Japa meditation is an ancient form of meditation that uses a combination of a mantra and prayer beads to sooth the mind and spirit. There are many religions that make use of Japa meditation, although the most well known example is from the telling of rosary beads in the Catholic church. Read more »
japa meditation, mantra, meditation session, mind and spirit, mind body and spirit, prayer beads, rosary beads This tendency towards extolling a god as the greatest and highest gradually brought forth the conception of a supreme Lord of all beings (Prajapati), not by a process of conscious generalization but as a necessary stage of development of the mind, able to imagine a deity as the repository of the highest moral and physical power, though its direct manifestation cannot be perceived. Read more »
deities, life immortal, manifestation, man and beast, oblations, rigveda, sage, supreme lord The conception of Brahman which has been the highest glory for the Vedanta philosophy of later days had hardly emerged in the rig-Veda from the associations of the sacrificial mind. Read more »
brahman, devotion, magical formula, purusha, rig veda, shatapatha brahmana, supreme principle, vedanta philosophy, vedas The cosmogony of the rig-Veda may be looked at from two aspects, the mythological and the philosophical. The mythological aspect has in general two currents, as Professor Macdonell says, “The one regards the universe as the result of mechanical production, the work of carpenter’s and joiner’s skill; the other represents it as the result of natural generation (1).” Read more »
atman, births, brahmana, cosmogony, golden egg, hymn 5, immortality, navel, pantheistic, rig veda, supreme being There seems to be a belief in the Vedas that the soul could be separated from the body in states of swoon, and that it could exist after death, though we do not find there any trace of the doctrine of transmigration in a developed form. Read more »
correct knowledge, doctrine of transmigration, hymns, karma, manas, rig veda, rita, sacrifices, shatapatha brahmana, soul of man, two fires The passage of the Indian mind from the Brahmanic to the Upanishad thought is probably the most remarkable event in the history of philosophic thought. We know that in the later Vedic hymns some monotheistic conceptions of great excellence were developed, but these differ in their nature from the absolutism of the Upanishads as much as the Ptolemaic and the Copernican systems in astronomy. Read more »
atman, brahman, one god, principle, rig veda, upanishads, vedic hymns The change of the Brahmana into the Aranyaka thought is signified by a transference of values from the actual sacrifices to their symbolic representations and meditations which were regarded as being productive of various earthly benefits. Read more »
brahmana, brahmins, material substances, meditations, prana, real truth, rig veda, sacrificial rituals, samaveda, symbolic representations, vital functions The fundamental idea which runs through the early Upanishads is that underlying the exterior world of change there is an unchangeable reality which is identical with that which underlies the essence in man (1). Read more »
brahman, fundamental idea, man and the universe, psychological functions, samhita, upanishads, visible objects, vital breath The sum and substance of the Upanishad teaching is involved in the equation Atman=Brahman. We have already seen that the word Atman was used in the rig-Veda to denote on the one hand the ultimate essence of the universe, and on the other the vital breath in man. Later on in the Upanishads we see that the word Brahman is generally used in the former sense, while the word Atman is reserved to denote the inmost essence in man, and the Upanishads are emphatic in their declaration that the two are one and the same. Read more »
atman, brahman, consciousness, desires, essence of man, hunger and thirst, indra, rig veda, senses, upanishads, vital breath When the Vedic people witnessed the burning of a dead body they supposed that the eye of the man went to the sun, his breath to the wind, his speech to the fire, his limbs to the different parts of the universe. They also believed as we have already seen in the recompense of good and bad actions in worlds other than our own, and though we hear of such things as the passage of the human soul into trees, etc., the tendency towards transmigration had but little developed at the time. Read more »
asceticism, charitable deeds, dark half, doctrine of transmigration, good deeds, recompense, sun moon, upanishads, vedic, way of the gods, womb It is very probable that the earliest beginnings of Nyaya are to be found in the disputations and debates amongst scholars trying to find out the right meanings of the Vedic texts for use in sacrifices and also in those disputations which took place between the adherents of different schools of thought trying to defeat one another. Read more »
