A nice observation about Saturn
September 8, 2009
From an astrological standpoint, Saturn is the planet that people tend to have the most difficult time with. I like to joke that of all the planets, Saturn certainly does play for keeps. That aspect of life will take us right to the edge of what we think we can endure.
But it is useful to know that one of the names of Saturn is “Vishnu Bhakta” which means that he is a devotee of Vishnu. In a way, the ultimate goal of Saturn is to have you lying flat on the floor completely surrendered to the divine because you have no where else to turn. Only then is Saturn fully happy. And, buy the way, this need not be taken literally, it can be any form of the divine. The important part is the state of surrender as you will see in this excerpt from one puja.net yagya participant.
<<I have not been involved with these yagyas for long, but I think I have learned the lessons of Saturn over the recent year of so…loss of our home’s property value, loss of income, loss of outward progress…back to being more spiritual. Without all of these losses, I probably would not be here involved with these wonderful yagyas…thank you Saturn!>
A dramatic experience…
August 20, 2009
All yagyas dissolve karma and move us steadily towards enlightenment. We don’t even have to know (or agree on) what enlightenment is. Yagyas bring progress in a natural and fundamental way. Participants frequently experience a sense of movement, forward progress based on replacing impurities with purity, darkness with light, the restrictiveness of stress and “ignorance” with freedom and knowledge. While participating in yagyas is a very simple process, over time it is also very profound and the depth of the effects are not to be underestimated.
So what follows is one participant’s experience. It is not what usually happens. It is in fact, very unusual because most of the time the experience of yagyas is subtle, quiet, pleasant, but not earth shaking. I am posting this experience because it hints at what may be taking place beneath the surface of our awareness. There is no way of knowing for certain if these experiences are “real” or a dream. But they are consistent with what happens as a result of yagyas. The text has been slightly edited for length.
“”It seems for me that things started coming up right from the beginning when the yagya starts. I have been having Throat Chakra issues for a while but not sure what the root cause is. The first day of this yagya as I was going to bed – I drifted into the state between waking and dreaming. Or maybe I was in a state of witnessing – I was a conscious observer separate from what was happening even though I could
feel things.
I was given a vision of what appeared to be different layers of my personality or maybe even past lives – not quite certain.
The first vision was a man standing beside me wearing a white shirt and white hat. It affected my Throat Chakra as well as I felt a huge block there and I kept trying to express myself and could not get a word out. I was frozen. I remember struggling with all my will to get the words out, I wanted to say God is Love but could not utter a sound.
Then I was dropped down to a new person which felt like it could have been part of me in some way. The rest of the levels going in a downward direction were all women and after about six women figures down there was a very unpleasant personality showing herself to me. I remember thinking how mean she was and I did not want her to be a part of me.
I kept wanting to speak God is Love but could not utter a sound. Then I came into a full state of awareness and felt an overwhelming feeling and a gasp for air. I still have an energetic band around the top of my neck and trying to figure out how to get it to release. I feel like the vision is telling me something about why it is there.
Whew! “”
Family yagya
August 4, 2009
“More feedback for you…out of the blue last week my sister, who has not spoken to me for 5 yrs, invited me to her daughter’s Nov. wedding…I accepted and asked her to meet with me as I’l be in B. week. She agreed…there are many ‘currents’ permeating Life permanently…the yagya service which I requested for improving family relations has to be one of those ‘currents’.
Thank you.”
Long term benefits…
July 27, 2009
This experience is very inspiring because it confirms for me that what matters most is sincerity and consistency. This person has participated in the yagyas for the past few years on a relatively small scale. She make very little money, but has worked hard to improve her life, all the while doing a yagya here and there.
My theory about yagyas is that as you repeat them, their power to remove obstacles increases with every performance. But you also have to have an appropriate time and place for their effects to manifest. Once that happens, the effects (removal of obstacles) can be quite dramatic.
As always, can one establish a definitive cause and effect? No, but what happened to her is very consistent, although more dramatic, with what has happened to others. So I feel comfortable saying that the events were connected to her yagyas.
