Guest guest Posted May 9, 2005 Report Share Posted May 9, 2005 Devnath's Sanskrit for beginners 1) Maa and Swami are living Sanskrit. Become like them. 2) listen again and again to tapes of Swamji chanting the Chandi Path or Maa singing Kali's 1000 names, or the Lalita or Shiva Puja and chant along with them while reading from the Roman transliteration -- don't worry about accuracy at first, She knows you are making an effort and is happy like a parent with a child's first words -- just keep going 3) strive with all your might and discipline to develop and chant from the transliterated text in a strong asan (swastik or padma asan) with pranayam! -- Swami has said repeatedly that one mala a day in the diamond pose (Vajrasana) is all you have to do to develop the asan -- THIS IS TRUE THIS IS TRUE THIS IS TRUE -- and don't force your knees down -- just do a mala a day with pranyam -- Nature will do the rest -- Maa said that her devotees don't sit on pillows or use back support -- please pay attention to this advice -- asan and pranayam are key -- NO ONE is too old or stiff for God's grace to melt away the tightness and knots of stress -- do just one mala a day in Vajrasana, or two, one in the morning and one in the evening 4) regular practice of sadhana, and add a few minutes each month 5) read just one or two verses a night, letter by letter at first, of the Gita or Chandi every night before bed instead of TV -- have the Sanskrit alphabet and vowel abbreviations handy on a piece of paper you can refer too (I'll scan and post what I use) -- don't worry trying to learn all the consonant conjuctions at first or memorizing anything -- don't strain, have fun -- just do a little at first -- one verse a night -- it will grow and soon you'll be reading a few pages a night and more remember what the Chandi Path says in the Kilakam, verse 4 -- nothing is gained without repeated application build your inspiration and build your asan and pranayam, and the rest will come easier when it does after trying many many times for many many years to memorize the letters and vowel abbreviations and consonant conjunctions and never succeeding, it all came together in 2 hours one late night for me -- well, the reading anyway go figure -- God's grace 6) then writing, then grammar and meaning If you want a book recommendation to add to your library until you are ready to dive, then the ones by Tom Egenes are good ones: http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/tg/detail/-/8120811402/ ref=ase_advancedyogap-20/104-4208201-8503160?v=glance&s=books text books and classes all help, but I wouldn't recommend any of them at first as the amount of material to learn and the sandhi rules to master and on and on will probably overshadow your inspiration Remember, it's not about becoming a pundit, it's about becoming a Lover! Swamji says: "Try to come as close as possible with English language to the true meaning of a text or mantra. There's even more in the Sanskrit that we can't even speak. No, it is not about being a Sanskrit scholar. If you study Sanskrit from the purview of intuitive understanding as a sadhu, you will never become a Sanskrit scholar. You will become a lover. This is the whole thing about being a lover, about falling in love so deeply that you maintain the lover affair to maintain the romance. It's just as exciting to you after 35 years as it is the first day. And that's true with everything we do, whether it be a personal relationship or relationship with God, and everything in between. It's not hard to fall in love, but to stay there is the mystery. How do you maintain that love, that bhava? If you become a Sanskrit scholar you would not necessarily become a lover. But if you become a lover you will understand the meaning whether you're a Sanskrit scholar or not. And the more you practice being the lovers, the more we understand it's not about being technically correct. It's not about being a walking dictionary. It's not about being able to defeat others in debate. It's about being in love all the time, or as much of the time as we can possibly keep ourselves in that bhava. Whether we're digging holes or reading the Vedas, it's still the same puja. It's the same demonstration of our love. And I believe this whole sadhana is about maintaining the love affair. It's not hard to get inspired, but to stay there takes some real sadhana. And I'm sorry you who have been in relationships for longest periods can tell us some the wisdom of that. It takes real sadhana to maintain that love affair - to keep it fresh and alive and unique and exciting - no to let it deplete, not let it dissipate, not let it become a responsibility or a chore, or something we have to perform - like I'm going to bribe God by singing some poetry. No, it's about