Saraswati Puja

Saraswati is the consort of Lord Brahma and is the Goddess of Wisdom and Knowledge. She is the personification of knowledge - arts, science, crafts. She represents Shakti, creativity and inspiration and presents herself when the weather is pleasant and Nature is in its full grandeur. Saraswati Puja, the ritual worship of the goddess Saraswati, is done on Vasant Panchami day every year. The festival is celebrated to pay obeisance to Saraswati, the goddess of knowledge and learning.

Sri Saraswati ShatanAma Stotram (108 names):

sarasvatI mahAbhadrA mahAmAyA varapradA
shrIpradA padmanilayA padmAkShI padmavaktragA
shivAnujA pustakadhR^it j~nAnamudrA ramA parA
kAmarUpA mahAvidyA mahApAtakanAshinI
mahAshrayA mAlinI cha mahAbhogA mahAbhujA
mahAbhAgA mahotsAhA divyA~NgA surava.nditA
mahAkAlI mahApAshA mahAkArA mahA~NkushA
sItA cha vimalA vishvA vidyunmAlA cha vaiShNavI
cha.ndrikA cha.ndravadanA cha.ndralekhAvibhUShitA
sAvitrI surasA devI divyAla.nkArabhUShitA
vAgdevI vasudhA tIvrA mahAbhadrA mahAbalA
bhogadA bhAratI bhAmA govi.ndA gomatI shivA
jaTilA vi.ndhyavAsA cha vi.ndhyAchalavirAjitA
cha.nDikA vaiShNavI brAhmI brahmaj~nAnaikasAdhanA
saudAminI sudhAmUrtissubhadrA surapUjitA
suvAsinI sunAsA cha vinidrA padmalochanA
vidyArUpA vishAlAkShI brahmajAyA mahAphalA
trayImUrtI trikAlaj~nA triguNA shAstrarUpiNI
shuMbhAsurapramathinI shubhadA cha sarvAtmikA
raktabIjaniha.ntrI cha chAmuNDA chAMbikA tathA
muNDakAya praharaNA dhUmralochanamardanA
sarvadevastutA saumyA surAsuranamaskR^itA
kAlarAtrI kalAdhArA rUpa saubhAgyadAyinI
vAgdevI cha varArohA vArAhI vArijAsanA
chitrAMbarA chitraga.ndhA chitramAlyavibhUShitA
kA.ntA kAmapradA va.ndyA vidyAdharA sUpUjitA
shvetAsanA nIlabhujA chaturvargaphalapradA
chaturAnanasAmrAjyA raktamadhyA nira.njanA
ha.nsAsanA nIlaja~NghA brahmaviShNushivAtmikA

evaM sarasvatI devyA nAmnAmaShTottarashatam.h iti shrI sarasvatyaShTottarashatanAmastotram sampUrNam


Sarasvathee namasthubhyam varadae kaamaroopinee

Vidyaarambam karishyaami siddhirbhavathumae sadaa

Yaa daevee sthooyathae nithyam vibudairvedapaaragaihsaa mae vasathu jihvaagrae brahmaroopa sarasvathee

Sree vidyaroopini sarasvathi sakala kalaavalli chaaru bimbhaadharee

s(h)aradaa devi s(h)asthravalli veenaa pusthaka dharinee vanee kamala paanee vaagdevee varadaayaki pusthaka hasthae namasthae

Yaa devee sarva bhoothaeshu smruthi roopaena samsthithaa

Namasthasyai namasthasyai namasthasyai namo nama:

Yaa kundendu thushaara haara davalaa yaa s(h)ubra vasthraavruthaa

Yaa veena varadanda mandithakaraa yaas(h)wetha padmaasanaa

Yaabrahmaachyutha s(h)ankara prabrithibhih daevaih sadaa poojithaasaamaam paathu sarasvathi nisaesha jaadyaapahaa 

