> > Patanjali mentions the 'pranava', but does not > > state that it is 'om'. AUM is not, strictly > > speaking, a 'bija' mantra. AUM isn't mentioned > > in the Yoga Sutras nor in the Rig Veda. > > Vaj: > According to bija-mantra dictionaries, AUM is a > bija mantra. > You don't get 'bija' mantras from a book or a dictionary - you get bija mantras from a guru in an initiation ceremony. The mono syllable 'AUM' is a mantra, not a bija mantra, Vaj. If you don't get the bija from a guru, then it does not have the 'shakti', it's just a nonsensical sound, without the empowerment. Any word or phrase can be a bija mantra if the guru says it is.
According to the Swami Ageananda Bharati, AUM is a mantra 'by courtesy only'. For example, AUM or OM isn't included in the Gayatri. Om is not a bija mantra used in TM. > > So, Patanjali doesn't say anything about the > > 'TM' bija mantras and where they came from. > > > Duh. The YS is not a text on mantra, it's a Nath > text on yoga, maybe that's why! > The Yoga Sutra of Patanjali (circa 200 BC), was composed long before the advent of the Nath tradition (Matsyendranath). Bija mantras didn't come into use in India until the age of the Indian alchemists (Naga Arjuna). > > Vernon Katz made the translation and they seem > > to be pretty standard. I've compared Katz's > > translation with Swami Prabhupada's word for > > word translations and they are near the same. > > > Actually according to the MUM download on the > Gita, Marshy translated it. > It was probably a collaborative effort between the Maharishi, Vernon Katz, and his students. But, it's pretty obvious who made most of the cogent comments. Almost all translations of the Gita follow a standard linguistics and transliteration. BHAGAVAD-GITA: http://www.bhagavad-gita.org/index-english.html > Interesting for someone who couldn't read > Sanskrit! > Yes, it's interesting why you'd assume that the Maharishi, a physics graduate of Allahabad University, and a student of spiritual paths for fifty years, couldn't read or speak Sanskrit. You're not even making any sense! Almost any child in grade school level can be taught how to read and speak a language in just a few years, Vaj. The Maharishi could not only read and write Sanskrit - he was obviously multi-lingual, being able to converse on spiritual subjects in not only Sanskrit, but Hindi, English, Urdu and probably several other common prakrits.
