Sudarshana worship

 Hari Aum.

 There are broadly two aspects to God as we all know-- the benign, benevolent aspect that grants blessings, and the wrathful, powerful aspect that grants justice. These aspects of God manifest in many ways and are associated with different names and forms.

One form of the divine which is associated with tremendous might and power, and a capacity to protect the good (within and without us) and destroy negativity is known as Sudarshana.

Sudarshana is depicted as the divine discus of Lord Narayana. He is an aspect of the power of Narayana that protects the good and destroys evil. In the sacred scriptures known as the Puranas, He is described as extraordinarily radiant (like numerous suns put together), unbearably hot, unimaginably fast and incredibly powerful. 

He is depicted in the form of a whirling wheel which is held in the hand of Narayana. He is described as being released by the Lord on numerous occasions to destroy evil and re-establish dharma (righteousness). 

Just as Narayana is worshipped, this particular aspect of His nature known as Sudarshana is also worshipped. Due to His nature, Sudarshana is invoked to bring the light of dharma into our lives, to strengthen that which is good (both inside us and in our external lives). He is worshipped for protection, for removal of negativity, misery and inauspiciousness in life. In many parts of India, He is especially worshipped by those who feel troubled by 'black magic' and undivine entities. 

His worship is often conducted through the means of the sacred fire ritual known as homam or havan. He can also be worshipped through prayers and recitation of His mantras and by worship of His yantra (geometrical pattern representing Him).

A relative of mine recently informed me that she was advised by her friend (who has in-depth knowlede of Vedic astrology) to worship Sudarshana to bring auspicious positive energies into her life. This inspired me to do some reading on the subject. I have had a spate of illnesses this month (possibly related to the current Covid wave happening where I live) and was feeling in need of an injection of some positivity. I therefore decided to worship Lord Sudarshana by performing a homam.

The Vedic astrologer and spiritualist, Sri Narasimha Rao (who is based in Boston) has a wonderful website which contains numerous homam manuals. These are meant to be used by people who have no special training in the performance of rituals (not trained as priests) such as myself. I have used these manuals occasionally in the past and have found them to be excellent (have mentioned them on this blog in the past).

There are 2-3 versions of the homams on the website-- a super-short ('simplest') version, a short ('simple') version and a longer ('legacy') version of each homam. The longer versions contain a bigger build-up to the main worship and a more elaborate winding down afterwards (plenty of extra mantras). 

The super-short version has the basic minimum mantras before/after the main worship-- I like this version as it allows me to dedicate most of my time spent on the homam (an hour or so) to the main deity being worshipped. The super-short version can be done in as little as twenty minutes or as long as one likes by extending the main part.

One can also worship more than one deity in the same homam if one likes, especially if one is doing it for spiritual purposes. 

As I am currently undergoing the dreaded Rahu mahadasha (which has had some difficult elements to it so far, and I have another fifteen years to go!), I decided to follow Sri Rao's advice (mentioned on his website) to worship Lord Venkatesha. This is a form of Narayana that means 'lord of Venkata'. (Venkata is a hill in Andhra Pradesh in South India, and He is worshipped there in the famous temple of Tirupati). While worship of any form of the Divine can control the negative energy of Rahu, the worship of Venkateshvara is regarded as especially useful for this purpose. I therefore decided to worship Venkateshvara too along with Sudarshana. And as I was recently advised to worship Mother Lakshmi more, I thought I would worship Her too in the same homam!

I therefore conducted a homam for Narayana as Venkateshvara and Sudarshana and Mother Lakshmi and found this very satisfying. I always feel so much better after doing a homam and feel I should do more. In accordance with the advice I have recently been given to be more spontaneous with my worship, I am not making any fixed plans to do homam regularly but would love to do one randomly once in a month if possible.

I discovered a beautiful mantra of Lord Sudarshana as part of preparing for this homam (see below). It is mentioned in the homam manual and I found some versions of this on YouTube too. I am sharing the homam manual link below and the video recording as well. I used the shorter 'Om Namo Bhagavate Sudarshanaya svaha' mantra for the homam but then recited the longer mantra (below) for a few minutes after the homam was complete.

Website with homam manuals (including for Lord Sudarshana):

https://vedicastrologer.org/homa/download.htm

Longer Sudarshana mantra (there are a few versions online with minor variations but they are broadly similar; I like the version in the homam manual-- shared below):

"om śrīṁ hrīṁ klīṁ kṛṣṇāya govindāya gopījanavallabhāya parāya paramapuruṣāya paramātmane

para karma mantra yantra auṣadha astra śastrāṇi saṁhara saṁhara| mṛtyormocaya mocaya| om

namo bhagavate mahā sudarśanāya dīptre jvālāparītāya sarva dikṣobhaṇakarāya huṁ phaṭ

brahmaṇe paraṁjyotiṣe sahasrāra huṁ phaṭ svāhā|"

In essence, this mantra praises Lord Krishna in various ways, including as the Supreme Being, the beloved of the gopis. It asks Him, in the form of Sudarshana, to protect one from all negativity from all directions and bless one.

Beautiful rendition of the Sudarshana mantra:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DgmGej7b-DQ

I highly recommend performing a homam oneself if one has a little time to spare (it is very easy) and also listening to this mantra if one feels in the need of a little protection. 

And, as humanity continues to stumble from one crisis into another (pandemic, war and climate change to name just a few), it would be nice to also pray for some relief from all these troubles when we conduct our homams. Our worship of God may be woefully inadequate but we know that His grace is said to be infinite. He is extraordinarily compassionate, patient and forgiving, and we are all His children after all. 

