Your
Worship is Not Complete Without Meditation on Brahman
(Compilation
for a discourse By N. R. Srinivasan, Nashville, TN, USA, March 2014)
INTRODUCTION
We end up all our worship and rituals with the word “Krishnarpanamanstu” thereby meaning for
any commission or omission, this worship or ritual is placed at the feet of the
lord, thus seeking his blessings in our performance. Such actions blessed by the Lord are bound to
result in good things only. This we say with all our heart whatever may be our chosen
deity. This concluding prayer is
directed to Supreme Principal only. In
our discourse on “Why temples have red and white stripes on their outer walls”
we have learnt irrespective of whatever
deity we worship in temples our prayers
are all directed to Nirguna Brahman through Saguna Brahman visualized as
Trinity in his functional aspects of Creation (Srishthi), Preservation (Sthiti)
and Dissolution (Laya).
Vaastu
Mandala or the charged atmosphere in the temple is the imaging of the cosmos
which is achieved by the presence of 32 divinities who are planets, stars and
guardians of directions who are accommodated on the perimeter of Vastumandala
with various other deities subsidiary to the main deity who is the central
shrine who occupies Brahmasthaana, the place of realization of Supreme Brahman.
This is the place assigned to Brahma, the Lord of creation in the Vedic
tradition. In Puranic tradition this position is assigned to the major Hindu
Gods, Vishnu and Siva, making Brahma subordinate and placing his deity on the
northern wall of the sanctum. But the concept of Trinity worship continues in
Hindu Tradition. Siva manifests as Linga (Vyakta-avyakta form) while Vishnu
manifests himself in his divine forms and incarnations (avatars). Both these
are the Universal Brahman in their sectarian systems of beliefs and worships
while the other Vedic deities remain as subordinates in their positions as pada-devatas.
Later Puranas also brought in two sons
of Siva as main deities for worship. Jayadeva hailed Krishna as Jagadeesa or Brahman. Sankarshana, Pradyumna and
Aniruddha, family members of Krishna were introduced as Vyuha deities for
worship by Pancharatra (Chaturvyuha) Theology of Vaishnavas. In all these in reality worship is directed to
Trinity or Saguna Brahman only, be it a Siva temple or Vishnu temple.
TRINITY CONCEPT IN
CHRISTIANITY
The doctrine of Trinity is prevalent in Christianity too though
they do not mean the same way as Hindus but there is every reason to believe
they have been influenced by it. It is the father who generates, Son who
is begotten and Spirit that Sustains. All things come from Father
delivered through the Son with the Holy Spirit. Trinity Sunday falls on
the first Sunday after Pentecost celebrating this doctrine by many. Even though
there is no mention of the word Trinity in the Holy Bible, the faithful draw
references to this doctrine drawing reference to several quotes from the
Bible. In essence this reflects essential view of Vedanta, Bible's precursor
about One God with three functional aspects. Legend says Patrick used the
shamrock to teach about the Trinity, the concept of three persons in
one God. The stem represented God with the three leaves designating
the Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit. St. Patrick's Day is
celebrated on March 17 (his death anniversary) every year to honor the patron
saint of Ireland. This day is focused for imparting seeds of truth about
obeying God and praying for missionaries.
CONCEPT OF MOTHER WORSHIP
Puranas,
though aware of the formlessness of Brahman who has no
gender attached identity, choose to
bring in the concept of worship of the Supreme in the form of Mother, as only
mother can bestow love and affection on her child unconditionally at all times.
