The Guru is the gateway to liberation, like
Varanasi, like the Ganges, and the holy banyan
tree Akshaya. The Guru is himself Vishveshvara
– the Shiva of Varanasi, with the Ganges at his
feet. He is the Prayag, the confluence of the
three holy rivers at the pilgrimage center of
Gaya. Pranam to the Guru again and again.
| Kaashi kshetram | |
| kaa - shee k(a) + shay - trum | |
Note: the sound of ksha actually corresponds to one letter of the Sanskrit alphabet, which is also on one of the two petals of the ajña chakra. Kashi is the old name for Benares, modern-day Varanasi, the holy city of Shiva, where people go in the belief that Shiva will immediately enlighten them if they die there. Thus, Varanasi is considered a portal, just as the Guru is. |
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| tannivaaso | |
| tun - nee - vaa - so | |
| |
| jaahnavi | |
| jaah - nu - vee | |
| Note: give the 'h' just a little breath, just so it's not jaanavi. Jaanavi means the river Ganges. | |
| |
| charano dakam | |
| chu - ru - no du - kum | |
| Note: charano means 'feet', which is a word we've already seen several times. Dakam is a word we will see a few more times and means 'water'. It is used both literally and symbolically, as the flow of grace and energy coming from the Guru's feet. Here it is translated as 'with the Ganges at his feet'. | |
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| Now string them together... | |
| Kaashi kshetram tannivaaso, jaahnavi charano dakam | |
| |
| Gurur | |
| goo - roor | |
| |
| vishvesh | |
| vish - vaysh | |
Note: vaysh, like a vase you put flowers in... just end it with 'sh'. (fish face  ) |
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| varah saakshaat | |
| vu - ruh saak - shaat | |
Note: again we have the single letter ksha Vishveshvara is one of Shiva's names, specifically related to one of the great temples in Varanasi. |
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| taarakam brahma | |
| taa - ru - kum bru + (h) - mu | |
| |
| nishchitam | |
| nish - chi - tum | |
| |
| Now string them together... | |
| Gurur vishveshvarah saakshaat, taarakam brahma nishchitam | |
| |
| Guroh paado | |
| goo - ro (h) paa - do | |
| Note: paado means feet. | |
| |
| dakam yattu | |
| du - kum yat - too | |
| Note: again, dakam means water. The water of the Guru's feet... | |
| |
| gayaa sau | |
| gu - yaa sow | |
| Note: Gaya is a famous pilgrimage site | |
| |
| saukshayo vataha | |
| sow - k + shu - yo vu - ta | |
Note: again, we have the ksha Sometimes it helps to learn a tongue twister by first appending it to one syllable (like onto sow) and work with it; then move it to another syllable all together to work with it (like kshayo). Working it from both directions, as it were, helps smooth it out. Kshayo stands for akshaya (the initial 'a' is dropped when it follows the vowels of 'sau'). Akshaya is a famous banyan tree, considered very sacred. |
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| Tirtha raaja | |
| tir - thu raa - ju | |
Note: strive to differentiate the pronunciation of the two 't' sounds in tirtha. The first is not aspirated; the second is. Tirtha means a pilgrimage site (a word we've seen before in verse 8). Raaja means king. |
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| prayaagash cha | |
| pru - yaa - gush | |
Note: take note to NOT make the pray into a dipthong. Keep the syllables separate and you'll be ok. Prayag is a city in the north Indian state of Uttar Pradesh located at the confluence of the three holy rivers: Ganges, Yamuna and the invisible river, Sarasvati. It is believed to be the place where Brahma offered his first sacrifice after creating the world. The term "the three rivers" also symbolizes ida, pingala and sushumna, the three most important nadis or currents of the subtle body. |
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| gurumurte | |
| goo - roo - moor - tay | |
| Note: as we saw in verse 9, murte means form | |
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| namo namaha | |
| nu - mo nu - mu + (hu) | |
Note: the (hu) is a visarga, meaning to slightly echo the previous vowel, which in this case is the 'u' sound. And because it is at the end of the verse, it's pronounced (a bit). Namo means to bow, pranam or honor. Repeating the word means again and again. |
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| Now repeat the entire verse all together: | |
| Kaashi kshetram tannivaaso, jaahnavi charano dakam; Gurur vishveshvarah saakshaat, taarakam brahma nishchitam. Guroh paado dakam yattu, gayaa sau saukshayo vataha; Tirtha raaja prayaagash cha, gurumurte namo namaha. | |
| And make sure you know the keywords: | |
| Kaashi kshetram tannivaaso, jaahnavi charano dakam; Gurur vishveshvarah saakshaat, taarakam brahma nishchitam. Guroh paado dakam yattu, gayaa sau saukshayo vataha; Tirtha raaja prayaagash cha, gurumurte namo namaha. | |
| The Guru is the gateway to liberation, like Varanasi, like the Ganges, and the holy banyan tree Akshaya. The Guru is himself Vishveshvara – the Shiva of Varanasi, with the Ganges at his feet. He is the Prayag, the confluence of the three holy rivers at the pilgrimage center of Gaya. Pranam to the Guru again and again. | |
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Try saying this by initially saying KA and then SHAY, and then squeezing the air out of the separation between the two sounds, until the k and sh blend together.