Mantra Meditation
| October 12, 2009 | Posted by monica under Ayurveda, Ayurveda and Yoga Practice |
By Atul Krishna Das and Manjulali Dasi
The sanskrit word mantra is derived from ‘man’ indicating mind, and the verbal root ‘tra’ indicating deliverance. A mantra is a sound vibration meant to free the mind by aligning it with a path to higher levels of consciousness or existence.
Many different types of mantras exist with different purposes. Nowadays ‘mantra’ has entered the modern vocabulary to refer to any kind of invocation or utterance meant to help one focus on a particular goal. While this is true of mantras, it is a limited definition. The deeper metaphysical meaning of mantra is a sound which has been imbued with some specific power. Invoking or meditating on the mantra opens a channel to energetic pathways connecting us to higher levels of consciousness.
Every mantra has various attributes, including an object or goal; a seed vibration which connects the body of the mantra with the object of worship; a predominating personality who lends his or her power to the mantra; a seer who has revealed the mantra; and a process by which the mantra is transmitted to the seeker.
The concept of ‘worship’ mentioned here is not identical to the rituals of various religious dogmas, but refers to the process of connecting with higher power in a subordinate relationship. The precise Sanskrit word used is ‘upasana’ which incorporates the prefix ‘upa’ referring to a subordinate position and ‘as’ meaning situation or existence.
Yoga is often considered a passive exercise of unity. The very word ‘yoga’ derives from the Sanskrit verbal root ‘yuj’, to link up or engage or connect. The concept of upasana is not often understood in the same breath as yoga because the concept of subordination to a higher power is sometimes seen as dualistic, or non-unity.
Reconciliation of the implied unity of yoga described in the Upanishads and Patanjali Yoga-sutras with the many statements of the Upanishads describing the eternal separate nature of the self follows different paths. One path is to describe the apparent separateness of consciousness in the embodied state as temporary. Another path (described here) is to describe this separateness as the individuality of the atomic spiritual essence known as the atma or soul, whose ultimate unity is understood through the Vedanta-sutra aphorism ‘shakti-shaktimator abhedah’ – between the potent and potency, there is no difference. This doctrine of unity of the potent (shaktiman) and potency (shakti) as a reconciliation of Vedanta and the Upanishads is called achintya-bhedabheda-tattva or advaya-jnana-para-tattva, and will be described in detail later.
In order to meditate, we must focus and channel our mind, which otherwise will run in five different directions. Beeja Mantras must be taken from a qualified GURU for proper benefits.
Examples of different Mantras used for Meditation are:
Sound: OM
(Om Namah Bhagavate Vasudevaya, Om Kesavaya Namah, Om Narayanaya Namah, Om Govindaye Namah, Om Krisnaya Namah)
Beej Mantras: Srim, Klim, Hraum, Hring, Shring
(Om Klim Krsnaya Govindaya svaaha)
Transcendental Names: Ram, Vishnu, Krishna, Govinda, Giridhari
(Hare Krishna Hare Krishna Krishna Krishna Hare Hare
Hare Rama Hare Rama Rama Rama Hare Hare)
Powerful , Beej Mantra for Protection from evil, ghosts, death:
Om kraum narasimhaya namaha
om ksaum namo bhagavate narasimhaya
jvala-maline dipta-damstrayagni-netraya
sarva-raksho-ghnaya sarva-bhuta vinashaya
sarva-jvara-vinashaya daha daha pacha pacha
raksha raksha hum phat
“Obeisances to the Lord Nrisimhaya, burning with His own scorching effulgence which are ablaze and whose eyes pour forth torrents of living fire, matched only by the glow of His glowing teeth. Obeisances to the destroyer of all demons, to the slayer of all ghosts, to the destroyer of all sorts of fever. Burn and burn, cook and cook, preserve and preserve.”
(Source: Archana Deepika www.purebhakti.com, Dr. Raj Baldev, occultastrology)
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