DEVOTION IN THE STARS
ANURADHA NAKSHATRA
The half darkening Moon phase known Tantricly as the Siddha Moon. 🌗
The Ashtami (eighth lunar night) of descent is a time of balance.
The halves of dark and light meet in perfect balanced union and awaken the central chanel of Sushumna on each half Moon.
On the descending phase the forces of the Moon draw the fluidic pressures to the left side.
The Mala is worn from left to right by the practitiones and devotees of the Moon… this helps in balancing the fluids that we are made of.
The half Moon transfers these energies internally and to the heart side of the physical and astral body.
The Nakshatra (lunar mansion) on this night is Anuradha… she is the starry realm of devotion and commitment, endurance and loyalty.. she lives in the realm of Vrishchika (Scorpio).
Tantric ritual works prominently with focus on the forces of the Nakshatra that beams it’s teachings off the Moon.
Aligning to devotion is perhaps the essence of the eternity of love.
To be commited to ones feelings is a profound thing that Tantrics cultivate.
There will be a ritual tonight that be connected to being devoted to some of the very hardest feelings we might have experienced in this voyage from birth to death that some call life.
the Sadhaks call that Voyage Yog.
Anuradha Nakshatra is devotion… her starry devotion is both earthly and celestial and sparkles with the eyes of the beloved. This Nakshatra transports the lessons of friendship and dedication.
Tierya is a Sanskrit term that denotes reliability, conviction and the potency of staying. Anuradha Nakshatra is the friend who will bend and the mother who will devote to the child’s heart.
astrologically the Moon and sun are the proponents of Tierya… how they dance together is something g obvious and at the same time mysterious… their constancy and steadfastness shows in that they never retrograde or altar speed.. they are the cosmic egg and seed. The dance of the sacred feminine and masculine… the exchange of friendship.
How does this apply to ourselves?
Where do we lose motion or retrograde when devotion is in the picture?
In the Vimshottri Dasha system, Anuradha Nakshatra comes under Saturn… which seems interesting as Saturn is constancy, devotion and unrelenting intent… Saturn is called many things from the Katma Karana to the lord of time… but meditation deeper upon the slow one known as Amanda, we find that he is the planet that leads to live by his power of staying with whatever… Saturn is given as the dark planet of the left hand Tantrics for this reason. Never turning away but enduring and loving all the way unto the heart of Shakti.
Anuradha Nakshatra is composed of the 3 stars of Scorpio: -Alpha, Delta and Pi.
She is a Nakshatra that awakens elements in us that teach us the secrets of being a true friend and devotee of love. To be a true friend is to awaken to love.
Anuradha Nakshatra takes us to the very depths of our issues in friendship aand devotion.
When this Nakshatra is ritualistically contacted through focus and concentration, it presents a doorway of healing our deep-seated issues in relationships, both past and present.
This is the Root aspect of the Lotus.
Anuradha has the potential to take us to the subtle etheric peaks of devotional relationship. She can take us to levels of psychic union in a telepathic sense with those on our frequency of friendship.
This is the Stem aspect of the Lotus.
Oh and the taste of devotional love is the union of Tantric practice. Sadhana is the constancy of devotion that leads to the mystic woman known as Sadhia.
This is the Flower of the Lotus
The name Anuradha is another name of the Gopi Lalita. Anuradha means ‘the follower of Radha – Radha is the Goddess of love and devotion.
The stories tell us that Anuradha did follow Radha like a true friend.
Anuradha follows Radha with her very heart – this is the deepest aspect of devotion.
when we try,y are in love, then our heart beats with the beloved… and their feelings are our very own.
And just like the Gopi that shares the name of this Nakshatra, Anuradha Nakshatra brings us the lesson of becoming a true devoted lover..
COSMOLOGICAL ORDER
The Ruling deity of Anuradha Nakshatra is Mitra.
Mitra is the god of friendship.
Mi – means to uncover and untie. Tra – implies binding or order, or an instrument of bringing order.
Mitra is the keeper of cosmic order. He is the very force that balances the dance of ebb and flow together – the contraction and expansion of energy in both the body and the psyche, in both the macro and microcosm.
It is Mitra that keeps cosmic rhythm through managing the opposite forces of binding and unbinding.
Mitra is best friends with his opposite.
Varuna is his opposite and they are bound together in a sacred oath of friendship that is so deep, it keeps the universe in equilibrium.
Varuna translates as the one who covers and conceals.
Mitra causes the sun to rise, he uncovers and reveals as the ‘Mi’ in his name suggests, Mitra is said to never close his eyes.
Varuna on the other hand conceals and brings nightfall.
Mitra is the deity who assists the activating of the solar day forces and Varuna assists in activating the lunar night forces.
Varuna is the deity of the depths and the waters that cover the earth and move with the dance of the Moon.
So, these two opposite forces are tied together in deepest friendship and keep the cosmological order of Rtta. Rtta is the rhythmical, regulating principle of order.
SYMBOLS OF ANURADHA
The symbols of this Nakshatra are an archway, a Danda (wand), and a Lotus flower.
