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Fundamental Concepts of

My Salutations to all Devas--Pithrus

OM DEDICATED TO LORD , , NACHIKETAS, SAVITRI AND NANDI, THE ETERNAL ATTENDANT OF LORD SIVA, WHO HAVE ALL UNRAVELLED THE MYSTERIES OF THE LIFE BEYOND DEATH

"Hinduism is not just a faith. It is the union of reason and intuition that cannot be defined but is only to be experienced” - Dr. (1888-1975)

ॐ अञानतिमिरा्ध्य ञाना्जनशलाकया । चषुु्िीमलिं यॳन ि्िॴ रीगरवॳु निः ॥ om ajnana-timirandasya jnananjnana salakaya caksur unmilitam yena tasmai sri gurave namah “I offer my most humble obeisance to my spiritual master who has opened my eyes which were blinded by ignorance with the light of knowledge.:

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INTRODUCTION The Information on this article “Fundamental Concepts of Hinduism” furnished here in is compiled from various mail friends, internet sites and elders who have knowledge on this subject. The documents referred in the net sites are quoted as told but not gone through by me for their authencity. Every effort has been taken not to leave essential points but to make the reading informative and interesting. Since the subject matter is lengthy and it could not be confined in one or two postings - it may appear lengthy. Hindu says, “To lead a peaceful life, one must follow the Sastras which are the rules of the almighty that cannot be changed by passage of time(i.e.kruta,thretha,dwapara& ).The almighty says, “Shruthi smrithi mamaivaagya yaasthaam ullangya varthathe | Aagya chhedi mamadhrrohi math bhaktopi na vaishnavahah||” Which means, and sastras are my commands and one who surpasses these rules have breaken my laws and cannot be considered as my bhakta or a vaishnava. So everybody who seek the grace of lord must follow the smrithis(dharma sastras) in order to get rid of sins and to attain purity of mind. It is said that so many sastras which binds every humanbeing in this world is meant for purifying the mind(chitta ).Aadi shankara in his -choodamani says, “ CHITTA SUDDHAYE NA TU VASTHU UPALABDAYE| VASHTHU SIDDHIRVICHARAENA NA KINCHITH KARMAKOTIBIHI:||” Which means, rituals are meant only to purify the mind and not attain almighty but he can be known only through (introspection) ¬ by doing a crore of rituals. Even if a person attains the knowledge of the almighty’s by his grace he should perform karma(rituals) for the sake of sangharah:(welfare of the world). Lord in shri bhagavath geeta says, “yath yath aacharathi shrestahah thath thataeva etharo janahah:| Saha yath pramanam kuruthae lokahah thath anuvarthathe||” i.e.the general public is used to follow whatever the elite(jnani= self-realised) does.for e.g. if he doesn’t perform karma ,others stop doing karma. So,in order to safeguard the world Lord Krishna orders the elite to be an ideal for other people by doing karma. It is said in Mahabhashyam that “Brahmanaena nishkarano dharmahahshadango vedhadhyeyo gayyashcha” – Patanjala Mahabashyam Which means without asking reasons &questioning a must study the vedas with its six angas(parts) and follow the dharma sastras. We should follow the sastras without asking reasons. Should do the like and poojas as said by the .

With all Great Respect to my Guruji Raojie – Humble disciple A V Ramakrishnan

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Overview of Hindu Theology Almost all believe that the real self () is distinct from the temporary body made of matter (Prakriti). The eternal soul identifies with matter and is entrapped by (illusion). Impelled by lust, greed, anger, etc., he undergoes samsara (the cycle of repeated birth and death). Each soul creates its unique destiny according to the law of karma (the universal law of action and reaction). Under the influence of eternal time and the three Gunas (material qualities) he moves throughout the creation, sometimes going to higher planets, sometimes moving in human society, and at other times entering the lower species. The goal of most Hindus is , liberation from this perpetual cycle, through re-identification with the eternal (Supreme). Hinduism accepts different paths towards this common goal (union with ). Nonetheless, it stresses strict adherence to universal principles through the practice of one's dharma (ordained duty) as revealed through authorised holy books and usually received through the guru (spiritual mentor). Men in their normal life are caught up in the unreal, feel dull and clouded, threatened by death and torn with anxiety and sorrow. The popular Upanishadic prayer

ॐ असि८ िा स्गिय । Om Asato Maa Sad-Gamaya | ििस८ िा ्य८तिगगिय । Tamaso Maa Jyotir-Gamaya | ि्य८िागृ अििंृ गिय । Mrtyor-Maa Amrtam Gamaya | ॐ शान्िः शान्िः शान्िः ॥ Om Shaantihi Shaantihi Shaantihi || [बहदार्यकृ उपतनषद] [] Meaning: 1: Om, (O Lord) Keep me not in the Unreality (of the bondage of the Phenomenal World), but lead me towards the Reality (of the Eternal Self), 2: (O Lord) Keep me not in the Darkness (of Ignorance), but lead me towards the Light (of Spiritual Knowledge), 3: (O Lord) Keep me not in the (Fear of) Death (due to the bondage of the Mortal World), but lead me towards the Immortality (gained by the Knowledge of the Immortal Self beyond Death), 4: Om, (May there be) , Peace, Peace (at the three levels - Adidaivika, Adibhautika and Adhyatmika). --seeks divine help for its comforting treatment of the subject. talk all the time about how to get free, to become deathless to get rid of impurities, to overcome confusion. In God's creation, human body represents his Microcosm of creation, while the his Macrocosm. They both obey the same laws of nature. There is orderliness in their systematic creation and dissolution. Human body is called as Pindaanda and the Universe Brahmaanda emerging out of (). Human body gets its gross body by a process called Pancheekarana, when the subtle elements called turn out gross elements called five elements (Pancha Bhoothas). These five elements are worshipped in the form of Lingas in the five famous of South being the basic creations. These are: Element - Special Space or Sky (expansion) (Aakaash) : Sri Nataraja Temple, Chidambaram [FOR PRIVATE CIRCULATION] 3

Air (movement) (Vaayu) : Sri Kalahasthi Temple Fire () ( / Tejas) : Thiruvannamalai Temple Water (liquidity) (Jala / Aapah) : Sri Jambukeswarar Temple, Thiruvanaikkaval Earth (solidity) –( / Bhoomi) : Sri Ekambareswarar Temple, Kancheepuram Physical body of the human being constitutes all these five elements. All objects in nature also arise by the mixture of the same gross elements. When Hiranyagarbha (life and mind of Macrocosm) dies, it merges into God and becomes one with him. At the death or liberation of Hiranyagarbha, the world undergoes dissolution, which is called Praakritha . It is also possible for the subtle bodies after casting off the physical body constituting five gross elements to merge with God if it is mature enough. But caught up in the whirlpool of Samsaara (earthly desires), it takes several births before it could make final correction and merge with God. The physical body is just an outer gross shell for the soul (subtle and casual bodies) and at the time of death, physical body is cast off which process we call "death". In fact, there is nothing to mourn about as the soul has started its upward journey to readjust itself and return to earth by . It may even cast off its subtle body based on its experience, cast off its casual body and merge with God culminating its long journey or stay for long there with its casual body enjoying bliss delaying merger with the Supreme. Nobody mourns the death of a true Sanyasi (liberated soul) for everybody knows that it is his final journey before merging with the Supreme. It is therefore a common practice to celebrate the death anniversary of a saint and not his birthday as it is the most sacred day of his liberation. When Hiranyagarbha (life and mind of Macrocosm) dies, it merges into God. (Information Assembled From Various Sources) Before discussing the subject “Sraadha”, we should understand the basic things of Religion. “Religion without science is blind and science without religion is lame” – Albert Einstein. Religion is a fundamental set of beliefs and practices generally agreed upon by a group of people. These set of beliefs concern the cause, nature, and purpose of the universe, and involve devotional and ritual observances. They also often contain a moral code governing the conduct of human affairs. For centuries, humankind has sought to understand and explain the “meaning of life.” Many philosophers believe this contemplation and the desire to understand our place in the universe are what differentiate humankind from other species. Religion, in one form or another, has been found in all human societies since human societies first appeared. Archaeological digs have revealed ancient ritual objects, ceremonial burial sites, and other religious artifacts. Much social conflict and even wars have resulted from religious disputes Some people may ask, “Aren’t all religions the same?” No. Every religion is different. Many preachers, mainly Hindu preachers who have vested interest of building their empires propagate the idea that all religions are the same. So any religions will give the same result. But this is not the fact. Hindus respect other religions. It is not difficult for them to see various levels of spiritual truth in other spiritual paths. However, all religions take their practitioners to different levels of philosophical understanding, spiritual knowledge, levels of consciousness, and different abilities to perceive spiritual Truth. So no religions are the same. This is, why members of some religions are more congenial and respectful toward members of other religions. While some members of particular [FOR PRIVATE CIRCULATION] 4

religions are not respectful toward those that are different, are quick to call them infidels and other derogatory names, and say that they are going to hell, or tell them that they need to convert in order to be “saved”. This is certainly due to a different perspective and a lack of understanding that we all worship the same Supreme Being, Srushti and Pralaya The cosmos follows one cycle within a framework of cycles. It may have been created and reach an end, but it represents only one turn in the perpetual Kalachakra, "wheel of time", which revolves infinitely through successive cycles of manifestation and dissolution. Within this cycle of manifestation and dissolution of the universe, the atman (the Self) also undergoes its own version of cycle called Samsaara, the cycle of rebirth in which individual Self are repeatedly reincarnated. For the Srushti (creations) of anything three causes are required to be fulfilled: Material cause, instrumental cause and supporting cause. In Creation, Brahman is all of these three causes. He evolves Himself into Moolaprakrithi or Primordial matter. There are two types of Srushti (creations), Samashti Srushti, aggregate creation and Vyashti Srushti, individual creation — the creation of Mahath out of Prakriti, of Ahankara and the 10 indriyas of knowledge and karma, of Panchabhoothas and subtle elements. All these are called aggregate creation. This is how the world or the universe was created. The further creation of human beings, animals, trees and plants is called individual creation. Samashti Srushti and Vyashti Srushti: Samashti Srushti has been defined by Dr.S.M.S.Chari as “aggregate evolution of the Universe” and Vyashti Srushti as “creation of the Universe of Space and matter with all its diversity” and its infinitude. The First stage is Vyashti Srushti and it is followed by the Samashti Srushti. Brahman/Isvaran creates the Universe out of its own Sankalpam (will, resolve, volition). The evolution of Universe from five gross/physical elements (Pancha Bhoothams)-- Aakasam, Vaayu , Tejas , Aapah and Prithvi -- is first through Vyashti ; next follows Samashti Srushti, thru the mechanism of Pancheekaranam (Quintiplication of the Pancha Bhoothas in different proportions) .These doctrines stay as deep and profound topics of Vedhantha, and Agamas with some variations. We will stick to the Upanishadic interpretations. Many Upanishads (Chhadndogya, Taiitthreya, Svetasvathara, Brahadarayaka, Mandraka and Subala) deal with the topic of Creation (Srushti/Sargam). They deal with the origin and evolution of the Universe .They deal with the existence of the Universe before creation. They agree with one voice that this universe existed in Brahman prior to its creation .The common passage “ Agra Aseed, Ekameva, AdvidhIyam" is seen in different word orders in these Upanishads. They thus affirm that this universe prior to its Srushti existed in an Unmanifest form in Brahman and later became differentiated with limitless names and forms (Anantha Koti Naama Roopa Prapancham). Following Taiitthreya Upanishad passage sums up the relations between Isvaran(Brahman) and Universe (Jagath) this way: "Brahman created all this, whatever is here. Having created it, it entered into it. Having entered it, it became both sentient and the nonsentient, the defined and the undefined, the founded and the unfounded, the non-inert and the inert, the true and the untrue. Brahman became all this". The full translation of the above "Kaaranathvaathmathvadhi Vivaranam" section of Taiitthreya Upanishad by Dr. N .S. Anantharanga Acchar Swamy in his most recent monograph on the Upanishads takes this form: [FOR PRIVATE CIRCULATION] 5

“He (the Anandamaya) willed (Soakamayatha). May I become many! May I be born (Bhausym prajayeyethi) ! He made a deliberation (sa tapoathapyatha).He, having thus deliberated, created all this, all that exists. Having created that, Brahman entered into that itself. Having entered into it, That became Conscinet and the Inconscient; the defined and the undefined; the host of Sentients (that forms of the ground of Nonsentients) and the Nonsentients (that are dependent); the Noninert and the Inert; the true and the untrue. The true Brahman became all this that exists. Therefore, they say that this (Universe) is that true Brahman. There occurs a verse pertaining to this - "All this was in the beginning Unmanifested Brahman (without articulation of names and forms). From that the manifested came into existence. That Brahman created itself by itself. So, Brahman is called the one of good deed (Tasmaath Tat Sathkruthamuchyathaithi)". The causal relationship between Brahman and the created Universe has been explored by the Upanishads and commented upon by the three commentators: Raamanuja , Aadhi Sankara and Maadhvachrya. There are distinct differences between Acharya Raamanuja's Siddhanthams in the interpretation of Brahma Soothrams on this topic and those of the two other Darsana Sthapakas. In our sampradhayam, Brahman as Saririn (individual soul) is “organically related and eternally inseparable " from the Universe of sentients (Chith) and insentients (Achith) as the body (SarIera ) of Brahman. The three causes behind "the product" of Universe created by Brahman have been examined by the various Upanishads. These three causes are Upadhana, Nimittha and Sahakari Kaaranams. Upadhana Kaaranam relates to the material out of which the Universe is produced. Nimittha Kaaranam deals with the instrumental cause that produced the Universe. And Sahakari Kaaranam deals with the accessories needed to create this Universe. Brahman is the Kaaranam and Universe is the Kaarya. Brahman in Visishtadhvaitha Vedhantha is the Upadhana (material) and Nimittha Kaaranam (instrumental cause) and does not need any Sahakaris except its(Brahman's) will/resolve .Brahman is thus recognized as the aadhara for the sentients and the insentients . Brahma Soothram (II.1.27) explains the mystery (vichithra sakthi) of the evolution of Brahman into the Universe (Parinaama) without affecting its Swarupa. The Brahma Puraana declares: "To continue with Creation, Brahma gave form to a Man and a Woman. The man was Swayambhu and the Woman was named Shatrupa. Humans are descended from Manu, that is the reason they are known as Manavs." After creating the Devas, , Pitras etc., Lord Brahma was completely exhausted and decided to take a break. He sat ruminating about the direction his work had taken till now, when suddenly, from his body, emerged a creature who looked a lot like him. Indeed MANU is the root-word for both the 'Manushya' and the English 'Man' that derives origin from the Germanic Mannus which stems from the same root as Manu. This was the First Man, Swayambhu Manu (Born-on-his-Own) who was born with the ‘Kaya’ of his father Brahma (‘Ka’-means Brahma, ‘ya’- means form). Interestingly, the same incident is noted in Bible as - 'Man was created in the Image of His Maker!' KARMA AND REBIRTH - PURANA Garuḍa Purṇa says that there are 8,400,000 types of species in existence broadly divided into four categories. They are Aṇḍaja (born out of eggs like snakes, birds, fish, etc), Svedaja (born of sweat like insects), Udbhijja (born out of seeds – plant kingdom) and Jaryuja (Viviparous). Out of these [FOR PRIVATE CIRCULATION] 6

four categories, Aṇḍaja is the lowest and Jaryuja is the highest. It is extremely difficult for the lower categories to attain a human form, considered to be as the highest. In Garuda Paraná further says, among men, the one who deliberates on Vedic topics is the best. , demigods, saints, sages and ancestors are always present in those places where virtues and dharma are upheld. Man is generally avaricious and longs for more and more. A man wants to become a demigod, a demigod wants to become a god and a god wants to become the Brahman. Their desires are endless. Men with avaricious desires fall into the hell and those without any desire comfortably reach the heaven. During childhood, one is attached to his parents; during adulthood, he is obsessed with his spouse and in his old age, he becomes obsessed with his grandchildren. Unfortunately, none is attached the Brahman, the Self. It is easier to get a person released from rope chains but a person with ‘bondage’ that is bound by attachment to his spouse, children and grandchildren can never be freed. Death is unavoidable. Man dies to be born again. He is born alone and dies alone. None accompanies him both in birth and in death. He alone creates his karmas and he alone uses his karmas. If he has created good karmas, he enjoys his life and if he has accrued bad karmas, he suffers in life. His karmas transmigrate along with his soul. Once the physical body is burnt or buried, his association with the material world is over. The status of a man purely depends upon his previous deeds (karmas). One has to spend his wealth on virtuous deeds and actions. Any rite without complete faith does not yield results at all, either in this birth or in future births. A rite performed without faith does not accrue good karmas at all nor is he benefited in the present birth. It is said that a man cannot attain heaven without begetting a son. Funeral rites performed by his son is more beneficial than the rites performed by other than his own son. If funeral rites are not performed properly, the departed soul roams about in the atmosphere for some time and will be born again as worms and insects. It is difficult to get a human form, but it is very easy for a man to be born as insects and animals due to his bad karmas. It must be remembered that liberation is possible only through the human form. Therefore, as long as his health permits, one should perform virtuous acts and provide gifts to the needy, to attain a human form again in order to get liberation. The basic question: “WHO IS GOD?” In Sanskrit the word for God is ‘’. ‘Bhag’ implies six attributesŚ Absolute Fame, Absolute Dharma, Absolute Wealth, Absolute Knowledge, Absolute Beauty and Absolute Detachment. One possessing these attributes is “Bhagavan”, the Supreme Person or God. In simple words, one personified as perfect – at par excellence is God. One who is Virtue-Incarnate is God. The One who has lived to the infinite limits of right conduct is God. An example of such a person in Hindu history is Maryada Purshottama like Shree or Sri Krishna. A person who had shown such qualities of par-excellence and can guide the rest of society to follow the right conduct in living is known as the Incarnation of God, or an Avatara, God who descends into this material realm. Or as the - also say, “God, the Absolute Truth, is He from whom all else manifests” Unlike other religions in the World, the Hindu religion does not claim any one Prophet, it does not worship any one God, and it does not believe in only one philosophic concept, it does not follow only one act of religious rites or performances. In fact, it does not satisfy the traditional features of a religion or creed. Hindu Religion is a way of life and nothing more"

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Prominent themes in Hindu beliefs include (but are not restricted to) Dharma (ethics/duties), Samsra (the continuing cycle of birth, life, death and rebirth), Karma (action, intent and consequences), Moksha (liberation from Samsra or liberation in this life), and the various (paths or practices). Classical Hindu thought accepts four proper goals or aims of human life: Dharma, , and Moksha. These are known as the Puruhrthas. What is Dharma? Hinduism is a traditional way of life. Many practitioners refer to Hinduism as Santana Dharma, "The Eternal Law" or the "Eternal Way". The Sanskrit word ‘Dharma’ has a much deeper meaning than religion and is not its equivalent. All aspects of a Hindu life, namely acquiring Wealth (Artha), fulfillment of desires (Kama), and attaining Liberation (Moksha) are part of Dharma which encapsulates the "Right Way of Living" and eternal harmonious principles in their fulfillment. Dharma is considered the foremost goal of a human being in Hinduism. The concept Dharma includes behaviors that are considered to be in accord with “tam”, (ऋिं) the order that makes life and universe possible, and includes duties, rights, laws, conduct, virtues and "right way of living". Hindu dharma includes the religious duties, moral rights and duties of each individual, as well as behaviors that enable social order, right conduct, and those that are virtuous Dharma,

In the Vedic religion, tam (ऋिं) "that which is properly/excellently joined; order, rule; truth" is the principle of natural order which regulates and coordinates the operation of the universe and everything within it. In the hymns of the Vedas, ta is described as that which is ultimately responsible for the proper functioning of the natural, moral and sacrificial orders. Conceptually, it is closely allied to the injunctions and ordinances thought to uphold it, collectively referred to as Dharma, and the action of the individual in relation to those ordinances, referred to as Karma – two terms which eventually eclipsed ta in importance as signifying natural, religious and moral order in later Hinduism Santana Dharma refers to the "eternal" duties all Hindus have to follow, regardless of class, caste, or sect, such as honesty, refraining from injuring living beings, purity, goodwill, mercy, patience, forbearance, self-restraint, generosity, and asceticism. This is contrasted with Swadharma, one's "own duty", the duties to be followed by members of a specific caste and stage of life. Defining Dharma in , the great epic which is acclaimed as the Manava Karthavya Sastra (Code of Duties of Human beings) contains a discussion of this topic. On being asked by Yuddhishtra to explain the meaning and scope of DHARMA, who had mastered the knowledge of Dharma replied thus:

िाृश८ अयं अनर्ण८ु यर धिग: सदु लगबु : । द्कंु : रमलस््याि ुं ि्कॳनार ्स्व्यथि । रभविगय भिानांू धिगरवचनं कृ िं । या्यि रभवस्य्िु : स धिग इति तनच्हय: ॥ िहाभारि-शान्ि पवग : १०९ - ९-११ Tadrisho ayam anuprashno dharmaha sudurlabaha Dushkamha pralisankhyatum tatkenatra vysvasyathi Prabhavarthaya bhutanam dharmapravachanam kritam Yasyat prabhavasamyuktaha sa dharma iti nischayaha. Mahabharath-Shanthi Parva - 109-9-11

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Meaning: It is most difficult to define Dharma. Dharma has been explained to be that which helps the upliftment of living beings. Therefore, that which ensures the welfare of living beings is surely Dharma. The learned rishis have declared that which sustains is Dharma Parva — Ch. 69 Verse 58 eulogies Dharma in the following words:

धारणाि धिग मि्यहु धिो धरयिॳ रज: । यि ् ्या् धरनसंय्िंु स धिग इति तनच्हय: ॥ करना पवग ६९ – ५८ Dharanat dharma mityahu dharmo dhara-yate prajaha Yat syad dharanasamyuktam sa dharma iti nischayaha. – 69.58 Meaning: Dharma sustains the society, Dharma maintains the social order, Dharma ensures well being and progress of Humanity. Dharma is surely that which fulfils these objectives , the author of the celebrated Purvamimamsa and Uthara Mimamsa, explains 'Dharma' thus:

सहह तनरॳयसॳन प्शंसंयु नन्ितिु रतिजनीिॳ: । िदमभधीयिॳ च८दनल्ण८ अररह८ धिग: ॥ जॴमिनी -२ Sahi nisreyasena pumshamsamyunaktiti pra-tijaneemahe tadabhidhiyate chodanalakshno ariho dharmaha. - JAIMINII-2 Meaning: Dharma is that which is indicated by the Vedas as conducive to the highest good. Therefore, Dharma embraces every type of righteous conduct covering every aspect of life essential for the sustenance and welfare of the individual and society and includes those rules which guide and enable those who believe in God and heaven to attain Moksha (eternal bliss). Karma Karma is a concept in Hinduism which explains causality through a system where beneficial effects are derived from past beneficial actions and harmful effects from past harmful actions, creating a system of actions and reactions throughout a soul's reincarnated lives forming a cycle of rebirth. The law of karma is a simple and straightforward concept according to which beings, not just men, are rewarded or punished according to their own actions and intentions. Thus good actions and intentions reap good rewards and bad actions and intentions result in suffering and pain. With some minor variations this concept is common to Hinduism, , and . The law of Karma underpins the process of transmigration of the soul. Karma literally means "action," but more often refers to the accumulated reactions to activities. Thus we talk of "good karma" and "bad karma," which are stored reactions that gradually unfold to determine our unique destiny. In Vedic rituals on a daily basis, most Hindus observe at home. However, observations of these rituals are performing greatly among regions, villages etc. Rituals on occasions like Birth of a child, Annaprasham, Upanayanam Marriage and Death etc. involve what are often elaborate sets of religious customs as Karma. The self-determination and accountability of the individual soul rests on its capacity for free choice. This is exercised only in the human form. Whilst in lower species, the atman takes no moral decisions but is instead bound by instinct. Therefore, although all species of life are subject to the

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reactions of past activities, such karma is generated only while in the human form. Human life alone is a life of responsibility. According to Hindu scriptures, the law of karma is universal. Even gods are subject to it. Some Puranas declare that the trinity of gods, Brahma, and Siva, has attained their current positions of divine responsibilities because of their meritorious actions in the previous cycles of creation. Lord Krishna himself said to have died because of the unintentional action of a hunter, who stuck an arrow in his toe, mistaking it to be a rabbit, as a consequences of his own act of killing from behind a tree in a deceptive manner in his previous incarnation as Lord Rama. The categorises karma, by listing three kinds of human actions: (1) Karma: those, which elevate, (2) Vikarma: those, which degrade, and (3) Akarma: those, which create neither good nor bad reactions and thus lead to liberation. "In proportion to the extent of one's religious or irreligious actions in this life, one must enjoy or suffer the corresponding reactions of his karma in the next." - Bhagvatha Purana 6.1.45. The religious life of many Hindus is focused on devotion to God (perceived as Brahman, , Vishnu, or Sakthi) or several gods. This devotion usually takes the form of rituals and practices associated with sculptures and images of gods in home shrines. Moksha:

Moksha (Sanskrit: ि८ष Moka, "liberation") or Mukthi (Sanskrit: िन्िु , "release") is liberation from Samsaara, the cycle of death and rebirth or reincarnation and all of the suffering and limitation of worldly existence. It is a state of absolute freedom, peace and bliss, attained through Self- Realization. This is the supreme goal of human endeavor, the other three being, dharma (righteousness), Artha (wealth and power) and karma (sense-pleasure). It is seen as a transcendence of phenomenal being, a state of higher consciousness, in which matter, energy, time, space, karma (causation) and the other features of empirical reality are understood as Maya. Meaning of Moksha as per Hindu traditions means gaining Mukthi i.e. liberation from the bondage of karma, from the vicious cycle of birth and death forever! In other words, the transcendent state attained as a result of being released from the cycle of rebirth. This becomes possible when human beings after establishing absolute control over five senses and mind reached the stage of Nirvikalpa ... the stage of nothingness... the stage of absolute wisdom!. Moksha is seen as a final release from one's worldly conception of self, the loosening of the shackle of experiential duality and a realization of one's own fundamental nature which is true being, pure consciousness and Satchid (bliss) an experience which is ineffable and beyond sensation. According to , at liberation the individual atman (or the Self) is realized to be one with the Ground of all being — the Source of all phenomenal existence known as Brahman. The self-as-individual is realized to have never existed. In other Dvaitha traditions it is held that the identification between the liberated human being and God is not total but there is always some distinction between the two. In Vaishnava, Moksha involves forsaking everything material and establishing one's existence as a purely devoted servant of Vishnu (Bhagavan or God; also known by many other names such as Krishna, Rama, , etc.). Some Hindu scriptures emphasize this devotional conception of Moksha, which is achieved through the practice of (Yoga of worship) or Prapatti (surrender). On the other hand, works of the non-dualistic Hindu school, Advaita Vedanta or Brahmavada whose doctrinal position is derived from the Upanishads, say that the Self or Super-Soul is formless, beyond being and non-being, beyond any sense of tangibility and comprehension.

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In Dvaita-Advaita (dualist) and qualified Advaitic schools of the personal Vaishnava traditions, Moksha is defined as the loving, eternal union with (God) and considered the highest perfection of existence. The Bhakta (devotee) attains the abode of his supreme Lord in a perfected state but maintains his or her individual identity, with a spiritual form, personality, tastes, pastimes, and so on. In Advaita philosophy, the ultimate truth is not a singular Godhead, per se, but rather is oneness without form or being, something that essentially is without manifestation, personality, or activity. Moksha is union with this oneness. The concepts of impersonal ‘Moksha’ and Buddhist ‘’ are comparable. Indeed, there is much overlap in their views of higher consciousness and attainment of enlightenment. In Nastika religions such as Jainism and Buddhism, Moksha is a union with all that is, regardless of whether there is a God or not. After Nirvana, one obtains Moksha. The Nirvana of Hinduism is Brahma-Nirvana meaning that it will lead to God.

Aatmagyaan (आ्िञान - self-realization) is the key to obtaining Moksha. The Hindu is one who practices karma and bhakti, knowing that Brahman (Absolute God) is unlimited and exists in many different forms, both personal and impersonal. Moksha in Hinduism and Jainism generally mean the same! In Christianity moksha is termed salvation... in Buddhism ‘Nirvana’. The deeper meaning of Moksha in Hinduism simply means liberation of the Atman soul from the cycle of birth and death forever! The moment human beings reached the stage of enlightenment (Kaivalya )... one finally gained Moksha (Salvation) in that lifetime! Cessation of all Karma in entirety results from reaching the stage of enlightenment... never before! Traveling the path of ... assimilating the pearls of wisdom contained in sacred Bhagavad Gita of Hinduism... human beings finally emancipated forever from the cycle of birth and death... reached the stage of enlightenment (Kaivalya Jnana) and finally Moksha (Salvation) There are believed to be four yogas (disciplines) or maargas (paths) for the attainment of Moksha from Samsra. These are: (working for the Supreme), Jnana Yoga (realizing the Supreme), (meditating on the Supreme) and (serving the Supreme in loving devotion). Different schools of Hinduism place varying emphasis on one path or other, some of the most famous being the tantric and yogic practices developed in Hinduism. Today, the two major schools of thought are Advaita Vedanta and Bhakti branches. Samsāra: Samsra is the continuous cycle of life, death, and reincarnation envisioned in Hinduism and other . In Hindu and Buddhist practice, samara is the endless cycle of life and death from which adherents seek liberation. In Hinduism, the prominent belief is that samara is a feature of a life based on illusion (Maya). Illusion enables a person to think s/he is an autonomous being instead of recognizing the connection between one's self and the rest of reality. Believing in the illusion of separateness that persists throughout samara leads one to act in ways that generate karma and thus perpetuate the cycle of action and rebirth. By fully grasping the unity or oneness of all things, the believer has the potential to break the illusion upon which samara is based and achieve moksha—liberation from samara. Whereas moksha (liberation) acts as the positive motivation for Hindu religious practice, samara is the negative motivation from which Hindus seek liberation. The undesirable nature of samara comes from its unpredictability—people are unaware of how the actions or karma in their present [FOR PRIVATE CIRCULATION] 11

life will affect their future. Because past lives affect future ones, a person is never sure about their reincarnation and the suffering that might accompany it because of past actions. As the Indian conception of human existence (prior to one’s enlightenment), samara is a central component of all religions originating in India. Buddhists and Sikhs view samara in much the same way as Hindus, and Buddhists particularly stress the concept that life is a form of suffering that is encountered and perpetuated through samsara. Jainism sees samara as a base and mundane form of existence that one ought to renounce. Hence, this process of reincarnation is called Samsaara, a continuous cycle in which the soul is reborn over and over again according to the law of action and reaction. At death many Hindus believe the soul is carried by a subtle body into a new physical body which can be a human or non- human form (an animal or divine being) As the real self (atman) remains unchanged throughout life, it likewise continues after death. This soul is carried within the subtle (astral) body to its next destination. The precise nature of the new body is determined by the state of mind at death and is specifically influenced by (1) the person's desires, and (2) his karma. Samsara refers to the process of passing from one body to another throughout all species of life. Hindus believe that consciousness is present in all life forms, even fish and plants. However, though the soul is present in all species, its potential is exhibited to different degrees. In aquatics and plants it is most "covered", practically asleep, whereas in humans it is most alert. This progression of consciousness is manifest throughout six broad "classes of life, "namely (1) aquatics, (2) plants, (3) reptiles and insects, (4) birds, (5) animals and (6) humans, including the residents of heaven. Most Hindus consider samsara essentially painful, a cycle of four recurring problems: birth, disease, old-age, and death. In Bhagavad Gita,

दॳहहन८ऽन्ि्यिा दॳहॳ क९िारं य९वनं जरा। ििा दॳहा्िररानतिधीर्िर न ि्यति।।ु रीिदभगव्गीिा - 2.13।। dehino 'smin yatha dehe kaumaram yauvanam jara tatha dehantara-praptir dhiras tatra na muhyati Bhagavad-Gita: 2.13.(Contents of the Gīt Summarised) Translation: “O son of Kuntī, the nonpermanent appearance of happiness and distress, and their disappearance in due course, are like the appearance and disappearance of winter and summer seasons. They arise from sense perception, O scion of , and one must learn to tolerate them without being disturbed.” Meaning: "As the embodied soul continually passes in this body from boyhood to youth to old age, the soul similarly passes into a new body at death."

