Understanding

Sri Chakra Puja

Amrita, Devipuram, India, 531001

Prologue This book had to be written to fill a gap. There are millions of people in the world who are doing Sri Chakra Puja. ut ver! few understand the meanings of the mantras and pro"edures, wh! the! are being done, what is a good wa! of doing things. And there are simpl! no books available on this sub#e"t. $ri Devi inspired Devi %arvati to seek this information for the benefit of ever! devotee of $ri &id!a b! asking 'uestions to Amrita at Devipuram, India. $he used to ask 'uestions, and tape the answers. $he took painstaking trouble to trans"ribe what was said, t!ped it out and Amrita edited it again. (onversational st!le was preserved to a large e)tent to preserve readabilit!. *edundan"ies have not been totall! removed be"ause the! are sometimes needed as reminders+ but an attempt has been made to redu"e them. This is the first attempt that reall! tries to go into the m!steries of ever! mantra, and ever! pro"edure in the $ri (hakra pu#a as des"ribed in %arashu *ama ,alpa $utra to "onve! a deeper understanding of the ritual. It is the author-s belief that su"h an attempt to open up these m!steries has not been made before in a book whi"h an!one "an read. .u"h of the matter presented here is being spoken from a dire"t personal revelational stand point, and so "arries no referen"es. It is also the first time that the authenti" te)ts have been e)plained the wa! the! are here "ombining the modern and an"ient views. /ou ma! or ma! not agree with what is said here. ut to hide the s"ien"e of ritual from publi" e!e be"ause it ma! not be in tune with the present norms is not "orre"t. After all, the purpose of this book is to inform about pra"ti"es that were followed in olden da!s. To pra"ti"e or not is !our personal de"ision. To sa! that a book on g!ne"olog! should not be published be"ause it shows the pi"tures of genitals is ridi"ulous. 0hether it works for !ou, !ou have to dis"over. There is a good "han"e it will, if !ou approa"h the sub#e"t with respe"t. It is not a "heap imitation or a pruned down version of the ritual. It is the a"tual stuff. It does not have the patriar"hal bias to the age old traditions when woman was 1od. It talks openl! about sub#e"ts su"h as use of se) in ritual and

hen"e brushed aside b! man! pra"titioners as being a""essible onl! through surrendering !our bod!, mind and soul to a 1uru. 3a"h heading "an be interpreted as a 'uestion about a topi". 0hat follows is an an attempt to "larif! the "on"epts involved.

PUJA
Parashurama is an Avatar of Vishnu. 4e has divided the Sri Chakra Puja into four "learl! defined time slots5 Lalita, Rajashyamala, Varahi and Para. %u#a to Lalita is to be done in the morning in the "reative "enter, Rajashyamala in the heart during midda!, Varahi in the evening at the e!ebrow "enter, and Para Shakti at midnight in the "rown. This volume deals onl! with the first part, Lalita Puja. $ome people "ombine all these differnt pu#as into one unmanageabl! long pu#a. 6either the parti"ipants nor the people wat"hing the pu#as understand what is going on. The! think that the longer the pu#a, the better it is. The! keep on adding to the pu#a from this book and that book, and the! are then afraid to let go of this or that bit of the pu#a. The! loose their balan"e and be"ome angr! with slightest disturban"es to the pu#a like a "hild "r!ing for food. 7or a devotee to be"ome angr! is to go down. /ou find a famous e)ample of this in the stor! of *ama!ana. &ishwamitra was a great king who wanted to attain to the highest knowledge of 1od. 4e was doing austerities for a long time. Then Indra, afraid that he will lose his position as the ruler of 1ods, sent a "elestial sedu"tress "alled .enaka to stop him from pra"ti"ing "eleba"! in thought, word and deed. &ishwamitra got attra"ted to .enaka and spent 10,000 !ears en#o!ing her. Then he lost the power he had obtained from his austerities. 4e reali8ed his mistake and he told her 9 6o I don-t want !our "hild, and I don-t want !ou, get lost9. 4e pushed her awa! and then started again on the austerities gaining great merit. Then he went to $age &ashishta-s ashram. And he told him, 9:ook I have be"ome great in austeritie. 6ow !ou have to pro"laim that I am a Brahma Rishi=self reali8ed soul9. &ishishta sa!s, 96o !ou are not a rahma *ishi9 to test him. Then &ishwamitra got angr! and "ursed &ishishta. 0ith that single "urse he lost all the power. The moral of the stor! is that se)ual en#o!ment is mu"h less harmful than anger. 0hereas lust has taken 10,000 !ears to remove his power, his anger removed it in one instant. That is the differen"e. That is wh! the! sa! if !ou are pra"ti"ing sadhana ;sin"ere devotion, and !ou get angr! !ou are not making headwa!. The signature of being on the proper path is that !ou must remain unperturbed b! anger or fear. It is then that !ou are reall! on the wa!.

hree Shaktis
Puja is done to !riya Shakti" Jnana Shakti and #$$ha Shakti. 0hat is the meaning and importan"e of these Shaktis in the .other worship< The! are the powers residing in the eroti" #ones of a woman. All 1oddesses are powers of attention, awarenesses, residing in "ertain pla"es or times. %ure unbounded awareness is "onsidered to be the universal .other, Lalita. All shaktis are 4er bod! parts. 4er bod! is spa"e and time. %ouri=!riya" Lakshmi=Jnana" Saras&ati=#$$ha The word 9mother9 brings to our minds usuall! the 9one who gives birth to9. I was born out of her womb and that is m! pla"e of birth. The birth "hannel, the yoni;vagina is the onl! entit! that reall! 'ualifies to be "alled the mother. It is indeed a temple where the 1oddess who gives birth is lo"ated. 0e "all the 1oddess there as %ouri="reatri). The yoni is also the pla"e where billions of sperms who are tr!ing to get a "han"e to live are destro!ed. That is wh! she is known as !ali=destro!er. %ouri is the one who a""epts the seed and gives it life, and !ali is one who a""epts the seed but destro!ing it. That is wh! it is important to worship ,ali during menstruation, when "on"eption is not possible. The! are different, !et the! arelo"ated at the same pla"e, "alled b! different names at different times. The! are both lo"ated in the 'uladhara Chakra. $o as the .other of all, who gives birth to us through her !oni, %ouri is worshipped in the !oni. $he is the base in whi"h the Linga=phallus of $iva stands. :alita $ahasram speaks of Bhagaradhya= worshipped in !oni. There are so man! names in the :alita $ahasranama that relate to su"h e)pli"itl! se)ual aspe"ts of the .other 1oddess worship. At one time there were fertilit! rites where the love between man and woman was offered as an intimate servi"e to the 1oddess. (evi the universal mother is lo"ated in the S&adhisthana $hakra. S&a ) b! self, adhisthana = residing in. The pla"e where Devi is residing in, is the genitals. The seat of the !undalini power, the energ! whi"h gives supreme pleasure of orgasm is lo"ated in the genitals. The starting point of ,undalini is known as !umara. 4e is like the !oung Siva. The big Siva is the male linga= phallus. !umara, his son, the small linga in the female is the "litoris. The female linga is the seat of happiness and pleasure and the origin of !undalini Shakti. The first movement of the !undalini is to make !ou lose !our sense of bod! identifi"atiion, and that is e)a"tl! what happens in orgasm. /ou are flowing out of !ourself as the seed and !ou lose all !our tensions. The word orgasm is used in Tantra in the broader context as losing all your tensions. If !ou are worried, losing !our worr! is an orgasm.

There was one fellow who used to wear shoes three times under si8e. 4e used to walk with those shoesall da! long. And he used to have e)"ru"iating pain throughout the da!. And people asked him, 90h! do !ou wear those undersi8ed shoes and bear the pain<9 4e said, 9There is onl! one happiness left in m! life and that is when I remove this shoe from m! foot, onl! then I feel e)tremel! happ!. 9 0e are all wearing this undersi8e shoe, "alled this bod!, and on"e !ou find the release from this bod! !ou find happiness, the onl! happiness that we know, and that is "alled an orgasm. 0e want repetion of that happiness be"ause we want to be permanentl! in that state. The onl! wa! to a"hieve that is to re"ogni8e whenever there is stress developing, and to be let go of that stress. This is the main point of Tantra. Tr! to be in a state of "onstant orgasm, to be in the perpetual union between $iva and $hakti. The mother who gives birth is "alled %ouri. .an is ver! in"idental to the pro"ess of "reation. 4e #ust deposits a seed in the womb and then walks out. And there finishes his dut!. 0e think we are the mothers of our "hildren that we beget. ut are the! our "hildren< The! are not, the! are the "hildren of %ouri. Do we know how to give form to that formless seed< 4ow to make the fa"e, the e!es, the ears, how to make the tongue, how to put the taste in the tongue< 4ow to "reate the limbs that "an grow and where ea"h should be lo"ated, in what proportion, what si8e< 0hat "olor e!es, what looks< 6one of these things we know. All of this happens automati"all!. There is a power of transformation whi"h is "oded in the genes whi"h is doing this #ob. And that power %ouri is lo"ated in the womb. It is the seed that we are worshipping. /ou "annot sa! that the seed is male or female. $o before the egg, whi"h "ame first, the egg or the hen< It was the seed that "ame before either of them. And that seed is information, knowledge in=formation. It is the seed that is 1ouri, the bindu. That is the first mother that we know of. In the womb, initiall! !ou as the "hild e)perien"e a tremendous growth potential. 3ver! moment !ou are multipl!ing !ourself into two and it appears as if there is an infinite possiblit! of growth. And !ou are en#o!ing that happiness and ri"hness available to !ou of the multipli"ation of !ourself. ut then after some time, the womb being limited in si8e offers resistan"e to growth. And !ou are being "onfined. And !ou don-t like that "onfinement. /ou want to grow. And after some time !ou are pushed out for"ibl!. At first !ou do not know what is tou"h, !ou were not even breathing. /ou were floating in the womb for nine months. /ou were breathing through !our navel through the blood of the mother. At the time of birth !ou were pushed out, and suddenl! a "old metal "omes and grasps !our head and pulls !ou out and before !ou have learned how to transfer from one s!stem of life to another s!stem, !our navel thread is "ut. At the time of birth !ou are fighting for life. This trauma is tremendous. /ou "annot sa! that this trauma is not present in "easarean births

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be"ause the! also "ut the navel "ord. 7rom navel breathing !ou have got to move to nasal breathing, and that transition is ver! traumati". After the birth pro"ess, then immediatel! prote"tion has to be given, nourishment has to be given. 0here does it "ome from< It "omes from the .other-s breasts as her milk. There she is known as Lakshmi. $he is the o"ean of milk that "omes from the breasts of the female. There the "hild feeds. The first milk that "omes out of the mother-s breasts has immuni8ation properties. Do !ou know how to make that milk< /ou ate food and it be"ame milk. That power to give nourishment is what we "all Lakshmi. The nipples through whi"h milk "omes is the lo"ation of the se"ond aspe"t of the .other we worship. Then the "hild grows and after some time it leaves the mother-s breast and looks for outside food. The "hild is not interested in re"eiving nourishment from the mother an! more. 6either is that mother able to provide it. It re"eives nourishment from knowledge. Then the third mother "omes into e)isten"e. That is Saras&ati. $he is in the tongue. 0hen !ou are talking, are !ou aware of where the tongue has to go in order to "reate a "ertain se'uen"e or sounds< 6o, !ou are not aware. $till that is the fun"tion of $araswati, to tea"h. This learning pro"ess starts at the age of about two and a 'uarter !ears. The first part is for nine months+ the se"ond part for twent! seven months and in the third part !ou are taken "are of from then to 2?)3;@1months;about ? !ears of age b! Saras&ati, the third mother. In the (evi 'ahatmyam, in the first part there is onl! one "hapter, the se"ond part has three "hapters and the third part has nine "hapters, where !ou have to dan"e !our wa! through life with happiness and pleasure. 7or that !ou have toobstru"tions to !our progress. In this part !ou will find a great battle being waged against all the demons and how the Devis over"ome them one b! one. The worst of these demons is *aktabi#a. *aktabi#a means the triggering of one thought from another. The #$$ha Shakti is lo"ated as Saras&ati at the tip of !our tongue. Jnana Shakti is worshipped in the heart "enter, and !riya Shakti is worshipped in the !oni. If !ou want to manifest or "reate a ph!si"al form, worship of the !oni brings this power into !ou. All !our fears and se)ualit! are lo"ated in the first two "hakras. 0orship;pa!ing attention to feeling of respe"t, removes !our negativities and paves the wa! to power and love. 0orship of the heart "enter gives !ou the blessings of knowledge, of prote"tion, of immunit!, of wealth, of prosperit!. 0orship of the fa"e gives !ou will power and emotional intelligen"e "alled #$$ha Shakti. 3spe"iall! when !ou "on"entrate on the e!ebrow "enter; ajna $hakra" it develops !our power to "ontrol !ourself and others.

The :alita $ahasranama talks in detail about these these various aspe"ts. There is a mantra appropriate to worshipping the (evi in the heart "enter, and that is Raja Shyamala. There is a mantra whi"h "ooresponds to the Ajna "enter whi"h is "alled Varahi. There is a mantra "ooresponding to the rahmarandhra, the Sahasrara $hakra and that is a single letter mantra "alled Souh. It is Para. It is the hissing sound of the kundalini snake as it rises up the spinal "hord. 0hen it rea"hes the Sahasrara it opens its hood up and implodes the "osmos into !ou. Vishnu is sleeping under the hood of the serpent Sesha. It means that the "osmos and "osmi" "ons"iousnessB &ishnuC is under the prote"tion of this !undalini for"e. It is both a "reative and a destru"tive for"e. It "reates order and destro!s disorder. The s!mbolism of the snake is a universal ar"ht!pe over the ages in various "ultures. Imagine a snake "rawling over !our bod! and that !ou are a small "hild and that !ou are not aware that it is a snake. Dr !ou have not learned to name it as a snake. 0hat do !ou find< /ou find a supreme pleasure in its tou"h. It "oils around !our limbs and a beautiful massage is being given to !ou b! the snake. In this situation !ou are not naming it and not identif!ing it with a situation that is potentiall! dangerous. /ou #ust pla! with that. This is the nature of $iva. The moment !ou asso"iate that situation with the notion of fear that it "an kill !ou, then the fear is related to the muladhara "hakra. Dn the one hand there is pleasure and on the other hand there is fear. This "ombination of the pleasure=fear "omple) is what is s!mboli8ed b! the snake. If !ou look at the philosophi"al stru"ture behind this, !ou find that the snake is something that moves in a wav! "urv! fashion, not straight. The! sa! that when !ou are drunk !ou move in a wav! fashion, !ou are not "lear in what dire"tion !ou are moving. ut if a snake be"omes drunk, what does it do< It moves straight. The mind and its thought patterns are like the snakes, going hither and dither in wav! fashions. ut when the mind be"omes stead! and one=pointed, when it flows relativel! straight then it is 9drunken9. This is the drink that the! refer to in the tantra. The drink, the ambrosia whi"h makes !our mind one=pointed and straight. The !undalini shakti is flowing up the sushumna "hannels instead of going round the petals in whatever wa! it wants. This is the s!mbol of the snake. /ou "an worship the pan"adasi in a parti"ular portion of !our bod!. The usual portion asso"iated with the Devi is the swadhisthana "hakra. That is where she resides. 0hen the !undalini is sleeping then !ou are aware of the world and !oufeel that !ou are separate from the world. 0hen the !undalini is awakening, !our separateness is getting lost step b! step. 0hat "auses this separateness< /ou are intera"ting with the world through !our five sensor! modes of per"eption. The! are all lo"al magnifiers. $o !ou are not knowing the world as it e)ists, but through the filters of !our senses. 0hen

,undalini awakens, it enables !ou to trans"end these sensor! limitations. 7or e)ample, !ou "an smell distant odours, taste remote #ui"es, see distant forms, tou"h distant ob#e"ts, hear musi" "ontinents apart. Dne after the other these senses are being trans"ended. $o the as"ent of the !undalini, this "ons"iousness=provoking , d!nami" power is the loss of !our separation from "osmos, !our sour"e. $o it "an be "alled worship of the !oni from whi"h !ou "ame to be. !undalini is thus said to be sleeping in the muladhara "hakra, "oiling itself 3E 1F2 times around.1oing round the waistBmanipuraC, "hestBanahataC, and ne"kBvisuddhiC are the three "oils of the snake. And then the head of the snake is going into the vagina through the vulvaBswadhisthanaC to the "ervi)BmuladharaC and that is where the tip of the lingam is going to be. That is where the head of the snake is sleeping. 0hen the kundalini reverses its flow, then from the muladhara "enter of the shakti it enters the muladhara "enter of the male and flows in a reverse a"tion and "omes to the swaddhisthana, whi"h is the base of the lingam and then moves up the spinal "hord behind and "omes up to the sahasrara. This is the transfer of energ! from the $hakti to the $iva in the !ogi" posture of union. This posture is a reversal pro"ess. The e)"hange of energ! "an take pla"e between the $iva and $hakti in union. /ou os"illate. And this os"illation "an build up to the navel "enter and then from the heart "enter to the heart "enter, and then rom the throat "enter to the throat "enter and then to the a#na "enter. And then the "ir"le gets "losed. 0hen the "ir"uit gets "losed, then the "osmi" "ons"iousness is supposed to happen. Then the $iva and $hakti do not e)perien"e their separateness. The! be"ome one and it is thus that the "onsummation between $iva and $hakti takes pla"e. This is the purpose of the marriage = to e)perien"e this "osmi" oneness of one soul moving in two bodies, between husband and wife. That is "alled moksha. /ou have passed a life=long term of imprisonment on !ourself stating that !ou are going to live in this bod!, this mind, and live with these thoughts. 0hen !ou are able to es"ape from these three sets of notions then !ou are %asupati, !ou are $iva. 0hen !ou are "onfined b! these notions, !ou are a pasu, a beast. A beast is tied b! strings. These strings that bind !ou are !our fear, !our seeking for sensations, !our power addi"tions, and in a limiting fashion the love !ou have for others. These are all strings. *R#%#+ *, S*U+(S he 'ahes&ara Sootra Nritta avasaane Nata Raja Rajo Nanaada Dhakkaam Nava Pancha vaaram

Uddhartu kaamah Sanakadi Siddhaan

tad vimarse Siva Sootra !aalam

The stan8a means, 9 At the end of the dan"e, the king of dan"ers, $iva beat on his drum 1> times, BGH5C wanting to further enlighten great as"eti"s starting eith $anaka. 0e shall dis"uss some of these important aphorisms, known as .aheswara $ootra 9. This .aheswara $ootra o""upies a seminal pla"e in the histor! of 4indu religion. The! form the basis of harata-s dan"e form, %anini-s 1rammar of $anskrit literature, and %atan#ali-s /oga. There is a stor! that the (reator be"ame tired of "reating himself. $o he "reated four "hildren $anaka, $anandana, $anatkumara and $antsu#atha and re'uested them to "ontinue the #ob of pro"reation. 4owever, the! refused to do so, thinking that the lowl! se)ual mode of reprodu"tion was not for them, whi"h their father wasdoing. $o the! "hose to remain eternall! !oung at the age of four, when se) has not !et kno"ked at their door. To help them understand life and its purposes better, the king of dan"ers, Bdan"e; lifeC $iva, who is eroti" in the nine worlds below and an as"eti" in the five worlds above, pla!ed on his drum GH5;1> times, representing the paths to be found in all the fouteen worlds. As we shall see presentl!, these drum beats are none other than the seed mantras BsoundsC of $anskrit alphabets. The drum beats are5 ". # $ Un. %. #r #l Uk. &. 'ng. (. #i 'uch. ). *a +a ,aa Rat. -. .an.

/. Nga 0a !na Nna Nam. 1. !ha 2hany. 3. 4ha Dha Dhash. "5. !a 2a 4a Da Dash. "". 6ha Pha 7hcha Ththa Ththa 7a Ta Tav. 12. ,a %a!. 13. $ha $hsha $ar. 1>. 4al. 1. A I In A = the first letter stands for negation. Awareness e)ists in two states, awareness that is not even aware of itself = that is the first state, 9A9, like a 8ero+ and awareness that is aware of itself, like a 8ero that is the sum of opposites for e). B1.5CHB=1.5C;0. A small deviation, a small movement = that is the se"ond state. Awareness has these two properties of oneness and man!ness. I = is the se"ond letter. It is the desire of the awareness to know itself b! splitting into sub#e"t and ob#e"t. I = to preserve the desire is "alled 9u9. That is $thiti BpreservationC.

$risti, the "reation has not o""ured in 9A9. Dnl! when 9A9 desires to manifest itself it be"omes an orgasmi"all! elongated 9Aa9. This desire is represented b! 9I9. 0hen 9I9 is full! e)pressed it be"omes9Ii9 BlongC . The desire to preserve that altered state of awareness is 9I9 and 9Iu9. 2. Aru Aluk 0hen awareness is observing a part of itself, the observed part appears to it as if it does not have an awareness. $o awareness is "reating a non=awareness relative to it in this pro"ess. This is represented b! 9Aru9 and 9Alu9. These vowel sounds are "onsidered to be of neutral gender, denoting ob#e"ts whi"h are not e)perien"ed the same wa! as the sub#e"t e)perien"es itself. 3. 3 Dng >. Ai Du"h Then "reation pro"eeds further through the letters, 3, ong+ Ai, Au"h. A H i is 3. A H u is D. 3 H a is Ai. 3 H u is Au. Am is the seed held within the sub#e"t+ Ah is the seed e)pressed outside itself as an ob#e"t. $o "reation, preservation and disolution of the ob#e"t are being mapped b! the vowel sounds of the $anskrit alphabet. This "ompletes the formation of the vowel sounds. 5. 4a /a &a *at The desire to pro"reate "omes down from the sk! to earth as the "onsonants.4a,/a,&a, *a. 4a means spa"e. 4am is the "enter of the &isshudhi, the throat "hakra. /a means life, prana. /am is the "enter of the Anahata, the heart "hakra. &a means waters, the sour"e of life. &am is the "enter of the .anipura, the navel "hakra. *a means heat. *am is at the swadhisthana "hakra, the se) "enter. In the !ogi" parlan"e of toda!, water is des"ribed to be at the genitals and fire at the navel. This order is reversed in $iva sootras, for a good reason. :ust is the heat in the loins whi"h melts the seed whi"h goes into the mother-s tumm! and grows there in the waters of life. $o, in these sootras, water is supposed to be at the navel "enter. This is also the view of $ankara as propounded in his $oundar!a :ahari, a h!mn to the .other 1oddess. A. :an The ne)t sound is :an. It is shown separatel! from the ha, !a, va, ra, be"ause it is the last and densest ob#e"tifi"ation of the five states of aggregation of matter, B"alled elements hereC. 6e)t the attributes of these elements are dis"ussed. ?. 6ga .a Jna 6na 6am

6ga means an! vibration. $pa"e has onl! one attribute5 sound. .a means tou"h. Air has two attributes5 sound, tou"h. Jna means form. 7ire has three attributes5 sound, tou"h, form. 6na means taste. :i'uid has four attributes5 sound, tou"h, form, taste. 6a means smell. $olid has all five attributes5 sound, tou"h, form, taste, smell. The five states of aggregation $pa"e, Air, 7ire, 0ater, and $olid have ea"h one more attribute than their prede"essor. $in"e an entit! is known b! its attributes, we "an sa! these attributes are making theseelements. $o we observe that matter is in -ormation B;informationC of the sensations+ or are derived from them. The $utras @,G,10,11,12, 13, 1> are elaborations on the same lines. 0e shall ignore them, as we have "overed the basi" stru"tures needed for our dis"ussions on $ri (hakra. 3a"h letter of the $anskrit alphabet has a ver! pre"ise meaning. 3a"h letter has "osmi", individual and mi"ro"osmi" meanings. If !ou look at the vedi" language, !ou will see that the senten"es rarel!, if at all, repeat themselves. It is an irredu"ible representation. /ou "annot "ondense it an! further than it alread! is. &edas are highl! "oded forms of information, like, for e)ample, the *6A and D6A "odes of genes. The! "ode the information of life so tightl! that !ou "annot redu"e them an! further. The vedi" language is "ondensed into these alphabets whi"h are irredu"ible representations of the original meanings "onne"ted with the sounds from the drumbeats of $iva. he Sri Chakra 0ords and senten"es are auditory forms informing us about "reation, maintainen"e and dissolution. $imilarl!, a highl! "oded visual gemetri"al stru"ture e)ists. It is "alled a $ri (hakra Bthe "ir"le of gra"eC. It is the geneti" "ode of the (osmos, the individual and mi"ro"osmos. .editation on it has revealed man! truths to seers+ it is itself revealed in meditation. It is a s!mbol all of "reation, in"luding its unitive Bsub#e"tiveC and diverse Bob#e"tiveC aspe"ts. The seer is alwa!s one. The seen are man!. Sri Chakra is the a.ode o- the $osmi$ a&areness. 0e now dis"uss sub=stru"tures of $ri (hakra, starting from the "enter outwards. G.The $ri (hakra starts with a (enter, the indu, a dimensionless point. It is the seer+ never seen. @.$urrounding that is the first triangle, the seen, whi"h in"ludes the seer. ?.$urrounding that there are @ triangles. A,5.$urrounding that there are t&o sets of 10 triangles ea"h.

10

>.$urrounding that there is the 1>=triangle figure. 3.$urrounding that there is an @=petalled lotus. 2.$urrounding that, there is a1A=petal lotus. 1.$urrounding that there are three "ir"les and a s'uare en"losure with three lines in it. The s'uare en"losure has four entran"es. These are the main "ir"les or subsets of the $ri (hakra. The $ri (hakra is "omposed of 3 sets of 3. :ooking from outwards going in, the first 3 = the s'uare, the 1A and @ petalled lotuses, "onstitute Sristi, the "reative aspe"ts of the Awareness. The 1> "ornered figure, the 10 "ornered figure and the other 10 "ornered figure represent the Sthiti, the maintenan"e. The @ "ornered figure, the triangle and the "enter point represent the Laya, the reabsorption. he Bindu The "enter of ever! e)perien"e is !ourself. That is $iva, "alled the invariant point, bindu. The word bindu means three things5 point, seed and mind. All that is e)perien"ed is $hakti. The fun"tion of $iva is to unite !ou into the "osmi" being that !ou are. The fun"tion of $hakti is to separate !ou from being $iva to bring an e)perien"e to that awareness, that flowing and movement in time. $iva is the awareness full of e)perien"e that flows not in time. It is a fro8en e)perien"e that has no evolution. The first movement Bin time and spa"eC is the "reation of an interval = an interval between the knower and the known, between the seer and the seen, between the one whi"h is aware and that of whi"h it is aware. The "haitan!a and #ada. Jada is what !ou are seeing, whi"h !ou are not penetrating. It is something that somehow separates itself from itself and this separation manifests itself as an interval between the seer and the seen. This interval "an be "ompared to the distan"e between a point and its image in the mirror. A point is dimensionless. The point is refle"ted in a mirror and it appears as if it is another point unto itself. $o the first point, the se"ond point, and the distan"e between these two points e)ist, "onne"ted b! the spa"e Bdistan"eC and time Bre'uired b! light to "over the distan"eC interval. Dn"e the spa"e time interval is formed, something has to have the propert! of movement. Time is the one whi"h has the "hara"teristi" of movement. This statement is not absolutel! true, but is a good first appro)imation. BIt is e'uall! proper to sa! that spa"e, not time has the propert! of movementC. 4owever, our e)perien"e tells us that it is the time whi"h is moving and spa"e is not moving and this e)perien"e is valid in a suffi"ientl! large number of "ases so that we "an a""ept that it appears to be true. This law breaks down as !ou are approa"hing the velo"it! of light. That is where the relativisti" theor! takes over. The spa"e time interval is the first "reation and that manifests itself as intera"tion between spa"e and time and out of the rotation of spa"e around time

11

matter is formed. The bindu, the "enter point is uni'ue, it is dimensionless, it is awareness, but it is not even aware of itself. $o it "annot be even "alled a "reator. It is a linga, a "hara"teristi" of invarian"e. It is awareness and non= awareness "ombined. 0hat !ou see and what !ou are is "ombined in that. ,nowledge and ignoran"e are "ombined in that. It is not negatible. It is invariant to negation. If !ou have knowledge alone and when !ou negate it !ou have ignoran"e. 0hen !ou have ignoran"e alone and negate it, it be"omes knowledge. ut when !ou have the sum of the two and !ou tr! to negate the sum, knowledge moves over to ignoran"e and ignoran"e moves over to knowledge and so the sum total is not "hanged even when !ou den! it. It "annot be denied. It is self=evident. It is !our own knowledge that !ou e)ist. It does not have to be proved to !ou. The awareness has this propert! of self= proving, $vaprakasha. Awareness is self enlightening+ that does not another light to show its e)isten"e, it is proof unto itself. That pure awareness is 1od. 0hat is to be enlightened< Dur own ignoran"e. 0hat is ignoran"e< Dne sees the world and what is seen appears different from oneself. ut if illumination is there then this differen"e isnot there. Absorption of the interval ba"k into the point is the fun"tion of $iva. (reation of the interval is the fun"tion of $hakti. The! are opposites of ea"h other. $iva kills !our individualit! to make !ou the (osmi" eing. In being a killer, $iva is giving !ou birth into !our "osmi" "ons"iousness. $hakti is tr!ing to limit !our "osmi" "ons"iousness into !our individual "ons"iousness and therefore $hakti appears to give life. $iva appears to give death. 0hat we interpret as death is the "osmi" awareness. 0hat we interpret as life is the "osmi" death. These are the fun"tions of the two "reators, $iva and $hakti. The! are "o="reators and the! have e'ual poten"! and e'ual powers. This is the $iva=$hakti identit!. he Central riangle 7rom the point B induC !ou have two points and the interval between them. 7rom one !ou are moving into three and this triad is s!mboli8ed b! the "entral triangle of the $ri (hakra. The triangle is the "reation of the interval. $in"e spa"e time and matter B"reated b! the "urving spa"e around timeC are all wa!s of looking at this interval, we know that $risti, $thiti and :a!a = the "reation, sustenan"e and reabsorption are all the same, but appering to fun"tion differentl! under the power of the triangle. 3)pansion of the bindu into the triangle is the pro#e"tion of the "osmi" awareness into separateness, through a wave like phenomenon. It is a limitation. It is "alled .a!a. $!mbol of .a!a is the seed letter 94rim9. 4rim means 4ara B$ivaC H 4ariB&ishnuC H and &irin"i B rahmaC. 4ara is the s!mbol of the unit! and timeB minterval measured in timeC, 4ari is the s!mbol of the

12

dualit! and spa"eBinterval measured in spa"eC, and &irin"i is the s!mbol of "reation and matterBinterval measured in spa"e=timeC. /ou "an also think of them as the past, the present and the future. 7uture is d!ing to "reate the present moment, and the %resent is d!ing to "reate past. The 7uture is being pushed into the present and the present is being pushed into the past. That is what time is doing when it is moving. It is manifesting the future and pushing the present into the past. :ooking at it another wa! !ou "an sa! the present is the "reation of the future and the past is the "reation of the present. $o again !ou see the identit! of two wa!s of looking at the same pro"ess. :et us then sa! that there is some power inherent in the awareness itself to know itself and that power is manifesting as if there is a mirror. The mirror is so pure that !ou are not even aware that it is in front of !ou. $o what !ou are seeing is a refle"tion of !ourself. That mirror is "alled !our mind, or the the "osmi" mind. In the "osmi" mind, 1od refle"ts hisFher own image and refle"ts on it. 1od is neither male nor female nor neuter. All genders are in"luded. 3ver!thing, ever!one is in"luded in the manifested state. This is true, not onl! in the "ase of the "osmi" intelligen"e, but also of the individual intelligen"e. /our mind is a mirror in whi"h !ou are seeing !ourself refle"ted. 6o matter how "ompli"ated the world seems to mbe, it is onl! !ourself that !ou are seeing. 6o matter how varied it looks = trees, birds, males, females, things, land, sea, sk!, sun, moon, stars, gala)ies, = none of these things e)isted if !ou did not e)ist. 7or billions of !ears !ou did not e)ist. 0here was this world then < 3)isten"e is awareness. Den! e)isten"e itself. Then, "an there be awareness< Thus e)isten"e implies awareness. Awareness implies e)isten"e too, self evidentl!. $in"e these two impl! ea"h other, the! "ontain ea"h other. $o the! are not two separate entities, but the! are indeed one and the same entit!. 3)isten"e is "alled $iva, Awareness is "alled $hakti. $iva is therefore "alled $thanu= unmoving. Their unit! "reates the flow of e)perien"e and the flow of e)perien"e is "alled liss = Ananda, or $at="hit=ananda. /ou "an sa! that the 3 points of the "entral triangle are $at (hit and Ananda. /ou "an define it in terms of "reation, sustenan"e and destru"tion, or, !ou "an define it in terms of the $eer, the $een and the a"t of $eeing, or, the .easurer, the .easured and the a"t of .easuring = all these things are the meanings, asso"iations, of this triangle. 6ow it stands to reason that if there is a "entrifugal power in the awareness whi"h e)plodes this point into a triangle, there must be a "entripetal power that implodes the triangle ba"k into the point.

