.........science of
yog
is
the way
to know
oneself...............
naarD-muni
asks his brother snk-muni:
"By what vedik
vidhi (holy rite)
is yog attained by a yogi
and
how yog leads to moKSH?"
snk-muni's
sharing of science of yog
in Parts 1 to 23 is from slok 1.33.26-27, 28-30, 31, 34,
35, 42, 38-40, 45-46, 47, 48/50, 49/52, 51, 54-55, 56-57, 58-59, 60-62,
63, 65, 66/68, 69,70-72, 1.33.26-27, 28-30, 31, 34,
35, 42, 38-40, 45-46, 47, 48/50, 49/52, 51, 54-55, 56-57, 58-59, 60-62,
63, 65, 66/68, 69, 70-72, 73-74,75, 76, 77, 78, 79-82, 83, 84, 85-86, 87,
88, 89-96, 97-99, 100-108 from
naarD puraaAN.
Parts 1 to 24 and 25 to 25-7 are
posted separately on the yog
section of the veD page of this
PVAF website.
Parts 1 to 24 explains the basics
meaning of yog process and
practice.
The parts 21 to 24 are repeated
hereunder to have a continuity from Parts 1 to 24. Parts 21 to 24
explains maayaa-shk`ti and that
explanation leads to the understanding and practice of the
1st ang called
yam
of 8-ang yog practice.
Parts 25 to 25-7 explains
yam
which is the 1st ang of
8-ang yog.
Part 25-7 is repeated at the
start of Part 26 to have a continuity from the
1st ang called
yam
of the 8-ang yog practice.
This presentation contains
Parts 26 to 26-5-1
which explains
niyam
which is the 2nd ang of
8-ang yog.
PART 21
"The universe
appears to be of diverse kinds
to
those who are devoid of
purna gnaan
(complete and perfect knowledge which is knowledge that brhmah
is everything and
one's body is not one's "I"
but one's "I" is one's aatmaa and
not the body).
To those
endowed with
param gnaan,
(highest knowledge which is knowledge that brhmah
is everything and
one's body is not one's "I"
but one's "I" is one's aatmaa and
not the body).
it (the universe)
is
one with
param brhmah.
(supreme, second to none, the only
one brhmah)
People perceive
difference in
param aatmaa (=param
brhmah)
due to
maayaa
(a primary shakti of nirgun
brhmah which has the brhmah-ordained
function to hide the true identity of brhmah
from all creations with a shakti
called aavaraN and also to
make all creations see multiplicity in brhmah
through a shakti of vikshep)
of the wielder of
maayaa
(wielder of maayaa
is param brhmah).
Hence a
mumukshu
(one who desires moksh meaning liberation
from saNsaar which is
worldly existence of cycles
of
birth and death full of
sukh ( joy and
happiness) followed by dukh
( pain and sorrow))"
should forsake
maayaa
through
yogik shakti
(power of yog)."
PART 22
"maayaa
(a primary shakti of nirgun
brhmah which has the brhmah-ordained
function to hide the true identity of brhmah
from all creations with a shakti
called aavaraN and also to
make all creations see multiplicity in brhmah
through a shakti of vikshep)
is
neither
of the form of
asat
(creations
created by brhmah which dies
after a life cycle
upon receipt of karma-phal
for that life cycle and
are reborn through
nitya-laya, naimmittik-laya,
praakrt-laya and aatyantik-laya.
laya is re-absorption into the creator
for rebirth to receive one's remanant karma-phal.
Re-absorption is into brahmaa-dev
for nitya and naimittik
laya
and into brhmah
for praakrt and aatyantik
laya).
nor
of the form of
sat
(shakti
of brhmah
which are eternal and are not affected by cycles of
nitya-laya, naimmittik-laya,
praakrt-laya and aatyantik-laya.
laya is re-absorption into the creator
for rebirth to receive one's remanant karma-phal.
Re-absorption is into brahmaa-dev
for nitya and naimittik
laya
and into brhmah
for praakrt and aatyantik
laya.
Examples are gnaan and chaitanya
(consciousness) which are brhmah-self)
nor
maayaa
is of the form of both (sat
or asat).
