few words. Accumulated wisdom, born from the toil of a marriage that spanned decades, was at once evident. His wife didn't seem to mind the introduction too much and had an expression on her face that suggested that this was not the first time she had heard him say this.
' Marriage', he began again, ' is not a word. It is a sentence'. Ha ha ha. He seemed to be enjoying himself thoroughly. The two empty and one half full pint glasses of Guinness on the table, perhaps the reason for his state of elation. But the real reason for his jovial mood lay in the fact that I had approached him for some advice - being the wise, old neighbourhood know it all, he was at his best when he was trying to offer advice on just about anything to anybody within earshot. And, it didn't bother him in the slightest if nobody paid even the slightest bit of attention to his ministrations. Truly, he was wise!
I was about to get married to the woman who was the love of my life. Just so you don't get a wrong idea about me - she was the only woman in my life. Like most of you out there, I too was smitten by the fragrant arrows of Cupid (once)! And like most who are so smitten, I was busy planning my whole life ahead with this woman. Naturally, getting married to her was high on the agenda. The powerful hand of Fate had brought me face to face with the woman who until then was only the woman of my dreams. She ticked all the right boxes! I was surely not going to miss the boat with this one. So, we decided that we will get married and we had chosen the date for the wedding. And here I was, in a pub, listening to sagely advice on being married from a highly inebriated yet very affable ould sod.
'Listen to me carefully, young chap', he continued earnestly, ' look at me. I have been married to her over there for over fifty years now. And not a day goes by when I don't wake up in the morning and think, oh God, what have I done!' Even this Guinness inspired confession from the old man did not attract any notice from his wife - obviously, they were a couple who knew each other quite well. ' Don't waste your life in the search of suburban bliss', said he, ' remain till the end of your days a single man. Live your life as a free man.'
Thankfully for me, I didn't listen to his advice. Nor did I pay any attention to the words of many a great Hindu sage. Selfishly, I listened only to the thud thud of my heart. And the words of the prophet Khalil Gibran -
You were born together, and together you shall be forevermore.
You shall be together when the white wings of death scatter your days.
Aye, you shall be together even in the silent memory of God.
But let there be spaces in your togetherness, And let the winds of the heavens dance between you.
Love one another, but make not a bond of love. Let it rather be a moving sea between the shores of your souls.
Fill each other's cup but drink not from one cup.
Give one another of your bread but eat not from the same loaf.
Sing and dance together and be joyous, but let each of you be alone, Even as the strings of a lute are alone though they quiver with the same music.
Give your hearts, but not into each other's keeping.
For only the hand of Life can contain your hearts.
And stand together, yet not too near together.
For the pillars of the temple stand apart, And the oak tree and the cypress grow not in each other's shadow.
And now, I am a happily (well, almost) married man and the proud father of three fine children! Eleven years to this exact day have I been married. We have walked through life, hand in hand, through thick and thin and I have to admit it has been the best thing I ever did in my life!
PS. To my lovely wife of eleven years,
If you are reading this - I love you.
Thursday, December 24, 2009
Snow! (and Christmas)
Sri gurubhyo namaha.
Hello there readers! It's been a while...quite a while, really. I know.
Snow is so magical. Its not pompous, like the rain, arriving with much fanfare...loud claps of thunder, the dark ominous and over bearing clouds. A light display with a psychedelic flash here and a dazzle there. No. Snow is more cultured. A lady.
She arrives so silently. Not only not making any noise herself, but even going so far as to soften the clamour of every day life. Snowflakes, snow flakes - lighter than the feathers in a new born angels wing. Each flake, a structure so perfect and echoing the Crystal, reveal worlds inside worlds. Each of them perfect.
The familiar suddenly becomes filled with mystery. A sense of deep calm and a stilling of time. A back garden here becomes a winter wonderland, and the way to the bus becomes Alice's pipe dream! The light gets peculiar and the nights feel whiter. And there is twinkle, twinkle everywhere. Ah, snow. Wonderful Snow.
