The Lunar Calendar

Quotes From
Shri Mataji
 “Om Shri Sarat Chandra
Nibhanana Namoh Namaha”
'Whose face is like the autumnal moon'
v.129 Lalita Sahasranama
Why the lunar calendar?
“Here (in India ) every festival is based on the position of
the moon. And that’s why the dates keep changing and the
same festival falls on different dates, in different years. The
reason why we give importance to the moon and keep all
our dates according to its position, is that the moon has an
influence on human beings. The sun does not. Along with
the moon, other planets also have influence on us. That is
why we follow the lunar calendar and fix our festivals
accordingly. There is one festival however, where the date
is as per position of the sun. When the sun starts its
movement from southern hemisphere to the northern
hemisphere, that date is celebrated as a festival
(Sankranti).

“In our country the science of astrology is also based on the

positions of the moon. In astrology also the positions of the
moon are taken into consideration. The first calendar that
was made here which is called as Shalivahana Shaka is
based on the movements of the moon. That is why all the
festivals are based on the position of the moon. Those
people who are not aware of our (Indian) system of dates will not be able to understand
why our festivals fall on different dates, in different years.”

Whatever it is, we must think as to why we give so much importance to the moon. The
reason is that we should remain vigilant about the effects that the moon has on us. The
biggest effect that the moon has on us is because our left side is based on it. Very few
people know about it. This left side of the body
which is recognised and accepted so much in
our country, has psychological effects on us.
Effects on the left side are psychological and
not intellectual, and we cannot control it.
Whatever psychological problems we have,
cannot be controlled. We cannot control the
effect of the moon on us. That’s why the
position of the moon is seen and lunar dates
are observed. For example if it is a no-moon
night (Amavasya) or a full moon night
(Poornima) then the problem of a person,
having epilepsy or any other psychological
problem, will aggravate further. One can
immediately see very clearly that such a person has been affected by the full moon or no-
moon. That’s why we are very much sensitive towards the position of moon and date of
lunar month. In our country detailed calculations are done on this, to know about the exact
timings and position of the eclipse, and when it will end.. All this shows that in our country
a lot of care is taken about the positions of the moon on the of lunar calendar and so much
has been discussed and written about it.
“Now we live in these modern times, where the dates and festivals are based on the
position of the sun. But this is not correct. We must see the position of the moon- what is
its position today, what will it be tomorrow, how it will affect us today. This is a very deep
subject about which we all must know and it should be discussed in our country.”

Gudi Padwa Puja, Palam Vihar, Gurgaon (India), Saturday, April 13 th 2002.

Shukla And Krishna Paksha ( The Waxing And Waning Moon)

“So Nirananda. The joy, is so much that it is completely joy and nothing else, just joy.
Purest form of joy. that is what you get at Sahasrara. And then this joy expands it doesn’t
improve. Till that, joy improves. And after that it
expands. And that’s why whatever one does
according to the lunar system, one does it from
the spiritual point of view. I mean, you don’t get
any consumer surplus like you get through the
Sunshine- Sunlight. That supposing you buy
something at this time and sell at another time
you might get a big profit.
Sahaja Yogi: Material gains.

Shri Mataji: Material gains. That’s right side.

But you get spiritual gains. That’s why all the
spiritual things are to be done according to the
Moon. You follow now, Rustom? It’s a very big
question One day I will give you a big lecture on
that. But I think you have understood.
Rustom: Shri Mataji, why do they have a light
phase and a dark phase of the Moon? Shukla
Paksha and Krishna Paksha?

Shri Mataji: No, Shukla paksha is the time when

the moon is increasing and Krishna Paksha is
when decreasing, so at the decreasing time, it’s
not auspicious.
There is no “why” for auspiciousness. It does not
happen. Why there is light coming out of the gas, can you explain? Because it is light, but
why? It is so. When the Moon increases then there is auspiciousness because that
represents the Spirit, “na”? The more reflection of the Spirit comes in, it is on the
increasing side. When it is decreasing, we can say, it is on the decline. Then it is not
auspicious. So there is Shukla Paksha and Krishna Paksha.”

Niphad (India), Saturday , February 6th 1982.

