Guest guest Posted May 21, 2005 Report Share Posted May 21, 2005 The Respected Great Lord replied Verse 121. The consecrated offering is the energy known as kundalini. The syllables that rise in the heart are Ham and Sah. Form is known as the bindu, one pointed awareness. And that which is beyond form is infinite. Comment: The energy known as Kundalini is the lotus which we continue to speak of. The lotus is the soul's light which climbs through the chakras starting from the base at the muladhara, climbing through the mud (phlegm, mucus, blood, etc) of this transitory body to reach the sahasrara. Swamiji says that the Lotus is the highest residence of consciousness before it moves beyond the body. The kundalini rises through the grace of Guru. Ham and Sah are the feet of Guru who is seated in the middle of that fountain of light, the Lotus at the crown. Form is that centre point, the bindu , the point of union. Beyond form to be formeless one must be rid of the load of attachment, we must become formless to realize the formless Divine. Please share your comments.Do You ? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted May 21, 2005 Report Share Posted May 21, 2005 Dear Kalia, although this verse remains very obscure to me, I'd like to let you know what I thought about: > The consecrated offering is the energy known as kundalini. In verse 119 we were told that when one meditates upon the Guru, he/she becomes the manifestation of Supreme Divinity. And one of the results or effects of this is that he/she is liberated in 'consecrated offering'. In this verse we are told that this offering is the energy known as kundalini. Kundalini, as I understand, is the energy also known as 'serpent fire', which must be awakened and raised through the central channel to the head. This 'rising' of energy reminded me of verse 98, where it was said that if we meditate in the manner prescribed ('There is nothing more than the Guru. This alone is Shiva'), wisdom would rise of its own accord. In verse 10 it was said that the Guru is he who gives rise to the light by which illumination is known. This leads me to think that the rising of the energy called Kundalini has everything to do with our growing awareneness, by the grace of the Guru, of our true 'I' and our growing willingness to surrender our all to the Guru: no longer going after our own selfish desires and spending our energy on that, but giving this up in favour of seeking guidance from the Guru. This initial 'turning in' and 'giving up' could be experienced, by our limited personal consciousness, as a sacrifice, at first. But it is a consecrated offering, because all that we desire, think and do is 'set aside' for the purpose of service and offered at the feet of the Guru. And once the energy starts to rise, it will rise further and further, because there is no limit to offering and service. So there is liberation in that. On another level, the verse can also refer to the 'moon' Shiva carries as the 'cup of sacrifice', and to the union of Shiva and Shakti, but I would not know what to say about that. I have the idea (but that may be totally wrong, of course) that our growing willingness to surrender reaches a critical point once the energy has risen to the level of the heart-chakra (or has been 'drawn' to that level). It is only then that we can 'recognize' the Guru. And in that regard, the feet of the Guru puzzle me. Kaliaji, you wrote: >Ham and Sah are the feet of Guru who is seated in the middle of that >fountain of light, the Lotus at the crown. yet in the text it is said that these syllables rise in the heart. I have an image in my mind of the feet of the guru being in the heart, as the first glimpses of Truth you 'see' when rising in consciousness (or the clouds of ignorance lessen) and which you then hold onto for dear life, lest the 'ocean of hell or the sea of conflict and confusion' take you down. But that's just an image. To be liberated in form: what does that mean? If the bindu is the point where form manifests and also dissolves, being established in the bindu must mean total freedom to 'come and go', never identified with a specific form, yet able to use form as an 'instrument for expression'. Oh well, I'll spare you the rest of my thoughts, which are becoming more and more labyrinthesque. I bow to the Guru: teach me the path, give me your grace, I bow to your feet. with love, Henny , Kali Kali <kaliananda_saraswati@y. ...