The Potential of Mantra — Satsang by Swami Satyananda Saraswati
The Potential of Mantra — Satsang by Swami Satyananda Saraswati
Satsang by Paramahamsa Swami Satyananda Saraswati, 5 January 1981, Ganga Darshan, Munger, India. Published in YogaMag, October 2012.
In the science of mantra, daily practice is essential. The mantra given by the guru should be practised as much as possible. Yet to awaken the potential of the mantra — to bring the śakti of the mantra to life — it has to be practised a certain number of times.
Cycles
The mantra Om Namaḥ Śivāya has five syllables plus Om. To awaken it, practise it 500,000 times in fifteen days. This is called one anuṣṭhāna, or mantra sādhana.
Gāyatrī mantra, on the other hand, has twenty-four syllables and needs to be practised 2.4 million times. This is a complete cycle. If you complete this cycle, then you will attain one siddhi, or perfection — the mantra awakens and becomes alive. But this is very difficult, occupying half one’s lifespan. Therefore, other provisions have been made. The mantra can be practised in smaller cycles, such as 125,000 times. These cycles are necessary to explode the power of the mantra.
When one practises the mantra for five to ten minutes, it offers relaxation through intensification of the alpha waves in the brain, but intensification of alpha is not the discovery of spiritual potential. One has to go beyond this into a waveless state — a state where there are neither gamma, beta, alpha, theta nor delta waves. The mind has to go beyond the waves, the waveless and the void. It has to become zero. For a moment, the mind has to completely stop.
Navaratri Anuṣṭhāna
During Navaratri, many householders engage themselves in Gāyatrī mantra anuṣṭhāna. Navaratri is a period of nine nights with a tenth day that is considered the day of victory — when light conquers darkness. Navaratri is celebrated twice a year.
During these days, householders retire from their usual activities. One member of the family practises the mantra from morning until evening with only a few breaks. They do not take grain or meat, only fruit, milk, and a little boiled vegetable. Some eat only once a day, others twice.
The sādhaka does not sleep on a mattress, but on a grass mat on the floor for nine nights. They do not eat with the women of the household. They do not shave. Then on the tenth day they simply come out.
These practices are repeated every year — not by the same family member, but by different members. For if everybody were to practise at the same time, there would be no one left to manage the household.
In this way, once a year, you too may retire into seclusion, practise mantra from dawn until dusk or late at night, with a little break here and there for food. This practice constitutes one cycle of Gāyatrī mantra anuṣṭhāna. In Christianity there is a similar practice called Novena — though it is more of a ritual and less of a sādhana.
Gāyatrī
In the Indian culture there are only three things: the Bhagavad Gītā, the Gaṅgā, and Gāyatrī. If you take these away, this culture does not exist. The external Gaṅgā is the river; the inner Gaṅgā is suṣumnā, which flows between the earth and heaven. The Bhagavad Gītā and Gāyatrī are the philosophy.
Some believe that Gāyatrī is directed towards the sun, but ultimately it has been found that this mantra is directed towards the inner brilliance, the inner sun. The inner brilliance must shine and one’s consciousness must be enlightened — but how does this happen?
There are two Gāyatrī mantras used for two different practices. One version is used for mantra sādhana, the other for prāṇāyāma.
The Gāyatrī for mantra or japa yoga:
Oṁ bhū bhuvaḥ suvaḥ
tatsaviturvareṇyam
bhargo devasya dhīmahi dhiyo yo naḥ pracodayāt
The Gāyatrī intended for prāṇāyāma:
Oṁ bhū, oṁ bhuvaḥ, oṁ suvaḥ, oṁ mahaḥ,
oṁ janaḥ, oṁ tapaḥ, oṁ satyam
Oṁ tatsaviturvareṇyam
bhargo devasya dhīmahi dhiyo yo naḥ pracodayāt
The second Gāyatrī represents one inhalation — the vitality of a yoga student. One inhalation spans the mental recitation of this Gāyatrī. During retention the mantra is repeated twice; during exhalation, twice again. This is elementary prāṇāyāma in the ratio 1:2:2. The more advanced ratio is 1:6:4.
Om and Gāyatrī
Om is a bīja — seed mantra, the universal mantra. Sometimes the aspirant is not qualified or prepared, and when he practises Om, he comes suddenly face to face with certain experiences, because the effect of Om is very rapid. Therefore the Gāyatrī mantra was revealed to the wise men so that those who are less prepared can practise Gāyatrī in place of Om and avoid drastic or rapid results. Gāyatrī is in fact the developed state of the mantra Om. Gāyatrī represents the cosmic total of the original prāṇa. All throughout the Vedas and Upaniṣads it is said: “Om is nāda and Gāyatrī is prāṇa.”
Thus, from Om, Gāyatrī is created — manifesting in two stages. In the first, the mantra mentions three states of individual self: bhūr, bhuvaḥ, suvaḥ — the waking, dreaming, and deep sleep states. In the second, seven lokas or planes of existence: bhūr, bhuvaḥ, suvaḥ, mahaḥ, janaḥ, tapaḥ, satyam. Satyam represents Sahasrāra; Tapas represents Ājñā; moving down, Bhūr represents Mūlādhāra. These seven planes represent the seven realms of individual consciousness from the gross to the most subtle.
Sāvitrī
There is a beautiful poem written by Sri Aurobindo called Savitri. Sāvitrī and Gāyatrī are synonymous names. In the morning there is absolute darkness — only the stars are shining. Then the light shoots forth through the horizon. Internally there is also darkness. From time to time you see some visions — they are like the stars. And when the inner sun comes up, when the morning dawns, traces of light are experienced within the horizons of the mind. That upspring of light is called Sāvitrī.
When jñāna — wisdom — rises and dawns, when inner enlightenment takes place, not only the physical body and the mind, but all planes of existence become perceptible. It does not matter who you are: whatever you are, live life in any way you can, but always remember that the aim of life is self-realisation and strive for it all the time.
— 5 January 1981, Ganga Darshan, Munger, India. YogaMag, October 2012
