The Tilaka of Sharada

Sharada Tilaka

...[The text details astrological calculations for mantras, involving the arrangement of letters into grids based on the practitioner's name and zodiac sign.] (123-127)

One should write the letters in a four-sided square, divided into four compartments. Starting with the first letter of one's own name, beginning from the vowel 'a' and ending with 'ca'. (128)

One should conceive of the mantras as "perfected" siddha and so on. One should perform the rituals starting from the "perfected." The "perfected" mantra yields success through recitation; the "attainable" sadhya through fire offerings, and so on. (129)

A "very perfected" mantra yields success merely by its acquisition; the "hostile" ari mantra consumes the practitioner. "Perfected" letters are said to be like relatives, "attainable" letters are like servants. (130)

"Very perfected" letters are known to be nourishers, while "hostile" ones are considered killers. Rituals performed while relying on the "illuminated" station yield fruit. Breaking the square earth, write a set of nine compartments. (131)

One should write the seven letters sequentially in the first compartment. In the center compartment, write the vowels in pairs. (132)

Where the first letter of the name is situated, starting from the east, one should know that to be the "face" of the Kurma-chakra Tortoise-wheel, a diagram used for checking ritual compatibility. The hands are situated on both sides. (133)

The abdomen is in the compartment, and both feet are in the remaining space; the rest is called the tail. By this order, one should divide the "human-tree" a metaphorical representation of the body of the mantra into parts. (134)

If the mantra is situated in the face, the practitioner attains success. If it is in the hands, life is short. If it is in the middle, it remains indifferent. If it is in the feet, the practitioner suffers. (135)