Why a Mantra Is Given Forty Days — and the Order the Sadhanas Come In

Does a clove bursting while it burns mean something?

No. It is an entirely ordinary thing and no auspicious or inauspicious sign should be read into it. The one exception the speaker allows: if there is a particular illness or bodily distress at the time, the clove that flew out may be eaten, taking it as grace.

Answering a listener at the very start of the session, the speaker says that a clove bursting while clove and camphor are being burnt is a completely ordinary occurrence, and that no indication of the auspicious or the inauspicious should be read into it. He allows one qualification. If there is some particular circumstance — an illness, some distress in the body — and at that time the clove flies out, then that clove may be eaten, taking it as grace. There is no inauspiciousness in it.

Why is every mantra given forty days?

Because that is the minimum Mandala. The session sets out to answer why any mantra — Dattatreya, Shabar, Pauranik or Tantrokta — is given forty days, and what effects begin to be obtained within them.

The speaker opens by noting that Bhagavan Dattatreya's Jayanti, Margashirsha Purnima, falls on the coming Tuesday. He then states the subject of the session. For those who perform Tantrokta sadhanas in particular, why is it said that any kind of mantra — and especially the mantras connected with Bhagavan Datta, Shabar mantras, or Pauranik and Tantrokta mantras — should be done for forty days, and what effects begin to be obtained within those forty days.

What is a Mandala, and does it apply to every deity?

A Mandala means forty to forty-one days, and it is said of every deity that at least one Mandala must be done. This holds for japa of any mantra, Archana and Avaran puja of any Yantra, and abundant recitation of any Sukta or Kavach undertaken for Siddhi.

The speaker gives the rule to remember before anything else. Japa of any kind of mantra, Archana of any kind of Yantra and its Aavaran Puja, and abundant japa of any kind of Sukta performed for the sake of siddhi, or japa of any Kavach performed for the sake of Siddhi — for every deity it has been said that at least one Mandala must certainly be done. The meaning of a Mandala, he says, is forty to forty-one days. Take it as forty-one.

Does the discipline start on the first day of the Anushthan?

No — take it as beginning one to two days earlier. If the Anushthan starts on Tuesday, then Sunday and Monday too require full Brahmacharya and correct conduct in food and drink; and for at least two days after the forty-one days end, the same rules are held.

The speaker extends the Mandala at both ends. The whole forty-one day process runs from the first day to the last, and when the Anushthan is about to begin, take it as starting one to two days before that. As an example: if you are going to begin the Anushthan from Tuesday, then at minimum on the Sunday and Monday too it is necessary for you to observe complete BrahmacharyaStrict celibacy required through an extended ritual observance. and to conduct your eating and drinking properly. And when the forty-one day Anushthan is complete, for at least the next two days as well you must keep your rules properly — food and drink, sleep, Brahmacharya and the rest.

Can the rules be relaxed a little in the middle of a long Anushthan?

No. Anyone who tells you that the Kali Yuga excuses mental lapses, or that you may keep contact with your wedded wife once or twice midway without incurring fault, is — in the speaker's words — becoming the cause of your complete ruin. It never works that way.

The speaker lists the excuses in the form they are usually offered. In the whole forty-one day Mandala no negligence at all will be shown: not the appetite becoming unbearable, so a little is eaten; not the inability to hold BrahmacharyaStrict celibacy required through an extended ritual observance. mentally, so a little thought is held to be no great evil; not the claim that in the Kali Yuga mental sins do not attach; not the claim that the Anushthan is very long and the age is what it is, so according to your convenience you may once or twice keep company with your wedded wife and no fault attaches to that. Whoever tells you such acts and has you perform sadhanas shaped to your mind and to theirs — know, he says, that they become the cause of your complete ruin. It never happens that way. He extends the objection to the modern traditions being started nowadays, in which practitioners are told that the forty-one day Mandala is the most necessary thing but that they should practise for it first because they have very little time.

What should a householder do who cannot hold forty days?

Shorten the observance, not the rules. Do five days — Monday to Friday, or Tuesday to Saturday — take a two-day gap, repeat. When five days is habitual, go to eleven, then to a full fortnight from Pratipada to Purnima. Within a year the forty-day rule can be carried comfortably.

The speaker accepts the constraint plainly: it is not possible for a householder to perform very long sadhanas or give very much time. No difficulty in that, he says — and this is what he always tells people. Do fewer days. Do five days. Do it from Monday to Friday, or from Tuesday to Saturday. Take a two-day gap, then do it again, then take another two-day gap. Keep such five-day Sankalpas. When five days has become habitual, increase it. Do eleven days at a time. Then make it a fortnight — that in the Shukla Paksha you will perform your Anushthan from Pratipada to Purnima, and that through the whole fifteen days you will keep your food, conduct and behaviour pure both mentally and physically. When you begin to extend the practice this way, then over three months, six months, a year, so much practice will have formed that you will carry the forty-day rule across comfortably as well.

What happens when the timings of Sandhya are adjusted for convenience?

Then do not make any particular wish for fruit. The rule is to rise before sunrise, with the morning Sandhya done while stars are still visible, and to begin the evening one at the Godhuli hour. Push these back for cold or for electric light and you have compromised in every place.

The speaker sets the principle first: it is said that if a practitioner is given conveniences and wishes to perform sadhana according to those conveniences, then he should not make any special wish for the obtaining of fruit. People say, Guru ji, we did such and such a thing so much, and where did anything happen for us. How would it happen, he asks. It cannot. Go by the rule as the rule stands; do it by invention and it will not happen. He then walks the drift down step by step. The rule is to rise before sunrise, so that the morning SandhyaThe twice- or thrice-daily prayer rite performed at dawn and dusk — Vedic Sandhya requires eligibility under Varnashrama, while those without it may instead undergo Tantrik initiation and perform Tantrik Sandhya. is completed while a star is still visible in the sky. In that we look for convenience — it will be cold in the morning, we will rise a little later. Then do not wish for fruit. Then it becomes, do it before 7:30. Then the cold is too much and there are other problems, so it becomes 8:30. Now you are doing the morning Sandhya at half past eight or nine and it is running to ten. The evening rule is that as darkness is just beginning, the sun fully set but its redness still there, the Godhuli BelaThe evening twilight period around dusk, traditionally favoured for Akarshana (attraction) rites., the Sandhya should be started. But at that time there is still much light, and now there is electric light, so it will not be done until night has fallen completely. There too you compromised. And when you are compromising in every single thing in your sadhana and looking everywhere for the answer that japa done with Bhava is enough — then, he says, God's Bhava is of the same kind, and He will give fruit of the same kind.

Why do people abuse those who insist on the rules?

Because a rule is an obstacle to convenience. The speaker says that wherever discipline, rule or Maryada is spoken of, the speaker is buried in abuse — and that this happens not only to him. He has seen good practitioners giving sound suggestions in Facebook groups covered in the same abuse.

The speaker reports the pattern rather than only his own case. He is not talking about his own channel, he says: in ten different places one sees the same comments running. Other people who point out the right path, good groups on Facebook where people give very good suggestions, genuine practitioners — they are covered over with abuse. Wherever anyone speaks of a rule, of discipline, of Maryada, the response is that he should be beaten soundly with slippers, that he is a great one to talk, that nobody does that in the Kali Yuga. And whoever speaks without Maryada is the one who says there is no need for any of it — eat and drink here, what is the difficulty, Bali is offered to Bhagavati anyway so eat a little yourself, eat an egg, what will happen, the body needs it in these times; liquor is offered to Bhairav ji anyway so drink a little.

If the day cannot be used, when should sadhana be done?

Perform the night-time sadhana: begin around 10 or 10:30 and go to 12:30, or from 11 to 12:30 or 1 — two hours, with midnight falling inside the sitting. That is the rule. Shiva too is worshipped at that hour, as are the Dasha Mahavidyas in the ordinary Stotra form.

Having ruled out convenience-shifted morning and evening Sandhyas, the speaker gives the remaining option. If you cannot do it in the day, at dawn, or at the evening Sandhya, then perform night-time sadhana. How much? Begin at ten or half past ten and go on until half past twelve, or from eleven until half past twelve or one — two hours of sadhana. Midnight must come inside it. That is the rule of it. You are not required to accomplish any siddhi; the worship of Bhagavan Shiva also takes place at that time, and of whichever of the ten Mahavidyas you are ordinarily told to serve through their Stotras. And there too, he says, there is a difficulty — that this has become a demonic sadhana, that this is the hour of the Rakshasas, how will it be done at this time. So which time would you like, then? Seven-thirty in the evening, complete by nine or half past nine. So at every point you are compromising on the time and choosing the hour by your own convenience. Then whether you do forty days or four hundred, nothing will come of it.

If so many preliminary sadhanas are required, is the fruit not divided?

This is the great confusion among practitioners: Guru form first, then Ganapati, then Bhairav, then Hanuman, then the Kula deities, then the grahas of the birth chart — who will do all this, and by the time the principal sadhana is reached, has the fruit not been divided among them?

The speaker names the second subject of the session as a confusion, and states it in the practitioners' own words. If we are performing the sadhana of Bhagavan Dattatreya, how is Ganapati ji's sadhana to be taken up first within it? If we are performing the sadhana of Bhagavati Durga or of Kali ji, then in the sequential sadhana it is said that you should first perform the sadhana of the Guru form. For example: you have done Bhagavan Datta's sadhana, then Ganapati's, then Bhairav ji's, and now you are doing Hanuman ji's. You are doing the powers of the Kula deities. According to your birth chart you are doing the grahas and nakshatras. Who will do this much? And after doing all this, at the very last you come to your principal sadhana. And in all these sadhanas that were done, the fruit has been divided. This is the objection that is raised.

Why does a Guru insist on steps the student finds burdensome?

Because he is looking at you from the other side. The speaker's comparison: as a child you resented your teachers and hoped they would fall ill; many of you are now teachers yourselves and cannot bypass what you know a student needs. Once Purnabhisheka is done and the right is given, you will not bypass it either.

The speaker answers the objection by turning the practitioner around. Those who are duly and traditionally initiated in the Tantra path — once your Purnabhisheka has been done, in whichever tradition you go into, and once this right is given to you, you too will not be able to bypass this thing when you speak to your own disciple. It feels good to talk now, he says. In childhood you will have said all sorts of bad things about your teachers — where does he come from, why has he not fallen ill, he addles the brain, he will ask questions, he will chew the mind — and you will have given your teachers various names. But many among you have now become teachers yourselves, and you know what you must think for your own students. You cannot bypass it. You know what runs in the child's mind, that he does not want to come, that he wishes his teacher would fall ill. But you know that for the child's own good you must get this thing completed in this much time. It is your responsibility, because if that child studies, your own name and reputation grow with it. Here it is exactly the same. As long as you are advancing in the path of sadhana as a student, as long as no responsibility rests on you, whatever Guru, scholar or guide tells you the sadhanas will seem difficult to you — so much difficulty, so much burden, so much elaboration, so much that has to be done as mere show. That feeling arising within you is one thing. But you are not looking at yourself from his standpoint. He is looking at it this way: if this Tantra practitioner, with the attachment and surrender he has within him, does these things, his basics will be cleared, his path will open, he will go forward, and he will not have to come back for them later.

What should be done when years of practice have borne no fruit?

Analyse yourself. Ask how many days of sadhana you actually did to your own liking rather than to the rule. And the speaker's own counsel to those in regular contact is not to change the practice — do the same thing, with a Deepdaan or a pilgrimage added alongside.

The speaker turns the question back on the practitioner. Pick up your own life and look at it. If you have been walking this path for two, three, four, five or even ten years and things are not bearing fruit, then look at what mistakes you made — analyse it sometime, yourself. How many days of sadhana did you do to your own liking? Of any sadhana he has described on YouTube or Facebook, how many days are obligatory, how, what, when — the choosing has been yours. He then describes what he actually tells those in regular contact, people he has been speaking with for a year or two. You say, Guru ji, this work is not happening, that work is not happening — change it, what should we do? But we say: keep doing the same thing. Something connected to it may be added — let this Deepdaan procedure be done, go to this temple, let this pilgrimage happen — but what you do stays the same. And where you go on pilgrimage, they will have you perform a smaller worship relating to that place; the worship you have already been doing, he tells you to increase there. They have it done, they do not have it changed, because of the energy of a single deity-power that is gathering in you.