buehler, compound words, kautilya, logic, scriptural knowledge, upanishads, vatsyayana, vedic accents, vedic texts, vidya When we compare the Nyaya sutras with the Vaisheshika sutras we find that in the former two or three differentstreams of purposes have met, whereas the latter is much more homogeneous. Read more »
authorities, caraka samhita, chala, debates, hindus, jalpa, logical categories, practical art, refutation, sanskrit literature, sutras The four stages, conditions, or periods in the life of a Brahman are: First, that of the chaste student, or brahmachari; second, the period of secular life as a married householder, or grihastha; third, that of the recluse, or vanaprastha, when there is retirement from the world; and lastly, that of the beggar, or bhikshu, who begs his single daily meal, and meditates upon the Supreme Spirit to which he is about to return. Read more »
ascetic, brahma, brahman, castes, householder, japa, kali age, places of pilgrimage, puja, sadhana, secular life, shakti, supreme spirit, vaishya We can perhaps better form an idea of the Creative Will, by reference to its outward and visible forms of activity. We cannot see the Will itself–the Pressure and the Urge–but we can see its action through living forms. Just as we cannot see a man behind a curtain, and yet may practically see him by watching the movements of his form as he presses up against the curtain, so may we see the Will by watching it as it presses up against the living curtain of the forms of life. Read more »
Creative Will, forming of the crystals, plant life THE Tantras speak of three temperaments, dispositions, characters (bhava), or classes of men namely, the pasu-bhava (animal), vira-bhava (heroic), and divya-bhava (deva-like or divine). These divisions are based on various modifications of the gunas as they manifest in man (jiva). It has been pointed out (1) that the analogous Gnostic classification of men as material, psychical and spiritual, correspond to the three gunas of the Samkhya-darsana. In. the pasu the rajo-guna operates chiefly on tamas, producing such dark characteristics as error (bhranti), drowsiness (tandra), and sloth (alasya). Read more »
afflictions, darsana, divya, gunas, jiva, kularnava tantra, lajja, moha, pasu, tandra, tantras, vira The third, or highest, class of man is he of the divya-bhava (of which, again, there are several degrees-some but a stage in advance of the highest form of vira-bhava, others completely realizing the deva-nature), in which rajas operates on sattva-guna to the confirmed preponderance of the latter. Read more »
bhairava, deva, divya, guru, japa, nitya, pasu, rajas, sastra, sattva, vira INITIATION is the giving of mantra by the guru.(1) At the time of initiation the guru must first establish the life of the Guru in his own body; that is the vital force (prana-sakti) of the Supreme Guru whose abode is in the thousand-petalled lotus. Read more »
cakra, feet of the guru, initiation, japa, kula, kusa, mantra, nada, prana sakti, sexual continence, spiritual knowledge, supreme guru, thousand petalled lotus THERE are four different forms of worship corresponding with four states (bhava);(1) The realization that the jivatma and paramatma are one, that everything is Brahman, and that nothing but the Brahman exists, is the highest state or brahma-bhava. Constant meditation by the yoga process upon the Devata in the heart is the lower and middlemost (dhyana-bhava), japa and stava (hymns and prayer) is still lower, and the lowest of all mere external worship (puja). Read more »
advaita, brahman, brahmanas, caitanya, consciousness, daily puja, dhyana, japa, karma, nitya, panca, prana, pratima, sandhya, sudras, tantrik, worshipper, yoga Sabda, or sound, which is of the Brahman, and as such the cause of the Brahmanda, is the manifestation of the Cit-sakti itself. The Visva-sara-Tantra says (1) that the Para-brahman, as Sabda-brahman, whose substance is all mantra, exists in the body of the jivatma. It is either unlettered (dhvani) or lettered (varna). The former, which produces the latter, is the subtle aspect of the jiva’s vital sakti. Read more »
akasa, body waves, brahman, ethereal space, external manifestation, inhalation and exhalation, jiva, letters of the alphabet, mantra, nada, prana, sabda, space waves, varna, vayu, waves of sound By mantra the sought-for (sadhya) Devata is attained and compelled. By siddhi in mantra is opened the vision of the three worlds. Though the purpose of worship (puja), reading (patha), hymn (stava), sacrifice (homa), dhyana, dharana, and samadhi, and that of the diksa-mantra are the same, yet the latter is far more powerful, and this for the reason that, in the first, the sadhaka’s sadhana-sakti works, in conjunction with mantra-sakti which has the revelation and force of fire, and than which nothing is more powerful. Read more »
bija, hymns of praise, mantra, mantras, monosyllabic, nitya, nyasa, puja, quintessence, saumya, tantrik The term mudra is derived from the root mud, “to please,” and in its upasana form is so called because it gives pleasure to the Devas. Devanam moda-da mudra tasmat tam yatnatascaret. It is said that there are 108, of which 55 are commonly used.(1) Read more »