Hence
maayaa
should be understood as
being
anirdeshya
(that which can not be specified,
defined, described, explained or compared
for its form or nature or state of being).
maayaa
gives the idea and perception of
dvuNdvuN
(delusion of perceived difference
between brhmah and what is
created by brhmah or
the delusion of perceived difference between KSHetra
which is a field or domain or physical body of a
living being in which
an aatmaa
in an embodied state can perform karma
and
KSHetragna which s the
soul or
jiv or individual aatmaa
embodied by karma-phal
in a body of a living being which is made of
the karma-phal to be
partaken or received in that life journey)."
PART 23
"It is
maayaa
that is understood by the word
agnaan
(non-knowledge which deludes one in believing that
brhmah
is separate from everything in the universe
and that one's "I" is one's body and hides the truth that from
the gnaan that
one's "I" is one's aatmaa and
not the body)..
Hence only those
who have conquered
maayaa
(a primary shakti of nirgun
brhmah which has the brhmah-ordained
function to hide the true identity of brhmah
from all creations with a shakti
called aavaraN and also to
make all creations see multiplicity in brhmah
through a shakti of vikshep)
can have
mukti
(release, liberation,
deliverance, freedom)
from
agnaan.
param
sanaatan brhmah
(supreme and eternal brhmah)
is denoted by the word
gnaan
(knowledge that brhmah
is everything and
one's body is not one's "I"
but one's "I" is one's aatmaa and
not the body).
Indeed
param aatmaa
(supreme, second to none, the only
one aatmaa = brhmah)
shines continuously
in the hearts of
those endowed with
gnaan.
A yogi
must destroy
agnaan
through
yog.
yog
is achieved through
ashta-ang
( eight limbs or auxiliary means or
expedient).
I shall mention them factually. "
PART 24
"ashta-ang
( eight limbs or auxiliary means or
expedient).
of yog are:
yam
(in the practice of yog,
the practice of restraining, controlling, curbing
karma
through self control of indriyo
(senses) and manas (mind), buddhi,
and ahankaar
and with application the rules of dharma
so as to live only by dharma)
niyam
(in the practice of yog,
the practice of voluntary and self-imposed or imposed by ved
through vedik shastra
and vidhio (rites) in daily
life
as per dharma of one's varNa
and aashram)
aasan
(in the practice of yog,
the practice of body postures assumed in performing
niyam, praaNaayaam, dhaarNaa and
samaadhi
as outlined by ved through
vedik shastra and vidhio
(rites)
as physical bodily aid to the attainment of respective activity)
praaNaayaam
(in the practice of yog,
the practice of breath control and flow of
praan (vital energy systems which empowers all bodily
functions)
through idaa and pingalaa channels
which
lie on the left and right of sushumaN
(central nervous system)
during performing
niyam, aasan, dhaarNaa and samaadhi
to create focused bhakti
(worship) of
a dev or brhmah
with whom one is trying to achieve yog
with)
pratyaahaar
(in the practice of yog,
the practice of subduing
the powers and functions of ten indriyo
(senses) to
minimum necessary for attaining yog
and withdrawing the ten indriyo
(senses) from
their field of operation so as to
control manas (mind)
to enable the manas to focus
on
niyam, aasan, praaNaayaam, dhaarNaa
and
samaadhi
being performed and thus aid attainment of yog)
dhaaraNaa
(in the practice of yog, retention
of and staying
in the mode of pratyaahaar )
dhyaan
(in the practice of yog,
after achieving pratyaahaar,
reflecting, thinking, contemplating
with focus and concentration
what is perceived by indriyo (senses)
and manas (mind)
for relating all perceptions to brhmah
and for
obtaining divine intuition or discernment of the gnaan
of
the satya (Truth) that
brhmah is everything)
samaadhi
(in the practice of yog,
deep mode of dhyaan with
focus on
integrating and merging all perceptions,
including one's own aatmaa
(soul)
into one object only, that is, brhmah).
I shall briefly tell
the natural constituents of these
ashta-ang
( eight limbs or auxiliary means or
expedient)
of yog
in the order given above."
PART 25-7
anusuuyaa
is abandonment of
ansuuyataa
which is
severe heart-burn and mental agony
that
one suffers on seeing
others superior to him
in wealth and other worldly possessions.
arey naarad,
para-gnaani
(most excellent among enlightened one),
yam (practice) have thus been
briefly recited.
Now I shall also recite
niyam.
Listen.