How long does accumulated punya take to show?

As long as it takes — but the day it bursts you go a very long way forward and never look back. The energy gathers in one place; when bad Prarabdha wears thin, a little surrender and a little good Bhava toward your Ishta is all that is needed. The difficulty is that we cannot stay fixed on one thing.

The speaker describes what the accumulation actually does. How long will our PrarabdhaThe portion of destiny already set in motion by past actions — spiritual practice and good deeds can lessen its severity, but not eliminate it. stay bad — a year, two, three, four, five? But as soon as our bad Prarabdha grows thin, and the Punya-bearing energy that has been gathering in one place is there, with a little surrender, a little good Bhava toward one's Ishta Devata and trust kept in them — the day that bursts, you will go a very long way forward. Then you will not have to look back and think, that was our problem, we had to worry about this thing. This time comes in life. It is not that it does not come. It may come for you in ten days or after ten years. But there is no patience. And the patience is not forming, he says, because we are not able to stay fixed on one thing in one place. He gives his own festival instructions as the example of what people get wrong: Deepdaan for Bhagavan Dattatreya at his Purnima, Deepdaan for the Kula powers and for Yamaraj at Diwali and Dhanteras. Those were told for a particular deity at a particular Parva Kala. But alongside them he has never once said to catch hold of that alone and walk with it.

Why is service to Dattatreya held to be necessary?

Because he is the Mahaguru — the Siddha of Siddhas, before whom the Acharyas and Siddhas of every tradition bow. His service is held necessary where a curse has attached, or a Kula-Pitr or Kula-dosha is at work; once he casts his glance, the speaker says, nothing has the standing to harm your house.

The speaker gives his reason for placing Bhagavan Dattatreya first. Since Bhagavan Dattatreya is the Mahaguru — call them the Acharyas of every tradition, call them Siddha, call them Mahasiddha, all the Siddhas remain bowed before him; he is the Siddha of Siddhas, the Mahasiddha — his service and worship is therefore necessary. It is necessary, he says, if a curse of some kind has attached to us, if there is a Kula-Pitr matter or a Kul Shakti fault. He recalls a correspondent whose name he cannot bring to mind, in whose house someone dies every seven years. That, he says, may have an unconsidered cause or it may be some fault of the Kula. By the grace of Bhagavan Datta, once he has cast his glance, nobody has the daring or the standing to be able to do harm in your house.

Who should be told about your sadhana?

Only those close to you who are in distress. The point at which people cause you difficulty is exactly the point at which confidence begins to form in you and you ask someone about it — and they will pin you somewhere, saying nothing comes of it. Take guidance only from someone who wishes you well.

The speaker identifies where the harm actually enters. Do you know where people cause you difficulty? At the place where confidence about your practice begins to form within you, and you ask someone about it. You said, we are doing this — and the person in front of you will pin you somewhere. He will say nothing comes of it, great ones have come and gone. This is why, he says, he repeatedly tells people to keep these things secret. Do it, and keep it secret. Tell those of your own dear ones who are in distress — tell them to do it too. But those who hold ill will toward you, what need is there to tell them? They will only cause you harm. And if guidance is to be taken, take it from a person of the right kind, one who wishes and thinks well of you. Otherwise, in pursuit of their own concerns, they will do you ill as well.

How many powers should be worshipped as the principal one?

One. The speaker says he puts this into five of every ten lives: we will worship only one power principally, and the preliminary sadhanas have to be done only for some days. Practitioners stay stuck exactly here, distracted from one thing to another, unable to get out of it.

The speaker states the principle that the whole roadmap rests on. On the most important point — when we are performing the sadhana of some power, which changes should be made and how often — he says that in roughly five out of every ten lives he puts this same thing: we will always worship one power principally. The preliminary sadhanas have to be done by us for some days only. This, he says, is what you are not able to understand. You stay stuck here. You are not able to get out of it. However much it is explained, your mind does not let you out. You keep being distracted — not this way, do something over there; not there, do this instead. His instruction is to prepare your whole road map, and he offers to work it through as an example.

What is the first step for someone who wants to do Mahakali sadhana for life?

Choose the Guru method first — Bhagavan Dattatreya, the Navnath, a renowned Guru-form of your own region, or one of the three Shaktis. Then perform the Dev Deeksha Vidhan on a proper muhurta; the speaker offers the coming 26 December, or Makar Sankranti on 15 January.

The speaker works the whole roadmap through a named listener, Anil ji, whom he takes as a new person wishing to perform the sadhana of Mahakali — Ma Dakshina Kali — for life, and who has asked to be told the complete procedure from the beginning. His first suggestion is the selection of the Guru method. Which form do you wish to worship? Do you wish to worship Bhagavan Dattatreya? Is your faith in the Navnath? Is there any renowned Guru-form of your own region? Choose taking that. Or else you may want one among the three Shaktis. In this example the listener says his attraction is entirely toward Bhagavan Dattatreya, because of his nature, his procedure, and the presence in him of all three forms — Brahma, Vishnu and Mahesh. So the first sadhana the speaker gives is this: perform the Dev Deeksha Vidhan at a proper muhurta. The 26th of December is coming, do it that day; or Makar Sankranti falls on the 15th of January this time, so do the Deeksha Vidhan on the 15th. Watch the Dev Deeksha Vidhan video repeatedly, make all the preparations, and perform it.

A month or forty-one days of the Ekakshari at 108 mala a day, then eleven days of the Mala Mantra — about two months of preliminary work.

For at least a month, or forty-one days as far as possible, 108 mala a day of the Ekakshari mantra. When that is done, at least eleven days of the Mala Mantra, 108 a day. About two months of preliminary sadhana have gone in this, with the food rules kept throughout.

After the Dev Deeksha Vidhan, the speaker prescribes the japa. For at least a month, or for forty-one days as far as it can be managed, perform japa of 108 mala a day of the Ekakshari mantra. When that is finished, do japa of the Mala Mantra 108 times a day for at least eleven days. With that, roughly two months of your preliminary sadhana have passed. In these two months you must certainly keep attention on the rule of food and drink — for a practitioner, he adds, that is a daily matter. He allows one accommodation and names it as an accommodation. If you are in a profession that requires travel, then after a personal conversation — this convenience or that inconvenience is arising — the forty-one days may be made eleven and completed, and the Sankalpa taken again afterwards. That concession will be given. By January, February and March, then, this listener's Bhagavan Dattatreya sadhana, that is the Guru sadhana, has been completed.

Ten days from Chaturthi to Chaturdashi, one durva offered on each of the 108 recitations, with abhishek and archana on the first and last day.

Ten days, Chaturthi to Chaturdashi in either Paksha. Each day 108 Durva are needed: offer one Durva to Ganapati on each recitation of the Sankat Nashan Ganesh Stotra. On the first and last day add milk Abhishek, Shringar, Panchopachara and Archana with the 108 names, then 108 recitations.

The second sadhana is Ganapati's. The speaker chooses the time first — a Chaturthi, or any meritorious day — and begins from there. Where there is no initiation in a Guru tradition but the Dev Deeksha Vidhan from Bhagavan Dattatreya exists, the sadhana of Maha Ganapati may be performed. The Anushthan itself is of the Sankat Nashan Stotra: perform a ten-day sadhana from Chaturthi to Chaturdashi in either Paksha. Each day you will need 108 Durva GrassA sacred grass offered to deities — especially Ganesha — and included among the items used to formally invite a deity before moving to a new location.. Bring the Durva and, on each recitation of the Sankat Nashan Ganesh Stotra, offer one Durva to Ganapati. If possible, across the ten days perform Bhagavan Shri Ganapati's Abhishek with milk, then with water and the rest, then with Gandha and so on; if you keep pure garments, clothe him in them, otherwise place them before him; do his Shringar and PanchopacharaThe basic five-item worship sequence — incense, lamp, fragrance, flower, and food — performed for a deity after the opening rites of a sadhana. worship as far as your capacity allows, and then perform Archana with the 108 names. Then complete 108 recitations of the Sankat Nashan. The first and the last day are to be done in full; on the days between, simply recite and go on surrendering. Deepdaan will happen daily. With that, the ten-day Ganapati sadhana is complete — in March, in this example.

At what count does a mantra awaken, and what is the daily minimum after?

At four lakh. 108 mala a day for forty-one days comes to roughly four lakh eleven thousand, and the awakening of the mantra happens at four lakh. After that, at least 27 mala a day, or a minimum of 11 — five minutes at most, once the practice is there.

The speaker does the arithmetic on the Dattatreya sadhana already completed. Japa of 100 mala a day, done for forty-one days, comes to at least four lakh ten thousand, four lakh eleven thousand mantras. And at four lakh, the awakening of the mantra takes place. After that, he says, we must certainly go on doing at least 27 mala a day of that mantra, or even less than that — a minimum of 11 mala — every day. The practice of doing 100 or 108 mala is already there; how long will 11 take? Not even five minutes. In the Ekakshari mantra a minute comfortably yields a mala and a half or two once the practice has formed, so it will not take even five to ten minutes. So that japa is being done, and once the ten-day 108-recitation Sankat Nashan sadhana is complete, eight recitations a day will be continued.

Why should a new practitioner keep the daily count high?

Because a new practitioner needs Punya-bal and Tapo-bal. The count could be reduced, but for now eight recitations are kept daily. And during the Ganapati sadhana the Datta japa continues in parallel — 11 mala of the Ekakshari and five recitations of the Mala Mantra at the start of each sitting.

The speaker gives the reason for holding the daily count where it is: it could be made less, but since this is a new practitioner, Punya strength is needed and Tapo-bala is needed, so eight recitations will be continued each day. He then answers the parallel question. While the Ganapati sadhana is running, will Dattatreya's Mala Mantra and the rest still be recited? Yes, they will — because its Siddhi and its Vidhan have been completed, even if only for eleven days. So each day, at the very beginning of the Ganapati sadhana, Bhagavan Datta is remembered, worshipped mentally, offered flowers before us; then 11 mala of the Datta Ekakshari mantra and five recitations of the Datta Mala Mantra are done aloud; and after that the Ganapati sadhana is performed and surrendered, with Aarti and the rest. Once Ganapati's is complete, that too becomes included in the daily sitting.

The Aapada Uddharak Batuk Bhairav Ashtottar Satnam suits a beginner best — with its two or three nyasa procedures left out at first.

The Aapada Uddharak Batuk Bhairav Ashtottar Satnam Stotra is the most exact for a beginning practitioner. It carries two or three Nyasa procedures — do not attempt them at the start. Do the Viniyoga simply and recite the 108 names, before an installed Trishul or a picture of Batuk Bhairav.

The third sadhana is Bhairav ji's. The speaker first asks which recitation the practitioner wants: in the house it will be Batuk Bhairav's. If there is an enemy-related problem, still do Batuk Bhairav's first and only then go on to Mahabhairav. For a beginning sadhana, he says, the most exact is the Aapada Uddharak Batuk Bhairav Ashtottar Satnam Stotra. There are at least two to three Nyasa procedures within it — do not perform those at the start, do not go into that much difficulty. Perform their Viniyoga in the ordinary way and do japa of the full 108 names, the ones beginning with Bhairav Bhutanath. For this, either install a Trishul in the name of Bhagavan Bhairav ji, or install a picture of Batuk Bhairav ji in the house. Before them light a lamp each day and begin with the offering that is prescribed — Laddu Bhog and the rest, or whatever Bhog is available to you.

When should the Batuk Bhairav Anushthan be held, and with what Sankalpa?

From the Ashtami tithi of the Krishna Paksha, or during the Navratri falling in March–April. The Sankalpa is for Batuk Bhairav's full grace, for his grace to remain over the lifelong sadhana to come, for no obstacle to arise in any sadhana, and for every sadhana to complete under his protection.