dhyana, fish, hatha yoga, kalpa, mudras, siddhis, upasana, worshipper, yoni mudra The Vaidiki samdhya is the rite performed by the twice-born castes thrice a day, at morning, midday, and evening. The morning samdhya is preceded by the following acts. On awakening, a mantra is said in invocation of the Tri-murti and the sun, moon, and planets, and salutation is made to the Guru. The Hindu dvi-ja then recites the mantra: “I am a Deva - I am indeed the sorrowless Brahman. By nature I am eternally free, and in the form of existence, intelligence, and bliss. Read more »
deva, gayatri devi, gayatri mantra, guru, invocation, japa, kusa, mantras, om, prana, pranayama, salutation, tantrika, twice born This word is the common term for worship of which there are numerous synonyms in the Sanskrit language.(1) Puja is done daily of the Ista-devata or the particular Deity worshipped by the sadhaka - the Devi in the case of a Sakta, Visnu in the case of a Vaisnava, and so forth. Read more »
asana, ganesa, ista, puja, sanskrit language, visnu This word, which comes from the root yaj (to worship), is commonly translated “sacrifice”. The Sanskrit word is, however, retained in the translation, since Yajna means other things also than those which come within the meaning of the word “sacrifice”, as understood by an English reader. Read more »
butter ghee, deva, homa, mantra, nadis, nyasa, offerings, om, organic creation, principles of tantra, sacrifice, spirits, vedas Japa is defined as “vidhanena mantroccaranam”, or the repeated utterance or recitation of mantra according to certain rules.(1) It is according to the Tantrasara of three kinds: Vacika or verbal japa, in which the mantra is audibly recited, the fifty matrkas being sounded nasally with bindu; Upamsu-japa, which is superior to the last kind, and in which the tongue and lips are moved, but no sound, or only a slight whisper, is heard; and, lastly, the highest form which is called manasa-japa, or mental utterance. In this there is neither sound nor movement of the external organs, but a repetition in the mind which is fixed on the meaning of the mantra. Read more »
asana, bindu, book knowledge, japa, kalpa, manasa, mantra, recitation, sundari, utterance, vidya This form of sadhana consists in the repetition (after certain preparations and under certain conditions) of a mantra a large number of times. The ritual (1) deals with the time and place of performance, the measurements and decorations of the mandapa, or pandal, and of the altar and similar matters. There are certain rules as to food both prior to, and during, its performance. Read more »
asana, brahmanas, continence, ganesa, japa, kumara, mandala, mantra, nyasa, puja, sadhana, savitri Owing, however, to abuses, particularly as regards the tattva of madya and maithuna, this Tantra, according to the current version, prescribes in certain cases, limitations as regards their use. It prescribes (1) that when the Kaliyuga is in full strength, and in the case of householders (grhastha) whose minds are engrossed with worldly affairs, the “three sweets” (madhuratraya) are to be substituted for wine. Those who are of virtuous temperament, and whose minds are turned towards the Brahman, are permitted to take five cups of wine. Read more »
brahman, japa, kali age, lotus feet, maithuna, mother of the universe, passions, sadhana, siddha, tantra, wine, worshipper From pranayama (q.v.) arises laghava (lightness).
All beings say the ajapa-Gayatri, which is the expulsion of the breath by Hamkara, and its inspiration by Sahkara, 21,600 times a day. Ordinarily, the breath goes forth a distance of 12 fingers’ breadth, but in singing, eating, walking, sleeping, coition, the distances are 16, 20, 24, 30, and 36 breadths respectively. Read more »
bija, coition, exhalation, gayatri, guru, inspiration, japa, nadi, nyasa, pranayama, vital airs The piercing of the six chakras is one of the most important subjects dealt with in the Tantra, and is part of the practical yoga process of which they treat. Details of practice (1) can only be learnt from a Guru, but generally it may be said that the particular is raised to the universal life, which as cit is realizable only in the sahasrara in the following manner: The jivatma in the subtle body, the receptacle of the five vital airs (panca-prana), mind in its three aspects of manas, ahamkara, and buddhi, and the five organs of perception (pancajnanendriyas) is united with the Kulakundalini. The Kandarpa or Kama Vayu in the muladhara, a form of the Apana-Vayu, is given a leftward revolution and the fire wich is around Kundalini is kindled. By the bija “Hum,” and the heat of the fire thus kindled, the coiled and sleeping Kundalini is awakened. She who lay asleep around svayambhu-linga, with her coils three circles and a half closing the entrance of the brahmadvara, will, on being roused, enter that door and move upwards, united with the jivatma. Read more »
apas, bija, chakras, dakini, deva, kundalini, lam, lotus, prana, sarasvati, savitri, vam, vayu
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