Without any further meandering..............
Here's wishing you and yours a very Happy Christmas and a peaceful New Year!! May it bring you ever closer to your Self.
Hello there readers! It's been a while...quite a while, really. I know.
Snow is so magical. Its not pompous, like the rain, arriving with much fanfare...loud claps of thunder, the dark ominous and over bearing clouds. A light display with a psychedelic flash here and a dazzle there. No. Snow is more cultured. A lady.
She arrives so silently. Not only not making any noise herself, but even going so far as to soften the clamour of every day life. Snowflakes, snow flakes - lighter than the feathers in a new born angels wing. Each flake, a structure so perfect and echoing the Crystal, reveal worlds inside worlds. Each of them perfect.
The familiar suddenly becomes filled with mystery. A sense of deep calm and a stilling of time. A back garden here becomes a winter wonderland, and the way to the bus becomes Alice's pipe dream! The light gets peculiar and the nights feel whiter. And there is twinkle, twinkle everywhere. Ah, snow. Wonderful Snow.
Without any further meandering..............
Here's wishing you and yours a very Happy Christmas and a peaceful New Year!! May it bring you ever closer to your Self.
Wednesday, October 28, 2009
May I be Many.
Srigurubhyo namaha
Deep within the dark womb
of a galaxy far beyond -
Existence.
Neither awake nor asleep,
Being, suspended before the advent of Time.
Existed.
The raging fires burnt it not.
Eventual rays from a distant moon,
Excite. Rhythm rising to a hissing swoon.
Throbbing, fast building to the Boon.
Germ of Desire -
Born of Fire.
" May I be Many "!
Power, veils the wielder -
And energy appears as matter.
Ether, Breath, transforming Fire,
with Water and Earth, appear.
Worlds are born
like oak from acorn.
Golden Egg of universes vast
Resting place of worlds past.
'Father', some say, 'Mother', say some -
Some, they see deeper.
Seek! You will grow wiser.
Power veils the Wielder -
Energy appears as Matter.
Saturday, September 12, 2009
Story of Prahlada - part 7
Srigurubhyo namaha.
The seventh installment of the story of prahlAdA as it appears in the srimadbagawatam.
The seventh installment of the story of prahlAdA as it appears in the srimadbagawatam.
Narada Muni continued: All the sons of the demons appreciated the transcendental instructions of Prahlada Maharaja and took them very seriously. They rejected the materialistic instructions given by their teachers, Shanda and Amarka.
When Shanda and Amarka, the sons of Sukracarya, observed that all the students, the sons of the demons, were becoming advanced in Krishna consciousness because of the association of Prahlada Maharaja, they were afraid. They approached the King of the demons and described the situation as it was.
When Hiranyakasipu understood the entire situation, he was extremely angry, so much so that his body trembled. Thus he finally decided to kill his son Prahlada. Hiranyakasipu was by nature very cruel, and feeling insulted, he began hissing like a snake trampled upon by someone's foot. His son Prahlada was peaceful, mild and gentle, his senses were under control, and he stood before Hiranyakasipu with folded hands. According to Prahlada's age and behavior, he was not to be chastised. Yet with staring, crooked eyes, Hiranyakasipu rebuked him with the following harsh words.
When Shanda and Amarka, the sons of Sukracarya, observed that all the students, the sons of the demons, were becoming advanced in Krishna consciousness because of the association of Prahlada Maharaja, they were afraid. They approached the King of the demons and described the situation as it was.
When Hiranyakasipu understood the entire situation, he was extremely angry, so much so that his body trembled. Thus he finally decided to kill his son Prahlada. Hiranyakasipu was by nature very cruel, and feeling insulted, he began hissing like a snake trampled upon by someone's foot. His son Prahlada was peaceful, mild and gentle, his senses were under control, and he stood before Hiranyakasipu with folded hands. According to Prahlada's age and behavior, he was not to be chastised. Yet with staring, crooked eyes, Hiranyakasipu rebuked him with the following harsh words.
