Remember Their lotus feet
At first I tried to in vision Krishna’s feet by mentally looking at the Dieties lotus feet, but the thoughts couldn’t endure. The mind would easily drift off and I’d find myself drifting away after only a few seconds. So I had to pray for Krishna to reveal to me how to meditate on Ballavisa’s lotus feet. What was revealed to me was to turn those feet upside down.
On the bottom of Sri Krishna’s lotus feet are 19 signs; 11 on the right, and 8 on the left.
On the right foot, starting at the base of the big toe is a barley corn. Next along the base of the toes is a chakra below the barleycorn, then the upward curving line, then the lotus flower. Then comes the elephant goad at the base of the little toe. Below the goad is the lightning rod. To the right of the rod as you look at the right foot on the left position (since they are upside down) comes the flag. Then hopping over the upward curving line, on the instep of the foot is the umbrella. Then down just above the heel is an 8 sided figure called Astakona, Above, below, left and right of this octagon are the Swastikas. Diagonally placed between the Swastikas are four rose apples or sometimes called blackberries. Now going up to the top of the left foot at the ball of the foot is a conch shell. Under the middle two toes is a Sky emblem., below that is an unstrung bow, below that is a cow’s hoof print, below that is a triangle, encircling the triangle are 4 waterpots, below that is a crescent moon known to be a half moon, and on the heel of Krishna’s left foot is a fish.
While chanting your Japa, you begin with the barleycorn and in the order given above chant one Maha Mantra per sign. There are the 4 swastikas, 4 rose apples and 4 water pots. Adding up all the impressions there are 27 in total. Twenty- seven times 4 comes to be 108.So in this way as you chant each Mantra, you visualize these signs.
At the end of just one round, what to speak of all 16, these signs will become branded in the brain, so that every time you simply touch your beads the lotus feet of Sri Murlidara will come to your conciousness. Always remembering this is to be done to please your Istha deva Everything is for Radha Gopijanavallabha’ s pleasure! Now probably for the first time you will be controlling the mind, as the mind will be having a job; to go from one sign to another. And because you have been practicing to chant the Names in a mood of devotion, You will be attentive and will feel a sense of completion of a monumental task, like swimming across a lake.
Now you will soon be finished with offensive chanting and now move into the Nama abhasa category, thus you will experience a significant changing of your consciousness. This is so much very important. For now the stages of sraddha, will become very strong because of the association (which is Sadhu Sanga)of the Rasika Acaryas via their books.
Post view 380 times
Leave a Reply