Sakti panchakshari

[Guest guest]

Dear Devi Bandhus

Pranamams. Yes I was asking about the sakti panchakshari and Siva

panchakshari mantras. Thank you so much for the information.Can I

ask you all for some more information about the mantras,

anganyasa,karanyasa,dhyana slokas for these two mantras? I know

until and unless the mantra diksha is given by guru one can not do

it. Please help me.

Thankyou all.May Amba shower her choicest blessings on all of us.

[Guest guest]

Pranams:

 

unfortunately it behooves us devotees not to go into such detail in

electronic print (to maintain the tradition)...I have one

suggestion; with the permission of your spiritual mentor, guru or

family priest, please find out if you can get hold of a book

called "Japa Vidhanam".... I dont know where you live...if you are

in Chennai you can get it at Giri Trading Agency in

Mylapore...details can be found in this book...but as you rightly

pointed out, please do not practice this on your own..I have two bad

personal experiences of trying to practice mantras from a book...

 

Best regards

Ganesh

 

-- In , "shivani_garla" <shivani_garla>

wrote:

> Dear Devi Bandhus

> Pranamams. Yes I was asking about the sakti panchakshari and Siva

> panchakshari mantras. Thank you so much for the information.Can I

> ask you all for some more information about the mantras,

> anganyasa,karanyasa,dhyana slokas for these two mantras? I know

> until and unless the mantra diksha is given by guru one can not do

> it. Please help me.

> Thankyou all.May Amba shower her choicest blessings on all of us.

[Guest guest]

, "shivani_garla" <shivani_garla>

wrote:

> Dear Devi Bandhus

> Pranamams. Yes I was asking about the sakti panchakshari and Siva

> panchakshari mantras. Thank you so much for the information.

 

Panchakshari is not the same for everyone.

For males of the first three castes it is Namah Shivaya.

For women,shudras and others Panchakshari is Shivaya namaha.

 

The above variation is according to Suta Samhita, Shiva Purana,

Srividyarnava and other Puranic and Tantric texts.

[Guest guest]

Dear Satish-Ji:

 

What could be the reason for this tradition? As you know sUta

themselves were pratilomaja?

 

Were sUta just trying to establish their higher (superior) status by

establishing such variations? Any thoughts?

 

Regards,

 

Dr. Yadu

 

 

, "Satish Raja Arigela"

<satisharigela> wrote:

> , "shivani_garla"

<shivani_garla>

> wrote:

> > Dear Devi Bandhus

> > Pranamams. Yes I was asking about the sakti panchakshari and Siva

> > panchakshari mantras. Thank you so much for the information.

>

> Panchakshari is not the same for everyone.

> For males of the first three castes it is Namah Shivaya.

> For women,shudras and others Panchakshari is Shivaya namaha.

>

> The above variation is according to Suta Samhita, Shiva Purana,

> Srividyarnava and other Puranic and Tantric texts.

[Guest guest]

Dear Devotees,

Late joinee into this thread. Still thought of sharing something

on this very important subject.

Before proceeding further, the mantra "namaHshivAya" is referred

as shakti panchAkshara and "namaHshivaya" is referred as shiva

panchAkshara. Note the A shortened, as "shivA" is the name that

refers to the Goddess inseparable from the God. There are many more

panchAkshara as told in Agama and related texts, which would be a

subject in itself and hence restricted to this level of detail here.

Yes, definitely mantras have certain restrctions to follow in

terms of how when etc to chant. However regarding the specific

panchAkshara "namaHshivAya" (also called sthUla panchAkshara) there

is absolutely no restriction of whatsoever. It can be chanted by

anybody, It can be chanted any time of the day. It can be chanted

without any special initiation. In fact it needs to be chanted by the

devotees all through the day irrespective of the state they are in.

It will definietly bring in great benefits as long as the chanting is

sincere.

