The Gayatri Mantra
The Gayatri is the most sacred of all Vaidik mantras. In it the Veda lies embodied as in its seed. It runs: Ong bhur bhuvah svah: tat savitur varenyam bhargo devasya dhimahi: dhiyo yo nah prachodayat. Om. “Ong. Let us contemplate the wondrous spirit of the Divine Creator (Savitri) of the earthly, atmospheric, and celestial spheres. May He direct our minds (that is, ‘towards’ the attainment of dharmma., artha, kama, and moksha), Om.”
The Gayatrt-Vyakarana of Yogi Yajnavalkya thus explains the following words: Tat, that. The word yat (which) is understood. Savituh is the possessive case of Savitri, derived from the root su, “to bring forth.” Savitri is, therefore, the Bringer-forth of all that exists. The Sun (Suryya) is the cause of all that exists, and of the state in which they exist. Bringing forth and creating all things, it is called Savitri. The Bhavishya Purana says Suryya is the visible Devata. He is the Eye of the world and the Maker of the day. There is no other Devata eternal like unto Him. This universe has emanated from, and will be again absorbed into, Him. Time is of and in Him. The planets, sta.rs, the Vasus. Rudras, Vayu, Agni, and the rest are but parts of Him. By Bhargah is meant the Aditya-devata, dwelling in the region of the Sun (suryya-mandala) in all His might and glory. He is to the Sun what our spirit (atma) is to our body. Though He is in the region of the sun in the outer or material sphere He also dwells in our inner selves. He is the light of the light in the solar circle, and is the light of the lives of all beings. As He is in the outer ether, so also is He in the ethereal region of the heart. In the outer ether He is Suryya, and in the inner ether He is the wonderful Light which is the Smokeless Fire. In short, that Being whom the sadhaka realizes in the region of his heart is the Aditya in the heavenly firmament. The two are one. The word is derived in two ways: (1) from the root bhrij, “to ripen, mature, destroy, reveal, shine.” In this derivation Suryya is He who matures and transforms all things. He Himself shines and reveals all things by His light. And it is He who at the final Dissolution (pralaya) will in His image of destructive Fire (kalagni) destroy all things. (2) From bha = dividing all things into different classes; ra = colour; for He produces the colour of all created objects; ga, constantly going and returning. The sun divides all things, produces the different colours of all things, and is constantly going and returning. As the Brahmana-sarvasva says: “The Bhargah is the Atma of all that exists, whether moving or motionless, in the three loka (Bhur bhuvah svah). There is nothing which exists apart from it.”
Devasya is the genitive of Deva, agreeing with Savituh. Deva is the radiant and playful (lilamaya) one. Suryya is in constant play with creation (srishti), existence (sthiti), and destruction (pralaya), and by His radiance pleases all. (Lila, as applied to the Brahman, is the equivalent of maya.) Varenyam = varaniya, or adorable. He should be meditated upon and adored that we may be relieved of the misery of birth and death. Those who fear rebirth, who desire freedom from death and liberation and who strive to escape the three kinds of pain (tapa-traya), which are adhyatmika, adhidaivika, and adhibhautika, meditate upon and adore the Bharga, who, dwelling in the region of the Sun, is Himself the three regions called Bhur-loka, Bhuvar-loka, and Svar-loka. Dhimahi = dhya-yema, from the root dhyai. We meditate upon, or let us meditate upon.
Prachodayat = may He direct. The Gayatri does not so expressly state, but it is understood that such direction is along the chatur-varga, or four-fold path, which is dharmma, artha, kama, and moksha (piety, wealth, desire and its fulfilment, and liberation, vide post). The Bhargah is ever directing our inner faculties (buddhi-vritti) along these paths.
The above is the Vaidika Gayatri, which, according to the Vaidik system, none but the twice-born may utter. To the Shudra whether man or woman, and to women of all other castes it is forbidden. The Tantra, which has Gayatri-Mantra of its own, shows no such exclusiveness; Chapter III., verses 109-111, gives the Brahma-gayatri for worshippers of the Brahman: “Parameshva-raya vidmahe para-tattvaya dhimahi: tan no Brahma prachodayat “(May we know the supreme Lord. Let us contemplate the Supreme essence. And may that Brahman direct us).