यं यं वापप ्िर्भावं ्यज्य्िॳ कलॳवरि।् िं ििॳवॴति क९्िॳय सदा िावभापविः।। रीिदभगव्गीिा - 8.6।। yam yam vapi smaran bhavam tyajaty ante kalevaram tam tam evaiti sada tad-bhava-bhavitah Bhagavad-Gita: 8.06.(Attaining the Supreme) [FOR PRIVATE CIRCULATION] 12

Translation: "Whatever state of being one remembers when he quits his body, 0 son of , that state he will attain without fail." Meaning: Whatever state of being one remembers when he quits his body, that state he will attain without fail.

र८रं चषुः ्पशगनं च रसनं राणिॳव च। अथध्ठाय िनचचायं पवषयानपसॳविॳ।।ु रीिदभगव्गीिा - 15.9।। srotram caksuh sparsanam ca rasanam ghranam eva ca adhisthaya manas cayam visayan upasevate Bhagavad-Gita:15.9 (The Yoga of the Supreme Person) Translation: “The living entity, thus taking another gross body, obtains a certain type of ear, tongue, and nose and sense of touch, which are grouped about the mind. He thus enjoys a particular set of sense objects.” Meaning: In other words, if the living entity adulterates his consciousness with the qualities of cats and dogs, in his next life he gets a cat or dog body and enjoys. Consciousness is originally pure, like water. But if we mix water with a certain color, it changes. Similarly, consciousness is pure, for the spirit soul is pure. But consciousness is changed according to the association of the material qualities. Real consciousness is Kṇa consciousness. When, therefore, one is situated in Kṇa consciousness, he is in his pure life. But if his consciousness is adulterated by some type of material mentality, in the next life he gets a corresponding body. He does not necessarily get a human body again; he can get the body of a cat, dog, hog, demigod or one of many other forms, for there are 8,400,000 species. A common misunderstanding in Hindus that they believe in the next life the soul becomes a different person or even an animal. No, the soul retains its identity, and the same "real-self" passes into a new body. Any differences between the bodies we now have and that which we receive in the next life reflect the subtle (psychological) changes undergone in this chapter of life. The essence of the above three Slokas that  At death the soul passes into another body.  It is carried within the subtle body.  The next body is determined by the state of mind at death, and by the soul's desires and deserts.  The nature of the soul is the same, regardless of which body it resides in. Samsra – passing through the six categories of life-forms – is considered painful for the eternal soul. Significance of Yoga: in Hinduism the general name for spiritual disciplines is yoga, which means, literally, union of the individual self with the Supreme Self, and also the method of this union. Yoga means the realization in direct experience of the preexisting union between the individual consciousness and the universal consciousness. There are different ways of expressing this, including that Atman is one with Brahman, Jivatman is one with , or Shiva and are one and the same. Each of these ways of saying it come from a different viewing point, while

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they are not essentially different points of view. They all point in the same general direction of union or Yoga. There are different kinds of yoga suited to different temperaments. The kind of yoga that is applicable to a man is determined by his innate tendencies. Though there are as many minds as there are human beings, yet the Hindu psychologists speak of four general types; active, emotional, introspective, and philosophical; and for each there is an appropriate yoga. It is true that each mind contains some of the four traits, one particular trait is dominant and this dominant trait indicates the type of the spiritual discipline a person should pursue. Yoga is a science, that is, it is a body of techniques that lead us to consciously connect with ourselves and with life. It is also the actual experience of connection that results from practicing the techniques. There are many traditional yogic paths that facilitate connection to the highest truth and awaken our own consciousness. These systems, such as , , laya, , bhakti, jnana, karma yoga, and so on, give us the tools to achieve higher knowledge and the experience of connection. They are suited to different personality types. They allow each one of us to access our own truth and to arrive at that truth by our own means, through our own chosen path. It is very important as yoga teachers to be totally respectful of every path. “The soul is the same for all individuals and nations, but our conditioning and culture determines our predisposition and outlook.” - B.K.S Iygenar Hinduism contains within it six major schools of thought, or darshanas: , Yoga, , , Mimamsa and Vedanta. The underlying thread between these six darshanas is the acceptance of the Vedas as the supreme revealed scriptures. Thus, is often described as Vedic or the Vedic tradition. Hindus commonly referred to Hinduism as Sanatana Dharma, or the Eternal Truth. Also uniting the darshanas is the concept of pluralism, the belief that multiple paths exist to reach liberation, or moksha, or oneness with God. In Hindu thought, the Divine or Supreme Being resides within all that exists, and all humans, regardless of race, religion, sexual orientation or gender, have the ability to achieve moksha. No one person is born saved or condemned, but rather earns the fruit of his actions, words, and thoughts, or karma, and advances spiritually by acting in accordance with dharma, or righteousness. It is with this very basic understanding in mind that yoga should be examined. Sri. T.K.V. Desikachar says, "Yoga is from the Vedas." - At its broadest meaning of yoga, from the root word “yuj” in Sanskrit, means to unite. Most discuss yoga as a practice to control the senses and ultimately, the mind. The most famous of which is the Bhagavad Gita (dating back to 6th-3rd Century BCE3), where Krishna speaks of four types of yoga - bhakti, or devotion; Jnana, or knowledge; Karma, or action; and Dhyana, or concentration (often referred to as raja yoga, though not all sources agree on the term) - as paths to achieve moksha, the ultimate goal for Hindus. Of the four, the description of dhyana yoga has the most in common with yoga as it is largely understood today.

िरॴकारं िनः कृ ्वा यिथच्िॳन्ियरियः। उपपवचयासनॳ य््या्य८गिा्िपवशु धयॳ।।ु 6.12।। सिं कायमशर८रीवं धारय्नचलं न्िरः। [FOR PRIVATE CIRCULATION] 14

संरॳ्य नामसकारं ्वं हदशचचानवल८कयन।।् 6.13।। रीिदभगव्गीिा Tatraikagram manaah kritva yatchittendriyakriyaah. Upvishyasne yunyjyadyogmatmavishuddhaye. 6.12. Samam kayshirogrivam dharyannachlam sthiraah. Samprekshya nasikagram svam disashchanvalokyan. 6.13. Srimad Bhagavad Gita. Meaning: There, having the mind actively focused upon a single point, with thought and sense activity controlled, Sitting on a seat, one should practice yoga for purification of the self. With an aligned body, head, and neck-keeping these steady, without movement; Focusing the vision toward the t ip of one’s nose without looking about in any direction. – Srimad Bhagavad Gita 6.12 - 13 Most importantly, the Bhagavad Gita makes clears that regardless of which path one embarks upon, yoga is an individual journey that requires lifelong dedication, consistent practice, and devotion to God. Of course, the references to yoga are found throughout Hindu scripture. The , dating back to 800 - 600 BCE4, states:

िवं य८गं इति ि्य्िॳ न्िरि ्इन्िय-धारणि ् अरि्िास िदा भवति य८ग८ ही रबवतय९ कठ८पतनष् -2.3.11. tm yogam iti manyante sthirm indriya-dhraṇm, apramattas tad bhavati, yogo hi prabhavpyayau. Yama: The firm control of the senses, they regard as Yoga. At that time one gets careful, for, Yoga is acquired and lost. - Kaṭhopaniṣad - 2.3.11

And the Svetasvatara_Upanishad (्वॳिाचविर८पतनशद), 600 - 500 BCE, explains the results or outcomes for one who is steeped in the practice of yoga:

पथि्यतिॳज८ऽतनलखॳृ सिन्ििॳु प्चा्िकॳ य८गगणॳु रव्िॳृ । न ि्य र८ग८ न जरा न ि्यृ ःु राति्य य८गानननियं शरीरि ्॥ ्वॳिाचविर८पतनशद-२.१२॥ prthivyaptejo'nilakhe samutthite panchatmake yogagune pravrtte । na tasya rogo na jara na mrtyuh praptasya yogagnimayam sariram ॥ - 2.12. Meaning: Meaning: When the fivefold qualities of yoga consisting of the earth, water, fire, air and ether are firmly established in the body, then in that body strengthened by the fire of yoga, there is no place for sickness, old age and death.

लघ्विार८नयिल८लु प्वंु वणगरसादः ्वरस९्ठवं च । ग्धः शभ८ु िरपू रीषि्पंु य८गरवन्िंृ रििां वदन्ि ॥ ्वॳिाचविर८पतनशद-२.१३॥ laghutvam arogyam alolupatvam varnaprasadah svarasausthavam cha । gandhah subho mutrapurisamalpam yogapravrttim prathamam vadanti ॥ 2.13

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Meaning: Lightness of being, health, steadiness, improvement in the complexion of the body, perfection in the voice, sweetness of the body odor, slight excretions are said to be the first results of the progress of yoga.

यिॴव बबंबं िदय८पमलतिंृ िॳज८ियं राजिॳ िि ्सधा्ििु ्। ि्वाऽऽ्िि््वं रसिी्य दॳही एकः कृ िािो भविॳ वीिश८कः ॥ ्वॳिाचविर८पतनशद-२.१४॥ yathaiva bimbam mrdayopaliptam tejomayam bhrajate tat sudhantam । tadva''tmatattvam prasamiksya dehi ekah krtartho bhavate vitasokah ॥ 2.14 Meaning: Just as a mirror shines brightly after it has been cleaned, so does the who has realized the true nature of his soul becomes integrated as one in his body, attains sense of fulfillment and remains free from sorrow.

यदा्िि््वॳन ि ु र्िि््वं दीप८पिॳनॳह य्िःु रपचयॳि ् । अजं रुवं सवगि््वॴपवगशधंु ञा्वा दॳवं ि्यिॳु सवगपापॴः ॥ ्वॳिाचविर८पतनशद-२.१५॥ yad atma tattvena tu brahma tattvam dipopameneha yuktah prapasyet । ajam dhruvam sarvatattvairvisuddham jnatva devam muchyate sarvapapaih ॥ 2.15॥ Meaning: Through the real nature of his own soul, as if by a lamp held on the nature of Brahman, when he sees, his own real nature as one who is unborn and completely pure, He is freed from all the fetters at once. The slightly more recent Dhyanabindu Upanishad explains yoga as having six limbs - , Prayanama, , Dharana, Dhyana, and Samadhi - and goes on to provide postural detail: There are as many postures as there are living creaturesś and Mahevara (the great Lord) knows their distinguishing features. Siḍḍha, Bhaḍra, Simha and Paḍma are the four (chief) postures. Practicing Yoga spirituality gives us the inner strength to manage difficult situations and to keep smiling. Being established in the Self, your inner peace spreads outward, and makes you a more responsible human being full of caring, sharing and love. Yoga allows us to switch on the luminous, intuitive and creative part of ourselves. This part makes our lives a joyful, fulfilling, and successful journey. Without it, we live in a dull world of ignorance and monotony, searching for answers outside of ourselves. By connecting to the luminous parts of ourselves, we discover and experience the truth that everything we need to know is within. This is the blissful experience that yoga can give. It radically transforms our lives. Yoga is a science of self-transformation, of speeding up our natural evolution. And it is a journey that takes time. As teachers, we need to remember and communicate that yoga is an amazingly broad and rich science of self-development and self- exploration; that human existence is an amazingly wonderful, awesome, and occasionally terrifying process; and that there are tools which can allow us to face life with more courage, awareness, skill and higher consciousness. Thus, the key to yoga is awareness–discovering the luminous intelligence that lies within us all. When we find and cultivate this aspect of ourselves, we create our own health, happiness and peace which we can then, in turn, convey to others. Today, the most commonly referenced text on yoga is ’s Yoga Sutras, dating between 200 BCE – 2. Hence, Yoga means the realization in direct experience of the preexisting union between the individual consciousness and the universal consciousness. There are different ways of expressing [FOR PRIVATE CIRCULATION] 16

this, including that Atman is one with Brahman, Jivatman is one with Paramatman, or Shiva and Shakti are one and the same. Each of these ways of saying it come from a different viewing point, while they are not essentially different points of view. They all point in the same general direction of union or Yoga. Not merely union of body and mind: It has become common to say that this union is merely the union of the physical body and the mind. This allows both teachers and practitioners to dodge the true meaning of Yoga so as to present it as being something other than a spiritual path such as only physical health or fitness. It also allows people to avoid any sense of conflict with limited religious views that have no place for such high direct experience. Four Paths of Yoga: Jnana, Bhakti, Karma, Raja The four paths of Yoga are Jnana Yoga, Bhakti Yoga, Karma Yoga, and Raja Yoga. These four paths of Yoga are aspects of a whole that is called Yoga. The four paths of Yoga work together, like fingers on a hand. While a Yogi or may focus exclusively on one of these approaches to Yoga that is quite uncommon. For the vast majority of practitioners of Yoga, a blending of the four traditional types of Yoga is most appropriate. One follows his or her own predisposition in balancing these different forms of Yoga. These four paths of Yoga are aspects of a whole that is called Yoga. The four paths of Yoga work together, like fingers on a hand. Jnana Yoga: Jnana Yoga is the path of knowledge, wisdom, introspection and contemplation. It involves deep exploration of the nature our being by systematically exploring and setting aside false identities. Bhakti Yoga: Bhakti Yoga is the path of devotion, emotion, love, , and service to God and others. All actions are done in the context of remembering the Divine. Karma Yoga: Karma Yoga is the path of action, service to others, mindfulness, and remembering the levels of our being while fulfilling our actions or karma in the world. Raja Yoga: Raja Yoga is a comprehensive method that emphasizes , while encompassing the whole of Yoga. It directly deals with the encountering and transcending thoughts of the mind. Jnana Yoga: Jnana in Hinduism is termed as knowledge acquired through meditation and study as a means of reaching Brahman. It’s also called Brahmajnana. The meaning of Kaivalya Jnana (the absolute knowledge) in Hinduism is that the stage when only Jnana remains i.e. the stage of Absolute Wisdom! Devoid of all dross within when an Atman soul reaches the stage of nothingness, one is said to have reached the stage of Kaivalya Jnana or Absolute Wisdom! Bhagavad Gita is clear on this explanation of Kaivalya Jnana! Cessation of karma in the physical manifest life is not that easy! Surrounded by materialistic riches galore... prompted by a bloated ego... the wanton desires and greed for materialistic riches... most human beings in life desire traveling the spiritual path standing on platform of material riches. This simply cannot be... the spiritual path can never be traveled following religion!

किेन्ियाणण संय्य य आ्िॳ िनसा ्िरन ् । इन्ियािागन्विढा्िाू मि्याचारः स उ्यिॳ ॥ रीिदभगव्गीिा ३-६॥

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karmendriyṇi saṁyamya ya ste manas smaran indriyrthn vimūḍhtm mithycraḥ sa ucyate. - Srimad Bhagavad Gita -3.06 Meaning: “One who restrains the senses and organs of action, but whose mind dwells on sense objects, certainly deludes himself and is called a pretender.” (Srimad Bhagavad Gita -3.06) The deluded ones, who restrain their organs of action but mentally dwell upon the sense enjoyment, are called hypocrites. Kaivalya Jnana: is the Eternal wisdom on achieving which every Human Being Emancipates forever. A stage in Life when a Human Being rises above the mundane and gains those Spiritual Heights wherein nothing more is left to learn. All is Jnana, Kevala (only) Jnana (wisdom and only wisdom)! The stage of Kaivalya Jnana is achieved when one burns out his total Karma (of the past and present) and what remains is only Jnana, Kaivalya Jnana. A stage of all bliss when having become pure one can invoke all Jnana contained in the Cosmos. All mundane experiences of Life are left with no meaning. Immersed in the thought of the Eternal ... Atman soul rejoices in the ever lasting blissful state. Ignorant in matters spiritual... a follower of path of religion (rituals) always pretends following path of spirituality! One who did not understand even basics of spirituality, how could one realize anything about God Almighty in ones lifetime? Just by forcibly stopping usage of five senses, one does not succeed in establishing control over five senses! Control over five senses could never be established that way. All the five senses are primarily governed by mind power. If our mind remained active... how could we subdue five senses in entirety? Control over five senses comes with time when we travelled path of pure spirituality as detailed in Bhagavad Gita of Hinduism. Indulging in nishkama karma yoga when we contemplated on God Almighty... dross impurities within our soul atman, the spirit within reduced gradually! A true seeker of spirituality never went to a temple, church or mosque. A true traveler of spiritual path never indulged in pastimes that carried no meaning on spiritual journey. For a serious seeker of spirituality, God Almighty always existed within us in miniscule form as our soul atman, the spirit within! To know God... we had nowhere else to go! Remaining wherever we are, simply by indulging in teachings contained in Bhagavad Gita we can reach God. All their life Sri Paramhansa and Maharishi Ramana never built an (hermitage) of their own. Why? Both these spiritual masters gained enlightenment (Kaivalya Jnana) in their lifetime. After gaining enlightenment, both indulged in preaching to masses whatever they learnt on spiritual path! Lying on a cot, both preached wisdom of Bhagavad Gita to masses at large! A true spiritual preceptor, one who had negated karma to zero forever would never build an ashram (hermitage) as it was totally unnecessary. The need to indulge rests with those who had yet to establish absolute control over five senses and mind. One who was free of all bondages of earthly manifest life never feared anything in life. Whatever the means available, one indulged in imparting sacred wisdom to humanity at large! A true spiritual preceptor always works like a true trustee of God Almighty, doing his bidding all the time! To a true trustee of God almighty... everything belonged to God Almighty. One was only an instrument in the hands of God Almighty, doing his bidding! By offering fruits of karma performed to God Almighty all the time... a liberated seeker of spirituality never attached self to any kind of

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karma! Whatever little karma was necessary to maintain the body, one indulged in that! A pure soul atman had no more goals to achieve in life. Bhakti Yoga:

Bhakti (Sanskrit: भन्ि) literally means "attachment, participation, devotion to, fondness for, homage, faith or love, worship, piety to (as a religious principle or means of salvation)". Bhakti, in Hinduism, refers to devotion and the love of a personal god or a representational god by a devotee. The word Bhakti comes from a root word “Bhaja” in Sanskrit which means to remember, contemplate, worship, serve, adore, love and sing the glories and greatness of the creator. Four main components of Bhakti are: chanting the glory of God, worshiping, service and surrender to God. Bhakti may be defined as single-minded, constant, loving remembrance of God. In Srimad Bhagavad Gita, Lord Sri Krishna explains:

अन्या-सॳटह सििि य८ िाँ ्िरिी तन्यसह ि्यहाँ सलभाहु पािाग तन्या-य्ि्याु य८थगनाः॥ रीिदभगव्गीिा - ८-१४॥ ananya-cetah satatam yo mam smarati nityasah tasyaham sulabhah partha nitya-yuktasya yoginah ॥ Srimad Bhagavad Gita 8.14 Meaning: For one who remembers Me without deviation, I am easy to obtain, O son of Pth, because of his constant engagement in devotional service. Para Bhakti comes when intellect surrenders to divine will in the spirit of true or pure love. Bhakti is selfless loving contemplation of God. The one who always contemplates God with full faith is considered to be the best of all as given below: (Dhyana Yoga |The Yoga of Meditation)

य८थगनािपप सवेषां ि्गिॳना्िरा्िना | रधावा्भजिॳ य८ िां स िॳ य्ििि८ु िि: || रीिदभगव्गीिा - ६-४७॥ yoginm api sarvehṁ mad-gatenntar-tman hraddhvn bhajate yo mṁ sa me yuktatamo mataḥ - Srimad Bhagavad Gita-6.47. Of all yogis, those whose minds are always absorbed in me, and who engage in devotion to me with great faith, them I consider to be the highest of all. Meaning: Even amongst yogis, there are karma yogis, bhakti yogis, jñna yogis, ahṭṅg yogis, etc. Shree Krishna declares the bhakti yogi to be the highest, superior to even the best ahṭṅg yogi and haṭha yogi. That is because bhakti, or devotion, is the highest power of God. It is such a power that binds God and makes him a slave of his devotee. This verse puts to rest the debate about which form of Yoga (Yog) is the highest. In this verse, Shree Krishna has used the word “bhajate”. It comes from the root word “bhaj”, which means “to serve.” It is a far more significant word for devotion than “worship,” which means “to adore.” Here, Shree Krishna is talking about those who, not merely adore him, but also serve him with loving devotion. They are thus established in the natural position of the soul as the servant of God, while the other kinds of yogis are still incomplete in their realization. They have connected themselves with God, but they have not yet situated themselves in the understanding that they are his eternal servants. The Supreme Personality of Godhead said to the in the Srimad Bhgavatam::

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अहि भ्िा-पराथधन८ ही अ्विंिरा ईवा ्वीजा | साधुभीर र्िा-रदाय८ भ्िायर भ्िा-जाना-रीयः॥ रीिदभागविपराणु -९.४.६३॥ ahaṁ bhakta-pardhīno hyasvatantra iva sdhubhir grasta-hidayo bhaktair bhakta-jana-priyaḥ Srimad Bhgavatapurana - 9.4.63. "I am completely under the control of My devotees. Indeed, I am not at all independent. Because My devotees are completely devoid of material desires, I sit only within the cores of their hearts. What to speak of My devotee, even those who are devotees of My devotee are very dear to Me." The bhakti yogi possesses the power of divine love, and is thus most dear to God and considered by him to be the highest of all. Bhakti sees God as the most worshipable object of love, for example, a personified monotheistic conception of Shiva or Vishnu. Unlike in Abrahamic traditions or Vaishnava, Smartha does not prevent worship of other aspects of God, as they are all seen as rays from a single source. The concept is essentially of devotional service in love, since the ideal nature of being is seen as that of harmony, euphony, its manifest essence being love. By immersing oneself in the love of God, one's Karmas (good or bad, regardless) slough off, one's illusions about beings decay and 'truth' is soon known and lived. Both the worshiped and worshiper gradually loose their illusory sense of separation and only One beyond all names remains. Vedanta finds itself split threefold, though the dualist and modified non-dualist schools are primarily associated with the foregoing thought of Bhakti. The most famous today is Advaita Vedanta, a non- dual (i.e. no separation between the individual and reality/God/etc.) perspective which often played the role of Hindu foil to contemporary . In general, it focused on intense meditation and moral realignment, its bedrock being the Upanishads, Brahma Sutras and the teachings of its putative founder, Adi Sankaracharya. Through discernment of the real and the unreal, as a peeling of the layers of an onion, the sadhaka (practitioner) would unravel the maya (illusion) of being and the cosmos to find nothing within, a nothingness which was paradoxically being, and transcendentally beyond both such inadequate descriptions. This was Moksha, this was atman and Brahman realized as the substance and void of existential duality. The impersonalist schools of Hinduism also worship various deities, but with the idea that such worship is ultimately abandoned - both the worshiped and worshiper lose their individual identities. Raja Yoga: Raja yoga is the royal path of meditation. As a king maintains control over his kingdom, so can we maintain control over our own “kingdom”—the vast territory of the mind. In raja yoga we use our mental powers to realize the Atman through the process of psychological control. The basic premise of raja yoga is that our perception of the divine Self is obscured by the disturbances of the mind. If the mind can be made still and pure, the Self will automatically, instantaneously, shine forth. Says the Bhagavad Gita: “When, through the practice of yoga, the mind ceases its restless movements, and becomes still, the aspirant realizes the Atman.” If we can imagine a lake that is whipped by waves, fouled by pollution, muddied by tourists and made turbulent by speedboats, we’ll get a fair assessment of the mind’s usual state. "Raja Yoga is a science, art and a path in life to enhance, enrich and strengthen our spiritual focus." -Walt Baptiste "With Raja Yoga, benefits are experienced both immediately and long-term, not just on a physical level but in all aspects of our lives. We experienced positive changes in our lives that include not [FOR PRIVATE CIRCULATION] 20

just improved health, but greater awareness, mental clarity, self-confidence, and spiritual attunement within ourselves and in relationship to the world around us." - -Michele Hébert and Mehrad Nazari, Ph.D.

राजपव्या राजग्यंु पपवरमिदि्िििु ् । र्यषावगिं ध्यं ससु खंु किुगि्ययि ् ॥९-२॥ rajavidya rajaguhyam pavitram idam uttamam pratakshavagamam dharmamya susukham kartum avyayam. . Srimad Bhagavad-Gita, 9.2 “This knowledge is the king of all wisdom, the king of all that is confidential. It is the purest and the topmost and because it gives direct perception of the self by realization it is the perfection of all religion and everlastingly joyful to perform.” Raja means King. A king acts with independence, self-confidence and assurance. Likewise, a Raja Yogi is autonomous, independent and fearless. Raja Yoga is the path of self-discipline and practice. Raja Yoga is also known as Ashtanga Yoga (Eight Steps of Yoga), because it is organised in eight parts: 1. Yama - Self-control. 2. - Discipline. 3. Asana - Physical exercises. 4. - Breath exercises. 5. Pratyahara - Withdrawal of the senses from external objects. 6. Dharana – Concentration. 7. Dhyana – Meditation. 8. Samadhi - Complete Realisation The eight steps of Raja Yoga provide systematic instruction to attain inner peace, clarity, self- control and Realisation. The practitioner is required to adhere to all the precepts listed above and can attain the final stage of Samadhi only after mastering the previous . You can be noticed that each stage prepares you for growth to the next spiritual level by progressively disciplining the body, mind and senses. This type of meditation involving an elaborate process is best done under the supervision of a teacher, who can act as a guide taking you through the path of least resistance as well as a coach with whom you could discuss your spiritual experiences and get answers to your questions. The real beauty of raja yoga meditation is that you don't have to be a believer to get started. Bring an open mind and only believe what you directly experience. The word ‘Meditation’ means ‘to think’. As we all know, man’s mind is, ordinary, occupied with hundreds of thoughts of the world; in Raj-Yoga meditation, one withdraws one’s mind from all the worldly thoughts, including the thoughts of one’s own body, and one collects ones, consciousness, at least for sometimes, and thinks of the shining and peaceful self as a point of divine and conscient light and, then, focuses one’s attention on god as supreme soul, who also is a point of conscient light and is the ocean of peace. The inhibition of worldly thoughts and the recollection or recapitulation of thoughts of the luminous self is attained by directing the flow of thoughts towards god i.e. the supreme soul in his supreme adobe or Paramdham which is the world of divine light. In this sense, this meditation is withdrawal or reversal of one’s consciousness, from the body and its world to the soul and its silent world, or from the dark lanes of negative thoughts on the bright path of contemplation on god. RajYoga meditation may therefore, be defined as a disciplined exercise of awareness, utilizing such processes as creatively thinking, intuitively perceiving and silently reflecting and concentrating on the metaphysical truths of self and god which lead to comprehension and realization of the subject. [FOR PRIVATE CIRCULATION] 21

This practice involves the turning of one’s mind and the flow of his love in the direction of god, giving him the hot-link to communicate with him. The spiritual knowledge also helps one to see the hidden benefits in every situation however stressful it may seem at its outset. He always thinks about the positive side of the coin. Hans Selye, Canada’s most honored scientist also laid importance on attitudes as “Rather than relying on drugs or other techniques, I think there is a better way to handle stress, pleasant or unpleasant. More than thinking about it, talking about it, what is needed is to practice the method to develop the positive habit for the effective management of stress. Understanding of the spiritual knowledge helps one to do positive thinking and transform his attitudes towards the stressful situation. Hence meditation and spiritual knowledge help one to maintain stability of mind in the adverse circumstances. He accepts criticism and tries to correct himself. He will not be influenced by anger, Hopelessness, Attachment, Fear etc. He remains away from the unhealthy habits which provide only a temporary pleasure and makes one’s mind weak. Thus spirituality based positive thinking helps one to attain the highest level of emotional equilibrium Karma Yoga: Work when performed as a spiritual discipline is called Karma Yoga. The purpose of the teachings of the Bhagavad Gita is to solve a moral problem. It is the predominant topic of the Bhagavad Gita, though the book deals with other Yogas as well. ‘In that which is night to all beings,’ says the Bhagavad Gita, ‘men of self-control are awake; and where all beings are awake, there is night for the contemplative who see.’ The meaning of this passage is that to the unenlightened the supreme reality is like night; while trying to understand it they see darkness and confusion. But the enlightened are fully awake with regard to reality. Further, the physical world of names and forms is clear as day to the unenlightened, but the enlightened see in it the darkness of night. In the Bhagavad Gita, asks Sri KrishaŚ ‘Under what compulsion does a man commit sin, in spite of himself, and driven, as it were, by force?’ Krishna repliesŚ ‘It is desire; it is wrath, which springs from .’ Know that this is our enemy here, all devouring and the cause of all sin.’ The mind is by nature pure and clear, and capable of reflecting reality. The impurities in it, which distort the image of reality, are created by desires and attachments. Being foreign to it, they may be removed; and this is effected through the practice of disciplines. Thus the unenlightened man becomes enlightened. Arjuna’s dilemma was caused by his confusion about the two ideals, which, from time out of mind, have moulded the Hindu pattern of life. These are the disciplines of action and renunciation, distinctly laid down for two types of mind. The discipline of action is followed by the majority of men, who believe in social obligations and who do not explain away the world and the individual ego as unreal. They seek happiness here and hereafter. But a few persons who realise self-knowledge to be the supreme duty of life and who are convinced of the transitory nature of all material experiences either on earth or in heaven follow the discipline of renunciation, and seek liberation from bondage to the phenomenal world. Both disciplines are necessary to preserve the social stability; but their spheres must not be confused. Arjuna obviously was not ready for the discipline of renunciation because he was conscious of his duty to society and was still attached to his relatives and friends, whose death he [FOR PRIVATE CIRCULATION] 22

anticipated with sorrow. Certainly he had not attained that spiritual elevation from which one sees the illusory nature of worldly values, good or evil. He talked about renunciation only as an escape from the unpleasant duties of life. Krishna characterised this attitude as ‘lowness of spirit, unbecoming a noble mind, dishonorable, and detrimental to the attainment of heaven, which every warrior covets.’ He advised Arjuna to plunge into action and fight in a spirit of non-attachmentŚ ‘He who sees non-action in action, and action in non-action, he is wise among men, he is yogi, and he is the doer of all actions.’ ‘He who is free from the notion of egotism, and whose understanding is undefiled - though he slays these men, he really slays them not nor is he stained by the result of slaying.’ This non-attachment is the secret of work as a spiritual discipline. [Note: Compare, for instance, where a judge, in accordance with law, carries out his duty as a judge and passes a sentence of death upon some criminal, and the state executioner carries out such death sentence.] Mere karma or action is different from karma yoga, or action as a spiritual discipline. Karma is what is done, a deed. Activity is seen everywhere, both in physical nature and in man. Nature is active; for one sees activity in the stars and the planets, trees and rocks; space itself is vibrating. And there is something in the very makeup of man- the spirit of rajas – which drives him into action in spite of himself. His body is active when he is awake; his mind is active, both in the waking and dream states; and his heart, lungs, and other organs are always active, even in deep sleep. The body cannot be kept alive if one remains inactive. The preservation of the social order, too, demands constant and vigilant action. Even religious disciplines, such as prayer, worship, and meditation, are forms of activity. Though actionlessness may characterize a certain form of spiritual experience, it cannot be attained without previous practice of the discipline of action. When work is done without any desire for personal gain it becomes spiritual action. Such work is utterly different from the mechanical action seen in the inorganic world, or the instinctive action seen in the inorganic world, or the instinctive action at the infra-rational level, the egocentric action of an average person. karma in ordinary sense has a binding quality. It creates and leaves behind subtle impressions, which at a future time and under favourable conditions become the causes of new actions. The new actions likewise create another set of impressions, which in their turn become the causes of yet other actions. So man works impelled by necessity; he has no freedom. Now the question arises as to how one can avoid the bondage of the causal law and work as a free agent. The solution lies in karma yoga. Karma yoga is the secret of action. It gives the worker evenness of mind in gain and loss, success and failure. According to the Bhagavad Gita actions bind men to their consequences and subject them to their own karma. This however does not mean that inaction or non-action is a solution to the problem of karma. The Bhagavad Gita makes it clear that a person does not attain freedom by abstaining from work or by renouncing work (Ch.3.4).

