Thoughtson

SandhyāVandanam

B Mahadevan

Sumathi Samskriti Trust, Bangalore

June 2014 

 

Contents

Preface i1. ImportanceofSunWorship 12. Upanayanam 93. SandhyāVandanamasaNityaKarma 154. TimelyobservanceofSandhyāVandanamKarma

215. OverallStructureofSandhyāVandanamMantras 276. SomeaspectsofPrayogainSandhyāVandanam 317. FAQsonSandhyāVandanam 418. ConversationofaDevoteewithSringeriJagadguru

ShriChandraśekharaBhāratiMahāSwamigal 51

GuidetoTransliterationsymbolsusedinthebookThetransliterationschemausedinthisbookisbasedonInternationalAlphabetofSanskritTransliteration(IAST).IASTisatransliterationschemethatallowsalosslessromanizationofscriptsasemployedbytheSanskritlanguage.Thedetailsaregivenbelow.Vowels

अ a उ u ऌ ḷ ओ o

आ ā ऊ ū ॡ ḹ औ au

इ i ऋ ṛ ए e अं ṃ

ई ī ॠ ṝ ऐ ai अः ḥConsonants

क ka च ca ट ṭa त ta प pa

ख kha छ cha ठ ṭha थ tha फ pha

ग ga ज ja ड ḍa द da ब ba

घ gha झ jha ढ ḍha ध dha भ bha

ङ ṅa ञ ña ण ṇa न na म ma

ह ha य ya र ra ल la व va

श śa ष ṣa स sa

Others

क्ष kṣa तर् tra jña śra ऽ ‘

i

Preface

Wearelivinginaneracharacterizedbyscientificdiscoveriesofvarious kinds. In the last twohundred and fifty yearswehavediscovered new technologies one after the other. These haveplayedamajorroleinshapingourthinkingandthewayof life.However, more importantly, as a nation, we have also beenintroducedtoanumberof ideas fromthewesterncivilizations.One important impact of this is a general feeling among anaverage,well‐meaningeducatedIndianthatanythingofwesternorigin is good, credible and the way to go forward. Even thetraditionally educated pandits in the country crave forrecognitionoftheirscholarshipbythewesterneducatedgroup.With the result there is a widespread feeling that anythingworthwhilemustpassthroughthelensofwesternacceptance.The recent onslaught of mass media and computers and thesuccessofmedia convergence asa reliable technology seem toaccelerate this process. As a result there is a heightenedexposure to other social structures and practices across theglobe. Indian society is fast joining the global melting pot ofcultureandsocialpractices.Imbibingnewerideasandpracticesisgenerallyviewedasasignofevolutionandgrowth.However,replacingaltogether onesetofculturalpracticeswithanotherdoesnotamounttoevolution.Attimesitcanbecounter‐productiveandretrogradeinnature.Therefore, giving up one’s own native culture and socialpracticesisnotahealthyideaforanysociety.TheIndiansocietyispreparingtomakesuchachoice.However,thereisambiguityand confusion among the citizens about the pros and cons ofsuchachoice.Withtheresultavastmajorityofourpopulationarelikethecatonthewallnotknowingwhattodo.

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Interestingly, on the other side, there is a growing interestamongtheyoungsterstoknowmoreabouttheIndiantraditions.Current educational policies and practices encourage them to“question” everything. This is in sharp contrast to the AncientIndian paradigm of having a very healthy “spirit of inquiry”.There is a subtledifferencebetween the twoapproaches, eventhoughthebasicmotivationseemstobeoneofgettingclarifiedabout an unknown concept. A sprit of inquiry stems out ofhumilitywhereasanattitudeofquestioningarisesoutofego.Anaturalextensionofthisattitudehasresultedinthemwantingto know more about some of the ancestral knowledge andcultural practices that we follow even today. Honestly, a vastmajorityofyoungstersaresimplycluelessaboutvarious facetsof Ancient Indian wisdom. They are anxiously waiting forsomeone todiscuss these in a languageand a format that theyareusedto.Ancestral Indianwisdom is rich,multi‐facetedandprofound. Itoffersgrandparadigmsforlivingandsettinggoalsforone’sownprogressinlife.Italsohasmultipleperspectivesonsomeoftheimportant issues such as attaining peace, tranquility andcontentment. These are organized systematically in severallayers.Sṛti,which is otherwise known as Vedas andUpaniṣadshas defined governing principles for life. On the other hand,Smṛtishavedetailedthemandprovidedusefulguidelinesbywayofrulesforday‐to‐dayliving.TheDharmaśāstrasprovidethesedetailsandspecifySāmānyaandViśeṣadharmas.TheyalsopointtoNityaandNaimittikakarmasthateveryonemustfollow.Sandhyā Vandanam is the basic and most fundamental Nityakarma to be followed by Brahmins, Kshatriyas and Vaiśyasbelonging to all the four āshramas. However, unfortunately inthecurrentcontextofjetsettingandhecticlifestylesmanyhave

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abandoned this important duty. Many others are performinghalf‐heartedly,notknowingwhattheyaredoingandwhy.Thereare still many more who have been diligently following thepracticeofperformingSandhyāVandanamthreetimesdaily.This booklet has been prepared keeping a target group ofyoungstersandofficegoersinmind.Thisgrouphasalwaysbeenhaving a question about the usefulness of this karma, itsimportanceand itsprimacy inourschemeofdaily living.SinceEnglishhasbecomethedefactomediumforallandthesundry,thishasbeenwritteninEnglish.Thechoiceofthelanguageandthestyleofwritingaresuchthatthetargetaudiencewillbeabletoreaditwitheaseandrelatetheideaswithoutmuchdifficulty.However, it does not mean we need to compromise on theoriginal intent and messages that our ancestors have withrespect toGāyatrī mantra and SandhyāVandanam. Therefore,while compiling various ideas I have quoted generously fromearlierwritings,DharmaśastraandothertextsthatIhavebeenabletogothroughtotheextentpossible.Idonotclaimexpertiseinthesubjectmatter.Ihavebeengreatlybenefitted by reading three commentaries on SandhyāVandanam. The first is a two part essay in Kannada by HisHolinessJagadguruSriAbhinavaVidyāTīrthaMahāSwamigalofsṛngeriśāradāPeeṭham.OneessaywasonGāyatrī MahimāandtheotheronSandhyāMahimā.Theseessaysweresubsequentlytranslated into Tamil by Changanur Subramaniya Aiyar Trust,Coimbatore and published in 1999 by Śri Śaradā Trust,Bangalore.The second source is a bhashya on Sandhyā Vandanam bySrivatsa Somadeva Sarma, the founder of Vaidika DharmaVardhini,Chennai.ThisbhāṣyawaspublishedinTamil in1952.

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ThethirdsourcewastheSandhyāVandanamBhāṣyaby“Anna”and published by Ramakrishna Math, Mylapore, Chennai in1956. I was also greatly benefited by the book “SamkṣepaDharma Sāstra” written in Tamil by Manjakudi VenkatramaSastrigal and published by Heritage India Educational Trust,Mylapore,Chennaiin1985.IhaveaddedsomemodernfeaturesinthiswriteupincludinganFAQ(FrequentlyAskedQuestions)section.Ihavealsotakentheliberty to reproduce an interesting conversation between anEducational Officer and His Holiness Jagadguru SriChandraśekhara Bhārati Swāmigal of Sringeri Śārada Peeṭham.This is indeed an inspiring conversation. It adds like a crownjeweltothiswriteup.ThedesiretobringsomeoftheinterestedyoungstersbackintothefoldofSanātanaDharmamotivatedmetoventure intothisexercise.Ifthereareanyerrorsandomissionsitisentirelyduetomy ignoranceof thesubjectmatter. Ibeg tobe forgivenandrequestthereaderstobekindenoughtobringittomyattentionsothatIcancorrectthem.BMahadevanJune2014

1ImportanceofSunworship

Everyone is aware that thepresidingdeity ofworship throughSandhyāVandanamistheSunGod.Asperthepractice,SandhyāVandanam isexpectedtobedonedaily thricewithout failuntilwe breath our last. Therefore, the first question that comes toourmindiswhatistheideabehindthis?Whydidourancestorsaccord somuch importance to Sunworship? It is important toreflectontheneedforthis, thesignificanceofsunworshipandtheroleoftheSunGodinworldlymatters.Ifwecarefullygothroughtheancient Indian literature,wewillfindthatprayertotheSunoccupiesmostprominence,SandhyāVandanambeingone,albeitimportantelement.ThecelebratedArunaPraśnaḥ(alsoknownasSūrya Namaskāram),which isapartoftheTaittirīyaAranyakaofKrishnaYajurVedaisahymntotheSunGod,isrecitedwithfervoreventoday.Eveninday‐to‐dayYogapractices,SūryaNamaskāramisanintegralaspect.AllthesepointtothecentralityoftheSuninmanyworldlymatters.Sun–TheveryreasonforourexistenceWhyistheSunsoimportantthatweneedtopraytotheSunGodthreetimesaday?Letuslookatmodernsciencefirst.Anybodywho has some familiarity with basic physics knows that thesustainabilityoftheearthcriticallydependsontheSun,whichisthe centre of the solar system associated with the earth.Balancedclimaticconditions,regularityofrainfall,availabilityofwaterandnaturalresourcestonotonlythemankindbutalsoto

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the entire living creatures and the plant kingdom are possibleonlybecauseof theSun. If for some reason theSunchooses tocomeclosertotheearthbyaninchwewillallbeburnttoashesandtheentiresolarsystemwillloseitsequilibrium.Similarly,iftheSundecidesnottoriseontheearth’shorizonforaweek,itwillleadtocatastrophiceffectontheentirelivingsystemintheplanetearth.ToquoteSwamiRanganathananda’scommentaryontheGītā1,“…AllourenergycomesfromtheSun.WehaveinIndia,idealizedthe concept of the Sun. In fact, The National GeographicMagazineofUSA(Sep.1948) in itsarticleon“TheSmithsonianInstitution” by Thomas R Henry says: “The sun is the greatMother. All life on earth may be considered as transientmaterializationof the exhaustless floodsof radiancewhich shepours on the planet’s surface. This enables green plants tosynthesizesugarsandstarches fromwater inthesoilandfromcarbon‐di‐oxidegasintheatmosphere,thusmakingpossibleallotheressentialfoods.Weeatsuninsugar,bread,andmeat,burnsunshinemillionsofyearsagoincoalandoil,wearsunshineinwool and cotton; sunshine makes the winds and the rain, thesummersandwintersofyearsandages.Particularlyinterwovenarethethreadsoflifeandlight.…”In Praśna Upanishad, in response to a query, from KātyāyanaKabandhīoneofthesixdisciples,“Wherefromthecreaturesareborn?”,SagePippalādarepliesthatitcomesoutofmatter(Rayi)and energy (Prāṇa). The sage further explains that the Sun isverilythelifeandtheMoonisthematter.2

1 SwamiRanganathananda(2000),“TheUniversalMessageoftheBhagavdGītā:Volume1”,pp356–357.

2SeePraśnaUpaniṣad(1.3to1.5)formoredetailsonthis.