Om Sri Saraswatyai namah

Triveni Sangam

Triveni Sangam is the confluence of three rivers (Ganga, Yamuna and the legendary Saraswati River) near Allahabad, India. The Triveni Sangam in Allahabad is a confluence of 2 rivers, the Ganga, Yamuna. Of these three, the river Saraswati is invisible and is said to flow underground and join the other two rivers from below. The point of confluence is a sacred place for Hindus. A bath here is said to wash away all one's sins and free one from the cycle of rebirth. The sight of the Sangam is a treat to the eyes. One can see the muddy and pale-yellow waters of Ganga merging with the blue waters of Yamuna. The Ganga is only 4 feet deep, while Yamuna is 40 feet deep near the point of their nexus. The river Yamuna merges into the Ganges at this point and the Ganges continues on until it meets the sea at the Bay of Bengal. At the confluence of these two great Indian rivers, where the invisible Saraswati conjoins them, many tirtha yatris take boats to bathe from platforms erected in the Sangam. This, together with the migratory birds give a picturesque look to the river during the kumbh, in the month of January. It is believed that all the gods come in human form to take a dip at the sangam and expiate their sins.
The Triveni Sangam is believed to be the same place where drops of Nectar fell from the pitcher, from the hands of the Gods. So it is believed that a bath in the Sangam will wash away all one's sins and will clear the way to heaven. Devout Hindus from all over India come to this sacred pilgrimage point to offer prayers and take a dip in the holy waters. The sacred Kumbh Mela is held every 12 years on the banks of the Sangam. According to myth, the Prakrista Yajna was performed here by Lord Brahma. That is how Allahabad received its ancient name, Prayag. Allahabad is also called Tirtha-Raja (Prayag Raj), king of all holy places. It is said that Lord Rama visited Allahabad when he was in exile.
Sangam means confluence, a meeting point of two or more rivers, a place where diverse cultures meet and flow together, a place where people of different origins, different cultures merge into one whole combined identity.

Native American Indian Prayer

Oh, Great Spirit
Whose voice I hear in the winds and whose breath gives life to all the world.
Hear me.
I am a man before you, one of your many children -
I am small and weak. I need your strength and wisdom.
Let me walk in beauty and make my eyes ever behold the red and purple sunset.

Make my hands respect the things you have made, my ears sharp to hear your voice.
Make me wise,
so that I may know the things you have taught my people -
the lesson you have hidden in every leaf and rock.

I seek strength not to be superior to my brothers,
but to be able to fight my greatest enemy - myself.
Make me ever ready to come to you
with clean hands and straight eyes,
so when life fades as a fading sunset
my spirit may come to you without shame.

Meru yantra

Mount Meru (Sanskrit: मेरु) (also called Sumeru i.e the "great Meru") is a sacred mountain in Hindu, Buddhist cosmology, and Jain mythology considered to be the center of all physical and spiritual universes.
The Iranians claim that the Aryans came from Mount Hara. Har is another name of Shiva, who has His abode in this mountain. Some beliefs, local to that area of the Himalayas, associate mythical Mount Meru with a mountain called Kailasa near the Lake Manasarovar in Tibet,which can be traced to some later layers of Mahabharata.
For the equivalent central mountain in Buddhist cosmology, see Sumeru.
The Meru Chakra or Sri Chakra is a three-dimensional Shri Yantra, the embodiment of Sri Lakshmi (abundance) and Tripura Sundari (beauty). It is the yantra of Sri Vidya, sacred knowledge of the Goddess. It can also be seen as the unification of Masculine Divine and Feminine Divine: Shiva and Shakti, Lakshmi and Narayana, Purusha and Prakriti.
The Shri Yantra consists of triangles arranged in five levels around the center. The Meru Chakra has these same levels arranged in different heights, with the centermost level the highest. The Meru is the three dimensions of the Sri Chakra. If we returned to the two dimension Sri Chakra, and imagine that the bindu in its center is the peak of a mountain. The imagine that the mountain is built up in tiers, each tier being one of the circles of triangles or lotus petals, with the outermost square representing ground level. Now, imagine a vertical spine down the center of the mountain, then at each point that the spine and a tier intersect, there is a chakra. The peak represents Mount Meru, abode of the Gods.

