Guest guest Posted December 12, 2003 Report Share Posted December 12, 2003 This reminded me of an page "power of gayatri mantra" (http://members.rediff.com/akipeed/gayatri.htm) Relevant Excerpts from that page: ===== There is a Zen story about a poor man walking through the woods reflecting upon his many troubles. He stopped to rest against a tree, a magical tree that would instantly grant the wishes of anyone who came in contact with it. He realised he was thirsty and wished for a drink. Instantly a cup of cool water was in his hand. Shocked, he looked at the water, he decided it was safe and drank it. He then realised he was hungry and wished he had something to eat. A meal appeared before him. "My wishes are being granted," he thought in disbelief. "Well, then I wish for a beautiful home of my own," he said out loud. The home appeared in the meadow before him. A huge smile crossed his face as he wished for servants to take care of the house. When they appeared he realised he had somehow been blessed with an incredible power and he wished for a beautiful, loving, intelligent woman to share his good fortune. "Wait a minute, this is ridiculous," said the man to the woman. "I'm not this lucky. This can't happen to me." As he spoke...everything disappeared. He shook his head and said, "I knew it," then walked away thinking about his many troubles. There is a great truth hidden behind this simple Zen story. Our mind is like this magical tree. "Whatever the mind conceives and believes, it achieves." Since Vedic times, this universal truth has been understood by our rishis. Recitation of mantras is one of the tools for programming our unconscious minds. But alas, mantras are like the magical tree mentioned in the zen story narrated earlier. Mantras work for those who believe in their power. ===== dr_nachiketa <no_reply> wrote: Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted December 12, 2003 Report Share Posted December 12, 2003 Dear Respected Dr_Nachiketa: Everybody has a right to their opinion until they realize forthemselves. Any realization cannot happen without understanding, regardless of the subject matter. You Said: > I agree that Brahmins (means those who are duty bound to teach > spirituality to others) must know the meaning before they recite > shlokas. BUT a common person even without knowing the meaning, if > recites a mantra or Shloka (all shlokas too have some Beej mantras in > them), it certainly has effect on his Chitta (Sub-consc) > May be rather than saying "brahma" we shoould only start using the sanskrit root verb "bR^iH" (pronounced as bhruH), which will sound like a barking of dogs. The object of any "saadhana" is to elevate from lower level to attain higher level. Get promoted by the acquisition of skill and knowledge. A total blind faith to rituals was cleverly used by British to negate our cultural values and introduce the education that created a whole generation of technicians and scientists. Therefore propagating ignorance should always be the first order of business. adnyan hR^idayagr.nthi naasho mokshaada iti smR^ita || Meaning - Thus amputating the glands that screed the ignorance leads to moksha. Having said all that, You have every right to do whatever you think is correct. May be that is not your idea of "saadhana". I wish you well in you pursuits. Regards, Dr. Yadu , dr_nachiketa <no_reply> wrote: Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted December 12, 2003 Report Share Posted December 12, 2003 Power of Gayatri Mantra in the a is in the "REALIZATION" of it's significance. Sound from out-side has very little significance. Everyone knows the four kinds of mantra japa saadhana. shabdic, vachic, maanasiika and upaa.nsu. The higher Archie is in the reverse order (4->, 3->, 2-> & 1). If Sound vibration was supposed to be important than it would as been 1-> 2-> 3-> & 4. Kabir tells us - maalaa pherata juga gayaa, gayaa na manakaa phera | maNakaa-maNakaa chhoDade manakaa maNakaa phera || Meaning - Whole life time has gone in to performing the malaa japa. Leave that alone, instead recite the meaning as understood by your mind and keep on thinking about it. Pata~njala muni tellis tajapatadastabhaavanam || 1.28 || this means that the yogasutra advises and recommends the understanding the "bhavanaa" expressed in the mantra not the mechanical recitation. If these folks do not mean anything to you, then go ahead and perform the academic exercise of recitation. And weight for the lightening of realization to strike. Ishavaasya upaniShad tell us the ignorance will definetly lead you to darkest of dark corners. a.ndh.n tamah pravishnti ye.avidyaamupaasate || iiSh. 