Sri Chakra - Srividya

Bloom and growSri Akka’s New Year SatsangOn January 1, 2016, Pujyashri Mathioli Saraswathy (also lovinglyknown as Sri Ammaor Sri Akka), gave hernew year’s speech at theKanthimathi KalyanaMandapam in Chennai, India. The Nandalala Mission later puttogether some majorpoints from Her speech,which was originallygiven in Tamil. Belowis an edited version ofthat copy. Thanks tothe Nandalala Missionfor their transliterationinto English, and Bhuvana Subramanian andKathy Allen for passing it along to the SriChakra.[The number] 2016 addsup to the number 9, which is theaadhikkam (influence) of Sevvai(Mars), and the color Red is specialthis year. We will hear news of girlchildren being born, and also thenews of inter-caste marriages [will]be common.This year, people willfeel more paraparappu (tensionand stress). This is because ofthe greater influence of the Moon(Chandran). Our minds [may] bewavering and things may not workout according to our plans. Thisdoes not mean that things won’thappen. Rather, it may not happenthe way we would have planned it.8For instance, it may get delayed orit may happen earlier than what wehad planned.We will have many smalldesires, many of which may not[come into fruition]. Having suchdesires is not wrong, but we need tomake sure it doesn’t turn into greed(peraasai).This year people [may] beprone to breathing problems, earaches, eye problems and conditions relating to the ear, throat andbreathing. Some simple measuresto prevent these issues may include: The regular practice of pranaayamam to help in avoid breathing problems Sundakkai (either freshor dried), Kandankaththiri andThoodhuvalai. Allthese three may beconsumed, either aspart of food or as apowder, to help prevent health problems Growing aThulasi plant, as botha thulasi maadam andin pots, helps purifythe air and will givethe benefits of doingpranaayamam. Thesepots may be placedinside the house inthe following fourlocations: southwest,northeast, at thecentre of the westernportion and at thecentre of the southernportion. Keeping thulasi plants in any ofthe above mentioneddirections is as goodas doing a homam.But make sure that it is maintainedproperly and remains green.We tend to ignore thesesimple home remedies that havebeen a part of our traditional knowledge. It is only when we fall ill thatwe remember that we should havetaken these preventive remedies.Avoid fixing nails to wallsthis year. This is to avoid diseasesand illness (vyaadi). The more nailswe fix, the more illness we arelikely to have.Parents are eager to knowabout their children’s studies thisyear. For vidyashakti, gnanashakthiand memory power, the followingare the ideal days to start studies andlearning (padippikku ugandathu): Wednesdays

Bloom and grow days with the star Hastamor Punarvasu (Punarpoosam) Navami thithiEven elders, if they want tolearn something, can start on any ofthese days for successful completion.Keeping a picture or an idolof a seahorse will assist in highereducation and will definitely helpone to go and study abroad. It isalso good to keep it in libraries, stationery shops and photocopy shops.[The] chanting of AbhiramiAndhaadhi, Hayagriva shlokas,Adithya Hridayam, Dakshinamoorthy shlokas and Saraswathy Sakalakalavalli Maalai are good thisyear.To reduce the burden ofdebt and property mortgage, youmay keep surakudukkai (a hollow,wood pot, as seen in some musicalinstruments) in the house and putcoins in it. Keep coins inside it andplace it in any place in your house.You will definitely come out ofmortgage/loan issues. Periodically,these coins may be taken out andused for charity purposes.Surakudukkai is kept bysiddha purushas, who generallydrink water from it and keep coinsin it. This is a reason why theydon’t have an attachment and desirefor money.While all temples maybe visited this year, one temple isspecial. Near Mayiladuthurai, thereis a place called Natham which hasa temple for Tripurasundari samethaThiru Menishwarar. This is onthe Thirunandriyur-VydheeswaranKovil Road. There is a Nandhavanam in the temple, which housesa special tree called the Raamadhari. Just as the bilvam is specialfor Lord Shiva, this Raamadhariis special for Lord Rama (Mahavishnu).We must plan our visit tothe temple and collect authenticinformation so that we are able tovisit the nandhavanam and havedarshan of the Raamadhari tree. Incase we find it difficult to visit thetemple now, we may pray and keepa one rupee coin in our puja area.This is equivalent to visiting thetemple. We may then offer thisto the Hundi when we get theopportunity to visit this temple.[Please] share the message of the New Year Satsangto friends and family. Hearingthem say that they benefittedfrom [this] message will makeyou happier.Though there may beproblems like of the ear, eyeetc. this year, you will set themright. With determination andcomplete faith in God, try toovercome impediments andsuccessfully complete all yourwork this year. Blessings arealways there with [you]. Allwill have blessings for a happy,healthy and prosperous NewYear.Jai Nandalala!9