PART 26
"niyam
(practice components)
are
tapas
(performance of penance),
svaadhyay
(self- study of ved
to understand one as aatmaa and
not the body)
santosh
(desireless contentment with what one obtains
through
daivya or bhaagya (fate or destiny)),
shauch
(purification of a living being's existence
as a body and body's empowering entity called aatmaa
(soul)),
hari-puujaa
(puujaa or
worship of brhmah by
thought, words and karma),
and
sandhyaa praathnaa
(prayers to brhmah
3 times a day - morning, noon and evening)"
(details of each
niyam will be explained in the
following
sub-parts of Part 26)
PART 26-1
(first karma
in the practice of niyam is)
"tapas1
is
thorough which
a body is
emaciated
through
chandraayaN1 and
others1.
It is an excellent means of yog."
NOTE 1 EXPLANATION: practice of tapas
means living a lifestyle whereby all karma
in life that are not required to realize an objective are stopped and
only karma that will realize the objective are performed. This
usually means forgoing daily life activities which gives pleasures,
which produces wealth for sustenance of oneself and one's family and
restraining the 2 basic instincts of food, sleep to the minimum
possible to sustain one's body alive. The third and fourth instinct of
procreation and fear are restrained during tapas.
This in turn means one lives a very basic, simple and austere lifestyle
to create mild to extreme levels of "hardships" for the
body's well-being and health. This way the real "I" which is
aatmaa (soul) is made to prevail over its body which the
aatmaa only needs and uses for its embodiment as a human being.
This leads to knowledge of one's aatmaa. Examples of tapas
mode activities are as follows:
-
One may only take food enough for body to stay alive
and could end of looking totally emaciated.
-
One may stand on one foot during tapas.
-
One may stay submerged to the neck in water.
-
One may stay in extreme heat and cold environments
without any protection.
-
One may even stop taking food and live on water only
and then further giving up even water and living on air only as
food. This is a trial of bearing with hunger and thirst.
-
One may remain in some posture which is hurtful to
the body over extended time period.
-
One may go into kaastha-mauna state meaning a state
devoid of all expressions of life such as speaking, seeing, hearing,
having feeling, having emotions, etc.
PART 26-2 (second
karma in the practice of niyam
is) "svaadhyaay
is
jap of
pranav, mantra and mahaa-vaakya.
jap
is of three kinds:
vaachik, upaaMsu and maanas." (all
of the above terms will be explained in the following sub-parts)
PART 26-2-1 "jap1
is of
praNav (om),2
upnishad3 passages,
12-syllabled or 8-syllabled mantra4
and
of collection of
mahaavaaky5 jap1
of above
is called
svaadhyaay.
jap
is an excellent means of yog.
The foolish one who abandons
svaadhyaay
does not achieve
yogik shakti
(power)."
EXPLANATION OF 1:
jap :
-
jap is a practice of repeating prayers
to a dev
or devi one is invoking. This is either done in an
undertone or silently in one mind.
-
jap is different from normal mode of
praying because the prayer is repeated a number of times as prescribed
by shaastra or as pledged by oneself. The practice of
jap
facilitates by repetitions to focus on the dev
or devi to propitiate the dev or devi
for a desired objective.
-
Some of the words in the prayers in a jap
practice are om, a passage from ved or a mantra
or a mahaa-vaakya explained below.
-
In jap a maalaa
(rosary) is also used to count or keep track of the repetitions. One
may perform jap as part of a vrat or vow for achieving desired wish
with the help of a dev or devi. In such cases a person promises that
say a thousand jap will be performed to realize the wish or after
realizing the wish.
EXPLANATION OF 2:
praNav = om:
-
om is the first creation as shabda
(word) created in the scheme of creation of the universe.
-
om is the most sacred word and
represents the creator brhmah-self.
-
om as brhmah is also
prayed to as a shakti or naam or ruup
of brhmah.
-
om is described in upnishad as unknowable,
unspeakable, into which the entire universes of creation exists
and revolves in repeated eternal cycles of creation and as duality
of existence as brhmah but separate from brhmah when
created.
-
brahmaa-dev when first created
started speaking om and prayed with and to om to
find out who he was and what he was supposed to do.
-
om is used as follows in vedik
lifestyle:
-
om is used as a tool to perform jap
in the practice of yog.
