Sound and Form ...

[yajvan]

hariḥ oṁ
~~~~~~

Namasté

I thought to offer a view on sound and form, which we see and experience every day:


śabda शब्द= sound = a word (śabdena , by word , explicitly , expressly)
rūpa रूप - form, shape, figure. Many times we mention Śiva is prakāśa , pure light. Yes this is one quality, but there is more. Śiva has the nature of sāmānya-prakāśa-spanda¹ - or the whole (full) pulse (vibration) of creation, manifestation.
And Śakti is of the nature to stir, stimulate this whole/full potential of creativity into sound (śabda) and form (rūpa). What else follows is color, flavor (rasa), touch (sparśa) and smell (gandha).

My teacher use to call this creation manifesting, Creative (Śakti) Intelligence (Śiva). Śiva is the full, complete (pūrṇa), pure potential and Śakti, as extension of Śiva, provides this impulse to create. It is out of the union of Śakti +Śiva that multiplicity of creation comes about.

The interesting part ( for me) is this process say the wise, comes from the Self-referral quality of this Pure Intelligence. Some call it vimaṛśa śakti - Self-reflection, Self-revelation as vimaṛśa विमृश means consideration , deliberation; Vimarśa ( a noun for Śiva), also means intelligence; And we find this reflection quality, vimaṛśa, Śiva curves back onto HimSELF for manifestation.

So what is my point? When we look at the saṃskṛt assembly of akṣara¹ it is made up of vowels (svara) and consonants (vyañjāna). Śiva is the owner of svara and Śakti is the owner of vyañjāna.

The 16 vowels (svara) extend from a (अ) to ḥ (अः). The 34 consonants (vyañjāna) extend from ka (क) to kṣa (क्ष).
These akṣara (~ phonemes, sounds, letters) are not intert letters, there are filled with this creative intelligence. They are considered
the utterance of parā-vāk , the verbal power of the Divine.

Within Śaivāgama this Creation or manifestation via parā-vāk is called varṇa- sṛṣṭi: varṇa is form , figure , shape , colour + ṣṛṣti is letting go, emission i.e. creation. It is by this utterance parā-vāk i.e. this vimaṛśa (Self reflection) that Creation comes into being and each akṣara (~ phonemes, sounds, letters) offer a particular quality in creation.
We should find all the tattva-s ( elements, 'that'ness) within the full 50 akṣara of the saṃskṛt assembly of akṣara. We can then look at each letter and see the tattva behind it.

It is via this parā-vāk or sakti that allows mantra-s to have their effects and use… they are built from the saṃskṛt assembly of akṣara that also brings about ( or is inherent in) creation, sound and form.

More on some of these letters (~ phonemes, sounds) in a future post as they are considered Mātṛikā-s¹ - the (little) mothers creating the Universe.

praṇām

words

vimarśa विमर्श- vimarśa means consideration , deliberation ( also a noun for Śiva), also intelligence, knowledge
vimaṛśa विमृश - means reflection, deliberation.
akṣara अक्षर- a letter, vowel, sound, word; also means imperishable
sāmānya सामान्य - Universal, whole , entire ; note sāmanya सामन्य - friendly, favorable
prakāśa प्रकाश - shining, bright, luminous, light ; manifestation , expansion , diffusion ; ( also a noun form Brahman)
spanda स्पन्द - throb, vibration
Mātṛikā मातृका - mother, source or origin.

[simex]

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=05Io6lop3mk&feature=channel_page

The creative power of sound.

It's interesting to see how varied and complicated patterns can be generated by a very simple sine wave. It's a good explanation for how a complicated world can come to appear as ripples on the surface of something simple. After all, the only difference between a sound and the light bouncing off of an object is the frequency at which the energy is cycling. Everything is in waves or cycles. Furthermore, everything is movement and matter, and the movement (i.e. energy) is really the same thing as the matter (i.e. energy).

"All that is within and beyond the threefold division of time, that is truly Om." - Mandukya Upanishad

It sends chills down my spine to think that the rishi's had such a plausible conception of the reality, without the lens of science-- which now confirms their words. Or maybe I just read too much in to this stuff ;)

[devotee]

Namaste Yajvanji & Simex,

Everything what I see feels me with the wonder unlimited. Every Sound I hear fills me with wonder unlimited.

Seen, the seer, the light & seeing. As correctly brought out by Simex, light is just an electromagnetic wave ... a vibration of magnetic & electric fields in space ... a form of energy. The "Seen" is the object which reflects the light to the "Seer". The "Seen", the matter, is nothing but another form of energy having acquired a particular form within a given conditions. The "Seer" is again not different from the earlier two.

So, the "Seer", "The Seen" & the "Light" (i.e. the means help "seeing") are nothing but different forms of energy. There is no individuality in "light" or the "seen" (assuming it to be an inanimate object) ... but the "Seer" happens to own the act of "seeing" ... a sense of individuality ... "ahamkar"/ ego. When the two quantum of energies (in the same form) mix, there is no memory of their "separate" existence of the past left in their new form.That reminds me of experience of "One-ness" of individual soul with God & the universe.

OM

[yajvan]

hariḥ oṁ
~~~~~~