> wrote: > > The Respected Great Lord replied > > > > Verse 121. > > > > The consecrated offering is the energy known as kundalini. The syllables that rise in the heart are Ham and Sah. Form is known as the bindu, one pointed awareness. And that which is beyond form is infinite. > > > > Comment: The energy known as Kundalini is the lotus which we continue to speak of. The lotus is the soul's light which climbs through the chakras starting from the base at the muladhara, climbing through the mud (phlegm, mucus, blood, etc) of this transitory body to reach the sahasrara. Swamiji says that the Lotus is the highest residence of consciousness before it moves beyond the body. The kundalini rises through the grace of Guru. > > > > Ham and Sah are the feet of Guru who is seated in the middle of that fountain of light, the Lotus at the crown. Form is that centre point, the bindu , the point of union. Beyond form to be formeless one must be rid of the load of attachment, we must become formless to realize the formless Divine. > > > > Please share your comments. > > > > > > > > Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted May 21, 2005 Report Share Posted May 21, 2005 Thanks for your response. It was at the end that I realised it was Henny and not Chris writing to me, this is really a beautiful post. The verse is also obsure to me but by sharing our thoughts and ideas I believe that the understanding would come. Yours is an explanation of kundalini as is the Lotus. There are some questions coming out of your response that I will forward to Swamiji for answers but on the aspect of Ham and Sah. Nanda posted Swamiji's response to this sometime this week. Please do not hold back your thoughts for though you might find them labyrinthesque, they may hold the answer to questions that others (Kalia included) seek. Thanks again for your response. Hope that Chris and others will respond to your post. Jai Guru! henny_v_i <HvI (AT) SoftHome (DOT) net> wrote: Dear Kalia,although this verse remains very obscure to me, I'd like to let you know what I thought about:> The consecrated offering is the energy known as kundalini.In verse 119 we were told that when one meditates upon the Guru, he/she becomes the manifestation of Supreme Divinity. And one of the results or effects of this is that he/she is liberated in 'consecrated offering'. In this verse we are told that this offering is the energy known as kundalini. Kundalini, as I understand, is the energy also known as 'serpent fire', which must be awakened and raised through the central channel to the head. This 'rising' of energy reminded me of verse 98, where it was said that if we meditate in the manner prescribed ('There is nothing more than the Guru. This alone is Shiva'), wisdom would rise of its own accord. In verse 10 it was said that the Guru is he who gives rise to the light by which illumination is known. This leads me to think that the rising of the energy called Kundalini has everything to do with our growing awareneness, by the grace of the Guru, of our true 'I' and our growing willingness to surrender our all to the Guru: no longer going after our own selfish desires and spending our energy on that, but giving this up in favour of seeking guidance from the Guru. This initial 'turning in' and 'giving up' could be experienced, by our limited personal consciousness, as a sacrifice, at first. But it is a consecrated offering, because all that we desire, think and do is 'set aside' for the purpose of service and offered at the feet of the Guru.And once the energy starts to rise, it will rise further and further, because there is no limit to offering and service. So there is liberation in that. On another level, the verse can also refer to the 'moon' Shiva carries as the 'cup of sacrifice', and to the union of Shiva and Shakti, but I would not know what to say about that.I have the idea (but that may be totally wrong, of course) that our growing willingness to surrender reaches a critical point once the energy has risen to the level of the heart-chakra (or has been 'drawn' to that level). It is only then that we can 'recognize' the Guru. And in that regard, the feet of the Guru puzzle me. Kaliaji, you wrote:>Ham and Sah are the feet of Guru who is seated in the middle of that >fountain of light, the Lotus at the crown.yet in the text it is said that these syllables rise in the heart. I have an image in my mind of the feet of the guru being in the heart, as the first glimpses of Truth you 'see' when rising in consciousness (or the clouds of ignorance lessen) and which you then hold onto for dear life, lest the 'ocean of hell or the sea of conflict and confusion' take you down. But that's just an image. To be liberated in form: what does that mean? If the bindu is the point where form manifests and also dissolves, being established in the bindu must mean total freedom to 'come and go', never identified with a specific form, yet able to use form as an 'instrument for expression'. Oh well, I'll spare you the rest of my thoughts, which are becoming more and more labyrinthesque. I bow to the Guru: teach me the path, give me your grace, I bow to your feet.with love,Henny , Kali Kali <kaliananda_saraswati> wrote:> > The Respected Great Lord replied> > > > Verse 121. > > > > The consecrated offering is the energy known as kundalini. The syllables that rise in the heart are Ham and Sah. Form is known as the bindu, one pointed awareness. And that which is beyond form is infinite.