• Home
    • Buying the Music.
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  • Translated mantras C
    • om tare tutare ture soha
    • purnam-adah-purnam-idam
    • Radhe Radhe Radhe Shyam
    • sarvesham svastir bhavatu
    • Shambho Shangkara namah Shivaya >
      • Shambhu Shankara Namah Shivaya Krishna Das meaning
      • Om Namah Shivaya Krishna Das. Lyrics, meaning, discussion.
    • shri sache maha prabhu
    • Shiva Shiva Shambho Shangkara
    • Sīta Ram Hanuman.
    • twam eva.
    • tri-ambakam yajamahe >
      • Maha Mrityeonjaya Hein Braat meaning
  • Translated mantras B
    • mangalam bhagavan Vishnu
    • namah Shivaya hare Hari om
    • om bhakta jai
    • Bhakti Heenam
    • Om Gam Ganapataye Namaha discussion
    • om jaya Shiva Shambo
    • om mani padme hum
    • om namo bhagavate Vasudevaya
    • om namō narāyanāya
    • om namah Shivaya
    • om param eshvaraya vidmahe
    • om tat purushaya vidmahi
  • Mantras Translated A
    • asato ma sad gamaya meaning discussion >
      • om asat oma sad gamaya
    • amma amma taye
    • chid-ananda-rupah shivo-ham
    • The Essence of All
    • gate gate para gate
    • Gayatri om bhur bhuvah svaha
    • Govinda, Gopala Radha. >
      • Radhe Govinda Krishna Das meaning
      • sands of pleasure lyrics translation
    • hare Krishna hare Rama (a) >
      • hare Krishna hare Rama (b)
      • The Hare Krishna Sect.
    • mantra room
    • jai Radha Madhava - Meaning.
    • je ma je Kali ma
    • Moola Mantra
  • Spiritual Practice
    • A : Introduction to Practice
    • B : Buddha's Enlightenment
    • C Meditation for Enlightenment.
    • D Self Realisation
    • E : The Ego
    • F : Discharge of DIstress
    • G : Relationships
    • I : Desire
    • J : Karma
    • K : Dissatisfaction and Anger
    • References. >
      • New Page 2
      • New Page 3
  • pronouncing the Sanskrit
    • Sanskrit Cases
  • Scriptures
    • Bhagavad Gita
    • Mandukya Upanishad word by word
    • Isha Upanishad word by word
    • Free Enquiry >
      • kalama sutta word for word
    • Dhammapada
    • Satipatthana Sutta >
      • Satipatthana Sutta selections
    • dhammacakkappavattana sutta word by word
    • anattalakkhana sutta word for word
    • Heart Sutra
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    • Good and Evil
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      • Principles
      • Practice
      • The Sacred
      • Practicalities
      • Purusha
  • Deity and Kirtan
    • God in Hinduism
    • Interpreting Deity
    • More About Shiva
  • Course in Meditation
    • Instructions During Meditation.
    • 1. All attention on sensation.
    • 2. Return and Stay With
    • 3 Letting Go.
    • 4 Cultivating and Developing.
    • 5 Making Effort
    • 6 Beauty
    • 7 Beauty of Spiritual Qualities
    • 8. Suffering
    • Traditional Terminology
  • About Mike
  • Home
    • Buying the Music.
  • Music Meditation
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  • Translated mantras C
    • om tare tutare ture soha
    • purnam-adah-purnam-idam
    • Radhe Radhe Radhe Shyam
    • sarvesham svastir bhavatu
    • Shambho Shangkara namah Shivaya >
      • Shambhu Shankara Namah Shivaya Krishna Das meaning
      • Om Namah Shivaya Krishna Das. Lyrics, meaning, discussion.
    • shri sache maha prabhu
    • Shiva Shiva Shambho Shangkara
    • Sīta Ram Hanuman.
    • twam eva.
    • tri-ambakam yajamahe >
      • Maha Mrityeonjaya Hein Braat meaning
  • Translated mantras B
    • mangalam bhagavan Vishnu
    • namah Shivaya hare Hari om
    • om bhakta jai
    • Bhakti Heenam
    • Om Gam Ganapataye Namaha discussion
    • om jaya Shiva Shambo
    • om mani padme hum
    • om namo bhagavate Vasudevaya
    • om namō narāyanāya
    • om namah Shivaya
    • om param eshvaraya vidmahe
    • om tat purushaya vidmahi
  • Mantras Translated A
    • asato ma sad gamaya meaning discussion >
      • om asat oma sad gamaya
    • amma amma taye
    • chid-ananda-rupah shivo-ham
    • The Essence of All
    • gate gate para gate
    • Gayatri om bhur bhuvah svaha
    • Govinda, Gopala Radha. >
      • Radhe Govinda Krishna Das meaning
      • sands of pleasure lyrics translation
    • hare Krishna hare Rama (a) >
      • hare Krishna hare Rama (b)
