99-398: Ānanda Mārga ( lit. ' The Path of Bliss ' , also spelled Anand Marg and Ananda Marg ), or officially Ānanda Mārga Pracāraka Saṃgha (organization for the propagation of the path of bliss), is a world-wide socio-spiritual organisation founded in Jamalpur , Munger , Bihar , India , in 1955 by Prabhat Ranjan Sarkar , known as Shrii Shrii Anandamurti. It is also the name of
198-400: A technique of meditation based on moral rules directed to inner fulfillment. It recognizes that a balance is needed between the spiritual and mundane aspects of existence, and that neither one should be neglected at the expense of the other. Hence, the goal of Ananda Marga is " self-realization and the welfare of all". The spiritual philosophy of Ananda Marga recognizes that the universe is
297-585: A center, representing his influence and power. The iconography popular in representing the Chakras , states the scholar David Gordon White , traces back to the five symbols of yajna , the Vedic fire altar: "square, circle, triangle, half moon and dumpling". The hymn 10.136 of the Rigveda mentions a renunciate yogi with a female named kunannamā . Literally, it means "she who is bent, coiled", representing both
396-403: A certain colour. In various traditions, chakras are associated with multiple physiological functions, an aspect of consciousness , a classical element , and other distinguishing characteristics; these do not correspond to those used in ancient Indian systems. The chakras are visualised as lotuses or flowers with a different number of petals in every chakra. The chakras are thought to vitalise
495-511: A classical system of six-plus-one, the last being the Sahasrara, is most prevalent. This seven-part system, central to the core texts of hatha yoga, is one among many systems found in Hindu tantric literature. Hindu Tantra associates six Yoginis with six places in the subtle body, corresponding to the six chakras of the six-plus-one system. The Chakra methodology is extensively developed in
594-524: A minor goddess and one of many embedded enigmas and esoteric riddles within the Rigveda . Some scholars, such as D.G. White and Georg Feuerstein , have suggested that she may be a reference to kundalini shakti and a precursor to the terminology associated with the chakras in later tantric traditions. Breath channels ( nāḍi ) are mentioned in the classical Upanishads of Hinduism from the 1st millennium BCE, but not psychic-energy chakra theories. Three classical Nadis are Ida, Pingala and Sushumna in which
693-422: A nasal. Unlike other Indo-Aryan languages like Hindi, comprehension of Marathi is not impeded if all schwas are retained. However it will be interpreted as a formal register called 'Ati Shuddha Marathi', which is only used for certain plays and poetry recitals. Nepali orthography is comparatively more phonetic than Hindi when it comes to schwa retention. Schwas are often retained within the words unless deletion
792-741: A position but no definite nervous node or precise physical connection. The tantric systems envision it as continually present, highly relevant and a means to psychic and emotional energy. It is useful in a type of yogic rituals and meditative discovery of radiant inner energy ( prana flows) and mind-body connections. The meditation is aided by extensive symbology, mantras , diagrams, models (deity and mandala ). The practitioner proceeds step by step from perceptible models, to increasingly abstract models where deity and external mandala are abandoned, inner self and internal mandalas are awakened. These ideas are not unique to Hindu and Buddhist traditions. Similar and overlapping concepts emerged in other cultures in
891-509: A result of schwa syncope, the Hindi pronunciation of many words differs from that expected from a literal Sanskrit-style reading of Devanagari. For instance, राम is pronounced Rām (not Rāma , as in Sanskrit), रचना is pronounced Rachnā (not Rachanā ), and वेद is pronounced Ved (not Veda ). The name of the script itself is pronounced Devnāgrī , not Devanāgarī . Correct schwa deletion
990-484: A strong schwa deletion phenomenon, affecting both medial and final schwas. From an evolutionary perspective, the final schwas appear to have been lost prior to the medial ones. According to Cardona , the word-final schwa deletion occurred during the transition from Middle Gujarati to Modern Gujarati . In the Dardic subbranch of Indoian, Kashmiri similarly demonstrates schwa deletion. For instance, drākṣa (द्राक्ष)
1089-409: A teacher. These chakras were also symbolically mapped to specific human physiological capacity, seed syllables (bija), sounds, subtle elements (tanmatra), in some cases deities, colors and other motifs. Belief in the chakra system of Hinduism and Buddhism differs from the historic Chinese system of meridians in acupuncture . Unlike the latter, the chakra relates to subtle body, wherein it has
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#17327918725451188-501: A unique system of physical exercises, called yantra yoga or ' phrul ' khor . Chakras, according to the Bon tradition, enable the gestalt of experience, with each of the five major chakras, being psychologically linked with the five experiential qualities of unenlightened consciousness, the six realms of woe. The tsa lung practice embodied in the Trul khor lineage, unbaffles
1287-583: A variety of ancient meditation practices, collectively denominated as Tantra , part of the inner traditions of Hinduism and Buddhism . The concept of the chakra arose in Hinduism. Beliefs differ between the Indian religions, with many Buddhist texts consistently mentioning five chakras, while Hindu sources reference six or seven. Early Sanskrit texts speak of them both as meditative visualizations combining flowers and mantras and as physical entities in
