STEP TWENTY-NINE
NOW, IT'S TIME TO FREE ALL THE ENERGIES YOU MAY HAVE INVOKED DURING YOUR JAPA. I HAVE SIMPLIFIED THE GAYATHRI SADHANA SO WE ARE NOT INVOKING SI MANY ENERGIES. IN ADVANCED MANTRA SADHANAS, YOU INIVITE MANY DIFFERENT KINDS OF ENERGIES TO BE THERE WHILE YOU ARE DOING YOUR JAPA, BECAUSE YOU ARE INVITING DEVI, AND YOU WOULD NOT WANT TO INVITE HER ON HER OWN. FREEING ALL THE ENERGIES IS CALLED VISARJANA, SO WE GRATEFULLY AND GRACEFULLY SEE THEM OFF, AND THEY CAN GO WHERE THEY WISH. YOU CAN SIMPLY FOLD YOUR HANDS AND SAY, THANK YOU VERY MUCH, WHOEVER CAME HERE, PLEASE BE WITH ME NEXT TIME, OR YOU CAN CHANT THIS SIMPLE SHLOKA.
GACCHA GACCHA PARAM STHANAM SVASTHANAM PARAMESVARI,
PUJARADHANAKALE CA PUNARAGAMANAYA CA.
MAY YOU ALL RETURN TO YOUR ADODE, I HUMBLY REQUEST YOU TO PLEASE BE HERE WHEN I CALL UPON YOU ONCE AGAIN TO OFFER MY PRAYERS TO YOU.
TISTHA TISTHA PARASTHANE SVASTHANE PARAMESVARI,
YATRA BRAHMADAYO DEVAH SARVE TISTHANTI ME HRDI
LET EVERYBODY GO TO YOUR ADODE AND BE SETTLED THERE. MAY ALL THE POSITIVE ENERGIES, ALL THE GOODNESS, FOREVER REMAIN IN MY HEART. LET THOSE I NEED NOT GO FROM HERE.
THERE ARE ENERGIES THAT SIMPLY HELP YOU FULFILL YOUR MATERIAL GOALS, BUT THEN THERE ARE ENERGIES THAT THE PART OF YOUR PURIFICATION THAT SHOULD REMAIN WITH YOU TO HELP YOU PROGRESS ON THE SPIRITUAL PATH. LET THOSE POSITIVE ENERGIES STAY INSIDE ME, IN MY HEART - THAT'S WHAT THIS VERSE MEANS.
STEP THIRTY
STEP THIRTY 30 IS TO SAY SORRY FOR ANY MISTAKES YOU MIGHT HAVE MADE WHILE CHANTING, WHETHER THAT'S YAWNING, LOSING FOCUS, FEELING ANGRY OR NEGATIVE OR EVEN THINKING ILL OF PEOPLE, AND SO ON. THESE ARE ALL ERRORS OF COMMISSIONS - YOU KNOW THEY HAVE BEEN COMMITTED. SEEKING FORGIVENESS IS IMPERATIVE, SO WE DO A LITTLE KSHAMA PRARTHANA, A REQUEST FOR PARDON AND ONCE AGAIN, YOU CAN EITHER READ THE TRANSLATION ON PAGE 157 OR YOU CAN JUST SAY SORRY IN ANY LANGUAGE AND WORDS THAT YOU FEEL COMFORTABLE WITH. HERE'S THE STOTRA AGAIN WITH MEANING FOR YOUR READY REFERENCE:
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- APARADHASAHASTRANI KRIYANTESHARNISAM MAYA,
- DASOSYAMITI MAM MATVA KSAMASVA PARAMESRVARI,
- AVAHANAM NA JANAMI KSAMYATAM PARAMESRVARI,
- PUJAM CAIVA NA JANAMI KSAMYATAM PARAMESRVARI,
- MANTRAHINAM KRIYAHINAM BHAKTIHINAM SURESRVARI,'
- YATPUJITAM MAYA DEVI PARIPURNA TADASTU ME.