Any creation requires a womb which the Vedas mention as Hiranyagarbaha. Garbha in
Sanskrit means womb. Aakaasa or space is the womb for the creation of the
Universe. In this Garbha context
Puranas conceived creator only in the female form of Holy Mother. Puranas then came out with the strength
aspect of Saguna Brahaman responsible for all activity. Strength in Sanskrit is
Sakti which is a feminine noun. So the Puranas came out with three female components to three male
components of Siva (dissolution or Laya), Vishnu (sustenance or Sthiti) and
Brahama (creation or Srishthi) as Parvati, Lakshmi and Saraswati. This gave
rise to Sakta Tradition which
attributed all activity to Sakti in the form of female trinity—Lakshmi, Sarasvati
and Parvati. Brahman had no sex identity as Rigveda define Brahman as Tat+ ekam=
tadekam, meaning that
one. The word Brahman in Sanskrit
language is neither masculine nor feminine. It is neuter. Puranas identified Saguna
Brahman as Trinities as male as well as female entities. Parabrahman who had no gender has been named
Paraasakti a feminine entity by Sakta followers and according to them any
worship to any female deity in temples is directed to Paraasakti only.
SAAYANA RECOMMENDS
CONTEMPLATIVE FINAL MANTRA
Saayana, the commentator on Mahanarayana Upanishad states the
mantra “om
antascharati bhooteshu” is employed for the contemplative
worship of the Supreme after Gaayatree Visarjana (farewell) connected with the
twilight-devotion or Sandhyavandana. Saayana and Ranga Ramanuja are the great commentators of later
ages on Upanishads like Sankara, the earliest to comment. Ranga Ramanuja
follows Vishishtaadvaita Philosophy, while Saayana follows Advaita Philosophy. In
Sandhyavandana we are meditating on Sun during the morning and mid-day prayers
and on Agni during twilight zone prayer.
In Rigveda we hardly find the word Brahman but Tadekam that One who is
worshiped as Sun, Fire, Moon, Water, Earth etc. Rudra (Brahman) of Rigveda in
his auspicious and pleasant form is worshiped as Siva. Puranas depict this form
of Siva as white in complexion, with one eye having Sun, the other having Moon
and the third Jnaanchakshu, the fire that burns all ignorance. Hence this
description of Rudra is Parabrahman only who is glorified as Siva or Saguna
Brahman. Sun, Moon and Agni are defined as Vyahritis of Brahman in Rigveda and
so represent him alone.
But what prompted Saayana to say the Mantra beginning with Om antascharatibhootesshu is to be employed for the contemplative
worship of the Supreme after Gayatree-visarjana ritual connected with the twilight-devotion
for Dwijas? This is a very powerful
Mantra beginning with AUM and ending with AUM describing in between there is
nothing other than Supreme and that everything has it value derived from the
Supreme. It is a very powerful aumnic mantra on
Brahman bracketed by two AUMs. Probably it should be the AUM-mantra in
Kathopanishad endorsed by Bhagavdgeeta as described below as well as the fourth
quarter of Mandookya Upanishad. (Please
refer to the discourse on Mandookya Upanishad).
Kathopanishad in 2-15 brings forth powerfully AUMNIC meditation as
an advice to Nachiketas from Lord Yama: “Sarve vedaa yat padmaamananti
tapaamci sarvaani cha yad vadanti | Yad
ichchanto brahmacharyam charanti tat te padam sangrahena
braveemi-AUM-ity-etat ||
[Yama said; The state which all the Vedaas declare of (praise), which all
penances proclaim and wishing for which they lead the life of celibacy, that
State (pada) I will tell you. It is the (fourth) State AUM. The word Padam has something like 22 meanings
in Sanskrit such as way, place, abode, foot-step, state, goal etc.
A close echo of this immortal mantra is heard in Bhagavadgeeta which repeats the second
half the mantra in its verse in chapter 8, verse 11: Yad aksharam vedavidovadavti visanti yad
yatayo veetaraagaah | yad ichchaanto brahmacharyam charanti tat
te padam sangrahena pravekshye || That State which the knowers of
Vedas call eternal, where in the ascetics enter, being free from attachment and
desiring which they practice celibacy—that goal I shall declare to you briefly. That is AUM.[The word Pada meaning State can
be found in Mandookya, Katha and Bhagavadgeeta meaning the same--the
Tureeya State or Brahman or AUM]
ARE WE WORSHIPPING ISHTADEVATA OR
BRAHMAN?
We have the
following Vedic Mantra in several Upanishads and sloka in Bhagavdgeetaa which
describe that Universal Fire and Light:
Na
tatra sooryo bhaati na chandrataarakam nemaa vidyuto bhaanti kutoyam agnih |
Tameva
bhaantim-anubhaati sarvam tasya bhaasaa sarvam-idam vibhaati ||
[The Sun does not shine there, nor the moon and the stars.
These lights do not shine? Where-from
can Agni do so? All these shine after Him (Brahman) the Ever-shining. All these
shine out because of His effulgence!
Divi soorya-sahasrasya
bhaved-yugapad-utthitaa |
Yadi baah sadrisee sa
syaad-bhaasaas-tasya mahaatmanahn ||
If the effulgence of a thousand Suns were to blaze forth all
at once in the sky, that might resemble the effulgence of that Supreme Being
(Brahman).
Also Bhagavdgeetaa says:
Ahma vaisavvanaro bhootvaa
praaninaam dehamaasritah |
I am the Universal Fire dwelling in the body of all living
beings.
The illuminating characteristic of the sun, moon and fire is
an aspect of the Infinite Consciousness. The cosmic energy pervades the entire
universe and holds it intact. It comes as life energy, enters the earth and
sustains all the movables and immovable.
The Sun, the Moon and the Fire on which we meditate upon and Siva the
auspicious who has Sun, Moon and Fire as his three eyes whom we worship in
visible forms are that Universal Effulgence only. This is the same light and
fire that Moses saw in the burning bush, that he could not look at being blindfolded
because of the brightness many times greater than the Sun and from which he
received The Ten Commandments to deliver it to the world. This is the same
Light that Buddha received on Enlightenment based on which his followers
started a new religion. Buddha did not start any religion. This is the same
light that Parsis with their Zarathustra following worship that Fire. This is
the Light that is revealed in Grantha Sahib. This is the light that outshines
in Himalayan snow in Amarnath as Snow-white Linga. This is the Light that emerged as Lingodbhava
moorti of Trinity on Sivaratri Night. This is the Light that we cannot define
but feel its power all the time. Even in Physics light is not explainable with
any one theory; the chapter on Light begins with “What is Light?” and “ends
with “What is Light?”
Every temple, be it Siva or Vishnu, must have a niche in the
northern wall for Brahma, and the image must receive worship every day. In Siva
temple we offer our worship to pedestal Linga. This Pedestal Linga has a base
called Brahma Bhaaga, a middle portion or Yoni called Vishnu Bhaga and the top
portion called Linga part or Siva. Therefore in all Siva temples our worship in
reality is directed to Trinity or Saguna Brahman. In Vishnu Temple Vishnu having assumed the
color of dark blue we actually recognize the presence of Siva who is associated
with darkness or Tamoguna. However Vishnu being the custodian of Sattvaguna he
is identified with white all through. So Vishnu images are a combination of Siva and
Vishnu. With the presence of Brahma prevailing in all temples here also all our
worships are directed to Trinity or Saguna Brahman.
We may be wondering why Vishnu is associated with feminine
aspect (yoni) of Linga. In Vishnu Sahasranama we can find many names of Vishnu
in feminine gender. In Puranas he took the bewitching Mohini Avatar and married Siva.
Ayyappan was the result of this union and addressed as Hariharaaatmaja. Siva is
sometimes portrayed as Ardhanareeswara but not as a female entity altogether.
Vishnusahasranama also has many names in neuter gender. Thus Vishnu like
Brahman has all genders or no gender. That is why in his name as Narayana he is
identified as Parabrahman. If we think deep Lingodbhava Moorti is a column of fire or Jyoti and
that represents Saguna Brahman as fire column or bright white
column. We learn from the Puranas that
when the deadly poison Haalaahala or Kaalakoota came floating during the
churning of the Ocean of Milk Siva saved the disaster by swallowing the
poison to become Neelakantha. There is a story behind this incidence. When the
Devas requested Siva to save the world, Siva told Ganesha who was nearby,
“Listen, Ahamkaraa (ego) is influencing the world. The spirit of time has made
the qualities of Sattva, Rajas and Tamas”. Hardly were these words were spoken,
when Sakti manifested herself in Siva, who immediately entered into Sakti and
came out as a Linga. Ganesha, an eye witness to these miracles found Brahma,
Vishnu and Siva and other divinities in the Linga and also beheld the Linga and
Sakti without any change of identity and also as powerful as before. The whole
universe was seen merged in it—Lingamoorti.
It is most enigmatic that the Linga was seen immersed in Prakriti and
Prakriti was completely permeated with Linga—Sakti and Linga were found
intertwined mutually and this is the origin of Lingodbhavamoorti whom you
worship on Sivaratri night. In reality whom we are worshiping on this night is
Trinity and their domain and that is Sadguna Brahman as revealed to Lord Ganesha.
That is the Abhishekam you witness on Pedestal Lingams which is the
Vyakta-avyakta form of Sadguna Brahman and not Siva alone as is generally
thought to be.
Siva devotees rush to Amarnath on the holy Sraavana Poornima day in August to worship
Siva thinking that it is the most sacred and pure form of Siva
Linga. As you know Siva icons are always seen with white face (Siva, the white
skinned) unlike Vishnu who is dark faced (Vishnu, the blue skinned). Amarnath is situated at a height of 12730
feet in the Himalayas 87 miles from Srinagar. The cave of Amarnath lies up a
narrow gorge in the Liddar valley. The sacred river Amaraavati flows at the
root of the cave in whose waters a few very devout, sturdy and strong take a
dip. Inside the cave is the six foot Lingam of ice resting on a platform of
ice.
This natural phenomenon of drops of water shaping like a
Linga is remarkable. Amazingly it dwindles in size till on the New Moon Day
when the outline of the base of the Lingam alone remains on the pedestal. Thus
Saguna Brahman becomes Nirguna Brahman. It is on the Full Moon Day in the month of
Sravana (August) the Linga is at its maximum and crowds attending also the
maximum. It cannot be said to be a stalagmite, for in that freezing atmosphere
the stalagmite must increase in size and not get reduced while it vanishes
except for the platform. Science has no explanation! Siva and Vishnu complement
each other—Vishnu, the custodian of Sattva Guna is dark outside and white
inside while Siva custodian of Tamo-guna is white outside and dark inside.
Brahma is their inseparable companion as there can be no temple without a niche
for Brahma in the northern wall of the sanctums in all temples. All our
worships in reality are thus directed to Nirguna Brahman through the
manifestation of Saguna Brahman in Trinity form in all temples.
Our scriptures repeatedly proclaim that Brahma, Vishnu and
Siva are only the functional aspects of Easwara, the manifestation of one
Supreme Principle, who is all pervading and who has no name or form. The Rigveda says “Eko
sat vipraah bahudaa vadanti” (there is only one Almighty God whom the Pundits give several names). The
Naaraayan Sooktam which glorifies the Supreme Being ends with “Sa
Brahma, Sa Siva, Sa Harih, Sa Aksharah”
(he is himself
Brahma, Siva and Vishnu and everything eternal or AUM). The Mahabharata says “Visnum
Jishnum Mahavishnum praba Visnum Maheswarah” (The supreme Omnipotent Being pervading everywhere
is known as Mahavishnu and Maheswara and by various others names and forms).
The word Siva in the Sanskrit dictionary Amarakosa says as “Swah
sreyasam badram kalyanam mangalam
subham” meaning
Auspiciousness. It therefore refers to all Forms and Names of the Supreme. In
the various verses of Sivanadalahari of Sankara the Lord is addressed as Vibhuh meaning “All Pervading Entity”.
Akshar means AUm. AUM syllable consists of letter A standing for Adimata
(beginning), U standing for Utkrisha (progress) and M standing for Mritu
(dissolution). According to Mandookya Upanishad AUM with his half nasal sound
stands: A for wakeful state; U for dream state; M for Dreamles deep sleep state and nasal for Tureeeya
state the whole sound standing for Brhaman.
OUR CONCLUDING MANTRAS
FOR CONTEMPLATION
It is therefore fitting and proper that we should conclude
all our prayers contemplating on Trinity or Saguna Brahman directed to Nirguna
Brahman ultimately. The same mantras as in the contemplative worship of the
Supreme connected with Sandhyavandana (twilight devotion) are obligatory and appropriate to end all our
worship with meditation in Veda Maarga (path of Veda) mantra “antascharati
bhooteshu” like what we
do in Puranic prayer “Sarvam Krishnaarpanamastu”, with which we pray whatever may be our tradition—Siva, Vishnu or
Sakta in Bhakti Maarga (path of Devotion).
The first mantra for this meditation at the end of worship
is:
I. Om tabrahma | Om
tadvaayuh | Om tadaatmaa | Om tatsatyam
| Om tatsarvam | Om tatpurornamah ||
Om that is Brahman; Om that is Vaayu; Om that is the finite
self (Jeevaatma); Om that is the Supreme Truth; Om that is all; Om that is multitude of citadels (the bodies
of creatures. Obeisance to that Supreme! Om is that primeval cause that existed
before creation.
The syllable Om at the beginning of each word or phrase above
is for glorifying Paramaatman or Supreme Principal which echoes His
all-pervasive and all-inclusive nature.
Here by Vaayu element of air all the other four elements earth, water,
fire and space are also meant to whom we pay our obeisance during our worship
in all temples. Vaayu represents the power of the Supreme perceptible as
universal movement. The word Sarva stands for omniscient nature of the Supreme. The above mantra is
also said to be a shorter form of Gayatree Mantra.
The second mantra runs
as follows:
II. Om antascharati bhooteshu guhaayaam
viswamoortishu | tvam yajnastvam
vashtkaara-stvam indrastvam Rudrstvam
Vishnustvam Brahmaa tvam Prajaapatih || [That Supreme Being moves inside the
spiritual heart of all created beings possessing manifold forms. O Supreme!
Thou art the sacrifice; Thou art the Yajna mantra vashat, Thou art Indra, Thou
art Rudra, Thou art Vishnu, Thou art Brahmaa (the creator), Thou art the master
of all subjects! [This mantra is
prescribed also as Sarvaatmaka-brahmopasana
universal meditation on Brahman. All
entities other than that Supreme have Him as their inner-self and so all terms
signify Paramaatman alone in the ultimate analysis.
In the Andhra version of Mahanaaraayana
Upanishad this second mantra includes at the end the following taken from the long Gayatree
mantra:
This
mantra is added to the second Mantra in the Andhra Version of MNU:
III. Tvam tadaapa aapo jyotee raso
amritam brahma bhoorbhuvah suvarom ||
Thou
art That, Thou art the water in the rivers and the ocean, Thou art the Sun,
Thou art flavor, Thou art ambrosia, Thou art the body of the Vedas, thou art
the threefold world, Bhuh, Bhuvah and Suvah and Thou art Om.
It is recommended to use mantras I) and II) or mantras II)
and III) together. The first quarter here declares the Supreme described in I) above
is hidden in the Spiritual heart of all created beings in the various forms of
and the flora and fauna of the world. The second quarter is the direct address
to The Supreme. In Vedic fire sacrifice we often find the priests using the
words Swaha for divines and Swadha for pitrus (manes) while making the
offering. Vashat and hanta are also similar words employed in
fire offerings. Brahma, Vishnu and Siva, the Trinity here is ascribed to be
Brahman alone in Saguna form. The mantra also asserts all elements and other
facts of the world as Brahma alone. A devotee has to understand thereby that
there is nothing other than the Supreme and that everything has derived its
significance from the Supreme alone.
WORSHIP IN HINDU
AMERICAN TEMPLES
In American Hindu Temples it is the general practice to
conclude worship with the popular prayer in Bhajan form in Hindi, to
accommodate large gatherings of devotees drawn from the Hindi belt, Om Jaya Jagadeesa
Hare, a poetic composition of Pandit Sharadha Ram Phalluri of Punjab which
conveys the message somewhat contained in the Veda Mantra I) above. Probably he
was inspired by the Dasavatara Keerti Dhavalam contained in Geeta Govinda of
Jayadeva of 12th century. This is a prayer for singing loud like bhajan
singing. It does not have the powerful
intonation of Veda mantras and is not suitable for meditation which is
essential after participation in elaborate worship based on Bhakti Marga.
Mantra is something more than a prayer which does not influence the inner voice
and does not lead to spiritual
heights. That is why in Aaagama worship
such prayers and songs are not included or in fact not looked upon with favor.
PRAYER AND MEDITATION
The word Mantra is a combination of two Sanskrit words man and tra. Man means the mind,
our thinking faculty, and tra means
to emancipate. It is defined as Mananaat
traayate iti mantrah-- a word which emancipates the mind. When chanted with intonation it elevates the
mind to a spiritual concept of existence and helps it to settle in the Supreme
Principal. We feel the holy vibrations all around. Mantra Japa brings a change
in our thinking process. It leads us to
seek true happiness within our own self. It directs our attention towards our
inner treasure, which is the ultimate source of peace and happiness. Chanting
of a mantra is indeed a vehicle of spiritual illumination. It helps the person
to regulate, harmonize and bring the entire thinking faculty into certain
order. It enables the individual acquire an ability to grasp the mystic reality
through a very simple and effortless act (Saadhana). It is the special type of energy enclosed in a
primordial sound. Mantras are for
meditation. Swami Chinmayananda says, “When I pray, I talk, God listens; when I
meditate, God talks and I listen”.
Why Veda mantras cannot be replaced by loud prayers; we can’t
explain. It is a feeling that comes from within that God is talking to you when
you chant a mantra in the divine language. Saayana, the renowned Vedic sage therefore
prescribes the last mantra, combination of II) and III) for contemplative
worship of the Supreme. Our ultimate goal is to realize that Universal Oneness
and its pervasiveness in all beings. With this thinking we pay our final obeisance
to Supreme Being and the five elements in our act of temple worship. Though the prayer Jagadeesa Hare stresses on
Jagadeesaa (Universal Lord) and Antaryamin (inner controller) in its famous
composition and in essence echoes the Veda mantra, its effect is not felt the
same way as experienced in chanting the above Veda mantras. We all know why
Hindu Bhaktimarga worship is packed with so many Veda Mantras which were
powerfully employed by our sages in Vedic sacrificial form of worship (Yajna).
Followers of Bhakti Maarga (devotionl thoughts) are engrossed
in prayers while Spiritual Seekers of Jnaana Maarga in meditation. Articulated and emotional prayer is Bhajan. The
wise Statesman of India Rajaji has the following to say in this regard:
“When intelligence (jnana)
matures and lodges securely in the heart, it becomes wisdom (vignyana). When
that wisdom (vignyana) is integrated
with life and issues out in action, it becomes devotion (bhakti). Knowledge (jnana) which has become mature is spoken
of as devotion (bhakti). If it does
not get transformed into devotion (bhakti),
such knowledge (jnana) is useless tinsel”
(while introducing Bhajagovindam of M. S. Subbulakshmi to world audience).
HINDU SCRIPTURES ON
MANTRAS
T
he resplendent Self is attainable by the practice of
spiritual disciplines as truth and continence. The chanting of the mantra with
correct intonations itself is great spiritual discipline. Samayak varnaprayogena brahmaloke maheeyat--one who recites mantras
with intonations attains highest merit purifying his body and mind say Vedas.
The above mantras prescribed by Saayana for contemplation at the end of worship
are the most thrilling and spiritually gratifying mantras of Upanishads chanted
everyday by spiritual seekers. Fill up your mind with these mantras and feel
the difference between meditative mantra and devotional singing!
Bhagavageetaa echoes Upanishads and you can actually find
some mantras being repeated from Upanishads as slokas. Upanishads are AHSP of Vedas—Authority
Holding Sealed Particulars, that is Wisdom of Vedas. Bhagavadgeeta is a practical guide for implementation
of these particulars and not a wartime emergency document coming from a
battlefield as Krishnaarjuna samvaada-dialoggue between the Guru Krishna and
Arjuna the disciple. Bhagavadgeetaa concludes with the clear
mandate:
Sarvadharmaan parityajya
maamekam saranam vraja |
Aham tvam sarvapaapebhyo
mokshayishyaaami maa suchah ||
Resigning all Universal and Individual Laws of Dharma, seek
refuge in Me alone. I shall liberate
you from all sins. Do not grieve!
This is a command and divine assurance on its implementation
and not a mere statement. The seeker has to worry nothing more as he becomes
one with the Supreme if he follows Dharma. Here “Tadekam (That One)” of Rigveda has
become “Maamekam (Me Alone)” in
Bhagavadgeetaa as it was dramatically presented as a wartime document and as
dialogue between the charioteer Lord Krishna and his warrior Arjuna by
Vedavyasa. It is the master charioteer
who guides the fighter in his battle of conflicts and intrigues to succeed.
Whether we worship Pedestal Linga, Jyoti Linga or Snow Linga
in effect we are worshiping Saguna Brahman only and so also Vishnu who is
always equated as Narayana. It is therefore
appropriate and obligatory to contemplate on the Veda mantra “antascharati
bhooteshu” which Sayana
has suggested for all daylight worship in which the Sun and fire are addressed
as Brahman as well as obey the Geetaa’s command Maamekam, Me alone which is fully revealed in the mantra “antascharati
bhooteshu”
Medhatithi Sankaracharya in verse 11 of
Bhajagovindam, a philosophical rendering by Adisankara and his disciples
directs us to realize the glory of Vishnu as follows:
Tvayi mayi sarvatraiko
vishnur vyartham kupyaci mayyasahihnuh | sarvasminnapi pasyaatmaanam
sarvatrotsrija bhedajnaanam ||
Vishnu is there in me, in you and
in all others. Your anger and
intolerance are unwarranted. Please visualize
the same Self (Atman) in all beings. Leave all your thoughts of differences and
focus on Vishnu, The Omnipresent. (It is interesting to note that though a
staunch follower Siva he glorifies Vishnu as the Supreme Being. This signifies
all prayers are directed to Supreme
Being only).
Yoga –rato vaa bhoga-rato
vaa sanga-rato vaa sanga-viheenah |
Yasya brahmani ramate
chittam nandati nandati nandsyeva ||
--Anandagiri Sankaracharya in Bhajagovindam
One may be enjoying immersed in Yoga; one may be enjoying his
life as a householder; one may be
enjoying in a company ; or one mat be enjoying to himself alone in seclusion; all
this cannot match the one whom is enjoying
the company of Brahman—such a fortunate
one enjoys; enjoys and enjoys.
FINAL MEDITATION
Mantras
that blossoms our indomitable consciousness taking us to spiritual heights:
“Om Tad Brahma, Om tadvaayuh,
Om tadaatama, Om tatsatyam, om tat sarvam om tatpuror namah”
“Om antascharati bhooteshu guhaayaam
viswamoortishu | tvam yajnastvam Vashtkaara-stvam Indrastvam Rudrstvam
Vishnustvam Brahmaa tvam Prajaapatih | Tvam tadaapa aapo jyotee raso amritam
brahma bhoorbhuvah suvarom ||”
REFERENCES:
1.
Swami
Vimalananda, Mahaanaaraayana Upanishad, Ramakrishna Math, Chennai, India.
1.
2.
Ananta Rangacharya, Principal Upanishads, Bengaluru, India.
2.
Prabha
Duneja, Mantra and the Modern Man, Geeta
Society, Pleasanton, CA, USA.
3.
Mukundan
T.K., A Concept of Hinduism, Bharatiya Vidya Bhavan Mumbai, India
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