न किगणािनार्भा्नॴ्क्यं पुष८ऽचनु िॳु । न च सं्यसनादॳव मसपधं सिथधग्छति ॥ रीिदभगव्गीिा - ३-४॥ na karmnam anarambhata naishkarmyam purushah ashrute na cha sanyasanadeva siddhim samadhigachhati Bhagavad Gita - Ch.3.4

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Translation: “Not by merely abstaining from work can one achieve freedom from reaction, nor by renunciation alone can one attain perfection.” This verse explains that without purity of heart, jnana does not take place. By not engaging in activities recommended in the scriptures, one cannot attain jnana (naiskarmyam). One with an impure heart cannot attain jnana by renunciation of activities recommended in the scriptures (sannyasat).

न हह कनचच्षणिपप जाि ु ति्ठ्यकिगकृ ि ्। कायगिॳ ्यवशः किग सवगः रकृ तिजॴगुगणॴः ॥ रीिदभगव्गीिा - ३-५॥ na hi kaschkshana api jatu tishathati akarmkrit karyate hi avashaha karma sarvaha prakitijaih gunaih Bhagavad Gita - Ch.3.5 Meaning: Everyone is forced to act helplessly according to the qualities he has acquired from the modes of material nature; therefore no one can refrain from doing something, not even for a moment. It is not a question of embodied life, but it is the nature of the soul to be always active. Without the presence of the spirit soul, the material body cannot move. The body is only a dead vehicle to be worked by the spirit soul, which is always active and cannot stop even for a moment. As such, the spirit soul has to be engaged in the good work of Krishna consciousness, otherwise it will be engaged in occupations dictated by illusory energy. In contact with material energy, the spirit soul acquires material modes, and to purify the soul from such affinities it is necessary to engage in the prescribed duties enjoined in the . But if the soul is engaged in his natural function of Krishna consciousness, whatever he is able to do is good for him. The Srimad-Bhagvatam affirms this:

्य््वा ्वधिं चरणा्बजंु हरॳभगज्नप्व८ि पिॳ्िि८ यहद । यर ्व वा भििभदिू ्यु रकं क८ वािग आति८भजिां ्वधिगि: ॥ रीिदभागविपराणु - १.५.१७ ॥ tyaktva sva-dharmam caranambujam harer bhajann apakvo ’tha patet tato yadi yatra kva vabhadram abhud amusya kim ko vartha apto ’bhajatam sva-dharmatah Srimad-Bhagvatam -1.5.17 Translation: If by any chance, a person worships the lotus-feet of Lord Sri by giving up his own duties, falls from that path when he is yet unripe in devotion, will anything inauspicious happen to him anywhere at any point? On the other hand, what great purpose is achieved by practicing merely one's swadharma by those who do not sing Lord 's glories? in this verse Sage says that Sage must instruct only devotion to Lord Hari even at the cost of giving up one’s Nithya and Naimittika karmas. These two karmas are the actions ordained by the Vedas that must be compulsorily performed according to one’s position in life and this is called swadharma. It is commonly believed to be a great sin to give up one’s swadharma. But Naradamuni boldly declares that one can neglect even that to perform Hari Keerthanam (singing the praises of Lord Hari). Now, there is no question about a person, who attains fulfillment in the path of devotion by giving up his duties. But what is the predicament of one who has fallen from the path of devotion before [FOR PRIVATE CIRCULATION] 24

attaining the highest and has also given up his swadharma? Narada assures in this verse – “Even if one gives up his swadharma for the sake of adoring the feet of Lord Hari, but falls without attaining the highest, has ever calamity befallen such a person? Never in the past has a devotee faced calamity and nor will he in the future! A person might ‘fall’ from the path of devotion due to either death or because of having gone astray from that path. In any case, since a person who has developed a taste for devotion is no more bound to prescribed actions. Therefore even if he has fallen and attains lower births he never faces misfortune due to the good impressions present in his heart by virtue of his devotion. There are many instances where even if a devotee goes astray or dies before his devotion ripens, he again comes back to this path of devotion and the Lord never lets down a devotee. The Lord himself declares in the ‘Gita’ – “....न ही क्याणकृ िः कनचचि ् दगगतिंु ििा गछति਻ (“… na hi kalyaanakrith kaschit durgathim thaatha gachathi” - never does a person who indulges in pious acts face misfortune) and “न िं भ्िहह रणचयति” ( “na me bhakthah pranashyathi” - never does my devotee perish). On the other hand what great result can be achieved by a person who merely adheres strictly to his swadharma and fails to adore the Lord? If a person blindly practices perfectly his swadharma but fails to develop devotion to the Lord, then his efforts are futile. Nothing significant is achieved by such a person for the fulfillment of practicing ones swadharma is attained only when the Lord is pleased and it is devotion alone that can please the Lord. This is so because it is not possible for anyone to remain inactive even for a moment as the Gunas drive every one hopelessly to perform actions (Srimad Bhagavad Gita - Ch.3.5 above mentioned), mentally, if not physically. Besides, some actions such as breathing and digestion are performed autonomously. Without such actions even the maintenance of the body is not truly possible (Ch.3.8).

तनयिं कु ु किग ्वं किग ्याय८ ्यकिगणः । शरीरयारापप च िॳ न रमस््यॳदकिगणः ॥ रीिदभगव्गीिा - ३-८॥ niyatam karu karma tvam karma jyayo hi akarmanah shariryatra api cha te na prasidhyayeda karmanaha Translation: ntil the mind and intellect reach a state where they are absorbed in God- consciousness, physical work performed in an attitude of duty is very beneficial for one’s internal purification. Hence, the Vedas prescribe duties for humans, to help them discipline their mind and senses. In fact, laziness is described as one of the biggest pitfalls on the spiritual path. You should thus perform your prescribed Vedic duties, since action is superior to inaction. By ceasing activity, even your bodily maintenance will not be possible. So the scripture declares that action is superior to inaction and the best means to attain liberation provided we know how to perform them without incurring the karma arising out of them. The body needs food for its survival. Food comes from God only. The virtuous ones who know this eat only that which has been offered to God as a sacrifice, for the sake of nourishing their bodies alone. By doing so, they do not incur any sin (Ch.3.13).

यञमश्टामशन: स्ि८ ि्य्िॳु सवगरकन्बषॴ: | भ्जिॳु िॳ ्वघं पापा यॳ पच््या्िकारणाि ्|| रीिदभगव्गीिा - ३ १३ || [FOR PRIVATE CIRCULATION] 25

yajña-hihṭhinaḥ santo muchyante sarva-kilbihaiḥ bhuñjate te tvaghaṁ pp ye pachantytma-kraṇt Translation: The spiritually-minded, who eat food that is first offered in sacrifice, are released from all kinds of sin. Others, who cook food for their own enjoyment, verily eat only sin. In this path of action there is no loss, nor any reverse reaction. Even a little practice safeguards one from the fear of birth and death (Ch.2.40).

नॳहामभििनाश८ऽन्ि र्यवाय८ न पव्यिॳ | ्व्पितय्य धिग्य रायिॳ िहि८ भयाि ्|| रीिदभगव्गीिा - २.४० || nehbhikrama-nho ’sti pratyavyo na vidyate svalpam apyasya dharmasya tryate mahato bhayt Translation: Working in this state of consciousness, there is no loss or adverse result, and even a little effort saves one from great danger. According to the Gita, man's right is to work only, but not to the fruit of his actions or to inaction (Ch.2.47).

किग्यॳवाथधकार्िॳ िा फलॳष ु कदाचन | िा किगफलहॳिभु ूगिाग िॳ स्ग८ऽ््वकिगणण || 47 || karmaṇy-evdhikras te m phalehu kadchana m karma-phala-hetur bhūr m te saṅgo ’stvakarmaṇi Translation: You have a right to perform your prescribed duties, but you are not entitled to the fruits of your actions. Never consider yourself to be the cause of the results of your activities, nor be attached to inaction. This is an extremely popular verse of the Bhagavad Gita, so much so that even most school children in India are familiar with it. It offers deep insight into the proper spirit of work and is often quoted whenever the topic of karm yog is discussed. The verse gives four instructions regarding the science of work: 1) Do your duty, but do not concern yourself with the results. 2) The fruits of your actions are not for your enjoyment. 3) Even while working, give up the pride of doership. 4) Do not be attached to inaction. True Karmayoga consists of performing ones duty without attachment and remaining even minded in success and failure (Ch.2.48).

य८ग्ि: कु ु किागणण स्गं ्य््वा धन्जय | मस््यमस््य८: सि८ भ्वाू सि्वं य८ग उ्यिॳ || 48|| yoga-sthaḥ kuru karmṇi saṅgaṁ tyaktv dhanañjaya siddhy-asiddhyoḥ samo bhūtv samatvaṁ yoga uchyate Translation: Be steadfast in the performance of your duty, O Arjun, abandoning attachment to success and failure. Such is called Yog. The fruits of your actions are not for your enjoyment. To perform actions is an integral part of human nature. Having come into this world, we all have various duties determined by our family situation, social position, occupation, etc. While performing these actions, we must remember that we are not the enjoyers of the results—the results are meant for the pleasure of God. The individual [FOR PRIVATE CIRCULATION] 26

soul is a tiny part of God (verse 15.7), and hence our inherent nature is to serve him through all our actions.

दशा भिमिदिू ्ि्य जगि्िावावार जंगिं रीिन नारायान्वािी जग्पिनरभई्वरहु : (पदि पराणु ) dsa bhūtamidaṁ tasya jagatsthvara jangamam hrīmannryaṇa swmī jagatnprabhurīhwaraḥ (Padma Puran) “God is the Master of the entire creation; all moving and non-moving beings are his servants.” Material consciousness is characterized by the following manner of thoughts, “I am the proprietor of all that I possess. It is all meant for my enjoyment. I have the right to enhance my possessions and maximize my enjoyment.” The reverse of this is Spiritual consciousness, which is characterized by thoughts such as, “God is the owner and enjoyer of this entire world. I am merely his selfless servant. I must use all that I have in the service of God.” Accordingly, Shree Krishna instructs Arjun not to think of himself as the enjoyer of the fruits of his actions. This can be accomplished by controlling the senses (Ch.2.64 &65) and the desires (Ch.2.71).

राग्वॳषपवय्िॴ्िु ु पवषयातनन्ियॴचचरन ्| आ्िवचयॴपवगधॳया्िा रसादिथधग्छति || 64|| rga-dveha-viyuktais tu vihayn indriyaih charan tma-vahyair-vidheytm prasdam adhigachchhati Translation: But one who controls the mind, and is free from attachment and aversion, even while using the objects of the senses, attains the Grace of God. The entire downward spiral leading to ruin begins with contemplating happiness in sense objects. Now, the urge for happiness is as natural to the soul as thirst is to the physical body. It is impossible to think “I will not contemplate happiness anywhere,” because it is unnatural for the soul. The simple solution then is to envision happiness in the proper direction, i.e. in God. If we can repeatedly revise the thought that happiness is in God, we will develop attachment toward him. This divine attachment will not degrade the mind like material attachment; rather, it will purify it. God is all-pure, and when we attach our mind to him, the mind will also become pure. Thus, whenever Shree Krishna asks us to give up attachment and desire, he is referring only to material attachment and desire. Spiritual attachment and desire are not to be given up; in fact, they are most praiseworthy. They are to be cultivated and increased for purification of the mind. The greater the burning desire we develop for God, the purer our mind will become. The Jñnīs who propound the worship of the undifferentiated attributeless Brahman do not understand this point when they recommend giving up all attachments. However, Shree Krishna states: “Those who attach their minds to me with unadulterated devotion rise above the three modes of material nature and attain the level of the supreme Brahman.” (Bhagavad Gita 14.26) He repeatedly urges Arjun to attach his mind to God in many verses ahead, such as 8.7, 8.14, 9.22, 9.34, 10.10, 12.8, 11.54, 18.55, 18.58, 18.65, etc. Attachment and aversion are two sides of the same coin. Aversion is nothing but negative attachment. Just as, in attachment, the object of attachment repeatedly comes to one’s mindś similarly, in aversion, the object of hatred keeps popping into the mind. So attachment and aversion to material objects both have the same effect on the mind—they dirty it and pull it into the three modes of material nature. When the mind is free from both attachment and aversion, and is [FOR PRIVATE CIRCULATION] 27

absorbed in devotion to God, one receives the grace of God and experiences his unlimited divine bliss. On experiencing that higher taste, the mind no longer feels attracted to the sense objects, even while using them. Thus, even while tasting, touching, smelling, hearing, and seeing, like all of us, the sthita prajña is free from both attachment and aversion.

रसादॳ सवगद:ु खानां हातनर्य८पजायिॳ | रस्नचॳिस८ ्याश ु बपधु : पयगवति्ठिॳ || 65|| prasde sarva-duḥkhnṁ hnir asyopajyate prasanna-chetaso hyhu buddhiḥ paryavatihṭhate Translation: By divine grace comes the peace in which all sorrows end, and the intellect of such a person of tranquil mind soon becomes firmly established in God. Grace is like a divine energy that floods into a person’s personality. By grace, God who is sat-chit- nand bestows his divine knowledge, divine love, and divine bliss. This entrenches the intellect, like the North Star, in the love, bliss, and knowledge of God. By God’s grace, when we experience the higher taste of divine bliss, the agitation for sensual happiness is extinguished. Once that hankering for material objects ceases, one goes beyond all suffering and the mind becomes tranquil. In that state of internal fulfillment, the intellect becomes firm in its decision that God alone is the source of happiness and is the final goal of the soul. Previously, the intellect was accepting this only on the basis of knowledge as stated in the scriptures, but now it gets the experience of perfect peace and divine bliss. This convinces the intellect beyond any shadow of doubt, and it becomes steadily situated in God. पवहाय कािा्य: सवाग्पिांचचरतिु तन:्पहृ : | तनिगि८ तनरह्कार: स शान्ििथधग्छति || 71|| vihya kmn yaḥ sarvn pumnh charati niḥspihaḥ nirmamo nirahankraḥ sa hntim adhigachchhati Translation: That person, who gives up all material desires and lives free from a sense of greed, proprietorship, and egoism, attains perfect peace. In this verse, Shree Krishna lists the things that disturb one’s peace, and then asks Arjun to give them up - Material desires:. The moment we harbor a desire, we walk into the trap of greed and anger. Either way, we get trapped. So the path to inner peace does not lie in fulfilling desires, but instead in eliminating them. Greed.\:Firstly, greed for material advancement is a great waste of time. Secondly, it is an endless chase. In developed countries, very few people are deprived of enough to eat and wear, and yet they remain disturbed; this is because their hankering is still unsatisfied. Thus, those who possess the wealth of contentment possess one of the biggest treasures of life. Ego: Most of the quarrels that erupt between people stem from the ego. Mark H McCormack, author of What They Don’t Teach You At Harvard Business School writesŚ “Most corporate executives are one giant ego, with a couple of arms and legs sticking out.” Statistics reveal that a majority of executives, who lose their jobs in the senior management level, do so not because of professional incompetence, but because of interpersonal issues. The way to peace is not to nurture and increase pride, but to get rid of it. [FOR PRIVATE CIRCULATION] 28

Proprietorship: The feeling of proprietorship is based upon ignorance because the whole world belongs to God. We came empty-handed in the world, and we will go back empty-handed. How then can we think of worldly things as ours? A true Karmayogi knows that controlling the senses is very important.

किेन्ियाणण संय्य य आ्िॳ िनसा ्िरन ् | इन्ियािागन्विढा्िाू मि्याचार: स उ्यिॳ || 6|| karmendriyṇi sanyamya ya ste manas smaran indriyrthn vimūḍhtm mithychraḥ sa uchyate (Ch.3.6). Translation: Those who restrain the external organs of action, while continuing to dwell on sense objects in the mind, certainly delude themselves and are to be called hypocrites. Shree Krishna states in this verse that people who externally renounce the objects of the senses while continuing to dwell upon them in the mind are hypocrites, and they delude themselves. Attracted by the lure of an ascetic life, people often renounce their work, only to discover later that their renunciation is not accompanied by an equal amount of mental and intellectual withdrawal from the sensual fields. This creates a situation of hypocrisy where one displays an external show of religiosity while internally living a life of ignoble sentiments and base motives. Hence, it is better to face the struggles of the world as a Karma yogi, than to lead the life of a false ascetic. Running away from the problems of life by prematurely taking Sanys is not the way forward in the journey of the evolution of the soul. Saint stated sarcastically:

िन न रṅगायॳ ह८, रṅगायॳ य८गी कपआ जिवा बढाए य८गी धुतनया रिऔलॳ् , दहहया बढाए य८गी बतन गयॳलॳ बकरा mana na raṅgye ho, raṅgye yogī kapa jatav baḍhe yogī dhuniy ramaule, dahiy baḍhe yogī bani gayele bakar ] Meaning: “O Ascetic Yogi, you have donned the ochre robes, but you have ignored dyeing your mind with the color of renunciation. You have grown long locks of hair and smeared ash on your body (as a sign of detachment). But without the internal devotion, the external beard you have sprouted only makes you resemble a goat.” The Puranas relate the story of two brothers, Tavrit and Suvrit, to illustrate this point. The brothers were walking from their house to hear the hrīmad Bhgavatam discourse at the temple. On the way, it began raining heavily, so they ran into the nearest building for shelter. To their dismay, they found themselves in a brothel, where women of disrepute were dancing to entertain their guests. Tavrit, the elder brother, was appalled and walked out into the rain, to continue to the temple. The younger brother, Suvrit, felt no harm in sitting there for a while to escape getting wet in the rain. Tavrit reached the temple and sat for the discourse, but in his mind he became remorseful, “O how boring this is! I made a dreadful mistake; I should have remained at the brothel. My brother must be enjoying himself greatly in revelry there.” Suvrit, on the other hand, started thinking, “Why did I remain in this house of sin? My brother is so holy; he is bathing his intellect in the knowledge of the [FOR PRIVATE CIRCULATION] 29

Bhgavatam. I too should have braved the rain and reached there. After all, I am not made of salt that I would have melted in a little bit of rain.” When the rain stopped, both started out in the direction of the other. The moment they met, lightning struck them and they both died on the spot. The Yamadoothas (servants of the god of Death) came to take Tavrit to hell. Tavrit complained, “I think you have made a mistake. I am Tavrit. It was my brother who was sitting at the brothel a little while ago. You should be taking him to hell.” The Yamadoothas replied, “We made no mistake. He was sitting there to avoid the rain, but in his mind he was longing to be at the Bhgavatam discourse. On the other hand, while you were sitting and hearing the discourse, your mind was yearning to be at the brothel.” Tavrit was doing exactly what Shree Krishna declares in this verse; he had externally renounced the objects of the senses, but was dwelling upon them in the mind. This was the improper kind of renunciation. The next verse states the proper kind of renunciation. He therefore engages in actions by restraining his mind and the senses, unattached, directing his organs to work.

यन््वन्ियाणण िनसा तनय्यारभिॳऽजुगन । किेन्ियॴः किगय८गिस्िः स पवमश्यिॳ ॥ ३-७॥ yah tu indriyani mansa niyamya arbhate arjuna karmendriyaih karmayogam asaktah sah vishishyate (Ch.3.7). On the other hand, he who controls the senses by the mind and engages his active organs in works of devotion, without attachment, is by far superior. He overcomes in this way desires and is self contended, taking delight in the self alone Further Sri Krishna Says:

य््वा्िरतिरॳव ्यादा्िितिचचृ िानवः । आ्ि्यॳव च स्ि्ट्ि्यु कायं न पव्यिॳ ॥३-१७॥ yah tu atmaratir eva syat atmatriptah cha manavah atmani eva cha santushtah tasya karyam na viddyate (Ch.3.17). One who is, however, taking pleasure in the self, who is illumined in the self, who rejoices in and is satisfied with the self only, fully satiated—for him there is no duty. For him there is no interest whatsoever in performing actions or in not performing actions, nor does he depend upon any one for anything

नॴव ि्य कृ िॳनािो नाकृ िॳनॳह कचचन । न चा्य सवगभिॳषू ु कनचचदिग्यपारयः ॥३-१८॥ na eva tasya kritena arthah na akritena eha kaschan na cha asya sarvabhuteshu kaschit arthavya pashrayah (Ch.3.18). A self-realized man has no purpose to fulfill in the discharge of his prescribed duties, nor has he any reason not to perform such work. Nor has he any need to depend on any other living being. He thus performs his duty without attachment. Even the Lord Supreme is a true Karmayogi, for he also engages himself in actions, though there is nothing in the three worlds for Him to do or attain. He performs actions so that men would follow His example and also that worlds could be saved from disorder and confusion The ignorant acts with

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selfish motives, with attachment, while the wise act without attachment for the general welfare of the world (Ref. Gita - Ch.3.22, 23, 24 & 25). The sense of doership is another area of internal reform. The knower of the Gunas knows that all actions are caused by the triple qualities of nature (Ch.3.27) and therefore he remains detached (Ch.3.28). He surrenders all his actions to God, with His mind fixed on Him freed from expectations, attachment and mental agitations (Ch.3.29).It is not restraint of actions but restraint of the senses which is important (Ch.3.34). Even if the duty is of imperfect nature one should not abandon it and take up a new one for however imperfect the duty may be real fulfillment comes only by performing ones duty but not by avoiding it. Reincarnation and Karma: Two important tenets of Hinduism that guide one's actions and influence suffering are karma and reincarnation. Reincarnation essentially means to be born again. The body is like a set of clothes that the soul removes before putting on new clothing. From a Hindu viewpoint, one can be born as a human, an animal, an insect, or even a plant. What form the next incarnation takes depends on karma, and one can move up or down the hierarchy. If a person has lived a good life and performed more good deeds than bad, they are born into a more fortunate existence. Karma guides, how a Hindu lives, and each person's deeds both in current and past lifetimes determine what sort of rebirth they attain. Karma is a combination of cosmic and moral cause and effect that crosses lifetimes and life lessons learned for spiritual growth. There are three types of karma: karma from past lives that may or may not be experienced in the present lifetime, karma currently being created, and future karma or karmic experiences saved for a future lifetime. A devout Hindu will be non-violent on every level including the practice of . The ultimate goal after living many lifetimes is to be released from rebirth or to achieve moksha; and becoming one with Brahman. OUR WISE RISHIS OF LONG AGO desired to know the mysteries of life and death. What happens after death? Why is there so much happiness for some and suffering for others in a lifetime? The Gods revealed to the rishis in their deepest the answers to these puzzling questions. They revealed the laws of karma and reincarnation which are now two of Hinduism's most central beliefs. They capsulise our ancient religion's view of life, death and immortality. All Hindus know that they take many births and receive the results of their own actions in this and future lives. Karma is the law of action and reaction which governs life. The soul carries with it the mental impressions it received during its earthly life. These characteristics are collectively called the karma of the soul. Karma literally means "deed or act", and more broadly describes the principle of cause and effect. Karma is not fate, for God endowed his children with the power to act with free will. Esoterically, karma refers to the totality of our actions and their concomitant reactions in this and all previous lives, all of which determine our future. Try striking the top of a table with your bare knuckles? It would hurt, wouldn't it? The harder you strike, the more the pain. Action is followed by reaction. And, the reaction is equal to the action. In a similar way, if you cause pain to someone else, you can be certain that the same pain will come back to you. It may not return immediately, maybe not even during this lifetime. But it will return in your next life, or even in some life after that. When the reaction to your previous action of causing pain to another being does return to you, you will feel the same pain. If the pain inflicted was mental, mental pain will return. If the pain inflicted was emotional, emotional pain will return. If the pain inflicted was physical, physical pain will return. Be it mental, emotional or physical. That is why [FOR PRIVATE CIRCULATION] 31

even good people suffer. They may be paying for some action that was done in a past life. If you do good, too, the good will be returned to you somehow. Yes! Karma is the law of action and reaction which governs life. The soul reaps the effects of its own actions. If we cause others to suffer, then the experience of suffering will come to us. If we love and give, we will be loved and given to. Thus, each soul creates its own destiny through thought, feeling and action. Karma is a natural law of the mind, just as gravity is a law of matter. WHAT IS REINCARNATION? “Birth and death are doors through which you pass from one dream to another. Someone is born on Earth in France as a powerful king, rules for a time, then dies. He may be reborn in India, and travel in a bullock cart into the forest to meditate. He may next find rebirth in America as a successful businessman; and when he dreams death again, reincarnates perhaps in as a devotee of Buddha and spend his entire life in a lamasery… What is the difference? Each existence is a dream within a dream, is it not?” Paramhansa Yogananada Vivekananda also talks about “the doctrine of the Atman and the reincarnation of the soul; it maintains that innumerable individual souls, having taken body after body again and again, go round and round in the wheel of birth and death according to their respective Karmas; this is Samsâravâda, or as it is commonly called the doctrine of “Rebirth.” There are four basic principles involved in the explanation of Hindu doctrine of reincarnation. First is, the belief in the permanence of the essential self (Soul, Atma). Without this belief of Soul’s permanent nature, the discussion of reincarnation is meaningless. Second, the belief in (ignorance) which causes the self assumes an individuality of its own resulting in multiple births. Third, the belief in the concept of liberation (Moksha), Moksha implies that one has the potential to realize one’s own true self. It is considered the birthright of every Hindu to be liberated from human bondage and be united with the Brahman (God, the Supreme Spirit) provided one is released from the ignorance. Fourth, the law of Karma affects the theory of rebirth. According to this law, every action of the individual leads to an inevitable result, good or bad. The actions in the present life conditions future nature of birth the same way as the actions in the previous life impacted the present life. Life does not end at the death of the physical body. The body dies but the soul does not. It lives on in a counterpart of the physical body which is called the astral body. The astral body is made of astral matter and resides in a world not unlike this one, called the or Second world. In other words, in order to perfect itself, to spiritually unfold and evolve, the soul lives on in another body after death, the astral body. At the right time, according to its karma, it is reborn into a flesh body. Thus the astral body, with the soul within it, enters a new physical body. This same cycle is repeated many times until the soul spiritually unfolds and reaches a certain state of perfection or mature evolution. These repeated cycles of births and deaths are known as samsara. The soul passes from one physical body to another. Each time it does so, the Hindu says, the soul has reincarnated. This is the process to which the name "reincarnation" is given. Therefore, the Hindu does not believe in a single life on earth, followed by eternal joy or pain. Hindus know that all souls reincarnate, take one body and then another, evolving through experience over long periods of time. To a Hindu death is not fearsome. Like the caterpillar's metamorphosis into the delicate butterfly, death does not end our existence but frees us to pursue an even greater development. The soul never dies. It is immortal. Physical death is a most natural transition for the soul, which survives and, guided by karma, continues its long until it is one with its creator, God. Reincarnation is the natural cycle of birth, death & rebirth, called samsara.

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When we die, the soul leaves the first world physical body, it lives for a while in the Devaloka, the Second World, before returning again to earth, the Bhuloka or First World. THE MANY FACETS OF REINCARNATION Reincarnation is many-faceted. Through the ages it has been the great consoling belief within our religion, eliminating the inborn fear of death. Hindus do not fear death, nor do they look forward to it. Each one knows being is eternal. In stepping out of the physical body, consciousness continues in unbroken continuity in the astral body, its exact duplicate. In the Devaloka, mind continues, emotions continue, associations continue. There is no escape from life's experiences. We must re- experience the karma that we have created, be it joyous, painful or mixed. Suicide, for instance, only accelerates the intensity of one's karma, bringing a series of immediate lesser births and requiring several lives for the soul to return to the exact evolutionary point that existed at the moment of suicide, at which time the still-existing karmic entanglements must again be faced and resolved. Thus turns the slow wheel of samsara. MOKSHA: FREEDOM FROM REBIRTH The next question the Rishis asked the Gods: What must a person do if he wishes to reach the blissful state of union with God? Is there a state that not only confers upon us supreme, unbroken bliss, but also puts an end to pain, sorrow and suffering? Does this process of reincarnation go on forever? The Gods explained: No. Each time the soul takes on a new body, it get closer and closer to becoming perfect. To gain a better birth each time, one must live according to the natural laws that Hinduism proclaims and live out the karma in this life positively and fully while at the same time refraining from creating painful new karmas. After a number of such excellent incarnations, and after God-realization has been attained, the soul body becomes mature enough that it no longer needs to take a physical incarnation. Instead, it continues its evolution on inner planes of consciousness. This release from samsara is called Moksha. The soul is said to be freed from the bondage of birth and death. So, we can see that the goal of a Hindu's life is to halt the process of births and death. Life's ultimate goal is not money, not clothes, not sex, not power, not food or any other of the instinctive needs. These are natural pursuits, to be sure, but our real purpose on this earth is to know, to love and to serve God and the Gods. This will eventually lead us to the rare and priceless object of life, which is now called by many names "Enlightenment, Liberation, Self-Realization, God-Realization, Nirvikalpa Samadhi and finally Moksha. After many lifetimes of wisely controlling the creation of karma and resolving past karmas when they return, the soul is fully matured in this love and trust in God and the Gods and their goodness, and in the knowledge of these divine laws and the wise use of them. Therefore there is no longer a need for physical birth, for all lessons have been learned and all karmas fulfilled. That individual soul is then naturally liberated, freed from the cycle of birth, death & rebirth on this planet. After Moksha, it was revealed to our rishis, our soul continues its evolution in the inner worlds, eventually to merge into God as a drop of water merges with its source, the ocean. MOKSHA IN SUMMARY Moksha comes when all extraneous karmas have been resolved and God has been fully realized. This means that before Moksha, the soul must have gone through all the experiences of life in the physical world. Once having faced in the spirit of love and understanding all of these various and varies experiences, Moksha comes and marks the way-station where the liberated soul is free from rebirth. When our soul has sufficiently evolved and undergone all necessary karmas in this physical universe and God-Realization has been attained, it will not return to the First World. All the worlds

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rejoice when an old soul is freed from samsara, the cycle of birth, death and rebirth. Moksha is sought for and is expected to be attained by every Hindu. But every Hindu does not expect that it will necessarily come in this present life, even though it is sought for as the ultimate goal. Hindus know this and do not delude themselves that this life is the last. Seeking and attaining profound spiritual realizations, they nevertheless know that there is much to be accomplished on the earth and that only a rare few attain Moksha. One can know past and future births. By getting rid of desire, one can put an end to birth altogether; this great truth all Hindus know. "In all my births with me God stayed. My present birth God will terminate. To make me free of future births God gave His grace to me." Hinduism affirms that is possible for every person on earth to reach Moksha - to be free from rebirth. The great beauty of Hinduism lies in professing hope and promise for all, regardless of their differences. There is no terrifying state such as "eternal damnation" in Hindu doctrine. No one is damned. We have the glorious example of , who was once a plunderer and murderer of the vilest type. He changed his ways for the good. Through the power of God he became a sage and gave to the world the immortal , one of the great epic poems of Hinduism. Hinduism is so broad. Within it there is a place for the insane. There is a place for the saint. There is a place for the beggar and for those who support beggars. There is a place for the intelligent person and plenty of room for the fool. The beauty of Hinduism is that it does not demand of every soul perfection in this life, a necessary conclusion for those who believe in a single lifetime during which human perfection or grace must be achieved or all is lost. Belief in reincarnation gives the Hindu an acceptance of every level of humanity. Belief in karma gives the Hindu caution, foresight and wisdom in handling the affairs of life. There are one billion Hindus in the world today. Hinduism attends to the needs of each one. It is the only religion in the world today that has such breadth, such depth. Hinduism contains the Deities and the sanctified temples, the esoteric knowledge of inner states of consciousness, yoga and the disciplines of meditation. It possesses a gentle compassion and a genuine tolerance and appreciation for all religions. It believes in a just world in which every soul is guided by karma to the ultimate goal of Moksha. It rests content in the knowledge of the Divine origin of the soul, its passage through one life and another until maturity has been reached. It offers guidance to all who take refuge in it, from the non-believer to the most evolved Rishis. It cherishes the largest storehouse of scripture and philosophy on the earth, and the oldest. It is endowed with a tradition of saints and sages, of realized men and women, unrivaled on the earth. It is the sum of these, and more which makes us boldly declare that Hinduism is the greatest religion in all the world.

