Long revered in Hindu rituals, life-giving water has amazing properties, including memory, which scientists are only now discovering
BY VATSALA SPERLING, NEW YORK
MY HUSBAND AND I HAD BEEN TALKING about our son Mahar, who had just turned three, and preparing him for his mundan sanskar (first head shaving). He had never seen a barber before, but he calmly let her go snip-snip and watched the curls of his birth hair fall to the ground. Mahar was all attention watching our family priest, Punditji Kailashan, as he decorated the floor in geometric forms using colored fabric, grains and seeds representing the navagraha (nine planets) and positioned a purna kalasha (literally “full or complete vessel”) full of water in the center of this pattern. Using the fire ceremony and mantras, Punditji Kailashan invoked the Deities into the kalasha. After the Ganapati and navagraha homam were completed, Punditji continued chanting in Sanskrit, dipped a cluster of mango leaves into the water contained in the kalasha, and sprinkled it liberally on Mahar, all the guests. Then he went through the house, sprinkling water in every room.
“I have already showered. Why is Punditji giving me another shower?” Mahar asked while moving his hand gently over his shaven head. “Mahar, by chanting mantras, Punditji has invited and welcomed Brahma, Vishnu, Shiva, Indra, Varuna, Karttikeya, Ganesh, navagrahas, ashta-dikpalakas, and the Goddesses Lakshmi, Parvati and Saraswati. He has requested them to take a seat in the water contained in the kalasha and worshiped them with kumkum, akshat, chandan, turmeric, ghee lamp and incense. He has offered them flowers, fruits, grains and prasadam and prayed to them to be kind to our household and everyone connected with it, to bless you and all of us with healthy, happy and long life. Trusting that the Gods have heard his prayers, arrived into the water in the kalasha, accepted warm welcome and all the offerings, he has gone around sprinkling the God-infused water on you, our home, and on all our guests. You got a fresh shower with cool, God-infused droplets of water.”
Mahar was full of questions: “Ganesh is so big. How did He enter the kalasha? Why did Pundit call so many Gods? Why did he use water? Why not milk? Ganesh and I like milk.”
Water in Hinduism
One question stuck with me—why water? I thought about other liquids—milk, honey, yogurt, oil, ghee, tea, coffee, alcohol, blood. Though long known to humankind, none of these had won the race to the purna kalasha. But water is used in all Hindu ceremonies—not just for cleansing and preparations leading up to the puja, but also as a conduit for conveying the essence of our prayers and offerings to the Gods. When given to us as tirtha on our outstretched, cupped right palm, or sprinkled over us, it is considered to convey God’s blessings to us via each of those cool droplets.
This question deserves to a sound answer. Years ago, I had asked my parents about two sealed brass pitchers in our home shrine that were said to contain water from River Ganga. To answer me, Mother chanted the Ganga stotram composed by Adi Shankaracharya, narrated the story of the birth of Ganga as described in Vishnu Puranaand told me how Ganga’s water contains the powers of Brahma, Vishnu and Shiva. Therefore it has the ability to create, sustain and destroy life (so it can be created again). She said that, besides Ganga, other rivers are sacred, too.
After major floods, looking up at the Himalayas or any distant mountains, one can see dozens of gushing waterfalls. It is the ever-living depiction of the famous Puranic story of the waters falling furiously on Shiva’s head—it was Devi Ganga who softened the flow and then brought Ganga to earth to purify us from sin. This image is indelibly stamped on the Hindu collective consciousness. Water is similarly used in other religions, purifying worshipers for communicating with the Divine.
In Hinduism, water is all this and so much more. The ancient Saivite Agama scriptures understood the power of water to capture the shakti of inner worlds, in memory and substance, through intention, mantras and fire. It prescribes placing a purna kalasha with a coconut and mango leaves between the sacred fire and the Deity of the temple. With powerful chanting, and one-pointed intent, the priests invoke the shakti of the Deity from the inner worlds into the pot of water in this world. This charged water is then used for abhishekam, bathing. This could be for blessing a child and a household like ours, one or more of the temple Deities or, most famously, the towers atop a temple during mahakumbhabhishekam (a temple renewal ceremony held ever twelve years). No Vedic ceremony can be performed without water.
The mystical chant to water, called Mantra Pushpam, found in the Krishna Yajurveda’sTaittiriya Aranyaka, is recited in temples toward the end of every puja. It is also chanted in pious Hindu homes on special occasions and even daily. Mantra Pushpam alludes to a higher knowledge—that to understand water is to understand the cosmos, the marvels of nature and life itself.
