#147 (Gr)attitude towards the body
Being objective means differentiating what is ours and what is given to us.
If anything is ours, it is always with us. We have full control over it and can modify it anytime we want, however we want.
How about the body? It is given to us.
Right now as you are listening, take a moment to sense the body, completely from one’s head to the toes. Notice the parts of the body that are in contact with the floor, the bed, or the chair.
As a part of one’s prayers and contemplation on the deity in this case being Shiva, there is a process whereby we invoke the grace of different devatas and visualise them to be place on different parts of the body. There are two aspects to it. One is the recognition that these devatas are responsible for the functioning of these parts and the second is we invoke their grace in the way in which the body parts function. So I will chant a small section which helps us invoke the grace of these devatas and also brings to mind their role and their blessing to this body.
प्रजनने ब्रह्मा तिष्ठतु। पादयोर्विष्णुस्तिष्ठतु | हस्तयोर्हरस्तिष्ठतु | ब्राह्मोरिन्द्रस्तिष्ठतु । जठरेऽग्निस्तिष्ठतु । हृदये शिवस्तिष्ठतु । कण्ठे वसवस्तिष्ठतु । वक्त्रे सरस्वती तिष्ठतु । नासिकयोर्वायुस्तिष्ठतु । नयनयोश्चन्द्रादित्यौ तिष्ठेताम् । कर्णयोरश्विनौ तिष्ठेताम् । ललाटे रुद्रास्तिष्ठन्तु । मूर्ध्न्यादित्यास्तिष्ठन्तु । शिरसि महादेवस्तिष्ठतु । शिखायां वामदेवस्तिष्ठतु । पृष्ठे पिनाकी तिष्ठतु । पुरतः शूली तिष्ठतु । पार्श्वयोः शिवाशङ्करौ तिष्ठेताम् । सर्वतो वायुस्तिष्ठतु । ततो बहिः सर्वतोऽग्निर्ज्वालामाला – परिवृतस्तिष्ठतु । सर्वेष्वङ्गेषु सर्वा देवता यथास्थानं तिष्ठतु । माग्ं रक्षन्तु । सर्वान् महान् जनान् रक्षन्तु॥ ॥
As I transfer my attention to the top of my head, I might feel some sensation – tingling, cold, warmth, or anything else that comes into awareness. The head protects the brain and the face also holds the four sensory organs – eyes, ears, nose, tongue.
The brain is a complex organ that controls touch, motor skills, vision, breathing, temperature, hunger and every process that regulates our body. All these are given to me.
The mind is able to learn, unlearn, absorb, reason, think, analyse and synthesise. My mind is able to feel, connect, remember and expand. I am grateful that my mind is able to do all of this and more. I am grateful for the head and its many functions.
May my head be relaxed, and at ease.
ललाटे रुद्रास्तिष्ठन्तु – May Rudra (another name for Shiva) be present in the forehead.
मूर्ध्न्यादित्यास्तिष्ठन्तु – May Aditya be present in the back of the forehead.
शिरसि महादेवस्तिष्ठतु – May Mahadeva (another name for Shiva) be present in the head
शिखायां वामदेवस्तिष्ठतु – The back portion of the head, may Shiva as Vamadeva be present there.
I shift attention to my eyes. I become aware of what the eyes feel – tired, heavy or relaxed. Since the time I have been born they have been showing me the world and a kaleidoscope of colors and forms. These tiny parts of the body which have allowed me to visually experience the world. They are given to me. I am grateful for it. I accept my eyes in whatever condition they are, in this moment.
May my eyes be healthy and well.
नयनयोश्चन्द्रादित्यौ तिष्ठेताम् – May the Sun and the moon be present in the light of the eyes
I shift attention to my ears. I am able to listen to all kinds of sounds – the gurgling laughter of my children, birds chirping, my favourite music, traffic sounds, different languages, conversations and love in my friends tone of voice and different words. They are given to me. I am grateful that I can experience the world through its different sounds. May my hearing be clear and crisp.
कर्णयोरश्विनौ तिष्ठेताम् – May the Ashwina devatas be present in our ears and bless them.
I shift attention to my nose. I feel the air coming in and out through the nostrils. With every inhalation my body feels energised and gets necessary oxygen for its functions. They are given to me. I am grateful that I am able to breathe.
May my breathing be full and relaxed.
नासिकयोर्वायुस्तिष्ठतु – May Vayu devata be present in and through our nostrils
I shift attention to the lips, jaw, mouth, and tongue. It is amazing how they all work together, in speaking, chewing, smiling and laughing. They are given to me. I am grateful. May my lips, jaw, mouth, and tongue be relaxed and healthy.
वक्त्रे सरस्वती तिष्ठतु – May goddess Saraswati be present on our tongue
I shift attention to my neck and notice any sensations – perhaps it is relaxed or there is stiffness. Ny neck supports the head. It helps me to move my head in different directions and assists in swallowing, breathing and so many other functions. The neck is given to me. I am grateful for it. May my neck move with ease.
कण्ठे वसवस्तिष्ठतु – May the Vasu-s abide in my neck and throat.
I shift attention to my shoulders which are the most mobile joints of the body. I am able to move my arms forward, backward sideways and so on. The shoulders are given to me. I am grateful for the range of movement that my shoulders allow. May my shoulders be relaxed, and at ease.
I shift attention to my arms and notice any sensation. May be my arms are holding the phone or cooking or driving or watering the plants or just resting by the side.
All the functions that my arms and hands do – holding, touching, caressing, cleaning, cutting, mending, typing, etc. The ligaments, joints and muscles seem to work in such close coordination. These are given to me. I am grateful for how my arms, hands, and fingers do all the work. May my arms and hands have the energy, be relaxed and at ease.
ब्राह्मोरिन्द्रस्तिष्ठतु – May our arms be blessed with Indra.
हस्तयोर्हरस्तिष्ठतु – May Hari bless our hands and be present there
I shift attention to all my internal organs; to name a few:
The heart, lungs, stomach, and intestine. The heart beats 100,000 times a day. Moment to moment it is pumping in oxygenated blood and other nutrients to all the parts of the body. The heart is given to me. I am grateful for its non-stop activity. May my heart be healthy and strong.
हृदये शिवस्तिष्ठतु – May Shiva be present and preside over our heart
My stomach receives all the food I eat and digests it with all the juices provided. It releases food to the intestines for further processing.
The stomach is given to me. I am grateful for all its work.
May my stomach be at ease
जठरेऽग्निस्तिष्ठतु – May the stomach region be blessed with Agni devata
The small and large intestines further digest the food and help absorb water and nutrients that the body needs. They sift through what is not required. The intestines and other internal organs are all given to me. I am grateful for how intelligently they help nourish the body. May they be at ease and function well.
I shift attention from the front of the body to the back, slowly moving from the top of my shoulders, down the spine, to the lower back. My entire back provides support to the torso. It is given to me. It allows me to stand, walk, bend, twist, dance, climb and so on. I am grateful for the support it provides.
May my back be flexible and strong.
पृष्ठे पिनाकी तिष्ठतु – May the back portion of the body be blessed by Shiva, who is holding a bow ( referred to as Pinaki) be present there.
पुरतः शूली तिष्ठतु – The front portion of the body, may all of it be blessed by Shiva who is holding the trisula
पार्श्वयोः शिवाशङ्करौ तिष्ठेताम् – May the sides be blessed by Shiva and Shankara (both words referring to Shiva).
I shift attention to the pelvic and hip area and noticing any sensation of solidness at the point of contact with the chair, floor, or bed. The pelvic muscles aids in breathing and bear the weight of the body while sitting and standing. It holds the reproductive organs which have the capacity to bring another life into the world. This region holds the bladder and bowels as well. It is given to me. I am grateful for all its functions. May my pelvis and hips be healthy and relaxed.
प्रजनने ब्रह्मा तिष्ठतु – May Brahmaji be present and bless our genital organs.
I shift attention to the thighs, knees and ankles. These allow me to stand, walk and move from place to place. The muscles, bones and ligaments work together to provide support, balance and movement. These are given to me. I am grateful for all its functions. May my legs be healthy, and well;
May my feet carry me with ease.
पादयोर्विष्णुस्तिष्ठतु – May Vishnu preside over and bless our legs and feet
As I do a quick scan of the body from head to toe, it is possible that there may be
pain, or discomfort, in any of the body parts;
I allow that part to soften, the tightness to release and send kindness to that body part through my breath.
May this area of my body be at ease;
May the pain be released;
May this part of my body be healed.
May I appreciate my body in this moment.
May my entire body be at ease. All of it is given to me.
My body is a medium to experience the entire world.
I am grateful for all of it.
My body is prasaada.
When I constantly judge it, try to fix it, gratitude seems to slip away and inadequacy springs up. Can I still do all that I want to use the body for, without rejecting and judging it?
सर्वतो वायुस्तिष्ठतु – May all the parts of the body inside-outside be blessed by Vayu. Vayu is responsible to aid the different functions of the body.
ततो बहिः सर्वतोऽग्निर्ज्वालामाला – परिवृतस्तिष्ठतु – Inside and outside all over there is different flames of Agni and in those flames Agni, which stand for knowledge, may I have full protection
सर्वेष्वङ्गेषु सर्वा देवता यथास्थानं तिष्ठतु | माग्ं रक्षन्तु | सर्वान् महान् जनान् रक्षन्तु॥ – May all the body parts be blessed by the different devatas and may they abide in all of them. May they protect me and all other beings
As I am aware of my body, from moment to moment,
I see that it is given to me.
In the Vedic tradition, that which is given to you is prasaada.
Is prasaada a specific object? No.
Then, how can you say that the body is prasaada?
What makes it prasaada is seeing that this body is not mine.
Gratitude for what has been given transforms the body into prasaada.
The entire body rests in the wholeness, permeated by kindness and intelligence that is Bhagavan.