Puja & Panchang
“You should know that another cleverness your Mother has, you see, maybe the car was
failed because of Me perhaps, you can’t say. I’m very clever at certain things like arranging
timings. You know, the thing is, we went for a.. there was a puja in, puja in…what was that
place, [Andara? Indian name] or some place. What was the place we were in? We stayed
in [Lonaura? Indian name]. We had a puja there.
And for that puja, you see, they fixed the time at
nine. As usual they fixed themselves as if they
never ask Me. Nine o’clock, puja is fixed, Mother,
come at nine. Mother should come, sit down, “All
right, do My puja.” You see, at nine o’clock,
imagine.

I said, “All right, I’ll be there.” So I wouldn’t go for

My bath till eleven o’clock. They were saying:
“Mother, go for Your bath.” I said, “Just a minute,
I’ll do… [inaudible].” And without bath I wouldn’t
come for the puja. So they said, “Why Mataji is
not going?” They were all very upset. Sit down,
they were waiting and waiting for “Why Mother
has not come ji[?]?”

I said, “All right, I’ll just go for a bath.” At eleven I

went for a bath. And they were to have puja at
nine, you see. Then I came back about eleven
thirty, I came down, they started the puja.

So before starting the puja I said, “All right, now

please see the panchanga.” where they write the
dates, you see. There it was written till eleven
o’clock was amavasya, is the day when there is
no moon. And nothing, no good work to be done during that time, inauspicious, you see. I
said, “How could I take My bath before that?” And they were all amazed.
I said, “I never read panchang, but I know what is to be done what, and what time it is the
most auspicious time, that is the time everything else is to be done. And you don’t have
any panchang today, but you can find out about it.”
These things are very important, timings are, because as I have to consult all the deities, I
have to consult all the stars, and also you know, the stars have got all the deities on them,
they’re all to be consulted, they are to be put right, the whole thing is to be geared up for
puja so that you have the maximum advantage. I have to work very hard for all these
things and it’s a very big operation, so such a huge complicated operation that you do not
know.

You see, when you start doing my puja you get your vibrations, you think, ‘Oh, Mother has
given us vibrations.’ It’s not so simple. It’s a very-very big operation, imagine, to get a car
done is so difficult. Now here there are so many complicated stuffs and the whole universe
is involved into it, so one has to work out very carefully. So only thing, one should have a
humility, why you don’t understand Mother so much, it’s all right, we have to understand
our Mother more and more, so that education is also important.

So far you have had faith in Me, thank you very much for that, and I hope you’ll have more
faith in Me, and understand Me better, why I do certain things and why it is necessary.
These cannot be rationalized unless and until you really reach that state of rationality,
where the Spirit gives you the light to understand. Then you will see that time Mother will
allow some time to pass and this happens, that
happens, sometimes She may come earlier, later,
it’s little whimsical, to an ordinary person, but it is
not, it is not. It is the working of the divine, which
is to be understood from the divine point of view.
See, from a human point of view it may also look
crooked, it may look vicious sometimes, may look
funny, but it’s not so. It has to be done like that
and I really use traditions to hide all that which
looks funny to you. That’s how I manage,
otherwise you would be surprised, the things I’m
doing, like killing the rakshasas and all that, is a
horrible thing but I’m doing it, all these things.

“You know I’m doing lots of things like I gave a

bandhan to this Narakasura, and they had no
meetings, not a single person turned for their
meeting. So all these tricks I am playing, you
may call it espionage or anything you feel like.
You may call it anything very serious, what can I
do about it? But it is so, one has to work out in
this crooked world, you have to take them out
and really do something about it. So it is a big
operation on, while you are the real people on
the stage, I mean, the whole opera, everything is
for you, the whole dressmakers and everybody is sitting at the back, they’re all working it
out, you are on the stage and you have to achieve it. You are the actors and you are the
real things, which are going to give the show. That’s true. So if you have any questions,
please ask and then we’ll go ahead with this puja business.”