All living cells in the body communicate with each other via the medium of water. Our rishis knew that water has memory and intelligence. Modern science is just catching up to the importance and properties of water and trying to figure out how it all works.
The Physics of Water
Water’s unique physical and chemical properties make it indispensable for sustaining life. And it is highly versatile. At Earth’s normal temperatures and pressures, water can exist as solid (ice), liquid (water) or gas (vapor). And now it has been discovered that a fourth, “liquid crystal” phase also exists. Water can change from solid to liquid to gas while retaining all its physical and chemical properties.
In its solid state, ice, enormous amounts of water are held in reserve at Earth’s two poles and in mountain ranges. Large inter-molecular spaces allow ice to float on water. This creates a protective blanket that preserves life in ice-covered lakes and water bodies. Below an adequately thick layer of ice, the heat of the earth keeps water liquid at 4°C (39°F), a temperature at which aquatic life forms can live. If ice were heavier than water and sank rather than floating, life forms would perish in the icy coldness.
Water is present on Earth in all four states simultaneously and has a built-in self-purification process. While changing from solid or liquid into vapor form, it becomes pure. Modern material sciences have methods for turning solids into liquids and gas (and vice versa), but only by expending enormous amounts of energy. For example, iron (solid) turns to liquid when heated to 2,759°F. Carbon dioxide gas can be solidified at -109.2°F. Such temperatures are not normally found on Earth’s crust. Water is the only known substance that can exist as solid, liquid and gas at temperatures and pressures normally found on Earth.
A stable proportion of saltwater to fresh water is maintained at 40:1. This proportion keeps the density-driven salt water in the ocean and does not allow it to seep into the fresh-water aquifers in the ground. Water also has the ability to dissolve into itself almost anything it comes in contact with. Carrying the solution to the ocean, it brings sustenance and nutrition to marine life.
The net water content of the Earth remains pretty much constant. Due to Earth’s gravity, water vapors do not escape into outer space and disappear from our atmosphere.
Origin of Water
“Nasadiya Sukta,” the Rig Veda’s Hymn of Creation, says that the cosmic soup was nothing but water. Where did Earth’s water come from? There are two views on this. Some believe water is released from Earth’s core by volcanic eruptions. Alternatively, Professor Luis Frank of University of Iowa proposes that water was delivered via asteroids.
Water is composed of two molecules of hydrogen bound to one molecule of oxygen. Earth’s atmosphere contains 20.946% oxygen but only 0.000055% hydrogen. Where did all the hydrogen for forming water come from? This question would support Prof. Frank’s asteroid delivery theory. Also, the ratio of deutrium (a stable isotope of hydrogen with approximately twice the mass) and normal hydrogen is the same in ocean water as in the asteroids. “Mantra Pushpam,” in the Yajur Veda, tells us that water on Earth originates from moon, fire, heat, air, sun, stars, clouds and the rainy season.
Scientists are using models to support their point of view. But models are problematical, as it is impossible to know the exact situation that existed as the Earth was forming. Therefore, the debate about water’s origin will continue.
Water Memory in Our Lives
Let us revisit the topic of Punditji’s chanting powerful, positive and deeply meaningful mantras in Sanskrit and how the water in the brass vessel is affected. Specific frequencies of vibrations created in the air by the sound energy are carried to the water molecules, which begin to vibrate at the same frequency and form clusters that contain the information brought to them by the sound energy. The clusters communicate to all water molecules in the vessel, and the entire water volume becomes charged.
This unique ability of water to receive, copy and transmit information exposed to it is used brilliantly in kumbhabhishekam and other elaborate temple rites. Such Agamic rituals rely on the power of water to accept, multiply and transmit information. In modern times these properties have been validated by the water crystal photographs of Masuru Emoto, by French scientist Jacques Benveniste (dilution of medicine with water) and Nobel Laureate Luc Montagnier (memory of water).
This subtle technology has enormous potential. Using our positive thoughts, intentions, words and feelings, we can expose water to these vibrations in a mindful manner, and drink this water as a spiritual medicine that we can make for ourselves every day. Creating a positive and mindful impact on ourselves doesn’t get easier than that.
Through water—in its solid, liquid crystal, liquid and gaseous states—we are connected with everyone and everything else in the universe. We breathe air that contains moisture. We breathe out, and the exhaled air contains moisture from our body. Exhaled air and water vapor mingle with the vapor content of air in the atmosphere that every other being breathes in. Air and water vapors cannot be confined within the boundaries of any country; they belong to the whole world. Through breathing in and out, we are connected to past, present and future, and to every known and unknown being. Since water cannot escape to outer space, no water is ever lost. It is a perpetually circulating, self-contained system. We drink the same water that touched the lips of our ancestors. When we hold a cup of water in our hands, we embrace eternity.
