Fwd: On Durga Saptashati/Devi Mahatmyam (long)

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|| Om Gurave Namah ||Dear Srinivas,Shravana nakshatra is ruled by Vishnu.Warm RegardsSanjay POn 5/18/06, vadhris.rm <

vadhris wrote:NarasimhaAny reason why sravana nakshtra to be the basis for count?

thxSrinivassohamsa , " Narasimha P.V.R. Rao " <pvrwrote:>> Namaskar Ram ji,>> Thank you for the info on Sri Brahma Dev ji.

>> > Narsimhaji is very fast.It takes me a few hours to complete thereadings and> > 7-8 hours for Samputit Path.>> The priests who were reading Saptashati at the time of Shata

Chandi Homam were actually reading faster than me! I still have toreach their speed.>> What is the verse you use for making it " samputit " ? I never readChandipath with samputikaran.>

> However, I did read Vishnu sahasranaam (Vishnu's 1000 names) withsamputikaran in the past.>> Actually, I was thinking of mentioning one thing and it isinteresting that you mention samputikaran. A thought came to me a

few days back while reading Vishnu sahasranaam. It may or may not beworth anything, but I will mention it anyway. This is what struck tome:>> Suppose you want to read Vishnu sahasranaam with a specific goal

(e.g. birth of a child). Take the lord of a relevant house or arelevant karaka (e.g. 5th lord or Jupiter). Find the navamsaoccupied by that planet. Count which navamsa it is from the navamsacorresponding to the first quarter of Sravana nakshatra. Take the

verse corresponding to that count and use that in doing samputikaranof Vishnu sahasranaam. Read the samputikrit Vishnu sahasranaam for40 successive days. They will reach the goal.>> Please note that Vishnu sahasranaam has 108 verses, including the

final " vanamAlI gadI... " verse.>> Example: Suppose someone has 10th lord Jupiter in Revati 3rdquarter and wants to perform good karma and have some goodaccomplishments. Counting from Sravana, Revati is the 6th star

(Sravana, Dhanishtha, Satabhishak, Poorvabhadra, Uttarabhadra andRevati). So the 3rd quarter in Revati is 5x4+3=23rd quarter from thefirst quarter of Sravana. So take the 23rd verse:>> gururgurutamo dhAma satyassatyaparAkrama@H |> nimiSho.animiSha@H sragvI vAcaspatirudAradhI@H || 23>> Of course, what struck to my intuition may or may not be correct.Those who want to try may try. Make a sankalpam and then read the

samputit Vishnu sahasranaam path with that verse.>> May the light of Brahman shine within,> Narasimha> -------------------------------> Free Jyotish lessons (MP3): http://vedicastro.home.comcast.net> Free Jyotish software (Windows): http://www.VedicAstrologer.org> Sri Jagannath Centre (SJC) website: http://www.SriJagannath.org> ------------------------------->> > || Om Gurave Namah ||> > Dear Narasimhaji and Jyotishas,

> > I forwarded Narasimhaji's mail to Ram Baba, who is Bagalambaworshipper> > from a Nepali tradition. His comments are as below.> > If anyone can help me with the book he mentions, " Sadhan Samar "

by Shri> > Brahma Dev, I would be happy.> >> > Warm Regards> > Sanjay P> >> > ---------- Forwarded message ----------> > Ram B Chherti <rambchhetri@>

> > May 17, 2006 3:22 AM> > RE: Fwd: On Durga Saptashati/Devi Mahatmyam(long)> > sanjaychettiar@> >> > Thank you,Sanjaya for the excellent treatise on Durga

Saptasloki.It is very> > enlightening.One can just read " Sidhakunjika Stotra " if onecannot complete> > the whole 700 Mantras-Verses.Also by doing Samputit Path onecan gain one's

> > desires fulfilled including material success.> >> > I would strongly recommend a book in 3 parts by Shri Brahma Devcalled> > " Sadhan Samar " which was originally published in Kolkotaa in

Bengali, and> > later few translated version in Hindi.This is the mostauthorative book on> > the spiritual meanings of the sacred Book of the Divine Mother.Itried to> > find it in Nepal and through friends in India.I could not.I readthese few> > times after borrowing from an acquintance.If you find thesebooks I would> > really appreciate if I can also get the Hindi translation.> >> > Shri Brahma Dev was a fully realized spiritual Master;and such

personage> > never advertise about themselves or hanker after eartly trinketslike> > name,fame or money.This is one of the tested criteria to knowabout such> > enlightened beings.This

is my humble opinion.> >> > Narsimhaji is very fast.It takes me a few hours to complete thereadings and> > 7-8 hours for Samputit Path.> >> > May the Supreme Goddess bless us.

