Eight - Banalinga

                    Bana Linga

    Bana Linga is the Divine Sacred Symbol of Lord Shiva. It has within it the highestfrequency of vibrations (compared to any stone on Earth) and appears from the cradles of River Narmada. The Bana Lingas are Swayambhu Shiva Lingas that have taken shape in the Sacred Narmada River.For this reason, the Bana Lingams are also known as the Narmada Bana Lingas or Narmadeshwar Shiva Lingas.

    The river Narmada is one of the Seven Holy Rivers of India. It is also famous as "Reva" , which is described as the "sweat" flowing out of Lord Shiva's own body when he performed his Divine "Tandhab dance" . It is also said that the natural Bana Lingas are self-manifest respresentations of God Shiva.Narmada Bana Lingas are as precious to Lord Shiva as Shalgram shila is for God Vishnu. 

     These Bana Lingas contain Crypto Crystalline Quartz and a Gemstone material called Chalcedony ( alongwith Basalt and Agate. This unique composition coupled with elliptical shape has a precise resonance in alignment with our Energy Centers or Chakras and are used for thousands of years as Divine Energy Generators for Cleansing, Healing and for Meditation.It is the considered that the unique composition of the Bana Lingas was formed 14 million years ago due to a a large meteorite that crashed into the Narmada River. The fusion of the Meteorite and the Earthly Minerals has spawned a new and unique type of Crystalline Rock with extraordinary energetic qualities - Bana Linga. The Bana Linga's upright egg shape represents the Pure Consciousness of Lord Shiva and the Holy Markings on the Sacred Stone represent the interactive aspect of Goddess Shakti Together, they represent the Union of Shiva and Shakti :

     Bana Linga has a legend to in the puranas.The demon King Bana ,the eldest of the one hundred sons of Bali was a great devotee of Shiva and to seek His Divine Blessings he performed severe penances for a long time, in the Holy Himalayas, invoking Lord Shiva's favour. Finally Lord Shiva appeared in answer to his austerities and agreed to grant him a boon. Banasura wished for himself One Thousand Arms carrying a multitude of weapons to destroy his enemies and desired that Goddess Parvathi consider him as her own son - he was bestowed with what he asked. Being pelased with him, Lord Shiva honoured Bali by giving him his own representation in the form of Swayambu Shiva Linga, hence the name Bana Linga.

    These Banalingas were worshipped by different Gods and deities.So these Bana Lingas carry the different marks characteristic of these Gods :

(1) Conch Shell mark on top indicates it has been worshipped by Lord Maha Vishnu.

(2) Lotus Mark denotes it was worshipped by Lord Brahma.

(3) Parasol mark reveals it was worshipped by Lord Indr .

(4) Heads mark shows it was worshipped by Lord Agni.

(5) Three Steps denote it was worshipped by Lord Yama.

(6) Mace mark indicates it was worshipped by Lord Isana.

(7) Water Vase mark shows it was worshipped by Lord Varuna.

(8) Banner mark denotes it was worshipped by Lord Vayu.

    It is said that mainly there are nine types of Banalingas -

(a) Swayambhu - honey coloured with two dark rings

(b) Mrityunjaya - variegated colours with marks resembling spear and colis of matted hair

(c) Nilakantha - elongated and white coloured with a black spot

(d) Trilochana - white coloured with eye-like marks

(e) Kalagni Rudhra - lustrous and dark, stout with matted-hair like marks

(f) Tripurari - honey coloured with white marks resembling the sacrificial chord across and with lotus at the base

(g) Isana - clear crystal with the top twany brown and marks of a trident

(h) Ardhanariswara - white coloured on one side and red coloured on the other side

(i) Maha Kala - slightly red in hue, shining, stout and longish in shape

    The famous Tantric Text "Yoga Sara" of Kaula gives a separate dhyana and mantra for the worship of Bana Lingas, which is completely different from the standard worship ritual offered to Lord Shiva. This procedure in heavily tantric in orientation and involves a lot of visualising capabilities and might not be suitable to the householder.Rigorous worship of any Sacred Object like the Narmada Bana Linga is always good, but it is not obligatory. The mere presence of a Banalinga is said to grace its environment with harmony, mental peace, prosperity and protection. Regular worship of the Lingam with the Sacred Mantras cause a powerful internal reverberation which is absorbed by the Bana Linga. With consistent worship, this energy is slowly released and emitted to the surrounding environments, and is specially known to have the capacity to negate the accumulated karmic burdens of its worshipper.The Bana Linga helps one to unite the lower self with the higher self so that we may know our own divinity. It brings believers into the mystical union with Godby healing and opening the chakras and thus activating the kundalini energy and the seven chakras. In this way It awakens the energy centers and brings feelings of peace and well being.

Seven - Life and Death

           Seven - Life and Death

Life and death are the alternate situation of every human lives.If life comes can death be far behind? So why should we care for the inevitable?Why should not we keep moving towards the life enjoying the Divine moments that we can experience here?Live life instead of die before the death thinking about the ultimate perish..If you ask me,I will say,"We should neither care for life nor for death..Just go on the way of the divinity eradicating all pressures to block us..go on using the positives of the life and if on your way you feel threatened about death,just have a glimpse of the book "From The World Beyond Death" and your fear for death will be vanished..I have written in this book about a yogi's journey to the world after death and everything was written there on the experience. There is no death,only the decaying of the physical instead..So feel the life to fill up the blanks that death creates in our mind.

Six -Span of 4 yugas as mentioned in the shastras

Span of 4 yugas as mentioned in the shastras

Four are the ages in the land of Bharata: the krita, treta, dwapara and kali. The krita yuga lasts for 4800 divine years, the treta for 3600, the dwapara for 2400 and the kali for 1200; and, then, another krita begins.

The krita or satya yuga is an age of purity; it is sinless. Dharma, righteousness, is perfect and walks on four feet in the krita. However, from the treta yuga, adharma, evil, comes to the world and the very fabric of time begins to decay. Finally, the kali yuga, the fourth age, is almost entirely corrupt, with dharma barely surviving, hobbling on one foot.

A chaturyuga, a cycle of four ages, is 12,000 divine years, or 365 x 12,000 human years long. Seventy-one chaturyugas make a manvantara; fourteen manvantaras, a kalpa. A kalpa of a thousand chaturyugas, 12 million divine years, is one day of Brahma, the Creator.

8,000 Brahma years make one Brahma yuga; 1,000 Brahma yugas make a savana and Brahma’s life is 3,003 savanas long. One day of Mahavishnu is the lifetime of Brahma

Three hundred and sixty-five human years make one year of the Devas and the Pitrs, the Gods and the ancestors.

(A compilation from the shastras)