Hiranyakasipu said: O most impudent, most unintelligent disruptor of the family, O lowest of mankind, you have violated my power to rule you, and therefore you are an obstinate fool. Today I shall send you to the place of Yamaraja.
My son Prahlada, you rascal, you know that when I am angry all the planets of the three worlds tremble, along with their chief rulers. By whose power has a rascal like you become so impudent that you appear fearless and overstep my power to rule you?
Prahlada Maharaja said: My dear King, the source of my strength, of which you are asking, is also the source of yours. Indeed, the original source of all kinds of strength is one. He is not only your strength or mine, but the only strength for everyone. Without Him, no one can get any strength. Whether moving or not moving, superior or inferior, everyone, including Lord Brahma, is controlled by the strength of the Supreme Personality of Godhead.
The Supreme Personality of Godhead, who is the supreme controller and time factor, is the power of the senses, the power of the mind, the power of the body, and the vital force of the senses. His influence is unlimited. He is the best of all living entities, the controller of the three modes of material nature. By His own power, He creates this cosmic manifestation, maintains it and annihilates it also.
Prahlada Maharaja continued: My dear father, please give up your demoniac mentality. Do not discriminate in your heart between enemies and friends; make your mind equipoised toward everyone. Except for the uncontrolled and misguided mind, there is no enemy within this world. When one sees everyone on the platform of equality, one then comes to the position of worshiping the Lord perfectly.
In former times there were many fools like you who did not conquer the six enemies that steal away the wealth of the body. These fools were very proud, thinking, "I have conquered all enemies in all the ten directions." But if a person is victorious over the six enemies and is equipoised toward all living entities, for him there are no enemies. Enemies are merely imagined by one in ignorance.
Hiranyakasipu replied: You rascal, you are trying to minimize my value, as if you were better than me at controlling the senses. This is over-intelligent. I can therefore understand that you desire to die at my hands, for this kind of nonsensical talk is indulged in by those about to die.
O most unfortunate Prahlada, you have always described a supreme being other than me, a supreme being who is above everything, who is the controller of everyone, and who is all-pervading. But where is He? If He is everywhere, then why is He not present before me in this pillar?
Because you are speaking so much nonsense, I shall now sever your head from your body. Now let me see your most worshipable God come to protect you. I want to see it.
Being obsessed with anger, Hiranyakasipu, who was very great in bodily strength, thus chastised his exalted devotee-son Prahlada with harsh words. Cursing him again and again, Hiranyakasipu took up his sword, got up from his royal throne, and with great anger struck his fist against the column.
Then from within the pillar came a fearful sound, which appeared to crack the covering of the universe. O my dear Yudhishthira, this sound reached even the abodes of the demigods like Lord Brahma, and when the demigods heard it, they thought, "Oh, now our planets are being destroyed!"
While showing his extraordinary prowess, Hiranyakasipu, who desired to kill his own son, heard that wonderful, tumultuous sound, which had never before been heard. Upon hearing the sound, the other leaders of the demons were afraid. None of them could find the origin of that sound in the assembly.
To prove that the statement of His servant Prahlada Maharaja was substantial -- in other words, to prove that the Supreme Lord is present everywhere, even within the pillar of an assembly hall -- the Supreme Personality of Godhead, Hari, exhibited a wonderful form never before seen. The form was neither that of a man nor that of a lion. Thus the Lord appeared in His wonderful form in the assembly hall.
While Hiranyakasipu looked all around to find the source of the sound, that wonderful form of the Lord, which could not be ascertained to be either a man or a lion, emerged from the pillar. In amazement, Hiranyakasipu wondered, "What is this creature that is half man and half lion?"