-
om is used as a focus point in any meditation or
practice of 8-ang yog starting from the anga
(limbs):
- dhaaraNaa which is retention
of and staying
in the mode of pratyaahaar ;
- after achieving pratyaahaar in the
practice of dhyaan which is
reflecting, thinking, contemplating
with focus and concentration
what is perceived by indriyo (senses)
and manas (mind)
for relating all perceptions to brhmah and for obtaining divine intuition or discernment of the gnaan
of
the satya (Truth) that
brhmah is everything; and
- samaadhi
(in the practice of yog,
deep mode of dhyaan with
focus on
integrating and merging all perceptions,
including one's own aatmaa
(soul)
into one object only, that is, brhmah.
-
In most of the mantra or prayers to
commence prayers and also to end the mantra or
prayer.
-
Used as heading to a writing as a prayer and
propitiating brhmah.
-
Used as a symbol in drawing yantra
or sacred diagrams to signify presence of brhmah.
-
In upnishad om is eulogized as practically all the
created entities in the universe.
-
In ved om broken down as
three syllables a, u, m - each syllable is used as
representation of three states of existence of an embodied aatmaa
of living being: 1. as vaishvaanar in awake
state,
2. as taijas in dream state and
3. as pragnaa in sushupti (deep sleep) state.
-
From grammatical sense, om is used as a particle
om implies solemn affirmation or respectful agreement or assent or
acceptance or command or auspiciousness or removal and warding of
some obstacles.
-
As a pranav, om broken
down into 3 syllables a, u, m - each syllable
represents the united and co-existing trinity of the 3 creating shaktio
of mahaa-maayaa or prakruti or pradhaan:
1. rajas-gun shakti in the form of brahmaa-dev:
2. satya-gun shakti in the form of vishnu-dev:
and
3. tamas-gun shakti in the form of shiv-dev.
EXPLANATION OF 3:
upnishad:
-
upnishad is the collection of shruti
and smruti complied in writing form in sanskrit
by rushio and munio (sages) which
explains the supreme and only one creator of this universes known
as brhmah mentioned in ved.
shruti (revelations by intuition. smruti
is remembrances of revelation passed down from brahmaa-dev to all
his creations.
-
There are 18 major upnishad texts out of a total
of 108 upnishad texts known to exist.
EXPLANATION OF 4:
mantra
-
A mantra is a passage, phrase,
aphorism or collection of words from ved which is
used for:
a) a prayer or
b) in any 8-ang (limb) of yog
practice as a jap or starting from the anga (limbs)
- dhaaraNaa which is retention
of and staying
in the mode of pratyaahaar ;
-
after achieving pratyaahaar in the practice of dhyaan
which is
reflecting, thinking, contemplating
with focus and concentration
what is perceived by indriyo (senses)
and manas (mind)
for relating all perceptions to brhmah and for obtaining divine intuition or discernment of the gnaan
of
the satya (Truth) that
brhmah is everything; and
- samaadhi
(in the practice of yog,
deep mode of dhyaan with
focus on
integrating and merging all perceptions,
including one's own aatmaa
(soul)
into one object only, that is, brhmah.
c) a spell to create, sustain or destroy a
creation.
d) a spell to create a illusion.
e) a formulae to propitiate any dev or devi
to fulfill a command or a desire. Such a mantra is
usually given by a dev or a devi or a guru
to a person as a gift or for a purpose.
f) as a set of words given by a guru
to a student at the initiation ceremony for a student to start ved
study.
-
A mantra is of three types or forms:
a) ruch or rik is it has
metric scale in it and is intended to be recited loudly;
b) saaman if it has metric scale and is
to be chanted or sung loudly.
c) yajus if it is in prose form and is
intended to be spoken in a low voice or tone
-
mantra as a collective are those
parts of ved which inlcudes samhitaa
but are different from braahmaNaa.
EXPLANATION OF 5:
mHaavaak`y
-
A mHaa-vaak`y is literally great
sentences or aphorism in veD to convey the relationship
of bRH`m to aat`maa (soul) which have
embodied existence as living beings and under the effect of maayaa.
The effect of maayaa prevents an embodied aat`maa
to know bRH`m. The 4 mHaa-vaak`y
are:
a) tt tvm asi
= you
are that ( "you" = embodied aat`maa
as a living being and "that" = brhmah)
b) aHm bRH`m asi
= I am
bRH`m ("I" = the embodied aat`maa as
a living being)
c) ahm aat`maa bRH`m
= my
aat`maa is
bRH`m ("my"
= the living being)
d) pRGNaanM bRH`m
= bRH`m
is pRGNaa (pRGNaa
is bRH`m's chaeetn`y shk`ti (power)
which empowers all functions in all living or non-living creations
and animates or creations to exhibit its ordained functions.