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अथ कबन्धी कात्यायन उपते्य प च्छ । भगव कुते ह वा इमाः जाः जायन्त इित ॥athakabandhīkātyāyanaupetyapapraccha,bhagavankutehavāimāḥprajāḥprajāyantaiti.रिंय च ाणं चते्येतौ म ेबहुधा जाः किर यत इित ॥ आिदत्यो ह वै ाणो रियरेव चन्दर्मा ...rayim ca prāṇam cetyetau me bahudhā prajāḥ karṣhyata iti.ādityohavaiprāṇorayirevachandramā…AgreatsourceofinspirationLet us turn our attention to another aspect of the Sun. It isknown to us by common sense that light is the source ofenthusiasm, inspiration and energy for the life to go on. Also,bright light and the verynotion of brightness in various formsare associatedwith knowledge, power and strength. ThewordTejas inSanskritnearlycapturesalltheseaspectsandrelatesittotheSun.Forallthesereasons,lightisassociatedwithanythingthat is Divine. That is why in India the practice is to have acircularbrightlightsourcebehindidolsintemples(andeveninphotographsdepictingdivineentitiesandGods).Ifwereflectonthesourceoflighttotheearth,itisonlytheSun.WithouttheSunthereisnopossibilityof findinganalternativesource of light. All other known sources of light such as theMoon,currentelectricity fromanyavailablesourcearenothingbut derived sources of the Sun. Therefore, it is only natural tocontemplate on this ultimate source of prosperity to themankind.RecognizingsuchacentralroleoftheSuninourday‐

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to‐daymatters,ourancestorshavefeltitfittingtoreflectontheSun as the ultimate source of inspiration and knowledge. Thebearminimum expected out of us, as amatter ofmodern daysimplecourteous living, is tosaythankyouOh!Sunforall thatyouaredoingtokeepusalive.According to Swami Rāma Tīrtha, the great MathematicianturnedSannyāsiwholivedinthebeginningof20thcentury,“TheSun in the material world is a symbol of light, that is to sayknowledge, The Sun is a symbol of power, it makes all theplanetsrevolve. It isasymbolofexistence, life:all lifeowes itsorigintoorisindebtedtotheSun.TheSunisasymbolofbeauty;it attracts theearthandeverything– sodazzling.Now theSunrepresents knowledge, light, life, power, existence, beauty andattractiveness…”.3TheNotionofTimeIn the modern parlance some of the most commonly heardphrases are “I am too busy, I have not time…”. We need toobjectively think for a moment to understand what is thereference frame for us tomake such comments. The notion oftime, the notion of day and night are all nothing butmanifestations of the Sun. Bhartṛhari in has Vairāgya śatakabringsthisideaverybeautifullyasfollows:आिदत्य य गतागतैरहरहः संक्षीयते जीिवतं यापारैबर्हुकायर्गुरुिभः कालोऽिप न ायते ।ādityasyagatāgataiḥaharahaḥsamkṣīyatejīvitamvyāpāraiḥbahu‐kārya‐gurubhiḥkālopinajñāyate 3 Inwoods of God‐Realization, Vol. 2, pp. 70, Swami Rama Tirtha Pratisthan,2007.

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AstheSunraisesandsetseveryday,one’slifeshortensand(theflightof)timeisnotfeltbecausewearetoobusywithanumberof activities. Themost importantpoint tonote is thatwithouttheSun,wemaynotbeabletomeasuretime,knowhowmuchtimehaspassedandsetdeadlinesformanyofourpersonalandprofessionalactivitiesthatwepursue.ThisiswellarticulatedinthefourthmantrainAruṇaPraśna.TheSunexercisescertainLordshipover theEarthbybeingbeyondtheEarthandcastingitslightontheplanet.Further,byitsactofheating (creating several climatic cycles) itmakes us aware ofthenotionof time.Thiswholenotionof time isanactivity thathappenscontinuouslyonaccountoftheSun,likeaconstantflowofwaterinaperennialriver.सूय मरीिचमाद े । सवर् मा ुवनादिध । त याः पाकिवशेषेण । मृतं कालिवशेषण । नदीव भवात्कािच । अक्ष यात् यन्दते यथा ॥suryo marīcimādatte, sarvasmāt bhuvanādadhi, tasyāḥ pāka‐viśeṣena, smṛtam kālaviśeṣanam, nadīva prabhavāt‐kācit,akṣayyat‐syandateyathā.Sun–AtruelivingentityOur ancestors have a different conceptualization of the realitycompared to the modern day scientific thinkers. Modern dayscientificthinkingviewstheSunasaninertmatterthatcouldbethesubjectmatterforphysicsandchemistry.TothemtheSunisnothingbutamixtureofgasesorganizedinaparticularfashion.How can the entitywhich brings the earth (and itsmillions oflivingcreaturesstartingfromtheonecelledamoebatothemostrefined human beings) to life be modeled or portrayed as alifelessentityamenableonlyforscienceexperiments?

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Ontheotherhand,forourrishis,theSunisthemostdirectlivingexpressionofdivinityforthereasonsmentionedabove.TheSunis the ultimate representation of consciousness, omnipresentandomnipotentDivineworthyofworship.That iswhytheSuninourschemeof things isalsoknownasSūrya Nārāyaṇa. It isthe most easily and directly approachable Pratyakṣa Devatāknowntomankind.It is no wonder that Sage Agastya recited the Āditya HṛdayaStotram for SriRama and inspiredhim topray to the SunGodbeforevanquishingRāvanainthebattlefield.TheĀdityaHṛdayaStotram that appears in the Yuddha Khāndam of VālmikiRāmāyaṇam is recitedby thousandsofpeopleacross theglobeintheearlymorningwhentheSunisrising.Contemplating on the great qualities of the Sun, expressing asense of thankfulness and praying for the intellectual andspiritual progress of an individual in a structured manner iswhatSandhyāVandanamisallabout.ASenseofGratitudeWhen somebody offers us some help, we tend to say ‘ThankYou”.Wedo this even for a very small help such as somebodyhelping us by picking the paper thatwe dropped on the floor.Saying “thank you” is a civilized and just behavior and is anexpression of fairness, sense of gratitude and a good behaviorthateveryoneofushaveinculcated.Infact,inmostschoolsandeven in households the young children are taught these basicmannerismsoflife.Aswehaveseenso far,ourability to livehappily isdue to theSun (as the National Geographic magazine proclaimed, we eat

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sun,webreathsunandwewearsun).Inanutshell,theSunisafascinating and complex object, a gigantic fusion reactor thatgivesuslife.Thereforewearedutyboundtodothisactofthanksgivingifwehaveanysenseoffairness,justbehaviourandgratitude.SandhyāVandanamisattheoutsetanactofthanksgivingtotheSunGod.

2Upanayanam

Upanayanam is performed in order to transform an individualintoDwija.Dwija means twice born. SinceBrāhmins,Kṣatriyasand Vaiśyas are supposed to be initiated to Gāyatrī Upadeśathrough Upanayanam, they are considered as twice born. TheSanskritwordUpanayanamhastwoparts“Upa”and“Nayanam”.What it means is bringing someone closer. What is implied isthatby thisact, the individual isbroughtcloser to theultimatetruth,which is the constant searcheachoneofusmake inourlife time. ThroughBrahmaUpadeśa, the individual, henceforthknown as Brahmacāri, is blessed and initiated into spiritualpursuitsinhislife.There are prescribed ages for performing the upanayanam.According to āpastamba, from the time a Brāhmin child isconceived in the womb of the mother in the eight yearupanayanam must be performed. If we account for the 10monthsinthemother’swomb,whatitmeansisthatbythetimethe child is 7 years and 2 months old, upanayanam must beperformed.InthecaseofKṣatriyasitis11yearsandforVaiśyasitis12yearsfromthetimethechildisconceivedinthewombofthemother.गभार् मेषु ा णमुपनीयत, गभकादशेषु राजन्य , गभर् ादशेषु वै य । garbhāṣtemeṣubrahmanam‐upanayīta,garbha‐ekādaśeṣurājanyam,garbha‐dvādaśeṣuvaiśyam

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AccordingtoManu, if there isagenuinedesireandenthusiasminthefathertoendowthechildwithvedicknowledgesoonandmake him a pandit, then even at the age of five upanayanamcouldbeperformedforsuchachild:

वचर्सकाम य काय िव य प मे ।brahmavarcasa‐kāmasyakāryamviprasyapaṅcameInSrimadBhāgavatam, there is awonderful description of theUpanayanam of Vāmana (fourth Avatāra of Vishnu among theDasavatārās). Sūrya initiated Gāyatrī mantra to Vāmana;Bṛhaspati gave Yajña Upavīta; Bhūma Devi gave deer skin forāsana; Soma gave the Palāśa Danda, Atitī (Vāmana’s Mother)gave Kaupīna, Heavenly Gods gave Umbrella, Brahma gaveKamandal, Sapta ṛṣis gave Darbha grass, Saraswatī gave JapaMāla, Kubhera gave Bhikṣa Pātra and Uma Devī (Annapūraṇī)offeredBhikṣa.Thisepisodesuccinctlypointstothepurposeoftheupanayanamandtheexpectationsonthepartofthebrahmacāri.Upanayanammarks the beginning of an intense period of study andcontemplation. In order to successfully complete the period ofstudy,thestudentisrequiredtolivewithutmostsimplicityandausterity, devoid of any expectations andworldly distractions.Suchastyleof livingisthemosteffectivewaytoimbibeall therequiredworldlyknowledgeinashortspanoftime.Asmanyofusmaybeaware,inaperiodof12years,abrahmacāriacquiresalltheknowledgerequiredtogainfullyliveaworldlylifeaswellastopursueaseriousspirituallifeinduecourse.Thisisinstarkcontrast to the current style of livingwhere the student life isfullofdistractions.

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SandhyāVandanamisanintegralpartofaDwija.ThatiswhyitismentionedinourDharmaśāstrasthatbybirthallareśūdrasandonly by the karma that they do (Sandhyā Vandanam etc.) onebecomesaDwija:जन्मना जायत ेशूदर्ः कमर्णा जायते ि जः । janmanājāyateśūdraḥkarmanājāyatedwijaḥPerforming Sandhyā Vandanam three times a day is animportant Samskāra for aDwija.While this age old practice isfollowed even today by several thousands of people spanningacross the five great oceans, many components (such asPranāyāma and Japa) of Sandhyā Vandanam are beingrecognizedassimpleyetpowerfultoolstoleadahealthylifebymany today. Thus, performing Sandhyā Vandanam with fervornot only bestows on an individualBrahma Tejas and spiritualprosperitybutalsohealthylifethatbegetsmaterialprosperity.YajñaUpavītaEveryone who has undergone the Upanayanam ritual will behaving the Yajñopavīta (the sacred thread). Yajñopavīta isneither a status symbolnor likeanecklacewhichcanbewornduringoccasionsandremovedandkeptaway.Infact,adwijaisexpected to be always with Upavīta, for any ritual performedwithout Yajñopavīta is a futile exercise (अनुपवीतः यत्करोित न तत्कृत ). Ifwe carefully look at the saṃkalpa thatwemake at

thetimeoftheyajñjopavītadhāraṇam,wefindthattworeasonsareattributedforwearingthesacredthread:

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ममोपा सम त दिुरतक्षय ारा ी परमे र ीत्यथ ौत - मातर् - िविहत िनत्यकमार्नु ान - योग्यता - िसद्ध्यथ य ोपवीत धारणं किर ये ॥mamopāttasamastadurita‐kṣaysdvārāśri‐parameśvaraprītyarthamśrauta‐smārta‐vihitanitya‐karmānuṣtāna‐yogyatāsiddhyarthambrahmateja‐abhivṛddhyarthamyajñopavītadhāraṇamkariṣyeThesacredthreadiswornbyusfortworeasons:(a) Tobecomeeligibleforperformingalldutiesenjoinedinthe

śṛtisandsmṛtis(b) And through such a process, obtain Brahma Tejas by

removalofallsins.

