mantra jaap

Mantra pujas the dos and don’ts

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I wrote about practicing the Gayatri mantra daily and there were several questions, thus this generic post.

Everyone above the age of 6yrs should take up one mantra or stotra as a life time thing. ie Recite it every day during your daily puja routine. Choose this as per your convenience and inclination but dedicate yourself to this mantra, your life line for this lifetime. When you do a mantra jaap regularly, you are actually working very hard, focussing your mind, body and soul on this mantra daily for a few mins. This regular practice adds up over your lifetime. Eg exercising daily for 15mins is more sensible and useful than working out once a month for nonstop 24hrs. The mantra is pure Intelligence, it magnifies the work you have done on it and reflects it back at you.

The quantum of energy does not matter as much as your conscious control over your own Mind does. Read this line twice. 

Eg. someone I know, does intense jaap of Navavaran mantra but without the necessary lifestyle to be able to absorb such enormous amounts of energy. This has affected her negatively, her mind has become unstable. Generating power from intense mantras is dangerous if you cannot control it.

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Sadhana is something that genuine aspirants, Sadhaks or people with a genuine ascetic bent of mind do. They will invest time, energy and sacrifice several things in this process. For doing Sadhanas, you need combinations for asceticism in your chart. Intense Sadhana creates Nivrutti in the mind of the aspirant, ie detachment from the material, from the Game of Creation, from the Lila. This intensity is not for everyone. And, in fact, it is not even necessary for everyone.

So when it comes to spiritual practice, do only that much which you can easily do. You should feel happy when you do it. If you ever feel that it is a burden, review and reduce the practices. Rather than trying for ‘high power’ mantra which others recommend, do what you feel is the best for you even if it is for a few minutes, eg do it for 3 repeats if you feel 108 repeats is too much. But do something daily.

Generally gruhast ie householders do not do such Sadhana. What we do is, perform our daily puja and sometimes Anushthans, ie a targeted pujas. Daily puja would be something quite brief, 10mins max, generally lighting a deepak, putting tilak, putting flowers and doing Arti of the family gods. Daily pujas do not have many rules and are simple. Anushthans are more intense and last for a few days. eg I might intend to do a Gayatri Laghu Anushthan, ie 24000 repeats of the mantra in 9 days of the Ashwin Navratri. In these 9 days I will be bound by several restrictions. I will follow these rules to safely channelise the energy I generate with this mantra into my body. As a householder we are used to certain habits which we cannot continue when we take up targeted Anushthans. The rules vary in the different Anushthans but there are common themes. The first restriction will be on food, ie tamasic foods like non-veg, brinjal, heavy pulses like masoor, highly oily food, very spicy food, alcohol and other addictive substances, food cooked by others etc will stop. Eating ghee, milk from desi cows, eat food you cook yourself, keeping to yourself, not speaking much, not touching random people, shaking hands etc or travelling in crowded public transport will not be possible, physical intimacy with your spouse will stop for that time. Sticking to the schedules determined by your Anushthan will be necessary. You have to discipline your body first, this discipline will then more inwards as the mind gets disciplined. Thus you will get the results of the Anushthan.

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Common householders/ gruhast, cannot channelise much power, ie the entire ocean cannot be poured into a small cup. Householders are tiny cups, highly insufficient to hold the power of the mantras in their full-fledged form. So gruhast people are encouraged to slowly increase their capacity with all these festivals we have in the Sanatan Dharma. And we have a festival practically every fortnight. As you do the pujas associated with these festivals throughout the year, every year, you are actually training your mind. In Sanatan Dharma we have a plethora of options. You can choose your favourite deity, source of faith as per your wish. The beauty of Sanatan Dharma is that no one can compel you. You are responsible for your own actions and are required to follow your own Conscience at all times. We have the most beautiful life possible, genuinely happy from the inside. Our festivals are the backbone of our society. We worship pure nature, ie the Samudra Sea on Narali pournima, the Mountains on Govardhan puja, the Sun on Makar sankranti or Ratha saptami, Dawn and Dusk on Chatt puja, the Moon on Kojagiri pournima etc. We worship our Rivers, Sarasvati, Ganga, Yamuna, Narmada etc as our mother, we adore them. We worship animals with equal fervour eg Snakes on Naag Panchami, Bulls on Pola etc and plants eg Banyan tree on Vat Savitri. We worship human like deities ie the embodiments of the three Gun, Satva Vishnu-Laxmi, Raja Brahmadev- Sarasvati, Tama Shankar-Parvati with the rest of the pantheon. We even worship Mathematics with the same devotion, the Shri yantra and the other yantra are complex geometry. We revere sound, light, vibrations, energy. We recognise Divinity embedded in every aspect of creation. We worship Intelligence because we intend to recognise that same Consciousness inside us.

