ESOTERIC MAHABHARATA
Posted by Shanracer (on www.indiadivine.org)
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Namashkar,
Sometime ago I had posted on the Esoteric Ramayan- Mahabharat also has
a esoteric element hidden in it...
It requires some knowledge of Mahabharats story.
Shantnu is the Parabrahm, the Supreme beyond. He has 2 wifes- the 1st
is Ganga who is pure Conciousness Shakti-or the Adi Shakti. This Adi
Shakti has 8 children. 1st 6 are powers of the 3 worlds(Causal, AStral
& Physical)- for both the Universe level & individual level. 7th is
Universal spirit or Kutashta Chaitnya. These 7 children are hidden
from normal people, or " drowned " by Ganga as in the story.
The 8th child is the Universal Ego, or Bhishma. Bhisma is the
reflection of the Universal spirit. He is not to be confused with our
petty egos- the Universal Ego or Bhisma is noble & pure, & has little
interest in our physical world(accordingly, Bhisma renounces his throne).
Satyavati is the 2nd wife of Shantnu, & is the Primodial nature, or
matter.
Her 1st son is Vyas, Pure discriminating intelligence, who is hidden.
Her other 2 sons are Chitragadha or 1st element, who dies early, as
the 1st element in nature(these are Sankhya elements) breaks into its
parts. 2nd is Vichitraviyra, the Divine Ego.
Vichitravirya has 2 wives-Ambika(negative doubt) & Ambalika, positive
power of discrimimation. Vichitravirya dies early, as the Divine ego
cant survive contact with physical matter. So Vyas, or pure
discrimination & conciousness, is brought to sire 2 children. From
Ambika, or doubt, he sires Dhritrashtra, or the blind sense mind,
blind as it lacks power o discrimination. Thru Ambalika is sired
Pandu, or Buddhi, which is power of wisdom & discrimination.
Dhritrashtra, or blind sense mind, marries Gandhari, or power of
desires, & has 100 children- the 10 sense organs * 10 Mahabhuta. Their
chief is Duryodhan, who represents worst qualities of blind mind- ego,
anger , vanity etc.
Vidur- there are several explanations. One is that Vidur is the
equivalent of Mind born sons of Brahma, who help him in running the
world, but cannot directly interfere.
Vidur was pure energy of Vyas(or Pure discrimanting intelligence), as
his mother wasnt afraid of Vyas. So like the mind born sons of Brahma,
he had full wisdom from birth, with which he tried to help others, but
they didnt always listen to him.
Vidur was a pure soul- he was one of only 3 who saw Krishna in his
Viraat form.
Pandu, or Buddhi, marries Kunti(or power of dispassion) & Madri(power
of attachment to dispassion). With them he has 5 children- who are the
5 elements, or 5 Chakras of our body- Yudhistra or Ether
element(Akash)-the Vishudhi Chakra, Bhima or Air element(Pran) -the
Anahat Chakra, Arjun or Fire element(Agni) -the Manipur Chakra, Nakula
or Water element(Ap) -the Swadhistan chakra, & finally, Sahadev -the
Earth element(Prithvi) Muladhar Chakra.
These 5 brothers have 1 wife- Draupadi or Kundalni Shakti. She spends
time with each brother, & has a son with each(the spiriutal powers of
each chakra).
The Pandavs are defeated in the game of dice, which is the game of
Maya or illusion we can never win. They are then kicked out of their
kingdom(or the body) & the evil tendencies then rule. Then have to
wander for 12 years, which is the time many Yogis say it takes a man
to achieve expertise in Sadhna. The 13th year is spent in disguise, or
when the Sadhaks takes Samadhi, & is lost to bliss & outside world.
Then these positive forces return to the bodily kingdom, but the -ve
forces(ego, arrogance, hatred etc) refuse to share even a part of the
kingdom. So with the help of Krishna, the Divine Guru or his
representative, the +ve forces prepare for battle...
he 1st chapter of the Gita describes in detail the enemies facing
each other on the battle field. Most commentators ignore it.
Yogananda, however, shows how each Hero represents some power- Divine
or Demonic that either helps or stops the Sadhak.
1st, the +ve forces that help the Pandus, or the Sadhak:
1. Yuyudhana- He reprsents devotion, or Shraddha, the faith & love of
God, which naturally force man to fight forces of darkness.
