Dot Dot Dot Om Swaha

Magic happens whenever we watch Om Swami ji’s havans live, even remotely from the other side of the world. It happened again when my wife and I watched the Sri Suktam havan  for the last few days. Just by watching and  listening, I was magically transported to the happiest days of my life:my childhood, the days spent with my grandmother, my parents and my brother.

My grandmother was a pious lady, organizing pujas at the drop of a hat. We had Akhanda Ramayana, Hanuman Chalisa recital as well as Durga Saptashati puja quite regularly in our home.

However, the most exciting thing was the puja with special effects – the havan.

For little children, what could be better than a havan kund with a fire in the middle, with mysterious, magical incantations recited by a priest? 

When Om Swamiji did his havans,  I was transported  back into that magical space of early childhood. I could see my whole family seated around the havan kund, with our Panditji leading the ceremonies. I distinctly remember my brother and I making faces at each other, while grown-ups tried to look serious during the ceremony.

I even remember the exact  mantras that were recited. They went  like this;

‘dot dot dot om swaha.”

Yes, those were the exact words, as we heard them in our childhood. Some of the longer mantras went like this:

‘blank blank dot dot dot Om Swaha”

For us, the word “Swaha” was a wake up call. We would come out of our child-like stupor, take a little havan samagri, and offer it to the fire. We started out generously, with a lot of havan samagri in each offering, then we were told to reduce the amount. Towards the end of the havans, we offered just  two or three particles of havan samagri with each Swaha. 

We envied the priest who had control of the ghee, the mystic ingredient that caused the fire to lighten  up immediately.

‘dot dot dot om swaha”

Sometimes, it seems I have spent a lifetime figuring out what the dots mean, and I am still at the nursery stage. As I grew older, I read more of our sacred literature, including small portions of the rig Veda – mostly in translation- as well as bits of the Upanishads, the Bhagavat Gita and the Durga Saptashati. Some of the dots became a bit clearer, as I encountered the same words again and again in these texts. 

Things became a lot clearer after attending Om Swami ji’s havans. The family Pandit of my childhood did not explain anything, he just recited the mantras. However, Om Swami ji explains the verses brilliantly, giving the esoteric meaning behind the words, not just the literal translation. Every havana by Om Swamiji is studded with these jewels of wisdom. 

There are so many jewels, but if I had to pick just one I would choose the verse about Deviji sitting in a chariot, with horses in front and the sound of elephants all around. It is such a powerful image. Om Swami ji even gives us the esoteric meaning: it is a description of the mystic sounds heard during meditation: the neighing sound of horses, the grinding sound of the chariot, and the cacophony of elephants all around us. I feel like jumping into meditation right away, just to hear these mystic sounds!

The other thing that stands out for me  is the story of Medha Rishi. This Rishi took the verses from a text and put them into the Shri Suktam. In other words, he did the job of an editor, much like our very own Medha ji.

Om Swamiji brings out the inner beauty of Shri Suktam. During the first havana, I understood very little, to be absolutely honest. With each succeeding havana I understood a bit more and got more joy out of the proceedings. Now, I can honestly say I have graduated to Kindergarten from Nursery school,in my understanding of the sacred mantras. There are still a lot of classes ahead.

I think the havana has a lot to teach us about how to live our lives. The havana kund is, of course, symbolic of the human body and the sacred fire in the kunda symbolizes the fire in our belly, as Om Swami ji has explained. This is the power of digestion. For proper digestion, the offerings we make to our stomach must be just right.

The ghee makes the fire burn very brightly, but it is used very sparingly during the havana. If we put too much fat in our body, it’s not good for us. The havana samagri is the balanced diet; again, too much of this will douse the fire, we need to offer just a little at a time. We must be relaxed during our meals and take our time eating, chewing each bite and mixing it properly with saliva, as part of the digestive process. We can make special offerings of high quality ingredients like almonds and sesame seeds, but, again, in limited quantity.

The fire has to be well ventilated in order to burn properly. Proper breathing is the most important thing we can do and there are lots of yogic technique for this. Rapid breathing, like kapalbhati, will stoke the digestive fire very quickly but it must be practiced in moderation. We cannot do kapalbhati all day, because the intensity of the fire will overpower us.

However, the most important offerings that we can make are prayers. If we pray a little before each meal, our mind and emotions will be at ease and we will eat mindfully. We will eat the right foods, we will observe their effect on the body and we will not eat too much or too little.

Are you wondering what prayer to use? Again, Om Swami ji leads by example. Just like swami ji, simply say:

Jai ambe  hari, jagdambe hari, Jai Jai jag janni, Jai ambe hari.

What could be better  for our physical and mental health than praying to the mother goddess before every meal?