A Guru Gayatri Sadhana for the Eclipse — What a Householder Without a Guru May Do From Amavasya to Guru Purnima

The speaker opens by saying that the sadhana he is placing before everyone today is for this Grahan kaal, and that this time is extremely important. On the solar eclipse falling on 21 June, he says, there is a Chudamani yog after 840 years, and any sadhana done at that time will give that much strength to one's sadhana. It is the saying of mahatmas, of saints and of learned people, he reports, that the time which gives crores of times more fruit is the grahan kaal. And within that, if a solar eclipse falls on a Sunday, then it gives akshay fruit — endlessly, endlessly multiplied fruit. That, he says, is why he is placing this sadhana before everyone.

This sadhana is especially for those whose guru there is none, he says, and who wish to come onto the sadhana marg. It is also for the ordinary person who wishes to do sadhana for the protection of his house and family and for his own protection. For them, he says, this sadhana is. If a Guru is not being obtained by us, or no guru is being found who suits the mind, then there is no need to wander about. Until a guru is obtained, do this sadhana, and until then awaken these mantras.

It is so, the speaker says, that gurus are not obtained so easily. It is the PrarabdhaThe portion of destiny already set in motion by past actions — spiritual practice and good deeds can lessen its severity, but not eliminate it. of some of our karmas that a guru is not being obtained. When that prarabdha is cut, when there is increase in Punya, when strength comes into your JivatmaThe individual embodied soul currently animating a physical body — distinct from the formless, genderless Atman it ultimately is., when the energy of tapas grows and a collection of punya is made, then the guru will certainly be obtained. So this sadhana, and this sadhana done at this time, will certainly increase your tapas, he says — it will increase the Tapo-bala.

The mantra he spoke at the beginning, he says, is known to all: गुरुर् ब्रह्मा गुरुर् विष्णु गुरुर् देवो महेश्वरः गुरुर् साक्षात परब्रह्म तस्मै श्री गुरुवे नमः। That is, the guru alone is Brahma, the guru alone is Vishnu, the guru alone is Shiva in person, the Parabrahma in person alone is guru. In that same way, he says, those of you who have no guru should understand this — that Brahma ji alone is guru, Vishnu ji alone is guru and Bhagwan Shiva alone is guru, Ma Jagadamba"Mother of the World" — an epithet of the Devi. alone is guru, that Parabrahma Bhagavati alone is guru. So you may accept them as guru. Our worthiness has nothing to do with them, he says; no person can become worthy before them. When their glance of grace is there, when their wish is there, when their blessing and grace is there and the strength of our punya is there, only then will they grant us a guru in gross form, a physical guru of the physical world. So for now, accepting them as guru, we can do these sadhanas of ours, our sattvik sadhanas, for our house and family.

If you are to accept Bhagwan Shiva as guru, then bring a rudraksha mala, the speaker says. A black hakik mala may also be brought if Bhagwan Shiva is to be accepted as guru. If sadhana is to be done accepting Ma Jagdamba as guru, then bring a sphatik mala. If sadhana is to be done accepting Bhagwan Narayan, then bring the yellow hakik mala. Bring any one mala, and before the grahan kaal, on some special auspicious day, have its Prana Pratishtha done. He says he will give the ordinary sattvik vidhi for pran pratishtha, a small vidhi, in a separate video soon — how it can be done in the least time and by the easiest method. This one mala is all that is needed, he says, and it is the most important thing for you; and this mala is what you are to wear. How it is to be worn, by which vidhi it is to be worn, and how far it is to be energised before wearing — that, he says, is what he is now going to tell, along with how the sadhana is to be done.

For those whose guru there is none, the speaker says, the Guru Gayatri is the best. It is best for those who have a guru as well — but those who have a guru have already obtained a guru mantra, so they should do japa of that guru mantra alone. They should take a vidhan from their own guru for this grahan kaal. For those who have a guru and have received a guru mantra too, this eclipse time is very important. If there is no time for doing any other sadhana, or no wish, or if for any reason or circumstance they are not able to do it, then let them at the very least do Japa of their guru mantra.

The time of the sadhana kaal on 21 June, the time at which it will begin, will be from 10:15 in the morning, the speaker says. Sit down by at least 10:10 in the morning, and you have to keep sitting continuously on one asana until at least 2:45 in the afternoon. If you are not capable of doing it and cannot sit that long, there is no difficulty and no trouble in that, he says. If you are a new sadhak or have no practice of sitting, it is not as though you must give your life over it — sit and then remain stuck sitting. You may comfortably leave your asana. But make at least an attempt: if you are sitting at 10:15, try to sit continuously for two hours, up to 12:15, so that you reach the sparsh kaal of the eclipse and the madhya kaal. When the full eclipse falls — the full eclipse falls in the madhya kaal — try to cross the time of the full eclipse, that you sit at least till 12:15. If you manage to sit even that long and do it, he says, a great deal of your work will be accomplished.

The second thing, the speaker says: keep GangajalWater from the Ganges, used to purify and re-consecrate ritual items exposed to impurity. in a bowl with rose water mixed into it, and along with it a lota of water with an achamani. The AsanaThe consecrated mat or seat used during ritual practice, treated as a manifest form of Earth energy (Vasundhara) — never to be shared casually, stepped on, or used for mundane purposes. cloth should be yellow or white; it may also be a Kusha Asana. The women sadhikas, if they wish, may wear a yellow saree; they may also wear a red saree, and according to their own wish may wear colourful clothes — but they should not wear black. In this guru sadhana, he says, because it is sattvik and is for householder people, black cloth is absolutely not to be used. Dark cloth is not to be used. The attempt should be to use yellow, or red, or pink — these colours may be used. One is to sit on the asana facing towards the east.

If there is very much wish, and in order to give this strength, then a lamp — either of ghee or else of til oil, the speaker says. And how is a lamp lit? A lamp's mouth is always towards the east, so it is kept facing towards the east and then lit; and the thread that is put into it will be two threads. If you put in KalavaThe red-and-yellow sacred thread (also called moli) tied at the wrist or used to twist lamp wicks; sold in strands that are wound to a counted number., raw thread kalava, or if you put in cotton, then mix kalava together with the cotton and put it in. One single thread is never lit, one wick is never lit — two wicks are lit. So twist the two wicks together and light it comfortably, such that it can burn for three hours, for the whole grahan kaal. Just light it and sit down.

Whatever vidhi-vidhan you know — doing AchamanaThe ritual sipping of water for self-purification before worship, one of the opening Shatkarma/Pavitrikaran rites., purifying the ground and so on — if you know that vidhi then it is fine; if you do not know it, then remembering Bhagwan, do japa of the Guru Gayatri, the speaker says. He states that he is giving an absolutely easy vidhi, kept as easy as possible so that nothing is difficult and no doubt remains in the mind. The mala is already pran-pratishthit. One has only to take up that mala and begin the japa. The time he has already told you. After the japa is complete, the mala goes into that water in which there should be only Gangajal. The brass bowl, with the rose water mixed, should have only Gangajal in it — no other water should be mixed into it. Simply place the mala into it after completing the japa, and mentally offer the japa up.

Keep in mind, the speaker says, that this eclipse which is falling has Sutak six hours before and sutak six hours after as well. For that reason there is no need on that day to do puja-path and so on — meaning DhoopIncense offered during worship; its smoke is treated as an offering in its own right within the sequence of upacharas., deep, batti and the rest in the puja room. It is not to be done that day. On that day keep the whole shutter of the puja room closed. In the grahan kaal, pujan and bhog and the like of the devatas are not done. Japa alone is done. At the most, outside the puja room — dhoop is not lit, a lamp alone may be lit. That is the only thing that will be done on that day. And the bowl is afterwards placed in the puja room.

One more thing, the speaker says: a kaner root. Whether yellow kaner or white kaner, bring the root of either of these two on a Thursday. Although it is properly brought in Pushya Nakshatra, even if Pushya Nakshatra is not obtained, still bring it and keep it; and in that bowl in which you will be keeping the water, keep this root through the whole grahan kaal. Afterwards, from the next day Navratri is beginning. So after doing the puja-path you are to do, if you can do one mala of japa of this mantra then one mala, if you can do ten malas then ten malas — but keep it the same every day. If you do five malas today, then tomorrow too it will be five malas. On the third day of Navratri too it will be five malas, and up to the morning of Dashami you have to keep doing japa of the same five malas each time. Doing five malas of japa you will continue up to Dashami, and after doing the japa you are to keep placing the mala back into the bowl from there.

Then, the speaker says, up to the Purnima — up to the day on which Guru Poornima is falling, up to Guru Purnima, the Ashadh Purnima falling on 5 July — up to that day you will do it. That day too is a Sunday. It is on going to that day that this sadhana of yours becomes complete. This is a full two-week sadhana, he says, a complete one-paksha sadhana — from Amavasya right up to Purnima, from darkness right up to light, this sadhana is. On that day this sadhana becomes complete.

When the japa becomes complete on Dashami, then on that day do one round of Ahuti, do a Havan, the speaker says. The havan you will do only and only on ghee and mango wood and cow-dung cakes. No other thing is to be used in it. There should be only ghee, and it should be pure desi ghee. Give 108 ahutis — that is plenty. After giving that much, do the Purnahuti. Here your sadhana becomes complete, he says: the first charan.

After this, the speaker says, the next charan is that the mala is still not to be used. After doing japa on that mala it is again to be placed in the same way into the same water, into the Gangajal bowl. And after that, what is to be done? From the day after Dashami — again one mala of japa, or five malas of japa, whichever you were doing; now it is your wish. From the day after Dashami, if it is your wish that no, I will do japa of only one mala, then you will do japa of only one mala.

On that day guru pujan will be done, for whomever you have accepted in the form of guru, the speaker says. Cloth will be kept for them, and a bhog of sweets and the like will be given. And then, after doing the pujan, for the purpose of doing dan and the rest, the articles will be touched and set aside — whatever ann-dan you wish to do, whatever dan you wish to do, will be kept separately along with some DakshinaThe offering made to a guru or officiant that completes a rite; a ritual is held incomplete without it.. The yachaks who come to ask for something — you will keep something aside separately to give to them. And after that, taking this mala as the blessing of the guru and as the protection of the guru, treating it as this nimitta, you will wear it around your neck.

Here you have worn it, and with these there is no separate niyam at all, the speaker says. There is no requirement upon you that you must take it off, or when you must keep it away. Keep it worn always. There is no difficulty, and do not keep any kind of doubt in the mind. Yes — if it is a RudrakshaA sacred seed strung into rosaries and worn during shiva worship. mala, at the time of shauch and the like, it is your wish, but it should indeed be taken off. When you go at the time of shauch, take it off. After bathing, do pujan again and put it on. There is no difficulty. Wherever you go and come, keep it worn always. There is no trouble in this.

After that, from the next day, when Shravan (Savan) is beginning, it is your wish — if you like, then again keep doing japa of one mala of it every single day, and keep it worn around the neck, the speaker says. This will be your first charan of the sadhana. Whoever does it, after that, in whatever other sadhana he has to do, will not have too much distress and trouble in it, there will be right guidance, and whatever sadhana he wishes to do will be completed; from this he will get help and strength in it. Along with that, there will be that increase in your punya and in your Tapo-bala by which you may obtain a guru face to face, directly, in this physical world.

This whole time of the guru paksha, and this grahan kaal and Navratri time, is a very special and very particular time, the speaker says. There can be no time more special than this, that a full Navratri is falling in between two eclipses. For your sadhana, for tapo bala, for energy, it is a very good time. Make good use of this time; begin your sadhana at this time.

If to this day any of you have done nothing for yourselves, if to this day we have done no sadhana at all, then at the very least do certainly make use of this Guru Gayatri once in your life, the speaker says. Sadhana is always begun from the guru. The guru is SumeruThe head bead of a mala, never crossed during japa — the count turns back at it instead., the guru is the mountain; all sadhanas should be started from the guru alone. After doing sadhana of this mantra, he says, he will further tell many other sadhanas of the kind that you can comfortably do while staying at home, and can get relief from some of your problems. Beyond that is Bhagavati's wish, he says — by Bhagavati's wish we are all only instruments.