Birthday Puja, Chelsham Road Ashram, London (England), Sunday March 21 st , 1982

Gudi Padwa – First Day Of Shalivahana Calendar

“Today is the Day of Gudi Padwa [The New Year’s Day of the Shalivahana shak]. And it is
celebrated in Maharashtra mostly, but now in other places too. It is said that it is a very
auspicious day. Whatever work is done on that day it is fruitful. But whatever is the reason
is as per worldly beliefs.The other thing is that, in the dynasty of Shalivahana, there was
one person: Babruvahan. He defeated the king Vikramaditya. After that, he started this
new calendar called ‘Shalivahana Shak’. According to this calender, today is the first day
[of the year].
“Its importance is major in Maharashtra. To represent the Shalivahanas, they take a
Kumbha [and a stick] on which they put a shawl – he was Shalivahana. The Kumbha
represents the Kundalini. They tie a shawl [to the stick] and keep a Kumbha on top of it.
The meaning is that the Kumbha also represents spirituality. Spirituality is represented by
the Kumbha.The Shalivahanas used to call
themselves the seven vehicles. They had a lot of
faith in Kundalini. Later, they started giving a
shawl to the Devi. They were worshipers of the
Devi so they called themselves the
Shalivahanas. That is how the name got
changed.The Shalivahanas who were there,
came from Mewar. They were the rulers of
Mewar from the Sisodia Dynasty. Their son, of
Sisodia dynasty, for some reason, had a
disagreement with his uncle. So, he ran away
[from Mewar] and went to Maharashtra and then
to Chennai.This is how it happened and this is
the history of the Shalivahanas. Even I belong to
the Shalivahana dynasty. Thousands of years
back they had gone to Maharashtra. We are also
descendants of the Shalivahan dynasty so our
name became ‘Salve’ from Shalv [or Salva].
The person Shalv, who had fought against
Bhishma, you must have heard about Shalv.
With Bhishma it was Shalv. He helped later the
Pandavas. Bhishma had cursed him: he had
made a cage around him. Because of the cage
he could not come out. So, he cursed Bhishma
that, “You too will be trapped in a cage”. That
happened to Bhishma in the end.

He is also of a great dynasty, but thousands of years old dynasty. It was revived later.
There was a sage there who had a dream of Shivaji, who said, “Make Bappa Rawal the
king of this place”. From there the revival of Shalivahan dynasty took place. I don’t know
how from ‘Shalv’ it became ‘Shalivahan’. The queen Padmini was also of the same
dynasty.People of the city of Meerut went there to find out, the people were so true to their
word, righteous, worshippers of the Devi. They say that, “You cannot even find such type
of people there”. They were very different people.Everything of theirs was destroyed as
they did not compromise. But Jaipur people compromised – first with the Muslims then
with the English. So there, there was prosperity. One should not judge people based on
prosperity but based on character.

Today, this day was started by these Shalivahanas, by Babruvahan. So, it was made
slightly earlier to Christ during the time of Vikramaditya. Even now people of Maharashtra
believe a lot in it. Here [in the North], it is the ‘Vikram Samvat’ [Vikram calendar]. In
Maharashtra, it is the Shalivahana Shak. Even we, probably because I am from
Maharashtra, we follow the Shalivahan calendar. According to it, today is a significant day
and whatever you desire will be fulfilled.
Many blessings to all.

Gudi Padwa Puja, Noida (India), 18th March 1999.

Sharada Purnima (The Autumn Full Moon – Biggest & Brightest)

“Today is the famous, great, full moon, called as Sharada Indu. Sharada Indu – that’s the
name of the Goddess also, Sharada Indu. The moon on the autumn season. This is the
biggest moon, and – of course not in England – but in India that day the moon is giving the
greatest light, see? And it’s such a great thing that Guru Nanaka was born on such a date.
As you know in India, people celebrate birthdays according to the dates of the moon,
called as stithi, not as the dates we have here according to the sun.

Guru Nanak’s Birthday, “Every Sahaja Yogi has to become a Guru”. Nirmala Palace
(Nightingale Lane ashram), London (UK), 1 November 1982.

Saptami(7th) & Navami(9th) – 'You Have My Special Blessings'

“The night of new moon, you should meditate especially on Shri Shiva. You should sleep
after meditating on Shri Shiva, that is the Spirit, and completely surrender yourself to Him.
On the night of full moon, you should meditate on Shri Rama and surrender yourself to
Him for protection. The meaning of the word Ramchandra is ‘creativity’. You should
completely dedicate your creative powers to Him. Thus you have to take special care of
yourself on these two days.
However, on the seventh day (saptami) and ninth day (navami) of the Lunar fortnights you
have my special blessings. Remember that you are specially blessed by me on these two
days. Make some special arrangements so that you can have proper meditation on these
days.
Dhyan Kaise Karein, “How to Meditate”, Bombay 29 May 1976.

Akshaya Tritiya – The Indestructible Third Day .