1386-549: A wide range of supposed correspondences with other systems such as alchemy , astrology , gemstones, homeopathy , Kabbalah and Tarot were added later. Lexically, chakra is the Indic reflex of an ancestral Indo-European form *kʷékʷlos , whence also "wheel" and "cycle" ( Ancient Greek : κύκλος , romanized : kýklos ). It has both literal and metaphorical uses, as in the "wheel of time" or "wheel of dharma", such as in Rigveda hymn verse 1.164.11, pervasive in
1485-629: Is Lam for the earth element. All sounds, words and mantras in their dormant form rest in the muladhara chakra, where Ganesha resides, while the Shakti is Dakini . The associated animal is the elephant. Kurt Leland, for the Theosophical Society in America , concluded that the western chakra system was produced by an "unintentional collaboration" of many groups of people: esotericists and clairvoyants, often theosophical; Indologists ;
1584-403: Is həməro ( even ours ) with schwas but is pronounced həmᵊro . That is akin to the neighbouring Bhojpuri in which हमरा (meaning mine ) is pronounced həmrā rather than həmərā from the deletion of a medial schwa. Marathi exhibits extensive schwa deletion. The schwa at the end of a word is almost always deleted, except in the case of a few tatsama words from Sanskrit as well as when
1683-487: Is a phenomenon that sometimes occurs in Assamese , Hindi , Urdu , Bengali , Kashmiri , Punjabi , Gujarati , and several other Indo-Aryan languages with schwas that are implicit in their written scripts. Languages like Marathi and Maithili with increased influence from other languages through coming into contact with them—also show a similar phenomenon. Some schwas are obligatorily deleted in pronunciation even if
1782-416: Is a synthetic outlook, recognizing a theistic singularity or 'Supreme Consciousness', which is claimed to be both transcendental and manifested in all. To this end Ananda Marga suggests what it claims is a practical, rational, and systematic way of life for the balanced development of all human potentialities: physical, psychic and spiritual. This incorporate practices from hygiene, diet, and yoga postures, to
1881-402: Is also critical because the same letter sequence is pronounced two different ways in Hindi depending on the context. Failure to delete the appropriate schwas can then change the meaning. For instance, the letter sequence 'रक' is pronounced differently in हरकत ( har.kat , meaning movement or activity ) and सरकना ( sarak.na , meaning to slide ). Similarly, the sequence धड़कने in दिल धड़कने लगा (
1980-477: Is called Dharma and is generally considered to be the petal lotus of "Essential nature" and corresponding to the second state of Four Noble Truths . Corresponds to the middle dantien in the Qigong system. In esoteric Buddhism, it is called Nirmana, the petal lotus of "Creation" and corresponding to the first state of Four Noble Truths . Corresponds to the lower dantien in the Qigong system. The seed syllable
2079-564: Is called Sahaja Yoga. The system consists of six meditation techniques or lessons taught one by one, on a personal basis. The six lessons are: 1) Iishvara Pranidhana (Personal mantra and Ishta Cakra ), 2) Guru Mantra (Personal Guru Mantra ), 3) Tattva Dharana (Concentration on Cakras ' Tattvas ), 4) Sadharana Pranayama (Basic Pranayama . A special breathing technique), 5) Cakra Shodhana (Purification of Cakras . A special type of Dharana ), 6) Guru Dhyana (Special type of ideation for Dhyana ). A set of higher meditation lessons
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#17327918725452178-461: Is called the " subtle body " ( sukshma sarira ). This subtle body is energy, while the physical body is mass. The psyche or mind plane corresponds to and interacts with the body plane, and the belief holds that the body and the mind mutually affect each other. The subtle body consists of nadi (energy channels) connected by nodes of psychic energy called chakra . The belief grew into extensive elaboration, with some suggesting 88,000 chakras throughout
2277-573: Is claimed to be a principle which if practiced will lead to the desired objective. The essence of Tantra is to awaken the latent spiritual force in the human personality and unify oneself with the Cosmic Consciousness. According to tantric tradition a proper preceptor and a proper disciple are both essential for success on the path of Tantra. P.R. Sarkar clearly explains that, disciples are of three categories: 1) disciples that acquire spiritual knowledge when they are in close contact with
2376-407: Is covered by a set of rules called the 'Sixteen Points' that guide the practitioner on both spiritual and social aspects. It consist of yoga asanas , mudras , bandhas , pranayama , self-massage and two specific dances, kaos'ikii and tandava . A lacto-vegetarian diet and fasting are also included as a fundamental part of yogic practice. The goal of Ananda Marga is " self-realization and
2475-447: Is no spiritual practice, where people pray to God for the fulfilment of narrow worldly desires, where people's only slogan is "Give us this and give us that" – only there do we find that Tantra is discouraged. So only those who do not understand Tantra, or even after understanding Tantra do not want to do any spiritual practice, oppose the cult of Tantra. Sarkar's "Tantra and its Effect on Society", 1959. Sarkar weaves continuity with
