Devi Mandir

Temple of Divine Mother

Devotee Shares About 2008 Sharanagata Sankalpa Mantra

Updating the numbers after a two week gap. We have had three people complete this sankalpa in the meantime. Congratulations to Vasantha, Rick Veda and Usha !!!

Here is what Ushaji had to say "I’ll miss doing this sankalpa. Do you think Shree Maa would give us a new one – or should we just keep going on this one ?"… Well, Ushaji, there is another sankalpa in the air, this time given to us by Swamiji … Stay tuned.. and thank you for your enthusiasm and participation !

Rick had this to say "All victory to the Mother of All Beings! I have completed my sankalpa. I am going to celebrate with some friends" Thank you Rick Veda !

Vasantha sent in a moving account of her experiences with chanting this mantra.

She says, " This year has been a very challenging one healthwise. I started it with a major surgery . The sankalpa mantra became my refuge during the slow and painful recovery process. Being restricted in movement , this became a perfect opportunity to keep at the mantra. I was gifted a clicker, and this became my constant companion. I used to go to sleep with the clicker in one hand and the mantra on my lips. It took away the physical pain, kept me focussed on the higher good, and made me at peace with my situation. My pranams again and again to Shree Maa and Swamiji for providing this opportunity to stay on track with my sadhana even during my illness. Their blessings make it all possible." Thank you Vasanthaji.
Here are the numbers for those of us that preferred to chant the mantra at the fire (Week ending April 8th 2007)

Name
Number of Mantras
Swamiji & Mandir Residents
Priceless
Michael
12,960
Janitri
6,048
Mousumi
10,908
Parvati
3,240
Total
33,156

And for those of us that chanted without the fire

Name
Number of Mantras
Arati
20,000
Babu
1,296
Bharata
81,000
Bharati
13,068
Brendan
3,843
Carie
2,732
Chocatane
33,048
Chris K
26,352
Chris W
34,765
Debi
111,111
Donna
32,490
Durga
9,396
Egyirba
9,180
Eric
94,824
Gauri
10,044
Georgiann
7,891
Henny
34,020
Janitri
19,196
Jayadeva
35,640
Julia
27,360
Kalachandra
20,736
Kaliananda
25,164
Kamalaji
31,861
Kanda
28,080
Karen
28,000
Kathy
26,920
Linda
824
Marsha
22,572
Maruthi
63,111
Mausumi
22,680
Michael
21,600
Michele
5,710
Morningsong
35,640
Muktimaa
15,120
Nickolas
2,300
Nirmal
5,184
Nirmalananda
15,700
Nanda
16,115
Papia
32,400
Patty
27,784
Prasana
10,840
Prathibha
20,422
Raghu
34,128
Rebeca
23,020
Rick Veda
103,140
Robin
24,500
Rolf
25,056
Rukmani
7,560
Sadhu Maa
11,261
Shubal
23,760
Sitara
7,424
Sundari
30,240
Shankari
11,880
Surya
111,111
Susan
51,732
Usha
105,732
Vasantha
108,000
Wendel
25,800
Wendy
31,860
Vinay
2,160
Visveshwar
34,236
Yogini
76,680
Total
1,915,299


Swamiji on Nine Planet Pujas

~~OM~~

In this article, Swamiji stresses the need to do make worship of all the daily influences everyday and the beneficial effects of worshipping the nine planets.

Question: Swamiji, what is the attitude that one should have when facing adversity? In India, the priests suggest pujas (worship) to Shani (Saturn) to make things normal again. What do you think?

Swamiji: I think that we should make puja (worship) everyday, and not just for Shani but for everybody, everyone that’s Divine, and all the Divine influences in our lives. Now, what happens in India is that, generally, priests know that householders are so busy with their worldly tasks that they’re not making puja, and their neglect of the pujas is what causes confusion.

So most of the priests in India who suggest that you worship Shani are really saying, “Get on a spiritual path.” For anyone who’s really on a spiritual path, you have no need for a priest who says to do a puja for Shani. You’re doing puja everyday yourself. What need have you for a pujari who says, “It’s Shani dosha (affliction) that’s causing your problem”?

Shani has many benevolent effects in our astrological ecology. Shani is the Lord of discipline. Shani is a very great benefactor to anyone who creates a discipline. He is the strength of that discipline, and the focus of that discipline, and the commitment to that discipline. And now we are seeking freedom through action – not freedom from action. The moksha that we are seeking is freedom in action, not being inactive. The verses in the Bhagavad Gita say, “No one can be free from action. Even I who am the Lord of the three worlds, I must continue to act.” Therefore, do your action with the spirit of the rishis (sages). Do your action as the servant of Ram, do your action as an instrument in the hands of God.

So I appreciate the priests of India who recommend that we do Shani puja or the like, because they’re really saying, “Do something spiritual.” But I appreciate even more those great sadhus who are doing it themselves, not because some priests in India told them to, but because they are really in love with God. And they are following this path just as an inspiration so that they lead a pure life, a focused life, and a disciplined life which brings them to their ultimate objectives.