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According to the Samkhya philosophy, the source all reality and experiences is Prakriti or nature. In its pure original forma, it is the Unmanifest (Avyaktam), primal resource, the sum total of the universal energy. Prakriti is without a cause, but the cause and source of all effects, "the ultimate basis of the empirical universe". Through a process of continuous evolution, it gradually manifests its latent potentials and effects into various forms, energies and elements in different planes of reality. Though it is the cause of all causes, it does not have any control on the or the individual soul without qualities and movement. The creative process (Shristi) begins, when Purusha, joins Prakriti and becomes established in it. Out of this process evolve 24 principles, which are: Mahath: the great principle (1) Buddhi: the discriminating, reasoning and causative intelligence (2) Ahankara: the ego-principle (3) Manas: the mind or the sixth sense (4) Panchendiryas: the five sense organs (9) Five Karmendriyas: the five organs of action (14) Five Tanmatras: the five subtle elements (19) Five Mahabhoothas: the five gross elements (earth, water, air, fire and ether)(24) These are the evolutes. The Mahat (the Great One), is the first to emerge in this process of evolution. The Mahath is Prakriti or the primordial nature in its dynamic aspect. From the Mahath evolves buddhi and Manas. Buddhi is the principle of intelligence or the discriminating awareness and Manas is the mind stuff consisting of pure consciousness. From Buddhi evolve Ahmkara or the feeling of individuality and separation and the five Tanmatras of sound, touch smell, form or color and taste. The rest of the principles arise from Manas, which are the five senses, the five organs of actions and the five gross elements. These are the 24 evolutes and together with the Purusha (individual soul) who joins with Prakriti to initiate this process, the number becomes 25. As one European commentator pointed out, Samkhya is "the most significant system of philosophy that India has produced." Its popularity in ancient India can be gauged from the fact the epic, the Mahabharata, , the Puranas and the Bhagavad Gita describe its main features though with some variations and sometimes without making a direct reference to this school. According to the Bhagavad Gita, the Purusha enters the Prakriti and manifests the entire creation. At the human level, the Purusha is compared symbolically with a man and the Prakriti with a woman. At the microcosmic level a union between the two indeed leads to the creation of a new being, which can be compared to the Hiranyagarbha (the golden embryo) at the microcosmic level. The concept of Prakriti as the source of material evolution, probably led to the popularity of the worship of Mother Goddess and led subsequently to the emergence of Tantricism during the post Gupta period.. Our Hinduism believes in many gods and goddesses. At the same time they also believe in the existence on one Supreme God, whom they call variously as Paramatman (Supreme Self), Parameshwar (Supreme Lord), Paramapitha (Supreme Father), Hiranyagarbha, Iswara, Maheswara, Bhagavan, Purusha, Purshottama and so on.

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God is one, but also many. He manifests Himself in innumerable forms and shapes. As Purusha (Universal Male), He enters Prakriti (Nature, Matter or Divine Energy) and brings forth the numerous worlds and beings into existence. He upholds His entire creation with His unlimited powers. He is both “the Known and the Unknown, the Being as well as the Non-Being, Reality as well as Unreality”. As the Unknown, He is rarely known and worshipped for difficult and painful is the path for those who choose to worship Him as the Unmanifest. In The Bhagavad-Gita XII, Sri Krishna says-.

यॳ ि ु सवागणण किागणण ितय सं्य्य ि्पराः । अन्यॳनॴव य८गॳन िां ्याय्ि उपासिॳ ॥१२-६॥

िॳषािहं सिधिागु ि्यृ संसारसागरािु ् । भवामि नथचरा्पािग िसयावॳमशिचॳिसाि ्॥१२-७॥ yetu sarvani karmanu mayi samyastha mataparah anyena eva yogana mam dhyayantah upasate tesham samuddharta mrutya samsaratsagarat bhavami nachirat partha mayi aveshita chetasam The Bhagavad-Gita XII.6 & 7 “For one who worships Me, giving up all his activities unto Me and being devoted to Me without deviation, engaged in devotional service and always meditating upon Me, who has fixed his mind upon Me, O son of Pth, for him I am the swift deliverer from the ocean of birth and death.” It is explicitly stated here that the devotees are very fortunate to be delivered very soon from material existence by the Lord. In pure devotional service one comes to the realization that God is great and that the individual soul is subordinate to Him. His duty is to render service to the Lord-if not, then he will render service to My. The Supreme Lord herein promises that He will without delay deliver a pure devotee thus engaged from the ocean of material existence. In the Varha Purṇa this verse appears:

नयामि परिṁ ्िानि अथचगराहद-गतिṁ पवना गुड-्क्धि आर८तय यिॳ्छि अतनवाररिḥ naymi paramaṁ sthnam arcirdi-gatiṁ vin garuḍa-skandham ropya yatheccham anivritaḥ The essence of this verse is that a devotee does not need to practice Ahṭṅg-yoga in order to transfer his soul to the spiritual planets. The responsibility is taken by the Supreme Lord Himself. He clearly states here that He Himself becomes the deliverer. A child is completely cared for by his parents, and thus his position is secure. Similarly, a devotee does not need to endeavor to transfer himself by yoga practice to other planets. Rather, the Supreme Lord, by His great mercy, comes at once, riding on His bird carrier Garuḍa, and at once delivers the devotee from this material existence. Although a man who has fallen in the ocean may struggle very hard and may be very expert in swimming, he cannot save himself. But if someone comes and picks him up from the water, then he is easily rescued. Similarly, the Lord picks up the devotee from this material existence. One simply has to practice the easy process of Kṇa consciousness and fully engage himself in devotional service. Any intelligent man should always prefer the process of devotional service to all other paths. [FOR PRIVATE CIRCULATION] 36

The conclusion of Bhagavad-Gīt is stated in the Eighteenth Chapter:

सवगधिाग्परर्य्य िािॳकं शरणं रज । अहं ्वां सवगपापॳ्य८ ि८षतय्यामि िा शचःु ॥१८-६६॥ sarva-dharmn parityajya mm ekaṁ araṇaṁ vraja ahaṁ tvṁ sarva-ppebhyo mokayiymi m ucaḥ. Bhagavad-Gīt – 18.66 One should give up all other processes of self-realization and simply execute devotional service in Kṇa consciousness. That will enable one to reach the highest perfection of life. There is no need for one to consider the sinful actions of his past life because the Supreme Lord fully takes charge of him. Therefore one should not futilely try to deliver himself in spiritual realization. Let everyone take shelter of the supreme omnipotent Godhead Kṇa. That is the highest perfection of life. He exists in all and all beings exist in him. There is nothing other than Him, and there is nothing that is outside of Him. He is Imperishable, unknowable, immortal, infinite, without a beginning and without an end. All the same when worshipped with intense devotion and unshakeable faith, He responds to the calls of His devotees and comes to their aid and rescue. All the gods and goddess are His manifestations only. In His female aspect He is Shakti, who as the Divine Universal Mother assists the whole creation to proceed through the process of evolution in Her own mysterious ways. The relationship between man and God is purely personal and each can approach Him in his own way. There are no fixed rules and no central controlling authority on the subject of do's and don'ts. There are of course Scriptures and Smrithis but whether to follow them or not is purely an individual choice. The concept of is not new to Hinduism. It is as old as the Vedas themselves. References to One indivisible and mysterious God are found in the itself. The concept is the central theme of all the Upanishads in which He is variously referred as Brahman, Iswara, Hiranyagarbha, Asath etc. Krishna explains the perfection of karma yoga in the ninth chapter of the Bhagavad Gita: “Whatever you do, whatever you eat, whatever you offer or give away, and whatever austerities you perform— do that, O son of Kunté, as an offering to Me.” (Bhagavad Gita 9.27)

य्कर८पष यदचनामस य्जुह८पष ददामस यि ् । य्िप्यमस क९्िॳय ि्कु ु्व िदपगणि ्॥ ९-२७॥ yat karoshi yat ashnasi yat juhosi dadasi yat yat tapasyasi kaunteya tat kurushva madarpanam “O son of Kuntī, all that you do, all that you eat, all that you offer and give away, as well as all austerities that you may perform, should be done as an offering unto Me.” Thus, it is the duty of everyone to mold his life in such a way that he will not forget Kṇa in any circumstance. Everyone has to work for maintenance of his body and soul together, and Kṇa recommends herein that one should work for Him. Everyone has to eat something to live; therefore he should accept the remnants of foodstuffs offered to Kṇa. Any civilized man has to perform some religious ritualistic ceremonies; therefore Kṇa recommends, "Do it for Me," and this is called arcan. Everyone has a tendency to give something in charityś Kṇa says, "Give it to Me," and this means that all surplus money accumulated should be utilized in furthering the Kṇa consciousness [FOR PRIVATE CIRCULATION] 37

movement. Nowadays people are very much inclined to the meditational process, which is not practical in this age, but if anyone practices meditating on Kṇa twenty-four hours by chanting the Hare Kṇa mantra round his beads, he is surely the greatest yogī, as substantiated by the Sixth Chapter of Bhagavad-Gīt. So the ultimate conclusion of karma yoga is do everything as an offering to the Lord. The Bhagavad Gita concludes with Lord Krishna’s demand that we surrender unto HimŚ “Abandon all varieties of religion and just surrender unto Me. I shall deliver you from all sinful reactions. Do not fear.” What is a Runa (debt)? Certain concepts & traditions were developed by our old generation. Now, we in the guise of modernization discard them without understanding what they are. What is Runa? It is not at all easy to understand what Runa is. In fact, one has to realize what it is. Runa is a Sanskrit word and it means a debt in that language. In fact, it isn't mere a debt arising out of a monetary transaction but it's something more too. Its usage on several other occasions gives rise to different feelings. Indebtedness need not be always necessarily monetary. It can be otherwise too. One can be indebted to other on account of making available services and helpful in all possible ways too. When there is nobody to take care, if one serves other when they are seriously ill and hospitalized and takes care of their children at home too, it is a great service. In fact, some render such services and assistance so much that it is impossible to either quantify or evaluate them at all. In such, instances one can only remain indebted to service provider. Such a service or help could not be reciprocated at all and indebtedness remains unsettled. Runa prevails and creates a sense of gratitude in one who has been benefited. When one feels that it is impossible to settle indebtedness, they shed tears of gratitude having no other recourse to settle Runa. Sometimes one is not even aware how much they owe to whom, and why. Whenever one is unable to settle their indebtedness, they feel guilty and become restless also. Settlement of Runa is a very difficult task. Once the feeling that we are indebted to somebody arises in us, it is hard to drive it out. We remain grateful to them. Some deliberately do not insist on repayment because they want others to be in their Runa. Further, they think that one who is in their Runa is generally obliged to them. One who is in Runa does not generally command much respect and is treated with scant respect too. Those who are in Runa generally suffer from inferiority complex. In fact, Runa haunts us until it is fully settled to our satisfaction. We can pun with the word “Runa”. always used to tell us that we should not be in anybody’s “Runa”. Further, they used to opine that if we do not settle that score during our lifetime, we have to take birth again as a servant in their household. They used to point out at animals, like oxen, horse, dog etc and it is the belief that it is all due to non-settling of indebtedness (Runa) during previous lifetime, they are working for us now. That which is done without any obligation is “Runa”. Whatever good that whosoever does it in whatever form to us we should be indebted to them. If somebody does something good knowingly or unknowingly which is helpful to us, it is “Runa” only. We should note and try to help in return; otherwise, we would be in their “Runa". There are two types of Runa. One type of Runa can be settled and other type of Runa cannot be settled at all According to Hind Dharma, a person when born in this world is born with Runas. These Runa if not properly handled and cleared, rebounces to us in every births giving us what we have returned and snatching from us what we have not returned earlier. In other words, if a person fails to fulfill his/her promises or cheats others (money, marriage, properties or commitments), then this person will have to born again to complete the task. That is, the Person will be surrounded by the affected peoples in the form of wife, husband, children, relatives, friends, neighbours, business-partners, known or [FOR PRIVATE CIRCULATION] 38

unknown peoples during the current lifetime. Thus you need to settle down every obligation before you complete your lifetime. Everyone must understand that any unfinished commitments would get carried over to your next birth. The concept of payment and recovery of debts called Runas was a traditional practice existed in Ancient India also. "Which debt must be paid, and which may not be paid, by whom, where and in what way to be paid, and the rules governing advancing and recovering of loans constitute the title Runadanam (Payment of Debts)”. Here is something every Human being should know. Man ought to live in harmony with his surroundings to elevate himself above nature and finally attain the state of Emancipation. That is the end of religion. In his endeavor, he needs and is needed by many sections of the society. The great Rishis of Bharathavarsha, to whom we are all so indebted, gave us the knowledge in form of rules - which by incorporating into our lifestyle, our purpose of birth is achieved. Philosophy behind obligation to repay the debts:- The law imposing the liability to repay the debt incurred by a person has a philosophical origin. The concept of and the duty to repay it emanates from the Vedas. In the Vedic literature, the duty to pay off one’s debts has been clearly laid down. But the idea of debt (Runa) was not understood in the sense of payment of money or loan taken from another. It was understood as an obligation of an individual to the source from which every type of benefit was received by him including his own coming into existence. According Hinduism, A man when born in this world is born with Pancha Runa [five debts] 1. Pitru Runa [debt towards the father ] 2. Dev Runa [debt towards ] 3. Rushi Runa [debt towards preceptors] 4. Manushya Runa [debt to the society] 5. Bhootha Runa [debt towards the elements /environment] There is another most important Runa is called Mathru Runa [debt towards the Mother]: Mathru Runa does not get cleared at all. One can never repay what a mother does to her child. We are all ever indebted to a mother for having brought us into this world bearing all the pain and nourishing us selflessly. Of all the Runas, Pitru Runa is the most important. That does not mean that one can neglect the other. It only means that more emphasis is laid on Pitru Runa. Without Pitru (Parents) the very existence on this earth would not have been possible. Devatas are for all the Panchabhoothas, rains, nature etc. and Rishis are for giving us Puranas, shastras, , Vedas, etc. Manushya is to the society at large and Bhoothas are to insects, birds, animals, etc. Of these, the Runa of parents cannot be paid back easily and is virtually impossible. Hence one needs to at least do to them, listen and adhere to their words and give them a lot of respect. This is the least one can do to them. Our Puranas also show that one can attain moksha just by doing Seva to parents.

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Seva to Parents – Way of Moksha Among the easiest ways of attaining salvation or moksha is serving our parents with love and devotion. Our parents gave us birth and took care of us and educated us and made us fit to face life. We are indebted to them for the gift of life and it is very difficult to repay them. In the natural progression of life, when we were small and incapable, they took care of us and when they grow old and incapable, we must take care of them. Loving our parents and serving them is not a difficulty. It is a pleasurable means of repaying to a small extent what has been done unto us when we needed help. The ancient texts teach us: Mathru Devo Bhava, Pitru Devo Bhava – the mother is God, the father is God. When we see God in our parents and serve them with love, we are on a fast track to salvation. Divinity itself honors and takes care of us when we take care of our parents. This is the story of Pundarika and his Seva to his parents which was his short-cut to moksha or salvation. Pundarika was the spoilt son of good parents. He was addicted to gambling, drinking and women. His parents tried to correct him but it was of no use. In anger, he drove them out of the house and sold whatever was possible and continued enjoying life. Once his money was gone, the prostitute left him and his friends deserted him. In sorrow he wandered about in the nearby forest and it was evening time when he saw an ashram. He was about to enter it when he saw three very ugly women enter the ashram. They were covered with sores and pus and were utterly filthy. He saw them move around the ashram and clean it. Then they entered the hut and came out in a short time. They were transformed into radiant beautiful women. Pundarika was attracted to them and stepped forward to talk to them. Seeing him, all three turned into their former ugly sick selves. He was shocked at this and sought an explanation. The three women said that they were , and Saraswathi rivers. People came and bathed in their pure waters and left the filth of their karma in them and purified themselves. They came to this ashram where Kukutta Muni lived and served his parents. They served the Muni and cleaned his ashram and before leaving they had his Dharshan. The radiance of goodness of the Muni who served his parents, cleansed them and helped them to attain their former purity. The next evening they were back carrying the filth and karma of millions who bathed in them to serve the Muni and purify themselves. Pundarika was extremely shocked at the bad karma he had incurred. He had seen for himself that his sins alone were more than equal to the bad karmas of millions who bathed daily in the three holy rivers. He was very remorseful at the wrong he had done to his parents. He searched for them and found them. He took them back home and began to take care of them with love and dedication. His mind was always fixed on Sri Krishna and his hands and body served his parents. His smaran of the Lord and his selfless Seva pulled the Lord to him like a powerful magnet which attracts iron bars. Pundarika never had time to visit the temple. So the Lord came to his home to see him. He knocked at the door and Pundarika answered saying: O Lord please wait as I am massaging my father’s feet. The Lord repliedŚ It is raining here. So Pundarika threw a brick outside and the Lord stood on it to keep His Feet from getting wet. After the massage, Pundarika was busy cooking, cleaning, washing, drawing water and completing other tasks. Pundarika’s father woke up and asked who had called out. Pundarika replied that Sri Krishna was waiting out. His father asked that the Lord be brought into their home. Sri Krishna granted moksha to his parents and also stayed back at the same place where He waited for His Bhakta – standing on a brick, with His Hands on His Hips. By the Grace of seva done to his parents, Pundarika attained salvation and attained the Feet of Sri Krishna. Even today, this figure of Sri Krishna is there in Pandharpur where the Lord came to visit Pundarika. Here the Lord is called Panduranga or Vitthala and from this centre countless Saints and

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spread the message of bhakti and principles of Santana Dharma i.e. – Hinduism. The dictum of honor thine parents are there in all religions. Even when we disagree with them, we must still respect and honor them, take care of them and love them. In Bhaktanam Mahatmyam (The Glory of the Devotees) Bhishma figures in list of great devotees as given below sloka. -NARADA-PARASARA-PUNDARIKA-VYASA-AMBARISA-SUKA-SAUNAKA- BHISMA-DALBHYAN - VIBHISANA-PHALGUNA ADIN PUNYANI IMAN PARAMA BHAGAVATAN MANAMI (SRI PADYAVALI-52, TADBHAKTANAM MAHATMYAM) "Prahlada, Narada, Parasara, Pundarika, Vyasa, , Sukhadeva Gosvami, Saunaka Rsi, Bismadeva, Balbhya Rsi, Rukmangada, Uddhava, Vibhisana, Arjuna, etc. to all of these great personalities, I pay my humble obeisances. " Meaning: To the saintly devotees of the Lord, headed by Prahlada, Narada, Parasara, Pundarika, Vyasa, Ambarisa, Suka, Saunaka, Bhisma, Dalbhya, Rukmangada, Uddhava, Vibhisana, and Arjuna, I offer my respectful obeisances. - Sri Daksinatya

Aadi Shankara, the great Advaita philosopher, believed that the whole world is Maya (illusion). It is like dream. Ignorance (Avidya) of the real nature of life has trapped one into this cycle of birth, death and rebirth. After repeated births, one would realize that the real happiness (Amanda) does not come from this physical body but only through higher forms of spiritual experience. Thus, Aadi Shankara begs Lord Krishna to redeem us from samsara in his composition entitled “:”

पनरपपु जननं पनरपपु िरणं पनरपपु जननी जठरॳ शयनि ् । इह संसारॳ बहुद्िारॳु कृ पयाऽपारॳ पाहह िरारॳु .. ॥ बाजग८पव्दि ् २२. pun arapi jananam punarapi maranam punarapi jananii jathare shayanam iha samsaare bahudustaare kripayaa apaare paahi muraare. Bhaja Go.vindam 22 (“Born again, death again, birth again to stay in the mother’s womb! It is indeed hard to cross this boundless ocean of samsara. Oh Murari! Redeem me through Thy mercy.”). The question is how do we redeem ourselves from the cycle of birth, death and rebirth? According to Aadi Shankara only the knowledge of the saintly seer can bring that Moksha (salvation) which recognizes the close relationship between self and the universe, Atman and Brahman, soul and God, and the merging or absorption of the part in the whole. Only when this absorption is complete, the cycle of birth and rebirth stops. Once they merge into Brahman, they will enjoy the eternal bills: “This is a place of intensely spiritual atmosphere, whose inhabitants live, free from disease, old age, and death, enjoying uninterrupted bliss in the companionship of the Deity.” Till then, everything is Maya (illusion). In Bhagavad Gita, The Lord warns Arjuna and thereby mankind of all time, that self-destruction and dire annihilation alone will be the result, if man ventures to stand against this mighty wheel of action.

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एवं रवतिगिं चिं नानविगयिीहु यः । अघायररन्ियाराि८ु ि८घं पािग स जीवति ॥ भगवद गीिा ३-१६॥ evam pravartitam chakram na anuvartayati iha yaha aghayu indriyaramo mogham partha sah jivati Bhagavad Gita 3.16

“O son of Pth (Arjuna)*, a man who does not follow this prescribed Vedic system of sacrifice certainly leads a life of sin, for a person delighting only in the senses lives in vain.” *Kuntī's another name is Pth. Kuntī's father's name was Pthu, so Kuntī's name was Pth. Therefore Arjuna's name was Prtha. Having come into this world if man does not do what is expected of him, his advent amounts to nothing. As a drone, he drags on a wretched existence. He is no asset, but a burden and dead weight to society. A student who declines to be educated does not derive the benefit of his being schooled. Instead of fulfilling, a human being has no right to frustrate the divine plan and purpose of nature. Only if the individuals are perfect, the community works smoothly. Man ought to be a fulfillment and not a failure in life. Such a man lives in vain, indeed.

य््वा्िरतिरॳव ्यादा्िितिचचृ िानवः । आ्ि्यॳव च स्ि्ट्ि्यु कायं न पव्यिॳ ॥ भगवद गीिा ३-१७॥ yah tu atmaratir eva syat atmatriptah cha manavah atmani eva cha santushtah tasya karyam na viddyate Bhagavad Gita 3.17 One who is, however, taking pleasure in the self, who is illumined in the self, who rejoices in and is satisfied with the self only, fully satiated—for him there is no duty.” But, the man who rejoices only in the Self, who is satisfied with the Self, who is content in the Self alone, for Him, verily there is nothing (more) to be done. The wheel-of-action explained above is generally applicable to the majority of seekers; actions in the world, undertaken in a spirit of Yagna integrate their personality and make them more and more prepared for the highest vocation in life, meditation. Through selfless work, an individual gains an increasing amount of inner poise and when such a single-pointed-mind is brought to function at the meditation seat, the meditator gains the experience of transcending his limited ego. To such a perfected one, work is not a training to purify himself but it is a fulfillment of his own God-realisation. DO WE NEED RITUALS? It is not uncommon for people to question the need for performing host of rituals prescribed in the Sastras. In modern days people leading very fast and hectic life have neither the time nor the temperament to engage in any of the rituals or rites that involves performing religious functions, pujas or sacred ceremonies set to religious codes of actions. Their woes get compounded by the Sanskritised hymns and the verses used in the performance of the rituals, as they have no clues to know the underlying meanings of the hymns and hence render the whole procedure a mechanical one. Vedic rituals, like the 'Yagna' and '', as said are "attempts to fulfill the purpose of creation and elevate the status of man to that of godhead or a cosmic man". Puja is essentially a

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ritual suggestive of symbolic offering of our lives and activities to God. Every object associated with the ritual of Puja or worship is symbolically significant. Athmic awareness is an inward experience. As for the rituals are concerned, they are outward actions. The question is how rituals will help experiencing the Self. Answering this question, the Kanchi Seer Shri Chandrashekarendra Saraswathi Mahaswamigal has categorically stated that there is no need for performing any rituals for those who have realized the Self. But we must honestly ask ourselves whether we have truly realized it; whether we are mature enough for realization, whether we have become inwardly pure. The reality is that we are all far from becoming mature for awareness of the Self. Through series of births, we have concealed the bliss of knowing the Self. Therefore, by conducting good rites, and by associating ourselves with noble objects, we have to cast away the evil influences sticking to us from our past lives. Such an attitude will put an end to karma itself and we will embark on Athmic inquiry. Until then we have to perform what are called "mere" rituals So what is the use of performing "mere" rituals? With this, we will acquire concentration of mind, discipline, non-attachment, the will power, and humility. Overall, it will help us to live a moral life. Without this moral conduct, there can never be Athmic inquiry and Athmic experience. Significance of Rituals in Hinduism In Hinduism, rituals are meant to inculcate feelings of devotion and religiosity and thereby bring God and spirituality into the center human life. As a part of his householder’s responsibilities, a devout Hindu is expected to perform certain rituals every day starting from morning till evening. Some people do not like to use the word rituals to denote Vedic religious activities since the word ritual implies certain mechanical attitude and lack of serious involvement. Vedic sacrifices are integrated into human life and although they are meant to be performed with certain regularity, their ultimate purpose is not mere observance but transformation of the mind and body so that the person becomes a fit vehicle to manifest the intent and purpose of God in creation. Hindu ritual and sacrificial ceremonies are many. However, they primarily involve sacrificial offerings to gods, beings, departed souls, humans and other living beings. The offerings are made on daily, weekly, monthly or annual basis. Some offerings are made on specific occasions that come only once in a lifetime. Such offerings are meant to be made without claiming reciprocal advantages as a service to God and his manifestations. In Hinduism, rituals are meant to inculcate feelings of devotion and religiosity and thereby bring God and spirituality into the center human life. As a part of his householders responsibilities, a devout Hindu is expected to perform certain rituals every day starting from morning till evening. Some people do not like to use the word rituals to denote Vedic religious activities since the word ritual implies certain mechanical attitude and lack of serious involvement. Vedic sacrifices are integrated into human life and although they are meant to be performed with certain regularity, their ultimate purpose is not mere observance but transformation of the mind and body so that the person becomes a fit vehicle to manifest the intent and purpose of God in creation. Hindu ritual and sacrificial ceremonies are many. However, they primarily involve sacrificial offerings to gods, beings, departed souls, humans and other living beings. The offerings are made on daily, weekly, monthly or annual basis. Some offerings are made on specific occasions that come only once in a lifetime. Such offerings are meant to be made without claiming reciprocal advantages as a service to God and his manifestations.

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The Vedas speak about things not comprehended by the human mind. Performing the rites prescribed by the Vedas, the fruits will naturally follow. The consequences of good deed will be only good and that of evil deed will be evil only. There are three types of karma:"Nithya-karma", "Naimittika-karma", and "Kamya-karma". Nithya-karma includes sacraments that must be performed dally. (Like , Oupasana, Daily Puja, Prayers, Chanting Mantras and Slokas, etc.) Naimittika rites are conducted for a specific purpose or reason or on a specific occasion. For example, we observe fasting on auspicious days Vritha like Ekadasi, Shashti etc. as also on Pithrupaksha Thithies. We offer libations to our ancestors or rejoice on Deepavali day and so on. Nithya and Naimittika rites are to be performed by all. A Kamya-karma is a ritual that has a special purpose. When there is drought, we conduct - to invoke the god and seek His favour in the form of rain. People undertake Anghapradakshnam by way of a vow for seeking favour of the god in the accomplishment of their desires. These belong to the Kamya-Karma category.

'िाि ृ दॳव८ भव। पपि ृ दॳव८ भव। आचायग दॳव८ भव। अतिथि दॳवं भव।' - िॴन्िरीय उपतनष् ११.२ “Mathru Devo Bhava, Pitru Devo Bhava”, Taiitthrieya Upanishad 11.2, Meaning: Respects to Mother, Father, Guru and Guest. They are all forms of God. So Pithrukarmas are equally important as Devakarmas. - Most of the used to follow complex rituals in connection with major events in their lives, such as pregnancy, childbirth, education, marriage, and death. Although, the number of major Samskaras fluctuates between 12 and 18 in the Grhya Sutras, later, it became 16 in number generally known as "Shodasha Samskaras". They are: Pre-natal – , , Simanatonayana (3) Childhood - Jathakaranam, , , Annaprasm, , .(6) Educational – Vidyarambha, , Vedarambha, , Ritusuddh Samavartana.(6) Marriage – Vivaha.(1) Last Anthyeshti (on Death) Non-performance of Nithya-karmas like Sandhyavandhanams, Oupasana etc. is sinful, but its performance is not claimed to bring any good. It is because they are not Kamya or optional rites and their non-performance will bring you unhappiness. Next, we have the instances of worshiping the deity in a temple, undertake pilgrimage, feeding the poor, giving alms to beggars or give a donation to some Organisation, all in the belief that there is merit to be earned thereby. By not doing, any such deeds cannot be said is sinful. According to the Taiitthrieya of Krishna Yajur Veda says,

जायिान८ वॴ रा्िणन्रमभर ् ऋणवा जायिॳ र्िचयेण ऋपष्य८ यञॳन दॳव्यः । रजया पपि्यृ एष वा अनण८यःृ परीु य्वा र्िचाररवासी िि ् अवदानॴर ् एव अवदयिॳ िि ्अवदानानाि ्अवदान्वं।॥ िॴन्िरीय संहहिा - ६ ३ १०.५ jayamano vai brahmanastribhir runava jayate brahmacharyena rushibhyo yaj~jena devabhyah prajaya pitrubhya esha va anruno yah [FOR PRIVATE CIRCULATION] 44

putrI yajva brahmacharivasI tat avadanair eva avadayate tat avadananam avadanatvam Taiitthrieya Samhita - 6.3.10.5 "A Brahmana on birth is born with a threefold debt, of Knowledge or Mantra (Brahmacharya) to the Rishis, debit of sacrifice (Yagna) to the Gods, of offspring to the Pithrus. He is freed from his debt who lived as a pupil, who performs Yagna (to the Gods) and has a son (Putra); this (debt) he returns (Avadayate) by these giving, and that is why the giving (Avadana) have their name." In other words, a Brahmin is born with three debts: viz. Rishi-Runa, -Runa, and Pithru-Runa. A Brahmin is indebted to the Sages, the Devas and the Ancestors. The first debt to the sages are repaid by chanting the Vedas; secondly, by conducting sacrifices, religious ceremonies, and other rites the debt to the Devas is repaid; and thirdly, by offering libations and performing the Shraadhas the debt to the Pithrus is repaid. It is pronounced in the Vedas that those who have faith will find reasons to perform the rites. Others who are perverse in their reasoning will find excuses for not performing the same. And further, in as much as he is bound to practice hospitality, for that reason he is born as (owing) a debt to men: hence when he harbours them, when he offers food to them, it is (in discharge of his debt) to them that he does so. Whoever does all these things, has discharged his duties: by him all is obtained, all is conquered." The “” 1.7.2.1-5 & 1.7.2.1-6 on gratitude to one's parents also enumerates these debts and adds a fourth debt - a debt unto mankind (Manushya Runa): [The atapatha Brhmaṇa ("Brhmaṇa of one hundred parts") is a prose text describing Vedic rituals, history and mythology associated with the ukla . The text describes in great detail the preparation of , ceremonial objects, ritual recitations, and the libation, along with the symbolic attributes of every aspect of the rituals.] Verily, whoever exists, he, in being born, is born as (owing) a debt to the gods, to the Rishis, to the fathers, and to men. For, inasmuch as he is bound to sacrifice, for that reason he is born as (owing) a debt to the gods: hence when he sacrifices to them, when he makes offerings to them, he does this (in discharge of his debt) to them 1:7:2:5 “Inasmuch as he is bound to practice hospitality, for that reason he is born as (owing) a debt to men: hence when he harbours them, when he offers food to them, it is (in discharge of his debt) to them that he does so. Whoever does all these things has discharged his duties: by him all is obtained, all is conquered. 1:7:2:6. And, accordingly, in that he is born as (owing) a debt to the gods, in regard to that he satisfies (ava-day) them by sacrificing; and when he makes offerings in the fire, he thereby satisfies them in regard to that (debt): hence whatever they offer up in the fire, is called Avadânam (sacrificial portion) (The word is really derived from ava-dâ (do), 'to cut off.' The Taitt. Br. gives the same fanciful etymological explanation of the term as here.) The text describes in great detail the preparation of altars, ceremonial objects, ritual recitations, and the Soma libation, along with the symbolic attributes of every aspect of the rituals. “In being born every being is born as debt owed to the gods, the saints, the Fathers and to men. If one makes a sacrifice, it is because of a debt owing to the gods from birth. . . If one recites a sacred text, it is because of a debt owing to the saints. . . If one wishes for offspring, it is because of a debt due to the fathers from birth….And if one gives hospitality, it is because it is a debt owing to men”.. - | Shatapatha Brahmana 1.7.12, 1-6]

िररिॳ द्वत्यंु सवगिात्यॳ परर द्यनॳहस८ व ऊियः सूूिय८ु व ऊियः || [FOR PRIVATE CIRCULATION] 45

िद्नाय िदपसॳ िं भागिपसॳदु षॳु | िररिाय च दपविाय च८ष८ द्वत्यंु वहानॳहस८ व ऊियः सूूिय८ु व ऊियः || यिा कलां यिा शफं यि रणं संनयािमस | एवा द्वत्यंु सवगिात्यॳ सं नयाि्यनॳहस८ व ऊियःसूूिय८ु व ऊियः || अजॴ्िा्यासनाि चाभिानागस८ू वयि | शिपिा र्िण - १ ७ १२ १-६ trite duvapnyaṃ sarvamptye pari dadmasyanehaso va ūtayaḥ suūtayo va ūtayaḥ || tadannya tadapase taṃ bhghamupasedue | tritya ca dvitya coo duvapnyaṃ vahnehaso va ūtayaḥ suūtayo va ūtayaḥ || yath kalṃ yath aphaṃ yatha ṇaṃ saṃnaymasi | ev duvapnyaṃ sarvamptye saṃ naymasyanehaso va ūtayaḥsuūtayo va ūtayaḥ || ajaimdysanma cbhūmnghaso vayam | Shatapatha Brahmana 1.7.12, 1-6 Meaning: “To him whose food and work is this, who comes to take his share therein, To Trita, and to Dvita, Dawn! Bear thou the evil dream away. As we collect the utmost debt, even the eighth and sixteenth part, So unto ptya we transfer together all the evil dream. Now have we conquered and obtained, and from our trespasses are free. Shine thou away the evil dream, O Dawn, whereof we are afraid. Yours are incomparable aids, and good the succour they afford.” “Let us drive away the evil effects of bad dreams, just as we pay off debts. “.- |Rig Veda 8.47.17] The logic behind the concept of the debts and their discharge is profoundly simple. Man enjoys the objects of nature created by God, and maintained by His deputies. Man becomes wise and learned by the Vedas and other texts of knowledge bestowed to us by the Rishis. Moreover, he owes his very life and living to his parents. Therefore, man is under a perpetual, lifetime debt which he can repay only in the prescribed ways of discharge before he can finally attain liberation. Man is also under an irrevocable obligation not just to enjoy but also conserve and preserve for posterity, the wealth and knowledge he has obtained. Our birth in this world is according to our past karma and we have to perform the rites accordingly. If we do not perform rites, we will suffer. The customs and rites must be adhered to properly. According to the Shastras, not doing the work assigned to us is not only sinful but also disadvantageous in a worldly sense. In the past, people earned their respect by doing the karma, the duties expected of them. Failures on the part of people to follow their respective rites and duties, inherited from their ancestors have resulted in the miserable state of our nation. If everyone does ones allotted job, carries out the duties expected of one by birth, there should be happiness for all. Vedic rituals are essential for purifying the inner soul and not for seeking temporary rewards like paradise. We must not be deflected from the higher path by the fruits yielded by karma. It is better that they be placed devotedly at the feet of the Lord. He will bless us with the higher fruit of inner purity and then the mind will get ready for Athmic inquiry, for the inward journey. That is the way to the supreme blessedness the quiescent state (stable) in which one is oneself. It is therefore imperative that all of us have to perform all the rituals and rites as prescribed in the Vedas and expected of us by birth. Equally important is that we place or return the fruits of our deeds at the feet of the Lord.

