MAHĀKĀLI DHYANAM
Meditation on Mahākāli
From the Devī Mahātmyam [Mārkendeya Purana]
Om Namaś Chaṇḍikāyai.
Om khaḍgaṁ chakra-gadeṣu-chāpa-parighāñ
chūlaṃ bhuśuṇḍīṁ śiraḥ
śaṅkhaṁ saṃda-dhatīṁ karai-stri-nayanāṁ
sarvāṅga-bhūṣāvṛitām
Nīlāśma-dyutimāsya pāda-daśakāṁ
seve Mahākālikāṁ
yāmastaut-svapite harau kamalajo
hantuṁ madhuṁ kaiṭabham.
Om Namaś Chaṇḍikāyai.
Om, I bow to the Goddess Chaṇḍikā.
Om, holding a scimitar, disk, mace, arrows and bow, lance, club, a skull and a conch shell in Her ten hands. The three-eyed goddess, Her body covered with ornaments, Her countenance with the brilliance of blue diamonds, with ten limbs. We offer our service to Mahākāli, She who Brahma praised for protection from the demons Madhu and Kaitava, when Vishnu was in sleep.
Om, I bow to the Goddess Chaṇḍikā.
Book 3/Chapter 9/1:48
On the characteristics
of the Gunas
1-2. Nârada said :-- Father! You have described to me the characteristic
of the three qualities; though I have drunk the sweet juice from your lotus
like mouth, still I am not quite satisfied.
Kindly describe to me, in detail, in due order, how I can recognise clearly
the three qualities so that I can get the highest peace of mind.
3. Vyâsa said :-- O King! The Creator of the world, Brahmâ, originated
from the Rajo Guna, asked by his high minded son Nârada, began to speak in the
following terms.
4. O Nârada!
I myself do not possess fully the complete knowledge of the three qualities;
but, as far as I know, I am telling that to you.
5. The pure Sattva quality is not found alone to
exist anywhere; it manifests itself always, in mixed condition, in combination
with the other qualities.
6-9. As a beautiful woman, well decorated with
ornaments and endowed with amorous gestures, gives delight, on the one hand, to
her husband, father, mother and friends; and, on the other hand, becomes a
source of pain and delusion to her rival wives, so the Sattva quality,
personified as a beautiful woman, engenders the Sâttvic happiness of the mind
to some individual, at one time, and at another time becomes a source of pain to the same individual (or at one and the
same time becomes a source of happiness to one and a source of pain to
another.) Thus the Rajas or the Tamas quality, personified respectively as a
beautiful woman becomes a source of pain or delusion to an individual at one
time, and at another time, a source of happiness to the same man. So it is easily seen that one quality cannot
remain single; it remains in union with the other qualities.
Note :-- It is very possible that a man,
possessing the Sâttvic quality at any time, can be said not to possess only the
Sâttvic quality but also the Rajas and the Tamas to a certain degree.
At any subsequent time the Rajas might get
preponderance, and that man may be in circumstances requiring money or so
forth; but, due to his Sattva quality before hand he did not collect money and
therefore he feels pain afterwards. So
with the Rajas.
Or it may be thus :-- Suppose an earning member is Sâttvic. He earns just sufficient to meet his wants. But his family members require more money,
for they are Râjasic. Therefore the
earning member is happy for his Sâttvic quality; but the other members are
unhappy for his Sâttvic quality. A man
is, as it were, wedded to the three wives, Sattva, Rajas, and Tamas.
10. O Nârada!
When the three qualities remain each in their own real natures, then the
effects produced by them also remain always the same; no changes are perceived owing
to the difference of time or person. But
when they get combined, then each of them produces effects sometimes counter to
their natures.
11-13. A young beautiful woman, shy, modest and of
sweet qualities, well versed in her religious learning, and full of good
behaviour, skilled in love practices and full of sweet sentiments becomes a
source of loving delight to her beloved and also a source of pain to her rival
wives so each of the three qualities assume no doubt, different aspects
according to differences in time and in the nature of the person.
O Nârada!
As one woman gives pain and delusion to her rival wives and gives
pleasure to her husband and friends, so the Sattva quality, when perverted,
gives pain and delusion to the persons.
14-19. As the police sepoys and constables are, on
the one hand, delight to the saints, troubled by thieves, and, on the other
hand, sources of pain and confusion to the thieves and robbers; again as the
heavy shower of rain in a pitch dark night, in the rainy season, when the sky
over clouded, and when there are flashes of lightning and thunder, is on the
one hand, a source of highest delight to a farmer, who has all seeds and
necessary things and implements, and, on the other hand is a source of pain to
the unfortunate householder, whose house is
not yet completely thatched with grass or who has not been able to collect his
beams and grass for necessary roofing, and a source of utter bewildering
confusion to the young woman, whose husband is abroad expected back at that
time, so the three Gunas produce contrary results when perverted by contact
with the remaining Gunas, instead what they would have produced, had they not been perverted so.
20-25. O Child!
