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Shiva Panchakshara Yantra

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Shiva Panchakshara Yantra
© SYDA Foundation®. All rights reserved. Do not copy, post or distribute.
This image is for viewing on the Siddha Yoga path website only.

The Shiva Panchakshara Yantra is a sacred geometrical diagram that embodies the shakti of Lord Shiva. Focusing on this yantra quiets the mind and draws a seeker’s awareness inward toward the Self. By meditating on this yantra, you can experience Lord Shiva’s formless nature and all-pervasive bliss.

As you rest your awareness on the image, let your mind gravitate to any element to which it is naturally drawn. The vibration of the mantra Om Namah Shivaya is seen and felt throughout the yantra. As you meditate on the yantra, it’s okay if you feel your focus wandering. Lord Shiva is extolled as “the compassionate one” and he smiles upon all who make a sincere effort.

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    Contemplating the Shiva Panchakshara Yantra, I felt protection and reassurance. For me, the shades of blue and white create harmony, beauty, and peace. At first, I noticed all the Om symbols in the diagram; then I focused on the central one and imagined a heart, the heart that Bade Baba speaks of in his teaching, so dear to me: “The heart is the hub of all sacred places. Go there and roam.”


    I then focused on the description of the Shiva Panchakshara Yantra, where Lord Shiva is celebrated as “the compassionate one” who “smiles upon all who make a sincere effort.” In the past, I have criticized myself for performing the practices imperfectly, but when I read that I shouldn’t worry if my mind wanders while meditating on the yantra, I felt Lord Shiva’s compassion and understanding, and this filled me with gratitude.

    Naples, Italy

    Lately, I have been experiencing grief while looking at the events in the world around me. Yet when I focus on the Shiva Panchakshara Yantra, it consoles me. I feel it enters my heart and brings peace. 

    New York, United States

    As soon as I started to focus on the Om at the center of the Shiva Panchakshara Yantra, I felt the entire yantra enter the cave of my heart. Knowing that Shiva is within me gave me a great feeling of relaxation, and I was able to let go of worries. I feel that Lord Shiva and the mantra are one in the “hub” of my heart. Such a great blessing!

    California, United States

    What I saw before me as I focused on the Shiva Panchakshara Yantra was Lord Shiva’s fortress. “But where is the entry?” I asked myself.

     

    Suddenly, I realized that, for me, the five-pointed star was the doorway—this was Mount Kailash—and to enter, I needed to be in meditation. So, I closed my eyes and floated down into the cave. As I settled, energy sparked from the right side of my body, and I felt a tingling sensation on my skin. It was dark, but the light of the Self illuminated the inner screen before me.

     

    Meditation was great! I felt protected in every way.


    Ilford, United Kingdom

    When I  followed the instructions for focusing on the Shiva Panchakshara Yantra, I felt very drawn to the Om in the center. I felt immediate relief and my heart felt at peace. I felt at one with Lord Shiva and with my Sadguru, Gurumayi.
     

    Verbania, Italy

    When I started contemplating the Shiva Panchakshara Yantra, I immediately perceived its charm and mystery, but I could not understand it. Then I heard inwardly: “Is it so difficult to look?” So I simply followed the instructions in the introduction.

    I started by observing the yantra naturally, as one would observe a beautiful landscape. I was attracted by the light that emanates from the white shapes, which is intensified by the contrasting blue. I perceived a subtle vibration flowing in different directions, and suddenly the yantra came alive!

    It transformed in my inner vision into a beautiful flower that encompassed my entire being. I felt transported deep into my center, where the syllables of the mantra Om Namah Shivaya arise. I felt one with the yantra.

    The contemplation of the Shiva Panchakshara Yantra allowed me to experience its shakti and to savor its precious nectar.

    Macerata, Italy

    Each time I view the Shiva Panchakshara Yantra, my breath flows with vitality. I do this practice regularly as a dharana for three minutes. During this period of concentration, all my attention is drawn toward my breath, and my mind empties of thoughts.

    I see the yantra as the crown of Lord Shiva! The circles of jewel-like arrows pointing inward and outward symbolize for me the infinite flow of universal Consciousness circulating in the constant flow of the breath.

    Rodez, France

    I was immediately engaged when I looked at the Shiva Panchakshara Yantra. I appreciated the introduction’s invitation to let my mind be drawn to any element of the yantra, as the vibration of Om Namah Shivaya can be seen and felt throughout it.

    As I did this, I found that my attention was strongly drawn to the curved elements at the top of the outer circle. I experienced them as domes of temples, reaching upward toward the sky. Unexpectedly, this stirred a vivid memory. A few days earlier, I had been walking around a wonderful, frozen lake and looking up at the stark silhouettes of leafless branches seemingly reaching upward toward the blue sky.

    Suddenly, the memory of these trees in nature and my contemplation of the dome-like elements in the yantra seemed to blend together in my consciousness to form a single inner experience. To me, this felt like a sacred moment.
     

