This article explains the method by which one’s ātma bīja is arrived at. This article gives only a broad idea to formulate ātma bīja. Right ātma bīja can be formulated only if one knows the nature of various akṣara-s of Sanskrit. The ātma bīja can be fine tuned by having one’s birth chart as well.
The above cakra is known as akathaha cakra अकथह चक्र (it is called so because of the four letters (a ka tha ha) in square 1. There are 49 Sanskrit alphabets in this cakra. Different views prevail on the number of alphabets in Sanskrit. Assuming that the alphabets are 52, then three alphabets are not included in this cakra and they are ḻa, kṣa, jña (ळ, क्ष, ज्ञ).
To begin with, the name of the person is to be written in Sanskrit. Name here means the name by which the concerned person is often called. Here is an example. Name of a person is Ashish Kumar. He is generally called as Kumar and not as Ashish. Then his name should be taken as Kumar and not Ashish Kumar. In case he is often called as Ashish, then his name should be taken as Ashish. Frequently used or called name alone should be taken for finding out one’s ātma bīja. If Kumar is the often used name for him, then Kumar should be written in Sanskrit as कुमार् (kumār). Though the first letter is कु (ku), it consist of two letters क and उ, only क should be taken as the first letter of his name, Kumar.
In akathaha cakra there are sixteen squares numbered from 1 to 16. There are four columns A, B, C and D. There are four rows I, II, III and IV. Each column and each row has four squares each. Column A has rows I, II, III and IV and similarly column B has also I, II, III and IV as rows, etc. Row I has columns A, B, C and D, etc. Thus there are 16 small squares and each square has three letters except square 1, where there are four alphabets. Thus there are 49 alphabets (16 x 3 = 48 + 1 = 49) in akathaha cakra.
There are several ways for arriving ātma bīja. The simplest way is discussed here. There should be more than one alphabet which can make a powerful bīja. Difference between an akṣara and a bīja is significant. Akṣara is only an alphabet. For example क (ka) is an akṣara. Akṣara with some modifications become a bīja, which forms a part of a mantra. For example klīṁ (क्लीं) is a bīja, which contains more than one akṣara (ka la ī - क ल ई - and a bindu). Bīja-s are the seeds of a mantra and several bīja-s form a mantra. Bālā mantra consists of three bīja-s - aiṁ - klīṁ - sauḥ (ऐं - क्लीं - सौः). The first bīja consists of an akṣara ai (ऐ) and a bindu, which is a dot above the alphabet. In the case of second bīja klīṁ (क्लीं), it is the combination of - ka – la – ī and a bindu (क – ल – ई and a bindu). Therefore, every bīja is a combination of more than one akṣara.
Generally it is the practice to find out whether a particular mantra is suitable for a person or not,akathaha cakra is used. This is applicable only to a particular mantra as the suitability of a mantra is tested with the first letter of his name. But if a person is initiated into more than one mantra, suitability for all the mantras is to be checked. In order to avoid this, an ātma bīja can be chosen usingakathaha cakra, which can be prefixed to all the mantras, so that there is no need to check the suitability of all the mantras. It would be still better to place ātma bīja both at the beginning and at the end of a mantra. This is called sampuṭīkaraṇa, where a mantra is encased between ātma bīja-s. If this is done, the potency of the mantra is said to remain with the soul or ātma of the person concerened. However, one’s Guru alone can decide on such important matters. There are a few mantras for which no suitability check is needed.
As said earlier, there are certain akṣara-s that make a very good bīja. The most important of such akṣara-s come from vowels i.e a to aḥ (अ to अः) and a few akṣara-s from consonants such as ka, ba, bha, ma, ra, va, śa, sa, ha, etc (क ब भ म र व श स ह). Any of these akṣara-s can be chosen to formulate an ātma bīja in conjunction with other akṣara-s. The akṣara- can be chosen from the natal horoscope of the disciple. If the lagna (ascendant) lord is very powerful (having high ṣaḍbala), well placed, not combust and not debilitated, then the concerned bījākṣara of lagna lord can be used as the base for formulating ātma bīja. If langa lord is not well placed, or weak or malefic, then bījākṣara of pūrṇa yogakārakā (occupying a kona and a kendra) planet, if any in the horoscope can be used. If none of these are available, then any of the akṣara-s mentioned above (given only as examples) can be chosen to form ātma bīja.
Now, let us understand how the ātma bīja for Kumar is derived. Guru of Kumar decides to use akṣarara (र) to formulate ātma bīja for him. There are two methods by which this can be done. र is placed in D-IV (square 16), whereas the first akṣara of Kumar क is placed in A-1 (square 1). Now count the number of columns from A-1 to D-16, which is in the fourth column. Similarly, count the number of rows from A-1 to D-16, which is also in the fourth row. Both fourth column and the fourth row is an enemy (ari) square and the alphabets therein cannot be considered for ātma bīja. Therefore, any bīja with र as the akṣara cannot be the ātma bīja for Kumar.