The speaker fixes the timing and the wording. Begin from the Ashtami tithi of the Krishna Paksha, or perform the accomplished procedure during the Navratri that falls in March or April. The Sankalpa is made in these terms: for the complete grace and blessing of Batuk Bhairav; and so that in the complete sadhana we will perform lifelong in the future, the grace of Bhagavan Bhairav ji remains upon us; so that no obstacle or impediment of any kind comes in any sadhana; and so that under his proper protection our every sadhana is completed. Having made that Sankalpa, his sadhana is begun again. For the duration: from Ashtami to Chaturdashi or Amavasya, or if you wish, from the Krishna Paksha through to the Shukla Paksha, Ashtami to Shashthi, fifteen days by your own reckoning, doing his Ashtottara ShatanamaA recitation of a deity's 108 names — shorter than a Sahasranama (1000 names) and commonly used as the accompanying Havan or daily Japa count.. At minimum, complete 1100 japa between Ashtami and Chaturdashi.

Is a Havan required at the end of each sadhana, and may a woman offer the Ahuti?

Yes, a Havan must be prescribed on the last day of every sadhana — at minimum 11 mala of Ahuti with the Ekakshari. Men use ghee mixed with Guggul; women keep the Guggul higher and the ghee lower. Since this is a Tantrokta procedure, a woman who already has children may offer the Ahuti.

The speaker makes the closing Havan part of the pattern rather than an option. On the final day of every sadhana there must certainly be a prescribed Havan. In Bhagavan Dattatreya's too, on the last day, offer at minimum 11 mala of Ahuti with the Ekakshari mantra. On the material: if it is a man, ghee mixed with Guggul; if it is a woman, keep the quantity of Guggul higher and the quantity of ghee somewhat lower. On the entitlement, he states the rule and the reason together. There is this provision — that those who have already obtained children may perform the Ahuti, because this is a Tantrokta procedure. In the Vedic procedures there are many processes such as the prohibition of Ahuti by women; in the Tantra field, at the present time, there is no need to think about that. In some of these things, he says, you should make the change.

Does a Tantrokta Havan require the same entitlement as a Vedic one?

No. A Vedokta Havan should be performed only by those authorised for it, but a Tantrokta or Shabarokta Havan raises no obstruction for you — perform it. What must not be dropped, he adds, are the Maryadas; not everything can be carried at every time, but not those.

The speaker separates the two orders of Havan. Not everything is possible to carry at all times, he says, but that does not extend to abandoning the Maryadas. For Tantrokta and Pauranik procedures, no obstruction will form for you anywhere. A Vedokta Havan should be performed by those persons who are authorised for it. But we are performing a Tantrokta one, or a Shabarokta one — so in that you have no trouble; perform it. He then closes the three preliminary sadhanas with their final-day Havans. On the last day of the Dattatreya sadhana, 11 mala of Havan, or five, or as much as could be done. When Ganapati ji's was completed, on the last day the Havan was again done with his 108 names. And in Bhairav ji's, on the last day the sadhana was of the 108 names, with 11 Ahutis given for each name — by which a thousand Ahutis were also completed and his sadhana was finished. With that, three basic sadhanas have been completed.

When does the Hanuman sadhana begin, and which Kavach should be used?

From the Purnima tithi falling in Chaitra — Hanuman Jayanti — and running Purnima to Purnima, at least a month. Use either the Ekmukhi or the Panchmukhi Hanuman Kavach; where the house has a Pret or Pishach related fault, use the Panchmukhi.

The fourth sadhana is Hanuman ji's. In that same Chaitra, the Purnima tithi that falls is the day on which Hanuman Jayanti is observed, and from that day the Hanuman sadhana will begin, running from Purnima to Purnima for at least a month. Which one to do: perform his Ekmukhi Hanuman Kavach, not a great deal more, or the Panchmukhi Hanuman one. Both, he says, are extremely effective in their own place. But if the place you live in, the house you live in, has some fault present from Preta or Pishach, some difficulty there, then do the Panchmukhi Hanuman ji's. Japa of the Kavach should happen daily; and alongside, if the problem is severe, you may also perform Havan daily with the Hanuman Chalisa. With at least a month of the Panchmukhi or Ekmukhi Kavach Anushthan completed here, the basic sadhanas are roughly finished, and you must now come to the principal sadhana.

Kula devi-devta sadhana runs at least eleven days, and where their Sthan is established it continues in parallel with every other sadhana.

After the basics. Perform sadhana according to the form of your Kula devi-devta, at least eleven days. If their Sthan or Than is established, their worship runs in parallel alongside every other sadhana. Where the Kula deities are not known, the speaker prefers keeping things clear over an Avahan.

By the time Chaitra arrives, the speaker says, most of the basic sadhanas have been completed. What now remain are the sadhanas connected with your Kuldevi and Kula deities. According to whatever information you have about their form, you should perform sadhana of them — at minimum eleven days. If their Sthan or Than has been built, then that worship will run in parallel alongside all the sadhanas. If we do not have the information about who the Kula deities are, then there is a prescribed procedure for Avahan and the rest — but, he says, we would rather say: keep things clear.

Is there a daily japa that everyone must keep?

Yes — ten mala of some one mantra every day, man or woman, and with no Sankalpa attached to it for any particular work to be completed. Those entitled to the Vedic Sandhya are told ten mala of the Gayatri; those who cannot, the Panchakshari. The speaker says this is compulsory for all.

The speaker states this as an obligation rather than a stage. After the basic sadhanas, two things have to be chosen from here — and the first is that whether you are a woman or a man, japa of ten mala of some one mantra should be kept daily. And in it there should be no Sankalpa that some particular work of mine be completed, or that this stuck matter be resolved; it should be for the purpose for which our birth took place. Those who are entitled to the Vedic SandhyaThe twice- or thrice-daily prayer rite performed at dawn and dusk — Vedic Sandhya requires eligibility under Varnashrama, while those without it may instead undergo Tantrik initiation and perform Tantrik Sandhya. are told ten mala of the Gayatri Mantra. Those who cannot do the Gayatri are given the Panchakshari Mantra, Shiva ji's five-syllable mantra. Those not entitled to the Pranav do it without the Pranav — no Shadakshari without the Pranav — and, according to the prescription, women and those who do not wear the YajnopavitaThe sacred thread ceremony marking initiation into Vedic rites (Janeu) — if lapsed across generations, expiation (Prayashchitta) for each known generation is required before it can be resumed. will add Namah at the end and do japa of ten mala of that mantra daily. This, he says, has become compulsory for everybody. It is compulsory for all. It is to be done even if you are a Shudra — even if you consider yourself and call yourself a Shudra, you too must do it; and if anyone is stopping you, there is no greater fool than him. Only keep in mind what your right regarding the Pranav is, so that no fault attaches to you and no curse of any kind touches your growth or prosperity. That much only. Everyone is to do it.

What about the faults of the birth chart?

If after the first three or four sadhanas a birth-chart fault still seems to be affecting you, either have its Shanti performed, or make the Daan and wear what the running Dasha and Antardasha require — or do seven-day sadhanas of your Panchamesh, Lagnesh and Navamesh. One month covers it.

The speaker fits the horoscope work into the same year. In the following month, in Ashadha and so on, Gupt Navratri will come again, and other times will come; from then the principal sadhana of your chosen deity starts. But if after the opening three or four sadhanas it seems that some fault connected with the birth chart still remains and is affecting this person, or some fault is present whose Shanti is essential, then either have that Shanti performed; or else, according to whichever Dasha and Antardasha is running, let the related Daan or the wearing of something be done at that time; or else let the sadhanas connected with your Panchamesh, Lagnesh and Navamesh be done, seven days each. That is to say, in one month that too is completed. The basic things are clear.

Does the festival worship of a month displace your own sadhana?

No — both run. Through Savan the daily Abhishek of Shiva is compulsory, done in the morning; then after resting the limbs for ten or fifteen minutes you sit again on your asana and do your own ten mala or your Anushthan, morning, evening or night as suits.

The speaker uses Savan to show how a festival month and a personal Anushthan sit together. By the time Savan arrives, all the smaller and larger opening things have been completed, and the counts of each of the earlier sadhanas have been settled — five mala of one, ten of another. Now the principal sadhana has been reached, from Pratipada in the month of Savan. Since it is Savan, Shiva ji's worship will certainly happen and his Abhishek will certainly happen; that has become compulsory and will run alongside. Whatever festival's worship time it is, that worship will happen — but you will do your own sadhana with it. His own example: when Bhagavati Vindhyavasini is to be served, in Savan too we complete Bhagavan Shiva's Rudrabhishek in the morning. After that hour and a half or two hours is finished, rest a little, straighten the limbs for five, ten or fifteen minutes, then sit again on your asana and perform the japa of Bhagavati's mantra that is your rule — ten mala — or the Anushthan you want, four or five lakh of that mantra in the month of Savan. That japa will run in parallel, whether done in the morning, the evening or at night. But Shiva ji's worship is compulsory and is to be done daily, at one fixed time, as early in the morning as possible.

Does the daily sitting keep growing as sadhanas accumulate?

No — once each is accomplished, every count is reduced. One mala of the Datta Ekakshari, the Mala Mantra five times or once, Sankat Nashan once, the Batuk Ashtottar Satnam once, the Hanuman Kavach once, and the nine grahas gathered into a single Navagraha Stotra. Five minutes in all.

The speaker now collapses the whole accumulation. When all this sadhana is done, we will reduce every count. Whatever was the preliminary sadhana, whatever was the basic sadhana, we will now cut all its numbers. Here Bhagavan Dattatreya's Ekakshari mantra becomes only one mala, done at the start while performing his Dhyana. The Mala Mantra is done only five times, or once. Sankat Nashan once, remembering Ganapati ji. Bhairav ji's Ashtottara ShatanamaA recitation of a deity's 108 names — shorter than a Sahasranama (1000 names) and commonly used as the accompanying Havan or daily Japa count. once. Hanuman ji's Kavach, or his Ashtottar Satnam, or the Chalisa, or the Bajrang Baan — whichever we had accomplished — once each. With that the whole of our opening worship is complete. The Navagraha sadhanas — Panchamesh, Navamesh, Lagnesh, Labhesh, whichever four or five we did in that opening stretch — are no longer to be done separately. In one go we will read the Navagraha Stotra, or recite their Pauranik mantras, or recite the Tantrokta Beej mantras and remember the nine grahas that way. It will take five minutes at most. The whole summary of five months of sadhana will then happen inside five minutes of the daily worship. But, he insists, through those whole five months we kept the rules — Brahmacharya observed, food and drink watched, everything observed as far as capacity allowed.

The Kavach is accomplished before anything else — 1100 japa and its havan — and only then the Bhagavati mantras one is entitled to.

The Kavach. The speaker calls it the most necessary thing — accomplish the Kavach first. In the worked example, 1100 japa of the Kavach, then its Havan procedure learnt; only then the Bhagavati mantras the practitioner is entitled to, or the Stuti, Stotra, Sahasranama and Satnama.

Now, the speaker says, the lifelong principal sadhana has to be done. In the worked example, the listener performs Mahakali's sadhana, so from the month of Shravan Bhagavati Mahakali's sadhana will be begun. What will be his very first sadhana? The sadhana of the Kavach. It is the most necessary, the most essential. Accomplish the Kavach first. So he performed the Siddhi of 1100 Kavach, did the japa, and after that learnt its Havan procedure. Once the Kavach and so on was done, then those mantras connected with Bhagavati that he is entitled to recite may be recited; or the Stuti and Stotra that follow; or the SahasranamaA recitation of a deity's thousand names — a devotional text genre used across many deities, not one single fixed composition. and Satnama, by which the effect reaches him at once — at which point he is told, now begin this.

At Ashadha Purnima a havan with 108 recitations of the Datta Mala Mantra makes the first sadhana conscious again.

