The purpose of auspiciousness (Taittiriya Upanisad 1.4)
The verses in this section may at first appear to be ordinary prayers for health and auspiciousness, but a more attentive study reveals that they are a prayer to the Lord, as the holy name.
Section 4: The purpose of auspiciousness
The verses in this section may at first appear to be ordinary prayers for health and auspiciousness, but a more attentive study reveals that they are a prayer to the Lord, in the form of his transcendental holy name, to provide the devotee with the means to understand Him. This indicates that all our assets, including the body, the capacity of hearing, the faculty of speech, and so on, should be used as means for advancing in spiritual understanding, and not just as tools for enjoying this world.
Text 1.4.1
yaś chandasām ṛṣabho viśva-rūpaḥ
chandobhyo ’dhy amṛtāt sambabhūva
sa mendro medhayā spṛṇotu
amṛtasya deva dhāraṇo bhūyāsam
śarīram me vicarṣaṇam
jihvā me madhumattamā
karṇābhyām bhūri viśruvam
brahmaṇaḥ kośo ’si medhayā pihitaḥ
śrutam me gopāya
O You, who is the chief of the Vedas, the universal form! You have arisen from the immortal. Being the most powerful, please enliven me with knowledge. O Deva, the shining one, may I possess the Lord in my heart. May my body be a tool for acquiring knowledge about Him, may my tongue taste the sweetness of speaking about Him, and may my ears hear the scriptures that speak about Him. You are the receptacle of the Lord, filled with wisdom. Please preserve the meaning of what I have learned.
Commentary: This verse contains a prayer to the praṇava, or Omkāra, the seed of transcendental realization, composed of the three transcendental letters A-U-M. The letter A refers to Krsna, the letter U indicates His internal potency, and M indicates the living entities. In this way, Omkāra represents Krsna, His name, fame, pastimes and potencies, His devotees, and everything else connected with Him.
The Omkāra is not different from the Maha-mantra in the sense that both are the holy name of the Lord and award the same benefit. There is a difference, however: The Omkāra can be pronounced only by brahmanas, while the Maha-mantra can be chanted by anyone. In this way, the meditation on the Omkāra was practiced in Satya-yuga, when the whole population had the qualification of brahmanas, while the Maha-mantra is the process recommended for the era we live in. Prabhupada explains this point in his purport to SB 9.14.48:
"In Satya-yuga the only mantra was omkāra (om tat sat). The same name omkāra is manifest in the mantra Hare Kṛṣṇa, Hare Kṛṣṇa, Kṛṣṇa Kṛṣṇa, Hare Hare/ Hare Rāma, Hare Rāma, Rāma Rāma, Hare Hare. Unless one is a brāhmaṇa, one cannot utter omkāra and get the desired result. But in Kali-yuga almost everyone is a śūdra, unfit for pronouncing the praṇava, omkāra. Therefore the śāstras have recommended the chanting of the Hare Kṛṣṇa mahā-mantra. Omkāra is a mantra, or mahā-mantra, and Hare Kṛṣṇa is also a mahā-mantra. The purpose of pronouncing omkāra is to address the Supreme Personality of Godhead, Vāsudeva (om namo bhagavate vāsudevāya). And the purpose of chanting the Hare Kṛṣṇa mantra is the same. Hare: “O energy of the Lord!” Kṛṣṇa: “O Lord Kṛṣṇa!” Hare: “O energy of the Lord!” Rāma: “O Supreme Lord, O supreme enjoyer!” The only worshipable Lord is Hari, who is the goal of the Vedas (vedaiś ca sarvair aham eva vedyaḥ). By worshiping the demigods, one worships the different parts of the Lord, just as one might water the branches and twigs of a tree. But worshiping Nārāyaṇa, the all-inclusive Supreme Personality of Godhead, is like pouring water on the root of the tree, thus supplying water to the trunk, branches, twigs, leaves and so on. In Satya-yuga people knew how to fulfill the necessities of life simply by worshiping Nārāyaṇa, the Supreme Personality of Godhead. The same purpose can be served in this Age of Kali by the chanting of the Hare Kṛṣṇa mantra, as recommended in the Bhāgavatam. Kīrtanād eva kṛṣṇasya mukta-sangaḥ param vrajet. Simply by chanting the Hare Kṛṣṇa mantra, one becomes free from the bondage of material existence and thus becomes eligible to return home, back to Godhead."
