The world around us is moving at a pretty fast clip, in so many ways. It’s pretty easy to fall into the trap of existing somewhere within and between where we’ve been and where we’re going, with seemingly very limited opportunity to just be. If we’re not conscientious about it, the time on the mat can just turn into yet another aspect of the coming and going. The opening mantra helps stop that from happening. It’s a moment of devotion, in a way that’s special and sacred, to place mind within body, grab the breath, plug into your source, and begin to move with purpose.
vande gurūnām caranāravinde sandarśita
svātma sukhāvabodhe |
nihśreyase jāngalikāyamāne samsāra
hālāhala mohaśantyai ||
ābāhu purusākāram śankacakrāsi dhārinam |
sahasra śirasam śvetam pranamāmi patañjalim ||
I bow to the lotus feet of the Gurus
The awakening happiness of one’s own self revealed,
Beyond better, acting like the jungle physician,
Pacifying delusion, the poison of Samsara.
Taking the form of a man to the shoulders,
Holding a conch, a discus, and a sword,
One thousand heads white,
To Patanjali, I salute.
There’s an element of courage involved – courage to humble one’s self for the sake of gaining knowledge – to show faith through humility. And also reverence – a show of respect and admiration for those who have come before us and offered teachings to remove deep rooted misperceptions (avidya – that which prevents us from experiencing yoga) from our lives.
There are a few key features of the chant that I find important to point out. The first being that “gurūnām” is plural – suggesting that the windows to awareness (a way I like to think of the guru principle) can appear in multiple forms as we move through our lives. The second is that it reminds us that the ultimate guru – the “awakening happiness of one’s own self” – is within us. It’s there for us to find and merge with (a way of thinking of yoga as union). Thirdly, I totally dig this idea of a “jungle physician”. This might not be the definitive definition, but to me it signifies the depth, grit and heart that most of us have to pour into this path, this work, in order to develop as a yogi. And then there’s “samsara hālāhala mohaśantyai”. Samsara being the cycle – the many cycles – within which our lives are embedded – the most significant one being our very own cycle of birth–life–death. Hālāhala represents the forces, the actions, often clouded by negative emotion, that continue to pull us into this cycle – and yoga is a means to liberate ourselves from this cycle (mohaśantyai). And finally, there’s a nod to Patanjali – the author/compiler of the Yoga Sutras – a guidebook for the practice of yoga that introduces the eight limbs (ashta = 8, anga = limbs) of ashtanga yoga. This last part, starting with “ābāhu” is direct from the traditional opening chant for the study of the Yoga Sutras. Asana is a super important limb for many of us and can serve as a backbone for inclusion and pursuit of developing the other seven limbs, giving us the opportunity to expand our yoga practice into every aspect of our lives.
*An audio recording of this chant can be found on the “Shala on SoundCloud” page under the “On Demand” tab of yogashalanashville.com