Chapter 15 - Wishes to be gained (kāmya)

Brahma:—

1. For men who live their lives with a view to the benefits of this world, please expound in general terms what constitutes their round of duties, in order that they may gain their objects.

Parama:—

2. I have already expounded this to you in part, O, Pitāmaha!, but I shall briefly explain the whole of it.

3. First of all let a wise man determine the objects he wishes for, provided they are in keeping with his birth and his character, which are likely to be of benefit to him.

4. Having made his determination, let him go away from his relatives and the town where his residence is, and live in a hermitage near a hill, with an abundant supply of water.

5. Keeping the hair, finger-nails and hair on the lips, etc., and wearing garments of bark, let him make known to the deity the object of his desire.

6. Making a cottage for himself, let him live in it. If he is incapable, let him get others to put it up for him; and for all purposes, let him live in it.

7. A month at the least up to a year is the time prescribed. In order to gain one’s object let him first perform puraścaraṇa (preliminary purification by puraścaraṇa (preliminary purification by mantras).

8. The purifying of the body by mantra is what is called puraścaraṇa; for without this the desired object cannot be gained even by an ascetic.

9. One must maintain life by food cooked by himself from forest herbs. Whenever obtainable, roots and ripe fruits of the season may also be utilised.

10. Bathing early in the morning, worship the deity of the mantra in a clean place. At the appropriate time secretly recite the mantra without being too rapid, or too slow in the recital.

11-12. Without taking any food, with all organs of sense under control, and in complete devotion, make the secret recital (japa) a thousand times or a hundred as desired, placing oneself face towards the deity. At noon let him take his bath in the prescribed form.

13. After the bath, taking the holy sip and offering the water oblation, again make the japā (secret recital of the mantras); in the afternoon (aparāṇha) however, offer again the water oblation and set free the presiding deities of the mantra.

14. Having bathed again and having partaken of food make the evening worship and then go to bed. In this manner again let the practitioner do his duties on the following day.

15. Having gone out to ease oneself, let him take the prescribed bath; perform the japā with devotion, reciting the mantras devoutly after.

16. A wise man should secretly recite the japa, the māhāmantras 12,000 times—these being Sudarśana, Nṛsimha, Vārāha and Aparājita.

17. If the mantra be composed of less than 12 letters, the japa should be one lac for each letter. From the first letter of the aṅga mantra, mark the position in 10 divisions.

18. If the mantra is of one syllable (bīja) make that alone all the aṅgas (parts involved). It is only when^[1] all this is said in due order that the mālāmantra (mantra in a garland) is completed.

19. For the successful performance of the mantra place the praṇava (syllable Oṃ) both at the beginning and the end. When the mantra had thus been successfully accomplished, use the mantra in the performance of the homa (fire-oblation) with a terminal svāha (instead of praṇava at the end).

20. The homa may be performed with ghee, or samidh (sacrificial wood), or fruits, at the best, ten times as a matter of duty for the success of the mantra.

21. If one is unable to do this homa, let him perform the homa mentally by inaudible incantation of the homa mantra. A wise man should make his daily of the mantra terminate in the performance of a homa.

22. Churning the fire for the homa, preserve it without going out. If perchance the fire be extinguished, light it up again by churning in the same manner as before.

23. When you are engaged in the japa of the great mantra, the Gods will frighten you by great and fearsome noise. Do not be frightened by these.

24. When one remains unshaken and without fear, these Gods tempt him with beautiful women and such other enjoyable objects to deceive him.

25. Other Gods try to delude him by appearing like the upāsaka’s (practitioner’s) relations in his dream and try to dissuade him by arguments of reason.

26. He is a wise sādhaka who keeps free from being deluded by these. To him the lasting wish formed in the mind attains fulfilment.

27. To those who always do their duty with courageous effort, their previous wishes certainly attain their fulfilment; not to others, O, Pitāmaha.

28. A courageous man should carry out, without assistance from others, the work needed for attaining the end desired. In the case of an incapable man however assistance may be rendered in work of an accessory character, but never in the case of others.

29. When one has accomplished the requisite incantations of the mantra, fire oblation should be offered up to the limit of 10,000 oblations.

30. After this, perform another fire-oblation suitable to the object desired beforehand. If a man desire the wealth of learning, Brahma Śrī, perform the homa with white lotuses.

31. If one desires the wealth of valour (Kṣatriya Śrī) he must offer red lotus oblation; if one desires a kingdom he must offer oblations of pipal sticks (Samidh).

32. If one desires increase of years the oblation is grass dipped in ghee; in case one desires a girl, he should use the grass dried up naturally; if he desired land, he should use mud for the purpose.

33. One desiring place or position, should use the sticks of the Indian fig (Śamī). For propitiatory oblations however use sticks of the fig-tree.

34. One desiring a child (son) should offer sweet gruel; for gaining control over another, use apāmārga (Achyranthes aspera) as also in cases of great distress.

35. A wise one -desirous of learning (vidyā) should use sticks of Palāśa (Butea frondosa); those desiring food, cooked rice, while one desiring wisdom should use new ghee.

36. One desiring wealth should use bilva (Aegle marmelos); in case of cure for ailments, gingelly.

36B-37. For getting rid of enemies who are great sinners, make an image of the enemy with kneaded Māṣa (black kindney bean) flour, cut off parts of it from feet upwards, and offer each part in anger at the junction of streets; and then make oblations into the fire of thorny sticks touched with blood.

38. For bringing affliction to an enemy, the adept should offer oblations of mushroom. If one desires enmity to another, he should offer oblations of salt mixed with gingelly.

39. A gold desiring adept, should use the flowers of lemon.

40. One desiring rain should offer oblation of ratan sticks. At the end of the mantra in the performance of fire oblations, the svāha is prescribed to be used.

41-45. This must be used with hiṅkāra and phaṭkāra in fire oblations intended to afflict others. In all one does, one must contemplate the various conditions to which the object is intended to be subjected, as having been achieved; namely, in an attempt at gaining control over another he must be thought of as being already under control; in the case of bringing about enmity he must be thought of as already an enemy. An officiant who has accomplished his object should, at the end of the incantation, in cases of bringing affliction to others, conclude by a propitiatory fire-oblation. Otherwise very evil consequences will follow as shown in Viṣṇu Dharma. Having performed a work to gain one’s wish and having gained the object thereof, a wise man will begin work only then to attain another object. Disappointment, and eagerness in doing work to attain an object, should be avoided in ceremonies to attain an object.

46-47. By fault of speech or mind, the result of the work (karma) may be lost or even one’s own life. Therefore one should do this kind of work which is only for one’s own good. A wise man should avoid work for inferior purposes.

In the Parama Saṃhitā of the Chapter XV, named Kāmya (Wishes to be gained).

Footnotes and references:

[1]:

When all the akṣaras have been placed in due order over the aṅgas.