Through this cosmic web, water empowers us to create the change we want in ourselves and others. Using Emoto’s technique in our daily life, we can infuse water with the positivity we want to experience. By consuming this water we become the information signature, the vibration of the positive change we seek in the universal scheme of things. When enough of such positively oriented people aggregate (cluster, satsang), a positive outcome of more significant dimension is possible.
Water absorbs all frequencies it is exposed to—not just the positive ones. Therefore, it is imperative that we live our life according to the tenets of Sanatana Dharma, causing the least amount of negativity, disruption and damage to others and to the environment we live in, whether by our thoughts, words or actions.
Where does matter end and spirit begin? Considering that we are nothing but the signature of energy that we embody and emit as vibrations into endless space, we are both at the same time. In a particular frequency, a vibration of subatomic particles results in a certain type of matter, say for example gold. In another frequency, it results in a human being. This is what our scriptures and quantum physics have been telling us: vibrations, frequencies and intentions convey a message. Our ancient scriptures have taught us the power of water to absorb this message, retain it, memorize it, multiply it and transmit it to sanctify us and our environment. How sophisticated and deep is this knowledge! Amazingly, it is our collective heritage. All we have to do is tune in and enjoy the many blessings of water.
Water in Hindu Rites
ABOVE THE PRIEST CHANTS MANTRAS TO invoke the Deities from the homa/yagna fire on the left into the sacred pots (wrapped in red silk) on the right. This is a scene enacted in temples across the globe. When this water is used for abhishekam/bathing it is often accompanied by the Nadi Stuti mantra from the Rig Veda, (10.75), “I salute Ganga, Yamuna, Saraswati, Sutudri and along with them you, Parusni. Askini, Marudvrdha, Vitasta, Arjikya, listen O Susoma.” These are ancient rivers that find their source in the Himalayas (some of which dried up long ago).
Nadi Stuti is often accompanied by Ahnika Sutravai, 106, which celebrates seven rivers, “gange cha yamune chaiva godavari sarasvati narmade sindhu kaveri jale-smin sannidhim kuru,” “River Ganga and Yamuna, and also Godavari and Saraswati, Narmada, Sindhu and Kaveri; please be present in this water (and make it Holy).”
Ganges is the most sacred of all. She is Mother Ganga, Shakti descending from heaven to the earth, purifying our sins, sustaining life’s connection to the pure water of the Causal Ocean. Every evening during the sandhya hour (at dusk), this reverence for the ancient rivers is celebrated on the Ganges and elsewhere with joyful devotion by waving massive lamps above the edge of the river.
Wherever Hindus find themselves next to a body of water, they often do libations, tarpana (offering), by making a cup with their hands and pouring the water back into the river while reciting mantras to the celestial beings or ancestors. Water is used in the first rite of puja, achamanam, at the temple or at home, cleansing the hand and then sipping three times while reciting mantras. Every temple has a pond nearby where devotees wash hands and feet before entering.
Mantra Pushpam (excerpts)
Translation by P. R. Ramachander
He who understands the flowers of water,
He becomes the possessor of flowers,
children and cattle.
Moon is the flower of the water,
He who understands this fact,
He becomes the possessor of flowers,
children and cattle.
He who knows the source of water
Becomes established in himself,
Fire is the source of water,
He who knows this
Becomes established in himself,
Water is the source of fire.
He who knows this
Becomes established in himself.
He who knows the source of water
Becomes established in himself
Air is the source of water…
Water is the source of air…
Scorching sun is the source of water…
Moon is the source of water…
Water is the source of moon…
Stars are the source of water…
Water is the source of stars…
Clouds are the source of water…
Water is the source of clouds…
Rainy season is the source of water…
Water is the source of rainy season…
Apah Suktam, Rig Veda 10.9
chanted to invoke the blessings of water for
rejuvenation and purification of one’s soul
Waters! You are health giving,
Give us energy, so that
We may look on great delight.
Give us a portion of the sap, the most
Beneficent you have,
Like mothers longing with love.
So gladly do we go with you
To the home for which you make us live.
Waters! Give us progeny.
Gracious be Divine waters for
Our protection, be there for our drink,
And stream on us bliss and happiness.
Sovereigns over precious things,
And rulers over men, Waters!
We seek your healing balm.
Within waters—so Soma has
Told me—all healing balms,
And Agni, benign to all.