2. Uttamjaus or Celibacy- not just from sex, but all outer tendencies
of mind, which force mind to run to outer things.
3. Chekitena- Smriti or spiritual memory- that reminds us of our true
nature of the image of God.
4. Virat or Samadhi- When the Pandavs were exiled for 13 years, the
condition was they must spend the last year in hiding. They spent that
in King Virats kngdom. Virat represents Samadhi, where the devotee
merges his conciousness into the Divine, & draw spiritual strength.
Note that the Gita doesnt say Samadhi is the final step- the devotee
then has to return & fight negative forces with the help of this
Spiritual Energy.
5. Kashiraj- Pragya or Discriminative Intelligence. Pragya allows the
Sadhak to discriminate between real knowledge, & the traps of the ego.
Its not mere intellectual knowledge, but a Divine Intelligence that
guides the Sadhak.
6. Drupada-Extreme Dispassion- This is not a negative disinterest in
life, but means such an complete devotion to reaching God that all
other goals seem weak in contrast.
As I said in last post, Draupadi is the Kundalni Shakti- she is also
daughter of Drupada. That means Kundalni is only " born " when the
Sadhak achieves an highly Detached(to material things) state.
The next allies represent the limbs of Yoga(as described in Yoga Sutra):
7. Dhrustaketu- Yama- Power of Mental resistance
8. Shaibya- Niyam- Power of positive Mental discipline
9. Kuntibhoj- Asana- Or Posture. Kunti was the Mother of the Panadavs.
She had the power to invoke the Gods, which was how the Pandavs were
born. Kunti represents the devotees power to call for Higher
spiritual power to aid his mission.
As Kuntibhoj " adopted " Kunti, in the same way Asana helps the Sadhak
in calling for Divine help with the help of Pranayam, for which
correct posture is necessary.
10. Yudhamanyu- Pranayam.
11. Purujit -Pratyahar
12. Abhimanyu, or Self Mastery -Abhinanyu, the bravest warrior,
represents the last 3 steps of Yoga- Dharna, Dhyana & Samadhi, which
enable the Sadhak to become a Master of Himself.
13. Sons of Draupadi- These are the awakened Chakras, & the powers
associated with them. The Gita doesnt say(like many Gurus) that these
powers should be ignored; rather they should become soldiers that help
the Sadhak in his battle with darkness.
The enemies of the Pandavs as descibred in the 1st chapter of the Gita
are:
1. Kripa – Avidya, or delusion. Kripa is the Guru of Kauravs, & one of
their main warriors. Avidya forces man to think he is different from
God. At the end of Mahabharat, Kripa survives, & makes peace with
the Pandavs. This shows Avidya can never completely vanish, as then
the manifested world would go back to the Spirit.
2. Bhishma- Ego. Bhisma is one of the most interesting characters of
Mahabharat. He was a Deva, & spiritually advanced enough to see
Krishna in his real form, yet he took side of Kauravs.
Bhishma advised Duryodhan against the war- as the Ego is the Grandsire
of both good & bad qualities/habits of man, & loves them equally.
Bhishma or the Ego takes the side of the lower mind when it becomes
powerful(Duryodhan), but soon tires of his evil ways, & feels sympathy
for his good qualities(Pandavs).
But Bhishma cant be defeated- which shows the Ego cant be defeated
without its cooperation. In the Mahabharat Bhishma tells the Pandavs
the secret how to kill him.
Even then Bhishma doesnt die, as he immortal. He says he will stay
alive till the sun reaches the North in heavens. Later on in the Gita
Krishna says the same thing- people who die when sun is in
North(winter) get Moksha, which has led to a lot of stupid attempts to
die during winter!
The hidden meaning is that Ego is rendered powerless by Samadhi, it
doesnt go completely till the Sun of Inner Conciousness reaches the
Highest point(North) in the body- or the Sahasra Chakra in the Head.
3. Dronacharya- Habit or inner tendency, or Sanskars. Sanskars are the
impressions made on the Chit, which continuously come up & force us to
do things by habit- Sanskars are collected over many lifetimes. Drona
was the Guru of both Pandavs & Kauravs, as we have both good & bad
Sanskars(good Sanskaars can be habit of meditating regularly). But
since our negative Sanskars are more numerous & powerful, they become
our enemy rather than friend.
Drona was the mortal enemy of Drupada, who represents extreme
dispassion. Our dispassion makes us ignore our Sanskars, as we lose
interst in results of Karma. Dron is finally killed by Drupadas son( &
Draupadis brother)- who cuts of Drons head- meaning all Sanskars are
destroyed by the energy born of dispassion.
4. Ashvathama- Latent desires- These are our hidden desires- for sex,
money, power etc. At the end of Mahabharta, Ashvathama survives, but
is rendered powerless & cursed to roam Earth forever. This shows our
desires never die, but are rendered helpless, & no longer affect the soul.
5. Karna -Raga or attachment
6. Vikarna- Repulsion or Dvesha
7. Jayadrath- or Body attachment, & fear of death
8. Bhruishrav or Karma with egoistic desire
Duryodhan & his brothers:
As I said, Duryodhan is the 1st son of Dhritrashtra or blind sense
mind, & represents all the bad qualities of it, like anger, ego greed
envy etc. His brother represents various other -ve qualties mentioned
in Vedas:
9. Kama or Lust or desire- Duryodhan is the himself his quality, as he
refused to share even a millimetre of land with Pandavs due to his
lust for power.
10. Krodha or Anger- Dushansan
11. Lobha or greed- Karna & Vikarna represent this
12. Moha or deluded attachment- Shakuni represents Moha. Our
attachment blinds us, & confuses us with Maya. In the Mahabharat,
Shakuni tricked the Pandavs by cheating in a dice game. The dice game
here is the game of the material world, with its temptations & lures.
By falling prey to these temptations, the Soul is " banished " from it
kingdom of the body, as the Pandavs were.
13. Mada or pride- Represented by Shalya, who was related to the
Pandavs, but joined the Kauravs when Duryodhan flattered his ego &
offered him money. Mada also means insanity, which is what our pride
makes us. He is killed by Nakul/Sahadev, who were his nephews, &
represent power of Yama/Niyama.
14. Matsarya or envy- Represented by Kritvarma, who was related to
Krishna, but went against because of envy.
As we can see, the enemies are numerous, which makes the task of
Sadhak very hard. But the Sadhak has Sri Krishna, the Divine Guru, the
Hidden Spirit. About him we need no introduction.
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ESOTERIC RAMAYANA Version 1
(text begins)
Long time ago, I also posted this message on the hidden Tantric
meanings of Ramayan(it assumes knoweldge of Kundalni & Chakras):
The hero of Ramayan is Ram, which is also mantra for Manipura
chakra, that defines our personality. He is a pure Satoguni. His wife,
Sita is the Kundalini. She is kidnapped by Ravan, the lower sensory
Ego,and held across the sea-The Swadhistan Chakra is for the element
of water.
Ram need the help of Lakshman. In Sanskrit, Laskshye is one pointed
concentration. So to raise Kundalini, we need to be Satoguni, and must
have complete dedication.
But this isnt enough- they also need someone else, very strong, to
fight demons and clear the way for them. That is Hanuman, who is the
son of Vayu(air). In Upanishads, vayu is also used for Pran(life
force). So Hanuman is the God of Pran. This also makes sense since in
the Upanishads also Pran is the one who fights and destroys the
demons.
Together, these 3 go across the sea(water element of Swadhitan
chakra). To cross the sea they need to build a bridge with stones who
have Ram written on it. So to raise Kundalini, we need pure bakti,
just doing Kundalini or Kriya Yoga isnt enough.
They defeat Ravana, and bring back Sita. Sita hs to give Agni
pariksha, means you have to show your inner fire(agni) is pure, ie you
have complete faith in God. If you dont, you will burn in the fire of
Kundalini.
Once they pass the test, Ram and Sita fly back. Air is the element of
Anahat, or heart chakra. This also signifies that your path becomes a
bit easier after you pass Agni pariksha.
How many people read the Ramayan without knowing the hidden meanings?
Thats why I said, our scriptures are pregnant with hidden meaning, if
you are smart and brave enough to look for them.
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ESOTERIC RAMAYANA Version 2
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Dear Thimmappaji,
Your mail reminds of something.....sometime back I was searching Google to look
for versions of ESOTERIC RAMAYAN....and thats how I happen to discover this
group :-)
Since the topic of ESOTERIC understanding has surfaced, am sharing some
reflections......
" These are thoughts evoked long back after reading Dr.Svoboda's books (Aghora
Series)...