Graha shanti (peace) is to put to all your planets in harmony. Now look, the Sun is the light of wisdom, the Moon is the warmth of devotion, Mars has strength and fortitude and focus, Mercury is the communicator, Jupiter is the great guru and teacher, Venus fills us with love and pure attachment, Saturn will take us to discipline, Rahu and Ketu polarize obstacles and help us to reconcile the opposites. Look at the beneficent aspect of the planets and then they’ll all be in shanti. That’s the puja.

How to Tie the Sacred Thread

The “Sacred Thread” is a consecrated thread that is worn by Hindus in India.

This article shows how to tie the sacred thread, while sitting in the Swastik Asana and chanting the Gayatri Mantra. …read more
 

Satsang on Guru Gita


~~OM~~

Guru Gita: Satsang with Shree Maa and Swamiji

In the following profound and elevating conversation, Shree Maa and Swamiji translate and discuss a Bengali commentary on the Guru Gita.

Mother is translating from a book by Nirmalananda, who is a disciple of Swami Pranavanandaji from Bharat Seva Ashram.

Who is the Respected Guru and what kind of behavior does the Guru exemplify? What is the Guru’s intrinsic nature and what is the principle of the Guru?

Who is able to take refuge in the Guru and what is the effect of taking refuge in Guru?

What is seva to the Guru, what is an offering to the Guru, what is the song of the Guru, and what is the discipline of a disciple?

What is the highest fruit of devotion to Guru?

The answers to all these questions are found in the scripture called Guru Gita.

Commentaries on Sri Guru Gita come from the Vishvasaara Tantra. These are expansions of the Guru Gita. Also people speak of Rudrayamal Tantra. All Tantras speak of the highest principle of the Guru.

In both the Vedas and Vedanta, the position of the Guru is held in very high regard. But in the Tantra scriptures, they speak of the Guru’s position as being the very highest. In the path of Tantra, the principle of Guru is the highest principle of all.

Guru is both the Supreme Divinity with form and without form.

The Guru is Brahma, Vishnu and Maheswar. The Respected Guru is both the motivation for the highest truth and the attainment and realization of the highest truth. These are illuminated in all of the verses contained in the Guru Gita.

The foremost principle and discussion of the highest importance has been given by Sada Shiva. His first student was Parvati.

Guru Gita informs us by which sadhana, by what means, can someone who wears a body attain success.

Without a doubt, Shiva has illuminated these questions in this scripture. The path of the Guru is the king of all dharmas (king of all ideals of perfection – the Supreme). In order to attain prasad (consecrated offering) from the Guru, your birth, your past, your karma (what kind of activities you perform) are not required subjects. The ignorant, the lazy and those steeped in darkness (tamas) will not proceed in this path. They are not capable of achieving the understanding of the wisdom of the principles. They don’t have wisdom or desire knowledge of liberation.

It is incumbent upon all those who take refuge in the Guru to do so with their body, mind and speech.

Seva (selfless service as an expression of love) to the Guru, Puja, aaradhana is a disciple’s sadhana. Giving pleasure to the Guru is your sadhana, your worship.

Whoever is able to do atma samarpan (surrender of his or her own soul in equilibrium) to the Sri Guru’s Feet – giving up all their attachment – this is samadhi and siddhi (attainment of perfection). This is the path of the Guru.

The Guru is not a human being. The Guru is the Supreme Divinity made manifest. Because of this, we cannot look at our Guru as just a human being. This Guru principle is united with all pure qualities, beautiful attributes, the greatness of all purity. This is the authority that comes through the Guru.

If you can perceive these qualities in your Guru, you will not think of your Guru as a mere human being. The Guru is Bhagavan (Supreme Divinity).

All the qualities and all the attitudes, all the energies and all that is Infinite or eternal, all the wisdom that is inculcated – all these qualities are only reflected in God. That Godliness is reflected in the Guru. So we should not think of the Guru as a human being. We would think of the Guru as the emblem or representative of Supreme Divinity.

Where there is atma samarpan, the disciple becomes a mirror and there is union between Guru and disciple in a great radiant light. When there is a transfer of energy from Guru to disciple and surrender, there is a light that is incomparable to anything you can see with worldly eyes.

Trailinga Swami once locked himself in His room for three days. His disciple was very worried and wanted to see Swamiji. He went to the door and banged and banged and banged. Trailinga Swamiji said ‘Who are you?”

The disciple was full of his own ego self, and replied, “I am so and so”. He felt he was a real disciple, but he was not at that moment. There was no response from within. On the second day, the disciple went again and banged on the door and received the same question. Again he answered, “I am so and so”. Nothing happened. On third day, the disciple thought deeply and cried, “Why is the Guru doing this to me?”

Again he knocked on the door with reverence. Trailinga Swami asked, “Who are you?” The disciple replied, “You.” Trailinga Swamji opened the door.

The Guru-disciple relationship is very subtle. Atma samarpan has become a big market nowadays. The relationship between Guru and Disciple is truth. A truthful relationship means surrender. You will get everything with surrender.

