Mantras
The Secret Alchemy of God
by Kosi
Mantras are the ancient song of God—the Sanskrit hymns contained in ancient Vedic scripture, which are composed of sounds heard by ancient sages and rishis in the most pristine silence. Every mantra contains potent seed letters—a frequency of sound, electromagnetic energy, and vibratory silence with the power to re-wire the synapses in your brain. The simplest and most basic mantra is the primordial sound OM. It contains the seed letters a-u-m, which precisely correlate to the primary states of consciousness—the waking, dream, and deep sleep states. The sound of a-u-m is potent vibratory silence that naturally directs your attention to the omniscience deep within your heart—bliss beyond all ideas of bliss—the stateless state of consciousness known as Turiya. This sound has been embraced for centuries as the gateway to the eternal, but what exactly is this ancient alchemy? Are mantras necessary for enlightenment—liberation from eons of suffering? Or is enlightenment instant and effortless? What is the process of enlightenment?
Enlightenment, also known as Moksha or Liberation, is often viewed in a modern context as instant and effortless, which has led to the notion that awakening and moksha, or the ultimate release from the ancient and terrifying wheel of karma, occurs in a finger snap. In other words, awakening and moksha have been mushed together as one and the same, which has led to the insidious idea of instant enlightenment. But is this the truth or just a fantasy of the arrogant western mind? What is the nature of moksha?
In spite of the popular narrative to the contrary, moksha simply is not instant. In the context of the teaching of Sri Bhagavan Ramana Maharshi awakening can occur instantly as the sudden realization that you are the consciousness that looks, is looking, and will always look—the eternal witness. This radical shift in perspective is often accompanied by a euphoric feeling of bliss, but this delicious feeling does not last simply because this glimpse into the infinite generates a mental trance state that will change—it is not the stateless state of Turiya, but rather a mere reflection of that infinite stillness. The spark of insight that awakening represents begins the evolutionary process of moksha—but it is not the end.
In a moment of awakening, your heart breaks open to a new perspective of yourself. It is a radical shift from the slavery of your mind to the indescribable freedom of your heart. The moment of awakening to your eternal nature is like a seed that cracks open in the nourishing warmth of the earth. The seed dies and falls away, which begins the alchemy of transforming into a plant. The evolutionary process of moksha is very much the same. The ‘me’ you think you are is the seed that cracks open when your awareness is planted in the fertile ground of your heart. It opens your mind to a new consciousness, which begins the journey that leads to the ultimate release from eons of suffering—moksha.
The teaching of Sri Bhagavan Ramana Maharshi represents a rebirth of the eternal natural way of Sanatana Dharma. Nature is an evolutionary process—a baby is not born the instant a little squiggly tadpole-looking sperm bites an egg. Of course not! The union of the sperm and egg is the spark of life that begins the evolution of the fetus in the womb, which continues to evolve once the baby born into the world. This natural evolution gives birth to the infamous transmigration of the soul—the slow process of the growth and dissolution that culminates in the death of the body and the rebirth of the light frequency that animated the body during life—and the karmic wheel keeps on spinning.
The process of moksha has three distinct phases: awakening, self-realization, and the ultimate release that moksha represents. In other words, awakening is merely the beginning of the evolution of your consciousness. The sudden shift in consciousness that awakening represents does not represent the end or moksha. It is however the spark of insight that initiates the evolutionary process of moksha. This ancient process requires the intense effort of sadhana, which are the yogic practices that burn through both conscious and unconscious tendencies or the deeply rooted patterns of suffering that have kept the karmic wheel spinning for eons.
To make any real progress you must apply the teaching—you can’t think your way to moksha. It is simply impossible to break free of the genetically strong karmic tendencies, most of which you are completely unaware of, without the laser beam power of the ancient mantras, meditation, and inquiry. The teaching of Sri Bhagavan Ramana Maharshi does support instant awakening but awakening and moksha are simply not the same. Ramana was crystal clear that the process of moksha occurs over many years if not lifetimes. It requires the intense desire for the ultimate release that moksha represents as well as the willingness to apply the yogic practices of sadhana.