O waters, teem with medicine to keep
My body safe from harm,
So that I long may see the sun.
Whatever sin is found in me,
Whatever evil I have wrought,
If I have lied or falsely sworn,
Waters remove that far from me.
The waters I this day have sought,
And to their moisture have we come,
O Agni, rich in milk, come and
With your splendor cover me.
Researchers Learn H2O Is Far More Than We Know
IN 1988, FRENCH IMMUNOLOGIST JACQUES BENVENISTE PUBLISHED a study of his experiments showing how water could have an imprint of human antibodies it was exposed to without having a single molecule of the antibody remaining in the water. Further, he said, this imprint could be digitized. Later, attempts to replicate his work were highly obfuscated by Nature magazine investigators. Benveniste died in 2004, a broken man whose science was scorned. Since then, it has been shown that water molecules exhibit mysterious “social” behavior and show an intelligent, organized response to quantum phenomena. Science is only beginning to understand the nature of water. We share a few highlights with links you can follow for more.
Crystals of Water
Japanese alternative-medicine doctor Masaru Emoto began studying water in 1988. His work is startling and he was questioned for not following good scientific methods. In 2001 he published two volumes about his work. In his book, The Hidden Message of Water, Emoto writes: “When we are born, we are 90% water; as adults, we are 70% water. If we have clear understanding of water, we will better understand human body and even be able to unlock the mystery of why we were born and exist as we do.”
With these ideas in his mind since 1988, Masaru Emoto had a eureka moment. While reading a book, he saw the words, “No two snow crystals are exactly the same.” He began taking photographs of crystals frozen from water exposed to thoughts, words, music and feelings. He took water from different sources, for example, chlorinated tap water, spring water from underground rivers, water from glaciers and rivers at their origin, distilled water from pharmacy and so on. He exposed water to music by Beethoven, Mozart, and Chopin, violent heavy metal music, and also to words like thank you, love and gratitude.
The team observed that water exposed to sounds of uplifting music and words indicating positive emotions formed lovely and complete crystals. Water exposed to heavy metal music and negative words or foul emotions formed fragmented crystals. He concluded, based on physical and reproducible evidence, that water responds to and remembers the energy it is exposed to. With his photographs of water crystals and his relentless pursuit of differences between water exposed to different energies and vibrations, Emoto concluded that water has the ability to memorize, copy and transport information. See: www.masaru-emoto.net and youtu.be/ePY73ozlnI8
The Cellular Effects of Water
The famed Yopam chant from the Vedas extolling water says, “He who knows the source of water becomes established in himself.” This ancient verse is being played out in modern science. The website globalfreedommovement.org/understanding-science-water/ tells us, “The New Science of Water, pioneered by a number of contemporary researchers and as postulated by Dr. Gerald Pollack, Ph.D., shows that not only does water occur naturally in three different states (solid, liquid and vapor), but water also occurs in a fourth lattice-structured state resembling that of a liquid crystal. This form of structured water (H3O2) is energized, negatively charged, and is the vital element in all living organisms and natural ecosystems and is crucial for growth, well-being and longevity.”
In the introduction to his book, The Fourth Phase of Water, he explains, “This phase occurs mainly next to water-loving (hydrophilic) surfaces. It is surprisingly extensive, projecting out from the surface by up to millions of molecular layers. Of significance is the observation that this fourth phase is charged; and, the water just beyond is oppositely charged, creating a battery that can produce electrical current. Light charges this battery. Thus, water can receive and process energy drawn from the environment in much the same way as plants. Absorbed light energy can then be exploited for performing work, including electrical and mechanical work, as well as the work of proteins inside cells.”
Dr. Pollack says that although we are 70% water by weight, the water molecule is so small that numerically we are made of 99% water molecules. See Dr. Pollack’s TEDx Talk here: youtu.be/p9UC0chfXcg
Diving into the Deep End
Nobel laureate Luc Montagnier, who is credited with co-discovering the AIDS virus, later shocked the scientific community with his research of water memory. We quote from Wikipedia (en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Luc_Montagnier):
“In 2009, Montagnier published independently-made, controversial research studies, one of which was entitled ‘Electromagnetic Signals Are Produced by Aqueous Nanostructures Derived from Bacterial DNA Sequences.’ [meaning that the water had a record of DNA sequences, even though the bacteria is no longer present in the water.] It has been said that, if its conclusions are true, ‘these would be the most significant experiments performed in the past 90 years, demanding re-evaluation of the whole conceptual framework of modern chemistry.’ [Andy Coghlan, ‘Scorn over claim of teleported DNA,’ New Scientist 12 January 2011] The paper concludes that diluted DNA from pathogenic bacterial and viral species is able to emit specific radio waves and that ‘these radio waves [are] associated with nanostructures in the solution that might be able to recreate the pathogen.’
“In a December 24, 2010, Science magazine interview entitled ‘French Nobelist Escapes Intellectual Terror to Pursue Radical Ideas in China,’ he was questioned about his research and plans. In the interview he stated that Jacques Benveniste, whose controversial homeopathic work had been discredited, was ‘a modern Galileo.’ He also mentioned that his applications for funding had been turned down and that he was leaving France to set up shop in China so he could escape what he called the ‘intellectual terror’ which he claimed had prevented others from publishing their results. He says that China’s Jiaotong University is more open minded to his research. There he is chairman of the editorial board of a new journal which publishes his research. Watch ‘Water Memory,’ the video of his life work, at youtu.be/R8VyUsVOic0.”
Water Clusters
THE CELLS OF THE RETINA OF YOUR EYES as they read this page are emitting electromagnetic frequencies that go to the brain. The chlorophyll in green plants uses light to split water into separate elements, hydrogen and oxygen. All plant, mineral and animal matter emit characteristic frequencies at a quantum level. These frequencies can be picked up, retained and transmitted to nearby water molecules. Dr. Bill Gray explains this phenomenon in his book, Homeopathy, Science or Myth? He states that Newtonian physics has served well to explain gross physical behavior of water, but Einsteinian theories are needed to demonstrate the interaction between subatomic forces and field phenomena.
Dr. Gray takes us on an intricate adventure, surveying the work of a variety of scientists and universities. We learn that electromagnetic fields align water molecules in space. Their movements are not random. The hydrogen atom—two of which combine with one atom of oxygen to make a water molecule—has a positively charged proton and an orbiting, negatively charged, mass-less electron.
A water molecule can be viewed as a dipole magnet. When an electric charge is introduced into water, or when a “solute” is added (plant, mineral or animal matter) that is dilute and succussed (vigorously shaken), water molecules begin to realign themselves toward the positive and negative charge. Such clusters of water molecules (George Vithoulkas, 1994) are bound by forces sufficient to generate further clusters. These new clusters are copies of the original cluster formed by water molecules in response to exposure to the charge or to a solute; and they can carry complex and subtle information.
The clusters of water molecules form coherent regions and couple strongly with other clusters. These clusters have enough energy to reproduce themselves and are very stable. The coupling of coherent water clusters in a bottle of water affects all the water in the bottle. Not only that, the clusters are strong enough to “metastasize” and pass their information on to nearby random water, which begins to mimic the same cluster. This effect disappears if the water is beyond 120°f for over 30 minutes. This is the method used in preparation of homeopathic remedies. A plant, mineral or animal substance, such as bee venom, is diluted and shaken vigorously in water until its vibrational signature is retained in water clusters. This process is repeated many times, and the finished homeopathic remedies do not contain even one molecule of the original medicinal substance. Using sucrose as a base, small pills are then made from the water. Upon ingestion, the whole body, which is made of 70% water, gains the new information.
Still the defining guide to understanding the science of water memory, Dr. Gray’s book is available at Amazon Books.
Revutalized Water
In EUROPE THE FACT THE WATER HAS MEMORY is now well known. Homeopathy is a standard medical practice there. Now another technology puts water memory front and center. Johann Grander (1938-2012) developed a method to take the highly structured, mineralized water of the Stephanie Spring, which originates at a depth of 520 meters in the shafts of the Kupferplatte (Copperplate) mine in Kitzbuehel Alps, Austria-uniquely protected from environmental influences-and transmit its qualities to ordinary water. In his device a pipe carries incoming water through the spring water. There is no contact, but the outgoing water is said to be revitalized-to pick up the “memory” of the spring water that surround the pipe.
This has been called “pseudo-engineering” by scientists—but they have had to “shut their mouths,” because industries that use the device have solid measurements that the revitalized water is saving them money.
Metal smelting plants which require large amounts of water to purify and cool their systems find that Grander Revitalized Water prevents corrosion of the pipes in the plant. Large laundry operations find they need less detergent. Farmers claim to get better production and larger vegetables, and their family’s health is improved. It has been successfully used in physical therapy. Cities and hotels have begun to use it. Public swimming pools that use Grander Revitalized Water need less chlorine, and common skin ailments that children get from public pools are reduced.
Watch the short documentary “The Waterman of Tirol” here: youtu.be/iYqiDgh0UG0