Therefore, we have a duty to ask Him to bless this planet with relief, much-needed relief, from the various troubles that afflict it at present. May He give good sense to us all, may we take steps to reduce our carbon-footprint (this is good karma and a duty!), may we think noble thoughts, may the politicians be inspired to make good decisions, may war come to an end, may the pandemic ease. This and many other wishes for the welfare of all should also be our concern because we are all interconnected. What affects one nation affects another. 

Om Lokah Samastah Sukhino Bhavantu. 

May all the worlds be happy.

Om Namo Narayanaya.

Om Namo Bhagavate Sudarshanaya.

Hari Aum Tat Sat.

Meditation on Mother Lakshmi

 Hari Aum.

The Divine Mother, as we know, has countless names and forms. Three of the most well-known forms are Durga (or Parvati), Lakshmi and Sarasvati. Although every name and form of the Mother is complete in itself and contains the whole of existence within, some of these emphasise a specific aspect of Her nature.

The number three comes up a lot in spiritual traditions. Creation, preservation and dissolution are three important activities of the Divine, and each of these three forms of the Mother are especially associated with one of them. 

Saraswati is regarded as the Creative power of the universe, She is the Mother of wisdom, of divine knowledge, the granter of material and spiritual knowledge. It is by Her power that the universe is created. 

Once the universe has been created, it is Lakshmi that preserves it by Her power. She is the maintainer of harmony, the aupicious one who nourishes what has been created. She is the giver of the good things in life, both material and spiritual. She gives wealth, fame, husbands/wives, children, property. She is also the giver of noble virtues that enable one to progress on the spiritual path.

After the universe has been maintained for a long time, it is dissolved and becomes unmanifest before the next cycle of creation begins. Parvati or Durga is the energy that dissolves the univese; She destroys what is no longer fit for purpose. She is also the Mother who destroys evil, who fiercly loves Her devotees and protects them. 

She actively defends the forces of goodness in the universe. Like Sarasvati and Lakshmi, She too is described as very beautiful but She is especially associated with war. War on evil-- both outside and inside oneself. While Lakshmi and Saraswati are typically depicted as sweet and peaceful, She is depicted as filled with divine noble wrath; divine anger that protects the good and destroys evil. In spiritual life, She destroys the ego (the obstacle between the devotee and God) particularly efficiently.

One way of worshipping the Mother, that is described by many Gurus, is a sequential approach. This is suggested by Sivananda for Navaratri worship. At the beginning of the spiritual path, He says, approach Mother Durga. Ask Her to remove all impurities. Then once some cleaning of the mind has occurred, by Her grace, approach Mother Lakshmi. Ask Lakshmi for virtues, for auspiciousness, for spiritual qualities. Then, when impurities have been thinned out, and virtues have been greatly cultivated, one is fit to approach Mother Sarasvati to request spiritual wisdom. 

This, he says, is the hidden meaning behind the sequential worship of the Mother during Navaratri (the first three days are dedicated to Durga, the next three to Lakshmi and the final three to Sarasvati. The final tenth day, the auspicious Vijaya Dashami, is meant to symbolise spiritual victory, conquest over one's lower nature and union with the Divine). Regardless of whether one calls the Divine by these three names of the Divine Mother, the reality that this form of worship represents the natural progress of spiritual life for most seekers. 

It is a bit like gardening. Imagine a garden that is full of thorny weeds and poisonous plants with bitter fruits. This is the mind of  most spiritual seekers at the beginning of the spiritual journey. The mind-garden is filled with negative thoughts and emotions, undesirable harmful qualities and ignorance. 

In order to get the best out of this overgrown garden, the first step is to thoroughly weed it. All the thorny, poisonous, unpleasant plants need to be rooted out. This cleaning can take a long time (varies depending upon the garden). 

It is Durga in particular, the Goddess with tremendous power to destroy evil, who the spiritual aspirant needs to invoke to tidy the mind-garden. Prayer to Durga is said to rapidly cleanse the mind; She uproots the weeds with tremendous energy. It can be difficult as the bitter fruits of many negative past karmas may manifest in the process but this is necessary. Her grace always protects Her devotees and all obstacles are ultimately surmounted. 

Once a significant amount of cleaning of the mind-garden has been completed (full cleaning is not completed until spiritual liberation), one can then approach Mother Lakshmi to plant some beautiful plants that produce fragrant flowers and sweet fruits. 

Lakshmi, the nourishing aspect of the Mother, helps us to sow the seeds of virtues in the mind-garden and enables us to water these with devotion. She actively helps us to develop devotion to the Supreme Being. This devotion is the water and potent fertiliser that helps the plants take deep root in the mind-garden and to grow well. The sunlight of divine grace gives strength to the plants and they thrive and grow spectacularly.

As the beautiful plants grow, the threat of unwanted weeds unfortunately remains; they can come back at any time, and if they do and take root, they can destroy the garden. Hence the spiritual seeker needs to remain vigilant until liberation is attained. However, with the grace of Durga and Lakshmi, the mind-garden is kept well-cultivated and the beautiful plants grow tall and strong while the unwanted weeds are kept at bay.

Then, at an auspicious time, in accordance with divine will, the plants begin to bear fragrant flowers and lovely fruits (the fruits of spiritual labour). Finally, the most precious fruit of all, the spiritual fruit of liberation, appears in the mind-garden (once this happens, the weeds can never again return). This granting of the divine fruit of wisdom and liberation is associated with Mother Sarasvati. (All forms of the Divine Mother can grant liberation in reality but Sarasvati is particularly associated with the acquisition of wisdom).

At this stage, the Upanishads say, one sees the Truth as clearly as perceiving a fruit in one's hand. One realises one's true immortal nature as a part of the Mother, of the Supreme Being. One then enjoys an eternal bliss that cannot be experienced by the consumption of any material fruits or other material objects. One experiences a wisdom that cannot be acquired even from the best of universities-- the recognition of oneself as being one with God. 