Without chaitaniya all creations starting from mHaa-maayaa
becomes jD or inert. chaeetn`y is
unborn, eternal, un-taintable, pervades the entire creation and
exist in various forms such as puRuSH, chaetn,
aNtkrAN and aat`maa which is the
reflection of chaeetn`y in pRkRUti.)
PART 26-2-2 "even
without
yog,
mankind's paap (sins)
are destroyed through
svaadhyaay.
On being propitiated through
svaadhyaay
the devo become
delighted. "
PART 26-2-3 "japa
is of 3 types: vaachik,
(expressed by words of mouth, oral)
upaaMshu,
(expressed through mumbling and are indistinct to
hearing)
and
maanas
(conceived only in manas
or mind). The
latter ones in these three
are
better than the earlier ones."
(vaachik, upaaMsu and maanas
forms of jap will be described in the next talks)
PART
26-2-4 "jap
is called
vaachik
if mantra of jap
is spoken well
by making the syllables and words articulated clearly.
vaachik jap
grants the benefits of all yagna." (upaaMsu
and maanas forms of jap will be described
in the next talks)
PART 26-2-5
"jap
is called
upaaMshu
if mantra of jap
is spoken such that
the worlds of mantra are
only slightly distinct from one another
(means words cannot be distinguished
from each other distinctly).
upaaMshu jap
is twice more beneficial than
vaachik jap."
PART 26-2-6
"jap
is called
maanas
if chint
(thinking, reasoning,
reflecting and meditating upon to understand its meaning)
is done over each of
the syllables
in mantra of jap.
maanas jap
grants all
yogik achievements."
PART 26-2-6
"devo
becomes delighted with
one
who eulogizes continuously through
jap.
Hence
one who is richly endowed with
the practice of
svaadhyaay
realizes all his
desires."
PART 26-3
(third
karma in the practice of niyam
is)
santosh
is
satisfaction
with obtaining
what comes
spontaneously.
asantuSHt
(unsatisfied)
person
does not get
sukh
(happiness, joy, delight, pleasure)
anywhere."
PART 26-3-1
"Never is
one
satisfied by the enjoyment of
sukh
(happiness, joy, delight, pleasure)
of
kaam
(wish, desire, affection, love,
desire for sensual enjoyments and carnal gratification, lust).
A kaami's
(a person with wish, desire, affection, love,
desire for sensual enjoyments and carnal gratification, lust)
needs
always keeps on increasing
saying
"When will I get more than this?"
Hence,
one should give up
kaam
that causes
the wasting away of
the body.
One
should be contented
with
effortless spontaneous
acquisitions
and
be absorbed in
dharma."
PART 26-4
(third
karma in the practice of niyam
is)
"shauch
(purification of a living being's
existence
as a body and body's empowering entity called aatmaa
(soul))
is of
two types
as differentiated by its
external and internal
purification methodologies.
The external
shauch
is through clay1 and water1.
The internal
shauch
is purity of bhaav
(feelings, emotions, sentiments, love, affection,
attachment,
conduct, behaviour, senses)."
EXPLANATION OF 1:
The external cleaning of the body of a living being
with clay and water signifies the maintenance of external hygiene for
overall good health and well-being of a living being. The use of clay
and water is just symbolic and any other materials that can clean a
body and maintain it healthy are meant to be used as per the customs
and traditions of a locale, time and availability of living resources.
Water is a universally common natural resource used by mankind. Clay
has been mentioned here as a lot of cultures used natural clay for
body cleaning and body invigorating purposes as used in spas and
health resorts in current times. Instead of clay soaps, oils, special
herbal preparations and special mud or clay preparations are also used
by various civilizations from times immemorial.
PART 26-4-1
"The different kinds of
yagna1
performed by those
who are devoid of
internal
shauch,
do not
bear fruit
like the oblations poured
on ashes in a
yagna.
All
vidhio
(vedik rites and ceremonies
as prescribe by ved and shaastra)
of those
who are devoid
of
bhaav shauch
(purity of feelings, emotions, sentiments, love, affection,
attachment)
conduct, behaviour, senses)
are futile.
