Speech of HH Sri Ganapathy Sachchidananda Swamiji – Navarātri Series – Day 5, Panchami – Goddess Parāshakti – Namasankeertana & discourse in the evening – October 19, 2023 – Mysore
New keertana – Mānasa nilaye
I was telling Prasad on the way here that I wanted a Mother Goddess song in this raga. When I got here, Mani and others were singing a Krishna bhajan (Bhajan ID 846 – Jaya Jaya Hari Krishna) in exactly this raga (Bhīmpalas). So, I gave the Devi composition to you in this raga hot from the oven. Do you like it, asks Swamiji.
Marakata mānasa nilaye Sri Devi
Mani maya deepe Sri Devi
Marakata shobhe Sri Devi
Mangala rūpini Sri Devi
Tripura jayīshwari Sharvāni
Vani Lakshmi shukha pāni
Kamakshitvam kaumāri
Meenakshitvam Shivataruni, Shivataruni.
Nadamayītvam Veda mayī
Bhakti jnāna vairāgya mayī
Sri Chakrānchita shakti mayī
Sachchidananda tattva mayī
Singing this song slowly is very soothing. Since we do Kumari Puja, we put the name Kaumāri in the composition, as we worship Mother as Balā Tripura Sundari – She is the child of Lalitā Devi. Mother Goddess Herself wanted a child, why can’t we ask for girl child? We should have more girl children, they are good children, good for looking after older parents. Boys go after earning money.
Fifth day today.
kātyāyani mahāmāyē bhavāni bhuvaneśvari |
samsārasāgarē magnam mām uddhara kṛpāmayē ||
brahma viṣṇu śivārādhyē prasādaṃ jagadambikē |
manōbhilaṣitam dēvi varam dēhi namostutē ||
Discourse:
Today we learn about the greatness of Navarātri Vrata. We learned about the rules of Navarātri and other stories, now we learn about the greatness of this Vrata.
kātyāyani mahāmāyē bhavāni bhuvaneśvari |
samsārasāgarē magnam mām uddhara kṛpāmayē ||
brahma viṣṇu śivārādhyē prasādaṃ jagadambikē |
manōbhilaṣitam dēvi varam dēhi namostutē ||
Do we need to perform this, or is it enough to behold the Puja? Janamejaya asked this question because not everyone may be able to do Puja.
Sage Vyasa said to King Janamejaya: You asked about Navarātri Vrata. This is greater than 1000s of other Vratas or charites. This Vrata bestows health, happiness, longer lifespan, heaven and even salvation. This may happen in this birth or next. This Vrata bestows children, wealth. The 7th, 8th and 9th days are very important. 7th day is specially important for students; 8th day for businessmen; and 9th day for employees hold great relevance. It bestows children to those who wish for progeny. Without doubt it fulfils all wishes.
What is the way out for those who are ailing in this birth? They had no idea about this Vrata in their last life and even if they knew, they never cared, did not bother to even have a photo of Mother Goddess at their homes. The cause for chronic illness and poverty is not doing this Vrata. So, realise your mistake in this birth and worship Mother. At least come and see the Puja even if the body aches, or you are sleepy or the mind is disturbed. Force yourself to come and watch the Puja. Those who observe this Vrata on Earth will enjoy greater felicity and comforts than Svarga and Vaikuntha. Those who want great comforts in this world and next must surely worship Mother. Trimurits (Trinity), the guardians of all directions and other celestials worship Chadika Devi, then why not mortals do the same? This is not Swamiji saying, this is the conversation between Janamejaya and Sage Vyasa during Dvāpara Yuga. Lord Krishna, Lord Rama, the manes (Pitr Devatās), our dearest and revered Swamiji too worships Mother. We should learn from the greats. Janamejaya wanted to help his ancestors the Pandavas attain salvation. That is why he heard the Tripurā Rahasyam. That is why we put the discourse in two languages on YouTube.
The reason we suffer in this life is because we did not worship Devi in our prior life. So, in this birth at least force your mind and body to be here. The body has laziness, it wants to sleep, eat, and lie down. You must conquer that and do this Vrata with stubborn resolve. That is why even at this age, I am doing this Vrata, for your sake. You still do not realise this. You think Swamiji is God, that is why he is doing all this. That is not the case. The body has its (dharma) natural course and its age. Even Sri Rama, Sri Krishna all of them grew old. Sri Krishna was over 120 years old. At 85, Lord was known as Vriddha (old) Krishna. He had all the power, but he was old in physical body. There are some old people who are very lean, eat very little, bathe in cold water and do anushthāna (daily worship/rituals) everyday. They are so radiant. They don’t even need your support to function. They are ready to face their karma and do all their Pujas and Vratas themselves. Some others who are in wheelchairs are insistent on having Swamiji’s Darshana. We should bring them to see Swamiji. Those who want a great life in the mortal world and in afterlife, they must do Devi Puja.