      • The Hare Krishna Sect.
    • mantra room
    • jai Radha Madhava - Meaning.
    • je ma je Kali ma
    • Moola Mantra
  • Spiritual Practice
    • A : Introduction to Practice
    • B : Buddha's Enlightenment
    • C Meditation for Enlightenment.
    • D Self Realisation
    • E : The Ego
    • F : Discharge of DIstress
    • G : Relationships
    • I : Desire
    • J : Karma
    • K : Dissatisfaction and Anger
    • References. >
      • New Page 2
      • New Page 3
  • pronouncing the Sanskrit
    • Sanskrit Cases
  • Scriptures
    • Bhagavad Gita
    • Mandukya Upanishad word by word
    • Isha Upanishad word by word
    • Free Enquiry >
      • kalama sutta word for word
    • Dhammapada
    • Satipatthana Sutta >
      • Satipatthana Sutta selections
    • dhammacakkappavattana sutta word by word
    • anattalakkhana sutta word for word
    • Heart Sutra
    • References.
    • broken buddhism
    • Good and Evil
    • Hindu Themes >
      • Principles
      • Practice
      • The Sacred
      • Practicalities
      • Purusha
  • Deity and Kirtan
    • God in Hinduism
    • Interpreting Deity
    • More About Shiva
  • Course in Meditation
    • Instructions During Meditation.
    • 1. All attention on sensation.
    • 2. Return and Stay With
    • 3 Letting Go.
    • 4 Cultivating and Developing.
    • 5 Making Effort
    • 6 Beauty
    • 7 Beauty of Spiritual Qualities
    • 8. Suffering
    • Traditional Terminology
  • About Mike
  Pathway
  • Home
    • Buying the Music.
  • Music Meditation
  • Reading the Menu
  • Translated mantras C
    • om tare tutare ture soha
    • purnam-adah-purnam-idam
    • Radhe Radhe Radhe Shyam
    • sarvesham svastir bhavatu
    • Shambho Shangkara namah Shivaya >
      • Shambhu Shankara Namah Shivaya Krishna Das meaning
      • Om Namah Shivaya Krishna Das. Lyrics, meaning, discussion.
    • shri sache maha prabhu
    • Shiva Shiva Shambho Shangkara
    • Sīta Ram Hanuman.
    • twam eva.
    • tri-ambakam yajamahe >
      • Maha Mrityeonjaya Hein Braat meaning
  • Translated mantras B
    • mangalam bhagavan Vishnu
    • namah Shivaya hare Hari om
    • om bhakta jai
    • Bhakti Heenam
    • Om Gam Ganapataye Namaha discussion
    • om jaya Shiva Shambo
    • om mani padme hum
    • om namo bhagavate Vasudevaya
    • om namō narāyanāya
    • om namah Shivaya
    • om param eshvaraya vidmahe
    • om tat purushaya vidmahi
  • Mantras Translated A
    • asato ma sad gamaya meaning discussion >
      • om asat oma sad gamaya
    • amma amma taye
    • chid-ananda-rupah shivo-ham
    • The Essence of All
    • gate gate para gate
    • Gayatri om bhur bhuvah svaha
    • Govinda, Gopala Radha. >
      • Radhe Govinda Krishna Das meaning
      • sands of pleasure lyrics translation
    • hare Krishna hare Rama (a) >
      • hare Krishna hare Rama (b)
      • The Hare Krishna Sect.
    • mantra room
    • jai Radha Madhava - Meaning.
    • je ma je Kali ma
    • Moola Mantra
  • Spiritual Practice
    • A : Introduction to Practice
    • B : Buddha's Enlightenment
    • C Meditation for Enlightenment.
    • D Self Realisation
    • E : The Ego
    • F : Discharge of DIstress
    • G : Relationships
    • I : Desire
    • J : Karma
    • K : Dissatisfaction and Anger
    • References. >
      • New Page 2
      • New Page 3
  • pronouncing the Sanskrit
    • Sanskrit Cases
  • Scriptures
    • Bhagavad Gita
    • Mandukya Upanishad word by word
    • Isha Upanishad word by word
    • Free Enquiry >
      • kalama sutta word for word
    • Dhammapada
    • Satipatthana Sutta >
      • Satipatthana Sutta selections
    • dhammacakkappavattana sutta word by word
    • anattalakkhana sutta word for word
    • Heart Sutra
    • References.
    • broken buddhism
    • Good and Evil
    • Hindu Themes >
      • Principles
      • Practice
      • The Sacred
      • Practicalities
      • Purusha
  • Deity and Kirtan
    • God in Hinduism
    • Interpreting Deity
    • More About Shiva
  • Course in Meditation
    • Instructions During Meditation.
    • 1. All attention on sensation.
    • 2. Return and Stay With
    • 3 Letting Go.
    • 4 Cultivating and Developing.
    • 5 Making Effort
    • 6 Beauty
    • 7 Beauty of Spiritual Qualities
    • 8. Suffering
    • Traditional Terminology
  • About Mike