Since र is not suitable, his Guru decides to use the akṣara म (ma), which is in the second column as well as the second row from क. Second row and second column is sādhya square, which means that all the three akṣara-s (ऌ, झ, म) in that square is highly suitable for Kumar. An akṣara alone cannot form a bīja and therefore म is to be made as a bīja. Before his Guru decides on Kumar’s ātma bīja, he will have a look at the other two bīja-s ऌ, झ. Each bīja has certain characteristics and based on the characters they do either good or bad to the person concerend. In the present case akṣara ऌ is not auspicious and should not be used to form an ātma bīja. Therefore, either झ or म can be used. Between these two, म is more auspicious and this alone should be used to form an ātma bīja. Having decided to choose म, this has to be converted into a bīja by adding रीं (rīṁ). रीं is chosen because र is a very auspicious as well as a powerful akṣara and belongs to Agni and (ईं ) īṁ is kāmakalā. Thus म+ र + ईं = म्रीं (mrīṁ) becomes the ātma bīja of Kumar. In the foregoing discussion, the decision was not made on his horoscope, but only the first letter of his name.
It is always better to choose the square that falls in the second row and second column or third row and third column from the name square. However, third column and third row from the name square is the most beneficial which is known as susiddha square (the efficacious and having superhuman powers). As said earlier that each letter has got certain qualities and before determining the ātma bīja, the nature and quality of the akṣara is to be ascertained. However, the fourth column and fourth row are to be totally avoided.
Once ātma bīja is arrived, his Guru should initiate this to his disciple. The disciple should be asked to test its efficacy by reciting the ātma bīja for a few days. This is necessary to avoid any unnoticed and overlooked human errors while computing the bīja. If the disciple feels the positive vibration from the ātma bīja, then it perfectly suits him. On the contrary, if the disciple faces some difficulties during this period, this ātma bīja should be discontinued and another one should be chosen. Once the ātma bīja suits the disciple, his Guru will advise him how to use this while reciting various mantras. Generally ātma bīja can be prefixed and suffixed to a mantra. Alternatively, his Guru may advise him to recite only ātma bīja. This is applicable in the case of advanced disciples who practice more meditation. Ātma bīja should be aligned with one’s breath for quick results. If one mentally recites the right ātma bīja, attaining siddhi is possible in a short time say a month or two at the maximum.
Further Readings
pragha thiswaren
January 29, 2014 01:24 PM
CAN U PLS FIND AN ATHMA BIJA FOR WHICH MY NAME USED TO BE CALLED NORMALY IS PRAGHA
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MANBLUNDER
February 19, 2016 09:53 PM
Please write to me at ravi@manblunder.com
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Krishna
May 23, 2014 03:13 AM
Dear Ravi,
Do you have any other article discussing the various akṣara-s and their meaning, as well as their suitability to forming ātma bīja mantras?
Best Wishes,
Krishna.
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MANBLUNDER
May 23, 2014 08:41 AM
I have not published any article on akṣara-s. It will be too complicated and every aspect of formation of bīja should be explained. There are some books available on this subject.
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Krishna
May 23, 2014 10:55 AM
Dear Ravi,
Can you please mention the books that are available on this subject?
Best Wishes,
Krishna.
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MANBLUNDER
May 23, 2014 11:00 AM
Please send a direct mail to me at ravi@manblunder.com
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Sudhi Gs
March 22, 2016 04:09 PM
Dear Guru ji
Pranams to your lotus feet
May I know the ATHMA BIJA for my Name SAVITHA,
KINDLY LET ME KNOW
pranams
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jason c
March 29, 2016 11:48 PM
Namaste Guruji! Pranams. I have a question... In another place you describe atma bija as follows... "... In certain mantras, ātma bīja is also placed as part of the main mantra and in the case of all other mantras, they are to be encased with recitation of siddhi mantra at the beginning and at the end." I am curious to know how one would divine which mantras are to be encased by siddhi mantra and which mantras are to be chanted with atma bija prefixed/suffixed. Thank you! Shrim Shrim
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MANBLUNDER
March 30, 2016 10:34 AM
In Mahashodashi mantra, the second OM in the second line is replaced with atma bija. In all other mantras, atma bija is prefixed and suffixed. Incorporating atma bija in a main mantra will always be decided by one's Guru.
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jason c
March 30, 2016 12:07 AM
Namaste Guruji! Pranams once again. I have another question. śrīṁ was derived as the Atma Bija. Since srim is comprised of aksharas "śa + ra + ī + nāda + bindu", does this mean I can use śa (box 7 in the akathaha cakra) as the base akshara in akathaha chakra for determining other mantras are suitable for me? Namaste! Dhanyavaad/Thank you Guruhji.