Normallywe findthepeoplewearstrandsof three,sixornine.Therehavebeenconfusionsastowhenonemustwearastrandof nine. Some are told thatwhenonebecomes the head of thefamilyhemustwearnine.Whatsignifiesbecoming theheadofthe family has again been a subject matter for interpretation.Some say that when the father passes away the son formallybecome as the head of his family. Some others say that by thetime the sīmantonayanam function is done for his wife(heralding the new arrival in the family) the person becomesheadofthefamily.According to the śāstras, the prescriptions are a little differentfromtheseperspectives.Bṛgusaysthatabrahmacāriwillwearastrand of three (which constitutes one set), a gṛhasta and avānaprasthawillwearastrandofsix(twosets).Yatiswillwearastrandofthree(oneset).

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उपवीतं वटोरेकं ेतथेतरयोः मृते ।एकमेव यतीना ं यािदित शा तर् यिन यः ॥upavītamvaṭorekamdvetathā‐itarayoḥsmṛteekamevayatīnamsyaaditiśāstrasyaniścayaḥItisfurtherclarifiedthatthethirdsetofthreestrandswillhaveto be taken in lieu of the uttarīyam (the angavastram that wewearontheupperpartofthebody).तृतीयं उ रीयं या तर्ाभावे तिद यते ।tṛtīyamuttarīyamsyād‐vastrābhāvetadiṣyate

3SandhyāVandanamasaNityaKarma

Everyindividualwantspeaceofmindandhappinessinlife.Weengage in several activities on a day‐to‐day basis in pursuit ofthese.Howevertheanswertothequestion,whatprovidespeaceof mind is neither simple nor straightforward. Things that weassumewillprovidepeaceofmindturnouttobeotherwiseovertime bringing us back to square one. This leaves confusions inourmind.Itappearsthatforanaverageperson,peaceofmindisan evading issue. This is where our ancestral wisdom plays amajorrole.Thebodyoftreasuredknowledgecollectivelyknownas “Sṛti, Smṛti, Dharma śāstras, Itihāsas, Purānās etc.” addressthis issue in detail and provides guidelines for us to attaineternal bliss. There are several prescriptions in the Dharmaśāstras, often known as Sāmānya Dharma and Viśeṣa Dharma,whichhelp the individuals in their journeyof seekingpeaceofmindandhappiness.In order for an individual to attain eternal bliss, properknowledgeoftherightmeansisrequired.Thisisobtainedonlybyaproperstudyofthevedas.Inourschemeofthings,onecanbe initiated intostudyofvedasonlyafterhehasbeen initiatedwith Gāyatrī mantra. In order to get initiated with Gāyatrīmantra upanayanam must be performed. Gāyatrī upāsanathroughSandhyāVandanampreparesanindividualandqualifieshimtoreceivetheknowledgecontainedinvedas.DoingSandhyāVandanam first creates the eligibility for a brāhmin to do allrituals following it. Rituals done without doing SandhyāVandanam is regarded as fruitless by Dharma śāstras. Thus,

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Sandhyā Vandanam forms the basis or regarded as thefoundationforallothervedicrituals.In the purāṇas it is mentioned that Gāyatrī is the mother ofvedas,istheonewhogivesbirthtoaBrahminandprotectsonewhocontemplatesonher:गायतर्ी वेदजननी गायतर्ी णः सूः ।गायन्तं तर्ायते य मा ायतर्ीित गीयते ॥gāyatrīveda‐jananīgāyatrībrahmanaḥprasūḥgāyantamtrāyateyasmātgāyatrītipragīyateOneofthecoreprescriptionsfortheDwijaspertainingtoallthefourashramas4 istoperformSandhyāVandanam.Ourancestralprescriptionsmention six karmas to be done every day and itincludestakingbath,doingSandhyāVandanam,japa,homa,devapūjaandvaiśvadevam:सन्ध्या ानं जपो होमो देवताना पूजन ।आिदत्यं वै देव ष मार्िण िदने िदने ॥sandhyāsnānamjapohomodevtānāmcapūjanamādityamvaishvadevamcaṣatkarmāṇidinedineThe importance of Sandhyā Vandanam is highlighted by thefollowingśloka,whichproclaimsthatSandhyāforaDwijaisliketherootforthetree.Iftherootiscut,whereistheopportunitytohaveflowersandfruits?:

4The four āśramasareBrahmacārya,Gruhasta,Vānaprasthaand Sanyāsi.AllaresupposedtoperformSandhyāvandanam.ThepracticeforSanyāsisdiffersfromtheotherthreeāśramas.

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िव ो वृक्षः त य मूलं िह सन्ध्या ।मूले िछ े नैव पु पं फलं वा ॥viprovrukṣaḥtasyamūlamhisandhyāmūlechinnenaivapuṣpamphalamvāLikewise, in Manu Smṛti (4.94), the importance of SandhyāVandanamismentionedasfollows.RishiswhoperformSandhyāVandanam for a long time attain long life, knowledge, goodvirtues,nameandBrahmaVarcas:ऋषयो दीघ सन्ध्यत्वा दीघर्मायुरवा ुयुः ।ा ंयश कीिर्त वचर्समेवच ॥

ṛṣayodīrghasandhyātvātdhīrghamāyur‐avāpnuyuḥprajñāmyaśaścakīrtimcabrahma‐varcasamevacaOur sacred texts suggest that one can attain salvation throughKarma,Bhakti,Yogaor Jñāna.SandhyāVandanam has all theseaspects and proper understanding and steadfast approach ofdoingSandhyāVandanamcanhelpanindividualattainsalvationusinganyofthese.TheabovefouraspectsarefoundinSandhyāVandanamasindicatedbelow: Karma:ThethreemantrasinSandhyāVandanamआपः पुनन्तु

पृिथवीं, अिग्न मा मन्यु andसूयर् मा मन्यु endwith वाहा,whichpointtotheKarmaaspectthatonecanfollow

Yoga:PrāṇāyāmaisanimportantelementofYogapractice Bhakti: TheofferingofArghya (अघ्यर् दान ), points to the

Bhaktiaspect

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Jñāna:Theaikyaanusandhānam(ऐक्य अनुसन्धान )mantra

(असावािदत्यो ा)enablesonetopursuethepathofjñānaYājñavalkya asks, when Brahma, Vishnu and Shiva have beenobservingthishowcanaBrāhminignorethiskarma?

णोपा यते सन्ध्या िव णुना शंकरेण च ।क मा ोपासये ेवीं ेय कामो ि जो मः ॥brahmanopaasyatesandhyāvishnunāsaṃkarenacakasmātnaupāsayetdevīmśreyas‐kāmodwijottamaḥRāma andKṛṣṇa,ourgotraṛṣis(Vasiṣta,Angiras,Atri,Kaṣyapa,Gautama, Bharadwāja etc.) have all performed SandhyāVandanam. Authors of Sūtras such as āpasthamba, Bodhāyana,āśvalāyana,greatkingssuchasJanaka,Bhaktasandourācāryashaveallobservedthiskarma.ValmīkiandVyāsahavementionedabout the greatness of Sandhyā Karma in Rāmāyaṇa andMahābhārata respectively. In Kumārasambhava, KālidasamentionsthatŚivaperformedSandhyāVandanam.According to Yama,Gāyatrī is equivalent to all the four vedas.OnceBrahmaputthefourVedaswithallitsangāsononesideofapanandGāyatrīontheotherside.Itwasfoundthatpanwasinperfectbalance:गायतर्ीं चवै वेदाचं तुलयाऽतोलय भुः ।एक तुरो वेदा सागंां सपदकर्मा ।एकत वै गायतर्ी तु यरूपा तु सा मृता ॥

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gāyatrīmcaivavedāmścatulayāatolayatprabhuḥekaścaturovedānsāmgāmścasapadakramānekataścaivagāyatrīmtulayarūpātusāsmṛtāDwijas are required to do Sandhyā Vandanam as their nityakarma.Iftheyarenotdoing,theśāstrassaythatthekingwhoissteadfast in dhārmic practices must detail them to do worksmeantfortheśūdras:सायं ात तथा सन्ध्या ये िव ा न ुपासत े।तानेव धािर्मको राजा शूदर्कमर्सु योजये ॥sāyamprātastathāsandhyāyeviprānahyupāsatetānevadhārmikorājāśūdrakarmasuyojayetPerforming Sandhyā Vandanam with faith and with properunderstanding of the mantras and adherence of the rulesbestowsgreatestbenefits.TheyareredeemedofallsinsandwillattaintheBrahmaLokaasexplainedinthefollowingśloka:सन्ध्यामुपासत ेये तु सततं संिशत ताः ।िवधूयपापा ते यािन्त लोकमनामय ॥Sandhyāmupāsateyetusatatamsamśitavratāḥvidhūya‐pāpāsteyāntibrahmalokamanāmayamIt is therefore amply clear that thedwijas derive their stature,credibility and authenticity only by observing SandhyāVandanam karma on a daily basis. Moreover so muchimportancehasbeengiventoSandhyāVandanam.Ourancestorshave also praised highly of the virtues and benefits ofperformingSandhyāVandanam.

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Despite all these if we decide to develop anti‐faith (अ ा)towards Sandhyā Vandanam, it is a strange behaviour on ourpart.Whentheemployertellsusthatwearequalifiedforamuchhigher jobandoffersusabetter jobandpay,willwedenythatand instead choose to do only an inferior job for a meagersalary?

