Respected Sir:
To add to what our respected member Dr.Sadagopan has mentioned.
Right from the top of the head to the fag end of the root / tip of the spinal column ending, there are 'chakras' or wheels. Traditionally these are 7 in numbers. A chakra is a center of activities that processes & channelises basic prana or bioelectric energy & the 7 key chakras are associated with the effective, efficient & optimal function of the body/mind nexus. Scientifically, as our learned Dr.Sadagopan Sir, has mentioned the spinal nervous system with the sympathetic & parasympathic nervous systems govern all our instincts, reflex actions & exchange electrical signals with the brain & therefore, engaging these points with drops of water charged with prayers, chants & the Lord's name acts as a powerful cleansing activity.
In the Sandhyavandanam process, rituals, one of the most significant rationale is to secure inner cleanliness so that the more broader raison dâÃtre of obtaining the grace of our Lord the Beloved Sriman Narayanan's holy feet.
It is impossible to internally clean yourself with a piece of cloth. Sleep,rest,diet & fasting etc. also may not provide the required inner cleansing. Our thoughts are still there. Thoughts govern our action & consequently, we are what we think. The Vedic seers saw this body-mind exchange of energy clearly & devised a cleansing mode for internal cleansing.
This is also one of the reasons why Pranayama is also enjoined in the Sandhyavandanam process. If, strictly one follows the Pranayama process, then fresh oxygen & active elimination of toxic carbon dioxide is achieved. The subtle nerve-endings get activated afresh & one is ready to take on the day.
We all know the placebo effect in medicine. If with full faith one takes the medicine, the body accepts because the mind has accepted & prepared the nervous systems to accept. In a similar manner, focusing our thoughts on the water, charging it with the Lords name, dedicating it to the Lord, in full faith, when you consume the drop of Achamanan water drops, as it passes thru the Chakras, the drop becomes potent & along with Pranayama, the chakras get re-charged. What happens if you drop of water over a surface? As it travels down the surface it wets the path thru which it travels. The effect of the drop removes the dryness on the surface even as it passes thru the surface. In a similar manner, the drop of water ingested starts of the cleansing effect by wetting the key chakras.
How do you clean your TV screen? Or your computer monitor? You spray a little of the cleaning liquid & when the small droplets sprayed spread over, with the piece of cloth you wipe the screen by spreading the wetness around & rub back & forth & lo & behold the screen is shining. In a similar way, as soon as Achamanan is over the next act is Pranayama. The potent water has removed the dryness at the grosser level of the chakras & then Pranayama acts like the cleaning cloth by moving life giving prana & oxygen, which by its very nature starts impacting the minute droplets of the sprayed drop. The chakra thereby gets its sheen back & like the engine of a motorcycle sputtering back to life with a healthy Burr burr when the driver kicks the starter, the chakras start off.
Among the chakras at the throat level, at the heart level there is the Vishudi & Anahata chakra respectively. The former is supposed to govern discrimination & wisdom & the later decisions where the mind has no role i.e. heart based, affection / love /kindness decisions happen - that is why u commonly hear these 'have a heart!!' or 'he is ruled by the heart & not by the head, impractical man ', 'you cannot let your heart overrule your head', etc. etc.
By cleansing these key chakras, the bioelectric energy fields get a free access to all parts of the body & brain & body functioning attains its purpose.
Look at the ingenious way in which our ancient Seers have conceived to address the inner cleaning issue. Just between the eyebrows right in the center is the Ajna chakra that is supposed to control the mind. Now unlike the Vishudi & Anhata chakras that are inside the throat & down below, where water can reach thru the mouth water cannot reach the Ajna chakra. You cannot pour drops into the ear or bend your neck back & drop water thru the nostrils or put water thru the eyes. So how to achieve the cleansing? No sweat for our Ancient Seers! . Simply charge your fingertips with the name of the Lord & use acupressure at all possible points on the face so that like hot spears the cleaning happens.
That is why two thirds of the 12 points of Achamanan are located on the face. Since water is not feasible, the touch points side of the nostrils, the ears, the cheeks, the eyes are all subject to the acupressure. Even before the Chinese discovered the magic of acupuncture using fine needlepoints, our Vedic Seers had put the science into practice. Why the reference to âlike hot spears in the previous para? Similar to a needle end which when applied with the proper pressure & precision, will activate the dormant state of the relevant energy point with applying pressure in quick succession â note that the Achamanan is done without any let. Also itâs not a slow act. Once you sip the water, the âtouch purificationâ thru acupressure is instantaneous, almost a reflex action. Now imagine, on the face, from all possible angles, except perhaps from the back of the head, in quick succession pressure is applied. Like rays the energy pierces & centers on the eyebrow. The chance of a miss out is practical negligible. What is the effect? Cleansing at its best without water. A superb scientific marvel! very practical, easily do-able, simplistic.
What is the net effect? As soon as you get up, you externally clean yourself, then start off with the internal cleansing. Your mind, heart & nervous systems are arrayed in perfect unison & your brain starts functioning with sound discrimination & in silent wisdom.
There is yet another angle to the âtouch-pointâ concept of the Sandhyavandanam. This has got to do with the Mudras. For instance the traditional Namaskar __/\__ is a mudra. Even Christians while making the sign of the cross end up touching the heart with both the palms making a symbol of the cross over the heart. When we sit for Japa, typically the thumb & the forefinger are lightly joined, during Pranayama this is used. The overall effect is that energy gets balanced resulting a more calming/soothing effect on your thought-physio-psycho set-up. Also to enhance concentration Mudras are used apart from therapeutic & other uses. Some of the impact of Mudras where fingertips are used predominantly.
Thumb touches tip of index finger: churns energy to the legs & lower body. Thumb touches tip of middle finger: invokes patience
Thumb touches tip of ring finger: enhance self-confidence. Thumb touches tip of little finger: helps in Intuition
You will thus see that most of the above actions are subtler than the subtlest & cannot be easily âfeltâ or âseenâ. Though, symbolic & esoteric they are firmly rooted in science & psychology. So by a judicious mix of psychology, physiology, spirituality, body, mind, chemistry, & electronics our ancient Seers have attempted to interlink the structure of a human with the universe.
Errors if any may be pardoned a ignorant ramblings. kayena vacha...manse.....sarvam Krishan arpanam !!!!!!!!!
OM Tat Sat
Tat Tvam asi
Post script : When one talks of placebo effect, the medicine in reality is somewhat inert and neutral. The healing takes place due to the auto-suggsestion . Moreover the placebo is not relevant for serious ailments. However, for the topic under discussion, the reference to the placebo is just by way of an analogy to drive the point. Readers are requested to understand the spirit in which the placebo reference is made. In case of the water charged with Sriman Narayanaâs name, there is no question of inertness or neutrality. It actually attains potentiality and does its work.
"Dr. Sadagopan" <yennappan@xxxxxxxxxxxx>
Sent by: Oppiliappan@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxx 10/28/2007 01:40 AM
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