19.4) Procedure for establishing vardhanī kalaśa:

(All procedures and mantras are abridged. If this procedure is adopted, it would approximately take about three hours to complete navāvaraṇa pūjā. There are several expanded versions with procedures and mantras in detail and for performing such pūjā-s, it could take about eight to twelve hours. Which version one has to adopt is decided by one’s Guru.)

To the left of sādhaka (marked as 6 in the previous part) is vardhanī kalaśa. Position of these vessels can be marginally adjusted to suit the convenience of sādhaka; however their places should not be interchanged.

A yantra is to be drawn as shown in the image below. It consists of a bindu, three triangles and a square. Ideally this yantra should be drawn with diluted paste comprising of sandal, kumkum and turmeric paste. This is the base or maṇḍala on which vardhanī kalaśa will be placed. Those who frequently perform navāvaraṇa pūjā get them engraved on metallic plates or wooden plates. Flowers/ akṣata should be offered to each of the triangles by reciting this mantra six times.

4 अं अग्नि मण्डलाय नमः॥ 4 aṁ agni maṇḍalāya namaḥ ||

Place sandal paste and kumkum on the four upper sides of the vardhanī kalaśa and fill it with water taken from 19.1.5 (part 7) mixed with condiments on the maṇḍala above, by reciting the following mantra twelve times. When vardhanī kalaśa is placed on the maṇḍala, it should be filled with water and should have uttaraṇi within. (Refer any one of the below two images)

 

4  मं  सोममण्डलाय नमः॥ maṁ somamaṇḍalāya namaḥ || (This is known as abhimantraṇa or consecrating).

Without taking the right palm, recite the following mantra.

कलशस्य मुखे विष्णुः कण्ठे रुद्रः समाश्रितः।

मूले तत्र स्थितो ब्रह्मा मध्ये मातृगणाः स्मृताः॥

कुक्षौ तु सागराः सर्वे सप्तद्वीपा वसुन्धरा।

ऋग्वेदोऽथ यजुर्वेदः सामवेदोऽप्यथर्वणः॥

अङ्गैश्च सहिताः सर्वे कलशांबुसमाश्रिताः।

आयङ्तु देवी-पूजार्थं दुरितक्षय-कारकाः॥

गङ्गे च यमुने चैव गोदावरि सरस्वति।

नर्मदे  सिन्धु कावेरि जलेस्मिन् सन्निधिं कुरु॥

kalaśasya mukhe viṣṇuḥ kaṇṭhe rudraḥ samāśritaḥ |

mūle tatra sthito brahmā madhye mātṛgaṇāḥ smṛtāḥ ||

kukṣau tu sāgarāḥ sarve saptadvīpā vasundharā |

ṛgvedo'tha yajurvedaḥ sāmavedo'pyatharvaṇaḥ ||

aṅgaiśca sahitāḥ sarve kalaśāṁbusamāśritāḥ |

āyaṅtu devī-pūjārthaṁ duritakṣaya-kārakāḥ ||

gaṅge ca yamune caiva godāvari sarasvati |

narmade  sindhu kāveri jalesmin sannidhiṁ kuru ||

(Meaning: Mouth of this  vessel is Viṣṇu, its neck is Rudra and its base is Brahmā. In the centre all the akṣara-s reside.  All the oceans are within, along with the seven continents. Four Vedas together with all their branches dwell within this water. Holy rivers Gaṅga, Yamunā, Godāvarī, Sarasvatī, Narmadā, Sindhu and Kāveri are present in these waters.)

Continue to hold the kalaśa with right palm and recite mūlamantra (initiated mantra either Pañcadaśī or Ṣoḍaśī) eight times.  Now show dhenu mudra over the kalaśa. Take some water with uttaraṇi and sprinkle (prokṣaṇa) all over the pūjā items and over the self. This is known as śuddhisaṁskāraḥ (शुद्धिसंस्कारः) or purification rites.

(Dhenu mudra: Join the fingers of both palms, connect little fingers with ring fingers and connect index fingers with middle fingers. Join the thumbs and make these intertwined fingers to face down. Please refer image below.)

19.5) Procedure for establishing sāmānya arghya:

Similar maṇḍala is to be established again for sāmānya arghya. Establishing sāmānya arghya requires a conch and a base as shown in the picture below, apart from the maṇḍala. On the maṇḍala, base for the conch is placed (which is usually turtle shaped) and on this base, the conch is to be placed. This is called sāmānya arghya and this is marked as 7 in the previous part.

Establishing maṇḍala for sāmānya arghya is different from establishing vardhanī kalaśa, though the drawing remains the same. Let us assume that the sādhaka is sitting facing east. Then the maṇḍala is to be worshiped as per this chart. There are three types of mantras. One is performed on the square marked in blue numeric, another is performed in the inner triangle (marked in red numeric 1 to 6) and the third one is worshiped in the inner triangle which is marked in roman numeric. The entire pūjā is done with Bālā mantra, as described in Bālāṣaḍaṅanyāsaḥ, with some additional mantras.

19.5.a) Worshiping outer square

(marked 1 to 5 on the outer sides and 6 in the bindu):

1. 4 ऐं हृदयाय नमः। हृदयशक्ति श्रीपादुकां पूजयामि नमः॥

4 aiṁ hṛdayāya namaḥ | hṛdayaśakti śrīpādukāṁ pūjayāmi namaḥ ||

2. 4 क्लीं शिरसे स्वाहा। शिरःशक्ति श्रीपादुकां पूजयामि नमः॥

4 klīṁ śirase svāhā | śiraḥśakti śrīpādukāṁ pūjayāmi namaḥ ||

3. 4 सौः शिकायै वषट्। शिकाशक्ति श्रीपादुकां पूजयामि नमः॥

4 sauḥ śikāyai vaṣaṭ | śikāśakti śrīpādukāṁ pūjayāmi namaḥ ||

4. 4 ऐं कवचाय हूं। कवचशक्ति श्रीपादुकां पूजयामि नमः॥

4 aiṁ kavacāya hūṁ | kavacaśakti śrīpādukāṁ pūjayāmi namaḥ ||

5. 4 क्लीं नेत्रत्रयाय वौषट्। नेत्रशक्ति श्रीपादुकां पूजयामि नमः॥

4 klīṁ netratrayāya vauṣaṭ | netraśakti śrīpādukāṁ pūjayāmi namaḥ ||

6. 4 सौः अस्त्राय फट्। अस्त्रशक्ति श्रीपादुकां पूजयामि नमः॥

4 sauḥ astrāya phaṭ | astraśakti śrīpādukāṁ pūjayāmi namaḥ ||

There are three * marks which represent south, west and north sides. In these three places, without reciting any mantra place akṣata at these cardinal points. (I am not able to get explanation as to why these three cardinal points are worshiped in silence. I believe that this subtly represents the innermost triangle of Śri Cakra, hence worshiped without any mantra. If someone knows about this, please write about this in comment section.)

19.5.b) Worshiping six inner triangles:

(marked as 1 to 6 in red)

In 19.5.a, Bālā mantra was used. In this section, Saubhāgya Pañcadaśī is used.

1. 4 ऐं क ए ई ल ह्रीं हृदयाय नमः। हृदयशक्ति श्रीपादुकां पूजयामि नमः॥

4 aiṁ ka e ī la hrīṁ hṛdayāya namaḥ | hṛdayaśakti śrīpādukāṁ pūjayāmi namaḥ ||

2. 4 क्लीं ह स क ह ल ह्रीं शिरसे स्वाहा। शिरःशक्ति श्रीपादुकां पूजयामि नमः॥

4 klīṁ ha sa ka ha la hrīṁ śirase svāhā | śiraḥśakti śrīpādukāṁ pūjayāmi namaḥ ||

3. 4 सौः स क ल ह्रीं शिकायै वषट्। शिकाशक्ति श्रीपादुकां पूजयामि नमः॥

4 sauḥ sa ka la hrīṁ śikāyai vaṣaṭ | śikāśakti śrīpādukāṁ pūjayāmi namaḥ ||

4. 4 ऐं क ए ई ल ह्रीं कवचाय हूं। कवचशक्ति श्रीपादुकां पूजयामि नमः॥

4 aiṁ ka e ī la hrīṁ kavacāya hūṁ | kavacaśakti śrīpādukāṁ pūjayāmi namaḥ ||

5. 4 क्लीं ह स क ह ल ह्रीं नेत्रत्रयाय वौषट्। नेत्रशक्ति श्रीपादुकां पूजयामि नमः॥

4 klīṁ ha sa ka ha la hrīṁ netratrayāya vauṣaṭ | netraśakti śrīpādukāṁ pūjayāmi namaḥ ||

6. 4 सौः स क ल ह्रीं अस्त्राय फट्। अस्त्रशक्ति श्रीपादुकां पूजयामि नमः॥

4 sauḥ sa ka la hrīṁ astrāya phaṭ | astraśakti śrīpādukāṁ pūjayāmi namaḥ ||

19.5.c) Worshiping inner most triangle and the bindu within:

(marked as I to IV in red):

I. 4 ऐं क ए ई ल ह्रीं नमः। 4 aiṁ ka e ī la hrīṁ namaḥ |

II. 4 क्लीं ह स क ह ल ह्रीं नमः।4 klīṁ ha sa ka ha la hrīṁ namaḥ |

III. 4 सौः स क ल ह्रीं नमः। 4 sauḥ sa ka la hrīṁ namaḥ |

IV. 4 ऐं क ए ई ल ह्रीं । क्लीं ह स क ह ल ह्रीं । सौः स क ल ह्रीं नमः।।

4 aiṁ ka e ī la hrīṁ । klīṁ ha sa ka ha la hrīṁ । sauḥ sa ka la hrīṁ ।।

(IV is to be repeated eight times with arcana on the bindu.)

19.5.d) Placement of conch and it’s based on the maṇḍala.

Now take the tortoise shaped base and sprinkle it with water taken from vardhanī kalaśa by reciting the following mantra.

4 astrāya phaṭ | 4 अस्त्राय फट् |

Now the base is in the right hand of the sādhaka. After reciting the following mantra, place this base on the maṇḍala meant for sāmānya arghya.