> > > > Comment: The energy known as Kundalini is the lotus which we continue to speak of. The lotus is the soul's light which climbs through the chakras starting from the base at the muladhara, climbing through the mud (phlegm, mucus, blood, etc) of this transitory body to reach the sahasrara. Swamiji says that the Lotus is the highest residence of consciousness before it moves beyond the body. The kundalini rises through the grace of Guru. > > > > Ham and Sah are the feet of Guru who is seated in the middle of that fountain of light, the Lotus at the crown. Form is that centre point, the bindu , the point of union. Beyond form to be formeless one must be rid of the load of attachment, we must become formless to realize the formless Divine.> > > > Please share your comments.> > > > > > > > Do You ?Tired of spam? 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Guest guest Posted May 22, 2005 Report Share Posted May 22, 2005 , "henny_v_i" <HvI@S...> wrote: > Dear Kalia, > > although this verse remains very obscure to me, I'd like to let you > know what I thought about: > > > The consecrated offering is the energy known as kundalini. > > In verse 119 we were told that when one meditates upon the Guru, > he/she becomes the manifestation of Supreme Divinity. And one of the > results or effects of this is that he/she is liberated in 'consecrated > offering'. In this verse we are told that this offering is the energy > known as kundalini. Kundalini, as I understand, is the energy also > known as 'serpent fire', which must be awakened and raised through the > central channel to the head. This 'rising' of energy reminded me of > verse 98, where it was said that if we meditate in the manner > prescribed ('There is nothing more than the Guru. This alone is > Shiva'), wisdom would rise of its own accord. In verse 10 it was said > that the Guru is he who gives rise to the light by which illumination > is known. This leads me to think that the rising of the energy called > Kundalini has everything to do with our growing awareneness, Henny, This matter of Kundalini is complex. As Swamiji pointed out recently, Kundalini is the light of the soul, it is the very force which animates this form. So, in a sense, Kundalini is always awake. There is also a manifesting of Kundalini that begins when She is awakened in the devotee, that takes place gradually as the sadhana progresses (remember, all of this awareness and bliss we experience is ultimately Kundalini). There is also the Kundalini experience we have all heard or read about. It is very dramatic. She awakens with a loud noise, angry, as it were, at being aroused. In great power She devours everything in sight. The force of her awakening renders Shiva inert, and She dances on his corpse-like body. I am reminded of this every time I read about Kali in the Chandi. The jiva in whom She has awakened, like Shiva, becomes inert, helpless before Her raw power. His only recourse is to pray for the advent of Durga to restore balance. It is said that when Durga appears, Kali is passified. by the > grace of the Guru, of our true 'I' and our growing willingness to > surrender our all to the Guru: no longer going after our own selfish > desires and spending our energy on that, but giving this up in favour > of seeking guidance from the Guru. This initial 'turning in' and > 'giving up' could be experienced, by our limited personal > consciousness, as a sacrifice, at first. But it is a consecrated > offering, because all that we desire, think and do is 'set aside' for > the purpose of service and offered at the feet of the Guru. > And once the energy starts to rise, it will rise further and further, > because there is no limit to offering and service. So there is > liberation in that. Very nicely said. > On another level, the verse can also refer to the 'moon' Shiva carries > as the 'cup of sacrifice', and to the union of Shiva and Shakti, but I > would not know what to say about that. > > I have the idea (but that may be totally wrong, of course) that our > growing willingness to surrender reaches a critical point once the > energy has risen to the level of the heart-chakra (or has been 'drawn' > to that level). It is only then that we can 'recognize' the Guru. And > in that regard, the feet of the Guru puzzle me. Kaliaji, you wrote: > > >Ham and Sah are the feet of Guru who is seated in the middle of that > >fountain of light, the Lotus at the crown. > > yet in the text it is said that these