Hence,
one should forsake
raag
(passionate attachment)
and
similar bhaav
and be
sukhi
(happy and joyous). "
EXPLANATION OF 1: : "yagna":
See Sanskrit Glossary on this web
site
PART 26-4-2
"A man whose
aatmaa (soul)
is
defiled
is
one similar to a
chaandaal.1
Though such a person
might have externally washed his/her body
with ten million pot-full of water
and
thousands of bahaar of clay.
(1 bhaar = 20 tula)
If a person devoid of
internal shauch
becomes engaged in
worship of
dev or devi,
then such a person
taints
the character and essence of that
dev or devi
and
falls into
narak (hell).
EXPLANATION OF 1: chaaNdaal
-
a person outcast from all varna
because
of non-compliance to
sva-dharma
and varna-dharma
by himself and by his
parents.
-
chaandaal persons
are of 3 types as defined in
naarad puraan:
a) a person born of a unmarried virgin girl;
b) a person born of sagotra
meaning from a marriage between
a man and a woman of same gotra or
lineage. sagotra
rule is applied to any person on father's ancestry for six previous
generations and five generations of ancestry on mother's side. Marriage
within this spectrum of father's and mother's gotra
is not recommended by ved and
shaastra.
c) a person born of a sudra
father and a braahman
mother.
PART 26-4-3 "A
person
who is devoid of
internal shauch
but
strives for
external shauch
does not attain
a-vyakulataa
(non-agitated or non-perplexed or
non-bewildered or non-distracted or non- alarmed or non-troubled or
non-frightened or not fully overtaken by)
like a decorated liquor pot1
. tirtho2
do not
pavitrii-kru
(make one loose all one's paap and
thus make pure)
those who perform
yaatra3
without
mano-bhav shauch,
(purification of mind and mind's creation of all
feelings, emotions, sentiments, love, affection, attachment,
conduct, behaviour)
just as
a river cannot purify
a liquor pot.1
"
EXPLANATION OF 1:
This is a simile explanation. Liquor is regarded as
extremely a paapi (sinful)
and duushta (evil) item in
creation. Any liquor when consumed by a living being agitates all its
senses to the point of taking over all its senses to make the living
being behave irrationally and even adharmikally.
Just because a liquor is stored in a nicely decorated pot does not
mean it is a non-evil item and its inherent properties will not affect
a living being when consumed. After consuming liquor a living being
becomes vyaakul (opposite
of a-vyaakultaa) meaning agitated,
perplexed, bewildered, distracted, alarmed, troubled, frightened and
fully taken over by liquor to prevent having reasoned and rational
behaviour.
Similarly a river with all its water cannot purify a
liquor pot which contains liquor. This again refers to the difference
between external and internal shauch.
EXPLANATION OF 2: tirth
(plural tirtho)
-
A tirth
is a place such as a mandir (temple) or any natural or
man-made structure, or a lake or a river, or a tree or mountain or a
natural creation, or a man made or natural shiv-ling
or..... which is designated as pavitra
or holy by an brhmah or dev
or devi or by age old folk
lores.
-
A tirth is ordained with shakti
(power) by brhmah or any dev or devi
that could cure illnesses or granting wishes or propitiating
whatever one wishes with certain prescribed methods such as taking a
dip in the lake or river or perfroming a vrat
(vow) or performing tapasya
(penance).
-
Some tirtho, such as gangaa
river, have the ordained shakti
to mitigate or destroy one's paap
(sin) when visited or touched or seen.
-
At some tirtho by
perfroming vedik vidhio (rites and ceremonies) such as SShraaDdh
one's ancestors are released from their dukh (pain
and sorrow) or propitiated.
-
During visit to a tirth,
one has to perform certain definite
karma in a definite manner to realize the proclaimed
benefit of visiting the tirth. Such karma are prescribed in detail
by the ordaining entity,
-
A tirth is also a place as prescribed in ved
and shaastra that one can
visit after taking a vrat or vow or to perform tapasya
in order to propitiate brhmah or a dev
or devi. For example kaashi
has been proclaimed as a tirth for such purposes in
all puraano. kaashi was originally
established by vishnu-dev who then given to shiv-dev.
-
A tirth
is also a place which has been named as a
pavitra (holy) place because of the stay in that
place by a rushi or muni
or saint. Such a place is visited by the followers of the person to
whom the place belonged in the wish and hope that the visit will
bestow on the visitors good fortune.
-
A place is classified as a tirth
if some historic event that upheld dharma
occurred in that place. For example: kurukshetra
is a tirth where the war between kauravo
and paandavo took place
enabling vishnu-dev' eighth
avataar of krishna
to destroy 1.7 billion paapi peoples who were
threatening destruction of dharma......
-
A place visited by any of the nine incarnations of vishnu-dev
is also classified as tirth.
Examples are the site visited by shree
raam in search of his wife sitaa-devi,
or mathuraa of krishna
where raas with gopio
was played....
-
In ved, shaastra, puraano and
itihaas numerous tirtho
are mentioned for empowering any person to visit the tirth
to absolve oneself of one's paap
(sins) or to perfrom SShraaDdh
for one's ancestors, or to perform the end rites of a vrat
one has taken to attain one's desires or to perform tapasya
(penance) or to perform some of the 16 sanskaar
(rites of passage of different states of growth including final
death) a person has to perform between conception and
death.
EXPLANATION OF 3: yaatraa
-
yaatraa means
a journey or pilgrimage to a tirth (as
explained above) for
realizing the objectives one has in mind related to aadhyaatmaa
of one's existence, meaning life's aspects dealing with one's aatmaa
(soul) and aatmaa's
life journeys in which karma-fal
(fruits of karma) is incurred and accumulated.
-
Mostly an yaatraa
is undertaken to mitigate the karma-fal
of one's paapi (sinful)
karma.
For this objective, places called tirth
are visited and prescribed vedik
vidhio (rites and
ceremonies) are performed in that tirth
for mitigating the paapi karma-fal.
-
yaatraa
is also undertaken to complete one's vrat
(vow) after realization of the objectives of the vrat. Again certain
prescribed vedik vidhio
(rites and ceremonies) are performed in that tirth
and as per one's vrat. For example one may take a vrat
to offer free food to 100 persons at a tirth or to do
a pujaa
or to donate cash or to do a fast or to be blessed by the deity of
the tirth.
-
yaatra
is also undertaken just to accumulate punya
(merits) by visits of a tirth. Such punya
are described in ved, shaastra, puraano and
itihaas.
-
yaatra is
also undertaken to places where dharmik or vedik
festivities are historically celebrated on a regular but periodic
basis such as annually or bi-annually or once in certain number of
years. Example is kumbh-melaa
which is celebrated at kaasi
every 12 years or celebrations at some very old temples which are
regarded as tirth.
-
In devi
bhaagvat puraan, the best and
most auspicious prayer to brhmah
is only for a blessing for any and all resources available to be
used for yaatra
only in any state of embodied existence or incarnation of one's aatmaa
in the eternal cycle of sansaar
(worldly existence). This prayer empower one to use all resources
and wealth one obtains in the sustenance of well-being for all
creations and as sevaa (service) to brhmah.
(explanation
will be continued
of
the third karma in the practice of
niyam
which is
shauch
(purification of a living being's
existence
as a body and body's empowering entity called aatmaa
(soul))
PART 26-4-4 "If
a person
desires with one's
manas1
and buddhi1
for
paapi vastu or
vishay
(a worldly object. article, substance,
matter, wealth, property, possession, subject pleasures of senses which
is sinful)
even
as he talks
on dharma,
know him
to be
mahaa-duSHtatam
(most wicked, ill-behaved, corrupt, guilty,
culpable, low, vile, worthless)
among
maahaa-paaapio
(great sinners). If
those persons
whose
manas1
are
shauch
(pure or purified)
perform only their
param-dharma
(excellent duties),
know that
karma-fal
(fruits and benefit of karma)
thereof is
shaashvat
(imperishable)
and a
granter of
sukh
(happiness, joy, delight, pleasure)."
EXPLANATION OF 1: :
"manas"
= mind
& "buddhi
"=
discriminative intellectual
faculty to distinguish between dharmik and adharmik karma through
reservoir of knowledge of experience from many life cycles:
See Sanskrit Glossary on this web
site for full understanding.
PART 26-4-5 (fifth
and sixth karma in the practice of niyam
is) "hari-puujaa
is real if
bhakti1
to
hari (= brhmah)
is
stabilized by means of
sandhyaa1
praathnaa1
(prayers to brhmah 3 times a day - morning, noon and evening)
consisting of
puujaa,1
upaasanaa1, aaraadhanaa1
(worships),
stuti1
(eulogies)
and
listening to and with
manas1
(mentally),
vaach1
(with words verbally)
and
prakrutyaa1
or jaatit1
(physically)."