    Minnesota, United States

    When I observe the Shiva Panchakshara Yantra, which is imbued with the power of the mantra, I experience that it purifies my mind, my senses, and my body. Then I can perceive the true beauty of the world, the pure manifestation of Lord Shiva.
     

    Rodez, France

    I am totally fascinated by the subtle effect that the Shiva Panchakshara Yantra has on me. Over the last few days, I have been focusing on this yantra again and again. So much so that the image of the yantra sometimes spontaneously appears in my mind’s eye as I go about my everyday life. 

    Today, as I was driving home from work, I suddenly felt a sense of fear rise up within me, as if someone were threatening me. But then the Shiva Panchakshara Yantra came to my mind, and I imagined myself sitting in the middle of this yantra.

    Immediately, I felt a sense of tremendous protection, and my fears dissolved. I discovered from this experience that engaging with the Shiva Panchakshara Yantra can provide me with great support in facing my inner enemies and gaining greater freedom.

    Unterlangenegg, Switzerland

    I have liked focusing on the Shiva Panchakshara Yantra since it was posted on the Siddha Yoga path website. The first time, after I gazed at it for a while, I closed my eyes, and I saw the yantra with my mind’s eye on my inner screen. Since then, I sometimes see it as a golden square, sometimes just a dark velvety space—always quiet and peaceful.

    Today, as I looked at the Shiva Panchakshara Yantra, I entered the first ring, then the second and the third, repeating silently the syllables of the mantra. When I entered the final circle, I began humming the mantra melodiously, as I did with Gurumayi during the Satsang in Honor of Mahashivaratri.

    Humming Om, I focused on the Om symbol in the yantra. As I hummed the mantra, I focused on each syllable of the mantra at the same time I hummed it. I did this three times. Then I closed my eyes, and saw on my mind’s screen a golden square where I merged deep inside.

    Plougonvelin, France

    As I watched the yantra, it was pulsating from the center outwards. I could feel the pulses mirroring the same pulse within me. The longer I watched it, the more fluid and alive the yantra became. The blue rings became bolder and clearer. I could feel the oneness, the eternal Consciousness.

    Eumemmerring, Australia

    What a joy and privilege to behold this great yantra, especially after having repeated the mantra Om Namah Shivaya extensively throughout the day on Mahashivaratri and in the Universal Hall during the beautiful satsang with Gurumayi. 
     
    I feel it’s a surprise gift granted to us because of our devotion to the great Lord within and our desire to merge with the all-encompassing, auspicious One. 
     
    As I focus on it, I see in it the immanent and the transcendent, the mystical and the precise. For me, it is scientific in its perfection. It holds and exudes beauty and bliss. 
     
    My words cannot say everything this yantra expresses, so I just say Om Namah Shivaya while continuing to contemplate it with gratitude to Gurumayi for continuously reminding us of our inherent Shiva nature.

    New York, United States

    When I first gazed at the Shiva Panchakshara Yantra, I experienced its astonishing power as a pulsing presence in my chakras. As I examined the yantra more closely, it seemed to become three-dimensional. I was fascinated by this phenomenon and felt myself being drawn into the yantra, as if I were going into some sort of actual architectural creation. At that moment, my attention dropped into my heart, and I entered a state of meditation so deep and profound that I lost all sense of time and place. When I opened my eyes, I looked at the clock and was startled to find that I had been meditating for over an hour.

    Texas, United States

    I was immediately fascinated by this yantra—at first by the blue colors but also the very strong directions of the arrows and the petals. As I thought of the eight directions, it reminded me that Lord Shiva is in everything and everyone, no matter which direction we take.
     
    All I can say is that the Guru is endlessly offering her guidance and love in the most extraordinarily loving ways. 
     

    Heidelberg Heights, Australia

    Today after my morning meditation session I contemplated the Shiva Panchakshara Yantra just for a few minutes and I felt pulled into a long and profound meditation.
     
    It has been very powerful! I’m still astonished and intoxicated by the experience and the strength and power of the shakti in this yantra.

    Milan, Italy

    I was drawn to closely examine each auspicious element of the Shiva Panchakshara Yantra. First, I noticed the beauty and intricacy of the whole yantra. Then, beginning at the center, I tenderly repeated each syllable of the five-syllable mantra Om Namah Shivaya. Next, I concentrated on the outer rim and repeated each occurrence of the mantra as I moved my focus clockwise with great reverence and attention to the formation of the Sanskrit characters. 

    Then I felt as if a key in a doorway turned: I sensed a vibration resonating in my heart and great love within. As I prepared to meditate, I bowed to my puja and offered thanks for this visual image of Lord Shiva’s mantra and for the abundant grace and guidance showered upon me each day. 

    Maryland, United States

    This yantra touched a musical and playful chord in me. As I gazed at it, it took me back to a dancing saptah at Shree Muktananda Ashram many years ago, where I had a vivid experience of Gurumayi’s gentleness and sweetness.

    Florida, United States

    Very beautiful! The energy from within the yantra steadies and centers me. At the same time, I sense that the yantra is alive and moving in all directions.
     
    I am grateful for this visual approach to worship and to reflection on the mantra and Lord Shiva!

    Florida, United States