Ganapati 1 of 2

Date: Sat, 19 Mar 1994 12:14:43 +0000 Ganesh 1 of 2 Another magical Upanishad -- the Ganapati Upanishad. Introduction is from the grade papers of AMOOKOS. (I hope to upload the whole set of grade papers 1-6 to an ftp site in the next few weeks or months). Mike Magee (Lokanath Maharaj) "In these papers we cannot stress enough that what is known as "Hinduism" is degenerated esoteric or occult lore. Such which has passed into the hands of the orthodox as been twisted out of context and has lost its meaning. But in the symbolism or iconography much of real occult value can still be discerned by the awake-aware. "As an example, in this section, we will discuss the hidden symbolism of the well-known god known as Ganapati or Ganesha. In present-day Hinduism Ganesha has degenerated into a god stopping obstacles, and His image can often be seen in shops. The shopkeepers 'worship' Him for the success of their trade. "If we look at a contemporary image of Ganesha, the iconography has preserved much of the occult or esoteric side, although the exoteric side has triumphed. We see a strange composite of elephant and man, and at the bottom of the picture a mouse or rat. "This is a glyph of the three worlds - of heaven, earth and the underworld, or sun, moon and fire. But in a very clever and wise way the symbolism has been drawn from the animal or mammal kingdom. In this picture man is the mean between the large or macrocosm and small or microcosmos. "Because of this triple symbolism Ganesha is connected with three gunas. His association with 'obstacles' comes from the great strength of the elephant, the intelligence of the human and the subtlety or ability to penetrate small spaces of the mouse or rat. "Ganesha is usually shown with four arms - these represent the four directions of space or the four elements - the god being the spirit or quintessence of these. This is also an indication of how the four turn into three and the three into one. "Ganesha means Lord of Hosts. As is usual in the Tantrik symbolism the Name is really an adjective. This adjective is also applied to Shiva. The Hosts are the hosts of spirits or denizens of the three worlds. "Although Ganesh is usually thought of as the son of Shiva and Parvati, the more cosmic view is that He is, simply, a specialised aspect or symbol of the primordial god. Because we follow nature, it is entirely natural that primordial godhead is represented by the penis, while the goddess is shown by the yoni. "Knowledgeable about the creation of a child, the ancients, knowing of macro and microcosmos, found it natural to conceive of the sexual union of a woman and man as analogous to the creation of the cosmos. "You will not be surprised to learn that there formerly existed an esoteric group of Ganesha worshippers who worshipped the Ganesha Lingam and his Shakti as creators of our cosmos. "Contemporary images of the elephant-headed god invariably show Him clothed. Formerly this was not the case. We can note the following prescriptions for images drawn from a medieval and occult Indian work:- "Ganesha: Vermilion colour, three eyes with a large belly. In His four hands he holds a tusk, a noose, a goad and grants boons. He holds in His trunk a pomegranate and a crescent moon is on his forehead. He is adorned with huge serpents. "The symbolism relating Ganesh as being a child of Shiva and Parvati also has meaning. Their other son is Skanda or Kartikeya. He rides a peacock. If we take Shiva as guru, His sons, one with him in spiritual lineage, are the Divine and the Heroic dispositions. Ganesha and Skanda are princes and Shiva is the king." The Ganesha Upanishad We would ask you to examine this in the light that it is a resume of occult or magical lore. Think about it with an open mind and analyse it for what it is. We do not, in these papers, wish to restrict ourselves to the occultism of the Indian subcontinent. The gods and goddesses of many places and traditions can reveal a wealth of material which can expand our understanding. Occult symbols or sages can often preserve a whole body of wisdom and yoga magic. Some of this has been corrupted or garbled through the course of time by the ignorant. But the wise can reconstruct the past into the present for projection into the future. Ganapati Upanishad Auspiciousness to those who hear - thus the Shanti. 1 Om Lam I bow to Ganapati. 2 You clearly are the tattva. You alone are the Creator. You alone are the Maintainer. You alone are the Destroyer. Of all this you certainly are Brahma. You plainly are the Essence. 3 Always I speak amrita. The truth I speak. 4 Protect me. Protect the speakers. Protect the hearers. Protect the givers. Protect the holders. Protect the disciple that repeats. Protect that in the East. Protect that in the South. Protect that in the West. Protect that in the North. Protect that above. Protect that below. Everywhere protect! Protect me everywhere! 5. You are speech. You are consciousness. You are Bliss. You are Brahma. You are Being-Consciousness-Bliss. You are the Non-Dual. You are plainly Brahma. You are knowledge. You are Intelligence. 6 You create all this world. You maintain all this world. All this world is seen in you. You are Earth, Water, Air, Fire, Aether. You are beyond the four measures of speech. You are beyond the three Gunas. You are beyond the three bodies. You are beyond the three times. You are always situated in the Muladhara. You are the Being of the three Shaktis. You are always meditated on by Yogins. You are Brahma, You are Vishnu, You are Rudra, You are Agni, You are Vayu, You are the Sun, You are the Moon, You are Brahma, Bhur-Bhuvah-Svar. 7 'Ga' the first syllable, after that the first letter, beyond that 'm', then the half-moon all together. Joined with 'Om', this is the mantra form. 8 Letter Ga the first form, letter a the middle form, m the last form. Bindu the higher form, Nada the joining together, Samhita the junction. This is the vidya of Lord Ganesha. 9 Ganaka is the seer, Nricad-Gayatri the metre, Sri Mahaganapati the god. "Om Ganapataye Namah." 10 Let us think of the one-toothed, let us meditate on the crooked trunk, may that tusk direct us. 11 One tusk, for arms, carrying noose and goad, with His hands dispelling fear and granting boons, with a mouse as His banner. 12 Red, with a big belly, with ears like winnowing baskets, wearing red, with limbs smeared with red scent, truly worshipped with red flowers. 13 To the devoted a merciful Deva, the Maker of the World, the Prime Cause, who at the beginning of creation was greater than nature and man. 14 He who always meditates thus is a yogin above yogins. 15 Hail to the Lord of Vows, hail to Ganapati, hail to the First Lord, hail unto you, to the Big-bellied, One-Tusked, Obstacle-Destroyer, the Son of Shiva, to the Boon-Giver, hail, hail! 16 He who studies this Atharva Shira moves towards Brahma. He is always blissful. He is not bound by any obstacles. He is liberated from the five greater and the five lesser sins. Evening meditation destroys the unmeritorious actions of the night. At both evening and morning he is liberated from the bad and he attains Dharma-Artha-Kama and Moksha. 17 This Artharva Shira should not be given to those not pupils. If from delusion a person so gives, he is a bad person. 18 He who wants something may accomplish it by 1000 recitations of this. He who sprinkles Ganapati with this becomes eloquent. He who recites this on a 4th day becomes a knower of Vidya. This an Artharva saying "He who moves towards Brahma Vidya is never afraid." He who worships with fried grains becomes famous and becomes intelligent. He who worships with sweet-meat (modaka) gains the desired fruit. He who worships with samit and ghee by him all is attained, all is gained by him. He who makes eight Brahmanas understand this becomes like the sun's rays. In a solar eclipse, in a great river, or in front of an image having recited (this) he gets accomplished in the mantra. He becomes liberated from great obstacles. He is freed from great misfortunes. (c) Lokanath Maharaj 1982-1985