Bloom and growQ & AiyaWe all love hanging out with Aiya, drinking tea, and sometimes gettingsome guidance on how to travel down our own paths to the Devi. Here, headdresses questions that were asked to him at a workshop abroad.Q: Should we have the shruti boxon when we are chanting every dayat home?Aiya: I have a weakness, Amma—Ilike the sound. When you play thetambura shruti, you can keep hearing, “Om, om, om” and you cannothear any outside sounds that wouldLearn the Thirumurais and Thevarams. Imagine if I served lunchfor you and you saw there were fivecurries and you took just one andthen wanted to go back for more,how would you feel if I yanked theplate away then and said that wasenough?If you sing just the firstverse of Manthira MaavaduNiru, for example, youhave sung just one-tenth ofit. If you’re going to do itin Tamil and do it properly,you have to sing the wholepadikam. And you can’t doa rush job—you sing it exactly according to the meterand thaalam. And then youcan do pujas in Tamil.Q: Why do you use yourleft hand to offer flowersand do puja?otherwise come in and disturb you.For me, that works.When the shruti is on in ourtemple, it’s played over the publicaddress system. Even if someone isin the temple and has nothing to dowith the puja going on, it will stillcalm their nerves. If I were you, Iwould keep it on while chanting.Q: Can the pujas be done in Tamil?If so, how?Aiya: Yes, it can be done in Tamil.10Aiya: My friend, I’m anatural left-hander. If I usemy right hand, the flowers will landon your head and not Ganapathi’s.Let me ask you this—why has theleft side of the body suddenly become untouchable?If you think of Shiva as Ardhanareeshwara, the entire left sideof his body is the Devi. Who’s tosay she’s not pleased when I do pujausing my left hand as the dominanthand?One thing we all have toget over is the conventions whichwe have been conditioned into hold-ing. It’s not about which hand youuse; it’s the attitude with which youoffer the flowers.Q: Why are our rituals so long? Itdemotivates the youngsters. Howdo we motivate them to do more?Aiya: Let me tell you something.Even if you are a seasoned pro atmeditation and you sit down earlyin the morning without any disturbances to meditate, it will still takeyour body at least 25 to 30 minutesto physically settle down. Andonly after that will your mind settledown.You think it can happen in5 minutes? No way. When there’schanting going on and it’s 1000names long, what should you be focusing on? Only the sound. Nothing else.The rituals are long, andthat’s the nature of it. Just becausethe youngsters don’t have the patience in a world where everythingis instant, it doesn’t mean the practices should change. Maybe theyshould learn the rituals to developthat patience.When I was small and mymother took me to the temple, shewould tell me I had to sit in oneplace until we left—if she saw merunning around, I would pay for itwhen we got home. That’s not howit is now. Children run wild in thetemple and the parents do nothing.The only way to motivatethe children is for the parents to

Bloom and growbecome involved in it first. Youmust show them by example. I seeespecially with Sri Lankan JaffnaTamils that when they come intoour temple, they only want to havearchana done. And they have noidea why they want it!In our temple, no ritual isdone without explanation, and atypical archana will take about 30minutes whether I’m doing it orwhether any other volunteer is doingit. And you can see after about 10minutes, the fellows in the back aregetting restless and they just leave.So when the older folksdon’t have the patience, how do youexpect the kids growing up in thiscommunication age to do it?When we move to the West,what do we practice? For everyoccasion there’s a party—birthdayparty, anniversary party, graduationparty and whether they know thewords or not, they’re singing andchopping a cake.Whose culture is this?The shastras tell you that on yourbirthday, you have to light a lampand you have to give. Not blow outthe candles and think three weeksahead, “What will my uncles giveme? What will my cousins giveme?”Don’t think the childrenwon’t follow your example. InCanada, I taught regular classesof about 60 children who couldn’tcross the border to come to thetemple. And they talked to me veryfreely.One time, a child told meshe went to her cousin’s birthdayand they had fun, and lots of food,and soft drinks, and that “the bigpeople had their own soda in theback.” You think the kids don’tknow you’re drinking? After theage of 10 or 12, they come to thinkit’s normal and they’ll follow yourexample.Is this why we left home? Ileft Sri Lanka almost 45 years agoand I haven’t forgotten what wasgiven to me. We absorb all the rotten things from the western culture;why haven’t we absorbed the goodthings?Do you ever thank Godor the Devi for the meal that is infront of you, or do you walk intothe kitchen, ask what’s cooking,and then smell it instead of doingnaivedyam?The best motivation for theyoungsters is seeing their parents dowhat they are asking the kids to do.Shortening the pujas won’t do it.11

