LA-N
Lastly, the solid state of matter, called earth, supports the other elements. This solid element corresponds to the dental L, (from Ü, lri), and hence to Mâyâ identified with the Earth goddess and the feminine principle (Prakriti). "Earth is the basic element: it supports the others. It is the earth which provides food; from food comes the seed, and from the seed comes life" (Kârikâ 17).
ÑA-MA-NA-NA-NA-M (NASALS): THE SENSES OF PERCEPTION
The successive states of the condensation of energy, which appear to us as gaseous incandescent, liquid, or solid, are all formed from tiny (sukshmä) entities, or atoms (anu). They resemble dispersed solar systems but are in fact no more than gravitational formations of ether. The states of matter are organized along different means of communication and are only differentiated as far as we are concerned by the perceptions we have of them; and our perceptions are linked to the duration of apparent time and to the relative dimension of space. Their appearance results from the limitations of our five senses. There is a hierarchy of the senses, connected to the order in which the different stages in the formation of matter appear. The ears perceive only the characteristic vibratory forms of space or ether; the sense of touch recognizes the gaseous state; the eyes perceive the igneous state; taste recognizes liquid; and the nose recognizes the solid state. These forms of perception are represented, according to Nandikeshvarä, by the five nasals, which are to be found in the same places of articulation as the semivowels. (In practice, three of these nasals do not appear in the French or English alphabet; they can only be represented approximately.)
"The five nasals are connected with the 'perceptible qualities' (gunä[s]): hearing, touch, sight, taste and smell, corresponding to the five states of matter present in all things" (Kâshikâ. 18). Nandikeshvarä reminds us that from the point of view of experience or perceptibility, the world begins from the materialized energetic aspect represented by I and not from the theoretical aspect (A) of the plan. "I, representing energy (Shakti), is thus deemed to be the principle of all the other letters" (Kâshikâ. 7). The nasals thus start with the palatal Ñ, corresponding to an I, in other words, to Prakrtti, the plan realized in substance.
The nasals, which appear as the fifth consonant in each group, are as follows: the guttural-nasal (now placed in the center), representing hearing (ether); the palatal nasal N (as in Spanish), representing touch (air); the labial nasal M, representing taste (water); the cerebral nasal N, representing sight (fire); and the dental nasal N, representing smell (earth).
The hierarchy of the senses reflects the hierarchy of the successive appearance of the different elements. Ether or pure vibration is perceived only by hearing or its analogous senses. The others follow in order: the gaseous state of air, perceived by hearing and touch; the state of fire, perceived by sight, touch, and hearing; the liquid state, perceived by sight, touch, hearing, and taste; and finally the solid element of earth, perceived by smell and all the other senses.
JHA-BHA-Ñ AND GHA-DHA-DHA-SH: THE ORGANS OF ACTION
The fourth letter (varnä) of each group (vargä) represents one of the senses of action which allows the formation of the body of the universe (virât) inhabited by consciousness (cit). They are present in all beings but are not perceptible in inanimate matter. [Kâshikâ 19]
Jh and Bh represent the organs of speech and touch. The tongue, organ of speech, corresponds to the element of ether and is represented by the letter Jh. The hand (pânî), the organ of touch which perceives the gaseous element or air, is represented by the letter Bh. [Kâshikâ 19–20]
Gh, Dh, and Dh introduce forms of action which correspond to the elements of fire, water, and earth and which are present in all living beings in the feet, the anus, and the sexual organs. [Kâshikâ 20]
The third degree of the manifestation of matter is the state of fire corresponding from the point of view of perception to sight, and to the senses of direction, of which the organ of perception is the eye and the organ of action is the foot.
The earth derives from the sun, which is for man the center of his universe. This is why it is represented by the guttural Gh (born of A, the principle). Then comes the liquid element, of which the organ of action in man is the genitals. It is represented by the cerebral Dh.