13

0e have dis"ussed so far the point and the triangle of the $ri (hakra. These are the most fundamental things. This itself is a great !antra = a point from whi"h universe "omes out spiralling and transforms itself into a triangle. It is one of the first seen diagrams, "alled Tripura hairavi. The triangle is "alled the !oni, the sour"e, the gate through whi"h ever!one "omes into being. It is the 9I9, the ,ama ,ala, the desirefor variet!, the desire for life to e)perien"e e)isten"e. 9I9 plus 9A9 = the $hakti and $iva, the triangle and the bindu is the "reative power behind the "osmos. This is the e)plosive, e)pansive power of the awareness. To shift itself awa! from its point of fo"us is "alled 94rim9, and a "all ba"k to the "enter is "alled 9$rim9. oth are great powers. 9$rim9 undoes what 4rim does. The seed letter 4rim, "reates individuation, limiting the "osmi" awareness to individual awareness. The seed letter $rim removes limitations and the individual is e)ploded into "osmi" awareness. $o 4rim and $rim are inverse operators. 9Dm9B;AHIHmC is the name of 1od. 0e sa! 9Dm 4rim $rim9 as a mantra to impl! that the world "ame out of 1od and is going ba"k to it. 4rim is the power that makes the point into the triangle and $rim is the power whi"h "ollapses the triangle ba"k to into the point. Interestingl!, Dm "onsists of the seed letters AH IH .. Just a "!"li" permutation IH.HA reads as Ima. Dm is the name of $iva and Ima is the name of $hakti. It is #ust two wa!s of looking at the same entit!. If we begin with e)isten"e A, it looks like $iva+ if we begin with awareness I, it looks like $hakti. he /) riangle ,igure 3)pansion of 4rim is e)pressed in terms of the @ groups of letters in $anskrit starting with a..k.."..t..t..p..!..s. There is a ver! ni"e "orrelation between the numbers of su""essive triangles !ou find in the $ri (hakra with the numbers found in the ele"tron shells of the atomi" stru"ture. 1, 3, @, 10, 10, 1>. (onsidering the importan"e of $ri (hakra and the atomi" stru"ture, we "annot dismiss this "orresponden"e as a mere "han"e. 7illed 3le"tron $hells $ri (hakra Indian %hilosoph! B1sC2 B2sC2 ;> The "enter and three points of triangle. $een, $eeing B2sC2 B2pCA ;@ @ "ornered figure, the sounds of "reation. 0ords of 1od, life B3dC10 ;10 Inner 10 "ornered figure. 3lements, 5 %roperties $eer,

1>

B>dC10 ;10 $enses, 5 .otors B>fC1> ;1> worlds of e)perien"e

Duter 10 "ornered figure. 1> "ornered figure.

5 1>

15

This "ompletes the "reation of the elements. The $ri (hakra represents the mi"ro"osm of the atoms, the individual and also the "osmos. It represents the sour"e of the "osmos, and the gatewa! to individual life. It is a s!mbol at three levels. This e)pansion pro"ess whi"h brings the point to the triangle does not end there be"ause spa"e and time start intera"ting "reating matter and the e)pansion pro"ess is then shown as @ triangles, ea"h triangle representing a form of $araswati. 3a"h triangle is a /oni. /oni means a sour"e, a gate, from whi"h life "omes. /ou "an also interpret !oni as the "ause for time to flow. In a human metaphor, !oni is the vulva, the gate through whi"h life-s #ourne! begins, "ausing time to flow for an individual. Death is also a !oni+ it "auses time to stop for an individual. (osmos be"omes an individual through a /oni of birth+ an individual be"omes "osmos through the /oni of death. The flow of time is reall! a prede"essorFsu""essor relationship. This pre"edes that. This is the "ause of that. This present moment is the "ause of the future moment. This "ontinuous relationship of "auses to effe"ts is the movement of time. 'ovement o- time is $alled !arma. /ou sow the seed, !ou reap the fruit a""ordingl!. It is ver! important to realise that !our ,arma, the wa! !ou e)perien"e life, is not determined b! !ou alone+ all life together has a ver! big part in it. $o respe"t for life is part of good ,arma. As time "reates life, and time destro!s life too. $o she is 1ouri the universal mother, the vulva. $he is also ,ali the destro!er, the funeral p!re. oth these aspe"ts are "ombined into one triangle. he 01)Cornered ,igures ) he #nner and *uter sets o- riangles This pro"ess of e)ploding the "osmos through the intera"tion of spa"e and time goes on. The "osmos e)presses itself in terms of the five elements or the five states of aggregation. The word element is used in $anskrit to mean states of aggregation = the solid state, the li'uid state, plasma state, the gaseous state and the va"uum state. These are the five elements and their properties are sound, tou"h , form, taste and smell. his set o- -ive elements and their -ive 2ro2erties $onstitute the set o- inner ten triangles o- the Sri Chakra. The outer ten triangles of the $ri (hakra "onstitute the individuation from the "osmos. The! are "alled the five sensor! and five motor organs.

:et me draw a small diagram here. Imagine this paper is an field of "ons"iousness. :et us draw a pi"ture of a pot. Dn"e !ou draw a pot !ou "an sa! that there is something outsideit and something inside it, even though the inside is "onne"ted with the outside. :et us now draw an arrow going into the pot. /ou sa!, aha = there is an arrow "oming from the outside to the inside. This is our ordinar! per"eption of the world. The world is outside and I am inside. 0hat I think I am is inside. ut I am "onne"ted to the world. ut I forgot about that. I see this pie"e of information is "oming to me from the outside world. This pie"e of information is "alled knowledge.

1A

And if there is an arrow going from inside to outside< This is "alled a"tion. /ou are a"ting in the world and the world knows about !ou through !our a"tions. $upposing the boundar! was not there and #ust the arrow was there< 0here is the arrow going, inside or outside< /ou "annot sa!, be"ause there is no inside and no outside if the pot is not there. In that "ase it is both. 0hat this means that what goes inside, knowledge, is the same as that whi"h goes outside, a"tion. The fundamental e'uation ,nowledge;A"tion B,;AC is valid onl! when the boundar! is absent. This means that !ou "an "reate, !ou "an manifest onl! when !ou get rid of !our bod! awareness. As long as !our "ons"iousness is limited to !our bod! awareness, there is no manifestation, and this e'uation is invalid, be"ause !ou are able to distinguish , from A. 0hen , be"omes A !ou of ne"essit! have to get rid of !our bod! awareness. That is "alled the digambara state. That is where the siddhis manifest. As long as !ou are aware of !our bod!, as long as !ou are aware that !ou are "lothed, as long as !ou are aware that !ou have an individual mind, as long as !our individual thoughts are flowing through !our individual mind, so long !ou do not have siddhi. $iddhi means the e'uation ,;A. Just b! thinking deepl! !ou manifest. There is no distin"tion, there is no time gap, there is no interval between the thought and its "reation. That is what we "all manifestation. The ne"essar! and suffi"ient "ondition for obtaining an! siddhi

of an! kind is the loss of bod! awareness. This means we have to stop our mind from being agitated b! e)ternal influen"es. This is wh! in Devi !ou find the five senses whi"h are the five arrows. These are the "hannels through whi"h !our mind "an be disturbed. $he holds them separate from the mind whi"h is the bow. The bow and the five arrows, are indeed the mind and the five senses. $he holds them separatel!. $he does not "onne"t the arrow to the bow, whi"h means that Devi represents the !ogi" state where !ou de"ouple !our mind from disturbing sensor! inputs. ut even when this mind is de"oupled from the senses, there is still another part of the mind whi"h is the memor!. The memor! "ontains in it all the senses and it keeps on bringing these things up. All those things also have to be de"oupled. The mind itself has to go. It is then that !ou are flowing in the "osmi" awareness. he outer set o- 01 triangles re2resent the -ive sensory and the -ive motor organs o- the individual. As !ou are moving out from the indu of the $ri (hakra, !ou are moving farther and farther awa! from !ourself, from being the "osmos to being an individual. /ou "an des"ribe the e)plosion pro"ess of "reation in terms of three stages5 1. e)plosion of the interfa"e, the a"t of seeing whi"h is "onne"ting the inside with the outside = manifesting the @ triangles, 2. the e)plosion of the outer universe= manifested in the inner 10 triangles, and 3. the e)plosion of the inner self, the ego= whi"h is the outer 10 triangles of the $ri (hakra. he -ourteen &orlds o- evolution This e)plosion is "ompleted in 1> different stages of !our e)isten"e. There are ? worlds below !ou, !ou are in the @th world now, and there are A above !ou. /ou have gone through the mineral phase, the water, fire, et". and !ou have aggregated !ourself and a""umulated "ells and be"ome the animals, and finall! !ou have be"ome a human being. This is the @th world !ou are passing through now. After !ou leave !our bod! !ou go through the further A stages of evolution. Then when !ou have a"hieved the 1>th "hakra !ou have "ompleted the pro"ess of evolution. $o this 1> "ornered figure represents the 1> phases of evolution. There are 1> "orresponding powers BgoddessesC asso"iated with these 1> worlds and the! are shown in the $ri (hakra. he Cir$les and the 3ight)Petalled Lotus The "ir"le is drawn to show that this evolution is "omplete. The inside has e)ploded "ompletel! and the outside has e)ploded "ompletel!. Then !ou start e)perien"ing !our intera"tion. /ou have started !our life as a separate entit!, the world is formed and !ou are intera"ting with the world, and !ou are e)perien"ing the world. /ou start e)"laiming, this is hard, this is the earth. This

1?

is flowing. It is water. This fire, it burns. This is air, it is "ool to the tou"h. This is spa"e in whi"h I "an walk around. These are the different e)perien"es. Then I reali8e that I am separate from the other people. 0e sa!, we are humans, we are not animals. These distin"tions are "reated b! us. The "osmi" wealth of our e)perien"es are "alled the Ananga devatas. Anga means a limb. Ananga means not having an! limbs. Ananga ,usuma, Ananga Devata, Ananga *ekha, et". These eight are the form of wealth, the wealth of e)perien"e of 1od, the "osmos. he /)2etalled lotus is the &ealth o- %od" the / -orms o- Ais&arya. he 04)Petalled Lotus /ou not onl! e)perien"e these things stati"all!, but !ou e)perien"e them d!nami"all!. Time is measured in terms of the lunar "alendar be"ause it is the fastest moving ob#e"t in the sk! ne)t onl! to the $un. That is the lunar "lo"k. And the lunar "lo"k is divided into 1A digits or phases of the moon. he 2hases o- moon are sho&n as the 04) 2etalled lotus. Just as the woman menstruates ever! 2@th da! of the "!"le, so the "osmos has its "!"les and periods. /ou know lunar is also asso"iated with lunati", be"ause sometimes we go "ra8!, disorderel!, irrational, sometimes we maintain our balan"e. There are "osmi" "!"les with whi"h we sometimes resonate and sometimes not, sometimes we are lunati" and sometimes sane. 3a"h da! of the week is also asso"iated with one of the planets and there are different pu#as done on these da!s. Dn $unda! we do pu#a to all the nine planets, in"luding the sun. And .onda! we worship $iva. And Tuesda! is for the warlike Durga. 0ednesda! is ver! sa"red to *ama. Thursda! is for 1uru and .ahalakshmi. 7rida! is for the worship of the woman. $aturda! is for worshipping $aturn or the "ouple. ,an!as Bvirgin girlsC are worshipped on Tuesda!s, married women are worshipped on 7rida!s, and both the husband and wife are worshipped on $aturda!s, and the man is worshipped on .onda!s. These are the da!s for worship. he S5uare 3n$losures ) he 3ight Passions 0hen !ou "ome to the s'uare !ou are down to the earth, down to the present level = where we think we are distin"t from ea"h other, where we are fighting, where we are pla!ing our ego and power games, and all these things. This is represented in the outmost en"losures. It is here that srsti is "ompletel! manifested. :et us take the e)ample of the little pot that I have drawn earlier. The pot is the "on"ept of the self, the ego stru"ture. The individual is "reated, the "osmos is "reated and the flow of time is being e)perien"ed. /ou are e)perien"ing !our intera"tions with the world, and these intera"tions are sometimes pleasant and sometimes unpleasant. /ou e)perien"e fear, lust, anger, all these things. These

1@

e)perien"es whi"h are generated b! the five arrows that are "oming in, the five senses that are agitating !our mind. /ou sa!, 9I like this, I want this. 0ithout this I "annot live.9 Lust is $alled the 2assion Brahmi. 0hen !ou are denied that lust, !ou get angr!. Anger is 'ahes&ari. !oumari is 2ossessiveness" Vaisnavi is delusion" Varahi is 2ride. 'ahendri is jealousy. 'ahalaksmi is vi$e o- atta$hment and Chamunda is the virtue o- letting go. 0h! is .ahalakshmi "alled vi"e< e"auses atta"hment to wealth "reates enmit! between even the mother and her "hild. $u"h atta"hment "an onl! be a vi"e. These are the 3ight passions. he ten 'udra Shaktis and ten Siddhis There are wa!s of over"oming these disturbing influen"es and these are "alled the 9.udra $haktis.9 The attainments that !ou get b! "ontrolling these influen"es are "alled the 9Attainments9 or the 9$iddhis9. The first mudra shakti is Sarva Samkso.ini. This means agitation. /ou are agitated but !ou transfer !our agitation over onto ever!thing else. /ou intera"t with ever!one. $khobana a"tuall! means intera"tion, inter"ourse also. :imited intera"tion within a "ir"le is possible for an! ego bound stru"ture. ut "an !ou e)pand it to in"lude the whole "osmos< 4ow "an !ou be in love with a "o"kroa"h< a bird< a swan< a flea< a star< a thermonu"lear fusion< a h!drogen bomb< 0hen !ou have the notion that !ou love ever!thing, this over"omes !our limitations. /ou reali8e that the notion of love does not mean tr!ing to possess the thing !ou are wanting to hold onto but in letting go of the ver! thing. :ove is not imposing our will on others. It is tr!ing to find out what others want and tr!ing to give it to them to the best of !our abilit!. $arva $amkshobhini .udra moves !ou from initial feelings of lust to love. This mudra is the a"t of e)pressing love. :ove takes different forms a""ording to the ob#e"t of !our love. It is not the same mode in ever! "ase. /ou love fire b! not tou"hing it. 3mbra"ing a friend is an e)pression of love. oth are e)pressions of love. e"ause I love m! "hild I don-t want to give it too man! "ho"olates be"ause I know its bad for the stoma"h. (ho"olates taste ni"e, but too mu"h is bad. I know this but the "hild does not know. $o the parent-s e)pression of love to the "hild in"ludes den!ing sometimes what the "hild wants, knowing that it is not good for the "hild. :ove does not #ust mean se) alone. It means all t!pes of intera"tions where !ou are tr!ing to give !our best to others, where giving is giving what the partner needs, not what !ou want to+ where letting go is letting go of the fruits of !our a"tion. $ometimes, !our giving ma! !ield !our e)pe"ted result, sometimes not. :ove means deta"hment to the e)pe"tation and result both, not deta"hment to a"tion.

1G

:et me tell !ou a stor!. $upposing there is a man=eating tiger roaming around in a village. There is a woman who hears the roar of the tiger and she is tr!ing to prote"t herself b! running into all the "losed doors and somehow finds a little door where she "an enter to hide. The ne)t da! she is "arr!ing her "hild and the same tiger "omes along. All the doors are "losed. There is no wa! she "an es"ape. 0hat does she do< $he keeps the "hild somewhere else and goes and offers herself as pre! to the tiger. This is an e)pression of her love towards her "hild. :ove over"omes the fear of death. $o she goes and offers herself and makes the supreme sa"rifi"e to prote"t her "hild. :ove has the power over"ome fear. 7ear is the worst possible enem! that !ou have got. /our worst enemies are all inside of !ou, not outside. The enemies of an! "ountr! are not the other "ountries, but the fears that the governments have about them. If people "ould onl! understand that our enemies are all inside ourselves, we would not need all these weapons, guns, shootings. $ometimes the words we speak to ea"h other are worse than guns. hus the Sri Chakra is an e62ression o- the $osmos" o- yoursel-" and it is also a means o- $onne$ting these t&o. #t re2resents a ladder .y &hi$h you $an $ome out o- your limitations. The four gates are the four basi" t!pes of knowledge+ *g &eda, /a#ur &eda, $ama &eda, Atharvana &eda. &eda is "alled $ruti. 0hat !ou hear in !our meditation in that deep state of tran'uillit! is "alled $ruti.

20

*rigins o- Sri Chakra

9Darsana9 is an! dire"t revelation from 1od whi"h !ou see in !our meditation. 1eometri"al diagrams "alled /antras are seen in !our deep state of tran'uillit!. The best of /antras is the renowned $ri (hakra or $ri /antra. $u"h /antras are "alled apaurushe!a = not "reated b! people. The meditator has spent no effort at all in "reating them. 4ow do !ou distinguish whether what !ou e)perien"e in !our mind-s e!e is "oming from !our mind or from outside< /ou "an distinguish in the following wa!. 4ow mu"h effort did !ou spend tr!ing to "reate that ob#e"t< If !ou have spent no effort at all, then it is a "reation of 1od. I open m! e!es and the world mira"ulousl! appears. 0hat effort did I do to "reate it< 6othing. That is 1od-s "reation and I am #ust happening to see it. Don-t think that revelation is something that !ou see onl! with !our e!es "losed. The whole world that !ou see is !our revelation. The world is 1od. The world is !ourself. /ou must understand that !our mind is a mirror in whi"h !ou are seeing !ourself. .ind is su"h a pure mirror that we do not even suspe"t its e)isten"e. /ou are onl! seeing !ourself, but !ou are not reali8ing that !ou are seeing !ourself. That is

from where !ou get the notion of 9other9. *ut o- the notion o- other $omes the -ear and all the rest o- these things) kama" krodha" moha" et$. 7lust" anger" delusion" et$.8 &hi$h -lo& one out o- the other. 9orshi2 o- the Sri Chakra 0hat do we mean b! worship of the $ri (hakra< It means worship of !ourself, loving !ourself, understanding !ourself, understanding the pro"ess b! whi"h !ou have be"ome differentiated from others and tr!ing to retra"e the steps and then merging with !our true self. /ou define for !ourself a role model and then live that5 that is what !ou are. /ou have to understand that this life is like a drama in whi"h !ou have to make a role for !ourself and learn how to pla! that role. /ou "an take up a different role. It is !our "hoi"e what role !ou want to pla!. 9I want to be a goldsmith9. That is fine. 9I want to be a mother9. That is fine. ut remember that !ou are pla!ing the game and that these are onl! rules for the game that !ou have defined for !ourself. Dne who "an hire a person "an fire the person. Those who make the rules "an also break the rules. So don:t .e a-raid to .reak rules i- you -eel the need to outgro& them. The whole trouble "omes with the tea"hing be"ause when a person "omes to a guru the guru is a""epted as a guru as long as the dis"iple hears what he wants to hear from the guru. The moment the guru sa!s something not liked b! the dis"iple, the guruship is done for, gone. The guru is no more a guru. /ou ma! go and sa! to the guru, 9Dh, I will give m! life to !ou, !ou onl! have to ask for it, I-ll give !ou even m! life9. ut if the guru sa!s after a little while 9I have to get m! daughter married, "an !ou give me a loan of 10,000 K9< Then he is no more a guru. /ou were prepared to give !our life, not the K. .one! has a higher value than lifeL That is an illusion, a value a""epted b! !ou as trueL The $ri (hakra s!mboli8es realit!. The "enter point is realit!, and so are the outer en"losures, and so is the path. The! are all aspe"ts of realit!. The same realit! is seen from different perspe"tives. There are different hills and different views from different peaks but the same s"ene is there below. In the same wa!, if !ou are seeing the world from the perspe"tive of the world, being the world, from all possible perspe"tives, then !ou are 1od. If !ou see from the perspe"tive of the individual, then !ou see individual people with so man! life forms. That is #ust !our view point. The thing to reali8e is that !ou don-t stop being 1od when !ou are an individual.

21

3ssen$e o- the Ritual o- the Sri Chakra Puja

The ritual is a pro"ess of training b! whi"h !ou tr! to understand !ourself, b! whi"h !ou tr! to relate !ourself to the world around !ou, b! whi"h !ou "an sa!,

9!es, I have lived a ri"h, harmonious, empowering life for m!self. 7or those around me, for whomever I have "ome in "onta"t with, I have tried to help them in whatever wa! I "an.9, To enable !ou to have this kind of feeling, the ritual is useful. (ondu"ting !our life with happiness is a ritual. 3ver!thing is a ritual. 0hen I talk with !ou it is a ritual. 0hen I gesture, it is a ritual. 0hen I take a bath it is a ritual. 0hen I take food it is a ritual. 0hen I get up from the bed it is a ritual. :ife itself is a ritual. /ou "an invoke an!thing into !ourself. /ou "an invoke all the evil in the world into !ourself. /ou "an invoke all the good in the world into !ourself. It is !our "hoi"e. 4ow !ou want to live !our life and whether !ou want to make !our life happ! for !ourself, or a disaster for !ourself and others = is in !our mind. 0hat kinds of thoughts !ou entertain = that-s the kind of situations !ou attra"t to !ourself. That is the realit! whi"h !ou manifest for !ourself. This is where the paths differ. Those paths whi"h make !ou and others happ! are "alled the right paths. Those whi"h make !ou unhapp! and those around !ou unhapp! are "alled the wrong paths. The wise ones "hoose the right paths and tr! to avoid the wrong ones. This is where wisdom lies. /ou are wise if !ou "an learn from !our own e)perien"es. /ou are wiser still if !ou "an learn from other-s e)perien"es. /ou are a fool if !ou don-t learn even from !our own e)perien"eL And most of us never learn even from our own e)perien"es. 0e develop a pattern of repeating the same mistakes again and again foolishl!, "ompulsivel!. 0e "ontinue foolishl! with our old patterns of thinking and old moulds of behavior, of finding fault with others, as if we are free of themL I am a repositor! of faults. ut not a single fault of mine appears to me. The slightest fault of another appears to me. $ai aba keeps telling people, 9Don-t find fault with others. If there is some little good that !ou "an find in others, tell it to !our friends.9 7orgive and forget the faults of others. This wa! !ou "an in"rease the area of harmon! and "ooperation, even with those that restri"t !ou, !ou "an in"rease !our heart spa"e in whi"h !ou allow others to "ome into !ou. (o unto others as you &ould like to done unto you, Jesus on"e said. Do !ou like to be "riti"i8ed< /ou don-t. Then wh! do !ou "riti"i8e others< Do !ou like to be loved< /es. Then wh! don-t !ou love others< 9hat you give" you re$eive. #- you don:t give" you don:t re$eive. The best thing to give is love, intima"!, affe"tion, a kinfd word. 0e find it so diffi"ult to do this. Do !ou like to be re#e"ted< /ou don-t. Then wh! do !ou re#e"t others< This is the kind of understanding !ou must have. 0hat applies to !ou !ou must appl! to others and see that !ou are alwa!s engaged in su"h a"tions whi"h attra"t similar a"tions to !ou. 0hat !ou like to happen to !ou !ou must

22

do to others. /ou wish to get wealth< 1ive it to others. /ou wish to gain knowledge< Tea"h others. /ou wish to be praised< %raise others. %raising others is praising 1od. If !ou praise 1od, 1od praises !ou. 0hat better than having 1od on !our side< The ritual of $ri (hakra is divided into four parts. The first part is "alled Sri !ramam. In it ne"tar is invoked into !our life. The se"ond part is "alled the Lalita !ramam. In it the 1oddess is adored in man! man! intimate wa!s !ou would like to be adored. The third part is "alled the +avavarana Puja. In it all aspe"ts of "rativit!, nourisment, knowledge of the 1oddess are all adored. The fourth part is "alled Shakti Puja. In it a living woman is worshipped as a s!mbol of the living 1oddess and her wishes are fulfilled.This ritual is ver! empowering both to the performer and the re"ipient. That is wh! $hakti %u#a is "onsidered to the life and soul of $ri (hakra %u#a. The adepts "an perform all parts of the pu#a to $hakti, a living person. $hakti "ould be an! lovable person, male, female, or !our own self. $hakti pu#a "an be done b! a group also+ then it is "alled a mandala.

23

A Brie- %lim2se at the Sri !ramam

7irst !ou worship the 1uru, then !ou make !our bath a ritual b! invoking the 1oddess into !ou and worshipping 4er in !our bod!. 0hen !ou are taking a bath, !ou are indeed giving a bath to 4er, without an! sense of shame. The sense of shame "omes from the notion of the other. 7ear and shame go awa! when !ou realise that whom !ou are worshipping is !our own self. /ou "an re"ite the $ri $uktam and all the suktams that !ou know when !ou are taking bath be"ause !ou are indeed the 1oddess. 6e)t !ou worship the fort!=four triangles of the $ri (hakra . Think of the "entral part of $ri (hakra as a beautiful pala"e of #ewels and the most beautiful things in the world, where $iva and $hakti are making love among "elestial dan"ers, and n!mphs, in a ver! eroti" pla"e filled with beaut! and harmon! and gra"e and loving "ouples. /ou reali8e that !ou are in a ver! limited state of being and !ou tr! to over"ome this state b! resetting !ourself to the state of being the 1oddess. 4ow do !ou do that< ! thinking like this5 9D,, I am si)t! !ears old now. $o what< Age is #ust a "on"ept. I am also a 1A= !ear old girl bubbling with #o! and happiness and not "rippled b! m! age, or pulled down b! m! worries. 9 I am free and I want to look at ever! moment as an opportunit! to grow in whatever wa! I "an and to help others in whatever wa! I "an.

9I will share m! beaut!, share m! #o!, and m! bubbling enthusiasm and power with others. This is what I am, this is what I will do.9 $o sa!ing, I reset m!self to this state b! getting rid of this old, useless, stupid, worrisome, kind of e)isten"e that I am going through and I sa!, 9:et me burn this bod! and get rid of all the mu"k that I have a"'uired through so"ial "onditioning and programming. I will re"onstitute m! bod! to be forever 1A, beautiful, powerful9 This aspe"t of the pu#a is "alled the Viraja ;omam.

2>

Then !ou imagine that !ou have #ust be"ome a bod! of light. And !ou merge with the "osmos and be"ome a ball of light. This ball of light "ondenses and turns into the most beautiful, most harmonious, most loving, most wonderful, most powerful, most enri"hing kind of a being there is. /ou are a 1A = !ear old girl, Ananda hairavi. $he is en#o!ing herself non=stop with her "onsort Ananda hairava, pla!full! a"ting all the moods , and out of their en#o!ment is "oming this world full of beaut!, of harmon! of loving, of "aring, of "ompassion. It is not the world demar"ated as 1erman!, Austria, Denmark, 6orth Ameri"a, $outh Ameri"a, (anada, ra8il, India, %akistan, (hina. 0hen !ou fl!, !ou go to the sk!, !ou go to the satellites, do !ou see an! boundaries there< 6one. It is we that "reated our boundaries. If the world was governed b! women who "are for their "hildren then the! would "ome forward and sa!, let-s get rid of all these boundaries and make one world. Its too small, its #ust one village and we "an-t afford to destro! it. 0e won-t destro! pur "hildren, we will tea"h them to be loving and "aring. Thus !ou go through the pro"ess of "reating an immortal bod! for !ourself. It is going to "ontinue to e)ist after !our mortal "oil has been shed. And it will "ontinue to do good be"ause !ou are going to evolve through the fourteen different worlds. This !ou do with the power of !our imagination, the power of !our "reativit!, !our visuali8ation a"uteness, the "larit! with whi"h !ou "an per"eive things = with these things !ou "reate an image . This image goes and does whatever good it does. It is #ust like a "hild born out of !ou whi"h "ontinues its e)isten"e independent of !ou. /ou "an tr! to "ontrol it, /ou "an tr! to make a friend of it. /ou "an "reate eight simultaneous e)isten"es whi"h "an work independentl!. 0h! eight< e"ause the properties of 1od are eightfold. The! are spatiall! different. A"tuall!, time =wise !ou "an have si)teen different forms. After !ou do the&ira#a homam, !ou do Vajra Panjara +yasam. It means that !ou are "reating for !ourself an indestru"tible "age. This "age has the power of the $ri (hakra. As long as the $ri (hakra lives, as long as "osmos lives, so long !ou are going to live in this "age. Dn"e the world itself is desolved, then !ou

desolve. /ou are #ust merging with $iva. That is the format !ou are tr!ing to "reate for !ourself. #nvo$ation o- the !alas Into this format !ou want to invoke all the "osmi" intelligen"e that there is. The intelligen"e that is there in the earth, in the fire, in the water, in the o)!gen that we breathe, in the spa"e that we see and walk around in, in the time that brings the past present and future into us, and immortal e)isten"e. All these kalas, aspe"ts !ou tr! to invoke into !ourself. Sri Sudha (evi 6ow in this pu#a !ou sometimes need a s!mbol. The s!mbol "an be an i"on, a figure like the $ri (hakra, or a ph!si"al, living presen"e, a person. If !ou sa! that 1od is ever!where and !ou want to worship ever!thing, it is not eas!. It is diffi"ult to find 1od in a "o"kroa"h, or in an atomi" e)plosion, or in A, >? guns, or in povert!. It is diffi"ult to find 1od in the agonies that we go through. It is easier to find 1od in harmon!. /ou would like to e)perien"e 1od as benevolent, not as a vengeful, #udgmental kind of a being, who will punish !ou to hell for an infinite amount of time, . /ou want to think of 1od as a nourishing .other, as one who "ares for !ou, who loves !ou un"onditionall!, so beautiful, so loving, so nourishing. <# &ant to drink the milk o- kno&ledge and 2o&er. # &ant to enjoy li-e to the -ullest. # &ant to .e 2ros2erous and make tons o- money so # $an share some o- it &ith others &ho are less -ortunate. # &ant to hel2 2eo2le to reali=e that they are really %ods and angels in human -orm.< This is the kind of thought pro"ess that the ritual en"ourages. It helps !ou to think of 1od as en#o!able, health!, ri"h, harmonious, beautiful, loving, nourishing, "aring person like !ou. These are the ver! same 'ualities that we are tr!ing to invoke into ourselves and others. he Samanya Arghya and Vishesha Arghya 6e)t !ou think of 1od as the immortal drink that gives !ou happiness, prosperit!, and all positive 'ualities that !ou "an think of. This se"tion e)plains the preparation of that ne"tar whi"h "ontains all the "osmi" elements that deliver them to !ou. he %uru 'andala Then !ou think of 1od as the line of the 1urus, the gurus who spent their lives serving others. This is the 1uru .andala.

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he +itya (evatas In this se"tion !ou think of 1od personified as benevolent Time, reminding !ou of the good times that !ou have e)perien"ed. $o !ou worship 1od as so man! 6it!as, the dates on whi"h I was happ!. All these se"tions are tou"hed briefl! here. The! will be des"ribed in enough detail later on.

