| Amarnath Cave is named after Mount Amarnath
(5,486m a.s.l.), where it is located nearly 4000 m high. Because of this
height, the cave is covered with snow for most of the year. Only for a
short period in sommer, the entrance is accessible. The cave is an ice
cave, it contains a certain amount of ice stalagmites.
The cave is a holy place for Hindu pilgrims, because of its ice content. One very characteristic pilar of ice is believed to be an ice lingham, the phallic symbol of Lord Shiva. Two smaller ice stalagmite represent Parvati, his wife, and Ganesha, his son. The Hindu pilgrims also believe, that the height of the lingham increases and decreases with the phases of the moon. In the month of Shravan, on the full moon in August, thousands of Hindus go on a pilgrimage up to the cave. At this time the lingam reaches its biggest size. The pilgrimage is somewhat dangerous. The big height and the low temperature, combined with the under-nourished state of many people, cost a yearly toll. Sometimes, like in 1996, bad weather increases the number of fatalities dramatically. A legend tells, that Shiva explained the secret of creation to Parvati in the cave. Two mating doves heard this and now live in the cave for eternity, being reborn again and again. This legend is confirmed (at least in the eyes of believers) by flocks of doves near the cave, with no vegetation around. Another legend tells that Kashyap Reshi drained a big lake, which became then the Kashmir valley of today. The cave was discovered by Bregish Reshi AUG-1996 260 people died on their pilgrimage in the wake of a storm. One of the most important event during July/
August, is Amarnath Yatra to the Holy Pilgrimage. This is an annual
event when thousands of Hindus from different corners of the Globe visit
Amarnath caves. The pilgrims trek from Pahalgam to these caves and worship
the great ice Lingam. SHRI AMARNATH YATRA 8 DAYS 7 NIGHT Day 1 Delhi/Srinagar Day 2 Srinagar/Pahalgam(256kms) Day 3 Pahalgam/ Sheshnag Day 4 Sheshnag/Pahalgam Day 5 Panchtarni/ Amarnath cave (6 kms altitude
3962mts) Day 6 Panchtarni/Pahalgam Day 7 Pahalgam/Srinagar Day 8 Srinagar/Delhi |
The Amarnath Cave has special significance . The Legend about the importance of Amarnath Cave is as follows :- This is The Cave which was chosen by Bhole Shankar for narrating the secrets of immortality and creation of Universe to Maa Parvati ji . The story goes like this . Centuries ago Maa Parvati asked Shiv ji to let her know why and when He started wearing the beads of heads ( Mund Mala) . Bhole Shankar replied when ever you are born I add one more head in my beads . Maa Parvati said ," My Lord, my body is destroyed every time and I die again and again, but you are Immortal. Please let me know the secret of this ." Bhole Shankar replied that it is due to Amar Katha ." Maa Parvati insisted that she may be told that secret. For long Shiva ji continued postponing . Finally on consistent demand from Maa Parvati He made up his mind to tell the immortal secret . He started for lonely place where no living being could listen it . He choose Amarnath Cave . In preparation to that He left His Nandi ( The Bull which He used to ride ) at Pahalgam (Bail gaon) . At Chandanwari He released Moon from his hairs (Jataon). At the banks of Lake Sheshnag He released the snakes . He decided to leave his Son Ganesha at Mahagunas Parvat (Mahaganesh Hill ) . At Panjtarni, Shivji left the Five Elements behind (Earth , Water, Air , Fire and Sky) which make living being . He is the Lord of these elements. It is believed that as a symbol of sacrificing the earthly world , Shivaji and Maa Parvati had Tandav Dance . After leaving behind all these, Bhole Shankar enters the Holy Amarnath Cave along with Parvati Maa . Lord Shiva takes his Samadhi on the Deer Skin and concentrate . To ensure that no living being is able to hear the Immortal Tale , He created Rudra named Kalagni and ordered him to spread fire to eliminate every living thing in and around the Holy Cave . After this He started narrating the secret of immortality to Maa Parvati . But as a matter of chance one egg which was lying beneath the Deer skin remained protected . It is believed to be non living and more over it was protected by Shiva -Parvati Asan (Bed) . The pair of pigeons which were born out of this egg became immortal having listened the secret of immortality (Amar Katha). Many pilgrims report seeing the pair of pigeons when they trek the arduous route to pay their obeisance before the Ice-Lingam (the phallic symbol of Shiva). |