Where is the individual form of God? Ishwara, God, the Supreme Soul, is everywhere, in every place. He is in the gross body, the subtle body, the modifications of the mind and unmanifest as well. How can the individual wearing a body grasp Supreme Divinity, find Him, touch Him with sensory knowledge? With our current perception, this is a very difficult issue.

There is a solution to this issue in Hindu Dharma. Scriptures say that He who understands Supreme Divinity, becomes Supreme Divinity. Who has refined the discipline of sadhana, becomes united with all the tendencies of sadhana, he understands the nature of the Supreme Divinity. That individual becomes a representative of Supreme Divinity.

A great example of that is Swamiji!!! This moment Swamiji does not need sadhana. He can go to the Himalayas and be by Himself. But to show the world, He is doing sadhana.

We are born, we learn how to walk, first we learn from our parents – how to walk, how to eat – step by step, our whole life is sadhana. In childhood we are learning how to be human. Now we are learning how to be with the soul. Without sadhana, we will never know.

The Supreme Divinity, the teacher, and the yogi who has attained divinity are all one.

The Yogi is actually a murti – the perceivable form of Supreme Divinity. All the true qualities of a Yogi are illuminated in reality.

We believe that according to the needs of the age, God Himself comes in an embodied form. That Supreme Divinity which is Infinite beyond conception takes a human form and takes birth in the mortal world.

He is undefeatable and that is the Supreme Divinity manifested amongst all the elements of existence.

When we do surrender our soul in equilibrium (atma samarpana), we receive Diksha. The first chapter of this experience is to receive a mantra in the ear, but that is only the first chapter. Om

"But I can keep my knees down …"

Congratulations to Debi on completion of her sankalpa!!! She shared her exhilaration with us and says "Happy! Happy! Joy! Joy!"

Donna from Florida admits that the sankalpa is not always smooth . "At times it got tough" she said and there were days she "just didnt want to do it" ! This reminds me of a Swamiji story – He once said that (and I paraphrase) regardless of what the mind tries to trick us into, we should "keep our knees down" ie we should keep our asana and continue our sadhana regardless !

Sitara from Toronto , Canada says "This mantra has been wonderful for me." and said that will share the "details soon". We look forward to hearing from you Sitara !

Sundari from Berkeley wrote in to share this

"The sankalpa has really helped me deepen my regular practice in beautiful ways. The UPS is such a huge goal to work toward – 100,000 repetitions just can’t be done in a day. Or maybe it can, if you recite really fast! (It would require 7 repetitions per minute for 24 hours straight.) With what I am able to do (anywhere between 3-10 malas a day), I just have to come back to it every day, whether I’m feeling like it or not. I feel a sense of accomplishment at every major milestone, but also humbled and challenged by the weight of what is left. And inspired, too! I believe that such a strong and sweet intention can and will transform world consciousness, eventually.

The support from the online community has been especially powerful, and the whole thing inspired me to deepen my sadhana."

All the very best to you Sundari !

Here are the numbers for those of us that preferred to chant the mantra at the fire (Week ending March 18th 2007)

Name
Number of Mantras
Swamiji & Mandir Residents
Priceless
Michael
12,960
Janitri
6,048
Mousumi
10,908
Parvati
1,080
Total
30,996

And for those of us that chanted without the fire

Name
Number of Mantras
Arati
7,000
Babu
1,296
Bharata
60,000
Bharati
10,800
Brendan
3,711
Carie
1,920
Chocatane
24,408
Chris K
18,900
Chris W
26,294
Debi
111,111
Donna
25,490
Durga
5,616
Egyirba
9,180
Eric
71,928
Gauri
10,044
Georgiann
7,007
Henny
28,512
Janitri
14,296
Jayadeva
26,784
Julia
20,430
Kalachandra
20,736
Kaliananda
20,520
Kamalaji
30,049
Kanda
21,600
Karen
22,000
Kathy
20,116
Marsha
20,088
Maruthi
47,000
Mausumi
17,280
Michael
10,800
Michele
5,710
Morningsong
26,460
Muktimaa
13,176
Nickolas
1,500
Nirmal
5,184
Nirmalananda
12,900
Nanda
14,115
Papia
25,920
Patty
23,248
Prasana
10,840
Prathibha
20,422
Raghu
24,948
Rebeca
18,700
Rick Veda
82,620
Robin
18,600
Rolf
18,900
Rukmani
6,696
Sadhu Maa
10,044
Shubal
12,420
Sitara
5,004
Sundari
24,840
Shankari
11,880
Surya
111,111
Susan
31,536
Usha
74,736
Vasantha
90,000
Wendel
19,500
Wendy
27,972
Vinay
2,160
Visveshwar
34,236
Yogini
70,200
Total
1,563,494


What can we do to clean Ganga?

~~OM~~

Swamiji asks:

“Ganga has been charged with the responsibility to cleanse the world from selfishness. When Ganga complained that She would become  polluted from cleansing the world, Brahma proclaimed that the sadhus  will perform sadhana in order to clean Her. What actions can we take  to help clean Ganga?