So this is the general process of evolution for most spiritual seekers regardless of the form of God we worship (and whether or not we worship God as the Divine Mother). 

These three forms of the Divine Mother, namely, Sarasvati, Lakshmi and Durga, are represented as the female counterparts of the three forms of the Divine Father (Brahma, Vishnu/Narayana and Shiva). They are said to be all different forms of the one God or Supreme Being.  

Although Narayana is the main deity I worship, I have also been very drawn to Durga all my life. This may be due to a variety of reasons--may be due to samskaras (mental impressions) from past lifetimes, the fact that the women in my family are mostly strong-minded, independent professionals (embodying the Durga aspect), and perhaps because my first name (Aparna) that was given to me by my parents at birth is one of Durga's names.  

As Sivananda has advised, when I have worshipped Her, I have asked that She remove the impurities within and thus allow me to make spiritual progress. While there is still much work left to do, I feel She has not ignored my requests entirely; I feel She has done some work on me in response to my prayers. And of course, this will need to continue until the spiritual goal is achieved. 

The Swami I spoke to recently, who advised me to adjust my spiritual approach (as mentioned in my previous post from July 16), also advised that I focus on worship of the Divine Mother as Lakshmi for a while, rather than as Durga. She was of the opinion that I currently need to actively seek some divine nourishment (Lakshmi) rather than divine discipline (Durga). 

Although Durga is also loving and nourishing, She is mainly portrayed as the Mother in Her fierce, fiery, disciplinarian form (it can feel like 'tough love' sometimes). That, the Swami said, is less helpful for me right now. In contrast, she said, the energy associated with Lakshmi is more gentle, more cooling and more nourishing. "You're burning up" she said to me, "You need some cooling and nourishment, so worship Lakshmi!"

The yogis say we gradually manifest the qualities of the deities we invoke within us. Having invoked Durga for a long time, I have now been asked to invoke Lakshmi. "Be a sweet wife and mother" said the Swami to me recently, "Be like Lakshmi!". Having tried to live up to my given name as Aparna (name of Durga symbolising intense tapas) for a long time, the time has perhaps come to focus on the Vishnupriya aspect (name of Lakshmi symbolising auspiciousness; this is my other/spiritual name given by the Swami). I will still worship the Mother as Durga of course (I cannot give Her up obviously), but for now, I will make Lakshmi the primary form.

So I have taken Swami ji's advice onboard and have decided to meditate on Lakshmi. For years now, when I have done mantra japa, I have visualised Narayana present within a blazing bright light within the heart space (anahata chakra). And while doing the japa verbally, I have made offerings to Him as a form of a simple manasik puja (worship done in the mind). 

Following the traditional format of pujas done in temples, I have offered Him a seat, light, incense, fruit, flowers, Tulasi leaves, sandal paste, food and drink. Again and again during the process, I have brought my wandering mind back to the manasik puja, some days with more success and some days with less. This has occurred most days for close to eight years. I have sometimes visualised Lakshmi present on the chest of Narayana (as She is said to reside there) but the main focus has always been Him. 

Since the Swami's recent advice, I have introduced a manasik puja of Lakshmi during my japa of the Narayana mantra (as they are one). In this puja, Lakshmi is the main deity visualised and Narayana is seen as present with Her heart (as He is said to be present within the hearts of all). 

Visualisation is said to play a key role in the practice of meditation based on bhakti yoga, the path of devotion to the divine. So I visualise or imagine the realm of Lakshmi-- a cool, pleasant place, filled with clear lakes containing lovely lotuses (She is associated with this flower), water fountains and flowing milk (another cooling substance associated with Her). In this place, in my mind's eye, I see pretty buildings made of cool white marble, sparkly crystals and diamonds. In the centre of this realm, in a grand building filled with divine splendour, She, the Mother of the universe, Herself resides.

I imagine myself visiting Her at Her home in this realm, Lakshmi who is my Divine Mother (and the Mother of all beings). I enter a hall where She is seated on a magnificent throne. Other companion goddesses are also present (these are described in the Shakta tradition of worshipping God as Mother; they are various aspects of Herself).

I visualise Lakshmi as having the form of a beautiful woman, filled with divine golden radiance. She is dressed in rose-coloured silks and sparkling ornaments. She has a lovely face with a sweet and affectionate smile. In Her hands, She holds lotuses which represent divine blessings (She is traditionally depicted in this way). The entire hall is decorated with soft white silks, diamonds and flowers. There is the sound of water gently flowing from nearby fountains just outside. The air is fragrant with incense. The atmosphere is incredibly tranquil and soothing.

I imagine myself greeting Her as my Mother. I then sit down on a seat next to Her to prepare to start my mantra japa in Her presence. I bow my head to both Her and to Narayana whom I see within Her heart. I see Her smile and acknowledge my arrival. She approves of the japa of Narayana of course and is happy to observe this. To give me Her blessings and support before I begin, She gives me a plate of sweet foods (kheer, gulab jamun and rasgulla! I often offer these to Narayana in my manasik puja of Him). These represent positive qualities that are helpful in spiritual life.

She treats me with affection-- similar to that which an Earthly mother would have for her child only much more (as She is the Universal Mother after all). I accept Her blessing (prasad) with gratitude and then commence my ashtakshara mantra japa. 

This goes well-- in such a soothing, pleasing atmosphere, with such divine company and sweet food, the mind wanders much less! I see that She is pleased with the japa of the Narayana mantra. At the end, I bow to Her and Narayana and take my leave, asking Them both to remain with me always. She and He bless me, and She gives me another sweet as prasad (Her blessing).

This new type of meditation with Lakshmi as the focus definitely makes me feel soothed and nourished. It has brought a refreshing change to my spiritual routine. 

