Swedish Bhairavi Says: Love Language & Pratams

Some years ago I encountered one beautiful Shanti mantra for the first time. It was introduced to me by Kaulantak Nath. I was in my “natural habitat”, in Sweden.

I loved the whole process of learning the mantra. I was practicing it out loud and kind of becoming better and better at some of the more difficult parts, like the retroflex nasal “ṇa”. I was listening to recordings and tuning into the sounds and timings and pronunciations. And if you do pronounce it, of course it starts sounding as if you are trying to speak the language.

And I was indeed trying to improve it…and I remember there was another person there, whom judged me and questioned me, saying; “why are you trying to pronounce it like Indians do, it’s not your language.”

Since I had gone through the process of learning languages in the past, I thought the comment was quite weird. I didn’t reply back and it just so happened that they never heard me sing or practice ever again.

Why was that person interacting differently with the mantra than I was? They also had the chance to practice it if they wanted. Did they not want to try something new? Did they want to but not “all the way” kind of amount? Was it because they had a fixed idea about themselves, their identity, their language and what they were encountering, an idea so firm that no new experience could enter and expand it?

This is where we can begin to touch upon pratam. A pratam is not only received in the mind, it is received in the heart. The heart registers, holds and responds to first encounters in a way that shapes how we relate to it onwards.

Pratam is not spoken about much, yet it carries deep significance. It is a first encounter, a first imprint, a first contact with something. It is what creates grounds for nurishment as well as the corners of traumas or delusions. In Siddha Tantra, this first contact, a first impression, holds a certain potency, a certain power, a certain opening. It is a moment where something is allowed to enter without any or much previous associations, without excessive layering, without being forced into old categories.

Most people who do not actively care for pratams, or do not recognize its potency, will naturally accumulate impressions upon impressions without guidance or nourishing sustainable cultivation. This happens everywhere in the world and is not like a “western thing”. But, since I was born in the West, I have a certain eye and ache for the Western mind and heart, and I see how easily the space for first encounters becomes limited very fast.

A baby encountering the world for the first time experiences things with intensity and awe. A sound, a face, a touch, a taste, everything is vast, everything is direct, everything is alive and possible. Over the years, layers of association begin to form. The mind learns to recognize, categorize, compare, and relate. We start to assume things, more and more.

For most people a bit of auto pilot is handy to not spend energy and time being in awe of how miraculously water comes out from the tap every morning before going to work. So the ability to categorize in itself is useful.

It also allows refinement, learning and mastery. When you learn piano, you build upon what you have already understood. You refine your technique in that realm, you learn from the teacher and excell. The impressions you have cultivated support your growth for playing the piano.

At the same time, when impressions come from scattered sources, from different intentions, from varying depths of understanding, they begin to mix without coherence. The mind still claims familiarity, still places new experiences into old categories, yet the foundation underneath lacks alignment. This creates difficulty in receiving something new in its full essence. In that sense there is no nourishment to refine the piano playing, because the impressions and the process is scattered, mixed and sometimes contradictory.

For many of us, especially those who are curious, who seek, who explore, which in itself is also a very good thing, there is sometimes the tendency to break the seed before it has had the chance to grow. We search, we compare, we gather, we conclude. We get our pratam regarding a subject without a container, without proper introduction, readiness, setting, vibe…we get our pratams on a deep subject or sacred word while in the drive through of a fast food joint. We get “half-assed” impressions to satisfy some current curiosity and then the association bank is already getting filled by that.

In such a situation, which is basically how the world is everywhere right now, teachings cannot rely solely on the power of pratam.

Still, we should know it exists, and that pratam remains a source and it is actively used in Tantra, in rituals, in the pace and unfolding of teachings. It makes it even more important for us to make the effort to prepare you, so that whatever space is available for a first encounter can be honored and used to your full benefit. We work with what is present in you, as you are now.