The Basics of Sri Yantra:
Before starting the worship it is advisable to know about the way the Sri Yantra is constructed, what all it represents, about the 9 Avaranas, the deities, their gunas and significance, so that your worship is more meaningful. The following are the authentic details as given in various Tantra & Mantra scriptures.
Five downward pointing triangles representing Devi intersect with four upward pointing triangles representing Siva, forming 43 triangles including the central triangle.
From the five Shakti triangles comes creation and from the four Shiva triangles comes the dissolution. The union of five Shaktis and four Fires causes the chakra of creation to evolve.
At the centre of the bindu of the Shri Yantra is Kamakala, which has three bindus. One is red, one is white and one is mixed. The red bindu is Kurukulla the Female form, the white bindu is Varahi the Male form, and the mixed bindu is the union of Shiva & Shakti - the individual as the potential Shri Cakra. Varahi, the father-form, gives four dhatus to the child and Kurukulla, the mother-form, gives five dhatus to the child. Theses represent the nine dhatus of the human body.
Varahi’s four fires are the 12 (4 x 3) sun Kalas, the 12 Zodiac constellations. Kurukulla’s five triangles are the 15 (5 x 3) Kalas of the moon, 15 lunar Tithis. These nine triangles also represent the nine stages of growth of the human child in the womb.
Surrounding the 43 triangles formed by the intersection of the nine triangles is the 16 petals circle. Surrounding the 16 petal circle is an 8 petal circle. After that the 3 lines and at the outermost part of the Sriyantra there are 3 lines called the Bhupura. The 43 triangles constitute the six inner sections called Avaranas, the two circles of petals are two more avaranas and the Bhupura of 3 lines is the last Avarana.
These 9 Avaranas of the Sri Yantra have various presiding Devis. They are the Devi’s Parivar (retinue) of total 108. In the Srichakra pooja they are systematically worshipped one by one with their names and mantras. The presiding Deity of Srichakra, Devi, is Known as Lalita Tripura Sundari. The form of Devi Kamakshi of Kancheepuram is the closest resemblance of the Devi as described in the scriptures.
As the Supreme Will, Shakti is described as Consciousness-Bliss. The Saundarya Lahiri describes the universe in its subtle and gross forms as the trans- formation of Shakti. Though undergoing actual trans- formation into all these elements in their gross macro-cosmic aspect as the universe and in their subtle micro-cosmic aspect as the six chakras in the body, Shakti is not lost in the effects - she retains her identity as the Supreme Will or Consciousness-Bliss.