In my blog I have mentioned a few stotra, mantra, sukta which can be taken up as a regular practice. This practice helps still the mind. If the mind is still, you are more Aware, more focussed on the Real. I have written briefly about several including the Amrit sukta, Shri Sukta, Purush Sukta, Mahamrutyunjai mantra, Gayatri mantra, Guru stotra, Teekshna Damshtra Bhairavashtakam, Chakshushi mantra, Navavarna mantra etc. And referred to several books like the Ved, Upanishad, Vijnyan Bhairav Tantra, Ramayan, Mahabharat, Devi Mahatmya etc. All mantra (except the Ajapa mantra and Om) are generally linked to a ray from the Eternal, ie a deity, an Aware Intelligent Consciousness. Eventually all merge into the same Eternal Advaita. It is so elegant.

I have written on Soham, the Ajapa mantra which my Satguru ‘gave’ to all his disciples, the easiest option. It gives control over the Mind, slowly and steadily with every breath you take. You gently train your mind to become aware of the most natural rhythm in the world, the rhythm of your own breath.

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Now for some specific dos and don’ts for women in general life. Two events in life are very stressful for women, the menstrual phase of the monthly cycle and the pregnancy.

I wrote a detailed post here on the restrictions during the menstrual phase of the monthly cycle, do go through it.

Next, during pregnancy, there are mantras and stotras which you can recite or listen for your and your baby’s well being during this time. Here your body is doing enormous amount of work. The astral bodies of the mother and child are highly intertwined.

  • So doing any sort of practice where you channelise mantra with your breath while sitting on the asan is not advisable. ie you can recite the Gayatri 3 times with your daily puja routine but do not sit on your asan and do a 108 jaap of the mantra with the breath. Or you can mentally recite Soham to relax your mind, but do not sit on your Asan for targeted 108 Soham sadhana. 
  • Then eclipses. If there are any eclipses visible in your town when you are pregnant, you must be very alert. Best would be to sit in front of your puja ghar/ altar and read something eg the Bhagvat Gita or recite or listen to mantra and stotra while the eclipse is on.
  • The Sutak time. In case there is a physical death in your close family ie this is the paternal family or after marriage husband’s paternal side of the family for married women, then from the day of the death till the pindadana on the 13th day, the dimensions of the spirits and humans, ie the Pitrulok and Martyalok are interconnected. This affects everyone in the family. If this event occurs in the same house you live in, try to keep away from the Anteyshti related activities as much as possible. A pregnant woman should not go for condolence visits to relatives or friend’s families, her husband can go if it is necessary.
  • The Natak time. Similarly if a new baby is born in your close family, then from the birth to the name ceremony day, again the dimensions are interconnected as the soul gets settled in his new life. This too is an intense time on the energy levels. A pregnant woman can see this new baby born in her family on the day of its Naamkaran sanskar.

Ideally a woman should stick to the daily pujas till the baby is 6 months old at least. Do not attempt Anushthans or other targeted practice during this time. This is the time when the baby is still absorbing your energy, ie breast feeding, and you are also working hard. So first focus on what the baby needs and on rebuilding your strength. After you do the Annaprashan Sanskar for the baby, if you feel up to it you can increase the intensity of your spiritual practice.

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For men, the life is interconnected with the Gayatri, as every boy above the age of 6yrs is entitled to the Yajnopaveet Sanskar. This means wearing the Yajnopaveet sutra for a life time and doing Sandhya Vandanam, ie Gayatri puja three times a day. Ask your father or paternal relatives for any restrictions or dos and don’ts as this often varies from family to family. If your parents have not done the Yajnopaveet Sanskar for you but you really want to do the Gayatri mantra in a formal manner then you can do a simple intention on an auspicious Sunday, consider the rising Sun as your Guru and start. Do this only if you really feel and your conscience agrees with it. Never do anything against the Antaratma, the inner voice. At the very least you can recite this mantra even once a day when you do your daily puja.

Generally for major Anushthans, if there is a Sutak or Natak period in your close family then you will temporarily stop your Anushthans till this period is on.

Then there are several dos and dont’s which vary from family to family. This is mostly linked to the culture and the family deities. eg in my family we never wear black colored clothes, as the family deity does not like it. So you will have to ask the elders in your paternal family or husband’s paternal family for any such typical things.

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The only requirement for a follower of Sanatan Dharma is that you have faith/ Shraddha in something. This can be in an external source, there are so many options. Or if you prefer, you can put your faith in your own Divinity, ie directly focus on the Eternal, the Advaita that you yourself are. Do not compare yourself with other’s. Don’t ever think that someone is doing so much and you are doing so little. This concept does not exist in Sanatan Dharma. Each one of us is an unique individual, but all linked to the same eternal foundation. We, the followers of Sanatan Dharma, adore Pure Intelligence in every way possible. Every route is acceptable, it only depends on the practitioner’s inclination and conscience.

Dasha Mahavidya and the 10 dimensions

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The 10 Mahavidya are the terrifying aspects of the Devi, the Prakruti, the manifested creation. Their names are Mahakali (Kali), Tara, Tripursundari (Shodashi), Bhuvaneshvari, Bhairavi, Chhinnamasta, Dhoomavati, Bagalamukhi (Valagamukhi), Matangi, and Kamala.

Some people consider the Mahavidya-s into two divisions, as the less strict Tara, Tripurasundari, Kamala, Bhuvaneshvari, and Matangi. And the more terrifying Kali, Dhoomavati, Bhairavi, Chhinamasta, and Bagalamukhi. In my opinion all are equally terrifying and you should not do anything with them unless you are 100% sure of what you are doing. They are very deeply linked into your energy. If you mess up here, it will take you several lives to recover. They are not just idols or representations, they are all aware and very fierce, Ugra.

  • Dasha दश – 10, time period, fate, condition, perception, edge, position, pin-point, etc
  • Maha महा – great, huge, vast, light, joy, seed, intelligence, extreme, etc
  • Vidya – विद्या knowledge, skill, magic, mantra, gain, that which ignites, existence, to unbind or make free, pierce, the present instant, the combined act of starting, existing and the conclusion all together, etc.

This is how the 10 Mahavidyas were created. The story/allegory as per the Devi Puran. Devi Shakti/ Sati married Shiv against the wishes of her family and went to live with him at Kailas. Sati’s father Prajapati Daksh later planned a massive Yadnya at Kankhal, Hardwar but he did not invite Sati-Shiv to the ceremony. He didn’t like Shiv and after her marriage, didn’t want to see Sati either. But Sati wanted to go. Shiv was like, ‘you haven’t been invited so you shouldn’t go’. But Sati got cross, her logic being that Daksh was her own father, so why does she need an invite to go to her father’s house! Sati, in her rage, then created the 10 Mahavidya-s and they all surrounded Shiv and argued on her behalf. Ultimately Shiv gave in and told her to do whatever she wanted to, but there would be problems. And there were terrible consequences later. (There is a deep esoteric meaning to all this.)

