Siva Puja and Advanced Yajna

Siva Puja and Advanced YajnaI'm very excited to write a review of this outstanding book. Some years ago I fell in love with Lord Shiva and began worshipping Him in my own limited way, but with this text Swamiji has made it possible for all of us to learn how to worship God in the same way that the Rishis themselves do. Who knew that shaktipat could come in the form of a book?In case you were unaware, the author of this book is NOT the absolutely brilliant (and better known) Swami Satyananda Saraswati who founded the Bihar School of Yoga. BUT DON'T GO AWAY YET, because this Swami (who resides in Napa) is equally brilliant and sure to impress with his unmitigated mastery of the subject matter.The book itself is geared toward practice. It is a compilation of mantras to chant and mudras to use in order to perform a traditional puja and yajna. The translations of the Sanskrit are insightful and poetic. The Sanskrit is given first using the Devanagari script, and then a Roman transliteration is provided to make chanting easier for those who can't read Devanagari.The biggest problem that most people will probably have with this book is with the lack of background information. You will find little to no explanation as to why each section is done - all of that you will just have to learn elsewhere (his free online classes are a great place to start). This book isn't really designed for the total beginner to puja (like me), but anyone who is willing to put forth a little effort to study it will certainly be empowered to do the whole thing with understanding. There is a Beginners Shiva Puja book written by the same author which is much smaller and less daunting to actually perform, but once you've done that for a while you will probably want to learn this too.On the authors website there are many, many instructional videos to help those who want to learn these pujas. These are very helpful because here you get to SEE when the author rings the bells, claps his hands, etc. Sometimes there are even live classes in which you may submit questions to the author about the finer points of worship. The classes are VERY fun, and I for one am hooked. I did email this author once with a brief grammatical question about some Sanskrit I wanted to insert into my own practice. His answer came immediately, and was quite helpful. Any contact you have with Swamiji will illustrate that he is clearly much more than some dry intellectual Sanskrit scholar. Intellect he has in spades, but he also really, truly lives in the spirit of puja all day long.To summarize, this book is packed with knowledge, from cover to cover. If you want to learn mantras for a Shiva puja this is THE BOOK. And if you sincerely want to study it but are confused about any aspect it covers, or even if you just want to study it in good company, Swamiji, Shree Maa, and the whole Devi Mandir family is sure to welcome you to the online classes with open arms. Happy learning and Har Har Mahadev!!! :)

This is the book that changed my life years ago. When I think about my life, there are the years before this book and the years after this book. It takes a while to work your way up to offering the whole puja and yajna, but it is worth the effort. Make sure you find the free companion videos on Swamiji's website. Once you've watched the videos while following along with the book you'll be able to offer the puja. I made notes in pencil in the book as I watched the videos. Look up any terms you don't understand. Don't give up if it is difficult at first.

I thought directions would be more clearly laid out, though this book is nearly impossible to use unless you know a little bit about pujas and their set up. With that said I have used it and gotten some powerful energetic results, but just wish it was better laid out.

This is a superb work that holds a vast amount of God's grace. It is truly unbelievable in it's breadth. One would not be disappointed with this purchase.

It was exactly what I asked for. Perfect. Great condition. It came on time, and there were no issues with price or money. It is a great book to practice with. Om Namah Shivaya!!!

I didn’t like this book that much. It says teach puja, but really it’s just a bunch of prairies bunch together with out any context. It does not teach puja. The name of this book should be shiva prair book.

Though I am posting this review under the title "Shiva Puja and Advanced Yajna," it really applies to all of the wonderful books of Swami Satyananda Saraswati of Napa, California (as distinguished from the identically named Swami who wrote many books on yoga -- which are also great books, by the way). These books will probably appeal most to those who perform traditional Hindu ceremonial worship, called puja. However, this review is to call attention to another aspect of these books which is worth noting, and is indeed highly praiseworthy. Personally, I do not perform formal pujas, but I love Sanskrit and all the wonderful traditional mantras and hymns of that sacred language. I repeat mantras and recite hymns in my own informal way. As a source for Sanskrit mantras and hymns, there is nothing better than the books of Swami Satyananda Saraswati. I have taught myself to read Devanagari script, so I greatly appreciate its inclusion in these books. Above all, the script is large, clear, and easy to read. These books are typeset to allow easy reading of either the Devanagari script, or the transliterated text, while performing puja. A great deal of attention has obviously been paid to making the script easily readable, even while holding the book at arm's length. This is a huge advantage. I'm not so great at reading Devanagari that I enjoy working my way through the tiny, blurred script found in so many other books, especially Indian publications. These books, by contrast, are a pleasure to read.The transliterations of the Sanskrit mantras and hymns follow the precision international system which uses diacritical marks. This system, originally developed by European scholars in the nineteenth century, has long been the "gold standard" for transliteration of Sanskrit texts due to the direct one-to-one correspondence with the Sanskrit alphabet. (I have been glad to see that this system has become more and more universally used for transliteration of Sanskrit.) It is here employed with great accuracy, and in a typeface of unsurpassed readability. I have many versions of some of the Sanskrit hymns and mantras in this book, and in the many other books of Swami Satyananda Saraswati, but I always choose to read the versions in Swami Satyananda Saraswati's books because I can always count on them to be the most accurate and readable versions available.Besides the Sanskrit texts in both Devanagari script and in Romanized transliteration using the international system, one is also treated to Swami Satyananda Saraswati's highly accurate, but also energetic and enthusiastic English translations. Without deviating from the precise meanings of the texts, the Swami manages to include and convey his own love and enthusiasm for this ancient and sacred literature. I rarely look elsewhere for definitive translations.Also, when perusing the catalog of Swami Satyananda Saraswati's books, don't be misled by the titles into thinking that they convey the full range of the contents. The books are always crammed with "extras," often mantras only peripherally related to the main topic, but in this way one gets a spectacular collection of the greatest Sanskrit mantras in existence.For those dedicated to the performance of puja, these books are indispensible. For those who just love Sanskrit and all the wonderful hymns and mantras, these books are a treasure trove. I don't recite every mantra in ever book -- not by any means -- but there are some in every book that I love to sing and recite. And I buy all the books also just as a way of saying "thank you" to Swami Satyananda Saraswati for rendering this wonderful service to all Sanskrit lovers, and doing so in such a conscious and conscientious way. Thank you, Swamiji! We've never met, but I'm one of your silent (until now!) fans and admirers.