THE MYSTICISM OF SHASTA HILL :

To,


All Members,


( Sri Sabari mala - Sri Ayyappa Swami )


All great masters convey the truth to the masses through the instrument of mysticism. Through it these men of perfection sing the song of their experiences, finding their way into the heart of man.
Whenever they try to explain the experience beyond the worldly knowledge of the ordinary man, they have to employ this peculiar technique called mysticism. These expressions of their transcendental experiences are the literature of mysticism. It is there in all religions. Whether it be Buddhism, Jainism or Islam.

But of all religions, it is in Hinduism that this technique of conveying the highest form of thought has been developed into a perfect art. So, to carry the message of the Vedas to the average man, the great masters have used this vehicle of mysticism.

But, quite often, this technique is not understood by the Hindus themselves. The pundits take it literally and start explaining it from the aspect of a god and his wife or and avatara an his wife! No wonder, many people do not understood or accept it.

What is the significance of Shasta Hill ? Shasta is a deity, a powerful symbol in Hindu literature. He is known to be the protector of the weak, one who saves people from disease, sickness and the miseries of life.

The Vishnu Purana explains that in the heavens the gods and the demons, the devas and asuras, decided to sink their differences temporarily to strive for a mutual endevour, just as the politicians today join together for the national emergency! This was a national program planned in the heavens to churn the milky ocean, the abode of Vishnu, to get the amrta, the immortal elixir of life.
Manthara Mountain was the churner; Vasuki, the great serpent, was the rope used for churning, the churning produced many gifts which were distributed, and finally the amrta was collected by the national effort of cooperative activity. But the asuras ran away with the profit, as the capitalists do today, therefore, at that time, the devas prayed to the Lord. Vishnu heard them. He went himself, and by a clever manoeuvre, brought back the nectar.

He used Maya, his power of delusion, so that when the asuras ran away with the nectar, they could not come to a a conclusion as to who should distribute it properly, nor could they decide on the rate of distribution. They quarrelled loudly among themselves. At that time, Vishnu came in the form of an enchanting maiden. The asuras, true to their nature, stopped what they were doing to look at her, because she was so beautiful. She said, “if you have faith in me and sit down, I will distribute the collection justly.” The asuras, with their eyes glued to her, agreed immediately and sat down. She, resenting their lustful looks which offended her modesty, said to them, “ Please close your eyes and then i will distribute it to you.”

Obediently they shut their eyes, all the while thinking of her beauty behind their closed eyelids. While they were waiting thus quietly for their turn so that she would come and give some nectar in their turn so that she would come and give some nectar in their hands, the maiden ran away with the pot. One fellow, cheating a bit, opened his eyes and cried out to the others. “Hey, she is gone!” The others were afraid to open their eyes and look, since they thought it to be a ruse of the fellow who called out, for the maiden had said that whoever opened his eyes would not get any nectar. Slowly, as the minutes ticked away, they too became suspicious, opened their eyes, saw that she was gone and immediately gave chase.

Later on, Lord Siva asked Vishnu about the girl and the pot. “Tell me what happened. I was lost in meditation. Let me see the girl.” Lord Vishnu replied, “You will get shaken by Mohini's form. Her very name suggests one who enchants everybody.” “No,” protested Siva vehemently, “What do you mean! After Hundred of years of tapas, what can shake me?” So Vishnu, for the entertainment of Siva, took his Maya form of Mohini. Parameshwara could not withstand the charm of Mohini, and a child was born of that contact. Thus Shasta was the child of Siva and Vishnu.

People, not understanding the deeper meaning, say it is all stupidity. The symbolic meaning is that the lower nature cannot get the amrta, only the higher nature can attain it. This indicates the need for subjective redemption of our own personality.

The milky ocean is the pure mind in which churning by manana(reflection) gives us the ability to discriminate the good from the bad, the matter from the spirit, our lower nature from the God in us.

As a result of the churning spiritual life bears fruit. In the pure or spiritual mind, many things are manifested, even great siddhis (supernatural powers). We must reject them all, continue and wait until we reach that ultimate experience which can be gained as a result of the churning, the amrta, or immortality.

No amount of reading the Gita, the Koran or the Bible, which contain the amrta or the Truth, is of any use, for the one cannot understand it in the state of delusion, enchanted by one's own Maya. Vigorous churning and reflection is needed to obtain the amrta.

The Lord is the mighty power behind the whole universe. He is the power of construction as well as destruction; both are maintained together. He destroys in order to maintain the spiritual wealth in all of us. When the constructive aspect and the destructive aspect wed, a child is born; this is Shasta, the protector, who destroys our negative tendencies in order to maintain the sattva, the goodness, the spiritual power and wealth in every one of us.

We invite this Shasta power in us. We adore this divine aspect, for without the grace of this mighty power, no meditation is possible. For vedantins, without grace of Shasta(Guru), consistency in meditation is not possible. Sri Sankara's mother was a great devotee of Shasta. She had no children. By the grace of Shasta, she conceived Sankara.

In Kerala, Shasta is known as 'Ayyappa'. In that temple, no distinction of race or caste is observed. It is the only temple maintained like that, the approach is very difficult; it is a matter of severe penance. Firstly, one must remain as a sannyasi at home for 41 days, living in strict self-control. Such a person wears a mala and a black, not a white cloth(dhoti) during this period. He remains in prayer, immersed in great thoughts.

Then, he begins the trip to the temple on foot, through the penance of the approach(its is n an arduous journey through rugged forests and rough mountain terrain.), he gets a taste of samnyasa, of total dedication unto the Lord. In the temple, a few pujas are performed daily to adore the glory of the Lord. Sinking all differences of caste and creed, devotees live together in the temple for eight or nine days as sojourners on a great pilgrimage.

It is natural that we face competition and challenges in our daily life. From time to time, there must be a period of clearing, when we can clean our emotions, confess our weaknesses, learn to love each other in mutual regard and correct our confusions and contentions. This is the function of temples and mosques. Such a temple serves a communal purpose. Many of us carry inimical thoughts, because we don't know the other's mind. The divine atmosphere of temples, churches and mosques has a salutary effect and we find all raga-dvesa(likes and dislikes) to be stupid and foolish. The concord between man and man becomes palpable. Such places become centres of cultural dissemination.

~ Swami Chinmayananda