| Discovery of Holy Cave The story narrated by people about the discovery of this Holy Cave is of a Gujjar ( shepherd) Buta Malik . He is given the credit of discovering this Holy Cave . Story goes like this , that a saint gave Buta Malik a bag full of Coal. On reaching his home when he opened the bag , to his utter surprise the bag was full of gold coins . This made him overwelmed with joy. He ran to thank the Saint . But, what he found was that the Saint had disappeared . Instead , he found The Holy Cave and Shiv Lingam there in . He announced the discovery of this to the Villagers. Then onwards this has become the sacred place of Pilgrimage . The ancient epics narrate an other story which goes like this. The valley of Kashmir was under water .It was a big lake. Kashyap Rishi drained the water through number of rivers and rivulets . In those days Bhrigu Rishi came that way on a visit to The Himalyas. He was the first to have Darshans of this Holy Cave . When people heard of the Lingam, Amarnath for them became Shiva’s abode and a Centre of pilgrimage . Since then Lacs of devotees perform the pilgrimage through tough terrain and avail eternal happiness. The trek to Amarnath, in the month of sharavan ( July–August) has the devout flock to this incredible shrine, where the image of Shiva, in the form of a Lingam, is formed naturally of an Ice Stalagmite, which waxes and wanes with the Moon's cycle . By its side are fascinating, two more Ice Lingams, that of Maa Parvati and of their son, Ganesha . |
| The ice Lingam of Amarnath Cave was first discovered
before the 12th century by a Muslim shepherd named Malik while looking
for a missing goat. When he entered the mammoth cave in search of the
goat, he found a five-foot Siva Lingam naturally formed of ice. He had
seen Lingams in Hindu temples before, and upon his return to Hatnam, a
small town on the Anantnag-Pahalgam road, he shared his discovery with a
Hindu priest. The priest, however, did not believe Malik. He challenged
Malik to take him to the cave. They reached the cavern after crossing
the ice-cold waters of the River Liddar, climbing through the dense
forests and over the rocky terrain. The priest was amazed when he saw
the six-foot ellipse. Soon word spread everywhere that a new place
sacred to Lord Siva had been found. It was named Amarnath, "The
Deathless Lord."
The Lingam forms naturally toward the end of each summer from water dripping inside the 135-foot-high grotto. From time to time hot weather prevents the Lingam from forming, or causes it to melt prematurely, as happened this year. The cave is only accessible in late August when the snows have melted. There are many legends told about Amarnath. Kalhana's Rajatarangini reports that before the 12th century it was visited annually by many thousands of pilgrims from all parts of India. The famous book Brangish Sanhit gives full information with regard to the origin of the pilgrimage. The book says that the chari (holy silver mace) was given by Lord Siva to Kashyap Rishi. Siva commanded that this mace be carried to Amarnath each year. This tradition continues. The mace arrives at the full moon in August/September (Shravan), which this year was August 21st. The event coincides with Raksha Bandhan. In ancient times Amritsar was the starting point. Since the 1940s, pilgrims have started from Srinagar. Were it not for the threats, 100,000 would have made the difficult trek this year.
|
HE IS A REALISED ONE WHO FORGETS THE PAST, DOES NOT WORRY ABOUT THE FUTURE,
AND DISCHARGES HIS DUTIES IN THE PRESENT.
(Telugu Poem)
Embodiments of Love !
Past is past, future is uncertain, only present is in our hands. It is the foremost duty of man to live in the present and share his joy with his fellow beings. Truly speaking, the human being is the most fortunate one among all the living beings. Compared to the entire cosmos, man is very small like an atom, yet he is able to comprehend the magnitude and vastness of the creation, which is very startling indeed. He attains immortality by understanding the unity between the microcosm and macrocosm. As mentioned by Me yesterday, whosoever reaps the harvest of love in the field of his heart is a true Christian; a true Sikh; a true Hindu and a true Muslim. In fact he is the true human being on earth.Man cannot exist without love.