4Timelyobservanceof

SandhyāVandanamKarmaOneof thekeyaspectsofperformingSandhyāVandanam is theimportance of timing. The extreme importance of performingSandhyā Vandanam at the right time is highlighted in manyways.Irrespective of whether a person is clean or otherwise, doingSandhyāVandanamattheappropriatetimeisveryimportantasmentionedinthefollowingśloka:

शुिचवार् अशुिचवार् काले सन्ध्या ंसमाचरे ॥śucirvāaśucirvākāleSandhyāmsamācaretThe śastric prescription is thatweperformall vedic rites after

taking bath ( ात्वा कमार्िण कुवीर्त). Therefore, those who arehealthyandable‐bodiedmustendeavour togetupearly in themorning, take bath and perform Sandhyā Vandanam at theappropriate time. Ifwe are not keeping good healthwe can atleast wipe the bodywith awet cloth, change new clothes andthen perform the karma. Since the essence of doing SandhyāVandanam lies inperformingat therighttime,at theminimum

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we must wash our hands and feet and then do SandhyāVandanamattimeswhenweareunabletotakebath.It is even suggested thatwhenaperson isdoing the final ritesfor their parent, if it is the appropriate time for performingSandhyā Vandanam, then the Karta is expected to take bath,perform Sandhyā Vandanam and then continue the rites. InMahabharataitismentionedthatitwasdecidedbytheKauravasthat thewarwas tobe fought even in thenight.Onaccount ofthis, the warriors were supposed to have done SandhyāVandanamevenwhentheyhadtheweaponsintheirhands.If forsomereasonwehavemissedtheSandhyāVandanamandthe time for the next SandhyāVandanam has arrived, thenweshould not think that we can ignore the previous one. Afterdoing the SandhyāVandanam for the stipulated time,wemustdotheSandhyāVandanamwhichweoughttohavedoneearlier.Togiveanexample,ifwewereintravelbetween3pmand6amthe next day, and were not in a position to do the eveningSandhyā,theninthemorningtimewemustfirstdothemorningSandhyāVanadanamandafterthatperformtheeveningSandhyāVandanam,whichwemissed.According toYājñavalkyamorningSandhyā shouldnotbedoneafter sunrise and evening Sandhyā should not be done aftersunset. The time between the disappearance of the stars andsunriseisconsideredtobetheappropriatetimeforperformingthemorningSandhyā:

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नक्षतर्ज्योितरार य सुयर् योदय दशर्ना ।ातसन्ध्येित ता ं ाहुः शर्ुतयो मुिनस माः ॥nakshatra‐jyotirārabhyasūryasyodayadarśanātprāta‐sandhyetitāmprāhuḥśrutayomunisattamāḥAccordingtoanotherdefinition,thelasttwoNazhikasofthelastYāmaofnightissupposedtobethebeginningtimeformorningSandhyā. The appearance of the sun’s rays facing upwards(whichsignifiesimminentsunrise)isconsideredtobetheendofthemorningSandhyā:

रात्र्यन्त्ययाम नािड े सन्ध्यािद कालः उच्यते ।दशर्नादर्िवरेखायाः तदन्तो मुिनिभः मृतः ॥rātrayntya‐yāmanādidveSandhyādikālaḥucyatedarshanāt‐ravi‐rekhāyāḥtadantomunibhiḥsmṛtaḥAnotherślokabringsthisaspectinadifferentfashion.Accordingtothis,performingthemorningSandhyāwhenstarsarepresentissuperior,doingitafterthestarshavedisappearedismediocreanddoingitinthepresenceoftheSunisinferior:

उ मा तारकोपेता मध्यमा लु तारका ।अधमा सूयर्सिहता ातः सन्ध्या ितर्धा मता ॥uttamātārakopetāmadhyamālupta‐tārakāadhamāsūrya‐sahitāprātaḥSandhyātridhāmatā

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Ontheotherhand,performingeveningSandhyāinthepresenceoftheSunisconsideredtobesuperior,performingaftersunset(beforethestarsbegintoappear)ismediocreanddoingafterallthestarshaveappearedontheskyisinferior:

उ मा सूयर्सिहता मध्यमाऽनुिदततारका ।अधमा तारकोपेता सायं सन्ध्या ितर्धा मता ॥uttamāsūrya‐sahitāmadhyamāanudita‐tārakāadhamātārakopetāsāyamSandhyātridhāmatāSastraprovidesasimpledefinitionforSandhyā.ItsayswhentheSun and the Naskṣatras are both visible such a time is calledSandhyāasevidentfromthefollowingphrases:

आज्योितषो दशर्ना सिन्ध, ज्योितषी भानुतारे ājyotiṣodarśanātsandhi,jyotiṣībhānu‐tāreIt is clear that the word Sandhyā denotes the junction (orunison)oftwo(inthiscasedayandnight).Therefore,thereisapossibilitytocometoaconclusionthatSandhyāVandanamhasto be done twice only; once during the Sandhyā of night anddawn in themorningandagainduring theSandhyā ofdayanddusk in the evening. Many find this argument convenient tothembecausetheymaybeintheofficeandthereforemissingtheMādhyānikam can be justified by this argumentwhich appearsrational. However, the correct practice is to do SandhyāVandanam three times a day. According to Atri,Dwijas alwaysneedtoperformSandhyāVandanamthreetimes:

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सन्ध्यातर्यं तु कतर् यं ि जनेात्मिवदा सदा ।Sandhyātrayamtukartavyamdvijena‐ātmavidāsadāThis is further clarified by the following śloka attributed toSankha, which suggests that morning Sandhyā must be donewhenthestarsarestillvisibleinthesky,theMādhyānikamaftertheMādhyānikaSnānamandtheeveningSandhyāwhilethesunisstillinthesky:ातसन्ध्या ंसनक्षतर्ा ंमध्यमा ं ानकमर्िण ।सािदत्या ंपि मा ंसन्ध्या ंउपासीत यथा िविध ॥prāta‐Sandhyāmsanakṣatrāmmadhyamāmsnāna‐karmanisādityāmpaścimāmSandhyāmupāsītayathāvidhi

5OverallStructureof

SandhyāVandanamMantras

Structurally, the Sandhyā Vandanam is divided into twoportions: thePūrvānga and theUttarānga. All themantras areorganizedaroundthefourmostimportantcomponents(ArghyaPradhānam, Aikya Anusandhānam, the Gāyatrī Japa and theSūrya Upasthānam) and set as preparatory elements forperforming these. Figure below pictorially depicts the overallstructureofSandhyāVandanam.The order in which we utter various mantras during SandhyāVandanam has sound logic and purpose. Imagine that you aregoingtoparticipateinan800metersrunningrace.Whatdoyoudo just before the commencement of the race? You prepareyourself physically and mentally. By physically I mean takingbath, wearing comfortable clothes and shoes, having the rightamount and type of food etc. Similarly, preparing mentallywould mean cleaning up unwanted thoughts, thinking aboutpositive aspects of winning the race, contemplating on thestrategies to run etc.With such a preparation, there is a goodchancethatweperformverywellintherunningrace.WedoexactlysamethingsinSandhyāVandanam.ThefirstpartofSandhyāVandanam,knownasPūrvānga,essentiallypreparestheBrahmacāri physically andmentally to eventually offer theArghyatotheSunGod.

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Pūrvānga UttarāngaThe second part, Uttarānga mainly consists of Gāyatrī Japa,equivalenttotheactualraceintheaboveexample.However,ourancestorshadconsiderabledesiretoknowwhattheyaredoing,howandwhy.HencethefirstpartofUttarāngaexplainsindetailhowthemantrasthatwecontemplateinJapaareauthored,whoauthoredthem,whatistheunderlyingrhythmetc.Afterthisniceintroduction,weactuallyperformPrāṇāyāma andGāyatrī Japa.WethenriseandcompletetheSūryaUpasthānam,which is thefourth important aspect ofSandhyāVandanam. After theSūrya

Developing  the  intention  to do Sandhyā Vandanam • Ganapaty Dhyānam • Sankalpa 

Cleansing the mind

Mārjanam

Prāśanam

Punar‐mārjanam

Offerings to Gods – Meditating on oneness

Arghya Pradhānam

Prāyaścitta Arghya Pradhānam

Aikya Anusandhānam

Deva Tarpaṇam

Preparing for the Japa

Contemplating  on  sapta lokās, ṛṣis, chandas

Prāṇāyāma

Performing Gāyatrī Japa

Post‐Japa Prayers

Sūrya Upasthānam

Prayers  to  the Dik Devatas and other Gods

ItemsinboldarethecriticalelementsofSandhyā Vandanam

Samarpaṇam & Rakshā

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Upasthānammantra we utter a series ofmantras praising theGods,motherearthandnature.Ifonlyweseriouslymeanttheseutterances, we would not dare inflict such damage on theecology and our own surroundings by reckless abuse ofresourcesandabuseofnature.Finally,we retirewithapairofmantras.Prāṇāyāma and Japa are the most wonderful prescriptions ofSandhyāVandanam.ItbestowsonusBrahmaTejasandwillhelpus evolve in our spiritual journey. However, it turns out thatthese will bestow a healthy physical life as well. If onlyindividualsperformthesetwoaspertherecommendations,theywill be free fromAsthma,Hyper‐tension andDiabetes.Most oftherecentdaynon‐drugprescriptionsforthesewidelyprevalentsilent killer diseases include breathing control andmeditation.That iswhatweactuallyachieve throughPrāṇāyāma and Japa.More than thephysicalbenefits, itbestowsonan individualanopportunitytocalmthemind,feeltheinnerrhythmandachieveabalancedviewof life, lifegoalsandpurpose.These issuesareveryimportant inoursojourninthis lifeespeciallyaswegrowolder.ImportantcomponentsofSandhyāVandanamA person may be able to survive without limbs, eyes etc.However, without the vital force Prāṇa he/she cannot evensurvive for a moment. In the same manner, there are certainvital components ofSandhyāVandanam. Onemust know theseand perform them even when the situation for performingSandhyāVandanamisveryadverse.Theseareasfollows:ArghyaPradhānam (अघ्यर् दान ), Aika Anusandhānam (ऐक्य अनुसन्धान ), Gāyatrī Japa and Sūrya Upasthānam. This is

broughtoutsuccinctlybythefollowingśloka:

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अपरेतु अघ्यर्दानं सन्ध्या ध्यानं गायतर्ी जपः उप थानं च धानिमित वदिन्त ॥aparetuarghya‐dānamSandhyā‐dhyānamgāyatrī‐japaḥUpasthānamcapradhānamitivdantiOfthesethe first twoformpartof thePūrvānga andthe latertwo form part of the Uttarānga. In Aikya Anusandhānam, theMahāvākyaof thecorrespondingVeda is included.Asthenamesuggests, this is done to contemplate the oneness with theBrahman, which theMahā Vākyas proclaim. All the precedingmantrasinthePūrvāngaaremeanttocleansethemindandthebodyleadingtoperformingthesetwoimportantcomponentsofSandhyāVandanam.The importance of Arghya Pradhānam is highlighted by thefollowing śloka which suggests that even in very adverseconditionsarghyamustbeofferedwithdustofsand.Evenifthisis not possible, at least we must meditate on the Sun God.Examplesofadverseconditionsareasituationofnotbeingabletofindasourceofwater,alongjourney,beingundersomeone’scontrolorimpure:जलाभावे महामाग बन्धनेत्वशुचाविप ।उभयोः सन्ध्ययोः काले रजसा वाऽघ्यर्मुित्क्षपे ।तदभावेऽिप सूयर् य ध्यानमेव समाचरे ॥jalābhāvemahā‐mārgebandhanetuaśucāvapiubhayoḥSandhyayoḥkālerajasāvāarghyamutkṣipettadabhāve’piSūryasyadhyānamevasamācaret

6SomeaspectsofPrayogain

SandhyāVandanam5Today’schildrenandevenelders(readeducatedclass)havethehabit of asking a question. Why are we imposing severalmeaningless conditions when we engage in religious practicesandrituals?Forexamplewearerequired tositeast facinganddocertainrituals.Ontheotherhand,wearenotsupposedtodothe pūja or japa south facing etc. There are other restrictionssuch as the nature dress we wear, the need to apply vibhūti,sandaletc.onourforeheadetc.Infactitappearsthelistisratherlong.Itraisestwoimportantquestionsinourmind.First,canwenot be left alone so that we may do it the way we want to?Secondly,allthesearemeaninglessatonelevelandthereforeitmaynotbearationalbehaviortofollowsuchpracticesblindly.SandhyāVandanam has, as in the case of other practices, haveseveral such conditions, which we will see in this chapter.However, before we discuss this in some detail, we need toresolve this confusion in our minds pertaining to therestrictions.UnderstandtheworldofVyavahāraInordertounderstandthisanddevelopclarity,weneedtofirstknow that we are talking about the “world of activities” or

5 This section is based on the practices observed among Smārta Brahmins inTamilNadu.Thereareseveralvariationsinpracticeacrossregions.Thismustbekeptinmindwhilegoingthroughthissection.

