RUDRAKSHA

Rudraksha The Bead Divine

       The word Rudraksha is derived from the words Rudra + Aksha meaning tears of Rudra, i.e., Lord Shiva. Details about Rudrakshas and their effects are mentioned in various Hindu Puranas like Shiva Purana, Devi Purana, Padma Purana and Rudraksha Jabalopanishad. The following is the authentic information from Shiva Purana. The other Puranas say almost the same thing with a few minor variations.

       According to Shiva Purana, the demon king Tripurasura became all powerful and became the scourge of the Gods. To kill him Lord Shiva decided to create a powerful divine weapon, called Aghora-astra, and went into meditation. After a long time when he opened his gaze, his eyes smarted and a few tears fell on earth. As nothing divine is ever wasted, the tears became seeds and from the seeds the Rudraksha tree was born. The Rudrakshas we get are the seeds of the Rudraksha fruits.

       The three eyes of Lord Shiva represent the Sun, Moon and Fire. The Rudrakshas born of the tears of his solar eye are brown in colour and are of twelve types. Those born of his lunar eye are fair and of sixteen types. The Rudrakshas related to his Fiery eye are black in colour and are of ten types. This gives us a total of thirty eight types of Rudrakshas.

       The wearer of 108 Rudrakshas gets the results of performing Ashwamedha Yagya and his next 21 generations will get the good fortune of going to Shiva loka. The wearer of 1100 Rudrakshas becomes equal to Rudra. The one who wears 555 Rudrakshas as a crown becomes equal to lord Shiva. The one who wears 320 Rudrakshas in three rows across his body, like the sacred thread, becomes equal to lord Shiva.

AVAILABLE COLOURS IN RUDRAKSHA

    The four basic shades of Rudrakshas - fair, light brown, dark brown and black - are associated with the four Varnas of the Hindu society. There are two theories about this. According to one the Rudrakshas are rated as Brahmins, Kshatriyas , Vaishyas and Shudras. According to the other, people belonging to these casts should wear the respective colored Rudrakshas. If you ask HOWSTHAT, the answer is no comment ! Most of the commercially available Rudrakshas are coloured to give them a good look.

Smallest to the largest Rudrakshas available from Pandit S.P.Tata's collection

       Another variety of Rudraksha is "Patri" Rudraksha. It is very smooth and costs 3 to 4 times more. Very difficult to obtain now. Rudrakshas are known by their "Mukhis" or faces. The simple way to know is by counting the number of lines on a bead. The Puranas associate various Mukhis with various Gods and have described their spiritual attributes. Rudrakshas have several curative powers. For example a fully tested five mukhi Rudraksha mala controls anger, BP, Diabetics, tooth-ache, piles and gives peace of mind and spiritual inclinations.

       There are two other special type of Rudrakshas. One is Ganesha rudraksha which has a Ganesha's trunk type projection. Regarded as highly auspicious and protector from misfortunes.The other is Gauri-Shankar rudraksha in which two Rudrakshas are joined together, symbolically representing Shiva and Shakti.

Ganesha Rudraksha

 

Gauri-Shankara Rudraksha

TYPES OF RUDRAKSHA

    Different types of Rudrakshas are associated with different Gods and Goddesses according to our Scriptures. Wearing the specific Rudraksha while doing the Pooja or japa of the deity increases the results and also devotion/affinity for that deity. Every time it touches your chest you remember the deity and that’s what improves. The following are the different types of Rudrakshas and the deities associated with them.

1. mukhi: 
It is a divine gem. It is associated with lord Shiva and also with Sun God.
2. mukhi:
It is associated with Ardhanareeswar, i.e., Shiva and Shakti.
3. mukhi:
It is associated with God Agni.
4. mukhi:
Represents Brahma.
5. mukhi:
It is associated with Kalagni Rudra, i.e., lord Shiva.
6. mukhi:
Associated with lord Shanmukhanath or Kartikeya, the son of lord Shiva.
7. mukhi:
Associated with lord Ananga.
8. mukhi:
Associated with lord Ganesha, the son of lord Shiva.
9. mukhi:
Associated with lord Bhairav, the incarnation of lord Shiva.
10. mukhi:
Associated with lord Janardhan, i.e., lord Vishnu and represents the 10 incarnations.
11. mukhi:
Associated with Ekadasa Rudra, i.e., lord Shiva.
12. mukhi:
Associated with Aditya, i.e., Sun.
13. mukhi:
Associated with lord Kartikeya, the son of lord Shiva.
14. mukhi:
Associated with lord Shiva. It also represents lord Hanuman, the incarnation of lord Shiva. 

21. mukhi: 

Associated with lord Kubera, the God of unlimited eternal wealth.

RUDRAKSHA WITH PLANETS

Chandrakar 1mukhi: 

It is associated with Sun and very good for sun related remedies.
2 mukhi:

It is associated with Moon and is a remedy for Moon related problems.
3 mukhi:

It associated with Mars and is prescribed as a remedy for Mars related problems.
4 mukhi:

It is prescribed as a remedy for Mercury related problems.
5 mukhi:

It is a remedy for Jupiter related problems.
6 mukhi:

It is prescribed as a remedy for Venus related problems. It controls low BP.
7 mukhi:

It is prescribed as a remedy for Saturn related problems.
8 mukhi:

Prescribed as a remedy for Rahu related problems.
9 mukhi:

It is prescribed as a remedy for Ketu related problems and Venus related problems.
10 mukhi:

It is a good remedy for problems related with Mercury as it is the Rudraksha representing Lord Vishnu, the ruling deity of Mercury.
11 mukhi:

It represents the Ekadasa Rudras and is a good remedy for problems related with Mars and Jupiter.
12 mukhi: Mantra:

It is prescribed as a remedy for Sun related problems.
13 mukhi:

It is a good remedy for all problems related with Mars.
14 mukhi:

Mantra: It is prescribed as a remedy for Saturn related problems. A very effective one during the Sadesati.