Shakti forms are central to authentic spiritual practice. Nature’s energies are accessible but require dedication
The creation is governed by certain Shaktis. As you progress in your sadhana, you can experience their forms. Every day, each one of the 365 days, is governed (sanchalit) by a specific shakti. That is why the importance of niyam and daily practice is insisted upon in yoga. If one misses the sadhana for even a single day, the shakti of that day is left behind and the sadhana of an entire year goes to waste because in Brahmand, if a single thing goes missing then its effect is felt on everything – our body, the earth, as well as other planets and stars.
Every Shakti has a day, but one need not perform rituals to access them. In yoga and tantra, there is no ritual, just the sadhana of Shakti. It is important to understand the shakti of each day and the Swaroop of that shakti. There is a name for every form of Shakti, but at the present moment, we will only be discussing their forms. The names are taken only after generating the capacity in the body, through specific sadhanas. At a basic level, when you do dhyan with your guru, you can see certain forms in him/her, like the sun or even the moon. Ever wondered where these forms come from and what they represent? There are many sadhaks who have reported seeing the form of the sun in dhyan. What is so special about the Sun? If you look at the Sun at the time of Sunrise and Sunset, keeping the awareness of Manipoorak and chanting the mantra ‘Ram’, you will find a certain glow starts coming into the body and just within a month you will start looking very different (A word of caution here, for any yogic practice it is important to have a Guru who guides you as per your capacity).Just like the sun, the moon too is an extremely interesting energy. The moon merely reflects the light of the Sun, but with that light, it can attract the tides as well as the earth’s surface on a full moon night. Have you ever thought about it- what is so special about the moon? Not just that, on a full moon night, animals become violent, the mentally unstable start behaving funnily and accidents and fights are on the rise. Right now I am only discussing the basic aspects, to give you a hint that there is something different about these forms. What that is, is a subject of experience and you will get that experience with the correct practice of Sanatan Kriya.
The speciality of the Moon is that it looks calm and peaceful but it is more volatile than even the Sun. When you look at the moon under the guidance of a Guru, you will be able to see all the mantras in its form because you cannot see the sun, which channelises that Shakti. There are certain shaktis which you cannot see and so there are certain other shaktis through which you can see and feel their effect, it becomes an experience for you. And till you have that experience, yoga is a waste for you, nothing can happen and nothing is possible.
Experience is the basis of yoga. All the things that we see in the sky and on the earth, there are so many flowers of so many different kinds and colours, if you simply look at them without blinking your eyes under Guru Sanidhya, all the defects and imbalances in the body disappear. But there is a small problem… niyam. There should be no break in the practice, and the break will come if you do not have the capacity for that Shakti or if you don’t have a Guru. Nature, everything that we see around us, has all the swaroops of shaktis hidden in it and all these shaktis are very easily accessible. If one makes him/herself stir on these shaktis and accesses them properly, then they start following that person. The nine days leading to Diwali are especially powerful because of the congregation of specific shaktis during these days. Our ancestors prescribed observing the vrat of brahmacharya during these days to make the body strong enough to accept these Shaktis.
(The writer is a spiritual guru; views are personal)
