Category Archives: Vedic

The Maaya of Maya

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1e by Masbt

On this blog, I’ve been arguing that the Sanskrit “maya” comes from the root “to build” and means creation, not illusion. We may see the world as an illusion at a certain stage but the reality is deeper than this. It turns out we have lost some detail in transliteration from the larger Sanskrit alphabet to English. There’s three different words in play: maya, maaya, and maayaa (aa meaning long A). Maya means “made of”, from the root “to build.” We see this in words like annamaya kosha, the “body made of food” or physical body and in the name … Continue Reading… →

More on Death

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Death Valley by Peretz Partensky

Over the years, I’ve written surprisingly often about death. This is because there is a lot of fear and misunderstanding around the topic. Yet we’ve all been there before. Recently a good friend sent me a site on the Vedic approach to death. I wasn’t born into the culture in this life so I don’t follow the rituals much. However, there are useful points we can draw from that understanding to support ourselves and others through this process. Settled Space It’s useful to create a settled environment for the dying. Prayers and meditation are more supportive than expressions of grief. … Continue Reading… →

Lokas and Patalas

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Kapaleeshwarar Temple by Vinoth Chandar

I’ve previously talked a little about lokas, mainly for the 2 versions of the Gayatri mantra. One describes a 3-worlds model of physical, subtle, and Divine. The other, a more detailed 7-worlds model with the physical, 3 progressively more subtle layers, and 3 heavens. Same arena divided in more detail. How many colours in a rainbow? Loka means place or world. The Vedas define lokas ranging from the physical world up into various heavens in the celestial realm. Essentially lokas are a type of nested sub-space. Just as the described koshas often stop with the causal, heavens are not usually … Continue Reading… →

The Yog Vasishtha

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a cloud

As most readers know, I started my path through Maharishi Mahesh Yogi. He’s had a strong influence on my perspective as he brought great clarity to ancient philosophy and enlightenment. Maharishi spent a great deal of time translating the Bhagavad Gita and the Brahma Sutra in the 60s and early 70s (they have not published most of it). But it turns out much of Maharishi’s later programs came out of the Yog Vasishtha. The Yog Vasishtha is an ancient text describing the teachings of the sage Vasishtha to prince Rama. It is the core text of the Ramayana, the story … Continue Reading… →

Curving Back

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mind spiral

I’ve talked regularly of how consciousness curves back on itself, becomes self-aware, and expresses. In my talk at this years Science and Nonduality Conference, I spoke of how the layers of expression unfold from that self-interacting consciousness. But there’s another detail I also (awkwardly) touched on there.  Consciousness folds back on itself over and over. That flow of consciousness curving back on itself continues, and it folds back on itself over and over. Each folding creates a smaller and smaller infinity and density until qualities of consciousness manifest. – On the level of the bliss body, Space manifests and vibration … Continue Reading… →

The Saptarishi or Seven Seers

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lights

The Rig Veda, the oldest existent text, is composed primarily of the cognitions of a small group of rishis or seers. 10 families of rishis account for 95% of the verses in the 10 mandalas or books.   There are 7 key rishis known as the Saptarishi, said to incarnate after the universe is reborn to restore the cognitions in consciousness and thus awaken that knowledge in the collective. They are Brahmarishi – knowers of Brahman. Ancient India named the 7 stars of the Big Dipper constellation after them. However, some understanding about them seems lost. For example, I’ve noticed … Continue Reading… →

To Retire

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nautilus shell

There is a word in the Rig Veda, Nivartadhvam. It means to “twist within” or return or retire.   We retire from the world through samadhi or transcendence. Then we return to the world by retiring from transcendence. This is like the analogy of dying the cloth. To dye a fabric the old way, it was dipped in the dye to soak, then hung up in the sun to bleach. That cycle was repeated until the colour was fast. Too much time in the dye (practices) and the fabric will rot. Too much time in the sun (activity) and the … Continue Reading… →

The Apaurusheya Bhashya

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ADSR

One of Maharishi Mahesh Yogi’s gifts to the world was a simple technique to go beyond the mind and transcend. This is pure Yoga. Another great gift was of understanding. He brought a vision to the ancient texts that shed immense light on their deeper meanings. One aspect of the second was his early ’80’s cognition of the uncreated commentary of the Rig Veda. He found that the layout of the text also described the text. The structure was a commentary on itself and on the dynamics of creation. He called this The Apaurusheya Bhashya. Apaurusheya means “not of a … Continue Reading… →

Inherent Intelligence

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sugar magnolia

When we talk about origins, it’s important to recognize the intelligence embedded in the process of all experience and expression. Pure Divinity seeps into everything. For example, in the origins of consciousness, when liveliness stirs alertness, it doesn’t just agitate it. Alertness becomes awareness which becomes self-referencing and reflective. This is the foundation of all experience. Similarly, within the dynamics of consciousness, there would be no devata value or process of experience and no recognition if there were not inherent intelligence. On a more personal level, we can see the dynamics of our own intelligence. When we’re agitated, our forebrain … Continue Reading… →

The Mahamarmas

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lamps in boxwood

I’ve spoken many times about the body’s energy system. I’m not an expert but there are worthwhile observations to make. A set of 7 universal chakras or energy wheels is inserted into the bliss body and serves as a scaffolding for building life-forms. The chakras are progressively more expressed up into the energy body of specific forms. Sub-chakras are also found at various key points. Interconnecting the various chakras are energy tubes known as nadis. The larger chakras also have a spiky array of terminated nadis called chakra databanks that express the emphasis of laws of nature (devata) in that … Continue Reading… →

The Bull of Dharma

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road in light

I’ve spoken before about dharma in the 4 areas of life. Also that dharma means that which sustains. In other words, dharma is actions (karma) in life that sustain it and the world in which we’re unfolding. I’ve also seen dharma described as 3 levels: Universal (Rishi), Vocational (Devata), and Personal (Chhandas) where rishi, devata, and chhandas are the 3 aspects of consciousness: knower, knowing, and known. This is like the 4 areas of life but leaves out time-of-life and shifts caste more into vocation. Dharma can also be framed as that which supports the degree of consciousness being expressed. … Continue Reading… →

The Brahmasthan

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Neutron Star 2004

The brahmasthan is a term from the Vastu Shastra or Sthapatya Veda, the guidelines for Vedic architecture. Vastu recognizes that a properly designed building will amplify the presence of the building and support its occupants. “The brahmasthan is a special central zone in a building. It is free from any obstructions in the form of a wall, pillar or beam, furniture or fixtures and is often well lit from above, by skylights for instance.” It is the silent center of a space. Every space has a center as I’ve illustrated here before. We can think of the brahmasthan as the … Continue Reading… →