The Danda is one of the symbols of of meditation when we approach Anuradha Nakshatra. The Danda is the magical stick of power carried by witches, wizards and sages.
Yogic wisdom tells of many types of stick that hold and transport the power of those that carry them.
In an inner sense, the stick of power is the the spine.
And just like the spine, it is also the lotus flower that extends both into the deep depths and blooms fragrantly upwards.
Just like the lotus bloom, Anuradha takes us to the Southernmost part. ‘the fertility inherent in depth’
The two opposites poles of the Danda
are united in love
Another symbol of Anuradha Nakshatra is in fact the Lotus flower.
We see that the other Nakshatra’s connected to Shuni (Saturn) in the Vimshottri Dasha system, also have their symbols as lotus flowers.
The blue lotus flower being the symbol of Shravan Nakshatra Uttara Bhadrapada Nakshatra has the pink lotus flower as its symbol.
Anuradha Nakshatra has the white lotus as its symbol.
Each of these colours of the Lotus has significance to the energies of the ruling Nakshatra. This can be discovered when one engages intuition by meditating upon the the stories associated with these Nakshatra’s.
The archway is yet another of Anuradha Nakshatra. But what exactly is an archway?
We can see that it is a joining of divisions between two areas. The archway is a structure of union.
To pass under an archway is a sacred chance to evoke Anuradha Nakshatra and all that it stands for.
Meditating and doing rituals in archways are connected to Anuradha and are part and parcel of her many sacred rituals.
We can see this in Indian marriages. With the passing under the arch rituals. We also see in the marriage customs the pouring of Mustard oil i upon the doorway as the new home is entered.
Anuradha is a yellow Devi (Goddess), just as the mustard oil is. Mustard oil is a much prized oil in Tantra for working with Shakti.y
Passing under the arch with the recognition of the unity of opposites is the love of invoking Anuradha in marriage ritual. It is a prayer to appeal to her celestial forces to establish order in the coming Union.
The archway literally brings two halves together – just as devotion, friendship and loyalty bring disparate and exclusive elements together into a unified marriage.
The whole lesson of Anuradha Nakshatra is about devotion and unification – bringing those things which are opposite and far away from each other into close proximity.
CARRIED IN LOVE
To carry the beloved in love might not just be a sweet sentimental undertaking, but one that is fiercely protective and hot with the essence of Khandita Bhaav (described in next section)
The ferocious flame of love burns both hot and cold in the heart of the cosmic mother… There is no undertaking that will not be chanced for the sake of loving devotion in her heart.
Her heart beats red and dark in the breast of the voyager who voyages into the mysteries of Love.
As mentioned above, Anuradha is a name of the Gopi Lalita – and Anuradha means the one who follows Radha.
Anu – means to follow, as in the sense to ‘follow behind’
but Anu also means to follow as in something ‘coming after another thing’
So Anuradha is literally the friend who surrounds Radha on both sides.
Anuradha literally both follows and leads Radha.
Radha is the Goddess of devotion and longing, and Anuradha is the aura around her.
The stores tell that Anuradha is always with Radha, just as her her shadow is.
Anuradha is 27 days older than Radha. These 27 days denote the 27 Nakshatras. Meditation on this significance will give insights as to what this means.
WOMAN IN LOVE
Anuradha expresses Khandita BhaAv, this is one of the attitudes of a woman in love.
This Bhaav (attitude) is harsh towards the lover in a hot tempered way and seeks to protect the flower of love by proudly refusing to be taken for granted.
In this way Anuradha protects the devotion of Radha. Radha is the absorbent tender flower of love and Anuradha is the protector of the sacred heart.
Love can have many colours sorounding it.
The journey of love can move between the sweetest and sourest flavors.
Longing, jealousy, scandal, obsession and emptiness can all be part of the journey to the sacred heart of love.
Anuradha is the devoted lover & friend to turn to and confide the deepest of the hearts secrets.
Anuradha is the loving protecter of the heart of Radha.
When we consider the meaning of the name Radha, another level of insight can be gleaned.
LOYALTY AND DEVOTION
Devotion and blessing and teaching of Anuradha.
Loyalty to familiar things that agree with our nature and do not challenge us, is not the measure of real devotion. The path of Tantra of the left hand way of heart, takes us through many meditation and learnings and challenges on the way to Sadhia. The Sadhana to her the elusive temple of Sadhia can be beset with challenge and disappoint. Yet Anuradha is the essence in the heart of both Sadhia and Sadhana.
To befriend that which challenges our sense of self and our reality – takes a very deep devotion and love… this is the devotion of Anuradha… She lives in a the heart of the Tantric, within a temple dedicated to the beloved.
Even that which is totally abhorrent and contrary to us – if we can befriend that, then we breath the deepest breath of devotion.
Refining the quality of our devotion and love require both the thorn and the rose.
Intense devotion might be a preciously rare quality. It might be the scent of the Rose of Shakti.
Devotion is the quality of the true lover and the Yogi who is ready to accept the thorn and the rose together.