Namaskar
By Hinduism Today March 1998
http://www.hvk.org/Publications/namaskar.html
THE WORD - NAMASKAR
"Shake hands and come out fighting."
It's the referee's final counsel to two pugilists about to beat each other's
brains out with clenched fists. Even outside the ring, a handshake can be a
little off-putting. When one returns to the West from an extended sojourn in
Bharat or elsewhere in Asia, the hand suddenly thrust forward can seem more
ominous than friendly, especially if the hand offered is that of a stranger. Of
course, one soon acclimatises and the menacing aspect of this salutation
subsides.
Perhaps that moment of intimidation derives
from the history of the handshake. According to one anthropologist, the
handshake evolved in medieval Europe, during the times of knights. It seems not
all were laudable Lancelots or gallant Gallahads. More than a few would approach
opponents with concealed weapons and when within striking distance do the
needful, driving dagger or striking sword into the unguarded paladin.
To fend off the fear of a foe's foul foil,
knights took to offering their open and visibly empty hand to each other. It was
a kind of surety, a gesture of trust which said, "See, I am unarmed, so you
may safely let me approach." As the story goes, soon the gesture itself
took on meaning and the less noble, less lethal man on the street adopted the
handshake as the proper way to greet others.
In much of the world today, people do not
shake hands when they meet. They may hug formally or kiss one another on the
cheek, as in eastern Europe and Arab states. They may bow softly, eyes turned to
the ground, as in Japan and China. The Hawaiian greeting, termed "honi,"
consists of placing the nostril gently beside that of the person greeted, a kind
of sharing of breath, which is life and Pran(a).
For, Hindu(s), of course, the greeting of
choice is "Namaste," the two hands pressed together and held near the
heart with the head gently bowed as one says, "Namaste." Thus it is
both a spoken greeting and a gesture, a Mantr(a) and a Mudr(a). The prayerful
hand position is a Mudr(a) called Anjali, from the root Anj, "to adorn,
honor, celebrate or anoint." The hands held in union signify the oneness of
an apparently dual cosmos, the bringing together of spirit and matter, or the
self meeting the Self. It has been said that the right hand represents the
higher nature or that which is divine in us, while the left hand represents the
lower, worldly nature.
In Sanskrit "Namas" means,
"bow, obeisance, reverential salutation." It comes from the root Nam,
which carries meanings of bending, bowing, humbly submitting and becoming
silent. "Te" means "to you." Thus "namaste" means
"I bow to you." the act of greeting is called "Namaskaram,"
"Namaskara" and "Namaskar" in the varied languages of the
subcontinent.
Namaste has become a veritable icon of what is
Bharatiya. Indeed, there must be a Bharatiya law which requires every travel
brochure. calendar and poster to include an image of someone with palms pressed
together, conveying to the world Bharat's hospitality, spirituality and graceful
consciousness. You knew all that, of course, but perhaps you did not know that
there can be subtle ways of enhancing the gesture, as in the West one might
shake another's hand too strongly to impress and overpower them or too briefly,
indicating the withholding of genuine welcome.
In the case of Namaste, a deeper veneration is
sometimes expressed by bringing the fingers of the clasped palms to the
forehead, where they touch the brow, the site of the mystic Third Eye. A third
form of namaste brings the palms completely above the head, a gesture said to
focus consciousness in the subtle space just above the Brahmarandhra, the
aperture in the Crown Chakr(a). This form is so full of reverence it is reserved
for the Almighty and the holiest of Sat Guru(s).
It is always interesting, often revealing and
occasionally enlightening to muse about the everyday cultural traits and habits
each nation and community evolves, for in the little things our big ideas about
life find direct and personal expression. Take, for instance, the different ways
that American and Japanese tool-makers approach the same task. A saw for cutting
lumber, if designed in the U.S., is made in such a way that the carpenter's
stroke away from his body does the cutting. But in Japan saws are engineered so
that cutting takes place as the carpenter draws the saw toward himself. A small
detail, but it yields a big difference.
The American saw can, if leaned into, generate
more power, while the Japanese saw provides more control and refinement in the
cut, requiring surprisingly less effort. Each has its place in the global
toolbox. each speaks — like the handshake and namaste greetings — of an
underlying perception of man's relationship with things.
