Nath
Every question on the site tagged Nath, each answered from a timestamped source rather than a summary written from memory.
Other sects
The Nath yogi tradition founded by Matsyendranath and Gorakhnath, centered on Hatha Yoga and Tantra.
22 notes from our sourcesNotes from our sources
Ganpati and Kula Shakti first, then Kula Bhairava, then the 24 of the triangle
After the Sankalpa, light two ghee lamps for Ganesha and the family's Kula Shakti, then the Kula Bhairava coconut lamp, then the 24 triangle lamps one by one in a clockwise direction while reciting Deepdaan mantras or Dattatreya's name.
Why is Lord Dattatreya described as Smartagami, and what does that mean for the deepdan?
Smartagami means "attainable by mere remembrance" — Dattatreya, the Supreme Guru of the Kaula, Vaishnava, Shaiva, and Nath traditions, is said to become fully present wherever this Deepdaan is performed with sincere remembrance.
Who should observe Aghor Amavasya and Mahavidya Tara Amavasya?
The speaker says this day is very important for everyone connected with the tantra sampradaya: those in the Nath Sampradaya parampara, the Kaula Sampradaya parampara, the Shakta parampara or any other parampara. He adds that it matters just as much for someone doing tantra-related kriyas on their own, without any guru parampara, and for anyone worshipping any mahashakti by the Tantrokta method, even if their vidhan is sattvik.
Should the Bhairav kanthi be taken from a guru?
Asked to discuss the Batuk Bhairav kanthi according to the shastras, he says you will find the subject at most among the Nathpanthis, and that the matter of observing brahmacharya then comes into it. If the kanthi is taken from a guru it is more proper: wearing it on one's own, as against walking within guru maryada and following whatever adesh and upadesh he gives, the latter is more proper.
Which mantras are most used in this work?
The greatest use in this, the speaker says, is of the Mahamrityunjay mantra as it runs in bhagatvaal — in the Sabar, the Sabar Mahamrityunjay, which he calls a very different matter. Nathpanthi mantras also occur in it, and people perform the jagran of those.
Should a Kinnar be made one's Guru?
The speaker declines to generalise about their traditions, saying their mentality is not the same everywhere. But he notes that of the Kinnars who perform sadhanas, about ninety percent do them by Vama Vidya, by Vamachara — and once you go into Vamachara you will then have difficulty as a householder.
What do the new self-styled tantriks tell people?
In this same sequence come the newly minted young men who become tantriks, the speaker says, using a crude epithet for them. They will tell anyone at all that there is Bhairavi tattva within you, so become a Bhairavi; that one Bhairav can keep more than one Bhairavi, that he can do this and that. He says repeatedly that this thing never happens in that manner, and that the words Bhairav and Bhairavi have in today's time been made disreputable.
Are there sadhanas of Dattatreya's ganas and the Nath Panth siddhas?
Asked whether, as there is Rudragana sadhana, there is any sadhana of the ganas of Guru Dattatreya or of the siddhas of the Nath Panth, he answers: yes, yes, absolutely there is. There is one of Bhagavan Dattatreya too, and there is one of the siddhas of the Nath Panth too.
Further Shabar tantra sadhanas of Gorakhnath and Dattatreya are to come shortly
Asked to upload further sadhanas of Shabar tantra, such as those of Guru Gorakhnath ji and Guru Dattatreya ji, he says he will do so shortly.
May a woman light Gorakhnath's dhoona?
Asked whether a woman can light the dhoona of Gorakhnath, he answers: what is it these days that you are not doing? But — vansh vriddhi having been completed, and if from now onward she is not to remain in the grihastha, only then should the dhoona be lit. Even so, he says, we would say that you should light it only after becoming initiated and understanding all these subjects properly from your guru ji.
Which outward observances are compulsory?
In the Sanatan samskriti — in the tantra marga, the Nath marga and the Vedic marga alike — the Yajnopavita is a separate matter, he says, but even after that: wearing a kada on the hand, wearing a mudrika on the fingers, a kanthi or a mala at the throat, a waist thread at the waist so that it is bound and not left open, a kada on the foot, and a shikha on the head. These, he says, are certainly compulsory.
What special sadhana should be done on Guru Purnima?
Asked whether special sadhana should be done on Guru Purnima, the speaker says it absolutely may. All those who have performed the sadhana of Bhagavan Gorakhnath in particular should do the Guru Gorakh Sabari Navnath sadhana and the like again on that day, as a one-day observance. Those who have done Bhagavan Dattatreya's should do the sadhana of Bhagavan Dattatreya. This you may do.
