The Tears of Shiva

Yoga is a philosophy and science of the mind, and it’s teaching are tens of thousands of years old. The Vedas are said to be the earliest written spiritual text known to a man still controversy overshadows the authorship and origin. No one source can clarify how old the Vedas are or even who wrote them, thought to have always existed, the speculated age is 12,000 years old.

Woven to the fabric of the worlds oldest living philosophy are stories, allegories, and metaphors in creation of the universe, the values and ethics of humanity and the theory of our origin and our journey to guided emancipation.

Rudraksha – Tears of Shiva

Rudraksha – Tears of Shiva
The name Rudrā is one of 1008 names of the Hindu deity Shiva and the word Akśa means tears in Sanskrit. After 1000 years of meditation, tears began to fall from the eyes of Shiva in compassion for humanity, and the tears became the Rudraksha Tree.

It is said in the Rudraksha Upanishad (an ancient Hindu text that is included in the Vedas, humanities oldest spiritual and philosophical book), that those who wear the Rudraksha close to the skin will absolve their sins.

The Rudrakśha Upaniśhat is one of the 108 scriptures of the Upanishad, (which are the final scriptures of the Vedas), and it says that even uttering the name itself – “Rudraksha” holds pranic and Karmic merit and wearing the beads is akin to wearing the sacred ash, Bhasma.

Rudraksha Mala

Rudraksha is the small earth coloured seeds that sometimes resemble an apricot kernel worn on the necks and wrists of practising yogis, spiritualist and fashionistas alike. Wearing a wreath or mala (garland) of beads is popular among western spiritualists. The mala is meant to protect you from bad vibes, balance your karmic debts and enhance your psychic powers.

The beads are strung together into a mala, (wreath) of 108 beads + 1, or 111 +1 depending on your sources. There are some texts that state in the time of Kaliyuga – which is now – 111 beads are worn. (The plus 1 accounts for the guru bead and is not included in the mantra or prayer count). Japamala is the practice of using beads in mantra, meditation and prayer. The user sits quietly and work thumb and middle finger across each bead in a clockwise direction, one mantra for each bead.

Mala can be made of other organic materials that include lava, mineral rocks and semi-precious stones, precious metals, bone, shells, pearl and wood. Different organic compounds compose different resonant frequencies – just like a medical prescription, different compounds suit different needs. But it is the Rudraksha, and Tulsi beads that remain the favourite amongst Sadhus, Yogis, devotees of Shiva and aesthetics.

Not All Beads Created Equal

The Rudraksha plant itself is a very potent healing plant, (Ayurvedic Medicine), the seeds, berries, bark, leaves, and even ash are used to treat inflammatory diseases, measles, dermal problems and skin rashes, mumps, measles, schizophrenia and cancer. There are 360 species of Rudraksha found across Australasia, and 25 are unique to India alone. The different strains appear to have various medicinal properties, as well as a different energetic and spiritual value.

The value of the beads is given based on their Mukhi – the number of individual segments counted inside the seeds. The number influences how the beads work and their spiritual value. The number of Mukhi range from 1 up to 27, 1 being the rarest. Single Mukhi Rudraksha is of the highest importance and is meant to enhance your spiritual development. The warning to someone who wears the single Mukhi is they are likely to renounce all worldly possessions and leave his family within seven days.

Rudraksha beads also have the ability to determine the difference between negative and positive energy and can tell if water has been contaminated and is undrinkable. Sadguru demonstrates this in the online video posted here. There are other mystical qualities that set the Rudraksha beads apart from other types of Mala Beads including the electromagnetic properties of the seeds and the the ayurvedic quality they poses.

For the beads to work, they need to be activated, which means you somehow switch them from inert compounds to active and receptive to the wearer and the mantra they have chosen. It might be the same as when you buy activated grains or Vitamin B12, I think!?.

You can buy activated  Rudraksha mala online or buy them directly from stores, suppliers and even gurus in India (if you go there). I am not too sure how one would know what qualifies for fraudulent or counterfeit beads, I guess only a true Yogi can understand that.