Now, for tomorrow’s puja I hope you will all be ready and you will all enjoy tomorrow’s puja.
Had a very nice puja in Pune which I had to perform on the thirteenth because it is the
date called Akshaya Tritiya, means undestructible third day of the moon. That’s
actually nobody knew, but it is the puja of the Kundalini. That day everybody felt very, very
clear. Very clear. Puja was hardly for about half an hour, the real puja of the Kundalini. But
everybody felt extremely clear and beautiful. So, that sort of puja we should do tomorrow
also, if possible, so that we’ll have the feelings of the Sahasrara completely opened out.
Because even if Sahasrara is opened, the rest of the chakras, if they are caught up then
you’ll have problems. It’s better to clear out all the chakras and then the Sahasrara. So,
tomorrow we’ll do the puja in that fashion and I hope it will work out very well for all of you.

Evening before Sahasrara puja. Thredbo (Australia), 2 May 1987.

Ekadashi – Destructive Eleventh

“So today is a day, according to Indian calendar, called as ‘Parivartani Ekadashi’.

Now, today is the eleventh day of the moon. Eleventh
day is ‘Ekadashi’. Also, in Sahaj Yoga, you know
about Ekadasha Rudra, which is here (forehead);
which will ultimately destroy all those things which are
not required anymore. That is Ekadasha here, that’s
the eleventh.”
Ekadasha Rudra Puja. New York City (USA), 17
September 1983.

Shri Mataji: “Today is the day which is called

the ekadashi means the eleventh day of the moon
and the name of this special 11th day is ekadashi but
we have different ekadashis but today’s ekadashi is
called as ‘Mokshada’ – the one which is the giver of
Moksha. See what a Sahaja system is that on the day
of Christ is Mokshada and now you will know why I
did not celebrate it yesterday. Alright? I don’t see
panchang (book of auspicious timings) but I know
everything! “
1982-1225 Christmas Puja, Pune

Ashtami – Shri Durga's Eighth Day

The second important thing which is a combination, which is a very, very auspicious thing
– that you get on one day, two dates. One is Ratha Saptami, on that day you cannot do
havan because it is the Surya already is there. So the
second thing is, [which] today we do, is a very great
puja of Ashtami (eighth day): is the day when the
Goddess killed nine rakshasas together with Her eight
hands. So today is a very special day for which a very
special attention is needed.It’s only at the behest of the
bhaktas that the Goddess took Her form and killed all
these rakshashas. Also with Her eight hands, She
killed Mahishasura. That’s why She’s called as
Mahishasura Mardini. She’s called as Nava Chandi,
one who has killed nine Chandas, means nine
rakshashas She has killed. So is a very important day
and very vital and very deep.
It’s very simple to say, “Mother, we have fixed Your puja on such and such day.” Nobody
thinks what Mother has to work behind the whole thing, you see. You can’t fix My puja. It’s
not proper. It is I who can tell you what time is the best for you to do the puja.
So it starts at two minutes past twelve. So now we can start it and that’s why I delayed my
bath. But that would be too late, I started my bath little early. Then only we can do it.

Shri Durga Puja. Rahuri (India), 1 February 1982.

Shri Mataji: And the second was vishwa ashtami two days were there. And you cannot
have a havana on a septami. So the septami started very early in the morning and the I
saw the Sun because the Sun is the ratha septami. So I saw the Sun and I don’t disturb it.
And then ashtami we had. I don’t consult any panchanga you know.

Sahaja Yogi: Because You are the creator of panchanga.

[Laughter ; applause]

Conversation with Yogis, India tour, Niphad, (India), 6 February 1982.

“And on an Ashtami, that is today, is the eighth day of the moon, of the moon which is
increasing, shuklapakshi; that first time all the weapons of the Goddess are to be
worshipped. This was a great idea because these
weapons who work all the time, not only to kill the
evil but to protect the good, were never worshipped
before; and that today, if human beings realize their
importance and significance, then lots of problems
of atomic bombs and all these things that have
been created could be solved by diverting them to
the right direction, using them for the destructions
of the evil forces and not the good; also for
protecting human life, nourishing human life. The
same weapons can be used in a wrong direction;
but, rightly used, they can be dedicated for the use
of God’s work.

