Menoculayshunal; A Place Called Om

हरि ॐ Hari Om

You have all seen me begin any comment or email or greeting in this manner. I have explained before that it is a more specific greeting than that of 'namaste'. The latter literally means "I bow to you" and was originally used for the purely spiritual before the altar. As Sanatana Dharma is not merely a religion but a whole life philosophy, the greeting extended into society as politeness and acknowledging the divinity in all. 

Hari Om literally means "the manifest and the unmanifest". It is used in greeting by Vedantins, who have studied and understand that there is no separation of these two things - that is to say, All Is One. Used in greeting, the speaker is declaring unity and communion with the greeted.

This much I had learned even from that very first meeting at the Sydney centre. I also learned that it was to be used every morning to first meet someone or used to acknowledge an instruction from the teacher or complete a prayer... Hari is the breath from which arises sound. OM is the originating sound and without which no breath emerges. Hari Om is the very essence of consciousness and, therefore, life. It must be spoken with full understanding and intent (usually shown by the folding of the hands, or at least by touching one's breast over the heart centre).

Arriving at Sandeepany prepared with this greeting and now well used to it, I had not been as ready as I thought... for when greeted by the aachaaryas, the full blast of their gaze upon one, there was also the sense of being seen. Truly seen. The unity was properly felt. Over several dozen pages, one might convey the sense of this to the reader but in a brief blog post that is a near impossibility. 

Just think about the difference you might feel between the cashier at the supermarket muttering 'have a nice day' as part of their customer service script and without even looking at you and then coming home to a dear one who looks at you, assesses you however subtly and engaging your eyes asks, 'did you have a nice day?' with a clear intent of wanting your response.

Even though one might see one's batch-mates for hours on end each day, it never grew tiresome to greet them with 'Hari Om!' and meet a direct look on every occasion and have the greeting returned. The connection and the warmth it created spread well and unified the batch quickly and meaningfully. At times when seva (service of cleaning, or attending the staff's need or other work for the ashram which was not study-related) involved groups of shishyas (students), you might hear spontaneous chanting of the phrase as a mantra and time took on another dimension, removing the 'chore' from the task being undertaken.

Writing out the Devanagri script, meditating upon it, weaving it around one as if in dance all help bring a sense of peace and calm. If one learns no other Sanskrit than this, Hari Om will serve one well... The whole of Sandeepany was nestled beneath a 'cloud' of Hari Om and - despite being in suburban Mumbai with all the noise and smells and pollution that entails - was a true sanctuary. Even in the toughest times (and there were a few), it always felt safe and nurturing. 

If ever one was out and about, one couldn't wait to ..." hurry 'ome..." 😍