how can sacred language help us connect with Deity, as Mother Nature?


Sanskrit and Pali Cases for
​
Kirtan and Scripture.
​

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sanskrit_nouns#a-stems 
https://sanskrit.inria.fr/DICO/grammar.html
These provide the different inflection or word ending for the eight grammatical cases,  for Sanskrit

http://www.buddha-vacana.org/toolbox/noundec.html has inflection tables for Pali

https://easysanskrit.wordpress.com/tag/eight-noun-cases/  This explains how to use the different cases 


https://www.academia.edu/27386976/Mandukya_Upanishad_Word_for_Word_Translation_with_Transliteration_and_Grammatical_Notes   describes how the verb and noun cases operate.

 
Perhaps you never studied the grammar of other languages, which have different cases?  And they did not teach English grammar when I was in high school in Australia! 
 
I will describe how these eight Sanskrit cases for nouns are used in the Kirtan songs of this website. When we understand these cases, we get a better understanding of the dynamics of spiritual practice,  and how the Presence of Deity operates,  how bhakti can arise.
 
Sanskrit is like Latin,  which used to be the sacred language in the West (perhaps still is?)  In Sanskrit,  each noun is usually in one of eight cases.  These cases tell us how the word is used in the sentence.  The ending of the noun is called the declension or inflexion or declination of the noun.  This declension changes depending on the case the noun is in.  Thus the declension of the noun tells us how the word is used in the sentence.
 
Let’s start with the basics of subject – verb – object.  Consider a simple sentence “I write this website”.  I am the subject for I do the action in the sentence.  website is the object, for it is the object of my actions.  And the action is the verb;  in this case “write”.   
 
The nominative case names the subject.   The object is in the accusative case. 
 
Let’s start with -  om purnam adah purnam idam. 
 
पूर्णमद              पूर्णमिदं           
pūrṇam         adah              pūrṇam         idam
purity             out there      purity             in here
(when) out there is pure,  (and) in here is pure,  then  …
 
पूर्णात्पुर्णमुदच्यते
pūrṇāt                       pūrṇam         udacyate 
from purity              purity             is sent out
 
पूर्णस्य                       पूर्णमा             दाय       
pūrṇasya               pūrṇam         adāya 
that of purity         to purity        returns
 
पूर्णमेवा                                 वशिष्यते   
pūrṇam         -eva             vasiṣyate
purity             surely         is undiminished, strengthened.
 
This mantra is about pūrṇaḥ =  purity or “the pure”. 
 
In line 1,  pūrṇam   is in the accusative case,  and therefore is the object of the two sentences   :  (When) out there is pure.  (When) in here is pure,  then  …
 
In line 2,  pūrṇāt  is in the ablative case, and means “away from purity”. 
 
In line 3,  pūrṇasya  is in the genitive case  and means “generated by purity”, or “belonging to purity”.  pūrṇam  is in the accusative case,  and means that something goes to purity. 
 
In line 4,  pūrṇaḥ  is better understood to be the subject of the sentence,  and pūrṇa  is in the nominative case.  Yet the mantra goes pūrṇam-eva vasiṣyate.   I am no grammarian,  but I guess that it is written as pūrṇam  because of Sandi, not because of declension.   
 
The end of the word also changes due to Sandhi.
 
Sanskrit is written as it is spoken, with several words run together as a continuous string of letters or sounds.   These long strings of words are called euphonic combinations,  called Sandhi in Sanskrit.  In effect,  we do the same in English without writing it.  The sentence ‘Do you want to get a cup of tea?’ can be pronounced :  ‘Jawannageddacuppatee?’
 