Hiranyakasipu studied the form of the Lord, trying to decide who the form of Nrisimhadeva standing before him was. The Lord's form was extremely fearsome because of His angry eyes, which resembled molten gold; His shining mane, which expanded the dimensions of His fearful face; His deadly teeth; and His razor-sharp tongue, which moved about like a dueling sword. His ears were erect and motionless, and His nostrils and gaping mouth appeared like caves of a mountain. His jaws parted fearfully, and His entire body touched the sky. His neck was very short and thick, His chest broad, His waist thin, and the hairs on His body as white as the rays of the moon. His arms, which resembled flanks of soldiers, spread in all directions as He killed the demons, rogues and atheists with His conchshell, disc, club, lotus and other natural weapons.
Hiranyakasipu murmured to himself, "Lord Vishnu, who possesses great mystic power, has made this plan to kill me, but what is the use of such an attempt? Who can fight with me?" Thinking like this and taking up his club, Hiranyakasipu attacked the Lord like an elephant.
Just as a small insect falls forcefully into a fire and the insignificant creature becomes invisible, when Hiranyakasipu attacked the Lord, who was full of effulgence, Hiranyakasipu became invisible. This is not at all astonishing, for the Lord is always situated in pure goodness. Formerly, during creation, He entered the dark universe and illuminated it by His spiritual effulgence.
Thereafter, the great demon Hiranyakasipu, who was extremely angry, swiftly attacked Nrisimhadeva with his club and began to beat Him. Lord Nrisimhadeva, however, captured the great demon, along with his club, just as Garuda might capture a great snake.
O Yudhishthira, O great son of Bharata, when Lord Nrisimhadeva gave Hiranyakasipu a chance to slip from His hand, just as Garuda sometimes plays with a snake and lets it slip from his mouth, the demigods, who had lost their abodes and who were hiding behind the clouds for fear of the demon, did not consider that incident very good. Indeed, they were perturbed.
When Hiranyakasipu was freed from the hands of Nrisimhadeva, he falsely thought that the Lord was afraid of his prowess. Therefore, after taking a little rest from the fight, he took up his sword and shield and again attacked the Lord with great force.
Making a loud, shrill sound of laughter, the Supreme Personality of Godhead, Narayana, who is extremely strong and powerful, captured Hiranyakasipu, who was protecting himself with his sword and shield, leaving no gaps open. With the speed of a hawk, Hiranyakasipu moved sometimes in the sky and sometimes on the earth, his eyes closed because of fear of Nrisimhadeva's laughter.
As a snake captures a mouse or Garuda captures a very venomous snake, Lord Nrisimhadeva captured Hiranyakasipu, who could not be pierced even by the thunderbolt of King Indra. As Hiranyakasipu moved his limbs here, there and all around, very much afflicted at being captured, Lord Nrisimhadeva placed the demon on His lap, supporting him with His thighs, and in the doorway of the assembly hall the Lord very easily tore the demon to pieces with the nails of His hand.
Lord Nrisimhadeva's mouth and mane were sprinkled with drops of blood, and His fierce eyes, full of anger, were impossible to look at. Licking the edge of His mouth with His tongue, the Supreme Personality of Godhead, Nrisimhadeva, decorated with a garland of intestines taken from Hiranyakasipu's abdomen, resembled a lion that has just killed an elephant.
The Supreme Personality of Godhead, who had many, many arms, first uprooted Hiranyakasipu's heart and then threw him aside and turned toward the demon's soldiers. These soldiers had come in thousands to fight with Him with raised weapons and were very faithful followers of Hiranyakasipu, but Lord Nrisimhadeva killed all of them merely with the ends of His nails.
The hair on Nrisimhadeva's head shook the clouds and scattered them here and there, His glaring eyes stole the effulgence of the luminaries in the sky, and His breathing agitated the seas and oceans. Because of His roaring, all the elephants in the world began to cry in fear.
Airplanes were thrown into outer space and the upper planetary system by the hair on Nrisimhadeva's head. Because of the pressure of the Lord's lotus feet, the earth appeared to slip from its position, and all the hills and mountains sprang up due to His intolerable force. Because of the Lord's bodily effulgence, both the sky and all directions diminished in their natural illumination.
