RUDRAKSHA

Shiva purana says that “Rudraksh” is the gift of Lord Shiva to mankind. It’s name is derived from the combination of 2 Sanskrit words : Rudra and Aksha. Rudra means Lord Shiva and Aksha means eye. It means Rudraksha originated from the eyes of Lord Shiva as tears and bhoomi devi conceived his tears as the rudrakha tree.

 

It is abundantly found near the abode of Lord Shiva – Kailash or Himalayas (Nepal).

It is also found in India , China, Srilanka,Africa,Indonesia etc.

Ohm NaMah ShiVaYa

Om Nama Shivaya

Om Namah Shivaya

Many knows this is the “panchakshari” (5 letter) beeja or moola mantra for lord Shiva. Now where are these 5 letters ? What is the significance of this mantra? What is the meaning of this mantra? Let’s look at the excerpts from ” Avdhoot Babaji’s ” question & answer session:

“Shiv Panchakshari Mantra is drawn from the five elements of nature namely, Earth, Sky, Water, Air and Fire. This Mantra is capable of cleansing up all these elements. See of this Bija Mantra has all the characteristics of its parent body. In a way it is a miniscule of its parent form, complete with everything. A Seed of a gigantic banyan tree is a comparatively tiny object but it has everything in it, right from trunk, leaves and other attributes. Shiv Panchakshari Mantra is evolved from the five seeds of aforesaid natural elements, Namah Shivaya. Na Consecrates Prithvi Tatva, Ma does the same with Jal Tatva (Water factor) Shi energizes Agni Tatva (Fire element) Va energizes Vayu Tatva (Air factor) and finally Ya energizes Akash Tatva (Sky element). Om purifies Bramhatatva and Crown Chakra.

Whevever a Sadhak invokes this Mantra during meditation or Tandav, he does so giving the impression as if he is applying percussion beats on every Chakra, using the skillful strokes of a Tabla Player. On the note of Na he starts from Muladhara, with Ma he reaches Swadisthar, as he says Shi he enters Manipur and at Anahata he produces the sound Vaya. In a subtle manner if you look at the whole pattern it seems like a sequence of percussion notes of Mridang (musical instrument).

Shiv Panchakshari Mantra has terrific vibrations which cleanse all five elements present inside the body.

“ All the “panchabhootas” are tied together with the string of lord shiva’s shakthi to make this beautiful mantra “garland”.

It’s evident from many other old scriptures like “Shiva Purana” and “Vedas” that chanting of this basic panchakshari mantra itself will lead the devotee or seeker towards “moksha” or “Eternal Bliss” or “Success (Both spiritual&materialistic)”.

So chant or sing panchakshari and be with Shiva in the bliss trance !!!

Ohm NaMah ShiVaYa

Om Nama Shivaya

Om Namah Shivaya

Ohm Nama Shivaya

Ohm Shivoham …Ohm Shivoham….Rudra Namam Bhajeham….Bhajeham……

Because of its popularity, counter feet rudrakshas are abundant in the market for sale.

They either carve rudrakha design on to a wooden bead or use heavy metals like lead to make other look alike to be passed on as originals.

Tantrics and Yogis can identify the Power of Rudrakshas by keeping Rudraksha in their fist and observing pulse (Nadi spandana) . That is impossible for normal persons.

Below mentioned simple tests can be used by anyone to find out Original Rudraksha.

There are 4 traditional methods to select genuine rudraksh :

1)    Copper Test

Original Rudraksha is blessed with a natural magnetic field around it’s edges.

Keep rudrakha between 2 copper plates/coins and you can see mild deflection or rotation of the seed due to its magnetic properties.

Instructions :

Place Rudraksha on one coin vertically with it’s poles facing up and down.

Bring the second  copper coin slowly, so that you can see the movement.

Evaluating outcome:

Original Rudraksha must rotate in Clockwise direction (Pradakshina). There will be some Rudrakshas which will rotate Anti-clockwise (Apradakshina). Discard  them. Eventhough they are also Rudrakshas ,they will have Negative energy.

If you don’t see any movement or deflection then the bead is either damaged or fake.

2) Water Test

Seeds of any tree will float in water.

Put the Rudraksha  into a container filled with water or milk.Eventhough it is a seed , original will sink to the bottom.Rudraksha beads from unripe fruits will also float on water. But they are useless.

Please note that this test alone is not safe now because of clever counter feats – made using wood or implanted with heavy metals.

3) Temperature test:

It is a simple test which highlights an important property of Rudraksha. Place Rudraksha in a glass of water (just enough to cover Rudraksha). Record temperature by using a Thermometer. Record the temperature after 30 minutes. If the Rudraksha used is original ,you can observe 1 or 2 degrees centigrade rise of temperature.

4) Test using Milk :

This  is a time consuming test. Place Rudraksha in a glass of fresh milk. Test the milk after 2 days. The milk will not get spoiled. Some quality Rudrakshas can protect milk for even 3 days. Ek mukhi Rudraksha will work for 5 to 7 days!!!

All said and done , the luck to have in possession an original rudraksha is greatly determined by your karmas and blessings from guru and god.

So keep praying sincerely to Shiva and he will drop few of his tears for you.