2574-483: Is pronounced both as /ˌxikˈkʰitɔ/ and /ˌxikˈkʰit/. The Bengali equivalent for schwa is open-mid back rounded vowel or [ɔ]. Bengali deletes this vowel at the end when not ending in a consonant cluster but sometimes retains this vowel at the medial position. The consonant clusters at the end of a word usually follows a close-mid back rounded vowel or [o]. For example, the Sanskrit word पथ (/pɐt̪ʰɐ/, way) corresponds to
2673-521: Is regarded as useful in freeing the mind and preparing it for meditation. Ananda Marga members are recommended to practice collective meditation at least once a week. These meetings, Dharma Chakras (held weekly in the Dhyan Mandir ), are preceded by the singing of Prabhat Samgiita ("Songs of the New Dawn" composed by Sarkar) followed by the spiritual dance of Lalita Marmika . Before meditation
2772-495: Is signaled by the use of a halanta(्). सुलोचना (a name) is pronounced sulocnā by Hindi speakers while sulocanā by Nepali speakers. Some exceptions exist, such as सरकार (government), pronounced sarkār , not sarakār . The following rules can be followed to figure out whether or not Nepali words retain the final schwa in a word. Note that schwas are often retained in music and poetry to facilitate singing and recitation. Odia in its standardised form retains
2871-543: Is taught to advanced practitioners committed to dedicate more time for spiritual practices and universal service. According to the Ananda Marga system, the Lalita Marmika dance is performed particularly during the collective meditation. It was supposedly invented by Parvati , the wife of the god Shiva . This yogic dance with swaying movements, combined with a kirtan (the chanting of the universal mantra),
2970-632: Is the open-mid back rounded vowel or [ɔ]. Assamese deleted this vowel at the end of consonant ending words, with a few exceptions like in numerals. In clusters, it's deleted in words like কান্ধ (/kandʱ-/, shoulder), বান্ধ (/bandʱ-/, bond) while optional in the word গোন্ধ (/ɡʊnˈdʱ(ɔ)/, smell). Modern Standard Assamese developed the schwa in words like কাছ (/kaˈsɒ/, turtle), পাৰ (/paˈɹɒ/, pigeon), তই কৰ (/tɔi kɔɹɔ/, you do) which appear with different vowels in some other dialects, like কাছু /ˈkasu/, পাৰা /ˈpaɾa/, কৰাহ /ˈkɔɾaʱ/ in some Kamrupi dialects . Eastern (and its sub-dialect, Standard) and Central Assamese retained
3069-553: Is the Sanskrit word for grape, but the final schwa is dropped in the Kashmiri version, which is dach (दछ् or دَچھ). Maithili's schwa deletion differs from other neighbouring languages. It does not delete schwa, but shortens it, i.e. ə → ə̆ / VC_CV applies to the language. Maithili with increased influence of other languages through coming into contact with them has been showing the phenomenon of schwa deletion sometimes with words that traditionally pronounce schwas. For instance, हमरो
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3168-579: Is the best category of disciples. During the 1960s, the organisation expanded rapidly in India, sending Acharyas as missionaries to other continents. Ananda Marga's popularity in India put it in direct confrontation with the Communist Party in West Bengal . In 1967, Ananda Marga headquarters came under attack by locals who were allegedly incited by Communist leaders. Criticism of corruption in
3267-471: Is the main spiritual practice of this tradition, and through it the practitioner struggles to overcome weaknesses and imperfections. The basis of Ananda Marga practice is covered by a set of rules called the 'Sixteen Points' that guide the practitioner on both spiritual and social aspects. Sarkar expounded these principles in his 1961 Ānanda Sūtram , in Sanskrit. In the Tantric tradition of Ananda Marga,
3366-407: Is written as खरं ( khara , "true"). This often happens in the case of pluralization, e.g. फूल ( phūl , "flower") can be written as having the plural फुलं ( phula , "flowers"). This arises from the original plural marker -एं (as in फुलें phulẽ , "flowers") having degraded to a schwa in modern speech, and the anusvara serves a purpose as a non-deleted vowel even though it is not realized as
3465-475: Is रचना/রচনা which is pronounced racanā (/rɐtɕɐnaː/) in Sanskrit, racnā (/rətʃnɑː/) in Hindi and rôcona (/rɔtʃona/) in Bengali. While the medial schwa is deleted in Hindi (because of the ə → ∅ / VC_CV rule), it is retained in Bengali. On the other hand, the final schwa in वेद /বেদ is deleted in both Hindi and Bengali (Sanskrit: /veːd̪ə/, Hindi: /veːd̪/, Bengali: /bed̪/). The Assamese equivalent for schwa
3564-650: The Samgacchadvam mantra is chanted. At the end of meditation the Nityam Shuddham and the Guru Puja mantras are recited. Baba Nam Kevalam is a universal kirtan mantra given by Sarkar. The basic practices of Ananda Marga are yoga asanas , mudras , bandhas , pranayama , self-massage and two specific dances, kaos'ikii and tandava . These are accompanied by Lacto -vegetarian diet and fasting . The philosophy of Ananda Marga
3663-579: The Kubjikāmata and Kaulajñānanirnaya expanded the list to many more. In contrast to White, according to Feuerstein, early Upanishads of Hinduism do mention chakras in the sense of "psychospiritual vortices", along with other terms found in tantra: prana or vayu (life energy) along with nadi (energy carrying arteries). According to Gavin Flood , the ancient texts do not present chakra and kundalini-style yoga theories although these words appear in
3762-523: The Indo-Aryan languages Odia and Sinhala . According to Masica (1993), there has been not "any attempt to deal with it [schwa deletion] (and medial vowel loss in general) in systematic fashion either descriptively or historically across all NIA [New Indo-Aryan] languages." Although the Devanagari script is used as a standard to write Modern Hindi , the schwa ('ə') implicit in each consonant of