9 || When Buddha said "bddham saraNa.m gacchhami". buddha is referring to knowledge, that is what one has to surrender to, which is from within through realization. Regards, Dr. Yadu Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted December 12, 2003 Report Share Posted December 12, 2003 Dr Yadu, I am trying to find the connection between the posting you are replying to and your reply....well ... realization comes through practice of . I think a brahmin is just another name for a spiritual person. As a westerner i have no respect for the system of castes and i do not believe in brahmins. I do have a great deal of respect for wise and great souls though, even if they belong to the untouchables.... I am just trying to say that only superficial people, would give authority to a person just due to its caste. Its funny, i thought that castes dont exist in modern india and yet, it still is a subject. The matter of mantra cannot be argued, we all know the effects of mantra through our sadhna. Knowing the meaning is helpful but does not affect in any way the effectivity of the mantra. Unless your daily japa has proved something different, which i welcome you to share as your spiritual experience with us. I agree that the faith in the mantra does multiply its effectivity because faith is associated with strong pranic waves and thought streams, which can intensify the aura and change the vibrations of a person. I keep reading about the barking dogs....being unable to find the wisdom in it..... brahma is a name of god, if i were you i wouldnt try to invoke the etheric entity in myself coz you might perceive a dog... Attaining higher level makes a person tolerant and compassionate, not disrespectful and ironic. Noone talked about blind faith in rituals, we were just discussing about whether it makes a spiritual difference to know the meaning of not. It makes no difference. I have met poweful yogis who have had a very poor education and cannot write as "academically" as we do. However their spiritual powers were indescribably great. If only moksha could be attained through reading of books and education... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted December 12, 2003 Report Share Posted December 12, 2003 One can define "mantra" as "mantraaH mananaata" - One that is practiced with manana. Manana is definetly not repeation of a phrase but signifies its understanding. It can also be defined as "mananaata traayata iti mantraH" Meaning - the one that keeps you afloat (traayata). My disagreement is only limited to and the attitude of promoting ignorance and frustration pertains to insistence of the same. This is exactly turns blind leading blind. Bust after all it is an individual choice. Regards, Dr. Yadu , "de_spell_2000" <oiokasti@h...> wrote: > Dr Yadu, > > > I am trying to find the connection between the posting you are > replying to and your reply....well ... realization comes through > practice of . > Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted December 12, 2003 Report Share Posted December 12, 2003 Dear Members ,There is So much talk about Mantras,In this Degraged age of Kaliyuga,Krsna Has made it Very Simple to Gain Love of God(Krsna prema)By his incarnation of Krsna,Playing the Part of His own Devotee! Lord Caitanya Appeared 500 Years Ago,and Gave This Maha Mantra to us,Because in this Age,There Is no other Way of Practice of Yoga! the Maha Mantra is Very Simple,Its the Names of God,And ( Hare),is like a Calling To God,Like a Child Calling To His Mother,So Please Chant ,(Hare Krsna,Hare Krsna,Krsna Krsna,Hare Hare,Hare Rama Hare Rama,Rama Rama Hare Hare)In this Degraded age of Kali,There is No other Way,There is No Other Way,There is No other Way,Thank to Chant the Main Names of God,Krsna and Rama! When We chant these Names,The sound Vibration is Non different than God Himself!When We say Krsna,Krsna is There,In sound,And Krsna is Absolute So His Name is Non different Than Himself Personally,So Krsna is Dancing on Your toung!Chant Hare Krsna And Be Happy Your Servant,Jaya Kesava Dasa ----Original Message Follows---- "ymoharir" <ymoharir Re: Power of Sound )))))))))))))) Fri, 12 Dec 2003 16:45:09 -0000 Power of Gayatri Mantra in the a is in the "REALIZATION" of it's significance. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted December 14, 2003 Report Share Posted December 14, 2003 Thanks dear de-spell. I enjoyed your post which reflected the wisdom attained at such a young age. Dear Pradeep's story elaborated that chanting of Mantras even without knowing their full strength/meaning. No body has denied that we should chant mantra knowing its meaning/significance, but it is a Truth that Mantras chanted do have effect on our self whether we know the meaning or not. Chanting with faith and understanding will have many fold effect though. We can prove this by one experiment. Take a child of 7-10 years who does not know English. Ask the child to repeat the word "CUP" or "Triumph" continuously. The child after some time will become sleepy, because these words are Hypnotic and they effect the sub-cons whether we know the meaning or not. Same is the case with Tantric Beeja Mantras. Take for example beeja mantra Hu(m) or Krin(g) or Kling. They have no literal meaning but have tremendous powers if chanted regularly. Sound is present at four levels. Vaikhary, Pashyanti, Madhyama and Para. Each stage has its own significance. I just supplemented the information given by Dr. Yadu, who refused to gulp down the truth of Power of Sound. Truth does not need acceptance. it remains truth eventhough. You are right about Brahmins. In fact here when we say Brahmin, it does not mean Brahmin by caste but Brahmin as a guru to teach spirituality to masses, and he can be of any caste and creed. My dear dr.Yadu has also written about Brahma and dog. If it was a joke then it was certainly not in a good taste. Dr. Yadu further wrote:- > Having said all that, You have every right to do whatever you think > is correct. May be that is not your idea of "saadhana". > > I wish you well in you pursuits. > > Regards, > > Dr. Yadu with most respect for Dr. Yadu I would say that Scriptures work as a double edged sword. They can be used to understand the glimpses of Truth behind them and they can also be used to Prove Others Wrong. Hindu scriptures are great and excellent but they are not the only truths in the world. There are people out there who without studying Hindu scriptures have attained the truth. Jesus Christ, Buddha, Mohamed,kabir, Jalaluddin Rumi and hundered others have realised the truth without reading Hindu scriputres. spiritual pride is perhaps our biggest hurdle in the path of sadhna. What I KNOW IS THE ONLY TRUTH - is more dangerous than any other hurdle on the path of sadhna. If we keep our (mind)windows open and accept others ideas too, perhaps we are more on the path of sadhna than others. with regards and love to all nachiketa Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted December 15, 2003 Report Share Posted December 15, 2003 You Said: >>>>>>>>>>>>>>>> >>>>>>>>>>>>>>>> No body has denied that we should chant mantra knowing its meaning / significance, but it is a Truth that Mantras chanted do have effect on our self whether we know the meaning or not. Chanting with faith and understanding will have many fold effect though. <<<<<<<<<<<<<<<< <<<<<<<<<<<<<<<< Apparently you are not reading my posts, otherwise you would have not made such a statement. It is also clear that you have no regard or a clue for "patan~jla muni's Yoga Shastra". More Power to You. >>>>>>>>>>>>>>>> >>>>>>>>>>>>>>>> , because these words are Hypnotic and they effect the sub-cons whether we know the meaning or not. Same is the case with Tantric Beeja Mantras. Take for example beeja mantra Hu(m) or Krin(g) or Kling. They have no literal meaning but have tremendous powers if chanted regularly. Sound is present <<<<<<<<<<<<<<<< <<<<<<<<<<<<<<<< On hand you seem to be interested in doing mantra saadhana and have no desire in understanding the same. I will give you an example: Om SahaantiH Om SahaantiH Om SahaantiH is always recited before undertaking taking many rituals and we conclude them by reciting Om SahaantiH Om SahaantiH Om SahaantiH; as well. However, if you just keep on repeating Shanti Shanti shanti shanti shnati shanty …… … … … … … … . And if a woman named "Shanti" happens to hear this may actually come to see you. This will then most definitely disturb the "shanti (PEACE)" you may be aspiring for, whether you are married or not. However, by corollary, if you were really calling for the female named "Shanti" than your "saadhana" was successful, not otherwise it will be in vain and drive you insane. A brief note on the significance of beeja mantra - Where do you get these ideas that they do not have meaning or significance? This is precisely that cause of my frustration that we do not know, have desire to know but want to propagate ignorance at every step of the way. I do have extensive information of various biija mantra as well, but just for the record I will jive an example of "humklim" and "krrim" - ha – shiva biija uu – bhairava biija bindu – Concentration and Purpose is duHkha haraNa The sum of above becomes "hU.m"; which express vriira bhaava, Energy and krodha as well. Monica