So, the "Seer", "The Seen" & the "Light" (i.e. the means help "seeing") are nothing but different forms of energy. There is no individuality in "light" or the "seen" (assuming it to be an inanimate object) ... but the "Seer" happens to own the act of "seeing" ... a sense of individuality ...



Namasté devotee (et.al)

The seer + seen + method of seeing and perceiving ( light and our perception organs) all add up to a continuity, a continuum.

Perhaps this is why the wise talk of Brahman as wholeness (purṇatā).
That there is no break or pause - the continuity of consciousness pervades everything. Trika sees Brahman as vast (bṛhat) and all-pervading (vyāpaka). It needn't mention Existence (sattā) for that is Brahman already.


This continuum then (for the wise) allows them to see everything uniformly , with an even-ness of vision. They tell us this by saying:
sarvasarvātmakatā vapuḥ - everything (sarva) is the form (vapuḥ) of everything else (sarvātmaka)


praṇām


words

sarva सर्व - whole , entire , all , every
ātmaka आत्मन् - belonging to or forming the nature ; belonging in essence , nature
vapuḥ or vapu वपु - a body

[yajvan]

hariḥ oṁ
~~~~~~

Namasté


And Śakti is of the nature to stir, stimulate this whole/full potential of creativity into sound (śabda) and form (rūpa). What else follows is color, flavor (rasa), touch (sparśa) and smell (gandha).

My teacher use to call this creation manifesting, Creative (Śakti) Intelligence (Śiva). Śiva is the full, complete (pūrṇa), pure potential and Śakti, as extension of Śiva, provides this impulse to create. It is out of the union of Śakti +Śiva that multiplicity of creation comes about.

Śrī Devī is said to wear a garland of letters (50 phonemes of the saṃskṛt assembly of akṣara) and She is known as Mālinī, She wearing
a mālā¹ ( garland) and holding (mal - to hold or possess) the śakti of these sound forms i.e. the phonemes (akṣara) of the saṃskṛt
alphabet.

This word devī is quite attractive. devī देवी we know is a female devā, and therefore divinity. Within this (divinity) we see divinity. What of this div ?
div दिव् to play , sport; to shine , be bright ; to praise , rejoice. It also means to have free scope , spread , increase or expand as we find
in the root of Brahman bṛh - to grow great or strong , increase. Some say this also implies vijigīṣā विजिगीषा, to overcome or subdue.
So we find within Śrī Devī the notion to expand, to be bright, to play, sport and to grow great and strong.
Expansion and strength is a natural quality of śakti शक्ति- power, energy,etc. It is not uncommon to hear of the 8 sakti-s , indrāṇī , vaiṣṇavī , śāntā , brahmāṇī , kaumārī , nārasiṃhī , vārāhī , and māheśvarī ( all expressions of Śrī Devī's play). These sakti-s, it is said, preside over the phonemes of letters and sound. They are called mothers (Mātṛkā).

Hence in a future post, and in the spirit of sound and form, we will take a look at these 50 akṣara of the saṃskṛt assembly and look at the
tattva-s that accompany each phoneme.

Understanding these words is another way of appreciating parā vāk ( an expression of Śrī Devī ) and the letters that come out from the Supreme - from a to kṣa ( the 50 akṣara of the saṃskṛt assembly) - that is this Creative Intelligence that sounds forth creation, the manifestation of the Divine.


praṇām

words

mālā माला- a string of beads , necklace , rosary; also a wreath. Not to be confused with mala - that of a blemish, dirt, etc.