In these long strings of many words, the ending of each individual word is modified to blend into the next word.  Note the Devanagari is one word : पूर्णमेवा  whereas I have written the transliteration as two words :  pūrṇam -eva
 
Let’s look at other well known mantras.
 
In the mantra  om namah Shivaaya   the noun Shiva is in the dative case.  This gives the following translation –
 
om      namaḥ                       śivāya   
            devotion to              move towards
        spiritual practice        Shiva
Let us be devoted to our spiritual practice,  so we can move towards Shiva.
 
In the mantra  om Tare Tutare Ture soha,  the three Names for Deity are all in the locative case.  This give the following translation -
 
om      Tare                           Tutare           Ture               soha
            located                      located          located          guidance
            in compassion         in courage    in clarity
Let us be located in compassion, located in courage,  located in clarity, and so be guided by Deity. 
 
In the mantra  hare Krishna, hare Rama,  both Krishna and Rama are in the vocative case.  This can have several meanings –
  • we are called upon to approach Krishna or Rama and be with them,  as our calling or vocation in life, or
  •  invoke Krishna or Rama,  ie to bring them into our experience, or
  • vocalise Krishna or Rama,  ie call upon them for aid.
 
When we understand the case in Sanskrit,  we can gain a deeper insight into the meaning of mantra, and how we can view mantra. 
   Nominative  :  Purity (pūrṇa) is strengthened in spiritual practice
   Accusative  :  beautiful things come to Purity (pūrṇam)
   Ablative  :  sending out from Purity (pūrṇāt),  and
   Genitive  :  receiving things generated by Pure nature (pūrṇasya).
   Locative  :  Being located in Deity (tare) or
   Dative  :  Moving towards Deity (śivāya) or
   Vocative  :  Taking the Presence of Deity as our vocation in life (Krishna),  or
   Vocative  :   Invoking Deity into our experience (Krishna). 
 
Please note also how the English translation is so much longer than the Sanskrit.  These cases in Sanskrit enable Sanskrit mantras to be very concise and pithy, with all unnecessary words omitted.  


Please note that Sanskrit verbs have six different cases and two voices,  each with their own system of declensions and inflexions.   

Use of Cases in Scripture
 
The word ending used in Pali and Sanskrit scripture is more governed by Sandhi,  and less by the case of the noun, or tense and voice of the verb.   Sandhi (saṃdhi) is a Sanskrit term meaning “holding together”.  saṃdhi  is the alteration of sounds—both across word boundaries (external saṃdhi) and within words (internal saṃdhi)—that simplifies pronunciation.  In effect,  saṃdhi  governs the word ending to suit pronunciation, rather than indicate exactly how the word is meant to be used in the sentence. 
 
South Asia has monsoonal climate with hot wet summers,  which greatly hampers the storage of paper,   and information printed on paper.  This means that these ancient verses of scripture come from aural tradition,  not from paper books.  All these scriptures were known in full, word-for-word,  by heart,  by the scholars.  That was their job.  Before books were available,  education trained the mind to remember huge amounts of material by heart, with memory that is staggeringly prodigious compared to the modern text dependent educated mind.
 
Thus religious tradition has preserved the words,  but not necessarily the case of nouns,  and the tense and voice of verbs.  This gives us considerable freedom to choose case, tense and voice to suit our own understanding of the sacred verse.  Then we can develop a new translation and interpretation of ancient verse that works for us,  freed of confusing and obscure religious doctrine. 
 
I simply do not have the time and energy to laboriously determine the proper declension of the hundreds of Sanskrit and Pali words I provide in my new translations of ancient Buddhist and Hindu scripture.  And even if I did,  I cannot guarantee that my declensions will be scholastically correct.
 
Therefore,   the way I use these Sanskrit and Pali words when I translate them into proper English sentences might not match the declension that I provide.  In addition, I often translate nouns as vowels, and vowels as nouns.

 
Your Own Study of Sacred Verse
If you choose a verse or series of verses of Hindu or Buddhist scripture,  for special attention,  memorisation, recitation and reflection,  this is my recommendations.

 
Study the webpages I cite at the beginning of my webpage,  so you know how the system works.  Look up each word in the dictionary,  to find what its neutral declension is.  Look up the noun or verb cases, and decide what the case is,  for the way you use the word.  And adjust the declension accordingly. 
 
This will give more power to your use of sacred verse.
  


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