The solid state represented by the dental Dh corresponds to smell and to the function of rejection, whose organ of action is the anus. In Nandikeshvarä's text, the inversion of anus–sexual organs (Pâyu-Upasthä) for sexual organs–anus seems to have come about for metrical reasons, although some have chosen to see an allusion to Tantric practices; the sexual organ was viewed as the producer of semen, connected with the sense of smell and a means for sexual communication, while the anus was seen as the residence of Kundalini (coiled energy).
JA-BA-GA-DA-DA-SH: THE ORGANS OF PERCEPTION
"In all living creatures the ear, the skin, the eyes, the nose, and the tongue are the five organs of perception. [They are oriented] toward the exterior and correspond to J-G-B-D-D" (Kâshikâ 21).
KHA-PHA-CHA-THA-THA-CHHA-TA-TA-V: THE VITAL ENERGIES
"The five vital'energies (prânä[s]) correspond to the second (aspirated) letters of each group: Kh, Ph, Ch, Th, Th. Kh is combustion (prânä, respiration-digestion); Ph is elimination (apânä); Ch (samânä, distribution-circulation); Th (udânä, reaction, force); Th (vyânä, planning and specialization)."
CHHA-TA-TA: THE INTERNAL FACULTIES
"Ch-T-T follows. These are the first consonants of the three middle groups of the Vargä series; and it is these which symbolize the internal faculties (antahkaranä)" (Nandikeshvarä Kâshikâ 22–23).
There are three of these faculties: the mind (manas), which discusses; the intellect (buddhi, including the memory), which decides; and the Ego (ahamkarä), which acts. The fourth of these internal faculties, the consciousness (cit), is treated separately, for it is an omnipresent principle. The palatal C represents the mind, the cerebral T the intellect, and the dental T the feeling of autonomy, the Ego.
There is a connection between Chh (sâmanä, circulation) and C (manas, the mind); between TH (udânä, force) and T (buddhi, the intellect); and between Th (vyânä, specialization) and T (ahamkarä, the Ego).
KA-PA-Y: PRAKRITI-PURUSHÄ
"Universal Nature (Praknti) and Universal Man (Purushä) are represented by the initial consonants of the first and last group: K and P" (Kâshikâ 24).
Now that we have defined in man (the microcosm) the elements that correspond to the constituents of the universe in the creative principle, we shall return to the First Cause, to the origin of all forms of existence; to the fundamental dualism.
K (the first letter of the first group) evokes nature, Prakriti, the substance of the universe, which is considered to be a feminine principle; P (the first letter of the last group) represents Purushä, the plan of the universe, considered to be a masculine principle. [Kâshikâ 24]
SHA-SHA-SA-R: THE THREE GUNÄ.
"Sattvä, Rajas, and Tamas are the three fundamental tendencies that form the nature of the world. They are represented by Sh, Sh, and S. The Great God (Maheshvarä) can act (create the world) by becoming incarnate in these three tendencies" (Kâshikâ 24).
The palatal Sh represents Rajas, the tendency toward gravitation (and toward equilibrium between the contrary forces which permit the formation of atoms and worlds). The cerebral Sh is Tamas, the centrifugal force (which animates and creates but also disperses and destroys). The dental S is Sattv3, the centripetal force of attraction (which concentrates, conserves, and protects). These three tendencies are characterized by the colors red, black, and white. They are personified in the three divine aspects of Brahmâ, Shivä, and Vishnu. Shivä is the ultimate principle: the principle of expansion, from which all else stems and to which everything returns at the end.
HA-L
The last formula of the Maheshvarä sûträ represents a return to the principle, the beginning and end of all existence, to the Being who stands motion
less outside and beyond the world. According to the Shivä gamä, "the letter H represents Shiva in his aspect as the ultimate principle." "Beyond the creation, beyond all that which can be defined, I am H, the Supreme Witness, the sum of all mercy. Having said that, the peace-giver (Shambhu) disappeared" (Nandikeshvarä Kâshikâ 27).
With this, Nandikeshvarä's analysis of the Maheshvarä sûträ comes to an end. His commentator adds: "The letter A, the first of all the letters, represents light and the supreme deity. The I (aham) is formed by the union of the beginning (A) and the end (H)."