਺शा्रं रिाणं िनाया - सवगकिाग पालन ई्वरापगणि ्कु ु ।

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SHASTRAM PRAMANAM MANAYA- SARVAKARMA PALAN ISWARARPANAM KURU Mathru Devo Bhava; Pithru Devo Bhava; Aachaarya Devo Bhava; Athithi Devo Bhava; Worshipping these four categories is given highest significance and importance in Hindu Dharma. Among the four, Mathru (Mother) and Pithru (Father) Aachaarya (Guru) have attained greater prominence since they are the people who are responsible for our birth, culture (Samskara) and existence. Mathru-Pithru Seva (serving parents) when they are alive and performing Pithru Yagna after their departure has been prescribed as the best way to get discharged from Pithru Runa. It is believed that the souls will attain peace with sacred rituals/rites performed especially during Pithru Paksha and Pithrus will bestow their to those who perform for the welfare and prosperity of their Vamsam (dynasty). It is said that departed souls for whom these rituals/rites are not performed will wander aimlessly on Earth; embarrassed it will manifest in the form of Pithru dosha resulting in nagging problems/sufferings related to marriage, progeny, health, lack of growth and prosperity, nagging domestic problems etc. It is believed that performing sacred rites to ancestors will work as a remedy for Pithru dosha. It is said, also believed that one will be discharged from Pithru Runa by begetting a son (continuity of generation). by serving the Parents; by performing Pithru Yagna (sacred rites to forefathers). A son is known as Puthra. The word Puthra is a combined of two Sanskrit words Pu + Thra. “Pu” means “Punnaama” a name of loka (Hell) and “Thra” means to rescue. Therefore, Puthra means the one who rescues his parents and other ancestors from Punnaama Naraka. Ignoring ancestorsś Moola of one’s lineageś is like ignoring one’s own existence. Perhaps Pithru Yagna is one of the best traditions in Hinduism that have descended from Vedic days. In this materialistic modern world with changing perceptions, when Dharmic duties and responsibilities are slowly being vanished, it is disheartening that people do not even remember the names and Gothra of their ancestors. For such of those who cannot observe these rituals on a day- to-day basis, perhaps Paksha Maasa or Pithru Paksha comes as a boon to make up these lapses. MERITS OF LIFE: A person completing all duties of life leads to death with happiness. For the respect of its soul, if his/her grandsons are able shave their heads as a part of mourning, the soul attains a highest form of satisfaction. The Samskaras are rites of passage finding varied acceptance among religious adherents of Hinduism (Vedic), Jainism and some schools of thought in Buddhism. Sanskr is a commonly used Hindi pronunciation of the word and signifies "cultural heritage and upbringing" in modern speech The Samskara are a series of sacraments, sacrifices and rituals that serve as rites of passage and mark the various stages of the human life and to signify entry to a particular . Basically all these rituals are of the nature of purification, and they remove sins (Papa) and/or bestow good qualities (Gunas). Most of the Brahmins used to follow complex rituals in connection with major events in their lives, such as pregnancy, childbirth, education, marriage, and death. Although, the number of major Samskaras fluctuates between 12 and 18 in the Grhya Sutras, later, it became 16 (Hindi: sola) in number, generally known as "Shodasha Samskaras" (o daa a Saskra). Antim Samskar, the ritual associated with funeral. This Samskara is not mentioned in the lists of Samskaras in most of the Grhya Sutras and other texts that speak about Samskaras. The details and procedures of this rite are given in separate texts, dealing only with this topic in Grhya Sutras. The reason for leaving this rite out is that it is not considered as a pure and auspicious rite, and it should therefore not be mentioned along with the other pure, Samskaras [FOR PRIVATE CIRCULATION] 47

Every one has a great fear of death. Death makes people melancholy and they sink into misery. Everyone has to witness death some point in time during his or her life. At such a time hundreds of questions regarding the true nature of death may arise in a person’s mind. When he does not find any answers, he becomes perplexed. People have an ardent desire to discover the mystery surrounding death. A lot has been written on the topic, but it is all mere intellectual exercises. What is death? What was before this death? What is happening in the dying process? What happens after death? Who can talk about the experience of death? The dead cannot speak of their experiences. Those who are born do not have knowledge of their prior existence. No one knows what happens before birth and after death. That is why the mystery of how one passes through the time before, during and after death remains unsolved. When one learns about the facts surrounding death, his fears will be eased. Process of Dying: Everything is an illusion; life and death are two phases of the same energy. Death is not the end of life. Death itself is part of life, and life goes on. You have died many times, and still you are alive. Your life is eternal. Death is a small episode here and there, when you change your house, but the essential of your being remains the same. How many times you change houses does not matter, but it is inconceivable to the mind. There's no one exact way for all. How and when a person will leave his body and where he will go depends mainly on his Gunas and Karmas (joined with interventions by others through blessings, prayers, rites, etc.) Into the non-material heaven Vaikunda (Vishnuloka), goes a minimum people - those who are perfectly cleansed of all karmas (positive and negative). From there they don't return into the material world anymore. This is the perfection of life. Heaven, as it's usually understood, in the Vedic universe scheme refers to Swargaloka, subtle material dimension in this universe. It's accessible to people with very good Karmas and they remain there for relatively long time (even millions of earth years), but not permanently since even the material universe isn't permanent. These cases aren't usual nowadays in the West. Most of those who leave 'upward' get into a bit lower sphere, Pitru-loka, the dimension of ancestors, where they stay for some time (approximately from months to tens of years) before they again reincarnate on Earth. But many people nowadays go to lower than human level (animal, etc.) due to their negative Karma. If their Karma is really bad they go first to hellish dimensions or become ghosts. Also these existences are temporary yet the intensity of suffering gives them a semblance of almost eternity. A Sin is a deed (by speech, talk or act) which brings the performer further away from God. And good deeds bring one closer to God. Yes, but who is to say what is a good deed and what is a bad deed? What if a "bad" deed is, in the heart of the believer, not a bad deed? Perhaps you could explain how you understood his statement; it seemed completely clear to me. Here is a nice verse that might answer this question for you:

ि्िा्छा्रं रिाणं िॳ कायागकायग्यवन्िि९ । ञा्वा शा्रपवधान८्िं किग किुगमिहाहगमस ॥ भगवद गीिा १६-२४॥ tasmat shastram pramanam te karyakarya vyavasthitau gyatva vidhanoktam karma kartum iha arhasi -Bhagavad Gita, 16.24. [FOR PRIVATE CIRCULATION] 48

"One should therefore understand what is to be done, as well as what is forbidden, by the regulations of authoritative Sastra. Understanding the stated regulations of the Sastra, one should act accordingly." From accounts of dying persons coupled with the Sastric descriptions (mainly Vedanta , Bhagavad Gita, Puranas) these following things shall happen: - There is a strong loss of interest in life; a dull outlook on life and the world; the disappearance of the taste; all the close people seem very distant; a feeling of the inevitability of something; a desire to repent all the sins; the feeling of eternity. - Physical symptoms: the nose becomes thinner and sharper; the look becomes absent; facial gestures disappear; the body becomes unfamiliar and wooden. - Several days/hours before death the person enters the terminal phase. Often it has a form of terminal restlessness (a medicinal term, see below). He sees his dead ancestors and specific tivhika (escorting) Devatas and may communicate with them (which the hospital staff and relatives present there consider delusive). In other words, tivhika literally means ‘one who leads beyond’. After death, a jīva (individual soul) takes anyone of these three courses as per his karmas (deeds): Immediate rebirth Pithuloka- World of manes Sathyaloka or - The world of Brahm Journey to either of the last two worlds involve passing through some intermediate stations like Arcis (Beam of light; flame; Enlightening) Ahas (day), puryamṇa-paka (the bright fortnight) and so on. Though these appear to be physical realities, they really represent ‘tivhikas,’ the deities or divine guides who lead the Jīva to the next destination in its onward journey. - His body gradually turns cold starting from extremities. This is due to the detachment of the Prana and subtle senses, parts of the subtle body, from the gross body. "Unembodied are the wind and the clouds the lightning and the thunder. They are all without body. Issuing forth from yonder sky by the attainment of the great (solar) heat, they assume their respective forms. "Even like unto them, man, issuing forth from his body by the attainment of the Great Light, assumes his own genuine form. He is (then) the best of men. He then lords it with eating and playing, and enjoying with woman, or equipages, or relatives, without thinking of the body. Even as cattle are attached to an equipage, so is the Soul (Purṇa) attached to the body (Chhadndogya Upanishad - 8.12.2-3, Vedanta sutra 2.4.7-8, SB 4.28.23). - If the person is very attached to his body, he may remain in a coma for some time trying to postpone his exit. - The exit itself happens through various bodily orifices, as per one's karma and destination. (BG 14.18) What happens, in what sequence, when the soul leaves the human body? There's no one exact way for all. How and when a person will leave his body and where he will go depends mainly on his Gunas and karmas (joined with interventions by others through blessings, prayers, rites, etc.) [FOR PRIVATE CIRCULATION] 49

Into the non-material heaven, Vaikunda goes a minimum people - those who are perfectly cleansed of all karma (positive and negative). From there they don't return into the material world anymore. This is the perfection of life. Heaven, as it's usually understood, in the Vedic universe scheme refers to svargaloka, subtle material dimension in this universe. It's accessible to people with very good karma and they remain there for relatively long time (even millions of earth years), but not permanently since even the material universe isn't permanent. These cases aren't usual nowadays in the West. Most of those who leave 'upward' get into a bit lower sphere, pitriloka, the dimension of ancestors, where they stay for some time (approximately from months to tens of years) before they again reincarnate on Earth. But many people nowadays go to lower than human level (animal, etc.) due to their negative karma. If their karma is really bad they go first to hellish dimensions or become ghosts. Also these existences are temporary yet the intensity of suffering gives them a semblance of almost eternity. From accounts of dying persons and hospital staff coupled with the sastric descriptions (mainly Vedanta sutra, BG, Puranas) these things happen: There is a strong loss of interest in life; a dull outlook on life and the world; the disappearance of the taste; all the close people seem very distant; a feeling of the inevitability of something; a desire to repent all the sins; the feeling of eternity. Physical symptoms: the nose becomes thinner and sharper; the look becomes absent; facial gestures disappear; the body becomes unfamiliar and wooden. Several days/hours before death the person enters the terminal phase. Often it has a form of terminal restlessness (a medicinal term, see below). He sees his dead ancestors and specific ativahika (escorting) devatas and may communicate with them (which the hospital staff and relatives present there consider delusive). His body gradually turns cold starting from extremities. This is due to the detachment of the prana and subtle senses, parts of the subtle body, from the gross body (Chhadndogya Upanishad 8.12.2- 3, Vedanta sutra 2.4.7-8, SB 4.28.23). If the person is very attached to his body, he may remain in a coma for some time trying to postpone his exit. The exit itself happens through various bodily orifices, as per one's Karma and Destination.

ऊ्वं ग्छन्ि स््व्िा ि्यॳ ति्ठन्ि राजसाः । जघ्यगणवु न्ि्िाृ अध८ ग्छन्ि िािसाः ॥ भगवद गीिा १४-१८॥ urdham gachhanti satvasthah madhye tisthanti rajasah jaghanya gunavritisthah adhah gachhanti tamasah Bhagavad Gita 14.18 “Those situated in the mode of goodness gradually go upward to the higher planets; those in the mode of passion live on the earthly planets; and those in the mode of ignorance go down to the hellish worlds.” If the person is impious and quite sinful, the messengers of Yamaraja, called the Yamadoothas, fierce, horrible looking persons with twisted features copper red flaming hairs that stand on end, black in complexion and frightening to behold, appear at the deathbed of the person in question and drag him forcibly from his body with ropes and chains. This scene so frightens the person that he [FOR PRIVATE CIRCULATION] 50

literally dies of fright. They then pack up the subtle body of the person in a bag, where they take the soul, now covered only by the subtle body of mind, intelligence and false ego, to the abode of Yamaraja for judgment. He is taken over long stretches of hot, dry sands, and along the way he is insulted in various ways by other horrible creatures and bitten by dogs. He is suffering terribly on this journey and he wishes it would end. 2.2.8 says that those who commit suicide (and die a violent death in general) become ghosts. However, when it does end he is taken before Yamaraja, the fierce demigod in charge of death and punishing the sinful. He is forced to accept a position of suffering according to his sins in hell(s) which exist at the bottom of the universe, just above the Garbhodaka Ocean. In this hellish region called the Naraka, there are approximately 27 hellish places. He gets an airy, unbreakable body based on his specific karma (Garuda Purana 2.18.40) to suffer in. As an example of this, a person who has engaged in the slaughter and eating of other innocent animals will enter into Krimibhojana, wherein he will exist as a worm who is eating the tail of another worm as that worm is eating his tail. There are many such hells just according to the crimes committed. One may find the complete description in the last chapter of the 5th canto of the Srimad Bhgavatam. After such intense and horrible forms of suffering the living being is thrown again into the lower species of life just suited according to his sinful desires in his human life. However, persons who are not quite that sinful may expect a more peaceful departure from the body. At the time of death, death is denoted as the moment when the spirit soul departs from the material gross body. At that time the soul, covered by the subtle body of mind, intelligence and false ego, leaves the body. The subtle body always travels with the soul wherever he goes within this material world and therefore the living entity has a continuity of material experience throughout his different lifetimes. Death may come from a variety of causes, but when it actually happens the first thing that a person experiences is total blackness. All is dark, but this lasts only for a moment. The Super-soul, situated right next to the soul, illuminates a hole which appears to the soul to be a light at the end of a tunnel. In fact the darkness which appears is the body but now that it is dead it is devoid of consciousness and now we are seeing it from the inside for the first time. There are some 101 different passageways (Prasna Upanishad 3.6) through which one might depart from the body. One may only go through one of these at the time of death. These passageways are called nadis, or channels of consciousness. According to Garuda Purana 1.67 death occurs when both main (spine) nadis, Ida and Pingala are at work. Under normal conditions they switch. One might understand them to be the major nerve channels of channels of energy flow within the body, but the exact medical synonym is not available to us at this time. In any case one will depart from one of these nadis to his next destination. We do know that one who departs from the anus or genital goes to the lower regions, wherein one who departs from the upper portion of the body goes to the higher regions. Those who depart from the top of their skulls, from the hole known as the Brahma Randhra, the place where the three bones in the skull meet, will attain the regions of Brahman. Description of yogic death by merging the elements of one's body into Mahat- is given in SB 1.15.41-42, 2.2.30, 4.23.15-18, 7.12.30-31, Vs 4.2.15-16, etc. This process goes on in yogi's consciousness. Sridhara Swami speaks about giving up attraction to different sense objects (BG 2.67) and merging the sense into their objects (than-matras). [FOR PRIVATE CIRCULATION] 51

The Super-soul illuminates only one of these passageways according to the karma of the soul. He selects the passageway just according to the previous activities of the living entity and as soon as it is illuminated the soul naturally wants to move towards the light. As soon as he is out of the body, he feels relieved of the burden of the material frame and starts to move, naturally drawn towards his next form. He's lead by various guides called Aadivahika Devatas. Description is in Vedanta-sutra 4.2.7-4.3.16. At that time he will experience the world from the point of view of the subtle body and will see things much clearer than they are seen through the present body. Just try to imagine how much more beautiful the world must be when seen through spiritual eyes! Vedanta-sutra describes that not-too-sinful persons go to higher planets. According to Near Death experience (NDE) they may meet their departed relatives there. After time allotted by their karma, they must return to earth. In the process of sacrifice, the living entity makes specific sacrifices to attain specific heavenly planets and consequently reaches them. When the merit of sacrifice is exhausted, the living entity descends to earth in the form of rain, then takes on the form of grains, and the grains are eaten by man and transformed into semen, which impregnates a woman, and thus the living entity once again attains the human form to perform sacrifice and so repeat the same cycle. In this way, the living entity perpetually comes and goes on the material path "The Personality of Godhead said: Under the supervision of the Supreme Lord and according to the result of his work, the living entity, the soul, is made to enter into the womb of a woman through the particle of male semen to assume a particular type of body." (Srimad Bhagavatam 3.31.1) When the embryo is about seven months of age it is sufficiently developed to support consciousness and the baby awakens in his new body and immediately moves, sometimes kicking the mother from within in a vain attempt to get out of the horrible entanglement that he has found himself in. If he is pious, this horrible condition of having the arms and legs jammed into the chest as one is bent over in the foetal position, causes the soul to pray to the Lord as follows, "O Lord, this condition is terrible. Please save me from this situation and get me out of this womb immediately and I promise to serve You in this lifetime for sure." However, as soon as he takes his birth he becomes too much attached to all the attention and service being rendered him by mother and family members and he forgets all about serving the Lord and falls totally into Maya again. Avoid the process of rebirth; it is not auspicious in any way. Three Gunas - Sattwa, Rajas and Maya has three qualities or Gunas. These are called , rajas and tamas. These three inseparable qualities exist simultaneously in all of matter, all the time. Just as it's not possible to have water (H20) without the "O", oxygen atoms, so it's not possible to find a situation where one or more of its qualities have been eliminated. All three remain together, although at any given time, one of these qualities predominates over the other two. Qualities of the Gunas: Each quality has its own characteristics. Since both the external world and the internal world of the mind are made of matter, the qualities of the three Gunas are seen in both. For example, in the external world we see:

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Sattwa -- equilibrium and serenity Rajas -- dynamism and movement Tamas -- inertia and stagnancy In the internal world of the mind, these are experienced as: Sattwa -- Purity, compassion, wisdom, knowledge, understanding, comprehension, recognition, generosity, patience, kindness Rajas -- Desire, attachment, possessiveness, hyperactivity, fear, nervousness, anxiety, aggressiveness, competitiveness, power, prestige, name and fame Tamas -- Impurity, greed, anger, dullness, envy, jealousy, delusion, confusion, depression, stupor, unconsciousness, coma These Gunas—are the primary constituents of the Prakriti and are the bases of all substances; they cannot therefore be said to be attributes or qualities inhering in the substances as opposed to the substances. Material creation comes into existence due to the influence of another power called kal or time by the Hindu scriptures. Time is not an arbitrary division of the day and night, but an actual power. It creates movement or forward motion and comes into existence at the time of the creation of the universe, inducing its expansion.

These two powers, the material power, maya, and time energy, kal, cause other aspects of the material energy to manifest. These are: Duality A perfect duality -- duality means dynamic opposites such as day and night, life and death, happiness and sorrow, rich and poor, high and low, good and bad. Time induces the change from one to the other; otherwise they would be static. Then it would only be night or only day, or we would only experience happiness or only sorrow, and so on. With respect to the Gunas, this means that although one guna of maya predominates at any one time, another guna will predominate after some time. It isn't possible to predict when they will change or shift, for how long or to what degree. Three Gunas of Maya It is just like three wrestlers who are competing - how long can the strength of one person dominate over two people? After some time he weakens and one of the other wrestlers dominates the other two. This type of fluctuation is seen in any creation of Maya -- from weather patterns to our internal mood swings. The relationship of the Gunas to each other is dynamic and ever-changing. [FOR PRIVATE CIRCULATION] 53

In reply to a question from Arjuna, the blessed Lord describes in Srimad Bhagavad Gita the marks of one who has risen above the three Gunas. He states that if one constantly worships Him with exclusive devotion one will attain the highest divine experience and supreme peace and blessedness. The knowledge of these three Gunas, which hold the entire universe and all creatures under their sway, is of vital importance to each and everyone for their progress and happiness in life. Without this knowledge one will be forever bound by sorrow. In this knowledge we have the secret of success in worldly life as well as in spiritual life. Therefore, one should acquire this precious knowledge. Lord Krishna reveals that these three qualities compose the Cosmic Nature. This Cosmic Nature is the primal source and origin of the entire creation and all things in it. Hence all things created are subject to their influence and irresistible power. The individual soul also is bound to the body by these three qualities present in Cosmic Nature. The Supreme Being brings about creation through the help of His Prakriti (Nature) endowed with these threefold qualities. The highest of the three qualities is Sattwa. It is pure. It brings about happiness, wisdom and also illumination. The second quality of Rajas gives rise to passion manifested by intense attachment and greed. It causes sorrow and suffering. The third, termed Tamas, is the worst of all. It arises due to ignorance and results in darkness, lethargy and delusion. Krishna asks us to diligently endeavour to cast out Tamas from our nature. We should control and master Rajas, and by holding it in check, wisely divert its power towards good kinds of activities. Sattwa should be carefully cultivated, developed and conserved in order to enable us to attain immortality. The realised sage, of course, goes beyond all these qualities, for, although it is Sattwa that enables him to reach God, even this quality will bind him if he is attached to it. The aspirant should know the symptoms and signs of their presence in his personality and acquire knowledge of their subtle workings. Then only can he maintain an unhampered and smooth progress in all activities of his life, both secular as well as spiritual. Lord Krishna teaches us this important subject in this discourse from the ninth to the eighteenth verse. He declares that one who rises beyond all the three Gunas through spiritual practices, becomes free from birth, death, old age and sorrow, and enjoys immortality. Death in Three Gunas BG 14.14-15 lists three destinations according to three Gunas: goodness - heaven, passion - earth, ignorance - hell. SB 11.25.22 confirms it. An example for death in the mode of passion would be King Puranjana who had to take birth as a woman in his next life. Ajamila was practically enroute to hell and his condition was a good example of ignorance. In the Gita-Mahatmya of the Padma Purana there are many examples, like the story of one Brahmana who had to go to hell after death and then had to accept an animal birth. The example of a person who went to heaven is Maharaja Pururava. After he had somewhat cooled down from his excessive attachment to Urvasi, he became absorbed in performing sacrifices which the had taught him. At the end of his life he went to heaven. There are also all sorts of Jnanis and yogis and Brahmacharis who go to the planet of Brahma. On Yama and Pitru-loka, Srimad Bhgavatam syas,

यर ह वाव भगवान पपर-् राज८ वॴव्विः ्व-पवषयं रपपिॳस ु ्व-पुसॴजग्िु सु ु संपरॳिॳस ु यिा-किगव्यं द८षं एवान्लन्घिु -भगवच ् चसनः सगण८ दिं धरयति. रीिद भानविपरणु ५ २६ ६ [FOR PRIVATE CIRCULATION] 54

yatra ha vva bhagavn pit-rjo vaivasvataḥ sva-viayaṁ prpiteu sva-puruair jantuu sampareteu yath-karmvadyaṁ doam evnullaṅghita-bhagavac-chsanaḥ sagaṇo damaṁ dhrayati. – Srimad Bhagvatha 5.26.6 The King of the pits is Yamarja, the very powerful son of the -god. He resides in Pithuloka with his personal assistants and, while abiding by the rules and regulations set down by the Supreme Lord, has his agents, the Yamadūtas, bring all the sinful men to him immediately upon their death. After bringing them within his jurisdiction, he properly judges them according to their specific sinful activities and sends them to one of the many hellish planets for suitable punishments. The Bhagvatha Purana, the and the Bhagvatha Purana enlist and describe 28 hells, however, they end the description by stating that there are hundreds and thousands of hells. The Bhagvatha Purana enumerates the following 28 main Hells: The Bhagvatha Purana, the Vishnu Purana and the Devi Bhagvatha Purana enlist and describe 28 hells; however, they end the description by stating that there are hundreds and thousands of hells. The Bhagvatha Purana enumerates the following 28: Tamisra, Andhatamisra, Raurava, Maharaurava, Kumbhipaka, Kalasutra, Asipatravana, Sukaramukha, Andhakupa, Krimibhojana, Samdamsa, Taptasurmi, Vajrakantaka-salmali, Vaitarani, Puyoda, Pranarodha, Visasana, Lalabhaksa, Sarameyadana, Avichi, Ayahpana, Ksharakardama, Raksogana-bhojana, Sulaprota, Dandasuka, Avata-nirodhana, Paryavartana and Suchimukha. The Devi Bhagvatha Purana agrees with the Bhagvatha Purana in most of names; however, a few names are slightly different. Taptasurmi, Ayahpana, Raksogana-bhojana, Avata-nirodhana, Paryavartana are replaced by Taptamurti, Apahpana, Raksogana-sambhoja, Avatarodha, Paryavartanataka respectively. The Vishnu Purana mentions the 28 in the following order: Raurava, Shukara, Rodha, Tala, Visasana, Mahajwala, Taptakumbha, Lavana, Vimohana, Rudhirandha, Vaitaraní, Krimia, Krimibhojana, Asipatravana, Krishna, Lalabhaksa, Dáruńa, Púyaváha, Pápa, Vahnijwála, Adhoiras, Sandansa, Kalasutra, Tamas, Avichi, wabhojana, Apratisht́ha, and another Avichi. The Ten Main Duties () in Hinduism In Hinduism dharma primarily means duty. All other meanings of dharma arise from this root meaning only. Even God takes upon Himself certain duties, although He has no desires and no interest in doing or not doing anything. All our duties, energy, consciousness, and qualities arise from Brahman, the Supreme Being, since He delegates them to His numerous manifestations according to their status and hierarchy in creation. Since God is eternal, his duties are also eternal, and since Hinduism is all about performing God's duties by humans upon earth, Hinduism is traditionally known as Sanatana dharma, or eternal duty. According to our scriptures, those who renounce the world and lead an ascetic life have no duties and obligations. They may practice spirituality as part of their self-transformation in the pursuit of liberation, or they may teach and preach, but like Supreme Brahman they are under no obligation to follow any aim or goal in particular. However, those who take up the life of a householder (grihasta) have many duties and obligations. In this regard, they take upon themselves at the individual and personal level the duties of the Supreme Being in the material universe. The following are ten such most important duties enjoined upon Hindus by the Vedas and the Dharmashastras (books of duties). In the present day world, most Hindus do not practice them. Nevertheless, the best way to protect and uphold any faith is to practice it, rather than brag about it or wage wars about it. Hence, in today's context these ten duties become even more important.