2A

A -irst look at the Lalita !ramam

I would like to be intimate with m! 1od. I would like to see 1od in front of me, not as something unknown to me, but #ust like I am seeing !ou. I want to talk to 1od, to that 4igher Intelligen"e, and I want to e)perien"e it as a realit!, not something that I imagine. I would like to gather some e)perien"es in this life that will give me that tran'uil state and then repla! that tape and get a more perfe"t version than I have been able to e)perien"e. This is the essen"e of se"ond part of the pu#a, the offering of the $i)t! 7our Intimate $ervi"es to 1od. /ou tr! to see all the elements of 1oddess in another human being. /ou invoke the 1oddess into a, little girl, a single woman or a "ouple, and !ou worship them as embodiments of 1oddess. 1oddess is also in !ou, whether !ou are male or female. It is 1oddess who is worshipping herself. This is where the 'uestion of Tantra "omes in. Tantra speaks of intera"tion with others. The 'uestion is as !ou relate !ourself with others, are !ou tr!ing to keep !our separateness and relate to them as two separate entities, or are !ou tr!ing to relate to others through merging as !ou relate to !ourself< Jesus (hrist has given a beautiful answer to this 'uestion. It is worth repeating. Love thy neigh.or as thysel-. +ot as some.ody else" .e$ause i- you think o- your neigh.or as some.ody else then the 5uestion o- desire" o- lust" o- judgment $an $ome in. If !ou are loving th! neighbor as th!self, is there an! desire in that< If there is desire it "an be fulfilled without an! restri"tions or inhibitions. If I want to en#o! m!self, love m!self, or make love to m!self, who "an stop me< I am free. I go into the bathroom and take a soap to wash m! bod!. Is the rest of m! bod! ashamed that m! right hand is taking the soap and rubbing me all over< It is not. There "annot be a sense of shame in unit!. In the "onte)t of pu#a, notion of unit! rather than separation is to be e)perien"ed. The idea that what I am seeing is m!self should never be lost sight of.

7or intima"! to happen there "an be no restri"tions of an! sort. That is where the nudit! "omes into tantra. /ou "annot surrender !ourself to !our partner if !ou sa!, I am a woman. I must not remove m! "lothes.9 /ou and !our partner are not different people. /ou are tr!ing to merge into one. The word digambara does not mean #ust the removal of "lothes. It is a merging of the minds, of thoughts. /ou are thinking the same thoughts that I am thinking. /ou are e)perien"ing the same things that I am e)perien"ing. There is a transferen"e into the other being, an e)pansion of !our "ons"iousness to in"lude the other being as !ourself. oth of !ou are e)perien"ing the same thoughts without talking. That is digambara. That is when !ou are united. That is the intent of Tantra. Tou"h alone is not the intent of Tantra. All the five senses are in"luded. 0hen I am able to see !ou, when I "an tou"h !ou, taste !ou, talk to !ou, e)perien"e !ou in all possible wa!s, like I am e)perien"ing m!self, then I "an sa!, oka!, I have seen 1od. Dtherwise it is onl! a partial manifestation. I don-t want a partial e)perien"e, I want a totalit!, the love of 1od dire"tl!. In the A> intimate servi"es to the .other, !ou are giving 4er a bath and $he is giving !ou a bath at the same time. oth e)perien"es are there. /ou are not different from 4er. 0hat $he is e)perien"ing !ou are e)perien"ing. It is onl! when the e)perien"e is "ommon that !ou "an sa! that the union has taken pla"e. $upposed I rub m! right hand over m! left hand like this. The feeling of being tou"hed is in the left hand. The feeling of tou"hing is in the right hand. oth these hands belong to me. oth these e)perien"es belong to me, the! are o""uring in me at the same time. ut if I am tou"hing someone else, the e)perien"e of tou"hing is in me, but the e)perien"e of being tou"hed is not in me. The separateness has "ome. If I am being tou"hed b! somebod! else, then the a"t of being tou"hed is there but the a"t of tou"hing is not in me. 0hen !our "ons"iousness pervades the "ons"iousness of the other, then !ou are totall! united. /ou have lost !our boundaries. 0hen !ou are e)perien"ing !ourself as the other, the sense of shame has no pla"e. /ou are not ashamed of !ourself. The sense of other has no relevan"e. It is onl! in the sense of advaita, in a sense of unit! that pu#a should be done. Advaita in theory is Veda. Advaita in 2ra$ti$e is antra. antra means 2ra$ti$e" 2roving the ideas through e62eriment. hrough 2ra$ti$e you try to 2rove and -i6 &hat the theory has said. 3ven in the &eda there are "ertain aspe"ts of tantra. There are four &edas. *g &eda is what !ou have seen or heard in !our meditation. /a#ur &eda is the the "ompilation of these individual pie"es of revelation into a stru"ture that "an be used as a ritual. $ama &eda is the singing and dan"ing rituals spontaneousl!. Atharvana &eda is how to appl! and share this knowledge,

2?

how to use it as a weapon to remove evil tenden"ies in us or to attra"t, empower and help some bod!. $ometime !ou have got to hurt. 0hat is it that !ou have to hurt< /our fear !ou have got to hurt. /ou have got to get rid of it. /our lust !ou have got to hurt, to get rid of it+ !our internal enemies !ou have got to kill. And that is what Devi does. $he kills .ahishasura+ a buffalo is to be offered as sa"rifi"e to 4er. 0hat is this .ahisha< .ahisha is the bull whi"h represents blind, hurtful lust. :ust has to be transformed into something higher. :ust means that the notion of the other is preserved and !ou want it badl!, no matter what "ost. $o !ou want to grab and seek onl! for !our pleasure, ignoring the other-s sentiments or feelings. That is lust. This has to be transformed into love. In lust there is no "aring for the other-s pleasure, as !ou would "are for !our own pleasure. /ou are onl! interested in !our pleasure. That has to be transformed. Transformation means "hanging its nature. Transformation means killing its present nature, and giving birth to a new nature. ;o&ever" love $an not survive &ithout lust. :et us understand this. The lotus flower is born in the mud then grows in the water. Its flower "omes out into the open, into air and looks to the light and blooms when the sun "omes out. 0e are like the lotus. /ou are born in flesh. /ou "an sa!, 9I don-t want this flesh, I want to throw it awa!9, and then !ou "ut off the lotus from the stem. It is the lotus itself that will die. $o it is the fear, the lust, the greed and the #ealous! whi"h are transformed into love. It is the demoni" that have to be transformed into the divine. ut !ou "annot totall! destro! the disorder. Drder and disorder have to be in balan"e.

2@

he +avavarana Puja
This transformation of !our own "hara"ter is what is important to the ritual. /ou start with !our present situation, whatever that is+ whatever fears , lusts, greeds, possessivenesses, hunger for power, and all kinds of limitations, whatever !our feelings of separation impl!. It is from this starting point !ou have to move, to shed !our inhibitions one b! one and learn what it means to have inter"ourse with the world. 3ver! aspe"t of !our life is maithuna or inter"ourse, not #ust se). $e) is redefined in Tantra as the en#o!ment of beaut!. Tantra tea"hes that !ou do not have to own a thing in order to en#o! it. Do !ou own the ground that !ou walk upon< Do !ou own the air that !ou breathe< Do !ou have to own the sun, the stars, the moon and the "louds for !ou to see and en#o!< Dwnership is not there, e)"ept in the broad sense of 9/es, I own the whole worldL9

he Shakti Puja

After these si)t! four offerings Bupa"harasC, !ou have brought 4er "lose to !ou and !ou have embra"ed 4er. This embra"e has been so deep that $he has penetrated !our bod! and is residing there in the lotus of !our heart as a golden girl 1A !ears old. That transformation has happened. /our bodies have not remained separate. The! have merged into one. That is the !ab!um, $iva and $hakti. The "on"ept of this union is the final step. It is the $hakti %u#a. In the ritual there is no union. There is no union, be"ause !ou are adoring the .other. 7or the purpose of !our pleasure, !our happiness and en#o!ment !ou are thinking of Devi as different from !ou and so !ou are able to adore 4er. :ike a "hild wemake believe in these 1ods and 1oddesses in front of us. And the magi"k is that the! be"ome real. 0e worship them and then we bring them ba"k into ourselves. This is the notion of the pu#a, whi"h is a total absorption into the other, the divine. The Devi pu#a has to be done in Advaita. That is the onl! wa! it "an be done. e"ause $he is all power, and it needs to be "ontrolled. Dtherwise it is like driving a high=powered "ar with the a""elerator but no steering wheel. /ou are bound to end up in a disaster. /ou have to have a steering wheel to "ontrol the wa! !ou are going, no matter what speed. he more s2eed" the more $ontrol you must have. 9ithout dis$i2line you $annot a$hieve &hat you &ant. he more 2o&er you have" the more $ontrol you must have over your tongue .e$ause &hat you are going to say is going to $ome true. /ou "annot afford to sa! bad things = even in dreams. /ou have to have that mu"h "ontrol over !our behavior. These are the various aspe"ts of tantra, at a glan"e.

2G

Part >. he 'eanings o- the Channels &hi$h are $alled 'antras in the +avavarana Puja
0ith the gra"e of the Divine .other I hope to be able to give some meanings to the "hannels whi"h are "alled the mantras. *eall! .antras "annot be assigned an! meanings be"ause the! are "hannels of "ommuni"ation. 0hat meaning "an !ou give to "hannel no. > of T& or the fre'uen"! 101.? .h8< 0hatever information "omes through them is the meaning, if !ou like tto put it that wa!. 0hat !ou "an probabl! define is the nature of the information that "omes through. 7or e)ample, !ou know that if !ou swit"h on the .T& !ou are likel! to get musi" and dan"e+ on Dis"over! "hannel, !ou likel! to develop environmental "on"erns, and things like that. 0e "an make broad "ategori8ations but not spe"ifi"s. There are 2 great mantras, one of whi"h is "alled Dm and the other is also Dm. Dm is the "ombination of A=I=.. If !ou reverse the se'uen"e a little and put

the A at the end, it be"omes 9I.A9. If !ou think of AI. as $iva, I.A is $hakti. These are the two Dms. Are the! different< /es and no. It is #ust the wa! !ou look at it. The s!mbolism of 1odhead is "arried not onl! into the sound s!mbols but also into the visual s!mbols. In the visual s!mbols, the triangle with its ape) down is "alled a !oni, the $hakti from whi"h the "hild "omes. /ou take the same triangle and turn it upwards it is $iva. /ou "an think of it another wa!. $uppose !ou s"an the triangle with a hori8ontal line from bottom up. In a $iva triangle B ape) upC what !ou see is the width of the interse"ted line is graduall! diminishing and be"oming 8ero. In a $hakti triangle what is see is that it is starting at a point and growing into a line. $o the growth of the awareness pro"ess is the shakti but both are the same, there is no real distin"tion between the two. $ome are "alled $iva triangles and some shakti triangles. 0e have alread! seen the "hannels "alled ;rim and Srim. ;rim is the germinating power of the universe whi"h "reates the world and the differentiations in the world. It limits the totalit! in some wa!s so that !ou "an e)tra"t a ra! or a seed out of it. 4rim !ou "all ma!a. It also means la##a or sh!ness. 0hen !ou stare at a stranger, the! will "over their bod!. It is tr!ing to "over, prote"t or limit. :imitation is "alled 4rim. Srim is the opposite of it, "ondensing it, "ollapsing the ra! into the point. And unlimited e)pansion is "alled $rim. 4rim is the power to "reate this "osmos. It "ontains three basi" powers5 aim" klim and souh. Aim is the power that "reates. $o all that is related to "reativit! and pro"reation pro"ess, whether it is proving an intelle"tual theorem or whether it is is the spontaneous notes in a raga, or the lust that is the motive for"e behind the a"t of "opulation, all these things are "hannelled through this fre'uen"! "alled Aim. Aim is "alled $araswati. $e)ual en#o!ments, "uriosit!, the sear"h for diversit!, new wa!s of sa!ing and doing and en#o!ing things are all blessings from $araswati. !lim is the a"t of preservation, nourishment, sustenen"e, wealth, prosperit!, happiness, en#o!ment. These are the aishwar!as, the wealth that is "alled :akshmi. ,lim is the nourishing aspe"t of the .other whi"h is in the heart "enter. .ilk "oming from the two breasts of a female nourishes and prote"ts the bab! from disease. $o :akshmi is worshipped in the breasts. The mother en#o!s giving nourishment to her "hild when the "hild is su"king the breast.

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Souh is the sound of the hissing snake. That snake is supposed to be the kundalini shakti, the power of !our en#o!ment whi"h when transformed, eliminates !our bod! awareness step b! step and shoots !ou off into the "osmos. This is the kri!a shakti. Its origin is in the muladhara "hakra in males, and in the swaddhisthana "hakra for females.

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he %uru 'antra and its $ontent.

Aim Hrim Srim/ Aim Klim Souh/ Hamsah Sivah Soham/ Hskhphrem/ Hasakshamalavarayum /H-saum/ Sahakshamalavarayim/ S-hauh/
Svaroopa Niroopana Hetave/ Sva Gurave/ Sri Anna Poornamba Sahita Sri Amritananda Natha/ Sri Guru Sri Padukam/ Pujayami tarpayami Namah. 0e should separate the mantras from the e)planator! statements. The portion in small print is an e)planation whi"h simpl! means5 I worship the feet of the 1uru and his $hakti who taught me who I reall! am Bmeaning, that I am all that I see, not merel! what I think is m! bod!, mind or intelle"tC. 1. Aim ;rim Srim. Aim is the "hannel for knowledge. $o !ou are invoking the "hannel for knowledge for !ou to understand. 7or what purpose< 4rim, the nature of the limitation pro"ess, the individual life giver. To know the $rim, to re"eive the gra"e of 1od, so that !ou "an merge ba"k with 1od from whi"h !ou "ame. /ou are e)perien"ing separateness and limitedness and the pain of separateness and limitations. /ou want to e)perien"e the #o! of union. That is the $rim. /ou want to gain knowledge to over"ome this limitation pro"ess and get reabsorbed into the "osmi" unit!. $o Aim 4rim $rim is a pra!er whi"h pre"edes ever! mantra in the $ri (hakra pu#a whi"h means, Dh 1oddess, %lease give me knowledge to understand m! limitations to over"ome them and to e)perien"e m! truth as /ou, the 1oddess. 2. Aim !lim Souh. ,nowledge and the gra"e of 1od manifest itself through the pro"ess of "reation, the pro"ess of nouishment and a"tion. In manifesting an! thing, first it is as an idea in our thoughts. 0e dwell on it, enhan"e our knowledge, nourish the knowledge, "ouple it to material resour"es, a"t on it, to make the idea "ome alive. Then we let go of it. Aim;knowledge, ,lim;nourishing and prote"ting the idea, and $ouh;a"tion, fulfilment and deta"hment. 3. ;amsah. 4a is the sound of the outgoing breath. $ah is the sound of the in"oming breath. 4amsah or Soham are the mantras of life itself, the breath itself. 3ver! living being breathes and this breathing pro"ess is "alled hamsah

or soham. 0hen !ou know this it be"omes mantra. It is "alled a#apa ga!atri. It is one of the forms of the ga!atri. 0hen !ou "on"entrate and fo"us !our awareness on the breath hamsah then a "ertain knowledge dawns on !ou. And it is knowledge that separates the milk from the water. The legendar! bird the 4amsah is supposed to have the power of separating the milk from the water. That means separating the truth from fi"tion. The fi"tion is that I am different from the world. The truth is that I am the world. 0hen !ou reali8e that !ou are the world, and that an! small thing happening an!where does not and need not upset !ou, then this knowledge is what is given b! the breath. The 1uru .antra is telling !ou that !ou must fo"us on !our breath, hamsah to realise !our truth as 1od. >. The knowledge that !ou gain is Sivah Soham. I am $iva, the pure unbounded awareness, whi"h is m! true nature. That is the meaning of this part of 1uru .antra. 5. ;asakha2hrem. 4a is the s!mbol of $iva. The first breath that a person takes when born is the in"oming breath. The last breath is the outgoing breath, whi"h never returns. The first breath is the breath of the mother, and the last breath is the breath of the father. /ou are merging with the "osmos with the last breath. That is wh! we sa! that a person e)pires when he dies. /ou are not "oming ba"k again into this same bod!. $o 4a is the s!mbol of death, of annilation, of $iva. 4a is "alled &isarga in $anskrit. It means release of seed, to "reate life. 4a...aa..aa.. aa is also the s!mbol of the sound we make during an orgasm, when our life #ui"e is going out of ourselves. Then we e)perien"e something like a death, a loss of eros, whi"h is lust for life. Dur "onne"tion to heaviness of earth redu"es, we be"ome light. $a is the s!mbol of $hakti. ,ha is the s!mbol of spa"e. %hrem is the movement in spa"e. As $iva and $hakti, as awareness and its modifi"ations, we move in spa"e. 0hen the reali8ation that I am $iva dawns on me I forget m! bod! "ons"iousness. I rise above m! bod! "ons"iousness and move freel! in spa"e as the union of awareness and its modifi"ations, as $iva and $hakti. I e)perien"e a lightness, a levitating e)perien"e whi"h is like fl!ing in spa"e. That infa"t is the death e)perien"e. Death is an orgasm. A. To understand the ne)t 2 phrases, ;asakshamalavarayum h) saum.....Sahaksamalavarayim s)hauh ==we need to know a little bit about what is "alled the .atrika 6!asa. .atrikas mean the garland of letters of $anskrit alphabet. 6!sa means pla"ement in the bod!. In the matrika n!asa, the si)teen vowels are pla"ed around the ne"k. The 12 "onsonants ,a to Tha around the "hest, ne)t 10 Da to %ha around waist, ne)t A a to :a around the genital, ne)t > &a to $a near the sa"rum B "ervi)C, 4a, ,sha in the right and left e!es respe"tivel!. All the 50 letters have spe"ifi" lo"ations in the bod!+ the! ma! be "alled short addresses to refer to bod! parts.

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The $anskrit alphabets are lo"ated in different petals on the lotuses whi"h are linked to the stem of !our spinal "hord. 6e)t !ou have to understand where 4a is lo"ated, where $a is lo"ated, where ,sa is lo"ated, where :a is lo"ated, &a, *a, and I are lo"ated. 0hen !ou lo"ate them all, !ou will dis"over a path tra"ed b! these seed letters. 4asakshamalavara!um and $ahaksamalavara!im are the two paths of light tra"ed b! lo"ating where the letters are in !our bod!. The 1uru mantra tea"hes !ou how to move awareness in spe"ifi" parts of !our bod! to move ,undalini in the Ida and %ingala 6adis. This is the .antra /oga path to ,undalini. 4=saum and $=hauh whi"h !ou see here mean5 4=saum is formed b! 4 and $a and Aum. $=hauh is formed b! $ and 4a and Auh. 0hen 4a is the first letter, it means $iva nature dominantes, the male is in /oga witholding the seed, not e#a"ulating it. $hakti however needs to draw the seed out of male $iva to give birth to a new life. That is 4er purpose. $he is the "reatri), the pro="reative power lo"ated in the vulva. $he has to e)tra"t the seed and pla"e it in her womb. 0hen $hakti B$aC is dominant, the first letter, $he does e)tra"t the seed, and so aum be"omes auh. ha;&isarga;"reation. The "reativit! is the aum. Aum is holding the seed within. It is vibrating within as vitalit! but it is not being let out. 0hen $iva in /ogi" power is dominant the seed is "ontained within oneself. 0hen $hakti is dominant $he is asserting 4er power to manifest, $he e)tra"ts the seed orgasmi"all! out of 4im and pla"es it in 4er womb and pro"eeds with the "reation. $o 4saum and $houh are the male and female orgasms, holding the seed and e#a"ulating the seed. 0hat we dis"ussed so far is the invariant parts of the mantra. 0hat remains is5 ?.Svaru2a niru2ana hetave...... s&aru2a=!our true nature, niru2ana to prove, hetave = the "ause. The purpose of this mantra is being defined here. The "ause for proving to !ourself !our true nature, @. Svagurave, to !our own guru who has initiated !ou, who is all important./ou don-t have to worr! about an!one or an! thing thing else. G. Sri Anna2urnam.a sahita = is the shakti, the power behind the guru, 10. Amritananda +atha. .rit!u means death. 9A9 is negation. 6egation of death is Amrita. Therefore Amrita means ne"tar. /our $elf is not born. 4ow "an it die< The amrita, ne"tar is a#a = unborn. Ananda means bliss, whi"h is und!ing, un"hanging. liss of ne"tar is Amritananda. 3ver!one of these gurus a""ording to the Datta $amprada!a BlineageC are known as +athas. There are nine 6athas. 0e follow that samprada!a. 6atha literall! means husbandFwife, married to !ou, with whom !ou have to be intimate for !our progress. .ore importantl! the 1uru is "ommitted to take "are of !ou B#ust like a husbandFwifeC as a soul mate. The real 1uru, 1oddessF1od speaks through the 1uru, who "an be either female or male. Don-t "onfuse the the 1uru with a ph!si"al form. The 1uru of ever!one is one and the same. And that is 1odF1oddess. 1uru appears to

33

different people in different forms, but the form is onl! a s!mbol. /ou have to look behind the s!mbol to the truth and that truth is "alled Jagannatha. Jagat means world, 6atha means husbandFwife, the husbandFwife of the manifested world. The 1uru is referred to as the husbandFwife here, so that !ou "an open up !our bod!, mind and soul without an! inhibitions for deepest truths "an be learned without inhibitions. 10. Sri %uru = is the guru who is the sour"e of all powers, $ri who is the wealth of the :ord is the 1uru. In the havana Ipanishad it sa!s,9The 1uru "onfers the wealth of the :ord on !ou9. 11. Sri 2adukam = the benefi"ial, auspi"ious lotus feet of the 1uru whi"h he has pla"ed on the top of !our head. /ou are not to think of the form of the 1uru like this, but as Ardhanishwara = whi"h is half $iva, male, and half female, $hakti. In that form the right half is the male part and the left part is the female part. The! are eternall! united at all the "hakra "enters = at the muladhara and all the wa! up. And out of their union, their eternal union, flows the bliss as the 1anga flows from the head of $iva. It overflows and falls down to $iva-s feet where it be"omes ne"tar flowing onto the top of !our head. $o it is that 1uru who !ou must see. 12. 2ujayami = I worship that guru. 13. tar2ayami = 0hat is tarpanam< That whi"h gives !ou satisfa"tion. 0hat makes !ou sa!, 9/es, I have had enough, I don-t need an! more9< 4aving rea"hed that state is "alled tarpanam. It means !ou must be able to make the guru feel totall! satisfied, that !ou have rendered all that !ou are possible or "apable of doing. /ou have given him the supreme happiness of whatever he desires, that is tarpanam. $o I worship him Bthe 1uru "an be male or femaleC, I adore the feet, I make the :ord and 4is power totall! satisfied. 0hat is the desire of the 1od or the 1oddess< The! are both self=fullfilled. 0hat desires "ould the! have< Although !ou are sa!ing I am satisf!ing the 1uru, what it reall! means is that !ou are satisf!ing !ourself. It is !ou who are not having the fullfilled state. /ou are identif!ing with the 1uru. It is !ou who are tr!ing to rea"h the state of the 1uru, the :ord and his infinite %ower. /ou are tr!ing to fulfill !ourself. $o pu#a!ami means !ou are worshipping the 1uru as !our own manifestation outside and satis!ing herFhim means satisf!ing !ourself. he meaning o- the guru mantra tells you the 2ur2ose -or &hi$h you are doing the 2uja" and &hat it is you &ant to understand" and &hat is the result gained .y that 7hamsah siva soham8 and &hat the result is going to do -or you ) hasaka 2hrem. And the 2ath through the di--erent $hakras &hi$h you must take the kundalini and your a&areness hen you adore the -eet o- the guru &ho has given you initiation.

3>

Pan$adasi 'antra" the most se$ret mantra o- the %oddess Lalita 'aha ri2ura Sundari. !a e i la hrim) ;a sa ka ha la hrim) Sa ka la hrim

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The pan"adasi mantra "annot be translated. It is a ver! powerful mantra, a "hannel for infinite power, wealth, health, fame, en#o!ment and gra"e. 3ven in &edas, it is given in "oded form onl!. It is not usuall! written down in the mantra form be"ause it is supposed to be transmitted from 1uru to sish!a Bdis"ipleC dire"tl!, orall!. 3ven if it is written in books, it "annot be taken from there, as it will not !ield results. :ike a woman of 'ualit!, $he "an be had onl! through proper marriage, meaning, initiation from a 1uru+ not even an! 1uru, but one who has attained its fruits. It is a unthinkable asset, blessing. It is like an un"ut #ewel. The more !ou polish it the more beautiful it be"omes. The more !ou pra"ti"e it the more !ou get out of it. The best "ommentar! I "an give about this mantra is to be found in the $oundar!alahari, written b! $hankara"har!a. The stan8a starts with $ivah $haktih ,amah... The meanings are given here. !a $iva as "reator rahma. e $hakti as pure awareness, the "osmi" !oni, the word of 1od, $araswati i ,ama, the desire to "reate the "osmos. $in"e it "annot be said that "osmos e)ists or doesnot e)ist if there is no awareness to know it, it is the power of e)isten"e to "reate awareness "alled here the desire, the pro"reative drive, libido. la ,shitih, meaning "ondensation to dense solid state B through a su""ession of states5 time, spa"e, air, plasma, li'uid, solidC hrim rahma and $araswati en#o!ing the dan"e and musi" of of "reation+ e)isten"e and awareness together "reating an interval whi"h e)pands through intera"tion of spa"e and time to form matter and further evolution. This first group of five seed letters are "alled &ag= hava=,uta meaning, relating to the sour"e of spee"h. ha *avi; the $un, %assion, %ingala 6adi, the sustainer of life, aggressive male aspe"ts, intelle"t, a"tion oriented motor organs. sa $eetha ,iranah; .oon, Ida 6adi, feelings of e"stas! and depression alternating in "!"les, female aspe"ts, re"eptive organs of knowledge, language of gestures. ka $marah; .anmatha, agitations of heart and mind due to thinking about world. hamsah $wan;Dis"rimination between love, power, lust and fear, life sustaining breath.

la $hakrah; Indra, the 1od of heavenl! pleasures, en#o!ments and "ontroller of all deities guarding the @ dire"tions namel!, 3 Indra himself, $3 Agni; fire, $ /ama;death, $0 6irruti;"haoti" for"es, 0 &aruna; waters of life and seeds, 60 &a!u;air, 6 ,ubera; unlimited wealth, 63 Isana;(ontroller of worlds. hrim &ishnu and :akshmi in embra"e, prote"ting and nourishing this world. This se"ond group of the mantra is "alled ,amara#a ,uta, whi"h prote"ts and gives all desires of material and spiritual power while dire"ting it wisel!. sa %ara;trans"entent 1oddess, who also manifests here in this world, the sour"e of "osmos and !oni, the sour"e of an individual. ka .ara;3roti" desire, who brings forth this world out of $iva with the help of %ara $hakti. la 4ar; $iva, e)isten"e without awreness, like a "orpse, no movement. $iva is the phalli" s!mbol whi"h #umps to life on intera"ting with the %ara $hakti, the /oni. hrim $iva $hakti; (opulation of .ale and female, fulfilment of desires, liberation from desires. This third group of the great mantra is "alled $hakti ,uta.0e should remember that these seed letters are all "hannels of "ommuni"ation. It should be reiterated here that without initiation from a proper 1uru, this great mantra will not !ield fruit, sin"e it has to be "oupled with a $haktipat, an energ! flow from the 1uru to the dis"iple. &olumes have been written on this mantra. $o we will stop here and move onto the ne)t part of the ritual. Prayer to Lord %anesha *m %anaanaam tvaa ? %ana2atigum ;avaamahe ? !avim !avinaam U2amasravas tamam? Jyestha Raajam Brahmanaam ? Brahmanas2ata ? Aa nah Srinvan ?*oti.hih Seeda Saadanam?? Sri 'aha %ana2ataye +amah %ana means a group. 0e offer our homage in the form of ghee oblations to !ou. /ou are the leader of the groups, all the groups that form this world. There are different sets of ob#e"ts and knowledge about them. All these groups are "ontrolled b! %ana2ati. Among these groups are those whi"h form our limitations. The! are related to our se"urit! "enter, the .uladhara "hakra. To all those groups of entities whi"h tend to limit us, we offer our oblations to !ou our fears, an)ieties, neuroses, lust, greed, all these things. Dblations means the pouring of the ghee into the fire. 0hen !ou offer !our homage to the lord of these groups all negativities whi"h "ontrol !our da!= to= da! intera"tions and behavior patterns and programming, then what !ou get is to be a kavi, a poet.

3A

/ou be"ome a poet. %oetr! is more of the heart than intelle"t. It trans"ends rationalit!. That is its beaut! and goodness. It "an trans"end the limitations of rational, thought and thus e)press the trans"endent, whi"h "annot be "onfined to rational e)planations. There is a sa!ing in Telegu 9If the poet "annot see, "an the sun see then<9 It means the poet-s penetration into the truth is far superior to the penetration of the earth b! the sun-s light. /ou be"omes a poet b! understanding !our true nature. The ni"e thing about this is that the poet is able to look at the good and the bad, and find the humor in the situation in a dispassionate wa!. 4e does not de"r! or praise one thing or the other. 4e sees the things as the! are in their true perspe"tive. 1anesha is the jyestharaja ) the first one to be worshipped, be"ause he is the one who "reates the obsta"les for !ou and !our growth, in the form of fear, sensations, et". That is the starting point. /ou have got to first offer !our oblations and be with him and understand his nature and be"ome humorous about it. 0hen !ou find !ou "annot "hange the world be"ause it is "orrupt, !ou have to laugh it off and that is it. Dherwise !ou will be weighed down b! the worries and the an)ieties of the world with !our good intentions. The humor is the last resort of "ompassion. $uppose !ou go to a far off pla"e. us after bus has "ome and ever!thing is full and !ou have not been able to get a pla"e on an! bus and the last bus has "ome and !ou have struggled to get in and !ou did not get in. /our last hope is e)tinguished. And then what happens< /ou start singing and then walking the 20 miles ba"k homeL /ou are able to get the se"ond breath of life whi"h "omes to !ou from the depths of !our deepest frustrations and an)ieties. The "ompassionate humor "omes to !ou from a""epting the inevitabilit! of thingsas the! are. /ou are invoking :ord 1anapati. A nah srnvan ) please "ome and listen to us =. And please give us !our gra"e = seeda saadanam. Surya 'antra ) 0orshipping !our bod! and invoking the light of $un within !ou when bathing. ;raam ;rim ;rum Sah ? 'aartaanda Bhairavaaya Prakaasa Shakti Sahitaaya Svaaha. 0hen !ou are taking bath imagine that between !our navel "hakra and the heart "hakra is the sun. 0hen !ou are taking bath !ou offer three spoons of water to !our own navel sa!ing this pra!er to the sun, $ur!a. 'aartanda .hairavaaya means the fier"e $un with his illuminating power. :ight b! itself does not illuminate. It is knowledge whi"h illuminates. :ight "an be seen. ut a seeing awareness is a higher form of light. That is wh! it is "alled a param#!oti. J!oti is the light whi"h enables the darkness to be removed and things to be seen. ut without awareness the light or darkness "annot be seen.

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$o the light of light is the awareness. (ons"iousness is the true light b! whi"h the sun, the moon, the stars and the fires shine. 3ver!thing is known b! !our awareness. If !ou are un"ons"ious this world does not e)ist for !ou. Awareness is the highest form of light = whi"h itself is never seen. The light is something whi"h "an be seen. Dn"e !ou are able to see an!thing, even light, then the separation between the seer and the seen is manifest. 0hen !ou don-t see, then !ou are in union with that whi"h is seen. Then !ou know it b! being it, not seeing it. Prakasa means illumination. That is the power. This hram" hrim" hrum are the bi#a mantras for the sun. ;rim is the ma!a, the power that brings life to !ou. It is life=giving power that "omes from the sun. That is wh! when the sun "omes up in the sk! we get up and go about doing our dail! "hores. The life for"e "omes from the sun. That is the .ahakundalini $hakti wakes us up. Therefore we offer to the light whi"h is visible, Bthe s!mbol of the light whi"h is visibleC three spoons of water. 0h! water< = be"ause that also represents life, the seed, the semen. 6e)t think of $un5 ;ram ;rim ;rum Sah is the mantra. That "annot be repla"ed b! 3nglish te)t. /ou ma! treat the ne)t part as mantra, or !ou ma! use the 3nglish translation of it. 9To the orb of the sun along with its power to illuminate, residing between m! heart and navel, I offer this water as a s!mbol of m! life.9 $o sa!ing, sprinkle water there. 6e)t, !ou sprinkle water on the three parts of !our own bod! with eroti" parts of Devi mantra5 !our fa"e, with ka e i la hrim" !our breasts and navel with = ha sa ka ha la hrim" and !our genitals = sa ka la hrim. The identifi"ation goes like this. !a e i are the three e!es, la hrim is the mouth and tongue+ ha sa and ka ha are the two breasts with the nipples, la hrim is the navel and line of hairs below+ sa ka are the two sides of vulva and la hrim is the "litoral shaft and the tip. This is the mantra n!asa revealed to Amritananda b! 4laadini $hakti B love power of ,rishnaC. ri2ura Sundari Vidmahe5 ri2ura means three "ities. The three "ities are the waking state, the dreaming state and the sleeping state. In all these three states of !our being, the most beautiful is Sundari Vidmahe = vid = knowing intuitivel!. 7rom this vid "omes &eda. 0e learn about .aha &id!a through intuition. The beaut! of this universe that e)ists in these three states of being, I "ome to know b! meditating on the three pro"reative powers of the 1oddess. Pitha kamini dhimahi@ she has the desire to be on that pla"e, pitha, in the lotus of !our heart. $ri :aksmi and 6ara!ana are the nourishing and preserving powers whi"h "ome from the milk from !our two breasts. That is where she is residing.

