"Cactus Bud" a fiction written by my daughter Miss Sharvani Satpathy got released by Padmashree Haldhar Nag on 16th December 2018 in the 21st Book Fair at Sambalpur Odisha. 

Release of the Novel "Cactus Bud" on 16th December 2018

EKADASA RUDRA PUJA

EKADASA RUDRA PUJA 

Prof. Biswajit Satpathy

Rig Veda mentions a set of thirty-three deities. Yaskacharya mentions: eight Vasus, eleven Rudras, twelve Adityas and two Asvinis.

In the Brihadaranyaka Upanishad the Rishi Yajnavalkya says “The eight Vasus, eleven Rudras, twelve Adityas, Indra and Prajapati are the thirty-three gods".

He goes on to explain: Katame rudra iti: "Who are the Rudras?" and says "The ten senses and the mind make eleven. These are the Rudras.""When the senses and the mind leave the body, they make one cry in anguish." While a person is alive, these eleven: the senses and the mind, subject the individual to their demands, and make him cry in agony if he violates their laws.

The Ten senses are:

Pancha Jnanendriyas

The word Jnanendriya comes from the roots jnana, which means “wisdom,” and Indra, who was the God of the sensory heaven in Hinduism. These are the 5 lower sensual perception organs -- those which allow one to perceive the world around them. They are:-

Shotra - ears

Chakshu - eyes

Grahna - nose

Jivha - tongue

Tvak - skin

The real nature of these senses, which are the particular sensations themselves that result from the interaction of the jnanendriyas with the pancha maha bhutas ( the five elements which underlie the material world), are referred to as pancha tanmatras. They are shabda (hearing), rupa (sight), gandha (smell), rasana (taste), and sparsha (touch), respectively.

Pancha Karmendriyas

This term derives from the roots karma (action), and Indra. Literally, it translates to mean “organ of action,” which signifies that which facilitates our direct contact with the outer world -- or that which enables us to interact with the material objects of the world. These five organs of action are:

Pada (feet) - for locomotion

Pani (hands) - for dexterity

Payu (rectum) - for excretion

Upastha (genitals) - for reproduction

Vak (mouth) - for speech.

Mind is a higher power than the Indriyas. Mind is a consolidated Indriya. Indriya is mind in manifestation. Just as a minister obeys the king, so also, the five Jnana-Indriyas act in accordance with the dictates of the mind. Indriyas represent backwaters. The desire in the mind to eat has manifested as tongue, teeth and stomach. The desire in the mind to walk has manifested itself as legs and feet. If you can control mind, you can control the Indriyas.

Eyes can only see. Ears can only hear. Tongue can only taste. Skin can only touch. Nose can only smell. But, the mind can see, hear, taste, touch and smell. Mind is the common sensory. The five senses are blended there. It can directly see, hear, smell, taste and feel independent of the senses. It is an aggregate of the five senses. All the sense-faculties are blended in the mind. You can see and hear directly through the mind by Yogic practice (clairvoyance and clairaudience). This blows out the Western psychological theory of perception.

Mind is termed the sixth sense: "Manah shashthanindriyani- the senses of which mind are the sixth" (Gita, XV-7). The five senses are the five Jnana-Indriyas (organs of knowledge, sensation or perception).

Control of Thought

If the reins of the horses are under control, journey can be safe. The Indriyas are the horses. Indriyas cannot do anything without the help of the mind, their master and commander. Control of the Indriyas means control of the mind only. Control of thoughts leads to the control of mind and Indriyas also. It leads to the attainment of infinite bliss and eternal life. Control of thought is indispensable for healthy living.

In the Bhagvad Gita, Chapter 6, Shloka 35 Lord Krishna says to Arjuna:

Asamsayam mahabaho mano durnigraham calam

Abhyasena to kaunteya vairagyena ca grhyate.

Doubtless O mighty armed, the mind is restless and hard to control but by practice and non-attachment, O son of Kunti, it can be controlled.