Again I speak to you of the characteristics of the the Gunas. The Sattva guna is pure, clear, illumining,
light (not heavy) white. When the
senses, eyes, etc., and the limbs are felt very light (without any heaviness)
and the heart and brain clear, when there is dispassion towards the Râjasic and
the Tâmasic enjoyments, know then that the Sattva quality has grown in
preponderance in a body. When there is a
tendency to yawn, when there is rigidity and suppression of the functions of
faculties and when one feels drowsiness, consider that the Râjasic quality has gone
to excess. Again, when one seeks after
quarrels and goes to another village, one is always restless and ready to fight, when one feels heaviness in body,
as if wrapped by a very heavy darkness, when one's limbs and senses are heavy
and obscure, when one's mind is vacant, and when one does not like to go to
sleep, know that the Tamas has increased too much, Nârada!
26. Nârada said :-- O Father! You have described the different
characteristics of the three Gunas; but I cannot understand how they act all in
conjunction?
27. As those who are enemies to one another do
not work united, so these Gunas, of opposite characteristics, are enemies, as
it were, to one another; how can, then, they act in unison? Kindly explain this to me.
28-30. Brahmâ said :-- O Nârada! The three Gunas may be likened to a lamp. As a lamp manifests a certain object, so
these three qualities united do manifest or reveal a certain thing. See the wick, oil, and flame are all of
different characteristics; though the oil goes against fire, still it unites
with the fire. The oil, wick and fire
though running against each other, all these united,
serve the one common purpose of illumining, revealing a certain object.
31. So, O Nârada!
All the three qualities, though of contrary natures, go to prove the same
thing.
Nârada said :-- O Son of Satyavatî! The lotus born Brahmâ thus described the
three qualities, as born of Prakriti; and they are the causes of this Universe. What I heard of you about the nature of
Prakriti, I have now described before you.
32. Vyâsa said :-- O King! What you asked me, I asked before the same to
Nârada and he described thus (as I told you above) to me about the
characteristics and the effects of the three Gunas in regular order and in detail.
33. O King!
Wherever in the S’âstras whatever is said, the essence of all that is
this -- that the Highest Energy, the Supreme Force, the Great Goddess who is
pervading the Universe, is always with qualities and without qualities,
according to the differences in the manifestation. This Supreme Force is to be worshipped with
the highest devotion.
34. The Brahmân, the Purusa (the Supporter, the
Ultimate Substratum) the Highest Energy considered as the Male Principle though
It is Undecaying, Supreme and Full, is still without any desires or emotions. It is not able to accomplish any action
(without the help of its inherent force); this Mahâmâyâ, the Supreme Force is
doing all the functions, real and unreal, of the universe.
35-37. Brahmâ, Visnu, Rudra, the Sun, Moon, Indra,
the twin Asvins, the Vasus, Visvakarmâ, Kuvera, Varuna, Fire, Air, Pûsâ, the
Sadânan, and Ganesa all are united with S’akti and can do their respective
functions; else they are unable to move themselves. Therefore O king! Know that Supreme Goddess Mahâmâyâ as the
cause of this Universe.
38. O Lord of men! You worship this Goddess, perform sacrifices
in honour of Her and worship Her with the highest devotion.
39. O king!
That Mahâmâyâ is Mahâ Laksmî, She is Mahâ Kâlî, She is Mahâ Sarasvatî; She
is the Goddess of all the bhûtas and She is the Cause of all causes.
40. That all peaceful, easily worshipped and the
ocean of mercy, when
worshipped, fulfills all the desires of
Her devotees; what to say, the mere utterance of Her name is sufficient for the
granting of the desires.
41. In days of yore Brahmâ, Visnu, Mahes'vara and
all the Devas and many other self controlled ascetics worshipped Her to attain
liberation.
42. O king!
What shall I speak now about Her more than this :-- If one takes Her
name even with indistinctness, She grants the desired purposes, even if they
are quite unattainable.
43. In the midst of forest, on the sight of
tigers and other ferocious animals, if one becoming afraid, cries aloud Her
seed mantra (twice) “Ai, Ai” without the Vindu (incorrectly) instead of “Aim,
Aim” She grants immediately his desires.
44-45. O best of kings! There is an example of Satyavrata on this
point. That the mere utterance of the
name of Bhagavatî gives unforeseen results, has been witnessed by us and other
high minded Munis. Also in the assembly
of the Brâmanas I have heard fully many sages quoting in detail many instances
on the above point.
46-47. O king!
There was a Brahmân, named Satyavrata, quite illiterate, a thorough block-head. Once he heard the letter “Ai, Ai” being
uttered by a pig; and in course of a talk he himself uttered incidentally that
letter and thereby became the one of the best Pundits.
N. B. – “Aim” is the seed mantra of Sarasvatî, the
Goddess of learning.
48. The Goddess Devî, the Ocean of mercy, hearing
the letter “Ai” being pronounced by that Brahmin, became very glad and made him
the best of the poets.
Here ends the Ninth Chapter of the 3rd
Skandha on the characteristics of the Gunas in S’rîmad Devî Bhâgavatam, the
Mahâ Purânam 18,000 verses by Maharsi Veda Vyâsa.
Source:
Translation of The Srimad Devi Bhagvatam by Swami Vijnanananda
No comments:
Post a Comment