Loving Ganesha: Chapter 8 (Section 2) - The Primal Sound -- Ganeshah Pranavatmakah

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Here is the rest of chapter eight of Loving Ganesha, from

http://www.himalayanacademy.com/books/lg/lg_ch-08.html

 

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Om Shanti,

 

Neil

 

 

In Ganesha Hindus perceive one of the basic concepts of Hindu mythological

symbolism: the identity of the macrocosm and the microcosm. In our religious

tradition, the remembrance of the divinity of man and the immanence of God must

be present before the doer of any action. In this way a Hindu learns to bow to

Ganesha at every turn. Not only is He worshiped at the beginning of every

undertaking, but He guards the entrance of every house, of every temple and

business establishment in the land of the Hindus. Aum Ganesha is what He is:

the master guide of devotees to realize their Divinity.

This identity of the macrocosm and the microcosm can be observed in the

permanence of the relations formed as the substratum of all the aspects of the

perceptible universe. Pillaiyar, as he is fondly called by the Saivites, is

represented as elephant-headed to express the unity of the small being, the

microcosm that is man, and the great being, the macrocosm. The word Gaja,

meaning elephant, is taken to mean "the origin and the goal." The stage reached

by the reintegrated being, the yogi, in his experience of ultimate

identification (samadhi) is called Ga, the goal; and the principle called Ja,

the origin, is that from which the syllable AUM is said to be issued through a

process of multifold reflection.

The man-part of Ganapati, representing the manifest principle, is subordinate to

the unmanifest, shown as the elephant, which is the head. In symbols depicting

Divinity, opposites can coexist. Hence man and elephant are combined in

Ganapati's symbol, which leads to its essential meaning of Pranava. The

elephant is also a symbol of the stage whence existence begins (Brahma Sutra

1.1.4) and whence the syllable Aum issues. From Aum issues the Veda, the

universal law, and from the Veda, the universe. Prana is the life current, and

Va is the energy of Siva named Chit Shakti. When they mingle in the vibration

of Prana Va, Ganesha reveals Himself. Aum Tat Sat Aum is His sacred message.

The living beings are the visible form of That, the Supreme Reality. Human

existence denotes the coordination of the Absolute and the relative, of That

and Thou.

That (Tat) represents the limitless, transcendentprinciple whose (nature) is Truth and Knowledge."

Taittiriya Aranyaka 8.1.1

True knowledge is the realization of this unity which Ganesha signifies. Aum is

commonly attributed to the form of Ganesha, the Lord of the Pranava Mantra,

even though the three letters A-U-M signify a number of God's names when taken

separately. A stands for Virat, Agni, and Vishva. U stands for Hiranyagarbha,

Vayu and Taijasa. M represents Ishvara, Aditya and Prajna.

Virat is the all-comprehensive universe of being. Agni is the primary element of

all sacrificial ceremonies. Vishva means God Siva, since the whole universe and

the objects in the universe are manifested and are sheltered in Him. He

pervades all of them. Hiranyagarbha is One who is the source and support of all

light and luminous bodies as the sun, moon and stars. Vayu means one who is the

life and support of the universe, the cause of its dissolution. Taijasa is one

who is resplendent and gives light to the sun and other luminous bodies.

Ishvara is one whose knowledge and power are infinite. Aditya means immortal.

Prajna denotes one whose knowledge is perfect and one who is omniscient.

Thus, the sacred syllable Aum combines within itself some of the most sublime

names of the Supreme Being, and connotes His omnipotent and omniscient nature

and attributes. Aum thus represents, in its fullest connotation, God Siva, the

Supreme Being.

Aksharam Brahma ParamamSvabhavo Adhyatmam uchyate.

Bhagavad Gita 8.3

Brahman is spoken of as Akshara: that which is imperishable and inexhaustible.

Saint Auvaiyar also referred to Akshara, meaning eternal wisdom, in her famous

poem on Vinayaka. Krishna tells Arjuna in the following verse that he who

leaves the body reflecting on Aum reaches the goal of beatific bliss, paramam

gatira.

Aum Ityekaksharam BrahmaVyaharan mam anusmaranYah prayati tyajan dehamSa yati paramam gatim.

Bhagavad Gita 8.13

Aum is the Ekakshara, the one-syllable mantra of the Para Sivato, the word not

spoken. Mantra is that which redeems when contemplated upon:

Mananat thrayate iti mantra.

(The Son of Siva, Ganesha, being) "a second myself," came to be recognized as the God Word Aum.

When we chant the Pranava Aum -- the harmonious combination of the three basic

sounds, akara, ukara and makara -- the microcosmic activity links with the

entire macrocosmic activity of the cosmos, which represents the all-pervading

Reality of Parashiva.