3861-565: The Sanskrit word " Rāma " ( IPA: [raːmɐ] , राम) is pronounced "Rām" ( IPA: [raːm] , राम्) in Hindi. The schwa ( ə ) sound at the end of the word is deleted in Hindi. However, in both cases, the word is written राम. The schwa is not deleted in ancient languages such as Sanskrit . The schwa is also retained in all the modern registers of the Dravidian languages Tamil , Telugu , Kannada , and Malayalam as well as
3960-419: The aura , developmental stages, associated diseases, Aristotelian elements , emotions, and states of consciousness were added still later. A wide range of supposed correspondences such as with alchemical metals, astrological signs and planets , foods, herbs, gemstones , homeopathic remedies, Kabbalistic spheres, musical notes, totem animals, and Tarot cards have also been proposed. In Anatomy of
4059-446: The chakra with eight points, she has the ninefold chakra as a throne. — Yoginihrdaya 53–54 (Translator: Andre Padoux) The Chakras are part of esoteric ideas and concepts about physiology and psychic centers that emerged across Indian traditions. The belief held that human life simultaneously exists in two parallel dimensions, one "physical body" ( sthula sarira ) and other "psychological, emotional, mind, non-physical" it
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4158-454: The initiation the aspirant makes a commitment to practice meditation and to live in harmony with the universal balance, and is then taught the technique itself. The aspirant is then required to keep the individual lessons personal. In addition, he also taught Kapalika meditation to many sanyásins . His system of yoga can be termed as Rájadhirája Yoga , Tantra Yoga , or simply Ánanda Márga Yoga . The basic Ananda Marga meditation system
4257-556: The sahasrara "center" at the crown first appears in the Kubjikāmata-tantra , an 11th-century Kaula work. It was this chakra system that was translated in the early 20th century by Sir John Woodroffe (also called Arthur Avalon) in the text The Serpent Power . Avalon translated the Hindu text Ṣaṭ-Cakra-Nirūpaṇa meaning the examination (nirūpaṇa) of the six (ṣaṭ) chakras (cakra). The Chakras are traditionally considered meditation aids. The yogi progresses from lower chakras to
4356-517: The 1920s, each of the seven chakras was associated with an endocrine gland, a tradition that has persisted. More recently, the lower six chakras have been linked to both nerve plexuses and glands. The seven rainbow colours were added by Leadbeater in 1927; a variant system in the 1930s proposed six colours plus white. Leadbeater's theory was influenced by Johann Georg Gichtel 's 1696 book Theosophia Practica , which mentioned inner "force centres". Psychological and other attributes such as layers of
4455-603: The Bengali word পথ /pɔt̪ʰ/ (পথ্). But the Skt. word अन्त (/ɐnt̪ɐ/, end) retains the end vowel and becomes অন্তো (/ɔnt̪o/) in Bengali, as it ends with a consonant cluster. However, tatsama borrowings from Sanskrit generally retain the 'ɔˈ except in word-final positions and except in very informal speech. That vowel in medial position are not always retained. For instance, 'কলকাতা' is pronounced as কোল্কাতা (/kolkat̪a/), and not /kolɔkat̪a/ (although different pronunciations based on dialect exist, none pronounce it this way). Gujarati has
4554-504: The East and the West, and these are variously called by other names such as subtle body, spirit body , esoteric anatomy, sidereal body and etheric body. According to Geoffrey Samuel and Jay Johnston, professors of Religious studies known for their studies on Yoga and esoteric traditions: Ideas and practices involving so-called 'subtle bodies' have existed for many centuries in many parts of
4653-427: The Indian government by acharyas of Ananda Marga also put it in confrontation with Prime Minister Indira Gandhi . In 1971, Sarkar was imprisoned in India for the alleged murder of five former Ananda Marga members, on what were later proved false charges. The Ananda Marga organisation was banned and a number its leaders arrested. In February 1973, Sarkar was poisoned in prison, allegedly by the jail doctor on orders from
4752-576: The Indologist Edwin Bryant and other scholars, the goals of classical yoga such as spiritual liberation (freedom, self-knowledge, moksha ) is "attained entirely differently in classical yoga, and the cakra / nadi / kundalini physiology is completely peripheral to it." There is no consensus in Hinduism about the number of chakras because the concept of chakras has been evolved and interpreted differently by various sects, schools of thought, and spiritual traditions within Hinduism over
4851-635: The Nyingma lineage of the Mantrayana of Tibetan Buddhism a popular conceptualization of chakras in increasing subtlety and increasing order is as follows: Nirmanakaya (gross self), Sambhogakaya (subtle self), Dharmakaya (causal self), and Mahasukhakaya (non-dual self), each vaguely and indirectly corresponding to the categories within the Shaiva Mantramarga universe, i.e., Svadhisthana, Anahata, Visuddha, Sahasrara, etc. However, depending on
4950-457: The Spirit (1996), Caroline Myss described the function of chakras as follows: "Every thought and experience you've ever had in your life gets filtered through these chakra databases. Each event is recorded into your cells...". The chakras are described as being aligned in an ascending column from the base of the spine to the top of the head. New Age practices often associate each chakra with
