Namaste Sankarji,
Again, thank you for the good information on the early
translations/commentaries of the Durga Saptasati and for keeping the
bhava of Chandi Maa alive this Navaratri.

I was wondering if our group members could share about the first
time they chanted the Chandi? What was it like?

I chanted this book for the first time in Sept 2002 during the
Autumn Navaratri. I had been going to the Mandir for the last few
months and felt the excitement of everyone there - preparing for
Chandi, and Navaratri and ...of course I wanted a part of the
action. At Maa's suggestion, I had been chanting the Kavacham for a
few weeks by then and had been listening to Maa's singing the Siddha
Kunjika Stotram. And of course , the "ya devi" series was familiar
too...

So I sat down in front of my altar at home, full of good intentions.
An hour later and stumbling through the verses, I was SOOOO happy
when I encountered the Kavacham - I felt like I had seen a long lost
friend. And happy too when I came to the Argala stotram where the
refrain is simple and catchy "Give us your form, give us victory,
give us welfare , remove all hostility".

Then I plodded on, sad to leave these friendly chapters behind. Two
hours later, I encountered chapter 5, with its "ya devi" song.

By then, I must have changed positions any number of times, and
stumbled over the verses - felt like I was walking on rocks without
proper shoes, but my aim was to chant the book no matter what.

Another 2 hours later, comfortably leaning back against the wall and
legs stretched out, I finally encountered Siddha Kunjika and Arati
and FINIS ....

Whew, it took me more 5 hours and I went back and chanted it the
next day too. It wasnt any easier.

So I set it aside for a few months and nibbled on it - one chapter
at a time, just the seedha path, and so many variations of chanting
the book. And now it has become my good friend.

Maybe it is the vibrations that you mentioned in your post Sankarji,
but I have been watching myself over the last few months chanting
the Chandi . It has been my primary sadhana, although with a lot of
interruptions. The days that I do chant, I feel ready to cope with
anything. "Bring it on" I feel like saying. The days that I do NOT,
I start blaming God and karma and everything else.

So if nothing, chanting the Chandi gives me enormous faith and self
confidence. I see it spilling on my activities in the outer world.

I firmly believe in the words of Swamiji as he translates the Kilaka
Stotram in the Chandi. He says, "When the blessing of the Supreme
Sovereign is welfare, health, fulfillment, the destruction of all
enmity, and the ultimate liberation, why will mena not sing Her
praise?"

Why indeed?

JAI CHANDI MAA. May you give us renewed strength this Navaratri to
sing your praises.
Nanda

namaste nanda,
this will be my first
time (and it is a bit daunting).
--
Be Love,
Berijoy

Dear Nanda,
I had to laugh at your account, as I suspect most of us will
recognizing our own experience in yours, and our common struggles. For
the past five months I have been struggling with learning the chandi
and must admit I have managed the siddha path only a hand full of times
duriing the last few months. The interesting part was how many of the
chants I did know and had chanted numerous times before but the text.
chapter and verse has always illuleded me. In fact I remember the
unkind thoughts of "she must be crazy chanting the entire siddha path
in 2 hours" after one of your early emails.
However, I keep at it and one day she will be my best of friends for I
do feel compelled to learn the Chandi and very , connected with her.
This morning was my opening Sankalpa, which went fine but I did
struggle a bit during chapter one but not enough to turn on Swamiji to
get me through to the end.
Thank you all...l
And so tomorrow and the rest of the week I will start with the opening
mantras...invite Chandi to my place, continue onto the Devi Sloka and
....
Jai Maa Jai Swamiji
Grace
On 10/04/2005, at 12:33 PM, Nanda wrote:

>
>
> Namaste Sankarji,
> Again, thank you for the good information on the early
> translations/commentaries of the Durga Saptasati and for keeping the
> bhava of Chandi Maa alive this Navaratri.
>
> I was wondering if our group members could share about the first
> time they chanted the Chandi? What was it like?
>
> I chanted this book for the first time in Sept 2002 during the
> Autumn Navaratri. I had been going to the Mandir for the last few
> months and. felt the excitement of everyone there - preparing for
> Chandi, and Navaratri and ...of course I wanted a part of the
> action. At Maa's suggestion, I had been chanting the Kavacham for a
> few weeks by then and had been listening to Maa's singing the Siddha
> Kunjika Stotram. And of course , the "ya devi" series was familiar
> too...
>
> So I sat down in front of my altar at home, full of good intentions.
> An hour later and stumbling through the verses, I was SOOOO happy
> when I encountered the Kavacham - I felt like I had seen a long lost
> friend. And happy too when I came to the Argala stotram where the
> refrain is simple and catchy "Give us your form, give us victory,
> give us welfare , remove all hostility".
>
> Then I plodded on, sad to leave these friendly chapters behind. Two
> hours later, I encountered chapter 5, with its "ya devi" song.
>
> By then, I must have changed positions any number of times, and
> stumbled over the verses - felt like I was walking on rocks without
> proper shoes, but my aim was to chant the book no matter what.
>
> Another 2 hours later, comfortably leaning back against the wall and
> legs stretched out, I finally encountered Siddha Kunjika and Arati
> and FINIS ....
>
> Whew, it took me more 5 hours and I went back and chanted it the
> next day too. It wasnt any easier.
>
> So I set it aside for a few months and nibbled on it - one chapter
> at a time, just the seedha path, and so many variations of chanting
> the book. And now it has become my good friend.
> Maybe it is the vibrations that you mentioned in your post Sankarji,
> but I have been watching myself over the last few months chanting
> the Chandi . It has been my primary sadhana, although with a lot of
> interruptions. The days that I do chant, I feel ready to cope with
> anything. "Bring it on" I feel like saying. The days that I do NOT,
> I start blaming God and karma and everything else.
>
> So if nothing, chanting the Chandi gives me enormous faith and self
> confidence. I see it spilling on my activities in the outer world.
>
> I firmly believe in the words of Swamiji as he translates the Kilaka
> Stotram in the Chandi. He says, "When the blessing of the Supreme
> Sovereign is welfare, health, fulfillment, the destruction of all
> enmity, and the ultimate liberation, why will mena not sing Her
> praise?"
>
> Why indeed?
>
> JAI CHANDI MAA. May you give us renewed strength this Navaratri to
> sing your praises.
> Nanda
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
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Attachment: (text/enriched) [not stored]

Jai Maa
Namaste Lathaji,
November 2004 was the first time I chanted the
Chandi.
Bharat Patel

J A I M A A


J A I S W A M I J I

With Best Regards

--- In Devi_Mandir (AT) yahoogroups (DOT) com, our beloved sister "Nanda"
<chandimaakijai@y...> wrote:


"I was wondering if our group members could share about the first time
they chanted the Chandi? What was it like?"

I had read and studied the text of the Chandi for over a year before
Shree Maa and Swamiji called me to themselves, and I learned of the
great benefits of chanting it. My first time was for Navaratri in the
fall of 2003. I had never seen the introductory materials to the
Chandi before getting Swamiji's translation, so I was surprised and
delighted to see so much additional material. However, I chanted only
the 13 chapters for Navaratri. I fell in love with the book during
that week.

In January 2004, I loved the text so much that I wanted to memorize
it, and set out to do so (again, just the actual 13 chapters, with
introductions). After two months of working to memorize, I began to
realize that my focus had shifted from loving devotion to what I call
academic distance, and I did not like being there. So I set aside my
desire to memorize it and began to include parts of it in my morning
Durga Puja. I began to sing and pray the stutis to Maa, and my
devotion returned instantly. The more time I spend just loving and
adoring Maa, the more familiar all the Chandi becomes. I have chanted
through the 13 chapters many times, but this Navaratri will be the
first time I have chanted Swamiji's entire Chandi Path. I am chanting
early in the morning so I am completed by sunrise, then at mid-day I
am listening to Maa and Swamiji chanting it to me from the CD, and in
the evening I am reading aloud the English translation. That way, I
get a double blessing of the Sanskrit, and the understanding of the
meaning just before going to sleep.