Lord has given us via Arjuna the secret of controlling our mind which remains ever so restless. But before one strives to understand what the Lord is saying, one must be able to recall what Arjuna asked in previous Shlokas. In Shlokas 33 and 34 of Chapter 6 of The Bhagvad Gita Arjuna had talked about the restless nature of mind and hence, he had told the Lord that the mind is as hard to control as the wind. In the above cited shloka the Lord gives Arjuna the technique of controlling the mind. However, first the Lord agrees with Arjuna that the mind is not easy to control and then the Lord gives us via Arjuna two important means to control the mind. The first one is Practice and the second one is Non-attachment.

So according to me Ekadasa Rudra Puja is controlling the ten senses through practicing withdrawal from sense gratification and non attachment to those objects which might violate the laws of Nature. By this the Rudras will not make us cry during our lifetime.

NAVADURGA: A SCIENTIFIC INTERPRETATION

NAVADURGA: A SCIENTIFIC INTERPRETATION 

Professor Biswajit Satpathy

According to the big bang theory, one of the main contenders vying to explain how the universe came to be, all the matter in the cosmos -- all of space itself -- existed in a form smaller than a subatomic particle. The pre-big bang singularity possessed all the mass in the universe, effectively bringing time to a standstill. According to Einstein's theory of relativity, time only came into being as that primordial singularity expanded toward its current size and shape. So before big bang there was no time and every thing was in the state of singularity. The initial singularity was the gravitational singularity of infinite density thought to have contained all of the mass and space-time of the Universe before quantum fluctuations caused it to rapidly expand in the Big Bang and subsequent inflation, creating the present-day Universe. So the universe underwent an extremely brief and dramatic period of inflation, expanding faster than the speed of light. "Inflation was the 'bang' of the Big Bang," Filippenko told SPACE.com"Before inflation, there was just a little bit of stuff, quite possibly, expanding just a little bit. We needed something like inflation to make the universe big." This rapidly expanding universe was pretty much empty of matter, but it harbored huge amounts of dark energy, the theory goes. Dark energy is the mysterious force that scientists think is driving the universe's current accelerating expansion. During inflation, dark energy made the universe smooth out and accelerates. But it didn't stick around for long. "It was just temporary dark energy," Carroll told SPACE.com. "It converted into ordinary matter and radiation through a process called reheating. The universe went from being cold during inflation to being hot again when all the dark energy went away." 

As per Shaktism, Adi Parashakti appeared as Divine Pure Eternal Consciousness i.e. Shoonya Bindu (singularity ), the divine zero feminine energy, which then expresses (quantum fluctuations) itself as Prakriti (Universal Nature). The state just preceding that of creation is denoted by “Pra”; and “Kri” signifies creation. So the Great Devî (dark energy) that exists before creation is called Prakriti after creation. Since after Big Bang only the matter was created therefore SHE is named Devi Shailputri. Shaila means huge mass of stone i.e mountain and Putri is the daughter. This manifested gross world of matter is the first form of the Devi, so SHE is named Devi Shailputri. 

According to Adwetavad, at the most fundamental level, the universe is not just a physical or material entity, but pure consciousness of unfathomable power, having the ability to create, maintain, conceal, augment and destroy objective universe at will without effort or a specific intent. We identify this supreme consciousness of infinite capacities and unfathomable mysteries as Brahman. 

The modern science talks about the same thing in a different language. Dr Robert Lanza coined the phrase ‘biocentrism’ which is a theory which says that the consciousness is released into the universe through sub-atomic particles after death of a living being.

Dr Tucker has adapted this theory, and says that “Some leading scientists in the past, like Max Planck, who's the father of quantum theory, said that he viewed consciousness as fundamental and that matter is derived from it. So this consciousness is not dependent on a physical body in order to survive, and continues after the physical body dies. Therefore there is a universal consciousness. This universal consciousness is nothing but the all pervading Brahma. This energy is termed as Devi Brahmacharini, the Mother who roams in the Brahma or in other words who Herself is the Brahma. 