5049-522: The ability to bring the subtle pranas of an entity into alignment with the central channel, and to thus penetrate the realisation of the ultimate unity, namely, the "organic harmony" of one's individual consciousness of Wisdom with the co-attainment of All-embracing Love, thus synthesizing a direct cognition of absolute Buddhahood . According to Samuel, the buddhist esoteric systems developed cakra and nadi as "central to their soteriological process". The theories were sometimes, but not always, coupled with
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#17327918725455148-506: The ancient philosophy of Tantra, infusing new insights in human psychology, social theory and in each individuals' roles as spiritual and "socio-economic-cultural-political" beings. Ananda Marga Tantra is claimed to have a broad metaphysical base which allows for ways of knowing, feeling and processing which go beyond intellectuality or limited rationality. Priorities are given to the spiritual development, as Sarkar notes, "spiritual life controls all other arenas of human life." Ananda Marga Tantra
5247-422: The body (or rather of the body-mind complex) made up of channels through which substances of some kind flow, and points of intersection at which these channels come together. In the Indian tradition the channels are known as nadi and the points of intersection as cakra . Chakra and related beliefs have been important to the esoteric traditions, but they are not directly related to mainstream yoga . According to
5346-584: The body. Within Kundalini yoga , the techniques of breathing exercises , visualizations , mudras , bandhas , kriyas , and mantras are focused on manipulating the flow of subtle energy through chakras. The modern "Western chakra system" arose from multiple sources, starting in the 1880s with H. P. Blavatsky and other Theosophists, followed by Sir John Woodroffe 's 1919 book The Serpent Power , and Charles W. Leadbeater 's 1927 book The Chakras . Psychological and other attributes, rainbow colours , and
5445-563: The central channel Sushumna is said to be foremost as per Kṣurikā-Upaniṣhad. The latter, states David Gordon White , were introduced about 8th-century CE in Buddhist texts as hierarchies of inner energy centers, such as in the Hevajra Tantra and Caryāgiti . These are called by various terms such as cakka , padma (lotus) or pitha (mound). These medieval Buddhist texts mention only four chakras, while later Hindu texts such as
5544-436: The centuries. While some traditions follow the seven main chakra system, others recognize additional chakras or a different number of chakras. The lack of a universally accepted standard has led to variation and diversity in the interpretation and understanding of chakras within Hinduism. There are several sects within Hinduism that have their own unique interpretations and understandings of the concept of chakras. Here are some of
5643-437: The chakras is to spin and draw in this energy to keep the spiritual, mental, emotional and physical health of the body in balance. Rudolf Steiner considered the chakra system to be dynamic and evolving. He suggested that this system has become different for modern people than it was in ancient times and that it will, in turn, be radically different in future times. Steiner described a sequence of development that begins with
5742-508: The creation of the mental thought waves of the 'Supreme consciousness'. The following is a brief list of the essential elements of Ananda Marga spiritual philosophy: The social outlook of Ananda Marga asserts that human beings are an expression of the Supreme Being, the welfare of the individual is linked with the welfare of the collective, each relying on the other for its existence and dynamism. According to this philosophy everyone has
5841-423: The deep cognitive salvation of freedom from control and unity of perception and cognition. The more common and most studied chakra system incorporates six major chakras along with a seventh center generally not regarded as a chakra. These points are arranged vertically along the axial channel ( sushumna nadi in Hindu texts, Avadhuti in some Buddhist texts). According to Gavin Flood, this system of six chakras plus
5940-695: The earliest Vedic texts. In Buddhism , especially in Theravada , the Pali noun cakka connotes "wheel". Within the Buddhist scriptures refferred to as the Tripitaka , Shakyamuni Buddha variously refers the "dhammacakka", or "wheel of dharma", connoting that this dharma, universal in its advocacy, should bear the marks characteristic of any temporal dispensation. Shakyamuni Buddha spoke of freedom from cycles in and of themselves, whether karmic, reincarnative, liberative, cognitive or emotional. In Jainism ,
6039-438: The earliest Vedic literature in many contexts. The chakra in the sense of four or more vital energy centers appear in the medieval era Hindu and Buddhist texts. Chakra and divine energies Shining, she holds the noose made of the energy of will, the hook which is energy of knowledge, the bow and arrows made of energy of action. Split into support and supported, divided into eight, bearer of weapons, arising from
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#17327918725456138-522: The expansion of mind. Meditation is the main spiritual practice of this tantric tradition, which assists the practitioner to overcome weaknesses and imperfections. The path to liberation in Ananda Marga is free of religious dogmas, superstitions, artificial social barriers and ritualism. Ananda Marga recognizes spirituality and liberation as the birth right of every individual irrespective of one's race, caste, creed, nationality, gender, socio-economic status or belief system. The basis of Ananda Marga practice
