Kamakshidevi Temple at Mangadu

There is another temple at Mangadu (forest of Mango tree) near Kanchipuram in Tamil Nadu connected to the legend of Kamakshidevi. The main deity at this temple is Devi Kamakshi. Kshetra vruksha i.e. sacred tree is Mango tree.

This place is about 3000 years old. This place is mentioned as Sudhavanam in puranas. There is another temple very close to this and is known as Velli-ishwar. It is dedicated to the planet Venus (Velli in Tamil). In Kamakshidevi temple, only the foot print of Kamakshidevi is installed. In this temple there are 2 Vinayaka idols. In one idol we perceive Lord Ganesha holding Paddy stocks and a Mango in His hands. In the other idol He has an umbrella and a mango. Aadi-Shankaracharya has installed a Arthameru chakra in this temple. This chakra has 43 triangles and is made of Ashtagandha. Hence no Abhishek is done on it. On all days the chakra is covered by a Silver casing. Except on Vijayadashami day, when it is covered by a Gold casing. 

Legend associated with this place according to the puran – 

This is the place where Parvati was asked to start Her penance under a mango tree. She was promised by Lord Shiva that He will marry Her after Her penance. She started Her penance observing rigid rules, standing amidst fire. She made five agnikundas and stood near the central agnikunda with Her left toe touching the fire with right leg placed on her left thigh i.e. She stood on one leg. The left hand was on Her navel and right hand held a Japa-mala above Her head. Later on, at the end of Her penance, She heard a voice advising Her to proceed to Kanchipuram and continue the penance there. As her penance started at this place, the place is revered as Aadi-Kamakshi sthala. 

Goddess Ambika gives darshan at this temple in 4 forms. 1) As Srichakra 2) Aadi-Kamakshi idol of Panchadhatu 3) Kamakshidevi doing penance among five kundas 4) a small lamp burning near Aadi-Kamakshi which is revered as Ambika Herself. 

Another legend from the puran is as follows. Shukra (Venus) tried to dissuade Mahabali from giving 3 feet of land to Lord Vishnu who appeared as Vamana. He blocked the vessel containing water while giving Daan. Lord Vishnu removed this block with a Kusha (Darbha) grass and made Shukra blind. Shukra performed penance at this place on Lord Shiva and got his vision back. He did penance during same period as Parvati. Lord Shiva appeared before Shukra first and granted the boon. This indicates that the priority is for devotee. 

When Lord Shiva came to acknowledge the penance of Parvati, Lord Vishnu also came along with gifts for His sister’s marriage. When he proceeded to Kanchipuram, along with Shiva & Parvati, Maharshi Markandeya begged Him to stay at this place. He stayed back and he graces his devotees at this place as Vaikuntha-perumal.

Festivals – 
On the full moon day Nava (9) kalash homa is conducted for nine forms of Shakti.
Nirayamani festival is conducted on the full moon day in September-October.

Courtesy: Following sites 
https://tamilnadu-favtourism.blogspot.com/ and
https://temple.dinamalar.com/en/

Kanchikamakshi Devi temple

This temple is situated at Kanchipuram in Tamil Nadu. This place is mentioned in puran. A number of saints have taken birth at this place. It is stated in puran as the greatest of all Kshetras i.e. Nagareshu-Kanchi. This is one of the Panchabhoota sthalas representing element “Earth”. This city boasts of 180 Shivalayas, 10 Vishnu temples but has only 1 Goddess Parvati temple.

Main idol – Kamakshi amman
Sthalavriksha – Champa tree
Sacred Teertha – Pancha ganga

The main idol of this temple is Kamakshidevi seated in Padmasana (Yogic posture). This signifies peace and prosperity. She holds a sugarcane bow and bunch of flowers in the lower 2 arms. She has a Paash (noose/lasso) and Ankush (Goad) on her upper 2 arms. There is also a parrot perched near the flower bunch.