The first sadhana — Dattatreya's. At Ashadha Purnima, Guru Purnima, everything is made conscious again through a Havan, with 108 recitations of the Datta Mala Mantra. Panchanga worship means completing each of the principal deity's recitations in turn, after which only one recitation of each remains daily.

The speaker shows the pattern running in parallel with the calendar. If the principal sadhana is being started in Shravan, then beginning at the proper time you will reach Ashadha Purnima and Guru Poornima within it. Your first sadhana was of Bhagavan Dattatreya — so on Guru Purnima you will perform Havan and the rest and make the whole thing conscious again, reciting the Datta Mala Mantra 108 times. These things go on running in parallel at their times. For Bhagavati Mahakali the opening sadhana then proceeds gradually: first her Ashtottara ShatanamaA recitation of a deity's 108 names — shorter than a Sahasranama (1000 names) and commonly used as the accompanying Havan or daily Japa count. completed, 11000 or at least 1100; then her Kavach; and once the Kavach is done, the SahasranamaA recitation of a deity's thousand names — a devotional text genre used across many deities, not one single fixed composition. recitation. Panchanga worship, he explains, means that you will perform all the recitations of the principal deity. Everything else takes five or ten minutes — at the start each is being completed one by one, and in the daily recitation only a single recitation of each remains. When we were performing the Anushthan we were doing 108 recitations a day; the Anushthan is over, and now only one is to be done. Further on, other things reduce still more, until only a Stotra and a Dhyana mantra remain in the opening two minutes and only the principal deity's practice runs. But at the beginning, all of these must be done and completed. This, he says, is the first stage, to be completed once for life.

The ordinary Avaran is learnt from Bhadrapada over roughly fifteen months, in forty-day mandalas, a beginner tarpaning all eight Shaktis with one mantra.

From Bhadrapada, at the Kalika and Tara Jayanti, the practitioner is set to learn the Avaran. The ordinary Avaran is learnt first, over roughly fifteen months, in forty-day mandalas — and where a Avaran holds eight Shaktis, a beginner may do the Tarpana and Marjana of all of them with one mantra together.

The speaker marks the next stage. After this, when we are moving forward, then at a proper time the Aavaran Puja and so on begins — in the month of Bhadrapada, when the Kalika and Tara Jayanti and the rest arrive, from that time we now start this person off: now learn the Avaran. Even within the Avaran, the ordinary Avaran is learnt first, and for roughly fifteen months at least. A Mandala is forty days; if a Mandala cannot be completed that is another matter, but perform the Avaran puja in forty-day stretches, entirely plainly. As an example: suppose in the third Avaran eight Shaktis are present. Then either we perform the TarpanaA libation offering of water or other substances made to a deity or ancestor, typically performed alongside Havan and Marjan. and Marjana of each of the eight separately, or — since you are new — recite the mantra of all of them together at once and do the Tarpana and Marjana. Learn the process gradually this way. When six months have passed, go a little further and refine it. Another six months pass, refine it again. Keep refining it and keep going deeper, slowly. And in parallel with the Avaran puja you are performing the Kavach sadhana, the Ashtottar Satnam and the rest; go forward gradually.

At about eighteen months the groundwork lets a Guru give the Panchakshari straight away, skipping the four opening sadhanas.

At around a year and a quarter to two years. The speaker undertakes to have the person examined by a suitable authority and formally initiated in a proper tradition — and because the groundwork is done, the Guru may give the Panchakshari straight away instead of the Ekakshari, skipping the opening four sadhanas.

The speaker names the point at which he considers his own responsibility to fall due. A time will come when, at a year to a year and a quarter — roughly a year and a half of sadhana by his reckoning, taking everything comfortably, with Deepavali's sadhana and the Deepdaan and all of it in between — by a year and a half or two years, you become ready for the Diksha in the proper manner. If you have walked this far with him, he says, then it becomes his responsibility that your Deeksha be done duly in a proper tradition, and that your sequential sadhana begin after that; and he will say to a suitable person, examine this one yourself, this person has become entitled. And the groundwork changes what you are given. When the Guru who is to give the Deeksha asks what you have done so far, and you say you have completed these sadhanas in this manner, then instead of giving you the Ekakshari — if you are going into the Krama Vidya — he may give you the Panchakshari Mantra instead, saying the opening four sadhanas are not needed for you. What takes five or seven years is not needed. You have done the opening; take this, begin the Anushthan with this mantra, you have five lakh japa to do, this is the procedure. And since you have already told him you know the Avaran puja, he will say: for this Panchakshari mantra these changes and these Nyasa apply, and you will do it in this way. You will not have to wander anywhere at that point to learn the Avaran puja or the Nyasa.

What people want instead is Deeksha over the phone and Siddhi immediately after — or, failing that, someone else's Siddhi transferred to them.

Deeksha today, over the phone, and Siddhi immediately after — and when nothing happens, the request that the Siddhi simply be transferred. The speaker's answer is to pick up your own past: five or ten years have gone in wanting everything at once, and not a straw will have moved.

The speaker states the alternative people actually ask for. You do not want to do this much. You want to be given Deeksha straight away — come on the phone, take the Deeksha, take the Deeksha; and having taken it, Siddhi obtained at once; and then, we have taken the Deeksha and nothing is happening, so do this, transfer the Siddhi directly. Nowadays, he says, everything is happening very fast, wanted immediately. And in all the matters that are of the wanted-immediately kind, pick up your own past life and look: doing everything immediately, five years, ten years will have passed, and not one straw will have been able to move. What he has placed before them today, he says, are the most basic things — where a forty-day sadhana strikes, how it strikes, and that the preparation before a forty-day sadhana should be there. And if you have done it, it is not possible that nothing happens. In forty days a great deal happens. You have become ready for good practices and prayogas.

What actually changes in a person during forty days?

The arithmetic of counts is only the surface. In the middle of it there will be so much connection and traffic of energies in your intellect, your thinking, your Atma-tattva and your aura that your views change — your outlook toward sadhana and toward the other world alters as you go.

The speaker distinguishes the bookkeeping from the effect. All this talk of so much done and so much done is addition and subtraction, he says. But in the middle of that addition and subtraction, in your intellect, in your thinking, in the Atma-tattva within you, in your Aura, there will be so much connection of energies and so much movement of them that your views will be changed. Your outlook toward sadhana and toward the Laukik and Paralaukik world will go on altering. And once you have come into contact with those powers, and if some power has given grace in accordance with your conduct and the self-reflection that runs within you, then what may become of what is not written anywhere. He adds the condition. When, where, and whose deceit you will walk clear of — with intellect and discrimination applied — that decides it. Not being led astray by hearing and watching someone. And on the claim that an ordinary person cannot understand the speech of a saint, his position is: what is the use of such a saint's speech if it is of no use at all to an ordinary person. At the very least it should not do an ordinary person harm.

Should hair and beard be cut during a forty-day sadhana?

The Kshaur Karma should be done two days before the sadhana begins, and again two days after the Samarpan — not in between. When doing it again, avoid a special tithi: not Ekadashi, not an eclipse, not a Sankranti; the weekday does not matter.

The speaker takes up the claim, made by others, that not shaving for forty days during sadhana achieves nothing — so shave, stay clean, shave daily, do your makeup, there is no difficulty in sadhana. He quotes it in that form and then gives the prescription. Here it has been said that the Kshaur Karma and so on should be completed two days before beginning the sadhana. And after the sadhana is complete, two days after the Samarpan, you should perform the Kshaur Karma again. Or, if you are about to begin the next sadhana, then look at the day and tithi for it — that no such special tithi is falling — and do it. The weekday does not count, whether it is a Thursday or a Saturday. Let there be no such tithi, no Ekadashi, no Grahan falling, no Sankranti — and do your Kshaur Karma. But here, he says, people are saying flatly that there is no need for it, as though God were sitting there to look at hair and beard. The rule of hair and beard was not settled by you and me. Those who told the prescription of sadhana — God himself, coming in that form, in the form of the Rishis and Munis, and giving the knowledge of these things — they made the rule.

Why should someone else's opinion not be allowed to end years of practice?

Because it is your property. The energy and the Punya-bal gathered over two, four, five years of austerity is spiritual wealth — and on the word of someone with no stake at all in your Punya, you pour the whole of it down a drain. The speaker says this mistake should never be made.

The speaker names what is actually at risk. Avoid these follies, he says, because this is your property — spiritual property, gathered as you perform austerity for two, four, five years, accumulate energy and accumulate Punya strength. And then some person who has nothing whatever to do with your Punya says something, and you accept what he says and come away having poured the whole thing down a drain. This act, this mistake, never make. And you know the thought yourself, he adds. You know that this person is speaking wrongly, but even so you say: no, we were only waiting to hear the speech of a saint and a great soul. He has said it, so it has become the very speech of God. Set the Shastras aside; set the principles aside. This person is famous, the whole world accepts him, and what are the Shastras above that. His limit on the argument from interpolation is exact: hold something interpolated only so far as the work can proceed. Declare an interpolation on the point that a woman cannot sit at a Vedic Havan and cannot offer ghee Ahuti — fine, not that one, but she will do it in a Tantric Havan.

Who may perform the Ahuti in a Tantrokta rite, and who may not worship at all?

In Tantrokta worship a Bhairavi performs it too — all women are Bhairavi-svarupa, all are mother-like, and they will offer, with Samagri rather than ghee. But anyone who says a menstruating woman should go and worship or perform a Havan, or that it does not matter during Navratri, will ruin you.

The speaker draws the line on both sides. In Tantrokta worship a Bhairavi performs it too. All women are Bhairavi-svarupa; all are equivalent to the mother; all will give. They will not offer Ahuti with ghee — we will have them offer with Samagri. That much interpolation, accept. And there, he says, you refuse. You say a woman is prohibited from ghee Ahuti, that a woman should not perform a Havan at all. The mistakes, he says, are on both sides: to get your own point accepted you speak half your own case and give the proof only for the part you want accepted, and for what you do not want accepted you say the Shastra is interpolated and change with the times is necessary. Change is necessary everywhere, but only so much that we are benefited and no harm begins. Where is a woman's Ahuti necessary? In Tantrokta Havan and Karma she can do it; there it is not being done by the Vedokta procedure. But if anyone says that a Rajaswala woman should go and perform worship or a Havan, that person is thoroughly wicked, and whoever says it will ruin you before he is finished. Whoever says that during Navratri it does not matter if you become Rajaswala, go and worship Bhagavati — absolutely not.

Is a possessing power driven out by beating the person with a slipper?

The speaker says no. He recounts a well-known television figure boasting that he raised his slipper at a woman claiming to be Kali and that the possession left. Beating exists as a prescribed procedure with its own rule and method, but the speaker holds it is not something to be said in public in this form.

The speaker names a very famous, long-established figure who appears on television, whose talks he himself used to watch and who used to say many good things. He saw a video of his about the Savari that comes upon bodies. Half of what was said, the speaker accepts: that such people are partly disturbed mentally and weak of mind; and that women who have no standing in the family, who remain crushed down, take the support of these things and act a part. That aspect, he says, exists; he grants it. What he objects to is the second half — that no such thing at all exists, because such powers cannot come. And the story told to prove it: a woman was brought and the Mata began to come upon her, saying I am Kali. I at once took off my slipper — I will show you that you are Kali. On seeing the slipper his Kali ji left. People laughed loudly at it. Remember only this much, the speaker says. What becomes of that Guru ji makes no difference to you. But if even a Preta or Pishach is playing on the body, if a negative power is coming upon it, it has some compulsion of its own — it may be bound in a Char, unable to obtain its motion; or it has become bound with you, whether it is enjoying the body or enjoying its own experiences through you. One should not drive anyone away by beating with a slipper. And if you say the Tantrokta procedures allow it — yes, he says, there are such prescriptions, driving away by beating with a slipper and the rest. It is one prescription, with a rule and a method to it. Nobody speaks of such things everywhere in society. You will say it everywhere, and you do not even know this subject; you are saying that no such thing exists at all.

What is it that actually comes upon a body?