Everyday, if you light an incense, do Guru Puja, chant Lalita Sahasranāma, and do Anaghā Vrata, you will have happiness at home, all your problems will be gone. Your ahamkāra will erode; each one has some level of ahamkāra (ego), and to get rid of it completely you must do Satsanga and entertain satvichāra (good thoughts). You are not the master of your destiny. Use the money you have and spend on acquiring necessary amenities. Why do you keep stashing cash? You can buy the blender and TV needed for your home. Instead, you keep hoarding and do not enjoy the money. You can buy decent clothes, eat good food. Why do you need to starve? Those who are miserly at home will face a life of poverty and helplessness in their future lives.
That is why Devi Puja must certainly be performed. All celestials perform Chandi Puja. I know that, I can see it like a movie, but you do not know. If the Devatās and Trinity themselves perform this Puja, why not humans? Pitru Devatas bless you when you do Devi Puja during this time. You must do Satsang at home if you want your children to be well. The moment the child is in the womb, you must be exemplary in your behaviour. Otherwise, the child learns from your behaviour and is born with that wrong behaviour. Pitru Devatas (manes/ancestors) are pleased when you worship Mother. ‘Aim’ must be chanted while thinking of mother. A cowherd also attained felicitous state as he herded his cattle while chanting ‘aim’ without realising it was a Bījakshara. That letter must be chanted repeatedly. All wishes are fulfilled.
You must always be smiling at home. Listen to Suprabhāta every morning. Let there be fragrant aromas in the morning. The sound of the morning shower and the fragrance of the incense, the chanting of mantras, the ringing of the Puja bell, the playing of the Suprabhāta…all this feels so good. Be happy at home. The sounds of getting ready in the morning is so good when combined with divine sounds. We don’t need to have children, the spouses are like each other’s child. Why do you keep fighting instead? We should be content. I am not asking you to only listen to Bhajans. You can play a movie and work out, and do the chores around the house. Like a baby, put each other to bed. Don’t fight at home throwing utensils at each other. We are all together in this birth due to some prior births connection, by the grace of Mother Goddess, why fight?
The names Svaha and Svadha must be chanted by them during the Vrata. All Devatas are happy when those letters are chanted. We should do the same. Mother bestows all boons on such devotees. It is due to Mother that Brahma creates, Vishnu protects and Shiva dissolves. That is how creation is.
Every Navarātri we see calamities and disasters. These two months are all dear to Yama, the afterworld is overcrowded during this time. Yama does not catch hold of those who are devoted to Mother. He sweeps off thousands of souls each day those who don’t worship Mother. He will not come near when Mother is worshipped. Where Mother is present, Shiva is also there, and Yama never ventures where Shiva is present. There is nothing in this world that does not have Devi’s essence. Our ground, clothes, words, sights, gaze, the news we hear, the blood, the flesh, bones, every pore of the body are all Devi. She is present in all the atoms that make us, but the intellect keeps going astray sometimes and eats dust, so we should be careful. The body belongs to Mother and goes back to Mother as ash or decomposed substance, but the intellect goes astray. Without doubt, comforts and happiness abound and we get all wishes fulfilled when we worship Devi during Navarātri. We do not realise the importance of that which is easily available to us at our homes.
Yashoda did not realise Krishna was God, she thought He was her son. We don’t realise what Appaji is, especially those who live in the Ashram and see Him everyday. We should make use of what we have. I warn those who just come for Darshana and leave. You have Swamiji now, make use of it. What will you do when Swamiji goes on a tour? Follow his words, have Darshana. We should rub shoulders the one who has sandalwood paste or aroma or vibhūti on them, but we tend to go rub against the one smeared with dirt and impurities. We should utilise the good when it is available. We do not value the tree in our backyard. We do not realise it is Sanjeevini, it is Amruta (divine elixir) because its easily available. Similarly, we think we can easily get Swamiji. When you don’t get Him, you will be helpless. You must happily enjoy and utilise when Swamiji is available. That doesn’t mean you come and grab my beard.
There is a story about Susheela that Sage Vyasa told Janamejaya. This is a story from Kaushala region. Sage Vyasa who gave us the Vedas, Upanishads and other great scriptures gave this short story too. Some people need such stories to develop faith. Janamejaya was wise and yet he needed to hear this short story as an example to develop his faith. Some people are like that.
