[Advaita-l] !!! Doubt about Tripundra Dharana !!!

[Kale Balkrishna]

Namaskar Anand Hudli Ji,

Thanks for the nice explanation. Some other learned members too replied to
this question earlier but I find your answer the most easy to understand.
Thanks once again for the beautiful explanation.

Kale Balkrishna
Slogan of the day : Please do Sandhyavandane Daily.


On Wed, Jun 30, 2010 at 9:14 AM, Anand Hudli <ahudli at gmail.com> wrote:

> There is a saying that the UrdhvapuNDra, tripuNDra, and tilaka should be
> made with earth, ashes, and sandalwood paste respectively. (UrdhvapuNDraM
> mR^idA kuryAt.h tripuNDraM bhasmanA sadA tilakaM vai dvijaH kuryAccandanena
> yadR^icchhayA)
>
> The procedure of applying the tripuNDra mark is described in the
> kAlAgnirudropaniShad. The Bhasma-jAbAla-upanishad, in the form of a dialog
> between JAbAla  (BhusuNDa) and Shiva, also deals with the importance of
> Bhasma (vibhUti) and the tripuNDra (the three horizontal lines) marks on
> the
> forehead and  other parts of the body made with the bhasma. The bhasma is
> itself  prepared as an end-result of a homa done with such materials as
>  cow
> dung, etc. , the main mantra being "tryaMbakaM  yajAmahe ..." What remains
> as ashes at the end of the homa is vibhUti or bhasma (ashes).   Thus one
> says the mantra, "agniriti bhasma...". There are specific mantras that are
> to be recited while invoking and applying the vibhuuti, such as "mAnastoke
> ..", "sadyojAtaM...", and "tryAyuShaM jamadagner...". The vibhUti is said
> to  purify one, both  externally and internally.
> The three lines of bhasma are symbolic. The first line stands for the
> syllable A of the praNava, the Rig Veda, the Garhapatya agni, and so on.
> The
> second line stands for the syllable U of the praNava, the Yajur Veda, the
> dakShiNAgni, and so on. The third line stands for the M syllable of the
> praNava, the sAma Veda, the AhavanIya agni, and so on.
>
>  The significance of VibhUti and RudrAkShas is explained by upaniShad
> Brahma Yogin, the commentator on all the 108 upaniShads.
>
>  na hi svAjnalokasya sahasaa svajnAnamudeti tasya-ashuddhaantaratvAt.h
>
>  Knowledge of the Atman does not dawn all of a sudden on a person who is
> ignorant of the Atman. This is because such a person's mind is not pure.
>
>    (upaniShad Brahma Yogin's commentary on the akShamAlikA up.)
>
>  na hi ashuddhachittaM mantraarthapratyagabhinnabrahmavishhayaM bhavati
>
> Brahman, which is nondifferent from the Inner Self and the purport of all
> mantras, does not come within the range of an impure mind.
>
>   (upanishhad Brahma Yogin's commentary on the akshhamaalikaa up.)
>
>   chittashuddhir-vibhuuti-rudraakshadhaaraNaadR^ite na sambhavati iti
>
>  Without vibhuuti and rudraakshha's, purification of the mind is
> not possible.
>
>  (upanishhad Brahma Yogin's commentary on the rudraakshhajaabaala up.)
>
>  Therefore, the role played by vibhUti and rudrAkShas is to purify the mind
> (chittashuddhi). This chittashuddhi is necessary for realization of the
> Self.
>
> Those who need to apply Gopichandana to mark the UrdhvapuNdra use the
> ViShNu mantras, "ato devA ..." of the Rig Veda and apply the Gopichandana,
> saying the names 12 of ViShNu- keshava, nArayaNa,mAdhava, etc. It is not
> correct to find fault with either type of puNDra - tripuNDra or
> UrdhvapuNDra. Let us heed the advice of the SmritimuktAphala in this
> regard:
> तस्मादेकस्यैवेश्वरस्य सर्वदेवमयत्वाद्देवतान्तरनिन्दावर्जितैरेवेश्वर आराध्यः
> शिवो विष्णुरन्यो वा देवः । पुण्ड्रमपि तत्तद्देवताप्रीतिकरं
> पुण्ड्रान्तरनिन्दावर्जितैरेव धार्यम् ।
>
> Therefore, (one) should worship the One God, Ishvara as Shiva, ViShNu, or
> any other deity, without criticizing other deities, since only One
> God appears as all deities. (In simlar fashion), each person should also
> wear the puNDra mark that is pleasing to his deity without criticizing the
> puNdra mark of others.
>
> Anand
> _______________________________________________
> Archives: http://lists.advaita-vedanta.org/archives/advaita-l/
> http://blog.gmane.org/gmane.culture.religion.advaita
>
> To unsubscribe or change your options:
> http://lists.advaita-vedanta.org/cgi-bin/listinfo/advaita-l
>
> For assistance, contact:
> listmaster at advaita-vedanta.org
>