6237-413: The general concept of culture by inserting it into a new universalistic outlook. As described by Antonello Maggipinto, "Sarkar offers a new point of view, with a large universalistic explanation: 'the culture of the whole human race is one, but marked by different local manifestations ... it is the same, but varying in expression.'" In 1968, Sarkar founded the organization "Proutist Block of India" to further
6336-799: The goddess tradition of Hinduism called Shaktism . It is an important concept along with yantras, mandalas and kundalini yoga in its practice. Chakra in Shakta tantrism means circle, an "energy center" within, as well as being a term for group rituals such as in chakra-puja (worship within a circle) which may or may not involve tantra practice. The cakra-based system is a part of the meditative exercises that came to be known as yoga . The esoteric traditions in Buddhism generally teach four chakras. In some early Buddhist sources, these chakras are identified as: manipura (navel), anahata (heart), vishuddha (throat) and ushnisha kamala (crown). In one development within
6435-440: The heart started beating ) and in दिल की धड़कनें ( beats of the heart ) is identical prior to the nasalisation in the second usage. However, it is pronounced dhaṛak.ne in the first and dhaṛ.kanẽ in the second. While in the word नमक the final schwa is deleted, making it Namak and not Namaka , the similarly spelled word नमकीन is pronounced Namkīn , also dropping the schwa in between the m and k. While native speakers pronounce
6534-427: The higher echelons of government. On 1 April, after recovering his health, Sarkar began fasting in support of a demand for an investigation into his poisoning. That demand was never met. So he continued his fast for the next five years, four months, and two days, until 2 August 1978 when he was released from jail after having been proved innocent of all charges. The Bijon Setu massacre ( Bengali : বিজন সেতু হত্যাকাণ্ড)
6633-455: The highest chakra blossoming in the crown of the head, internalizing the journey of spiritual ascent. In both the Hindu kundalini and Buddhist candali traditions, the chakras are pierced by a dormant energy residing near or in the lowest chakra. In Hindu texts she is known as Kundalini , while in Buddhist texts she is called Candali or Tummo (Tibetan: gtum mo , "fierce one"). Below are the common new age description of these six chakras and
6732-412: The ideals of his theory through political and social action. A person who, irrespective of caste, creed or religion, aspires for spiritual expansion or does something concrete, is a Tantric. Tantra in itself is neither a religion nor an 'ism'. Tantra is a fundamental spiritual science. So wherever there is any spiritual practice it should be taken for granted that it stands on the Tantric cult. Where there
6831-476: The list of qualities, first appeared together only in 1977. The concept of a set of seven chakras came to the West in the 1880s; at that time each chakra was associated with a nerve plexus. In 1918, Sir John Woodroffe , alias Arthur Avalon, translated two Indian texts, the Ṣaṭ-Cakra-Nirūpaṇa and the Pādukā-Pañcaka , and in his book The Serpent Power drew Western attention to the seven chakra theory. In
6930-443: The major sects that have different perspectives on chakras: The classical eastern traditions, particularly those that developed in India during the 1st millennium AD, primarily describe nadi and chakra in a "subtle body" context. To them, they are in same dimension as of the psyche-mind reality that is invisible yet real. In the nadi and cakra flow the prana (breath, life energy). The concept of "life energy" varies between
7029-558: The meditational tradition, these vary between three and six. The chakras are considered psycho-spiritual constituents, each bearing meaningful correspondences to cosmic processes and their postulated Buddha counterpart. A system of five chakras is common among the Mother class of Tantras and these five chakras along with their correspondences are: Chakras clearly play a key role in Tibetan Buddhism , and are considered to be
7128-580: The paper ) and locative (ਕਾਗ਼ਜ਼ੇ, کاغزے, kāġzé / on the paper ) suffixes. Since Devanagari does not provide indications of where schwas should be deleted, it is common for non-native learners/speakers of Hindi, who are otherwise familiar with Devanagari and Sanskrit, to make incorrect pronunciations of words in Hindustani and other modern North Indian languages. Similarly, systems that automate transliteration from Devanagari to Latin script by hardcoding implicit schwas in every consonant often indicate
7227-517: The philosophy and life-style propounded by Sarkar, described as a practical means of personal development and the transformation of society. It is established in more than 180 countries across the world. Its motto is Ātmamokśārthaṃ jagaddhitāya ca (Self-Realisation and Service to the Universe). Tantra yoga , as interpreted by Sarkar, serves as the foundation of Ananda Marga. According to his teachings, Tantra means liberation from darkness through
7326-626: The physical body and to be associated with interactions of a physical, emotional and mental nature. They are considered loci of life energy or prana (which New Age belief equates with shakti , qi in Chinese, ki in Japanese, koach-ha-guf in Hebrew, bios in Greek, and aether in both Greek and English), which is thought to flow among them along pathways called nadi . The function of
7425-485: The pivotal providence of Tantric thinking. And, the precise use of the chakras across the gamut of tantric sadhanas gives little space to doubt the primary efficacy of Tibetan Buddhism as distinct religious agency, that being that precise revelation that, without Tantra there would be no Chakras, but more importantly, without Chakras, there is no Tibetan Buddhism. The highest practices in Tibetan Buddhism point to
