Shitala Ma Chalisa

Jai jai mata shitala, tumahin dharai jo dhyaan.

Hoy vimal sheetal hrday, vikasai buddhi balagyaan.

Jai-jai-jai shitala bhavaanee. Jay jag janani sakal gunakhaanee.

Grh-grh shakti tumhaaree raajit. Pooran sharadachandr samasaajit.

Visphotak se jalat shareera. 

Sheetal karat harat sab peera.

Maatu shitala tav shubhanaama.

 Sabake gaadhe aavahin kaama.

Shokaharee shankaree bhavaanee.

 Baal-praanarakshee sukh daanee.

Shuchi maarjanee kalash kararaajai.

 Mastak tej soory samaraajai.

Chausath yogin sang mein gaavain. 

Veena taal mrdang bajaavai.

Nrty naath bhairo dikharaavain.

 Sahaj shesh shiv paar na paavain.

Dhany-dhany dhaatree mahaaraanee.

 Suranar muni tab suyash bakhaanee.

Jvaala roop maha balakaaree.

 Daity ek visphotak bhaaree.

Ghar-ghar pravishat koee na rakshat.

 Rog roop dhari baalak bhakshat.

Haahaakaar machyo jagabhaaree.

 Sakyo na jab sankat taaree.

Tab maiya dhari adbhut roopa. 

Karamen liye maarjanee soopa.

Visphotakahin pakadi kar leenhyo.

 Musal prahaar bahuvidhi keenhyo.

Bahut prakaar vah vinatee keenha.

 Maiya nahin bhal main kachhu cheenha.

Abanahin maatu, kaahugrh jaihaun.

 Jahan apavitr sakal duhkh harihaun.

Bhabhakat tan, sheetal hvai jaihain.

 Visphotak bhayaghor nasihain.

Shree shitalahin bhaje kalyaana.

 Vachan saty bhaashe bhagavaana.

Visphotak bhay jihi grh bhaee. 

Bhajai devi kahan yahee upaee.

Kalash shitala ka sajavaavai.

 Dvij se vidhivat paath karaavai.

Tumheen shitala, jag kee maata. 

Tumheen pita jag kee sukhadaata.

Tumheen jagaddhaatree sukhasevee.

 Namo namaami sheetale devee.

Namo sukkhakaranee duhkhaharanee. 

Namo-namo jagataarani taranee.

Namo-namo trailoky vandinee.

 Dukhadaaridraadik kandinee.

Shree shitala, shedhala, mahala. 

Runaleehyunanee maatu mandala.

Ho tum digambar tanudhaaree. 

Shobhit panchanaam asavaaree.

Raasabh, khar baishaakh sunandan.

 Gardabh durvaakand nikandan.

Sumirat sang shitala maee.

 Jaahi sakal dukh door paraee.

Galaka, galagandaadi juhoee. 

Taakar mantr na aushadhi koee.

Ek maatu jee ka aaraadhan. 

Aur nahin koee hai saadhan.

Nishchay maatu sharan jo aavai. 

Nirbhay man ichchhit phal paavai.

Kodhee, nirmal kaaya dhaarai.

 Andha, drg-nij drshti nihaarai.

Vandhya naari putr ko paavai.

 Janm daridr dhanee hoee jaavai.

Maatu shitala ke gun gaavat.

 Lakha mook ko chhand banaavat.

Yaame koee karai jani shanka. 

Jag me maiya ka hee danka.

Bhanat raamasundar prabhudaasa. 

Tat prayaag se poorab paasa.

Puree tivaaree mor nivaasa. 

Kakara ganga tat durvaasa.

Ab vilamb main tohi pukaarat.

 Maatu krpa kau baat nihaarat.

Pada kshar tav aas lagaee. 

Raksha karahu shitala maee.

Ghat-ghat vaasee sheetala, sheetal prabha tumhaar.

Sheetal chhiyaan mein jhulee, maiya palana daar.

Namami Sheetaladevi Rasbhastha
Digambara
Marjani Kalshopeta Shurpalankrut Mastaka

Tantroktam Lakshmi Kavacham

om asya shree lakshmee kavacha stotrasya
shree eeshvaro devataa
anushTup Chandaha
shree lakshmee preetyarthe paThe viniyogaha ||