We know that, a correlation between consciousness and our physical material world does indeed exist in some way, shape or form. This marriage of matter (Shiva) with the energy (Shakti) is the married form of the Mother Goddess, Devi Chandraghanta. As a sign of this correlation of matter and energy Mother adorns her forehead with a half moon (Chandra) shaped like a bell (Ghanta) due to which, she became known as Goddess Chandraghanta. The manifestation of this whole universe is nothing but the marriage of physical material with the consciousness i.e the energy. 

The source of all energy to our planet and of this solar system is the sun. Therefore sun is regarded as the living God. Sun is worshiped in the Gyatri Mantra. It is therefore believed in Sakti cult that Mother Mother Goddess resides within the Sun thereby liberating the Sun's energy to the universe. Since then, this form of the Goddess has been known as Kushmanda, namely for her power and capability to live inside the Sun. Her name suggests her main role: Ku means "a little", Ushma means "warmth" or "energy" and Anda means "cosmic egg". Kushmanda is the synonym of the sun or in other words the energy of the sun is named as Kushmanda. 

The fifth form of the Mother is Devi Skandamata. In her form as mother of the God of War, Lord Skanda (also known as Kartikeya), she is known as Goddess Skandamata. Skanda is derived from skanḍr-, which means to "spill, ooze, leap, attack". Skandamata is the mother of the spilled energy of the matter (Shiva). We know that matter is converted in to energy in nuclear reactors and the energy is liberated as heat. Sun is a very large nuclear reactor from which heat energy is radiated to the whole of the solar system. Therefore to symbolize this event in the story of the birth of Skanda, it is said that Shiva and Parvati were disturbed while making love and Shiva inadvertently spills his semen on the ground. This semen incubates in River Ganges, preserved by the heat of god Agni, and this fetus is born as baby Kartikeya on the banks of Ganges. The "spill" epithet leads to the name Skanda. It is also mentioned in the texts that Kartikeya is also worshiped as Guha, the son of fire god Agni. Since this energy coming from the sun is the source of our living and physical strength, Kartikeya is worshiped as the Lord of the war. The mother of this vital energy is Devi Skandamata. 

Katyayani, the sixth form amongst Navadurga and is first mentioned in the Taittiriya Aranyaka part of the Yajurveda. Skanda Purana where it is mentioned that she is being created out of the spontaneous anger of Gods, which eventually led to slaying the demon, Mahishasura, mounted of the lion given to her by Goddess Parvati. She is regarded as the Mental Power. The mental power that has been depicted in the form of Katyayani is the energy that leads to action. In Yoga and Tantra, she is ascribed to the sixth Ajna Chakra or the Third eye chakra. The Ajna chakra is located in the brain, directly behind the eyebrow center. Its activation site is at the eyebrow region, in the position of the "third eye." If this power is realized than the person is able to find unity with Brahman, and thus gets the ability to create, preserve, and destroy. According to the modern science the pineal gland deep inside the brain is associated with Ajna Chakra. The start of current scientific knowledge about the pineal gland occurred in 1958, with the discovery of ‘‘melatonin’’ (from the Greek word melas, meaning black or dark). The discovery of melatonin and its physiological effects fanned interest in the relationship between the pineal gland and mental power. Thus it is proved today by the modern science that the pineal gland is the seat of our extraordinary power. Maa Katyayani is that mental power.

We usually talk of star formation in terms of the gas mass that is converted into stars each year. We call this the star formation rate. In the Milky Way right now, the star formation rate is about 3 solar masses per year (i.e. three times the mass of the Sun's worth of star is produced each year). The stars formed can either be more or less massive than the Sun, though less massive stars are more numerous. So roughly if we assume that on average the stars formed have the same mass as the Sun, then the Milky Way produces about 3 new stars per year. People often approximate this by saying there is about 1 new star per year.

Now what about the rate at which stars die? In typical galaxies like the Milky Way, a massive star should end its life as a supernova about every 100 years. Less massive stars (like the Sun) end their lives as planetary nebulae, leading to the formation of white dwarfs. There are about one of these per year.