The yogic practices he emphasized were silence (meditation), self-inquiry, and sound (mantra) with the primary emphasis on silence and self-inquiry. He also emphasized the yogic practice of pranava—focusing on the source of the sound OM within the body. The essential aspect of this practice is to sing the seed letters of OM (a-u-m), which contain subtle unseen light frequencies and electromagnetic waves with the innate power to re-wire the synapses in your brain—shifting your awareness from the suffering of your mind to the indescribable freedom of your heart. The energy of the pranava practice evokes the sublime stillness of the stateless state of Turiya alive in your heart. This practice as well as singing various mantras either out loud or silently, as a form of self-inquiry, vibrates the invisible magnetic field of the subtle and causal bodies within you, which naturally opens your consciousness to the source in the heart.
The more you inquire using the pranava practice, meditation, and various mantras as vichara (self-inquiry)—the more shakti energy builds in the body removing all of the unconscious tendencies stored in your genetics. The false premise that many satsang teachers have propagated around the world lives in the deeply held belief that awakening and moksha are the same, which is based primarily on the teaching of HWL Poonja better known as Papaji. His teaching negates the essential yogic practices, including the mantra, with a strong emphasis on focusing your attention on the absolute, but this limited perspective Ramana’s teaching simply does not work. It definitely supports awakening, but it does not release or burn through any of the vasanas (unconscious karmic tendencies) or the hardwired suffering of your genetics nor does it help you see through the very powerful visceral illusion created by the reflective consciousness of ego.
Ultimately, the teaching of Ramana Maharshi is radically different from the teaching of Papaji. Ramana realized that you simply are not in charge of the evolutionary process of moksha. As an ordinary human being, you have deeply ingrained unconscious tendencies that simply are not addressed by the awareness of awareness or the shift in consciousness that awakening represents. Ramana was also aware that in very very very rare cases a ripe soul moksha can happen instantly with a single internal glance, but he also recognized what appears to be instant was actually eons in the making. He emphasized over and over again the process of liberation takes many years if not lifetimes of practice. The majority of people are completely enslaved by the extremely potent unconscious tendencies he referred to as vasanas, which can only be fully eradicated through the long-term continuous application of yogic practices as well as the deepest surrender to the unseen omniscience known as the Self.
This can be misconstrued as a process that leads to a goal. This is one aspect of the mind that is difficult to overcome. After awakening it is common to start chasing after bliss states thinking that the bliss will end your suffering—this is the proverbial golden carrot that is always just out of your reach. It is important to understand that moksha is not a bliss state that changes and it is not a goal. The yogic practices Ramana recommended, however, are the potent ancient alchemy with the innate power to remove the veils of consciousness that hide your eternal nature.
Moksha is the vast pure presence of sat-chit-ananda (consciousness-being-bliss)—this omniscient intelligence cannot be comprehended by the human intellect. This unseen omniscience is extremely intelligent—and this intelligence is what grants the ultimate release of moksha. But it is not effortless. It requires surrender and the intense tapas of yogic practice, which supports a gradual natural evolution.
In other words, you do not end your suffering. It isn’t possible. Ego cannot free itself from ego. Ego cannot see through the mirror of its own reflection nor is ego aware of unconscious tendencies in their myriad of forms—you simply don’t know what you don’t know. It is the unknown hidden tendencies that make the long-term process of moksha so incredibly challenging.
The ancient alchemy of sadhana requires a deep intimate surrender to the vast indescribable unseen omniscience, bhakti (devotion), patience, perseverance, and the vigilance of bone-breaking resolve. It is simple to awaken, but the challenge of a lifetime to practice with the determination of never giving up in the midst of the endless distractions life presents.
The process of moksha is simple, but not at all easy. It requires the sacred bonfire of your commitment, the deepest surrender, and the yogic practices infused with the potent power of the mantra and silence as the vichara that burns within you until the unknowable moment when the omniscience sets you free from the karmic wheel. Yes, you don’t set yourself free—God does—this is the great humbling of your egoic mind.
The potent vibration of the seed letters contained within every mantra is absolutely essential for moksha. It is virtually impossible to make any noticeable progress without this ancient alchemy.
Ultimately, moksha is earned through your deep commitment to sadhana, surrender, and intense effort. It is not instant nor is it effortless.
Moksha is granted by God only when you have earned the grace of this eternal release.
This eternity is never given to you by your own ego!
Tat Sat,
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