om lakshmee me chaagratah paatu kamalaa paatu prushThataha
naaraayaNee sheershadeshe sarvaange shree svaroopiNee ||
raamapatnee tu pratyange sadaa avatu shameshvaree |
vishaalaakshee yogamaayaa kaumaaree chakriNee tathaa || 2 ||
jayadaatree dhanadaatree paashaaksha maalinee shubhaa |
haripriyaa hariraamaa jayankaree mahodaree || 3 ||
krishNa paraayanaa devee shreekrishNa manamohinee |
jayankaree mahaaroudree siddhidaatree shubhankaree || 4 ||
sukhadaa mokshadaa devee chitrakooTa nivaasinee |
bhayam haratu bhaktaanaam bhavabandham vimuchyatu || 5 ||
kavacham tan mahaapunyam yah paThet bhakti samyutaha |
trisandhyam ekasandhyam vaa muchyate sarva sankaTaat ||
etat kavachasya paThanam dhana putra virdhanam |
bheetih vinaashanan chaiva trishu lokeshu keertitam || 7 ||
bhoorjapatre samaalikhya rochanaa kunkumena tu |
dhaaraNaat galadeshe cha sarvasiddhih bhavishyati || 8 ||
aputro labhate putra dhanaarthee labhate dhanam |
mokshaarthee moksham aapnoti kavachasya prasaadataha ||
garbhinee labhate putraM vandhyaa cha garbhinee bhavet |
dhaarayet api kanThe cha athavaa vaama baahuke || 10 ||
yah paThen nityam bhaktyaa sa eva vishnuvat bhavet |
mrutyu vyaadhi bhayaM tasya naasti kinchin maheetale || 11 ||
paThedvaa paaThayedvaa api shruNuyaat shraavayet yadi |
sarvapaapa vimuktastu labhate paramam gatim || 12 ||
sankaTe vipade ghore tathaa cha gahane vane |
raajadvaare cha noukaayaam tathaa cha raNa madhyataha ||
paThanaat dhaaraNaat asya jayam aapnoti nishchitam |
aputraa cha tathaa vandhyaa tripaksham shruNuyaat yadi ||
suputram labhate saa tu deergha aayushyam yashasvinam |
shruNuyaat yah shuddha buddhayaa
dvou maasou vipra vaktrataha || 15 ||
sarvaan kaamaana avaapnoti sarva bandhaat vimuchyate |
mrutavatsaa jeevavatsaa trimaasam shravaNam yadi || 16 ||
rogee rogaat vimuchyeta paThanaan maasa madhyataha |
likhitvaa bhoorjapatre cha athavaa taaDapatrake || 17 ||
sthaapayen nityam gehe na agni choura bhayam kvachit |
shruNuyaat dhaarayet vaapi paThedvaa paaThayedapi || 18 ||
yah pumaan satatam tasmin prasannaah sarvadevataaha |
bahunaa kimihoktena sarva jeeveshvareshvaree || 19 ||
aadyaa shaktih mahaalakshmeeh bhakta anugraha kaariNee |
dhaarake paaThake chaiva nishchalaa nivased dhruvam || 20 ||

|| iti tantroktam lakshmee kavacham sampoorNam ||

By His Light

na tatra sūryo bhāti na candratārakaṃ nemā 

vidyuto bhānti kuto'yamagniḥ | 

tameva bhāntamanubhāti sarvaṃ tasya 

bhāsā sarvamidaṃ vibhāti || 15 ||

The sun does not shine there; nor do the moon and the stars, nor do these lightnings shine. How could this fire? Him shining, all shine after. All this shines by his light.

---the Katha Upanishad, Verse 2.2.15

HAPPY DIWALI!

Yamaya Namaha

Om Surya puthraya Vidhmahe 

Maha Kalaya Dheemahe 

Thanno Yama Prachodayath

Yama Deepam Mantra is here

OM YAMAAYA NAMAHA

Like a Lamp

Painting by Georges de La Tour

Incited by something external
Is like a small lamp
Whose flame is fed with oil,
Or like a stream fed by rains,
Where flows stop when the rains cease.
But love whose object is God is like
A fountain gushing forth
From the earth.
Its flow never ceases,
For He Himself is the source of this love
And also its food,
Which never grows scarce.

---by Isaac of Stella (1100 - 1169)

Scourge of Love

El Greco self-portrait (detail)

I also maintain that those who are punished in Gehenna are scourged by the scourge of love.
Nay, what is so bitter and vehement as the torment of love?
I mean that those who have become conscious that they have sinned against love suffer greater torment from this than from any fear of punishment.
For the sorrow caused in the heart by sin against love is more poignant than any torment.
It would be improper for a man to think that sinners in Gehenna are deprived of the love of God.
Love is the offspring of knowledge of the truth which, as is commonly confessed, is given to all.
The power of love works in two ways. It torments sinners, even as happens here when a friend suffers from a friend.
But it becomes a source of joy for those who have observed its duties.
Thus I say that this is the torment of Gehenna: bitter regret.
But love inebriates the souls of the sons of Heaven by its delectability.

---by St. Isaac the Syrian (640-700 AD), from "Homily 72"

1-2-3

Wonderful Shakti atmosphere during the concert of Andre Rieu.
Music: Shostakovich 'Second Waltz
It's so true. Dao De Jing, Chapter 42:

Dao gives birth to One. 