being the lover. And when you're the lover, then you'll understand it. Not by being the scholar. Now if part of your lover affair is demonstrating your love by studying more and more, then it's not about being a scholar, it's about being a lover and Sanskrit happens to be the medium that we're using in order to maintain the attitude of the relationship -- in order to demonstrate the privilege it is to be a lover. But it's definitely not about being technically correct or not about studying grammar or memorizing conjugations. It is totally about the bliss of the love affair all the time - so much as possible. The practices that we do are valuable only so far as they keep reminding us what a privilege it is to be in love." , nierika@a... wrote: > > devnath wrote: > > 1) inspiration > 2) accurate pronunciation > 3) understanding the meaning > 4) bringing one's life into accordance with the meaning > 5) living it completely > > > Ah, dear devnath ~ my fondest wish is that Swami will be inspired to write a > book or series of books on learning Sanskrit. I'm sure his would be more > comprehensible than most of what is out there. In the meantime, is there any > particular book or source that Swami directs those who are inspired to learn > Sanskrit to? Jai Swamiji ~ Linda Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted May 10, 2005 Report Share Posted May 10, 2005 Dear Devnath, thank you for this most useful and encouraging information! with love, Henny In , "devnath9" <devnath@s...> wrote: > Devnath's Sanskrit for beginners > > 1) Maa and Swami are living Sanskrit. Become like them. > > 2) listen again and again to tapes of Swamji chanting the Chandi Path or Maa singing Kali's > 1000 names, or the Lalita or Shiva Puja and chant along with them while reading from the > Roman transliteration -- don't worry about accuracy at first, She knows you are making > an effort and is happy like a parent with a child's first words -- just keep going > > 3) strive with all your might and discipline to develop and chant from the transliterated > text in a strong asan (swastik or padma asan) with pranayam! -- Swami has said > repeatedly that one mala a day in the diamond pose (Vajrasana) is all you have to do to > develop the asan -- THIS IS TRUE THIS IS TRUE THIS IS TRUE -- and don't force your knees > down -- just do a mala a day with pranyam -- Nature will do the rest -- Maa said that her > devotees don't sit on pillows or use back support -- please pay attention to this advice -- > asan and pranayam are key -- NO ONE is too old or stiff for God's grace to melt away the > tightness and knots of stress -- do just one mala a day in Vajrasana, or two, one in the > morning and one in the evening > > 4) regular practice of sadhana, and add a few minutes each month > > 5) read just one or two verses a night, letter by letter at first, of the Gita or Chandi every > night before bed instead of TV -- have the Sanskrit alphabet and vowel abbreviations > handy on a piece of paper you can refer too (I'll scan and post what I use) -- don't worry > trying to learn all the consonant conjuctions at first or memorizing anything -- don't > strain, have fun -- just do a little at first -- one verse a night -- it will grow and soon > you'll be reading a few pages a night and more > > remember what the Chandi Path says in the Kilakam, verse 4 -- nothing is gained without > repeated application > > build your inspiration and build your asan and pranayam, and the rest will come easier > when it does > > after trying many many times for many many years to memorize the letters and vowel > abbreviations and consonant conjunctions and never succeeding, it all came together in 2 > hours one late night for me -- well, the reading anyway > > go figure -- God's grace > > 6) then writing, then grammar and meaning > > If you want a book recommendation to add to your library until you are ready to dive, then > the ones by Tom Egenes are good ones: > http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/tg/detail/-/8120811402/ > ref=ase_advancedyogap-20/104-4208201-8503160?v=glance&s=books > > text books and classes all help, but I wouldn't recommend any of them at first as the > amount of material to learn and the sandhi rules to master and on and on will probably > overshadow your inspiration > > Remember, it's not about becoming a pundit, it's about becoming a Lover! > > Swamji says: > > "Try to come as close as possible with English language to the true meaning of a text or > mantra. There's even more in the Sanskrit that we can't even speak. No, it is not about > being a Sanskrit scholar. If you study Sanskrit from the purview of intuitive > understanding as a sadhu, you will never become a Sanskrit scholar. You will become a > lover. This is the whole thing about being a lover, about falling in love so deeply that you > maintain the lover affair to maintain the romance. It's just as exciting to you after 35 years > as it is the first day. And that's true with everything we do, whether it be a personal > relationship or relationship with God, and everything in between. It's not hard to fall in > love, but to stay there is the mystery. How do you maintain that love, that bhava? If you > become a Sanskrit scholar you would not necessarily become a lover. But if you become a > lover you will understand the meaning whether you're a Sanskrit scholar or not. And the > more you practice being the lovers, the more we understand it's not about being > technically correct. It's not about being a walking dictionary. It's not about being able to > defeat others in debate. It's about being in love all the time, or as much of the time as we > can possibly keep ourselves in that bhava. Whether we're digging holes or reading the > Vedas, it's still the same puja. It's the same demonstration of our love. And I believe this > whole sadhana is about maintaining the love affair. It's not hard to get inspired, but to stay > there takes some real sadhana. And I'm sorry you who have been in relationships for > longest periods can tell us some the wisdom of that. It takes real sadhana to maintain that > love affair - to keep it fresh and alive and unique and exciting - no to let it deplete, not let > it dissipate, not let it become a responsibility or a chore, or something we have to perform > - like I'm going to bribe God by singing some poetry. No, it's about being the lover. And > when you're the lover, then you'll understand it. Not by being the scholar. Now if part of > your lover affair is demonstrating your love by studying more and more, then it's not > about being a scholar, it's about being a lover and Sanskrit happens to be the medium that > we're using in order to maintain the attitude of the relationship -- in order to demonstrate > the privilege it is to be a lover. But it's definitely not about being technically correct or not > about studying grammar or memorizing conjugations. It is totally about the bliss of the > love affair all the time - so much as possible. The practices that we do are valuable only so > far as they keep reminding us what a privilege it is to be in love. " > , nierika@a... wrote: > > > > devnath wrote: > > > > 1) inspiration > > 2) accurate pronunciation > > 3) understanding the meaning > > 4) bringing one's life into accordance with the meaning > > 5) living it completely > > > > > > Ah, dear devnath ~ my fondest wish is that Swami will be inspired to write a > > book or series of books on learning Sanskrit. I'm sure his would be more > > comprehensible than most of what is out there. In the meantime, is there any > > particular book or source that Swami directs those who are inspired to learn > > Sanskrit to? Jai Swamiji ~ Linda Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted May 10, 2005 Report Share Posted May 10, 2005 Thank you Devnath for this. Your words, like your chanting always inspire us. Jai Maa!!!!! --- devnath9 <devnath wrote: > Devnath's Sanskrit for beginners > > 1) Maa and Swami are living Sanskrit. Become like > them. > > 2) listen again and again to tapes of Swamji > chanting the Chandi Path or Maa singing Kali's > 1000 names, or the Lalita or Shiva Puja and chant > along with them while reading from the > Roman transliteration -- don't worry about accuracy > at first, She knows you are making > an effort and is happy like a parent with a child's > first words -- just keep going > > 3) strive with all your might and discipline to > develop and chant from the transliterated > text in a strong asan (swastik or padma asan) with > pranayam! -- Swami has said > repeatedly that one mala a day in the diamond pose > (Vajrasana) is all you have to do to > develop the asan -- THIS IS TRUE THIS IS TRUE THIS > IS TRUE -- and don't force your knees > down -- just do a mala a day with pranyam -- Nature > will do the rest -- Maa said that her > devotees don't sit on pillows or use back support -- > please pay attention to this advice -- > asan and pranayam are key -- NO ONE is too old or > stiff for God's grace to melt away the > tightness and knots of stress -- do just one mala a > day in Vajrasana, or two, one in the > morning and one in the evening > > 4) regular practice of sadhana, and add a few > minutes each month > > 5) read just one or two verses a night, letter by > letter at first, of the Gita or Chandi every > night before bed instead of TV -- have the Sanskrit > alphabet and vowel abbreviations > handy on a piece of paper you can refer too (I'll > scan and post what I use) -- don't worry > trying to learn all the consonant conjuctions at > first or