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Devotional Recitations
Sacred Sounds part 3
Eight devotional recitations that supports you to let go of your personal feelings and interpretations and experience more inner space. Recitation chanting has a liberating effect when you have a strong mental orientation and it empowers your relationship with the divine.
Mantras
1. Surya – devotional recitation
2. Brahma – devotional recitation
3. Gayatri – devotional recitation
4. Vishnu – devotional recitation
5. Shiva – devotional recitation
6. Gurudev – devotional recitation
7. Shanti-mangalam – devotional recitation
8. Aum Mani Padme Hum – devotional recitation
How to use the devotional recitations
These mantras are repeated in a somewhat monotonous, meditative, and very devotional way through chanting to allow the words to go deeper into your mind and soul. This singing brings your sensitivity system into a cadence, regulates your breathing, and helps you to move beyond your personal emotional interpretations and access the value and meaning of the chosen mantra. Recitation chanting has a liberating effect on those with an overly mental orientation and deepens the experience of being in relationship with the essential.
The recitations are designed to bring peace to a distracted or chaotic mind and to help you express your love for the special experience of your inner being and bring it more fully to life. The recitations calm your brain, bring clarity to your soul, and ensure that you come into deeper contact with that which you long for and wish to be more influenced by. It is best to listen to the recitations by themselves, because it is better to concentrate for a while on a particular text or mantra and its essence that you are longing for.
You can also sing along after a while, but listening, which goes hand in hand with your receptivity to it, has the most calming effect at first. After a while, when you feel fulfilled by the recitation, you can easily let it enter you completely and feel liberated, and then you can start singing along. When reciting, it is important not to think about the rhythm, but to let it happen naturally as a result of your involvement. You should also be able to completely surrender your breathing and allow it to be secondary to the recitation. Another important point in recitation is to allow space after the recitation to experience the depth of the silence that follows. Enter into a friendly relationship with it and open yourself to the depth that becomes perceptible as a result. The devotional mantra recitations liberate, relieve, give space and will touch new depths in you. Give them room to do so and become familiar with the depth of your existence, for your soul is waiting for you in this loving space.
Track 1: Surya devotional recitation
Empowering the richness of your soul
Recitation Mitraya ravaye suryaya bhanave khagaya pushne hiranyagarbaya marichaye adityaya savitre arkaya baskaraya Free translation: “Now that you are so sensitively open to me as your soul, I will show you from my innermost being the pristine qualities in which I am recognizable. You will then experience me as the light of your truest friend, as your center, as your life force, as your source of light, as your ultimate freedom, as your most essential nourishment, as your source, as your healing, as your spiritual mother, as your holy spirit, as your radiance, as your creative father. Peace and love are the fundamental principles of my being in everyone’s existence. Thank you for wanting to experience me, for being willing to be so sensitive, for wanting to see the light of life, for being willing to experience me, your soul, as the light of existence.”
The Surya mantra is an ode to the twelve aspects of your inner sun, the twelve qualities of the soul, about meeting your soul, your essence, your spiritual heart, or how you wish to call that which is most precious within you, in order to be together with it. With mitraya, you open yourself to your inner sun as your truest friend, which enlightens you when you experience friendship. With ravaye, you open yourself to your inner sun as your true center, which enlightens you when you experience that your soul is your essence. With suryaya you open to your inner sun as the source that gives you your true longing, enlightening you as you experience strength through feeling your longing. With bhanave you open to your inner sun as your true light, enlightening you as you see and understand from a place of clarity. With khagaya, you open to your inner sun as the source that reflects your true freedom, enlightening you as you experience the vastness of life. With pushne, you open yourself to your inner sun as the source of your truest nourishment, enlightening you as you experience a growing into the light. With hiranyagarbaya, you open yourself to your inner sun as your true source, enlightening you as you experience that your soul is equal to that from which you come. With marichaye, you open yourself to your inner sun as your truest healing, enlightening you as you experience yourself as wholeness again. With adityaya, you open to your inner sun as the source of your true security, enlightening you as you feel enveloped by motherly love. With savitre, you open to your inner sun as your true spiritual source, enlightening you as you feel graciously inspired. With arkaya, you open to your inner being as the source of your true radiance, enlightening you as you are freely yourself. With baskaraya, you open your inner being as your true essence, enlightening you as you recognize your soul as your essence and as the essence of all. The Surya devotional recitation supports your openness to experience mental peace. It brings mental peace, space and freedom, qualities that are celebrated in the recitation as the various luminous aspects of the Light of the Soul, Surya. Let the recitation influence you and take you to a different quality of your emotions, beyond the sentimental.
Track 2: Brahma devotional recitation
Embracing the universe
Recitation
Brahmaarpanam brahma havir
Brahmaagnau brahmanaa hutam
Brahmai va tena gantavyam
Brahma karma samaadhina
Free translation (1) Any form of devotion is Brahma, the energy of expansion, growth, creation, and development (the Sanskrit root brih means to expand, to increase, to grow, to make greater); (2) whatever is offered out of devotion is Brahma (it is the result of the energy of expansion, growth, creation, and development); (3) the devotion itself is Brahma (the doing and the fact that there is someone to do it is the result of expansion, growth, creation and development); and (4) all the material aspects involved in the devotion are Brahma(everything that exists to give form to the devotion is the result of the energy of expansion, growth, creation and development). Brahma symbolizes the sacred, essential, and omniscient source from which the creative energy emanates. It is about the space to experience that you are alive and that you are part of creation. Creation, being in the making, constantly presents itself within you and becomes visible through you. After all, you are constantly giving space to “that which you are” to expand.
Track 3: Gayatri devotional recitation
Being cleansed by light
Recitation Aum bhur bhuvah svah tat savitur varenyam bhargo devasya dhimahi dhyo yonah prachodayat Free translation “Oh my dear essence, in pure devotion I open myself to your brilliant and enlightening radiance that created me and filled me with a sacred presence to enlighten and protect me.”
The Gayatri mantra opens you to the Light of Existence, which makes the essence of everything, your soul, visible, and it is your insightful consciousness that helps you to act in a healing way. The mantra celebrates light as the most important spiritual value that surrounds you, illuminates you, nourishes you, and makes you lighter and freer so that you can once again live from an open consciousness. The Gayatri prayer is about the value of light in all its forms. What we mean by the word light is experienced much more broadly in Sanskrit and the ancient Indian culture in which that language was spoken. In Sanskrit, for example, light also means love, both in the sense of the quality of the inner beloved and in the sense of heart energy or the essential in everyone. Light is also translated as awareness, as the value of insight, the light that makes things visible. But light can also mean the power that gives us light, God, or light as a healing power. In Sanskrit, light actually means any form of freedom and transparency and is seen as the most essential form of nourishment. Light is the value of the enveloping power of motherly love, the guiding power of fatherly love, and the protecting power of divine love.
Track 4: Vishnu devotional recitation
Opening to transparency
Recitation Saanthakaaram bhujaga-sayanam padhmanaabham suresham Vishwaadhaaram gagana-sadrisham megha-varnam subhaangam Lakshmi-kaantham kamala-nayanam yogibhir dhyaana-gamyam Vande vishnum bhava-bhaya-haram sarva-lokaika-naatham Vishnu vishnu vishnu mahavishnu
Free translation “I bow to the all-pervading energy that is present throughout the universe. I bow to this life energy, which is peaceful because it is the essence in everything. Which is depicted as an enlightened being resting on a bed of cobras in an endless ocean, with a long stem emerging from its navel, bearing the open lotus flower as the origin of creation. Which is the essence of all spiritual truth and all layers of existence. Which energy is so subtle that it permeates the entire cosmos. Which is depicted as an enlightened being with skin the color of rain clouds, in a beautiful form and combined with the energy of happiness and beauty. I bow to this all-pervading energy that shows me the purity of the soul, and to which I open myself again and again in meditation, so that my fear of the unknown fades naturally and being with my soul becomes a basis for freedom and trust.”
Track 5: Shiva devotional recitation
Celebrating the freedom of renewal
Recitation Aum namaha Sambhavaya cha, Mayobhavaya cha, namah Shankaraya cha, Maskaraya cha, namah Shivaya cha, Shiva Taraya cha Free translation “Oh Giver of both temporary and eternal joy, of both personal and spiritual happiness, of grace and purity, Giver of all-encompassing well-being, from a place of deep reverence I bow in acceptance of your truth and living presence, so dear to me and eternally Now, that I may meet and be with you again each moment.”