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(hi And when !ou meditate on this power in the heart "enter it gives !ou (hi = the abilit! to dis"riminate. To dis"riminate between good and bad and to a""ept the good and the bad with love and affe"tion. Sa ka la hrim $a ka la hrim is the a"tive $hakti, whi"h moves $iva to "reate a new awareness. 0hen !ou worship that, then tannah klinne 2ra$odayat. tannah = that ma! it propel us toward klinne = wetness. 0e are normall! lo"ated in our muladhara "hakra assuming the rigidit! of our bodies. The first transformation is from rigidit! to flow. :ike li'uid !ou tr! to "reate a flow. That means the starting of the movement of the kundalini shakti from the rigidit! of solid B earth "hakraC to the li'uid state Bthe se"ond "hakraC and then to lightness. This refers to the orgasmi" release from all of !our tensions in"luding se)ual tensions. 0ith this mantra !ou do prokshana BsprinklingC to the three parts of !our bod!. Lighting the Lam2 *m ;rim Rakta (&aadasha Sakti Auktaaya (ee2a +aathaaya +amah Then when we enter the temple, the first thing we do is to light up the lamp. The lamp is the s!mbol of the guru. The guru, like the lamp removes !our ignoran"e, the darkness. rakta dvadasa = rakta means the blood. dvadasa means twelve. = sakti yuktaya = asso"iated with the twelve powers. The twelve powers are lo"ated in the heart "enter. The heart "enter has the 12= petalled lotus there. The guru is lo"ated in the heart "enter. *atka also means the ra#a guna, the desire for movement, the desire to move the heart. That is the kind of knowledge that the guru gives. (ee2a nathaya namah = deepa is the light, the lamp. /ou light the lamp and sa! the guru is not here, so this is m! guru. $o !ou see the invo"ation of !our spiritual guide immediatel!. /ou do not think of the guru as the individual, but as the light. 0hat about the white and the red wi"ks on the two lamps kept on two sides< 0hite and red are the "olors of the semen and blood. The semen is white and the blood is red. oth are sti"k! things whi"h are ver! ob#e"tionable to the priests. $o the ritual pres"ribed b! priests uses s!mbols for them. ut both these substan"es "ontain the D6A and *6A "odes essential for for "reating life. $o on one side !ou have the white wi"k whi"h s!mboli8es the semen and on the other side the red wi"k whi"h s!mboli8es the blood. Dil is the s!mbol of the female orgasmi" fluid and ghee is the s!mbol of semen. That is wh! we offer ghee into the homam, a fire ritual. The homa kunda is supposed to be the female genital. Into that !ou offer the seed. 3ver! offering, ever! a"t of pu#a in ritual is suggestive of a release of ever! tension, an orgasm, "alled rahmananda, the Ananda of rahma, of "reation. The word orgasm is not being used in an! limited sense. An! release of tension is orgasm. 0hen !ou are fa"ing a situation where tension is developed, the moment !ou resolve or release the tension, resolution of a "onfli"t, that is "alled an orgasm in Tantra.

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BB 'editations o- the Sri $hakra In the ne)t >> visuali8ations with the mantras the beginning Aim 4rim $rim "an-t be repla"ed. The remaining part of the mantras "an be translation for ease of people who do not know $anskrit. 0here the meaning "an be "learl! established, we do not "onsider that a mantra. 0here the meaning "annot be divulged, where the words are a "hannel of "ommuni"ation we re"ogni8e it as a mantra. That is the "riterion we are using to distinguish the untranslatable mantra from the translatable parts. ,a e i la hrim, 4a sa ka ha la hrim, $a ka la hrim is all a mantra. It "an-t be translated. 6ow, what are these meditations about< These meditations are something like a guided imager!. It "reates an environment in !our minds e!e. It "hallenges !ou to e)plore !pur "reative visuali8ation. .eru is supposed to be the tallest mountain in the world. It spans the 1> worlds. And the 1> worlds are lo"ated from the bottom of the feet to the top of the head. The spinal "hord is the real meru. The spinal "hord is the abode of the 1oddess who travels up and down pla!ing the musi" of life in the seven "enters. 0hat do !ou do as !ou re"ite ea"h mantra and visuali8e the "orresponding image, mapping them into the fort! four triangles of the $ri (hakra< /ou pla"e a dot of sandalwood paste and kumkum on the "enter of the $ri (hakra. Dn that !ou pla"e sandalwood Bs!mbol for semenC whi"h is gandha= perfume. Dn top of 1andha !ou pla"e ,umkum whi"h represents blood. $o again the union of the male and the female fluids "reating life is s!mboli"all! pla"ed on the top of the $ri (hakra with ea"h of the mantras, or at the end of the entire visuali8ation pro"ess. Aim ;rim Srim is repeated with ea"h phrase. This phrase means5 I re'uest $araswati to tea"h me about .a!a and to re"ieve the gra"e of 1oddess $ri. 0hen we meditate, we first prepare ourselves for meditation b! preparing a beautiful lo"ation and and sitting there in a "alm state. (reation of this sa"red spa"e is the intent of these >> meditations. 0. amrtam.honidhaye namah =+ nidhi is a an o"ean+ am.ha is water+ amrita is ne"tar, or the o"ean of ne"tar+ namah means I am that Bo"ean of ne"tarine waters whi"h give and support lifeC.

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namahC a word about namah. If !ou look at the siva sutram, 6a is shabda, .a is tou"h. 6a means no. 6o tou"h. 0hat "ould it mean, no tou"h< Are !ou not tou"hing left and right hands with namah< Aha, that is the meaning, the tou"her and the tou"hed are the same. 0hen do !ou have a tou"h< 0hen there is a differen"e. (an a finger tou"h itself< A finger "an tou"h an!thing else, but it "annot tou"h itself, !et it "an be aware of itself. $o when !ou are the ob#e"t of !our vision, the tou"h disappears, but awareness does not. The tou"h is there as long as the interval is there. 0hen !ou sa! namah there is no tou"h, no "onta"t. It means that what I am meditating on has be"ome m!self. $o I have be"ome the o"ean of ne"tar. Also+ !ou sa! namah b! #oining !our left hand and right hand. If !ouknow that !our left hand belongs to the female part of !ou and the right hand to the male part 7artha nari is&ara8, !ou #oin the male and the female in 6amah. :eft is &ama = what !ou see B&ama;what !ou vomitted, what "ame out of !ouC. The right is what !ou are. Joining of what !ou see with the what !ou are is themeaning implied b! #oining the left and right hands. 0hen !ou sa! namah !ou are gesturing in effe"t that 9I am seeing !ou as a separate being, but I know !ou and me are one9. /ou are imposing the 'ualities of the ob#e"t on whi"h !ou are meditating upon onto !ourself b! the gesture of 6amah. That is "alled meditation. In meditation, !ou don-t stop seeing+ !ou don-t stop knowing+ but !ou are be"oming what !ou see, what !ou know. This state of being in whi"h !ou are merged with, in !oga with the ob#e"t of per"eption, is "alled $amadhi. The word $amadhi is "omposed of two terms5 $ama;3'ual, Adhi; *egarding. In this first meditation of $ri (hakra, !ou are thinking of it as an o"ean of ne"tar first as an ob#e"t+ then !ou are be"oming the o"ean of ne"tar. :et me tell !ou about a ni"e "ustom. 4indus make the "hild write *m +amah Sivaaya Siddham +amah at the time of starting to learn letters. 0hat does this mean< *m is the name of 1od. +amah = I am not seeing an!thing different from me. This knowledge that I am what I am seeing is Sivaya = for the good of ever!one. And how !ou attain this state<. Siddham +amah = !ou go to a person who is a $iddha, one who is enlightened and gesture +amah 9/ou are me9. Thus !ou are invoking the $iddha into !ourself. Then the siddha-s knowledge be"omes !ours and therefore !ou "an be"ome enlightened. The transfer of power or gra"e o""urs through identifi"ation, whi"h happens through pa!ing attention. 6amah is "onstantl! being used as an ending here with ever! mantra. There are five endings whi"h "an be used normall! to an! pu#a. These are jaya" namah" svaha" tar2ana and shuddha.

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The ,hadga .ala $totram is the Devi-s praise whi"h lists the powers of Devi. It "an be re"ited in five different wa!s. Shuddha Shakti 0ala means !ou are not adding an! ending, !ou are #ust being the power !ourself B not seeing an! differen"eC+ Namo antha 0ala, !ou are adding namah at the endBseeing a differen"e, but knowing that !ou are not different from the powerC+ !aya antha 0ala means !ou are sa!ing Ja!a Bvi"tor! toC at the end+ Swaha antha 0ala means !ou are sa!ing $vaha and offering ghee into the fire+ and Tar8antha 0ala means !ou sa! tarpa!ami and offering water of !our life in the "ause of the power. /ou "an think of Devi as a male, as a female, or !ou "an think of Devi as a loving "ouple in union. These three wa!s of thinking "an be "ombined with the above five wa!s of endings to make 5)3 ;15 wa!s of worship. $u"h wa!s of worship are indeed an integral part of worship of Devi. The! are the meanings of letters in the %an"adasi .antra. In ea"h of the 15 da!s of the lunar "alendar !ou are supposed to worship in these 15 different wa!s asso"iated with that da!. This is "alled Tithi 6it!a %u#a &idhi. There are fifteen wa!s in whi"h the ,hadga .ala "an be worshipped. Dn what da!sDevi is worshipped in a male BlingamC and what da!s Devi is worshipped in a femaleB!oniC and on what da!s Devi is worshipped as the union of the maleBseerC and female BseenC is to be found in the %an"adasi .antra, as given below. In the %an"hadasi .antra of Devi "alled the ,adi &id!a, there are three 9,a9s and the two 94a9s whi"h represent the male. The mantra is also the se'uen"e of the da!s of lunar "alendar+ the first letter is the first da!, the se"ond letter the se"ond da! and so on. $iva is supposed to be the destro!er+ so the da!s on whi"h we worship Devi as male $iva is "onsidered inauspi"ious for materialisti" gains B but auspi"ious for spiritual gainsC. The seed letters 93, I, one :a, two $a9 are the da!s on whi"h we worship Devi as a female B!oni;mother;sour"eC. These da!s are obviousl! auspi"ious, for she is taking "are of our material needs. 4owever, the ver! best da!s are those in whi"h Devi in the form of a "ouple in union+ These da!s "orrespond to the se"ond and third :a, and the three 4rims. $o on lunar da!s 1,A,@,G,13 Devi is worshipped in a .ale+ on da!s 2,3,>,?,12 Devi is worshipped in a female, and on da!s 5,?,10,11,1>,15 in a "ouple. It is our normal understanding that Devi is the mother who the gives us life, nourishes us through her milk and gives us knowledge. 4rim is the union of the male and female whi"h gives us life. $o firstl!, it the best to worship 4er as male and female in union, to get all forms of "reativit! invoked into us. 0orship of genitals therefore gives us ,ri!a $akti B"alled %arvati or Durga or simpl! .aC, to manifest all kinds of "reative powers in real life. $e"ond best is to worship 4er as the female onl! that gives us nourishment Bmeditation on breasts gives thatC and the last is to worship 4er as a male whi"h helps us to deta"h

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ourselves from this world. All this information is "oded into the mantra the %an"adasi .antra. These notes given here are designed to help the reader to "learl! visuali8e the meanings of the meditations. 2. Ratna (vi2aya +amah. In the Amrita o"ean we have the Ratnadvi2a = the island of #ewels. 3. +anavrksa mahodyanaya 7+amah8 ) a beautiful garden of flowers man! big trees. >. !al2a vrksa vatikaya7 8 = 4ere are trees that when !ou sit beneath them whatever !ou wish is granted to !ou. BThere is a trouble with that. If !ou , without thinking, think of something bad, that also will happen for !ou. $o the kalpa vrksa is a double=edged sword.C 5. Santana vatikaya namah = 0e know we are going to die one da!. $o, to prolong our life we enter into relationships and we beget "hildren. egetting "hildren is an attempt to gain immortalit!. 4owever, we will not gain immortalit! this wa!+ but it is one of the aspirations of humanit!, to have "hildren and grand"hildren, and so on and to perpetuate the ra"e. A. ;ari $handana vatikaya namah= (handana means the sandalwood paste, it also a s!mbol for semen. 4ari="handana is also "alled *akta (handana. B*akta;bloodC 4ari is &isnu. The three fundamental entities are spa"e, time and matter. $pa"e "ons"iousness is "alled &isnu, time "ons"iousness is "alled $iva, and the union between spa"e and time, $iva and &isnu "reates matter, rahma. 4ari="handana is the vasana, ra#oguna of 4ari, whi"h is the desire to manifest the world in his womb of spa"e. Dne of the forms of &ishnu is .ohini, who enti"es $iva to emits his seed. That is wh! 4ari"handana is "alled *akta "handana, the seed of the woman, the menstrual flow. Just as a woman e)hibits flow between her monthl! "!"les, the woman "alled mind e)hibits the flow of desire to manifest thought forms between silen"es. This name means that there is a "ontainer BvatiC full of hari"handana. /ou reali8e when !ou go through all these meditations, that !ou are reall! visuali8ing the form of the !oni. The! are all different aspe"ts of the !oni, the mother of all, whi"h "an be properl! "alled the female genital, or the "osmos, or even the mind. /ou visuali8e the garbhala!a, the womb, as a beautiful garden and a beautiful temple. A"tuall! the word 1arbha=ala!a means the womb whi"h is tha temple in whi"h the .other 1oddess of fertilit!and "reativit! resides. In olden times !oni was not "onsidered as a sinful thing+ it was indeed worshipped as the seat of the 1oddess. %halli" and female genital worship was the oldest of all forms of worship "ommon to all religions.

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?. 'andara vatikayai namah= a grove of h!bis"us flowers, whi"h are red in "olor with a red pestil in its "enter. @. Parijata vatikayai namah = in the forest of h!bis"us trees, there is a grove with white, ver! deli"ate and fragrant flowers with red stems whi"h are "alled are pari#ata. G. !adam.a vatikayai = kadamba is a garland of red flowers. All these things are relating to the different "olors of red. /ou reali8e that the! are all the different shades of red in the !oni. 10. Pushya raga ratna 2rakaraya namah = push!a raga is "oral. This is the en"losure made of "oral. 11. 2adma raga 2rakaraya = This is a red #ewel en"losure. 12. gomedha ratna 2rakaraya = This is a brown en"losure. 13. vajra ratna 2rakaraya =This is a diamond en"losure whi"h is sparkling white in "olor. Again that represents the seed. &a#ra also means a thunderbolt and the abilit! to keep the seed within as !ogis do. 1>. vaidurya ratna 2rakaraya = This is again a red #ewel. 15. indra nila ratna 2rakaraya = This is a deep blue. Indra also is the 1od of pleasure. 1A. mukta ratna2rakaraya= This is an en"losure of pearls. 1?. marakata ratna2rakaraya = This is again a red stone en"losure. 1@. vidruma ratna2rakaraya = (oral. Again all of these are different "olored en"losures one inside the other. 1G. manikya manda2aya = A hall whi"h is made of rubies. 20. sahasra stham.hamanda2aya = A thousand=pillared hall. Also the thousand petal lotus at the "rown of the head Bof the bab! inside the womb.C 21. amrta va2ikayai = The well "ontaining ne"tar. 22. ananda va2ikayai = The well of happiness.

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23. vimarsa va2ikayai = &imarsa is anal!sis. %rakarsha and &imarsa are the two feet of the guru. %rakarsha is enlightenment B$ivaC and &imarsha is anal!sis Bthe foot of DeviC. /our abilit! to dis"riminate between differnt paths to rea"h the goal !ou set for !ourself is "alled vimarsa. 2>. .alata2a udgaraya = ala means !oung+ atapa is the sunlight+ udgara is the profusion. $o this means the profusion of the rising sun-s light. B $un represents passion, and moon dispassionC 25. $andrikodgaraya = (andra is the moonlight. $o this is the profusion of the moonlight. 2A. mahsringara 2arighayai = parigha is a barrage of the great sentiment of eros. 2?. maha2admatavyai = .aha %adma represents a huge number, 10 to the power of twent!.The si8e of the "osmos is 10 to the power of 20 times the si8e of the human being. There are two great nidhis5 the "osmos itself, and the awareness in the "osmos. The "osmos nidhi is $iva and the awareness of the "osmos "alled $hakti is the padma nidhi. Atavi means a forest. A forest of island universes is meant. 2@. $intamani griha rajaya = within the padma nidhi is the #ewel of thoughts and a house built out of !our imaginations. (intamani is also a mantra 9arkshmir!aum9. It is found in the "lassi" te)t on worship of Devi b! Adi $ankara "alled $oundar!alahari. There it states that !ou en"apsulate the pan"adasi mantra with "intamani+ whi"h is then offerred in the fire of !our imagination and !ou keep the fire glowing. This means offering ghee with the mantra 9arkshmir!aum ka e i la hrim ha sa ka la hrim sa ka la hrim arkshmir!aumC to the fire-s glow in !our mind. If !ou are able to visualise the fire, offering the seed along with the mantra, then all the attainments manifest. :alita $ahasram talks of 7idagnikunda sambutayai namah = (it means "ons"iousness. In !our awareness the fire is made and the fire is sustained b! the mantra. The seed of the "intamani mantra is being pla"ed inside the light, and this "intamani flower is born and inside it !ou will see Devi, who will give !ou whatever !ou ask 4er, if it be 4er wish to grant !ou that. The house of "intamani is the $ri (hakra itself+ The $ri (hakra is first seen in meditation b! $age Agast!a+ worship of $ri (hakra gives Devi to $adhaka.. 2G. 2urvamnaya maya 2urvadvaraya = ne)t !ou see the outside doors of $ri (hakra des"ribed. The *g &eda is the 3astern entran"e. The *ig veda is the revelation of truth in meditation. This is one wa! to rea"h the 1oddess.

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30. dakshinamnaya maya daksinadvaraya = the /a#ur &eda is the southern entran"e. /a#urveda is the use of *iks in rituals. *ituals are the se"ond wa! to rea"h the 1oddess. 31. 2as$imamnaya maya 2as$imadvaraya = the western entran"e is the $ama &eda. $ama &eda is singing the *iks. $ong and dan"e are the third wa! to rea"h the 1oddess. 32. uttarmnaya maya uttardvarya = the northern entran"e is the Atharvana &eda. Atharvana &eda is the pra"ti"al use of the &edi" 4!mns to a"hieve ends magi"all!. 4elping others and !ourself through 4er gra"e is the fourth wa! of rea"hing the 1oddess. 33. ratna dvi2a valayaya = A "ir"le of islands made of #ewels are surrounding this island. 3>. mani maya maha simhasanaya = The great throne guarded b! :ions, is made out of #ewels, sitting on four living pillars. 35. .rahmamaya eka man$a 2adaya = rahma is one of the legs. It represents the .uladhara (hakra Bthe root "hakra at the "ervi)C. 3A. visnumaya eka man$a 2adaya) The se"ond leg is &isnu. &isnu is the $wadhisthana "hakra B2nd "hakra at the entran"e to birth "hannelC. 3?. rudramaya eka man$a 2adaya) The ne)t leg is made of *udra. *udra represents the .anipura "hakra B3rd "hakra at the navelC. 3@. isvaramaya eka man$a 2adaya= The ne)t leg is Iswara whi"h is the Anahata "hakra Bthe >th, 4eart "hakraC. 3G. sadasiva eka man$a 2halakaya = $adasiva is the &isshudhi "hakra Bthe Throat "hakraC. >0. hamsa toola tal2aya namah = Above the &isshudhi "hakra is a ver! soft swan down bed. It also means the soft !ogi" breath "alled the kevala kumbhaka. $he is sitting softl! on the in going breath So and on the outgoing breath ;am. >1. hamsa toola maho2adhanaya namah = a soft swans down "over. This is also the life floating on the breath. Toola means a feather floating freel! in the wind. >2. kausum.ha staranaya = the red satin sheet is "overing this bed.

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>3. maha vitanakaya = the en"losure whi"h prevents others from seeing what is happening inside. It is all inside the mind of the devotee. 6o one else "an "ome inside !our "osmi" mind and understand what is happening there. >>. mahamaya yavanikayai = the "overing ma!a whi"h separates !ou from that whi"h !ou are seeing. Dnl! when that separation is removed are !ou #oined with Devi. This "ompletes the >> meditations on the >> triangles in the "entral parts of the $ri (hakra.

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9orshi22ing the Bindu and the rikona 6e)t !ou worship the "entral point of the $ri (hakra B binduC b! sa!ing Aim hrim srim ,a e i la hrim 4a sa ka la hrim $a ka la hrim. The !ou worship the "entral triangle. ,a e i la hrim is the "orner fa"ing !ou. /ou are worshipping $araswati , the fa"e of Devi there. Then 4a sa ka ha la hrim is :akshmi. $he is visuali8ed to be on the "orner to !our right, and $a ka la hrim is %arvati on the left. The! are "alled .aha ,ameshwari, .aha &a#eshwari, and .aha hagamalini.

Viraja ;oma
6ow we are at a pla"e in the ritual where we want to "reate an astral bod! that is going to "ontinue after our e)isten"e,whi"h is going to "ontinue doing good. That is done through the &ira#a 4oma. 0hether we are males or females, whether we are !oung or old, whether we are fat of thin, whether we are depressed or elated, no matter what our initial state is, we reset ourselves to the state of 9I am 15 going on 1A9. 7or that this whole pro"ess "an be done in !our own language, whatever that is. $it "omfortabl!, and imagine the following to the best of !our abilit!. /ou imagine that !our bod! is sub#e"t to de"a! and it is going to be burnt upsome da!. It has to be"ome old, it has to merge with the elements, it has happened now. Imagine the wind is "oming and dr!ing up !our dead bod!. Its #ust like bare bones. It is pla"ed on the funeral p!re and lit up. These are all visuali8ations. The more powerfull!, the more "learl! !ou "an visuali8e seeing the flames in !our mind-s e!e, hearing the "rakling of the fire, and the sparks fl!, the better !our e)perien"e will be. 0ater vapors rise from the bod!, and parts of the bod! are sti"king out and someone takes a sti"k and pushes them ba"k into the fire. All these things are asso"iated with a smashana Ba "remation groundC. I don-t know if !ou have been to a real funeral p!re and wat"hed a

bod! burning. It is worth wat"hing be"ause that is e)a"tl! what is going to happen to !ou. Its all a drama and brings realit! of impermanen"e of life so powerfull! to !our mind. /ou reali8e that all these things we do in life are #ust games that we are pla!ing. /ou see the whole bod! going up in smoke. /ou visuali8e this s"ene. After the bod! is gone, all those things asso"iated with the bod! are gone too. There is no lust, nothing to be possessive of. $iva is supposed to have burned the whole "osmos and put the ashes of the "osmos on his head. Those are the three lines !ou see people wearing asso"iated with :ord $iva. 4e has burnt all the gross forms, all thesubtle forms, all the "ausal forms and all the ashes are being worn on his head. 4e is in !oga. 6othing disturbs him. 4e "ontinues as pure awareness. The linga is his "hara"teristi". After !our bod! is redu"ed to ashes, sta! in that state for a reasonabl! good time en#o!ing a "alm mind undisturbed b! thoughts like !ou never en#o!ed before. 6e)t !ou imagine that dark "louds are gathering, that there are thunder showers, and lightening , and a rain of ne"tar falls on the ashes. The ashes take a new shape. The new shape is a ball of light, brilliant like a thousand suns and "ool like a thousand moons and emiting billions of "oloured ra!s of all the "olors of the rainbow in different dire"tions. This ball of light "ondenses into the form of $iva and $hakti in embra"e, dan"ing with #o!. Dut of their dan"e, out of their union, out of their happiness "omes this world. 97or the sake of pleasure this universe was born. 7or the sake of pleasure !ou grow. . 0hen !ou be"ome old and !our bod! is taken over b! disease, for the sake of release from pain, !ou die. The onl! medi"ine, the onl! do"tor is 4ari, the :ord. 4ari also known as &asudeva who resides in the heart "enter, he "arries !ou like a "hild through the "ave of death and at the end of this there is a light. At the end of !our life if !ou sa! the name of &asudeva, he will manifest and "arr! !ou into the light. Imagine that !ou have "reated the ball of light and !ou are like $iva and $hakti. $iva is fifteen, $hakti is si)teen. The! have merged into a brilliant ball of light again. Then, imagine that this ball of light has entered into !our heart "enter and that !ou are emiting this light outside also. 0hatever "omes into "onta"t with this light is getting purified and healed. There are different "olors of light "orresponding with different fre'uen"ies and the! have different powers asso"iated with them. /ou do prana!ama three times. Along with e)halation and re"itation of %an"hadasi, this the ball of light is going out and forming ball outside, and when !ou inhale with %an"hadasi, this light is dissolving and "oming inside and forming a ball inside. An inside and outside e)"hange is taking pla"e with the breath. /ou are e)isting inside !our bod! and outside !our bod!. And the breath is the "onne"ting link between the two.

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The wa! to do prana!ama is as follows. *e"ite %an"hadasi on"e while inhaling, twi"e holding the breath inside, on"e while e)haling, on"eholding the breath outside. This "onstitutes one "!"le of %rana!ama. Also, the ball of light goes where the breath goes. During inhalation, it is going in, with e)halation it is going out. :ike this, !ou start with three rounds and graduall! in"rease to fifteen rounds. (ealing &ith the *.sta$les to Puja Apasarpantu te Bhutah Ye bhuta Vighna kartarah Ye bhutah Bhuvi Samsthitah te Nasyantu Sivajnaya

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Dn"e !ou have be"ome the ball of light, !ou have be"ome $iva,"apable of pro#e"ting a laser beam through !our third e!e, and !ou have be"ome $hakti who "an give nourishment b! a mere look of "ompassion. /ou have the power to "ommand the elements. As $iva !ou sa! that 9All those elements= A2asar2antu = ma! the! go awa! = te .huta) ye .huta = whi"h elements = .huvi samsthitah = are residing on the ground near me, ye .huta =and those elements = vighna kartarah = whi"h are obstru"ting the progress of m! sadhana = te nasyantu sivajnaya = ma! the! be destro!ed b! $iva-s order. $o sa!ing, !ou burn them up from the fire of !our third e!e whi"h shoots out like a destru"tive laser beam. &isuali8e them as "rooked beings, see them burn up. The feelings that bind !ou su"h as lust, anger, greed, #ealous!, preo"upation with se"urit!, all these are "alled bhutas whi"h "reate obsta"les for !ou. The! reside in the se"urit! "enter, the muladhara "hakraB bhuvi samsthitahC. $o having be"ome $iva !ou make sure that the! are burnt up. Vajra Panjara +yasam ) the (iamond Cage The whole "on"ept of the pu#a is based upon su""essive transformations. Transformations of !our ph!si"al bod! into a !antra, into an e)ternal astral bod!, into the light./our bod! is "alled !our sthula sarira. The susksma sarira is the !antra, and karana sarira is the ball of light. . /ou have the abilit! to move through these different levels freel!. The abilit! to do so is attained b! the entire pro"edure whi"h follows. he -irst o- these things is the identi-i$ation o- your .ody as the Sri Chakra. The $ri (hakra s!mboli8es the "osmos as !our self=identit!. It is also the "onne"ting link to those things whi"h preserve the idea of !our separate identit!. It "onne"ts all three5 !our true self, the self !ou have assumed, and the nature of the "onne"ting link between these two. /ou have to re=establish the "onne"tion between !ourself and this lost identit!, !our real identit! whi"h is "osmi" awareness.

This identifi"ation5 !our ph!si"al form ;the ph!si"al form of the Devi, the mantra; !antraB$ri (hakraC, and 1uru ;$iva. All these three pairs are to be merged. This si)=fold identit! has to be established. This is the "on"ept of the pu#a. /ou merge all these si) into one. The 1uru merges into !ou, the Devi merges into !ou, the mantra merges into !ou and the !antra merges into !ou. This pro"ess of merging is "alled Tantra. 0hat are .antra, !antra and tantra< .antra is the sound form, !antra is the visual form and tantra is the te"hni'ue whi"h "onne"ts these two. 4ow do we "onne"t the mantra to the !antra< It is usual as the part of !our meditative e)er"ise to draw first the $ri /antraB;$ri (hakraC. 0hile !ou are drawing it !ou re"ite the mantra. That is how the identit! between these two is established. 4owever, drawing a $ri /antra is "ompli"ated business, and is itself a meditation, like a uddhist mandala. 0e will go into this at a later stage. And for a proper $ri (hakra pu#a the $ri /antra that !ou draw is the one to whi"h !ou do pu#a. :et us look at the mapping of bod! parts to $ri /antra. 6ow if I sa! that I am identi"al with the !antra, then I must know where all m! limbs are lo"ated in the !antra. There are nine nyasas whi"h give us this information. +yasa means pa!ing attention to an! parti"ular region. It "an be done through tou"hing a part of the bod!, or merel! fo"ussing awareness there. In ea"h mantra that defines step b! step this identifi"ation pro"ess, there are three bi#aksharas or seed letters Bapart from the Aim 4rim $rimC. The first of the three letters is to be pla"ed inside of !ou, the se"ond seed letter is to be pla"ed at the "onne"ting point of the $ri (hakra, and the third seed letter is pla"ed in the I"on or the Devi or a living person whom !ou are worshipping. 1. The first mantra is Am Aam Sauh namah. Am is !our feet, Aam is the s'uare en"losure of the $ri (hakra and Sauh is the feet of the I"onFDeviF%erson. 9A9 is negation. It is the $ub#e"t lost in Db#e"t, and does not e)ist separatel! from it. 9Aa9 is that intention to know itself. It is the "onne"ting link between me and not me. And that manifests as souh = the power of the kundalini whi"h resides in the earth. The feet are "onta"ting the earth. $o !ou sa!, Am Aam Souh= I am "onne"ting to earth at m! feetBif standingC or seat Bif sittingC. :et us remember that if !ou have done the &ira#a 4omam visuali8ations properl!, !ou are almost floating in spa"e, !ou have lost !our bod! "ons"iousness alread!, but now !ou have to pro"eed with the pu#a. $o !ou have to for"e !our "ons"iousness to "ome ba"k to the bod!. Therefore there is a little twist here from the normal se'uen"e to ,ara n!asa Bpla"ing powers in fingersC.