I currently have two sessions of japa per day (morning and evening). I plan to do a mixture of this manasik Lakshmi worship as well as my traditional manasik puja of Narayana each day depending upon how I feel.

The Narayana puja is more formal; I am the devotee and He is the Lord and I make Him the offerings. The worship of the Divine Mother Lakshmi is more intimate, more informal; I am the child and She is the Mother, and She provides me with spiritual nourishment. 

The intimate connection that easily forms between a child and the mother is probably the reason why, in many spiritual traditions, it is held that the Divine Father is accessible only via the Divine Mother. In fact, in some traditions, the devotee is strongly advised to worship Lakshmi before worshipping Narayana.

I have also decided to soak my mind in Lakshmi mantras and prayers. I will listen to and recite the Sri Suktam when I feel like (will do it spontaneously in accordance with Swami ji's advice- no fixed planning). 

This is a beautiful and powerful Vedic hymn that praises Lakshmi. It is said to be Lakshmi Herself in the form of sound (as with all Her mantras). It is regularly recited in the Sivananda Ashram in Rishikesh and I used to recite it occasionally in the past (lost the habit in recent years). 

I will also explore more prayers and mantras related to Lakshmi in the coming months (there are many that I have not yet discovered). 

The purpose of all these prayers will of course be the same as my reason for worshipping Narayana and Durga, namely spiritual progress and general world peace (as I feel we are in dire need of this. Lakshmi is often worshipped for material gains but, as She has blessed me with enough professional skill and wealth to live comfortably, though not lavishly, I am grateful and satisfied and do not therefore wish to ask Her for more).

I also plan to avoid any more rigid daily spiritual disciplines aside from continuing the ashtakshara mantra japa. Everything else will be spontaneous for now as the Swami advised, including the Lakshmi worship, kirtan, puja, homam and so on.

I am including a link (below) to my favourite rendition of the Sri Suktam online (with English translation). There is a lot of meaning behind the verses (it is not just a simple description of a beautiful Goddess) and I plan to explore this in the coming weeks (will perhaps write a post on it in the future).

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0Vd6xbQDTYs

Om Sri MahaLakshmyai Namah.

Om Namo Narayanaya.

Hari Aum Tat Sat.

A prescription for spontaneity and self-kindness

 Hari Aum.

I'd like to write a bit about spontaneity and self-love/kindness here. It actually feels pretty strange for me to write about these topics because, over time, I've cultivated the exact opposite qualities-- being disciplined and self-critical. These qualities are common in society particularly amongst professionals and spiritual practitioners. 

Being disciplined and organised allows one to get things done in an efficient manner. Being self-critical enables us to meet the standards we set for ourselves and that are expected in our professions. In contrast, being 'spontaneous' is something that can feels a bit weird. And being self-loving to many people can feel positively bizarre!

The funny thing is that I often tell my patients to be kind to themselves (especially those with mental health issues). But like many doctors, I do not find it easy to practice this myself. The whole of the medical profession, and modern life for that matter, defines success as something that involves being efficient, organised and good at planning. 

And somehow, spontaneity seems to be a quality associated with artistic people-- musicians, dancers, actors and the like. The practice of the sciences seems to encourage a mindset where the intellect rules over the heart-- where efficiency and time management are the key (of course artistic people probably have these qualities in plenty too. There is just a perception amongst many, rightly or wrongly, that they are better at being spontaneous than scientific people).

Recently I had a chat with a senior Swami from the Sivananda tradition about my spiritual life (she is based in Europe). I told her about the issues I face-- the difficulty with God-remembrance, the issues with being not being disciplined enough, the mind wandering hither and thither, the lack of adequate devotional feeling etc. 

After listening to me for a while, she told me that there are two aspects of spiritual life which need to be in balance for it to be healthy. One side certainly is discipline, being self-critical/analytical and planning. But the other side is being spontaneous, joyful, and practicing self-love/self-kindness. 

My main issue currently, she said, is that I am 'too much in the head' and not enough 'in the heart'. Too intellectual, not enough heart-based, specifically not loving/kind enough to myself. 

"Too much self-discipline, planning and self-criticism is the issue", she said. "Be more spontaneous, more joyful, just allow yourself to exist with all your flaws and as you are. This is an important aspect of spiritual balance", she said. "This is what is needed to progress spiritually".

I stared at her blankly. "You want me to completely change my approach?" I asked. 

"That's a big ask. I've been doing things this way for a long time. I don't know how" I said.

She told me there's nothing to be done. "Just be", she said. "Send yourself some love", she said. 

"Which 'self' do you mean?", I asked. "My Higher Self/God (who exists in me and everyone) or my lower self (the dreaded ego, the enemy of spiritual life). Because I believe the Higher Self/God in me should receive my love, but not my lower self (the monkey mind)."

 She looked at me steadily and said-- "just yourself. The self that feels happy. The Higher Self and lower self are both a part of God. Stop the excessive self-discipline, stop torturing yourself with the constant self-policing. Just stop!". 

"Let yourself experience some joy in life, some sweetness, some fun. Consider some music and dancing". 

"I have taken up music and dancing", I told her. "I attend a devotional music class once a week. I also recently took up salsa dancing which I have not done in years. These do in fact make me feel happy and allow me to be less self-critical. When I sing and dance, I am in the moment, I enjoy myself (with relatively low self-criticism)."

"That", she said, "is what you should do more of".

I told her that I had recently told myself to do kirtan every day as a discipline. "Otherwise it won't get done and my day will be wasted", I said. "My life will be a spiritual waste. I will not be able attain the spiritual goal", I said feeling anxious. 

"What you are doing now is blocking your progress", she said. "This is not the way. Your path is too imbalanced". "There is too much discipline and self-analysis, not enough spontaneity and self-love/kindness." 