Therefore we get on average about one new star per year, and one star dying each year as a planetary nebula in the Milky Way. These rates are different in different types of galaxies, but you can say that this is roughly the average over all galaxies in the Universe. We estimate at about 100 billion the number of galaxies in the observable Universe, therefore there are about 100 billion stars being born and dying each year, which corresponds to about 275 million per day, in the whole observable Universe. This phenomenon is going on all the time. The cycle of construction and destruction is a continuous process with time in this observable Universe. The energy of such destruction with time for every thing in this universe is worshiped as Kalaratri, the seventh form amongst the Navadurga. Goddess Kalaratri is widely regarded as the destructive forms of Mother Goddess. In the microcosmic level, matter in the form of ephemeral subatomic particles constantly crystallizes out of energy and dissolves back to its source. Dissolution, creation’s inseparable companion, is not only a future event of cosmic catastrophe but also a continuous process inherent in the natural world. Chapter 1 of the Durga Saptashati, verse 75, references the destructive concept personified by Goddess Kalaratri, 

prakṛtistvaṃca sarvasya guṇatraya vibhāvinī

kāḷarātrirmahārātrirmoharātriśca dāruṇā

You are the primordial cause of everything

Bringing into force the three qualities (sattva, rajas and tamas)

You are the dark night of periodic dissolution

You are the great night of final dissolution and the terrible night of delusion

The name Mahagauri, the eighth manifestation of goddess Durga is extremely white in her complexion and very beautiful. Stars (like the Sun) end their lives as planetary nebulae, leading to the formation of white dwarfs. A white dwarf, also called a degenerate dwarf, is a stellar core remnant composed mostly of electron-degenerate matter. A white dwarf is very dense: its mass is comparable to that of the Sun, while its volume is comparable to that of Earth. A white dwarf's faint luminosity comes from the emission of stored thermal energy; no fusion takes place in a white dwarf wherein mass is converted to energy. We can imagine that a dying star had so much gas accumulated onto the star that the star just exploded causing the gas to form a ring around the white dwarf. These white dwarfs are termed Mahagauri in Hindu mythology and the gas ring around it is the Dumralochana demon. The collision of two dying stars can create a living one, scientists say. The merger of white dwarf stars can lead to supernova explosions, but this only happens if the combined stars are 140 percent the mass of the sun. If the new binary system is not heavy enough to go supernova after collision, but massive enough to force the helium atoms in the merged remnant to fuse than the resumption of nuclear fusion will lead it to shine like a normal star once more. This is the killing of Demon Dumralochana and leading to the final manifestation of goddess Durga called Siddidhatri. In the beginning of the universe, Lord Rudra worshipped the unmanifest form of the Mother Goddess, Adi Parashakti for creation. As Adi Parashakti, the Mother Goddess was pure energy and had no form. She thus appeared in the form of Siddhidatri from the left half of Shiva. 

The nine manifestations of goddess Durga talks about the cosmic and atomic level playing of energy. Finally we may say, the Mother, the energy, can neither be created nor destroyed. It only changes form. Maa Durga ki Jai. She is the Bhubaneswari, the ruler this vast manifested and un-manifested Universe.

Road to Siddhi by Understanding the Sri Durga Kavach

Road to Siddhi by Understanding the Sri Durga Kavach

SRI DURGA KAVACH

Prof. Biswajit Satpathy

P.G. Department of Business Administration

Sambalpur University

||Mārkaṇḍeya Uvāca||
Om yadguhyam paramam loke sarva rakṣākaram nṛṇām |
yanna kasya cidākhyātam tanme brūhi pitāmaha ||1||

Thus spoke Markandeya:
 O Brahmadeva, please tell me that what is so very secret and has not been told by anyone to anybody else and which Protects all human beings in this world.

||Brahmovāca||
asti guhyatamam viprā sarva bhūtopakārakam |
divyāstu kavacam puṇyam tacchṛṇuṣvā mahāmune ||2||