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6ow, usuall! in these n!asas, !ou start with the 1.thumb 2. forefinger 3. middle finger, >.ring finger, 5. little finger and A. front and ba"k of hands. 4owever, in this parti"ular n!asa with Am Aam Sauh !ou start with !our middle finger. This is to for"e !our attention ba"k to !our limited bod! identit! and then to e)pand it ba"k later, learning to atta"h and deta"h from bod! at will. This is like a musi"al s"ale of life. /ou reset !ourself to a thunderbolt in the "rown "hakra, the $ahasrara, then !ou bring !ourself down to the muladhara to be"ome the bod!, and then !ou start moving up again. $o, 1.Am madhyama .hyam namah Bthumb tou"hing middle fingersC, 2. Aam anamika.hyam namah 7ring fingersC, D.Souh kanisthika .hyam namah Blittle fingersC" B. Am angustha.hyam namah Bforefingers tou"hing thumbsC" E. Aam tarjani.hyam namah Bthumbs tou"hing forefingersC, A. Souh karatalakara 2rstha.hyam namah Bfront and ba"k of palmsC. This thing looks tough, but a little demo from a guru will "lear up the matters easil!. 3)"ept the am aam souh whi"h are the seed letters, the rest of the sanskrit "an be translated into !our own language, whatever that is. The seed letters are the part whi"h "annot be translated. Then !ou invoke the si)teen =petal lotus in the $ri (hakra with aim klim souh 'aha ri2ura Sundari Atmanam Raksha Raksha. This lotus represents the flow of time through the lunar "alendar. Raksha ; prote"tion. It means !ou have to be prote"ted ever! da! at all times. $o !ou sa!, aim klim souh = through the "reative, prote"tive and phases !ou have to be prote"ted. 'ahatri2urasundari @ maha means the great, belonging to the "osmos. If !ou take maha and reverse the letters, it be"omes aham ;I. Aham relates to the inside and maha relates to the outside of our bodies, mind and intelle"t. ri2ura is the three "ities= the waking, dreaming and sleeping states. Sundari= the most beautiful in all these states, relating to to the "osmos. atma, the notion of the ego "onfined to this bod!, raksha" raksha = Bma! $undariC prote"t me, prote"t me throughout all the si)teen da!s. The si)teen=petal lotus is identified with prote"tion. Then !ou move to the eight=petal lotus where !our e)perien"es begin. /ou have alread! moved be!ond the seven lo"as BworldsC below. /ou have moved into the eighth world. That is the 'uladhara $hakra. That is the eight=petal lotus Bin the $ri /antraC. ;rim !lim Souh. %reviousl! we usedAim ,lim $ouh. 4ere we are sa!ing 4rim. ;rim "an e)ist in three different forms. The first relates to "reation, the se"ond relates to nourishment, the third relates to the annihilation. 4ere all the three forms are in"luded in the 3arth. /ou are born out of the earth+ !ou are fed b! the things that grow out of the earth+ and !ou are reabsorbed into the earth. ;rim is !our mother the earth. !lim is the nourishment, "oming from 4er and Souh is the reabsorption into that.

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This is the nature of ;rim !lim Souh and the .uladhara (hakra. The fear "omes when !ou think !ou are separate from the earth. /our nourishment , !our life relies on seeking things from the earth. The earth does give !ou that nourishment. /our fears are asso"iated with !our separation from !our mother. /ou have lost !our "onne"tion with !our mother, with the earth, and !ou have to reestablish !our "onne"tion with the earth from whi"h !ou are born. 0hen !ou sa! ;rim" !lim Sauh, ;rim is pla"ed in !our muladhara "hakra. /ou must know ver! well these "hakras where these "hakras are lo"ated in !our bod!. 0hen the male and the female are in "oitus in the drama of "reation, then the glans penis tou"hes the "ervi) of the female. The "ervi) is the muladhara $hakra in the female, and in the man it is glans penis. ut the e#a"ulation that makes "reation possible is energi8ed b! the sphin"ter mus"les in male. $o the "ause for the seed-s emission lies in the e#a"ulator! sphin"ter mus"les, Beven more so in the headC. That is wh! in the male, people generall! asso"iate the muladhara $hakra with the e#a"ulator! sphin"ter mus"les l!ing between the base of the penis and the perineum, rather than in the glans penis. Thus muladhara is in the same lo"ation for both male and female.That is wh! when there is a se) "hange operation, the! take the "ervi) and pull it out to make it the male penis. Thus inside surfa"e of the vagina is the same as the outside surfa"e of the penis, and the sensations there are also identi"al. The s&adhisthana $hakra is the base in the penis and the vulva in the female. Again the! are at the same pla"e+ the sensations are also similar. 4ere !ou see Aim !lim Souh is the repeating pattern, and !ou are adding letters to it. 9h9, 9s9, and 9r9. In the s&adhisthana $hakra the energi8ation is through the fire. The fire is s!mboli8ed b! lust, the drive behind pro"reativit!, desire. That is what "auses the ere"tion of the penis in the male, the "litoris and the nipples in the female. Desire is s!mboli8ed b! 94a9. The desire for the "osmi" union, "alled the linga of $iva. 94a9 "oupled with 9aim, klim and souh9. That is wh! !ou sa! ;aim" ;klim" ;souh for the s&adhisthana $hakra. (esire is the 2o&er $alled !undalini, the desire for "reativit!, through an orgasmi" release from the bondage to earth. It does happen in $e), but it is short lived. That is its problem. To have a permanent release from all tensions, that is the real aspiration of ,undalini. The s&adhisthana $hakra in the $ri /antra is the fourteen="ornered figure. 9;) aim9 is pla"ed inside !ou at !our s&adhisthana8, 9h=klim 9on the fourteen = "ornered figure and 9h=sauh9 on the (evi:s s&addhisthana $hakraB vulvaFbase of penis. This "hakra "an be that of a person being worshipped, or of the "osmos. B:alita $ahasram sa!s Devi is Bhagaradhya;worshipped in the vulva

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as the universal motherC.The $vadhisthana "hakra of the "osmos is waters5 for e)ample, lakes, rivers, o"eans, rivers of life. In the mani2ura $hakra the sounds 9ha9 and 9sa9 are #oined together. ;s)aim" hs)klim" hs)souh. 4ere in the union between the $iva and $hakti, $iva is in !oga. 4e is not emitting the seed, and the desire is so powerful to make the linga is so ere"t that it be"omes verti"al tou"hing the navel. That is where the seat of the fire is supposed to be. The seat of fire is the outer ten= "orners that relates to the individual. The inner ten="orners relate to the "osmos. $o 4s=aim, hs=klim, hs=souh are related to the individual. efore !ou go on to the "osmi" figure !ou have to go through this link . These four "enters, muladhara, swaddhisthana, manipura and anahata are known as the pla"ement of 7our $eats, Chaturasana +yasa. To remind ourselves, nyasa means pa!ing attention to !our bod!. 4olding the mind in a pla"e or keeping !our awareness fi)ed is "alled n!asa. The first seat is "alled (evi Atma Asanaya namah. Devi is residing in the muladhara "hakra, and I am residing in the muladhara "hakra. The se"ond seat is the Sri Chakrasanaya namah. I am in the se"urit! "enter and so is Devi in the se"urit! "enter. 0hen I am in the swaddhisthana "hakra, Devi is in the swaddhisthana "hakra. 0hen I am looking for sensations, so is Devi looking for sensations. The third seat is the seat of power, "alled .anipura (hakra. 0hen !ou stand b! !our values with dis"ipline and!ou are prepared to sa"rifi"e !our life todo that, then !ou gain power and !ou are in the 'ani2ura $hakra. The ball of fire is lo"ated in the manipura "hakra. The fire e)ists as desire, lust, digestive fire, e)ternal fire, whereever !ou find fire. It is not #ust at the navel. It is there at the "ooking gas flame, in the thermal power plants, in the vol"anoes, in the bowels of the earth. It is all over. $o in the "osmi" aspe"t, wherever fire is found, it is part of the 'ani2ura $hakra. That is related to power. The mantra is Sarvamantrasanaya namah ) that whi"h brings all the mantras to !ou. 0ith the mantras we sa! 9s&aha9 and offer them into the fire. The seat of all the mantras is fire. This is a ver! interesting statement. 0h! is it that people have lost "onta"t with the spiritual world toda!< e"ause the! are not doing the fire rituals dail!. 7ire is a beautiful thing. The wa! it "an dan"e, !ou "annot dan"e. It is a beautiful sight. 0hen !ou are "onstantl! looking at its dan"e, it invokes that dan"e in !ou, the ,undalini , the power to know be!ond, in !ou. And that brings all the mantras to !ou in to !our memor!. That is wh! fire is "alled sarva mantra asana. The heart "enter is the inner ten= "orners, and it is surrounded b! a twelve= petal lotus. The mantra is ;rim !lim Blem Sadhya Siddha asanaya namah. Sadhya is what is to be attained. Siddha is what is attained alread!. This is the

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seat where !ou have partl! attained and partl! !ou have got to attain. The part !ou have attained alread! is the "ontrol over !ourself. /ou have "ontrolled all !our passions, and !ou begin to be non=#udgemental, love others un"onditionall!,. That is the part !ou have attained. The part to be attained is the fulfilment in "osmi"i8ation of this un"onditional love and non=#udgement. /ou have to attain these attributes in an unlimited sense. Thus the heart "enter is a mi)ture of attainment and attempting to attain love of all nature, good and bad in"ludedB non=#udging witnessC. 6ow we have gone over si) "hakras of the $ri (hakra alread!. The others three are the eight= "orners, the triangle and the point. The! all relate to the laya, the loss of !our individualit! totall! and !our merging into the "osmos. .erging with the "osmos begins with !our e)pansion of "ons"iousnessbe!ond !our bod!, be!ond !our love, be!ond !our atta"hments. That is wh! on"e !ou have rea"hed the Visshudhi $hakra, !ou will not "ome ba"k. ut if !ou are in the heart "enter and then !ou die, !ou are likel! to return be"ause of !our atta"hment to the people and the good deeds that are!et to be done. 4owever mu"h we sa! we are un atta"hed, we are atta"hed to goodness. This is love, but it is still a bondage. /ou must trans"end this love to get to the universal self. This is where the Vairagya Bdeta"hmentC starts manifesting. 0hen !our atta"hment for the universal manifests, !our atta"hment for the lo"al be"omes insignifi"ant. This e)pansion pro"ess is to be attained through !our understanding of the nature of Saras&ati. It is through knowledge alone that we "an attain to moksha. It is $araswati who takes !ou over from the Visshudhi and Ajna "hakras. The eight forms of $araswati are none other then the eight groups of the $anskrit letters = am) am" im) im" um) um" arum) aroom" alum) aloom" em) aim" om) oum" ah) ahm. In the $ri (hakra these are shortened into the unmanifest forms = a" i" u" aru" alu" e" o" ah. Aou "an map them also into the eight groups of letters "omprising of both vowels and "onsonants. /ou "an also think of them as "osmi" resour"es for matter forming out of intera"ting time and spa"e. In the &isuddhi "hakra, the seed s!llables are ;rim Srim Sauh. ;rim is being looked at as Laya, annihilation now. Srim is is the eight="orners where the eight forms of Saras&ati are lo"ated and Souh is the sound of a hissing snake !undalini power whi"h is taking !ou through all these things. Dn"e !ou "ome to visshudhi !ou are working with the "osmi" form and !our n!asa takes on different meanings, moving awa! from individuation to "onne"tedness. Visuddhi $hakra is "alled the "ommuni""ation "enter for this reason. Aim hrdayaya namah. /our hrda!a BheartC is the wind, life breath itself. !lim sirase svaha Bthe headC is now the outrea"h of spa"e. /our brain is mapped into

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the "osmos. Then Sauh sikhayai vasat" sauh kava$aya hum" klim netratrayaya vausat" aim astraya 2hat. *eall! all these things are untranslatable. B whi"h means I don-t know !et their meaningsLC Vagdevata +yasa 6e)t "omes the &agdevata 6!asa, the eight forms of $araswati. The! are "alled Vasini" !amesvari" 'odini" Vimala" Aruna" Jayini" Sarvesvari" and !aulini. This is the &isshudhi "hakra with the si)teen=petal lotus in the ne"k. The si)teen= petal lotus Bthe se"ond "hakra of $ri (hakrawC was asso"iated with time earlier. ut now in &isuddhi, asso"iation is with spa"e "ommuni"ations. he Ajna $hakra Aim ;rim Sri m...hsr)aim hsr)klim hsr)sauh. 4ere we are having < ha" sa" and ra< "oupled with aim klim and sauh. 4ere when !ou sa! that $iva and $hakti are united and the passion is united and maintained, then that manifests itself as the "reating power, the nourishing power and the reabsorbing power . This manifests as the flow of time. The agni, the tip of the fire starts at the muladhara "hakra and goes to the third e!e. There it manifests itself as past, present and future, as the movement of time. ;sr)aim is pla"ed in the right e!e, hsr)klim in the left, and hsr)sauh in the middle third e!e. Sahasrara, the "rown "enter, In the Sahasrara, the "rown "enter, all the "hakras are "ollapsed to the single "entral point, the "entral point of the Sri Chakra. In it are feet, thighs, then on to the 'uladhara" S&adisthana" 'ani2ura" Anahata" Visshudhi" Ajna" Sahasrara a total of nine "hakras. /our identit! with the $ri (hakra is now "omplete. /ou have shed !our ignoran"e that !ou are !our bod!. /our bod! is a temple where 1od lives. (lean the temple and worship the 1od within. (leaning, de"orating and serving the bod! is "alled 2ooja;worship. The worship is through the 'antras. 'antras are related to the "ausal form+ the "leaning is related to the five senses "alled 2an$amritas, the five ne"tars asso"iated with the five elements. he Pan$adasi +yasa !a 3 # La ;rim ;a Sa !a La ;rim Sa !a La ;rim There are man! hundreds of wa!s in whi"h !ou "an do nyasas. There are whole "hapters devoted to these various kinds of n!asas. %arasurama, an Avatar of &ishnu has "learl! stated that these eight or nine n!asas that have been given in this pu#a are enough. The others are fine and good if !ou do, but if !ou don-t it does not matter. $ome people look at various books and sa!, 9Ah, it-s ni"e here9, and pi"k up this thing and put it into their pu#as. The! keep on

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adding, making the pro"edure intra"table and unmanagable. $ome people think more "ompli"ated the pu#a, the better it is. The real skill and "leverness lies in simplif!ing !our pu#a and retaining its essentials and not over=doing it and not underdoing it. The nyasa of the Pan$adasi "an be done in man! man! wa!s. 0e will des"ribe a few important ones now. :atter on we give the most important wa! "alled the 'ula mantra nyasa. The form whi"h is most universall! followed is as the .other who gives birth to !ou in the $waddishthana and .uladhara "hakras. There is a famous statement whi"h translated sa!s, 9/ou "an think of Devi as male. /ou "an think of Devi as female. Dr !ou "an think of her as the flow whi"h "omes out of the union between male and female, the bindu. $o when !ou think of Lalita Devi as the female, !ou think of her as the !oni Bthe birth "hannelC, the sour"e of "reation. Traverse one side of the !oni b! sa!ing !a 3 # La ;rim. Then traverse the middle line from bottom up, sa!ing ;a Sa !a ;a La ;rim, and then traverse the other side of the !oni sa!ing Sa !a La ;rim. The !oni is alwa!s in front of !our mind-s e!e and !ou are worshipping that all the time. This gives "reative manifestations of all sorts. And it is this worship whi"h is des"ribed in the >> meditations in the beginning. It is a poeti" des"ription of how the !oni looks to !ou. The other modes of n!asa whi"h give totall! different fruits are as follows. /ou "an worship the Devi in the heart "enter b! "on"entrating on the right nipple B,a..C and then the middle of the heartB4a..C and then the left nippleB$a..C. This gives !ou Jnana;knowledge about nourishing !our ideas, musi"al and dan"e. /ou "an worship Devi in the lipsB,a...C and the two e!es B4a...$a...C or !ou "an worship the Devi with the %an"adasi at the a#na "enter+ the right e!e,B,a...C left e!e B4a...Cand the third e!eB$a...C. This gives !ou "ommand over all !ou see or imagine /ou "an worship the Devi with the two ears and the third e!e as the third point. Dr !ou "an worship the Devi with the two e!es and the ba"k of !our head as the point of the triangle. If !ou are looking straight up out of !our bod! and !ou are looking down over !our head it is then !ou will find that there is a he)agon being formed b! the ba"k of !our head and the 2 e!es forming one kind of triangle, and the third e!e and the two ears forming the other triangle. This is the $wadhisthana "hakra lo"ated in the $ahasrara and as !ou are looking down from above !our head. All su"h meditations a"tivate different kinds of powers su"h as "lair=vo!an"e, "lair=audien"e et".

5A

3a"h of these "hakras that are in !our bod! are all mapped in the $ahasrara as well. /ou must reali8e that it is like ele"tri"al "ir"uitr!. The swit"h is at one pla"e, the light is at another pla"e. The swit"hes are lo"ated at the "hakras, but the light is all in the brain. $o wherever !ou appl! the swit"h when !ou tou"h that part of the bod!, there is a "ertain part of the brain that is energi8ed and brings !ou a a "ertain t!pe of illumination. /ou "annot operate the light without turning on the swit"h. /our "ons"iousness has to move to the swit"h in order to enlighten that parti"ular part of the brain. That is wh! the arousal of the kundalini has to take pla"e through various e)er"ises in the mind. And these e)er"ises are "alled n!asas. As I said there are various t!pes of n!asas. These basi" set of n!asas found in the pu#a are enough if !ou do them with the proper awareness and "on"entration. he 'oola 'antra +yasa This most important moola mantra nyasa takes !ou over !our entire bod!. The idea is that !ou are tr!ing to map !our entire bod! into the brain. /our entire brain is energi8ed in this pro"ess. ,a is the sahasrara, 3 is the !oni+ I is the heart+ :a and 4rim are the 2 e!es. 4a is the third e!e+ $a and ,a are the two ears+ 4a is the tongue and :a and 4rim are the arms. $a is the ba"k and ,a and :a are !our right and left thighs, and 4rim is !our navel. $o when !ou move !our awareness to all these different parts of !our bod! pla"ing the seed letters there, then that a""esses !our entire bod! and therefore !our entire brain.This is "alled the 'oola 'antra +yasa. This is the most important wa! of doing the n!asa. The other wa!s as I have e)plained before for gaining i""ha shakti, #nana shakti and kri!a shakti is b! fo"using !our awareness in the fa"e, the breasts or in the !oni. It is the adoration of these aspe"ts, of "reativit!, of nourishment and of knowledge. 'aha Shodha +yasa The ne)t step in the pu#a is the re"itation of the mantra %anesa graha naksatra" yogini rasi ru2inim" devim mantra mayim naumi matrka 2itha ru2inim. All forms of 1anesha, graha = are the G planets+ naksatra = the stars, the "onsellations+ !oginis = there are A> "rores of !oginis, divine beings+ rasi = the 8odia"al signs+ rupini = she has all these forms be"ause she is "osmi" awareness. Devim = this Devi , who is in the form of the sounds, the mantras, the vibrations of the world+ naumi = I worship+ matrka pitha = the letters of the sanskrit alphabet whi"h have seats all over !our bod!+ in all these pla"es she resides. $he resides in the brain and in ever! part of !our bod!. 6ot onl! does she

5?

reside in !our bod!, she resides in all the geographi"al areas where the parts of her bod! have fallen Bthe 51 shakti pithasC. The awarenesses flowing in the "osmos, in !ourself in the mi"ro ="osmos are represented. This stan8a summari8es all the n!asas "ooresponding to the 1anesha n!asa, the graha n!asa, the nakshatra n!asa, the !ogini n!asa, rasi n!asa, devi n!asa, mantra n!asa, matrka n!asa = all these n!asas are "ombined in this stan8a. And %arasurama has pla"ed all these things into one "omplete stan8a. 6ow people e)pand these things into an infinite number of n!asas. The! sa! that through the n!asas alone !ou "an find reali8ation.

5@

he Sri !ramam .editation "an be "ompared to a flow. In fa"t ,the word 9 nadis9 whi"h the! use are reall! mispelling of the word 9nadi9 or river. It is a "onduit, a flow of awareness along a dire"tion. 7or this flow of dire"tion there are two banks. Dne bank is the male aspe"t and the other bank is the female aspe"t. 0hen !ou are thinking of the power as .other, then !ou are thinking of the female genital. 0hen !ou are thinking of the power as the 7ather, as $iva, !ou are thinking of the male genital. 0hen !ou are thinking of the flow itself, of the river itself, when the two banks merge, the flow be"omes thin, there is a thin line of separation between these two. The! are in "onta"t, in intera"tion. The flow is "oming out of the union between $iva and $hakti. The orgasm itself is the kundalini shakti. The male is the undisturbed aspe"t and the female is the disturbing aspe"t. In Tantra, the female is "onsidered to be the 1uru. $he is the one who dire"ts the flow of the pu#a worship. $he is the one who de"ides what is to be done and at what stage. $he "ontrols the entire pro"edure. 0ithout her approval, not one step "an be taken forward. (onstantl! the awareness is kept on the female aspe"t or the male aspe"t or on the union aspe"t. There are onl! three modes of worship at the muladhara "hakra. The mind tends to onl! get absorbed in happiness. It "annot fo"us itself on something it does not like. 3ven on things that it likes, it "annot sta! there, it tries to move awa!. Therefore !ou "hoose for !our meditation something whi"h is ver! pleasurable and lovable. That is wh! she is "alled hagaradh!a. Pre2aration o- the +e$tar. The $ri ,ramam is the preparation of the ne"tar, invoking the entire "osmi" aspe"ts into the nourishing drink that we are preparing here, b! the taking of whi"h !ou be"ome the Devi 4erself. This means throughout !our entire da! whatever !ou sa! will "ome true. Those who take the viseshar!am remembering the 1uru and offering it first to their heads and then taking it inside be"ome the Devi and this takes effe"t until the ne)t da!. All their previous sins and whatever karmas the! have done are "ompletel! washed out.

That is the fun"tion of the vishesharg!am sthapana. It pla!s a ver! important role. The $ri &id!a upasana means that !ou reali8e the truth of the statement that what !ou see is !ourself. /ou are seeing !ourself, !our bod!, !our mind, !our thoughts = all these are !ours. 6ot onl! that, !ou are also seeing all the arti"les of worship, the !antra and the devi = all these are also !ourself. To establish the realit! and the truth of this in an integral wa!, imagine that !ou are hovering like an angel over !ourself and !ou are looking down where !ou are sitting. This is !ouur nose. Devi is sitting here. The arti"les of pu#a are there = here is the $ri (hakra whi"h is the link between the two of !ou. Dn the left side and on the right=hand side !ou are going to keep what is "alled $amanarg!a and &ishesharg!a.There is going to be a mandala for the ordinar! pot Bsamanarg!aC and one for the vishesharg!a, the ne"tar in whi"h all the kalas are invoked. /ou have to be"ome a part of the entire stru"ture. This is 4er fa"e, !ou are 4er breasts and this is 4er foot and this is 4er !oni and this is 4er navel. /ou are sitting on 4er !oni, the Adhara shakti = 4er muladhara "hakra. /ou are !ourself the swaddhisthana. The samanarg!a and vishesharg!a are the right and left breasts of Devi. This whole stru"ture is Ardhanaishwara, the right breast "ooresponds with $iva and that is flat, and the left breast is full, it is the vishesharg!am, the Devi. The Devi is the i""ha shakti, the $ri "hakra and the $amanarg!a and &ishesharg!a are in the #nana shakti sthana and !ou and the muladhara are the kri!a shakti sthana. As we mentioned, in the &a#ra %an"an!asa, we are pla"ing the three bi#as, one in !ourself, one in the "onne"ting link of the $ri (hakra and one in the Devi, in the kri!a, #nana and i""ha shakti sthanas. /ou are e)"hanging the i""ha and kri!a shaktis and the "onne"tion is the #nana.It is like a point whi"h is a pin hole "amera, where what !ou see is being refle"ted. /our right side is 4er left side and !our left is 4er right side. /ou are making !ourself, the pu#a arti"les, the ne"tar and the Devi one integrated stru"ture through this pro"ess of ritual. Samanargya The ne)t step in the preparation is the purifi"ation of the water. 0e make a mandala like this. A s'uare, a "ir"le, the point of whi"h tou"hes the s'uare. Then !ou form a he)agon inside that. And then !ou form a triangle inside that. 7irst !ou draw the inside triangle. Then !ou draw the he)agon. /ou go "lo"kwise. /ou draw the "ir"le starting at the upper left and going around "lo"kwise. $tarting with the isana kona, the northeast "orner, !ou draw the s'uare. 0hen !ou do it this wa! !ou are following the vastu, the rules for ar"hite"ture. The "entral triangle represents the a#na "hakra. The upper triangle represents the siva trikona, and the triangle with the point down represents the shakti kona. The! are interpenetrating and the! are in union with ea"h other.

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This, therefore represents the swaddhisthana "hakra, the si) petalled lotus. The "ir"le represents the three "ir"les going around the waist, the "hest and the throat "hakras. .uladhara is the s'uare, swaddhisthana is the si)=petalled lotus, the "ir"le represents manipura, anahata and visshudi grantis and the "entral triangle is the a#na. Ip to the a#na the differentiation between $iva and $hakti e)ists. The $amanarg!a preserves this differen"e. /ou sa! 9trikona9 and draw the triangle, 9satkona9= the si)=petalled lotus, 9vrta9 = the "ir"le, and 9"aturasra 9= the s'uare.0hen done sa! 9mandala vilik!a9. The dire"tions of the pu#a are self e)planator!. 9Dffer a flower. %ut a "on"h or a pot on top of diagram. 7ill it with water. Into the water add one drop of milk, the spe"ial herbs, saffron, tumeri", et". Imagine the diagram is transferred up into the water. 0orship the angadevatas with kumkum or sandal paste. Imagine !ou are also worshipping !ours and Devi-s bodies as !ou do this n!asam. 9 Dn top of this is a base and a pot with water. Into this water we are invoking the limbs of the 1oddess. 0hen !ou do the angadevata n!asa !ou sa!, 9,a...hrda!a!a namah9 Bthe heartC and tou"h the agni kona = the northeastern "orner of the s'uare+ 94a...sirase svaha9 Bthe headC and tou"h the isana kona = the northwestern "orner of the s'uare+ 9$a...sikha!ai vasat9Bthe "rown of headC and tou"h the asura kona = the southeastern "orner+ 9,a...kava"ha!a hum 9Bthe armsC and tou"h the va!u kona = the southwestern "orner of s'uare+ 94a...netratra!a!a vausat9 Bthe third e!eC and tou"h the "enter Bmadh!eC+ and then 9$a...astra!a phat9 B"ir"le the headC and tou"h top side, right side middle, bottom side middle, left side middle and sa! 9 hubhuvasuvah om9. That is how it goes. Then !ou worship the "entral part of the triangle sa!ing 9Aim hrim srim ,a..4a..$a...namah9. /ou tou"h first the tip of the triangle at the bottom, then the right side "orner, then the left, going anti"lo"kwise. This "ompletes the preparation of the samanarg!a. Pre2aration o- the Viseshargyam 6ow "omes the "ompli"ated pro"edure, the invo"ation of all the kalas into the mother-s milk. 0e have identified the visesharg!a with the .other-s left breast. The milk of kindness, of "ompassion, of knowledge of gra"e, of prote"tion, of all these good 'ualities resident in the .other are present here. :ike before, we are drawing the mandala for visesharg!a. 7irst !ou put the bindu, taking the water from the samanarg!a, draw the mandala with !our ring finger. The ring finger represents the $iva, the ring is the !oni. $o with the $iva linga !ou are putting the !oni there. Again dip the finger and draw the "entral triangle. $urrounding that !ou draw the satkona like before. Then draw the "ir"le and the s'uare. 4ere !ou start from inside and go to the outside. 7irst worship the mandala that !ou have drawn on the ground. To the left of the samanarg!a is !our normal pot of water and to the side of the vishesharg!a !ou keep the milk. The arti"les or worship are on !our right side.

A0

/ou worship the mandala from the "enter. Then !ou worship the three konas of the "entral triangle the a#na "hakra, looking into the e!es of the Devi and remembering !our own e!es. !a..namah" ;a...namah" Sa...namah. Then !ou do the angadevata n!asa. /ou go aroung the sat kona "lo"kwise, starting with the southern kona . Then !ou repeat the n!asa in the same wa! that !ou do it for the samanarg!a. All the "hakras are in"luded in this n!asa. The bindu represents the sahasrara "hakra. ut in samanarg!a onl! up to the a#na "hakra is in"luded. This establishes the female suprema"!. Then !ou pla"e the bi#as for ea"h of the "hakras. /ou start with the fire whi"h !ou are going to invoke in the base on whi"h !ou are going to pla"e the visesharg!a pot whi"h goes on top of the mandalam !ou have drawn. The pot represents the sun and the li'uid, the milk is going to represent the moon. The agni is essentiall! the earth. 4ere is the sun and here is the moon. 0hen these three are aligned then there is a sun e'lipse. If !ou think of the moon here, then there is a moon e'lipse. 0h! do we sa! that the earth represents the fire< e"ause e)"ept for the outer "rust, out of the A000 miles about 5GG5 is fire and five miles is the earth. The entire earth inside is molten lava. That is wh! we "all the earth the fire. The graha kala, the e'lipse time is supposed to be a pun!a kala, an auspi"ious time. It is ne"essar! that !ou do not move the visesharg!a patra or this alignment until the pu#a is "ompletel! done. If !ou move it, then the power that !ou have invested in that, the e'lipse is over, so it does not have the same effe"t. That is wh! it is said that as long as the pu#a is not "ompleted, !ou should not move the visesarg!a or the samanarg!a. he Agni !alas 0e invoke the ten kalas of the fire . The kalas are all aspe"ts of Devi. The first three are in the swaddisthana "hakra. Aam dhumra$ise namah 7smoke8" ram usmayai namah7heat8" lam jvalinyai namah7glo&8. The sanskrit letters listed in the beginning are pointers to the pla"es where !ou put !our imagination in !ourself, in Devi-s bod! and in the !antra. The !antra we are talking about is the visesharg!a !antra. These bi#aksharas are lo"ated in the $waddhisthana "hakra5 am, ham, .am" Aam" Ram" Lam. oth the bi#aksharas and their names "ould be substituted here for a lo"al idiom. These are not the mantras, the! are the aspe"ts of the fire and !ou are tr!ing to see where the! are "oming from. The parts that "annot be "hanged are the mantras of the earth, the sun and the moon. I am not going to affe"t an! "hanges here, but !ou ma! do so if !ou so desire. The sanskrit alphabet has the advantage that it uses a single letter. Its disadvantage is that !ou do not know it. 0orking with the meanings of these things is more important then #ust working with the words.

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The agni kalas reside as the digestive fire in the stoma"h and also as the lust in the human being #ust as the light resides in the fire. Agni also e)ists as time. Aam dhumra$ise namah. /ou are looking at the left top portion of the !oni. If !ou superimpose the !oni on the bi#as, !ou will see that !am is the left side of the "litoris, ram is the middle of the labia and lam is the bottom of the labia. This invokes the lust, the kama. /ou are not invoking the right side here. In other versions of tantra, as !ou walk into the !a#na sala, the door is there. Dn the lefthand side !ou worship bhairava = bhairava!a namah. /ou worship lambodara!a namah on top and on right hand side !ou worship bhadrakal!ai namah. $o sa!ing !ou enter the sala. The door is like the gate through whi"h !ou are born and through whi"h !ou enter the !oni. The ne)t four agni kala bi#as are taken from the muladhara "hakra. Vam jvalinyai namah 7-lame8" Sam vis2hulinginyai namah 7s2arks issuing8" Sam7sam susriyai namah 7.lessing8" Samsuru2ayai namah 7.eauti-ul8. The last three bi#as "ome from the a#na "hakra, ;am" ka2ilayai namah 7yello&8 = right e!eC Lam havya vahayai namah 7$onsuming ghee8 = third e!eC !sam 7kavya vahayai namah8 7$onsuing -ood o--erings8) left e!e . $o from the muladhara and swaddhisthana, the fire whi"h starts as lust and goes up to the a#na . At this point it manifests as flowing time, past, present and future. The past is the right e!e, the present is the 3rd e!e and the future is the left e!e. The right e!e is the e!e of $iva, he is "alled bhutanatha = the lord of the past. The left e!e is the e!e of the Devi. Devi is the "reatri), the mother, she brings the future into the present. The mantra for the Agni ,alas is5 Aim agin mandalaya dharma2rada dasa kalatmane sri mahatri2ura sundaryah visesharghya 2atra adharaya namah. Agnim dutam vrinimahe hotaram visva vedasam. Asya yagnyasya sukratum. Ram rim rum raim raum rah" ramalavarayum" agni mandalaya namah. Aim is sristi, "reation. The real sristi starts with an idea in the brain. (reation a"tuall! starts with $araswati in the $ahasrara "hakra and moves down and takes the kri!a aspe"t Ba"tionC. $o aim agni mandalaya. (harma2rada = dharma is "onsidered to be !our dut!. 0hat is !our dut!< It is defined in the upanishads as follows5 9A"har!a!a pri!am dhanamahrt!a pra#atantum ma v!ava""hetsih.....9!ou worship !our tea"her and see to it that this rare life whi"h is a gift in this world is preserved. Do not "ut the thread of life. 9 $o pro"reate. That is the in#u"tion of the vedas. /ou owe a debt of life to !our parents. /ou repa! that debt b! giving life through !our a"tions. %ro"reation is !our dharma.

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6andi, the bull, whi"h is "arrier of $iva, is supposed to be the personifi"ation of dharma. The testes of 6andi !ou tou"h before !ou look at $iva. /ou energi8e the lingam that wa! and then look at $iva. It is onl! the energi8ed lingam whi"h has the desire to pro"reate whi"h is to be $iva. Dtherwise it is $havaB"orpseC. If !ou take awa! the letter i $iva be"ome $hava. 0hat is the purpose of lust< It is to do !our dut! to !our parents b! pro"reating. There is a dut! to !our parents and a dut! to !ourself. 0hat is the dut! to !ourself< It is to deliver !ourself from the sha"kles of bondage. This same agni whi"h is instrumental for "reating !our "hildren, is also instrumental for "reating !our spiritual uplift. In the four goals of life BDharma, Artha, ,ama, .okshaC stated in the 4indu philosoph!, there is a "onne"tion between Dharma and Artha Bdut! and wealthC. /ou must a"'uire !our wealth without hurting or "heating others. And ,ama and .oksha are also "ombined. ,ama must be transformed into :ove, and :ove must be transformed into liberation. oth hoga and /oga are in"luded in the gamit of one-s life. Agni also e)ists in the fire whi"h "ooks !our food. The 1ita sa!s, 9Aham vaishvanaro bhutva praninam deha asritah. pran-apana=sama!uktah, pa"am!annam "atur=vidham.9 9 I e)ist as the fire and I "ook the food in !our stoma"h with the help of the prana and apana, the ingoing and outgoing breaths9. dasa kalatmane = dasa means ten, kala is an aspe"t of time. An aspe"t of an!thing is "alled kala. $o the ten aspe"ts of the fire+ sri mahatri2urasundaryah = of the .other .ahatripurasundari+ visesarghya 2atra adharaya namah= visesargh!a means not ordinar!. It is the milk mi)ture to be offered+ patra is the vessel+ adhara is the base+ the base of the vessel in whi"h we are going to put the spe"ial li'uid whi"h is immortal ne"tar, that base is agni. In the muladhara "hakra is where the base is lo"ated and that is the fire. 0e human beings are driven b! lust and its modifi"ations. That is where we are. he Surya !alavahana ) the Sun The $un is the sour"e of life on earth. If the sun is not there, the earth would be a dead planet.The earth keeps a "ertain distan"e from the sun. Df the nine planets "ir"ling around the sun there is onl! life on this planet be"ause it is the "orre"t distan"e from the sun. The sun is our life for"e. As soon as the sun "omes up in the sk!, !ou go about doing !our duties. This life=giving energ! is supposed to "ome from the embra"e of $iva and $hakti. That is what is being des"ribed in the twelve kalas of the sun. The mantra of the $un5 Klim surya mandalaya kama prada dwadasa kalatmane sri maha tripura sundaryah visesharghya patraya namah.

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Aasatyena rajasa vartamano nivesayan amritam martyam ca. Hiranmayena rathena devo yati bhuvana vipasyan. Hram hrim hrum hraim hraum hrah surya mandalaya namah. surya mandalaya = the "ir"le or orbe of the sun+ d&adasa = twelve+ kalatmane = having the form of twelve aspe"ts+ visesarghya M wine or milk that we are going to invoke ne"tar into+ 2atraya namah= into the vessel whi"h is supposed to be the sun. The sun is "alled the pingala nadi.The moon is "alled the ida nadi. 0e are going to "ombine these two. 0e are going to bring in the "oolness of the moon with the heat of the sun. The heat represents e)treme passion, the passion for life and the "oolness represents deta"hment. $o passion with detat"hment. 0e are "ombining the two. In the "ombination lies the sushumna "hannel. It is like a pendulum. If !ou bring the pendulum all the wa! to the right = to the sun, it does not sta! there. It moves to the middle and then swings to the left, to the moon. If !ou tr! to move the mind to vairag!a Bdeta"hmentC it won-t sta! there, but it shoots ba"k into kama. $o from vairagh!a and kama the mind keeps o""illating. The stable position is when !ou bring it e)a"tl! into the "enter and leave it there. It does not move. It has no aversion to passion, it has no liking for vairagh!a+ it has no liking for passion, it has no aversion to vairag!a. It is absolute deta"hment. This is the "hannel of the sushumna. The sushumna is warm+ it is neither the heat of the sun nor the "oolness of the moon. /ou are passionate and dispassionate at the same time. In uddhism this is "alled the middle wa!. .adh!a .arga. This pro"edure "omes ver! "lose to the uddhist mandalas also. Asatyena = from beginning to end with truth+ rajasa = the emission of this truth+ vartamano = involved in the emission of the truth from beginning to end+ nivesayan amrtam martyam$a = pla"ing !ourself in immortalit! as well as mortalit!, into the !oga and the bhoga both+ hiranmayena ) golden+ savita = the life=giver. $avitri is the goddess of the 1a!atri mantra+ rathena = "hariot. *iding on a golden "hariot+ devoyati = the sun moves in the sk!+ .huvana vi2asyan = looking at all the worlds. ;ram hrim hrum hraim hroum hrah = hrim is the "reative, e)plosive for"e whi"h takes the point to the triangle+ These bi#as are the modifi"ations of hrim from the "oolness of am to the passion of ah. $o from the "enter !ou are moving towards the right and towards the left. hrmalavarayum = the pathwa! in !our bod! where these letters are lo"ated. The lo"ation of the letters shows how tightl! fi)ed the "on"ept of the letters are in $anskrit. :ord /ama is the 1od of Death. /a is lo"ated on the lefthand side of the swaddhisthana "hakra. .a is lo"ated on the righthand side. 0hen !ou sa! !ama !ou are moving from the female to the male. That represents moving !our "ons"iousness whi"h is like death. 6ow if these letters are reversed !ou have ma!a. /ou are moving from $iva to $hakti. .a!a is illusion but it also means pleasure, the flow of e)perien"e. $o when !ou move from $iva to $hakti !ou are e)perien"ing !our being limited in !our awareness b! the material

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world. And when !ou are moving from $hakti to $iva !ou are e)panding !our awareness, !ou are unlimited. The flow is the $hakti and the stati" is the $iva. The potential energ! is the $iva+ the kineti" energ! is the $hakti. ,ineti" energ! is "ompared to the snake the kundalini shakti whi"h moves in a snakelike motion. The twelve kalas of the sun are "oming from the embra"e of the $iva and the $hakti. *emember that it is the light of the sun whi"h is refle"ted b! the moon and then to us. The! are not separate. The flow of kundalini is ma)imum when the sun, moon and earth are in alignment. 0hen the gravitational pull is ver! strong or ver! weak then the kundalini is ver! a"tive. Dn earth during the e'lipse time the tidal waves rise. The o"eans are tr!ing to move awa! from the earth whi"h represents on the "osmi" s"ale the li'uid state tr!ing to move awa! from the solid state, whi"h is the upward motion of the kundalini. In relation to the "osmi" for"e !ou should align !our rituals also. That is wh! purnimaBfull moonC and amavas!aBnew moonC when the three orbs are appro)imatel! in alignment are supposed to be ver! ideal for pu#a.That is wh! the moon-s "!"les are so "losel! related to the ritual "!"les also. There is a full moon ritual, a new moon ritual, et". 0hen !ou are in tune with the "osmi" for"es then !our own for"es work mu"h better. In the embra"e of $iva and $hakti !ou find a pair of letters. kam .ham" kham .am, et". /ou use this ke! to lo"ate them on !our bod!. There is a ra! of light going from one point to the other point. Bsee diagramC. The first two "ome from the right portion of the swaddhisthana "hakra. 7rom this point onwards the points move up to the manipura "hakra and go around the waist, while the other points move around the anahata "hakra and the heart "enter. This is the embra"e. Dut of this embra"e "omes the life=giving for"e of the world, the sun. The nu"lear rea"tor that is there "omes from this embra"e. /ou "an see the left hand going around the waist and the right hand going around the "hest like this. 0e invoke the kalas of the sun from this embra"e. The sanskrit letters "an all be repla"ed with an! language alphabets. It is the meanings that are important whi"h are given there in the pu#a for the sun-s ra!s. The kalas for the sun are5 aim hrim srim namah is common a a a aaBfier"el! glowingC / a a a aa BbrightCF a a a aa BlighteningC F a a aa aa Ben#o!ingCF a a a aa B"osmi"C F a a a aa BawakeningC F a a a aa BrememberingC /a a aa aa BforgivingC.

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he !alas o- the 'oon ) Si6teen (igits o- the 'oon 0hen we invoke the kalas of the moon, the moon-s mantra is re"ited at the top of the head. Devi-s fa"e is supposed to be like the moon, full round, and the moon represents the flow of time around the visshudhi "hakra. /ou go around

the visshudhi "lo"kwise. /ou begin the mantra b! sa!ing 9soma mandalaya sodasa kalatmane visesarghya amrtaya namah9 = 9I pa! m! respe"ts to that spe"ial fluid whi"h is the ne"tar 9. The mantra for the .oon and the amrit is5 A2yayasva sametute visvatah somavrsniyam .hava vajasya sangadhe" sam sim sum saim saum sah samala varayum soma mandalaya namah. 9%lease "ome and dren"h me all over the world+ raining ne"tar+ the samsara of this world+ va#a is the horse, the s!mbol of our limbs of a"tion+ sangadhe = for their fulfillment please "ome and rain this ne"tar on me fulfilling all m! desires and therefore annihilating m! desires9. $o we invoke the moon for a"tions fulfilling all our desires. $am = sah is from one e)treme to the other e)treme of the seed. 0hen !ou move !our awareness through the letters !ou tra"e a path. In the guru mantra and in these bi#as !ou have to tra"e the path of the kundalini through !our bod!. /ou must be ver! familiar with the matrka n!asa, the sanskrit letters and where the! are on !our bod!. It is a ver! "on"entrated flow of awareness with a stor! behind it. It is "alled %rat!ahara. 0hat !ou are tr!ing to do is withdrawal of the senses and to be "on"entrated on what !ou are doing. 0e then invoke the si)teen digits of the moon. 0e pour the milk and imagine that into the milk the pattern of the visshudhi is there. And we go around the milk and invoke the digits of the moon, four in ea"h 'uadrant of the "up. /ou go in a "lo"kwise fashion. The first one is "onsidered as amavas!a. It is ver! sa"red. That is when all the kalas of the moon have gone ba"k to the sun. The union of the sun and moon is "omplete in amavas!a. That is when the sushumna "hannel is a"tive. %assion and vairagh!a are "ompletel! united. That is when the kundalini flows through the "entral "hannel. The Devi is "ompletel! in union with $iva on amavas!a. $he is "alled ,ali. During %urnima, full moon, Devi is "ompletel! separate. $he is :alita then. ;agmsah and Angadevata Pujas o- Sri Sudha (evi 0e have invoked the kalas of the sun ,the fire, and the moon and we have "reated this lunar e'lipse time artifi"all! here. 6ow we have to invoke in the visesharg!a the 51 letters of the sanskrit alphabet. 0e draw a triangle imagining that it has been written with these letters. 7rom the bottom point !ou go upward with the vowels. am am im im um um arum arum alum alum em aim om aum am ahm. Then there are three groups of five and one "onsonants5 ka" kha" ga" gha" na" $a" $ha" ja" jha" na" ta" tha" da" dha" na" then ta. Then starting with tham dam dham nam 2am 2ham .am .ham mam yam ram lam vam sam sam and sam. Then ham" lam" ksam the three e!es in the three "orners of the triangle. /ou are going anti="lo"kwise in the a#na "hakra. 4aving done that !ou invoke the kama kala into the milk. The fa"e is represented b! a "ir"le, the heart "enter b! two "ir"les, and the !oni b! a triangle.

AA

This is "alled the !ama !ala. This has several meanings. The fa"e is a "ir"le whi"h represents shun!a = nothing. 6egation of ever!thing. This is am. 4a is the visarga. $arga means "reation+ visarga means e)treme "reativit!. This is represented b! the two "ir"les, the two breasts. In the agni kalavahana we have omitted one letter. 0e omitted 9m9. It stands for "onta"t. (onta"t is so important for Devi that it is en"orporated in all the these bi#a letters. 0e don-t sa!9 a9+ we sa! 9am9. 0e don-t have to sa! the 9m9 separatel!. The ma is represented b! the !oni, the "onta"t between $iva and $hakti. Aham. 0hen !ou are "oming down from the head to the bottom !ou sa! aham = I am. 0hen !ou go up !ou sa! maha. I am the "osmos. $o the aham means I am the Devi. Ahamsah. I am the Devi ,the entire "osmos. $o when !ou sa! ahamsah, I am the Devi in the ,ama ,ala !ou are e'uating the pro"ess of "oming down and going up. There is no distin"tion. 0ith the in"oming breaths !ou are working with the I. 0ith the outgoing breaths !ou "an go through different surfa"es, different individuals or ob#e"ts. The breath goes in a "ir"ular pro"ess, never repeating the same "!"le. $o with the in"oming breath !ou are 9I am the Devi, the universe9+ with the outgoing breaths !ou go through all of the living beings one b! one .It is the individual e)perien"e and the "osmi" e)perien"e. 0hat is the differen"e< Individual e)perien"e is the seriali8ation of the "osmi" e)perien"e. The "osmi" e)perien"e is the unitive e)perien"es of the individual e)perien"e. That means whereas in the individual e)perien"e !ou have to go through seriall! one b! one all the life forms in this world at all times in the world+ but in the "osmi" e)perien"e !ou e)perien"e the lifeforms of all the living beings at the same time and in one lifetime !ou have finished the whole thing. etween these two the time fa"tor is mu"h more in the individual e)perien"e. In the "osmi" e)perien"e !ou "an e)perien"e moksha mu"h faster. It is the viswarupa darshanam of the hagavad 1ita. ,rishna shows Ar#una his "osmi" form but still time is flowing. /ou see through the a#na "hakra, so time is still there and distin"tions are still there = the mouths, the e!es, of ea"h living being flowing from the mouth of ,rishna. It is not a "omplete e)perien"e. It is a partial e)perien"e. It is "lose to the $ahasra, but it is not the sahasrara. The $ahasrara "annot be des"ribed. /ou draw the kama kala into the milk of the viseshargh!a+ the fa"e sa!ing 9A 9the breasts sa!ing 9;am9 and the !oni sa!ing 9Sah9. The fa"e is !a 3 # La ;rimC the breasts are ;a Sa !a ;a La ;rim and the !oni is Sa !a La ;rim. The a#na "enter triangle that we have drawn with all the letters also in"ludes all the other "hakras as well. Then 0e draw a he)agon surrounding this triangle and a "ir"le inside it while sa!ing the Amrita Ja!a mantra 9*m ;aum jumsah9. The he)agon represents the union between $iva and $hakti and the "ir"le inside it is the bindu whi"h "omes out of this union. Then we worship the Devi here in the visesharg!a with the Angadevata 6!asa.

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0e invoke the different "hakras into the milk. 0e identif! that the Devi-s muladhara "hakra representing all the earth and the solid state is invoked into the visesharg!a mandala. The solid state is the s'uare. 0e invoke all the o"eans and li'uids into the swaddhisthana "hakra, the si)=sided star. 0e invoke the fire in the manipura, the air in the anahata, the prana and spa"e into the visshudhi into the mandala-s "ir"le.

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#nvo$ation o- the Jiva !alas ) the FF !alas o- the Celestial Lights Dn"e again we invoke the ten kalas of fire, the twelve kalas of the sun and the si)teen kalas of the moon as before, but this time in the i"on or the female.

he Brahma !alas Then we invoke the kalas of rahma, the "reator in the .uladhara "hakra. The ten kalas are5 srst!ai B"reationC, rdh!ai BgrowthC, smrt!ai Bmemor!C, medha!ai Bintelligen"eC, kant!ai BglowC, laksm!ai Bprosperit!C, d!ut!ai BsparklingC, sthira!ai Bfi)it!C, sthit!ai Bfirm pla"ementC, siddh!ai Btrans"endentC. The first @ kalas go around the muladhara in a "lo"kwise dire"tion. The ninth kala Bsthit!aiC goes inside the muladhara, the tenth kala Bsiddh!aiC goes up to the tip of the lingam or to the outward edge of the "ervi). he Visnu !alas The ten kalas of &isnu are distributed si) in the $vadhisthana "hakra = #ara!ai Bold ageC, palin!ai Bprote"tiveC, sant!ai Bpea"eC, isvar!ai B"ontrolC, rat!ai Ben#o!mentC, kamika!ai BlustC+ three at the A#na (hakra and e!es = varada!ai BblessingC, hladin!ai BhappinessC, prit!ai BlovingC+ and one at the $ahasrara "hakra = dirgha!ai BlongC. he Rudra !alas The ten kalas of *udra are the $un lo"ated in the .anipura (hakra. That is the thermonu"lear fusion rea"tion whi"h is the brightness itself. That is wh! the "hakra is "alled manipura = filled with #ewels. Ip to this point, !ou "annot see an! lights. ut when !ou "ome to manipura "hakra !ou begin to see lights in !our meditation. The mantra for *udra is ryam.akam yajamahe sugandhim 2usti vardhanam urvarukamiva .andhanan mrtyormuksiya mamrtat namah. Tr!ambakam= the lord of the three mothers, 1auri, :aksmi and of $araswati. %arameswara is the lord of .ahatripurasundari, at all the three levels. The! are all the same. /ou sa! , 9This is m! hand and this is m! e!e9. The! are all !our bod!. %arvati is known as the 9$ahodari 9of *ama. If !ou identif! *ama with 9%urusha9 the 9%rakriti9 is the !oni, it is the $ahodari. It is the same pla"e.

The *udra kalas are5 tiksna!ai namah BsharpC, raudr!ai BangerC, bha!a!ai BfearC, nidra!ai BsleepC, tandri!ai B"omaC, ksudha!ai BhungerC, krodhin!ai Bflames of angerC, kri!a!ai Ba"tiveC, udgar!ai BupliftingC, mrt!ave BdeathC. #svara !alas 7Anahata Chakra8 There are four kalas for Isvara at the anahata "hakra. In the bod!, imagine that the left portion is the female, the right portion is the male. This is the Ardhaniswara form. The female breast is !ellow in "olor 72itayai namah8+ the male breast is white in "olor 7svetayai8. The nipple on the female side is red7arunayai8+ the nipple on the male side is blue7asitayai8. That is what is being des"ribed here with the kalas. In the mantra !ou sa! < ad visnoh 2aramam 2adam" sada 2asyanti surayah diviva $aksur atatam tadvi2raso vi2anyavo jagrvamsah samindhate visnoryat 2aramam 2adam namah<. Death is the ultimate abode of &isnu. &isnu is supposed to be sitting on his vehi"le garuda along with :akshmi. If !ou look at the breasts like this, the! look a little like a bird in flight. &isnu is sitting in the middle in between the two breasts. 4e is the heart of the mother. $in"e &isnu is female, the right breast is "alled $ri and the left breast is "alled hu. $ri Devi and hu Devi. $ri Devi gives prote"tion and hu Devi gives nourishment. And prote"tion ultimatel! takes the form of prote"ting !our true nature to !ourself. $ri means anugraha. Anugraha is like la!a, dissolution. That is wh! some people think of :alita as ver! 9ugra9 Bfier"eC . It is not the individual la!a but the .aha %rala!a, the dissolution of the worlds at the end. $hankara"har!a sa!s, 90hen the whole world is burning, !ou alone with !our husband are dan"ing. And this burning of the world is showing a nira#anam, a lighted "amphor lamp to !ou.9 Sadasiva kalas 7Vissuddhi Chakra8 Ip to this point, atta"hment to the world is there. The muladhara and swaddhisthana "hakras are "onne"ted to $rusti = "reation. $titi= preservation = is "onne"ted with manipura and anahata, and la!a= annilation = is "onne"ted with the &isshudhi and A#na "hakras. The dominant point in la!a is the vairagh!a, the deta"hment. Dn"e !ou "ome to the &isshudhi "hakra the withdrawal starts. If !ou are fun"tioning mainl! from here, then !ou will not "ome ba"k into a ph!si"al form on the earth. If !ou are fun"tioning from the Anahata "hakra !ou will "ome ba"k be"ause of !our love and atta"hment to the world, or for helping others in the world. ut from the &isshudhi !ou are not bound an! more to the world. If !ou look at the meanings of the kalas !ou will see that the! do not deal with individualit! but the a"tions speak of internali8ation of knowledge. If !ou look at the meanings of the kalas !ou will see that the! do not deal with individualit! but the a"tions speak of internali8ation of knowledge, of vid!a and reali8ation.

AG

The kalas of $adasiva are5 nivrt!ai namah BwithdrawalC, pratistha BfameC, vid!a!ai Binternal knowledgeC, sant!ai Bpea"eC, indhika!ai BfuelC, dipika!ai BlightC, re"ika!ai Be)haustiveC, mo"ika!ai BliberatingC, para!ai Btrans"endentalC, suksma!ai BlightC, suksmamrta!ai BpervasiveC, #nana!ai Bknowledge of the immanent, what !ou seeC, #anamrta!ai Bintuitive knowlege of the trans"endentalC, ap!a!in!ai BfillingC, v!apin!ai Be)pansionC, v!omarupa!ai Bspa"eC. he Pan$a Brahma 'antras 0hen !ou do the pu#a it is easier to do all the kalas first, and then repeat the %an"a rahma mantras for ea"h = rahma, &isnu, *dura, .aha &ishnu, $adasiva. It also gives !ou an opportunit! to reall! emphasi8e ea"h "hakra again. These mantras are taken from the most an"ient portion of the &edas. I "annot reall! give !ou a meaning for these mantras entirel!. I "an give onl! a few portions that I know. Brahma 'antra5 ;gum sah su$isad vasuh antariksasad hota vedisad atithir duronasat nrasad varasad rtsad vyomasad a.ja goja raja adrja rtam .rhat namah. ;gum sah = is an an"ient ar"hai" form+ su$i means the sun+ vasuh means the earth+ antariksah means spa"e+ sat means the truth+ hota is the one who offers the ghee into the fire+ vedi is the homa kunda+ atithi is the guest who "omes without an appointment+ duronasat nrasad = I do not know what this means+ varasad is the one who gives blessings+ rtsad is the flowing truth+ vyomasad is the truth established in the sk!+ a.ja is to one who is born out of the waters+ goja is born out of the indri!as the "ognitive and a"tive senses+ rtaja is the one who is born out of the non=flowing truth+ adrja is the mountain, the stabilit!+ rtam is the truth. The individual words have a meaning but wh! the! are pla"ed in this "onte)t or what their true meaning is I do not know. The! are e)plaining in some sense the "reation pro"ess itself. %robabl! if one uses this mantra and keeps repeating it one ma! get the per"eptions about the "reative pro"ess itself. It ma! have in it the geneti" "odes. That is wh! it is so diffi"ult to e)plain. Vishnu 'antra Pratad visnus tavate viryaya" mrgo no .himaha ku$aro girsthah" yasyorusu trisu vikramesu" adhiksiyanti .huvanani visva namah.

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97or !our power, strength, even the lion "annot be fero"ious enough. Df &isnu, when the three e!es are e)panded, the! go be!ond all that we see or have seen9. &isva is a te"hni"al term. 0hat !ou are able to see in the waking state is "alled &isva. 9&irat9, 9hiran!a garbha9 and 9iswara9 are the three terms and the "ooresponding three terms are 9visva9, 9tai#esva9 and 9pragna9 . These relate to e)perien"es of an individual in the waking state, dream state and sleeping state+ 9virat9, 9hiran!agarbha9 and 9iswara9 relate the "osmi" e)perien"es of the "osmi" being in the waking, dream and sleeping states. 0hen we sa! 9visva9 we mean all the worlds seen b! an individual that go be!ond those seen. The! "an onl! be per"eived in the united vision, not the individual vision. 0hat is the distin"tion between the universal vision and the individual vision< 7or instan"e, I am seeing !ou as so man! people = that is individual vision. ut when I see m!self also through !our e!es at the same time, and see what !ou are seeing at the same time, that is the universal vision. This adhiksiyanti .huvanani visva namah is all the worlds through the individual per"eptions, it goes be!ond that. &isnu is the waters of life. The! e)ist throughout the "osmos. 4is "hara"teristi" is pervasiveness, e)panding all over, growing be!ond. That is wh! the yasyorusu trisu vikramesu = the three dimensions in spa"e. As the! e)pand, whatever is seen in the three dimensions b! all the individuals, !our knowledge e)"eeds all these things. That is what the mantra of &isnu is sa!ing. Rudra 'antra ryam.akam yajamahe sugandhim 2usti vardhanam" urvarukamiva .andhanan mrtyormuksiya mamrtat namah. 9Irvaruka9 is a snake gourd. As it be"omes ripe it falls off b! itself. $o when one understands the tr!ambaka aspe"t of $iva, not "onfining oneself to the lower "enters then 4e, $iva nourishes !ou in all aspe"ts, and like the snake gourd that falls off the vine when it is ripe, 4e takes !ou awa! from the 9mrtu9, the death and gives !ou 9amrita9 the ne"tar. This is a"tuall! the worship of the sun. The entire *udram is the worship of the sun, the one who attra"ts and gives light, the life=giving for"e. It goes be!ond life itself. 'aha Visnu 'antra ad visnoh 2aramam 2adam" sad 2asyanti surayah" diviva $aksur atatam" tadvi2raso vi2anyavo" jagrivamsah samindhate" visnoryat 2aramam 2adam namah. 9The ultimate abode of &ishnu, the knowledgeable, the alwa!s seen, like sk!, the e!e is wide.9 0hat it means is whereas our individual e!es are limited to seeing what is near as big and what is far awa! as small, for the e!e as big as the universe, ever!thing appears with the same "larit! of vision. The ne)t part I

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do not know what it means. &isnor!at...9That is the ultimate abode of &isnu. To that I pa! m! respe"ts.9 Sadsiva 'antra aaa / a a / a aa / a aa a / garbham dhehi sin / aa aaa / aa aa a a aaa aa. This is the mantra b! whi"h the "osmos is "reated. $pa"e and time are being united. This is "alled the %ar.hadhana 'antra, whi"h means the a"t of "onsumation. Visnur yonim kal2ayatu) ma! &isnu "reate the !oni, the sour"e of life. vasta ru2ani 2igumsatu = .a! Tvasta, one of the aswini gods, "reate the forms out of what is available. Asin$atu 2raja2ati. %ra#apati is a tipi"al name for the ere"t male member. It is also a name for the unit of time whi"h the earth takes to orbit the sun. Asin"atu pra#apati. .a! that pra#apati fill !ou with his seed. (hata gar.ham dadatu te. .a! Dhata fertili8e the egg inside of !ou. %ar.ham dhehi sinivali. $inivali and $araswati are the two gods our awareness is asso"iated with the e#a"ulator! sphin"ter mus"les and the re"eptive for"es "ontrolling the movement of the sperm towards the seed. %ar.ham dhehi sarasvati. $arasvati is the for"e whi"h "ontrols propelling the right sperm towards the seed. %ar.hante asvinau devau = ma! the Aswini devatas who are the "reators of life, addhattam puskaras ra#ah namah = ma! the! put the life into the female egg. ,unti was the mother of the pandavas. $he re"ited this 1arbha Dhana mantra keeping the idea of the various gods of the "hakras and of the a#na "hakra and she had si) sons. 7irst she worshipped the A#na "hakra and she had ,arna. Then she worshipped /ama in the .uladhara "hakra and got Dharmara#a+ then she worshipped the Ashwini Devatas and got 6akula and $ahadeva+ and she worshipped &a!u with this mantra and obtained hima. $he worshipped the $un at the .anipura "hakra and got Ar#una.

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The (evi !ala Then we invoke Devi in the three e!es of the past, present and future with ,a 3 I :a 4rim 4a $a ,a 4a :a 4rim $a ,a :a 4rim. Amrita !alavahana

6ow imagine that on the top of !our head is the Ardhaniswara form of $iva. The right foot "ooresponds to $iva and the left foot "ooresponds to $hakti. This form is the form of the 1uru and his feet are on the top of !our head. Dut of that the ne"tar flows. Dne stream "omes from the left foot, from Devi, one stream from the right foot, $iva and one from the middle. This is ;saum and Sahouh. 4saum is the !oga aspe"t. And $ahouh is the $titi and $iddhi aspe"ts. 0e invoke them with the mantra5 Akhandaika rasananda" kare 2arasudhatmani" sva$$handa s2huranam atra" nidhehi akula nayike namah. Akhanda means unbroken. 3ka rasa is the one flow of Ananda. $o the unbroken flow of Ananda BblissC. %lease give me this unbroken flow of bliss. %arasudhatmani = the trans"endental ne"tar. $va""handa means independen"e. .a! it invoke independen"e in me, atra nidhehi please pla"e. There are two lotuses, one "alled the kulapadma and the other is the akula padma. The kulapadma is the sahasrara "hakra of the lower seven worlds+ the akula padma is the sahasrara "hakra of the upper seven worlds. The lower seven worldssahasrara "hakra is our muladhara "hakra. The akula padma whi"h is our sahasrara "hakra on the top of our head is where $iva resides. $o from $iva-s foot this trans"enden"e flows down. The ne)t verse is akulasthamrta akare suddha jnana kare 2are amrtatvam nidhehi asmin vastuni klinna ru2ini namah. 0hen the Devi has been taken up to the sahasrara "hakra and there she is united with $iva she also sta!s in the akula padma. 9akulasthamrta akare9. And what is its nature< 9suddha #nana kare = one who gives pure knowledge. 9pare9 =trans"enden"e. 9amrtatvam9 = immortalit!. 9nidhehi9 = please pla"e+ 9asmin vastuni9 = in this material whi"h I am having here+ 9klinna rupini namah9 = the nature of wetness. Then from the flow of the union between $iva and $hakti "omes5 tadru2ini ekarasya tvam krtvahi etat svaru2ini .hutva 2aramrta kara mayi $hit s2huranam kuru namah. There is a mahavakh!a a great sa!ing whi"h states, 9tat tvam asi9. Tat means that, tvam is !ou, asi = are. /ou are all that !ou see. All that !ou see is "alled that. $o 9tadrupini9 = all that !ou see that is having forms. This is relating to the flow from the akula padma. The other two verses related to the kula padma. Tadrupini ekaras!a tvam krtvahi etat svarupini bhutva paramrta kara ma!i "it sphuranam kuru namah. 3ven though these forms all look different, let me be able to see them as one single flow. 9etat svarupini9 = that should be"ome me+ bhutva = having be"ome+ paramrta kara = although I am seeing differen"es, let these differen"es disappear+ ma!i = in me+ "it sphuranam = the abilit! to see with m! "losed e!es+ kuru namah = ma! !ou "reate with m! "losed e!es the abilit! to see from m! intuition, m! inner knowledge.

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These are the flows "oming from the union between $iva and $hakti on the top of the head and from the $hakti below. he invo$ation o- the Amrta !alas The "ompassion of Devi moving through the e!es. Aim .lum jhmroum jum sah" amrte amrtod .have amrtesvari amrta varsini amrtam sravaya sravaya svaha. /ou alternate gentl! tou"hing the left and right e!es. It does not matter where !ou start. There are 5 senses. Dram Drim ,lim lum $aha. Dram is shabda = sound. Drim is sparsha = vision+ klim is rupa, form+ blum is rasa, taste. Aim is knowledge. lum is taste+ jhmroum and jum are related to the vibrator! aspe"ts. The! are phoneti" mantras. 0hen !ou add the letter ra to oum and !ou sa! jhmroum then it "reates a flash in !our mind-s e!e+ jum "reates a sense of vibration in !our bod!. Saha is the $hakti. The taste the vision, and the form of $hakti. Amrte amrtod .have = born out of the ne"tar+ amrtesvari = the "ontrol of the ne"tar+ amrta varsini = the one who rains ne"tar+ amrtam sravaya sravaya = ma! !ou let the ne"tar flow down into this visesharg!am. /ou sa! svaha be"ause !ou are "onsidering the visesharg!a to be the agni mandalam below, the sa"rifi"al fire pit. This "ool ne"tar of vairag!a flows down and "ools down the fire here and the fire goes and heats up the ne"tar. It keeps li'uif!ing the fro8en ne"tar and allowing it to flow. It is balan"ing the kundalini "hannels and allows it to move as the flashing of the lightning.Jhroum and #um are the mantras that "reate those lightning like flashes in !our mind-s e!e. 6e)t we invoke i""ha, #nana and kri!a shakti. I""ha is the power of !our sankalpa = what !ou desire be"omes true. Jnana is knowledge and kri!a is the related a"t of knowledge. 7rom the tongue we invoke $araswati whi"h represents i""ha shakti = aim vada vada vagvadini aim . &agvadini is the name of saraswati. This is a mantra of $araswati. 9%lease sa! what is supposed to be said, "oming from the .other-s tongue9. Then klim klinne kledini kledaya ) klim is lakshmi+ klinne is the one who is wet with "ompassion for her "hildren = the milk from the mother-s breasts+ kledini = the one who makes !ou wet+ kleda!a = 9make me wet = give me the milk of knowledge from !our breasts.9 'aha kso.ham kuru kuru klim ) ksobham means inter"ourse. .aha ksobham is inter"ourse with the entire world+ 9please make me have inter"ourse with the entire world9. All aspe"ts are to be "overed. Souh moksham kuru kuru souh hsoum shauh = 9moksham is to be obtained from the two feet of the guru on the top of the head9. 0e invoke i""ha, #nana and kri!a shaktis from the appropriate pla"es from the bod! of Devi. aking the Viseshargyam

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The first mantram is the 1uru mantram that was e)plained at the beginning of the pu#a. Then !ou have to remember the guru at this stage and !ou invoke the names of !our 1urus+ Sahasrakshi am.a rajarajesh&ari 2ara.hatharika sahita . 0e worship the feet of the guru ,al!ananda harati who is our guru-s guru-s guru. 0e worship the feet of datta guru $vaprakasanandanatha our guru-s guru. 0e worship the feet of $ri Amritanandanatha $araswati our guru and his wife. Intil now we have invoked the GG kalas. 7or the last kala, the taking of the ne"tar, !ou have to take permission of the gurus to take this ne"tar. The mantra for taking the ne"tar is5 Adram jvalati= the wetness whi"h is oo8ing from the svaddhisthana and muladhara "hakras, that shines and be"omes the fire. jyotir ahamasmi = I be"ome the light. 0hen !ou are able to "ontrol and dis"ipline !our se)ual drives !ou are able to be"ome the light. jyotir jvalati = when that light burns then it be"omes the trans"endental light and !ou are able to sa! .rahmahamasmi = that I am the Iltimate paramatman+ yohamasmi = whatever I am, whether I am in that impermanent state or that trans"endental state, !es .rahmahamasami = !es I am that Iltimate being. Ahamasmi = I am that+ .rahmahamasmi = !ou are repeating the statement again for emphasis. ahameva = I am indeed m!self = aham mam = I am taking me= juhomi = inside. The ne"tar "ontained in me is also me. That is rahma. I am also rahma . I am taking rahma inside. The identit! is reali8ed that ever!thing that !ou see is !ou. $o sa!ing, !ou give the ne"tar to Devi, be"ause !ou are no different than Devi and !ou take it inside of !ou and !ou put it on the sri "hakra. /our identit! is all those things. At this point it is also usual for !ou to sa! the purpose for !our taking this drink. #tah 2urvam = before now, itah 2aram 2rana .uddhi deha dharma adhikaratah = be"ause I am living, be"ause I have a bod!, be"ause I have a dut!, be"ause I am entitled to do the pu#a+ jagrat sva2na susu2ti avastasu = in m! waking state, dreaming state and sleeping state+ manasa va$a karmana = with m! mind, with m! spee"h with m! a"tion+ hasta.hyam 2ad.hyamudarena = with m! hands, with m! feet, with m! bod!+ sisna yonya = with m! penis or !oni+ yat smrtam" yat uktam yat krtam = whatever I have remembered, whatever I have spoken, whatever I have done+ yat smarami yat va$mi yat karomi = whatever I will remember, sa! or do+ tat sarvam .rahmar2anam .havatu svaha = ma! it be offered to :ord. $o whatever !ou do is offered to 1od and whatever is offered to 1od does not have the abilit! to bind !ou an!more. The wa! to over"ome the bondage of !our a"tions is to offer them to 1od no matter what the! are. 6ot #ust in our miser! but also in our pleasure these things should be offered. Then our a"tion be"omes ina"tion. Lalita !ramam

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This is the 2nd part of the pu#a. 4aving prepared the ne"tar with all the #iva kalas and all the elements of the individual and the "osmos into the ne"tar we are now going to invoke the :alita Devi with all her attendants, with all the "elestial beings with all the life for"es in the world into whatever it is that we are worshipping. Initiall! she resides in out hearts.0e invoke the "osmos that is alread! in our hearts into whatever it is we worship, for the sake of worship, and at the end of the worship we take it ba"k in to ourselves.That is important here. The mantra of invo"ation is 5 ;r$$akrastam = the one who is residing in the heart "hakra+ antah = inside+ susumna 2admatavi .hedana kusalam = the susumna is the "entral "hannel of the kundalini+ 2admatavi = forest of lotuses+ .hedana = pier"ing through+ kusalam = who is ver! adept.9 The one who is residing he the heart "hakra who is ver! adept in pier"ing through the lotus stems whi"h are the muladhara, swaddhisthana and all the "hakras9. 'ohandhakara ) illlusion and darkness+ 2ari2andhini = the spa"e surrounding the illusion and darkness+ samvid= to know intuitivel!+ agnim) the fire whi"h knows intuitivel! how to dispel the darkness of delusion+ siva di2a jyotim = the light immanating from the lamp "alled $iva+ $idru2inim = "id means "haitan!a = awareness, the form of awareness+ adi 2ara samvidam = intuitive knowledge of the 4ighest+ 2ranaru2inim = whose nature is life for"e+ 2aradevatam = the trans"endental goddess+ dhyatva = having thought of her like this. This is what the kalpa sutra sa!s, #ust this mu"h. $ometimes I add that I would like to invite the entire "osmos to "ome. $omehow when I think of that Trans"endent eing the "osmos does not enter m! head. $o to appre"iate the fullness and grandeur of this being that we are invoking "onsider the following statements5 Sri $akra gatta sarva avarana devata svaru2inim = all the deities that are en"losed or pervading the entiret! of the sri "hakra+ sarvato.hadramandala gatta = there is one mandala that is "omposed of 1A s'uares b! 1A s'uares or A> s'uares. In that all the gods and goddesses in the universe are invoked. That is "alled sarvatobhadra. This is drawn during $arada 6avratri on top of whi"h we pla"e the "o"onut and kalasa where we invoke the Devi. 0e invoke all the deities+ sarva ayatana devata svaru2inim= all those deities+ "haturayata devata svaru2inim = around Devi reside 1anesha, $ur!a, &isnu and $iva all these gods and their attendants are to be in"luded+ divya siddha manava augha gurumandala svaru2inim ) all the flows of the gurus are to be invoked as well+ samasta desa kala vastugatta jiva $haitanya svaru2inim" samasta deva gandharva yaksa kinara a2asara sadya siddha manusa stri2urusa svaru2inim" sri 2aradevatam ananda .hairavim ananda .hairavena 2arama sivena saha ravantim ramayantim svatma a.hinam

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2ara$hittim dhyayami trikhanda mudra gar.hita kusumanjalau. <<<<<<<= needs translation rikhanda mudra gar.hita kusumanjalau@ !ou make the trikandha mudra with !our hands whi"h is the !oni mudra with the fingers opened out. Then we invoke all the light beings5 $araswati who is s!mboli8ed b! holding a white flower in two fingers+ :aksmi who is s!mboli8ed b! a !ellow flower, and $hakti who is s!mboli8ed b! a red flower. Then !ou put all different "olored flowers in the middle. Then !ou sa! the pan"adasi mantra and aim hrim srim" hrim srim souh. *emember hrim srim souh is the mantra for the visshuddhi "hakra. Lalitayah = of :alita+ amrta = the ne"tar+ $aitanya murtim = the awareness whi"h has taken form+ kal2ayami namah= I imagine the immortal awareness whi"h has taken the form of :alita. Then !ou hold the breath. 3)hale and sa! aim hrim srim hasraim = !ou put the white flower !ou are holding on the Devi+ hasrklim= !ou leave the red flower+ and hasrsouh = !ou leave the !ellow flower. $a! the following mantra before releasing the rest of the flowers. 'aha2adma vanantasthe = The one who resides in the great "osmi" lotus+ karanananda vigrahe ) karana means the "ause. It also has a tantri" meaning5 it represents the visesarg!a. And for those who use the ra#asi" form of worship, karana means the wine, or into)i"ation of the Divine eing. That is the state that $he is alwa!s in. $he is bliss itself whi"h has taken the form of into)i"ation+ sarva .huta= all the living beings+ hite) one who does good+ matah = who is of the nature of the mother+ ehyehi = "ome, "ome+ 2aramesvari = the one who "ontrols the "ontroller, the 1oddess. Avahita .hava = !ou are invited here+ samstha2ita .hava = " ome and sit on top of $iva and be established here+ sannidha2ita .hava ) !ou visuali8e her in the a"t of sitting+ sannidhi .hava = she has entered on top of $iva + summukhi .hava = !ou are fa"ing me+ avakunthita .hava+ remove the veil of ignoran"e so I "an see !our full form+ su2ritha .hava = please be pleased+ su2rasanna .hava = be of a medium state between "alm and e)"ited+ varada .hava = grant m! wishes. Devi=the word "omes from 9div!ate prakashate9 whi"h means b! 4er is lighted up this world, The world is enlightened. (evi sarvajaganmatah yavat 2ujavasanakam" tavat tvam 2riti .havena yantresmin sannidhim kuru )This is the invo"ation to Devi.9 Dh Devi, !ou who are the one mother of the universe, til the end of the pu#a, til then will !ou please with pleasure be present in this !antra9 Bin the sri "hakra, the idol, the suvasini or woman in front of !ou = or !ourself.C 6ow ,having invoked all the "osmos and all the beings, we must pa"if! them and give them something to make them happ!. The best thing to pa"if! them is the ne"tar we have prepared alread!. 0e tr! to nourish the whole world with the ne"tar whi"h has all the "elestial lights in"luded in it.

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Then !ou add this senten"e5 Avahite.yah = those who are invited+ sarve.hyah = all of them+ sarva2ujartham = in view of the entire pu#a+ idam amrtam = this ne"tar+ samar2ayami ) I offer this ne"tar in view of the entire pu#a to all the beings assembled here. 3ven though !ou are sitting alone doing this pu#a, !ou are giving the ne"tar to the entire "osmos and the beings that are assembled there. he 4B intimate o--erings A brief e)planation of the different traditions in the $ri &id!a must be given here first, the sama!a"hara, dakshina"hara, kaula"hara and vama"hara traditions. 0e belong to the first three modes of worship. $ama!a"hara means an internal mode of worship and worship with the fire ritual. 0e do the homas, we do the internal visuali8ations, whether the e)ternal pu#a arti"les are present or not we "an visuali8e them and do the entire pu#a. The sama!a"hara traditions "ome to us from the Div!a %arampara that is through ala#i= alatripurasundari who is our guru. 7rom the $iddha %arampara, from $araswati I have been given the .edha Dakshinamurthi. $o the Dakshina"hara samprada!a has been given to us through the $araswati Drder. I am eligible for that and those who have taken diksha BinitiationC from me are also eligible for that. 4ere !ou worship the $ri (hakra. It is a bahia pu#a. /ou are worshipping something outside of !ou, usuall! a vigrahamBan idol or !antraC. 4owever, the suvasini pu#a is also done. $uvasini is a woman who represents the $hakti, but the pu#a is done onl! to her feet. In the ,aula"hara tradition the idol is repla"ed b! a living woman or a man or a "ouple. /ou "an also think of 4er as the union of $iva and $hakti. /ou "an worship 4er as a woman, as a man or as both. There is no restri"tion. 0hen we give 4er a bath we not onl! "hant the Durga and :akshmi suktams, but we also "hant the %urusha suktam and the *udram. The word 9she9 "ontains the word 9he9. $o !ou do not have to worr! that !ou are onl! worshipping the mother goddess and !ou are ignoring the father god. /ou are worshipping both. There is a sanskrit sa!ing that sa!s when ever !ou worship all the gods !ou worship ,eshava. ,a H isha H va is ,eshava. ,a is rahma, Isha is $iva and their union generates the vam whi"h is the amritam. bi#am. That is the nature of &isnu, the !oni. 9$arvadevam 6amaskaram9 goes to all the three gods, rahma, &isnu and $iva. The ,aula"hara traditions also "ome to us from the $iddha /oga %arampara. 7rom ala#i I have been given Diksha and from $araswati I have been given the Dakshinamurti tradition. ut the ,aul"ahra traditions also "ome to us through the Dattatre!a $amprada!a. Dattatre!a is the "ombination of rahma, &ishnu

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and *udra. 4e has given his instru"tions to his dis"iples5 %rahlada, his first dis"iple, and %arasurama his se"ond dis"iple. %arasurama had "odified his instru"tions into a ,alpa $utra. The %arasurama ,alpasutra divides the $ri &id!a Ipasana into five parts5 1. The first part is the 1anapati Ipasana &iddhi. It starts with the .aha 1anapati mantra *m Srim ;rim !lim %laum %am %ana2ataye Varavarada Sarvajananme Vasamanaya Svaha. 4ow to worship 1anapati at athe .uladhara "hakra is given. 2. Then the %arasurama ,alpa $utra goes on to des"ribe the $ri ,ramam the :alita ,ramam and 6avavarana %u#as whi"h is worshipping :alita at the $vaddhisthana (hakra. 3. Then it goes onto des"ribe the *a#!ash!amala Ipasana &iddhi. $he is "alled .antrini. As *a#!ash!amala she pla!s the veena and worshipped at the heart "enter, the musi" of life. >. $he is &arahi at the &isshudhi. As Dandini, the one who "an manifest, "hange, multipl! she is lo"ated at athe A#na (enter. 5. In the fifth part %arasurama has given the single letter mantra $ouh. That is "alled %ara. $o these five mantras, 1anapati, :alitha, *a#!ash!amala, &arahi and $ouh B%araC "ompletes the Dattatre!a Ipasana %athati "odified b! %arasurama. %arasurama has given mala .antras whi"h are a series of ra!s emminating from the feet of the Divine .other whi"h "an be re"ited ever! da!. 0e are told whi"h mantra is lo"ated in whi"h "enter. Then he talks about how to do the 4omas,the 7ire *ituals to attain what !ou want in life. These are the sub#e"ts "overed in the %arasurama ,alpa $utra. 0e follow these pro"edures. This sanskrit version is a word=b!=word translation of the sanskrit te)t given b! %arasurama. ut if !ou see the ,alpa $utras !ou will see it in a en"oded form. The! never write the mantras in a dire"t form. 3ver! mantra has to be de"iphered before !ou "an understand it. That has been done here. In this de"iphering pro"ess there is an Imanandanatha who has given a "ommentar! on this. ut he has added so man! other things as well. And then ever! other upasaka who has written a "ommentar! has also added on to it. The! keep on "ompli"ating it. In the ,aula"hara tradition, the notion of self is "ompletel! absent. /ou see ever!one as !ourself. /ou invoke the 1oddess into !our wife, or suvasini or an!one. /ou be"ome the goddess in the vira#a homa and !ou are worshipping the goddess. There "an be no sense of shame in that pro"ess. That is wh! Dattatre!a is known as DigambaraBnakedC. Dattatre!a Digambara is one of the great mantras of Dattatre!a. $hridi $ai aba, $at!a $ai aba, %aramahamsa/ogananda , 1anapati $a""hidananda, all these tea"hers "ome from the Dattatre!a tradition.

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The last a"hara is "alled the &ama"hara tradition. $o far these a"haras are based on the worship of the prote"tive, nourishing , healing kind of aspe"ts of the Divine. Then there are the terrible aspe"ts of the Divine whi"h is the la!a pradhana. That is the worship in the &ama"hara tradition. There !ou think of 1od as the terrible aspe"ts. /ou go to the "remation grounds. There !ou have vairag!a, "omplete deta"hment. /our energ! goes from the visshudi "hakra and goes up. It never "omes down. /ou are alwa!s working with the "ommand "enter. It is diffi"ult to arrive at those "enters without passing through the lower "enters. Intil !ou have e)perien"ed the heart "enter, to "ome to the a#na "enter is ver! dangerous be"ause !ou will e)perien"e an inordinate amount of fears and !ou "annot get rid of them. /ou "annot be given the astra vid!as, the atom bombs. /ou don-t want to put the atom bombs in the hands of "ra8! people. $o the vama"hara path is ver! dangerous without a proper guru. The aghoris are vama"hara. $ome vama"haras do use their energies for healing. Dne we know in enares uses his healing energ! to "ure the lepers and the untou"hables. 6ormall! we like to think of 1od in the beautiful. ut with the vama"haras, the! like to think of 1od in the ugl!. he 4B intimate a$ts o- &orshi2 The A> intimate offerings are then given. The onl! mantra given in the offerings is Aim ;rim Srim. This must remain. ut !ou "an "hange the sanskrit words e)plaining the offerings into an! language. 7irst !ou wash the Devi-s feet. Then !ou remove her ornaments and "lothes, be"ause !ou are going to give her a bath. 4ere is where the diffi"ult! of the ,aula"hara path begins. All of our three forms of worship are benign. The! will harm no one. /ou "an worship an idol. 0hen !ou give the idol a bath, so man! people sit around and wat"h that. 6o one feels an! sense of shame. ut when !ou put a living person there and give her a bath, or give an oil bath and massage the whole bod!, then people "an take ob#e"tion to that. Dur so"iet! is not used to the idea. 0e have embibed the foreign 3nglish "ulture and taken on their repressed attitudes. Then !ou appl! perfumed oil all over the bod! and appl! turmeri". 6e)t $he goes into the bathroom for 4er bath. $he sits in a #ewelled "hair. In the olden da!s the beaut! "remes we used were organi" ones = milk, "urds, hone! ghee, et". /ou prepare these for Devi-s bath and massage. 0e also use gram flour and water and massage it all over the bod!. 3a"h of these ingredients have light ra!s and "olors asso"iated with them. /ou are also bathing Devi with these lights. $o it is "alled a Divine ath. Then !ou give 4er a hot water bath. 0ith the bath !ou re"ite vedi" mantras. These pan"amritas are used for different parts of the bod! and for the different "hakras. .ilk is used for the muladhara "hakra+ "urd B!ogurtC is used for the swaddhisthana "hakra+ ghee B butterC is used for the navel "hakra, the

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manipura+ hone! is used for the anahata "hakra+ fruit #ui"e is used for the visshudhi or "o"onut water is offered. /ou "an use "o"onut water in lew of an! of these offerings. The "o"onut is the s!mbol of our head. 0hen !ou break the head, the #ui"e whi"h "omes out is the life for"e. $o !our out =of= the =bod! e)perien"e is the "o"onut water that !ou are offering to the Devi. The "o"onut is a ver! important offering. Also the bananas are offered. The! represent phalli" form of $iva and therefore offered to Devi B!oniC to eat Bi.e., se)C. The Durga $uktam is re"ited when !ou worship the svaddhisthana "hakra, the !oni. This is for obtaining all that !ou want to a"hieve through a"tion. The! sa! that if !ou want to get "hildren, !ou go to an ant hill and pour milk there be"ause the $nake whi"h gives "hildren lives there. A"tuall!, the snake the! refer to is the kundalini+ she resides in the !oni. The $ri $uktam is used to worship at the heart "enter. /ou worship the breasts of the Devi. %urusha $uktam also is used for worshipping at the heart "enter, the nipples. The *udram is "hanted for the worship of the $iva :inga, the "litoris or the phallus. $o far in the pu#a !ou have been worshipping the Devi. 6ow at this point the Devi is doing worship to the male. If !ou are a female it doesn-t matter, be"ause the male and female aspe"ts of ea"h individual are what are being worshipped. 0herever the "hara"teristi" of happiness is, there !ou find $iva. In the tongue there is a lingam+ the nipples on the breasts are the lingams+ the "litoris is the lingam+ the sight "oming from the e!es is the lingam+ the sound of musi" that enters the ears is female. All the sensor! modes are female. All the a"tive modes are male. The toes of !our feet are lingams. To all of these pla"es, these lingams !ou "an use the *udram and worship there. The *udram refers to the purifi"ation of the eleven "hara"teristi"s of the mind. The 5 karmendri!as, the 5 #nanendri!as and the 1 mind are the eleven rudras. The! are "alled rudras be"ause the! make !ou "r!. The mind remembers the past things that make !ou "r!. $ometimes the knowledge !ou re"eive is helpful, sometimes not helpful. /ou a"tions bring forth rea"tions from the world and the! make !ou "r!. $o when !our a"tions are pure, !ou "hoose to a""ept the divine aspe"ts of nature around !ou and to ignore the other aspe"ts = then !ou have truel! purified !ourself. %urifi"ation reall! means invoking the divine into !our life. It is a "ommitment to beaut!, to harmon!, to gra"e, to healing, to nourishment, to empowerment, to prote"tion. It is these things that are "on"erned with the worship. All of this purifi"ation has these "onnotations to it. The abhishekam is done both to the person who is re"eiving the pu#a and to the one who is doing the pu#a. It is not a one=wa! affair. /ou are e)perien"ing having the pu#a done to !ou and doing the pu#a and both "onditions are "ombined in !our imagination.

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After !ou have given the baths, then !ou wash Devi with the $amanarg!am. Then !ou dr! 4er with a white towel. Then !ou don-t want a draft to "reate a "hill so !ou give 4er a red shawl to "over her bod!. /ou offer 4er a red garment #ust to "over 4er breasts. Then !ou bring 4er to the makeup room and seat 4er there. /ou appl! different perfumes to 4er bod! in different pla"es. There are eight t!pes. Then !ou dr! 4er hair and then !ou perfume it with dhupam, in"ense, from behind. /ou offer all kinds of flowers. /ou then take 4er to the room where !ou offer 4er different kinds of #ewelr!. 4er hair+ the kumkum !ou appl! to the hair part+ 4er third e!e is normall! "losed so !ou put a #ewel on top of it to "over it. $he never opens 4er third e!e be"ause when $he does, the whole world gets destro!ed+ /ou appl! kohl to the e!es. If !ou look at the harata 6at!am dan"ers !ou will find that the ornaments that $he wears all over 4er bod! are e)a"tl! those des"ribed here in the pu#a. Also the various s!mbols that !ou see in meditation "oorespond to what !ou see here. There are twelve of these s!mbols that flash in !our mind-s e!e. All this #ewelr! !ou adorn 4er with. Then !ou offer 4er red #ewelled sandals, whi"h are kept on the top of !our head. 4er feet are resting on !our head all the time. Then offering no.>G sa!s, Svasamana vesa.hih = having similarl! adorned+ avarana devata = the deities of the en"losures of the sri "hakra+ a.hissaha maha$akradhi rohanam = !ou make 4er to "limb up to the bindusthanam of the $ri (hakra and sit there. Then offering no.50 sa!s !amesvara anka2aryanka u2avesanam = on :ord %arameshwara-s, :ord $iva-s , thigh !ou make her sit. If !ou are a male and are doing pu#a to a woman or to a girl, it is at this point that !ou ask them to "ome and sit on !our left thigh. If !ou are both female it doesn-t matter. The polarit! need not be there. /ou are both $iva and $hakti. Then !ou as $iva and the Devi are given the amritam Bvisesharg!amC and the water Bsamanarg!amC. /ou give Devi pan and tambulam as a mouth freshener. It is then that Devi gives a little smile and it is for this smile that !ou have been waiting all this time. Then !ou offer the light offering of mangala arati. Then !ou offer 4er the umbrella whi"h is a ro!al insignia. Then on either side :akshmi and $araswati are fanning 4er with !aks tail fans. /our mind is offered as a mirror in whi"h to see 4er as !ourself refle"ted. A palm leaf fan is offered. Then again !ou offer sandal paste, flowers, in"ense, light and a food offering. These offerings "oorespond to the different "hakras as well. $andal is offered to the muladhara "hakra+ flowers are offered to the a#na "hakra+ the! represent the 9indri!a nigraham9, the "ontrol of the five senses+ in"ense is offered at the heart "enter+ light is offered at the navel "enter+ naived!am is offered at the $vaddhisthana "hakra be"ause the! sa! that ,ali the .other 1oddess likes to have 9nada mamsam9 as naived!am. If !ou understand this properl!, the human flesh that is offered to 4er is the male lingam. It is the

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pleasurable naived!am that is offered to her. It is the inter"ourse that is offered to her as naived!am. In Devi upasana madya" matsya" mamsa" mudra" maithuna = these are the five ingredients that are 4er naived!am. 'adya means li'uor or into)i"ation. :ike !ou are "onstantl! taking li'uor, when !ou think of the .other 1oddess !ou are in a state of e"sta"!. The word e"stas! means standing out of !our bod!, !ou are having an out= of= the =bod! e)perien"e. There is the feeling of lightness, like !ou are floating on a "loud that !ou get when !ou are drunk. The Tantra $astra states9 Drink , drink and drink again until !ou fall on the ground. Then !ou get up and drink again. Then !ou obtain moksha or liberation.9 0hat it means is as the kundalini "hakra rises from the muladhara "hakra, !ou are having an out= of =the =bod! e)perien"e. ut that does not sta! for long. /ou again have to assume !our bod! "ons"iousness. Then !ou have to drink again to rea"h that state again. /ou have to move the energ! up the "hakras as it tries to "ome down. This is the musi" !ou pla! inside !ourself and !ou tr! to maintain that state. That is the wa! to liberation. This statement is a misleading statement. Tantri"s have a wa! of writing things that is "alled 9$andh!a hasha9, in "oded language. Those who do not have a""ess to a proper guru will follow down the wrong path and get degraded. $o mad!a is the "onstant energi8ing the the "hakras one b! one from the lower to the higher. 'atsya = like a fish that moves in the o"ean in an! dire"tion of its "hoi"e, so in the bliss of 1od !ou are moving wherever the flow takes !ou, flowing with !our bod!, mind, intelle"t knowing all the time that what !ou are doing is divine. That is mats!a bhava. $ome people interpret it to mean that !ou offer fish to the Devi. 'amsa = is the knowledge. It "omes from the statement 9/o mam ati sa mam atni9, meaning what !ou eat is going to eat !ou tomorrow. I am eating food. I am going to die. 0hen I die I be"ome food for the worms and the plants. 7ood whi"h is eating itself is that knowledge "alled mamsa. It is also human flesh, the lingam offered into the !oni of the Devi. 'udras = are the hand gestures. (ram drim klim .lum, et". 'aithuna is the inter"ourse. Inter"ourse is not limited to a "ertain time when the male and the female are together. It is in a broader "onte)t. 0e are alwa!s in inter"ourse. /ou are having "ontinuous inter"ourse with the entire world. /our seeing is union+ !our hearing is union+ !our ever! a"tion be"omes union. $o whether the a"tual maithuna happens or not it is not reall! relevent. ut she a""epts the union as naived!am to her.

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the 7ive Dfferings for Devi he ,ive *--erings to (evi BThe %an"a Ipa"ara %u#aC If !ou look at the 7ive Dfferings for Devi !ou will see 9Lam Lalitayai satsangam gandham kal2ayami namah9. :am is the bi#a asso"iated with the muladhara "hakra. And there is offered satsangam = asso"iation with the truth, asso"iation with the light, harmon!, gra"e. These positive aspe"ts are the gandham. /ou offer her the perfumed s"ents. The muladhara is "on"erned with se"urit!. /our se"urit! has to be purified so that it "an e)pand to se"urit! for the entire planet. 0herever !ou find a flow, admiration of nature-s beaut!, a dan"e, a song, some musi", dis"ussions on truth, that is satsangam. The ne)t offering is ;am akashatmikayai indriya nigraham 2us2am kal2ayami. Pus2am means flowers. There are eight kinds of flowers offered to Devi, like a mala around her ne"k. Then in"ense is offered. Punya 2a2a visarjanam dhu2am kal2ayami ) the elimination of kama krodha lobha moha mada matsar!a Blust, anger, , delusion,pride, #ealous! and all negative traitsC The smoke that "omes out from the in"ense s!mboli8es all these things "oming out of the heart "enter. /ou offer dipam = light. Chit kala darsanam di2am kal2ayami. 0hen !ou "lose !ou e!es in meditation, the lights that !ou see are the lights that !ou are giving as the offering to Devi. /ou offer food, naived!am = vasudhadi sivasanam siva sakti samarasyam naivedyam kal2ayami = The ne"tar that is offered is the ne"tar from the union of $iva and $hakti. The samaras!a is the state of e'ualit!, out of whi"h our identit! is obtained. 4ere both !oga and bhoga aspe"ts are being "ombined. /oga is where the "ontrol of the seed is pra"ti"ed. In the entire pu#a = the man and woman are there, $iva and $hakti are there and it is in the "onte)t of ritual and it is ver! "ontrolled environment. There is no loss of "ontrol at an! point. There is an elevation of e)pression of !our love to the other person. It goes more into adoration than into ph!si"al union. There "an be union, but even there the purpose is not the e)tra"tion of the seed. The purpose is to "ontrol the seed and to transform it into the "osmi" energ!. There is an os"illation of energ! between $iva and $hakti. The! sa! that unless 32 minutes of union is there, this energ! tranformation "annot take pla"e. ut in a normal human intera"tion, hardl! 5 or 10 minutes is all that !ou have. That is wh! for the .aithuna *ite the "ouple has to pra"ti"e different asanas, mudras and bandhas. 1aining "ontrol over !our senses is what is offered. This is the .aithuna *itual.

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In the $ri ,ramam !ou learn to take the energ! up to the $ahasrara "hakra into a "osmi" state. In the :alita ,ramam !ou move ba"k into the dualit! of pu#a and ritual. ut a"tuall! both the hoga Bph!si"al en#o!ment and worldl! pleasuresC and the /oga Bunion with the $upremeC are there all the time. The realit! is there, one end of whi"h is hoga and the other end whi"h is /oga. /ou take all this trouble to go up to the $ahasrara "hakra and what !ou find is that the hoga is going on at the same time. The! are all short="ir"uited here. The swit"hes for the energ! in the bod! are lo"ated all over the bod!, but the! are "ontrolled b! the brain. And the entire brain is the $ahasrara "hakra. $o !ou are alwa!s in the $ahasrara "hakra, no matter if !ou are in .uladhara or at the top of the head. $o hoga and /oga are united. The! are never separated. In the Tantra $astra there is no re#e"tion of !our famil! life, being in the samsara and also learning to be above that. /ou are supposed to en#o! !ourself but at the same time learn to be a witness to !ourself, to be a little deta"hed. :ike .r *ao N1 wat"hing .r. *ao N2 doing the pu#a to .r. *ao N3.

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he ten hand gestures ) the (asa 'udras It is at this point that !ou show the ten hand mudras. 3a"h of these gestures is asso"iated with one of the "hakras in the $ri (hakra. There are nine mudras5 dram Bshubda = (an I talk to !ou<C, drim Bsparsha= (an I tou"h !ou<C klimBrupa= (an I see !ou nude<C, .lum Brasa= (an I kiss !ou<C, sahBgandha= (an I appl! perfumes to !our bod!< C = these are the five sensor! modes of per"eption, plus kromBankusham= $top me where !ou wish to.C, hasakha2hrem B:et-s forget that we are separate individuals and fl! together in spa"e out=of= the=bod!.C , hsaum B.a! I pla"e m! seed in !ou< The seed is the seed of knowledge. C, and aim Brepresents the !oniC. In the :alita $ahasranama it sa!s she is to be worshipped b! ten mudras 9Dasamudra samaradh!a9. The krom BankushamC is sa!ing, 9If I am overstepping the boundaries laid down b! !ou, please stop me. In Tantra the woman is the tea"her. $he is the guru, the leader of the whole flow. $he has to de"ide where to draw that line and the sadhaka should never transgress that line. If she sa!s, !ou worship m! feet, then he has no right to worship an! other part of her bod!. That is the golden rule. If !ou violate the entit! !ou are worshipping, then it is no longer worship. That is the beaut! of the sastra here. ;asakha2hrem is where !ou "ross !our arms and make the !oni mudra. (rossing !our arms , e)"hanging the right and left means if !ou are $iva !ou are be"oming shakti, and if !ou are $hakti !ou are be"oming $iva. /our awareness e)tends into her and hers into !ou. /ou be"ome her and she be"omes !ou. /ou are both $iva and $hakti. Imagine that there is a tube between !ou and !ou are shuttling ba"k and forth between $iva and $hakti.

That is the e)perien"e of the $iva=$hakti samaras!a state. /our lingam is pro#e"ting into her = and her lingam is pro#e"ting into !ou. It is a two=wa! union. This is "alled the $amaras!a $warupam. This pro#e"tion of alternating energ! of bliss whi"h is going ba"k and forth. It "omes up to the navel "enter, then it "omes up to the heart to heart "enter, then to the ne"k to ne"k "enter, then to the e!ebrow "enters and then the two merge into one. Instead of being an os"illation it be"omes a "losed "ir"le. This is where the hoga be"omes /oga. In the /oga the hoga is still e)perien"ed. ! showing these mudras !ou are asking her where to draw the limits. 4asakhaphrem is sa!ing, 9:et-s forget that we are two entities. :et-s get out of our bod! "ons"iousness and move freel! in spa"e9. 0hen !ou make the !oni mudra !ou have three sets of lingas and !onis. The four= petal lotus "reated b! the long fingers forming a triangle with the four fingers pro#e"ting into them is the main !oni and lingams. It represents the muladhara and swaddhisthana "hakras, the srusti aspe"ts of "reation. Dne set of !oni =lingas represents the manipuraFanahata "hakra where :akshmi and &isnu reside, the stiti aspe"t. Dne set of !oni=lingas represents the visshudiFa#na "hakras whi"h are the la!a aspe"ts. And be!ond that is the $ahasrara whi"h merges with the "osmos and has no form. $o all seven "hakras are found in the /oni mudra. That is wh! it is reall! "alled the $arva /oni .udra. /ou show all these mudras and then if she agrees and de"ides to be !our guru, she shows the trikanda mudra, whi"h is the tenth mudra. It is made like the !oni mudra with the little fingers e)tended outwards. Padukam 2ujayami tar2ayami namah 7# &orshi2 and o--er &ater li.ations to your ,eet8 7rom this point onwards at the end of ea"h mantra !ou sa! sri 2adukam 2ujayami tar2ayami namah. If !ou look at the two feet standing together, !ou will see that the! also form a !oni. 0hen !ou worship the feet !ou worship them as !ou do the !oni. 0e re"eive the energ! from the feet of our guru, our shakti. 0hen !ou are ver! !oung, before the age of pubert!, !ou "an still have an orgasm. That orgasm is not at the genitals but it is shown as a #erk in the big toe. The shakti flows from the left foot-s big toe. 0e re"eive the energ! from the underside of the big toe. 3ven before pubert! at the age of five onwards "hildren feel this orgasmi" sensation. he Angadevatas /ou offer the anga n!asam to the different parts of Devi-s bod! and !our bod!. /ou "an a"tuall! tou"h those portions or she "an do them with !ou. This is the

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meaning of seeing the four hands of the pi"tures and murtis of the Deities. Two hands belong to !ou and two hands belong to her. /ou are not separate, !ou are one. The order of tou"hing the points around the $ri (hakra is the same as !ou have done for the samanarg!am. +itya (evatas Puja In the $ri (akra %u#a we also worship the 6it!a Devatas around the "entral triangle , along with all the sanskrit vowels. The word 6it!a in $anskrit means a unit of time. The nit!as are the different aspe"ts of spa"e, the different phases of the moon, the tithis. The word time is ,ala. A part of time is kal the nityas, the digits of the moon. The! are visuali8ed being around the Devi-s ne"k. /ou start with amavas!a, the new moon and go to pournami, the full moon. /ou move around the "entral triangle in an anti="lo"kwise dire"tion. ut if !ou do the worship to the Devi, !ou move around her ne"k in a "lo"kwise dire"tion. In the $ri (akra %u#a the worship is usuall! "onfined to the re"itation of the mula mantra of the nit!a devata and sometimes a short pu#a to ea"h of them. The mula mantras are all "hannels of energ! and not ver! translatable. 0ith ea"h mantra !ou first re"ite one vowel. These are to help !ou to memori8e the whole thing to be able to do it internall!. /ou tend to forget where !ou are. The letters provide "ontinuit! to the ne)t mantra. /ou remember the beginning and the last vowel and the! link to the ne)t one. The! are also pointers to where !our awareness is to be lo"ated around the visshudhi "hakra. The nit!a devatas are also identified with the fifteen s!llabled mantra, the %an"adasi. 3a"h s!llable of the %an"adasi mantra is re"ited on its asso"iated da! or nit!a. The s!llables of the mantra refer to the eternal, formless aspe"ts of the "osmos B$ivaC or the material universe and its ma!a B$aktiC. It is "onsidered appropriate to do the worship of the Devi on the da!s asso"iatated with the $akti and not on da!s asso"iated with $iva. The Tithis or 6it!as 1st da! ,a asso"iated with $iva not good for pu#a 2nd da! 3 9 $akti good 3rd da! I 9 sakti good >th da! :a 9 sakti good 5th da! 4rim 9 with $iva E $akti e)"ellent for pu#a Ath da! 4a 9 with $iva not good ?th da! $a 9 sakti good @th da! ,a 9 $iva not good Gth da! 4a 9 $iva not good 10th da! :a 9 $akti good 11th da! 4rim 9 with $iva E $akti e)"ellent B 9ekadasi9C 12th da! $a 9$akti good 13th da! ,a 9 $iva not good 1>th da! :a 9$akti good

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15th da! 4rim 9with $iva and $akti e)"ellent B%urnima = full moon da!C The same thing relates to the waning of the moon until !ou rea"h 6ew .oon or Amavas!a whi"h is "onsidered ver! good for pu#a. In addition to this asso"iation of the 6it!as to the %an"adasi mantra, in a tantri" pu#a, ea"h of the 6it!a Devatas is asso"iated to a point on the bod! of the Devi where !ou are to worship her ever! da! in order to e)"ite her and bring about orgasm. The referen"es to this form of worship is given in the ,ama $utras and in OOOOOOOOOOO<< he %uru 'andala Puja The div!augha guru Bour heavenl! gurus, the Divine 7lowC "omes from alatripurasundari, B or :ord &enkateshwara, ala#i = the! are the sameC, and $anat ,umara. alatripurasundari is depi"ted as a !oung girl, from around three !ears old up to nine !ears old. $anat ,umara was a famous sage who was an as"eti". The mantra of alatripurasundari "an be said in three wa!s5 Aim !lim Souh = ala#i is three !ears old+ Aim !lim Souh" Souh" !lim Aim = she is si) !ears old+ and Aim !lim Souh" Souh" !lim Aim" Aim !lim Souh = she is nine !ears old. $he is m! guru. It was $he who demanded that the $ri .eru temple be built and got it done. The ne)t guru worshipped is the $iddhaugha guru, Dattatre!a. .! guru "omes from the Dattatre!a Avadhuta tradition, $ri Avadhuta $vaprakashananda of Anakapalli. 4e follows the Dattatre!a tradition. I get what tradition he has got. Dattatre!a is $iddhaugha. 4e is supposed to be living toda!. 4e feet are in the &indh!a mountains at 1innath. If !ou go there it is possible that !ou ma! have his darshan. /ou have got to "limb about 10,000 steps. All that !ou find there is one little blo"k with two feet there whi"h are worshipped ever! da!. The .anaugha guru, the human form is $vaprakasananda tirtha paramahamsa avaduta. And m! name is also in"luded in there, I don-t know for what reason. he Caturyatana Puja ) 0orship of the 7our "orners of the $ri (hakra 6e)t we worship the four "orners of the $ri (hakra. In the $0 "orner :ord 1anapati is worshipped+ In the 60 "orner, $ur!a is worshipped+ in the 63 "orner &ishnu is worshipped+ and in the $3 "orner, $iva is worshipped. $hakti is in the "enter. *emember that these are different e)pressions of the same entit!. 0e "ould have an! one of them in the "enter. Then the other aspe"ts of 1od would take a different format around them. ut we follow the $hakte!a tradition, so Devi is in the "enter. The 1anesha .antra is *m Srim hrim klim glaum gam gana2ataye varavarada sarajanam me vasamanaya svaha. There is something else added, but it is not in the ,alpa $utra. The added mantra is srim hrim klim glaum

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gam namo .hagavati maha laksmi vara varade srim vi.hutyai svaha. Sri sri 2atyadi siddha laksmi sametha sri vallala.ha sri mahagana2ataye namah. The !antra for 1anapati is there and !ou worship 1anapati at the .uladhara "hakra. $tarting with 9sri pat!adi 9until 9siddha laksmi 9there is a group of deities arranged in the mandala like the $ri (hakra mandala that we have here. 7or ea"h aspe"t of 1od there is a "ooresponding mandala asso"iated with it. $ri &allabha = he is dear to the 1oddess $ri. In this manner !ou worship all the deities+ 1anapati, $ur!a, &ishnu, $iva and :alita. The worship "an be as long or as abbreviated as !ou like. he +avavarana Puja The most important thing that !ou have to remember here is the se'uen"e in whi"h these deities are lo"ated. 0hen !ou do the "ir"umambulation to the $ri (hakra !ou have to visit ea"h of these deities in this order. This makes it a prett! "ompli"ated affair and !ou have to keep !our wits about !ou. The ,hadga .ala $totra defines the se'uen"e and !ou have to remember whi"h 1oddess is where. /ou have to be so familiar with the pro"ess that !ou "an "lose !our e!es and visuali8e the form of the goddess in !our mind. It is a ver! powerful meditative te"hni'ue for visuali8ing the different forms of the 1oddesses. Dn"e !ou are familiar with the name and are able to asso"iate with the form of the 1oddess, it is then that the pu#a is "omplete. The! should be as if the! were living right in front of !ou, waving their various weapons around.

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he ,irst Avarana In the first avarana, we move from the outside en"losure to the inside. 0e begin our #ourne! to enlightenment. /ou worship the Devi-s 7eet. The -irst en$losure begins with the en Attainments 7Siddhis8. /ou attain one siddhi b! appl!ing ea"h of the mudras to ea"h of the passions. 1. The first siddhi to be attained is anima siddhi =<<< 2. Laghima?garima siddhi are "onsidered one siddhi = lightnessFheaviness 3. mahima siddhi) greatness+ >.isitva siddhi= "ontrol over !ourself+ 5.vasitva siddhi= bringing others under !our "ontrol+ A. 2rakamya siddhi = being able to desire large things+ ?. .hukti siddhi = en#o!ment+ @. i$$ha siddhi = desire+ G. 2ra2ti siddhi = attainment of desire+ 10. sarvakama siddhi = fulfillment of all desires. In the se$ond s5uare en$losure we have got the 3ight 2assions. The! are the potential distra"tions to our sadhana. The passions are lo"ated on the left=hand side the the entran"es. The! are Brahmi" 'ahesvari" !oumari" Varahi"

'ahendri" Camunda" 'ahalaksmi. rahmi is lust+ .ahesvari is anger+ ,oumari is possessiveness+ &aisnavi is Delusion+ &arahi is pride+ .ahendri is #ealous!+ (amunda is virtue. $he lives in the "remation grounds. $he brings vairag!a, deta"hment whi"h is supposed to be auspi"ious+ and .ahalaksmi is sin. $he is the giver of 1old. 0hen !ou think of 4er ,!ou think of all the mundane things that distra"t !ou too mu"h and keep !ou atta"hed. he third en$losure ) the 'udra Shaktis@ In the third en"losure we have the .udra $haktis. The! represent the pro"edures to "ontrol the passions above and obtain the powers mentioned in the first en"losure. ,sobini means inter"ourse. Sarva Samkso.ini means having inter"ourse with ever!one and ever!thing, or agitating ever!thing+ Sarva Vidravini = making things flow, li'uif!ing all+ Sarvakarsini = attra"ting all+ Sarva Vasamkari = keeping things under !our "ontrol+ Sarva Unmadini = making all "ra8!+ Sarva 'ahankuse = tri"king all and goading into a"tion+ Sarva !he$ari = able to move in all spa"e+ Sarva Bija = all knowledge+ Sarva Aoni = the sour"e, the womb of all+ Sarva rikanda = all forms and states of awareness, being the knower, the knowing and the known. The $arva ad#e"tive makes these powers have a poten"! when applied to the $haktis of passion. The! enable !ou to get over the passions, and the! "reate the ten $iddhis, or attainments. Then, at the end of ea"h Avarana there is a paragraph whi"h starts with the mantra for that avarana. These mantras are listed at the beginning of the pu#a also. The first avarana mantra is Am Am Souh. The paragragh translated for the 1st Avarana follows. It will be the same for all the Avaranas e)"ept for the name of the !ogini 7Prakata Aogini 8 and the "hakra 7 railokya 'ohana Chakre8 and the "ontroller of the "hakra 7 ri2ura Cakresvari8. 9These e)pli"it !oginis, whose nature is e)pressl! visible, not suppressed+ whose "hakra rules and deludes all the three worlds of waking, sleeping, dreaming + along with their mudras, hand gestures+ along with their attainments+ along with their weapons+ along with their powers+ along with their vehi"les+ along with their retenues of attendents+ b! all the intimate servi"es+ well=worshipped+ well=satified+ ver! happ! or pleased+ ma! all these gods be so. Again Am Am Souh "omes. ri2ura Cakresvari is the name of the "ontroller of this "hakra. In the ,hadgamala $totra all the names of Tripura "ome together at the end. 4ere in the 6avavarana %u#a ea"h of 4er names "omes at this pla"e at the end of the avarana. $o in the 2nd avarana her name is ri2uresi+ in the 3rd it is ri2urasundari, et".

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Then !ou sa! Sri 2adukam 2ujayami tar2ayami namah = To !our lotus feet I offer pu#a and tarpanam Bwater offeringC. I also offer gandham = sandal, puspam = flowers, dhupam = in"ense, dipam = lights, and naived!am = food offerings. /ou show the first hand mudra of Sarvasamkso.ini ) (ram. After ea"h avarana !ou show one of the ten hand mudras. The! go in order from Dram to /oni mudras. he >nd Avarana These are the Si6teen Attra$ting Po&ers whi"h are also asso"iated with the +itya (evis" the 1A Digits or %hases of the .oon. /ou worship the Devi-s hi2s and girdle. The names of the Devis given are5 kamakarsini = the attra"tion of lust+ .uddhyakarsini = of dis"rimination+ ahamkarakarsini = of ego+ sa.dhakarsini = of sound Bmusi"C+ s2arsakarsini = of tou"h BerosC+ ru2akarsini = of form Bbeaut!C+ rasakarsini = of taste BsweetnessC+ gandhakarsini = or odor BperfumeC+ $ittakarsini = of mind+ dhairyakarsini = of valor+ smritakarsini ) of memor!+ namakarsini = of name+ .ijakarsini = of the seed, semen+ atmakarsini = of the self, the soul+ amrtakarsini = of immortalit!+ sarirakarsini = of moralit!. The mantra for the 2nd avarana is Aim !lim Souh. The !ogini is %u2ta yoginyah = the se"ret !ogini. The "hakra is Sarvasa2ari 2uraka $akre = the wheel whi"h fulfills all dire"tions and all desires. The (ontroller of this "hakra is ri2uresi = the "ontroller of the waking, dreaming and sleeping states. /ou offer the Sarva Vidravini ) (rim mudra. Drd Avarana = The 3ight 3roti" $entiments /ou worship the Devi at the S&addhisthana (hakra. The names of the Devis given are5 ananga kusuma devi = the flowering devi+ ananga mekhala devi = the girdling + ananga madana devi = love+ ananga madanatura devi = lust+ ananga rekha devi = outlining+ ananga vegini devi = the desire for se)+ ananga ankusa devi = insistan"e on se)+ ananga malini devi = org!. The mantra is ;rim !lim Souh. The !ogini is %u2tatara Aoginyah = the esoteri" !ogini+ the "hakra is Sarva Samkso.hana Cakre = the "hakra whi"h agitates ever!one+ the (ontroller of the "hakra is ri2urasundari) the eautiful one who lives in all three states of "ons"iousness. /ou offer the mudra Sarvakarsini) !lim.

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Bth Avarana ) The 7ourteen 0orlds. /ou worship the Devi at the .uladhara (hakra. The names of the 7ourteen worlds that follow are not listed in the pu#a, but represented b! the avarana. $even are above our world+ seven below us. elow5 1. Atala 2. $utala 3. &itala >. Talatala 5. *asatala A. %atala ?. 4imatala Above5 1. hu 2. huvaha 3. $uvaha >. .ahaha 5. Janaha A. Tapaha ?. $at!am. The names of the >th avarana are5 1. Sarva samkso.hini = agitating all+ 2. Sarva Vidravini = li'uif!ing all+ 3. Sarva Akarsini = attra"ting all+ >. Sarva ahladini = pleasing all+ 5. Sarva Sammohini = deluding all+ A. Sarva Stam.hini = obstru"ting all+ ?. $arva Jrm.hini = e)panding all+ @. Sarva Vasamkari = "ontrolling all+ G. Sarva Ranjani = en#o!ing all+ 10. Sarva Unmadini = maddening all+ 11. Sarva Artha Sadhini = all prosperous+ 12. Sarva Sam2atti Purani = all fulfilling ri"hes+ 13. Sarva 'antra 'ayyi = all mantras+ 1>. Sarva (vandva !sayamkari = eliminating all dualities. The mantra is ;aim ;klim ;souh. $he is Sam2radaya yoginyah = the traditional !ogini.The "akra is Sarva Sou.hagya (ayaka Cakre = the "hakra of all kinds of union. The (ontrollor is ri2ura Vasini ) the one who lives in all three states of "ons"iousness. /ou offer Sarva Vasamkari mudra )Blum.

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Eth Avarana ) The %an"abhutas.<<<<< The outer ten triangles of the $ri (hakra. /ou worship the Devi at the .anipura (hakra. The names are5 1. Sarva siddhi 2rada ) giver of all a"hievements+ 2. Sarva sam2at 2rada = giver of all wealth+ 3. Sarva 2riyamkari = give of all that one likes to have+ >. Sarva mangala karini = bringer of all auspi"iousness+ 5. Sarva kama2rada = fulfiller of all desires+ A. Sarva dukha vimo$ini = eliminator of all miseries+ ?. Sarva mrtyu 2rasamani = eliminator of all a""idental deaths+ @. Sarva vighna nivarini = eliminator of all obsta"les+ G. Sarva anga sundari = beautiful in all parts of 4er bod!+ 10. Sarva sou.hagya dayini = provider of all unions. The mantra is ;saim ;sklim ;sauh. $he is !ulottirna Aoginyah = the !ogini who goes be!ond all "lassifi"ations. The "hakra is Sarvartha sadhaka $akre = the wheel that propels !ou onto the right path, gives !ou all wealth, fulfills all desires and makes liberation possible. The (ontroller is ri2urasri $akresvari ) the one who is the ri"hes of the three states. /ou offer Sarvonmadini mudra ) Saha.

4th Avarana<<<< The inner 10 triangles of the $ri (hakra. /ou worship the Devi at the Anahata (hakra The names are 1. Sarva Jna = omnis"ient+ 2. Sarva Sakti = omnipotent+ 3. Sarva Aisvarya Prada = omnie)pressive+ >. Sarva Jnanamayi = providing the bliss of omnis"ien"e+5. Sarva Vyadhi Vinasini ) eliminating all maladies+ A. Sarva Adhara Svaru2a = the support of all+ ?. Sarva Pa2ahara ) eliminator of sin+ @. Sarva Ananda 'ayi = all happiness+ G. Sarva Raksa Svaru2ini = all prote"ting+ 10. Sarve2sita Phala Prada = the provider of all fruits The mantra is ;rim !lim Blem. the !ogini is +igar.ha Aoginyah = the !ogini prote"ting the "hild in the womb. The "hakra is Sarva Raksakara Cakre = the wheel of all prote"tion. The (ontroller of the "hakra is ri2ura 'alini = the se'uen"es of these states e)perien"ed b! all people. /ou offer Sarva 'ahankusa mudra ) !rom. Gth Avarana ) the 3ight 7orms of $araswati /ou worship the Devi at the &isshudhi "hakra. The eight forms of $araswati are the eight groups of $anskrit letters des"ribing the e)plosion of the "osmos from the point BbinduC. 1. am am im im um um arum arum alum alum em aim om oum ah aham arblum = Vasini &agdevata!ai namah = (ontrol 2.kam kham gam gham #nam klahrim = !amesvari vagdevata!ai namah = 3)pressive. 3. "am "ham #am #ham inam #nblim = 'odini vagdevata!ai namah = %leasure. >. tam tham dam dham nam !lum = Vimala vagdevata!ai namah = %urit!. 5. tam tham dam dham nam #mrim = Aruna vagdevata!ai namah = %assion. A. pam pham bam bham mam hslv!um = Jayini vagdevata!ai namah = &i"tor!. ?. !am ram lam vam #hmr!um = Sarvesvari vagdevata!ai namah = (ontrolling all @. sam sam sam ham lam ksam ksmrim = !aulini vagdevata!ai namah = 3n#o!ing all. The mantra for the ?th avarana is ;rim Srim Souh. The !ogini is Rahasya yoginyah = the se"ret !ogini. The "hakra is Sarva Rogahara $akre = the wheel whi"h eliminates disease. The (ontroller of the "hakra is ri2ura Siddha Chakresvari = the a"hievements possible in all these three states. /ou offer the Sarva !he$ari mudra ) ;saka2hrem.

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he 3ighth Avarana =the 0eapons of the Divine .other and the 1oddesses of the Inner Triangle.

/ou worship the Devi-s arms and hands and then her third e!e, the A#na (hakra. 1. Dram Drim ,lim lum $ah, sarva #rmbhanebh!o banebh!o namah, sri Banasakti ) the five flower! arrows of .anmatha "all the five senses+ sound Bmusi"C, tou"h BerosC, form Bbeaut!C, taste BsweetnessC, smell Bfragran"eC. 2. Dham tham sarvasammohana!a dhanushe namah, sri (hanusakti ) the sugar "ane bow representing the mind whi"h likes sweet things in life. 3. Am hrim sarva vashikarana!a pasa!a namah,sri Pasusakti = the attra"tive powers of love. >. ,rom krom sarva stambhana!a ankusha!a namah = Ankusasakti = the repulsive power to "ontrol evil. 5. ka e i la hrim vama ra#oguna i""ha sakti !amesvaryai namah, sri i""ha sakti = desire, the thrust of 1od, desiring to see himself in man! forms. A. 4a sa ka la hrim #!esta sattva guna #nana sakti Vajresvaryai namah, sri #nana sakti =knowledge = the abilit! to obtain the "osmos in a seed form. ?. $a ka la hrim raudri tamoguna kri!asakti Bhagamalinyai namah, sri kri!a sakti = a"tion = the abilit! to e)press the "osmos out of the seed. @. ,a e i lahrim, 4a sa ka ha la hrim, $a ka la hrim = i""ha #nana kri!a sakti .ahadevi = all of the above. The mantra is ;sraim ;srklim ;rsrsouh. The !ogini is Atirahasya yoginyah ) the most se"ret !ogini. The "hakra is Sarva Siddi Prada "akre = the wheel of reali8ations. The (ontroller of the "hakra is ri2uram.a "akresvari = the e)perien"e of the "osmos in 4er three states unif!ing all the e)perien"es of all life. /ou offer the Sarva Bija mudra = ;saum. he Fth Avarana = $ri :alita Devi united with $adasiva in the indu. /ou worship the Devi at the $ahasrara (hakra. 0e worship $ri $ri :alitambika $ri $ahasraksi $ri *a#ara#esvari, whose mantra is !a e i la hrim" ;a sa ka ha la hrim" Sa ka la hrim. $he is Ati Rahasya !ogini = the most trans"endental se"ret !ogini. The Gth "hakra is Sarvananda 'aya "akre = the wheel of bliss. The (ontroller is Sri 'aha Cakresvari = the 1reat (osmi" (ontroller. 0e worship 4er with the Sarva Aoni mudra ) Aim. he Pan$a U2a$ara Puja After the 6avavarana %u#a is finished the :alita $ahasranama is to be re"ited and then we offer the %an"a Ipa"aras Bthe 7ive DfferingsC to Devi. 1. The first offering is gandham = sandalwood paste. The sanskrit is 9Lalitayai satsangam gandham kal2ayami namah.9 $atsangam means asso"iation with the truth. 0hat !ou are sa!ing is :et the sweet perfume smell of our asso"iation with the truth be as sandalwood offered in m! mind to !our lotus feet.

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2. The se"ond offering is of flowers. 0hat are the flowers that are offered< Lalitayai indriya nigraham 2us2am kal2ayami namah. Indri!a nigraham means "ontrol of the five senses. The! are the flowers that we offer. 3. The third offering is dhupam, in"ense. Lalitayai kama krodha lo.ha moha mada matsarya 2unya 2a2a visarjanam dhu2am kal2ayami namah. The in"ense is leaving the passions for lust, greed, et". and the notions of pun!a = virtue and papa = sin behind, letting them be burnt up as the in"ense sti"k is burnt up. >. The ne)t offering is dipam = the light. 0hat is the light we are offering< Lalitayai $hit kala darsanam di2am kal2ayami namah. (hit means awareness kala is the lights in the awareness in the mind-s e!e+ when !ou "lose !our e!es and !ou are seeing the lights within, it is those lights whi"h !ou offer to the Devi. 5. 6aived!am is food. Lalitayai vasudhadi sivavasanam siva sakti samarasyam naivedyam kal2ayami namah. To :alita, vasudhadi = starting from the earth, sivavasanam = in all the elements, in all the "hakras, $iva is the seer and $hakti is the known, the modified and unmodified awarenesses, their union Bsamaras!amC is to be offered as a food offering. The union between the seer and the seen is the food offering. A. ,arpura = "amphor . Lalitayai manolaya svaru2a ananda kar2ura nirajanam kal2ayami namah. .anola!a is the elimination of the mind+ that is the state of bliss. :ike the "amphor that burns and eliminates itself, so we offer the elimination of all thoughts from the mind to the Devi. ?. Tambulam = pan. Lalitayai u2anisad vakya sura.hilam tam.ulam kal2ayami namah. The upanisads are the parts of the &edas that deal with knowledge. &ak means the senten"es. $urabhilam is perfumed. The perfumed spee"h at the end of the &edas relating to knowledge, that is offered as the mouth freshing pan to Devi. @. The last offering is offering ourselves to Devi = Sivoham Sivaham. I am $iva. /ou are $iva. !ama !ala (hyanam 0e meditate on the fa"e of Devi as $araswati, 4er breasts as 1oddess :aksmi, and 4er genitals as 1oddess Durga, ,ali or :alita. In this meditation, !ou visuali8e !ourself as Devi, and Devi in ever!thing. All that !ou see is !ourself. Take some time to abide in this open oneness with Devi. Bali (anam

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In this last part of the pu#a, !ou give a food offering to the ,setrapalaka = the Deities that prote"t the field, the lo"ation where the pu#a is being held. /ou are also giving to the evil=mongering spirits or for"es that e)ist all around us so that the! do not trouble the devotees who are doing the pu#a. /ou draw the diagram on the floor in front of the Devi using the samanarg!am water = the triangle surrounded b! the "ir"le and a s'uare. 0hile drawing !ou re"ite 9Aim vya2aka mandalaya namah9. Dn top of the diagram !ou pla"e a small plate or vessel, preferabl! of "opper. /ou put a sampling of ea"h of the food offerings given to the Devi on the plate, and pour water on top of it. Then !ou sa! the following mantra5 *m hrim sarva vighna krid.hyah sarva.hute.hyo hum svaha. $arva vighna kridbh!a = all those who are "reating obsta"les+ sarvabhutebh!o = all the elements whi"h are "reating the trou ble+ hum svaha = I sa! hum and offer them to the fire. The word 4um has a spe"ial meaning. It is "alled a kur"ha bi#a. 0hen !ou hold !our breath and push it down as if !ou were going to eliminate !our bowels, then !ou feel after a little while the rush of blood "oming up to the fa"e. The fa"e will flush with the blood. That is the hum. 0hen !ou sa! 4um %hat svaha, and do it long enough, the phat is the sound of e)plosion when the blood rushes to !our head and !ou lose !our bod!, !ou pass out. /ou are dead. This is the wa! the !ogis die. The! #ust hold their breath, push it down and then the blood rushes up. The head is full! energi8ed in a super"ons"ious state and it blows up like a "o"onut and the waters flow out to $iva. This is the se"ret of the 4um %hat $waha mantra. $waha is what !ou offer to the fire. %hat is the e)plosive sound. 0hen !ou offer the bod! to the fire, !ou are dead. $o in a sense, %hat and $waha are the same thing. 0hen !ou sa! one, !ou don-t have to sa! the other. Then !ou "lap three times = for those relating to the bod!, those relating the elements and those relating to the astral entities. Adiatmika, adibhutika and adidaivika are the three disturbing elements !ou tr! to eliminate. o ,inish the Puja To offer an!thing to 1od, a pu#a, a karma, how do we offer< 0e offer with the seed and water. Akshatas, the ri"e grains represent the seed. These, along with water !ou pour over the .eru $ri (hakra. 3tat 2uja2halam = The fruit of this pu#a+ sarvam sri 2aradevatar2anam astu = along with water ma! it be offered to the trans"endental 1oddess+ 2aramesvara2arnam astu = to the father 1od, $iva+ %uru devatar2anam astu = to the 1uru who is the living 1od, we offer+ svatmar2anam astu = I offer to m!self. At the end of the pu#a !ou pi"k up the vessel "ontaining the visesharg!am,put it on top of !our head and then show it three times to Devi. After this !ou distribute the ne"tar to the devotees. Do not disturb it during the pu#a. Parasurama kal2a sutra

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The ,alpa $utra is a digest of $ri &id!a, a s!stem of Divine .other-s worship "ompiled b! %arasurama from several s!stems whi"h prevailed in his da!. This is one of the man! forms of $ri &id!a now in vogue. It is the shortest and best arranged one of them all. A passage from Tripurarahas!a Ipanishat 'uotes. In the Ipasana ,anda of the &eda, the Ipasana or the "ontemplative worship is treated in all its details. These details were "ompiled b! $iva in si) "lasses of works known as Agama, *ahas!a, $amhita, /amala, Arnava and Tantra, ea"h "lass being devoted to a distin"t Devata or form of the $upreme. hargava *ama, son of Jamadagni, saw them too vast ad asked his revered master, lessed Dattatre!a who "ombined the Trinit! of rahma, &ishnu and $iva in 4imself, to abridge the s!stem. A""ordingl!, seeing that the Ipasana of Tripura was the highest of all forms of worship and that its effe"t in"luded the effe"ts of all other forms of worship, "omposed Datta=$amhita "omprising eighteen thousand verses, in whi"h the worship of Tripura was laid down in all its details in a su""in"t form. 7rom him hargava *ama learnt the $amhita. ut, finding that it was still too vast in e)tent and that its meaning was still too deep for the average devotee to understand, *ama abridged the s!stem still further and presented it in an intelligible form. This abridgment "ontained si) thousand sutras in fift! ,handas or se"tions. *ama-s pupil, again, $umedha of the 4arita famil! who studied this sutra from his master, found the work almost as vast as Datta=$amhita, and so made an abridgment of the $amhita and the $utra, in the shape of another work of $utras, taking the form of a dialogue between Datta nd *ama. It is this abridgment that has "ome down to us as the %arasurama ,alpa $utra "omprising ten ,handas. Thhough the work is not apparentl! in the form of a dialogue, still, it ma! be inferred from the "on"luding passage of the work that it is a dialogue between the master and his pupil. 7inding this $utra too deep in its meaning for ordinar! students to understand, Imanandanatha, a dis"iple of the blessed haskarara!a, "omposed in 1??5 the work 96it!otsava9 la!ing down "learl! and methodi"all! the s!stem of worship taught in the $utra. I have taken the :alita Ipasana from the ,alpa $utra and tried to e)palin the meanings in s"ientifi" idiom suited to the 20th "entur!. Amrita of Devipuram, India, 531001 1GG@

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