I wish for all my beloved family the fullest and most beautiful
blessings of this Navaratri, and offer my eternal gratitude to Swamiji
for the text, to Nanda for her wonderful assistance, but most of all
to our Holy Mother Shree Maa who is the Eternal Chandi.

Offered in loving devotion,

Rick

Sometime in the spring of y2k after struggling with the Chandi in
bits and pieces for a number of months I decided to do it all in one
asanna. It took me close to six hours. From that point on I was able
to shave it down quite a bit. Repeated effort allowed me to
eventually get it down to an hour and a half. Later I returned to
the two hour range. Early on my swastika was done of a Japanese
buckwheat filled zafu. Now I sit on just an old black deerskin.

--- In Devi_Mandir (AT) yahoogroups (DOT) com, "Nanda" <chandimaakijai@y...>
wrote:
>
>
> Namaste Sankarji,
> Again, thank you for the good information on the early
> translations/commentaries of the Durga Saptasati and for keeping
the
> bhava of Chandi Maa alive this Navaratri.
>
> I was wondering if our group members could share about the first
> time they chanted the Chandi? What was it like?
>
> I chanted this book for the first time in Sept 2002 during the
> Autumn Navaratri. I had been going to the Mandir for the last few
> months and felt the excitement of everyone there - preparing for
> Chandi, and Navaratri and ...of course I wanted a part of the
> action. At Maa's suggestion, I had been chanting the Kavacham for
a
> few weeks by then and had been listening to Maa's singing the
Siddha
> Kunjika Stotram. And of course , the "ya devi" series was familiar
> too...
>
> So I sat down in front of my altar at home, full of good
intentions.
> An hour later and stumbling through the verses, I was SOOOO happy
> when I encountered the Kavacham - I felt like I had seen a long
lost
> friend. And happy too when I came to the Argala stotram where the
> refrain is simple and catchy "Give us your form, give us victory,
> give us welfare , remove all hostility".
>
> Then I plodded on, sad to leave these friendly chapters behind.
Two
> hours later, I encountered chapter 5, with its "ya devi" song.
>
> By then, I must have changed positions any number of times, and
> stumbled over the verses - felt like I was walking on rocks
without
> proper shoes, but my aim was to chant the book no matter what.
>
> Another 2 hours later, comfortably leaning back against the wall
and
> legs stretched out, I finally encountered Siddha Kunjika and Arati
> and FINIS ....
>
> Whew, it took me more 5 hours and I went back and chanted it the
> next day too. It wasnt any easier.
>
> So I set it aside for a few months and nibbled on it - one chapter
> at a time, just the seedha path, and so many variations of
chanting
> the book. And now it has become my good friend.
>
> Maybe it is the vibrations that you mentioned in your post
Sankarji,
> but I have been watching myself over the last few months chanting
> the Chandi . It has been my primary sadhana, although with a lot
of
> interruptions. The days that I do chant, I feel ready to cope with
> anything. "Bring it on" I feel like saying. The days that I do
NOT,
> I start blaming God and karma and everything else.
>
> So if nothing, chanting the Chandi gives me enormous faith and
self
> confidence. I see it spilling on my activities in the outer world.
>
> I firmly believe in the words of Swamiji as he translates the
Kilaka
> Stotram in the Chandi. He says, "When the blessing of the Supreme
> Sovereign is welfare, health, fulfillment, the destruction of all
> enmity, and the ultimate liberation, why will mena not sing Her
> praise?"
>
> Why indeed?
>
> JAI CHANDI MAA. May you give us renewed strength this Navaratri to
> sing your praises.
> Nanda