Definitely the statement above would require authenticity. The

following could provide that.

a. thunychalum thunychalilAtha pOzthinum

nenychalam nainthu ninaimin - sambandhar

(Meaning: Whether you are asleep or awake with heartfelt devotion

think the Holy Five Syllables.)

b. kolvArEnum guNam pala nanmaikaL

illArEnum iyambuvarAyiDin

ellAth thINgaiyum nInguvarenbarAl

nallAr nAmam namaccivAyavE - sambandhar

(Meaning: Be it murderers or be it those who have no good character,

still if they chant, they would be provided way to come out of all

their bad things. Hence the name of the Virtuous is namaHshivAya.)

 

If we look at the other scriptures, shiva mahA purANa (vAyu

samhita) has very clear and elaborate explanation of the

glory of the mantra. It is "vouched" here that even without

initiation and other procedures even if the chanting one is

 

"insane", ther person would definitely be getting good benefits.

bhagavata says whoever even in some other context one utters the

two syllables "shiva", that person gets great benefits. There could

be many more substatiating brought out from the purANas on this

subject.

 

In essence, yes there are mantras that need to go through definite

procedures for some good reasons. However the mantra namaHshivAya as

indicated in our holy texts does not have any restrictions at all,

but being sincere to the mantra, and it can be and needs to be

chanted ever by the devotees. Good results are guaranteed. It is

Ambrosia open for all. Drink as much as you can and share that

happiness with other too !

 

Some related articles could be found at:

http://www.shaivam.org/mantra_pancaxara.htm

http://www.shaivism.org/thisl077.htm

 

namaH shivAya

 

Love,

Ganesh

[Guest guest]

Dear Sir:

 

I absolutely concur with your views on that the panchakshari can be

recited anywhere anytime. The same goes for the shakti panchakshari.

However the mantra itself needs some clarification. The common form

of the Shakthi panchakshari has the shakthi bija preceding the "nama

shivaya"(for obvious reasons I have not typed the full mantra). The

dhyana mantra also reveals the form on which the sadhaka has to

meditate on. In this context I am eager and curious to know where

the mantra "Om NamaHshivAya" comes to be called the shakthi

panchakshari. I understand that the A with the dirgha refers to the

Mother. But this is not a version I am familiar with or have seen in

books (as a matter of fact I have been initiated into the Shakthi

panchakshari).

I eagerly look forward to your reply.

 

Thanks and regards

Ganesh

 

, "sgesh" <sgesh> wrote:

> Dear Devotees,

> Late joinee into this thread. Still thought of sharing

something

> on this very important subject.

> Before proceeding further, the mantra "namaHshivAya" is

referred

> as shakti panchAkshara and "namaHshivaya" is referred as shiva

> panchAkshara. Note the A shortened, as "shivA" is the name that

> refers to the Goddess inseparable from the God. There are many

more

> panchAkshara as told in Agama and related texts, which would be a

> subject in itself and hence restricted to this level of detail

here.

[Guest guest]

, "sgesh" <sgesh> wrote:

> Before proceeding further, the mantra "namaHshivAya" is

referred

> as shakti panchAkshara and "namaHshivaya" is referred as shiva

> panchAkshara. Note the A shortened, as "shivA" is the name that

 

 

The 4th case or chaturthi vibhakti for the word 'shiva'

is 'shivaaya' (akaaraanta masuline). It does not refer to AmbaaL

here. If you want to say I salute shiva, rama, krishna etc you would

say shivaaya namaH, raamaaya namaH krishNaaya namaH etc. So 'shivaya

namaH' is grammatically incorrect.

 

Incidentally, the 4th case for the word 'shivaa' meaning ambaaL

is 'shivaayai' (akaaraanta feminine).

You can appreciate this in the ardhanaariiShvara stotra

refrain, 'namaH shivaayai cha namaH shivaaya'

 

Shakti panchakshari has an additional biija after praNava in

panchaaxari.

