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Yaugik Interpretation of Pradosh
Here is the Yaugik interpretation of the Pradosh Vrat :--
According to the Shiv-Raaj Yog, concentration is directed towards the central point in the middle of the eyebrows, where the spiritual light can be perceived by the Yogee who turns the vision inwards. The Yogee passes through various stages, all of which are subdivisions of the four states of waking, dreaming, deep sleep, and the super-conscious state or Samaadhi. Each one of these states is further sub-divided into four states, for example, the waking-dreaming, waking-sleep, waking-fourth, and waking-waking. It will be seen that when the states are sub-divided in this way, the first three states comprise a total of twelve sub-states. The thirteenth is the forth-waking. There is correspondence between this and the thirteenth day of the lunar fortnight, either bright or dark.

Those who worship Mother Shakti have certain beliefs of their own, one of which is that the Goddess that is worshipped acquires one ray on each of the days of the bright fortnight, starting from the first day. Thus, on the full moon night, the Goddess would have received fifteen rays and would be ready for the final form of worship intended to benefit the devout worshipper in all ways. That is why the Navavarana worship is always conducted on the Full Moon day. The Moon is believed to have a direct influence on the mind. Incidentally, the word Mati means both the Moon and the mind.

According to the Shiv-Raaj Yog there are two channels through which the Praan flows - these are the Idaa and the Pingalaa Naadee, ruled respectively by the Moon and the Sun. Midway between these two there is a third one, known as Sushumnaa Naadee. The Yogee is asked to start the practice of Yog when the breath is passing through the lunar channel. This coincides with the flow of the breath through the left nostril. If, however, at the time of practice the flow is through the right nostril, the Yogee is asked to perform a special exercise by which to change the flow to the left.

When the Yogee concentrates on the point between the eyebrows, he transcends, stage by stage, the first twelve sub-states. The current of breath continues flowing through the lunar channel. The "Moon" is gaining more and more strength. When the thirteenth day is reached, the spiritual power of the Yogee has correspondingly increased, and he is in a condition to see the lights which appear in the nerve centre in between the eyebrows. In inverse proportion to the increase in concentration is the duration of the Yogee's breath. At the start of the practice, the breath will occupy a space of 16 fingers (inches approximately) . The moment the concentration has led him from the waking to the dream state, the length of the breath becomes only 12 fingers. In this way, when he reaches the thirteenth stage, only 4 fingers of breath would remain. As this breath now circulates only within the nostril, no breath is noticeable at the tip of the nose. From that moment the light is fixed permanently at the centre between the eyebrows, and the Yogee would have realized the object of his practice.

The Actual Process of Shiv-Raaj Yog

The Yogee sits in utter darkness, with the head and body erect, eyes open, and the gaze directed towards the center of the eyebrows. He utters the Mantra in his mind and, without restraining his breath, concentrates his gaze at the middle of the eyebrows, ever on the thought of the appearance of the lights. The deep concentration resulting thereby yields the following fruits, in order.

First, he overcomes the distractions of his mind. He reaches a stage wherein he seems to hear somebody talking somewhere in the distance. The words are not distinctly clear, but a sort of murmur is heard. Nevertheless, since his mind is elsewhere, he pays no attention to it. In fact, the sound comes from nowhere outside. It is his own mind that produces these sounds. The mind is actually functioning in its form as sound. Soon afterwards, this sound ceases, and he begins to see all sorts of visions, in the same manner as we see pictures in a movie. It appears (as if in a dream) that he is passing through hills of varying degrees of beauty, through seas and lakes of all sorts of colors and shapes, and through clouds of different hues. The clouds appear dark and thick at first and thin out gradually. These scenes are very pleasant to witness. But they are only thought-forms, an imagery created by the mind as it is functioning as a form. It is in this stage that the Yogee may hear musical notes as well—of the flute, violin, cymbals or any other instrument.
The Yogee then passes through an entirely different experience.

He suddenly awakens from a deep sleep. He does not remember when he got into the sleep state, but he is conscious of the sudden awakening. The truth is that he has not slept at all. His mind became a complete blank, he lost consciousness of the workings of the mind, which was nonetheless still active all the time. When he regained consciousness, he suddenly felt his awareness once again. He is now tempted to examine himself to ascertain if his posture is still erect and if his eyes are still fixed between his eyebrows. Finding no change in these he realizes that the temporary loss of consciousness was only a stage which he passed through in his Yog.

Next comes the stage when he feels as if something of the nature of a hot nail is pricking him at the centre of his eyebrows. In the earlier period of his practice there will only be this sensation, but as he advances, this is followed by the appearance of the lights. Even then there are various stages which have to be passed before the lights get their proper shape.
At first a yellow and a red light appear, the red being in the centre and two yellow flame-like lights on either side. After a few days, all these colors pass away and he begins to see a steady light of the shape and color of the Moon. As his practice advances, this light grows brighter and brighter, and the whole room in which the Yogee sits is gradually illumined, starting with the intensity of twilight until it becomes a flood of bright light. Yet in this state nothing can be seen in the room ; other things which are not there, begin to appear. They come and go with amazing rapidity, and reveal many things to him.
Thus far, we have dwelt upon only the first four stages of the entire series of sixteen stages which have to be passed through by the Shiv-Raaj Yogee before he finally attains union with Lord Shiv. The details of the experiences at each stage vary from man to man, as also from day to day. But, in the main, these are the stages :---

At first, the Yogee is aware of what transpires about him. He is in the waking part of the waking state. Then the pictures come in the dream part of his waking state. The feeling of overpowering sleep occurs in the deep sleep part of the waking state. The appearance of the light occurs in the fourth part of the waking stage.

The dream and the deep sleep states also have their four sub-divisions which have to be passed. When the Yogi comes to the thirteenth stage, he is in the waking part of the fourth state. The vision of Shiv in the form of Self-Consciousness now begins.

The form of the Lord appears before him as though coming out of the lights, which began at stage four of the sixteen stages. From this stage onwards the mind loses its sense of separate activity. It becomes deeply absorbed in the Self within.

On the thirteenth lunar day nature assists the worshipper in waking up from his mental deep sleep and in becoming aware of the fourth state. The Yogi who practices his Yog on the Pradosh day gets these experiences of Shiv quite readily.
Similar to the above is the significance of the worship of Ganesh on the fourth day of the lunar fortnight (Ganesh Chaturthee). This corresponds to the fourth part of the waking state, when the lights are first seen. On the eighth day or the Ashtamee, Mother Durgaa is adored. This corresponds to the fourth part of the dream state. Ekaadashee or the eleventh day corresponds to the deep sleep part of the deep sleep state. In this state there is complete unawareness of the mind. This is the most favorable moment for a direct contact with God, the indweller. If we fast and pray on this day, we can reduce our bodily activities to the minimum and can have the vision of the Lord who resides in our heart.

If we thus analyze the rationale of our holy days, we discover that our ancients took particular care to effect a synthesis of Yog — Karm, Gyaan and Bhakti.

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