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MANBLUNDER
March 30, 2016 10:40 AM
You can derive bijas based on श śa. However, when we derive atma bija, it should be a proper bija and not just an alphabet with a bindu. Therefore, it is ideal to have श śa as your atma bija. By prefixing your atma bija, you can use any mantra.
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Kirti Ji
October 01, 2016 03:51 PM
For a name starting with I, Row 3 and Column 1, Is a mantra starting with "Shri" suitable. Kindly guide me.Thank you for sharing this article and guidance.
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Rajasekhar
December 07, 2016 11:24 AM
If a persons name is Indira which falls in C III 11 in that case which row and column to be checked for deriving an atma bija as there is one row below that and two rows above that one column after that and and two columns before that
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MANBLUNDER
December 07, 2016 11:31 AM
You have to check for bijaksharas from square 1. In this case you can choose ह्रीं hrīṁ as atma bija. It is importnat that a proper bijakshara is derived for atma bija.
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Krishna
December 09, 2016 08:41 AM
Another interpretation I have seen, takes the square consisting of the first letter of the person's name as the "First Square" and continuing to the rest of the squares top down and right-left approach. For instance, in this case, the "CIII" square of the Original akathaha chakra becomes the new "AI" square and likewise "CI" of the original chakra becomes the new "AIII" on the horizontal side. Vertically, the original "DIII" is now the new "BI". The best way to look at this chakra, is like a scroll with vertical and horizontal folds.
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MANBLUNDER
December 09, 2016 09:25 AM
There are many methods to derive atma bija. But from my experience, I can definitely say that the method adopted by us seems to be the best and works very well for more than 95% .
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prashanth
December 01, 2020 07:58 PM
Dear ravi ji...in your article about soubhagya panchadasi can you give more explanation about how manmatha got this from soubhagya astottara namavali. Which is explained in tripura rahasya text ie conversation between guru dattatreya and rushi agastya..ie how to evolve saubhagya panchadasi from astottra namavali
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karthik
April 14, 2017 03:28 AM
respected sir, In sri vidya mantras and its cult it contains 10 dasa maha devi especially which among them are superior and athma bija is used in which devi and suppose for example it is saying that the second is replaced by atma bija if our Guru does't give athma bija and we recite athma bija in these particular mantra what is the effect .
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MANBLUNDER
April 14, 2017 09:23 AM
There is no superior or inferior among dasa mahavidyas. One is not supposed to violate the instructions of Guru.
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sankar
April 24, 2018 06:30 PM
Shri Ravi, Would A1 be the susuddhi beeja for dhanishta 4 moon placement? thanks
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Adarsh Prakash
May 21, 2020 11:31 PM
my name is adarsh, could you please let me know what my atma bija should be
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Krishna
May 21, 2020 11:53 PM
Please write to any of the gurus in the initiations page and seek the information. You may also required to provide your birth details.
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Rishi
March 11, 2023 07:03 PM
How to find initiation page?
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Rachana
November 28, 2020 03:19 AM
What is done when the name does not seem to be auspicious for atma bija? My name is Laura so La is in the second colunm but fourth row and ra is in the fourth colunm and fourth row (even worse)... My old Guru gave me a name which I used back then, Rachana. Could I resort to It and use na+heim?
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MANBLUNDER
November 28, 2020 07:09 PM
When we are not able to derive the right bija for atma bija, then we have to use श्रीं śrīṁ
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William
March 04, 2021 08:34 PM
Why is śrīṁ the default mantra to use?
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Krishna
March 05, 2021 03:53 AM
It is a fruition mantra.
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William
February 10, 2021 08:09 PM
Can you please do a full article on SIddhi Mantra with atma bija? Not on how it's derived but just on the effects, history, and it's significance? Please? Thank you
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Jayanth
February 11, 2021 11:35 PM
Siddhi means accomplishment, fulfilment. It also means prosperity, personal success, fortune, good luck, advantage, supreme felicity, bliss, beatitude and complete sanctification. Siddhi mantra is derived from birth chart (D20). 5th house Lord of and 9th house Lord of D 20 chart is taken into account while formulating siddhi mantra. There is no nyāsa for this mantra and needs no initiation. This mantra will be on testing mode to find out its suitability. This mantra should be recited as many times as possible for the first 10 days. If the mantra suits well, then it should cause infantile Bliss, some inexplicable happiness. If this is experienced, it means that the mantra suits you well. If the mantra suits well, it acts as a catalyst to the main mantra. All other mantras are to be encased (sampuṭīkaraṇa) between siddhi mantra at the beginning and at the end. It is advisable to chant siddhi mantra for a minimum of 24 times in the beginning and 24 times at the end of all other mantra japas. Ātma bīja (seed of the soul) is derived from the commonly called name in combination with planets placed in the birth chart. Various factors go into deriving ātma bīja. The ātma bīja which is thus derived is placed in the siddhi mantra next to ॐ (om) and hence ātma bīja need not be recited separately. In certain mantras, ātma bīja is also placed as part of the main mantra and in the case of all other mantras, they are to be encased with recitation of siddhi mantra at the beginning and at the end. Proper recitation of siddhi mantra, with ātma bīja placed next to ॐ, should cause subtle bliss in the form of inexplicable happiness. This experience confirms the suitability of both the siddhi mantra and ātma bīja.
