Namaste Friends,
August 12-17, we will be at Far Horizons in California. The workshop is Samadhi, Enlightenment and the Gayatri Mantra. On Saturday evening, we will do a
Sudarshana Chakra Yajna, which is rare to find and very powerful.
In September, I will be in Charleston, SC; Keene, NH, and at Kripalu in Western Massachusetts.
Hope you are all having a good summer and staying cool.
Prem,
Namadeva
|
|
KRISHNA, The Eighth Avatar of Vishnu
Krishna
is usually described as the most complete of the ten Avatars of
Vishnu. This means that this entity carried more of the energy of
Vishnu than any of the other very powerful beings which were also
Avatars of Vishnu.
As with Rama and Narasimha, there is a great mystery surrounding his
appearance. Because his birth was foretold in conjunction with the
destruction of an evil king (similar to Herod in the New Testament.) The mother-to-be was subjected to the destruction of all of her
children at birth. Finally, when Krishna appeared he was swapped
with another baby, his cousin, at birth. His cousin lived because she
was a girl child and, therefore, no threat according to the prediction.
The Krishna Avatar appeared approximately 5,000 years ago. When he
was an adult and took up his spiritual work full time, he admonished
all: "Do not try to copy me. Do not try to imitate me." He all but
told everyone that he was not human in the sense that they were.
Krishna demonstrated an overpowering attraction of women. It is
reported that 16,108 women fell in love with him. Some mystical
teachers maintain that the love was not physical but that the libido
was transformed into Divine Love. Others maintain that the love was
physical, with the same end result: Divine Love.
The roots of his involvement with so many women lie in the
incarnation of Rama. When that Avatar was in the forest for 14 years,
he came across many saints and sages who had taken refuge there from
the forces of the demonic Ravana and Kumbarnaka. When they encountered
Rama, they were astounded to observe that their love for him included
a physical attraction. Rama, observing this, stated that in this
incarnation he was the faithful husband and could not fulfill their
desires. However in his next incarnation, they could all enjoy a
physical embrace with him. Thus this story, which supports the act of
physical love by Krishna, postulates that the sages were reborn as
women who came to enjoy their final physical desire before
experiencing true Divine Love, which would lead them unerringly to
final liberation.
Those who deny this interpretation maintain that Krishna was capable
of imparting bliss far superior to physical love and therefore merely
took the women directly to the realm of Divine Love.
Krishna's consort is Lakshmi, in the form of his first Queen, Rukmini, who is his
power. However, another portion of her shakti is Radha, the shakti of
bliss, called Hladini Shakti.
|
|
|
August Mantras of the Month Om Klim Shri Krishna Paramatmane Namaha
Om is the prefix, seed sound of the Ajna Chakra.
Klim is the principle of attraction, Shri is Lakshmi, Paramatmane is
the Supreme Soul of which we are all a part. Namaha means In invoke
through the process of invocation.
Om Namo Bhagavate Vasudevaya
This
is one of the most famous and classical of Narayana mantras that also
applies to Krishna. It is called the 12-syllabled mantra, that
activates the positive and negative poles of the chakras, speeding
personal evolution. Vasudeva is the all-pervading consciousness aspect
of God. It also implies the Atman residing in the Hrit Padma (Sacred
Heart) of us all. It is a liberation mantra.
It is also the mantra to chant for a divine child, especially while pregnant and to the newborn.
Om
Radha Krishnaya Namaya
Since
Radha is Hladini Shakti, this mantra opens and empowers a channel for
the shakti to enter the Hrit Padma, activating that bliss, achieving
which, one wants nothing else.
|
|
The Ancient Power of Sanskrit Mantra and Ceremony Recordings 
The Ancient Power of Sanskirt Mantra and Ceremony, 2nd. Ed., is now being revised to simplify pronunciation.
As promised some time ago, Namadeva is recording all of the volumes to be sold in CD sets of 10 or more CDs.
Volume I will be for sale at our online store in August 2008. Volume II will be ready by the end of the year and Volume III in early 2009. |
|
The works of Thomas Ashley-Farrand (Namadeva) give unprecedented, detailed instruction in how to empower yourself using the techniques of the ancient sages and rishis. He and Satyabhama have been given the mission by their Gurus Sadguru Sant Keshavadas and Guru Rama Mata to bring these teachings to everyone.
To that end, he has written and recorded a number of works, and he travels to North America and the UK to teach workshops. Bi-annually they lead a Pilgrimage Tour of India's Holy Places, visiting with the Shankaracharayas at Kanchi Math, Guru Mata at Vishwa Shanti Ashram, and doing fire ceremonies in the Himalayas, among the highlights of the trip.
They have founded a religious organization, Sanatana Dharma Satsang, which has opened a Gayatri Temple in Beaverton, Oregon. Plans are in the works to found temples with residential communities in Oregon, New Mexico, and other locations. The link to it is in the right column.
These works are offered in a spirit of service. We sincerely hope that they will further you on your path.
|
|
Prem & Shanti,
Satyabhama (Margalo Ashley-Farrand)
Saraswati Publications, LLC |
|
|
|
|
|
2008 Schedule of Workshops
We will be doing workshops in the following places in 2008:
August - CA: Far Horizons Camp, Sierra Mountains (near Fresno)
September - Charleston, SC; Keene, NH; Kripalu, MA
October - IL: Arlington Hts, Highland Park, Chicago; CA: Los Angeles; CANADA: BC, Calgary (10/31)
November - CANADA: Calgary, Red Deer.
December - Bangalore, India
India Pilgrimage - May 2009
Please see our schedule for details and updates:
http://sanskritmantra.com/schedule.shtml |
Vijaya Vittala
at Vishwa Shanti Ashram
Bangalore
|
|