Sri Varahi

  Sri Varahi is one of the seven shaktis incarnating from the Mother. She is described to have human body with eight arms, head of a boar and also having three eyes. In the Sri Vidhya tradition, she is also called the Danda-natha (Lady Commander of the forces of the mother-goddess, symbolizing the might of Sri Vidya). As Varahi (hog-faced or the great consumer) she destroys evil forces that obstructs the devotees progress, paralyses the enemies and lead the devotees ultimately to Sri Vidyas. She is classed as the fifth among the seven mother-like divinities (Saptmatrikas) and hence also called Panchami. With Kurukulla, she is accorded the parental status to Sri-Chakra (Lalitha Tripura-Sundari). While Kurukulla represents the full moon, Varahi (the devoured) represents the new moon. And while Varahi represents the illumination (prakasa) aspects of the mother-goddess, Kurukulla is the deliberation (vimarsa) aspect.
In another aspect, Varahi is also said to be one of the Yoginis, taking the form of a boar. She is said to lift up the earth with her tusks to confer benefits on all creatures. She is imagined as an eight-armed and three-eyed lady with a face of a hog, seated under a Palmyra tree, and functioning as a trusted attendant of the Goddess as her chief counselor. In this form she is known as Chaitanya-bhairavi (the devotee's association of strength) She is being described as a fierce (Maha-Ghora) and as Commander of the forces, she moves about in a chariot drawn by boars. She is said to reside in the ocean of sugar-cane juice (ikshu), one of the four oceans that surrounds the mother goddess, holding her court in the island of nine-jewels, and facing the mother-goddess.
Maha Mantra:
Om aim glaum aim namo bhagavathi
vartali vartali varahi varahi varahamukhi varahamukhi
andhe andhini namah
rundhe rundhi namah
jambhe jambhini namah
mohe mohini namah
stambhe stambhini namah
sarvadushta prada dushtanam sarvesham sarvavak chitta
shatkarmukha gati jihva stambhanam kuru kuru shighram vashyam kuru kuru
aim glaum thah thah thah thah hum phat swaha
The Lalita Sahasranama, a collection of 1000 names of the Supreme Mother, hails Sri Varahi as the destroyer of demon Visukran, who was born from the right hand of demon Bhanasura. She was also the commander-in-chief of the armies of Goddess Kali in the war against demon Tharukasura; of Goddess Sandi in the war against demon Sumbasura; and commander-in-chief of the forces of Sri Lalita in the war against demon Pandasura. Saint Sri Abirami Bhattar in his composition – "Abirami Andadhi" – cites the names of Sri Varahi as another name of the Supreme Mother. Sri Devi Bhagavata hails Sri Varahi as one who "dispels the fear and bestows victory". Many Puranic lores revere Sri Varahi (in the form of Thandini) and Sri Shyamala (in the form of Manthrini) – the two forces without whose permission the Supreme Goddess cannot be beheld. That is Sri Shymala is the sugarcane in the sugarcane bow adorning the hands of the Supreme Mother while Sri Varahi is the sharp arrows shot from it to kill the enemies.
Girichakra is the chariot on which Sri Varahi is seated and is worshipped in nine forms, much similar to Sri Durga. Sri Varahi is also revered in the names of Ashvaarooda Thandini Devi, Panchami Devi, Swapna Devi, Vaarthali Devi, Madhu Varahi, Manthrini Varahi, Bhakta Varahi and Pakaalamukhi. Out of these names Sri Varahi as Panchami is regarded the most powerful, as She is the manifestation of the supreme powers of Lord Sadashiva.
In the well-known Buddhist tantric text Chakrasamvaratantra, Vajravarahi is the presiding goddess who unites with the god Chakrasasmvara, also known as Heruka. In one of the descriptions in the iconographic compendium called Sadhanamala, she is called the "first queen of the god Sri-Heruka". She is also loosely characterized as a dakini and Vajrayogini, though the latter is a different deity. What does distinguish Vajravarahi from other similar goddesses (another being Nairatma, the consort of Hevajra) is the sow's-head excrescence behind her right ear, which refers to the "varahi" component of her name. She dances on a corpse in the posture known as ardhaparyanka, which means "one leg on the thigh." Her other emblems, such as the chopper in the right hand, the skull cup in the left, and the tantric staff (khatvanga) in the crook of the left arm, are missing here. But the red complexion, the third eye, the garland of severed heads, and the bone apron that serves as her only apparel are some of the other features that distinguish the deity.
End of Varahi Anugrahashtakam:

Kim dushkaram thwayi mano vishayam gathayam,
Kim durlabham thwayi vidhanu vadarchithayam,
Kim durbharam thwayi sakruth smruthi magathayam,
Kim durjayam thwayi krutha sthuthi vada pumsam.

What is not reachable for him, when he has you in his mind?

What is not available to him, when he worships you?

What is beyond him, when you enter his mind?

Where is the defeat for him who offers a prayer to you?

Yin and Yang

Chang Tsai, (1020-1078), philosopher:

No two of the products of creation are alike. From this we know that although the number of things is infinite, at bottom there is nothing without yin or yang [which differentiate them]. From this we know also that the transformations and changes in the universe are due to these two fundamental forces.

Material force moves and flows in all directions and in all manners. Its two elements unite and give rise to the concrete. Thus the multiplicity of things and human beings is produced. In their ceaseless successions the two elements of yin and yang constitute the great principles of the universe.

Only after [the One] is acted upon will it begin to penetrate [through yin and yang]. Without the two forces there cannot be the One.
If yin and yang do not exist, the One (the Great Ultimate)" can not revealed If the One cannot be revealed then the function of the two forces will cease, Reality and unreality, motion and rest, integration and disintegration, and clearness and turbidity are two different substances. In the final analysis, however, they are one.

The negative and positive spiritual forces (kuei-shen) are the spontaneous activity of the two material forces (yin and yang). Sage hood means absolute sincerity (1) forming a unity with Heaven, and spirit means the Great Vacuity in its wondrous operation and response. All molds and forms in the universe are but dregs of this spiritual transformation.

Shao Yong(1012-1077), philosopher:

Without physical substance, the nature (of man and things) cannot be complete. Without nature, physical substance cannot be produced. The yang has the yin as its physical substance and the yin has the yang as its nature. Nature is active but physical substance is tranquil. In heaven, yang is active while yin is tranquil, whereas in earth yang is tranquil while yin is active. When nature is given physical substance, it becomes tranquil. As physical substance follows nature, it becomes active. Hence yang is at ease with itself but yin is fast moving without control.