Manifesting a full effulgence and a fearsome countenance, Lord Nrisimha, being very angry and finding no contestant to face His power and opulence, then sat down in the assembly hall on the excellent throne of the king. Because of fear and obedience, no one could come forward to serve the Lord directly.
Hiranyakasipu had been exactly like a fever of meningitis in the head of the three worlds. Thus when the wives of the demigods in the heavenly planets saw that the great demon had been killed by the personal hands of the Supreme Personality of Godhead, their faces blossomed in great joy. The wives of the demigods again and again showered flowers from heaven upon Lord Nrisimhadeva like rain.
At that time, the airplanes of the demigods, who desired to see the activities of the Supreme Lord, Narayana, crowded the sky. The demigods began beating drums and kettledrums, and upon hearing them the angelic women began to dance, while the chiefs of the Gandharvas sang sweetly.
My dear King Yudhishthira, the demigods then approached the Lord. They were headed by Lord Brahma, King Indra and Lord Siva and included great saintly persons and the residents of Pitriloka, Siddhaloka, Vidyadhara-loka and the planet of the snakes. The Manus approached, and so did the chiefs of various other planets. The angelic dancers approached, as did the Gandharvas, the Caranas, the Yakshas, the inhabitants of Kinnaraloka, the Vetalas, the inhabitants of Kimpurusha-loka, and the personal servants of Vishnu like Sunanda and Kumuda. All of them came near the Lord, who glowed with intense light. They individually offered their obeisances and prayers, their hands folded at their heads.
Lord Brahma prayed: My Lord, You are unlimited, and You possess unending potencies. No one can estimate or calculate Your prowess and wonderful influence, for Your actions are never polluted by the material energy. Through the material qualities, You very easily create the universe, maintain it and again annihilate it, yet You remain the same, without deterioration. I therefore offer my respectful obeisances unto You.
Lord Siva said: The end of the millennium is the time for Your anger. Now that this insignificant demon Hiranyakasipu has been killed, O my Lord, who are naturally affectionate to Your devotee, kindly protect his son Prahlada Maharaja, who is standing nearby as Your fully surrendered devotee.
King Indra said: O Supreme Lord, You are our deliverer and protector. Our shares of sacrifices, which are actually Yours, have been recovered from the demon by You. Because the demoniac king Hiranyakasipu was most fearsome, our hearts, which are Your permanent abode, were all overtaken by him. Now, by Your presence, the gloom and darkness in our hearts have been dissipated. O Lord, for those who always engage in Your service, which is more exalted than liberation, all material opulence is insignificant. They do not even care for liberation, not to speak of the benefits of kama, artha and dharma.
All the saintly persons present offered their prayers in this way: O Lord, O supreme maintainer of those sheltered at Your lotus feet, O original Personality of Godhead, the process of austerity and penance, in which You instructed us before, is the spiritual power of Your very self. It is by austerity that You create the material world, which lies dormant within You. This austerity was almost stopped by the activities of this demon, but now, by Yourself appearing in the form of Nrisimhadeva, which is meant just to give us protection, and by killing this demon, You have again approved the process of austerity.
The inhabitants of Pitriloka prayed: Let us offer our respectful obeisances unto Lord Nrisimhadeva, the maintainer of the religious principles of the universe. He has killed Hiranyakasipu, the demon who by force enjoyed all the offerings of the sraddha ceremonies performed by our sons and grandsons on the anniversaries of our death and who drank the water with sesame seeds offered in holy places of pilgrimage. By killing this demon, O Lord, You have taken back all this stolen property from his abdomen by piercing it with Your nails. We therefore wish to offer our respectful obeisances unto You.
