Namaha - insight and deep understanding is welcomed

[Guest guest]

Hari Om

~~~~~~~~

 

Namaste Satyakama's

 

If one can comment on this, I would be greatful.

We know that nama - means to bow, and also means name. The root 'naam'

as I understand means 'to honor', so my understanding , we give pranams

'in honor' of that Supreme in others.

 

Add mahah - we get 'great'. One place I read of this Mahah is  from

rishi Mahachamasya ( taittiriya upanishad) speaks of this vyahriyi or

sacred utterance, as Brahman. He also instructs that bhu, buhvah, and

suvah are contained in Mahah.

When we couple (samhita) Nama + Mahah we get namaha.  This then

suggest we bow, and honor Mahah, Brahm with the utterance of Namaha.

This becomes a profound and potent vyahriti to add to ones

meditations, japa, yajya, and puja.

 

Can any of our esteemed members comment on this potency? its proper

use and confirm the wisdom here?

 

 

pranams,

yajvan

 

 

 

 

 

 

Discussion of Shankara's Advaita Vedanta Philosophy of nonseparablity of Atman and Brahman.

Advaitin Homepage at: Terms of Service.

[Guest guest]

advaitin, "yajvan" <agnimile> wrote:

>

> Hari Om

> ~~~~~~~~

>

> Namaste Satyakama's

>

> If one can comment on this, I would be greatful.

> We know that nama - means to bow, and also means name. The

root 'naam'

> as I understand means 'to honor', so my understanding , we give

pranams

> 'in honor' of that Supreme in others.

>

> Add mahah - we get 'great'. One place I read of this Mahah is  from

> rishi Mahachamasya ( taittiriya upanishad) speaks of this vyahriyi

or

> sacred utterance, as Brahman. He also instructs that bhu, buhvah,

and

> suvah are contained in Mahah.

> When we couple (samhita) Nama + Mahah we get namaha.  This then

> suggest we bow, and honor Mahah, Brahm with the utterance of

Namaha.

> This becomes a profound and potent vyahriti to add to ones

> meditations, japa, yajya, and puja.

>

> Can any of our esteemed members comment on this potency? its proper

> use and confirm the wisdom here?

>

>

> pranams,

> yajvan

>

NAMASTE YAJVAN JI,

In response to your above post, i append below two messages that were

with me, sent to me by friends:

 

-

Nagendra S. Rao

Nagendra S. Rao

Thursday, February 24, 2005 12:12 PM

Meaning of Namaste

 

 

Friends:

 

Namaste is the traditional Indian greeting and salutation.  However,

many do not know its etymological origin or detailed meaning.  Ye may

find interesting the following explanatory piece a good friend sent

on to me.

 

Have a nice day now.

 

Nagendra

 

NAMASTE AND BEYOND!

Namaste (pronounced "Nam-a-stay") is used as a greeting or upon

parting.

Namaste is a composite of the two Sanskrit words, nama, and te.  Te

means you, and nama has the following connotations:

 

to bend

 

to bow

 

to sink

 

to incline

 

to stoop

 

All these suggestions point to a sense of submitting oneself to

another, with complete humility.

 

Significantly, the word 'nama' has parallels in other ancient

languages also.  It is cognate with the Greek nemo, nemos and nosmos,

to the Latin nemus, the Old Saxon niman, and the German neman and

nehman.  All these expressions have the general sense of obeisance,

homage and veneration.

 

The word nama is split into two, na and ma. Na signifies negation and

ma represents mine. The meaning would then be 'not mine'.  

 

The import being that the individual soul belongs entirely to the

Supreme soul, which is identified as residing in the individual

towards whom the namaste is directed.  Indeed, there is nothing that

the soul can claim as its own.

 

Namaste is thus the necessary rejection of 'I' and the associated

phenomena of egotism.  It is said that 'ma' in nama means death

(spiritual), and when this is negated (na-ma), it signifies

immortality.

 

In general, Namaste can interpret:

 

'The God in me greets the God in you' or

 

'The Spirit in me meets the same Spirit in you' or

 

'I honor the Atma in you as in me.' 

 

There are many other interpretations, all have the same meaning.

 

Swami usually turns to devotees, students, teachers, listeners,

etc. "Embodiments of Divine Atma," and "Embodiments of Love," it is

principally the same as "Namaste," or more correctly the _expression

of meaning the word "Namaste" by more understandable way.

 

Translated into a bodily act, yogic practice, greeting and farewell,

Namaste has its complex meaning and symbolism.

 

1. In general the gesture (or mudra) of Namaste is performed by

bringing together both palms of the hands before the heart, and

lightly bowing the head.  In the simplest of terms, it is accepted as

a humble greeting straight from the heart and reciprocated

accordingly.  (The following points are more proper explanation of

Namaste from different angles).

 

2. The whole action of Namaste unfolds itself at three levels:

mental, physical, and verbal.

 

3. Namaste starts with a mental submission.  This submission is in

the spirit of total surrender of the self.  By performing namaste

before an individual, we recognize the divine spark in him.  Further,

by facilitating our partaking of these divine qualities, namaste

makes us aware of these very characteristics residing within our own

selves.

 

4. We place the hands together at the heart charka, close the eyes,

and bow the head.  It can also be done by placing the hands together

in front of the third eye, bowing the head, and then bringing the

hands down to the heart.  This is an especially deep form of respect.

 

5. We bring the hands together at the heart chakra to increase the

flow of Divine love.  Bowing the head and closing the eyes helps the

mind surrender to the Divine in the heart.  One can do Namaste to

oneself as a meditation technique to go deeper inside the heart

chakra; when done with someone else, it is also a beautiful, albeit

quick, meditation.

 

6. The proper performance of Namaste requires that we blend the five

fingers of the left hand exactly with the fingers of the right hand. 

The significance behind this simple act in fact governs the entire

gamut of our active life.  The five fingers of the left hand

represent the five senses of karma and those of the right hand the

five organs of knowledge.  Hence, it signifies that our karma or

action must be in harmony, and governed by rightful knowledge,

prompting us to think and act correctly.

 

7. By combining the five fingers of each hand, a total of ten is

achieved.  The number ten is a symbol of perfection, and the mystical

number of completion and unity.  It is true for all ancient

traditions.  Ten is the number of the Commandments revealed to Moses

by God.  In the Pythagorean system, ten was a symbol of the whole of

creation.  Ancient Chinese thought too thought of ten as the

perfectly balanced number.

 

8. Another significant identification of Namaste is with the

institution of marriage, which represents a new beginning, and the

conjoining of the male and female elements in nature.  The idea of

human divine association was often expressed in terms of marriage, as

in the description of nuns as "brides of Christ."  Thus in the

exhaustive marriage rituals of India, after the elaborate ceremonies

have been completed, the new husband and wife team perform Namaste to

each other.

 

9. Namaste, which symbolizes the secret of this unity, holds the key

to maintaining the equilibrium of life and entering the area where

health, harmony, peace and happiness are available in plenty.

 

10. Namaste allows two individuals to come together energetically to

a place of connection and timelessness, free from the bonds of ego-

connection.  If it is done with deep feeling in the heart and with

the mind surrendered, a deep union of spirits can blossom.

 

11. Namaste recognizes the equality of all, and pays honor to the

sacredness of all.

 

12. Namaste recognizes the duality that has ever existed in this

world and suggests an effort on our part to bring these two forces

together, ultimately leading to a higher unity and non-dual state of

Oneness.  Consequently, no sphere of our existence untouched by the

symbolic significance of Namaste.

 

13. The gesture of Namaste is unique in the sense that its physical

performance is accompanied by a verbal utterance of the

word "Namaste."  This practice is equivalent to the chanting of a

mantra.  The sonority of the sacred sound 'Namaste' is believed to

have a quasi-magical value, corresponding to a creative energy

change.  This transformation is that of aligning oneself in harmony

with the vibration of the cosmos itself.

 

14. In general, Namaste is usual for individuals to greet when they

meet each other.  It is not only a sign of recognition but also an

_expression of happiness at each other's sight.  This initial

conviviality sets the positive tone for the further development of a

harmonious relationship.  In human society, it is an approach

mechanism, brimming with social, emotional and spiritual significance.

 

15. It is said also that in Namaste the hands are put together like a

knife so that people may cut through all differences that may exist,

and immediately get to the shared ground that is common to all

peoples of all cultures.

 

16. It is interesting to compare Namaste with the 'handshake.' Though

shaking hands is an extremely intimate gesture, namaste scores over

it in some ways.  You do Namaste with God (and not shake hands).  It

has been conjectured that both the Namaste and the handshake

developed out of a desire on the part of both the parties to show

themselves to be unarmed and devoid of malicious intention.

 

17. As much as Yoga is an exercise to bring all levels of our

existence, including the physical and intellectual, in complete

harmony with the rhythms of nature, the gesture of Namaste is a yoga

in itself.  Any yogic activity begins with the performance of this

deeply spiritual gesture.

 

18. According to Indologist Renov "Meditation depends upon the

relationship between the hands (mudras), the mouth (mantras) and the

mind (yoga)".  The performance of Namaste is comprised of all these

three activities.  It is in essence equivalent to meditation.

 

And : 

Another interpretation of the Namste action:

 

A Mahatma gave this meaning for the action 'Namaste':

 

We join both the palms.  When we start counting from the right little

finger, the right thumb is no. five. The left thumb is six.  The left

little finger is the last in the counting, with no.ten.  If we add

the no.designated to the right little finger, one, to the no.

designated to the left little finger, ten, we get eleven.  The right

ring finger is two and the left ring finger is nine and the sum we

get is eleven. In this fashion we get the figure eleven with the two

corresponding fingers of both the hands.  What does this eleven

signify?  In our mythology we have the ten avataras, incarnations, of

Bhagavan Vishnu.  The person who does this namaste can bring the

bhavana that this person to whom this namaste is directed is

the 'eleventh avatara'. 

 

My thanks to the frineds that sent me these.

 

Pranams,

subbu

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Discussion of Shankara's Advaita Vedanta Philosophy of nonseparablity of Atman and Brahman.

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[Guest guest]

advaitin, "subrahmanian_v"

<subrahmanian_v> wrote:

>

> advaitin, "yajvan" <agnimile@> wrote:

> >

> > Hari Om

> > ~~~~~~~~

> > This becomes a profound and potent vyahriti to add to ones

> > meditations, japa, yajya, and puja.

> >

> > comment on this potency? its proper

> > use and confirm the wisdom here?

> >

>

> NAMASTE YAJVAN JI,

> In response to your above post, i append below two messages that

were

> with me, sent to me by friends:

 

     This link has been posted before, but some of the newer members

may not be aware of it:

 

Terms of Service.

[Guest guest]

advaitin, "advaitins" <advaitins> wrote:

>>

>      This link has been posted before, but some of the newer members

> may not be aware of it:

>

> Terms of Service.

[Guest guest]

Hari Om

~~~~~~~~

 

Namaste subbu,

you have too kind...thank you for sharing.

 

pranams,

 

 

 

 

 

Discussion of Shankara's Advaita Vedanta Philosophy of nonseparablity of Atman and Brahman.

Advaitin Homepage at: Terms of Service.