PART 26-4-5-1
EXPLANATION OF 1 in Part 26-4-5: performing
bhakti through ,
sandhyaa praathnaa, puujaa, upaasanaa, aaraadhnaa, and stuti
through manas, vaach and
prakrutyaa-jaatit:
In ved and
shaastra performing bhakti
to a dev or devi
or any creation is defined as endeavouring to become one with the
entity to which bhakti is
targeted at....for the simple reason one's aatmaa
is our creator brhmah and
our creator brhmah is everything in this universe and
our creator brhmah is the
empowering entity for everything that is created and everything that
happens in this universe...Please see detailed explanation of
bhakti in the SANSKRIT
GLOSSARY in VED page on
the web site...
In the Part 26-4-5 of learning about yog,
brahmaa-dev who creates
everything through bhakti to
our creator brhmah teaches us that the performance is bhakti
is facilitated by perfroming puujaa
of brhmah together with praathnaa
(prayer) at sandhyaa is the
last part of the total practice of niyam which
is the second karma to be performed in the 8-karma
yog.
puujaa is
basically understanding what that being is and what the being does to
whom one is performing puujaa
to. For example in performing puujaa
to vishnu-dev one understands that vishnu-dev
has a body which has four arms, is dark blue in colour, has svaarstak
mark on his chest, wears numerous ornaments, takes a number of
vyuh (manifested forms and avataar (physical
incarnations) to do various functions to create, maintain and
re-absorb all creations for rebirth. In the four hands there are items
such as gadaa, sudarshan chakra, which
belongs to vishnu-dev only for his use in perfroming his
designated functions. So knowing all this as part of performing puujaa
one comes to understand all shakti (powers)
of our creator brhmah manifesting as visnu-dev.
So really one is understanding a small part of our creator brhmah.
Then so that one can remember all that information
about vishnu-dev as naam (name) and ruup
(form) of various shaktio of our creator brhmah,
in performing puujaa we
also sing praises to each of the shaktio
and this singing is called perfroming stuti....And
stuti can be done in three
ways:
-
by manas
meaning just mentally remembering all the shaktio and their
functions or
-
by vaach
meaning actually
saying or singing these through a lot of poems, bhajan, aarti we
have or
-
by prakrutyaa
or jaatit meaning
relating all these shaktio to various physical
phenomenon we know in ourselves or in all creations.
And these stuti should
be performed through sandhyaa meaning
praathnaa (prayers) at
dawn, noon and evening times when our own physical daily routines
change according to the circadian (related to movement of sun) rhythm
of a day, month, season, year and yug. The repetition of 3 times a day
is recommended to keep our focus in each time period that all that
happens or all that one does in that time period is through the
empowering shaktio of our creator brhmah...and all theses
empowering shaktio are seen in various different forms
of creation varying from our fellow humans to animals, plants,
organisms, inanimate creations and all forces and phenomenon of nature
such as rain, thunder, rotation and revolutions of everything in space
and phenomenon of time and time's cyclic nature.....each and every one
of these is our creator brhmah manifested in form of his
infinite shaktio...
Perfroming puujaa through
stuti at 3 sandhyaa as praathnaa
is bhakti....all for the
simple purpose of remembering continually that all that happens and
all that is done is due to our aatmaa manifested as a
form of our creator brhmah....
PART 26-5-1 (Now
learn about aasan which
is the third daily karma limb
in life for those who practice 8-ang
(limb) karma-yog) "One
who has conquered one's
indriyo
(5 senses of cognition of the universe and
5 senses of performance of karma in the universe and manas (mind) )
and
stabilized one's
buddhi
through the observance of
yam and niyam
(as taught in the previous sections)
should begin the practice of
aasan
duly.
aasan
is an excellent means
of achieving
yog
(In the PART 27 sanak-muni
teaches about
aasan
which is the
3rd ang (limb) of the 8-aNg yog
practice in life)
The above
GNaan of
yog which is True Knowledge
which
reveals creator bRH`m
is
supplemented by additional GNaan
by the smRUti shared by
naarD-muni in
s`kND puraaAN.
Please
perform your yaaTRaa to
visit the additional
PARTS 27 to 40
of yog practice
on this veD page on
this PVAF web site....
and enrich your life by removing suffering due to
unknown.....
---------------om tt st......................
---------------om shaanti shaanti .....................
---------------om bRH`mye nmH......................
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