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William
February 12, 2021 11:50 PM
Thank you Jayanath ji, In the case of one like myself, I have a Guru, Mata Amritanandamayi, who gave me a mantra based on what quality of the Divine that I like the most. Those who chose the same quality got the same mantra. This means it isn't exactly specific to my chart or prakriti. Although it isn't specific, it is blessed by a Guru. The Siddhi Mantra is not blessed by a Guru but it is very specific for me. One of the mantras I asked for from my Guru contains my Atma Bija derived from my chart using your methods. 1. Is it right to say that my Atma Bija has been blessed by my Guru even if I pull apart the mantra to extract only it's Bija? 2. Also, should I use the specific Siddhi Mantra derived from my chart or the Mantra containing my Atma Bija from the Guru?
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Jayanth
February 13, 2021 09:47 AM
Atma bija will be derived by your guru and sometimes will be changed if the effects are not to the desired extent. Siddhi mantra by default will have atma bija in it. So Siddhi mantra is a combination of atma bija and from d20 chart
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William
February 13, 2021 10:12 PM
(This is an edit, please delete the original comment above.) So do you think that since my guru did not derive my Atma bija, but instead gave me a mantra containing my Atma bija based on my choice, that my Atma bija alone is now charged with Guru energy? If that is the case then that makes my siddhi mantra also charged by my Guru.. Correct?
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Jayanth
February 14, 2021 10:10 PM
Your guru would have given the mantra with due consideration based on name, birth chart and not per your choice. So just chant what is given to you. There is no initiation for Siddhi mantra it is self initiation so no energy transfer per your question.
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Rishi
March 11, 2023 07:03 PM
Sir plz help me in finding my atma beej and mantra for me plz give me your email id. I wish to send my birth detail plz help me.
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Rishi
March 11, 2023 07:03 PM
Ravi sir pl z help me I want to know my atma beej and which mantra is suitable for me I have send you request mail on your mail add
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Krishna
March 12, 2023 10:03 AM
You may contact any of the gurus mentioned on our initiations page https://manblunder.com/articlesview/mantrainitiations to obtain your ātma bīja mantra.
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Koman
December 04, 2023 04:12 AM
Hello sir, so there are only 4 possible squares at the four corners that a person can can run i to an ari combination: A-I, A-IV, D-I, D-IV?
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Krishna
December 09, 2023 01:12 AM
The correct interpretation of this cakra seems to have been lost. You can look at this cakra drawn on a sphere fully embracing it on all sides. You may go from left to right, top to bottom from the starting point associated with your name. Another way to look at it, is to see the squares A1, A5, B1, B6 as one set and the others are assimilated in a similar manner. Within these 4 small squares, you can go in a clockwise manner for determining the siddha, ari etc configurations. There are many squares that are used to determine which mantra suits best and this is the most popular one. Regardless, one who follows the rules associated with mantra fruition, may most likely gain benefits.
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Koman
December 09, 2023 03:12 AM
Thank you sir. I am still lost. Please clarify it for me again. From the logic that I understood, the A1-A5, B1-B5, A1-E1, D2-G2,... are the same sets, meaning the akshara-s within are the same. Is that the correct logic, sir?
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Krishna
December 09, 2023 10:12 PM
You can go in the spherical sequence as shown in the cakra. So if your name is 'Ivan', then C11 is your first square, C12 second square, C9 is the third and C10 is the fourth. Likewise, the C row is the first, D is second, A is third, B is fourth. The first column will be 'C' and that is the starting point. In the second method, you should see the squares as (A1, B2, B6, A5) - (C3, D4, D8, C7) - (C11, D12, D16, C15) - (A9, B10, B14, C13). In the 2nd method, the first square would still be C11 and the sequence would be cyclic in the order specified. The "rows" would be defined in the same cyclic pattern of classification.
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Koman
December 10, 2023 04:12 PM
Thank you very much, Krishnaji, it's now very clear to me, even though I still cannot get the second method but that's just the way my brain wired. Many people have their horoscopes read and come up with a mantra hoping for a better life but somehow it does not work and they quit chanting after a few days. This might be the missing key. Thank you for bringing this invaluable knowledge to everyone.
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