This Principle of Love is Hiranyagarbha.This Hiranyagarbha is situated on the right side of the human body and the physical heart is on the left. The physical heart on the left side has to be left one day or the other in some circumstance or the other. Hiranyagarbha located on the right side of the human body is always right.It is immortal, eternal and all encompassing. It is present not only in human beings, but also in birds, beasts and all other living beings.The Vedas declare: "Eswara Sarvabhoothanaam, God is present in all thebeings, "Isavaasyam Idam Jagat" (God pervades the entire cosmos).
It is love that originates out of this Hiranya. The three principles of reaction, resonance and reflection have originated from Hiranyagarbha. Unable to recognise his true identity man is wasting his life in the pursuit of temporary fleeting, transient and ephemeral pleasures.
As I told you yesterday gold loses its value, effulgence and identity when it is mixed with different metals such as sliver, copper, brass. So also heart, which can be compared to gold loses its value, brilliance and identity on account of its association with the metals of worldly desires. This is the present plight of the world. Man is behaving likea demon, devil and a beast because he has forgotten his divine nature. Divine love originates from Hiranyagarbha. This divine love lives by giving and forgiving, whereas selfish love lives by getting and forgetting. Such divine love is essential for man.
Here is a small example to illustrate this: After Ravana was killed in the battle, Hanuman went to Sita and conveyed her the good news. Sita was overjoyed and started extolling Hanuman thus: "0h, Hanuman you are the Puravarashoura (the valiant one), who entered the Lankapura (city of tanks) in the Sea of adversities; you are the adra paraakrama (the mighty one) who has crossed the ocean in a single leap, and you are the Kapi raja shikamani (the crown jewel of the monkey clan) who has conveyed the whereabouts of Sita to Rama" But Hanuman did not relish any of the titles conferred on him by Sita. Sita continued, "0h, Hanuman, I have not seen a virtuous one Iike you. There is none equal to you in terms of physical strength in this world." She also conferred the titles of Gunavantha and Balavantha on Hanuman. None of these pleased Hanuman. In the end, Sita blessed Hanuman saying, "May Rama love you forever and install Himself in your heart."
Then Hanuman leapt in joy. He said, "0h mother, there is nothing greater than God's love in this world. I do not crave for any title. I pray only for Rama's love. In the absence of the love of Lord Rama, I will not be happy even if the whole world were to come under my control. My life will find fulfilment only when I am the recipient of His love."Such an all-powerful one like Hanuman craved only for the love of Rama, nothing else.
Love is everything. Human quality lies in kindling love within, speaking with love and acting with love. Basing on this it is said, "The proper study of mankind is man. "Once, a Pundit approached Buddha and challenged him to enter into a debate with him. The terms were that if he were the loser; he would know Buddhism along with his 3000 disciples and serve Buddha lifelong. But if Buddha were to be the loser it was obligatory on his part to be subservient to the Pundit. Buddha smilingly said, Punditasama-darshinaha, a true Pundit is one who has equal-mindedness. A true Pundit makes no distinction between the dualities of life, such as pain and pleasure, joy and sorrow. A person with anger and ego is unfit to be called a Pundit.In pilgrim centres such as Haridwar, Rishikesh, Badrinath and Amarnath, you find Pandas who give mantras that would grant liberation to the departed souls. Pandas can not be called Pundits.In this world there are many who have gone through sacred texts. The knowledge of the Self can not be acquired by mere scholarship or sitting at the feet of a guru. There are many who go through voluminous books, but is there a person who practises at least one teaching? Scholarship bereft of practice is futile.
Bhagavad Gita declares:
Kavim Puraanam, Manushaasi Thaaram Masnoraneeyaamsa Manusmare Dyah Sarvasya Dhaataaram Aachintya Roopam Aaditya Varnam Thamasah Parasthaath.