memorizing anything -- don't > strain, have fun -- just do a little at first -- one > verse a night -- it will grow and soon > you'll be reading a few pages a night and more > > remember what the Chandi Path says in the Kilakam, > verse 4 -- nothing is gained without > repeated application > > build your inspiration and build your asan and > pranayam, and the rest will come easier > when it does > > after trying many many times for many many years to > memorize the letters and vowel > abbreviations and consonant conjunctions and never > succeeding, it all came together in 2 > hours one late night for me -- well, the reading > anyway > > go figure -- God's grace > > 6) then writing, then grammar and meaning > > If you want a book recommendation to add to your > library until you are ready to dive, then > the ones by Tom Egenes are good ones: > http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/tg/detail/-/8120811402/ > ref=ase_advancedyogap-20/104-4208201-8503160?v=glance&s=books > > text books and classes all help, but I wouldn't > recommend any of them at first as the > amount of material to learn and the sandhi rules to > master and on and on will probably > overshadow your inspiration > > Remember, it's not about becoming a pundit, it's > about becoming a Lover! > > Swamji says: > > "Try to come as close as possible with English > language to the true meaning of a text or > mantra. There's even more in the Sanskrit that we > can't even speak. No, it is not about > being a Sanskrit scholar. If you study Sanskrit from > the purview of intuitive > understanding as a sadhu, you will never become a > Sanskrit scholar. You will become a > lover. This is the whole thing about being a lover, > about falling in love so deeply that you > maintain the lover affair to maintain the romance. > It's just as exciting to you after 35 years > as it is the first day. And that's true with > everything we do, whether it be a personal > relationship or relationship with God, and > everything in between. It's not hard to fall in > love, but to stay there is the mystery. How do you > maintain that love, that bhava? If you > become a Sanskrit scholar you would not necessarily > become a lover. But if you become a > lover you will understand the meaning whether you're > a Sanskrit scholar or not. And the > more you practice being the lovers, the more we > understand it's not about being > technically correct. It's not about being a walking > dictionary. It's not about being able to > defeat others in debate. It's about being in love > all the time, or as much of the time as we > can possibly keep ourselves in that bhava. Whether > we're digging holes or reading the > Vedas, it's still the same puja. It's the same > demonstration of our love. And I believe this > whole sadhana is about maintaining the love affair. > It's not hard to get inspired, but to stay > there takes some real sadhana. And I'm sorry you who > have been in relationships for > longest periods can tell us some the wisdom of that. > It takes real sadhana to maintain that > love affair - to keep it fresh and alive and unique > and exciting - no to let it deplete, not let > it dissipate, not let it become a responsibility or > a chore, or something we have to perform > - like I'm going to bribe God by singing some > poetry. No, it's about being the lover. And > when you're the lover, then you'll understand it. > Not by being the scholar. Now if part of > your lover affair is demonstrating your love by > studying more and more, then it's not > about being a scholar, it's about being a lover and > Sanskrit happens to be the medium that > we're using in order to maintain the attitude of the > relationship -- in order to demonstrate > the privilege it is to be a lover. But it's > definitely not about being technically correct or > not > about studying grammar or memorizing conjugations. > It is totally about the bliss of the > love affair all the time - so much as possible. The > practices that we do are valuable only so > far as they keep reminding us what a privilege it > is to be in love." > , nierika@a... > wrote: > > > > devnath wrote: > > > > 1) inspiration > > 2) accurate pronunciation > > 3) understanding the meaning > > 4) bringing one's life into accordance with the > meaning > > 5) living it completely > > > > > > Ah, dear devnath ~ my fondest wish is that Swami > will be inspired to write a > > book or series of books on learning Sanskrit. I'm > sure his would be more > > comprehensible than most of what is out there. In > the meantime, is there any > > particular book or source that Swami directs those > who are inspired to learn > > Sanskrit to? Jai Swamiji ~ Linda > > > > > Mail Stay connected, organized, and protected. 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