"You're so Christian, so much emphasis on 'good' and 'bad!", she exclaimed at one stage (She comes from a country where Catholicism is traditionally practiced).

"Let yourself just exist", she said. "As you are." 

"I eat too much ice-cream sometimes" I said. "I am not disciplined enough"

"So what?" she said. 

I looked at her in shock. "So what!" I said (in my head). 

"But, but...Sivananda sounds so strict in his books. He tells his disciples to be self-disciplined", I protested. 

"That is only in some places" she said. In other places, he tells his students to be joyful and spontaneous!"

"Ok" I said cautiously, "I will try and be spontaneous". 

"Not try!" she said.

"What do you want me to say?" I asked. 

"Say 'I will do it!'", she said firmly. 

"Ok, I will do it" I said nervously, feeling very out-of-my-depth. "Thank you for the advice!".

"One final thing, can I continue my daily mantra japa? I asked "I did pledge to do a certain amount over some years as a discipline."  

"Yes, you can do your japa" she smiled. 

"Laugh a little more every day" she added laughing.

As I look back in time at my spiritual life, and my life in general, it is true that self-discipline and self-analysis/self-criticism have played an important part (these are probably reflected in my blog entries too!). These qualities have served me well in many ways. I would not have achieved many of the things that I have, both in material life and spiritual sadhana, without this approach. But I feel Swami ji is right-- I seem to have accidentally taken it too far.

So I am going to follow her advice. And "just do it", be more spontaneous, do some more random music and dancing (and resist the temptation to plan the spontaneity!). And just be a bit kinder to myself in general, as I tell my patients to be. 

I'm going to let my hair down and eat ice cream without feeling guilty. And maybe some chocolate too (without labelling it 'rajasic' for a change). And perhaps not force myself to do kirtan every day (as I said in the previous post; I told Swami ji about the divination experience)-- but shock-horror, just when I spontaneously feel like it.

Last April, when I was being particularly self-critical and felt like a terrible disciple, I had a dream of Sivananda (in the early hours of Easter Sunday in fact) in which he simply told me to continue spiritual practice (he was not judgemental or critical of me at all, just really kind like a mother. This dream made me feel much better about myself).

This new approach will not be easy as it is completely different from what I have become used to. But perhaps it is just the prescription I need to heal my spiritual life. We will see!

This post is for anyone else who has gone too far on the path of discipline and in the process, forgotten how to enjoy the more relaxed, spontaneous side of life. 

Om Namo Narayanaya. May He bless us all with a bit more fun and spontaneity in spiritual life!

Hari Aum Tat Sat.

P.S. I am pleased to say that I am eating some ice-cream with fruit as I write this and do not feel guilty at all as it is the 'medicine' advised by the Swami! :) 

P.P.S. 

July 18, 2022

I would like to add an important footnote. One has to be careful as to the people from whom one accepts spiritual advice. The Swami mentioned in this article is a lady of tremendous discipline and bhakti/karma/yoga practice (she has been doing this for around four decades). I have known her from the time I discovered Sivananda in Nov 2004 and she was the one who initiated me into my mantra in 2005 (as an instrument of Sivananda).

She has known me for nearly 18 years and is aware of most major events in my life and my spiritual practices (the highs and lows). I have contacted her whenever I feel I face a significant obstacle in spiritual life.

There are times when she has asked me to increase the spiritual discipline. This is the first time that she has told me to back off a bit. 

I listen to her because I feel she knows what she is talking about as she is an advanced spiritual practitioner. And because, I have seen that she has walked the walk, not just talked the talk.

There are other people in my life who, over the years, have told me to tone down my spiritual practice using the same language as her--'you are overdoing it'. However they are not spiritual practitioners. Hence their words are not based on spiritual understanding, as in the case of the Swami, but rather  are an expression of their feeling that the spiritual path itself may not be worth it. Hence I naturally cannot accept such advice.

Therefore, one needs to carefully decide who one trusts in spiritual life and only take advice from them. Once the trust is present, one should be willing to listen with an open mind and implement the advice given.

Some of the instructions the Swami gave me in our recent conversation were not easy for me to listen to (as it was different from what I am used to). And some of the language she used towards me was tough and not flattering, while at other times, she was kind and encouraging. 

I trust her enough to know that when she criticises me, she means well; she is a true well-wisher and her words are based on experience (and her own connection with our Guru Sivananda, not mainly from the lower self/ego). Therefore I am not offended-- I listen and take her words seriously. And when she is encouraging and gives me permission to relax spiritually (something I could not do for myself)-- again, I listen and take her words seriously.  

It takes a spiritual practitioner to know another. She has guided many students on the spiritual path and walked it herself. This is the key. One cannot give any spiritual advice without having walked the path oneself, every step of the way. Without making many mistakes, correcting oneself and refusing to give up. Only by experience can one know what others may be going through and give appropriate advice.

It was Guru purnima last week. Salutations to all true Gurus who guide spiritual students every single day (whether or not they are physically present on Earth today).

Om Sri Gurave Namah.

Om Namo Bhagavate Sivanandaya.

Hari Aum Tat Sat.

A divination method based on the Ramayana

 Hari Aum.

The saint Tulsi Das of the 16th century was a great devotee of Rama and a self-realised being. He was a wonderful poet and composed many valuable spiritual works. Perhaps the best known amongst these is the Ram charit manas which is his re-telling of the story of the avatar of Narayana known as Shri Rama. 

(The original Ramayana, or lila of Rama, is said to have been composed in Sanskrit by the great sage Valmiki a very long time ago. Since then, many devotees of Rama have composed poems in their own languages in praise of Him).

