The Sublime Vision

The adorable Lord of all bliss, all love, all mercy
The supreme light that shines in my heart
The Lord who fed Sambandhar and Appar
Him I saw at the abode of Rishis.

The Great Ancient, the Goal of Yogis
The Supreme Purusha that dwells in the Puri
The Adi Deva, whom the Vedas sing of
Him I saw at the abode of Rishis.

The pillar of light which baffled Brahma and Vishnu
The ocean of mercy who saved Markandeya
The Lord of Madurai whom the Pandya beat
Him I saw at the abode of Rishis.

The supreme Teacher who taught the four
The Adi Deva who has assumed the five
Parama, Vyuha, Vibhava, Archa and Antaryamin,
Him I saw at the abode of Rishis.

The Lord who pervades the universe
The thread-soul, the Sutratman,
The over-soul, the purport of Srutis
Him I saw at the abode, of Rishis.

The effulgence who is above the Three
Who exists even after the Pralaya
Who saved Kannappa and Sundarar
Him I saw at the abode of Rishis.

He who drank the poison and saved the world,
He who danced at Chidambaram,
He who shines as the Jyotirlinga
Him I saw at the abode of Rishis.

He who brought the jackal-horses to Pandya
He who gave pearl-palanquin to Sambandhar
He who is the essence of Panchakshara
Him I saw at the abode of Rishis.

He who dwells in Banares and Vedas,
In Ramesvar, Arunachal and Kanchi,
In the hearts of all beings
Him I saw at the abode of Rishis.

He who pleaded on behalf of Darumi
He who dwells in Kailas with Uma
He who restored the eyesight of Sundarar
Him I saw at the abode of Rishis.

Jesus Christ, Son of Shiva

"For a child will be born to us, a son will be given to us; and the government will rest on His shoulders; and His name will be called Great Rishi, Mighty Indra, Eternal Guru, Kshatriya of Shankara." [Paraphrase of Isaiah 9:6]

Jivanta Vedas

The Supreme Scriptures of Jivanta include:
Sri Sri Ramakrishna Kathamrita;
I Am That; and
Natchintanai.

The Primal Scriptures of Jivanta include:
Bhagavad Gita;
Il Combattimento Spirituale;
Bodhicharyavatara; and
Discourses.

The Glorious Scriptures of Jivanta include both Jewish and Christian Shruti ("that which is heard") and Smriti ("that which is remembered"):

Yahadut Veda ("The Jewish Bible"):

Torah Samhita ("The Pentateuch"): examples include
Book I: Beresheit ("Genesis")
Book III: Vayiqra ("Leviticus")

Neviim Samhita ("The Prophets"): examples include
Book VI: Yehoshua ("Joshua")
Book VII: Shoftim ("Judges")

Ketuviim Samhita ("The Wisdom"): examples include
Book XIV: Tehillim ("Proverbs")
Book XXIV: Divrei Ha-Yamim ("Chronicles")

Yahadut Veda is composed of 24 (3 x 8) Books.

Christic Veda ("The New Testament"):

Euangelos Samhita ("The Gospels"): examples include
Book I: Maththaion ("Matthew")
Book II: Markon ("Mark")

Historia Samhita ("The Acts of the Apostles"): composed of Book V

Epistolai-Paulou Samhita ("The Pauline Letters"): examples include
Book VI: Romaious ("Romans")
Book VII: Korinthious A ("1st Corinthians")

Epistolai Samhita ("The General Letters"): examples include
Book XIX: Ebraious ("Hebrews")
Book XX: Yakobou ("James")

Apocalypsos Samhita ("The Book of Revelation"): composed of Book XXVII

Christic Veda is composed of 27 (3 x 9) Books.

The Energy of Maya

For hard-core maya-heads:

Concerns about Vedanta, Siddhanta and Maya

One concern that may arise in discussing monism in Saiva Siddhanta is that to accept an ultimate identity between God and soul (monism) would be tantamount to adopting Adi Sankara's (788-820) Advaita Vedanta philosophy. In fact, the pluralistic arguments above were originally formulated as a refutation of his Vedanta. This concern can easily be allayed. Saiva Siddhanta and the Vedanta expressed in the Vedas are not two irreconcilable views. Tayumanavar sang, "Vedanta is the fruit on the tree of Siddhanta." Satguru Siva Yogaswami taught us that "Siva is the God of Vedanta and of illustrious Siddhanta," and "Vedanta and Siddhanta we do not see as different" (nt. 166, 41, 64, 87). Monistic Saiva Siddhanta embodies both Siddhanta and Vedanta. More precisely, Vedanta is the summit of the vast mountain of Siddhanta; monistic Siddhanta is the whole, and Vedanta is the part, the highest part of that whole. Here we speak of Vedanta not as the denial of all but the Absolute, as in Sankara's view, which regards maya, meaning the entire manifest creation, including the soul and its evolution, as an illusion. Rather, we speak of the original and pristine Vedanta of the Upanishads, a perspective that accepts maya as Siva's grace in form rather than deluding appearance. To the Siddhantin, the world is Sivamaya ("made of Siva"), God's gift to mankind. While Advaita Vedantins hold that the world is nothing but maya (by which is meant illusion) and the greatest obstacle to Brahmavidya, "knowledge of God," Siddhantins see this world as Siva's gracious way of leading us to union with Him.

Let me elaborate for a moment on these two perspectives on maya. One is that maya is illusion, that this world is merely an appearance and not ultimately real at all. The other is that maya is God's loving creation, real and important for our spiritual progress. Devotees ask, "Which is correct? Can it be both?" In every aspect of the path there is the highest and the lowest and the in-between look at things, depending on where you are: on the mountainside, on the top or at the bottom. From Absolute Consciousness, maya is illusion, this is true -- an illusion to be disregarded, a barrier perpetuating the all-pervasiveness of consciousness which, from an even higher realization, is also an illusion. We are speaking of the contest between Parashiva being the Absolute and Satchidananda being the Absolute. So, the dual, dual/nondual and the nondual are the yogi's frustration in these higher states of mind. Once timeless, causeless, spacelessness is realized, all of this falls naturally into place. One sees form, time and causation as an illusion, a relative reality, and within it the mechanism of its own perpetuation of creation, preservation and destruction every microsecond, every second, every hour of every day of every year in the great cycles of time. This is maya. Its complexities are even greater than mathematical equations of all kinds.

So, you have a true/true and you have a true. True/true is seen by the Paramatman, the soul that has realized Parashiva. And the true is seen by the atman who has realized the all-pervasiveness of God. One is on the brink of the Absolute, and the other is the Absolute. Being on the brink of the Absolute is true, but being the Absolute and breaking the seal is the true/true. There you see all of the acts of Siva's play, in all of its many manifestations. Then there is the false/true. The false/true is understanding the true/true and the true, and being able to explain them intellectually but being devoid of experience. The true/true and the true are both of experience.

God Siva has endowed all creation of form with three of His powers, creation, preservation and destruction, and all life, as it is known, maintains itself. A flower creates, preserves and destroys. Microscopic organisms create, preserve and destroy. Because everything is not creating, preserving and destroying at the same time -- the process creates various densities of form, which we Saiva Siddhantins call relative reality. Those who don't understand the creative processes of Siva and the yoga processes of seeing through the ajna chakra, may consider the external world as illusory and a hindrance, or a temptation, to their desire for moksha. Therefore, they emphasize the concept of giving up desire, which is the desire to enter the illusory world and become part of the illusion, thereby giving up advaita; whereas monistic Saiva Siddhantins identify closely to Siva and, as an extension of His will, knowledgeably create, preserve and destroy, and understand themselves. Other organisms do likewise, but without being totally aware of these three functions.

I see maya both as creation, preservation and destruction -- and as illusion. The mechanism and the fact form the perspective of Parashiva. You have to realize that when the seal at the crown chakra is broken, the whole perspective changes and you see everything from the inside out, and you, to yourself, are the center of the universe. There is no doubt about it. And every manifestation of maya, which itself is manifestation, and the intricacies of anava and the complexities of karma can be and are seen through.

-- Satguru Sivaya Subramuniyaswami

Lord of the Meeting Rivers

Daughter of the Mountains

The demons lead by Taraka, rose from the netherworld and drove the devas, gods, out of the heavens. The gods sought a warrior who would help them regain the celestial realm.

“Only Shiva can father such a warrior,” informed Brahma.

But Shiva, immersed in meditation, was oblivious to the problems of the gods. As he performed tapas, meditations that produce great heat and energy, his mind was filled with great knowledge and his body became resplendent with energy. But all this knowledge and energy, bottled within his being, was of not use to anyone.

