THE DIVINE ROSARY

The ancient seers were fond of expressing the truth in many ways. In addition to alphabetical and metrical models, the Vedic seers also employed a practical model involving a rosary-like necklace of beads to illustrate the supreme wisdom.

Even today, throughout India, rosaries consisting of 108 + 1 = 109 beads are used commonly to count the repetitions of a mantra or name of God during the practice of japa (repeated recitation). Such rosaries are called aksha-malas (bead necklaces)—but, as we have discovered, the word aksha also means “letter.” Therefore, the 108 beads of the rosary represent the 54 + 54 = 108 layers that constitute the measurable forms of the self both above and below. The immeasurable form of the self, which is simultaneously “smaller than the smallest, and bigger than the biggest,” is represented by a single 109th bead hung as a pendant. This is known as the guru bead.

The number 108 is arguably the most important in the Vedic tradition. Virtually every major conception of God was assigned a list of 108 names, because the Supreme Being was viewed as having 108 fundamental aspects. Moreover, there are 108 Upanishads, because the Upanishads are the texts that deal specifically with the reality of the self. Further, mantras are recited typically 108 times.

To enshrine the supreme wisdom in the daily lives of the people, the seers prescribed the use of rosaries consisting of 108 beads. In the practice of japa, the 108 repetitions are counted by grasping each bead in succession between the thumb (representing the universal self) and the forefinger (representing the individual self). A complete round of 108 repetitions represents a complete cycle of ascent or descent through all 108 layers. The 109th bead, hung as a pendant between the first and 108th bead, marks the beginning and end of each round. When the guru bead is reached, the aspirant is supposed to sit in silence and meditate upon the nameless and formless reality of the supreme self. The 109th bead therefore represents the immeasurable reality of the supreme self, which is simultaneously “smaller than the smallest, and bigger than the biggest” of the 108 layers. It is both the alpha and the omega, the beginning and the end, of each complete cycle through the 108 layers.

Although the alphabetical and metrical models suggest that the supreme wisdom involves a total of 54 + 1 = 55 layers, the fifty-four layers have dual representations in the sense that they exist both above and below the half measure. As such, they can also be counted as 54 + 54 = 108 layers. The immeasurable layer has no such dual representation. It represents the immeasurable Oneness that knows no duality, and corresponds to the fifty-fifth layer as well as the 109th in the two formulations. The divine rosary presents an alternate version of the supreme wisdom, expressed in terms of 108 +1 = 109 layers rather than 54 + 1 = 55 layers.