One less well-known but interesting work by Tulsi Das is the 'Rama agya Prashna' (this means the order of Rama in Hindi). This is a divination method created by him for spiritual seekers and devotees to seek divine guidance. He lived in the sacred city of Kashi (Varanasi) in North India and it is said that he was inspired to create this technique to help a friend who was in trouble.

In essence, the Rama agya Prashna is a beautiful poem composed in an ancient form of Hindi (quite a bit of which overlaps with modern Hindi). It contains all the key events of the Ramayana in a condensed or mini version (that is much shorter than the original Ramayana). It consists of seven chapters or 'sargas' (in Hindi), each of which contains seven sections. Each of the seven sections in turn has seven verses. Thus, in total, there are 7 x 7 x 7 = 343 verses in this poem. 

Aside from the story of the Ramayana, there is mention of some astrological principles at the beginning and the end of the Rama agya Prashna. The last section of the poem explains the mental attitude and method that one should adopt when seeking to obtain divine guidance from this book. In essence one needs to select an auspicious day, meditate upon God in the heart beforehand and then pose the question. Then one finds a verse in the poem that provides the answer and is advised to reflect upon its meaning.

There are two main forms of this divination method that I have come across. One is in Hindi published as the "Ramagya Prashna" (the original). The other is in English published as the 'Rama ajna Prashna-- the oracle of Rama' (an adaptation of the original that is nearly identical to the Hindi one). I obtained both as I find they work quite well together. 

At this stage, I would like to mention that I generally avoid divination methods such as tarot cards, I ching and the like (these may well be useful but I know very little about them). I have never felt any need for them and have generally felt the best course of action is to follow the straight and narrow path of spirituality in the form of mantra recitation, meditation, puja, homam and other tried and tested spiritual practices. 

However, it was completely by chance, while seeking to purchase a birthday gift, for a friend that I happened to come across the English version of the Rama ajna prashna. This has been put together by the American author and yogi, David Frawley. He has published many books on yoga, ayurveda, astrology and a number of other spiritual subjects. One of his Vedic astrology books is a favourite of mine (that is the only book of his that I have read so far and I find it very helpful). 

Anyway, I ended up purchasing a copy of his adaptation of the Rama ajna Prashna. He has laid it out in a very interesting way. There are two decks of cards. One deck has 49 cards and each of these represents one section of the seven chapters in the mini-Ramayana of Tulsi Das. The second deck contains 7 cards, each of which represents one verse out of the seven in each section (of the seven chapters in the book). In addition, he has provided an English translation of the mini-Ramayana of Tulsi Das that was created for the purpose of divination or prashna. 

The method of using this divination method is as follows. After posing the question and meditating on God, one needs to shuffle each of the two decks of cards separately. Then one selects a card from the bigger deck. After this, one selects a card from the smaller deck. Now one needs examine both cards together to see which verse in the mini-Ramayana is indicated. This verse is meant to contain the answer.

I had certain questions related to my life, particularly my spiritual life, that I had not yet managed to find an answer for. I therefore felt the need for some divine guidance. Although Vedic astrology prashna can be used, this method provided by a saint felt more direct and worth exploring.

I therefore asked for divine guidance and consulted the Rama agya prashna (using the two decks of cards to indentify the relevant verse). To my surprise, each answer that I received matched the question that I had posed. Some were obvious, some seemed less so but appeared to have a meaning on deeper reflection. I repeated my mantra to invoke the blessing of God before, during and after the process and strongly feel that this was key in receiving relevant answers.

As I mentioned I have also purchased the Rama agya Prashna in Hindi (this contains Tulsi Das' original poem in ancient Hindi with a translation in modern Hindi). I did this because I can understand Hindi and wanted to read the original to grasp as much of the meaning as possible. So my method was to use the decks of cards in English to find the verse, but then read the answer in the Hindi book (and secondarily look at the English translation too).

On one or two occasions, my concentration on the mantra lapsed. On these occasions, the verses I received directly advised me to repeat the entire process again after meditating properly on God (the final verses of the book advise seekers to repeat the process if it was not done well !). Strangest of all, I received the same verse as an answer for three different questions within 48 hours (and I was shuffling the cards very well indeed so it was not due to a lack of this). The chances of that happening are around 0.00000002 i.e. very very small, so clearly not a coincidence. That verse appears to have some major significance in my life currently.

I will not go into detail about my questions and the answers as these are not relevant to readers. However, I will mention one thing about the verse that was repeated three times. The content of that verse felt to me like a spiritual admonishment. It felt like the universe was saying that I need to pull my socks up and try harder. It certainly feels relevant to my life today. 

In the past two years, due to the combination of the arrival of my daughter and the pandemic and various other issues, I have found my concentration upon God to be lacking. My devotional attitude has been lacking. There was a time around ten years ago when these were strong and seemed to flow almost effortlessly. But that spiritual ardour has lately felt like it is fading. 

I have increasingly felt caught up in worldly concerns and, despite feeling guilty about this most of the time, have not yet managed to change course. In the past couple of years, I have apologised to God on numerous occasions for this but unfortunately have not really improved. I have merely listed my excuses to Him ranging from personal to professional and even astrological (the recent double Rahu period with Sade sati has not been nice!). 

I do the mantra japa daily without fail but after that I forget Him periodically while busy with worldly tasks. This is the main problem and it was not this way in the past- I had a much better ability to remember God throughout the day and night with devotion regardless of what work I was doing. 

Despite the challenges of the past two years, my circumstances have now improved. I do have more time and energy to put into spiritual practice. And so, I do not have the excuses that I had previously (at least not to the same extent). I therefore feel like the Rama agya prashna's order or the divine will is for me to re-engage more seriously with spiritual life. To pull back from excessive involvement in worldly concerns. Or the consequences will be very unpleasant. 