As the Great Ultimate becomes differentiated, the Two Modes (yin and yang) appear. Yang descends and interacts with yin, and yin rises to interact with yang, and consequently the Four Forms (major and minor yin and yang) are constituted. Yin and yang interact and generate the Four Forms of Heaven: the element of weakness and the element of strength interact and generate the Four Forms of Earth; and consequently the Eight Elements (heaven, water, fire, thunder, wind, water in motion, mountain, and earth) are completed. The Eight Elements intermingle and generate the myriad things. Therefore the one is differentiated into the two, two into four, four into eight, eight into sixteen, sixteen into thirty-two, and thirty-two into sixty-four. Thus it is said (in the Book of Changes) that "they are distinguished as yin and yang and the weak and the strong are employed in succession. Thus in the system of Change there are six positions and the pattern is complete. Ten is divided to become 100, 1,000, and 10,000. This is similar to the fact that the root engenders the trunk; the trunk, branches; and the branches, leaves. The greater the division, the smaller the result, and the finer the division, the more complex. Taken as a unit, it is one. Taken as diffused development, it is the many.

Intimacy

Two citations separated by over a millennium illustrate the consistency of the ultimate aim of the Sufi path. The first is a holy tradition (hadith qudsi) by the prophet Muhammad, while the second is a soliloquy by the eminent Sufi master Abd al-Ghani al-Nabulusi. Both describe what Sufism is all about, one from God’s point of view, the other from the Sufis’ perspective. Sufis regard the message of this holy tradition as constituting the ultimate aim of the spiritual experience and the cornerstone of mystical knowledge. Speaking through the Prophet, God says:

“Nothing is more pleasing to me, as a means for my servant to draw near unto me, than worship which I have made binding upon him; and my servant ceases not to draw near unto me with added devotions of his free will until I love him; and when I love him I am the hearing wherewith he hears and the sight wherewith he sees and the hand whereby he grasps and the foot whereon he walks.”

It is this intimacy with divinity that underpins the Sufis’ vision, aspirations, and devotional practices. In the following soliloquy, the late Damascene Sufi master al-Nabulusi, an ardent follower of Ibn Arabi, shows how the prophetic tradition is personalized in the mystical experience. Al-Nabulusi writes:

My Lord said to me: “you are good for me.” I said: “how can I be good for you while I am perishable?” He said: “nothing is good for me except the perishable.” I said: “how can I be good for you when my character is bad?” He said: “I complement it with my good Character.” He then said to me: “O my
servant, I am you, but you are not me; O my servant, I am who exists, not you; O my servant, all people are the servants of my benefaction (nima), whereas you are the servant of my Self (dhat).” I said: “but how am I the servant of your Self?” He said: “you are the servant of Being (al-wujud), not the servant of a being (al-mawjud). Being is me, while a being is other than me, because beings are by me and I am by my Self. This is the reason why I said to you I am Being.” He then said to me: “O my servant, do not fear other than me, because I am that other. I am your Lord, appearing unto you by my subsistence in you. There is no divinity if it be not me, and no one is adored other than me. In any state, if by me that I make you rich, truly, then, I have made you rich; but if I do so by other than me, I then have made you poor; there is no divinity if it be not me.” I said to him: “O Lord, how am I in your regard?” He said: “you are to me amongst those who are drawn near (almuqarrabin), and so is everyone who loves you: I love you and love everyone that loves you.” I said to him: “O Lord, what is the sign of your loving me?” He said: “it is my guiding you to what I love and am pleased with.” I said to him: “O Lord, people are harming me.” He said to me: “all of this is of benefit to you; look within yourself for the result of their harm, you become nearer to me, and inevitably you will rise above them.”