Dasha Mahavidya and the 10 dimensions

These दश महा विद्या are generally taken to represent the 10 disha दिशा. They are considered to be 10 physical directions, east, west, north, south, NE, NW, SE, SW, up and down. This word दिशा means direction, region, scene, assignment, exhibition and most importantly, dimension. There are 10 dimensions of this manifested creation represented by the 10 Mahavidya energies. Each dimension is intelligent, aware, conscious and full of energy. The conscious energies of the 10 manifested dimensions are the 10 Mahavidya. The Bindu is the conscious origin of everything and beyond the concept of ‘dimension’. Now modern quantum physics and the string theory has also calculated that there are 10 dimensions. Physics has become metaphysics and will ultimately become Sanatan Dharma as the scientists get more deeply into the nature of intelligence and consciousness. The 10 dimensions ie the Dasha Mahavidya are a play of space and time plus awareness, intelligence and consciousness. Each one of them is roaring with power. It is a heady and exciting feeling to be face to face with their Vigraha where you can feel their energy pulsing.

The 10 Mahavidyas are not just the dimensions, they are the actual pran/ vital energy flowing in your body. The five main pran, are Pran, Apan, Vyan, Saman, and Udan. Their five sub-pran/ upa-pran are Kurma, Naag, Devdatt, Krkara and Dhananjai. I have written about the five main pran in my post here. The Dasha Mahavidya-s are present in your body as these 10 pran types and connect your mind/ body to the 10 dimensions of the manifested creation.

  • Mahakali and Tara are located in the lower part of the body below the navel and reproductive systems as Apana and Kurma respectively.
  • Shodashi and Bhuvaneshwai are Prana and Naag respectively and located in the upper regions of the body above the navel.
  • Bhairavi and Chinnamasta are respectively Udan and Devdatta and these move upwards, they are more prominent in the throat and upper parts of the body.
  • Dhoomavati and Bagalamukhi reside in the navel region and expand outward from it as Saman and Krkara respectively.
  • Matangi and Kamala reside in the upper parts of the body including the head regions as Vyan and Dhananjai respectively.

The vital energies are derived from the source called the mukhya-pran ie OM. (Your soul is connected to the Bindu/Om, but to reach there the dimensions have to be navigated and their energies made use of first.)

Dasha Mahavidya and the 10 dimensions

We exist in each of these dimensions and also in the central Bindu which is beyond these dimensions. The 10 Mahavidyas and the Om are all within you. Their derived pran are also flowing within you. When you stand in front of the Vigraha of the Dasha Mahavidya-s or recite their mantras or do their Sadhana, you are working on your own energies in a very complicated way. You are entraining your vital energies to the dimensions. You are entraining your pran to the highest energies possible. eg If you are doing Bagalamukhi sadhana you will be focusing on the Saman and Krkara vayu-s and intensely linking them to the highest possible levels.

Mahavidya Sadhana or tantra is a part of the Shri-vidya. If you succeed you get a massive one-up. Tantra is an aspect of spiritual sadhana which is very rare now. There are rare Guru-s who know how to perform these rituals correctly and with the precise intention. And there are the rare aspirants who actually need to do these type of sadhanas. Generally 99.99% of us do not need to do Mahavidya related practices. The regular shaant/ benign forms of the Devi, ie Sarasvati, Laxmi and Parvati are more than sufficient for regular householders like us.

The internet has several dowsy sites which give tantric mantras for vashikaran, ucchatan, stambhan, etc. (There are 6 types of mantras.) I saw a video where the lady was giving out some creepy mantra for hypnotising someone. Someone else was saying that you don’t need a Guru for doing Bagalamukhi Sadhana and stuff. Avoid these sort of sites and their so-called mantra, you might get yourself and your target both into serious trouble.