One gives birth to Two. 

Two give birth to Three. 

Three give birth to ten-thousand things.

1-2-3,1-2-3,1-2-3...

Durga Dwatrimshan Namavali

durgaa durgaarti shamanee durgaa aapadvi nivaariNee |
durgama cChedinee durga saadhinee durga naashinee || 1 ||
durgatoddhaariNee durganihantree durgamaapahaa |
durgamagyaanadaa durgadaityaloka daavaanalaa || 2 ||
durgamaadurgamaalokaa durgamaa aatmasvaroopiNee |
durgamaargapradaa durgamavidyaa durgamaashritaa || 3 ||
durgamagyaana samsthaanaa durgamadhyaanabhaasinee |
durgamohaa durgamagaa durgamaarthasvaroopiNee || 4 ||
durgamaasura samhantree durgamaayudha dhaariNee |
durgamaangee durgamataa durgamyaa durgameshvaree || 5 ||
durgabheemaa durgabhaamaa durgabhaa durgadaariNee |
naamaavalim imaam yastu durgaayaa sudhee maanavaha
paThet sarva bhayaanmukto bhavishyati na samshayaha || 6 ||
shatrubhih peeDyamaano vaa durgabandhagato api vaa |
dvaatrimshannaama paThena muchyate naatra samshayaha ||

Kill Bull - 7

Happy Navratri! So, the great festival is in full swing and here is my regular post "Kill Bull"(see Kill Bull-1, 2, 3, 4, 5 and 6). This is the right time to speculate about what makes our soul to be or pretend to be a bull, and how to summon a Divine Power to take off this asuric spell.
Durga Puja offers us, in dramatic form and by means of religious ceremonial a philosophy of the spiritual life, teaching many things, including the awakening of man upon earth from animalism to a life of purity and honor. Goddess Durga's images is a perfect reflection of the eternal Power that pervades all living beings and all things on Earth. It is beautiful dramatic expression of the belief in the ultimate victory of Good over Evil and the great human aspiration for union with God.

Durga is all about struggle and strength, but how does this apply to us personally? Mystic Sandhi puja is not about the event that once was and passed, but what happens today, in the eternal now. Each individual life goes along the horizontal line from birth to death. Good or evil force shapes it, and, if it is not saint-born, his life can not develop without a struggle. Everyone has his own personal Mahishasura. Because of itself the jivatma would be a mere inert passivity, unbalanced by a positive opposite. Like in Lewis Carroll's tale we must run as fast as we can, just to stay in place. And if you wish to go anywhere you must run twice as fast as that. But how much does it depend on our personal efforts? By and large, it does not depend on man's desire or effort, but on Mercy only. But I believe that this is inherent element of human nature. I want to say that the soul always seeks God. It is a fundamental necessity of the soul because its properties are the result of the union of eternal Divine basis with itself, modified by the good or evil tendencies. It is reproduced in the Durga yantra.

This is in deep correspondence with human life itself and the world we live in, which are themselves but allegories and symbols. The struggle, external or internal, is part of everything that surrounds us. But this struggle is not for survival. It's a life-and-death struggle. Literally, for the average person, and figurative for the mystic. Because this is the universal truth that mystical death must precede mystical rebirth. This is the death to one's lower self.

Gilgamesh, legendary King of the city of Uruk fighting against the Bull

Many cultures and religions, both current and past, tell us this story. According the St Paul "For if ye live after the flesh, ye shall die: but if ye through the Spirit do mortify the deeds of the body, ye shall live "(Rom 8:13), or the sufi saying "die before you die."
He who desires to rise to the heights of his own being must first crush his own lower nature and inclinations. Through this blessed battle, older versions of "I" may very well die.

Heracles and Cretan Bull

The message of this battle is that we need to tame the demanding self-centered beast within us and bring the power to good use. This process asks to bring the higher and lower consciousness in perfect balance, knowing that control is always in your hands, and purity in your heart. However, it has nothing to do with the confidence a person has when filled of one's own strength. Rather, it depicts the confidence of those whose blessed individuals strength is founded in God.
During the battle with the Shakti herself, (which is impossible by definition, because everything is shakti) the inertia and negativity of the soul become increasingly transmuted and superseded by the positive energy and activity of the Spirit. Like in the Yantra when the upper triangles gradually assumes preponderance over the triangle with a vertex down, signifying that the seeker becomes a more spiritually conscious being.
This battle is actually about Divine union. Divine Shakti's energy overcomes severity and uses mercy to become strong and enduring. This is called a gentle strength. Strength of having the inner-qualities of love, patience and power. And joy. When our pains of division are made up for by the joys of reunification.