Sage Vyasa said: Susheela was very poor. He got married. He was always peaceful and would only speak the truth. His manner was as per Dvāpara Yuga. This story happened 30 days before Kaliyuga entered. So, about 6075 years, 32 days from today. This man knew no deception or guile. He only knew charity and donated everything he had. He had no envy and had compassion for everyone. He was named Susheela due to his great virtues. He was rich in virtues, but not in wealth. Poverty (elder sister of Goddess Lakshmi) resided in his house. He also had a lot of children. And his married children and their husbands and their children came to live with him. He was unable to feed them and had no idea what to do. And yet the thought of dying did not cross his mind. Today, the useless people, the fools, the depraves think of dying when they have no way out of their dire situations. Don’t speak loosely of Yama saying you want to die. Death is not in our hands. We should live, fight and win. This birth is a rare opportunity we got after a lot of births. It is a gift from Paramātma. If you do not have money or food, you can say you’ll fade away starving while chanting divine names, but should not want to kill yourself. You must never say you want to die. Death will come to you one day, you cannot escape it.
Susheela was submerged in grief. One day, a disciplined and pious Brahmin was walking by on the street. We sometimes encounter old Brahmins who keep chanting mantras. They are oblivious to even the clothes on their body – they are absorbed in their chants. This world sustains because of those virtuous deeds of such selfless souls. It’s very rare to get a birth as a Vipra. It’s rare to get birth as a devotee of Swamiji. Make use of it and do japa. A lot of people could not make it to Navarātri. There are so many who live in Bengaluru or even nearby. Mother would not let them come. They will go to meetings, weddings and parties and death ceremonies, but they will not come to Navarātri to behold their Sadguru. They cite body aches and inability to sit or stand, but they can somehow to go other events. It is Karma. Datta does not even bring them here. Datta changes their minds, even if they want to go. We have good karma from past lives, that is why we are gathered here. We should make use of this opportunity again and again. In Bhagavatam, it is said, we can gain kingdom, the philosopher’s stone or wealth, or even Indra’s throne but we cannot gain Guru’s affection. It’s extremely rare and blessed. If we obtain Guru’s affection we can accomplish anything anywhere.
When Susheela saw that pious Brahmin, he fell at his feet, revealed his dire condition and prayed for a solution. He was hungry, and was unable to feed his family. He had only daughters, most of whom needed to get married. His only son left the house. He had no money to feed them all. He only prayed for the ability to feed them all. He did not wish for wealth or riches. Susheela said, “Please give me some mantra or tantra or japa or Vrata or something that will help me. I will pursue it with Bhakti and Shradda.” The vipra who was a Devi devotee gave him solace and said, Mother’s festival is coming up soon. Observe the 9 day Navarātri Vrata. Sri Rama observed this Vrata. He had lost his kingdom, His wife was abducted and He was not even able to offer obsequies to his father. He was unable to bear separation from Sita. Sri Rama performed the Vrata and by Her grace slew Ravana, won Sita back and regained his kingdom, and all his wealth and grandeur. The Vipra then gave Susheela a mantra. He observed the Vrata during the 9 days, for 9 years. Days 7, 8 and 9 are very important and sacred. On the 8th night, Mother appeared in his dream and granted him all the boons. This Vrata removes all difficulties. Participate in all the sevas during Navarātri. All your difficulties will be removed and your wishes granted.
Bhajan ID 8564 – Namo Devyai Maha Devyai
Meaning: Namaskara to Devi, you are Sat and Chit and Ananda; Demon Bhanda breaks families that are together; he whispers complaints and separate them; his selfishness grows without reason. At that time, Tripura Devi removes the Bhanda nature in devotees using Sattva guna. Devotees often act with Bhanda nature with stubbornness. Bhanda sometimes enters our minds and our homes; and quarrels erupt between couples. Mother intervenes and corrects.
A demon called Bhanda was tormenting Devatas. Devatas and demon are siblings. That selfish Bhanda tried to abduct Tripura Mata, who would be his sister (cousin). Tripura Mata is Devi and filled with divine qualities and is self-luminous. So, Mother you sacrificed him in your fire of Chidagni. You transform all mortals into Sat Chit Ananda when they seek refuge with you. You will not destroy such people the way you destroyed Bhanda. We worshipped such a Mother today.
The song Bhayamu Bhakti Namakkamu has been uploaded to SGS Kirtan Youtube channel. Two devotees sang the bhajan. Swamiji asks everyone to listen and follow. It is important to follow what is taught in the bhajan, not enough to just sing or listen.
Bhajan ID 305