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1. Duty towards self: Duties towards Self can be divided into duties towards the body, the mind, and the soul respectively, which lead to health, strength, mental clarity, purity (sattva), and spiritual transformation. Their purpose is to improve and maintain one's own physical, mental and spiritual wellbeing. The Bhagavadgita says," One should uplift oneself by oneself; and one should not debase oneself because surely the Self is one's own friend and one's own enemy." It means you are your own best friend when you are on the path of righteousness, and your worst enemy when you indulge in evil actions. Therefore, one should not indulge in any actions that would lead to one's moral and spiritual downfall into darker and demonic hells. Although householders lead worldly lives, eventually they have to work for their liberation. 2. Duty towards gods The gods (devas) exist in the body as organs and in the universe as the lords of their respective spheres. Since they are selfless and do not make food for themselves, human beings are obliged by duty to perform rituals and sacrifices and make them offerings of food. As you are aware, if you do not feed your body, your senses become numb and weak. You also know that if you feed the evil behavior in you, the gods and the sattva in you grow weaker while the demonic tendencies and impurities in you grow stronger. It is therefore important that you nourish yourself and gods with good thoughts and good food through your conduct as well as sacrifices. 3. Duty towards ancestors Your ancestors are responsible for your birth. They contribute to your gene pool. Hence, you owe them a debt of gratitude. According to the Vedas, upon departing from here, the souls live in the ancestral world until their karmas are exhausted. By doing good deeds, living virtuously, performing, rituals and making them offerings of food, their descendants can prolong their stay and grant them better lives in their next birth. This is pitryajna, sacrifice to the ancestors, which the Vedas declare as the duty of human beings towards their ancestors. If your ancestors are happy, they will also bless you and help you attain peace and prosperity upon earth. By serving them, you will replay the karmic debt you owe to them. 4. Duty towards progeny Hindus are expected to work for the welfare of their progeny from the time of their conception. Until they renounce their worldly lives and take up renunciation, parents have an obligation to perform all the sacraments for the children, educate them either personally or with the help of learned teachers, teach them their duties and responsibilities, inculcate in them good values, and help them become virtuous individuals. At the time of death, they are also expected to pass on their good name, qualities, strengths and abilities to their children through prayers and rituals. Since parents can be born in the same families as the children or grandchildren of their own children, such duties become even more important to preserve the family line, name, status and reputation. 5. Duty towards fellow human beings As a Hindu, you are not expected to live selfishly for yourself or your family only because you are but a representative of God upon earth. Your life, identity, power, abilities, strengths, riches, and enjoyment come from Him. Therefore, in Hinduism charity (dana) is one of the highest virtues. In fact, it was the only virtue, which Brahma specifically taught to humans in the beginning of creation for their peace and happiness. In Hinduism, service to humanity is considered service to God. Hence, Hindus have an obligation to help the poor and the needy, the weak and the disabled, the beggars, the mendicants, and ascetics who do not cook food for themselves. They are also

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expected to serve the guests who visit their homes, and educate those who approach them with a request to teach them knowledge. 6. Duty towards other living beings Since all beings possess souls and since they are manifestations of Brahman only, Hindus have an obligation to show compassion towards all living beings, practice , and avoid harming and hurting anyone, except in self-defense. They are also expected to nourish them within their means and help them survive and flourish. Hinduism is the only religion where animals are not only treated with consideration but also traditionally worshipped. Many deities have either animal forms and features, or use animals as their vehicles. Animals have also duties in creation and their duty is to serve humans in different capacities. As the Vedas say, just as the humans are to gods, the cattle are to humans. 7. Duty towards society Hindus have an obligation to uphold the order and regularity (rta) of society. They are not expected to destroy or disturb the institutions of family, caste, community, or tradition, whose source is in heaven since they are established by God to prevent chaos and confusion in the mortal world. Followers of God are also expected not to spread confusion by teaching perverted knowledge, beliefs, and philosophies that can unsettle human minds and lead to their moral and spiritual downfall. The scriptures declare that whenever society is in decline and evil is on the rise, due to our failure to contain it, God himself manifests upon earth to restore Dharma or He may manifest His aspects, emanations, demigods and associate powers for the same purpose. During normal times we are expected to do it in our individual capacity as the upholders of Dharma. 8. Moral duties In Hinduism, every human being has an obligation to practice virtue and uphold the Divine Law. They have to cultivate purity (sattva), and discernment (buddhi) and follow the injunctions and guidelines prescribed in the scriptures. Some important moral duties are the study and recitation of scriptures, prayers, worship, rituals, sacrifices, devotion, self-restraint, purity, moral discipline, discernment, resolve, good works, and the practice of virtues such as nonviolence, truthfulness, non-stealing, celibacy before marriage, and non-covetousness. Other duties include respecting the elders, parents and teachers, taking care of old and aged members of the family, helping children to grow up, and avoiding the cardinal sins namely lust, anger, pride, envy, and delusion. 9. Professional (caste) duties Hindus have are obliged to perform certain duties and responsibilities that come with power, position, caste and authority. For example each caste and caste related profession entails upon its members certain duties and obligations. In today's world most professions are not birth related. However, it is still important that they are performed according to the established practice. For example, those who are in leadership positions have to act fairly and impartially without falling for temptations and selfishness. Those who become spiritual teachers, or take up priesthood functions have to live virtuously and spread the knowledge of the Dharma. Those who become the warriors of Hinduism have to defend their faith, their land, and the people who practice it. Traders and merchants have to practice their professions without lying, cheating, and deceiving. Finally, those who take up manual labor should follow the rules that apply to them and do their part in serving others, without expecting society to take care of them, or support them with freebies.

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10. Duties towards other faiths It is the duty of a Hindu to practice his faith, but not to unsettle the minds of those who do not practice it. They are expected to show restraint and friendliness in dealing with people of other faiths, and live in harmony with them. Hinduism clearly affirms that the paths to God are many and all paths lead to Him only. Hence, fanaticism and intolerance are completely ruled out. However, amity does not mean submission to other faiths or practicing them. As a Hindu you not only have a right to choose what you believe in, but also have an obligation to defend your faith if necessary. In this regard, the gods of Hinduism are the best example. They are the most benign and compassionate beings, and yet each is a warrior who will not hesitate to fight the demons if the situation demands. In Hinduism the way of duty is the way of karma. As stated before, all duties in creation arise from God only, who is the true doer and source of all actions. The duties of human beings upon earth come from God only as delegated responsibilities. Hence, performing one's duties is the first step in the transformative process of every individual towards liberation. No one can achieve liberation without performing their obligatory duties and responsibilities. However, one should also remember that actions produce karma and thereby bind people to the cycle of births and deaths. Therefore, it is important that in performing them one should remain selfless and offer the fruit of such actions to God only who is the source and cause of all. This is called the renunciation of the fruit of one's actions (karma phala sanyasa yoga) whereby actions do not bind you. Samskaras: The Rites and Rituals in Hinduism Hinduism prescribes both ritual and spiritual practices for the liberation of men from the cycle of births and deaths. The ritual aspect is meant to make man more spiritual in the end, not vice versa. Each and every important event in the life a Hindu, who has chosen to lead a normal householder's life, calls for the performance of certain rites. Most of the rites are caste and gender specific. In other words not all are required to perform them all. These rites are considered to be part of man's obligatory duties depending upon the profession and caste of each individual and intended mainly to invoke the blessings of various gods to ensure success in earning merit and gaining a safe passage to the heavenly world and the continuation of family lineage. The Hindu rites also add structure and purpose to the human life as they are required to be performed at various stages in the life of an individual, as a part of one's dharma and obligatory duty towards oneself, one's family, society, ancestors, other living beings and gods.. Some of the important rites of Hinduism are described here. 1. Rites performed before the birth of an individual, invoking gods to make a woman of the household conceive. 2. Rites performed during the third month of pregnancy invoking gods for the birth of a male child. (Hindu women please take note. The were chauvinistic and wanted more male children!) 3. Rites performed at the time of the birth of a child. 4. Rites performed at the time of name giving ceremony. 5. Rites performed six months after the birth of the child. 6. The hair cutting ceremony. 7. Rites performed at the time of "Upanayana" to make the individual a "Dvija" or twice born". 8. Rites associated with marriage ceremony, starting from the time the marriage is fixed till the ceremony is concluded. [FOR PRIVATE CIRCULATION] 58

9. Rites associated with marriage life involving both the couples. 10. Rites associated with entry into a new house or construction of a new house. 11. Rites associated with the death and funeral of an individual. It must be noted that in the present world the practice of Hinduism is changing gradually. While rituals are still performed by certain sections of society, especially the higher castes, according to the established tradition, in case of majority of people, ritualism is giving way spiritualism. Many Hindus, especially those who live in the urban areas and brought up on modern education are liberal and spiritual, rather than conventional and ritualistic. Many of them turn to rituals only under peer pressure. Performance of rituals take time and effort. They also cost considerable sums of money. Ritualism implies also honoring the age old social structure and caste system, which to many modern Hindus is rather an unacceptable outdated practice. In following spiritual ideals of Hinduism such considerations usually do not arise. Besides many spiritual practices attempt to alleviate problems such as stress and anxiety. Therefore many Hindus willingly take to the spiritual path and participate in yoga classes and meditation camps. For the reasons mentioned above, Hindus presently perform the rites very selectively. Some rites, such as the upanayana ceremony are meant exclusively for the higher castes. So a good number of Hindus are excluded from the obligation of performing them. The rites that are most commonly observed are the ceremonies associated with events such as marriage, the birth of a child, the and the death of an individual. Even these are not performed uniformly due to a number of a regional variations and local traditions. A special note on Sraadha ceremony: According to Hindu scriptures, when a person dies, he either travels to heavenly worlds or to the ancestral worlds depending upon his previous deeds. We are told that the departed souls can be elevated to higher planes of existence and pushed further on the scale of evolution if their direct descendents on earth, especially the male progeny perform some annual rites and make sacrificial offerings to them. With such rites, not just one but the entire family of ancestors would be benefited and spiritually uplifted. So when a Hindu departs from this world, his descendents make ritualistic offerings as prescribed in the sacred texts so that the departed one makes further spiritual progress in those worlds also. The obligation towards the departed souls is thus a part of ones ordained duties, or obligatory karma, the performance of which brings happiness not only to the departed soul, but also to the ones who performed it. Sraadha ceremony is way of repaying ones debt towards ones parents and ancestors. A person is indebted to his parents and ancestors because they were responsible for his birth on earth. Without even one of them in the ancestral line, he would never have been. He is thus greatly indebted to them for his corporeal existence. He can repay this debt only by performing annual rites for the departed ancestors. He is therefore expected to perform these ceremonies without fail and save himself and every one before him from misery. Merits of Sraadha This ritual protects the family heir, birth of a boy baby, frees future generation from misery, long life, attain heaven, fame, animals and gives happiness but at the same time by not performing Shraaddha makes one’s life miserable and poor.

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How did Sraadha Originate? In Vedic culture there are 16 Samskaras (Purificatory Rites) from the conception Garbhaadhana Samskara i.e. Conceiving virtuous children) up to the final rites (Anthyeshti) all of which are to be observed as prescribed duties. Their observance will spiritualize life and purify our existence. The final rites are called Anthyeshti, during which the corpse is cremated. The ceremonies performed on the 10th and the 12th & 13th day followed by monthly observances until the yearly ceremony are called Sraadha (meaning faith and deep devotion).The performer of the Sraadha must not only have the correct attitude but must be purified by good discipline and austerities. It must be stressed that the Sraadha is a memorial service in respect of the departed Atma as well as a spiritual act, which benefits the performer and his Family. The annual Shraddha performed during Pithru- Paksha falls in the same category of rituals.

Athri - अबर (Athreya) Rishi was one of the 10 sons of Lord Brahma (Prajapathis or Manasaputras). From Athri’s tears was born a son named Soma, the . Athri’s wife was Anasūy. The tears of Athri impregnated her and had three sons called Soma, and Dattthreya. (Ref: Bhagvatha Purṇa 9.14.2-3) Athri conceived the original concept of performing the ritual of Shraddha. Athri Rishi narrated the ritual of Shraddha as laid down by Lord Brahma to his son Nimi Rishi. This established ritual has continued even today. Nimi Rishi in turn also had a son who was renowned for having performed penances for 1000 years. Soon after achieving this feat, he passed on. His sudden death came as a great shock to his father who was so traumatized with grief that no matter how hard he tried he was unable to reconcile himself to this tragic loss. Accordingly, on day (12th day) of the month Magha, he collected all the vegetables, fruits and foods which his son enjoyed and prepared them himself. He invited and fed several hold Brahmins, while simultaneously thinking of his deceased son and reciting, the latter's name, Gothra (family name) and Kula (linage). While all this was taking place, Narada Muni arrived and received by Nimi Rishi, who accorded him all due honour and hospitality. Nimi Rishi however, embarrassed by his attachment to his son broke down in tears and said, “O great Muni! You must think me such a fool for attempting to feed my beloved son, who is no more. Will I ever be forgiven for such an act?”. Narada Muni then replied. “Dear Rishi, do not despair. You have committed no wrong nor have you performed any unrighteous action. Take refuge in the ancestors. Invoke your ancestors and they will guide and protect you”. Thus encouraged by Narada Muni's advice, Nimi Rishi began to meditate upon his ancestors, who soon appeared before him and said, “Nimi, your son has already taken his place amongst the Pitru- Devas. Since you have performed this act of feeding and worship in honour of the soul of your departed son, it is the same as if you had performed Pitri . Lord Brahma, himself, had blessed this ceremony in the past and granted it to the merits of any other (sacrifice). So fear no more, my son, for you have been blessed because of your deeds.” Since that time, the Sraadha ceremony has formed a vital part of Sanadhana Dharma (Hinduism). This established ritual has continued even until to today. Manu Deva was the first person to perform the ritual of Shraaddha. Hence, he is called as the Deity of Srardha. 1. Objectives and Importance of performing Sraadham: In Garuda Purana, the Lord Maha Vishnu explains Garudadeva about Yama’s kingdom. The Lord not only begins to describe Yama’s kingdom, but also to describe the procedure to be followed immediately after death. It is said that the mode of one’s death also depends upon one’s karma. Due to the effect of karma, a man falls sick causing his death. When the subtle body is leaving the gross body, which is known [FOR PRIVATE CIRCULATION] 60

as death, the messengers of Yama arrive on the scene. When the subtle body finally comes out of the gross body, causing death of the gross body, the subtle body is still able to see the entire universe. The departed soul could see the messengers of Yama and the attendants of Lord Viṇu. This means that the soul can see both good and bad and the departed soul begins its journey according to its karma. A subtle body which has a bad karmic account feels for its sins at this stage. A soul has to travel the entire distance to reach the world of Yama. The distance between the earth and Yama’s world is 1,032,000 Kilometers (approximately 641,255 miles. (Distance between the earth and the moon is 384,000 KMs and the distance between the earth and the sun is 149,598,000 KMs). The path becomes rough for the sinners and the path becomes comfortable for virtuous. Lord begins to describe Yama. He has four arms holding a conch, a discus, a bow and a staff. He treats the virtuous with respect and sinners with rudeness. He hits the sinners with iron rod and club. He sits on a buffalo (Yama is called Mahia Vhanaś Mahia means buffalo and Vhana means vehicle). His body appears dreadful to sinners and radiant to virtuous. The soul is in the size of one’s thumb. The Soul and the subtle body always travel together. The subtle body is pushed out of the gross body by air. The subtle body cries out when it comes out of the gross body). Upon death, Yama Dharma Raj decides by which path the through which door the soul will enter his domain, East, West, North or South. The good people enter by the East Gate. Those who during the rainy seasons give gifts or provide shelter to the homeless, those who serve their mothers and fathers and teachers, those who read religious books and the Puranas, worshippers of Siva and of deities, Pure minded people enter through the East Gate. The West Gate (Pashchim Marga) is for the worshippers of Lord Vishnu, Those who read scriptures, make japas of , who practice non-violence, non-stealing, or Havan ceremony, who recite the Vedas, who practice Brahmacharya, Ascetics, Renunciates, who have the attitude of non-attachment () and who have spiritual knowledge, enter through the West Gate The South Gate is for the sinners who suffer the worst tortures in hell of the Baitarani river that holds boiling hot blood and flesh. It is a must in all Hindu homes is to have Ganga water Ganga water makes the house holy. A drop of Ganga jal in the mouth of the dying brings great benefits to both the giver of the water and to the one on the death bed. The living son performs the ten day ceremony for the soul and not for the body. He performs the ceremony to liberate from father’s debt. If there are many sons, any one son can perform the ten- day ceremony. Sons staying apart can each perform the ceremony. Final rites for the mother and for the father to be done according to scriptures by the eldest son, which yield fruits that are equal to making or of earth. Garuda Purana explains the makeup of the physical body as well as the subtle body with the six , and advises that we breathe 21600 times during 24 hours and that each inhaling and exhaling be made into an act of Japa-mala with such mantras as Soham, Hare Ram etc. [Soham (स८ ऽहि ् so 'ham) is a Hindu mantra, meaning "I am He/That" in Sanskrit. In Vedic philosophy it means identifying oneself with the universe or . The mantra is also inverted from so 'ham (the sandhi of saḥ + aham) to ham + sa.]

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The human body is subject to disease, old age, infirmity etc.; yet we hope to live but we do not realise for what purpose. While the senses are working, practice self-realisation. Therefore make good use of time for self-realisation. Youth does not come back. Wealth is like a dream that can vanish. Death can come during waking hours and during sleep. We feed ourselves with sensual pleasures. Surrounded by love and hatred, Chintha or worries eat the alive and Chita eats the dead. Contentment brings happiness and attachment produces misery. Bound by iron chains can be loosened, but worldly attachments, which are invisible, are very difficult to detach. For ten days, listen to this Katha (Garuda Purana) after someone passes away. This provides liberation to the Pitrus and the son gets desires fulfilled. The speaker as well as the listener of Garuda Purana benefit. Upon death of mother and father, reading Garuda Purana gives them salvation and the entire family becomes prosperous. Those atheists, immoral people who ignore these instructions, even their waters become impure. Deities and ancestors avoid their houses. They become poor, miserable and unhappy. Where no Sraadha is performed, where Garuda Purana is not read, where other ceremonies are not performed, they are never released from the three types of Rin or debts. In the Pretha-kanda of the Garuda Purana, Rules of Impurity (Sutak) is well explained. The impurity accruing from birth and death is fourfold. The rules of impurity are applicable to all the four castes. The days of impurity are ten for the relatives on the father’s and mother’s side. People should avoid taking meals during this period with the relatives of the dead. The bereaved family should neither offer nor receive gifts, neither undertakes nor conducts sacrifices. The study of the Vedas and Shastras (scriptures) is strictly prohibited. Mahabharata Santi Parva (Section CCCXXXII) explains how to overcome grief: Narada Muni says: The Supreme Soul is without beginning and without end. It resides as a witness in the Jiva-soul as the embodied soul. It is inactive and without form. Those people who are beholding the course of life and death in the world with the aid of their intelligence, do not shed tears, are said to behold properly. Such persons have never to shed tears. When any such calamity comes, productive of either physical or mental grief, as is incapable of being warded off by even one's best efforts, one should cease to reflect on it with sorrow. This is the medicine for sorrow, viz., not to think of it. By thinking of it, one can never dispel it; on the other hand, by thinking upon sorrow, one only enhances it. Mental grief should be killed by wisdom; while physical grief should be dispelled by medicines. This is the power of knowledge. Youth, beauty, life, stored wealth, health, association with those that are loved- these are all exceedingly transitory. One should not lament individually for a sorrowful occurrence that concerns an entire community. All combinations are destined to end in dissolution. Union is sure to end in disunion. and life is certain to end in death. One`s allotted period of life is running continually. It stops not in its course for even a single moment. Days and nights are ceaselessly running bearing away in their current the periods of life of all human beings. Upon the dissolution of the body, another body, which is as much destructible as the one that is destroyed, is kept ready for the burnt or destroyed creature (to migrate into) even as one boat goes to another for transferring to itself the passengers of the other boat. When the allotted period of a person's life is at its close, the five primal elements of the body attain to the seventh and the ninth stages and then cease to be. The soul however undergoes no change. The ten stages of a person's life are: 1. Residence within the womb, 2. Birth, 3. Infancy up to five [FOR PRIVATE CIRCULATION] 62

years, 4. Childhood up to 12 years, 5. teen-age up to 16 years, 6. Youth up to 48 years,. 7. Old age, 8. Decrepitude, 9. Suspension of breath, 10.Destruction of body. “On behalf of the entire community, we offer our heartfelt condolences and together we offer our prayer: May the Lord grant strength and courage to the surviving members of the family. To all relations and friends, may the Lord Grant ability to give Comfort to the bereaved families. May the Lord grant everlasting peace to the departed soul.” Brihadaranyaka Upanishads. Anthyeshti: Suffering in Death and Dying Practices Fearing death is natural and results from a fear of the unknown. According to Hinduism Today, a person with a terminal illness should tell family and friends so they can prepare for their loved one's death and be happy for them. Death is the fulfillment of this life and a chance for a better reincarnation, a chance to learn new karmic lessons and to move closer to moksha. Hindus believe that death must come naturally at the proper time. Life should not be prolonged by aggressive medical means unless it will result in a good quality of life. Prolonging life artificially would result in the soul remaining on earth past its natural time "tethered to a lower astral region rather than being released into higher astral/mental levels." Hindus will often forgo aggressive treatment when an illness is terminal or there is no hope of recovery. If the patient is a parent of young children, more aggressive treatments are often sought in the hope of prolonging life to provide for the children. Nor should life be cut short willfully. Speeding up death by artificial means would result in a large karmic debt. Suicide would result in many lesser rebirths to "make up" for the karmic debt of ending one's life unnaturally. Thoughts at the moment of death will result in a greater or lesser rebirth. Hindus may endure pain or uncomfortable symptoms to face death with a clear mind. They may use medication to control symptoms, but may avoid using so much that it reduces their consciousness. Rabindrnath Tagore, a Hindu philosopher, once said "let me not beg for the stilling of my pain but for the heart to conquer it." Hindus will, if at all possible, be thinking of Brahman at the moment of death and therefore experience a higher state of consciousness and a higher astral after death. Intentionally bringing all one's attention and energy to the top of the head and thinking thoughts of Brahman help the soul leave the body in the highest possible state. Ideally, a Hindu should die at home surrounded by family and friends who will sing sacred hymns and say prayers or chant the dying person's mantra in his/her right ear if he/she is unconscious. As death approaches, the bed should be turned so the head faces east. Hindus with a terminal illness or certain other disabling conditions are allowed to choose a "self-willed death by fasting"[19] but must tell their family and community. This is an acceptable method of ending suffering. Hindu funeral rites are varying according to the caste and religious sect of the deceased but generally involving cremation followed by disposal of the ashes in a sacred river. Anthyeshti rites are the final sacraments (Samskaras) in a series that ideally begins now of conception and is performed at each important stage of life. Why is the departed soul addressed as a Pretha (ghost) for 13 days and thereafter he is called Pithru and then dhaan is done for Pithru? It is very difficult to answer in a simple way. Garuda Purana describes the journey of the departed soul and its requirement during this time of travel. After the dead body has been burnt, there is a ten-day period of mourning and impurity for

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the sons and sapindas (near blood relatives). Every day, a pinda must be offered to the dead person. Water must also be offered. Thus, the tenth pinda is offered on the tenth day. When someone passes away 2 types of rites, Anthyeshti and Sraadham are done according to Purana. Anthyeshti (Anthim Sanskar) is the rituals done while cremation is going on. And Sraadham is generally done every year. During cremation mantras recited are suppose to remind the deserted Jivatma that it is absolutely free. The body has never bound it. Be free like the wind and fly completely detached from this body which is set on fire. Generally the soul is thought to wander near the body due to its attachment with it for 70-80 years. The vibrations of these mantras are supposed to provide relief to it, when reminded it is completely free. Rituals on immediately after death: The rituals that may be followed in Vedic religions after the death of a person, for his or her peace and ascent to heaven are: Niravapanjali (Sanjayanam) is a sacred ritual in Hinduism where after the cremation rites, the ashes are ceremonially immersed in holy water by the closest relatives, so that the soul may rise to heaven. In , king performed a Tapasya to bring down the river upon earth, so that he could immerse the ashes of sixty thousand of his slain ancestors in her sacred waters. Tharpanam is a sacred ritual whereupon the closest relatives make a sacred offering to the Gods so that the departed soul may enter Swarga. In Hindu mythology, the Great Parasurama offered a tharppanam for his father with the blood of his father's killer. The ceremonial offering varies across the spectrum of Hindu society. These ceremonies are also practiced in Sikhism. A story from Katha Upanishad runs as follows. King Vajasrawas performs a Yagna in which he offers worthless gifts to . Nachiketas, his son notices this and pesters his father to offer fruitful gifts. Vajasrawas, in a fit of anger gifts Nachiketas to Yama. Nachiketas meets Yama and asks the most important question-what happens after death? Yama, the God of Death reveals the secret which is one of the best explanations offered by any religion on the post-death happening. On reaching there he found that Yama was not at home. For three days and night the young boy waited without food , water and sleep at the doorstep of Yama’s abode. Yama on his return, was deeply grieved to see that there was no to welcome . Yama himself greeted him with due respect. For having kept Nachiketa waiting for three days, Yama granted him three boons. Nachiketa said, “I seek the welfare of my father as my first boon.” He granted him happily. “Sir I desire to know how one could reach heaven where there is no sorrow, old age or death”. Nachiketa did not ask this second boon for himself but for the sake of the people. He wanted everyone to learn this secret knowledge and free themselves for the sufferings. Yama was pleased with the unselfishness of Nachiketa. Yama gave all the details of a particular sacrifice, the performance of which would take one to heaven. As Nachiketa was an intelligent and a sincere boy blessed with a spiritual knowledge, he could understand all that was taught. Yama was pleased with him and in appreciation, named that particular sacrifice after Nachiketa himself. Nachiketa asked, “Respected Sir. What happens to a man after death? I should like to know the truth from you. This I ask for the third boon.” [FOR PRIVATE CIRCULATION] 64

Yama had not expected this question from a young boy. He tried to divert him but Nachiketa was very firm. He wanted to know the answer. Yama was very pleased but he tried to divert the attention with lot of attractive things. Nachiketa declined all these worldly pleasures. Yama was pleased with such a young truth-seeker who had rejected the path of enjoyment and chose the path of goodness. Then Yama taught him the knowledge of the Atman, realizing which man attains immortality. Thus from Yama, Nachiketas learns the distinction between soul and body, the immortality of soul, the concept of moksha, etc. This forms the subject matter of one of the Upanishads called Katha Upanishad. Rituals to be performed on the same day after cremation, according to the Scriptures that the kart should offer Tirlnjali (offering sesame seeds [til / thilam] and water) thrice on the Asma (Sanskrit word Ashma means stone supposed to be treated as Pithrus) along the pitru-tīrtha (Area of the palm between the thumb and the index finger portion) of their palms while chanting the mantra:

‘एष िॳ तिलि८या्जमल्िव८पति्ठिाि’् , Meaning: ‘Tirlnjali is being offered unto you’ while mentioning the Gothra (Lineage according to Vedic science) and the name of the deceased. One whose father is alive should not offer tilnjali. Rituals before kindling the pyre: A. Pieces of gold are placed on the mouth, both the nostrils, ears and eyes. If it is not possible to place the pieces of gold, drops of can be put with the tip of a darbha or with the help of a tulsī leaf. B. The kart then should place the pot for fire in the north-west direction and kindle the fire in it. While reciting the mantra ‘ि्यादनािानिनननंरति्ठापयामि ।’ (MeaningŚ ‘I am establishing a fire by the name of Kravyd’), black sesame seeds should be offered to the fire. (Some people prepare a triangular of mud to the north-west side of the dead body and kindle the fire taken from the pot). Then, oblations of ghee are offered to the fire as mentioned ahead. The word ‘्वाहा’ (swh) is uttered with each mantra while offering each oblation, and at the end of the sentence, ‘इदं न िि ।’ (This does not belong to me) is uttered.

अननयॳ ्वाहा । अननय इदं न िि ।। कािाय ्वाहा । कािाय इदं न िि ।। ल८काय ्वाहा । ल८काय इदं न िि ।। अनिियॳु ्वाहा । अनिियु इदं न िि ।।

Then, reciting the mantra -‘ॐ अ्िा्वॴ्विजायिा-अयं्वदमभजायिां । अस९ .. (mention the name of the deceased) रॳिाय ्वगागय ल८काय ्वाहा ।’, one oblation is offered on the chest of the dead body and after taking the name of the deceased, the following sentence is uttered – .. रॳिाय इदं न िि ।।’ C. Five balls of the size of a betel nut prepared from either barley or rice flour are placed on the forehead, face, both the shoulders and on the chest of the dead body. Ghee is then poured on each of these balls. The ritual of cremation:

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A. Those in attendance should place a piece of , any other wood, sticks or on the dead body. This is not mentioned in the Scriptures, but is a general custom. B. The kart should kindle the pyre with the Agnī (Fire) brought in the pot. Begin with head side of the dead body for a male or from the feet side for a female, and kindle the pyre from all the sides moving in an anti-clockwise direction. This can be done by first igniting a piece of dried leaf on the fire that has been brought in the pot and using it to kindle the pyre. C. Do not use objects such as tires to light a pyre. Make minimal use of kerosene or other inflammable substances, and that too, if it is absolutely necessary. D. As far as possible, avoid the contact of smoke emanating from the pyre. E. Once the skull of the dead body bursts, as judged by its sound, the kart should stand towards the feet of the deceased facing the south direction while holding the earthen pot filled with water on the shoulder. Someone should stand behind the kart and make a hole in the pot just below its neck with a stone picked up from the crematorium itself. This stone is known as ‘asma’ (Ashma) (The kart then circumambulates around the dead body once in an anti-clockwise direction, while the water keeps flowing around the pyre through the hole. On completion, a second hole is made in the pot below the first hole by the person using the same ashma. The kart then completes the second circumambulation like the first one. Similarly, a third hole is made, which is followed by the third circumambulation. On completion of the third circumambulation, the kart stands towards the head of the deceased with his back towards the pyre in case of a male and towards the legs of the deceased with his back towards the pyre in case of a female. Thereafter, he throws the pot backwards so as to break it without looking back. In the present times, this act is performed immediately after kindling the pyre. F. The kart should safely bring home the ashma that was used for making the holes in the pot. Garuda Puranam describes the journey of the departed soul and its requirement during this time of travel. After the dead body has been burnt, there is a ten-day period of mourning and impurity for the sons and sapindas (near blood relatives). Every day, a pinda must be offered to the dead person. Water must also be offered. Thus the tenth pinda is offered on the tenth day. Immersion of asthī (Bones of the deceased) The asthī (bones of the deceased) are collected either on the day of cremation or on the 3rd, 7th or 9th day and are immersed in flowing water before the 10th day. It is better to collect asthi on the 3rd day following cremation rites. If asthī are to be immersed after the 10th day then it should be done only after performance of the ritual of Tīrtha-shrddha. . Pinḍadān: According to the science of rituals, rites such as tilnjali and Pinḍadn (Ritual of offering of rice balls) should be performed beginning from 1st day till the 10th day. Visham shrddha should be performed on odd days. If that is not possible then Uttar- should begin from at least the ninth day. Nowadays, however, Pinḍadn that should be performed from 1st day to 10th day is performed as a combined ritual on the 10th day. On 10th day, Pinḍadn is performed in a Shiva temple or in a temple of an inferior Deity situated on the bank of a river. Rites of the first nine days: Installing stones for udaka danam

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The preta will suffer from thirst because of burning and hunger during the next ten days. Vasodaka (water dripped through cloth) and tilodaka (water mixed with tila ) should be offered every day up to the tenth day. This is done at two places - near a water body and outside the house. For this stones are installed at both places and the preta invoked in them with appropriate procedure. By the side of a nearby river or water body a small pit is dug , three stones are placed in it and the preta is invoked onto them after chanting - ayahi preta ...... “Oh ! Preta of father, come through the noble paths of our predecessors. Accord children, wealth and long life to us." The name of father along with relation and are pronounced for invocation. The son does sankalpa and he and the relatives in the proper order with the younger ones first dip a new vastra folded into three along with darbhas in the water while dipping themselves and offer water on the invoked stones by squeezing the clothe in succession 3 times. Then water mixed with tila is also offered three times. The above are offered by sitting on the left knee. Then a potful of water is offered (poured) saying - “Oh! Preta (pronouncing relation, name and gotra...) accept the vasodaka, tilodaka and drink this water from the pot. " The number of tilodaka is increased by one on every succeeding day - four on the second day, five on the third day and so forth up to the the tenth day. These are provided at noon time Water is collected in the pot and the son and relatives return home. At the entrance of the house another small pit is dug and three stones are installed. Permission from brahmins is sought and in the sankalpa it is mentioned that the installation of stones is being done for providing vasodaka everyday to take care of thirst and hunger arising out of burning of the body, to provide pindas for formation of the new body ( athivahika shareera ) and for providing prabhutabli ( the great bali on the tenth day ) to take care of great hunger. Three stones are installed chanting - ayahi ...... " Oh ! preta of father ,come through the noble paths of our predecessors. Accord children, wealth and long life to us." The name of father along with relation and gotra are pronounced for invocation and also the purpose of invocation is mentioned. Here vasodaka and pinda is offered by the karta alone. Everyday a sankalpa is done for providing vasodaka and pinda and they are offered. The pinda is to be offered twice a day morning and evening. but they are combined into one. In some variations cooked loose rice is offered as evening bali and some offer two pindas at the same time. Some people also offer curd and ginger on top of the pinda. There should not be any change in the way the pinda is prepared and offered throughout the ten days. After offering, they should be immersed in water and at the same place every day without fail. The pinda is thrown over the head backwards while facing south and the son should take a dip in the river facing the flow after immersing the pinda. The purpose of throwing it above the head is that it is not actually immersed, but aimed at the sky. [FOR PRIVATE CIRCULATION] 67

The purpose of offering of these pindas is for formation of the new body of the preta for its further journey. This new body is called athivahika shareera or bhoga shareera. The organs are formed as follows - Day 1 - creation of head Day 2 - creation of eyes, ears and nose Day 3 - creation of neck, shoulder and hands Day 4 - creation of back, sides, stomach, hips and private parts Day 5 - creation of thighs, knees and shin Day 6 - creation of ankles, feet, fingers and marmas (vulnerable nerve centers), skin Day 7 - creation of bones, skull and marrow, blood vessels Day 8 - creation of nails and hair Day 9 - creation of strength and energy Day 10 - to take care of its hunger Note: These days the busy sons and the busier priests have made it a norm to start the rites from the ninth day doing pinda pradanam for all the previous days together. This is completely wrong and unacceptable as per Sanadhana Dharma.. It takes say, six months to build house - what if you try to do the same in a ? It will collapse and fall soon. Is the body of the child in the womb of the mother formed overnight? Everything takes its own time. By trying to create a new body for the deceased in a day, you are rendering it weak and defective. Moreover, with the stones not installed the deceased will be still wandering in the cremation ground uncertain about his future, sad and wondering whether his son will ever perform his rites. Is this the farewell that he deserves? A person who has probably toiled his entire life to bring up his children, educate them, doesn't his son have ten days to give back to him? If the pindas are not offered in time the preta of the deceased will remain in the custody of the ferocious deities of the Smasana. The cloth used for vasodaka, the water pot, vessel used for cooking rice - all these should not be changed during the ten days. The installed stones should not be moved. The pindas should not be eaten by crow, dog etc. or touched by anyone else. There are Prayaschittas to be performed if this happens. Water and should be kept everyday in hanging earthen pots (so that they are not touched by cat, dog etc.). This is to take care of fatigue of the preta. The water is kept saying - “take bath” and milk is kept saying - "drink milk". Tender coconut is also kept saying - “drink coconut water." Each day’s pinda offerings are divided into four parts. The first part is appropriated by Yama’s messengers. The second part is used by the preta to survive. The remaining two parts are used by the preta to reconstruct a body by means of which he can travel to Yama’s abode. The first day’s share makes the head. The second day’s share makes the ears, the eyes and the nose. And so on and so forth until on the tenth day, the body is complete. On the eleventh day, a Shraadha ceremony is held. This is the first (Aadya) funeral ceremony, so it is known as Aadya Shraddha.It is called Ekothistam in southern part of the country. After the Pinḍadn on the 10th day, a little coconut oil is poured on the ashma and it is immersed in flowing water.