Thus spoke Bramha:
O Brahmin, there is Devi Kavach which is the most secret and useful to all beings. Please listen to that, O Great Sage. Durga is known by these Names:

prathamam śailaputrī ca dvitīyam brahmacāriṇī |
tṛtīyam candraghaṇṭeti kūṣmāṇḍeti caturthakam ||3||

The first form is SHAILAPUTRI- Daughter of the King of Himalayas; second is BRAHMACHARINI One Who observes the state of celibacy; third is CHANDRAGANTA- One Who bears the moon around Her neck fourth is KOOSHMANDA- Whose Void contains the Universe

pañcamam skandamāteti ṣaṣṭham kātyāyanīti ca |
saptamam kālarātrīti mahāgaurīti cāṣṭamam ||4||

Fifth is SKANDAMATA- Who gave birth to Karttikeya; Sixth is KATYAYANI Who incarnated to help the Devas; Seventh is KALARATRI- the fiercest form of Durga; Eight is MAHAGAURI- One Who made great penance

navamam siddhidātrī ca nava durgāḥ prakīrtitāḥ |
uktānyetāni nāmāni brahmaṇaiva mahātmanā ||5||

Ninth is SIDDHIDATRI- One Who grants Moksha .These are the nine forms of Maa Durga  (Nava Durga) as mentioned by Brahma.

Everyone will agree that some people spend their entire life wondering how to be successful in life, but never figure it out. You will be surprised to find out that the secret really comes down through certain key areas. Personal success is achievable for anyone who practices these areas – or keys to success.

Everyone wants personal success and to learn the keys to success. Everyone wants to have a happy, healthy life, do meaningful work, and achieve financial independence. Everyone wants to make a difference in the world, to be significant, to have a positive impact on those around him or her. Everyone wants to do something wonderful with his or her life.

Over and over, I have found that the keys to success are a single piece of information, a single idea at the right time, in the right situation, and change your life. I have also learned that the great truths are simple.

 

We All Have One Common Goal

Luckily for most of us, personal success is not a matter of background, intelligence, or native ability. It’s not our family, friends, or contacts who enable us to do extraordinary things. Instead, the keys to success are our ability to get the very best out of ourselves under almost all conditions and circumstances. It is your ability to adapt and change your life.

You have within you, right now, deep reserves of potential and ability that, if properly harnessed and channelled, will enable you to accomplish extraordinary things with your life.

Keys to Success

The keys to success lie in understanding the Sri Durga Kavach. In the Sri Durga Kavach, Brahma tells about the nine form of Maa Durga in the chronological order. The understanding of these forms and chronology can bring success or Siddhi in our life.

The first form of Mother Durga is Sailaputrī, the daughter of Saila or Himalaya. This form represents Maa Parvati. Parvati took a vow to marry Lord Shiva. Her vow was such that nothing could distract her from her goal. She continued to pursue her objective in spite of several obstacles. Her promise was as great as Himalaya and so her name Sailaputr. So the first key to success is that you decide exactly what you want and where you want to go. Fix a goal and make a promise to persist until you succeed.

The second form is Brahmachāriṇī meaning the Mother who roams in Brahma.  The goddess Brahmacharini wears white clothes, holds a japa mala (rosary) in her right hand and Kamandal, a water utensil in her left hand. The word Brahmacharini stems from two Sanskrit roots:

1.    Brahma, means "the one self-existent Spirit, the Absolute Reality, Universal Self, Personal God, the sacred knowledge".

2.    charini is the feminine version of one who is a charya, which means "occupied with, engaged, proceeding, behaviour, conduct, to follow, moving within, going after"

Brahmacharini is also known as Tapacharini. This name signifies that we must devout ourselves to the goal we have set. So to fulfil the goal one has set up, one has to constantly acquire knowledge and engage oneself in accomplishing the desired goal. This is the second key to success.  