So when one cannot rely on pratams….what do we do..?
This is where plasticity becomes important. Siddha Tantra practices bring forth this plasticity in a very direct and experiential way. We create conditions where the system can receive again, where new impressions can form in a more aligned and integrated manner. There is nothing that Tantra doesn’t have a path for. Some junk input, although some soot, is peanuts when encountering the practices and the patient process.

We know there are thousands of rituals, of initiations of settings that shine and glimmer like tasty carrot cake. But why are we not telling you to do those right now? There is a reason for it. This is also why everything is not given at once. There is a timing, a sequence and a preparation involved so that what you receive can actually land, take root and grow within you.

One can see it as a love tune, or love tuning.. When we are in contact with you, amongst many things, we are learning your current language, your associations, your ways of understanding, your inner “nationality.” Through this, a connection forms. Through this, practice becomes meaningful. And through this connection, you begin to move towards a more universal resonance and perspective, the underlying current that carries across languages, across cultures, across realms and practicalities.

From there, the specific language becomes a choice. You can then speak in many ways, to many people, in many contexts, because you are connected to the source from which language itself arises; the beej, the seed sounds, the primordial vibration, the resounding Oooom.

Speaking about language and the love expansion, the akaasha within. Before meaning is understood, resonance is felt and I have always loved sound and languages. The beauty of ancient words, the depth of their meanings, the way sound and resonance itself participates in expression, this has always been something very dear to me. I find it touches the heart when I see others becoming curious about these words, reaching across their own boundaries to listen, to speak, to learn. I know how potent the world of language is.

Even a pratam, a first impression of a word and how it is introduced, carries weight. One can say that how something is introduced matters, sometimes even more than what is introduced. It shapes how that word will live within you. It is a big responsibility for us.

It is very good that you are asking for the meaning of the words directly from us. When a word is received directly in this way, it carries a different pratam than when it is picked up casually or second-hand. We did mention we do have a short list of frequent Siddha Tantra words which we can continue to build upon.

At the same time, we expressed that some words need a bigger container. They need a certain learning venue, a certain experiential context, to be understood more fully. Their meaning is not contained in a simple translation. Their essence unfolds through practice, through contact, through time.

One important thing in relation to this to also understand is how translation works within the mind.

There is sometimes a tendency to take a word and immediately look for an “overall” translation, or renaming it internally into something familiar, something that makes it easy to categorize and move on. This gives a sense of understanding, yet often it remains incomplete. We have seen how an English description, when taken as the full meaning, can lead to misunderstandings about the very core of a practice. It creates assumptions, and those assumptions begin to influence further learning.

At the same time, there is no need for tension around memorizing names or getting everything perfect. There is space for learning, for becoming familiar, for growing into it.

We are also uncovering how much is needed to know? How much should be translated and how much should be learnt? We do feel it is important that you also speak and practice in your own languages, or languages that you have associations or some entry with. This is why we offer foundations in English, in a way that connects to your existing associations. It allows for the Siddha Tantra practice to become meaningful in your lived reality. In certain cases, we provide English descriptions that help you orient yourself within that realm.

And alongside this, we invite you to listen, to speak, to let the sounds themselves enter you. Sacred words are plentiful. Letting the body hear them, recite them, sing them, letting the vibration resound in the mouth, the airways, the brain, can be deeply nourishing. And we are not only talking about “vagus nerve activation”, although that is what we in the medical world “need” to refer to when we want to describe the benefit of Brahmari pranayama, humming, mantra and singing as beneficial practices for wellbeing.

Those of you who are here, who are journeying with us, for however long or short, already sense that something more is present. This allows us to spend our time in a more meaningful way, practicing, experiencing, refining, rather than explaining things always in frameworks like with the vagus nerve.

We love that you are open to practicing, open to trying, open to letting love languages resound in your hearts and beings.

And in this openness, something very beautiful can happen. New pratams can arise, fresh encounters, moments where something is received fully, deeply and begins to grow within you.

With love,

Swedish Bhairavi