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Mantra Japam – Right ways

Mantra Japam – Doing it Right way

Everyone of us chooses some mantras or receive certainly from the gurus, parents, friends etc. We start meditating upon the same and expect various results from it. It can be moksha to specific material gains.

Any mantra be it Namaskara mantra or Bija mantras should be done in a prescribed way as per shastras. Any mantra sidhi contains 4 steps

1. Mantra Japa
2. Deva Tarpana
3. Homam
4. Annadana

Be it any benefit we are looking for one needs to follow these 4 steps.

Homam can be purely optional. In earlier days Ichāgnihotra used to exist & it was practiced daily at homes by the sadhakas by offering clarified butter/Ghee to the Agni by reciting the Japa mantras.This is upto ones willingness to perform, having said everyone can do Ichagnihotra

How should a sadhaka live ?

A sadhaka before having chosen a mantra japa vidhana should practice a lifestyle which is most preferable for the process.

1. Eat less – prefer ekabhukti
2. Talk less – Mitha Bhaashinam
3. Sleep on Floor – Bhu Shayan
4. Trikaran Shudhi practice

Mantra Japas have different hours in a day dedicated for the sadhna. Most of them are preferred to be done in the morning times some even before sunrise. Nitya puja to kuladevata & Simhasan bhagwans is a must followed by japa and tarpanas & homam should be done.

How a mantra Japa is done Ideally?

Mantra japa should start with āchaman, Guru Vandana, then pancha / shodas upachara puja to the Bhagwaan whose mantra is chanted & then start the japa. Japam count per day depends on the sidhi requirement of the mantra.

Avoid talking, moving from the place, giving breaks for other works, leaning to the wall (unless Physically can’t support). Chant the mantra in manomaya I.e only heard to ur self with a lip moment. Use a japa maala with a meru bead. Do not cross Meru bead , which is guru bead.

Reverse your mala again and continue the Japa. Any mantra japa count per day needs to be finished in one shot. Some can be done divided in the morning and evening provided one needs to fast and keep the body accordingly compatible for mantra japa for whole day.

What is Tarpanam?

Tarpanam is 1/10 th count of per day japa calculated and used for offering water oblations to the Bhagwaan to satisfy them(prasannata). These tarpanams are 3 types Deva, Rishi & Pitru. We use Deva tarpanam for our mantra japam. One should not miss this step.

Take water in a copper vessel (not the one used for aachaman) and add sugandhit dravya ( elaichi, pinch of haldi & kumkum, one flower & Edible camphor ) to it. Mix well & keep it aside before starting the japa puja. Eg: 1/10 of 108 = ~11 is used for tarpanam.

Use the mantra ( Eg. Om Namah Shivaya is mantra, then take a spoon full of water into the palm and hold the water and chant Om Namah Shivaya Tarpayami Namaha ) and leave the water into plate through the ring & middle finger tips. So it looks we are offering water to the bhagwan.

Don’t use a stream of water to do this. One has to hold the water in hand while chanting mantra and then pour water after the chant. Strictly. Once finished, take the water 3 times as Teertham( Holy water) while taking it palm shouldn’t touch upper lip( same with aachaman too)

Sprinkle some water on self and then pour the extra water into any flowering plant or green tree. Avoid plants with only thorns(cactus) etc. One gets the full benefits of mantra japam after taking this water as aachaman.

Ichāgnihotra as per your convenience. There is a complete self guide on this website given by @mmpandit Ji and his team clearly on how to perform. All the Devta agnihotra procedures are mentioned here please refer.

Homam Manuals
vedicastrologer.org/homa/download.…

Importance
vedicastrologer.org/homa/homa_why.…

Demo

Homam can be done daily or periodically or in the end of the entire japam after the total count. Any japa should be done for atleast a mandala. Annadana is totally upto your affordability to do it periodically or do it once the sidhi is attained I.e finish the count entirely.

Note : Mantras done for Moksha 24/7 don’t need Tarpana. Just 3 arghyas to the bhagwaan would be enough since the count is not standard 🙏🏼

Tulsidasji writing the Sri Ramcharitmanas in Awadhi

Wishing you a very Happy #RamNavami.

Story behind Tulsidasji writing the Sri Ramcharitmanas in Awadhi :

On the command of Hanumanji, Tulsidasji went to Kashi and stayed at a Brahmin’s house. There, at Prahladghat, he began writing the Ramayana in Sanskrit. 1/8.

As per Mūla Gosāīm̐ Carita, Chaupais of Doha 37

In the daytime how much ever he would write, would get erased at night. This incident happened everyday and he didn’t understand what to do.

Then finally on the 8th day Lord Shiva came in his dream telling him to write the story in his own language.

Tulsidasji at once got up with the words of the dream echoing in his heart.

At that moment Lord Shiva and Devi Parvati appeared and Tulsidasji bowed down to them with his eight limbs. Lord Shiva said, “Write this poem in your own language and don’t go behind the language of the gods. Do what will be beneficial to others and leave the old tradition.

Go to Awadh and write your story there. With my blessings your poem will be as fruitful as the Sama and Richa (Rigvedic verse).”

Saying this Lord Shiva disappeared and Tulsidasji headed for Awadh.