> >> > Ram B.> >> >> >> >> > ------------------------------> > * " Sanjay Prabhakaran " <sanjaychettiar@>*> > * " Ram B Chherti " <rambchhetri@>*

> > *Fwd: On Durga Saptashati/Devi Mahatmyam(long)*> > *Tue, 16 May 2006 11:28:34 -0400*> >> >> >> >> > ---------- Forwarded message ----------

> > Narasimha P.V.R. Rao <pvr@>> > May 13, 2006 4:42 PM> > On Durga Saptashati/Devi Mahatmyam (long)> >

sohamsa > >> > Namaste friends,> >> > > |om gurave namah |> > > Respected Gurujis,> > >> > > I have heard a lot about Durga saprastuti; what is Durga

saptastuti?> > What is its significance in vedic astrology?> > >> > > Any pointers or explanation in this regards are appreciated.> > >> > > Regards,

> > > Pranav> >> > You asked a good question. I've been thinking of writing aboutDevi> > Mahatmyam for a while and have an occasion to do it now.> >> > There is something known as Durga Saptashloki, which is 7 verses

in the> > prayer of Divine Mother. This is a short form of a biggertreatise known as> > Durga Saptashati. I will focus on the latter in this mail.> >> > Durga Saptashati (aka Devi Mahatmyam or Chandi saptashati or

Chandipath) is> > a collection of 700 verses about Divine Mother. It is fromMaarkandeya> > Puraanam.> >> > The 700 verses are arranged in 13 chapters. Also, they arearranged in 3

> > parts (charitas). Some parts have more chapters and some partshave less.> > The three parts have MahaaKaali, MahaaLakshmi and MahaaSaraswatias the> > deities. They have Rigveda, Yajurveda and Samaveda as the

swarupas, i.e.> > each Veda is a different representation/form/essence of eachpart. The> > purposes of the three parts are dharma, artha and kaamarespectively. They> > have aim, hreem and kleem as the beejas.

> >> > * * *> >> > Some people mistakenly think that it is merely an account of theexploits of> > Durgaa and her slaying of demons Mahisha, Chanda, Munda,

Raktabeeja,> > Shumbha, Nishumbha etc. They view it as a collection of stories.But, IMHO,> > that is a very limited view. Devi mahatmyam is much more than acollection> > of stories. Vedas are its swarupam!

> >> > Devi mahatmyam is the very definition of the nature of DivineMother. When I> > say Divine Mother, I am not talking about limited forms. I amtalking about> > unlimited Shakti (energy) behind all limited Shaktis. Some

people call her> > Durgaa, some call her Chandi and some call her Mahaalakshmi. Thename does> > not matter that much. Bottomline is that She is the MoolaPrakriti, the root> > nature, of all that manifests. She is the force that drives

everything in> > the universe.> >> > Towards the end, the 11th chapter (titled " Naaraayani Stuti " )describes gods> > praying to the Divine Mother after slaying all the demons. They

address Her> > as " Naaraayani " . This is consistent with the difference betweenNarayana and> > Vishnu that we maintain at SJC. Vishnu is one of the Trimurthis.He is of> > Sattva guna and sustains the creation. Narayana is gunaateeta

(above> > gunas/attributes). He is the Sahasraseersha and Parama Purusha.Some people> > may describe the same as Samba Sada Shiva, but let us not getcaught in> > names. When we are essentially speaking about an entity that is

beyond> > attributes, it is foolish to argue about the name. After all,name too is an> > attribute. Though great people gave different names to theParama Purusha,> > the names essentially capture the nature of the path those

people took to> > experience the Parama Purusha rather than the nature of ParamaPurusha,> > which is beyond names and attributes.> >> > The bottomline is that there is a Parama Purusha above the

Trimurthis> > (Brahma, Vishnu and Shiva). If we call him Narayana, thenNarayani is his> > Shakti and She is the root cause of all creation. She isinseparable from> > Him. Don't imagine Narayani as a separate form. That is a

mistake. She is> > simply the power of Narayana. Neither Narayana nor Narayani havea form.> > After all, Narayana is gunaateeta and formless. Though He CANtake forms,> > forms only " limit " Him. His highest nature is that He has no

form or> > attributes. Similarly, Amba is not a separate person, but simplythe power> > of Samba Shiva. They are inseparable (just as Sourav said in aseparate> > discussion on " Samba Shiva and Adwaita " ).