All that is created by human beings, which looks

apparently an instrument of destruction, but if
human beings use their wisdom they will find out
that all these inventions that have come to them
from the prompting of the Unconscious, are for the
work of God. All scientific research, everything that
has been done, all these instruments that you have
produced, are for the use of God.”

Shri Durga Puja. Vienna (Austria), 26 September 1982.

Sankashti Chaturthi ( Auspicious 4th) – Ganesha's Birthday

In Maharashtra they believe that on Monday they should fast; then on Tuesday they will
fast for a different reason. Then on Wednesday another kind of fast. In our country there
are so many people already suffering from lack of
food! Why are you fasting? It is such a habit in India to
fast, especially on the birthdays of any of our deities.
Like on Sankashti, the birthday of Lord Ganesha,
people will fast. Would you fast on the day a child is
born in your house? Wouldn’t you distribute sweets?
Everything that is taught is the opposite of reality. This
kind of belief, that by undergoing this kind of
emotional trouble and torture, you attain God, is a
wrong belief. Just like what the Shia people do. This is
the biggest misconception they are living with. On the
contrary, those who are happy-minded, satisfied
people, they attain the Divine easily.

In English it is said, “Count your blessings one by

one”. The one who thinks about the blessings
showered upon him, is the one who achieves the
Divine. Not the one who always puts oneself into
pain.

Public Program, Pune (India), Tuesday , December

4th 1984

“They feel that only a doctor can help in body matters. They do not believe in the divinity of
Shri Ganesh but in Sahaj Yoga one has to believe. The reason behind this is , whatever
trouble you face due to the Ganesh element then you have to pray to Lord Ganesha only.
Means it is like this. Say you have some issue with your prostrate gland……Now I want to
narrate my experience. I have a disciple named Agnihotri. His name is Rajwade but as he
has performed many important yagnyas(fire rituals) he is referred to as Agnihotri Rajwade.
He is a very committed Sahaj Yogi. Two three years ago he came to me and said that ‘I
don’t have any issue except that of Prostrate gland. ‘ I was very surprised. This , very
accomplished devotee and Sahaj Yogi and why should he have an issue with his
prostrate.? Because the prostrate ailment arises due to the issue with the Ganesh
element or if Ganesh gets upset with him. There was no reason for Ganesh to be upset
with him. As he was a committed devotee and had total faith in me and was a very
simple person. Then why is the Ganesh element working in the opposite direction for him,
could not understand. I told him,’ take some prasad’. The Prasad is in the form of
Chana(peas).
When I gave this to him , his fellow person said,’ Today dada will not eat anything.’

I asked ‘Why? Why are you not eating today?’

He said” today is Sankashti. Everyone says you should not eat Chanas on Sankashti. ’
I said,’ This is the mistake. Sankashti is Lord Ganesha’s birthday’.
Now all of you are educated people. Even if some one tells you anything, you should use
your intelligence. Should be alert always. We keep fast on Sankashti. Sankashti or
Ganesh Chaturthi are the birthdays of Shri Ganesha. If you keep fast on his birthday
are you in mourning or what. It’s a simple thing,
1st Day of Navaratri Celebrations, Shri Kundalini, Shri Ganesha 22-09-1979

Moon Is The Spirit & Guru Is The Full Moon.

In the science of Sahaja Yoga, the moon is the spirit in our heart. It is the spirit in our
heart, meaning in Marathi purnantara. It’s the spirit in our heart, and it shines when the sun
reflects on it. When the sun – the sun, that is the sun of God. When the sun of God reflects
on the heart, then the moon shines in the human heart. But when it shines as a moon,
then Shiva Himself lifts it up and puts it on His head. So the human beings who are
blessed by the sun of God, who are being awakened by the sun of God, that is you can
say that it is Shri Ganesh or Lord Jesus Christ, any one of them, if they enlighten the heart
of human beings, then it becomes a shining moon.

And the amavasya, the day when it’s the dark night, is when a man is not a realized soul at
all. The realized soul is like the full moon.

Shri Chandrama Puja, Vaitarna (India), 18 February 1984.

“Today is the day of Guru Purnima. It is a full moon day, that’s why it’s called as purnima.
The guru has to be like a full moon: means completely grown, completely matured.There
are sixteen kalas, or the phases, of the moon, and when the complete purnima comes in,
the full moon day, all the sixteen kalas are completed.”

Guru Puja. Dollis Hill Ashram, London (UK), 8 July 1979.