Yantras II

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Yantra FAQS

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Yantra literally means "Loom, "Instrument or Machine". In actual

practice a Yantra is a symbolic representation of aspects of

divinity, usually the Mother Goddess. It is an interlocking matrix

of geometric figures, circles, triangles and floral patterns that

form fractal patterns of elegance and beauty. Though drawn in two

dimensions, a Yantra is supposed to represent a three dimensional

sacred object. Three-dimensional Yantras are now becoming

increasingly common.

 

Although the Yantra is primarily a meditation tool both for serious

spiritual seekers as well as sculptors in the classical tradition,

its Shakti is also available to new seekers with sincere devotion

and good intention. Before creating Yantric artefacts in wood, stone

or metal, they draw a Yantra that represents attributes of the god

or goddess they wish to sculpt, etch or create. Intense meditation

upon it causes the fully formed image to leap into the mind's eye

with remarkable intensity with imprinting ability. In some cases,

traditional Yantra-makers do not need to make a sketch before

creating the image.

 

Yantras are also used for innumerable mundane purposes such as to

enhance the quality of one's life, attract prosperity, abundance,

love, harmony, peace, enhance learning, promote healing, relieve

health problems, for career advancement, achieve desired goals in

projects, improve business and protection from negative forces.

 

Yantras are often mistakenly thought to be symbols purely of the

manifold aspects of the Mother Goddess.

This is an understandable error as most Yantras are indeed connected

to the Goddess, the most famous

being the Sri Yantra, an abstract representation of the Mother (and

Father too!) as Cosmos.

 

The Sri Yantra is also commonly misunderstood to represent Lakshmi,

the Goddess of Fortune but it is more true to say the Sri Yantra

includes and transcends every notion of divinity ever conceived of

the pantheons of deities relating to the Sanatana Dharma.

 

However, there are Yantras for male deities such as Lord Ganesha and

Lord Kubera but they share a common Yaksha origin with Goddess

Lakshmi. The Yakshas were original chthonic deities of India and

Yantra systems seem to have been incorporated into the Vedic

worldview at a later stage.

 

Within the body of more complex Yantras, monosyllabic mantras, the

Beeja or "Seed" mantras are inscribed to constitute the subtle forms

of respective Gods and Goddesses. Most designs often focus attentive

detail upon the center of Yantras usually a dot or Bindu which is

the Locus Mundi, the center of all things and represents the

Unmanifested Potential of all creation. Other figures usually

symbolize various stages within the unfolding of creation. Thus,

every Yantra is a symbolic representation of both the deity as well

as the universe. The Mother Goddess not only permeates the substance

of the universe, but is literally the Universe itself.

 

Abstract geometric representations of the universe that do not

represent a deity, are called Mandalas. Every Yantra is a also a

Mandala, though not all Mandalas are Yantras.

 

In ancient texts, Lord Shiva is supposed to have explained the

mystical meaning of the Yantra to his consort,

Goddess Parvati: "The Yantra is as essential to a god as oil is to

the oil lamp or as a body is to a

living human being".

 

Yantras are constructed with observing immutable laws of sacred

geometry, being symbolic representations of energy patterns of a

deity and rank amongst the most powerful 'centering' devices for

harnessing divine energies. The Yantra is actually more powerful

than a picture of a God which, to be energized, requires

a Yantra to be affixed at its base or back.

 

A Yantra always contains a Mantra associated with it. Just as the

mind is a part of, yet different from the body, so is the Mantra

from the Yantra. The Mantra is the mind consciousness while the

Yantra is the form of the deity.

 

 

Period of Benefits

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Another common question is how soon can one expect to experience the

benefits of wearing or installing a Yantra. This usually takes 45

days but this is a conservative estimate. Some Yantras activate

results almost immediately if one's karmic potential is ripe. Others

work better over the long term, gradually but steadfastly increasing

stages of blessings. Yantras for prosperity and wealth are usually

of this catergory. Hence patience is required. For example, the Lord

Kuber Yantra may or may not bestow immediate results but the patient

person will eventually see benefits. It is known that the greatest

bounties that can be conferred by the Lord Kuber Yantra come after 3

years in many cases.

 

Yantras for health, preventing accidents and mishaps and the like,

are known to be working if nothing is going wrong! However, despite

one's best intentions, the desired results may not always be

achieved. This is usually due to reasons of karma that have to be

worked out and experienced before the organism can achieve its

desire.

 

Copyright: Rudra Centre, Mumbai, India.

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