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vyavahāra. Let us take the case of driving the car on the road.Thereareseveralconditions,suchaswemustdriveonlyontheleft(rightsideifyouareintheUS),stopatthesignalwhenitisred,giverightofwaytoambulancesandpedestrians,notblowthehorn in thehospital andschoolzonesetc. In fact the listofrestrictionsfordrivingacarisaslongasorevenlongerthantheone fordoingSandhyāVandanam.Howdowerespond to this?Do we abandon driving the car because of these manyrestrictions?Ordowedrive inourownway ignoringall theserestrictionsbecauseitistoomuchforus?Wedon’tdoeither.Weratheradheretotheseandfollowitasmuchaswecan.Whyaresomanyrestrictionsplacedinthissimpleactofdrivingthe car? This basically takes us to the fundamental idea thatwhenanumberofpeopleinteract,docertainactivitiesetc.,itisimportant todevelopacodeofnormsandbehaviorand followthem.Otherwiseitbecomescomplextomanageandmakesenseof what is happening. It also helps in developing familiarity,orderandeaseoflearningandpractising.Italsoprovidesagreatrelief from myriad confusion arising out of individualizedbehavioural fluctuations. Therefore, trying to run away fromsomethingsinceit imposessomerestrictionsisnotthewaywecan approach life.More importantly, to argue that “myway orhighway” is trying to competewith animals. Only animals arefreefromsocialnormsofbehavioursandrestrictions.Theothermajorconcernisaboutdoingmeaninglessactivities.While Ācamanam is done, after having the water three timeswhileutteringअच्युताय नमः, अनन्ताय नमः andगोिवन्दाय नमः6we

6 It appears that Rig vedis and those in Andhra do Ācamanam four times byutteringKesava,Narayana,MadhavaandGovinda.

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need towipe the lips twice(each timeafterwiping the lipsweneedtocleanthehandswithwater).MethodofdoingPrāṇāyāmaPrāṇāyāmaisdoneinathreestageprocess:Pūraka: Inhaling the air through one of the nostrils into thelungs.Kumbhaka:Retainingtheairinthelungsforsometime.Recaka: Exhaling the air through the other nostril out of thelungs.Thesuggestedproportionoftimeforthesethreestepsis1:3:2.Normally, the Prāṇāyāmamantra is uttered three times whilethe three steps are undertaken once and the ratio of 1:3:2 isadheredbythefollowingpractice:Pūraka: Startwiththe firstmantraandutteruptoDhiyoYo

naPracodayāt(िधयो यो नः चोदया ).Kumbhaka:ContinuefromOmApoJyotiRaso(ओमापो ज्योतीरसो),

complete the first Prāṇāyāmamantra and continuewithutteringthefullPrāṇāyāmamantraforasecondtime.

Recaka: UtteronefullPrāṇāyāmamantra.RecitinginthisfashionwewouldhavecoveredthreemantrasinonecycleofPūraka–KumbhakaandRecaka.OnecycleofPūraka– Kumbhaka – Rechaka constitutes one Prāṇāyāma. Aftercompleting one Prāṇāyāma, we must touch the right ear. It isequivalent to cleaning the palms in the Ganges. Doing it threetimes, we would have covered the Prāṇāyāma mantra ninetimes. This is the suggested practice. If the drawing in of air,

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retention and exhalation are not done as per the proportionsmentioned,theotheralternativesuggestedistoutterthemantra10times.There are twopopular versions in practice todaywhich are invariancewiththisprescription. One is to uniformly perform 10 Prāṇāyāma during all the

threetimes. Theotherpracticeistoperform10duringmorning,3during

noon and 6 during evening. The latter practice appears tofollowcloselythenumberoftimesGāyatrīmantraisutteredduring the Japa duringmorning, noon and evening. This issurelyamatterofconvenience.

However, it may be indeed good if the suggested practice ofdoingthreetimes(andtherebycoveringthePrāṇāyāmamantraninetimes)isfollowedduringmorning,noonaswellaseveningSandhyāVandanam. Asmentioned before, it has great value inmaintainingahealthylife.RulesforofferingArghyaThe vedic prescription for performing Arghya is that duringSandhyā time thevedicscholarsstandeast facingandoffer thearghya with water in the upward direction after uttering theGāyatrīmantra:तद ु ह वा एत े वािदनः पूवार्िभमुखाः सन्ध्याया ं गायितर्याऽिभमिन्तर्ता आप ऊध्व िविक्षपिन्त ।Whenwegivearghya (अघ्यर् दान ) therearevariations in the

mannerweoffer:

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Duringmorning Sandhyā,arghya is offered in the standing

posturefacingeast,byraisingboththehandstotheheightofthehornsofacow.

The arghya offered duringMādhyānikam is offered facingnorth, in standingposture bymany.However, someothersofferitinasittingposture.

The arghya offered during the evening Sandhyā is givenfacingwest,inasittingpostureonly.Wehavetouseboththehandstoofferarghya.

After offering the Arghya we must do Atma Pariṣecanam(आत्मपिरषेचन ) with water after uttering Om Bhur‐Bhuvas‐

Suvaha. We must follow this with Atma Pradakṣinam (आत्म दिक्षण ).Thisisduetothevedicprescriptionthatbydoingso

wewillbeabletoabsolveoursins:यत् दिक्षणं कर्मिन्त तेन पा मानमवधून्विन्त ।yat‐pradakṣinamprakramantitenapaapmānamavadhūnvantiThere are certain prescriptionswith respect to performing theGāyatrījapa. During morning Sandhyā Vandanam the japa must be

performedeastfacinginastandingposture. Many recommend that Gāyatrī japa during Mādhyānikam

time also must be performed east facing in the standingposture. Some others suggest that it could be done northfacing.

During the evening time the Japa is done west facing insittingpostureonly.

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Variousprescriptionshavebeenmadethatintroducedirectionalrestrictions while performing various components of SandhyāVandanam.Thesearesummarizedbelow:Pūrvāngaisneverdonefacingwestorsouth.Normally,duringMorning Sandhyā Vandanam it is done facing east and duringevening Sandhyā Vandanam it is done facing north. ThePūrvānga ofMādhyānikam isnormallydoneeast facing.Someothersrecommendnorthfacingalso.Uttarānga is done in a different fashion. The easiest way torememberthedirectionforUttarāngaisthetrajectoryofthesunitself.Forthemorning,wefaceeastandfortheeveningwefacewest. For the noon,we either face east orwest (depending onthetimeofthedaythatweperformnoonSandhayaVandanam).However,thelastthreemantrasinUttarāngaaredonewiththesamedirectionalrestrictionasapplicableforPūrvānga.Also,theArghya offered to theSun inPūrvānga isdoneusing the samedirectionrulethatwefollowfortheUttarānga.RulesforGāyatrīJapaGāyatrī Japa is performed by repeatedly uttering the GāyatrīMantra. Hence it is important to know how many times oneneeds to repeat. In fact, it is being observed by our ancestorsthatdoingjapawithouthavingacountisnotworthwhile:असंख्यातं तु य ं तत्सव याि रथर्क ।asankhyātamtuyaj‐japtamtatsarvamsyātnirarthakam

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During all the three times performing japa 10007 times isconsideredsuperior.Ifthisisnotpossiblejapamustbedonefor100 times. Brahmacāris and Gruhastas are engaged in severalactivitiespertainingtotheirāśrama.Thereforetheycandojapa108 times. On the other hand, vānaprasthas and sanyāsis areexpected to do japa 1008 times. The following śloka explainsthis:गृह थो चारी वा शतम ो रं जपे ।वान थो यित वै जपेद सह क ॥gruhasthobrahmacārivāshatam‐aṣṭottaramjapetvaanaprasthoyatiścaivajapetashṭasahasrakamVyasa recommends performing Gayathri japa 10 times duringperiodsofāsuca:दशकृत्व तु गायतर्ीं मनसैवाशुिच मरे ।daśa‐kṛtvastugaayatrīmmansaivaaśuciḥsmaretInapracticalsense,duringunusualcontingenciessuchastravel,urgentoremergencysituationorāsucha japamustbedone10times.DoingJapafor10timesisnotadvisableexceptinthecaseabove situations. In practice there are several variationsrecommendedbyelders forminimumnumbers suchas28,32,

7 AllnāmāvalisofGodsare1000innumber(Sahasranāmās).Accordingtosome,thenumber1008isapracticewhichhascomemoreasamethodtoensurewedo 1000. It appears that ifwemiss one or two counts then the extrawillcompensatefortheloss.Similarlogicmayapplyforthechoiceof108.

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54or64.However,theprocedurepopularlyfollowedinseveralpartsofSouthIndiaisasfollows8:Morning :108timesNoon :32timesEvening :54or64timesSince Japa is an ideal vehicle to increase the concentrationpowerofyoungpeople andapowerful tool to relieve stress inthecaseofolderpeople,itmaybehighlydesirableforeveryoneofus to look foropportunities to increase thenumberof timesthis couldbedone.Onepossibility is todo108 times all threetimesaday,aspertheoriginalprescription.Onceinayear,wehaveapracticeofdoingthis1008timesontheGāyatrīJapaday.Butonecanaddsomemoreauspiciousdaystothis listandtrydoing 1008 during those days also. These for instance mayincludeKrishnaPratamai,EkādaśiandPūrṇima.During morning time both the hands must be kept in Anjalimudra9 at the level of the face while doing the japa. DuringMādhyānikam itmustbeperformedbykeepingthehandintheAnjalimudra at the level of the chest and during the eveningSandhyāVandanamthehandsmustbeheldatthenavallevel.Atalltimes,wemustcoverthehandswiththecloth.Holding theYajñaUpavīta in handwhile doing the japa is notrecommended.