> >> > Coming back to the point, the nine Shaktis who fought demons,i.e.> > Brahmaani, Maaheswari, Kaumaari, Vaishnavi/Lakshmi, Vaaraahi,Naarasimhi,> > Sivadooti and Chaamundaa/Kaali, are all described as different

forms of> > Naaraayani. I am quoting the slokas below in ITrans format. Ifyou have> > ITranslator, copy the text into it and see it in Sanskrit.> >> > haMsayuktavimAnasthe brahmANIrUpadhAriNi |

> > kaushAmbhaHkSarike devi nArAyaNi namo.astu te || 11-13> > trishUlachandrAhidhare mahAvR^iShabhavAhini |> > mAheshvarIswarUpeNa nArAyaNi namo.astu te || 11-14> > mayUrakukkuTavR^ite mahAshaktidhare.anaghe |> > kaumArIrUpasaMsthAne nArAyaNi namo.astu te || 11-15> > shaMkhachakragadAshAr~NgagR^ihItaparamAyudhe |> > prasIda vaiShNavIrUpe nArAyaNi namo.astu te || 11-16> > gR^ihItogramahAchakre daMShTroddhR^itavasundhare |

> > varAharUpiNIshive nArAyaNi namo.astu te || 11-17> > nR^isiMharUpeNogreNa hantuM daityAn kR^itodyame |> > trailokyatrANasahite nArAyaNi namo.astu te || 11-18> > kirITini mahAvajre sahasranayanojjvale |

> > vR^itraprANahare devi nArAyaNi namo.astu te || 11-19> > shivadUtIswarUpeNa hatadaityamahAbale |> > ghorarUpe mahArAve nArAyaNi namo.astu te || 11-20> > daMShTrAkarAlavadane shiromAlAvibhUShaNe |

> > chAmuNDe muNDamathane nArAyaNi namo.astu te || 11-21> >> > The nine Shaktis that fought the demons are described as various> > forms/manifestations of Naaraayani here. Thus, Devi Mahatmyam is

essentially> > about the Shakti of Gunaateeta Parama Purusha (Narayana). Alldevatas come> > from Him and hence the shaktis (energies) of all devatas comefrom His> > shakti (Narayani). Thus, Devi Mahatmyam is about the nature of

the most> > supreme energy of this universe!> >> > * * *> >> > Though Devi Mahatmyam looks like stories, there are veryvaluable lessons on> > Her nature in it. The deeper you go, the more you can understand

and> > appreciate the lessons in the stories. Let me give a couple ofexamples.> >> > (1) When various Mothers are going to war with demons, this ishow it is> > described (8-14): " Whatever form, decoration, weapons and

vehicle each god> > has, his shakti (energy) came in the same form, decoration,weapons and> > vehicle. " The next 9 verses describe how Brahmaani etc came. Forexample,> > Brahmaani came on a swan with aksha sutra and kamandalu (worn by

Brahma),> > Maaheswari came on a great bull with a Trishoola and She wore abig snake> > and Moon. And so on.> >> > What is the message hidden in the above description? The fact

that these> > female deities are identical to the male counterparts in form,decoration,> > weapons and vehicles suggests, to me, that they are not reallyseparate from> > the male counterparts. Brahma and Brahmaani are not separate.

Maheswara and> > Maaheswari are not separate. Vishnu and Vaishnavi are notseparate. And so> > on. Brahmaani is simply the shakti (vitality/energy) of Brahma.Maaheswari> > is simply the shakti (vitality/energy) of Maheswara. And so on.

> >> > Of course, if you imagine Vaishnavi (Lakshmi) as a separateperson with> > certain attributes, She may manifest limited by your imaginationand even> > give you a darshan in that form. However, that is a limited form

and Her> > true nature is beyond that. Her true and highest nature is thatShe is an> > inseparable part of Vishnu and represents the energy of Vishnu.She is the> > part of Vishnu that makes Vishnu think, desire, act etc. Any

other external> > form is a lower nature of Her.> >> > Thus, contemplation on these verses will make you understand thetrue nature> > of male devatas and female devatas and their relationship

better. It will> > enable you to appreciate the highest nature of Shakti.> >> > (2) Take Raktabeeja's slaying. Raktabeeja is a demon with aspecial ability.> > If a drop of blood falls from his body on the ground, another

demon will be> > born from it and will be of the same size, age and strength asthe original> > Raktabeeja even at birth. As Vaishnavi, Maaheswari, Aindri etcwere hurting> > Raktabeeja in the fight, more and more demons were being born

and all the> > gods were scared. Then Chandikaa told Kaali to expand her faceand eat all> > the demons as they are born. Chandika goes around the war groundeating all> > the demons as they are born and eventually Raktabeeja runs out

of blood.> >> > This looks like a nice story. But, is there is a deeper meaningin it? Why> > was Kaali the chosen one and not Vaishnavi or Naarasimhi orAindri?> >> > The word rakta means blood. Another meaning is " desire/passion " .

