Hari
OM
Application - that is what 'Workings-days' are about!
We are now undertaking basic technical
discourse on Vedanta. The text
forming the basis of these posts is 'Kindle Life'. Please do reread previous posts using the labels 'Workings-days' or
'Kindle Life'.
Ch. 28 गायत्री मन्त्र /gaayatrii maantra (cont'd).
There
are many parts of daily life which can be ordered according to shruti, (truly,
Sanskrit literature is the most comprehensive manual for living you could ever
find!), but of course daily worship, called सन्ध्या कर्म /sandhyaa karma, is given most
attention. One of the prayers which are prescribed and not to be missed, is the
repetition of the Great Gaayatrii Mantra.
| the body is purified by water the mind is purified by truth knowledge, practice and spirit are purified by intellect and knowledge. |
Historically,
it was used to keep the mind 'tidy' after the ravages of daily living and the
random unawareness of sleep. One of the great scriptures, the मनुस्मृति /ManusmRti, says
"...in the early dawn by doing this japa standing, one ends all sins
committed during the night and by doing the japa in the evening while sitting,
one ends one's sins committed during the day." Sin, here, means the
agitations created in our mental life by our own negative actions and the
tendency to repeat the same. Such 'habits' leave impressions on the mind and
these become sealed as vaasanas - the internal tendencies carried from life to
life.
After
that period in history, the importance of Gaayatrii grew somewhat and came to
hold the importance it currently has; 'importance' in the sense that it was
raised on a pedestal and some ritualistic behaviours grew around it - this is a
thing which happens in many spiritual matters; they are brought down, given
material importance instead, without there really being any supporting evidence
in the scriptures that this is required. It demonstrates that mankind requires
a level of ritual in order to feel that s/he is performing worship - making
worship a separate thing from daily living. This fall into materialistic
spirituality was also when other things got twisted and misconstrued; such as
the social divisions. In this case, there came about an idea that the Gaayatrii
was not to be chanted without the जनौ /janau (holy thread worn on the body of the
Brahmins… ie that only this strata of society were permitted to chant it). This
is also when the Pranava (OM) and the व्याहृताः /vyaahRtis (other sacred tones/words) were
added to the chanting. Thus we find ॐ भूर् भुवः स्वः /OM bhuur, bhuvaH svaH, giving a fourth
paada to the mantra. Sometimes, also, an additional OM is added before the
mantra proper. This was, as explained last week, in order to permit the eight
syllables, if the end syllable is held
as one and not split inti 'ni' and 'am'.
There
are two sandhyaas in a day. The word means the blending of and night,
therefore, dawn and dusk. In the ancient literature we do not find any
importance given to midday worship. The
Rsis appear only to insist upon morning and evening prayer. The concept of
midday worship, then, may well have been adopted from practices observed by the
Islamic faith, which encroached quite early in Indian history. In terms of the
morning and evening, it is generally advised that the most 'auspicious' times
(those times when the body mind and intellect are most likely to reap the best
benefit) is between 4:30 and 5 am (which is referred to as /Brahma-muhuurta)
and later, between 6 and 7 pm. ManusmRti is, again, very helpful in its
direction.
In
those early days, this sandhyaa karma was not as elaborate as it has tended to
become since the days of सूत्राः आगमाः /suutras and aagamas (commentaries and doctrines =
man's interpretations and assumptions). The original instruction was to chant
the mantra at dawn standing in water and facing the sun, holding water in the
folded palms and at then end of each recitation, that water is to be offered to
the Lord - ie allowed to run from the hands. As this happens, the sadhaka
utters /asaavaadityo Brahma (this sun is Brahman) and makes a circular stepping
motion around his or herself as reverence to the Lord Sun/Brahman, who is
nothing but the Self within us. Generally, the Gaayatrii is chanted a minimum
of ten times; however, according to one's faith, convenience and devotion, it
may be chanted any number of times - a classic and auspicious number is the 108
of a sacred mala. If you find that you have time space for only one Gaayatrii
practice in a day, then make it the morning.
The
mind and the body are the sources of our activity in the world; mind and body
have likes, dislikes, emotions, lusts, cravings and so on. They bring out from
us a host of animal instincts which can conquer and destroy the spiritual
essence within us - the Brahman, the Sun within us. The essential brillinace of
the human intellect becomes clouded by this onslaught… the Gaayatrii japa pours
oil on these stormy waters and acts as a filter, permitting the intellect to
understand it can rise above all the nonsense.
SELF
focus, not self focus is the purpose of this practice.
Some more on the history and background to this
mantra next week, after which there will be instruction in practice.