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THIS MEANS, I HAVE MADE COUNTLESS MISTAKES, PLEASE LOOK UPON ME AS YOUR HUMBLE SERVANT AND FORGIVE ME. I DON'T KNOW THE MANTRAS, I DON'T KNOW THE CORRECT PRONUNCIATION, I AM AN IGNORANT PERSON, AND YET I HAVE THE AUDACITY TO PRAY TO YOU BECAUSE YOU ARE EVER MERCIFUL, YOU STILL FULFILL MY WISHES.
STEP THIRTY-ONE
NOW IT'S TIME TO PERFORM YAJNA, THE FIRE OFFERINGS. THE TENPERCENT PRINCIPLE (DASHANSH) APPLIES HERE. WHICH MEANS, IF YOU HAVE CHANTED 3000 TIMES, YOU WILL MAKE 300 FIRE OFFERINGS. ONCE AGAIN, I'VE GIVEN A CHAPTER ON FIRE OFFERINGS IN THE APPENDIX.
THERE ARE MANY WAYS TO DO ELABORATE YAJNAS, BUT PERHAPS PERFORM THE SIMPLEST ONE. THERE IS NOT MUCH TO BE DONE. IF YOU CANNOT DO FIRE OFEERINGS, SIMPLY DOUBLE THE NUMBER OF CHANTS. FOR EXAMPLE, IF YOU CHANTED 1000 TIMES THAT DAY, THIS MEANS YOU WOULD MAKE 100 OBLATIONS TO THE FIRE. IF YOU CANNOT DO A YAJNA, SIMPLY CHANT AN ADDITIONAL 200 TIMES, OVER AND ABOVE YOUR 1000 MANTRA CHANTING, TO COMPENSATE FOR NOT DOING THE YAJNA.
ONE ESSENTIAL POINT ON FIRE OFFERINGS. WHENVER YOU OFFER ANYTHING TO THE FIRE OF THE YAGNA, MAKE SURE YOU END IT WITH THE WORDS "OM SVAHA".
FOR EXAMPLE, TO MAKE A FIRE OFFERING WITH GAYATRI MANTRA, YOU WILL SAY,
"OM BHURBHUVAH SVAHA TATSAVITURVARENYAMA BHARGO
DEVASYA, DHIMAHI, DHIYO NAH PRACODAYATA, OM SVAHA".
STEP THIRTY-TWO
AFTER THE YAJNA, WE DO TARPAN OR LIBATIONS. THERE ARE MANY KINDS OF TARPAN- BRAHMA TARPAN, PITRA TARPAN, DEVA TARPAN AND SO ON. THE TARPAN WE ARE DOING HERE IS DEVA TARPAN, THAT WE ARE OFFERING TO THE DEITY. WHEN YOU OFFER SOMEBODY FOOD, YOU OFFER HER SOME WATER AS WELL, BECAUSE WATER COMPLETES THE MEAL. I AM TELLING YOU THE SIMPLEST METHOD OF TARPAN.
IF CAN BE DONE WITH WATER MIXED WITH SESAME SEEDS AND SO ON, BUT THIS SIMPLE TARPAN IS DONW WITH JUST WATER. YOU CAN USE THAT LITTLE POT THAT YOU USED TO DO ACHAMANA, AND COMPLETE THE LIBERATION IN ANY OF THESE TWO WAYS: YOU CAN TAKE SOME WATER FROM THE POT WITH A LITTLE SPOON AND AS YOU CHANT YOUR MANTRA, "OM BHURBHUVAH SVAH TATSAVITURVARENAYAMA BHARGO DEVASYA DHIMAHI DHIYO YO NAH PRACODOYATA, OM TARPAYAMI".
LIKE WE APPEND "OM SVAHA" IN A FIRE OFFERING, WE ADD, "OM TARPYAMAI" WHILE PERFORMING LIBERATIONS.
THIS IS THE RECOMMENDED METHOD. IF YOU DON'T HAVE A SPOON, YOU CAN JOIN YOUR RING FINGER AND THUMB AND DIP THEM IN THE POT. THE NUMBER OF LIBERATIONS IS ALWAYS TEN PERCENT OF YOUR FIRE OFFERINGS. SO, IF YOU DID 1000 TIMES CHANTING, YOU'LL MAKE 100 FIRE OFFERINGS AND 10 LIBERATIONS.
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