Not Kali ji or Durga ji themselves — everyone knows they cannot and will not come upon anyone. These are Yogini powers, complete in a fractional form; were they to come fully, no ordinary person could bear the intensity and the body would burn. And the family of whoever bore it will certainly be ruined.

The speaker corrects the category. Suppose that by some mistake a portion of that house's Kul Shakti is upon someone's body. Everyone knows in the present age that Kali ji or Durga ji herself cannot come upon anyone and will not come. These are Yogini powers, complete in a fractional way. But if they were to come in complete form, no ordinary person can bear their intensity; the body burns, the person says so. If a Brahm comes, there will be burning in the stomach. If it is an Avayatmak or Paishachik power, it will play a great deal, a great deal. And even among the divine powers, if it is a Vayatmak power, a power above the Upadevata category, a Yogini with the capacity to move in another world, then when she comes upon the body it will spin and sway so much that the person's condition becomes terrible. These things happen, he says, one after another. And if such a power is on the body and you are beating it with a slipper, slapping it or hurling abuse at it — you do not even know what is on it and what is not. What happens to you, leave aside. But the family of the one whose body it was on will certainly be ruined. It is also true, he grants, that in the present time there is largely fraud going on. But you should have information about that fraud. Learn to distinguish the true from the false.

Acting on a possession from a distance is improper, particularly on a girl's body; the family should find someone they can be present with.

He declines. Four or five such cases reach him every couple of months. His answer is that interfering in these things from a distance is not proper — particularly on a girl's body, where acting will cause trouble — and that they should find someone in person whom they can stay with.

The speaker describes his own handling of the cases that come to him. People send videos — a girl is playing, some power is playing violently on the head. It happens four or five times in a couple of months, and the people who send them are entirely new, without much knowledge of these things; they have seen a video, or someone gave a reference. His reply goes only this far: that interfering in these matters from a distance is not proper. On a girl's body in particular the matter is such that if anything is done, difficulty will follow. Look for a person in front of you, someone you can stay with, and it will be right for something to be done there. Done from a distance there will be neither enough information nor enough conversation. So he leaves it and does not act — why trouble anyone. He contrasts that with the advice that is given instead: that this one is play-acting, give him two slaps, he will be fine at once, we drive out ghosts; take him to a doctor first, he has such and such a problem. The problem will come here, he says. It happened to one, it will happen to two, it will happen to four. Those who are genuinely suffering these things are misled further and taken down into the pit. And his point in placing the subject before a hundred listeners is not that everyone should be insulted, nor that every such person should be honoured — learn to test. What is right and what is wrong will become clear to you.

Why do those who really have Siddhi not display it?

Because of the censure and ridicule waiting everywhere. Even where someone has demonstrably awakened something, his opponents do not accept it as Siddhi; and respected saints dismiss miracles altogether. The speaker's objection: their own forebears ground their bodies down fasting and reciting, and that Siddhi and Punya is what is being enjoyed now.

The speaker asks the question directly: why do those who genuinely have something not put it on display? The cause, he says, is censure in place after place and ridicule in place after place. And it is true that even where one person has awakened something — look at the Shastri ji, he says, so great a court gathers, yet have his many opponents and the many who abuse him accepted that he is accomplished? They are not accepting it, whatever category of siddhi it is; and whether it is Brahm Siddhi or not is a separate subject. But the enlightened, the saints honoured in society, say plainly that nothing comes of these miracles. Why would it not, he asks. Their forebears ground down their own bodies, staying without food, keeping fasts, performing the Upasana of mantras — and that is how the Siddhi came to their forebears. It is the Punya strength of their forebears that they are now enjoying. The fame they obtained, whatever they obtained, they obtained because of their forebears. And you are saying there is nothing in it. That is wrong; that is entirely improper. The second thing you say, he adds, is to drop Karmakand and Jnanakand and only do Bhakti. Do not apply the intellect in Bhakti — fine, that too. But you also set rule and Maryada aside, and where is that right.

What does it mean to be principled rather than person-led?

That you follow a principle and a Shastra proof, not a person. Running blindly after someone because of their popularity, unable to tell the true from the false, will leave you nowhere. Oppose things, change within yourself, and try to walk the right path — but oppose in a proper manner.

The speaker gives the formulation he repeats often: do not become Vyaktivadi, become Siddhantavadi — person-led against principle-led. Come by the proof of the Shastra, he says; nobody in India is so foolish as to be unable to understand what is right and what is wrong. The failure, as he puts it, is that you are unable to make the distinction between the true and the false, and in the effort to follow a person blindly you run after him. That being person-led will leave you nowhere. Be principled. Oppose things, and by making a change within yourself, try to walk the right path. He does not exempt himself. We never say that there is no opposition to what we tell you, he says. But the manner of opposing will be wrong; people say such things that the wish to answer does not arise. Speak properly — say that this view did not seem right to me — and we will answer it. Speak crookedly and we will speak more crookedly than you.

What responsibility comes with influence?

That society will follow what it sees in you. The speaker says that if your conduct, discrimination and way of living in society benefit Sanatan, then your austerity bearing fruit is right. Influence given wrongly comes back on you, corrupts your own intellect, and does not last long.

The speaker takes up the trend of people being called incarnations of Bhagavan Datta. Very well, he says — we and you are all portions of the Supreme, and as we increase our Tapo-bala, such energies will form near us by God's blessing through the growth of our Punya. But it is right and proper that your austerity and your thinking bear fruit only if Sanatan is benefited by your conduct, your thinking, your behaviour, your good works, your Karmakand, your knowledge and discrimination, and your manner of living in society. Seeing you, society has to follow something. If you have become a very large influencer and are having an effect on society, he says, look at the case of a well-known figure — the one everyone is now discussing because of a spoof that went viral and the controversy that followed. Someone who had himself once abused an entertainer for having a bad effect on society; and look at what his own situation has become. Give influence in a wrong way and it will return and fall on you, and your own intellect will be corrupted. A wrong kind of influence will not run for many days. If you are speaking the language of those of another faith and people wish to follow you, harm will come to all of them along with you.

Why is it that certain teachers are followed and others are not?

Because they grant permission. The speaker asks why nobody follows Trailanga Swami, Devraha Baba or Tulsi Baba — because their hard Upasana, their Yoga practice, their hard Bhakti cannot be matched. What is followed instead is whoever says eat on Ekadashi, no Brahmacharya is needed, no mala is needed.

The speaker puts the question as a challenge. Why do you not go and follow Trailanga Swami? Why are you afraid to follow him? Because you will not be able to perform Upasana as hard as his. Why do you not follow Devraha Baba? Because you will not be able to do Yoga practice like his. Why do you not follow Tulsi Baba? Because Bhakti as hard as his will not be possible for you. Whom, then, do you follow? You follow those who give you the freedom to do anything at all in an invented way. You follow those who say: eat and drink on Ekadashi and stay happy, do service, there is no difficulty. You want to follow those who say that observing BrahmacharyaStrict celibacy required through an extended ritual observance. is not necessary in a forty-day sadhana. You follow those who tell you there is no need to recite the mantra with a Mala. You want to perform invented Upasanas and walk an invented path, he says — and then when nothing happens, or when things go wrong after two, four, five years, you come to make accusations against people like us who say: walk on principle. Then you say, thief, hypocrite, where did anything happen, we did it for five years. Look properly, he answers: at whom you followed.

Did Arjuna found a sect after receiving the Gita?

No. The speaker's argument: Krishna gave Arjuna the Gita at Kurukshetra, had him perform Anushthans, gave him Siddhi and victory — and Arjuna did not then declare a faith of his own and tell people to follow him because he was God's companion. That, he says, is the difference to grasp.

The speaker builds the argument out of a line he had been reading two days earlier, at Gita Jayanti, that Bhagavan Krishna gave the discourse of the Gita to ArjunaThe Pandava warrior-prince to whom Krishna delivered the Bhagavad Gita's teaching, on the battlefield of Kurukshetra. at Kurukshetra in forty-five minutes. So, he asks, did Arjuna, after winning the war, make a faith of his own and begin telling people that Krishna ji gave us the teaching, so follow us, he is God and we are the companion of God? Arjuna was called the Sakha, he notes — leave the teaching of the Bhagavad Gita aside and look at the Mahabharata, and he is called the Sakha, not son or child. He applies it to a trend he says listeners will have seen, and which is why he is speaking openly: people saying that Krishna ji gave them a teaching and taught them the path of Yoga. What sort of matter is this, he asks, that we take the teaching from those who taught us Yoga or Tantra Vidya, and then go into their faith and convert their own people, telling them to accept us. Arjuna did not do that. Krishna gave him the teaching of the path of Yoga, had him perform so many Anushthans, he obtained so much siddhi, and he was given victory in the war. Arjuna did not do that.

Why can a fixed hour be kept for a web series but not for japa?

The speaker's point is that the capacity exists and is spent elsewhere. You can sit at one fixed time for forty or a hundred days for episodes and reality shows — companies gave leave for a series finale — but for the self-elevation you were born for, sitting for forty mala or even four is beyond you.

The speaker refuses the depression argument. Performing sadhana and Anushthan is entirely essential, and walking by the method is entirely essential; you should not go into depression over doing it by rule. The cause of that, he says, is that your capacity to practise anything has already been finished off — and those of another faith want your practice never to form. His illustration is the fixed hour. For forty days you can sit at one time and watch episodes of any kind, Bigg Boss, Splitsvilla, whatever else is coming — at an absolutely fixed time. He recalls a web series about masked robbers that ran hugely on the internet, and how, when its last season released, corporate and IT companies gave two days of weekend leave for people to watch it. Such is the craze. So you can sit at one fixed time and watch continuously for your entertainment for forty days, or even a hundred. But for your own elevation, for which you were born, you do not have the intelligence to sit and complete forty mala of japa, or four. And if someone tells you to do it, he is a hypocrite, there is nobody more foolish than you, God is pleased by feeling and not by a Mala. Whoever is putting that into your head, he says, never wants your elevation.

Keep the practice secret — but from whom exactly?

Keep your own sadhana and Upasana secret, but certainly spread awareness among people. Not by force — among those dear to you, those who regard you, those in need or in distress. People go so secret, he says, that they will not even tell the members of their own family who need it.

The speaker corrects an overcorrection. Keep your own sadhana and Upasana secret, he says, but certainly spread awareness among people. And there too, do not do it by force: have it done by those who are dear to you, who regard you, or who have need of it and are in some distress. What does keeping it secret mean here, he asks. People become so secret, in such a manner, that they do not tell even the members of their own family who need it. If someone needs it — if you are a woman, have it done at your maternal home; if you are a man, have it done at your in-laws'. If you are the son-in-law, say that it will have to be done, otherwise your daughter will not be going to her maternal home now. By Sam, Dam, Danda and Bheda, by whatever means — in just the way, he says, that those of another faith are using Sam, Dam, Danda and Bheda to inflict harm on Sanatan.

What is the aim behind calling mala japa and Havan mere show?

To cut the household off from its own energies. His claim: once you break under that influence, the powers of your house, the energies of your house, your Kula deities and your Kshetra Rakshak stop receiving these energies — and then your protective armour breaks.

The speaker states what he believes the campaign is for. The wish, as he describes it, is that all the energies still standing on the ground in our culture should somehow be absorbed away and removed — have Bali stopped in one place, have this stopped in another; and once you are away from all these things, begin calling them wrong: that Mala japa is the work of hypocrites, that this is fraud, that performing Havan is fraud and nothing comes of it. By any means, he says, these people break your mentality. And as soon as you come under their influence and break, the powers of your house, the energies of your house, your own Kuldevi and Kula deities, your Kshetrapal — all of them will stop receiving these energies. And then your protective armour will break; the protection will break. For proof he sends the listener to the Shrimad Bhagavad Gita, from the end of the second chapter into the third: there, he says, you will find it written that Bhagavan Krishna says the responsibility of protecting men lies with the Devas — that men should perform Yajna, worship the Devas, satisfy them and nourish them; and the Devas, being nourished, should protect men, guard them, and fulfil their wishes.

