Dakshinamurthy Stotra: "Shapelessness
situated on the right side".
About a month ago, I happened to go to the Sri Ramana Kendra
in Chennai
Then, I happened to sight a text with commentary by Sri Bhagawan
Needless to say, I was thrilled and I purchased it instantly.
The name of this text is "Dakshinamurthy Stotra"
In Sanskrit, it means the "Shapelessness situated on the
right side".
Originally, this text was composed in Sanskrit by Adi
Shankaracharya.
Once, Bhagawan Sri Ramana happened to render the Sanskrit verses
into Tamil. Not only that, Sri Bhagawan also wrote the meaning
and commentary for them.
This contains 12 verses.
The 1st verse pronounces auspiciousness as is customary.
The 2nd verse sets out the purpose of the advent of Lord Siva
as the young
Sage Dhakshinamurthy.
The next 3 verses talk about the world.
The next 3 verses talk about the seer.
The next 3 verses talk about the scene.
The last verse talks about the all-encompassing Self.
Yours in Sri Bhagawan
RK Shankar
~ ~ ~
Dhakshinamurthy Stotra in Tamil - Verse 1 - Sri
Bhagawan's Tamil Meaning translated
Let us Praise that dhakshiNAmUrthy, the Supreme Father,
1 who is 'having the Opening to Delight',
2 who Delights in the Self alone,
3 who is the Embodiment of Delight,
4 who is with a Hand with fingers closed in the fashion of
Sealing in
Brahman as it were,
5 who is the pre-eminent among Spiritual Masters abiding
surrounded,
by the foremost among spiritual disciples, who are Rishis resting
in
Brahman,
6 who is a small boy,
7 who is of the Form of the Supreme Brahman, and
8 who denoted the Supreme Brahman by the Expounding that is
Silence.
Dhakshinamurthy Stotra Verse 2
Translation of the Import Gracefully Suggested by Sri
Bhagawan
in respect of Dhakshinamurthy Stotra Verse 2 The Self and the Ego
1 Salutation to that Dhakshinamurthy, who became the
Primordial Spiritual
Preceptor,
2 He, who sees "He, the Self" alone as existing, while
knowing the Self,
3 [like seeing oneself alone after waking up from sleep]
4 having seen the world as existing outside oneself,
like dream occurring by sleep caused due to the ignorance of the
Self,
5 even though the becoming of the world was existing within the
Self,
6 like the city seen inside a mirror.
Translation of Sri Bhagawan's Import of His Tamil DMS 3Dhakshinamurthy Stotra # 3 The Self is the Primal Cause
The Import Gracefully Suggested by Sri Bhagawan
1 Salutation to that (Spiritual) Preceptor, Dhakshinamurthy,
2 He, who, by (the Power of) His Self-Will,
3 like the Siddha (one endowed with 8 supernatural faculties) and
the
magician (one skilled in magical arts),
4 by the subjection to work, time and space, appearing falsely
due to Maya
(Illusion),
6 later spreads outside "as the mysterious many",
7 this world that existed (before) without differentiation in the
Self,
8 like the seedling (existing) before (sprouting), inside the
seed.
Dhakshinamurthy Stotra - Verse 4 - Sri Bhagawan's Import
translated
The Import Gracefully Suggested by Sri Bhagawan
Salutation to that (Spiritual) Preceptor, Dhakshinamurthy, 1 whom those of penance attain,
2 by having directly seen (He,) whom,
(one) does not again drown into this ocean of transmigratory
existence,
3 (He) who proclaims those adjoining Him by the Vedic Statement
'That Art
Thou',
4 whose True Lustre alone, 'shines clear' in things rising up
falsely.
Dhakshinamurthy Stotra 7 Translation of the Import
granted gracefully by Sri Bhagawan
The Self alone is the Eternal ExistenceThe
Import Gracefully Suggested by Sri Bhagawan
Salutation to that Eternal Lord of the Universe, Dhakshinamurthy,
1 He, the One, who abides always, and who becomes the
'Individual' by the
screening of the Illusion,
2 like the (Ever-Existent) Sun and Moon "captured (covered
over)" by (the
shadow that is reckoned as a planet according to Indian
Astrology) Rahu,
3 who sleeps when the expanded mind subsides, and
4 who reveals the Self-Existence as "(I) slept before (i.e.,
prior to
waking)" when the mind expands and awakes.
Yours in Sri Bhagawan
RK Shankar
Editor's note: I know it may seem shlockly to follow
Ramana's hard marble of knowing with a piece on New Years
resolutions, but here goes...
Our Voice: New Year is time for action .Make a
positive impact on the
lives you touch this year
Following is an interesting anecdote -- something to
contemplate as we
embark upon the first of the 366 days of this year (don’t
forget the
bonus day in February).