There are a number of legends from the purans associated with this place and also for the fact that why only one Devi temple is found in this city. According to Kamakshivilasa, Goddess have to absorb all other Shakti forms to grant a boon to Kamadeva (God of Love). According to another legend the Rajarajeshwari pose signifies absolute control over the land under her control. Aadi-Shankaracharya re-established the Srichakra in the Kamakshidevi temple in the temple tank (sacred teertha) for the shrine.

In the shrine of Kamakshi amman close to the sanctum, Thirukklavanur, one of the Divya Deshams (temples of Vishnu) is present. It is believed that the old Kanchikamakshi temple is also a Shaktipeeth where Aadi-Shankara has installed the Srichakra.

Legends: 

The following legends are stated in the purans regarding the Goddess Kamakshi. 

In Kailash, Mother Parvati covered the eyes of Lord Shiva (who was in a secluded place) in a playful mood. This resulted in a total stand stilling of all activities of the universe. Parvati requested Lord Shiva for atonement and pardon. He advised Her to proceed to bhoolok and undergo penance. He stated that at the end of your penance you will be pardoned. He gave her the following instructions. You will be born as a daughter of sage Katyayan. He will take care of you for 8 years. At the end of 8 years he will hand over certain things to you. With these things you will proceed to Kashi. There you will take care of people from famine as Annapurni for 12 years. Then you will proceed to South. At a place in South, the things in your hand will change. That is the place where you have to perform the penance.

As per His instructions, when She reached the place in South, the things held in Her hand changed. The vessel in Her hand became a lamp; Rudraksha became a Bilva garland; Yogadanda became a Trishul; the fan became a parrot; and the Ganges water in Kamandalu became the Milk and so on. Parvati understood that the time has come for Her to start her penance. Sage Narada appeared there and initiated Her with Panchabaan Mantra. She did penance for 6 months by making Shivalinga of mud on the banks of river Kamba. In order to test Her, Lord Shiva sent Ganga Devi to destroy Shiva linga. Parvati commanded one of Her maid servant to catch the Ganga Devi in Kamandalu. Later on, the same maid became the Shakti for Pralaya (eternal deluge). Parvati held Shivalinga to Her heart to protect the Shivalinga. Even today we can observe the marks on Shivalinga. Later Lord Shiva manifested as Kameshwar and Parvati as Kameshwari. They married on the bank of river Kamba under a mango tree. The place where She worshiped Lord Shiva is Kanchipuram. Hence this became one of the Panchabhoota sthalam representing the element Earth.

Festivals:
1. Golden chariot festival – Every Friday. 
2. On the first day of Tamil month, full moon day and new moon day there is chariot festival. 
3. Navavarana Pooja is conducted on every full moon day. 
4. Bramhotsavam is held every year in February. 5. Besides this, Navratri festival is held on a grand scale. 

There is a 2nd part which is associated with the above legend which we will cover in the next article.

Courtesy: Following sites https://tamilnadu-
favtourism.blogspot.com/ and
https://temple.dinamalar.com/en/

Shri Vilas Karnik

It is very sad to report that Shri Vilas Karnik (Karnik Sir), founder of Dnyandeep Classes, Dombivli and close associate and friend of our Shri Raghupathi Sir; and a contributor of this blog passed away on Tuesday December 3 at the age of 79.

Shri Karnik founded Dnyandeep classes and then sometime later invited Shri Raghupathi Sir to join as well. During their tenure Dnyandeep classes grew exponentially and gained a lot of respect and popularity in Dombivli. Many students from this class still remember Dnyandeep classes and pay their respect and attribute their success to the learning from this class.

Shri Karnik was a great human being indeed. He gained lot of respect among his students and his associates. 

In his later years he spent lot of his time writing spiritual articles and published and distributed spiritual booklets free of cost. He also contributed in this blog.

Shri Karnik was also closely associated with the activities of Shri Sainath Maharaj Trust.

We offer our sincere condolences to bereaved family and pray that his soul may rest in peace.

Structure of Shiva Temples

The following article is from the lectures of His Highness Sri Chandrasekhar Saraswati, the Shankaracharya of Kanchipeetha which he delivered in 1932. This reference we got from an old Tamil spiritual magazine.

