Sri Yantra: ‘Sri Yantra’ is the master of all Yantras, since all other Yantras are said to originate from Sri Yantra. ‘Sri’ means wealth and prosperity and ‘Yantra’ means instrument. S ri Yantra is Yantra is shown in the top right corner of this page. It is composed of 9 interlocking triangles, 4 triangles pointing up and another 5 triangles pointing down. A total of 43 triangles can be seen which are formed from the overlapping of these 9 triangles. The inner most triangle has a dot (bindu) in the center. When Sri Yantra is constructed in 3 dimensional form, it is called 'Maha meru'. Sri Yantra is used in the tantric culture of Hinduism. We start from the outer side of Sri Yantra and proceed towards its inner details. The outer side of Sri Yantra contains a square with 8 sides. The square represents the physical body. The 8 corners of the square are the 8 deities, starting from top in clock-wise direction, Kubera (North), Isaana (North-East), Indra (East), Agni (South-East), Yama (South), Nirruti (South-West), Varuna (West) and Vaayu (North-West). These 8 deities are protectors of our ph ysical body. We can say our body is composed of these 8 elements. Any excess or deficit de ficit in one or more of these elements will lead to diseases and destruction of the physical body. The earth square has 3 layers la yers at its outside. These layers represent Tamah (baser qualities), Rajah
(anger and desires) and Satwah (softness). These 3 q ualities are always attached to a human body. From this earth square, if we move towards the center of Sri Yantra, we see 3 concentric circles. The outer circle represents Manah (mind), the next one represents Buddhi (intelligence), and the innermost circle represents the Jeevatma (human soul). The significance is this: our wavering mind should apply its intelligence and find the ways to understand the soul. Once we get the awareness of the soul in our body, we are ready to tap the subtle energies of our body. Our body is a vast reservoir of different types of energies like light, heat and sound. The numerous nerves of the human body circulate these energies and are finally connected to brain through the spinal cord. These nerves meet in bundles at spinal cord region and are called chakras. We can imagine chakras as reservoirs of energy. These chakras are represented in the form of petals. The 16 petals of Sri Yantra represent Kaama (desire), Buddhi (intelligence), Ahankaara (igo), Sabda (hearing), Sparsa (touch), Roopa (sight), Rasa (taste), Gandha (smell), Chitta (mind), Dhairya (courage), Smirtya (memory), Naama (name), Beeja (fire), Aatma (soul), Amrita (water) and Sareera (body). These are the elements (or different form of energies) through which our Jeevatma (human soul) understands and interacts with the outside world. We can attain mastery over these elements by meditating and balancing the chakra energies in our body. Even a normal human being then gets some super natural powers called ‘siddhis’. There are 8 siddhis represented by the 8 petals of the inner circle. The y are Anima (smallness), Laghima (bigness), Garima (heaviness), Mahima (creativity), Easatva (godliness), Vasatva (subjugation), Praakamya (fulfilling the objective) and Iccha (willfulness). Now we come to the interlaced triangles. Each triangle is formed with 3 straight lines and hence there will be 3 vertices. These vertices denote Jnaana (Iym), Kriya (Hreem) and Iccha (Sreem). There are 4 upward triangles representing the Siva (the male force) and the 5 downward triangles represent the female force, called Shakti (the female force). When 4 upward and 4 downward triangles are taken, they are balanced. They represent that this entire Universe is emerged from Siva and Shakti. The one remaining downward triangle represents the Mother Nature. We live in this Nature and feel that this is the only real world. This feeling is called Maaya (ignorance). Once we come out of this ignorance, we will be able to understand Siva and Shakti. There is a dot (bindu) in the center of the Sri Yantra. Sit with your eyes closed and and start visualizing a dot in the top centre of your head. This place represents the sahasraara (crown chakra). When we concentrate on this crown chakra, we will be able to come out of Maaya and connect our Jeevathma (bodily soul) to all pervading Supreme soul. This is called ‘samaadhi’ (dwelling in the God). Thus, Sri Yantra beco mes an instrument for mankind to unite into the Supreme soul.