“Well, on July 22, 2009 at about 9AM or 10AM I get a call (at work) from the school I started to take this certification (and never finished). They informed me that a small school 55 miles away from where I live was looking for an Art Teacher and that the school would be contacting me. Needless to say, they did 30 minutes later!! I was asked to show up for an interview the next day!!
I showed up 30 minutes early and the principal was very busy dealing with parents and students that morning. The principal having to juggle many upset parents and students quickly introduced himself and took me to a small office where he closed the door behind us and in 1 minute he said: “This is going to be the fasted interview in your life. I have seen your resume and paperwork, you are qualified can you stop by tomorrow to sign the contract?”
I was still standing when he blurted this out!! I think I was still shaking his hand!! All I ever said was “YES!” and “Thank you”. I was in and out in 1 1/2 minutes!! I took the position not even knowing how much it paid!! Everything happened so fast!! I HAD NO INTERVIEW!! WHAT A FEELING!!
On my arrival home I went to their site to see the salary and I realized that it is less than what I am making now!!! UUGHH!! It’s the lowest paid District. Probably because it is such a small town not to mention the size of the school…but I really liked the employees while I sat there and waited for the interview. The school felt cozy and friendly. I felt that for my first year of teaching a small school would probably be best. I signed the contract the following day.
I realize that the drive is long and the gas alone is enough to put a bigger pinch on my budget but I figured that this one school year would be tough. After that I can transfer to something closer. I just need that one chance and this one really felt like it fell from the sky unto my lap.
Three weeks ago the newspaper where I work now, told us we all had to take a 5% pay cut and that maybe in about 2 years they could start giving 2% pay raises!! I have been there 4 years this July and have never been evaluated or given a pay raise but I have gotten many many many more responsibilities since my hire. So, I would have to invest another 4 years to be where I was 3 weeks ago!!
This new Art Teaching position promises a $500.00 pay raise every year!!”
Eclipse Yagyas
July 24, 2009
I’ve received a few people describing their experiences during and after the July 21 solar eclipse yagya. Here are a few excerpts:
“I’m not sure what to say really, because the experience was rather subtle and very fill of light. Usually eclipses are pretty dark for me and I have strange meditations and weird dreams. But this time it was fun. During the three hours of the yagyas in India, I spent the time in my room. I did my meditation for 45 minutes, then I did some pujas for the Sun and the other planets. That took about 45 minutes. Then I spent the last 1 1/2 hours doing mantra japa for the Sun, Ketu, and then a Shiva mantra that I like a lot. By the time the 3 hours were up, I was shocked. It felt like 20 minutes. I could easily have gone on for another 3 hours. In the days since I have felt calm and energized, like something has happened, although it is tough to put my finger on it. I suppose I would have to say that I feel like my karma burden has been lightened.”
And another:
“Hey Ben,
For me it was very powerful! I listened to a 1/2 hour of the Surya mantras to start. Then I meditated and did program & flying for 1 1/2 hours. Very deep and blissful. I felt better than I have for a long time. Then I listen to another 45 minutes of the Surya files. The two Aditya stotras seemed especially powerful. Then last night I had a hard time going to sleep, lots of awareness. Anyway, Thanks again for structuring such a wonderful program. Please tell Seetharam how much I enjoyed it and how deep my experiences were. I appreciated that you sent out the Solar Eclipse info email. I wouldn’t have thought to make sure to save that time for meditation and listening to the chanting had you not mentioned that this was the traditional & best way to experience the eclipse.
-T”
After six months of private yagyas
July 16, 2009
A while ago I received a very nicely detailed examination of the effects of the yagyas from an individual who had participated in a private yagya every month for six months. This is his summary of the results he experienced, slighted edited for the sake of brevity.
Living and housing situation:
THEN: I was living in a tiny room- more like a cell ! –in a NHS ( government health ) nurses home which was very restrictive for me and rather a bleak and cold place to live as it was in the grounds of a Victorian built hospital.
