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Significance of number 108 in Indian spirituality

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Ever wondered about the recurrence of 108 in Indian spirituality? Ever wondered why is a mantra suggested to be chanted 108 times? We have got some possible answers for these questions. 108 is a divine number in Indian spirituality. There are various reasons and interpretations for it. These are as follows:
  1. 108 is made up of 3 digits and each digit has a symbolic representation. 1 represents loneliness and oneness of soul. 0 represents the stage of shunya samadhi where the soul gets devoid of its karma. 8 represents 8gunas of a Soul that get revealed after liberation which is possible only after the removal of Karmic body. This Karmic body is made up of 8 Karmas covering this 8 gunas of a Soul.
    Thus 1,0 and 8 collectively as 108 represent the path of liberation.
  2. We approximately breathe around 10800 times in a day. 108 thus turns out to be it’s significant percentage emphasizing the importance of breathe control in any sadhna.
  3. Each pad in Navkar Mantra has various gunas. Arihants have 12 gunas, Siddhas have 8 Gunas, Aacharyas have 36 gunas, Upadhyay have 25 gunas, Sadhus have 27 gunas. If we add all these gunas the sum turns out to be 108. Thus attributes of the most worshipable souls is aggregate as 108.
  4. If you divide the distance between Sun and Earth with the diameter of Sun the answer will be approximately 108. Similarly if you divide the distance between Moon and Earth with the diameter of Moon it will turn out to be 108. This is the reason why Sun and Moon inspite of the difference between their size look similar to us in terms of their size.
  5. There are 108 swapna doshas. Swapna or dream is an activity related with the subconscious brain and it is this brain that can design your destiny and allow you to have atmadarshan. By chanting any mantra 108 times you are taking away your subconscious brain from laziness and those swapnadoshas.
  6. There are 108 ways of staining your soul with Karma Ashrava. Thus by acknowledging a guru as shri 108/1008 you are respecting him by seeing his efforts towards liberation and how he/she is not accumulating these Karm ashravas around their soul.
  7. The maximum number of Souls that can attain Moksh in a samay is 108.\
  8. The maximum number of Souls in Nigod (microbial and abiotic life form) that become participative in this Universe by entering the cycle of birth and death in one samay is 108.
  9. 27 nakshatra influence 4 directions with their circular presence in the night sky. If you multiply 27 by 4 the magnitude of this energy can be understood by the pattern of 108.
  10. There are 9 planets that influence our Karmic body and incidents of our life are indeed results of our previous Karma. We as humans are categorised in 12 zodiac signs. The movement of these planets in our Karm Marg can be understood by the number 108. As when you multiply 12 by 9 the answer comes as 108.
  11. Chakra is an old Sanskrit word denoting something that is in circular motion. In yogic connotations it refers to the energy centers of the body.
There are 112 chakras out of which 4 are considered to be in our astral body and 108 in our physical body. Thus there are 108 beads in the rosary beads which signify these energy centres that are within our reach and allow us to transcend the physicality. Instead of working on all the chakras the ancient Yogis found that energy can be aroused just by working on 7 major chakras.

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