The inhabitants of Siddhaloka prayed: O Lord Nrisimhadeva, because we belong to Siddhaloka, we automatically achieve perfection in all eight kinds of mystic power. Yet Hiranyakasipu was so dishonest that by the strength of his power and austerity, he took away our powers. Thus he became very proud of his mystic strength. Now, because this rogue has been killed by Your nails, we offer our respectful obeisances unto You.
The inhabitants of Vidyadhara-loka prayed: Our acquired power to appear and disappear in various ways according to varieties of meditation was banned by that foolish Hiranyakasipu because of his pride in his superior bodily strength and his ability to conquer others. Now the Supreme Personality of Godhead has killed him just as if the demon were an animal. Unto that supreme pastime form of Lord Nrisimhadeva, we eternally offer our respectful obeisances.
The inhabitants of Nagaloka said: The most sinful Hiranyakasipu took away all the jewels on our hoods and all our beautiful wives. Now, since his chest has been pierced by Your nails, You are the source of all pleasure to our wives. Thus we together offer our respectful obeisances unto You.
All the Manus offered their prayers as follows: As Your order carriers, O Lord, we, the Manus, are the law-givers for human society, but because of the temporary supremacy of this great demon, Hiranyakasipu, our laws for maintaining varnasrama-dharma were destroyed. O Lord, now that You have killed this great demon, we are in our normal condition. Kindly order us, Your eternal servants, what to do now.
The prajapatis offered their prayers as follows: O Supreme Lord, Lord of even Brahma and Siva, we, the prajapatis, were created by You to execute Your orders, but we were forbidden by Hiranyakasipu to create any more good progeny. Now the demon is lying dead before us, his chest pierced by You. Let us therefore offer our respectful obeisances unto You, whose incarnation in this form of pure goodness is meant for the welfare of the entire universe.
The inhabitants of Gandharvaloka prayed: Your Lordship, we ever engage in Your service by dancing and singing in dramatic performances, but this Hiranyakasipu, by the influence of his bodily strength and valor, brought us under his subjugation. Now he has been brought to this low condition by Your Lordship. What benefit can result from the activities of such an upstart as Hiranyakasipu?
The inhabitants of the Carana planet said: O Lord, because You have destroyed the demon Hiranyakasipu, who was always a stake in the hearts of all honest men, we are now relieved, and we eternally take shelter of Your lotus feet, which award the conditioned soul liberation from materialistic contamination.
The inhabitants of Yakshaloka prayed: O controller of the twenty-four elements, we are considered the best servants of Your Lordship because of rendering services pleasing to You, yet we engaged as palanquin carriers by the order of Hiranyakasipu, the son of Diti. O Lord in the form of Nrisimhadeva, You know how this demon gave trouble to everyone, but now You have killed him, and his body is mixing with the five material elements.
The inhabitants of Kimpurusha-loka said: We are insignificant living entities, and You are the Supreme Personality of Godhead, the supreme controller. Therefore how can we offer suitable prayers unto You? When this demon was condemned by devotees because they were disgusted with him, he was then killed by You.
The inhabitants of Vaitalika-loka said: Dear Lord, because of chanting Your spotless glories in great assemblies and arenas of sacrifice, we were accustomed to great respect from everyone. This demon, however, usurped that position. Now, to our great fortune, You have killed this great demon, exactly as one cures a chronic disease.
The Kinnaras said: O supreme controller, we are ever-existing servants of Your Lordship, but instead of rendering service to You, we were engaged by this demon in his service, constantly and without remuneration. This sinful man has now been killed by You. Therefore, O Lord Nrisimhadeva, our master, we offer our respectful obeisances unto You. Please continue to be our patron.
The associates of Lord Vishnu in Vaikuntha offered this prayer: O Lord, our supreme giver of shelter, today we have seen Your wonderful form as Lord Nrisimhadeva, meant for the good fortune of all the world. O Lord, we can understand that Hiranyakasipu was the same Jaya who engaged in Your service but was cursed by brahmanas and who thus received the body of a demon. We understand that his having now been killed is Your special mercy upon him.
...................to be contd.....................
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