Yantra
This word in its most general sense means an instrument, or that by which anything is accomplished. In worship it is that by which the mind is fixed on its object. The Yogini Tantra says that the Devi should be worshipped either in pratima (image), mandala, or yantra. At a certain stage of spiritual progress the sadhaka is qualified to worship yantra. The siddha-yogi in inward worship (antar-puja) commences with the worship of yantra, which is the sign (sangketa) of brahma-vijnana as the mantra is the sangketa of the Devata. It is also said that yantra is so called because it subdues (niyantrana) lust, anger, and the other sins of jiva and the sufferings caused thereby.
This yantra is a diagram engraved or drawn on metal, paper, or other substances, which is worshipped in the same manner as an image (pratima). As different mantra are prescribed for different worships, so are different yantra. The yantras are therefore of various designs, according to the object of worship. The cover of this work shows a silver Gayatri yantra belonging to the author. In the centre triangle are engraved in the middle the words, Shri Shri Gayatri sva-prasada siddhing kuru (“Shri Shri Gayatri Devi: grant me success”), and at each inner corner there are the vija Hring and Hrah. In the spaces formed by the intersections of the outer ovoid circles is the vija “Hring.” The outside circular band contains the vija “Tha” which indicates “Svaha,” commonly employed to terminate the feminine mantra or vidya. The eight lotus petals which spring from the band are inscribed with the vija, “Hring, Ing, Hrah.” The outermost band contains all the matrika, or letters of the alphabet, from ankara to laksha. The whole is enclosed in the way common to all yantra by a bhupura, by which, as it were, the yantra is enclosed from the outer world. The yantra when inscribed with mantra, serves (so far as these are concerned) the purpose of a mnemonic chart of the mantra appropriate to the particular Devata whose presence is to be invoked into the yantra. Certain preliminaries precede, as in the case of a pratima, the worship of a yantra. The worshipper first meditates upon the Devata, and then arouses Him or Her in himself. He then communicates the divine presence thus aroused to the yantra. When the Devata has by the appropriate mantra been invoked into the yantra, the vital airs (prana) of the Devata are infused therein by the prana-pratishtha ceremony, mantra, and mudra. The Devata is thereby installed in the yantra, which is no longer mere gross matter veiling the spirit which has been always there, but instinct with its aroused presence, which the sadhaka first welcomes and then worships. Mantra in itself is Devata, and yantra is mantra in that it is the body of the Devata who is mantra.
Mudra
The term mudrais derived from the root mud, “to please,” and in its upasana form is so called because it gives pleasure to the Devas. Devanang moda-da mudra tasmat tang yatnatashcharet. It is said that there are 108, of which 55 are commonly used. The term means ritual gestures made with the hands in worship or positions of the body in yoga practice. Thus of the first class the matsya – (fish) mudra is formed in offering arghya by placing the right hand on the back of the left and extending, fin-like, on each side the two thumbs, with the object that the conch which contains water may be regarded as an ocean with aquatic animals; and the yoni-mudra which presents that organ as a triangle formed by the thumbs, the two first fingers, and the two little fingers is shown with the object of invoking the Devi to come and take Her place before the worshipper, the yoni being considered to be Her pitha or yantra. The upasana mudra is thus nothing but the outward expression of inner resolve which it at the same time intensifies. Mudra are employed in worship (archchana) japa, dhyana (q.v.), kamya-karma (rites done to effect particular objects), pratishtha (q.v.), snana (bathing), avahana (welcoming), naivedya (offering of food), and visarjana, or dismissal of the Devata. Some mudra of hatha yoga are described sub voc. “Yoga.” The Gheranda Sanghita says that knowledge of the yoga mudras grants all siddhi, and that their performance produces physical benefits such as stability, firmness and cure of disease.
