by Pandit Rajmani Tigunait

Republished from the Kumbha Mela Times

Many of us are interested in personal enlightenment and personal development, but we forget that we are an integral part of the planet. Nature around us and within us is the locus of our existence. It is the air that we breathe and the food we eat that sustains our life. If the air is polluted and the food contaminated, we are bound to be sick.

Just as water, air, and solids are food for the body, thoughts are food for the mind. If we do not have healthy, positive, and spiritually illuminating thoughts we cannot sustain a joyful mind. The body and mind are the tools to attain the highest purpose and meaning in life. If these tools themselves are faulty, it is absolutely impossible to envision the meaning and purpose in life. In order to maintain a radiant body and a brilliant mind, we must pay attention to the sources that provide nourishment to our body and mind.

According to the scriptures such as the Upanishads, the Bhagavad Gita, and tantric texts, the quality of food is dependent on the quality of the soil. The quality of the soil is dependent on the quality of the water. The quality of the water is dependent on the quality of the clouds. The quality of the clouds is dependent on the quality of the air in space. The quality of the air is dependent on what we produce on earth and deposit in the air, and the quality of space is dependent on the quality of the sound we produce through our speech. Speech is a reflection of our thoughts. Therefore, the quality of speech is dependent on our thought patterns.

To keep air and space free of gross and subtle contaminants, we must stop producing toxins. Only then are we able to restore the health of the clouds. Only then will clouds rain healthy water that will nourish the soil, and the vegetation growing on the planet will be healthy. That in turn will ensure the health of all those who consume the vegetation.

The Rudra Yaga is one of the surest and most effective ways to both clean up the toxins and to nourish nature. By not adding to the production of toxins, we do only half of the service to nature. The other half is dependent on detoxifying nature as well as actively involving ourselves in the rejuvenation of nature. That’s what the Rudra Yaga does.

In the Rudra Yaga, the most exalted fire offering, we offer ingredients which are simultaneously detoxifying and nourishing. The oblations are consumed by fire, matter is transformed into energy, and energy is dispersed into the atmosphere. That energy acts like a cleansing agent as well as nourishing agent. Oblations are offered into the fire along with the recitation of revealed and awakened mantras. The mantra recitation has a double function. First it purifies space and polarizes the energy generated from the offering itself. Secondly it leads that energy to the target.

For example, the Rudra Yaga is being done at Prayagraja in India, or in the state of Pennsylvania, USA, but the greatest concentration of suffering may be in Ethiopia, or Kashmir. Guided by the intention of the person doing the fire offering, and the intelligence of the mantra, the peaceful and joyful energy generated by the fire offering automatically reaches Ethiopia or Kashmir. Since the person doing the Rudra Yaga practice is closest to the energy field, that individual is the first and foremost recipient of this peaceful energy. When you carry a lamp, automatically the path in front of you is illuminated. The others walking with you can easily walk in that light.

I am grateful to all those who so lovingly and sincerely are participating in this Rudra Yaga at the Himalayan Institute campus. I keep all of you in my heart, and I request that all 500 participants keep you in their hearts while they perform Rudra Yaga. May there be peace and prosperity within and without, throughout the world. May all of you residing in any corner of the world become carriers of the light, and may all of you become sincere and responsible children of Mother Nature. May all of you contribute to the health and well-being of earth, water, fire, air, and space. May the health, happiness, beauty and joy of nature’s forces add to your health, happiness, beauty and joy. May we all share each other in spirit.

Registration ends September 15, 2012. Call TOLL FREE 800-822-4547 (option 4) for space availability.