According to the rules described in Vedas, a Shiva temple has to be built with certain rules regarding the position of the other deities in the temple. 

In Shiva temples, we come across Shiva Linga denoted by various names but Lord Shiva is personified as Maha Lingam. 

Typical structure of Shiva Temple is as follows. In all Shiva temples Lord Ganesha is located in the sannadhi corner; Lord Subramanya in the West; Chandikeshwar in the North; Dakshinamurti in the south; Lingothbhavar or Lord Vishnu on the back wall of the sanctum's outer side; Somaskandha in the south-west (agneya) direction and Nataraja and Bhairavar in north-east (Eshan). All these are known as Parivaar devata.

Interestingly, in Tanjore district we come across such an arrangement of Shiva temples at geographical level. At Thiruvadaimaruthur, Mahalingam (considered as Moolavar) i.e. main deity. Sannadhi corner is Thiruvalanchuzhi where there is SwetaVinayaka temple; to the west at SwamiMalai there is Lord Subramanya temple; at South – at Alangudi there is Dakshinamurti temple; in the North there is Thiruchaianjalur Chandikeshwar; at East at Thiruvadurai there is Nandikeshwar temple; at south west there is Thiruvarur Somaskandha temple; at Chidambaram there is Nataraja temple and at Sirkazhi we have Bhairava temple. And so, if we look at all these places on a map, we perceive that whole Tanjore district can be considered as a Shiva temple.

Courtesy: Following sites https://tamilnadu-favtourism.blogspot.com/ and https://temple.dinamalar.com/en/

Importance of Devi Beej Mantra

Often while reading a Purana, Mahabharata or Ramayana, we come across instances where it is stated that an army or a soldier or a particular person was bound by reciting a mantra. What actually it means? This question arises in our minds.

It means that the person concerned becomes immobile, loses consciousness and remains unaware of his surroundings. Human beings are capable of controlling their mind and reach above mentioned state. This state can be considered to be the ladder which connects us with the Almighty and obtain supreme bliss. Mantras help us to achieve this state. Hence, mantras can be considered to bridge the gap between us and the Almighty. As the mother responds to single call of her child, Devi (Goddess Mother) also responds in same manner when we recite her stotras or namavalis. When we recite her 1000 names, she provides a shield around us without our own knowledge.

Under the command of Lalithadevi, Lord Hayagriva explained to the Sage Agastya, the importance of chanting the Devi mantras (Naam). According to Lord Hayagriva, by chanting a single name from the sahastra naam of Lalithadevi, we obtain the same Punya (benefit or boon) which is greater than the Punya obtained due to following deeds.

1. Taking bath in all sacred tirthas
2. Establishing enumerable Shiva lingas in Kashi which is called Avimukta Kshetra
3. Giving crores of gold coins to Brahmin and Vedic pandit on a Solar eclipse day
4. Performing Ashwamedha yaag infinite times on the banks of the sacred river Ganga.
5. Digging innumerable wells where the people are suffering without water
6. Performing innumerable number of Annadaan during a famine.

Furthermore, by reciting one naam, from the namavali, helps remove all the sins irrespective of their magnitude. Mere recital of single name of Lalithadevi, removes the sins due to all acts of errors and omissions of all duty. Hence the recital of sahastra naam is considered to be the most important aspect of worship in spiritual path. In that also the worship of Devi is considered to be one of the greatest.

The word Lalith itself indicates that she is lovable, adorable, beautiful, benevolent, affectionate, passionate and so on. Hence the practice of worshiping Devi with 1000 names i.e. Lalitha sahastranaam, is largely prevalent. The greatness of this Sahastranaam with respect to other Sahastranaams is that it contains exactly 1000 names without any repetitions. It also does not contain the words meant for rhythm. It is not only the namavali but it also contains (tells) rules and guidelines for the Upasana.

Among the Devi mantras, the most important is known as PANCHADASI which is a combination of 15 beejaksharas (seed letters) divided in 3 parts 

Part 1 : ka (क), ae (ए), e (ई), la (ल), hrim (ह्रीं),
Part 2: ha (ह), sa (स), ka (क), ha (ह), la (ल), hrim (ह्रीं),
Part 3: sa (स), ka (क), la (ल), hrim (ह्रीं). 