Akara sound is produced from the base of the spinal cord, where the kundalini is

posited, and rises to the throat. The supreme consciousness (chaitanya),

functioning through the gross body in the waking state in the individual, is

called vaishvanara and is represented by the first syllable, A. Ukara is the

second stage, where the sound from the throat is rolled outwards to the tip of

the tongue. The same supreme consciousness, functioning through the subtle body

in the dream state in the individual, is called taijasa, and is represented by

the second syllable, U. This makara sound is concentrated at the lips. This

same supreme consciousness, functioning through the causal body in the deep

sleep state in the individual, is called prajna, and is represented by the

final syllable, M, in AUM.

The significance of the Aum mantra is also brought out lucidly in the

sikshavalli of the Taittiriya Upanishad:

Aum iti Brahma, Aum iti idam sarvamAum ity etad anukriti, Aum iti samani gayanti (1.8).

And in the Chhandogya Upanishad:

Aum ityetadaksharam Udgitham upasitaAum iti Hyudgayati tasyopa Vyakhyanam (2.23.3).

The image of Ganapati and His mantra Aum constantly remind us of the reality of

the great identity. Man truly is the image of the cosmos. All realization lies

within himself. Through the study of his inner impulses and of his inner

structure, he can understand the nature of the universe. Lord Vighneshvara

assures the freedom from fear. He instills the knowledge necessary to remove

the fear inherent in time and duration. What power lies hidden in the mystic

Aum, the sound symbol of Ganapati, and which is uttered at the beginning of

every rite! Its meaning is expressed in Aum Tat Sat and represents the

fundamental identity of the macrocosm and the microcosm.

The swastika forms the graphic symbol of Ganapati. It is represented by a cross,

being the development of the multiple from the basic unity, the central point;

but each of its branches is bent so that it does not aim at the center. This is

intended to show that man cannot reach the basic unity directly through the

outward forms of the universe.

Ganesha's trunk is bent because Divinity cannot be directly understood and also

because He is master of obstacles. The noose in His hand destroys moha,

delusion, the enemy of all seekers. The driving hook is the insignia of the

ruler of the universe. The hand granting boons fulfills all desires, and the

other hand allays all fears. Man seeks Ganesha's protection at every turn in

order that the Great Being may establish Itself in his midst, and he may become

one with It.

That Transcendental One is Aum Ganesha. That Immanent One is Aum Ganesha. The

living beings are Ganesha Aum. Thus do we raise the chant of concord, Aum

Ganesha Tat Sat Aum. It is through the worship of Lord Ganesha that we come to

know the venerable Lord Murugan, and lastly Supreme God Siva, their Creator,

our Father-Mother God, Lord of all creation, preservation and dissolution. Aum

Tat Sat Aum.

Aum is the one Eternal Syllable of whichall that exists is but the

development.The past, present and the future areall included in this one

sound,and all that exists beyond the forms of timeis also implied in the word

Aum.

Mandukya Upanishad

On the following pages we have assembled a special collection of Aum calligraphy

gathered at our Kauai monastery over the past few years. They are mostly drawn

in Devanagari, but also in some of India's regional languages. Of all the

sacred symbols from India's rich spiritual heritage, none is more widely used

and loved than the Aum. It is Divinity incarnate, and so it is natural that

calligraphers and artists, designers and wall painters use it again and again

to express the highest Truth.

>From many hundreds of styles, our editors chose a few dozen and scanned them

into Adobe's Illustrator program. There they fine-tuned them, removing some of

the rough edges occasioned by printing in Bharat, then added a few

embellishments where needed. The scrolls themselves were produced in Adobe's

Photoshop program, which was also the tool used to create the embossed effects.

We take great joy in trading Aums (and other Indian art forms, like Ganeshas,

village logos and more) and will release rights to anyone who shares their Aum

collection with us. Send us a few specimens you especially like, and we will

send you a few back. Send fifty or more, and receive a treasure from our years

of collecting, a free US$49 CD with more than 700 styles. You can also view our

Aum collection and download low-resolution images at

(www.himalayanacademy.com/art/). Mail your contributions (photocopies are fine)

to Acharya Palaniswami, Himalayan Academy, 107 Kaholalele Road, Kapaa, Hawaii,

96746-9304, USA.

 

 

 

 

Loving Ganesha by Satguru Sivaya Subramuniyaswami

 

Web sites: http://www.hindu.org/ & http://www.himalayanacademy.com/

email: contact (AT) hindu (DOT) org

Himalayan Academy Kauai's Hindu Monastery107 Kaholalele RoadKapaa, HI 96746-9304

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

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