I wrote in an earlier post, my current, provisional, work in progress (possibly nonsense) theory that...
'Ashtanga has to hurt (not bone crunching tendon tearing hurt), it has to cost you something'
or at least appear to until we know better.
...whether it's a sacrifice of time, sweat, breath or a Buescher Super 400 Alto Saxophone.
The practice is perhaps an act of dedication, devotion, commitment, sacrifice, one or more or all of those or whatever others you can come up with along the same lines.
It's a tough practice, hard (but not impossible) to build a social life around it, often hard to get on the mat, hard in winter, hard in summer. Hard to get through a whole practice sometimes, frustrating, irritating, occasionally tedious.....
and at other times, many other times just beautiful.
Perhaps what it costs us (even though it gives so much in return) is one reason it has such an effect, that it has that something extra, that it's more than the sum of it's tatvas.
And of course it's bad form to mention or even reflect too long about the cost (except that it's an excuse to share pretty sax pics)
So here's Manju's Sax, my beautiful, classic, Buescher super 400 that I have to let go to enable me to go to his workshop in August.
Ramaswami's was The Martin Tenor.
And I was OK about letting it go before I took it out of it's case to take these photo's for ebay, looks beautiful on the Santorini manduka doesn't it? It's unique too, they put the keys on the back of the bell, quite marvellous.
What the heck.
Nice thing about being a Saxophone repairer is that they all turn up on my bench sooner or later and I get to give them a blow.
Saxophones are inextricably linked to my practice it seems. I had seven vintage saxophone stolen from under my bed six, seven years ago( got five back). It was to overcome the anger about that that I took up Yoga.
Taittiriya Upanishad SIKSHA VALLI
Nice coincidence this afternoon. .....
I was playing around with one of Manju's Shanti Mantra tracks, adding a space between each line of the mantra for me to repeat, I've been working at learning it over the last couple of days.
 |
| the mantra is down below in red |
Anyway I saw that Ramaswami had just posted something on Taittiriya Upanishad
Ramaswami Srivatsa
It was early days. I was chanting the Taittiriya upanishad with my Guru. It was the last paragraph of the Siksha valli chapter—the commencement/convocation/
Incidentally the name of the printing press was “Patanjali & Co”
-------------------------
It was early days. I was chanting the Taittiriya upanishad with my Guru. It was the last paragraph of the Siksha valli chapter—the commencement/convocation/
Incidentally the name of the printing press was “Patanjali & Co”
-------------------------
Haven't looked at the Taittiriya Upanishad for a while so found a version buried away on my ibooks and it turns out that the shanti mantra I've been trying to learn is right there at the beginning. Here it is with a nice explanation.
Taittiriya Upanishad: Petal 2 T.N.Sethumadhavan
CHAPTER 1 – SIKSHA VALLI SECTION 1 – SHANTI PATHA – INVOCATION
MANTRA 1
aum sham no mitrah sham varunah . sham no bhavatvaryama . sham na indro brihaspatih . sham no vishnururukramah .
namo brahmane . namaste vayo . tvameva pratyaxam brahmasi . tvameva pratyaxam brahma vadishyami . ritam vadishyami . satyam vadishyami . tanmamavatu . tadvaktaramavatu .
avatu mam.h . avatu vaktaram.h .
aum shantih shantih shantih .. 1..
iti prathamo.anuvakah ..
Harih Om
May Mitra be propitious unto us! May Varuna be propitious unto us! May Aryaman be propitious unto us! May Indra and Brihaspati be propitious unto us!
May Vishnu, of wide strides, be propitious unto us!
Salutation to Brahman! Salutation to Thee, O Vayu! Thou indeed art the visible Brahman. Thee indeed I shall proclaim as the visible Brahman. Thee indeed, O Vayu, I shall proclaim as the right (ritam). Thee indeed I shall proclaim as the true (satyam). May It protect me! May It protect the teacher! May It protect me! May It protect the teacher!
Om. Peace! Peace! Peace!
This is a prayer to various deities as we begin to embark upon a grueling journey of the study of Vedanta which at the same time is the most covetable undertaking. So we need the blessings, support and good wishes of all the deities. The word ‘sam’ in Sanskrit means propitious, be kind, be helpful.