Bloom and growGolden Clips from GurujiAn explanation by Sri la Sri Amritanandanatha SaraswatiIt was after the memorable Satha Abhishekam inauguration for Guruji at the end of December2014 when many disciples would sit in the front patio at Guruji’s ashram and ask him questions. Heanswered them all very lovingly, catering to everyone’s questions without discrimination, and responding to every question with simple answers. He embroidered each answer to address the true meaningsand guide the audience to understand the existence of the divine as an ocean of awareness.This content was transcribed from one of Guruji’s informal talks, on Jan 01, 2015, to a groupof devotees after the Satha Abhishekam celebration Thanks to Sundhara and Ahalya Arasaratnam fortranscribing and submitting this piece to the Sri Chakra.Awareness, consciousness, spiritualstate and physical stateWe are conscious and able to focusonly those parts within us that we are aware of.What we are not aware of we cannot focus on.Generally our awareness is fragmented. Freshness comes from being aware of all parts of ourbody.When you have a bath or shower thefreshness comes from being able to be aware ofall parts your body as the water flows over thewhole body. When you are fully awake you arein partial “anesthesia”. You are aware only of the“un-anesthetized” parts; yourawareness or consciousness isfragmented and not unified.When you go fromfragmented consciousness tounified awareness it gives onefreshness. Again, one couldconcentrate on somethingoutside one’s body and havea fragmented consciousnessthough you cannot be consciousof a part in your body that you12are not aware of. So there is a distinct differencebetween your conscious on yourself and outside ofyourself.The spiritual sadhana takes you beyondyour own individual consciousness to unified consciousness. This is why the Ganapathi Tarpanamworks best in achieving this unified consciousness.In doing Ganapathi Tarpanam the Kundalini energymoves from the Muladhara, solid state, with a defined shape to the Swadhistana, liquid state, with nodefined shape. When few people are seated and do

Bloom and growthe Ganapathi Tarpanam together,they gradually all merge into oneform as the solid state rises to theliquid state.When doing GanapathiTarpanam the individual state ofconsciousness merges into a collective state of consciousness. Typically you lose your ego, individuality and feel free and light. It is themovement from heaviness to lightness viz the application of heat to asolid that makes it a liquid with noshape. The solid shape disappearsand loses its identification. It is thefirst step of realization or becomingconscious to “I’m the universe”.It is the first transition;you are getting light and free. Atthis stage the “partial anesthesia”is partly removed. It is still partialbecause you still need to evaporatethe liquid form to vapour state tomix with other. Further “heating”will transform you into mergingwith space and then to time etc. tobe in fully unified consciousness.Spirits could be unifiedor partially unified consciousness. What governs the differencebetween spirit and material thingsis the speed of light. Any materialparticle cannot exceed the speed oflight. Anything physical is limitedby the speed of light. The particlesthat are travelling higher than thespeed of light are imaginary particles. A particle above the speed oflight cannot enter the region belowthe speed of light and vice versa.The same can be said ofthe spiritual realm and physicalrealm. If you are at the border i.e.(just) at the speed of light you havethe potential to experience eitheror both; you can experience thespiritual state and the physical stateor become fully unified.13

