Protective Yantras for Gopal.
Satkona - Star of David or Star of Goloka? Krsna Talk 84
Star of David or Star of Goloka?
by
Swami B. G. Narasingha
The Star of David [in Hebrew, the Magen David or Shield of David] is renowned as the sacred symbol of the Jewish faith. Indeed, the Star of David is the distinguishing feature on the Israeli flag and as an ornament of jewelry the Star of David is proudly worn by millions of devout Jews worldwide. Yes, the Star of David is purely Jewish. Or is it?
Recently, while visiting the holy city of Jerusalem, I purchased a silver pendant of the “Star of David” from a local shopkeeper and when I put it around my neck I was asked,
“Why are you wearing a Jewish symbol?”
To this I replied, “This is Sat-kona, the symbol of Goloka, the abode of Krsna.”
This article is about the origins of Sat-kona [the Star of Goloka or Goloka-yantra], its transcendental significance, its historical use in Vedic and other ancient cultures, its use in Christianity and Islam, and its eventual adoption by the Jewish faith in the 17th century as a popular symbol of Judaism.
Symbols have long been a part of the histories of the world's great civilizations and Sat-kona is no exception. Before it appeared in the west, from the most ancient of times to the present day, Sat-kona has been at the heart of spirituality in India. The Sat-kona [the six pointed star with a hexagram within, defining sacred space], is constructed by joining two perfect triangles — one pointing upward signifying Purusa and the other pointing downward signifying Prakrti. It is the oldest spiritual symbol known to the world. Sat-kona has been around since the beginning of the universe. We do not expect to find any archaeological evidence to support this statement, however, from sastra, Vedic literature, the evidence is there.
In the oldest known Vedic literature, Sri Brahma-samhita [in that it has been attributed to Lord Brahma and composed shortly after creation], the Sat-kona is mentioned in a description of the supreme abode of Goloka, the abode of Krsna.
karnikaram mahad-yantram sat-konam vajra-kilakam
sadanga-satpadi-sthanam prakrtya purusena ca
premananda-mahananda-rasenavasthitam hi vat
jyotirupena manuna kama-bijena sangatam
“The center of the divine lotus is the core — Krsna's residence. It is presided over by the Predominated and Predominating Moiety. It is mapped as a hexagonal mystic symbol [sat-konam]. Like a diamond, the effulgent Supreme Entity of Krsna, the Fountainhead of all divine potencies, presides as the central pivot. The great mantra of eighteen syllables [Gopala-mantra], which is formed of six integral parts, is manifest as a hexagonal place with six-fold divisions.” [Sri Brahma-samhita, Ch-5, Tx-3]
tat-kinjalkam tad-amsanam tat-patrani sriyam api
“The core of that eternal holy abode which is called Gokula is the hexagonal land of Krsna's abode. The stamens or petals are the residences of the cowherds or Gopas, who are Krsna's own, His dear most friends and high loving devotees that are a part of His own self. Those abodes appear like many walls, all beautifully effulgent. The extensive foliage of that lotus constitutes the sub-forests that are the abodes of the loving damsels of Krsna, headed by Sri Radhika.” [Sri Brahma-samhita, Ch-5, Tx-4]
In the practice of devotion [krsna-bhakti] three important items are given to the devotee to help him/her realize the Supreme Reality, i.e. mantra, yantra and Sri Murti. Mantra is the sound representation of the Supreme Reality, yantra is the mechanized or symbolic representation of the mantra and the Sri Murti is the three dimensional [personal] form of the mantra made manifest to the senses of the devotee to receive his or her service.
Overall, in contemporary Gaudiya Vaisnavism, yantras are no longer in vogue as they were in olden times. Preference has been given to Sri Murti who is worshiped with the appropriate or corresponding mantras. Although yantras are for the most part no longer in use amongst Gaudiyas, this was not always the case. In bygone days all branches of Vaisnavism were frequently found to use yantras in their daily worship and meditation.
The description given in the purports of Brahma-samhita says that the Gopala-mantra [klim krsnaya govindaya gopijana-vallabhaya svaha] manifests as the six sides of the hexagonal figure [Krsnaya, Govindaya, Gopijana, Vallabhaya, Sva and Ha] and that the bija [klim] is the central pivot.
Sat-kona is set up in such a way that those who attend the yantra by meditation and who are deeply aspiring to enter into Krsna's divine pastimes must first realize six objectives of the mantra, i.e. 1) the intrinsic form of Krsna [Krsnaya], 2) the intrinsic form of Krsna' pastimes in Vraja [Govindaya], 3) the intrinsic form of Krsna's intimate attendants, the Gopis [Gopijana], 4) the intrinsic form of full self-surrender unto Krsna, in the wake of those who are Krsna's beloved [Vallabhaya], 5) the pure soul's intrinsic form of divine cognition [Sva], and 6) the intrinsic nature of the soul to render transcendental loving service unto Krsna [Ha].