We have to live up to the highest standards of mental and emotional purity so that instead of contaminating the River of Heaven, we add a little of our purity to it.

~~gyselsvishnu

It is our own mind stream that must be cleansed and we are the ones that must do the cleaning. This is the River of the Gods we swim in and drink. This means removing the detritus and particulates floating therein, placed there by our own actions, as much as we can.

If we do that wholeheartedly and sincerely, over a period of time, we will without special effort be contributing to the clean spiritual water for all humanity. We will also no longer be paddling about in circles – we will be cutting through the waters of confusion in a
purposeful and inspiring fashion.

~~Steve Connor

Just try to understand ourselves and more we do more clean She becomes, and we can hasten the process by letting our incomplete understanding wash the feet of the Masters, so that we can come away with better understanding and little more closer to completely understanding Ganga.

On the first take Ganga concern might look little selfish, but if we look deeper it was Her compassion that made Her get the boon, so that if we awaken through Her, She has made sure that there will be someone there to carry us all the way. It was through hard work of our ancestors Ganga flows in us, but it was Ganga compassion that made sure that the beings she liberated would be there to help the the rest of us – Oh! thats our Mother!

~~n mallan

As I understand, we help to clean Ganga every time we act selflessly as a natural expression of our love. Our capability to do this will grow if we persistently strive to surrender selfishness and make every effort to take refuge in the Guru: `Eternally remembering the image of the Guru, always making recitation of the name of the Guru, always observing the instruction of the Guru, always maintain the attitude of none other than the Guru’. Thus we gradually learn how to cultivate peace and maintain a relationship with the attitude of Truth, thereby creating waves of vibration stronger than those of our thoughtless and selfish actions. Then we enjoy the privilege of belonging to the family of sadhus and pure souls who sit on Ganga’s banks, joyfully singing the names of God and contemplating the Light of Wisdom reflected in her pure waters.

~~Henny

I feel the following would help:

  • Love towards all
  • Help and serve others without any expectation of returns
  • Truthful and honest in conduct.

~~Anirudh

We can clean ourselves, both inside and out so when we bathe in Ganga, both physically and spiritually, we can help purify Her instead of burdening Her. By our example and by our Sharing and Giving, once we have attained something to Share and Give, we can help others to do the same. We can live in Harmony with this World and help others to do the same, so Bhu Devi is pleased and tranquil. We can be regular and consistent with our sadhana and steadily increase it until every moment of our short lives here becomes a puja, a meditation, a seva.

~~Surya

By making sure Pure Love is the origin and intention of all our actions. Actions taken out of Pure Love are clean, never selfish.

~~ecjensen

To love so intensely that we cannot live without this intense love and to follow Dharma.

~~michael medua

Grasp understanding of Absolute Truth (knowledge), develop and put into practice that understanding (devotion), toss the pollution of fear, resentment, worry, anxiety, and hatred into the river (surrender of ego), and the ever-flowing source of unconditional love will carry it away, all of it – always…faith keeps the river clean…thus you have peace.

~~Sal Paulsen

I think with sadhana  we can help to clean Ganga.

~~Kalachandra

In our appreciation and reverence for Ganga cleansing the world from selfishness we would what to exemplify that action ourselves. Through our spiritual practices of Japa, Puja, scriptures as well as selfless service in the world. If we have a scripture like the Ganga Strotram which I downloaded from the web site and it is a wonderful way to fathom her greatness. A couple of days ago I chanted the Chandi Path by the creek and felt enveloped in her presence and her constant nurturing and purifying essence.

In our pujas we establish a container of consciousness with water, mantras, etc. as well as water oblations to the deity with our sincere devotion. We ourselves are made up of so much water and in bowing down to Ganga,we are bowing down to our selves.

~~Surath

The Guru Gita says that “the water from the Guru’s two feet can purify all sin. The water from the Guru’s feet is a holy river.” Selfless surrender, sincere and consitent service to Guruji would assist in cleansing Mother Ganga. Following the steps of devotion as outlined in the 2nd Chapter of the Kasyapa Sutra will also help in cleansing Goddess Ganga.

~~Kaliananda

To help to clean Mata Ganga we can do pranayama, drawing ojas up the ida, moving the energy around the ajna chakra (washing the feet of the Guru), and then moving it down the pingala.

~~Sadhu Maa

I think that we are talking about cleansing the nadis. As above so below. Just as our nadis get clogged up with negativities and thoughts; the Earth’s aura gets clogged up with the negativities and thoughts of all of humanity. How to help cleanse the Earth? The central nadis of humans are potentially connected to Her central nadi through the hui yin point at the base of the body; the perineum; and our crown chakra is connected to a star far above our head; the abode of Shiva. Ask and receive; these connections can be made that simply.
Why not?

~~Dan

We can do sadhana beside our favorite stream. All the streams and rivers of this world are Maa Ganga. So we can purify all the waters. After that, if there’s some litter around, we can clean the place up a bit. Jai Maa Ganga !!!

~~Nirmalananda Saraswati

Shiva receives Ganga so She can safely come to Earth to purify unfortunate souls and further sanctifies Her with His touch. Ongoing puja to Shiva with gratitude for the offerings of both seems another way to assist in ever-transforming the impurities Ganga receives.

~~Durga & Shubal

I believe that enlivening every molecule with the name of Divine Mother shatters any impurity in Ganga within and without.

~~Gauri

Because I am learning to see and understand Ganga as the stream of Life or Consciousness which runs throughout all of creation, I believe that the best actions we can take are those which keep our input into this Consciousness pure and sattvic.

This question reminded me of the saying “ethics are what you do when no one is looking.”  It is the things we do, think and believe in the depths of our hearts that are what we put into the river.  These can either be the lotus flowers of love, compassion and truth, or selfishness and toxic waste.

Living a life of prayer and meditation is the filtering system of our input into Consciousness.  Sadhana allows our input to come from hearts of pure devotion.  If we live in the most sattvic way we can, with love and focused attention on Maa, we are certainly helping to clean the river.

~~Morningsong

An excellent start towards purification is to establish a daily schedule, a commitment, a sankalpa which we faithfully follow with our full attention. This concentration of purpose will cause us to commune, ultimately, with our own soul, bringing devotion into our hearts and clarity into our minds. In the Cosmic Puja (Samasti Upasana), the Nava Durga Puja (1) on page 120 describes this process of purification beautifully through several steps, each represented by a specific Goddess:

  • Goddess of Inspiration (Sailaputri), the Mother of the Universe
  • Goddess of Learning (Brahmacarini), the Image of the Three
  • Goddess of Practice (Candraghante), also the Goddess of Welfare
  • Goddess of Refinement (Kusmanda), the Eyes of Desire
  • Goddess Who Nurtures Divinity (Skandamata), She Who Tears Apart Thoughts
  • Goddess Who Is Ever Pure (Katyayini), You Who Belong To Shiva
  • Goddess of the Dark Night (Kalaratri), The Seed of Desire
  • Goddess of the Great Radiant Light (Mahagauri), also the Goddess of Contentment
  • Goddess of the Grantor of Perfection (Siddhide), the Reliever of Difficulties

As you may note, this puja describes a series of purifying processes we experience inwardly as we dedicate ourselves to helping to cleanse Ganga, the River that flows within each of us. May we all be blessed with success in applying the numerous tools for purification Shree Maa and Swami Satyananda have so kindly given us!

~~Gautam.

We can make it our individual intention to maintain equanimity in the face of all the pairs of opposites…just as Ganga Mata does, accepting everything equally: death and life, worship and inattention, plastic bags and tiny arati lamps floating across her face. We can do our small part in cleansing our own incarnated world from our own ego-driven selfishness. We can offer our sadhana for the benefit of others. Thank you for asking this question…and for your wonderful support.

~~Sadhvi

Reflections on Sarva Badha Peace Sankalpa Mantra


{The answer to the question in the title is given in the Introduction of the Shiva Puja and Advanced Yajna book. Swamiji says "Cultivate the attitude of gratitude, and carry it with you throughout your daily activities.Only then will worship pervade our lives"}

Congratulations to Surya for completing the sankalpa ! He completed 111,111 recitations. Thank you Surya for blessing this universe with your sadhana. Surya had a few words to share on his experience, but first here is a Q&A with our beloved Swamiji.

Sadhu Maa had two questions on the meaning of the mantra.

Sadhu Maa asked : In the UPS mantra there is reference to "the three worlds". Will you please explain what is meant by "the three worlds"?

Swamiji says: The gross body, subtle body and causal body: what can be perceived through the senses, conceived in the mind, and known through intuition.

Sadhu Maa asked: When we say "and in like manner, remove from us all hostility", are we talking about hostility present in our subtle, vital and gross bodies?

Swamiji says: Yes, as well as all hostility within us, or directed to us, and ultimately all hostility from creation.

Here is what Maruthi had to say "I really feel blessed that Shree MAA gave us the opportunity to take part in the Universal Peace Sankalpa."

And here is Surya‘s sharing from this sankalpa – the feeling of what an honor and privilege it is to serve Her.

"I finished the 100,000 repetitions Monday night. I figured since it was Shiva’s Day (and Night) it would be an auspicious way to end, so I pushed it and did the last 4030 reps that day/night. Now I am just finishing another 11,111 so that I can have a total of 111,111–an auspicious Gauri Shankar number. Om Shiva Shakti Aikya Rupinyai Namah!

This sadhana has really changed me and my outlook on many things. Some shift definitely occured that night. I really felt a big change starting on Maha Shivaratri and this "sealed the deal", so to speak.

I decided that from now on, I am going to really apply myself to see everything in my life as a true and beautiful gift from the Goddess.

I am truly thankful for all these Blessings She has given me. My family, my partner, my kids and all that makes up my life. I gladly accept my karma and dharma and will work hard to live up to what is required of me.

I must admit that becoming a householder has been a very difficult road for me. In many ways I have fought it tooth and nail. But this was/is just silly. Everything is how it should be and I am very grateful for it.