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Acts to be performed on 11th and 12th day On the 11thday, homam (Fire-sacrifice to appease Deities) should be performed in the house and Panchagavya (A mixture of cow’s milk, curd, ghee, cow’s urine and cow dung) should be sprinkled all over the house. All family members should sip Panchagavya. The kart should make a sankalpam (resolve) for the benefit of the deceased and donate food-grains and perform Dasa- dnam (Ten types of donations or offerings). Srdhams (Special rituals performed for the departed ancestors) such as Ekoddhishta Shrddha, Vasugana Shrddha and Rudragana Shrddha should be performed outside the house, in a cowshed or elsewhere. Sapindikarana Shradham: Sixteen monthly Sraadhams are performed on 11th or 12th day so that one becomes authorised to perform Sapindikarana Shradham. Sapindikarana Sraadhams is performed on the 12th ay. With the performance of Sapindikarana Sraadham, the individual attains the title of ‘Pitru’ and gets a place in Pitru-lokam. Really speaking, it is appropriate to perform sixteen monthly Srdhams in the respective months and Sapindikarana Srddham a day before the yearly Srddham; however, the present custom is to perform all this on the 12th day post-death itself. The ritual of Nidhanshānti (Shānto-dak) On the 13th day, Pathēya Shrddha is performed and ritual of Nidhanshnti is performed. All the near and dear ones should be invited and served a sweet meal. In today’s times in some places, this ritual is performed on the 12th day itself. Inviting everyone on the 13th day for a meal comprising sweets Due to the rituals performed on the 13th day, the Linga-dēha (subtle body) penetrates the atmospheric range of earth and attains further momentum. Attaining momentum means cutting off all ties with his family members by the Linga-dēha and developing a relationship with God. To greet this blissful process of doing away with the attachment with the gross body and developing attraction towards God, everyone is invited for a meal comprising sweets as a symbolic gesture. For a period of one year, every month, on the date of death (Thithi day), Sraadha ceremony (Masika Sraadha) continues to be held. Then a final Sraadha on the thithi day of month died ceremony known as Varshika Sraadha is held. All of these ceremonies are accompanied by the offering of pindas. The period of one year is very important? Aadya Sraadham (first Sraadham) takes place on the eleventh day. Then on the twelfth day, Yama’s messengers come for the preta. The preta now has a body, thanks to the pindas offered on the first ten days. Yama’s messengers grab this body and begin to drag it towards Yama’s abode. But the way is long and it takes three hundred and forty- eight days for the journey to be completed. The journey starts on the thirteenth day after death. Therefore, it is almost a year after death when the preta finally reaches Yama’s abode. During his long journey, the preta gets no food or water. It lives on whatever offerings are made to it in the form of pindas. There are sixteen places that have to be passed on the way to Yama’s abode. Their names are Yamya, Souri, Nagendra, , Shailagama, Krouncha, Krura, Vichithra, Vahvapada, Duhkada, Nankranda, Sutapta, Roudra, Payovarshana, Shitadhya, and Vahubhiti In between the places named Vichithra and Vahvapada, the river Vaitarani has to be crossed. This is a terrible river and its currents are made of blood. There are boats for crossing the river. But only those who have donated cows on earth are allowed to cross by means of the boats. The others are dragged through the current and their flesh torn to shreds by fierce birds.

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After one year has passed, the preta reaches Yama’s abode. He is no longer a preta, but becomes one of the ancestors (Pitru SarIera). The Varshika Sraadham that is performed is recognition of this fact. Garuda Purana abridged: 2.15.67 "Within three days and nights the soul assumes a new body. On the tenth day the embodies soul longs for food. 2.15.74. "On the eleventh day and the twelfth, the soul of dead eats to his fill. 2.15.76 "On the thirteenth day, the soul of the dead is taken to the High Way. Now he assumes a body of the pinda and feels hungry by day and night. 3) Half boiled rice and dhal is kneaded as laddus as pinda: The pinda dhaan in death rituals vary from region to region in length and breadth of the country,. This can be seen in Gaya Pinda Dhaan and there many many kinds of Pinda Dhaan and with various constituents. (boiled or semi boiled, spherical or lumped, with seasame or daal ...). During his long journey, the preta lives on whatever offerings are made to it in the form of pindas. 4) One year after the death, the family will observe a memorial event called “Sraadha,” which pays homage to the deceased. The karta will invite Brahmins, members of the highest caste, to the home and provide them with an elaborate meal, treating them as he would his own parents." Meaning and Scope of Sraadham: The term ‘Sraadham’ has originated from ‘Sraadhama’ (faith). It is impossible to repay the various favors, which our deceased forefathers have done for us. The ritual performed for them with complete faith is known as Sraadham. It is impossible to repay the various favors, which our deceased ancestors have done for us. The ritual performed for them with complete faith is known as Shraddha. In Hindu Sanadhana Dharma, the ritual of Shraddha is not only repays debts (Runa) towards deceased ancestors, but also makes it easy to repay debts towards God and Sages. Sages are considered to be hot tempered in comparison to God and due to this nature; they could curse one and thus entrap the embodied soul. However, as debts towards ancestors are to be repaid by action (Karma), it becomes simple and easy to repay these debts through the ritual of Sraadha. Therefore, in order to be able to repay other debts in a good manner, it is necessary that everyone relies upon debts towards ancestors that act as link between God and Sages, satisfy them by performing these rituals and try to embark upon the progress towards attaining final liberation. By performing the ritual of Shraddha, with the help of the ancestors’ soul, one can slowly progress towards reaching God and Sages. Moreover, by the virtue of combined support from , and Adithya (Vasu means aspirations, Rudra means dissolution and Adithya means radiance or action), one can provide momentum to the deceased father, grandfather and great grandfather and in turn acquire blessings from God. The term ‘Shraddha’ is completely linked with Maya (The Great Illusion) and Brahman (the Creator) through the bond of debts that is to be repaid. When the threads of the reciprocation relationship that binds us, dissolves, and then at that time the embodied soul gets liberated and only then it can acquire momentum to progress towards attaining Final liberation. Therefore, through the ritual of Shraddha, one can get rid of the bonding with others and get liberated in this birth itself under observer stance of the followers of Lord Vishnu.

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Repaying the debt to ancestors is as important as repaying the debt to God, Sages and the society. It is the duty of descendants to respect their ancestors, make donations in their name and to undertake activities that will please them. Performing Sraadham is a part of obeying Dharma, as per science of Dharma. B) Ancestors' soul becomes satisfied only after receiving pinda and water from their son. In relation to this, following is a verse in the holy text Mahabharat that describes 'who qualifies to be called as son' :

प्ना्न८ु नरका्य्िान्पिरं रायिॳ सिु : । ि्िा्परु इति र८्ि: ्वयिॳव ्वयंभवाु ।। – Mahabharata 1.74.39 Punnamno Narkadysmatpitharm Thrayte Sutaha: Tsmatputra ithi Prokthha:Swayameva Swayambhuva Meaning: The son protects his ancestors' souls from the Hell named 'Puta'. Therefore Lord Brahma himself has named him as 'Putra'. As per the above verse, to enable the deceased ancestors to progress to a higher sub-plane, every son should perform ritual of Sraadham. It is amply clear in the verse that the one who is believed to be a son, he should perform these duties.

C) दॳवपपिकायाग्यांृ न रिहदि्यि । – Thaittiriya Upanishad 1.11 Devapithruckryabyam na Pramditwayam Meaning: One should not commit mistakes in any task performed towards God or ancestors' souls. One should not avoid these rituals. D) Following verse, regarding people who do not perform Sraadham, in the holy text Gita is insightful

पिन्ि पपिर८ ्यॳषां लतिपप्ड८दकरियाु – Shrimad Bhagavat Gita 1.42 Pthanthi Pitharo Hyesham Lupthapindokakriya. Meaning: Due to the nonperformance of rituals like pinda Sraadham and offering water to deceased ancestors etc. the ancestors of such people (who do not perform Sraadham) have to reside in the Hell region. This results in stagnation and no progress of the descendants.

E) Sage Sumantu has said, 'राधाि ्परिरं ना्यि ्रॳय्करि ्उदाृिि ्।', Sraddhat Parataram Nanyath Sreyaskaram Udahrtam. Meaning: Nothing is as superior as the ritual of Sraadham. Therefore, a person having a pure intellect to discriminate between right and wrong should never abstain from performing Sraadham. F) (one of the major 18 Puranas) explains about why every son should perform ritual of Sraadha. It says that 'Activities related to deceased ancestors are more important than those related to God'. Therefore every sacred ceremony begins with Naandi Sraadham. G) says, 'One who performs the ritual of Sraadham diligently and in accordance with ones financial state, he satisfies everyone right from Lord Brahma to the insignificant blade of grass. No one in the family of the person performing Sraadham remains unhappy.' (4)

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H) At the time of death if a person feels, 'Sraadham is meaningless and nobody should perform Sraadham for me after my death' and later because of Sraadham having not been performed, after his death, he experiences that, 'I am trapped', even then he cannot convey this feeling to anyone. He could become unhappy because of his wish remaining unfulfilled. Taking this point into consideration, it is absolutely necessary to perform Sraadham for every deceased person. I) By performing ritual of Sraadham for a deceased person, the give-and-take account that exists with that person gets fulfilled, e.g. if we owe something to a person and he dies before we could repay him, then by the virtue of performing Sraadham the loan can be repaid. 3. Benefits of performing Sraadham: A) The ritual of Sraadham is sacrificial fire performed for deceased ancestors and it is sacred, beneficial bestows blessings for conceiving a baby boy. The benefits derived after performing the ritual of Sraadham are mentioned in Smruthi Chandrika and other holy texts in the form of a verse as follows :

आय:ु परानु ् यश: ्वगं कीतिग पन्टंु बलं थरय: । पशनू ्स९्यं धनं धा्यं रातनयािु ्पपिपृ जनािू ् ।। Meaning : One can conceive a baby boy and acquire a long life, success, heaven, fame, strength, wealth, animals, happiness, food, etc. by worshipping (performing Sraadham for) deceased ancestors. B) If the ritual of Sraadham is performed on the day of an eclipse, the host derives benefit similar to the one obtained after donating a piece of land to someone. Indian culture teaches us that we have to perform certain duties towards our parents and close relatives after their death, just as we serve them when they are alive as a part of obeying our Dharma. The ritual of Shraddha provides us with an excellent mechanism to fulfill our duties and in turn repay our debts towards ancestors. Our parents have taken the utmost care of us during our childhood. The ritual of Shraddha is necessary so that their journey after their death is full of comfort and devoid of any distress and that they acquire momentum, which allows them to progress to a higher sub-plane. If Shraddha is not performed, the desires of the deceased ancestors remain unfulfilled. The negative energies make easy victims of such desire riddled ancestors souls and then make them their slaves. In all likelihood, they then use them to cause distress to their own family members. By performing Shraddha, one gets relieved from the distress caused by the ancestors’ souls thereby enabling oneself to lead a comfortable life on earth.

Srddham or Shraaddha (राध) is a Sanskrit word, which literally means anything or any act that is performed with all sincerity and faith (Srddham). In Purana mentions about Sraadham as:

਺तन्यं नॴमिन्िकं का्यं बरपवध राध ि्यिॳु ।’ ि्््य परननु ् “Nityn Namithikam Kaamym trividha Sraadha Mukyte” – Matsya Purana Meaning: primarily there are three types of Sraadham – one performed daily, periodically and with purpose (Kamya). In addition to these, Yamasmruti defines Nandi Sraadham and Parvana Sraadham as additional main types. The definition of Shraddha as given in the 'Shraddha' chapter within the Brahma Purana Holy text is as follows:

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दॳशॳ कालॳ च पारॳ च रधया पवथधना च यि ् । पपिनृ हिचयु पवरॳ्य८ द्िं राधिदाृिु ्।। - र्िपराणु deshe kaale ca paat-re ca sh-rad-dhayaa vidhinaa ca yat- | pitrnud-dish-ya vip-rebh-yo dat-tam sh-raad-dhamudaahrt- || - Brahma Puraanna Meaning: The offerings (food etc.) made to the brahmins (priests) with the intension being received by the deceased ancestors, after taking into account the aptness of country, time period and place and with complete faith and abiding by all the rules is known as Shraddha. Associated words in Sraadha: Shraddhattva Pinda, Pitru Puja (ritualistic worship of deceased ancestors), Pitru Yagna (sacrificial fires performed for deceased ancestors) 2. Importance and need of performing Sraadham A) Repaying the debt to ancestors is as important as repaying the debt to God, Sages and the society. It is the duty of descendants to respect their ancestors, make donations in their name and to undertake activities that will please them. Performing Sraadham is a part of obeying Dharma, as per science of Dharma. B) Ancestors' soul becomes satisfied only after receiving pinda and water from their son. In relation to this, following is a verse in the holy text Mahabharat that describes 'who qualifies to be called as son' :

प्ना्न८ु नरका्य्िान्पिरं रायिॳ सिु : । ि्िा्परु इति र८्ि: ्वयिॳव ्वयंभवाु ।। – Mahabharata 1.74.39 Punnamno Narkadysmatpitharm Thrayte Sutaha: Tsmatputra ithi Prokthha:Swayameva Swayambhuva Meaning: The son protects his ancestors' souls from the Hell named 'Puta'. Therefore Lord Brahma himself has named him as 'Putra'. As per the above verse, to enable the deceased ancestors to progress to a higher sub-plane, every son should perform ritual of Sraadham. It is amply clear in the verse that the one who is believed to be a son, he should perform these duties.

C) दॳवपपिकायाग्यांृ न रिहदि्यि । – Thaittiriya Upanishad 1.11 Devapithruckryabyam na Pramditwayam Meaning: One should not commit mistakes in any task performed towards God or ancestors' souls. One should not avoid these rituals. D) Following verse, regarding people who do not perform Sraadham, in the holy text Gita is insightful

पिन्ि पपिर८ ्यॳषां लतिपप्ड८दकरियाु – Shrimad Bhagavat Gita 1.42 Pthanthi Pitharo Hyesham Lupthapindokakriya. Meaning: Due to the nonperformance of rituals like pinda Sraadham and offering water to deceased ancestors etc. the ancestors of such people (who do not perform Sraadham) have to reside in the Hell region. This results in stagnation and no progress of the descendants.

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E) Sage Sumantu has said, 'राधाि ्परिरं ना्यि ्रॳय्करि ्उदाृिि ्।', Sraddhat Parataram Nanyath Sreyaskaram Udahrtam. Meaning: Nothing is as superior as the ritual of Sraadham. Therefore, a person having a pure intellect to discriminate between right and wrong should never abstain from performing Sraadham. F) Brahma Vaivarta Purana (one of the major 18 Puranas) explains about why every son should perform ritual of Sraddha. It says that 'Activities related to deceased ancestors are more important than those related to God'. Therefore every sacred ceremony begins with Naandi Sraadham. G) Brahma Puran says, 'One who performs the ritual of Sraadham diligently and in accordance with ones financial state, he satisfies everyone right from Lord Brahma to the insignificant blade of grass. No one in the family of the person performing Sraadham remains unhappy.' (4) H) At the time of death if a person feels, 'Sraadham is meaningless and nobody should perform Sraadham for me after my death' and later because of Sraadham having not been performed, after his death, he experiences that, 'I am trapped', even then he cannot convey this feeling to anyone. He could become unhappy because of his wish remaining unfulfilled. Taking this point into consideration, it is absolutely necessary to perform Sraadham for every deceased person. I) By performing ritual of Sraadham for a deceased person, the give-and-take account that exists with that person gets fulfilled, e.g. if we owe something to a person and he dies before we could repay him, then by the virtue of performing Sraadham the loan can be repaid.

As per traditions in Hinduism, an individual born in this world has to fulfill three ऋण – RuNa or debts. They are as follows: • Daiva Runa- It is the debt towards the Almighty God. This is to fulfill by performing of Yagnas or sacrifices. • Rishi Runa- It is the debt that we owe towards the ancient Seers, who performed great sacrifices for the betterment of the mankind. The studying of the Vedic scriptures fulfills this RuNa. • Pitri Runa- It is the debt towards the ancestors. This is to fulfill by begetting sons through procreation and the performance of Sraadhams in accordance with the Vedas. Amongst the above Runas, Pitru Runa is a way of remembering and paying respect towards our ancestors who are no longer alive. ‘Sraadhams’ are performed to ensure that the memories of our forefathers and loved ones do not fade away To do rituals of SHRADDHAM - Penance to Ancestors is an unique tradition in Hinduism. According to Manusmriti 3.68,

प्च सनाू रह्ि्यु चु्ली पॲष्यप्करु : | क्डनी च उदकु ्भश ्च ब्यिॲ यास ् ि ु वाहयन ् || िन्िु तिृ - ३.६८ "pancha soonaa gruhastasya chullee peshanyupaskara: kandanee cha udakumbhash cha badhyate yas tu vahayan" - Manusmriti - 3.68 Meaning: "There are 5 slaughter houses in the house of a householder. The hearth (stove), the grinding-stone, the broom, the pestle and mortar, the water vessel. He kills millions of small and

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invisible creatures daily, which bind him to inevitable sin. It is to expiate all these five sins that the “pancha maha yagyas” were prescribed daily for householders".

Manusmriti further says in 3.70, “पपि ृ यञ्ि ु िपगणं….਻, - “ pithru yagyasthu tharppanam”. Out of the above 5, Tharpanam is one of the yagyas. Pitru Tharpanam is offered to 3 generations of ancestors viz: paternal and maternal father, grandfather and great grandfather and their respective wives so that they are exalted to higher spiritual planes. We invoke the pitrus in the form of the presiding deities of the Pithru Loka and the tharppanam, the Vasu, Rudra and Adithya on the Bhugnam/Koorcham, in due order of the 3 generations. : Refer “Vasurudraditya Swaroopanam” in tharppana mantra. We then offer water, which they love, and til (thilam) with mantras. We then request at the end of the tharppanam, that this til and water be converted into suitable food for the pitrus may it be amrutam, ghee, water, milk, grass, blood or any other food according to their present requirement. (They may be in heaven, may be reborn as men or trees or in any other form)...refer tharppanam mantra taken from Yajur Veda Samhita, “oorjam vahanhteeramrutam ghrutam paya: keelalam parisruhtam swadhastha tharpayatha may pitrun”. The food is called “Swadha” 1. The prayers offered during Sraadha Tharpanam starts -

ेउदीरिािवर उि ्परास उ्ि्यिा: पपिर स८्यास: । अस ुं य ईयरवु काृ ऋिञा: िॳ न८ऽव्ि ु पपिर८ हवॳष ु ।।’ – ऋनवॳद, िंडल १०, स्िू १५, ऋचा १ Udhirathavamavara Uthparasa Unmadhyama Pithara Somayasa Asooyaeyaravruka Ruthakna The Noavanthu Pithrohaveshu - The Rig Veda-10.S.15.1 Meaning: Let the ancestors residing on Earth attain an evolved region. Let the ancestors who are in heaven, that is, at a higher plane of existence, never degrade. Let the ones who are at a medium plane of existence, attain a higher plane. Let the ancestors who symbolise the Truth protect us. Also, prayer is offered to the ancestors for the continuation of the lineage, ‘O Pithru-deities, give birth to a son like Ashwini Kumar, who is beautiful, healthy and who can fulfill the wishes of Deities, ancestors and all humans. 1.1 The prayers offered at the end of the Shraaddha ritual

A. ‘ग८रं न८ वधगिाि ् ।‘ – ‘Gothram no vardhatham’ MeaningŚ Let our lineage (Gothra) grow. To this, the Brahmins bestow blessings, ‘Let your lineage grow.”

B. ‘वीरं िॳ द्ि पपिर: ।’- ‘Veeram me datha pithraha’. Meaning: O ancestors, give me a valiant son. Another prayer is, ‘Since the time of the origin of the Universe to date, whoever was born in the lineage of my mother and father and all the servants from these two lineages and my past births, those supported by me, those serving me, friends, disciple, pets, the plants and trees planted and cut by me, the close relatives, those who incurred favours from me and those who bestowed favours on me, get the food offered by me. It is evident from this prayer that the Hindu Dharma teaches us to express gratitude not only to our own but also towards our benefactors, other beings and trees and plants. [FOR PRIVATE CIRCULATION] 75

The said Sraadham is sacred one for Hindus as many scriptures say that it is the pious duty of generations in Hindu families to do penance to ancestors (Pits) especially to one’s dead parents regularly in proper ritual style. Conceptually, it is a way for people to express heartfelt gratitude and thanks towards their parents and ancestors, for having helped them to be what they are and praying for their peace. It also can be thought of as a "day of remembrance." It is performed for both the father and mother separately, on the days they became deceased. It is performed on the death anniversary or collectively during the or Shraaddha Paksha (Fortnight of ancestors), right before Sharad in autumn. The performance of Sraadham by a son during Pitru Paksha is compulsory in Hindu Dharma to ensure that the soul of the ancestor goes to heaven as regarded. Markandeya Purana says that if the ancestors are content with the Sraadha, they will bestow health and happiness upon the performer. However, let it be known that the underlying emotion is gratitude and NOT selfishness. In practice, the Karta (person who performs the Shraaddha) invites (individuals who are considered very noble, worthy, knowledgeable, etc.) the Shraaddha day, imagines they are his/her parent, performs a homam, serves them with sumptuous food, and treats them with all hospitality and finally serves “pinda pradanam”. (Pinda—balls made of rice, given as offerings to the Pits). The Karta then gives "Dakshina" (fees) to the Brahmanas. (There are various other actions done to show respect to the Brahmanas, like washing their feet etc. during the course of Shraaddha). Cows are also considered ancestors in Hinduism and during Srddham; the practice of offering food or pinda to cows is still in vogue. Since this is one of the most important and noble “Samskaras” (rituals meant to cleanse the mind and soul) that the Hindu sages have envisaged, it is imperative that the performer of the ritual understands what he or she is doing. Only then, the true intent of the ritual will be fulfilled. In addition, the performer of the ritual feels completely gratified. Else, the ritual becomes just a mechanical exercise for one’s part. A) Providing momentum to the deceased ancestors present in the Pitru region so that they can progress to a higher sub-plane of existence, through the means of Sraadham. B) Satisfying wishes and desires of the souls of the deceased ancestors from ones' family who are trapped in the negative regions due to unfulfilled desires and providing momentum for their further progress. Hindu Dharma does not give any chance to anyone to say that the Shraaddha was not performed due to non-feasibility in a particular period! Sraadha ceremony performed for the ancestors is of different types. Strictly speaking Sraadha has to be performed daily. The Vedas speak about things not comprehended by the human mind. Performing the rites prescribed by the Vedas, the fruits will naturally follow. The consequences of good deed will be only good and that of evil deed will be evil only. According to the shastras, not doing the work assigned to us is not only sinful but also disadvantageous in a worldly sense. In the past, people earned their respect by doing the karma, the duties expected of them. Failure on the part of people to follow their respective rites and duties are inherited from their ancestors have resulted in the miserable state of our nation. If everyone does ones allotted job, carries out the duties expected of one by birth, there should be happiness for all.

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There are several types of Tharppanams: - 1. Gunda Tharpanam- the Tharpanam which is done in the first ten days of death. 2. Brahma Yagna Tharpanam-This is the oblation supposed to be done daily to the Devas, Rishis and Pithrus. 3. Parheni Tharpanam- This is the Tharpanam which is supposed to be done on the next day after annual Sraadham .This at present is being done after Srardha on the same day, because the priest does not have time to come the next day. Here the Tharpanam is offered only to ones Pithru (paternal side) 4 The regular Tharpanam which is supposed to be done on all Amavasyas. Four Months beginning viz Mesha, Karkitaka, Thula and (Sankramana Sraadham) and both Lunar and Solar eclipses. Our Sastras have asked us to perform Tharpanam on 96 days in a year but this is not being done nowadays. Several Acharyas have codified the method of Tharpanam. Some of them are Apasthabha, Bodhayana, and Drahyayana. There are slight differences in the sankalpam among and Iyengars. It is understood that the Tharpanam for Rig Vedis is almost similar but that for Sama Vedis is different. There are also differences brought about by local practice and family tradition. People are advised to follow their traditions strictly. They have precedence over what is written down. For example in many families Tharpanam is done without wearing Vibhuthi or Namam but there are certain families who do Tharpanam wearing these. Some people do Avahanams of Pithrus on two Koorchams. Some on one Koorcha and some on spread Durbhas gras. In some places both Koorchams and Dharbhas are used. According to the Vaidhyanatheeyam and Srivaishnava Deepika (Anmiika Granthams), a dutiful Brahmin has to perform 96 tharppanams in a year, as stipulated in the Vedic scripts. Listed below are the days on which a Brahmin has to perform his duty in Thila tharpana roopam. Out of these, the Mahalaya Tharpanam can be done with Hiranyam or with Brahmmana bhojanam also; if not on all the sixteen day, any one day that one considers himself as most important – viz. Mahabharani, Madhyashtami or on his mathru / pithru srardha thithi days that falls during Mahalayam.. Following are the 96 days:- Amavasya – 12 days. Masapirappu – 12 ,, Pournami - 12 ,, Kruthayugathi – 1 ,, Threthayugathi - 1 ,, Dwaparayugathi - 1 ,, Kaliyugathi – 1 ,, Vaithruthi Yogas – 14 ,, Vyatheepatha Yoga -14 ,, Mahalayathi -16 ,, Ashtakaa – 4 ,., Anvashtaka – 4 ,, [FOR PRIVATE CIRCULATION] 77

Thisroshtaka -4 ,, If one cannot afford to perform the Darsha Sraadham known as Thila Tharppanam on all the above days, one should stick to minimum possible on Amavasya, Mesha Sankramanam, Dakshminayana Punyakalam, Thula Punyakalam, Uttharayana Punyakalam, visible / Grahanam days and also on the next days to Mathru/Pithru Srardha. Amavasya Tharpanam: In simple terms, Tharpanam usually means offering something to one’s ancestral beings to satisfy them. Many believe that Tharpanam is as important as any other worship procedure. Tharpanam, which is carried out on the day of Amavasya, is known as Amavasya Tharpanam. Sankranthi or Sankramana (Masapirappu days) (when the sun enters the next Rasi) Sankranthi or Sankramana means transmigration of the Sun from one constellation of the zodiac in Indian astronomy to the next called Rasi. Hence, there are 12 Sankranthis in a year. Each Sankranthi is marked as the beginning of a month in the sidereal solar followed in , Kerala, Odisha and Punjab. On the other hand, in the sidereal solar Bengali and Assamese calendar, a Sankranthi is marked as the end of each month and the day following as the beginning of a new month. Uttharayana Punyakalam start with Makara Sankranthi day and ends in Dakshminayana Punyakalam. Dakshminayana Punyakalam begins when Sun enters Karkitaka (Kataka) Rasi. Many Hindus perform Shraadha ceremonies for their ancestors on this day. In Hinduism, one day of Brahma is one human year. Uttharayana Punyakalam marks one day time and Dakshminayana Punyakalam marks one night of Brahma. Our sages saw a close relationship between the position and movements of the planets and the behavior as well as destiny of man, his fortunes and miseries. They somehow felt the eclipse had a negative influence on man’s life. Therefore, they prescribed offering water oblation to ancestors, fasting during the period, offering prayers, indulge in charitable acts and holy baths after the eclipse and before starting prayers. Probably they felt that human intellect could not understand many things on the universe so pleading to the mercy of the divine is the best solution. Out of fear or awe, they directed their prayers to the Lord and the planets. Even today special prayers are offered in temples pleading for calmness and peace to ward off ill effects of the eclipse. Whenever planets align themselves in some difficult configuration, moving away from their rhythmic order it creates cosmic energies that can cause devastation, destruction or create difficult situations around the world. These abnormal aspects can also cause threat to the well-being and lives of some beings according to their birth stars. So, prayers are offered to the Lord pleading so that no such disturbances take place. Prayers create positive energies that counteract negative energies created by these disturbances or at least dilute their destructive effect. Puranas cleverly wielded the incidences of eclipse to an interesting mythological story. You have all heard the story of churning of the ocean and the emergence of that is elixir for immortal life. Lord Vishnu assumed the form enchantress and distributed the divine nectar only among the divines or Devas. But Rahu, a demon disguised himself as a divine appeared before Mohini. Ever vigilant Sun and Moon brought this to the notice of Mohini who wielded Sudarsana and cut off the head of Rahu. Since the nectar had reached up to the neck of Rahu, he did not die. Thus the head came to be known as Rahu and body came to be known as . They assumed the planetary status along with seven others and are known for their ill effects. To avenge this betrayal Rahu and Ketu periodically eclipse the Sun and the Moon say the Puraanas.