The Ego, the center of all individualized consciousness, allows the living being, like universal man, to be the witnesses through whom the divine dream becomes apparent reality; the Gnostic Christians interpreted this formula as Alpha and Omega, the first and last letters of the Greek alphabet.
Creation by the Word
NANDIKESHVARÄ'S theory is an attempt to explain the fact that linguistic symbols can be used to define and describe the world of ideas as well as the world of matter, and that they can be the instrument of science and of thought. The way in which the original language was revealed to (or discovered by) mankind is of little importance. Nothing is changed by this revelation being instantaneous or a drawn-out process. Creation develops according to a preestablished plan, like a fetus. It is neither more nor less likely that language stemmed from the Damaru (Shivä's little drum), whose rhythm symbolizes the origins of life, than that it was slowly formed in the dull-witted intellect of half-apes: one myth is as good as another. The possibility of language must necessarily preexist its discovery and use. Its point of departure lies not in changing customs but in eternal principles. The extent of our possibilities of knowledge is determined by the limits of language.
Monosyllabic Dictionaries
ONE can find in India monosyllabic dictionaries that analyze the meaning of the various components of a syllable, and the corresponding elements in the various orders of reality.
In the realm of Yogä, particular vowels are associated with specific colors. Color differences are due to the frequency of light waves, just as musical sounds are defined by the frequency of sound waves. These in turn can be placed in parallel with the vowels of the spoken language. Nevertheless, because of the lack of simple instruments to measure the frequencies of the light waves, and because of the limited range in the spectrum of colors, the parallels between sounds and colors are imprecise. According to Raghunandanä Sharma's Aksharä-Vijñâanä (in Hindi), the fourteen vowels correspond to the following colors:
A = white (shvetä) Å = cream (pându)
I = red (raktä) Î = copper (tâmrä)
U = yellow (pîtä) Û = faun (Kapilä)
Ë (ri) = bluish-black (krishnä) E (rî) = browny-black (shyâmä)
Ü (lri) = smoke-color (dhûmra) Û (lrî) = orange (supishanga)
É = red-brown (pishangä) È = mother-of-pearl (trivarna)
Ó = speckled (shabalä) Ò = black or gold (karvandhurä)
These letters and colors correspond to those which characterize the cycles in which new human species are born and die. We are currently at the end of the seventh cycle (manvantara), which is characterized by the vowel Ë and the color bluish-black.
Modern Indian grammarians have attempted to trace, in the most varied of languages, the origins of certain words, on the basis of the information given in the Maheshvarä Sûträ. For example, the word devä (god), comes from the root div, meaning "shining" (an epithet of the sun). I represents shakti, or energy. D is sight; V derives from U. Div therefore corresponds to "materialized, visible energy."
The root vid (from which comes Vedä) is the opposite and reflection of Div. Div is the divine light; vid is its reflection—sight, knowledge, revelation. The English word God and the German Gott derive from the root go, meaning "bull," the animal sacred since prehistoric times as the incarnation of Shivä-Dionysos. G means "hearing" and Ó means "the principle present in its manifestation." Gó therefore means "revelation." In the same way, crown, a symbol of royalty, comes from the root krn, which means "horn" and refers to the divine character of royalty (K = Purushä, man; R = agni, fire; N= earth), or man shining out on earth.
Magic Formulae (Manträ)
THE meanings given to the different elements of language are not simply attribution. There is a true correspondence between the formulation of the Word and the structures of living beings and the material world. This can be verified by the power of the Manträ(s), or magic formulae.
Some syllables not only have a descriptive value, but can also become a path of action, the means of summoning a subtle principle. The real presence of a divinity can be summoned into his image through the power of a Manträ. A typical example of a Mantra is the Christian formula of consecration, which, in its Aramaic form actually changes the bread and wine into the flesh and blood of Christ; but in translation it can only evoke the mystery. The translation of words that are magical in nature renders the rite ineffective.
