The most ancient tales of Mt. Shasta mysticism come from the Native American folklore. They believed that the ‘Guardian Spirit’ lived on the slopes of Mt. Shasta. Mt. Shasta is today the centre of New Age Spiritualism Research.
Says Kenneth Grant, “Arunachala is the most sacred holy place of all…….. The Hindu sage Ramana Maharshi said that Arunachala was the top of the spiritual axis of the earth and that there must be another mountain corresponding to it at the opposite side of the globe. I am suggesting that the other mountain is Mt. Shasta. But whether that is true or not, there is no doubt in my mind that Mt. Shasta and Mt. Arunachala are two of the major spiritual power spots of planet Earth“.
Shasta and its other cognates, namely Shastri, Shasti, Srishti and Shastika are all valid words in Sanskrit. Lets look at the Sanskrit connection to the word Shasta. Shasta (शस्त) means beautiful, fortunate, auspicious, excellent, praiseworthy and commendable. Shasta also means ‘eulogy’. What one word could describe the beauty and mysticism of Mt. Shasta better.
However, Dr. R. B. Dixon, who is the authority above all others on Shasta tribe research, says that the name Shasta may not be all that ancient: “The earlier forms – such as Saste, Shaste, Sasty, Shasty, Chasty, Shasti, Shastika – have given place to the form Shasta…. The origin and meaning of this term are obscure.”
Referring to the the mid 1850s, Dr. R.B. Dixon says, “After persistent inquiry, the only information secured which throws any light on the matter is to the effect that about forty or fifty years ago there was an old man living in Shasta Valley whose personal name was Shastika (Stisti’ka). He is reported to have been a man of importance; and it is not impossible that the name Shasta came from this Indian (Native American), an old and well-known man…..” Could it then be that the mountain is named after this old, quite possibly learned and wise man. Maybe then he was referred to as Shastri (शास्त्री). In Sanskrit, Shastri means “the wise one or the learned one”.
Alfred Louis Kroeber (June 11, 1876 – October 5, 1960) an American anthropologist who received his Ph.D. from Columbia university researched the Shasta tribe extensively in the early 1900s. Lets look at the some details of the Shasta tribe that he records and use Sanskrit to analyze the names.
At the time of Kroeber’s research the head of the native American Shasta tribe was Sambho. This name is a cognate of the Sanskrit Shambo (शंभू) – a common male name in India. Shambo or Shambhu is also another name for Lord Shiva.
The Shasta tribe inhabited the area close to the Klamath River. The Klamath River was known to them by the name ‘Ish-Keesh’ (ईश-कीश). In Sanskrit ‘Ish-Keesh’ (ईश-कीश) translates as ‘Lord Sun’.
And then there are many more Sanskrit words which mean ‘white’ that are close in pronunciation. These include ‘shwetaka’ (श्वेतक) which means ‘white’, and, ‘Shukla’ (शुक्ल), which means ‘white’ and also ‘moon’.
Are derivatives of Sanskrit words alive in Native American languages? Native American names sound so familiar to the Hindi and Sanskrit speaking world, that the results of more research in this area may just surprise everyone.
Archaeologists are now beginning to study the many megalithic sites around Mt. Shasta and the higher valleys of the mountains in the region. At one point, a stone marking on one of the stones coincides exactly with the only spot on Winter solstice day, from where one can see the sun appear directly from behind the Mt. Shasta peak.
There is much left to uncover and explore at this unique site. For more on the megaliths of Mt. Shasta click here and here.