8 ThisisperhapsthereasonforsuggestingthenumberoftimesPrāṇāyāmatobedoneduringmorning,noonandeveningSandhyaas10,3and6respectively,asmentionedbefore.

9 Anjalimudra is the typical folded hands posture with which we greet ourguestsintheIndiantradition.

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UtteringtheGāyatrīmantrainamannerthatisaudible(knownasVācikam)toothersisaninferiormethodofdoingthejapa.Ontheotherhand,utteringthemantrabymovementofthelipsbutnotinanaudibletone(knownasUpāmsu)isamediocremethodof doing the japa. However, doing the japa at the mind levelwithout any form of external utterance or lip movements(knownasMānasam)isconsideredtobeasuperiormethod:उ मं मानसं ज यं उपाशुं मध्यम मृत ।अधमं वािचकं ाहु सवर्मन्तेर्षु वै ि जाः ॥uttamammānasamjapyamupāmsumadhyamasmṛtamadhamamvācikamprāhus‐sarvamantreṣuvaidvijāḥSalientAspectsofPrayoga Morning Noon EveningPūrvāngaDirection

East EastorNorth

North

UttarāngaDirection

East EastorNorth

West

ArgyaDirection

East EastorNorth

West

Argya/JapaPosture

Standing Standing Sitting

ArgyaPosition HeightequivalenttotheHornsofacow

ChestLevel ChestLevel

JapaPosition FaceLevel ChestLevel NavalLevel

7FAQsonSandhyāVandanam

1. WhyshouldIdoSandhyāVandanam?There are three compelling reasons for us to do SandhyāVandanam.a. Whensomebodyoffersussomehelp,wetendtosay‘Thank

You”. We do this even for a very small help such assomebodyhelpingusbypickingthepaperthatwedroppedon the floor. Saying “thank you” is a civilized and justbehavior and is an expression of fairness, sense ofgratitudeandagoodbehavior thateveryoneofushaveinculcated.SandhyāVandanam isat theoutsetanactofthanksgivingtotheSunGod.Ourabilityto livehappily isduetotheSun(asonearticle intheNationalGeographicmagazineproclaimed,weeat sun,webreath sunandwewearsun).Thereforewearedutybound todo thisactofthanksgiving if we have any sense of fairness, justbehaviourandgratitude.

b. SandhyāVandanamofferswonderfulprescriptions forustomaintain a healthy life. It helps us cleanse themind,maintain a good physical condition (through practicessuch as Prāṇāyāma) and provides us with greateropportunity to thinkabout trueevolution inour lifeand

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helpsus in the journeyof salvation.Whywould someonenotmakeuseofthisopportunity?

c. A vast number of rishis, learned people and elders haveagain and again talked about the virtues of SandhyāVandanam.Whenpeopleofgreatlegacyandrespectagainand again extol the virtues of doing something, wenormally tend to practice the same without evenbothering to analytically evaluate their statements orverifying it.This is considered to be a sensible aspect ofliving.Forexample,whereveryougointhisworldandasksomeonewhatshouldyoudotokeepthehypertensionordiabetes incontrol,youwillbetoldtohavesimpleeatinghabits and indulge in adequate physical exercises. It isfoolishtosay“Iwillpersonallygetconvincedaboutthisbyverifying this statement and then decide to follow this.”The same rule must apply with respect to performingSandhyā Vandanam. Disregarding the prescriptions andadvisesofelders,rishisandancestors isa laughable idea.Itwillamounttoexposingourfoolishapproachtolife.

Therefore, if good sense prevails in ourmindwewillmakeeveryefforttoperformSandhyāVandanamwithearnestness,steadfastnessanddevotion.

2. ShouldIalwaysdoSandhyāVandanam?

This isas goodasasking should I eat everyday.Wedonotseemtoeventhinkofaskingsuchquestionswhen itcomestoeating.OrdoesastudentaskshouldIgotoschooleveryday?Thestudentwillneverasksuchaquestion.Eatingeverydayisrequired to keep our physical health in good condition and

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draw enough energy for physical activities. In the samemannerdoingSandhyāVandanameverydayprovidesapersonwith a lot of spiritual energy, calmness and peace.All thesecomewithoutanycost.Theonlycostisthetimespent.

3. Should we know the meaning before performing

SandhyāVandanam?Whenwe talk to someoneabout some subjectmatter,wedonot do so without knowing the meaning of what we aretalking. Similarly, when we do something, we do not dowithoutknowingwhywearedoing it.Therefore, thesemustapplyeven inthecaseofdoingSandhyāVandanam.Yāska inhisworkNirukta observes that a person reciting vedas andmantras without knowing its meaning is like someonecarryingheavybagsathisbackor likea tree (whichhasnopower to think and contemplate). On the other hand, byknowing themeaninghegetsbenefitted immensely from theexerciseandattains trueknowledgeandgetsabsolvedofallsins:थाणुरयं भारहारः िकलाभू अधीत्य वेदं न िवजानाित योऽथर् ।योऽथर् इत्सकलं भदर्म ुते नाकमेित ानिवधूतपा मा ॥sthānurayambhārahāraḥkilābhūtadhītyavedamnavijānātiyo’arthamyo’arthajñaitsakalambhadram‐aśnutenākametijñānavidhūta‐pāpmāAnother śloka brings this idea a little differently. A personuttering a mantra without knowing its meaning is like ananimalcarryingaloadonitsback.Justastheanimaldoesnot

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getanybenefits for itself from carrying the load, thepersonuttering themantrawithoutknowing themeaningalsodoesnotgetbenefitedinanyway:यथा पशुभार्रवािह न त य फलम ुते ।ि ज तथाथार्निभ ो न वेदफलम ुते ॥yathāpasur‐bhāravāhinatasyaphalamaśnutedvijastathāarthānabhijñonaveda‐phalamaśnuteTherefore, performing Sandhyā Vandanam (or any suchKarmaorrecitingmantras)afterunderstanding itsmeaningisaworthwhileactivity.Itwillbringvitalitytotheactivityandprovide the intended benefits.Moreover, itwill also help inengagingoneselfmentallyintheactivity.ThisdoesnotmeanweshouldsimplyabandondoingSandhyāVandanamunderthepretextofnotknowingthemeaningandwaituntilwegettoknowthemeaning.Ifsomebodytakessuchanapproachhewillnevergettodothekarma.ItmerelysuggeststhataswecontinuetoperformtheSandhyākarma, we must endeavour to know the meaning of thevariousmantras thatwe utter so that over time our effortswill begin to bear fruits.Untilwe know themeaning of themantras,theSandhyāVandanamthatweperformwillprovideusbenefits,albeit,inalimitedfashion.On the otherhand, ifwe keeputtering themantraswithoutknowing the meaning, then we are no different from asparrowwhichcanrepeatwhat ithasbeentrained.Itmakesthewholeexerciseadryritual.Overtimewewillonlydevelophatredtothisexerciseandfindeveryopportunitytoavoidthis.ThisistrueofnotonlySandhyāVandanam,butanymundane

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activity thatwe dowithout knowing themeaning. Thiswashowmostofusbegantoabandonthevedicwisdom.

4. WhatisanappropriatetimetodoSandhyāVandanam?

Thereisasimpleruleforthis.InTamiltheysay10“காணாமல் - Kānāmal (without seeing), ேகாணாமல் - Konāmal

(withoutanyangle–instraightline),கண்டு - Kandu(whileseeing), ெகாடு - Kodu (Give)”. What it means is that themorning SandhyāVandanam should be done before Sunrise,the Mādhyānikam at 12.00 noon and the evening SandhyāVandanam before Sunset. This is the broad guideline. Oneshouldendeavour to follow thisas faraspossible.Wheneverwe make deviations from this, as part of the SandhyāVandanamitselfweofferPrāyaścittaArghya(RefertoArghyaPradhānaminPūrvāngaformoredetailsonthis).

5. Doing Mādhyānikam is difficult as I will be inschool/office.CanIskipit?

Mādhyānikam,asexplainedearlier,needstobedoneat12.00noonoraroundthattime.Withthecurrentstyleoflivingthismaybedifficult.Thereforethequestionbeforeusisdoweskipitaltogethertilltherestofourprofessional lifeordoitatanearlier time (say in the morning before we leave foroffice/school). Itmay be better to do it at a slightly earliertime. Though it may sound inappropriate it is better thanskipping it forever. The benefits of this are not only theblessingsofGāyatrībutalsodevelopingabettersenseoftimemanagementaswell.Thiswillcomehandywhenwegrowupandstepintohigherresponsibilitiesinlifelater.

10 TherewasoneIdaikattuChittar.Hewastendingcattle.Heapparentlysaid

(inTamil),“Kanamarkonamarkandukodu.”

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6. Iam convincedof theneed todo SandhyāVandanam.

But it takes more than 45 minutes to do SandhyāVandanam. Spending such an amount of time threetimesadayissimplynotpossibleforme.ThereforecanIskipordojustonceinaday?SandhyāVandanamisanityakarmaanditisatri‐kālakarma(thricedaily).Therefore,thereisnoscopefordiscountsonthenumberoftimesthatoneneedstodo.Themainissueisabouttheexcessivetimetakenforthis.Letus lookatanother issue thatalso seems to be ournityaanuṣṭhāna (daily ritual),viz.,using thecomputer forvariouschores.WhenyouareintroducedtoMicrosoftWordorExcelittooka lotoftimetoevenknowhowtoopen,usetheexistingfeaturesandpreparethedocumentsthewaywewant.Wecanobservetwothingsinthisprocess:a. Byandlargepeoplehavenotcomplainedthatitistaking

toomuchtimetousethenewsoftware.b. As we keep using, the time taken progressively comes

down.Aftera fewweeks itbecomesalmost likea child’splaytousethesoftware.

Whatisalsointerestingtonoteisthatwekeeprepeatingthisprocess several times (new software, new versions areintroduced and we seem to go through the same processwithoutanycomplaint).We need to take a similar approach in the case of learningSandhyāVandanammantrasandprayoga.While itmaytakeabout45minutes in thebeginning,aftera fewweeks itmaycome down to about 15minutes.The good news is that the

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mantrasfortheMorning,MādhāynikamandEveningSandhyāVandanamarenearly75%common.Therefore,wewillhaveacceleratedlearning.Themainreasonforustoraisethesequestionsisthatwehavenotbeenabletodevelop faiththatSandhyāVandanam is forour material as well as spiritual prosperity. Once we getconvinced of this these issues will disappear and we willincorporate Sandhyā Vandanam into our daily routinewithoutanydifficulty.