syllables rise in the heart. I > have an image in my mind of the feet of the guru being in the heart, > as the first glimpses of Truth you 'see' when rising in consciousness > (or the clouds of ignorance lessen) and which you then hold onto for > dear life, lest the 'ocean of hell or the sea of conflict and > confusion' take you down. But that's just an image. My guru wrote about why we venerate the feet of the guru once. I don't remember it well, but I will try to repeat it. When the Guru goes into meditation, he becomes one with the formless. His consciousness, his very being rise above the heavens. His feet where they touch the earth are all that we can reach. So we venerate his feet. On a purely symbolic level, ham and sah represent the feet of the gurutattwa, who is at once unmanifest sat chit ananda, and all this. The feet represent manifest existence, or the potential of manifest existence (if ham and sah are seen in sahasrara chakra). > > To be liberated in form: what does that mean? If the bindu is the > point where form manifests and also dissolves, being established in > the bindu must mean total freedom to 'come and go', never identified > with a specific form, yet able to use form as an 'instrument for > expression'. I don't know. I want to ask Swamiji about this too... Kalia was right; a very beautiful post. Jai Maa! Chris > > Oh well, I'll spare you the rest of my thoughts, which are becoming > more and more labyrinthesque. > > I bow to the Guru: teach me the path, give me your grace, I bow to > your feet. > > > with love, > Henny > > > , Kali Kali <kaliananda_saraswati@y. > ..> wrote: > > > > The Respected Great Lord replied > > > > > > > > Verse 121. > > > > > > > > The consecrated offering is the energy known as kundalini. The > syllables that rise in the heart are Ham and Sah. Form is known as > the bindu, one pointed awareness. And that which is beyond form is > infinite. > > > > > > > > Comment: The energy known as Kundalini is the lotus which we > continue to speak of. The lotus is the soul's light which climbs > through the chakras starting from the base at the muladhara, climbing > through the mud (phlegm, mucus, blood, etc) of this transitory body to > reach the sahasrara. Swamiji says that the Lotus is the highest > residence of consciousness before it moves beyond the body. The > kundalini rises through the grace of Guru. > > > > > > > > Ham and Sah are the feet of Guru who is seated in the middle of that > fountain of light, the Lotus at the crown. Form is that centre point, > the bindu , the point of union. Beyond form to be formeless one must > be rid of the load of attachment, we must become formless to realize > the formless Divine. > > > > > > > > Please share your comments. > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted May 22, 2005 Report Share Posted May 22, 2005 Kalia, I have a bunch of questions for Swamiji. Would you do me the honor of forwarding to him? Jai Maa! Chris Swamiji, "Oh Shankara, Cause of Peace, please explain this to me." I really hope this will not be too much for you. I know how busy you are. If I ask a question you have answered already, please feel free to ignore it. There is a lot I have questions about, and I apologize for what will likely be a long explanation, but I really wish to understand the meaning of these passages. There are four successive verses mentioning pinda, pada, and rupa (119-122). This is a lot of reinforcement of this idea. Pinda, pada, and rupa are gross, outward actions, the author is using to describe a very subtle, or inward, process. Why? My thought is that these are meant to bring to mind all of the outward activities we perform that are our gurupuja, of which, this awakening is the "prasad of grace." But then he goes on to say very clearly that we are "liberated in" each of these three, seperately. I do not understand this. Why not 'liberated through,' or 'liberated by'? What does this mean? Verses 113-118 and verses 119-127 seem to follow a similar pattern. There is the description of a practice and experience followed by a description of what it might be like to be enlightened. At first, I thought these two sections were separate; then I decided they overlapped, both describing the same thing; now I find myself thinking (minus the descriptions of divine experience) they are sequential. The sequence would go something like this: Meditate on the Guru in the space of the heart; know Him there as your own soul; see Him there as a light the size of the thumb, where He illuminates perfect clarity and gives rise to a special bhaava. By means of this meditation (as the prasad of grace of the Guru) Kundalini rises, Shiva and Shakti (ham sah) are united to form bindu, and when bindu is pierced, form is transcended. Do I have this right, or have I missed