NOW: I live in a very pleasant East facing house in one the most affluent and pleasant areas of Brighton,sharing the space with owner who run’s Yoga classes for Mothers and Fathers to be.Overall atmosphere very pleasant and positive,gentle, with this fortunate Vashtu direction-there are only a very few streets, about 4 or 5 I think in this area which actually lie in this fortunate and precise North/south direction.It also came to me effortlessly through a lead from my daughter – word of mouth so to speak.It had been a desire of mine to live in a nice home in a good east Vashtu for some years and seemed that this desired got fulfilled effortlessly right towards the end of the 6 month series.
Mind and Spiritual practice:
THEN: I was suffering from clinically diagnosed depression,had been off sick from work for 2 months from the end of june and had been unable to make much spiritual practice due to feeling weak,tired all the time and too despondent to even think about much practice.I had lost a lot of confidence in myself and could not imagine a happy life for myself. I had no sense of belonging to any particular group and felt lost,alone and afraid much of the time.I also suffered from feeling ‘unreal’ or depersonalised in my conciousness.
NOW: Symptoms of depression virtually gone,without any medication,occasional symptoms for few days every 4-6 weeks which are now greatly dissipating.I have now got back into a stronger routine of much more spiritual practice as I had before this time and have developed that a little more with newer ways to build up my inner strength and personal power.I feel I have considerable protection and guidance now.I feel much more grounded and frequently notice clear fortunate synchronicities and nature support in daily life- most every day.
Work:
THEN: I was in a job that I really hated all round that I believed contributed greatly to making me feel bad and undermined in all that I did.
NOW : In November, I transferred to a different job in the same service,after being invited to do so by the manager there. I have a new manager and colleagues who seem very supportive and friendly. I feel my old – and a new-confidence has come into my being.
I have also recently,especially since my recent Yagya’s were held in Varanasi,enjoyed unprecendented spontaneous good luck with incoming work, as an Actor, from people in the business who said ‘they just thought of me ‘ in relation to voiceover work, including: for a local radio station; an animation in an American accent, for an American client ,which I was very proud of doing technically.
I have also recently just acted and directed in a series of short plays for the Brighton fringe festival in May – just completed with good individual reviews for me and my fellow actors.I have also been approached and paid to teach actors individually and in groups,being approached again from their side without any marketing materials or approaches from me.What was especially remarkable for me was the timing of these opportunities following Yagya to Saraswati- which was specific intention to promote this kind of creative work.In addition,there are also other possibilities in the pipeline as a result of these successes.It is interesting to note that I do not have any website or publicity materials in place at the moment- and that all this work is based on ‘good faith’ in my ablilties by those who have met me and seen me perform, in some way, in the past.
Relationships with women:
THEN I was suffering from a lot of anger towards my wife, from whom I had become separated the year before, and had lost a lot of confidence with women in general.I had had no romantic contact with anyone for a long time.
NOW: I am enjoying a very positive and healthy relationship with an attractive woman who is also kind and fun to be with.This began to develop,again towards the end of the 6 month period.
I have also noticed the following reactions on the day of the Yagya performance : -
Sudarshana Chakra : exhausted and depressed on the day of performance,but feeling better the following day- but with good solutions and very good measurable progress being made in the area of mental health in following therapy sessions.My therapy proved to be measurably effective at reducing depressive symptoms in matter of few months at the time of this Yagya –which was done twice for me.
Chandi and Goddess Yagyas : feelings of joy bubbling up and of a very light positive energy being experienced on the day- often I would spontaneously wake up at 4 am ( 9am India time ) on the day feel wide awake,happy and quite hungry !
Lakshmi: woke up at 4am today again. I recited her mantra and asked for help- I had also bought fresh flowers and sweet smelling candles at home on my shrine with new brass statue of Lakshmi I had just bought the day before.Feeling of excitement.
Venus and Saraswati: generally very good feeling of optimism and increasing personal power with very good nature support quickly following these Yagyas, especially in the field of the Arts,creativity,insight into theatrical problems and stories,great improvement in confidence and increase in energy levels. ___________________________________________________________________________________________________________________
I have tried to keep to facts as much as possible and I may have missed a few things,but I hope this is a good summary of my experiences so far which I hope may help all of your good work in this area.