Jayphal is offered as bali to Maa Jagadamba or Bhairav ji, and a book and PDF on Gayatri and the yajnopavit will be uploaded
Asked which authentic book to read for shastra-approved knowledge of Gayatri and the yajnopavit, he says they will upload a book, they will upload a PDF. Asked how a bali of jayphal is done — jayphal is offered to Maa Jagadamba or Bhairav ji — and for the vidhan to be published, he says it will have to be done and shown, otherwise it will not be understood from where and what is to be done. Asked whether in the Nath panth the singi sutra is just like the yajnopavit, he answers it is absolutely right: in the Nath panth the nadi itself is held to be the janeu, in which the form of Bhagavati, Brahma, Vishnu and Mahesh is all held to be. He notes a request for the simple puja vidhi of Maa Bhuvaneshwari, whose jayanti falls on the 7th of September — all right, he says, we shall see.
Which sabar mantras can be reinforced in the Shakambhari Navratri?
Those who have done the Rudra gan sadhana can do this to make it pushta as well. In the same way, all those making siddh the sabar mantras — whether Hanuman ji's Bajrang Baan, the Hanuman Chalisa, or besides them the Kali Chalisa, or among the sabar mantras the mantras of Gorakhnath Baba, or the Kshetrapal and Gram Devta mantra that has been given, the Gram Devi mantra, and the Hanuman ji mantras.
How does a dosha attach to a person during mantra japa?
He gives the case in brief. Suppose you are doing sadhana of some sabar mantra without the information. Whenever such mantras are told on the Shri Sabari Vidya channel, he says, it is always stated that before doing japa of that mantra you must certainly perform asan bandhan, dish bandhan and the rest, and the sadhana of Guru Gorakhnath, at least one day of each, and only after that take it up. If asan bandhan and the rest were not established for you, or some mistake has already been made, some negative shakti comes near you.
How did high shaktis come to be installed against epidemics?
Speaking of what spreads in the form of a mahamari in different places, he says that for their shanti the sadhaks of that time laboured very hard — whether Kaul sadhaks, or sadhaks of the Nath sampraday, or upasaks of Bhagwan Datta. So in place after place such shaktis were established, which were shaktis of a high order, and in the course of time they became worshipped by society. Those who came to be worshipped were then accepted in the form of Bhavani; the name of Bhavani was given to them, the word Bhavani was attached before their name, and they became worshipped.
Does every sampraday have a guru mandal tradition?
Understand one thing, he says: whether Shakta, Kaul, Shaiva, or the Nath parampara, in all the different panths and sampradays that have formed and divided off, there is a tradition of the guru mandal in every one of them. The guru mandal is worshipped. In some places the guru mandal has nine avarans in the avaran pujan; in some places there are up to sixty-four avarans. There is a mool peeth, a siddh peeth, and a maha siddh peeth; at a maha siddh peeth the puja of sixty-four avarans is done and it takes eight hours. Those who have come to know everything thoroughly do it.
Can Guru Gorakhnath ji be worshipped as guru?
Asked whether puja can be done holding Guru Gorakhnath ji as guru, he answers that it absolutely can be done.
Where is the vidhan for Guru Gorakhnath ji's mantra?
Search the Siddh Sabari Vidya channel, he says, or the link is in the description of this channel — there is a link in the description of every video. Go into it, and do the Sumeru Sabar of Guru Gorakhnath ji first of all. There is a vidhan for awakening the Navnaths which you may do. There are two mantras of Bhagavan Gorakhnath and two separate vidhans; for the beginning, do any one of those two.
How is a sadhana done holding Gorakhnath as guru?
To STB News Hindi ji, who asks how to do sadhana holding him as guru, he answers that the link to the Siddh Sabari Vidya channel stays there; search on YouTube and the full vidhan has been explained completely, of how the sadhana of Guru Gorakhnath is to be done.
What is the Nath Sampradaya, and how does it relate to mainstream tantric traditions?
The Nath Sampradaya is a parallel tradition combining tantric elements (mantra, yantra, deity yoga centered on Shiva and Shakti) with Hatha Yoga's physical disciplines, transmitted mostly orally through a guru-to-shishya lineage traced to the legendary Navnath and figures like Matsyendranath and Gorakhnath, and it went on to influence orders like the Dashanami Sannyasis.
What preconditions apply before a siddha-composed mantra may be taken up?
Say to somebody that these mantras should not be done, the speaker recounts, and the reply is a quarrel. His position is that there are many things to be done first: at the least do the aarambhik sadhanas, do the sadhana of the Navnath, do the sadhana of Guru Gorakhnath ji, and if you must do it then do it outside the house — and if there is very great difficulty, do it in a Shiva temple, not shut up inside the home. The objection thrown back is: were these mantras not composed by the siddhas? He answers that yes, the siddhas composed them — does that mean we will do them here inside the house?
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