If you are interested in doing any Sadhana related to the Mahavidyas, first entrain your energies to the Navavarna mantra. A initial 9 lakh repetition of the Navavarna is essential, else you might not be able to handle the further energies you evoke. eg Mahakali is the foremost Mahavidya. She is depicted in a very fierce manner. Her dangerous form is Smashan-Kali and her somewhat milder but still terrifying form is Dakshin-Kali. She is always depicted unclothed ‘dig-ambar’ दिगम्बर. She literally ‘wears the dimensions’, ‘clothed in the energy of space-time and more’, ‘secret of the dimensions’, ‘defined limits of manifested creation’. She is also the ‘inner core around which the manifested creation is created’. (I know an incident where the aspirant did an extremely complicated ritual to call Her. She came and asked him what he wanted. But the aspirant was so scared just seeing Her, that he ran away.) These rituals are a potent but often fraught with dangers. A specific life-style has to be adopted, there are strict energy rituals, specific and very typical ingredients, typical locations, then the appropriate time for doing this, etc are needed. Even the yantra or moorti/ vigraha that you will use as a focus point has to be made in a specific way. If you can use the mantra, tantra and yantra the way it is supposed to be, any of these Mahavidya-s can grant you everything including the ultimate Moksh.

Every aspect of Sanatan Dharm is designed to take you to your own reality, to achieve Moksh. Even from Ayurved, Rishi Patanjali has written that there are certain herbs Oushadhi, which if used in the correct way can grant deepest levels of Samadhi and further Moksh. But we do not have the herbs, nor the detailed knowledge on how to use them now. And the mantra, tantra and yantra system is also not available so easily. So in this present ‘modern age’ it is best to stick to Gayatri mantra and the Soham/ Hamsa practice. Focus on the the Bindu which is beyond the dimensions. This might take years or even a few lives, but you will reach there. The concepts of Kundalini, Moksh, Mahavidya-s, etc are not prizes, they cannot be shown-off as achievements. So be very clear why you want to do all this first, your intention and resolve will be tested on every step of the way.

 

Gayatri Mantra, Devi Sarasvati, Raja-gun and Agni

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There are three basic attributes Gun गुण, Satva, Raja and Tama. The Prakruti, ie the active energy who creates all the manifested is composed of these three building blocks. These three Gun form her ‘body’. When these three are perfectly balanced there is no creation. It is only when there is a spontaneous imbalance in these three, does further creation start. The entire creation is composed of the three Gun ie the Prakruti and this all exists within her. (The top-most dot of the Shri yantra is the unmanifest Ultimate and the next equilateral triangle represents the three Gun getting out of balance and creation starting.) So if you want to know your true reality, the three Gun have to be brought back into perfect balance by conscious use of pran/ vital energy.

Gayatri Mantra, Devi Sarasvati, Raja-gun and Agni

The conscious energy of Satva is called Vishnu/ Laxmi and this is linked to the Sun/ Surya. Vishnu is considered to be potential energy and thus masculine. Laxmi is the active principle thus considered feminine and the wife of Vishnu. The Raja gun has potential energy called Brahmadev and active energy called Sarasvati who is his wife. Raja Gun is connected to Agni/ Fire. The Tama gun is similarly linked to Shiv, his wife Shakti and the Moon/ Chandra.

These three Gun mix, suppress, produce, exist, support, separate, unite, recombine with each other in every way possible and in varying proportions to create the manifested reality. All things you see in this universe are created, maintained, evolved/destroyed because of these interactions. These three Gun are inter-linked and yet independent of each other.

  • Satva is the essence of intelligence, consciousness at all levels, it is linked to the deep pleasure of knowing that you are the Ultimate, it illuminates.
  • Raja is energy of motion and is linked to pain, it activates. This ‘pain’, is the pain which one feels when one is convinced that he is separated from the Ultimate.
  • Tama is the inertia of solidity, dullness and indicates delusion, it restrains.

If you study the process of creation, the Satva and Tama by themselves are inert, they are incapable of working by themselves. They are animated by the Raja gun. ‘Movement’ is the real reason creation occurs. Raja gun is the intelligent energy of movement. (What is the source of the spontaneous initial movement is something everyone has to experience for himself as it cannot be described in the language of the manifested creation. It was ‘before’ creation occurred.)