7524-451: The preceptor, but as soon as they are apart from him they forget all his/her teachings, 2) disciples that learn many things from the preceptor with great hardship, but do not take proper care to preserve those instructions. They lose their hard-earned knowledge out of negligence, 3) disciples that carefully preserve deep in their minds and hearts whatever they have learned from their preceptor by wisely putting those teachings into practice. This
7623-514: The primary channels, thus activating and circulating liberating prana. Yoga awakens the deep mind, thus bringing forth positive attributes, inherent gestalts, and virtuous qualities. In a computer analogy, the screen of one's consciousness is slated and an attribute-bearing file is called up that contains necessary positive or negative, supportive qualities. Tantric practice is said to eventually transform all experience into clear light. The practice aims to liberate from all negative conditioning, and
7722-426: The right to equal opportunities of life and development and as such there should be no discrimination on the basis of superficial barriers such as race, nationality and religion. Ananda Marga advocates a state if live, a world of justice, security and peace for all. The social philosophy covers neohumanism, education, culture, and the organisation's own Progressive utilization theory (PROUT). The philosophy reinterprets
7821-485: The scholar of myth, Joseph Campbell ; the founders of the Esalen Institute and the psychological tradition of Carl Jung ; the colour system of Charles W. Leadbeater 's 1927 book The Chakras , treated as traditional lore by some modern Indian yogis; and energy healers such as Barbara Brennan . Leland states that far from being traditional, the two main elements of the modern system, the rainbow colours and
7920-484: The schwa deletion process has the effect of nasalising any preceding vowels. Here are some examples in Hindustani: Cakra Chakras ( UK : / ˈ tʃ ʌ k r ə z / , US : / ˈ tʃ ɑː k r ə z / CHUK -rəz, CHAH -krəz ; Sanskrit : चक्र , romanized : cakra , lit. 'wheel, circle'; Pali : cakka ) are various focal points used in
8019-457: The schwa in its pronunciation as an open-mid back rounded vowel . Both medial and final schwas are retained: in the medial case ଝରଣା jharaṇā is pronounced /dʒʱɔɾɔɳā/ (waterfall) and in the final case ଟଗର ṭagara is pronounced /ʈɔgɔɾɔ/ (crepe jasmine flower). Sanskrit loanwords or 'tatsama' words, being more formal, always have the schwa pronounced. However, deletion is more common in a number of non-standard dialects, as well as increasingly in
8118-558: The schwa in medial positions, like নিজৰা (/niˈzɔɹa/, stream), বিচনি (/biˈsɔni/, handfan), বতৰা (/bɔˈtɔɹa/, news), পাহৰে (/paˈɦɔɹe/, forgets), নকৰে (/nɔˈkɔɹe/, doesn't do), which were deleted in some of the Kamrupi dialect, while some others kept them as /a/. Conjuncts in Sanskrit loanwords always have the schwa, and in consonants ending words (that are followed by schwa), the schwa is optionally present in words ending with suffixes, for example, শিক্ষিত from Sanskrit शिक्षित (śikṣita, "educated")
8217-400: The schwa inherent in the first consonant is deleted. However, this rule sometimes deletes a schwa that should remain and sometimes fails to delete a schwa when it should be deleted. The rule is reported to result in correct predictions on schwa deletion 89% of the time. Schwa deletion is computationally important because it is essential to building text-to-speech software for Hindi. As
8316-466: The schwa sound in the र, न, and त respectively, often leading to their transliteration by native Marathi speakers in the Roman script as Prerana, Manasi and Ketaki rather than Prerna, Mansi or Ketki. Sometimes, to avoid schwa deletion, an anusvara is placed at the end of the word. For example, the word खर ( khar , "roughness") is often read without the schwa. When the schwa needs to be made explicit, it
8415-408: The script is "obligatorily deleted" at the end of words and in certain other contexts, unlike in Sanskrit. That phenomenon has been termed the " schwa syncope rule " or the " schwa deletion rule " of Hindi. One formalisation of this rule has been summarised as ə → ∅ /VC_CV . In other words, when a schwa-succeeded consonant (itself preceded by another vowel) is followed by a vowel-succeeded consonant,
8514-437: The script suggests otherwise. Here, schwa refers to an inherent vowel in the respective abugida scripts, not necessarily pronounced as schwa ( mid central vowel ). Schwa deletion is important for intelligibility and unaccented speech. It also presents a challenge to non-native speakers and speech synthesis software because the scripts, including Devanagari , do not indicate when schwas should be deleted. For example,
8613-432: The sequences differently in different contexts, non-native speakers and voice-synthesis software can make them "sound very unnatural", making it "extremely difficult for the listener" to grasp the intended meaning. Different Indian languages can differ in how they apply schwa deletion. For instance, medial schwas from Sanskrit-origin words are often retained in Bengali even if they are deleted in Hindi. An example of this
8712-470: The seventh point known as sahasrara. This new age version incorporates the Newtonian colors of the rainbow not found in any ancient Indian system. Corresponds to the upper dantien in the Qigong system. In esoteric Buddhism, it is called Sambhoga and is generally considered to be the petal lotus of "Enjoyment" corresponding to the third state of Four Noble Truths . In esoteric Buddhism, this Chakra
