Asato maa, Sadgamayaa
Tamaso maa, Jyotirgamayaa ;
Mrityor maa, Amritam Gamayaa.
Asato-Maa, Sad Gamaya - From untruth to Truth! Untruth is the death of the ego. The Truth is eternal and immortal. So once you are part of the Truth, there is no question of death at all. My friends, the third barrier stopping enlightenment is the barrier of ego. Therefore, to experience God, we should see that the ego dies as early as possible.
Tamasoma, Jyotir Gamaya - There lies the light of wisdom. Tamas is the darkness. Jyoti is the light. With light, darkness is dispelled. Darkness is death. The light is Truth, Bliss, Peace. The light is eternal.
Mrityor maa, Amritam Gamayaa - Lead me from death to immortality through purity of purpose.
We are birthless, deathless and eternal; we are Truth itself. We celebrate birthdays because, having enough money, we want to have a social function. We enjoy it for a while, happily arranging it. Happy Birthday! But actually you were never born. It is only the body that appeared. That's all! You existed even before the existence of this body.
Sai Baba gives this beautiful example: There is electricity everywhere. But when it is inside the electric light bulb, it sheds light. When the bulb is removed, the electricity is still there, is that not so? So, electricity is ever-present. When the bulb is fixed, you get illumination. When the bulb is removed, you don't get illumination. With the bulb or without the bulb, electricity exists. You are Divine energy. You are Cosmic energy. You are the eternal Truth. The bulb is the body. That's all!
- Listen to the Asato Maa Mantra (mp3 216K, 27sec)
- Download a rendition of the Asato Maa Mantra in mp3 format from the "Mahamantras" CD by Pandit Jasraaj. This CD contains a lot of other hindu mantras sung in praise of Ganesha, Lakshmi, Saraswati and Gayatri.
- Listen to the Asato Maa Mantra (mp3 204K, 14sec)
- Download a rendition of the Asato Maa Mantra in mp3 format from the "Chants of India" CD by Ravi Shankar. This CD is a must for anyone interested in exploring other hindu mantras. This is one of the most frequently played albums on my i pod! All the tracks are excellent, including the Bhagavad Gita Mantra.