Who is a Kavi (poet)? A poet is one who knows the past, present and the future; not the one who merely plays with words. This implies that God alone is the true poet. What is the inner meaning of Purana? Pura means body. The divine principle that moves from top to toe in the body is referred to as Purana. Next comes Anushaasita (one who has control over the mind), you may imprison a person who has committed a crime, but you can not prevent his mind from travelling all over the world. There is no one in this world, who can command the mind. It is only God who has the power to control the mind. Therefore, God is known as Anushaasita. Explaining thus, Buddha silenced the Pundit, and advised him to give up pomp and show, pride and ego. He told the Pundit not to get carried away by the worldly knowledge. He exhorted him to acquire the divine knowledge and surrender to God.
Buddha said, "I undertook spiritual practice for a long time and have gone through various sacred texts in quest of knowledge. Ultimately I realized that mastering the senses is essential for acquiring knowledge of the Self. The five senses are the gifts of God. Make proper use of them. Only then can you realize the Self. What is the use of going through sacred texts and undertaking spiritual practices without proper utilization of the five senses? I have controlled the five senses and put them on the right path as a result of which I am experiencing bliss" Buddha attained Nirvana by controlling his five senses and making proper use of them.
What is Nirvana? It is nothing but merger in bliss. Water bubble is born in water, sustained in water and ultimately merges in it. Likewise, human being is born in bliss, sustained in bliss and ultimately merges in it. Bliss can be experienced by controlling the five senses. This is the true Sadhana. Mere chanting of the Lord's name will not suffice. First and foremost, the senses have to be controlled. At the time of attaining Nirvana, Buddha, seeing his cousin, Ananda, shedding tears called him near and said "Ananda, true to your name, you should experience Ananda (bliss). You should never shed tears of sorrow.You are the embodiment of Ananda. All of us are embodiments of Brahma". Saying so Buddha put his hand on Ananda and attained Nirvana. Whoever understands this truth can experience bliss and attain divinity.
When attaining liberation is so easy and simple, why do you struggle hard for it? It only means that you are not making any effort to understand the truth. You are mixing the metals of worldly desires to your heart,which may be compared to gold. As a result heart has become polluted and lost its true identity which is bliss. Ancient saints have said that bliss lies in visualizing your true form, which is the a Principle of Atma. Proper utilization of the a senses will lead to the knowledge of the Atma. Sage Patanjali said, Yogaha Chitta Vritti Nirodhaha (the control of senses is true Yoga). No Sadhana is greater than this. All the spiritual practices such as Japa (chanting of Lord's name) and Thapa (penance) will be of no avail if the senses are not controlled. You may be under the impression that it is not possible for a human being to control the senses. Here control does not mean total cessation. Discharge your duties. But whatever you do, do it with a feeling that it is to please God (Sarva Karma Bhagavath Preethyartham). Once you develop this Feeling all your senses will naturally becontrolled.
Embodiments of Love!
You feel that Arpitham (total surrender) to God is rather difficult; but according to Me nothing is easier than this. It may be easy to make a garland out of flowers or to remove the petals of a flower, for that matter, but total surrender to God is much easier and simpler than this. You find it difficult because you do not have steady and firm faith in God.
GOD IS EVERYWHERE. There is no place without God. There is no being without divinity. Each and every one is the embodiment of God. If you have total faith in this truth, you will never have difficulties. When your faith is defective, you find it difficult to achieve anything.
Embodiments of Love!
Have faith in God and love Him. Love Is God.You are bound to be successful in all your endeavours if you have faith in God. Any task, however difficult it may be, can be accomplished with God's grace. That is what happened in the case of Hanuman. With Rama's grace he leapt across the ocean, reached and found the whereabouts of Sita. He returned to Rama and described the untold suffering of Sita. "Oh Rama, please listen to what I say. I have seen Mother Sita surrounded by demons, shivering like a fear-stricken parrot in the cage. "On hearing this, Rama and Lakshmana immediately took their bows and arrows. Rama said, "I can not bear the suffering of Sita. Let us not waste even a moment. Let us go to Lanka."