This verse is not an ordinary prayer for health and auspiciousness, but a prayer to the Lord, in the form of his transcendental holy name to provide the devotee with the means to understand Him. This indicates that all our assets, including the body, the capacity of hearing, the faculty of speech, and so on should be used as means for advancing in spiritual understanding, and not just as tools for enjoying this world.
Text 1.4.2-3
āvahantīvitanvānā kurvāṇā ’cīram ātmanaḥ
vāsāmsi mama gāvaś ca anna-pāne ca sarvadā
tato me śriyam āvaha
lomaśām paśubhiḥ saha svāhā
ā māyantu brahmacāriṇaḥ svāhā
vi māyantu brahmcāriṇaḥ svāhā
pra māyantu brahamcāriṇaḥ svāhā
dam āyantu brahmacāriṇaḥ svāhā
śam āyantu brahmcāriṇaḥ svāhā
yaśo jane ’sāni svāhā śreyān vasyaso ’sāni svāhā
tam tvā bhaga praviśāni svāhā
sa mā bhaga praviśa svāhā
tasmin sahasraśākhe ni bhagāham tvayi mṛje svāhā
yathāpaḥ pravatā yanti yathā māsā aharjaram
evam mām brahmacāriṇaḥ dhātar āyantu sarvataḥ svāhā
prativeśo ’si pramā bhāhi pra mā padyasva
You are the Supreme maintainer. You are the one who provides food, water, clothes, cows, and opulence to everyone. Please also maintain me, so I can serve you. Let students come to me, and let them leave when they are ready. I welcome them. Let them give dakshina, and let them be peaceful. Let me serve the people. Let me bring fame and prosperity to the householders. O my Lord, let me attain you, and once attaining you, let me remain pure! Let you enter my heart! Please protect me and make me surrender unto you.
Commentary: These are mantras used in homa ceremonies to bring auspiciousness. A materialist performs these Vedic ceremonies with the idea of obtaining wealth and prosperity in order to increase his social position and enjoy his senses, but a devotee performs the same ceremonies with the purpose of obtaining blessings to better serve the Lord.
Another purpose of devotees executing Vedic ceremonies and other material duties is to give example to common people. As the Lord explains in the Bhagavad-gita: "Kings such as Janaka attained perfection solely by performance of prescribed duties. Therefore, just for the sake of educating people in general, you should perform your work. Whatever action a great man performs, common men follow. And whatever standards he sets by exemplary acts, all the world pursues." (Bg 3.20-21)
In his purport, Srila Prabhupada explains: "Kings like Janaka were all self-realized souls; consequently they had no obligation to perform the prescribed duties in the Vedas. Nonetheless they performed all prescribed activities just to set examples for the people in general. Janaka was the father of Sītā and father-in-law of Lord Śrī Rāma. Being a great devotee of the Lord, he was transcendentally situated, but because he was the king of Mithilā (a subdivision of Bihar province in India), he had to teach his subjects how to perform prescribed duties. Lord Kṛṣṇa and Arjuna, the Lord’s eternal friend, had no need to fight in the Battle of Kurukṣetra, but they fought to teach people in general that violence is also necessary in a situation where good arguments fail. Before the Battle of Kurukṣetra, every effort was made to avoid the war, even by the Supreme Personality of Godhead, but the other party was determined to fight. So for such a right cause, there is a necessity for fighting. Although one who is situated in Kṛṣṇa consciousness may not have any interest in the world, he still works to teach the public how to live and how to act. Experienced persons in Kṛṣṇa consciousness can act in such a way that others will follow, and this is explained in the following verse."
Krsna Himself performs duties when he comes to this world, even though He is completely unattached and has no interest in pious results. This principle of executing duties without attachment or aversion is the very process that allows us to become free from the material world, and attain the same pure spiritual nature as the Lord.