7. WhatdoIdowhenItravel?Whenwe travel for long hours (say a 20 hour journey), theconfusioniswhethertodoSandhyāVandanam.Resolvingthisconfusionisveryeasy.Askyourselfwhetheryouskipyourdailychoressuchaseating.Youdon’t.Therefore the idea isnot toskip.However,wemaynotbeabletodoSandhyāVandanaminthenormalway.Youcansimplywashyourhandsandface,sitcalmlyforafewminutesinyourseatandperformonlytheGāyatrī japa (ataminimumof32 times).ThepūrvāngaandothercomponentsofUttarāngacanbeskipped.OnecanfollowthisroutinewheneverwefacesuchsimilardifficultsituationswithrespecttodoingSandhyāVandanam.

8. When I stay in hotels (when I tour), there are no

facilities for me to do Sandhyā Vandanam. Can Ithereforeskip?Obviouslyhotelsandresortsarenotgoingtoprovideyouwithany facilities forperformingSandhyāVandanam. Justasyoutakewith you in your travel kit your toiletries, also carry aminimum set of things for doing Sandhyā Vandanam. Thisincludes a small plate, a small Pancha pātra and a small

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pocketcontainingwhateveryouapplyonyourforeheadwhiledoingthisactivity.Itdoesnotoccupymuchspace.Itisonlyaquestionofgettingused to thisand feelingstrongly theneedfordoingSandhyāVandanam.

9. ManyatimesIgotoaplacewhereIamunabletoknow

the directions. I do not feel like asking some strangerwhichiseast.WhatdoIdo?You need not have to embarrass yourself with this issue.Simply carry in your travelkitamagneticneedlewhich canindicateyouthedirection. Itcomes inmanyways(keychain,pendulum,smallcasingetc.).

10. IamtoldthatifthereissomedeathinthefamilywearenotsupposedtodoSandhyāVandanam.Isthistrue?CanIskipduringsuchoccasions?Duringperiodsofāsauca(restrictions forreligiouspractices)wedonotdoSandhyāVandanam.ButthatdoesnotmeanwedonotdoGāyatrīJapa.DuringthesetimeswemustdoGāyatrīJapa alone skipping all other components of SandhyāVandanam.Thepracticeistodo10timestheGāyatrīmantraduringsuchoccasions.However,duringperiodsofāsauca,wearerequiredtouttertheGāyatrīJapasilently(withinthemindonly).Also,itismentionedthatduringperiodsofāsauca,itisenoughtodoonlyuptoArghyaPradhānam.11

11ThisobservationismadebasedonthetamiltranslationoftheworkonGayatriMahimaand SandhyaVandanaMahima of Sringeri Jagadguru SriAbhinavaVidyaTeertaSwamigal,publishedbySriSharadaTrustin1999.

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11. Iam told tochangemyYajñaUpavītabecauseof someevents (such as death) happening in the house. Is itimportantorcanIignoresuchadvises?The Yajña Upavīta is worn by a person from the day ofUpanayana until his death. It is considered sacred and themorewedo japa, themore sacred is the thread (that iswhysome people translate Yajña Upavīta as sacred thread inEnglish).Whensomeāsaucahappens,the thread issupposedtohavelostitssanctity.Therefore,itneedstobereplacedoncethe āsauca period is over. If we continue to use the samethread and continue doing Sandhyā Vandanam, it is likecontinuing to use a tape recorder or any battery operateddevice even after the battery is dead. We lose data andcontinuity insuchacaseandaverysimilarthinghappens inthiscasealso.AllyourSandhyāVandanamandotherreligiouspracticeswillbecomefutile.

12. IstheSandhyāVandanamkarmathesameforallvedas?

AsweknowthethreevedicdivisionsareRig,YajurandSama(AtarvanaVedaisalaterdivisionmadebyVysaandinseveralvedictraditionsthereisamentionofonlythreevedas).BasedontheRigVeda,AshvalāyanaandSānkhyāyanaauthoredthekalpasutra.Thisconsistsof śrautasutrasandGruhyasutras.The Gruhya sutras cover the 40 samskāras which includesSandhyāVandanamalso.Therefore,Rigvediswill follow theprescriptionscontainedinthis.InthecaseofYajurvedatherearetwobranches;KrishnaYajurvedaandShuklaYajurveda.Āpastamba,Bodhāyana,Vaikānasa,Bhāradwāja,VarāhaandSatyashatawrote sutras for Krishna Yajur veda. Kātyāyanaand Bhāskara wrote sutras for Shukla Yajur veda. For theSama veda, Trāhyāyana Kopila wrote the sutras. The

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respectivevediswillfollowtheprescribedsutrasandperformSandhyāVandanam.TherearesomedifferencesamongthesesutrasinthemannertheSandhyākarmaisobserved,althoughthecorecomponentsdonotvary.InanycasetheGāyatrīmantraisthesameforallthese variations. A practical way to observe the Sandhyākarma is to follow the practices that the elders and theancestors in the family have been following. In thismanner,thecomplicationsofwhichbranchandwhichsutratofollowisaddressedasthesepracticesmusthavebeenhandeddownthegenerations.

8TheSandhyāWorship

ŚriChandraśekaraBhāratiSwāmigal12AtouringEducationalOfficeroncemetHisHolinessandsaid,

"I have occasions of being in constant touchwith young boys,mostlyBrāhmanās,studyinginschoolswhichIhavetoinspect.IhavefoundthateventheboyswhoperformtheirSandhyādosomoreas a form thanas realworship. I shall beverygrateful ifYourHolinesswouldgivemesomevaluablehintswhichIcouldconveytothem"

Ācārya:Iamverygladtoseethatyouarenotcontentwithmereofficialroutineofinspectionbutdesiretoutilisetheoccasionforthe betterment of the boys. It will be well if all educationists,inspecting officers or teachers, realise that they have beenentrustedwiththeverygraveresponsibilityoftrainingupyoungmen in the most impressionable period of their lives. In myopinion they are really to blame if they confine their attentiononlytotheprescribedtextbooksandneglectthespiritualsideoftheyounggeneration.

12 This articlewas originally compiled by Sri R. Krishnaswamy Iyer andwas

postedinMr.AjitKrishnan'swebsitehttp://www.mudgala.com.It may also be noted that it is a local copy of an article found at:http://www.srisharada.com/QA/Sandhya%20Worship.htm. Iam thankful toProf. Sri Sridharan of Kellog School of Management, North WesternUniversity,ShriSethuramanandShriCNKrishnaswamyforbringingthistomyattention. 

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E.O. : I always keep that end beforeme and I don'tmiss anyopportunityof talkingtotheboysandgivingthemsomeusefuladvice. It is mainly with a view to do that work better that IrequestYourHolinesstogivesomepracticalsuggestions.

Ācārya:Even if theboys towhomyoupropose to convey suchsuggestions may not benefit by them, you will certainly bebenefited.

E.O.:Certainly.

Ācārya:Youmaytherefore,forthepresent,ignoretheboysandasksuchquestionstheanswerstowhichare likelytobeusefultoyou.

E.O. : The first question which suggests itself to me is withreference to theSandhyāworship.What is the deity orupāsyadevatāintheSandhyāWorship?

Ācārya: Before we consider that, please tell me what youunderstandordinarilybytheSandhyāworship?

E.O. : BySandhyāworshipwemean theworshipof the risingSun,thesettingSunorSuninthemidheavens.

Ācārya:Quiteso.Comprehensivelyspeaking,youmeanworshipoftheSun?

E.O.:Yes.

Ācārya:YoutellmethatSandhyā is theworshipof theSunandyet you askmewhat isworshipped in the Sandhyā. Don't youthinkitisanunnecessaryquestion?

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E.O.:Putso,itmayseemanunnecessaryquestion,butmyrealquestionis,whatistheSunthatisworshipped?

Ācārya:WhatdoyouunderstandordinarilybytheSun?

E.O.:Wemeanthebrightcelestialorbinthesky.

Ācārya:Thenitisthatbrightcelestialorbthatisworshipped.

E.O.:Butthatorbis,accordingtoscience,mereinertmatterinastateofhighcombustionand iscertainlynotworthyofbeingworshipped by intelligent beings like ourselves. It can neitherhearourprayersnorrespondtothem.Icannotbelievethatourancestorsweresoignorantastoaddresstheirprayerstoamereburningmassofmatter

Ācārya: I quite agreewith you.They couldnever havebeen sofoolish.

E.O.:WhatthendidtheyseeintheSuntojustifytheirprayersbeingaddressedtoit?

Ācārya: You said just now that addressing of prayers to inertmattercannotbejustifiedbyreason.

E.O.:Yes.

Ācārya:What thenmustbe thenatureof the entity towhich aprayerisaddressed?

E.O. : Theprimarycondition is that itmustnotbemere inertmatter,butmustbeendowedwithintelligence.

Ācārya:Andthesecondcondition?

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E.O.:Thatitmustbeabletohearourprayersandbepowerfulenoughtoanswerthem.

Ācārya: Quite so. If our ancients were not fools and yetaddressedtheirprayers to theSun, theirconceptionof theSunmusthavebeenquitedifferentfromthatofmereinertmatter,inastateofhighcombustion.

E.O.:Yes,theymusthavealsopostulatedofitsintelligence,thecapacitytohearusandtheabilitytohelpus.

Ācārya:The'us'includingnotonlyallthosewhoarenowlivingto raise their hands in prayer to the Sun, but also thegenerations,pastandfuture,infiniteinnumberthoughtheymaybe?

E.O.:Ofcourse.

Ācārya: Then, the entity that is worshipped as the Sun isthereforeonewhose intelligenceorabilityknowsno limitationofspaceortime.

E.O.:Itmustbeso.

Ācārya:Youhavenowgotyouranswertothequestionastowhois worshipped in the Sandhyā? It is an intelligent Being,omniscient and omnipotent in the matter of hearing andrespondingtoitsvotaries.

E.O.: YourHolinessthenmeansthatitisadevatāwhohashishabitationinthesolarorb?

Ācārya:Quite so. He has not only his habitation there, but thesolarorbitselfishisphysicalbody.

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E.O. : YourHolinessmeans that thedevatā enlivens the solarorb,justaswedoourphysicalbodies?

Ācārya:Justso.

E.O.:Ifthenheisembodiedjustlikeus,howdoeshehappentohavesuchhighintelligenceorpowerastomeritourobeisance?

Ācārya: He attained that status by virtue of the appropriatekarmaandupāsanadonebyhiminapreviouslife.

E.O.:DoesYourHolinessmeanthathewasatonetimejustlikeourselvesandthatheattainedthatstatusbyhisendeavour?

Ācārya:Yes.

E.O. : Then he is nomore than a jīva, which I aIso am.Whyshould a jīvamake prostration before another jīva, howsoeversuperior?

Ācārya:Why should your son or pupil respect you and whyshouldyoushowrespecttoyoursuperiorofficers?Arenotbothofyoujīvas?

E.O.: Nodoubtweare.Butwerespectoursuperiorsasitisintheirpowertohelpusorinjureus,iftheysodesire.

Ācārya:Thatisaverylowkindofrespect.Anyhow,takingeventhatkindofrespect,wemustrespectSūryadevatā if it is inhispowertohelpusorinjureus,ifhesodesires.

E.O.:Ofcourse.