Since Tulsidasji was a Sarayūpārīṇa Brahmin, who are found in the Awadh region, ‘his language’ was Awadhi. Oh well then following the orders of Lord Shiva, Tulsidasji writes his story in his ‘own language’, Awadhi and alludes to this in the Balakand of the Ramcharitmanas:

Despite a black cow being so, her milk is still is very beneficial and thinking this people drink it. In the same way despite being in the rural language, smart people still sing and hear this story of Sri Sitaramji-

Doha 10

The Mūla Gosāīm̐ Carita is the most widely referred biography of Tulsidasji, written by a disciple called Venimadhav.

Image : Hanuman Carrying the Mountain of Medicinal Herbs (left); Rama Battles Ravana (right).

Meaning of ‘shrI vidyA’

Sri Vidya is a Shakta sect which believes that the goddess Lalita Tripurasundari is supreme.

One of the most important texts of the Sri Vidya sect is the Lalita Sahasranamam, found in the Lalita Mahatmya of the Brahmanda Purana.

The guru parampara of Sri Vidya consists of broadly 3 sections or “ogha” which literally means “flock” or “groups”.

First is the Divyaugha (divine or celestial beings including gods and devatas)

Second is Siddhaugha (extra ordinary beings including rishis, saints)

Third is mAnavaugha (human beings from which human paramparA continues)

‘shrI’ vidyA – is a combination of two words – shrI and vidyA. It is a popular misconception that the word ‘shrI’ is a title which is added to vidyA like shrI rama shrI krishna etc. Just as brahma vidyA is the knowledge of brahman, shrI vidyA is the knowledge of ‘SHRI’

We will discuss about it more in coming days.

@threadreaderapp unroll

When Madhu and Kaitabha stole vedas

The story happens in each different Kalpa in a different way. Bhagavata, telling us the lore from the Saraswata Kalpa, tells us that Madhu & Kaitabha stole the Vedas, and Hayagreeva avatar had to retrieve them. However, Markandeya, telling us the lores from a Kalpa older than Rathantara Kalpa (perhaps older, perhaps newer, who knows!) does not refer to theft of the Vedas – but only that Madhu & Kaitabha tormented Brahma no to end, and Vishnu fought them in His own form – not in Hayagreeva avatar form.

Interesting is to observe the contrast between the 2 parts of the Bhagavata purana – Shreemad Bhagavatam and Devi Bhagavatam. While the storyline mentioned above is in Shreemad Bhagavatam, the Devi Bhagavatam counterpart narrates it as – Hayagreeva avatar was taken by Vishnu to destroy Hayagreeva asura, because of a special boon received by the asura. And this is the asura who had stolen the Vedas from Brahma. I had narrated this lore here earlier: https://twitter.com/_ichat/status/1310677045223895041?s=20

Stealing of Vedas, and retrieval by Vishnu is also repeated in the story of Matsya avatar, where it was Hiranyaksha who stole the Vedas. And sometimes, the same lore is attributed to asura Hayagreeva – but this time, defeated by Matsya avatar.

There are more variations. As I said, each Kalpa has a variation. Hence puranas offer the same variation back to us.

Coming back to the “forms” of the Vedas, well, it’s an interesting question. The pictures often show that there are 4 child like forms taken up by the Vedas, which are rescued by Vishnu. However, if you link this back to the way the Vedas were stolen (they escaped through the yawns of Brahma), you may be able to establish only 3 Vedas (Rik, Saam, Yajur) – and not 4. Atharva-veda was realised later, approved by Shiva, contested heavily for authenticity by Sanatkumaras, and finally incorporated into the corpus as the 4th Veda. But then again, we also have lores talking about 4 faces of Brahma linked with 4 Vedas. Complex context. Who knows the real truth?

When this question was asked – it made me think. And I focused on the meta-information on the 4 Vedas. What uniquely identifies, isolates, and yet connects them all?

Rik – the rhythm – chhanda

Saam – the tune – sur

Yajur – the meaning – jnan

Atharva – the power – mantra

Altogether, they are complete. Altogether, they are the seal of absolute authority.

Can, then, they be imagined in humanoid forms? Well, at the edge of my vision, maybe I just can see the shapes. But words fail me. Probably, that’s how it is supposed to be! 🙂

Adhyatmika, Adhidaivika and Adhibhautika

Sorrow and suffering (duhkha, tapa) are inevitable in life. In fact, they are a part of life.A knowledge of their origin, causes and even categorisation helps one to minimise their effect if not eradicate them. The Hindu religious works usually call them ‘tapatraya’Tapatraya: ‘the three miseries’. They are: adhyatmika, adhidaivika and adhibhautika.

The adhyatmika duhkha or tapa is that which is caused by bodily suffering and mental anguish.Hereditary diseases like leprosy, disabilities like blindness or lameness and diseases caused by the violation of the rules of health and sanitation are classed under this.

The mental agony caused by worries and anxieties, attachment and aversion, also comes under this group.The adhidaivika duhkha or tapa is that which is caused by daiva. The word daiva includes the power of time, nature and the unseen hand of fate.Diseases caused by the changing seasons, misery caused by the elemental forces like floods and fire, suffering caused by black magic or gods who are displeased, natural tribulations due to hunger, thirst and old-age belong to this group.The adhibhautika duhkha or tapa is that which is caused by other bhutas or living beings, like wild animals, snakes or enemies.

Some of these, like hereditary diseases or physical disabilities cannot be got rid of. Hence they must be endured.Some like the diseases caused by change of seasons or the machinations of enemies can be countered by taking appropriate precautions.However, raising the mind to the level of the spirit, thus transcending the limitations imposed by the body-mind complex, is the best solution to offset the effects of tapatraya.

Source : A Concise Encyclopedia of Hinduism by Swami Harshananda