In the Shiva devotional recitation you repeatedly recite different names for the quality of Shiva (that which destroys and gives room for new life and development), which are intended to emphasize that the new life energy of Shiva concerns the total, and therefore also the spiritual, well-being of man. Various names of Shiva are recited, which indicate that the acceptance of both the human and the essential is necessary to achieve spiritual and holistic well-being. The names are: Shambhavaya (giver of temporary joy), Mayobhavaya (giver of eternal joy), Shankaraya (giver of personal happiness), Maskaraya (giver of spiritual happiness), Shivaya (giver of grace), and Shiva Taraya (giver of purity). The suffix -cha means “what I long for.” The Shiva recitation supports your openness to your meditative presence and promotes energetic exchange between the crown and perineum, creating inwardness and a feeling of essential presence. The recitation strengthens the longing to be connected to the living Now and to let each moment of presence become a contact with the essential. Progression of the recitation
Track 6: Gurudev devotional recitation
Opening to the guidance of the soul
Recitation Guru brahma, guru vishnu, guru devo maheshvarah guru saakshaat parabrahma tasmi sri guruvey namaha (Gurudev, gurudev, gurudev) (Aum namah ananda namah) Guru brahma, guru Vishnu, guru devo maheshvarah guru saakshaat parabrahmatasmi sri guruvey namaha Free translation “Oh creative power (brahma), you are both the bearer of all change (maheshvarah) and the support for all that lives (vishnu), I gladly let myself be guided by you as my absolute teacher (guruvey), with respect and devotion, for you are eternal being. (parabrahma).”
The Guru brahma mantra indicates that brahma, the inspiring and creative force, is the true teacher. In Hinduism, Lord Brahma is considered part of the Trimurti (the holy trinity): Brahma (creation), Shiva (transformation), and Vishnu (support). However, this mantra emphasizes that Brahma is actually the most important, because his power contains the powers of the other two. After all, inspiration also implies transformation (Shiva, here called Mahesh) and stability (Vishnu). The conclusion of the last sentence of the mantra is therefore, “I respectfully offer my devotion only to such a teacher in whom creation, transformation, and support go hand in hand.” The recitation supports your openness to experience your aura. It creates a greater sense of freedom and space for the energy field around you, relieving the tension in your skin and the feeling of living in a cocoon. This recitation expresses in many ways that pure life force and creation is the true spiritual teacher and guide. Progression of the recitation As you repeat this recitation, you continually allow the sounds and values of this mantra to enter you, creating a devotional space of consciousness in which the value of assuming soul guidance can take place completely, and from there to radiate out into the world. The sounds of the crystal singing bowl invite you to let go of all mental orientation, and the sounds of the tanpura have a liberating effect on your consciousness. As you allow these values to resonate in your consciousness, your brain automatically falls silent. In the process, the mantra fills you with the enveloping and meaningful experience of no longer being alone and taking guidance to the essential. After repeating this mantra over and over again, you have been imbued with this value to the point that you feel it in every cell of your body and you will naturally radiate that value to the outside world. For a moment you will be fully in harmony with your deep longing or thirst for soul guidance. When the mantra singing ends, allow the atmosphere in which you are enveloped to continue to exist for as long as it lasts, and open yourself to its healing influence. Allow your brain to remain still, for that is precisely why this value has been able to fill, enrich and heal you. When the music ends, allow the atmosphere that has been created to continue to exist in stillness until it fades away naturally.
Track 7: Shanti Mangalam devotional recitation
Extending peace to all
Recitation Shanti, Shanti mangalam shanti Free translation “Peace and prosperity for all.”
The Shanti Mangalam devotional recitation assists you in giving spiritual love or peace to all that you are and all that surrounds you. Shanti means inner peace and mangalam means prosperity, beneficial influence. This recitation is not very fast and gives you the space to bring peace and stillness to all the areas of tension you are experiencing at that moment. It is easier to let go of your tendency to identify with something, and this frees you from an overly concentrated mind and its narrow-mindedness. Whatever it is that occupies you or comes to mind, whether you find it pleasant or not, give it all this repeated beneficial influence of peace with complete devotion. There is no more important influence than the value of shantimangalam, which every soul and humanity as a whole needs to be respected and to be able to live together in trust. Each time you recite this mantra, you are contributing to this. Progression of the recitation As you repeat this recitation, you continually allow the sounds and values of the mantra shantimangalam to enter you, creating a devotional space of consciousness in which peace and prosperity for all can take place completely, and from there to radiate out into the world. The sounds of the bell are an invitation to let go of all mental orientation. As you let these values resonate in your consciousness, your brain automatically falls silent. The mantra then fills you with the deep and meaningful experience of peaceful prosperity. After repeating this mantra over and over again, you have been imbued with this value to the point that you feel it in every cell of your body and you will naturally radiate that value to the outside world. For a moment you will be fully in harmony with your deep longing or thirst for true peace. When the mantra singing ends, allow the atmosphere in which you are enveloped to continue to exist for as long as it lasts, and open yourself to its healing influence. Allow your brain to remain still, for that is precisely why this value has been able to fill, enrich and heal you. When the music ends, allow the atmosphere that has been created to continue to exist in stillness until it fades away naturally.