One who by virtue of being well established in such realizations of the mantra attains firmness [nistha] in the soul's engagement of divine service [abhidheya] and ultimately achieves the supreme goal of life [prayojana] by being engaged in spontaneous transcendental loving service to Krsna in the ego of a maidservant of Srimati Radharani.
At the stage of practice [sadhana], by the grace of the mantra assisted by Sat-kona, the manifest pastimes of Krsna in Gokula may appear in the heart of a devotee. And at the stage of perfection [siddhi] a devotee may realize the unmanifest pastimes of Krsna in Goloka.
At the beginning of the 20th century the great Gaudiya Vaishnava acarya, Sri Bhaktisiddhanta Sarasvati was inspired by the descriptions of Krsna' supreme abode in Brahma-samhita and thus incorporated the Sat-kona into the Gaudiya Matha logo. Indeed the logo of the Gaudiya Matha is in itself a Vaisnava yantra.
At the center of the hexagonal in the Gaudiya Matha logo, Sarasvati Thakura placed the bija-mantra Om [in place of klim] along with nama. In the six points [sat] of the Sat-kona he placed the six opulences, i.e. fame [yasa], beauty [sri], knowledge [jnana], renunciation [vairagya], wealth [aisvarya] and strength [virya].
In line with the purports of Bhaktivinoda Thakura in Brahma-samhita, Bhaktisiddhanta inserted Om in place of Klim to show that Klim and Om are non-different. Sahajiyas, and others of his time were of the habit of neglecting mantras such as Om and Brahma-gayatri, whereas Bhaktisiddhanta was of the practice to show how everything in its deeper meaning is related to Krsna. Bhaktivinoda's purport states as follows:
“The Gopala-tapaniya Upanisad states, tasmad omkara-sambhuto gopalo visvasambhavah, klim omkarasya caikatvam pathyate brahma-vadibhih. Omkara means Gopala, who is both Potency and the potent, and Klim means Omkara. Therefore, Klim or the primary desire seed [kama-bija] expresses the transcendental reality of Sri Sri Radha and Krsna.” [Sri Brahma-samhita, purport, Verse 4]
Furthermore, Sarasvati Thakura used the Sat-kona yantra as the floor plan for the temple of Sri Sri Guru-Gauranga-Gandharvika-Giridhari at Sri Caitanya Matha in Mayapura.
In the Vaisnava canon we find mention of numerous yantras such as the Visnu-yantra, Laksmi-yantra, Gopala-yantra, Radha-yantra, Sudarsana-yantra and Gayatri-yantra, etc.
Vishnu Yantra Laksmi Yantra Gopala Yantra
Radha Yantra Sudarshan Yantra Gayatri Yantra
The following is a verse in praise of Sudarsana from Sri Vaisnava pancaratrika texts mentioning Sat-kona:
sankham cakram capam parasu-
masimisum sula pasankusastram
bhibhranam vajrakhedau hala musala-
gada kuntam atyugra dhamstram
jvala kesam tri-netram jvalad -
anala-nibham hara-keyura bhusam
dhyayet sad-kona samastham
sakala ripu jana prana samhara cakram
"O great Cakra, remove the life of all our enemies. I meditate upon You, residing in the middle of the Sat-kona holding conch, cakra, bow, axe, sword, trident, noose, goad, missile, thunderbolt, plough, pestle and mace. You have terrible fangs, fiery hair, three eyes and you have the intensity of a raging inferno and You are adorned with ornaments and necklaces."
The above-mentioned yantras are today mostly used by orthodox sections of Vaisnavas in India [Sri Vaisnavas and Madhvas] and are more or less ornamental, rather than functional, in the daily sadhana of Gaudiya Vaisnavas. But in due course these yantras may again find their way back into more popular usage.
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Permalink Reply by Basu Gopala Dasa on
- These are some important lectures by Mahanidhi Swami describing about the Gopala Yantra-
How to use them and their confidential significance.They are about 50 minutes long each. Listen
to them carefully and meditate on their contents. I have listened to these several times and they never grow boring. They are classes from the Brahma Samhita. They are about Raganugha Bhakti
and engaging in the pastimes of Radha Krishna.
1) http://audio.iskcondesiretree.info/02_-_ISKCON_Swamis/His_Holiness_...
2)http://audio.iskcondesiretree.info/02_-_ISKCON_Swamis/His_Holiness_...
- The entire cosmic manifestation--
The Supreme Lord's Place - Goloka
Radha Krishna surrounded by the eight most confidential Gopis-- The eight petals of the Lotus
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