The magical power of words is not necessarily linked to their apparent meaning. This is the case with all Manträ(s): they play an essential role in all magical rites. The syllable with which many mantra(s) begin is the one which opens onto the universal: the syllable AUM (or more precisely AU, as it appears in Tantric rites).
One section of the Chhândogyä Upanishad is devoted to the various correspondences between the components of that syllable and the different aspects of the manifest world. Many other texts discuss the same subject. AUM is considered in a symbolic sense to be the syllable from which all others have stemmed. It contains all the elements of language since it is formed from the three points of the triangle (throat A, lips U, and nasal resonance ), within which all the points of articulation and hence the entirety of language are to be found. In day-to-day usage, the is replaced by M in order to avoid accidentally summoning the magic powers of the Manträ. A represents the principle of the world; U is the manifest principle; is hearing; AU summons the principle of the world manifested in the Word.
Much of the time we use words without knowing their true meaning: yet they have their revenge; for when we use sounds whose meaning is the opposite of what we attribute to them, and regard approximations as realities, we live in absurdity, and the results we obtain are contrary to those we are seeking. This is typical of most modern ideologies, which are based on key words whose meanings are other than what is attributed to them. Language, as the instrument of knowledge, is a powerful weapon whose misuse brings us quickly to disorder.
Elements of the Musical Vocabulary
STEMMING as they do from common principles, the divisions of articulated sound, just like those of musical sound (whose limits define our possibilities for communication), can be found in all the harmonies and proportions that form the universe. It is through the study of these harmonies—whose most immediate image is the phenomenon of music—that we can have insight into the harmonic nature of the stellar and planetary worlds as well as the structure of atoms, of the subtle and material worlds, both invisible and perceptible; we can then also understand the parallel universe which exists inside us, and which we perceive in the form of sensations and emotions, and whose mechanisms we can, through the introspection of Yogä, analyze and put into arithmetic formulae. The possibilities of articulated sound, like those of musical sound, are limited by inexorable and parallel laws; these are dependent upon the possibilities of our discrimination and perception, which establish the limits of the aspects of the world which we can and must perceive.
In the musical language, the intervals, which have a precise expressive significance, are in Indian musical theory called Shruti(s) (perceptible musical intervals). These Shruti(s), which form the base of all the musical languages, are fifty-four in number, just like the phonemes of spoken languages. In modal music like that of India, twenty-two of these intervals have a predominant role in the psychological action of the music.
The Various Forms of Language
S
POKEN language is not the only means of communication. There are linguistic possibilities, means of expression and communication linked to each of the states of matter (bhûtä) and each of the corresponding senses of perception and action.
The language of odors, tied as it is to the solid state of matter, is the most elementary. It plays an important part in the reproduction of the species. Odors and perfumes are signals: some animals (wolves, dogs, etc.) mark their territory and recognize their friends and enemies, their prey and food, by means of odors.
We use the language of taste, corresponding to liquid elements, as a guide to the alimentary process, the precondition of life.
The sense of touch, connected to the gaseous element, is rather rudimentary in man, with the exception of the aspect linked to auditory perceptions. The sound vibration is only perceptible to us because it is transmitted by the pressure of air, for our direct perception of the waves of ether is not developed. Some insects are not subject to the same restrictions, but we need a decoder in order to transform radio waves into audible sounds.
Visual Languages
CONNECTED as it is to the element of fire and to light, visual language is almost as important as spoken language. It is the realm of gesture, of symbols, of hieroglyphs and ideograms, and even to a certain extent of the forms of writing, which transpose audible sounds into visual symbols.
The language of Mudrä(s) (symbolic gestures) is used in ritual and dance, and allows the expression of concepts independently of any sound aspect. It is thus not linked to a spoken language. The same is true of ideograms; writing with ideograms, which are formed of visual elements not directly linked to sounds, is on a more abstract level than phonetic writing. Writing tends to alter and paralyze the evolution of a language, even though it is an artificial memory that allows the conservation and transmission of ideas.
While the Gods Play Page 23