We can always choose to look at our circumstances in many different ways. We can complain about our lot in life or we can see that it is all Her Will and be grateful for the Honor and Privilege of Serving Her, the Universe and Our Self in the way that She has chosen for us. She always knows what is Best for us and gives us Everything we need, even without us asking for it. So why not trust Her?

It is said that Life is what you make it. I firmly believe this. The grass isn’t greener anywhere else. So lets make Life a Celebration–a Truly Joyous Event. Lets revel in the Bliss. This is my ideal that I am going to do my utmost to embody each and every day."

Thanks Sadhu Maa for your questions, and to Maruthi and Surya for sharing your sentiments.

Here are the numbers for those of us that preferred to chant the mantra at the fire (Week ending March 4th 2007)

Name
Number of Mantras
Swamiji & Mandir Residents
Priceless
Michael
12960
Janitri
4384
Mousumi
10908
Total
28,252

And for those of us that chanted without the fire

Name
Number of Mantras
Babu
1296
Bharata
46000
Bharati
10800
Brendan
3160
Carie
1282
Chocatane
19116
Chris K
15228
Chris W
19128
Debi
70848
Donna
21590
Durga
5616
Egyirba
8424
Eric
46656
Gauri
5832
Georgiann
5762
Henny
23112
Janitri
11484
Jayadeva
22140
Julia
15810
Kalachandra
15876
Kaliananda
15984
Kamalaji
19630
Kanda
17280
Karen
18000
Kathy
15580
Marsha
15552
Maruthi
37000
Mausumi
12852
Michael
10800
Michele
4792
Morningsong
20520
Muktimaa
11664
Nickolas
1188
Nirmal
5184
Nirmalananda
11100
Nanda
12015
Papia
15120
Parvati
6480
Patty
18712
Prasana
9568
Prathibha
10617
Raghu
19872
Rebeca
16100
Rick Veda
63180
Robin
14200
Rolf
15336
Rukmani
6048
Sadhu Maa
8670
Shubal
12420
Sitara
3464
Sundari
19224
Shankari
10476
Surya
111111
Susan
18900
Usha
53136
Vasantha
51000
Wendel
15100
Wendy
20844
Vinay
2160
Visveshwar
34236
Yogini
51840
Total
1,206,115


More Reflections on Sarva Badha Peace Sankalpa Mantra

There are several highlights to this week – we crossed our first million in japa , and then a phone conversation with Swamiji on the sankalpa.

He asked, "Have you watched the broadcasts before the evening program on weekdays? We have been chanting the peace sankalpa mantra, atleast 1 mala a day, but we dont count!"

"Oh you count alright Swamiji", I hastened to clarify ,"In fact you are like Florida, you count AND count ! You count a LOT !" (Readers will doubtless remember the election of 2000 in Florida, but we will not probe into those boring political details here !)

Anyway, having Swamiji and the Mandir residents join our sankalpa is beyond value! Our heartfelt thanks to Swamiji for adding momentum to our progress .

There was a beautiful post by our beloved Rick Veda, on this sankalpa . Here is what he had to say

"The Universal Peace Sankalpa has taken on a life of its own in me. One thought I had was that being the UPS, it always delivers the package, and always on time! But it has become universal in a much more profound way to me. It is the first thought I have when I awake, and it follows with me in every moment, every conversation, every interaction I have all through the day. It has become my universe. I am so grateful to Shree Maa for giving this great blessing to me. Although I have been chanting mantras for years, there is a wonderful difference with this sankalpa because the mantra is chanting itself through me.

Swamiji’s inspired translation likewise blesses my spirit. The two words that keep coming back into my awareness are "disturbances" and "hostility." I ask her to "terminate all disturbance in the three worlds." It always begins with a disturbance. If I am kept from becoming disturbed, I will not lose my connection with Maa. But if I allow disturbances into my thinking, they will take root and create hostility. I do not have to experience hostility. But it is inevitable if I nurture any disturbance.

Shree Maa is the Spirit of the Supreme Sovereign. I am so grateful to pray this mantra to her, and know the bliss of deliverance from all disturbances. By her grace I am experiencing more of this each day. "

Thank you for your beautiful and profound words , Rick – it struck a chord in my heart, and am sure resonates with our other participants too.

Our friend Chris from Tacoma, WA , agrees with Rick and says "I am amazed every time I sit down for my japa of this mantra how strong the shakti is and how connected t is to Mother."

Thanks to all for sharing in your numbers. Congratulations to Mausumi for completing 100 malas at the fire.

As of Feb 25, here are the totals for those of us that prefer to do the sankalpa at the fire

Name
Number of Mantras
Swamiji & Mandir Residents
Priceless
Michael
12960
Janitri
4084
Mausumi
10908
Total
27,952

And below are the counts for those of us that do the sadhana without the fire

Name
Number of Mantras
Babu 1296
Bharata 39000
Bharati 9450
Brendan 2878
Carie 919
Chocatane 15660
Chris K 13392
Chris W 15481
Debi 51948
Donna 18790
Durga 5616
Egyirba 6048
Eric 39204
Gauri 5832
Georgiann 4913
Henny 20412
Janitri 9684
Jayadeva 19764
Julia 15480
Kalachandra 15876
Kaliananda 13392
Kamalaji 14040
Kanda 15120
Karen 16000
Kathy 11044
Marsha 12960
Maruthi 30000
Mausumi 11880
Michael 10800
Michele 4792
Morningsong 17820
Muktimaa 10800
Nirmal 5184
Nirmalananda 11100
Nanda 12015
Papia 15120
Parvati 6480
Patty 15944
Prasana 9568
Prathibha 10617
Raghu 18036
Rebeca 8100
Rick Veda 53460
Robin 12000
Rolf 12312
Rukmani 6048
Sadhu Maa 7668
Shubal 7884
Sitara 2694
Sundari 16200
Shankari 8856
Surya 95580
Susan 17172
Usha 42768
Vasantha 34000
Wendel 12300
Wendy 20844
Vinay 2160
Visveshwar 31512
Yogini 46440
Total 1,022,353

MahaShivaratri Picture


Photo of the week of Feb 18 – Feb 24 2007
(Taken on MahaShivaratri, Feb 15 2007 at Devi Mandir, Napa, CA)

Check out our weekly blogs.

"A little burn is no reason to break one’s asana or sadhana…"

Week 6 of the Sankalpa has completed. Some of us are trying to keep up with this sankalpa AND balance a sadhana for Shivaratri AND with the demands that life puts in our way to test our sincerity and resolve in this sadhana!

Shivaratri – reminds me of a Swamiji story. Swamiji had gotten badly scorched at a fire ceremony several years ago, one that he never fully healed from. This Shivaratri, during the chanting of a text, he got more blisters on the same spot that he had been scorched, but to paraphrase his own inimitable words "a little burn is no reason to break one’s asana or sadhana"

May we all derive the inspiration from Swamiji’s sadhana to keep at our tapasya this year . May our minds be filled with that firm determination of Shiva, the Consciousness of Infinite Goodness.

Here is a photo taken at the Dharamshala at the Mandir, in early Jan 2007 – with our friends from New Jersey, learning to pronounce the mantra for this sankalpa. Guess who is who ?

As of Feb 18 2007, here are totals of those of us that prefer to do the sankalpa at the fire

Name
Number of Mantras
Michael 12960
Janitri 4084
Total 17,044

and below are the counts for those of us that do the sadhana without a fire

Name
Number of Mantras
Babu 1296
Bharata 32000
Bharati 8640
Brendan 2150
Carie 618
Chocatane 13068
Chris K 11448
Chris W 12120
Debi 36828
Donna 15690
Durga 4752
Egyirba 6048
Eric 32508
Gauri 5832
Georgiann 4117
Henny 17496
Janitri 7584
Jayadeva 13824
Julia 10860
Kalachandra 9072
Kaliananda 11988
Kamalaji 9770
Kanda 12960
Karen 14000
Kathy 11044
Marsha 7884
Maruthi 23000
Mausumi 11880
Michael 7884
Michele 4218
Morningsong 15120
Muktimaa 9936
Nirmalananda 9300
Nanda 10115
Papia 11880
Parvati 6480
Patty 13365
Prasana 9568
Prathibha 10617
Raghu 15444
Rebeca 8100
Rick Veda 43740
Robin 9900
Rolf 10800
Rukmani 6048
Sadhu Maa 7668
Shubal 7884
Sitara 1124
Sundari 11340
Shankari 6048
Surya 73224
Susan 11664
Usha 32724
Vasantha 21000
Wendel 10200
Wendy 17712
Vinay 2160
Visveshwar 31512
Yogini 35640
Total 820,892

 

Peace Sankalpa 2007 Reflections

Welcome to the latest addition to our sankalpa group – Brendan from Massachusetts. Congratulations to Michael for completing his sankalpa at the fire.

Thanks to our participants Shankari Kali and Henny for sharing their progress on the sankalpa. Here is what Shankari Kali has to say

"I have noticed that since I started the peace sankalpa, I have developed more
discipline. This has affected many areas of my life. I could never stick with
anything. My weight was spiralling out of control, and my health was
deteriorating. By requiring myself to say this daily as many times as I could
muster, I even noticed that I had more energy. I have since developed a daily
exercise program.

I have been saying at least two malas of Om Namah Shivaya everyday along with other mantras. I have never had this much energy or desire to meditate."
And here is what Henny has to say

"The first week, I embarked upon daily chanting as one more task to be done and my chanting was very much directed outwards. I was chanting to someone ‘out here’, and in fact the volume was loud enough to be heard by the neighbours, I think. And I was very conscious of myself sitting there, chanting, and there was a feeling of ‘wanting to get the job done’.
Then one afternoon (early morning in California), I tuned into the live broadcast from the Devi Mandir, and I heard a Devi Mandir sadhu doing japa very, very quietly, tenderly and with great patience, and just listening to that voice made me realize what I had been doing. So, the next time I sat down for japa, I ‘listened’ to the memory of that voice in my mind, and that made me more centered and quiet, and then I began my chanting.
Gradually, over the next few days, I was gently drawn inside to the Presence listening within. And my chanting followed and it has become much more subtle, softer, and also much more peaceful. And now, when the mantra has taken me to that inner place where She listens, I forget to think about myself as one who chants, and chanting goes on inside of its own accord. Now, it is no longer a task to be accomplished, but an opportunity to enter into the Presence more and more, and something to look forward to. "

In the words of Swamiji, "We are trying to give ourselves the privilege of loving passionately"
As of Feb 11 2007, here are totals of those of us that prefer to do the sankalpa at the fire

Name
Number of Mantras
Michael 12960
Janitri 4084
Total 17,044

and below are the counts for those of us that do the sadhana without a fire

Name
Number of Mantras
Babu 1296
Bharata 25000
Bharati 8424
Brendan 2150
Carie 360
Chocatane 10260
Chris K 9180
Chris W 9351
Debi 26676
Donna 12190
Durga 2808
Egyirba 6048
Eric 27108
Gauri 5400
Georgiann 2591
Henny 15120
Janitri 5316
Jayadeva 11664
Julia 10860
Kalachandra 9072
Kaliananda 10368
Kamalaji 9770
Kanda 10800
Karen 12000
Kathy 8776
Marsha 7884
Maruthi 20000
Mausumi 9720
Michael 7884
Michele 3370
Morningsong 12420
Muktimaa 9288
Nirmalananda 5300
Nanda 9115
Papia 11880
Parvati 4320
Patty 11388
Prasana 9568
Prathibha 10617
Raghu 13284
Rebeca 8100
Rick Veda 34020
Robin 7800
Rolf 6264
Rukmani 6048
Sadhu Maa 6804
Sadhvi 25600
Shubal 5616
Sitara 1124
Sundari 11340
Shankari 3780
Surya 73224
Susan 8532
Usha 26136
Vasantha 11000
Wendel 7200
Wendy 15444
Vinay 2160
Visveshwar 24732
Yogini 25920
Total 709,470

 

Dvadasa Jyotirlingams Slideshow

The Jyotirlingams are among the most revered holy places for the worship of Lord Shiva. The twelve Jyotirlingams are:
Somanatham, Mallikarjunam, Mahakalam, Omkareswaram, Kedaranatham, Bhimasankaram, Visveswaram, Tryambakam, Baijanatham, Nageswaram, Ramesvaram and Ghusmesvaram.

Prathamam Sailaputri Cha

{ NOTE – If you are wondering about the title "Prathamam Sailaputri Cha", it means "First is the Goddess of Inspiration" and refers to the first of the Navadurgas. To know more about the Navadurgas, please read the Cosmic Puja or Chandi Path (the verse is in the Armor of the Goddess)}
The sankalpa has touched the participants in many many ways. It prompted Vishweshwar, a disciple of Shree Maa to reach out and ask each participant to spread the word and get more people to sign up. Like ever spreading ripples caused by throwing a single pebble into a lake, just one inspiration from Shree Maa has us doing more, and getting the word out to more people. It was also heartwarming to see two fairly "new" additions to the Mandir family, Prathibha and Prasana, energetically share their enthusiasm for the sankalpa with others that had gathered at the Mandir on Sunday. Prathibha, in the true spirit of motivating another, even gifted her friend with her own recently acquired hand tally counter to demonstrate how easy it was to keep adding mantras chanted in random free moments.

First Maa gives us an idea, and then Her beautiful family give it the momentum. May this positive energy continue to generate and bless Mother Earth !
As a group we have crossed 320,000 repetitions of japa and over 9000 at the fire. Here are the numbers as of the week ending 28th Jan 2007.
This is the total for those that preferred to do their sadhana at the fire

Name
Number of Mantras
Michael 6372
Janitri 3024
Total 9,396

and below are the counts for those of us that do the sadhana without a fire

Name
Number of Mantras
Babu 1296
Bharata 11000
Bharati 2052
Carie 30
Chris 5076
Debi 8640
Donna 5390
Durga 2808
Egyirba 3780
Eric 11664
Gauri 3132
Georgiann 1583
Henny 6480
Janitri 1624
Jayadeva 7020
Julia 6240
Kalachandra 4536
Kaliananda 6372
Kamalaji 5184
Kanda 6480
Karen 7000
Kathy 3240
Marsha 2484
Mausumi 4752
Michele 1372
Morningsong 7344
Muktimaa 5940
Nirmalananda 2500
Nanda 6900
Papia 5400
Parvati 2700
Patty 6852
Prasana 7000
Prathibha 7201
Raghu 8748
Rebeca 2700
Rick Veda 20412
Robin 3400
Rolf 5076
Rukmani 3672
Sadhu Maa 2376
Sadhvi 8146
Shubal 1512
Sundari 4536
Shankari 2808
Surya 45522
Susan 2916
Usha 13608
Wendel 1296
Wendy 6372
Vinay 2160
Visveshwar 11340
Yogini 11880
Total 320,588

 

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