 

 

> panchAkshara "namaHshivAya" (also called sthUla panchAkshara)

there

> is absolutely no restriction of whatsoever. It can be chanted by

> anybody, It can be chanted any time of the day. It can be chanted

> without any special initiation. In fact it needs to be chanted by

the

> devotees all through the day irrespective of the state they are

in.

 

 

Regarding the various rules in recitation of mantras etc, 'veda

saara shiva naamaani' posts might be of some interest. I will cover

the pramaNas dealing with rules for mantra recitation etc, but the

focus is towards the recitation of shiva naamaa that does not

require any rule and shines like fire that purifies all.

 

I was really surprised to see the vast amount of pramaaNas ranging

from Vedas all the way to puraNas and shankara bhashyams that shrii

bhagavan naamaa bhodhendra sarasvatii and shrii shriidhara aiyaavaaL

have cited to establish naama sidhaantaa. It is the one and only

religious discipline which is open to one and all irrespective of

any classifications like varNa, Ashrama, sthaana etc.

 

Aravind

[Guest guest]

True. Agree with Arvind on this construct. However there has been a

tradition of namaHshivAya & namaHshivaya. (This in fact came up

during a recently concluded seminar on panchakshara, rudrAksha,

bhasma & jaTa at Coimbatore. However I am unable to quote any

authentic source on this. namashivayap poruLOnE - aruNagirinAthar)

 

Thanks to Ravi for a providing details on this subject. Apart from

the thiruvambalac cakkaram section of third tantra that has been

already mentioned, thirumUlar deals elaborately with panchAkshara at

9th tantra. Interested could read the same at

http://www.shaivism.org/thm_9_t.htm

 

namaHshivAyai cha namaHshivAya

 

Love,

Ganesh

 

, "Ravisankar S. Mayavaram" <ravi@a...>

wrote:

> Quoting seeksha <seeksha@h...>:

>

> > , "sgesh" <sgesh> wrote:

> >

> > > Before proceeding further, the mantra "namaHshivAya" is

> > referred

> > > as shakti panchAkshara and "namaHshivaya" is referred as shiva

> > > panchAkshara. Note the A shortened, as "shivA" is the name that

> >

> >

> > The 4th case or chaturthi vibhakti for the word 'shiva'

> > is 'shivaaya' (akaaraanta masuline). It does not refer to AmbaaL

> > here. If you want to say I salute shiva, rama, krishna etc you

would

> > say shivaaya namaH, raamaaya namaH krishNaaya namaH etc.

So 'shivaya

> > namaH' is grammatically incorrect.

> >

> > Incidentally, the 4th case for the word 'shivaa' meaning ambaaL

> > is 'shivaayai' (akaaraanta feminine).

> > You can appreciate this in the ardhanaariiShvara stotra

> > refrain, 'namaH shivaayai cha namaH shivaaya'

>

> I agree with you Aravind. And as you said shivaH in dative format

becomes

> shivAya (like shrImAtA becoming shrImAtre). Which in tamil will be

shivanukku

> namaskAram, shrImAtAviRku namaskAram. Books such as nityAhnIkam

published by

> R.S. Vadhyar & Sons in Sanskrit give all the details of shakti

panchAxarI with

> nyAsa-s, dhyAna etc.

>

> Now coming back to Ganesh (shaivam.org)'s comment. what he is

saying is

> something specific to shaiva siddhAnta (and a tamilized version of

that). I

> have a Tamil book titled "thiruvainthezhuththu" (the sacred five

syllables)

> which gives lots of reference from tamil works and they kind of

make it as if

> it is a Tamil mantra. And denote it as chivayanama, namachivaya,

chivayachiva

> etc. There are explanations given such as chirappu, vanappu, yAppu

(gives a

> quote from tholkAppiyam for why yA becomes ya), naDappu, maRaippu

etc.

>

> In fact the compiler of the book goes to the extent that

namachivaya is a tamil

> mantra and all mantras come from it and it has nothing to do with

sanskrit. He

> explicitly says that it is not a dative form of the name shiva. He

also says it

> is a myth that mantra-s are of sanskrit (vaDamozhi - northern

language) origin.

> This book is published by Sri Ramanatha PiLLai of Thirunelveli

shaiva sidhdhAnta

> kazhagam in 1970.

>

>

> His basic support for this from some verses in thirumanthiram (such

as 982). As

> you know, thirumular does play with syllables of panchAxarI giving

different

> insights and also methods to draw chakra-s. But I dont think ever

it was

> Thirumular's intention to show that this is basically a tamil

mantra. In fact,

> his autobiographical reference indeed tells that shiva asked to him

(mular) make

> works on shiva (in Sanskrit) be available in Tamil (thannai thamizh

cheyyumARE).

>

> I personally dont agree with some of the claims in that book.

However, it is a

> very scholaraly book and written in pure Tamil (which many modern

Tamil readers

> will find it quite difficult to understand).

>

> I, however, agree with Ganesh's quotes from nAyanmArs which

supports that this

> mantra is open to one and all. That has been the view of Tamil

shaiva tradition

> for over 1500 years or more. When there is divided opinion in the

scriptures

> itself, I think we should take the one with the broadest scope. I

request

> Satish Arigela to give original verses from the purAna-s that talk

about the

> restriction placed on this mantra.

>

>

> My 2c.

>

> Ravi

[Guest guest]

, "Ravisankar S. Mayavaram"

<ravi@a...> wrote:

> I, however, agree with Ganesh's quotes from nAyanmArs which

supports that this

> mantra is open to one and all. That has been the view of Tamil

shaiva tradition

> for over 1500 years or more.

 

That is also the opinion of the Purana-s and Agama-s. That is not

something unique about Tamil Shaiva tradition.

 

This mantra is open to all but in different form for some groups.

 

> When there is divided opinion in the scriptures

> itself, I think we should take the one with the broadest scope. I

request

> Satish Arigela to give original verses from the purAna-s that talk

about the

> restriction placed on this mantra.

 

17 th chapter of Vidyeshvara Samhita of Shiva-MahaPurana says,

 

gurUpadeshAjjApyaM vai brAhmaNInAM *namo antakaM*.

paJNcAkSharaM ..................................122..

 

A Brahmin woman should do Panchakshari japa after getting mantra

from a Guru with namaH at the end(namo antakaM)

 

punashca paJNcalakSheNa.....

shUdrashcaiva *namo antena* paJNcavimshati lakShataH..127..

 

Meaning: A Shudra should chant this mantra with namaH at the end

for 25 lakhs....

 

In the YajnaVaibhava khanda of Suta Samhita, in the 24th chapter,

there is narrated, the story of a certain Shudra named Durghata, who

does Panchakshari japa in a place called Vyaghrapura.

 

sUta uvAca:

ityevaM brAhmaNenokto durghaTaH punyagauravAt.h.

shrImadvyAghrapuraM gatvA shraddhayA parayA saha..21..

 

pradakShiNa trayaM kR^itvA snAtvA nityamatandritAH.

*namo antam shivamantraM* tu japitvA aShTottaraM shataM..22..

 

Hearing the words of the Brahamana(who talks about the greatness of

Shiva earlier), this shudra, named Durghata develops faith in Shiva

and goes to Vyaghrapura where he bathes daily, does pradakshina

(circumbulation) thrice, and also does Japa of Shiva Mantra ending

with namaH 108 times.

 

Same is said in the Shiva puja vidhi chapter of Shiva mahatmya

khanda of the above text and is repeated in atleast two Shaiva Agama-

s and some Tantric texts.

 

As for restrictions regarding time and place, Shiva Purana is very

clear in saying that it should not be chanted when one is walking or

without asana or while lying down or standing or in darkness or in

an unclean place etc.(plz see below for original verses)

 

14 th chapter of Uttara-khanda of Vayaviya Samhita in Shiva maha

Purana says:

 

anAsanasshayAno vA gacchannutthita eva vA..51..

 

rathyAyAmashive sthAne na japettimirAntare.

prasArya na japetpAdau kukkuTAsana eva vA..52..

 

yAnashayyAdhirUDho vA cintAvyAkulito atha va.

shaktashcetsarvamevaita ashaktashshaktito japet.h..53..

 

53 rd shloka says that as long as one is capable of following these

rules one should follow, and when not capable, one should follow to

whatever extent they can.

 

Above rules are for doing formal mantra japa with nyasa etc. I was

told that one should always do mental japa(without movement of lips,

tongue) of the mantra they received(from a Guru), all the time,

wherever they are(even if one is in their restroom), and whether

they be clean or unclean.

 

Corrections to my misunderstanding are welcome.

 

Regards

[Guest guest]

, "Ravisankar S. Mayavaram"

<ravi@a...> wrote:

> Now coming back to Ganesh (shaivam.org)'s comment. what he is

saying is

> something specific to shaiva siddhAnta (and a tamilized version of

that). I

> have a Tamil book titled "thiruvainthezhuththu" (the sacred five

syllables)

.....

> In fact the compiler of the book goes to the extent that

namachivaya is a tamil

> mantra and all mantras come from it and it has nothing to do with

sanskrit. He

> Ravi

 

 

I think the tradition of establishing 'chaiva chittanta' independent

of Vedic sources is a fairly recent idea and can not be seen in any

of the great works of Shaiva siddanta Acharyas.

 

I think Tirumantiram is the first Tamil work to mention the

word 'chaiva cittantam' or Shaiva siddantam.

 

'karpana katRu.. tarparam kaNtuLor chaivachchit tAntare' 37

 

'The Shaiva Siddantin-s studied the path of yoga and GYAna, shed

there experiences and finally realized the Self in them'

 

As Ravi points there is more than ample evidence in Tirumantiram and

in the life of Tirumular to establish his reverece towards Vedic

literature. He is definitely not a proponent of a tamil mantra

called 'namachivaya' independent of Vedic sources.

 

It is also not possible to establish a non Vedic siddanta through

Meykandar's works (12 Century I think)

 

Umapati Shivacharyar who is fourth in the linage of Acharyas from

Meykandar in his 'Shaiva pirakAcham' says,

 

purachchamaya tavarkkiruLAi agachchamaya toLivAp.

pugal aLavak kaLavAgip porpaNipol abhedap..

.....

chirappinadAi vetAntat teLivAm chaiva.

chittantat tiraningut terikalutrrAm..

 

'vedAnta teLivAm chaivam' - Shaivam is the essence of Vedanta.

 

(You could read the entire text in -

http://siddhanta.shaivam.org/sanvkns.pdf)

 

Even very late Acharyas like Kumarakuruparar (17 AD) in his paNTAra

mummaNikkOvai says,

 

Orumve tantamena RuchchiiR pazutta

ArA vinba varu~nkani pizintu

chArang koNta chaiva chittantat

tenamutu taruntinar chilare yAvar..35..11

 

"Shaiva siddanta is the nectar extracted from the rare and delicious

fruit born on the top most branch of the Vedanta tree"

 

(You could read the entire text in -

http://www.tamil.net/projectmadurai/pub/pm0197/kguru6c.html)

 

Till 17th century there wasn't a Shaiva siddanta that had a non

Vedic origin. It is a concept developed purely in the the later

18th - 19th century by people interested in a culture void of vedic

origin.

 

But that does not prove or disprove a tamil 'namachivaya'. Though

one could establish 'chivaya' with a pure Tamil origin, I think one

would run in to grammar problems with 'nama' with out grammatically

acknowledging it as a 'vata chol'. I have to study more about this

to comment.

 

Corrections are most welcome.

Aravind