Sales, a tennis Player has use this "hU.m" in her American Express commercial. ka – kR^iShNa or kama or kaalii biija la – iindra biija ii – Satisfaction bindu - Concentration and Purpose is duHkha haraNa The Sum of the above becomes "kli.m" ka – kR^iShNa or kama or kaalii biija ra – brahma with agani biija ii – mahaamaaya bindu - Concentration and Purpose is duHkha haraNa The sum of the above becomes "krii.m" There is shloka in bR^ihad-gandharvatantra – shR^uNu devi pravixyaami biijaa.m devaruupataam | mantroccaaraNamaatreNa devaruupa.m prjaayate | Meaning – Devi paravati let me tell you the form of "BIIJA DEVATAA". Pronunciation of Bijja ma.ntara expresses the devata proliferation. You Said: ################## My dear dr.Yadu has also written about Brahma and dog. If it was a joke then it was certainly not in a good taste. ################## Please read the post correctly or may be I should have explained in more details. The word bramha, Brahman, brahmaNa are all derived from the root Sankrit verb "bR^ih" (pronounced as bruh). Therefore the root need to be combined with other pratyaya to form a proper sandhi to become the correct word one is trying to express. Just mechanical recitation of "bruh" will sound like barking dogs. You are absolutely correct that hundreds of other have become "realized" without reading the Hindu Scriptures. But remember the key word id their own realization that is "UNDERSTANDING" and "KNOWLEDGE" and not the mechanical recitation that you are trying to propogate. This is my last post on this subject. Regards, Dr. Yadu Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted December 15, 2003 Report Share Posted December 15, 2003 Dear respected Dr.Yadu You wrote "and not the mechanical recitation that you are trying to propogate." NO I am not propagating recitation without understanding. I just wished to say that for a beginner it is beneficial to recite a Mantra even without fully understanding its meaning and i m not wrong here. Shri Vishnu-Devananda the great disciple of Swami Sivananda has confirmed this when he wrote in Mantra and Meditation " The Mantra shuold be recited with faith devotion and understanding. But if a mantra is recited without fully knowing the meaning, it will still have positive effect, although slower, due to sheer vibrational energies of a Mantra". Mantras have great powers in them and the moment we start chanting them, they start working on our sub-cons. A moment comes when its meaning become clear to the sadhaka. In the end even the meaning vanishes and the truth reveals itself. Here faith and devotion is more important than understanding the literal part of it. You have very rightly given out the meaning of Beeja Mantras, but they are not the meanings, but an understanding. Like in HUM you have written Ha = Siva beeja...so where is the meaning in it ? You gave another explanation to Ha. You have also written " This is precisely that cause of my frustration that we > do not know, have desire to know but want to propagate ignorance at > every step of the way." If you become frustrated than you are far away from being a real sadhaka. Real sadhaka do not frustrate. They re-cast their equations and find the balance between the truth realised by them, and the truth realised by others. "What I know is Knowledge and what others know is Ignorance" is a perfect example of Spiritual Pride. Dr. Yadu further wrote " On hand you seem to be interested in doing mantra saadhana and have > no desire in understanding the same.It is also clear that you have no regard or a > clue for "patan~jla muni's Yoga Shastra"." What do you know about me ? I have not learnt Mantras from books. I have seen and experienced the power of Mantras myself. What ever i have written is from my Direct Experience. I have never used crutches of scriptures to prove myself right. Now I cant have a "Shastrathha" on Patanjali yoga sutras because i do not claim to be a pundit like you. But i m not that ignorant as you ignorantly tried to paint me. (smiles) Yes i agree you are very knowledgable and learned person and i have to learn a lot from you, because i am still a student not a teacher like you. Please continue guiding us, and where ever I find i may suppliment/correct/clarify, i will not hesitate. Dr.Yadu in the end you wrote "This is my last post on the subject" Oh come-on i know you are not a coward so you will not run away from doing your duty. The positive points of your messages have been well taken by us and we look forward to hear again from you. Your humble servant nachiketa Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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