May pilgrimage be undertaken during Kharmas?

Yes. Places of pilgrimage such as Vrindavan may certainly be visited during Kharmas; there is no difficulty in it. In the same exchange, the Sankat Nashan Ganesh Stotra Anushthan may be begun from a Chaturthi.

Two short answers open the Q&A. Someone wishing to perform the Sankat Nashan Stotra is told to begin from a Chaturthi. On Kharmas: places of pilgrimage such as Vrindavan can absolutely be visited during Kharmas. Do go for the Darshan of holy places in Kharmas; there is no difficulty about it.

Does the direction of the cow behind Dattatreya mark a difference of form?

The speaker has neither heard of nor seen such a difference of form. In the images he has used, the picture was simply edited and placed. The main tradition regarding Bhagavan Datta keeps the cow's face to the right, as he is generally worshipped everywhere; better not to go into it.

A listener asks about the cow behind Bhagavan Datta facing one way in one video and another way in another, and requests an explanation of the difference of form. The speaker answers that he has not heard of or seen any such difference of form. The images used in the videos were simply what was found and placed, edited into the frame; nothing particular about it struck him. However, the main position regarding Bhagavan Datta is that the cow's face remains to the right, as he is generally worshipped everywhere. There is nothing special in it by way of a distinction. Better, he says, not to go into it — such a thing will not even be found, and a Shri Vigraha of that kind is negligible.

Can the Dattatreya Kavach be written on Bhojpatra and worn?

First your Kavach must be accomplished. Without Siddhi there is no benefit in writing it. And the speaker adds that he cannot say which Dattatreya Kavach it is without seeing it, so the Pran Pratishtha cannot be answered in the abstract.

A listener asks how to perform the Prana Pratishtha of the Dattatreya Kavach written on BhojpatraBirch bark, used to write a mantra or a person's name with a pomegranate-twig pen and red sandalwood ink for Tantric applications, such as placing a name upon a Shivlinga's base for a honey Abhisheka. and worn. The speaker's answer is conditional. If you wish to do such a thing, then first your Kavach should be accomplished — without the siddhi, there is no benefit in writing it out. And which Kavach of Bhagavan Dattatreya it is, he says, is not possible to say without seeing it.

What should be done on Margashirsha Purnima, and how should children be brought in?

Deepdaan on Margashirsha Purnima is called extremely necessary. And tie a knot for Thursdays: on that day recite Bhagavan Dattatreya's Mala Mantra at home, twenty-seven times if you can. There is no question of entitlement in it. Introduce the children to Datta as the Guru form from childhood.

The speaker gives a set of instructions for the coming Purnima and the weekly practice. On Margashirsha Poornima, certainly have the Deepdaan performed — it is extremely necessary. And tie a knot about Thursday, he says. If Bhagavan Dattatreya's worship is to be done on Thursday, it is to be done. Recite his Mala Mantra; there is no question at all in it of who is entitled and who is not. Perform the recitation of Bhagavan Dattatreya's Mala Mantra at home that day, twenty-seven times if you can manage it. Even if you have not performed the Deeksha Vidhan, introduce the children of the house to Bhagavan Datta as well, and have all of them worship him in the Guru form from childhood. On Thursday let there be worship of Bhagavan Datta, or of Bhagavan Brihaspati or Narayana — and of no other faith's. Put this in now, he says, or later the children will not listen, and when they go out into society they will do incoherent things.

Which mala should be kept if one mala is to serve for all Bhagavati mantras?

Use the Bhairavi mala — the Bhairavi Rudraksha. The nine-mukhi Bhairavi Rudraksha will be the best for this. In the same stretch the speaker also notes that Shiva ji's Panchakshari may be recited on Dattatreya Jayanti.

A listener asks which mala should be kept if a single mala is to be used for the japa of all of Bhagavati's mantras. The speaker answers that in that case you should use the Bhairavi mala, the Bhairavi RudrakshaA sacred seed strung into rosaries and worn during shiva worship.. The nine-mukhi Bhairavi Rudraksha will be the very best. He also answers, just before this, that the Shiva Panchakshari Mantra may certainly be recited on Dattatreya Jayanti.

What does it mean if a mantra is forgotten in the middle of japa?

Nothing. It is an ordinary thing and not a subject to think about. If the mantra is long we forget a little; even reciters of Vedic mantras forget, and it happens often. There is no need to be troubled by it — nor by the clove and camphor falling from the hand.

A listener reports that during japa of the Mahabhairav mantra he forgot the mantra in the third mala and could not recall it however he tried, and that the burning camphor and clove fell from his hand. The speaker answers that this is an ordinary matter and there is nothing in it to think about — no subject of why did this happen. It happens very often that if the mantra is long we forget a little. Even those who are reciters of Vedic mantras forget; such things happen many times. So one is not to be troubled by it. In the same stretch he adds that mental japa of the Datta Mala Mantra may certainly be done — but not while walking about.

May a brass lamp and plate be used for Deepdaan, and a coconut cut across?

Yes to all three. A brass lamp may be used in place of the clay one, a brass plate in place of the Dona, and a coconut that comes already cut across the middle will serve. The speaker notes his own were cut somewhat smaller for Kula Bhairav and for Bhagavan Datta, and suggests trying for a clean cut.

A listener asks whether a brass lamp may be used in place of the clay lamp, a brass plate in place of the two Donas, and whether a coconut that is available only cut across the middle can be used. The speaker answers that a brass lamp may absolutely be used and a brass plate may be used. A coconut found cut through the middle will also do. He adds a note from his own practice: of the coconuts he cut, the one used for Bhairav ji, for Kula Bhairava, and the one for Bhagavan Datta were both cut a little smaller in size. Try a little to have it cut through the middle and it will cut neatly. Otherwise — his own were cut crosswise in a different way — one that comes already cut through the middle will serve equally well, and the lamp may be lit in that too.

Should the Nyasa be done for the Batuk Bhairav Ashtottar Satnam?

Perform only the Viniyoga to begin with. The full procedure is given in the Purva Pithika, but do the Nyasa only after you have completed 1100. Nyasa, the speaker adds, is not needed by everybody.

Asked to give the Viniyoga and Nyasa for Bhagavan Batuk Bhairav's Ashtottara ShatanamaA recitation of a deity's 108 names — shorter than a Sahasranama (1000 names) and commonly used as the accompanying Havan or daily Japa count., the speaker points to where the full prescription already is: everything is given in the Purva Pithika. But perform it with the Viniyoga only. Do the Nyasa and the rest only after you have completed 1100. Nyasa, he says, is not required by everybody. In the same stretch he answers that the daily Aarti should certainly be performed.

Is smoking ganja justified by calling it Bholenath's Prasad?

The speaker allows the Yogi's case and refuses yours. If a Yogi smokes and is genuinely doing Yoga sadhana, fine — he is tapping his body, you do not know which herbs he adds, and his is Vamachara sadhana. Yours is not. You are making it a means for your own appetites and calling it Prasad.

A listener writes that he smokes ganja, that he is a devotee of Bhole Baba and takes his Prasad. The speaker begins by granting the general principle — whatever thing is needed wherever, and by whom; this is exactly why it has been said that all such things should be limited. You smoke ganja, fine. Then he separates the two cases. If some Yogi is smoking and is performing Yoga sadhana, and you say that Mahadev's devotees smoke, that Mahadev smokes — very well, granted. Now tell me whether you are like that Yogi who is doing Yoga after smoking, who is genuinely doing Yoga, sitting in Dhyana after smoking. Fine. What are you doing? You are only smoking. He is heating his own body in austerity; which herbs he is putting into it you do not know. His is Vamachara sadhana; yours is not Vamachari sadhana. He is using those things for the purposes of sadhana-related Kriyas. You are making these things a means for the satisfaction of your own appetites and saying it is Bhole Baba's Prasad.

How is a Kusha asana made, and when is the Kusha to be gathered?

A ready-made Kusha asana is available — use that. The Kusha itself is drawn on the day of Kushotpatini Amavasya, the Bhadon Amavasya. If that much procedure is possible for you, do that too; and there is a rule within it distinguishing the married from the unmarried.

A listener asks how to make a Kusha Asana and when the Kusha has to be brought. The speaker answers that a ready-made Kusha asana is available, and to use that. On the gathering: the Kusha is drawn out on the day of Kushotpatini Amavasya, that is on the Bhadon Amavasya. If that much procedure is possible for you, then do that as well. He adds that there is a rule within it too, concerning the married and the unmarried.

Can Deepdaan be performed without a picture or an image of Dattatreya?

Yes — do it, there is no difficulty in having neither picture nor image. And do not bring one now. When your regard toward him has formed through proper sadhana, then give him a place. For the present, only perform the Deepdaan. Do not be in a hurry.

A listener writes that he has not performed Bhagavan Datta's Deeksha Vidhan or japa but wishes to do the Deepdaan the speaker has described. The speaker tells him to do it by all means. There is no picture, no image — no difficulty at all. And for anyone who has no picture of Bhagavan Dattatreya and no room to keep one, there is no necessity of bringing a Shri Vigraha of Bhagavan Dattatreya, or of bringing his picture, before doing it. Do not bring one now, he says. When your sadhana of him has been done duly and your regard toward him has formed — he is one of the Mahashaktis — then give him his place. For now, only perform the Deepdaan. Do not be in a hurry. Just before this he tells another listener who says he finds no fruit and concludes that some deficiency lies in himself: yes, do exactly that — carry out self-analysis, and look at the procedure.

Is Dattatreya sadhana forbidden to someone initiated at the Datia Peeth?

No, there is no prohibition on the sadhana of Bhagavan Datta; it may certainly be done. But on Yantras and the like, the speaker sends the questioner back: since you are initiated at the Datia Peeth, ask your own Guru for the full procedure — which side, what is to be made, how it is to be done.

A listener initiated at the Datia Peeth asks whether Dattatreya sadhana is permitted. The speaker answers that if you are initiated from the Datia Peeth there is certainly no prohibition on Dattatreya sadhana and the rest. There is no prohibition on the sadhana of Bhagavan Datta; you may absolutely do it. But on the Yantra and related matters, since you are initiated from the Datia Peeth, please ask your own Guru ji for the whole procedure — from which side, what is to be made, how it will be done. In the same stretch he tells another listener that no Kavach is to be made again; only the Mala Mantra Anushthan is to be performed once more.

This guidance holds only until Deeksha; after it, surrender to one's own Guru must be total — which is why Deeksha is not taken in haste.

Until your Deeksha has been performed by anyone, follow this guidance. Once it has, the speaker's own advice is that your surrender must be a hundred percent toward your Guru. This, he says, is exactly why Guru Deeksha is not to be taken in haste.

A listener says that the preliminary sadhanas described here were not given to him at the Datia Peeth, where he received the instruction for sequential sadhana, and asks whether he is proceeding correctly or should follow this process from the start. The speaker asks everyone listening to remember one thing. He speaks only with regard to himself; what the rest of the world tells or does not tell, he says, is not his concern. As long as your Deeksha has not been done by anyone, perform sadhana according to the guidance he tries to give, offered commonly to any householder in particular. Walk along with him; whatever can be done for you will be done and told, and you walk accordingly. Once your Deeksha has taken place, he will tell you only this: that your surrender must become a hundred percent toward your own Guru. And this, he says, is exactly why Guru Diksha is not to be taken in haste. Because after taking Deeksha, if things do not go according to your mind and you do not place your whole enquiry before him, difficulty will arise. Then you will hear from elsewhere that it should have been done thus, and there the Guru will say it has no meaning and there is no need for it; you will ask the reason and no satisfying answer will come; then your regard will lessen, and then the sadhana will not bear fruit. Understand the subjects, listen — there is no prohibition on listening — but the regard and surrender must be toward your own Guru.

He is still corrected on how the Sankalpa is made, how the hand Mudra is held, and how a Svastivachan mantra is pronounced.