The gods invoked the mother-goddess, who appeared before them as Kundalini, a coiled serpent. “I will coil myself around Shiva, wean out his knowledge and energy for the good of the world and make him father a child,” said Shakti. Shakti took birth as Parvati, daughter of the Himavan, lord of the mountains, determined to draw Shiva out of his cave and make him her consort.

Everyday Parvati would visit Shiva’s cave, sweep the floor, decorate it with flowers and offer him fruits hoping to win his love.

But Shiva never opened his eyes to look upon her charming face. Exasperated, the goddess invoked Priti and Rati, goddess of love and longing, to rouse Shiva out of his mediation.

These goddesses entered Shiva desolate cave and transformed it into a pleasure garden filled with the fragrance of flowers and the buzzing of bees.

Guided by Priti and Rati, Kama, the lord of desire, raised his sugarcane bow and shot arrows dripping with desire into the heart of Shiva.

Shiva was not amused. He opened his third eye and released the flames of fury that engulfed Kama and reduced his beautiful body to ashes.

The death of Kama alarmed the gods. “Without the lord of desire man will not embrace woman and life will cease to be.”

“I shall find another way to conquer Shiva’s heart. When Shiva becomes my consort, Kama will be reborn,” said the daughter of the mountain, Parvati.

Parvati went into the forest and performed rigorous tapas, wearing nothing to protect her tender body form the harsh weather, eating nothing, not even a leaf, earning the admiration of forest ascetics who named her Aparna.

Aparna matched Shiva in her capacity to cut herself from the world and completely master her physical needs. The power of her tapas shook Shiva out of his mediation. He stepped out of his cave and accepted Parvati as his wife.

Shiva married Parvati in the presence of the gods following the sacred rites and took her to the highest peak of the cosmos, Mount Kailasa, the pivot of the universe. As the world revolved all around them the two became one and Kama was reborn.

Parvati melted Shiva’s stern heart with her affection. Together they played dice on Mount Kailas or sported on the banks of Lake Manasarovar, discovering the joys of married life.

The goddess awakened Shiva’s concern for the world by questioning him on various issues. As he spoke, he revealed the secrets of the Tantras and the Vedas that he had gathered in eons of mediation.

Inspired by her beauty, Shiva became the fountainhead of the arts, of dance and drama. He sang and danced to the delight of the gods who were pleased to see his enchantment with the goddess.

Parvati gave Shiva’s aura to the gods. “From this will rise the warlord you seek,” said the goddess.

The gods gave Shiva’s aura to Svaha, consort of Agni, the fire god. Unable to bear the heat of the auro and the god Agni for long, Svaha gave the aura to Ganga the river goddess who cooled it in her icy waters until Shiva’s aura turned into a seed.

Aranyani, the goddess of the forest, embedded the divine seed in the fertile forest floor where it was transformed into a robust child with six heads and twelve arms.

Six forest nymphs called the Krittikas found this magnificent child in a lotus. Over come by maternal affection they began nursing him. The six headed son of Shiva, born of many mothers, came to be known as Kartikeya.

Parvati taught Kartikeya the art of war and turned him into a the celestial warlord called Skanda.

Skanda took command of the celestial armies, defeated Taraka in battle and restored the heavens to the gods.

With Parvati by his side, Shiva became a family man. But he did not abandon his ways as a hermit: he continued to meditate and immerse himself in narcotic dreams. His carefree attitude, his refusal to shoulder household responsibilities sometimes angered Parvati. But then she would come to terms with his unconventional ways and make peace. The consequent marital bliss between Shakti and Shiva ensured harmony between Matter and Spirit and brought stability and peace to the cosmos.

Parvati thus became Ambika, goddess of the household, of marriage, motherhood and family.

Alpha and Omega

St. John's vision of the Revelation revealed a Yeshu Christos full of warning and promise, who proffered a claim that embraced it all:

"I am the Alpha and the Omega, the first and the last, the beginning and the end" (Revelation 22:13; New American Bible).