4 अं अग्निमण्डलाय धर्मप्रथ दश कलात्मने श्री महात्रिपुर्सुन्दर्याः सामान्य अर्घ्य पात्राताधाराय नमः।

4 aṁ agnimaṇḍalāya dharmapratha daśa kalātmane śrī mahātripursundaryāḥ sāmānya arghya pātrātādhārāya namaḥ |

Worshiping sāmānya arghya consists of three parts. First, the base consisting of a square, three triangles and a bindu; second, the conch with its turtle shaped base; and three the water within the conch. These three are considered as agni, sūrya and candra maṇḍala-s. This has been already dealt with in part 7 of this series. The base has already been worshiped through 19.5.a, b and c above. Now the turtle shaped base for the conch and the conch itself are to be worshiped. Each of these maṇḍala-s have different kalā-s and each of these kalā-s are individually worshiped. Details of individual kalā-s are given while establishing viśeṣa arghya. Further, in order to shorten the duration, mantras for worshiping individual kalā-s are not given here. A sādhaka can include worshiping of kalā-s here as, if he or she has enough time.

After placing tortoise shaped base on the maṇḍala, the base along with maṇḍala is to be worshiped as below.

4 अग्निं दूतं वृणीमहे होतारं विश्ववेदसं। अस्ययज्ञस्य सुक्रतुम्। रां रीं रूं रैं रौं रः॥ रमलवरयूं अग्निमण्डलाय नमः॥

4 agniṁ dūtaṁ vṛṇīīmahe hotāraṁ viśvavedasaṁ | asyayajñasya sukratum | rāṁ rīṁ rūṁ raiṁ rauṁ raḥ || ramalavarayūṁ agnimaṇḍalāya namaḥ ||

Now place flowers on both the maṇḍala, and the tortoise shaped base of the conch.

Now sprinkle (prokṣaṇa) on the conch by taking water from the vardhanī kalaśa by reciting the following mantra.

4 astrāya phaṭ | 4 अस्त्राय फट् |

Now, take the conch and place it on the tortoise shaped base by reciting the following mantra.

4 उं सूर्य मण्डलाय अर्थप्रद् द्वादशकलात्मने श्री महात्रिपुर्सुन्दर्याः सामान्य अर्घ्य पात्राय नमः॥

4 uṁ sūrya maṇḍalāya arthaprad dvādaśakalātmane śrī mahātripursundaryāḥ sāmānya arghya pātrāya namaḥ ||

After placing the conch on the tortoise shaped base, apply sandal paste and kumkum on the conch.

After decorating the conch as above, recite the following mantra and place flowers on the conch (flowers should be placed outside the conch).

4 आसत्येन रजसा वर्तमानो निवेशयन्न्मृतं मर्त्यं च हिरण्ययेन स्वैता रथेनादेवो याति भुवना विपश्यन्॥ हां हीं हूं हैं हौं हः। हमलवरयूं सूर्यमण्डलाय नमः॥

4 āsatyena rajasā vartamāno niveśayannmṛtaṁ martyaṁ ca hiraṇyayena svaitā rathenādevo yāti bhuvanā vipaśyan || hāṁ hīṁ hūṁ haiṁ hauṁ haḥ | hamalavarayūṁ sūryamaṇḍalāya namaḥ ||

Now, by using uttaraṇi take water from vardhanī kalaśa and by reciting the following mantra fill the conch with water. Uttaraṇi should be held with the right hand thumb and ring finger.

4 मं सोम मण्डलाय कामप्रध षोडश कलात्मने श्री महात्रिपुर्सुन्दर्याः सामानर्ग्य अमृताय नमः।

4 maṁ soma maṇḍalāya kāmapradha ṣoḍaśa kalātmane śrī mahātripursundaryāḥ sāmānargya amṛtāya namaḥ |

Now using thumb and ring fingers add a few drops of milk-honey mix into the conch and recite the following mantra and offer flowers to the conch at the end of recitation.

4 आप्यायस्व समेदु ते विश्वतः सोमवृष्णियम्। भवावाजस्य संगते॥ सां सीं सूं सैं सौं सः समलवर्यूं सोममण्डलाय नमः॥

4 āpyāyasva samedu te viśvataḥ somavṛṣṇiyam | bhavāvājasya saṁgate || sāṁ sīṁ sūṁ saiṁ sauṁ saḥ samalavaryūṁ somamaṇḍalāya namaḥ ||

Take a few drops of water from the conch (conch can be lifted by the left hand to pour water into the right palm). By using the same mantras of 19.5.b (1 to 6) sprinkle this water on īśāna, agni, nirṛti, vāyu, centre and eastern cardinals.

By using avakuṇṭhana mudra (अवकुण्ठन मुद्र) over the conch, recite the following digbandhana mantra. In avakuṇṭhana mudra, by closing all the fingers of the right hand except the index finger and with this extended index finger rotate clockwise over the conch and similarly using the left index finger rotate anticlockwise over the conch. By doing so with both index fingers is avakuṇṭhana mudra, which is shown here.

avakuṇṭhana mudra