Sandhya
The Vaidika sandhya is the rite performed by the twice-born castes thrice a day, at morning, midday, and evening. The morning sandhya is preceded by the following acts. On awakening, a mantra is said in invocation of the Tri-murtti and the sun, moon, and planets, and salutation is made to the Guru. The Hindu dvi-ja then recites the miantra: “I am a Deva. I am indeed the sorrowless Brahman. By nature I am eternally free, and in the form of existence, intelligence, and Bliss.” He then offers the actions of the day to the Deity, confesses his inherent frailty, and prays that he may do right. Then, leaving his bed and touching the earth with his right foot, the dvi-ja says, “Om, 0 Earth! salutation to Thee, the Guru of all that is good.” After attending to natural calls, the twice-born does achamana (sipping of water) with mantra, cleanses his teeth, and takes his early morning bath to the accompaniment of mantra. He then puts on his caste-mark (tilaka) and makes tarpanam, or oblation of water, to the Deva, Rishi, and Pitri. The sandhya follows, which consists of achamana (sipping of water), marjjana-snanam (sprinkling of the whole body with water taken with the hand or kasha-grass), pranayama (regulation of prana through its manifestation in breath), agha-marshana (expulsion of the person of sin from the body; the prayer to the sun, and then (the canon of the sandhya) the silent recitation (japa) of the Gayatn mantra, which consists of invocation (avahana) of the Gayatri-Devi; rishi-nyasa and shadanga-nyasa (vide post), meditation on the Devi-Gayatri in the morning as Brahmani; at midday as Vaishnavi; and in the evening as Rudrani; japa of the Gayatri a specified number of times; dismissal (visarjana) of the Devi, followed by other mantra.
Besides the Brahmanical Vaidiki-sandhya from which the Shudras are debarred, there is the Tantriki-sandhya, which may be performed by all. The general outline is similar; the rite is simpler; the mantra vary; and the Tantrika-vijas or “seed” mantras are employed.
Puja
This word is the common term for worship of which there are numerous synonyms in the Sanskrit language. Puja is done daily of the Ishta-devata or the particular Deity worshipped by the sadhaka – the Devi in the case of a Shakti, Vishnu in the case of a Vaishnava, and so forth. But though the Ishta-devata is the principal object of worship, yet in puju all worship the Pancha-devata, or the Five Deva – Aditya (the Sun), Ganesha, the Devi, Shiva, and Vishnu, or Narayana. After worship of the Pancha-devata, the family Deity (Kula-devata), who is generally the same as the Ishta-devata, is worshipped. Puja, which is kamya, or done to gain a particular end as also vrata, are preceded by the sangkalpa; that is, a statement of the resolution to do the worship, as also of the particular object, if any, with which it is done.
There are sixteen upachara, or things done or used in puja: (1) asana (seat of the image); (2) svagata (welcome); (3) padya (water for washing the feet); (4) arghya (offering of unboiled rice, flowers, sandal paste, durva grass, etc., to the Devata in the kushi) (vessel); (5 and 6) achamana (water for sipping, which is offered twice); (7) madhuparka (honey, ghee, milk, and curd offered in a silver or brass vessel); (8) snana (water for bathing); (9) vasana (cloth); (10) abharana (jewels); (11) gandha (scent and sandal paste is given); (12) pushpa (flowers); (13) dhupa (incense stick); (14) dipa (light); (15) naivedya (food); (16) vandana or namas-kara (prayer). Other articles are used which vary with the puja, such as Tulasi leaf in the Vishnu-puju and bael-(bilva) leaf in the Shiva-puja. The mantras said also vary according to the worship. The seat (asana) of the worshipper is purified. Salutation being made to the Shakti of support or the sustaining force (adhara-shakti); the water, flowers, etc., are purified. All obstructive spirits are driven away (Bhutapasarpana), and the ten quarters are fenced from their attack by striking the earth three times with the left foot, uttering the Astra vija “phat,” and by snapping the fingers (twice) round the head. Pranayama (regulation of breath) is performed and (vide post) the elements of the body are purified (bhuta-shuddhi). There is nyasa (vide post); dhyana (meditation) offering of the upachara; japa (vide post), prayer and obeisance (pranama). In the ashta-murti-puja of Shiva the Deva is worshipped under the eight forms: Sharvva (Earth), Bhava (Water), Rudra (Fire), Ugra (Air), Bhima (Ether), Pashupati (yajamana – the Sacrificer man), Ishana (Sun), Mahadeva (Moon).
Yajna
This word, which comes from the root yaj (to worship), is commonly translated “sacrifice.” The Sanskrit word is, however, retained in the translation, since Yajna means other things also than those which come within the meaning of the word “sacrifice,” as understood by an English reader. Thus the “five great sacrifices” (pancha-maha-yajna) which should be performed daily by the Brahmana are: The homa sacrifice, including Vaishva-deva offering, “bhuta-yajna or vali, in which offerings are made to Deva, Bhuta, and other Spirits and to animals; pitri-yajna or tarpana, oblations to the pitri; Brahma-yajna, or study of the Vedas and Manushyayajna, or entertainment of guests (atithisaparyya). By these five yajna the worshipper places himself in right relations with all being, affirming such relation between Deva, Pitri, Spirits, men, the organic creation, and himself.