In your spiritual practice when your Kundalini crosses the Vahni mandal, the circle of conscious fire, the Vishnu granthi/knot and moves beyond the Muladhar and Swadhisthan chakras, you gain control over the Raja Gun. You gain control over the energy of movement. Now onwards the movement of your mind, body, internal pran remains in your conscious control. If you control ‘movement’ in its subtlest aspects, you can control everything. You can now move things, thoughts, emotions, vibrations, gross and subtle things with precise control. Or precisely stop their movements. This is a very important step in your spiritual progress. After this, your path gets slightly less bumpy. In the Bhagwat Gita, this step is described as the fall of Bhishma.

  • It is only Raja gun which has the energy to overcome the inertia of Tama. The solidity of Tama can be harnessed only by Raja. If Tama is the delusion that you are separate from the Ultimate Reality, then this delusion is also powered by Raja. Higher the energy of inertia, lower is the consciousness, lower is the life-form eg stones and soil. All resistance to movement and the stability of mass is Tama.

  • Raja is necessary for the Satva to operate. Raja provides a substratum for Satva gun to project its intelligence on. Satva is conscious intelligence, but it still needs the energy provided by Raja to display its intelligence, to move! If Satva is the understanding that you are the same as the Eternal Reality, then this is also powered by Raja. If the consciousness is powered higher, the inertia is lower and this self-awareness is higher eg aspirants on the spiritual path. All conscious creatures are more Satva – powered.

When you observe some thing, look for inertia, energy and consciousness. One will dominate over the other 2, this will be its predominant Gun. Everything can be classified as Satva-dominant, Raja-dominant or Tama-dominant. Even thoughts, emotions, the subtle to the gross, the tangible to the intangible is dominated by one of these three. You can observe yourself to know more about your overall tendency. This requires a lot of personal introspection and the ability to focus dispassionately.

  • Eg a stone has high inertia, lower energy and lowest intelligence, so it is Tama dominant.
  • Eg a genuinely kind and gracious human being will have lowest inertia, he has reduced inactivity. His mind will be less prone to random fluctuation as he focusses on his and others higher selves. Thus he becomes Satva-dominant. (You become kind when you realise that you and everything else is essentially the same).

Gayatri Mantra, Devi Sarasvati, Raja-gun and Agni

Raja is the energy present in the universe and the energy in all the things present in this universe. The energy of multiple forms of life and things we see are all products of Raja acting on Satva and Tama. Evolution, transformation, change and all its aspects are Raja. Fire, heat, force, motion, kinetic energy, electricity, magnetism, friction, etc is Raja. The pran/vital energy flowing in you is Raja. Understanding this concept is very important for the spiritual aspirant. If you can control the Raja gun, you can control the direction of your evolution. You can control the movement of pran in your body. Raja gun is the kinetic energy at all levels of existences.

Raja is Agni. Agni is the conscious energy of fire and is responsible for all kinds of movement and transformations at all levels. So we worship Agni in all ways possible. The Sanskrit mantras which we use also are fiery, they transform, push, pull, change, move. In all our compulsory ‘Right-Actions’, Sanskar, Fire /Agni is the witness. For any ritual in Sanatan Dharm, the presence of Agni is essential. There are 16 Sanskars in Sanatan Dharm aka Hinduism. The first is the Garbh-dharan Sanskar where the would-be parents are charged with energy so that they can conceive a happy healthy baby. And the last is the Anteyshti Sanskar where the discarded body is given to the conscious energies of Agni/ Fire and the flowing waters/ Aap.

Now the foundational mantra of Sanatan Dharm is the Gayatri mantra.

Om, Bhuh Bhuvah Swah, Om Tat Savitur Varenyam, Bhargo Devasya Dheemahi, Dhiyo Yo nah Prachodayat, Om.

ॐ भूः भुवः स्वः । ॐ तत्सवितुर्वरेण्यम । भर्गो देवस्य धीमहि। धियो यो नः प्रचोदयात॥ ॐ

This mantra is linked to the Devi Sarasvati. She is the active principle of Raja-gun. When you recite this mantra, do its jaap, and ultimately repeat it for 27 lakh times, you gain control over the Raja gun, the active principle of energy, transformation, creation and change. This is the biggest tool which you can possibly possess! Armed with this mantra, go on and do your spiritual practice and see how things move or stop moving as per your conscious will.