On that note, I have once again taken up the writing of the book on the Vamana avatar. I have been working on this in fits and starts due to the various issues in the past two years. I hope to have this completed to my satisfaction in the coming weeks and will aim to publish it this year. Writing it feels like a spiritual practice. 

I am also going to commit to doing more kirtan, puja and homams. In this current phase of spiritual dreariness and fatigue, the only thing that fills me with spiritual happiness and devotional feeling is singing the names of God. After 15-20 minutes of singing, particularly the names of Krishna, I feel so much better and connected with Him. As He says, He is present whereever His names are sung. Based on this, I feel I really need to do some singing on most days, ideally every day.

I am mentioning the Rama agya prashna here in case it may be of use to any readers who seek divine guidance for their issues. I would say that it is a simple and uncannily accurate method of divination and would highly recommend it. 

May Lord Narayana rescue those of us who need rescuing from excessive worldliness and draw us back to Him.

Om Shri Ramaya Namah.

Om Namo Narayanaya.

Hari Aum Tat Sat.

Vedic astrology: the bhava chalit chart and spiritual life

 Hari Aum.

In Vedic astrology, there is debate about what constitutes a 'house' in the chart. There are various viewpoints. Some say that if the ascendant falls in a sign, then the entire sign equates to the first house, and other houses are allocated to the following signs. E.g. if the lagna is 29 degrees Sagittarius, then the whole of Sagittarius is the first house, the whole of Capricorn is the second house and so on.

There are other popular approaches. One of these is to say that the degrees of the ascendant is the mid-point of the first house. And, as a house is 30 degrees, this means that fifteen degrees either side of this mid-point will constitute the first house.

So, with this method, if the lagna is 29 degrees of Sagittarius, then the beginning of the first house will be (29-15=) 14 degrees of Sagittarius. And the end of the first house will be (29 + 15)= 14 degrees of Capricorn.

Other people hold that the degrees of the lagna constitute the starting degrees of the first house. So if lagna is 29 degrees Sagittarius, the first house begins here and continues upto and including 28 degrees of Capricorn. The second house would then begin from 29 degrees of Capricorn and so on.

To know where a house begins and ends is important as the houses represent the different domains of life. 

I follow the widely-used method which takes the lagna as the mid-point of the house. 

Applying this method to the above example, if Moon is present at 28 degrees Sagittarius, it will be in the 1st house. If it is present at 2 degrees Sagittarius, it will be in the 12th house.

The moon aspects the seventh sign from where it is located. Therefore it will aspect Gemini. This will be the case regardless of whether it is at 2 or 28 degrees or anywhere else in Sagittarius.

If Moon is at 2 degrees of Sagittarius in the above example, it is in the sign of lagna (29 degrees Sagittarius). But it is in the 12th house (as it is more than 15 degrees away from the lagna/mid-point of the first house). How should this be interpreted? Well Moon in the 12th will give an interest in meditation/moksha. It is the 8th lord in the 12th which is good (dushtana lord in dushtana house). However, the style of thinking will strongly influenced by Sagittarius. 

This chart which looks at the houses using the lagna as the mid-point is known as the bhava chalit chart. It is an important chart which helps us to correctly understand the placements of planets.

Much of the knowledge of the ancient rishis who gave the knowledge of jyotish to humanity has been lost and we struggle to fully understand and interpret the rules. As we develop our intuition and practice this subject, we gain a greater understanding of the interpretation of the chart. Things are not set in stone in Vedic astrology; this is an area which many people are studying and new knowledge emerges from time-to-time.

On that note, I would like to give my chart as an example. In a previous post (spiritual path from the birth chart) in October 2017, I had discussed my chart as an example to illustrate some of the key points about that topic. 

Recently, some confusion arose regarding my lagna. My lagna was at the very end of Aries and it would change to Taurus if my birth time was increased by a mere 4 minutes. My relatives also informed me that they used a method to determine my birth time involving some 'averages' -- this meant the time when I would have fully emerged into the world was later than the documented birth time. There was therefore the strong possibility that I was a Taurus lagna.

My chart is a good example to illustrate the bhava chalit chart. I have four planets in Scorpio-- Sun, Mercury, Jupiter and Venus. With lagna at the end of Aries, these were in the 8th sign but in the 7th house (7th house in the bhava chalit chart). With lagna in early Taurus, these four are in the 7th sign and the 7th house. In both cases, the sign of Scorpio would strongly influence the personality. There would be an interest in the occult and mysticism as this is associated with Scorpio. However, with Aries lagna, these four planets do not aspect the 1st house from the 8th sign; they aspect the 2nd house. With Taurus lagna, these four aspect the 1st house.

My moon sign remains Sagittarius regardless of the lagna being Aries or Taurus. It also remains in the 9th house in the bhava chalit chart with Taurus lagna. So there is no major change. However, with Taurus lagna, it is in the 8th sign (though the 9th house in the bhava chalit chart). This will bring some 8th house energy to the signification of the Moon i.e. mind, mother, emotions etc. This is true in my life.

Despite the planets (except the nodes) remaining in the same signs and houses (in the bhava chalit chart) for Aries and Taurus lagna, there is an important difference. The benefic/malefic planets for these two charts are different and will give different results in their dashas. For Aries lagna, Jupiter, Sun and Mars are the benefics. For Taurus lagna, Saturn, Mercury and Venus are the benefics. This has huge implications for what to expect in the dashas.

The nakshatra of the Moon also influences the personality aside from lagna and moon sign. There are three nakshatras in every rashi/zodiac sign. These are ruled by different planets. The three nakshatras of Sagittarius rashi are Jyeshta, Purvashada and Mula which are respectively ruled by Mercury, Venus and Ketu. Three people with the Sagittarius moon sign whose moons are present in these different nakshatras will have variations in their mental make-up based on these additional influences. 