Rama reacted in this manner not because of attachment towards His consort. Sita symbolizes Prakriti (nature). God cannot bear the suffering of nature. In order to alleviate the suffering of nature, Rama decided to go to Lanka immediately.
Dharma (righteousness), Artha (wealth), Kaama (desire) and Moksha(liberation) are considered to be the four objectives (Purushaarthaas)of human life. In fact these correspond to the four stages of humanIife; namely, Brahmacharya, Grihastha, Vaanaprastha and Sanyasa. They do not correspond to Purushaarthaas in the true sense of the term. Today people are under the mistaken notion that the term Purusha corresponds to man, but not to woman. But actually Purusha means Atma or Chaitanya or Prana or Jivi. For the Atma there is no gender like masculine or feminine. So Purushaarthaa means Atma Dharma or the Dharma of the Awareness Principle or the Dharma of Life Principle. This is the true Purushaartha, the prime objective of human life. Without understanding the true meaning of the term Purushaarthaa, people talk of one Dharma for men and another for women. Saayujya(merger) is the true Atma Dharma and is true Purushaarthaa.
The second objective is Artha (wealth). Artha does not mean money or gold. Earning money or gold is not the objective of life. Money comes and goes. Wisdom is the true wealth. Advaita Danhanam Jnanam, seeing unity in diversity is the true wisdom. One has to earn this wealthof wisdom.
The third objective is Kaama (desire). This does not correspond to sensual desires. One should have desire for liberation (Moksha Kaama). One should have the desire to understand the Atmic Principle and attain divinity.
These are the main objectives of human Iife. Each word in Vedanta has many meanings associated with it. Different people interpret it in different ways. Today what people understand of the four objectives of human life corresponds to the Ashrama Dharmas such as Brahmacharya, Grihastha, Vaanaprastha and Sanyasa. They do not correspond to the Adhyaathmika Dharma (Spiritual Dharma). Spiritual Dharma is the true Dharma. Only that can confer Liberation.
What is Liberation? It is not merely reaching God. Your thoughts, words and actions should be one with the Divine. The rivers such as Ganga,Godavari and Saraswathi have different names and forms, but once theymerge in the ocean, they lose their name, form, taste and. Similarly once you merge in God, there will be no difference whatsoever. Experiencing such non-dualism is the true objective of human life.
Embodiments of Love !
Legend has it that when Siva, in order to save the world, swallowed Haalahala (poison). The resultant heat affected the world. In order to cool down the world, Siva created Himalayas. Then He placed Himalayas on His Stomach. As a result, the Himalayas absorbed all the heat from His body and He got up. This event is being celebrated as Sivarathri. This is only a worldly interpretation. Truly speaking the whole world is contained within Him. Such Divinity has neither birth nor death. The body may undergo change, but the Divine principle remains the same. Love never undergoes any change. It remains love always.
The quality of sugar is sweetness. It does not change whether it is added to coffee, tea, water or rice pudding. That which remains changeless is referred to as Sath (being). This Sath is within you. Love is its sweetness. We have to turn this love towards Visweswara (God), but not towards Vishayas. Sath can be compared to sugar. Chith (Chaithanya) to water. When sugar is added to water, it becomes syrup; likewise when Sath and Chith come together,what results is Ananda (bliss). Sath is associated with the Atma and the Chith with the body. Atma is Purusha and body is Prakriti(feminine principle). The unity of Purusha and Prakriti is human life. So, every human being is Ardhanaareeshwara (Androgynous).
The principle of Siva (Siva thatwa) teaches the unity of Prakriti and Purusha. Forgetting this principle man considers this physical body to be made up of merely blood, flesh and facial matter. No doubt it has these constituents, but one should not forget the fact that divinity permeates this body. To set an ideal to this world, the body is very important.
Embodiments of Love!
Body is Parvati and Atma is Eswara. There was a spiritual aspirant who used to repeat the mantra Sivohamas commanded by his guru. One day some one asked him the meaning of the mantra he was chanting. He said Sivoham meant "I am Siva". But when questioned what his relationship with Parvati was, he slapped his own cheeks and said with a tone of having committed a great sin, "aparaadham! aparaadham!" (blasphemyl). If he really had faith in the mantra he was chanting, he would have surely said, "Parvati is a part of my own being. "He could not say so as he was attached to his body. Attachment to the body leads to dualities because of which man is suffering.
Eswara and Parvati are present in every individual. The combination of these two aspects constitutes Manavatwam (mankind). Manava refers to human being. Ma means 'not', Nava means 'new': So mankind is not new,it is ancient and eternal. But you are not able to understand this truth.Here there are three letters: Ma-Na-Va. Ma means maya (illusion), Na means without, Va means Varthinchuta (to conduct oneself). He is a true human being who conducts himself with out being under illusion. Buttodayman is acting in a contradictory manner. At least from today try to understand the truth. Your deha (body) and desha (country) can be compared to object and reflection. Just as you safeguard your body, keep in mind the welfare of the nation too. Understand the true meaning and inner significance of Sivarathri. (Showing the Hiranyagarbha Lingam to the devotees, Bhagavan continued...) This is present in everybody's Hridaya (spiritual heart) and is on the right side of the body.
The principle of Hiranyagarbha is spread all over the body. It assumes a form when I will it. Whoever has seen this Lingam at the time of its emergence will not have rebirth. One should see Its form as It emerges. In order to sanctify your lives, such sacred manifestations have to be shown to you every now and then. Only then can you understand the divinity in humanity. This Lingam will not break even if it is dropped from a height with force. This is Amruthatwam (immortality). It is changeless. You can not see such a manifestation anywhere else in the world. it is possible only with Divinity. (After singing the Bhajan, "Siva, Siva, Siva, Siva Anaraada." Bhagavan continued)
For the past 20 years devotees did not have the privilege of witnessing Lingodbhava. The reason was lakhs of devotees used to gather in the Poornachandra Hall to witness this grand spectacle. As Poornachandra Hall can not accommodate large gatherings, there used to be stampedes. As a result devotees were put to lot of inconvenience. In order to avoid this, Lingodbhavam was discontinued. Not only this, three types of Lingams emerge. They are Bhur, Bhuvah and Suvaha. Bhur refers to materialization (body), Bhuvaha refers to vibration (Prana) and Suvaha refers to radiation (Atma). I often say you are not one, but three:"The one you think you are (physical body), the one others think you are (mental body), the one you really are (Atma)."
On every Sivarathri all the three Lingams would emerge. Even now the other Lingams had started to emerge, but I prevented them, because there are many things to be told to you. In future you will be a witness to many more manifestations of Divinity. Understand that this bliss can be experienced only in the proximity of the Divine and no where else. Don't get deluded just because I am talking, laughing, walking and eating like you. Don't get deluded by the body feeling. All My actions are selfless, selfless, selfless. There is no trace of selfishness in Me. Have firm faith in this truth. If you have total faith, wherever you are, all your desires will be fulfilled without your asking. Only those who don't have total faith suffer. Develop self-confidence. That is the first Sadhana you have to undertake.
Truly you are all most fortunate. Today is Somavaaram (Monday), very endearing to Somasekara (Eswara). That is why Siva is extolled as Someshwara and Somasekara. This body was also born on a Monday. In every Siva temple, special prayers are offered on Mondays. Hanuman is worshipped on Mangalavaaram (Tuesdays). When Ravana was killed in the battlefield, Hanuman rushed to Sita to convey the good news. Sita was overjoyed and blessed Hanuman profusely saying, "Hanuman, I don't know what day it is, but since you have conveyed the much awaited Mangalakara Vaartha (auspicious news), this day shall be called Mangalavaaram(Tuesday) and may you be worshipped on this day." In the Treta Yuga names of the days, such as Monday and Tuesday, were not in existence; they are of recent origin. Therefore, in the culture of Bharat each term has an inner significance. But Bharatiyas themselves are not making any effort to understand them and are going along the wrong path. Culture is important, not caste. We have to uphold the culture.
Embodiments of Love!
Understand the truth that love is Atma and Atma is love.