CHAPTER 1 – SIKSHA VALLI SECTION 1 – SHANTI PATHA – INVOCATION
MANTRA 1
aum sham no mitrah sham varunah . sham no bhavatvaryama . sham na indro brihaspatih . sham no vishnururukramah .
namo brahmane . namaste vayo . tvameva pratyaxam brahmasi . tvameva pratyaxam brahma vadishyami . ritam vadishyami . satyam vadishyami . tanmamavatu . tadvaktaramavatu .
avatu mam.h . avatu vaktaram.h .
aum shantih shantih shantih .. 1..
iti prathamo.anuvakah ..
Harih Om
May Mitra be propitious unto us! May Varuna be propitious unto us! May Aryaman be propitious unto us! May Indra and Brihaspati be propitious unto us!
May Vishnu, of wide strides, be propitious unto us!
Salutation to Brahman! Salutation to Thee, O Vayu! Thou indeed art the visible Brahman. Thee indeed I shall proclaim as the visible Brahman. Thee indeed, O Vayu, I shall proclaim as the right (ritam). Thee indeed I shall proclaim as the true (satyam). May It protect me! May It protect the teacher! May It protect me! May It protect the teacher!
Om. Peace! Peace! Peace!
This is a prayer to various deities as we begin to embark upon a grueling journey of the study of Vedanta which at the same time is the most covetable undertaking. So we need the blessings, support and good wishes of all the deities. The word ‘sam’ in Sanskrit means propitious, be kind, be helpful.
The deities to whom the prayers offered are:
Mitra – The deity identified with the prana and the day; the deity controlling the sun.
Varuna – The deity identified with apana, the downward breath and the night.
Aryaman – The deity identified with the eye and the solar orb.
Indra – The deity identified with strength.
Brihaspati – The deity identified with speech and intellect.
Vishnu – The deity who pervades the universe and is identified with the feet.
Praise and salutations are offered to Vayu (air) by the student seeking knowledge of Brahman so that obstacles to the attainment of such knowledge may be removed. All actions and their fruits are under the control of Vayu who is identified with prana. Here Vayu is addressed as Brahman. He is referred to as the visible because of his being direct, immediate, nearer than the sense organs and he can be felt.
Addressing Vayu, the student says ‘ ritam vadishyami, satyam vadishyami’ –‘I will call you the moral order, I will call you the truth’ because no society can flourish without moral order and the rule by truth.
He then prays for his own protection and that of the teacher also as both the teacher and the taught should be mentally and physically fit for attaining the spiritual goal. If the student is dull he cannot learn and if the teacher is dull he cannot teach.
The word ‘shanti’ is uttered thrice in order to ward off the obstacles emanating from one’s own self, from the other living beings and from the natural forces.
Thus the first section of the Upanishad opens with a set of invocation Mantras which together constitute Isvara Upasana which is a necessary prerequisite for gaining antah karana shuddhi, purity of mind and intellect for becoming fit for gaining spiritual wisdom and ultimately moksha - total fulfillment in life. It is an invocation to certain deities to remove the obstacles to acquire spiritual wisdom.
End of Section 1 - Chapter 1
--------------
And another thing. Ever wondered about that bit in the Krishnamacharya legend, where he is told by his teacher up in the Himalayas to go off and get married and become a householder. Always seems a little strange to me having just spent all those years learning yoga. But here it is in the Upanishad
SECTION 11 - EXHORTATION TO THE DEPARTING STUDENTS
vedamanuchyacharyontevasinamanushasti .
satyam vada . dharmam chara . svadhyayanma pramadah . acharyaya priyam dhanamahritya prajatantum ma vyavachchetsih . satyanna pramaditavyam.h . dharmanna pramaditavyam.h . kushalanna pramaditavyam.h . bhutyai na pramaditavyam.h . svadhyayapravachanabhyam na pramaditavyam.h .. 1..
Having taught the Vedas, the teacher thus instructs the pupil: Speak the truth. Practise dharma. Do not neglect the study of the Vedas. Having brought to the teacher the gift desired by him, enter the householder's life and see that the line of progeny is not cut off. Do not swerve from the truth. Do not swerve from dharma. Do not neglect personal welfare. Do not neglect prosperity. Do not neglect the study and teaching of the Vedas.
vedamanuchyacharyontevasinamanushasti .
satyam vada . dharmam chara . svadhyayanma pramadah . acharyaya priyam dhanamahritya prajatantum ma vyavachchetsih . satyanna pramaditavyam.h . dharmanna pramaditavyam.h . kushalanna pramaditavyam.h . bhutyai na pramaditavyam.h . svadhyayapravachanabhyam na pramaditavyam.h .. 1..