So determining the personality of a person takes into account various factors including the lagna, the moon sign, the nakshatras of the lagna and moon sign, the planets aspecting/influencing the lagna/moon sign and the location of the ruler of the lagna and moon sign. That is a lot of factors to consider and therefore it is no easy task sometimes to tell apart two lagnas, particularly when the lagna is at the very end of a sign and the bhava chalit charts are very similar!

Certain events have taken place in my family life in the past two years however which strongly fit with a Taurus lagna (they would be very unlikely with an Aries lagna). Apart from that, I have been strongly drawn to bhakti yoga and my hobbies are music and dancing which fit better with Taurus lagna. (I had previously thought these were due to my Moon being in Purvashada nakshatra ruled by Venus). I am not at all drawn to worship Subramanya (the diety associated with Aries) but I have a very strong interest in worshipping Durga (Venus, the ruler of Taurus, is in Scorpio). Virgo, the sign ruled by Mercury (representing Vishnu or Narayana) becomes the fifth house (representing mantra and worship) for Taurus lagna (again this fits better than Leo for Aries lagna).

Many other features of my personality and life events fit better with a Taurus lagna. I did not want to self-diagnose my own lagna (just like doctors are discouraged from diagnosing and treating themselves and their loved ones as it is difficult to be objective which is needed for accuracy). 

I therefore consulted an astrologer I respect and have known for a long time on this issue. Taking into account the various elements of my chart and specific recent life events (and the method by which my birth time was documented), he concluded that it it highly likely that my lagna is Taurus and that the actual birth time is about six minutes after the documented time (it is very common for rectified birth times to be +/- 10 minutes either side of the documented time). This fits with the key events in my life and also my experience of good/bad periods in life. It also fits far better with the results expected from planetary transits.

So both my previous chart and the current one have the same planets in the same signs, and the houses are almost the same. But the lagna and aspects are different. Rahu sits in Gemini while Ketu, Moon and Mars are in Sagittarius. Venus, Jupiter, Mercury and Sun are in Scorpio. Saturn is in Libra. The 7th house of partnerships and marriage plays an important role in my life. 

Four planets in a sign give sannyasa yoga (the yoga of renunciation) but with Venus as lagna lord in the 7th house, there will be a strong interest in marriage. This is the case for me. I toyed with the idea of complete renunciation in my early 20s. I even ended a close relationship thinking I would pursue the path of sannyas but it did not happen. After marriage though, I was drawn to the path of 'karma sannyasa' (living a life of a householder based on the concept of sannyasa) and took an initiation into this from the Satyananda tradition (he was a disciple of Sivananda). So while the approach of sannyasa has been an important to me, so are marriage and connections with people. I feel I need both to grow spiritually. 

Sannyasa in my life is not currently about the external life of a sannyasi (the orchre robe and living in an ashram) but rather about trying to live according to the broad principles of sannyasa (cultivating the spirit of karma yoga, egolessness, God remembrance and so on). As Sivananda says, it is the mind which primarily needs to be dyed orange while robes are less significant. Krishna also describes similar concepts of sannyasa in the Gita (the emphasis is on the mind/internal intent and thinking process, not merely on the body/external actions. Of course external sannyasa has an important role in society but it needs to be backed up by true internal sannyasa to be effective).

I also greatly enjoy sankirtan, singing spiritual songs both by myself and especially in a group with others. This, according to Sivananda, is one of the most effective spiritual paths. I am at my happiest when in a room full of people engaging in kirtan. In truth, this creates spiritual feelings in me like nothing else does. The joy of kirtan supersedes even that of japa in my life (which is why I plan to do more). This makes complete sense with the Taurus lagna (ruled by Venus and which has an affinity for music and singing) and the planets in the 7th house of Scorpio (representing the company of people). With Taurus lagna, I can see why I am the way I am. Things make much more sense that they did with Aries lagna. 

My atma karaka is still Mars regardless of the lagna. With both lagnas, Mars in located in Libra in navamsha and also in vimsamsa (the chart of spirituality). Mercury is the ruler of Virgo, the 12th sign from Libra. There is no planet in Virgo in Vimsamsa, but Mercury and Sun aspect Virgo from Pisces. This fits with worship of Narayana/Vishnu (represented by Mercury, lord of 12th from Atma karaka). 

Navamsa lagna is Capricorn with Saturn in the 12th house of Sagittarius. Jupiter, 12th lord, in the 7th house Cancer in exaltation. Moon and Venus are in the 9th house. These placements would fit well with a person with my interest in spiritual life. 

Vimsamsa lagna is Sagittarius with Jupiter in lagna, Moon in Cancer in the 8th, and Saturn in Leo in the 9th. Rahu and Ketu jointly occupy the fifth house Aries. As mentioned above, Mars is in Libra, while Mercury and Sun occupy Pisces. (Except for the nodes, these planets are all in the same signs in both Aries and Taurus lagna in the main chart, but vimsamsa lagna is Sagittarius when the main chart has Taurus lagna). These placements fit with worshipper of Guru (Jupiter), Durga (Rahu) and Narayana (Saturn) in trines.

There are many ways of calculating Vimsamsa and this is also a topic of debate amongst astrologers. The rashi chart is generally the one that most people agree on and the key factors of spiritual life should be seen here in my view (this is after all the main chart that is the basis of all the others).

I hope this article has highlighted the nuances of Vedic astrology, the multiple factors to consider when interpreting a chart and the challenges that one can sometimes face in certain situations such as when the lagna changes within a few minutes of the birth time.

I am still learning this wonderful subject and I see the recognition of myself as a Taurus lagna as a further huge green light to continue the practice of japa, kirtan and other bhakti yoga practices, and also continue the worship of Hari and Durga. 

Om Namo Narayanaya. May God bless us all. 

Hari Aum Tat Sat.