RAMAYAN means RAM=ATMAN (Soul) & AYAN=CYCLE (Journey)... " JOURNEY OF THE SOUL "
There are several characters in this Mythology and they symbolize, as under:
RAM=Atma Shakti / The Power of Soul
BHARAT=Deh Shakti / The Power of Body
LAKSHMAN=Manah Shakti / The Power of Will
SHATRUGHNA=Karma Shakti / The Power of Action
DASHRATH=Mind (Dash means Ten; Rath means Chariot...Mind is like a Chariot with
Ten Horses)
These 10 Horses are our external & internal senses...Eyes, Nose, Ears, Tongue &
Skin...i.e., 5 Karmendriyas and 5 Gyanendriyas.
KAUSHALYA=Satva Guna
KAIKEYI=Tamo Guna
SUMITRA=Rajo Guna
Simple fact, Dashrath (the mind) under the influence of Kaikeyi (tamo guna)
disregards his duties towards Ram (the atma/soul) and offers undue favours to
Bharat (the body) ...something we all are doing 'all the time' :-)
As a result, poor Ram has been sent in exile along with his wife SITA (who
ofcourse is The Kundalini Shakti )
Also, he faces his worst plight when Sita is abducted by Ravana (the ego). The
Ego (Ravana) is supported by various warriors who are extremely powerful. One
among them is Ravana's son...Meg-nad (literally means, The Sound of Clouds).
Its not difficult to understand that our ever agitating Mind is clouded
with the commotion of " Thoughts " ...which never ever allows us to let
rest into the deeper solitude of Inner Self. Meg-nad (The Sound of
Clouds/Thoughts) who is the son of Ravana (the Ego) is too powerful to overcome.
BUT !!!
BUT !!! Noone has ever been able to Stop the Power of the Soul (Ram). Ram seeks
help from LAKSHMAN (Laksh means Goal; Man means Mind...Focused or Concentrated
Mind)
&
THE HANUMAN (who is Son of The Wind God)...its thru the Wind that Life Force
(Pran Shakti) flows within Us. The whole Monkey Army is nothing but, various
forces of the Life Force transmitting Air (Pran Vayu).
Thus, with the help from HANUMAN (Pran Shakti) and LAKSHMAN (Concentrated Mind),
RAM (Atma) defeats RAVANA (Ego) in order to come in union with SITA (Kundalini
Shakti)......What a Beautiful Story !!!
Isn't Ramayana after all, " JOURNEY OF THE SOUL " ???
Now, this is in the lighter side with some new characters:
SUGRIVA = Su means Good + Griva means Throat = A Throat that is
energized/cleansed thru Yoga/Pranayam. Needless to say, SUGRIVA being the King
of Vanaras supplies Hanumana (Pran) as well as the whole Vanar Sena
(Pran Vayu) to assist RAM is his endeavours to free SITA (The Kundalini
Shakti) from RAVANA. An even, not so regular practitioner of Pranayam
can experience this phenomenon.
SHURPANAKHA :-) ..............well, this is getting funnier :-D
We
all know that the very seed of the RAM & RAVANA feud started with
the incident of SHURPANAKHA's nose getting slain by LAKHMAN. It is the
very beginning of the tale that finally makes Ramayana - The Story.
Esoterically, it refers to the 'time' when first of the endeavours of a
this wandering soul to reach back to its kingdom starts - The Neophyte.
In Ramayana also, 13 years of exile had passed.....just after a year
RAMA will be throned back to his kingdom. So, the EGO (Ravana) has to
play its final game in an attempt to not let it happen. Thus, the first
move is taken by Ego's Sister - SHURPANAKHA :-) Shall we explore the
meaning??? SHURPA-NAKHA means Big/Large Nails. And what do we do with
our nails??? No marks for guessing that, we scratch ofcourse :-P
The moment this neophyte Sadhak sits for " Meditation " or " Jap Mala " and tries to
Concentrate 'The Mind'.....Remember? Lakha-Man = Ekagrachitta Man
(Concentrated/Focussed Mind)...there comes the marriage proposal from
Shurpanakha :-)) One feels scratchy here and there :-D))))))))))))
So
next time we feel scratchy while Meditating or Japa, lets not take the
Surpanakha (Nails) to get married to Lakshman :-)
Control...Observe...Get Over...lets slay her nose and drive her out
!!!! :-)
Ofcourse get ready for Marich (The Golden Deer) to come next ;-D
Pranams _/\_,
Anupam
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