There is a story of a retired executive, who, along his
spiritual
journey, recognized the importance of doing a good deed every day
--
not just to appease his own conscience, but to contribute a bit
of
goodness to the world. Since his days were, as are most
peoples’,
filled to the brim with responsibilities and activity, he wanted
to
make sure that he could accomplish his goal each and every day.
So he
wouldn’t forget to perform these daily acts of kindness, he
had a
unique alternative to the string-around-the-finger method.
His solution: a green marble, which, every morning, he would
place in
his right front pocket. During the day, he was aware of its
presence,
and would roll the marble around in his pocket as a reminder to
look
for an opportunity to do good. When he performed an act of
kindness, he
moved it to his left hand pocket. When he went home and took the
marble
from his left pocket and put it up on his dresser, he would feel
that
he, at least for that day, made the attempt to make the world
just a
bit better. He carried this marble with him from 1982 until his
death
last year.
When his daughter removed the marble from his pocket for the
last time,
she noticed this orb was no longer perfectly round; its smooth
surface
was worn from years of handling, thousands of kind deeds -- the
legacy
of its existence. At his funeral, his grandchildren handed out
green
marbles in remembrance.
Here’s to a healthy and happy 2004. May your green marble
always be
well worn.
If you are inclined to grind that hard marble down and
watch it turn into an utterly interior-scented smoke, read on...
Welcome to the new people who have joined us for the
incense-making
discussions.
I should probably start back at the beginning, so everyone is on
the
same track.
The approach I'm going to take is much different than what most
people are accustomed to seeing. Most people are accustomed to
what I
call the "Betty Crocker" method of making incense,
because it is
largely based on recipes using measures. The problem with this
style
is incense ingredients vary greatly in potency and aroma.
Measures
can only be applied where there are standards. If I was going to
bake
a cake, some kind of recipe with measures would be essential, but
if
I'm making the mustard-glaze I mentioned before I don't need
measures. I can't taste a cake until it's baked, but I can taste
the
glaze as I simmer it on the stove, and taste is the final judge
-- or
smell in the case of incense.
For this reason we are going to start with "powdered"
incense.
Powders can be adjusted. Powdered incense is also a great stle of
incense burning in its own right. Burning powders is best done
using
the "Incense Trail" or "Incense Seal" method.
It originated at
Nalanda in India, and was taken to China by Vajrayana monks.
There it
was applied to use in timekeeping, and that passed on to Japan as
Incense Clocks, still used today in some monasteries. It is also
used
by Shingon monks for ceremonies in what is called an Egoro.
What you will need to burn your powdered incense:
Koh Press
If you look on internet where Makko Incense Powder is sold you
will
find those retailers normally sell what is called a Koh Press.
Simple
Koh presses are easily made yourself. Hardware stores sell
3/8"
square dowels. You cut (2) pieces 1 3/4" long, (1) piece
3/4" long,
and you clue them with Elmer's wood glue in the shape of a square
horseshoe. Next cut a piece 1 1/2" long and glue it on top
of the all
three pieces to use as a handle. Look at the pictures on the
retailers pages and you can see what it looks like, or you can
buy
one for about $6.00
There is also a Ceramic Koh Press with a round design that is
sold by
200 hands gallery. This is the one I personally use today, even
though I have a few wooden ones here as well. I like the round
design
because it is more efficient using space and burns about 15 to 20
minutes longer than the square style. I think it costs about
$12.00
Bowl
Many of the incense bowls out there today will work just fine. Be
careful that you don't use a flat bottom bowl that can burn your
table. Bowls with legs are what I recommend. Picking a bowl you
might
consider other ways you might be using it. For example, the Kodo
Kai
Kodo Cup will work just fine, and you can also use it to hold
sticks,
or use for Kodo style burning, but it is much more expensive than
other bowls. If you are not going to be doing Kodo then cheaper
bowls
might be better for you.
Ash
The Ash used in incense trails is usually ash from previously
burned
incense or incense powders, so when you begin to burn powders you
will begin to accumulate more ash which should be saved to make
another bowl/ash set. This ash CAN NOT be used for Kodo. Ash for
Kodo
is pure Rice Chaff ash and never ash mixed with ash from burned
incense or powders. However, rice chaff ash can be used for
incense
trails.
Makko
Makko can be obtained from several retailers.
Sandalwood Powder
My recommendation here is the Ayurvedic grade powder
with is usually
a low grade Sandalwood powder without the oil removed. The
majority
of Sandalwood powders are from leftover processing of essential
oil.
The best Sandalwood powder is taking the Sandalwood Chips and
grinding them yourself. However for this presentation I want you
to
start by using the ones that are already powdered. You will
understand as these lessons progress.
