DIVINEINFORMATION 2-19
Postedby: "DILIP KUMAR RAVINDRAN" [email protected] prdiliSat Dec 25, 2010
8:40 am (PST)
Varaha purana Part 31
EARTHEN AND COPPER IDOLS
A devotee should carefully make a beautiful earthen idol without any sign
ofcrack. The most auspicioustime for the installation of an earthen idol is
said to be during 'shravan nakshatra'.
An invocation is made to the deity to dwell within the idolafter which ablution
of the idol is performed with the help of various articleslike holy water,
panchagavya, sandalwood, etc. The rituals of worship aresimilar to that of
wooden or stone-idol."
"The best time for the installation of copper idol is said to be during
'chitra' nakshatra.The idol should be installed facing north and should be
purified with the helpof holy water, panchagavya, etc. Then the deity is
invoked to dwell within theidol. The invocation is made by chanting sacred
mantras. Now, the idol is fitto be worshipped. The rituals are same as
mentioned earlier."
BRONZE IDOL
"The most auspicious time for the installation of bronze-idol is said tobe
during jyeshtha nakshatra.The idol should be installed facing north. At the
time of installation thedevotee must not forget to keep four small pots in
front of the deity, eachfilled with articles like 'panchgavya' ' water,
sandalwood and honey. Therituals of invocation as well as worship are same as
mentioned earlier."
SILVER AND GOLD IDOLS
"The rituals forthe installation of silver or gold idols are similar to that of
copper orbronze idol.
Prithvi requested lord Varah to reveal thename of deities whom a devotee can
worship at home. Lord Vishnu replied-"A devotee can worship any deityat home
but worship of two shiva lingas is prohibited.
Similarly, a devotee should never worship threeshaligrams or three durga idols
or two surya idols.
A devoteeshould also never worship shaligrams adding up to odd numbers-
3,5,7,etc.But,there is no harm in worshipping one shaligram. A devotee must
never worship broken or cracked idolbecause it does not bode well for the
worshipper.
A 'chakra' mark on the shaligram is considered as veryauspicious and it can be
worshipped even if the idol is broken or cracked.
The virtuesattained by worshipping twelve shaligrams are similar to that of
worshippingtwelve crore shiva lingas. Partakingof 'charnamrit' that has been
offered to shaligram absolves a man
from all his sins.
But, a devoteeshould never partake any 'prasad' that has been offered to shiva
linga. Anybodywho either buys or sells a shaligram is certain to go to hell."
Varaha Purana part 32...RITUALS PERTAINING TO LAST RITES Posted
by:"DILIP KUMAR RAVINDRAN" [email protected] prdili Tue Dec21, 2010
12:00 pm (PST)
PITRA YAGYA
Prithvi requested lord Varaha to define the meaning of'Pitra' yagya(rituals
pertaining to last rite) and itssignificance. Lord Varaha replied-"Sage
Nimiwas the first person to perform the rituals of pitra-yagya after the death
of his son Aatreya.
Sage Aatreya is famous for his penance which he didfor ten thousand years. When
Aatreya died, his father-Nimi was filled withgrief. Nimi tried his best to
overcome hissorrow but to no avail. He mourned his son's death for three
consecutivenights. He thought that perhaps the performance of 'shraddh'
rituals would be the best means to getrid of his sorrow. So, he decided
toperform the 'shraddh' rituals on the twelfth day of 'magh'.On that
day,he invited many brahmins and fedthem with the same delicacies which
Aatreyawould have liked to eat. He performed all the rituals well within
a day which would otherwise havetaken a week to perform. He also performed
the rituals of 'pindadaan' by donating cereals, vegetables and fruits.
While performing the rituals of pinda-daan, he took some kusha grass in
his hands andafter pointing it towards south chantedAatreya's name and gotra.
In the night, Nimi sat on the seat of deer skin underneath which kusha
grasshad been spread. He then tried to concentrate on the tip of the nose. But
in spite of all his efforts there was no sign of mental peace he was
sodesperately seeking and thought ofhis dead son continued to torment him."
"Nimi was troubled by a guilt that perhaps he had set abad precedent by
performing the ritualsof pinda daan because nobody in the past had ever
performed the rituals.
He was worried as to what would the coming generation think of him. He was so
muchtroubled by the thought that he could not sleep for the whole night.
Nextmorning he got up, still worried. Heremained in a disturbed state of mind
for many days. At last, when it became too much for him tohandle, he decided
to end his life. In the meantime, sage Narad arrivedthere and assured him that
there was nothing to be worried about aswhatever he had done was most
appropriate. Narad also convinced himthat even his(Nimi's)dead father
wouldvouch for this fact."
"Nimi remembered his father who had died longago.His father revealed to him
that therituals which he had performed were in fact the rituals of
'pitra-yagya' .
Describing the importance of pitra-yagya Nemi's father told him- 'The
namepitra-yagya' was given by none other than lord Brahma himself who was the
first one toperform the rituals.Later on, lord Brahma haddescribed the rituals
to Narad and this is why Narad was convinced that you hadcommitted no wrong.
Nemi's father then described as to what should be done with regardto
the person who lay dying- 'Whenthe death approaches a person loses his
consciousness and becomes extremely fearful.
At that time, abrahmin should constantly study the criptures so that he could
die in peace.
Donating a cow helps to pacify the soul of a dead person. If sacred mantras
are whispered in theears of a dying person he diespeacefully. When the
death seems imminent, a morsel of 'Madhupark' (mixture of curd,
water,honeyand clarified butter) should be kept in the mouth of the dying
person .While doing this one shouldpray to the almighty to liberate the
deadman's soul.' 'The dead body should then be carried and kept under a tree
where it is purified by smearing ghee,oil, perfumes, etc.It is then carried
tocremation ground and kept at the bank of a river-feet pointing
towards south. After this,the dead body should be bathed by remembering all
the sacred places ofpilgrimage. It should then be kept on the pyre-feet
pointing south. The pyreshould be lit and the following prayershould be said-O
Agnideva! I pray to you to burn all the sins committed by this person so that
heattains to heaven. Now, circumambulation around the pyre is made and the
pyreis lit towards the head side.'
My note- I havelistened to samaradhana by a sasthrikal where he told-holding
the tail of cow,the pithru could cross the river Vaitharani. Nothing is told
here about itother than donation of a cow is good
'After consigning the dead body to flames , therituals of 'tarpan' and
'pinda-daan'are performed. All the people assembled there should purify
themselves before returning home. Theperiod starting from the time the dead
body is consigned to flames till thenext ten days is called
'Ashaucha'.It is applicable to all the relatives comingfrom the same gotra of
the deceased.'
My note- Now it is restricted to blood relations. When itwas modified? By whom?
This is the reason for my telling there are MISSINGLINKS-
Posted to Groups on 16-11-2021 by R. Gopalakrishnan
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