something? OK, now to this so ham, ham sah. Am I correct in my perception that ham sah is sort of an involute of so ham? In other words, so ham represents Shiva and Shakti, active and passive breaths, as separated or manifested, and ham sah represents them as perfected in union? Now, about ham sah arising in the heart. I've been wrestling with this, thinking well, maybe it's a practice, maybe it's actually a subtle sound that arises in the heart at a certain point, but I'm thinking now that maybe your earlier answer to Kalia was the answer to this as well, and this too is the one lotus of which we are speaking. If I am remembering correctly, bindu is said to rise from the ajna chakra, BUT it is experienced in anahata, isn't it? Bindu is described in the text as one-pointed awareness. But bindu is also ham Sah, isn't it, the union of Shiva and Shakti, the union of the two breaths (not quite perfected?)? Let's see if I can describe this properly then, Kundalini rises when there is union (or at least balance of) the two breaths on the gross level. Her arising creates one-pointed awareness, bringing about the formation of bindu, perceived in the heart as the two subtle breaths, so ham, are brought into union, creating ham sah. Uniting entirely with Her, they (we, I) pierce the bindu (glorious ). So, if I've gotten this right, it is all a single process, created by a single cause, the rising lotus Kundalini. I think that's all I have questions about, now... Thanks vey much. The Respected Great Lord replied: Jai Maa! Chris , Kali Kali <kaliananda_saraswati> wrote: > > The Respected Great Lord replied > > > > Verse 121. > > > > The consecrated offering is the energy known as kundalini. The syllables that rise in the heart are Ham and Sah. Form is known as the bindu, one pointed awareness. And that which is beyond form is infinite. > > > > Comment: The energy known as Kundalini is the lotus which we continue to speak of. The lotus is the soul's light which climbs through the chakras starting from the base at the muladhara, climbing through the mud (phlegm, mucus, blood, etc) of this transitory body to reach the sahasrara. Swamiji says that the Lotus is the highest residence of consciousness before it moves beyond the body. The kundalini rises through the grace of Guru. > > > > Ham and Sah are the feet of Guru who is seated in the middle of that fountain of light, the Lotus at the crown. Form is that centre point, the bindu , the point of union. Beyond form to be formeless one must be rid of the load of attachment, we must become formless to realize the formless Divine. > > > > Please share your comments. > > > > > > > > Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted May 22, 2005 Report Share Posted May 22, 2005 Thanks so very much for this explanation. Other than book research the only teaching on these scriptures are from the few times that I was able to visit Gurujis and from this forum, it is at times very difficult to put in words what the heart is communicating. Thanks again dear brother. Pranams KaliaChris Kirner <chriskirner1956 > wrote: , "henny_v_i" <HvI@S...> wrote:> Dear Kalia,> > although this verse remains very obscure to me, I'd like to let you > know what I thought about:> > > The consecrated offering is the energy known as kundalini.> > In verse 119 we were told that when one meditates upon the Guru, > he/she becomes the manifestation of Supreme Divinity. And one of the > results or effects of this is that he/she is liberated in 'consecrated > offering'. In this verse we are told that this offering is the energy > known as kundalini. Kundalini, as I understand, is the energy also > known as 'serpent fire', which must be awakened and raised through the > central channel to the head. This 'rising' of energy reminded me of > verse 98, where it was said that if we meditate in the manner > prescribed ('There is nothing more than the Guru. This alone is > Shiva'), wisdom would rise of its own accord. In verse 10 it was said > that the Guru is he who gives rise to the light by which illumination > is known. This leads me to think that the rising of the energy called > Kundalini has everything to do with our growing awareneness,Henny, This matter of Kundalini is complex. As Swamiji pointed out recently,Kundalini is the light of the soul, it is the very force whichanimates this form. So, in a sense, Kundalini is always awake. Thereis also a manifesting of Kundalini that begins when She is awakened inthe devotee, that takes place gradually as the sadhana progresses(remember, all of this awareness and bliss we experience is ultimatelyKundalini). There is also the Kundalini experience we have all heardor read about. It is very dramatic. She awakens with a loud noise,angry, as it were, at being aroused. In great power She devourseverything