Further Information:
The Ancient Power of Sanskrit Mantra and Ceremony,
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Imagine a small village in the Indus Valley in northern
India set in a time over 7,000 years ago. The Indian subcontinent plate has ended its
wandering northward trek through the ocean and has slammed up against the bottom of Asia where the crash of their meeting has caused the
tectonic plate of Asia to buckle and wrinkle. The Himalayan Mountain Range comes into existence, and even today these thousands of years
later, the cracking sound of the mountains can still be heard as they continue to grow - in some places up to a foot a year.
But in this valley, the colliding of the giant plates is too slow for the people to notice. They farm and gather and fish to survive. Some
weave and make pottery. Ornamentation is well-developed with the discovery of precious stones and metals. Aesthetic sense has
blossomed with painting, song and sculpture.
These people in this region communicate in a language no longer spoken today called Indo-European. Some branches of this ancient
language have never
been deciphered. Although we have records carved in rocks and caves, we don't
know what is said in some ancient carvings where certain dialects of
Indo-European stare down from their carved niches. But for later versions of
this language, we found keys to translation so that we understood what was spoken then and carved in the rocks. This later
population spoke a relatively new derivative of Indo-European that today we call Sanskrit.
Now imagine that one day, a young man or woman answering some mystical inner
call, stops farming or making a pot or some other activity and walks off into
the gently sloping hills surrounding the Indus Valley. The young person finds a place of solitude and shade, and sits and
throwing a shawl around their shoulders. Still answering some inner call, the person closes his or her eyes and begins to meditate.
After some time, now deep in meditation, the person begins to chant in deep mystical tones. Nearby cowherds and shepherds hear the
rhythmic tones and come to investigate. When they arrive, they hear and understand that something new is coming from this person who looks
asleep. With eyes closed the still unmoving figure begins to spout forth great verses and ideas. These simple country folk have been raised in an oral
tradition, so memorization is not difficult for them. They sit, listen and
commit to memory what they hear. Later, they will recite it for others who also
memorize it, and recording of these mystical chants will begin.
The chants speak of the universe, of the place humans occupy, of the relationship of man to nature, of the nature of
consciousness, and of something called "The Self." a piece of light contained in the heart
of every person. They hear that this flame of light we all carry as a part
of some great being called The Purusha. Mystical truths of many kinds are conveyed by those who sit in rapt
meditation. The form of Indo-European language derivative that today we call Sanskrit is the
"language of the chakras" as we will see later. It has also come to be
called Deva Lingua or divine language. In fact, in The Secret Doctrine
by H.P. Blavatsky, the importance of this divine language is clearly addressed.
"The speech of men cannot reach the Lords. . .They
must be addressed in their own language. . . It is composed of sounds, not
words. . . This language, or the incantations of mantras being the most
effective agent and the first of the keys which opens the door of
communication between Mortals and Immortals." Blavatsky later refers to
the Sanskrit language by name.
Purpose and Point of View
This book is intended as a desk reference on the practical
use of common Sanskrit mantras. Additionally, it provides some material that you may
have difficulty finding even with considerable research, including various planetary mantras, astotaras (collections of specific
mantra-powers) of certain Hindu deities, and Pujas (worship ceremonies) which have rarely been transliterated into English.
There are some slender volumes available which may give this or that mantra associated with certain classical Hindu concepts or deities from
the pantheon. But there is a frustration I find with publications found in many of these and other general purpose bookstores. The book will
typically contain a Sanskrit (Devanagri script) rendering of the mantra and a translation. There may even be an interesting essay or some
historical background about the mantra. But there will be no way for you to "say" that mantra because a transliteration is not included.
Mantras, from the very first, evolved as part of an oral tradition and were meant
to be "said," not read. They are essentially a phenomenon of the power
of "spoken word." But if there is no transliteration of the text from Sanskrit or Hindi to English, you will be unable to say the mantras no
matter how much you might like to do so.
There are exceptions, such as Stephen Beyer's wonderful book, The Cult
of Tara, and any of the works of Sir John Woodroffe (also writing under the pen name of Arthur Avalon). The Dalai Lama has written books such as the
Kalachakra
Tantra that contain English transliterated mantras, but these are the exceptions. Thus, this work is intended
to address an area that is largely ignored.
These volumes contain only transliterated mantras. There
is no Sanskrit Devanagri text whatsoever. Where there are places where you will find
approximate translations, in most cases there is only a scant translation or no translation at all. This reference book is for those
who want to speak the mantras, verses and praises. There is an old Indian proverb: "There are those who like to count the
leaves on the trees. But most of us would rather eat the fruit." In these volumes you will find the most comprehensive collection of
transliterated mantras available in the English language. I have spent
many years finding, collecting and eating the fruit contained in these volumes. May your practice of mantra serve your
highest interests.
Section I: Background
It seems to be part of human nature that once we stumble onto an incredibly powerful force, our instincts tell us to
make it secret. For thousands of years the power of the Sanskrit language to act as a
tangible force in everyday life was intentionally hidden by Hindu sages. Only in the last hundred years, and
mostly in the last fifty have some of these secrets come to light in the secular academic world, and in
certain broadening religious circles
The movements of the planets through spheres of force and influence represented by the various signs and houses in one's astrological chart
affect our lives in profound ways on a daily basis. Sanskrit mantras can change the way we receive those powerful vibrations. Secrets pertaining
to the use of mantra in application to the natal astrological chart were kept secret by the Brahmin priesthood for centuries.
Certain mantras are so powerful in healing and leading one to healing remedies that death itself can be
postponed in some cases. Sanskrit formulas pertaining to this field were also kept hidden until the last
fifty-one hundred years.
Life conditions can be completely altered by changing one's karmic vibrations through scientific application of mantra formulas. Education,
income, family harmony, marriage, childbirth and children and a thousand other things in life can be positively affected by the application of
mantra.
The first part of this work will give you the necessary background to
enable you to plan and complete mantra strategies for many aspects of your life. Those of you
who are interest in Ceremony will find that Volume III gives you a most complete approach to Sanskrit ritual.
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