In lieu of an abstract, here is a brief excerpt of the content:

sahajolī, which are variously described in yogic texts and have not been researched well enough to prove this suggestion at present. In any case, these mudrās deal with bodily fluids—namely, with semen, menstrual or other vaginal secretion, and urine, and thus may represent a hat ִha-yoga transformation of older Kaula rituals. WHAT SHOULD MĪNANĀTH THUS DO TO SAVE HIS LIFE? Until the exact meaning of the four moons is discerned, any answer to this question must remain speculative. We have seen that none of the explanations suggested so far are wholly satisfactory and that neither the song itself nor the full text of the poem offers any clear key to a solution of this problem. The only indisputable point is thus the desirable effect of the practice of the four moons: the fatally sapless body of Mīnanāth should be flooded using this technique. Let us briefly summarize the general possibilities how this objective might be achieved. (1) All the moons mean only something internal and subtle and the processes with the moons take place within a body, which is flooded by the nectar of immortality. (2a) Some moon(s) is/are internal and subtle and other(s) is/are external and gross. (2b) Some moons may have two forms: internal and external. In these cases (2ab), at least some external bodily fluid is thus involved. (3a) All the four moons are primarily gross and external, similarly to the Sahajiyā concept. Only the fluids of a yogin are used. (3b) All the four moons are gross and external, but some female fluid(s) is/are necessary. Admittedly, the results of my research are rather inconclusive. At the beginning, it was not clear what Mīnanāth should do to save his life and now, at the end, it is still unclear. And, what is worse, the range of possibilities of how to achieve this aim is quite broad, including one (3b) that, at the beginning of our discussion, appeared to be entirely inconceivable for a Nāth yogi but now cannot be so easily excluded. Is it actually possible to make any positive statement in the midst of these uncertainties and is there any promising way of continuing the research? The identity of at least one of the moons seems to be relatively unproblematic. The poisonous moon (garalcandra) stands in all probability for the nectar of immortality, whether taken in its usual subtle form stored in the sahasrāra-cakra, or 140 LUBOMÍR ONDRAČKA in an external gross form, i.e., as semen.70 All occurrences of the term poison (garal) within the poem fit this interpretation well.71 Further, two lines of the song that refer to a reverse yoga (8a and 8d) clearly allude to the well-known teaching of the Naths.72 What should be reversed, of course, are various bodily processes, such as ageing and the process of nectar/semen falling down. Or, in more general terms, all natural processes taking place within a body should be reversed or stopped.73 Consequently, a perfect yogi is a kind of an independent and “closed” system and does not interact materially with his external environment. This means that he does not need to eat and drink,74 and at the same time, his body does not produce any secretions or waste products.75 This concept may perhaps also have some connection to the practice of the four moons.76 Another relatively clear line is 8e: “strike at Triven ִī.” Here, in all probability, Triven ִī stands for the confluence of three main nād ִīs (subtle bodily conduits) and the only ambiguity is whether the upper junction in the ājñā-cakra or the lower one in the mūlādhāra-cakra is meant.77 Since the following line, 8f, says “to fill the channels with water,” the natural choice would be the upper cakra and the filling could then refer to the flooding of the body by the nectar of immortality. Regarding possible ways of proceeding with the research in order to obtain better results concerning the identity of the four moons, a few facts are quite apparent . The importance of the practice of the four moons for saving Mīnanāth’s life seems to be an exclusively Bengali phenomenon. Although other versions of the story also include the event when Gorakhnāth attempts to rescue his guru with the aid of a song, it is only in the Bengali...

Share