in sight. The force of her awakening renders Shiva inert,and She dances on his corpse-like body. I am reminded of this everytime I read about Kali in the Chandi. The jiva in whom She hasawakened, like Shiva, becomes inert, helpless before Her raw power.His only recourse is to pray for the advent of Durga to restorebalance. It is said that when Durga appears, Kali is passified.by the > grace of the Guru, of our true 'I' and our growing willingness to > surrender our all to the Guru: no longer going after our own selfish > desires and spending our energy on that, but giving this up in favour > of seeking guidance from the Guru. This initial 'turning in' and > 'giving up' could be experienced, by our limited personal > consciousness, as a sacrifice, at first. But it is a consecrated > offering, because all that we desire, think and do is 'set aside' for > the purpose of service and offered at the feet of the Guru.> And once the energy starts to rise, it will rise further and further, > because there is no limit to offering and service. So there is > liberation in that. Very nicely said.> On another level, the verse can also refer to the 'moon' Shiva carries > as the 'cup of sacrifice', and to the union of Shiva and Shakti, but I > would not know what to say about that.> > I have the idea (but that may be totally wrong, of course) that our > growing willingness to surrender reaches a critical point once the > energy has risen to the level of the heart-chakra (or has been 'drawn' > to that level). It is only then that we can 'recognize' the Guru. And > in that regard, the feet of the Guru puzzle me. Kaliaji, you wrote:> > >Ham and Sah are the feet of Guru who is seated in the middle of that > >fountain of light, the Lotus at the crown.> > yet in the text it is said that these syllables rise in the heart. I > have an image in my mind of the feet of the guru being in the heart, > as the first glimpses of Truth you 'see' when rising in consciousness > (or the clouds of ignorance lessen) and which you then hold onto for > dear life, lest the 'ocean of hell or the sea of conflict and > confusion' take you down. But that's just an image. My guru wrote about why we venerate the feet of the guru once. I don'tremember it well, but I will try to repeat it.When the Guru goes into meditation, he becomes one with the formless.His consciousness, his very being rise above the heavens. His feetwhere they touch the earth are all that we can reach. So we veneratehis feet.On a purely symbolic level, ham and sah represent the feet of thegurutattwa, who is at once unmanifest sat chit ananda, and all this.The feet represent manifest existence, or the potential of manifestexistence (if ham and sah are seen in sahasrara chakra).> > To be liberated in form: what does that mean? If the bindu is the > point where form manifests and also dissolves, being established in > the bindu must mean total freedom to 'come and go', never identified > with a specific form, yet able to use form as an 'instrument for > expression'. I don't know. I want to ask Swamiji about this too... Kalia was right;a very beautiful post. :)Jai Maa!Chris> > Oh well, I'll spare you the rest of my thoughts, which are becoming > more and more labyrinthesque. > > I bow to the Guru: teach me the path, give me your grace, I bow to > your feet.> > > with love,> Henny > > > --- In , Kali Kali <kaliananda_saraswati@y.> ..> wrote:> > > > The Respected Great Lord replied> > > > > > > > Verse 121. > > > > > > > > The consecrated offering is the energy known as kundalini. The > syllables that rise in the heart are Ham and Sah. Form is known as > the bindu, one pointed awareness. And that which is beyond form is > infinite.> > > > > > > > Comment: The energy known as Kundalini is the lotus which we > continue to speak of. The lotus is the soul's light which climbs > through the chakras starting from the base at the muladhara, climbing > through the mud (phlegm, mucus, blood, etc) of this transitory body to > reach the sahasrara. Swamiji says that the Lotus is the highest > residence of consciousness before it moves beyond the body. The > kundalini rises through the grace of Guru. > > > > > > > > Ham and Sah are the feet of Guru who is seated in the middle of that > fountain of light, the Lotus at the crown. Form is that centre point, > the bindu , the point of union. Beyond form to be formeless one must > be rid of the load of attachment, we must become formless to realize > the formless Divine.> > > > > > > > Please share your comments.> > > > > > > > > > > > Do You ?> > Tired of spam? Mail has the best spam protection around > > Discover Stay in touch with email, IM, photo sharing &; more. Check it out! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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