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During the Churning of the Ocean of Milk, the forces of darkness (demons) and the forces of light (demi-gods) cooperated to create Amrta – the Nectar of Immortality. The Chief Minister of the demons, Rahu, through subterfuge, begins to drink some of the Nectar. However, the Sun and the Moon see through his trickery and advise Mohini, the female of Lord Vishnu of this deception. She subsequently cuts off his head. Because the Nectar of Immortality passed through his throat, his head remains immortal. Rahu (the head without a body) seeks to consume the Sun while Kethu (the body without a head) attacks the Moon. In art, they are depicted as a snake. On a gross/physical level, the Solar and Lunar eclipses represent the demon’s severed bodies continually attacking the Sun and Moon as revenge. The Sun attacked by Rahu becomes black and the Moon attacked by Kethu appears as a golden/red cup full of blood. On a subtle level, these eclipses are inauspicious omens that portend trouble from the dark powers of the world. Pournami Sraadham: - Pournami Shraddha also called as Bhadrapada Purnima or Shraddhi Purnima is the full Moon day of the month of or Bhadrapada (Proshthapadi and Nabhasya) during September–October month. In the , Bhadra is the sixth month of the year and it begins with the Sun's entry into Virgo zodiac. During Bhadrapada month, the Eastern and Northern Bhadrapada nakshatras (constellations) are formed and hence the name occurred as ‘Bhadrapada’. Bhadrapada Purnima is the day in which the yoga of these Nakshatras or constellations is formed. The day also marks the onset of retreating monsoon in India and devotees offer prayers and rituals for prosperity and good health. The month is auspicious month in some parts of India and Bhadrapada Purnima - the full moon day of this month is celebrated Satyanarayana Puja with offerings to Lord Satyanarayana, a form of Vishnu. Doing so, the devotees believe that they gain good karma and that Lord Vishnu blesses them with wealth and happiness. The day also marks the onset of retreating monsoon in India and devotees offer prayers and rituals for prosperity and good health. Purnima or full moon divides a month into Krishna Paksha (Dark Half) and Shukla Paksha (Bright Half) and it is the day in which moon completes one cycle around the earth. Each Full Moon day is significant in Hindu tradition and is considered the right time to begin spiritual advancement or any activity. It is believed that Purnima (‘Pournami’ in ) relieves as from all negativities. Some devotees, on full moon day, observe fasting, conducts Purnima pujas and offer prayers to Lord Satyanarayana (Lord Vishnu). In some parts of South India, the fasting (Pournami Vratam) is dedicated to Devi or Mother Goddess. Purnima Shraadha is also known as Shraddhi Purnima and Proshthapadi Purnima Shraddha (र८्ठपदी पणणगिाू ). It should be noted that Mahalaya Shraddha for those who died on Purnima is done on Amavasya Shraddha Tithi and not on Bhadrapada Purnima. Although Bhadrapada Purnima Shraddha falls one day before Pithru Paksha but it is not part of Pithru Paksha. Usually Pithru Paksha starts on the next day of Bhadrapada Purnima Shraddha.

Bhadrapada Purnima Shraddha, like Pithru Paksha Shraadhas, is Parvana Shraadhas (पावगण राध) and auspicious time to perform it is either Kutup Muhurat or Rohina etc. Muhurat after that until Aparahna Kala gets over. Tharpana (िपगण) is to be done at the end of the Shraddha.

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Pithru Paksha Shraadha: (i.e. 15 days of Mahalaya) (39) Shraadha or Sraadham offered during Pithru Paksha (dark fortnight or Krishna Paksha) in the month of Ashwin (September – October) is of great importance in Hindu religion. As said, Shraadha is the ceremonies and rituals performed for the departed souls of dead ancestors. It is believed that the souls will attain peace by the Shraadha rituals performed during the fortnight. The Shraadha Pithru Paksha begins on next day to Purnima day Ashwina month i.e. begins September 23 and ends with Mahalaya Pithru Paksha. (Pithru Paksha fortnight – 15 days). According to Hindu mythology, the Shraddha performed on Ashwin Pithru Paksha reaches the ancestors immediately and their souls will rest in peace. Hindu Puranas are full of details about Shraaddha, especially Agni Purana, Garuda Purana and Matysa Purana. It is Yama, the god of death in Hindu mythology, who explained the importance of Shraddha performed on Pithru Paksha. As per Hinduism, the souls of three preceding generations of one's ancestor reside in Pithru–Loka, a realm between heaven and earth. Yama, the god of death, who takes the soul of a dying man from earth to Pithru–Loka, governs this realm. When a person of the next generation dies, the first generation shifts to heaven and unites with God, so Shraddha offerings are not given. Thus, only the three generations in Pithru–Loka are given Shraddha rites, in which Yama plays a significant role. According to the sacred Hindu epics (), at the beginning of Pithru Paksha, the sun enters the zodiac sign of Libra (Thula). Coinciding with this moment, it is believed that the spirits leave Pitru–loka and reside in their descendants' homes for a month until the sun enters the next zodiac—Scorpio (Vrichchhika)—and there is a full moon. Hindus are expected to propitiate the ancestors in the first half, during the dark fortnight. When Karna, the brave warrior whose acts of giving are legendary even today, died in the epic Mahabharata war, his soul transcended to heaven, where he was offered gold and jewels as food. However, Karna needed real food to eat and asked , the lord of heaven, the reason for serving gold as food. Indra told Karna that he had donated gold all his life, but had never donated food to his ancestors in Shraddha. Karna said that since he was unaware of his ancestors, he never donated anything in their memory. To make amends, Karna was permitted to return to earth for a 15–day period, so that he could perform Shraddha and donate food and water in their memory. This period is now known as Pithru Paksha. In some legends, Yama replaces Indra. These sixteen days when king Karna was on Earth were called the Pithru Paksha. These days are considered very inauspicious and even today no new activity or a good task is done on these days. The performance of Shraddha by a son during Pithru Paksha is regarded as compulsory, to ensure that the soul of the ancestor goes to heaven. In this context, the scripture Garuda Purana says, "there is no salvation for a man without a son". The scriptures preach that a householder should propitiate ancestors (Pitris), along with the gods (Devas), Ghosts (Bhoothas) and Guests. The scripture Markandeya Purana says that if the ancestors are content with the Shraadhas, they will bestow health, wealth, knowledge and longevity, and ultimately heaven and salvation (moksha) upon the performer. Sarva Pitri Amavasya, popularly known as “Pitru Paksha” or Mahalaya Paksha, means “all fathers’ new moon day” is meant for all ancestors, irrespective the lunar day they died. It is the most important day of the Pithru Paksha and those who forgotten to perform shradham, can do so on this day. The Shraddha done on this day is considered as fruitful as one done in the holy city of Gaya. Santana Dharma says, "Sarvapitri Amavasya is the day when all those who have not been able to do the rituals for the dead ones can perform the same, so that their ancestors may achieve liberation or moksha. Certain other practices are also need to be observed. The old and elderly who

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have passed away should be discussed and talked about, purchase of new things and starting of new ventures should be avoided." The performance of Sarvapitri Amavasya rites can also compensate a forgotten or neglected annual Shraddha ceremony, which should ideally coincide with the death anniversary of the deceased. According to Hindu Dharma, the Sraadha ceremony is central to the concept of lineages. The Shraddha involves oblations to three preceding generations, — by reciting their names — as well as to the mythical lineage ancestor (Gothra). A person thus gets to know the names of six generations (three preceding generation, his own and two succeeding generations—his sons and grandsons) in his life, reaffirming lineage ties. Pithru Paksha emphasises the fact that the ancestors are connected with the current generation and their next unborn generation by blood ties. The current generation repays their debt to the ancestors in the Pithru Paksha. This debt is considered as of utmost importance along with a person's debt to his and Devas. According to Matysa Purana, Agni, and are acting as intermediaries during Pithru Paksha Shraddha and take the rituals and food offered to ancestors. The ancestors bless those performing the ritual. In some places, the last day of the Shraddha is of great importance. The ritual is usually conducted near temples or on riverbanks. It is believed by Hindus that all the sinful acts committed by the dead will be cleansed by the Shraadha. Those departed souls who do not receive Shraadha are said to wander aimlessly on Earth. Pithru Paksha Shraadha is also offered by people to ancestors, whose death dates they have forgotten. To relatives who had no children and who met with violent death like accidents or murder. Those people who failed to perform the annual shradham (performed on the death date) also offer Shraadha during Pithru Paksha. The customs and rituals performed during Pithru Paksha Shraadha vary regionally. Some people fast on that day. Some people observe specific customs like abstaining from non-vegetarian food during the fortnight and some do not cut their hair or shave. The Shraadha rituals are usually performed under the guidance of a learned person or priest. According to ’s

“र्या पपिरन उहिचय पवथधना रियिॳ य्किग िि राधि् - Shradya pitran udishya vidhina kriyate yatkarm tat shradham” It means, “Whatever acts or deeds that you perform with devotion for your near and dear ones who have died are called the Shraadha.” The essence of offerings made in these rituals should be start with full devotion for the act of Shraadha. Without the presence of devotion all other offerings and prayers made in the process is remains just an act of completing the task of performing the Yagna. Pratipada Shraadha: It is done for those deceased family members who died on Pratipada Tithi, including both Shukla and Krishna Paksha Pratipada. Pratipada Shraadha Tithi is also considered suitable to perform Shraadha for maternal grandfather and grandmother (known as Nana-Nani). If there is no person to perform Shraadha at maternal home, then doing Shraadha on this Tithi appeases souls of maternal grandparents. Even if death anniversary of maternal grandparents are not known, then also Shraadha can be done on this Tithi. It is believed that performing this Shraadha brings happiness and prosperity at the home.

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Pratipada Shraadha is also known as Padwa Shraadha.

Auspicious time to perform Pithru Paksha Shraadha (Parvana Shraadha - पावगण राध) is either in Kutup Muhurat or Rohina Muhurat etc. after that till Aparahna Kala gets over.

Kutup (कु िपु ) Muhurat = 11:50 to 12:39 (Duration = 0 Hours 48 Mins)

Rohina (र९हहण) Muhurat = 12:39 to 13:28 (Duration = 0 Hours 48 Mins)

Aparahna (अपरा्न) Kaal = 13:28 to 15:53 (Duration = 2 Hours 25 Mins)

Tharpana (िपगण) is done at the end of the Pithru Paksha Shraadha. Vaidhriti Nithya Yoga: (12 days ) *Nithya Yoga - This is the combination of moon and sun and these indicate some aspect of the personality. The yoga point falls in a particular nakshatra, and this point and its ruling planet can be auspiciously activated during favorable transits. The avayogi planet, which is calculated from the yogi nakshatra, tends to cause problems. These yogas are minor indications and only carry real weight if they are helping to compound the effect of major indications in the horoscope.

Vaidhriti is the 27th Nithya (Naisargika) Yoga, which is ruled by (हदति) (an earth goddess and mother of the Maruts with Rudra. She is also the mother of the with the sage ). and considered to be extremely malefic one (along with Vyatipata). Both Yogas should be shunned in all auspicious elections. According to classical Jyotirvidyabharanam any religious activity done during these Yogas do not yield any result in both "", i.e. it is destroyed. Rajmartanda opines that these Yogas along with Bhadra Karana (Vishti) are even capable to destroy Amrita Yoga. Its effect can be described as "holding", "arresting". Guru is a Graha, who is ruling Vaidhriti. Vaidhriti (poor support)- overwhelming, calculative - (yoga point – Purnavasu / ; Avayogi - Sun) PACIFICATION OF VAIDHRITI YOGA: Worship of Rudra, Surya and Chandrama helps in neutralizing the ill effects of Vaidhriti Yoga. Vyatipata Yoga: - (12 days -63) PACIFICATION OF VYATIPATA YOGA is Worship of Surya, Agni and Rudra helps in the neutralizing the ill effects of Vyatipata Yoga. Vyatipata is the 17th Nithya (Naisargika) Yoga, which is ruled by Rudra and considered to be especially malefic one along with Vaidhriti (comparing to other malefic Nithya Yogas all Ghatis of Vyatipata and Vaidhriti are inauspicious for starting something). Both Yogas should be shunned in all auspicious elections. According to classical Jyotirvidyabharanam (2/56) any religious activity done during these Yogas do not yield any result in both "lokas", i.e. it is destroyed. Another classic, Rajmartanda opines that these Yogas along with Bhadra Karana (Vishti) are even capable to destroy even Amrita Yoga. Its effect can be described as "a portent indicating disaster", "a great disaster", "and calamity". Rahu is a Graha, who is ruling Vyatipata. TRIK-PRASAV SHANTI: A girl child born after three successive boys; or a boy born after three successive girls is considered inauspicious according to Indian . In such a case, it is necessary to perform this particular ritual to neutralize ill effects otherwise there is a fear of harm to the whole family.

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Manvadi or :. (14 days. -77) or Manuvantara or age of a Manu, the Hindu progenitor of humanity, is an astronomical period of time measurement. Manvantara is a Sanskrit word, a compound of Manu and antara or Manvantara, literally meaning the duration of a Manu, or his life span. Each Manvantara is created and ruled by a specific Manu, who in turn is created by Brahma, the Creator himself. Manu creates the world, and all its species during that period of time, each Manvantara lasts the lifetime of a Manu, upon whose death, Brahma creates another Manu to continue the cycle of Creation or Shristi, Vishnu on his part takes a new Avatar, and also a new Indra and Saptharishis are appointed. Fourteen Manus and their respective Manvantaras constitute one , Aeon, or a ‘Day of Brahma’, according to the Hindu Time Cycles and also the Vedic timeline. Thereafter, at the end of each Kalpa, there is a period - same as Kalpa - of dissolution or Pralaya, wherein the world (earth and all life forms, but not the entire universe itself) is destroyed and lies in a state of rest, which is called the, ‘Night of Brahma’. After that the creator, Brahma starts his cycle of creation all over again, in an endless cycle of creation followed by Absorption for which Shiva, Hindu God of Absorption and also renewal, is invoked towards the end of each such cycle. The actual duration of a Manvantara, according to the Vishnu Purana is seventy one times the number of years contained in the four , with some additional years, adding up to 852,000 divine years, or 306,720,000 human years. Seven Rishis, certain (secondary) divinities, Indra, Manu, the king and his sons, are created and perish in one interval (called a Manvantara) equal to seventy-one times the number of years contained in the four Yugas, with some additional years: this is the duration of the Manu, the (attendant) divinities, and the rest, which is equal to 852,000 divine years, or to 306,720,000 years of mortals, independent of the additional period. Fourteen times this period constitutes a Bráhma day i.e. a day of Brahma; the term (Bráhma) being the derivative form. The Brahma life span is 100 Brahma varshas. The following table will illustrate clearly the link to our years and Brahma years. Sub-divisions: 1 human year (in Hindu calendar) = 1 Deva Ahoratra for God (1 day and 1 night) 360 Deva Ahoratras = 1 Deva Vatsara 12,000 Deva Vatsara = 1 Chaturyuga (12,000 Deva Vatsaras are defined as, 4,800 Deva Vatsaras of Krita Yuga, 3,600 Deva Vatsaras of , 2,400 Deva Vatsaras of and 1,200 Deva Vatsaras of which is 1,200 * 360 = 432,000 human years) 72 Chaturyugas = 1 Manvantharam (1 life span of Manu) 14 Manvantaras = 1 kalpa (1 day of Brahma) 2 Kalpas = 1 day + 1 Brahma Ratra 360 days of Brahma = 1 Brahma varsha (Manvadi or Manvantaras Days Definition: - 1 Kalpa, the unit of time in Vedic astrology, is divided into 14 Manvantharas. One Kalpa equals to 4.32 billion solar years. One Thithi is fixed for each Manvantara is known as Manvadi Thithi. These 14 Manvanthara Tithis are considered as significant for doing Shraddha rituals for departed souls.) [FOR PRIVATE CIRCULATION] 83

Vedic and Puranic texts describe units of Kala measurements, from Paramaṇu (about 17 micro- seconds) to Maha-Manvantara (311.04 trillion years). According to these texts, the creation and destruction of the universe is a cyclic process, which repeats itself forever. Each cycle starts with the birth and expansion (lifetime) of the universe equaling 311.04 trillion years, followed by its complete annihilation (which also prevails for the same duration). The current Universe was created in Padma kalpa, the last day Kalpa of 50th year of Brahma. This is 10.51 billion years ago. This figure is close to the modern estimated age of the universe in ≈ 13.79 billion years. Following 14 Tithis are marked as Manvadi or Manvantara Thithi as per Hindu calendar. Each Manvadi Tithi has been named based on the ruling saint of Manvantara. 1. Chaitra, Shukla Tritiya - Swayambhu Manvantara 2. Chaitra, Purnima - Svarochisha Manvantara 3. , Purnima - Uttama Manvantara 4. Ashadha, Purnima - Tamasa Manu Manvantara 5. Kartik, Shukla Dwadashi - Raivata Manvantara 6. Ashadha, Shukla Dashami - Chakshusha Manvantara 7. Jyeshtha, Purnima - Vaivasvata Manvantara 8. Phalguna, Purnima - Savarni Manvantara 9. Ashwin, Shukla Navami - Savarni Manvantara 10. Magha, Shukla Saptami - Brahma Savarni Manvantara 11. Pausha, Shukla - Dharma Savarni Manvantara 12. Bhadrapada, Shukla Tritiya - Rudra Savarni Manvantara 13. Phalguna, Amavasya - Rauchya Savarni Manvantara 14. , Krishna Ashtami - Bhauta Savarni Manvantara. Purvedyu, Ashtakaa and Anvashtaka:- (15 days - 92) The four-month period from Margashirsha to Maagha Maasa is stated to be suitable for performing Ashtakaa Shraaddha on the Krishna Paksha- Ashtakaas; on the preceding Sapthamis Purvedyu Shraadhas are scheduled and on the following Navamis, Anvashtaka Shraadhas are required to be executed. However, there are views that the Ashtakaa Shraadhas be performed in Bhadrapada Krishna Paksha-Ashtamis and some others opine that these be done in Pousha Krishna Pakshas. In any case, if one is able to perform only one Shraaddha in the concerned periods. Then that is also acceptable. Even if that ist not be possible, there are Pratyamnaayaas or alternatives; for e.g. Vrishbha (Bull) has to be fed with dry grass, Agni too be offered grass and water pots to Veda- Vetthaas; as a last resort Shraadha Mantras be recited and Upavasa to be observed. Inability to perform Ashtakaa Shraaddha then the Prayaschitta is to fast on the lines of Praajaapatya krucchra; if Anvashtaka is not performed, atonement is to recite the Prayaschitta Mantra hundred times. Yugadi or : Days 4 – 96. (i.e. Krita, Treta, Dwapar, Kali) Brahma did the Srushti of this world in Suryodaya Kaala on Chaitra Shukla Paadya – that is why it is termed Yugadi. There are 4 Yugadis -.

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1. Vaishaka (April/May or Medam/Idavam. Tamil Chithirai) Shukla Triteeya – Tretayuga (Akshya Tritiya) 2. Bhadrapada (23 Aug..to 22 Sep. – in Tamil Purattaasi) Krishna Trayodashi – Kaliyuga 3. Kartika (October/November) Shukla Navami (Amla Navami) – Kruthayuga 4. Magha (January/February) Shukla Pournami – Dwaparyuga The significance of Ugadi stems from mythological times when Lord Brahma, the creator of the universe, began a series of wonderful creations, including that of the earth and all the life forms that live in it. The festival of Ugadi is celebrated to acknowledge that very day on which Lord Brahma started with the task. It is not only a according to the Hindu calendar, but also sets the new astronomical cycle into motion. The celebrations and prayers that follow fill people's hearts with joy and contentment. Ugadi specifically refers to the start of the age we are living in now, Kali Yuga. This Yuga started the moment when Lord Krishna left the world. Maharishi Vedavyasa describes this event with the words "Yesmin Krishno divamvyataha, Tasmaath eeva pratipannam Kaliyugam". Ads per Hindu Astronomy Calendar Kali Yuga began on February 17/18 at midnight in 3102 BCE. Kaliyuga means materialistic way of thinking, Satyayuga (Kruthayuga) means truthful way of thinking. So meaning of both yuga and era are the same. Yugadi or Ugadi is the New Year's Day for the people of the Deccan region of India. The name Yugadi or Ugadi is derived from the Sanskrit words ‘yuga’ (age) and ‘di’ (beginning). "The beginning of a new age" It falls on a different day every year because the Hindu calendar is a Luni- . The Saka calendar begins with the month of Chaitra (March–April) and Ugadi marks the first day of the New Year. Chaitra is the first month in Panchanga, which is the Indian calendar. In some parts of India, it is known as or Bhartiya Nav Varsh. Apart from above 96 days, the following other days are suitable to perform Shraddha rituals.

Matsya Purana mentions 'तन्यं नॴमिन्िकं का्यं बरपवध राध ि्यिॳु ।', “Nityam Niemitthik Kamyam Thrividha Sraadha mukhyathe.” Meaning: Primarily there are three types of Shraddha - one performed daily, periodically and with purpose (Kamya). In addition to these, Yamasmruti defines Nandi Shraddha and Parvana Shraddha are as additional main types. Seven Kalpadi Tithis - They are: 1. Magha Shukla Thrayodashi, 2. Chaitra Krishna Thritiya, 3. Chaitra Shukla Prathipada (, Ugadi) 4. Chaitra Shukla Panchami, 5. Vaishakha Shukla Thritiya (Akshya Thritiya), 6. Kartik Shukla Sapthami, 7. Margashirsha Shukla Navami. Varshika (Annual) Shraddha Day. Four types of Sraadhams: Parvana, Ekoddhishta, Naandi Shraaddha and Sapindikaranam. When one has enough material to perform the Shraddha and arrival of any suitable Brahmin Sampath Shraadha day: If two Shraddhas occur on the same date (as per Hindu calendar) then it is termed as Shraddha Sampath.

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Gajachchhaya Yoga: Gajachchhaya Yoga (गज्छाया य८ग) doesn’t form every year. But whenever Gajachchhaya Yoga occurs it occurs during Pithru Paksha and it is considered highly auspicious for performing Shraddha rituals and charity. According to Astrology, the sun transits through Hastha Nakshatra once in a year and mostly during Pitru Paksha. The combination when the Sun is in Hastha Nakshatra and the Moon is in Magha Nakshatra during Trayodashi Tithi of Pitru Paksha is known as Gajachchhaya Yoga. Similarly the combination when the Sun is in Hastha Nakshatra and the Moon in Hastha Nakshatra during Amavasya Tithi of Pitru Paksha is also known as Gajachchhaya Yoga. Hence, there might be one or two Gajachchhaya Yoga during Pitru Paksha. This auspicious combination occurs either on Thrayodashi Tithi or on Amavasya Tithi. Gajachchhaya Yoga is useful when it falls during day time and it has no value when it falls during night time. However we list Gajachchhaya Yoga irrespective of it falling during day time or night time. Surya Grahanam and Chandan Grahanam One should have a strong desire to perform the Shraddha Bhimashtami Shraddha: Bhishma Ashtami or ‘Bhishma Shanthi’ is a Hindu festival dedicated to ‘Bhishma’ of the great Indian epic ‘Mahabharata’. It is believed that Bhishma, also known as ‘Ganga Putra Bhishma’ or ‘Bhishma Pithamaha’ departed from his soul on this chosen day. This occurred during the propitious ‘Uttharayana period’ that is, the daytime of Devas. Bhishma Ashtami is observed on the ‘Ashtami’ (8th day) of the Shukla Paksha (bright fortnight of moon) of the month of ‘Magha’ in the Hindu calendar. It corresponds to the month of January-February as per the English calendar. It falls on the day after ‘Ratha Sapthami’. The day of Bhishma Ashtami is also important for people to get rid of ‘Puthra dosha’. Childless couples as well as newly married couples observe a strict fast on this day, in order to be blessed with a son soon. It is believed that by getting the blessings of Bhishma Pitamah on this day, the couples will be blessed with a male child, who will possess the qualities of Pitamah. The history behind celebrating “Bhishma Ashtami” According to folklore, in the ‘Dwapara Yuga’, Bhishma was the son of King Shanthanu and Ganga. His mother Ganges had left Shanthanu after giving birth to Bhishma. Having given his word of honour to his stepmother, Sathyavathi, Bhishma remained celibate all through his life. Marriage was never thought of, or any sensual desire ever arose in his mind. This great Yogi was adept in many Yogas and practice of meditation. His truthfulness was such that whatever he spoke came true. He knew every martial art and war tricks. He was the most respected person in the kingdom of Hasthinapur. Reverentially he was called Bhishma Pithamaha - Grandsire Bhishma. Bhishma Pitamah was known for his celibacy and he observed it all through his life. Owing to this persistent devotion and loyalty to his father, Bhishma Pitamah was bestowed with a boon “Swachchanda Maranam” or “Ischia Mrithyu” i.e a power to choose his time of death. In the Mahabharata War, Bhishma was on the side of the fighting against the . Bhishma had a pledge that he would not use any weapon against a woman. Therefore, on Sri Krishna’s advice, the Pandavas brought in the forefront to fight against Bhishma. Shikhandi was a eunuch. Because of his pledge, Bhishma did not use any weapon against Shikhandi and got seriously wounded. Though Bhishma fell in the war on the 10th day after the Great Kurukshethra war had started, he eagerly and patiently waited for Uttharayanam on the bed of arrows before departing from this world. He waited for the onset of Uttharayanam the most [FOR PRIVATE CIRCULATION] 86

auspicious period for a soul to depart. Even after the onset of Uttharayanam, he waited for the day of Ratha Sapthami, the day on which Sun’s movement takes a definite effect northwards and the next day Bhishma invoked his father’s boon of Swachchanda Maranam and died. He was ordained to seek his death whenever he wanted. Since he wanted to die in Uttharayanam, he lay in a bed of arrows created by Arjuna for 18 days. 2. Nandi Shraddha: The ritual of Shraddha performed during the start of any joyous ceremony and performance of any of the 16 religious rites, and recitation of specific mantras for success of the ceremony is called Nandi Shraddha. In this ritual Satyavasu (or Kratudaksha) are the Vishve deities and the father-grandfather-great grandfather, mother-grandmother (mother’s mother) – great grandmother (mother’s grandmother) and mother- grandmother (mother’s mother-in-law)-great grandmother (mother-in-law of mother’s mother-in-law) are invoked. 3. Karmanga Shraddha: This Shraddha is performed during the religious ritual of Garbhadhana. 4. Vruddhi Shraddha: Shraddha performed at the time of birth of a baby. 5. Parvana Shraddha: The Pindapithruyagna (sacrificial fires related to deceased ancestors) mentioned in the Shrout lineage is to be performed by a Sagnik (one who performs the ritual of Agnihotra). Alternative to this is the Parvana Shraddha mentioned in the Gruhya sutras. Once the deceased ancestors are listed as Parvanas, then for them this Shraddha is performed. 2.) Ekparvana (single Parvana), Dwiparvana (double Parvana), Thriparvana (triple Parvana) are the three varieties of this Shraddha. Mahalay Shraddha and Shraddha are the types of Parvana Shraaddha. 6. Mahalay Shraddha (fortnightly): It is a Parvana Shraddha performed starting from the eleventh day of dark fortnight of Bhadrapad (Hindu calendar month) till the no moon night. Mahalaya Paksham consists of 15 Tharpanams on 15 days (some years maybe 16) starting from Pradhamai and finishing on the Mahalaya Amavasya day, *plus* the usual Amavasya Tharpanam which *has* to be performed separate, for a total of 16 (or 17) Tharpanams. People, who find it difficult to perform all the 16 Tharpanams, instead perform on one of the 4 cases (in some cases 3), namely: • Mahalaya Paksha Tharpanam on the Father’s Thithi (provided the day fulfills certain conditions- restrictions); • Mahalaya Paksha Tharpanam on Maha-Bharani; • Mahalaya Paksha Tharpanam on Madhya-Ashtami; • Mahalaya Paksha Tharpanam on Thrayodasi day; and, in addition to usual Amavasya Tharpanam on the Amavasya day. Thus on the Mahalaya Amavasya Day, usually 2 Tharpanams *have* to be performed – • First a Mahalaya Paksha tharpanam; to be followed by, • The usual Amavasya tharpanam. The Mahalaya Paksha tharpanam offers the opportunity to perform Shardham in the form of Tharpanam to all those ancestors for whom – • Shraddham is not performed - usually lack of male heirs; • Shraddham cannot be performed - since we are not the direct heirs; [FOR PRIVATE CIRCULATION] 87

So, do not download the procedure for Mahalaya Paksha tharpanam and perform that instead of the usual Amavasya Tharpanam. You will end up neither here nor there. If you want to religiously follow the Mahalaya Paksha tharpanam procedure, (and there is no reason why we should not), download the procedure & for the usual Amavasya Tharpanam, use the Free Amavasya Tharpana Sankalpam Generator. Both of them (and other current Pooja procedures) can be downloaded from the - See more at: 7. Tirtha Shraddha: The ritual of shraddha performed at Holy places like Prayag or at the banks of a sacred river is termed as Tirtha Shraddha. While performing Tirtha Shraddha, all the Parvans of Mahalay are invoked. Apart from the main types mentioned above there are 96 types of Shraddha namely, 12 No-moon nights, 4 Eeras, 14 Manvantars, 12 Sankrants, 12 vaidhruti, 12 vyatipat, 15 mahalays, 5 first, 5 ashtak and 5 anvashtake. (Detailed information about these is present in the books related to science of Dharma.) Brief information about few of the other types of Shraddha 8. Goshthi Shraddha: The Shraddha performed by the group of priests (Brahmins) and scholars at a holy place with the intention that, ‘Deceased ancestors’ souls should get satisfied and let happiness and prosperity preside’, or while discussing the topic of Shraddha, if one gets inspired all of a sudden and performsShraddha, then such Shraddha is termed as Goshthi Shraddha. 9.Shuddhi Shraddha Offering food to priests (Brahmins) for acquiring purity is called as Shuddhi Shraddha. This is the ‘undergoing of punishment’ part of Shraddha. 10.Pushti Shraddha Shraddha performed for increasing physical strength and prosperity is called as Pushti Shraddha. 11. Ghruta Shraddha (Yatra Shraddha) Shraddha performed using ghee (clarified butter), in remembrance of deceased ancestors, before embarking on a journey to holy places with the objective of completing the journey without any obstacles is called Ghruta Shraddha. 12. Dadhi Shraddha Shraddha performed after returning from a journey to holy places is termed as Dadhi Shraddha. 13. Ashtaka Shraddha Shraddha performed on 8th day of the bright fortnight of the Hindu calendar mont. Ashtaka means the 8th day of bright fortnight of any Hindu calendar month. During the era of Vedas, the Ashtaka Shraddha used to be performed specifically on the 8th day of bright fortnight of Margashirsha, Poush, Magh and Falgun months. It was a practice to offer vegetables, meat, bondas, sesame seeds, honey, rice kheer, fruits and underground vegetables to deceased ancestors. Vishvedev, Fire (Agni), Sun, , , Stars (nakshatra), season (rutu) etc. were considered as deities of Shraddha. 14.Daivik Shraddha Shraddha performed with the objective of obtaining the grace of God is termed as Daivik Shraddha. [FOR PRIVATE CIRCULATION] 88

15.. Hiranya Shraddha This Shraddha is performed without offering food and only by offering money (dakshina) to the priests (Brahmins). If food is in scarcity, then gold, equivalent to four times the cost of the food grains, should be offered. 16. Hasta Shraddha Shraddha performed by offering food to the priests (Brahmins) designated for Shraddha. If cooked food is not available then the Shraddha is performed by offering money or dry food grains. (7) 17. Aatma Shraddha Those people who do not have children or whose children are atheists, they should perform Shraddhafor themselves when they are alive. The rites for such Shraddha are explained in the Gscience of spirituality. Even though various types of Shraddha are mentioned above, based on the calendar days, theShraddha performed for a dead person from the first day to the eleventh day, monthly shraddha,Sapindikaran Shraddha, Shraddha performed on one-year completion, Shraddha performed every year from the second year and Mahalay Shraddha are the only ones that are commonly practiced. Three historically established phases of Shraddhaand its nature in the current era A. Agnoukaran During the era of Rugveda, deceased ancestors were worshipped by offering Samidha (a kind of wooden stick) and Pinda (a rice ball) to the sacrificial fire. B. Pindadaanam (worship of Pinda) The process for Pindadaanam is mentioned in the holy scripts of Yajurveda, Bramhane, Shrout and Gruhya sutra. The ritual of Pindadaanam was put into practice during the period of Guhya sutra. The information regarding the time period when the worship of Pinda started is documented in the holy text Mahabharata (Shantiparva 12.3.345) – , incarnation of Vishnu, introduced Shraddha to the entire world. He created three Pindas from His molar tooth and placed it on a Darbha (dried grass twig) towards the southern direction. Varaha advised ‘Let the 3 Pindas be considered as a representation of the father, grandfather and great grandfather’ and then He vanished after performing the ritualistic worship of the Pindas using sesame seeds in a scientific manner. Thus began the worship of Pinda for deceased ancestors as per the guidance of Varaha. C. Offering food to priests (Brahmins) During the post Gruhya sutra and Shruti-Smruti period, offering food to priests (Brahmins) was considered mandatory and became an important part of the ritual of Shraddha. In the current era, all the three phases mentioned above are included within the ‘Parvana’ Srardha. The science of Dharma prescribes that householders should perform the ritual of Shraddha as their duty.

ॐ शान्तः शान्तः शान्तः ॥ Om Shaantihi Shaantihi Shaantihi ||

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