Actually,> > both the meanings are linked and the word comes from the rootranj/rang,> > which means " to color " . Of course, in our astrology also, Moonshows rakta> > dhatu (blood) and he is also the karaka for desires.

> >> > Raktabeeja means " the seed of desire " . Raktabeeja fighting withgods> > symbolizes desires taking the better of our good judgment andgood> > qualities. Each human being is a microcosm of the macrocosm that

the> > universe is. All devatas reside in us as various good qualitiesand all> > demons reside in us as various undesirable qualities. When weare overcome> > by desires and do bad deeds, the Raktabeeja within us is

defeating the gods> > within us.> >> > The thing is that desires are difficult to get rid of. You getrid of one> > desire and another desire is born. That is what Raktabeeja's

special ability> > means. The " seed of desires " within us will keep producing moreand more> > desires. It is very resourceful.> >> > Then, why Kaali to destroy Him?

> >> > In astrology, we associate Mahaakaala and Mahaakaali withSaturn. Kaali> > shows detachment and vairaagyam. She wears a garland of skulls,symbolizing> > that there is an endless cycle (garland) of births a material

form (skull)> > goes thru. The way Kaali shows to overcome the cycle isvairaagyam and> > detachment. She shows meaningful and highest level of vairaagyamthat comes> > with a deep understanding of the cycle of material forms.

> >> > To fully cut off the " seed of desires " so that one does not getany more> > desires, one needs to develop vairaagyam and detachment and keepon> > destroying desires as they are born and persist like that. After

persisting> > for a long time, the " seed of desires " will run out of desiresand one will> > overcome desires.> >> > Thus, simple stories have deep meanings. This particular story

celebrates> > the value of detachment, vairaagyam and persistence - Saturninequalities.> >> > * * *> >> > Durga Saptashati is what is used in Chandi homam. It is very

auspicious to> > read everyday or on Ashtami/Navami/Chaturdasi days. It takes 1-2.5 hours.> > When I read it for the first time on March, it took me 2 hours.Now it takes> > me 50 min. If you don't have much time, you may want to read one

chapter per> > day.> >> > Merely chanting it without understanding the meaning is alsoexcellent and> > produces results. Understanding the meaning and marvelling atthe power of

> > the Mother makes one fearless and energetic and also givematerial benefits.> > Understanding the deeper meanings and appreciating the TrueNature of the> > Mother makes one realize one's own true nature. It has various

benefits at> > various levels of sadhana. It is tough to exactly say whatbenefit it gives,> > as that depends on the evolution level of sadhaka and hisattitude. But,> > there is something in Chandipath for everyone!

> >> > It is more effective if you read the moola mantra (theNavakshari mantra or,> > preferably, Dasakshari mantra with Om added) 108 times beforeAND after> > chanting 700 verses.

> >> > I will give one interesting personal anecdote. I started readingDurga Sapta> > Shati during Shata Chandi Homam at Chennai in March. I took avow to read it> > for 108 consecutive days. After I finished exactly 40 days of

reading it, a> > priest who came to our house gifted me a one foot tallpanchaloha idol of> > Ashtadasa Bhuja Maha Lakshmi (Narayani with 9x2=18 hands).> >> > * * *

> >> > There are no classical references, to my knowledge, on themapping between> > the the nine planets and the nine forms of Narayani described inSaptashati,> > who fought with demons. But obviously there must be a link. Here

is my first> > shot at it:> >> > Brahmaani: Jupiter> > Maaheswari: Moon> > Kaumaari: Mars> > Vaishnavi: Mercury> > Vaaraahi: Rahu> > Naarasimhi: Ketu

> > Aindri: Sun> > Sivadooti: Venus> > Chaamundaa/Kaali: Saturn> >> > May the light of Brahman shine within,> > Narasimha> > -------------------------------

> > Free Jyotish lessons (MP3): http://vedicastro.home.comcast.net> > Free Jyotish software (Windows):> >

http://www.VedicAstrologer.org<http://www.vedicastrologer.org/>> > Sri Jagannath Centre (SJC) website:> > http://www.SriJagannath.org

<http://www..org/>> > ------------------------------->