Lalitha Trishati contains 300 names. Each of these 300 names start with a letter from panchadashi.  For example there are 20 names starting with ka (क), 20 names starting with ae (ए) and so on. Making total 300 names. 

Every part of panchadashi ends in HREEM, which is called Maya Beej Mantra. This mantra is considered as the seed (beej) of all the mantras. The Sanskrit word HREEM contains 4 alphabets.

HAKARA -HA (ह)

REKARA -RA – (र)

IKARA  – EE – (ई)

ANUSWARA – MA (.)

HA represents Aakash tatva which is endless and denote Lord Shiva. RA denotes Ishwara and his inseparable Shakti. Hence it represents the sound which is pure Chaitanya. IKARA denotes the stage of Vishnu which is spread everywhere. MA represents the destruction of sound or stage all mingle to become a new one. Thus we can conclude that this Beej Mantra represents the Tri Shaktis namely Creation, Protection and Destruction. Therefore Lalitha Devi bears the title, HREEMKAR LAKSHANA.

Again the three alphabets in this Beej mantra represents Satva, Rajas and Tamaa gunas. They are again represented by the colors White, Red and Black. By this Beej mantra all evil forces move away.

This mantra has both Saguna and Nirguna qualities. Therefore it has to be recited in same manner in which we recite the Pranava mantra - OM.

Of the 5 Beej mantras of Devi, HREEM has the capacity to grant virtues. Hence we can consider these Beej Mantra as a bridge between Human being and Goddess Devi.

This mantra is the most powerful and whoever chants it makes him a leader of men. 

Beeja Mantras

In our previous article series on Mantras, we have already covered much information about Mantras - their benefits, how to chant them etc. In this article we are providing little detailed information about beeja mantras.

Beeja means seed. Every creation is out of seed. Puranas mention that Brahma used seed mantras to create the universe and all parts of it. These are also called as Beejaksharas. Beeja mantras are combinations of three to nine syllables. For example om (ॐ) is a combination of a (अ) (represents creation i.e. utpatti), u (उ) (represents sustenance i.e. sthiti),  ma (म) (represents destruction i.e. laya) and ardhamatra which represents goddess i.e. shakti which gives life to all other mantras. Om is called pranava (pra-nava) i.e. primal sound. Om is also called as prakash-pranava. Like Om, there is another beeja mantra, hrim (ह्रीं), which is called vimarsha-pranava or maya-beeja. Hrim is considered as mother of all beeja mantras. We will cover details about hrim in next article “Importance of Devi Beej Mantra”

Every beeja mantra represents a power of particular god or goddess. 

Here is a list of some beeja mantras and gods/goddesses/elements/qualities associated with that mantra.

Beeja mantra	God/element/power/quality/usage	Combined from
Om	Origin of universe. Represents paramatma	A (Bhuh), U (Bhuvah), M (svah) and ardha matra that represents fourth stage called turiya
hrim	Maya bija	Ha, ra, im
aim	Saraswati bija
klim	Kama bija
shrim	Lakshmi bija	Aim, hrim, shrim together are called as tritari
gum	Guru bija
Gam / glaum	Ganapati bija
dum	Durga bija
ksham	Kshetrapal bija
lam	Earth and also muladhara chakra
vam	Water and also Swadhisthan chakra
ram	Fire and also Manipura chakra
yam	Air and also Anahat chakra
ham	Ether (akasha) and also vishuddha
Sum	Represents union of three gods - Brahma, Vishnu, Shiva
Jum	Quickening, animation, inspiration
Sah	Invokes universal soul
Tam	Getting rid of disease, worry, fear
Kreem	Kali beeja mantra. Kali mata is responsible for health, strength and protection from evil powers
Hroum	Represents Lord Shiva. For moksha
Fraum	Hanuman bija
Dam	Vishnu bija
Bhram	Bhairav bija
Dhoom	Dhumavati Devi bija
Hleem	Bagalamukhi Devi bija
Treem	Tara Devi bija
Kshraum	Narasimha bija
Dhaam	Kuber bija
Phat	Attacking enemy
Krom	Krodha Bija

Beeja mantras do not carry any specific meaning. Their power is in the sound vibrations produced by chanting them. These sound vibrations bring out a desired effect. For example, beeja mantra aim (ऐं) represents knowledge. So sound produced by chanting aim helps gain knowledge required to bring a desired effect. Similarly beeja mantra klim (क्लीं) represents Kaama i.e. desire. Sound vibrations produced by chanting klim helps in creating favorable conditions to fulfill desires. Of course, as mentioned in one of the previous articles on Mantras, to have a desired effect of mantra it is important to receive it from proper Guru or as per ordained by previous birth sanskara. 

Srimad Devi Bhagwat contains stories that signify importance of beeja mantras. For example story of Satyavrata (Book 3 Chapter 11) who received highest knowledge by repeating even half letter “ai” of beeja mantra aim. And story of Sudarshana (Book 3 Chapter 17) who got all his and his mother’s wishes fulfilled by repeating half letter “kli” of beeja mantra klim.

Beeja mantras are either chanted directly or they are chanted through shlokas where these beejaksharas are hidden. For example one of the Sri Vidya mantras is Panchadashi mantra which contains 15 beejaksharas - ka (क), ae (ए), e (ई), la (ल), hrim (ह्रीं), ha (ह), sa (स), ka (क), ha (ह), la (ल), hrim (ह्रीं), sa (स), ka (क), la (ल), hrim (ह्रीं)

All these fifteen beejaksharas are hidden in following shloka from Devi Atharvashirsha

कामोयोनि कमला वज्रपाणिर्गुहाहसा मातरिश्वा भ्रमिन्द्रः |

पुनर्गुहा सकला मायया च पुरुच्यैष्या विश्मातादिविद्योम् ||

So when we chant this shloka, indirectly we chant beejaksharas of panchadashi mantra.

Similarly following shloka from Lalitasahasranaama also has secret beejaksharas hidden in it. For example beejakshara hrim is hidden in the first word of this shloka i.e. raagaswarupa-paashadhya

रागस्वरूपपाशाढया क्रोधाकारान्कुशोज्वला |

मनोरुपेक्षुकोदण्डा पञ्चतन्मात्रसायका ||

The most common use of beejaksharas can be found in puja when we perform praanapratishtha of idol. During praanapratishtha vital energy of worshiper is infused into idol by chnating beejaksharas. 

For example, here are mantras that are chanted during praanapratishtha of an idol e.g. Ganapati idol.

ॐ आं ह्रीं क्रौं अं यं रं लं वं शं षं सं हं क्षं अ: क्रौं ह्रीं आं देवस्य प्राणा इह प्राणा ||

ॐ आं ह्रीं क्रौं अं यं रं लं वं शं षं सं हं क्षं अ: क्रौं ह्रीं आं देवस्य जीव इह स्थित: ||

ॐ आं ह्रीं क्रौं अं यं रं लं वं शं षं सं हं क्षं अ: क्रौं ह्रीं आं देवस्य वाङ्ग्मनश्चक्षु: श्रोत्रजिव्हाघ्राणपाणिपादपायूपस्थादि सर्वेन्द्रियाणि सुखं चिरं तिष्ठन्तु स्वाहा ||

Using above beejaksharas, praana i.e. vital energy, jiva - existence and then all organs are developed in idol. For example यं (yam) रं (ram)  लं (lam) वं (vam) हं (ham) represent five great elements (pancha-mahabhutas) from which organs of action and organs of perception develop. And then as if an idol has taken birth, by chanting om fifteen times, pancha dasha sanskaras are performed on idol.

Because in puja, worshiper’s praana is infused into idol, if puja is done properly, it can develop oneness between worshiper and the god that is being worshiped.

We attempted to explain importance and usage of beejaksharas. Hope you have found it useful. We seek forgivance for omissions or mistakes.