In the West we are outgoing, forceful,
externalized. We are told in USA (By telelphone
company) by Ma Bell to "reach out and touch somebody." We are
unabashedly acquisitive, defining our progress in life by how much we have —
how much wealth, influence, stored up knowledge, status or whatever. Every
culture exhibits these traits to some extent, but in the east Mother is there to
remind us, "Reach in and touch the Self." here we are taught to be
more introspective, more concerned with the quality of things than their
quantity, more attuned with the interior dimension of life.
So, there you have it, the whole of Eastern
and Western culture summed up in the handshake which reaches out horizontally to
greet another, and Namaste which reaches in vertically to acknowledge that, in
truth, that there is no other.
As a test of how these two greetings differ,
imagine you are magically confronted with the Divine. The Paramatma, Almighty,
walks up to you on the street. What do you do? Reach out to shake His hand?
Probably not. Though suitable between man and man, it;' an unseemly expression
between man and Paramatma. We never shake hands with Paramatma. I mean, what if
your palms are sweating?
So you namaste instead. The reason it feels
natural to namaste before Paramatma is that it is, in its very essence, a
spiritual gesture, not a worldly one. By a handshake we acknowledge our equality
with others. We reveal our humanity. We convey how strong we are, how nervous,
how aggressive or passive. There is bold physicality to it. For these and other
reasons, Popes never shake hands. Kings never shake hands. Even mothers don't
shake hands with their own children.
Namaste is cosmically different. Kings do
namaste, Sat Guru(s) namaste and mothers namaste to their own family. We all
namaste before the Almighty, a holy man or even a holy place. The namaste
gesture bespeaks our inner valuing of the sacredness of all. It betokens our
intuition that all souls are divine, in their essence. It reminds us in quite a
graphic manner, and with insistent repetition, that we can see Paramatma
everywhere and in every human being we meet. It is saying, silently, "I see
the Deity in us both, and bow before Him or Her. I acknowledge the holiness of
even this mundane meeting. I cannot separate that which is spiritual in us from
that which is human and ordinary."
And while we are singing the praises of
Namaste, it should be observed how efficient a gesture it is in an age of mass
communication. A politician, or performer can greet fifty thousand people with a
single Namaste, and they can return the honor instantly. In such a situation a
handshake is unthinkable and a mere waving of one hand is somehow too frivolous.
There are other, more mystical meanings behind
Namaste. The nerve current of the body converge in the feet, the solar plexus
and the hands. Psychic energy leaves the body at these junctures. To
"ground" that energy and balance the flow of Pran(a) streaming through
the nerve system, Yogi(s) cross their legs in the lotus posture, and bring their
hands together. The Anjali Mudra acts like a simple Yog(ic) Asan(a), balancing
and harmonizing our energies, keeping us centered, inwardly poised and mentally
protected. It closes our aura, shielding us psychically. It keeps us from
becoming too externalized, thus we remain close to our intuitive nature, our
super consciousness.
Here are some insights into Namaste from a
number of Hindu(s):
* Namaste elevates one's consciousness,
reminding one that all beings, all existence is holy, is the Almighty. It
communicates, "I honor or worship the Divinity within you." Also it
draws the individual inward for a moment, inspires reflection on the deeper
realities, softening the interface between people. It would be difficult or
offend or feel animosity toward any one you greet as Paramatma.
* Namaste is a gesture of friendship and
kindness, also of thanks or special recognition. Mystically it is called "Namaskara
Mudra" in the Agami(c) Pooja, and it centers one's energy within the spine.
* I've heard it means "I salute the
Almighty within you." The true Namaste gesture is is accompanied by bowing
the head and shoulders slightly. This is a gesture that lessens our sense of ego
and self-centredness, requiring some humility to do it well — whereas shaking
hands can be quite an arrogant event.
* Touching the hands together puts you in
touch with your center, your soul. Namaste puts you forward as a soul, not an
outer personality.
* The gesture has a subtle effect on the aura
and nerve system. bringing focused attention and a collection of one's forces,
so to speak. It also protects against unnecessary psychic connections which are
fostered by shaking hands. This might be called a form of purity also —
protecting one's energies.
This form of acknowledgment is so lovely, so
graceful. Just look at two people in Namaste and you will see so much human
beauty and refinement.
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