The effects of daily yagyas on spiritual practices
July 13, 2009
“As a spiritual practitioner, I find that participating in the daily yajnas helps provide me with a bit of an added boost: I can’t really explain it, but it creates a certain level of energetic support on the subtle level that helps my sadhana go a little bit easier, with a little bit less effort. I’ve also noticed they tend to smooth out rough edges in my life to a certain extent; things are a little gentler.”
-CF
Wearing away at things
July 7, 2009
During a recent conversation with a long time yagya participant, we discussed her experience with the Foundation Yagyas. These offer 1 day of yagya for each of Ganesha (to remove obstacles), Lakshmi (for abundance), and the Navagraha (for balance).
She had been doing the series through several years of her Saturn dasa (planetary period) and her experience had been that things in her life got incrementally better in ways that were not really noticeable on a day by day or week by week basis.
In comparison, her childhood friend who was born very near the time she was and so had a similar dasa sequence, had a very different experience. Her Saturn dasa really wore her down and she aged considerably over the course of these years of Saturn dasa.
“I feel the yagyas protected me,” said my friend, “I feel younger, stronger, and happier. Certainly in comparison to my friend whose life has otherwise paralleled my own in so many ways.”
Over the years I have come to much the same conclusion, that the really profound effects of yagyas are felt over longer time spans. You may not notice much month to month, but after some time, looking back the trend is different.
I’ve added the photo of milk being poured over the Shiva lingam because this is much the same process. If you do a good puja every day for a year, the results are amazing. But each day…you feel like you a simply pouring milk over a rock.
A feeling of being blessed.
July 6, 2009
<< I came home early from work and did as you suggested… just took it easy and lightly focused on my hoped-for results from the puja. I was with that intermittently for the whole five hours. At the end, around 11:50 PM, I just sent out a lot of gratitude and felt a huge wave of bliss and like I was being blessed. I’ve never been a mood-maker type person; this seemed very real. >>
An interesting experience
July 5, 2009
One of the effects of yagyas is to enliven the inner, more subtle levels of consciousness. By doing this, yagyas become a valuable enhancement to any spiritual practice. And sometimes the experiences are very interesting particularly during the time the yagyas are being performed.;
<< I had gone to bed with that first shallow falling asleep experience. Then woke up a bit as usual before going into full sleep. When I opened my eyes there was a visual field of points of lights in an organized vertical pattern hovering over the other side of my bed above the other pillow that lasted a few minutes. When I put my hand in it it slowly dissipated. I did not get any feeling from it other than that the form was visually beautiful. and benign. It was organized with hundreds of points of light glowing like diamonds in the dark. Any correlation to mrytunjaya yagya? It was very curious and I enjoyed it. One of life’s little mysteries of perception. >>
Family benefits
July 3, 2009
<< My mom forwarded me the note you wrote about the nighttime yagya for my son that took place last weekend. She asked me if I had noticed anything and I thought back and realized that we had an exceptionally nice weekend. Very easy going, mellow, relaxing and nice — which is far from what I sometimes get. A. is such a challenging kid and when he is good — the whole family benefits. And last weekend he was GREAT. Thank you so much for your help. >>
And from the grandmother..
<< A. overall, has improved so dramatically. He was always nothing short of amazing, but just very willful and challenging and difficult and now he is so much more easy going and i think his health is better — just big overall improvements. I do think the build up of all these yagyas has played a big role in his ongoing struggle towards maturity and overall health. I’m happy it will be done again on his birthday. That’s the best gift in the world. >>
The upward curve…
June 29, 2009
From a recent email;
<< I don’t think I can recall ever ‘feeling’ anything during past yagyas. And my meditation practice has never been flashy. But when I look at my life, it has been a constant upward curve in all aspects. The ups, the downs; they all seem to deliver just what I need to progress in a forward manner. >>
Spirituality
“My experience with this yagya period has been amazing. My sleep has been so deep every night and filled with intense dreaming all night long or appears to be all night long. And every night the same thing.
My meditations have been deeper and more active too. Saw a very clear vision of a paragraph of an ancient text during my flying sutra. So clear and vivid. Never experienced a vision so clear before. I have no idea what the text was or meant. I just consider it a gift.”