Cosmology in architecture - 1

In his famous Ihya Ulum al-Din (Reviving the Sciences of Religion), al-Ghazali (d. 1111), the celebrated Muslim theologian and mystic, cites an intriguing analogy. He says: “As an architect draws (yusawwir) the details of a house in whiteness and then brings it out into existence according to the drawn exemplar (nuskha), so likewise the creator (f atir) of heaven and earth wrote the master copy of the world from beginning to end in the Preserved Tablet (al-lawh al-mahf uz) and then brought it out into existence according to the written exemplar.”
In contrast to the current understanding of a boundless and infinitely expanding universe, premodern Muslims thought of and described the cosmos as being finite, founded, and with astronomically definable limits. The entirety of the cosmos was graspable by means of geometry, numbers, and the alphabet.
It was conceived in the form of concentric circles, at the center of which humans dwelled and at the outer limit stood the all-encompassing divine Throne.Space and time, as we know them, terminated at the divine Throne, which formed the threshold into the divine realms of being. There and beyond, different modalities of space and time prevailed. The Throne, the outer limit of the universe, was also visualized to be “quadrangular” in form but with a sense of spatiality that was distinct from our own. Marking a transitional zone, the Throne was seen to partake in both the physical and metaphysical worlds. Within this geometrically defined and ordered cosmos things were interrelated; they occupied definite positions within an intricate hierarchy. Nothing stood in isolation or ambiguity; everything was carefully positioned. Premodern Islamic sources provide very detailed descriptions of the cosmos, and the Sufis, among other Muslim thinkers, present numerous geometrical diagrams that illustrate the fundamental order of being and the basic design of the world, translating into visual idioms the “textual” contents of al-Ghazali's exemplar.
The move is explored in a variety of contexts and manifestations. The first trace of this move unfolds the metaphysial order, which is then traced in the cosmic order, which is in turn traced in the architectural order. Spatially, the move refers to the deployment of space from a central point along the three axes of what the French philosopher and metaphysician René Guénon describes as the “threedimensional cross.”
The Islamic cosmos consisted of the seen and unseen, the divine and human domains, with each having its own inhabitants, landscape, and order. The seen world was constructed of nine concentric spheres, seven planetary ones encompassed by the sphere of the fixed stars (the divine Footstool) and the utmost encircling sphere without stars (the divine Throne). The seven heavens rest on seven earths in the form of domed structures decreasing in size and positioned one within the other. As for the workings of the cosmos, it was seen to be regulated by a quaternary natural order of the four elements, mediated by many sets of four—four seasons,
four natures, four humors, four directions, and so forth.

Only with His Grace

There are many valiant metaphysical souls who tried greatly to explore on their own different ways to understand Being and settle down with the satisfaction that at long last they know Being . Such individuals set up religions cults schools of metaphysical thoughts, very practical methods like Yoga and so forth only to learn that there is no certainty in all these ways.  Being  always remains supremely elusive towards all human attempts to fathom the mystery that surrounds Being. The point is all such efforts are egoistic and indulging in such efforts is in fact strengthening the Ego and which will always cast a screen across BEING so that He can never be understood and the soul shine forth in the Glory of His presence. But Manikkar, a mystic, has achieved this and asks rhetorically who can explain this remarkable metaphysical feat. Of course he already indicates the reasons for his success. He has allowed himself to be possessed by Being  and in that possession he willingly became his devoted servant, the one at His feet and which is a metaphor for servitude. This really means that Manikkar slowly learned to kill his ego without which becoming the servant of  Being is impossible. With this inner resistance dissolved Being overpowers the soul disclosing Himself in various ways so that a genuine understanding is enjoyed by the soul. The kind of understanding of Being  is that over and above that He stands as the cosmic reality he also stands as Shiva, the metaphysically illuminating Supreme Radiance that dispels the Malam from the soul so that it becomes translucent clear and pure.
Tiruvasakam Tiruccatakam, MeyyuNartal 9:

Bavan empiraan pani maa matik kaNNi viNNoor perumaan
Civan empiraan enai aaNdu koNdaan
En ciRumai kaNdum
Avan empiraan enna naan adiyeen enna ipparicee
Puvan empiraan teriyum paricu aavatu iyambukavee

BEING my Lord is the Cosmic Reality and the Great Lord of all the celestial beings and who enjoys wearing the cool Crescent Moon as His head garland. My Lord of Shiva, the resplendent Power who overpowered me despite the fact that I am dirty with Malam infecting me. He is my Lord and I am His servant always serving Him. It is only because of this I understand this Being as the whole of the cosmos. Now can any one tell me how my servitude also has enabled me to understand Being thus?