The power of invisible ink

Recently many people across the country celebrated Chaitra Navaratra festival in various ways. I happened to visit a friend who is a devotee of Goddess Durga. While taking darshana of the Goddess I noticed a pale brownish paper put into a small plastic bag and being worshipped in his pooja altar. The paper didn't seem to have anything drawn or printed on it and apparently didn't have anything written or inscribed either. Out of curiosity I asked what it is. And he told me the story behind that "plain paper".

Almost twenty five years ago he visited some holy place and was advised to worship a particular Yantra (a spiritual geometric figure) of the Goddess. After his return, he did a formal anushthana of the Yantra and the Goddess. As advised he inscribed the Yantra on Bhrujapatra (also called Bhojapatra) using Ashtagandha. He developed extreme faith on that Yantra because it proved to be "miraculous" and "life saving" to him on many occasions. Years passed by. The Ashtagandha ink started to fade away. He continued to worship the same Yantra rather than creating a new one because he was getting the desired results. Over a period of time the Yantra drawn on the Bhurjapatra became almost "invisible" due to fading away of the Ashtagandha. BUT that "invisible" Yantra is still active and doing wonders to his life, faith, and spiritual journey in general.

Twenty five years ago that person inscribed his faith, intention, and strong will on the Bhurjapatra using Ashtagandha as a medium of representation. The ink faded away but the impressions or samskras of his faith and will power were written permanently. Those "invisible" strokes of his faith and intention are still manifesting desired results for him.

This also holds true for any Yoga and meditation practice. Although there may not be any tangible sign that your practice is really working or doing any good to you, over a period of time those impressions start manifesting the desired outcome. Every breath coupled with an intention, every recitation of a mantra done with full faith, and every attempt to concentrate your mind on your Ishtam inscribes an invisible footprint on your mind, intellect, and ego. As your practice matures they start manifesting the intended results. All you need is - Shraddha (faith), Saburi (patience), Shista (discipline), and Samarpana (utmost dedication).

OM HAMSAH SOHAM !!

May the swan of breath show you the right direction.

Bipin Joshi is an independent software consultant and trainer by profession specializing in Microsoft web development technologies. Having embraced the Yoga way of life he is also a yoga mentor, meditation teacher, and spiritual guide to his students. He is a prolific author and writes regularly about software development and yoga on his websites. He is programming, meditating, writing, and teaching for over 27 years. To read more about him go here. More details about his Kriya and Meditation online course are available here.