Homa, or Deva-yajna, is the making of offerings to Fire. which is the carrier thereof to the Deva. A firepit (kunda) is prepared and fire when brought from the house of a Brahmana is consecrated with mantra. The fire is made conscious with the mantra – Vang vahni-chaitanyaya namah, and then saluted and named. Meditation is then made on the three nadis (vide ante) – Ida, Pingala, and Sushumna – and on Agni, the Lord of Fire. Offerings are made to the Ishta-devata in the fire. After the puja of fire, salutation is given as in Shadanga-nyasa, and then clarified butter (ghee) is poured with a wooden spoon into the fire with mantra, commencing with Om and ending with Svaha. Homa is of various kinds, several of which are referred to in the text, and is performed either daily, as in the case of the ordinary nitya-vaishva-deva-homa, or on special occasions, such as the upanayana or sacred thread ceremony, marriage, vrata, and the like. It is of various kinds, such as prayashchitta-homa, srishtikrit-homa, janu homa, dhara-homa, and others, some of which will be found in the text.
Besides the yajna mentioned there are others. Manu speaks of four kinds: deva, bhauta (where articles and ingredients are employed, as in the case of homa, daiva, vali), nriyajna, and pitri-yajna. Others are spoken of, such as japa-yajna, dhyana-yajna, etc. Yajna are also classified according to the dispositions and intentions of the worshipper into sattvika, rajasika, and tamasika yajna.
Vrata
Vrata is a part of Naimittika, or voluntary karma. It is that which is the cause of virtue (punya), and is done to achieve its fruit. Vrata are of various kinds. Some of the chief are Janmashtami on Krishna’s birthday; Shiva-ratri in honour of Shiva; and the Shat-panchami, Durvashtami, Tala-navami. Ananta-chaturdashi performed at specified times in honour of Lakshmi, Narayana, and Ananta. Others may be performed at any time, such as the Savitri vrata by women only, and the Karttikeya-puja by men only. The great vrata is the celebrated Durga-puja, maha-vrata in honour of the Devi as Durga, which will continue as long as the sun and moon endure, and which, if once commenced, must always be continued. There are numerous other vrata which have developed to a great extent in Bengal, and for which there is no Shastric authority such as Madhu-sankranti-vrata, Jala-sankranti-vrata, and others. While each vrata has its peculiarities, certain features are common to vrata of differing kinds. There is both in preparation and performance sangyama, such as sexual continence, eating of particular food, such as havishyanna, fasting, bathing. No flesh or fish are taken. The mind is concentrated to its purposes, and the vow or resolution (niyama) is taken. Before the vrata the Sun, Planets, and Kula-devata are worshipped, and by the “suryahsomoyamahkala” mantra all Deva and Beings are invoked to the side of the worshipper. In the vaidika vrata the sangkalpa is made in the morning, and the vrata is done before midday.
Tapas
This term is generally translated as meaning penance or austerities. It includes these, such as the four monthly fast (chatur-masya), the sitting between five fires (pancha-gnitapah), and the like. It has, however, also a wider meaning, and in this wider sense is of three kinds, namely, sharira, or bodily; vachika, by speech; manasa, in mind. The first includes external worship, reverence, and support given to the Guru, Brahmanas, and the wise (prajna), bodily cleanliness, continence, simplicity of life and avoidance of hurt to any being (a-hingsa). The second form includes truth, good, gentle, and affectionate speech, and the study of the Vedas. The third or mental tapas in-cludes self-restraint, purity of disposition, silence, tranquillity, and silence. Each of these classes has three subdivisions, for tapas may be sattvika, rajasika, or tamasika, according as it is done with faith, and without regard to its fruit; or for its fruit; or is done through pride and to gain honour and respect; or, lastly, which is done ignorantly or with a view to injure and destroy others, such as the sadhana of the Tantrika-shat-karma, when performed for a malevolent purpose (abhichara).
Japa
Japa is defined as “vidhanena mantrochcharanam,” or the repeated utterance or recitation of mantra according to certain rules. It is according to the Tantra-sara of three kinds: Vachika or verbal japa, in which the mantra is audibly recited, the fifty matrika being sounded nasally with vindu; Upangshu-japa, which is superior to the last kind, and in which the tongue and lips are moved, but no sound, or only a slight whisper, is heard; and, lastly, the highest form which is called manasa-japa, or mental utterance. In this there is neither sound nor movement of the external organs, but a repetition in the mind which is fixed on the meaning of the mantra. One reason given for the differing values attributed to the several forms is that where there is audible utterance the mind thinks of the words and the process of correct utterance, and is therefore to a greater (as in the case of vachika-japa), or to a less degree (as in the case of upangshu-japa), distracted from a fixed attention to the meaning of the mantra. The japa of different kinds have also the relative values attachable to thought and its materialization in sound and word. Certain conditions are prescribed as those under which japa should be done, relating to physical cleanliness, the dressing of the hair, and wearing of silk garments, the seat (asana), the avoidance of certain conditions of mind and actions, and the nature of the recitation. The japa is useless unless done a specified number of times – of which 108 is esteemed to be excellent. The counting is done either with a mala or rosary (mala-japa), or with the thumb of the right hand upon the joints of the fingers of that hand (kara-japa). The method of counting in the latter case may differ according to the mantra.
Sangskara
There are ten (or, in the case of Shudras, nine) purificatory ceremonies, or “sacraments,” called sangskara, which are done to aid and purify the jiva in the important events of his life. These are jiva-sheka, also called garbhadhana-ritu-sangskara, performed after menstruation, with the object of insuring and sanctifying conception. The garbhadhana ceremony takes place in the daytime on the fifth day, and qualifies for the real garbhadhana at night – that is, the placing of the seed in the womb. It is preceded on the first day by the ritu-sangskara which is mentioned in Chapter IX. of the text. After conception and during pregnancy, the pung-savana and simantonnayana rites are performed; the first upon the wife perceiving the signs of conception, and the second during the fourth, sixth, or eighth month of pregnancy.
In the ante-natal life there are three main stages, whether viewed from the objective (physical) standpoint, or from the subjective (super-physical) standpoint. The first period includes on the physical side all the structural and physiological changes which occur in the fertilized ovum from the moment of fertilization until the period when the embryonic body, by the formation of trunk, limbs, and organs, is fit for the entrance of the individualized life, or jivatma. When the pronuclear activity and differentiation are completed, the jivatma, whose connection with the pronuclei initiated the pro-nuclear or formative activity, enters the miniature human form, and the second stage of growth and de-velopment begins. The second stage is the fixing of the connection between the jiva and the body, or the rendering of the latter viable. This period includes all the anatomical and physiological modifications by which the embryonic body becomes a viable fœtus. With the attainment of viability, the stay of the jiva has been assured; physical life is possible for the child, and the third stage in ante-natal life is entered. Thus, on the form side, if the language of comparative embryology is used, the first sangskara denotes the impulse to development, from the “fertilization of the ovum” to the “critical period.” The second sangskara denotes the impulse to development from the “critical period” to that of the “viability stage of the fœtus “; and the third sangskara denotes the development from “viability” to “full term.”
On the birth of the child there is the jata-karma, performed for the continued life of the new-born child. Then follows the nama-karana, or naming ceremony, and nishkramana in the fourth month after delivery, when the child is taken out of doors for the first time and shown the sun, the vivifying source of life, the material embodiment of the Divine Savita. Between the fifth and eighth month after birth the annaprasana ceremony is observed, when rice is put in the child’s mouth for the first time. Then follows the chuda-karana, or tonsure ceremony; and in the case of the first three, or “twice-born” classes, upanayana, or investiture with the sacred thread. Herein the jiva is reborn into spiritual life. There is, lastly, udvaha, or marriage, whereby the unperfected jiva insures through offspring that continued human life which is the condition of its progress and ultimate return to its Divine Source. These are all described in the Ninth Chapter of this Tantra. There are also ten sangskara of the mantra (q.v.). The sangskara are intended to be performed at certain stages in the development of the human body, with the view to effect results beneficial to the human organism. Medical science of to-day seeks to reach the same results, but uses for this purpose the physical methods of modern Western science, suited to an age of materiality; whereas in the sangskara the super-physical (psychic, or occult, or metaphysical and subjective) methods of ancient Eastern science are employed. The sacraments of the Catholic Church and other of its ceremonies, some of which have now fallen into disuse, are Western examples of the same psychic method.