Bloom and growMother Nature’sCosmic Webby Aparna Haslingunderground battlesdetermine the level ofnutrients available toplant roots. Amongthe most sacred are themycorrhizal fungi, acooperative networkof organisms whichcarpet forest floors.The temple woodsand wetlands, a placeI call Shakambhari’sAmma, Tharuman, and Natarajan uncleSanctuary, has nurapproaching the Vanadevata Trailtured my unique spiriBlazing the Vanadevatatual perspective. AfterTrail at the Sri Vidya Temple conAiya announced that Devi wouldtinues to teach me lessons aboutshow menature, society and existence. I have Herself inlearned to see traits of individualthe trees,plants akin to human beings andin 2005ecosystems as complex spiritualI begancommunities. The spiritual experiexplorence we call LIFE is a dance ofing thisShiva/Shakti (akin to flora/fauna)unchartedreciprocally influenced by the subtle land.energies of stored samskaras (akinAlone andto soil), and it continuously repeatsobliviousin infinite variations throughout theto my owncycles of time.vulnerabilAs maya refracts infiniteity, I walked through thicket, marsh,consciousness, individuals areand meadow without map, compassblinded to most of the electromagor GPS. Getting lost was part ofnetic spectrum and ignorant of thethe experience, as I slowly awakmicrocosmic ecosystem beneathened to the consciousness of nature.their feet. Yet embracing the power For me, it was a place to worshipof anima-siddha, it is possible towithout murthis and heal withouthold a single teaspoon of healthywords. A mystical link developedsoil and commune with half a billion such that when I lay on the ground,tiny life forms. Soil is a dynamicI could feel Devi’s embrace. And ascommunity of microorganisms with I learned to make friends with thediverse populations of predators and trees, my devotion to guru magniprey. They have complex survivalfied.strategies, and winners of theseIn 2014, I offered the trail14and trail guide to Aiya. It was theculmination of an intense sadhana,and I hoped it would evolve into anactual environmental center linking spirituality and science ecology. Unfortunately, comments fromdevotees were discouraging and Ifeared some would unknowinglydesecrate land. I had to explain tovisitors that every turn of the trailwas designed to bring attention toa particular tree, or divert attentionaway from a sensitive habitat. I feltprotective of the land and prayedthat others would respect the trail assacred ground, rather than an opportunity tofurthersubjugatenature orconstructaccording totheirdesires.Yet myattentionshiftedwhen Isaw a more immediate threat on thehorizon.In early spring and late fallthe honeysuckle bush dominatesthe understory. Before I understoodthe plant was invasive, I admired itscapacity to defy winter by leafingout early and holding leaves throughlate fall. Yet just as wealth is nolonger beautiful upon learning abouta corrupt source of funds, so doeshoneysuckle monopolize the soil’sand sun’s energy, offering nothingin return to local insects or wild-

Bloom and growlife. Caterpillars cannot munch the leaves, birds cannoteat the caterpillars and foxes cannot eat the birds. Thisplant should be given a different name because the onlythings it attracts are ticks and mosquitos.For years I knew that the temple land sufferedfrom invasive plant species: buckthorn, honeysuckle,garlic mustard (and many more). At first, the wildgrape vines seemed most destructive, since I could seethem use trees as giant trellises and eventually kill ourtrees by blocking light from above. Then I learned thatinvasive buckthorn trees lead their attack undergroundby emitting a toxic compound called emodin through itsroots, overpowering adjacent root structures. In partnership, garlic mustard groundcover emits a phytotoxin,thus killing the sacred mychorrhizal fungi. My studieswere overwhelming as I learned that buckthorn alsointerferes in the embryonic development of frogs andgarlic mustard also suppresses butterflies eggs.The overall impact of these non-native plantshave cascading effects on the biodiversity of nature’sweb, yet only those devoted to Mother Nature conceivethe consequences.The spread of invasive species kicks nature’sbalance off kilter; it causes some creatures to perishwhich stimulates others to overpopulate. For example,the extermination of wolves led to a 10-fold proliferation in white-tail deer. Simultaneously, human populations increased, shrinking forest habitat. Asa result, deer havebecome a destructiveforce in the forest; theyovergraze native plantsand allow unsavoryinvasive plants tospread further. Today,deer are blamed forthe disappearance ofregenerating trees aswell as vertebrate andinvertebrate fauna. Landmanagers respond by caging/protecting young trees.Yet their bias towardparticular plants continuesto disrupt nature’s web;even though poison ivy isa native species relishedby deer, it is routinely removed from public lands.For millions of years theanimal kingdom (Shakti)lived in harmony with theplant kingdom (Shiva).Each was part of a chain,and the bounty of food was enough for all. Now, just asour spiritual culture is being depleted by worldly influences, the environment is also experiencing collapse. Thereciprocal influence between plants, animal and soil is nolonger sustainable and the intricate food-chains are broken.Modern society disavowed the sacred circle by convertingforests into farmland, fertilizing soil with toxic chemicals, hunting animals to extinction, and cultivating exotictastes. Attempting to become civilized, the human race hasbecome an invasive species, destroying without cause andamassing resources without providing for the community.Chaos is expected in Kali Yuga, yet some devotees are compelled (by duty, remembrance or compassion)to strive for an ancient balance. The Vedas deify MotherEarth, and therefore service to Her is divine seva. For me,the work of land restoration is equal to the task of re-

Sri Chakra The Source of the Cosmos The Journal of the Sri Rajarajeswari Peetam, Rush, NY. 2 Bloom and grow . or feedback about this issue at sri_chakra_mag@ srividya.org or talk to Kamya or Abhi at the temple. Sri Gurubhyo Namaha! Our special thanks and gratitude to this issue's volunteers: Aiya,