No. He says people comment that he is a very learned person — and he still sits while being told that the Sankalpa is not made like that but like this, to make the hand Mudra this way, to tie one more knot in the Chutaiya, to pronounce properly, that this mantra in the Svastivachan goes this way.

The speaker uses himself as the illustration of surrender. Even today, he says, when you listen to him it seems that here is a very learned person; comments come saying so. Even today he sits for these small things. Your Sankalpa is not like that — a Sankalpa is made this way. Make the hand MudraA symbolic hand gesture used in worship or iconography — such as Varada (boon-granting) or Abhaya (fearlessness-bestowing) — each carrying its own specific meaning. like this; and then it is made exactly so. You tied one and a quarter knots in the Chutaiya, tie one more; all right, go. Pronounce it properly. At the time of the Svastivacana this mantra is not spoken that way but this way. In the Rudri this thing is not like that, you must do it this way. Speak the syllable that is written. And on the Samput recitation: you feel like doing a great Samput recitation — do it as it is being told, two recitations a day, do it in the morning and in the evening as well, sit down. Take me along, Maharaj, today I wish to do the Hridaya recitation. All right, do the Hridaya recitation, do one. How many was it to be? We had thought we would do 108 purashcharana. No, no, no. You do this for now. Surrender should be of that kind, he says: the syllable that is spoken is the syllable performed. However good your own practice is at doing everything, if the Guru ji is saying you must do it this way, then for us our Guru who is before us is Vindhyavasini herself, and his speech is her speech, his tongue is hers.

How much thought should go into accepting a Guru?

Think a thousand times. Once you have accepted a Guru, what he says is a line cut in stone — and changing a Guru later, or performing the Visarjan, brings difficulty. On the Guru's side, giving Deeksha creates a responsibility, and if the disciple commits an offence a sixth part of it falls on the Guru.

The speaker sets the weight on both sides. Until your Deeksha has happened, choose the proper path and walk with surrender; but think a thousand times before making a Guru. There is no benefit in regretting it afterwards, and changing a Guru later, or performing the Visarjan, or whatever the procedure may be, will cause you difficulty. If you take an order from them and they are a capable Guru, then they will give the order and it is well. But if they turn out to be an embittered Guru — if you have told them that you take guidance from a YouTube channel, and they say, these YouTube Gurus, and bitterness comes into their mind, or they hold a grudge on hearing the view — they are human, and then you will be ground between the two. So, he says, having accepted a Guru, what the Guru says is a line cut in stone, and you should walk accordingly. A Diksha taken in haste, where surrender cannot form because of knowledge, causes harm very often. He says he is very well aware of names at Datia who gave Deeksha, and of the upheaval in the disciples' lives that followed — and asks that this not be misunderstood as sowing doubt in anyone's mind. His reason: when Deeksha is given, a responsibility is created. The initiated disciple has to be looked after as a son. And not only that — if the disciple commits an offence, a sixth part of it will fall on the Guru. That is why, however formidable and fully consecrated a Guru may be, those who walk the true path think a thousand times before going forward on this path. Merely giving Deeksha is not the end of it — nor is it right to leave a disciple's enquiries unsettled.

How much time does a capable Guru give, and how should one sit before him?

The speaker's own Guru, though extremely busy, gives two to four hours one-to-one whenever he goes — not immediately, but on the third day. And his instruction for the seeker: sit as a fool, and then the matters of knowledge will come. Those who are over-learned will consider you nothing.

The speaker describes his own position as a disciple. His elder Guru ji has attained Brahmalina. The Guru who came after, fully consecrated, is so busy that he has a shortage of time — but whenever the speaker goes, he gives time, two hours or four, alone, one to one. And not because we announced ourselves as a VIP, he adds: when the time comes. Yes, my boy, wait two days, on the third day it is for you. In that time each subject is taken up — this mantra, this Utkilana, this matter and that, this chart I did not understand, tell me, we have to do this next. Each thing is explained. Whatever doubt exists, in whatever subject, all the doubts are removed. And it has never happened that he does not ask what we have and in what condition it is; he asks as though unacquainted — did you read something on this subject, was there some study of it — and when we reach halfway, he completes the rest. He already has the information he asks about, but he assesses how much is known, and then tells how it is to be done — whether it is the Vamachara method of the Tantra path or the Dakshinachara method, from both traditions. He adds what it took to get there. Do not imagine, he says, that we simply set out and a Guru was obtained and Siddhi came. How is a Sankalpa taken — we did not know. What is Nyasa called? There was no YouTube then. There are very many Nyasa, and Mudras within them; you cannot learn every Mudra. You learnt twenty-four Mudras and there are still others. Who would tell you? They have the information, but would they tell it? And his instruction to the seeker: this is the mistake made in front of a teacher. If you come forward as one who knows, they will decide that this one knows everything already. Sit as a fool, and then the matters of knowledge will come. Even among them, the over-learned will consider you nothing — they will say there is nothing in all these things, serve the Mother and it is done. But those who genuinely have the capacity, ask them one thing and they will lay ten open before you.

Is Sunday also a day dedicated to Mahadev?

Yes, you read it correctly. The day of the Sun is said to be dedicated to Bhagavan Shiva, and the day of the Moon, Monday, is dedicated to him as well.

A listener writes that Monday is held to be Mahadev's day but that he had read somewhere that Sunday is described as the day dedicated to Mahadev, and asks about it. The speaker confirms the reading. The day of the Sun has indeed been described as dedicated to Bhagavan Shiva; you have read it entirely correctly. And the day of the Moon, Monday, is dedicated to Bhagavan Shiva as well.

Do the weekdays give different fruits for the same worship?

Yes. Thursday for obstruction in marriage and money trouble — release from debt, gain of wealth and grain, and jaundice relieved by Shringar and Abhishek. Friday for afflictions relating to children and, for a man in particular, trouble in his marriage. Tuesday for the obstruction of an enemy.

The speaker sets out the weekday scheme for worship of Mahadev. If it is a Thursday, and there is obstruction in marriage or a problem of money, then worship, service or Darshan of Mahadev on that day will free you of it — release from debt will come, and wealth and grain will be obtained. And if jaundice has occurred, then Shringar and abhishekaA ceremonial bathing of a deity’s image or symbol, usually with water and other prescribed substances. of Mahadev performed on a Thursday will relieve it. If it is a Friday, then all the afflictions related to children fall in this category, and for a man in particular; and if some difficulty in particular is coming in a man's marriage, then service and worship of Mahadev that day will bring you the fruit. If there is obstruction from an enemy, then Tuesday. The rule of the day, he explains, is connected somewhere with the deity, and with the fruit related to that deity. It is not merely that everything will be obtained if we worship Shiva ji on a Monday alone, and that doing it on Tuesday achieves nothing, or that its importance rises or falls. Different fruits are described according to the day and the tithi.

Why does Pushya Nakshatra carry particular importance?

Because Bhagavan Narayana says in the Gita that among the Nakshatras he is Pushya, the king of Nakshatras. Both Shani Dev and Dev Guru Brihaspati come into it as its deities and lords, so both hold importance there — worship in Ravi Pushya pleases Shani Dev as well, not only Brihaspati.

The speaker takes up Ravi Pushya and Guru Pushya as an example of tithi and day carrying weight. There is a particular glory to the Pushya Nakshatra, he says. Bhagavan Narayana has said in the Gita that among the Nakshatras he is Pushya Nakshatra — the king of Nakshatras. Who, then, are the deities of Pushya Nakshatra and who are its lords? In that, both Shani Dev and Dev Guru Brihaspati come in. So the importance of both of them is formed there. It is not the case, he says, that if you perform worship in Ravi Pushya, only Brihaspati Dev is going to be pleased. Shani Dev will be pleased as well.

What happens when a Deeksha is refused and only Gayatri is prescribed instead?

The speaker's own case: he asked a practitioner at Vindhyachal for Pitambara Deeksha long ago and was deflected — you will become deranged, this will happen, that will happen — and told to do Gayatri instead. He did, Bhagavati's grace came, and the increase of Tapo-bal followed.

The speaker gives this as the reason he repeats the phrase increase of TapobalSpiritual power accumulated through austerity and sustained practice — the counterweight that must exceed accumulated black-magic or negative energy for an affliction to fully lift. so often — it is not empty talk. He recalls that the Shastri from whom they used to take guidance would turn the question aside whenever anything was asked about sadhana: what will you do with all this, do nothing, do Bhajan, Balaji's grace is on you, what will you do, go to Pitambara and take Deeksha. Most people, he says, act in exactly this way. There was a very good practitioner at Vindhyachal, still there. He was asked for Pitambara Deeksha a very long time ago. He turned it round a great deal — it is like this, it is like that, you will become deranged, such and such will happen. Fine, he said, I will not take it. Do Gayatri, do the Gayatri. All right then, brother, do only Gayatri. And Bhagavati's grace came. When a fit Tantra Deeksha is not being obtained, he says, and the wish is there and the surrender to Bhagavati is there, she is there. She reveals the practitioner fit for her, her own fit son, when the time comes. First she will increase your Punya strength and make you fit, make you capable — and then she will produce the fit person, the fit Guru, in your life, and have you take his shelter and make him your medium.

How can you tell a capable Guru from one who deflects?

By what comes back. Ask a capable Guru one question and he will answer ten properly, tell you new things, and himself tell you what you should study next. Whoever has done nothing himself will tell you to do nothing either.

The speaker says it is true that what is not obtained in ten years comes when the Guru is obtained — and when the Guru wishes it, and sees that there is application, surrender, and that this is an entitled person with capacity within him, he will not hesitate to give. Ask one question of such a person and he will tell you ten answers properly; he will tell you new things; he will himself say that you ought to study this thing, study that, hold your views on these subjects. And whoever has himself relished nothing will relish nothing for you; whoever has himself done nothing will tell you not to do anything either. He then raises the counter-case fairly. One subject that may come up here, he says, is this: that we walked the difficult path and obtained our goal, and we know which the easy path is, so we are urging the easy path — go this way, do not go by this difficult one, we know. The second subject is the person who is not fit to walk the easy path at all and wants to walk the hard one; his wish is that he will enjoy it by this road, and he is even asking to be encouraged along it. And you say to him: no, no, this is wrong, do not go this way. He asks, what are the hardships, tell me. You will tell him the hardships, will you not, if you came by that road — yes, look, difficulty of this and this kind can arise. Then come. So the experience will be of use. But the person simply refuses outright: no, you are not to go there, if you must come, come this way, do not wander here and there. This is wrong, he says. Everyone's enquiry cannot be settled in one manner.

Is worship between 7:30 and 8 in the evening wrong?

The speaker says he never said it should not be done. His point was about the time of the Sandhya, which is when the Godhuli hour falls. But if it is done at the principal times of the four Sandhyas, it will be far better.

A listener writes that he does not understand why worship should not be done between 7:30 and 8, since 7 to 11 in the evening is the time he has had for a long while. The speaker answers: perform worship. We are not saying it should not be done. But the time of the SandhyaThe twice- or thrice-daily prayer rite performed at dawn and dusk — Vedic Sandhya requires eligibility under Varnashrama, while those without it may instead undergo Tantrik initiation and perform Tantrik Sandhya. is when the Godhuli BelaThe evening twilight period around dusk, traditionally favoured for Akarshana (attraction) rites. falls — that was the subject we were placing; we did not say it should not be done. If it is done at the principal times, the four Sandhyas, it will be much better. In the same stretch he answers two more: a Rudraksha or Sphatik may be threaded onto the string on which the Dattatreya Kavach is worn, no difficulty; and once the Dev Deeksha has been done, there is no need to do it again.

On which day is the Havan done, and must non-vegetarian food be given up after Datta Deeksha?

The Havan may be done on the forty-second day after the japa of the forty-first, but do it on the forty-first if possible. On food, the speaker refuses non-vegetarian food whether or not you take the Deeksha — and asks that Bali and eating not be mixed together as one subject.