8811-433: The speech of urban areas as a result of exposure to English and Hindi. For example, the name of the city Bhubaneshwar can be pronounced either informally as /bʰubɔneswɔɾ/, or more formally /bʰubɔneswɔɾɔ/. Punjabi has broad schwa deletion rules: several base word forms (ਕਾਗ਼ਜ਼, کاغز, kāġəz / paper ) drop schwas in the plural form (ਕਾਗ਼ਜ਼ਾਂ, کاغزاں, kāġzāṁ / papers ) as well as with ablative (ਕਾਗ਼ਜ਼ੋਂ, کاغزوں, kāġzōṁ / from
8910-416: The spiritual aspirant or sadhaka practices sadhana . This signifies the effort through which a person becomes completely realized . In Tantra the spiritual master, the guru , plays a special role, guiding students on the spiritual path. The aspirant learns meditation from a qualified acarya . An acarya is most commonly a monk or nun, but in the Ananda Marga tradition there are also "family acaryas ". In
9009-561: The subtle body. The number of major chakras varied between various traditions, but they typically ranged between four and seven. Nyingmapa Vajrayana Buddhist teachings mention eight chakras and there is a complete yogic system for each of them. The important chakras are stated in Hindu and Buddhist texts to be arranged in a column along the spinal cord, from its base to the top of the head, connected by vertical channels. The tantric traditions sought to master them, awaken and energize them through various breathing exercises or with assistance of
9108-549: The term chakra also means "wheel" and appears in various contexts in its ancient literature. As in other Indian religions, chakra in esoteric theories in Jainism such as those by Buddhisagarsuri means a yogic energy center. The word chakra appears to first emerge within the Vedas , though not in the sense of psychic energy centers, rather as chakravartin or the king who "turns the wheel of his empire" in all directions from
9207-707: The texts, ranging from simple inhalation-exhalation to far more complex association with breath-mind-emotions-sexual energy. This prana or essence is what vanishes when a person dies, leaving a gross body. Some of this concept states this subtle body is what withdraws within, when one sleeps. All of it is believed to be reachable, awake-able and important for an individual's body-mind health, and how one relates to other people in one's life. This subtle body network of nadi and chakra is, according to some later Indian theories and many New Age speculations, closely associated with emotions. Esoteric traditions in Hinduism mention numerous numbers and arrangements of chakras, of which
9306-750: The upper chakras and moves down, rather than moving in the opposite direction. He gave suggestions on how to develop the chakras through disciplining thoughts, feelings, and will. According to Florin Lowndes, a "spiritual student" can further develop and deepen or elevate thinking consciousness when taking the step from the "ancient path" of schooling to the "new path" represented by Steiner's The Philosophy of Freedom . The not-for-profit Edinburgh Skeptics Society states that despite their popularity, "there has never been any evidence for these meridian lines or chakras". It adds that while practitioners sometimes cite "scientific evidence" for their claims, such evidence
9405-497: The welfare of all". Prabhat Ranjan Sarkar , known as Sri Sri Anandamurti, founded the Ananda Marga on 1 January 1955 in the state of Bihar , India. Its stated aims are " liberation of self and service to humanity".. Prabhat Ranjan Sarkar developed a discipline of Tantra yoga and meditation . Tantra yoga, as interpreted by him, is the practical philosophy which serves as foundation of Ananda Marga. According to Sarkar's teachings Tantra means liberation from darkness. Meditation
9504-433: The word ends in a conjunct. Schwas essentially get deleted when there is an opportunity for a consonant with a schwa to turn into a coda consonant for the previous syllable, though the actual rules are more complicated and have exceptions. However, in places where the schwa occurs in the middle of words, Marathi does exhibit a propensity to pronounce it far more regularly than Hindi. Words like प्रेरणा, मानसी, केतकी retain
9603-405: The world. (...) Virtually all human cultures known to us have some kind of concept of mind, spirit or soul as distinct from the physical body, if only to explain experiences such as sleep and dreaming. (...) An important subset of subtle-body practices, found particularly in Indian and Tibetan Tantric traditions, and in similar Chinese practices, involves the idea of an internal 'subtle physiology' of
9702-683: The written form rather than the pronunciation. That becomes evident when English words are transliterated into Devanagari by Hindi-speakers and then transliterated back into English by manual or automated processes that do not account for Hindi's schwa deletion rules. For instance, the word English may be written by Hindi speakers as इंगलिश (rather than इंग्लिश्) which may be transliterated back to Ingalisha by automated systems, but schwa deletion would result in इंगलिश being correctly pronounced as Inglish by native Hindi-speakers. Some examples are shown below: With some words that contain /n/ or /m/ consonants separated from succeeding consonants by schwas,
9801-509: Was the killing and burning of 16 sadhus and a sadhvi of Ananda Marga, at Bijon Setu , West Bengal , India , on 30 April 1982. Although the attacks were carried out in broad daylight, no arrests were ever made. After repeated calls for a formal judicial investigation, a single-member judicial commission was set up in 2012 to investigate the killings. Schwa deletion in Indo-Aryan languages Schwa deletion , or schwa syncope ,
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