What, precisely, is this "Alpha and Omega", this "beginning" and this "end"? The Indic Shivology of Shaiva Siddhanta may be of some help. Shaiva Siddhanta classifies all reality into 36 categories of existence, or 36 "tattvas", from beginning to end. The first 5 tattvas are purely Spiritual:

1) Siva tattva: Parashakti-Nada (Satchidananda, pure consciousness)
2) Shakti tattva: Parameshvara-Bindu(Nataraja, Personal God), energy, light and love
3) Sadashiva tattva: the power of revealment (Sadashiva)
4) Ishvara tattva: the power of concealment (Maheshvara)
5) Shuddhavidya tattva: dharma, pure knowing, the powers of
dissolution (Rudra), preservation (Vishnu) and creation (Brahma)

The next 7 tattvas are a mixture of Spiritual and Material:

6) maya tattva: mirific energy
7) kala tattva: time
8) niyati tattva: karma
9) kala tattva: creativity, aptitude
10) vidya tattva: knowledge
11) raga tattva: attachment, desire
12) purusha tattva: the soul shrouded by the above five tattvas

The last 24 tattvas are purely Material:

13) prakriti tattva: primal nature
14) buddhi tattva: intellect
15) ahamkara tattva: external ego
16) manas tattva: instinctive mind
17) shrotra tattva: hearing (ears)
18) tvak tattva: touching (skin)
19) chakshu tattva: seeing (eyes)
20) rasana tattva: tasting (tongue)
21) ghrana tattva: smelling (nose)
22) vak tattva: speech (voice)
23) pani tattva: grasping (hands)
24) pada tattva: walking (feet)
25) payu tattva: excretion (anus)
26) upastha tattva: procreation (genitals)
27) shabdha tattva: sound
28) sparsha tattva: feel/palpation
29) rupa tattva: form
30) rasa tattva: taste
31) gandha tattva: odor
32) akasha tattva: ether
33) vayu tattva: air
34) tejas tattva: fire
35) apas tattva: water
36) prithivi tattva: earth

Not delimited by any of these categories of existence is the "non-tattva", or "atattva":

Atattva: Parasiva (Sivalinga, Absolute Reality), beyond all categories

Yeshu Christos, speaking from the position of Atattva, embraces all tattvas, from Shiva tattva to Prithivi tattva, from beginning to end, Alpha to Omega. Only He Who is aware of all tattvas, and thus non-identical to, yet non-separate from, the tattvas, can include the tattvas. Yeshu Christos is Shiva and Shakti; Creator-Brahma, Preserver-Vishnu, and Dissoluter-Rudra; desire, knowledge, and time; intellect, instinct, and the senses; all the elements, from ether, to air, fire, water, and earth; energy, atoms, molecules, life, plants, animals, man, and woman.

When the Name is spoken, everything is consumed.

The Death of Death

In the Christian tradition, Christmas sets in motion the events of Easter: Christmas makes sense only in the context of that latter day. Easter can be seen as a kind of ultimate Christmas, a 'glorified' Christmas: "O death, where is thy sting? O grave, where is thy victory?" (1st Corinthians 15:55)


Markandeya

Markandeya was a great devotee of Lord Siva. His father Mrikandu had performed rigorous austerities to get a son. Lord Siva appeared before him and said: “O Rishi, do you want a good son who will die in his sixteenth year or a bad and foolish son who will live for a long time?” Mrikandu replied: “O my venerable Lord, let me have a good son”.

The boy came to know about his fate and began to worship Lord Siva whole-heartedly with intense faith and devotion. The boy entered into deep meditation and Samadhi on the day decreed as the day of his death. The messengers of Lord Yama were not able to approach him. Hence, Yama himself went to take away his life. The boy prayed to Lord Siva for protection and embraced the Linga [an iconic representation of Lord Siva]. Then Yama threw his noose round the Linga and the boy. Lord Siva came out of the Linga immediately and killed Yama to protect the boy. Lord Siva was called Mrityunjaya [Conqueror of Death] and Kala-kala [Destroyer of Time] from that day.

Then the Devas approached Lord Siva and said: “O adorable Lord, salutations unto Thee. Pardon Yama for his mistake. O Ocean of Mercy, bring him back to life”. Then Lord Siva brought Yama back to life at the request of the gods. He also conferred a boon to the boy Markandeya that he should live for ever as a boy of sixteen years of age. He is a Chiranjivi. In South India, even now men and women bless a boy when he does prostration to them: “Live as a Chiranjivi like Markandeya”.

Through Tapas and meditation you can achieve anything in the three worlds.