The third aspect of Mother Durga is Chandraghaṇṭa. Chandra symbolizes the Mana. Mana is mind. Maa Chandraghanta keeps her third eye always open. It means that you must try to accomplish your goal by using your intellect. The Third Eye is a very clever bit of natural evolution that allows you to see the patterns in your life. Even more amazing, your third eye can reveal these patterns to you by overlaying this information on top of your other senses. Third eye is the mind power which provides the non-dualistic thinking. Try to analyse the happenings before you actually do it. Using your mind you can very well understand the pros and cons of an event. This analysis is the key to your success.

The fourth form of the Mother is Kūṣhmāṇḍa. When the universe was non-existent and darkness prevailed everywhere, Maa Kushmanda produced the cosmic egg, bringing light to the universe. Through her brilliance She created this cosmos.  Kushmanda is the power and strength of the Sun. Her luminosity gives the Sun its brightness. She gives directions to the Sun. She is the Mother of all creation. This Swarup of Maa Durga is the source of everything. Since she created the universe, she is called Adiswarup and Adishakti. To accomplish our goal we are to be creative, think outside the box and be energetic. Innovation is the key to success. This is what we learn from Mother Kūṣhmāṇḍa.

Skandamātā is the fifth form of Goddess Durga, meaning Mother of Skanda, her name comes from word, Skanda another name of Kartikeya. It is believed that She awards devotees with power and wisdom. To achieve success both power and wisdom is needed. So the key is to do away with laziness and be wise for getting success in any endeavour.   

Katyayani is the sixth form amongst Navadurga or the nine forms of goddess Shakti. She is first mentioned in the Taittiriya Aranyaka part of the Yajurveda.   Skanda Purana mentions her being created out of the spontaneous anger of Gods, which eventually led to slaying the demon, Mahishasura, mounted on the lion given to her by Goddess Parvati. She is worshiped as Mahishamardini. She signifies the killing of negativity. Martin Seligman has studied the connection between positivity and performance. In one study he measured the degree to which insurance salespeople were optimistic or pessimistic in their work, including whether they attributed failed sales to personal deficits beyond their control or circumstances they could improve with effort. Optimistic salespeople sold 37 percent more policies than pessimists, who were twice as likely to leave the company during their first year of employment. Seligman research shows that people can transform a tendency toward pessimistic thinking into positive thinking. The key to success lies in positivity.

Kalaratri (sometimes spelled Kaalratri) is the seventh of the nine forms of Mother Durga. This form of Goddess is believed to be the destroyer of all demon entities, ghosts, spirits and negative energies, who flee upon knowing of her arrival. Kaalratri is also known as Shubankari, meaning auspicious/doing good. Every one of us we know that in our life we are sometime dominated by negative forces. These negative forces are due to Tamashik inert nature. Maa Kali or Kalaratri rules over the night and killed demon Raktabija and drank the blood to prevent getting birth of another Raktabija. This is symbolic. Mother Kalaratri prevents her devotees from all negative forces. This is most essential part of getting success. We are to kill the negative forces that obstruct our prosperity. Kali rules over Kala i.e time. Time is most precious thing in our life. The key to success lies in utilizing the time properly and do away with Tamashik nature or Guna.    

The eighth form is Maa Mahagauri. The name Mahagauri means extremely white, as she was white in colour and very beautiful (Maha, महा = great; Gauri, गौरी = white). This is the brilliance that radiates during the austere penance for attending success. Severe sacrament is required for achieving success. Nothing comes easily. Struggle is the key to success. 

Siddhidhatri is the ninth form of the Goddess Durga the meaning of her name is Siddhi means supernatural power or meditative ability or success, and Dhatri means giver or awarder. She is worshipped on the ninth day of Navaratri (nine nights of Navadurga); she fulfils all the divine aspirations and completes the mundane. This is ultimate form of Maa Durga. Here we enjoy the success and happiness for all our efforts.    

k c satpathy Professor Chemistry Sambalpur University was Awarded Vigyan Academy Scientist award 2015

Release of " Break in the Clouds" by Sharvani Satpathy:

Release of " Break in the Clouds" by Sharvani Satpathy: