Summary of this evening's Chandi class, Chapter 2

[Guest guest]

Dear Friends,

 

A summary of this evening's class follows:

 

The battle between the Divine Mother and Great Ego begins,

 

The Ego's generals are

 

Devoid of clear understanding: chikshura

Fickleness: chamara

Haughtiness: udagra

Great Deceiver: mahahanuh

Want of Resolution: asiloma

Memories: bashkalo

Wandering to and fro: parivratah

Hypocrisy: bidala

 

These are the thoughts that tell us to give up the search of divinity,

to become a somebody, rich and famous.

 

If you inhale the moola mantra of the Chandi (Navarna mantra and

exhale the verses in the Chandi you are breathing out more energy into

the army of the divinity.

 

Whenever we are attached to thoughts and we have a prejudice , a point

of view, we don't see what is. When we can defuse this prejudice,

these projections, we become Shiva. That's the goal.

 

Questions

 

1. On a daily basis, how do we monitor if we are truthful in thought,

word, and action?

 

You know when you cross the line. Either we sacrifice our goal or

sacrifice our truth. For example, did I leave the plate in the sink.

If I did, I sacrificed my truth. As a sadhu, I have a sankalpa not to

cause trouble to anyone. I have breached my contract. Ask the

question, am I giving the most and taking the least, or vice versa?

 

2. How can we experience small gaps of stillness (the eternal witness

i.e. Chandi Maa) during the hustle and bustle of daily activities

(hypocrisy/ fickleness/anger/bad thoughts)?

 

There is only one way to do it. Take a couple of minutes from time to

time and check out, close all your senses. Swamiji demonstrated

Shambhavi Mudra. Close ears with thumbs, ring finger and little finger

on lips, middle finger on nostrils (lightly srini adds, so that you

can breathe), index finger on eyes (lightly, srini addds).

 

3. I'm wondering about the difference between being distracted by the

asuras from our path and seeing truth in many places. If we maintain

our sankalpa and remain focused on our spiritual goals can this

sankalpa include teachings from various traditions, or is that

considered to be digging many shallow wells? Or can we consider this

to be a way of deepening our understanding?

 

It's important to learn from different sources When you cultivate your

practice, you will have to pick one language one heritage, and go

deeper and deeper in that tradition.

 

4. In some traditions, self deprecation is considered a spiritual

virtue, one that attenuates the ego. The Chandi seems to say that it

is equal to self-conceit as a manifestation of ego. Can you please

explain?

 

Self deprecation says I, so does self conceit. Self conceit is a

positive I and self deprecation is negative I. The only ego we want to

have is Aham Brahmasmi, I am Shiva. Self deprecation is different from

humility. Humility is I respect you. Self deprecation is I do not

respect myself.

 

5. Some thoughts perished with only Her breath and some by her lion

but for a few she had to use more force. Could you please explain this.

 

She has so many weapons at her disposal, sword, conch, discus, etc.

When we chant Chandi Path with pranayam many asuras die. For others

she uses wisdom, inspiration, refinement of practice, tapasya, etc.

Some thoughts take more work to destroy. Sometime we need wisdom,

inspiration, sometimes we need grace of Shree Maa.

 

6. How do we set goals for " focus " when chanting the Chandi, goals in

which we can evaluate our progress in our intensity of our concentration?

 

We have a master plan and chanting the Chandi is part of that master

plan. Idea is not have to goals in chanting Chandi (a to do list); the

idea is to have goal of chanting the Chandi everyday and trying to

understand its meaning for our lives. Each of the generals is going to

meet their death at the hands of the Divine Mother. That's the goal.

 

7. What is that the purpose of Mother Nature installing all the asuras

inside me? Why does the path in spirituality involve renouncing

everything Mother Nature has installed inside me?

 

It is inherent in the creation where there is dharma there will be

adharma. Dharma and adharma (devas and asuras), all the opposites are

all oblations to the fire. The mind is using the sruva (spoon) that

offers the dharma and adharma to the fire. If she gave you divinity

she gave you asuras as well. In our quest of divinity, we are going to

offer asuric thoughts to Divine Mother, and we have done that we

become pure devotees

 

8. I heard if we look at the mind itself as being divine, that way of

looking at the mind helps to over come it. Is that true?

 

Absolutely. If mind is divine it gives birth to divine thoughts.

 

 

Love

srini