Ācārya:Being a jīva asmuch as your superior officers, hewillhelpyouifyouappealtohimforhelporinjureyouifyouignore

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or despise him. In your own interest then, you are bound toworshiphimandsecurehisgoodwill.

E.O.:ButIneednotcourtthefavournorfearthedispleasureofmy superior officer, if I carry out the duties of my officefaithfully.

Ācārya:Quiteso.

E.O.:IfIpreservethatattitude,thereisnoreasonwhyIshouldpropitiatemysuperiorofficer

Ācārya:Certainlynot.

E.O.: Similarly,ifIcarryoutstrictlythedutiesenjoinedonmeby the śāstras, I need not propitiate any other jīva, be he thehighestdevatā.

Ācārya:Quiteso.

E.O.:Then,shouldInotgiveuptheworshipofSūryadevatā?

Ācārya:Certainlyyoumay,unlessofcoursesuchanworship ispartofthedutiesenjoinedonyoubytheśāstras.

E.O.:Howcanthatbe?

Ācārya:It istruethatanhonestandstrictofficerinperformingthe duties of his office need not mind the pleasure or thedispleasureofhisimmediatesuperior.Butthemerefactthathethinks it necessary or obligatory to perform those dutiesproperly,showsthathehasastheultimateendthepleasure,oravoidance of the displeasure of a still higher officer who issuperiortohimaswellastohisimmediatesuperior.Evenifhehasnopersonalacquaintancewiththathigherofficer,healways

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hasinthebackgroundofhismindanundefinedpower,callittheKing or the Government, when he performs the duties of hisoffice. And that power has the ability to benefit him byrecognitionofhisservicesortopunishhimbytakingnoteofhisdelinquencies.Furthermore, thatpowerrulesbothhimandhisimmediatesuperiorofficer.Ifthereforethatpowerrequireshimtobehaveinaparticularmannertowardshissuperiorofficer,hecannot afford todisobey that injunction, for if hedisobeys,notonlydoesheincurthedispleasureofthatofficerbutalsoofthehigherpower.

E.O.:Thatisso.

Ācārya: Similarly, if a power which rules both you as well asSūrya devatā requires you to conduct yourself in a particularmanner towards that devatā you cannot afford to neglect thatinjunction,butmust conform to it or take the riskof incurringthedispleasureofthatdevatāasalsoofthehigherpower.

E.O. : It isnodoubt so.But in that case, inprostratingmyselfbefore Sūrya devatā, I shall be really worshipping the higherpowerevenwhenmyworshipmayseemaddressedtotheSūrya.

Ācārya:Whatofthat?

E.O.:IfIamabletoconceiveofsuchahigherpowerwhoruleseven the Sūrya , that power is really the worshipped entityalthough to all appearances the worship is addressed to theSūryaonly.

Ācārya:Quiteso.

E.O. : ButYourHoliness said that itwasSūrya devawhowasworshipped?

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Ācārya:Yes. It is correct so far aspersonswhoarenot able toconceive of a higher power are concerned. To those howeverwho can conceive of that power, He is the real upāsya. ThatpoweriscalledHiranyagarbha.HeenlivensandensoulsnotonlytheSūrya,butalldevatās.Heenlivensandinhabitsnotonlythesolarorbbutall things.Heisthecosmicpersonalitywhoisthesoulofallthings.

E.O. : I suppose justaswehavethesenseof I 'inourphysicalbodies,sodoesthatcosmicpersonalityhasthesenseof"I"intheentirecosmos.

Ācārya:Hehas.

E.O. : Ifso, thedifferencebetweenHimandme liesnot in thepresenceortheabsenceofthesenseof'I'butonlyinthedegree,therangeorthemagnitudeofthatsense.Mineisrestricted,Hisisextended.

Ācārya:Itisso.

E.O.:Ifitisthesenseof"I"thatisresponsiblefortheconceptofajīva,hemustbeasmuchajīvaasmyself

Ācārya:Quiteso.InfactHeiscalledtheFirstBorn.

E.O.: Then,evenifthishigherpowerhappenstobelongtothecategory of jīvas, just like myself, the same objection which ImentionedagainsttheworshipofSūrya devaholdsgoodinhiscasealso.

Ācārya:Whatthenwouldyouliketoworship?

E.O.:Atranscendentpowerwhichisnotajīva.

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Ācārya:HaveitthenthatitissuchatranscendentpowerthatisworshippedintheSandhyā.WegiveHimthenameofĪśvara,theLord,ortheantaryāmi,theinnerruler.

E.O. : But Ihaveheard itmentioned that the termsLord' andRuler' areonly relative termswhichareused in regard toHimwhenwewanttodescribeHiminrelationtotheuniverse,whichis'lordedover'or'ruled'byHim.

Ācārya:Yes,itisso.

E.O.:Itcannotbethatwecanhavenoconceptionofhimapartfrom his relationship of some sort to the universe. Hisrelationship to the universe can at best be only an extraneouscircumstance. In His essence, He must have an independentexistencequiteunrelatedtoanythingelse.

Ācārya:Youareright.WecallthatunrelatedessentialexistenceBrahman.

E.O. : If it isso, thatmustbetherealobjectofworshipratherthantherelativeaspectcalledĪśvara.

Ācārya:Itisevenasyousay.ItisreallytheunqualifiedBrahmanthatisworshippedintheSandhyā.

E.O. : I cannot reallyunderstandYourHoliness.You first saidthatitwasthesolarorbthatwastheobjectorworship,butwhenIpointedout that itwasonly inertmatter,yousaid that itwasSūryadevathatwastheobjectofworship;whenagainIpointedout that hewas only a limited jīva likemyself, you said itwasHiranyagarbha,thecosmicsoul,thatwastheobjectofworship:when once again I pointed out that he was after all a jīva,howevercosmichissenseof 'I'maybe,yousaidthatĪśvaratheLordandRuleroftheuniversewasreallytheobjectofworship;

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and lastly when I said that even he is but a relative aspect ofBrahman,yousaidthattheobjectofworshipwasBrahmanitself

Ācārya:Ididsayso.

E.O. : But I fail to see how all these statements can bereconciled.

Ācārya:Whereisthedifficulty?

E.O. : Theobject inaparticularworshipcanbeonlyone.HowcanitbethesolarorborthedevaenliveningitorHiranyagarbhaorĪśvaraorBrahmanatthesametime?

Ācārya:Ineversaidthatitwasthesolarorborthedevaandsoon.

E.O. : DoesYourHolinessmean to say then that theobject ofworship is the solar orb and the deva andHiranyagarbha andĪśvaraandBrahmanallputtogether?

Ācārya:NordidIsayanythingofthatsort.

E.O.:HowthenamItounderstandYourHoliness'statements?

Ācārya:WhendidItellyouthattheupāsyawasSūrya?

E.O. : When I mentioned that the physical mass of burningmattercannotbetheobjectofworship.

Ācārya: Before you mentioned it, I said that it was even thatmassthatwastheupāsya.

E.O.:Yes.

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Ācārya: I never mentioned that it was the solar body or thedevatā as an alternative. To one who cannot conceive of anenliveningsoul,theupāsyaisthephysicalmass;toone,however,who declines to accept inertmatter as an object of worship, IsaidtheupāsyawasSūryadevatā.Theupāsyaiseverone,butits exact nature varies with the competence of theworshipping aspirant. The upāsya gets further refined wheneven the concept of a devatā does not satisfy the inquiringdevotee.WesaythenthatitisHiranyagarbha.Whenevensuchaconceptseemsmeagreorunsatisfactory,wetellthedevoteethathe is really worshipping the Supreme Lord Himself. When hebegins to feel that even the Lord‐ness is a limitation of Hisessentialnature,wetellhimthatitistheinfiniteBrahmanitselfthatisreallyworshipped.Whereisthedifficulty?

E.O. : DoesYourHoliness thenmean that it isnotpossible todefinitely say what the object of worship in the Sandhyā isexcept with reference to the mental equipment or intellectualadvancementoftheworshipper?

Ācārya:Howcantherebeanobjectofworshipifweignoretheworshipper? The nature of the worshipped necessarilydependsuponthenatureoftheworshipper.

E.O.:How?

Ācārya:Takeme for example. All of you showme respect. Buttheobjectofrespect,thoughitis,roughlyspeaking,myself,doesdifferwitheachoneofyou.Ordinarypeoplerespectmeandliketo see me surrounded by glittering paraphernalia; theirattentionand respect are claimedby thosearticles rather thanbymy personality. Such peoplewill show the same respect toothers who have similar paraphernalia. Their homage is notthereforereallypaidtomebutonlytotheparaphernalia.SomeothersrespectmeforthepositionthatIholdorfortheāśrama

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inwhich Iam.Suchpeoplewillequallyrespectotherswhoareormaycometobeinsuchapositionorinsuchanāśrama,theirhomageisthereforenotpaidtomebuttomypositionortotheāśrama.AndsomeothersmaynotcarewhatpositionIholdorinwhat āśrama I am, but give me homage wherever I go andhoweverImaybe;theirobjectofrespectismyphysicalbody.Afew others will not mind if my body is dark or ugly or evendiseased, butwill nevertheless giveme homage if by purity ofmindandcharacterorbythepowerofmyintellectandlearningor by any spiritual merit that I may possess I command theirrespect.Onlyveryveryveryfewindeedwillrespectmeforthesparkofdivine intelligenceorBeingwhich inheres inme, as itdoesinallofyou.

E.O.:OfcourseitisnotpossibletosaythatallthedevoteesthatapproachYourHolinessareofthesamementalequipment.

Ācārya: Quiteso. But,ordinarilyallthesepeople,whetherthey really tender homage to the paraphernalia or tomystatusandAshramaortomybodyortomymindortomyintellectortothedivinesparkinme,prostratebeforemetoshow their respect. Can you tell me, apart from anyreferencetotheseveraldevotees,towhomortowhattheyprostrate?

E.O.:Itisnodoubtverydifficulttoanswer

Ācārya:Similarly,itissowitheverykindofworship.Externallyviewed,therewillbenoappreciabledifferencebetweentheonewho respects me for the paraphernalia and another whorespectsmeforthedivinesparkinme.Externallyviewed,therewillsimilarlybenoappreciabledifferencebetweenthedevoteewho in his blind faith is content to address his prayers to theluminousSunandanotherwhoturnstoitasavisiblesymbolofthe infinite Brahman. Thequestion as towhat is theupāsya in

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the Sandhyā worship can therefore be answered only in thisway.

E.O.:InowunderstandhowinthesimpleworshipoftheSunallpossiblestagesinspiritualperceptionhavebeenprovidedfor.

Ācārya: It is not only this, for youwill find if you consider thematter still further, that all the three ways known as karma,bhakti and Jñāna have been given places in the dailyworship,but that is a different matter. Simple as the Sandhyā worshipseemstobe,itissufficienttohelpusontothehigheststages.Itisasusefultothehighestaspirantasitistothebeginner.Itisafolly,therefore,tobelittleitsvalueortoneglectitinpractice.