For boys a ‘Anushthan’ is performed at the age of 6-7yrs, this is called the Upnayan Sanskar or Yadnopavit or the ‘thread ceremony’. This is a ritual with intention that the boy will perform the 27 lakh times Gayatri mantra repeat in his life-time. For girls on the 6th birthday, she is taught the Gayatri mantra and she is also supposed to recite this 27 lakh times. In these ‘modern’ time, we have clean forgotten to teach our girls and even for the boys only few families do all this. It is a very great loss to humanity.

Gayatri Mantra, Devi Sarasvati, Raja-gun and Agni

People say in spiritual practice, ‘increase Satva-gun’ and ‘keep away from Tamasic stuff’. But how? You cannot increase Satva just like that as it is incapable of movement by itself. It is a lump of energy just sitting there! And how to reduce tama-gun or keep away from it? It is also a lump of energy sitting there. You have to move! Movement and complete control on movement is essential for spiritual practice. You have to start everything by application of Raja-gun. And Gayatri mantra is the most powerful way you can use Raja-gun consciously.

So recite the Gayatri mantra at least 27 times twice a day! It takes less than 5 minutes. Try to consciously invoke the power of Devi Sarasvati in yourself. She is the intelligent energy of motion, of Agni. She is the junior school teacher who starts you on your spiritual route. if you pass her test at the Brahma-granthi, you will be promoted. She will be followed by Devi Laxmi at middle-school, here the syllabus will be Satva-gun. If you transcend this, you will be allowed entry into high school where the syllabus will change to Tama-gun. Devi Shakti teaches high-school. The college teacher will be Devi Lalita Tripur-sundari herself. Once you pass her exams you realise that all through you yourself were your own teacher, you were the syllabus and you are everything and more.

But all this only after you first learn, understand and experience the Gayatri mantra in all its subtlety.

‘Saraswati namasyami, chetanam hrudi samsthitam’ सरस्वती नमसयामि चेतनाम ह्रदि संस्थितां  is how one of my favourite stotra-s on Sarasvati starts.

  • Sarasvati – Sarasvati is ‘celestial brilliance, intelligence flowing, movement, motion, power, expression’
  • Namasyami – Sarasvati is ‘the face, opening, entrance, presence of Ultimate.’ (The Ultimate is a paradox of illusion and wisdom united together. Depth of stillness and flowing movement together. The eternal unborn one in solitude)
  • Chetanaam – Sarasvati is ‘the consciousness, fire, awareness, conspicuously visible sentience’
  • Hrudi – She is the awareness ‘in the individual soul, in the the third eye Ajnya chakra, in the Center of this Ajnya chakra‘
  • Samsthitam – Sarasvati is ‘the foundation and conclusion’.

So Sarasvati is the flowing celestial intelligence of movement, at the opening of the route to the Ultimate. She is the ever alert fiery awareness at who is the foundation and also the conclusion of the individual soul.

The individual soul and its individual personal universe starts when Raja-gun spontaneously moves and creates an apparent separation from the Ultimate. Thus Devi Sarasvati is the energy who Creates. This duality ends when it knows its reality again at the conclusion of a process initiated again by Raja-gun ie Devi Sarasvati.

Gayatri Mantra, Devi Sarasvati, Raja-gun and Agni

(This is from the Sankhya, from Ayurved and some of my understanding and experience. I know that sometimes I write quite esoteric things which are not available on the Internet or elsewhere. It is my Karma to write, I do it for myself, to rebalance my karmic baggage. But if you are reading it, if it is your karma to read, then know that you should also actively try to practice. You cannot go onward in your spiritual practice just reading my experiences. So here is the Gayatri Ghanapath and its extended form. Close your eyes and listen to it. Feel its fire, its heat, its movement, let its rhythm move you.)