Having taught the Vedas, the teacher thus instructs the pupil: Speak the truth. Practise dharma. Do not neglect the study of the Vedas. Having brought to the teacher the gift desired by him, enter the householder's life and see that the line of progeny is not cut off. Do not swerve from the truth. Do not swerve from dharma. Do not neglect personal welfare. Do not neglect prosperity. Do not neglect the study and teaching of the Vedas.
devapitrikaryabhyam na pramaditavyam.h . matridevo bhava . pitridevo bhava . acharyadevo bhava . atithidevo bhava . yanyanavadyani karmani . tani sevitavyani . no itarani . yanyasmaka{\m+} sucharitani .
tani tvayopasyani .. 2..
Do not neglect your duties to the gods and the Manes. Treat your mother as God. Treat your father as God. Treat your teacher as God. Treat your guest as God. Whatever deeds are faultless, these are to be performed-not others. Whatever good works have been performed by us, those should be performed by you-not others.
no itarani . ye ke charumachchreya{\m+}so brahmanah .
tesham tvaya.a.asanena prashvasitavyam.h . shraddhaya deyam.h . ashraddhaya.adeyam.h . shriya deyam.h . hriya deyam.h . bhiya deyam.h . sa.nvida deyam.h .
atha yadi te karmavichikitsa va vrittavichikitsa va syat.h .. 3..
Those brahmins who are superior to us-you should comfort them by giving them seats. Whatever is to be given should be given with faith, not without faith-according to one’s plenty, with modesty, with fear, with sympathy.
ye tatra brahmanah sammarshinah . yukta ayuktah .
aluxa dharmakamah syuh . yatha te tatra varteran.h .
tatha tatra vartethah . athabhyakhyateshu .
ye tatra brahmanah sammarshinah . yukta ayuktah .
aluxa dharmakamah syuh . yatha te teshu varteran.h .
tatha teshu vartethah . esha adeshah . esha upadeshah .
esha vedopanishat.h . etadanushasanam.h . evamupasitavyam.h . evamu chaitadupasyam.h .. 4..
Now, if there arises in your mind any doubt concerning any act, or any doubt concerning conduct, you should conduct yourself in such matters as brahmins would conduct themselves-brahmins who are competent to judge, who of their own accord are devoted to good deed and are not urged to their performance by others and who are not too severe, but are lovers of dharma. Now, with regards to persons spoken against, you should conduct yourself in such a way as brahmins would conduct themselves-brahmins who are competent to judge, who of their own accord are devoted to good deeds and are not urged to their performance by others and who are not too severe, but are lovers of dharma. This is the rule. This is the teaching. This is the secret wisdom of the Vedas. This is the command of God. This you should observe. This alone should be observed.
All the above four mantras are taken up together for their study. At the teacher’s house the student obtains the theoretical knowledge of the Vedas. He has not yet attained oneness with Brahman, which is the goal of achieving the Vedic wisdom. Prior to this attainment he must fulfill his human aspirations that is possible only through performance of his duties. Neglect of duties accumulates sin. The performance purifies the heart and ultimately leads to the Highest Good. Thus, prior to the attainment of the knowledge, it is necessary to discharge one’s duties and obligations. Once self-knowledge is attained, human aspirations reach their fulfillment and thereafter he is free from all worldly duties.
Thus we have seen in this First chapter entitled ‘Siksha valli’, the teacher first instructed the student in the Vedic texts and then gave him the above exhortations regarding conduct of life. The students are supposed to enquire into the nature of their duties, dharma, to be performed by them.
These exhortations can be grouped under seven headings as under.
The next chapter entitled ‘Brahmananda valli’ will give instructions about the attributeless Brahman (Nirguna Brahman).
ityekadasha.anuvakah ..
End of Section 11 - Chapter 1
Thus we have seen in this First chapter entitled ‘Siksha valli’, the teacher first instructed the student in the Vedic texts and then gave him the above exhortations regarding conduct of life. The students are supposed to enquire into the nature of their duties, dharma, to be performed by them.
These exhortations can be grouped under seven headings as under.
- Advices ruling one’s own mode of living with reference to the society and oneself.
- Regulating one’s relationship with the last generation and the present elders.
- Relationship between oneself and the teachers.
- One’s attitude towards the learned and the wise in the society.
- Charity and the laws of giving.
- Remedy for doubts regarding one’s duty and conduct in life.
- Doubts regarding one’s relationship with others falsely accused in the world.
The next chapter entitled ‘Brahmananda valli’ will give instructions about the attributeless Brahman (Nirguna Brahman).
ityekadasha.anuvakah ..
End of Section 11 - Chapter 1
-------------------