Okay, that's pretty simple, and we are going to first learn to
make a
really good smelling Sandalwood incense, actually much better
than
99% of the commercial products, and much cheaper for the quality.
From there, just like taking a mustard-glaze and turning it into
hundreds of different Bar B Que sauces, we will learn to make
hundreds of unique incense recipes, from some simple basics, and
best
of all, you will be creating your own recipes, not following
Betty
Crocker's.
Okay, to help those of you just getting started, we are going to
give
you a little extra help.
For a limited time, if you buy the Ceramic Bowl & Koh Press
combination from 200 Hands Gallery (Cost $36.00) Esoterics LLC
will
throw in for free:
www. 200hands.com/html_gifts/kit-newyear-special.html - link
no longer active.
This should give you everything you need to get started.
Incense Making - What You Will Need
Dear List,
Here are the items you will need to participate in this
incense-
making lesson.
To begin
Required:
1. Bowl & Ash
2. Koh Press (Anykind, even something simple you make yourself)
3. Makko powder
4. Sandalwood powder
(Suggest trying different ones from different sources)
In lesson #3 we are going to go from powdered mixtures to
learning to
make cones, sticks, and kneaded (neriko) incense. I'm also going
to
introduce a form I think is much better than cones, and much
easier
to make than sticks.
Some items you may want to consider for lesson #3
Honey (Tupelo prefered)
Mortar & Pestle (Porcelain type about 6")
Flour sifter
* I'll give instructions on powdered charcoal at a later date
(suprise)
Included in these lessons are how a West Texas Irish girl
taught me
how to make Glazes and Bar B Que Sauce. I will also include
Tularosa
Tortillas & Sopas.
David
While we're playing with your senses, try this, yummmm
Take a big onion and chop it up to sautee. Take a very large
skillet
and pop in a lot of Virgin Olive Oyl. No matter how much she
screams,
brown that onion really good.
Take two packs of veggie burger from the freezer, God bless
the Seventh
Day Adventists for the Morning Star products. It will soak up any
amount of oyl. Sprinkle liberally with some spicy hot sauce.
Anything
but the tasteless Tobasco flamethrower brand. Crystal is my
favorite.
Lots of taste without the unnecessary tissue trauma.
Then scorch that veggie burger and onion mixture good. This is
supposed
to be bad for you.
And you can forget the ideal BMI for a little while. That's
the Body
Mass Index for the regular people out there. You others can
forget that
too.
Here is the hard part, put in two fifteen point five ounce
cans of
Bush's Chili Magic-chili starter. Umm, ummm, umm. Mix that up
good and
sizzlin' hot. Then pour in two fourteen ounce cans of stewed or
diced
tomatoes. Crystal sauce those tomatoes and mix it up.
Turn down that heat and simmer it for around thirty minutes.
It is
really good in an ice storm like today.
Ummm, ummm, ummm. I can smell it now. I mean I really can
smell it now.
It will feed four gluttons, one time or one semi-hermit glutton,
four
times. I like mine with saltine crackers and catsup. Figger on
restin'
a spell after supper. Ummm, ummm, ummm.
Love
Bobby G.
Bob Graham is a long time contributor to both the
HarshaSatsangh and
NondualitySalon mailing lists. He is an established painter. More
of
his paintings can be seen in the Spring 2002 edition of
HarshaSatsangh
Magazine. http://www.harshasatsangh.com/The images were taken by the author.
Lady Joyce
NDS
Please feel free to visit my
website at www.omshaantih.com I have finally started linking pages and
trying to organize it... My
big New Year's Resolution, to link a few pages!!! Took me all day long to figure it out!
Miles to go before I sleep...
Am I having fun yet?
Love,
Joyce
ps...Lord Shiva made me do it :-)
Gill Eardley
AllspiritInspiration
Happy 2004
Dear Friends
Do you recall, it doesn't seem five minutes since we were saying
it would soon be the year 2000? And here we are in 2004 already.
We are off to Slalely, in the north east of England, near to
Newcastle-Upon-Tyne, in the morning, until Sunday evening. All
seven of us are going and we are looking forward to the break,
and hoping we may even get some snow. I will have my camera
with me just in case.
I haven't really written, or replied to, any email over the
holiday
period, (other than an odd message) so I am sorry if you have
written and I haven't replied. My husband is back to
work on Monday,
the children back to school on Tuesday, and Matthew and Lauren
back to uni some time in the week. So I will have more time to
sit and
write, and will catch up next week.
I want to wish each and every one a 2004 filled with inner peace,
love, joy and happiness. And thank you to all who share with me,
it means a lot.
"We do not need to search in order to
find our true Being. We already are it, and the mind
which searches for it is the very reason why we cannot
find it."
You can find the bowl & Press set at: