THE SRICHAKRA SERIES (Part 2)

[Guest guest]

HOW DO I BEGIN?

 

There are many paths of sadhana within Srividya. Some are suitable

for some and some are suitable for others. Which is right for a

given aspirant depends not only on one's level of spiritual

development, but also upon one's circumstances. Not everyone can

cope with the rigorous rituals required by full-blown

Srividyopasana, whether due to unfamiliarity with details, or lack

of time and/or facilities. Not everyone can undertake daily

austerities running into hours. The main practice of Srividya -

worship of Sri Yantra - can take anywhere from 30 minutes to a full

day, depending on how you do it. You have to go by your gut feeling

to decide what's right for you.

 

The two main types of pooja are srishti krama and samhara karma - or

in English, the creation method and the dissolution method. In

samhara karma, each Devi is worshiped and is absorbed into the next

Devi, and it continues until we reach Lalita, in whom, by that time,

all the Devis will be absorbed. In srishti karma, Lalita is

worshipped first, and from her the next Devi is extracted, and from

her the next one, and onward until all the Devis are in their

rightful places.

 

The full pooja takes hours, because at each point we pause and do

smaller, detailed poojas. (What is pooja but an attempt at

meditating on the form of Devi?) Hence the sages of yore created a

recitation known as the Khadgamala Stotram. The Devi herself must

have inspired the great Upasakas to create a capsule that contains

everything so that for this time and clime it is THE upasana. All of

the sadhana of Srividya can be achieved by the recitation of the

Khadgamala. Hours of long ritual compressed to less than half an

hour of intense meditation that will give you a ticket on the same

plane as the great Srividya Upasakas. Says one experienced Srividya

Upasaka, "Whatever your developmental stage, this is IT!" Even those

who have not been initiated into Srividya can benefit from the

Khadgamala, which is why we chose to offer it to our members here.

 

Amritananda Natha Saraswati himself describes it as follows: "The

Khadgamala is the equation I=WORLD=BEYOND. Regular practice protects

you, nourishes you, and takes you beyond. It fulfils all wishes,

more than you desire, instantly. Therein lies its power. How should

you practice Khadgamala? As you are reciting each name, a portion of

Sri Chakra should spring up in your imagination. The power comes

from intensifying concentration to visualize the form, hear the

sound, feel the touch, taste, and smell of the divine perfume of the

goddess manifesting that part of the ever youthful Goddess. You can

sit in front of each of the sculptures in Devipuram [those who will

now, and for the next two years, grace the front page of Shakti

Sadhana] to get training into such visualizations. The Goddess loves

fun. She is deeply in love with You, making You HER Siva. So begin

your journey to Goddess today, no matter how feebly. You can add

power and depth as you move along. We are there to help you."

 

We will start posting only after at least eight Devi presentations

are ready in advance, so that we do not run into unseemly breaks.

Let those who so desire meditate on each Devi for a week, and it is

our prayer and hope that by the time we reach the Queen Empress,

these persons will have become accomplished srividya upasaks ready

to help others get on with their sadhana. Indeed it is our fervent

hope that those people who are willing to spend just half an hour a

day on this project should have siddhis from that moment on.

 

Aum Maatangyai Namahe