Two answers in sequence. On the Havan: it can be done on the forty-second day after the japa of the forty-first, but if possible, do it on the forty-first itself. On food: asked whether non-vegetarian food must be given up forever after taking the Deeksha of Bhagavan Dattatreya, the speaker answers that whether you take the Deeksha or not, we will forbid non-vegetarian food for eating in any case — do not eat it. And he asks that two things not be mixed together: Bali and eating. Bali is Bali; the manner of Bali is one subject, and whether you are someone who eats and eats what is offered is a different one. Though for that too, he adds, there are a great many things you have already given up. But as for non-vegetarian food — take the Deeksha or not, if you do not eat it, your own good lies in that.

Is the sadhana broken if the mala thread snaps midway?

No — do not keep the doubt in your mind, since you completed it. The proper method when a mala breaks midway is to restring it fully, perform its Pratishtha procedure again, and then do at least 51 mala of that same mantra separately, for the removal of the fault, before going on.

A listener reports that during five lakh japa the mala's thread broke after four or four and a half lakh; he tied the thread and continued, and completed the sadhana. He asks whether the sadhana was broken. The speaker tells him that since he has completed it, he should not keep the doubt in his mind. He then gives the proper method. If a Mala breaks in the middle, then it should be restrung completely and its Prana Pratishtha procedure and the rest performed again; and for however much japa had been done — four and a half lakh, in this case — do at minimum 51 mala of that same mantra separately, for the removal of the fault, and then go forward.

A realist, principled position will never agree with an invented one — what is true is true.

They will not agree, he says. Anyone who is a realist and principled will not agree with them. What is true is true; if things are run in an invented manner, that is another matter.

A listener writes that he has taken Deeksha from someone at Datia whom the speaker also knows of, that his mind is not settling there, and that their views on Shastra differ from the speaker's — mustard oil being one instance — so that on the whole their positions do not meet anywhere. The speaker answers that they will not meet. Where a realist and a principled person are formed, our views and theirs will not agree. What is true is true. If things are run in an invented manner, then the subject is different.

May the Pranav be uttered at the start and end of the Batuk Bhairav Ashtottar Satnam?

Yes, do it. And in the Viniyoga of the Datta Mala Mantra, saying "Datta Devata Prityarthe Kripa Prapti" is not necessary — say that in the Sankalpa instead.

Two short procedural answers. Asked whether the Pranav may be uttered at the beginning and end of the Batuk Bhairav Ashtottara ShatanamaA recitation of a deity's 108 names — shorter than a Sahasranama (1000 names) and commonly used as the accompanying Havan or daily Japa count., the speaker says yes, do it. Asked whether, in the Viniyoga of the Datta Mala Mantra, one may say Datta Devata Prityarthe Kripa Prapti, he answers that there is no need for it — say that in the Sankalpa.

Why is liquor offered to Kaal Bhairav?

The speaker declines to answer here. Giving a reasoned answer and satisfying the questioner, he says, are two different things — the answer exists and others have already explained it, but the subject is not easy for everyone to digest. He will set it out separately, with proof.

A listener asks why liquor in particular is offered to Kaal Bhairava. The speaker says that being able to give a reasoned answer and being able to satisfy are two different subjects. The reality is the same question as why a goat's Bali is offered to Kali Mai: developing the capacity within people to understand this subject is very difficult. There is truth in it, he says, and the answer can absolutely be given — people have already given it and explained this subject. But it is not within everyone's power to digest it, so what is there to say now. He sets the subject aside to be taken up separately, with proof — why, what and how.

What should someone do who cannot give up non-vegetarian food at once?

Try to give it up; keep it limited and let it go slowly. The rule is not that after the Dev Deeksha Vidhan you cannot eat it — but what you eat should be offered as Naivedya to your own Shraddha. If you do eat at home, keep the place of worship pure and at a distance, and do not go there without bathing.

A listener says non-vegetarian food will not stop all at once and asks for the rule. The speaker answers that if it will not stop at once, then make the effort to give it up. He is explicit that the rule is not that once you have performed the Dev Deeksha Vidhan you cannot eat it. But if you do eat, then what we eat is eaten after being offered as NaivedyaThe food offering (Bhog) presented to a deity during worship, accompanied by water offerings and dedicatory mantras. to our own Shraddha — Bhagavan Datta is worshipped in the house, or any deity is being worshipped there. So at the time of worshipping the household deities, the Bali of meat and the rest — if you are a resident of Bengal, the regional rule there is different, but otherwise such rules should not be applied. If you become vegetarian and follow the vegetarian rule, that is very good. Keep meat-eating limited, try, and let it go slowly; it will be well if you drop it. And if you are eating meat at home, then in that condition your place of worship must be pure and at a distance; take care not to go there after eating and drinking. You are not to go there without bathing — and it is not as it is in the cold, where one washes hands and feet, changes clothes and performs worship; with meat-eating that is not possible at all.

What is the biggest error people make with a permitted alternative?

Bringing it into the main current. The speaker calls this the greatest irony among Hindus. The alternative given for a difficult time — washing only the toe where there is no water, or only Abhishek, Naivedya and Aarti where full worship is impossible — becomes the whole of the practice.

The speaker states the general fault: when we bring the alternative to any thing into the main current, we make the greatest mistake of all. This, he says, is the greatest irony among Hindus. His example is one he was told through a beloved disciple of the late Shankaracharya Swaroopanand Saraswati ji Maharaj: that if you are in some condition or place where you cannot bathe, or there is no facility of water, then it has been held that you may at least wash your feet, or even your toe, and that too is taken as pure — in that condition you may perform worship, or do the remembrance mentally. But at least that much purity should be reached. And if people hear these things, he says, they will simply start washing the toe: he said the toe. Forget the rest of the subject, in which circumstance he said it and what you are to do in what circumstance. The same shape appears in the daily worship. It is found in different traditions that if you cannot perform the daily worship with full procedure, then at the very least three things should happen — abhishekaA ceremonial bathing of a deity’s image or symbol, usually with water and other prescribed substances., that is Shiva ji's Abhishek, NaivedyaThe food offering (Bhog) presented to a deity during worship, accompanied by water offerings and dedicatory mantras., and Aarti. And if even that much cannot be done, then if you only perform the Aarti, offering a little Naivedya of whatever is present, the worship will be held complete. And you people, he says, drop everything else — do the Gayatri, do this, do the Aarti morning and evening and the tension is finished. What was kept as an alternative for a difficult time is brought into the main current. That is the greatest irony. Doing this again and again, the main things were let go and let go, until today this condition has arrived.

A scholar's grandson showed the incense anticlockwise at Dakshineswar: three generations' loss from an alternative taken as the norm.

A young man from a wealthy Brahmin family, whose grandfather had been a great scholar, showed the incense to the Devi anticlockwise at the Dakshineswar Kali temple. The Bengali priest shouted at him. The speaker's point is that the loss ran down three generations from an alternative taken as the norm.

The speaker tells this as the illustration of what the drift costs across generations, and is careful to say he keeps no outward marks himself — we stay normal outside, you could hardly recognise us, we are not walking about wearing a Mundmala as some great Baba. The young man in question was from a very wealthy family and did not know who the speaker was. It was his birthday and he suggested they go. Whether it was the first time he had been to a temple or the first time he had lit incense, God knows. He lit five of the thick perfumed sticks at once — the kind that have no bamboo in them and give a fine scent. The speaker let it pass: he has brought them, let him light all five. Then the young man began showing the incense to the Mother — and the Bengali priest there shouted out, calling the boy mad. The speaker asked what had happened. Look at him, the priest said, he is showing the incense the wrong way round, anticlockwise. The speaker answered that he is a very great devotee, he is performing the Utara for Kali Ma, Kali Ma has caught the evil eye — people take her Darshan all day and gaze at her divinity. At that the priest too began to laugh, and said, all right, brother, it is to be shown this way. His point is where the fault lies. The young man's grandfather had been a very great scholar; even today such texts are found in their house, though in a condition where they cannot be opened, and the family will not part with them or let them be touched. And his father was exactly the case being discussed — what had been made an alternative was taken into the main current. And the son has accepted the main current so completely that today he does not even know how Dhupa-DeepaIncense and a lamp, offered morning and evening — the basic minimum daily worship even a busy household or apartment can always sustain. and incense are to be shown. Such people exist in society: going to perform worship of a deity, and performing the Utara of the deity instead, without knowing it. He adds, when the point is pressed, that he has seen his own mother giving the incense the wrong way round — and when he objected, he was told to keep quiet.

What does the ego of worship do to a person?

It ends learning. There is such a thing as pride in one's own service and worship — I am a devotee, I do a hundred mala of japa a day — and once that pride rises to the head, the possibility of learning anything further is finished. The speaker calls this ego so bad that it leaves a person nowhere.

The speaker names the trait plainly: some people are so learned that — see this — there is even a pride taken in service and worship. It is a true thing, he says. This ego is so bad that it leaves a man nowhere. I am a devotee; I perform a hundred mala of japa every day. Once the pride of that has climbed onto the head, the very possibility of learning anything further is finished. Once people become very famous, he says, the ego becomes such that it cannot be digested if anyone points a finger at them.

How should the mala be handled while offering Ahuti in a Havan?

If you are alone at the Havan you may do the japa with the reverse hand — but many practitioners, the speaker among them, never use a japa mala for it. He uses the 108-bead Kanthi mala he wears, covered with the upper garment, and offers the Ahuti while doing japa with the reverse hand.

The speaker gives the method and then the fault he saw. At the time of a Havan, if we are giving the Ahuti alone, then you may do the japa of the mala with the reverse hand. But in that many practitioners, and he himself, never use a japa Mala. If a Kanthi mala of 108 beads is worn, then covering it with the upper garment, the Anga Vastra, and doing japa with the reverse hand, we offer the Ahuti. The error he saw was at such a Havan. This was not the Ahuti of a Shatkarma mantra; the person knew which mantra he was offering with, a mantra connected with the Gayatri, of some deity. And he was running the mala the wrong way. The way of turning a mala is that the beads are drawn toward oneself; he was pushing them forward, and was not covered over either, with three or four Brahmins and practitioners sitting and watching him. They asked why he was running the mala forward. The speaker offered him the excuse — perhaps he has no practice with that hand, and if it is only for the sake of counting he is merely offering the Ahutis. Even so it is wrong, they said; it is wrong. When it was all over and he was asked, properly and politely, why he had done it in reverse when it is not done so, and everyone had been watching, and he had not even covered it — the answer was: what business is it of yours, I am doing it. The difficulty, the speaker says, is not that you were corrected for doing something wrong and became upset. The difficulty is the image — that I am so big a person and you are correcting me. And then humility goes.

Twenty-four lamps plus one karma sakshi lamp, ghee best of the three oils — and the Viniyoga is never changed midway.

Twenty-four, plus one Karma Sakshi lamp. Any of ghee, mustard or sesame may be used — ghee is the best of them, and sesame will also serve. And in the Viniyoga: it should be said after everything is accomplished; do not change the Viniyoga at the time of accomplishing.

Two closing procedural answers. On the count and the oil: 24 lamps, and one Karma Sakshi lamp with them — do 24. Whichever you wish may be used; if you do it with ghee it is the very best, or mustard, or sesame; do it with sesame too. On the Viniyoga: it should be spoken after everything has been accomplished. Do not change the Viniyoga at the time of accomplishing.

The havan-based anushthan and the cow's service fall on the Tuesday; at home, the Datta worship, the Diksha Vidhan if intended, and a havan the same day.

The Havan-based Anushthan and the service of the cow happen on the Tuesday. At your own home, perform the service and worship of Bhagavan Dattatreya, do the Diksha Vidhan if that is your intention, and try to hold a Havan at home that day.

The speaker closes the session with the arrangements for the Anushthan of Bhagavan Dattatreya. The Havan-based observance and the whole Anushthan will happen there on that day, along with the service of the cow, on the Tuesday. At your own home too, perform the service and worship of Bhagavan on that day. Those who are to do the Diksha Vidhan should do the Diksha Vidhan. And make the effort that a Havan certainly takes place in the house that day — on the Purnima.