Pranam
Q1 DHANUR MASA VISESHAM
Once, on the eve of dakshinayanam, the celestials assembled on the peaks of
Mountain Meru and prayed to the Upendra form of Lord Vishnu. When the Lord
arrived, the celestials told Him that their “night” was approaching and
sought His permission to go to their respective abodes. Then Ratri devi,
the patron deity of night and dakshinayanam, took on the form of a
beautiful damsel and prostrated before the Lord. She pleaded with Him as
follows “Lord, everybody views dhakshinayanam as a bad time. Nobody
performs any good deeds in that period. I am universally reviled. I will
undertake penance to obtain your grace. If I do not achieve my goal, I will
commit suicide and end this life of infamy”. The assembled celestials
concurred and pleaded her case before the Lord. The merciful Lord took pity
on her and blessed her as follows, “Ratri devi, your duration consists of 3
seasons of 2 months each. Out of these, the first two seasons shall be
deemed to dear to me. Within these 2 seasons consisting of four months,
there shall be a hierarchy in which kartika shall be the dearest, followed
by Ashvija, Bhadrapada and finally shravana. All pious and meritorious acts
performed in these four months shall yield immense benefits. Due to this,
people will now look forward to this time of the year, thus removing the
stigma attached to you”. From then on, these fours months became special in
the Hindu calendar.
The last portion of the night i.e., the one-and-half hours before sunrise,
has been given a very special status by our shastras. They decree that this
is the best time for humans to wake up and start performing their
prescribed religious activities like sandhyavandanAM, chanting of mantras
etc. The beginning of this period is called ‘brahma muhurta’. The same
injunctions hold true for the night-time of the celestials also. Here,
their special time starts with Margashirsha shukla Ekadashi (the eleventh
day in the bright half of the lunar month of Margashira) and extends up to
the end of dhakshinayanam. This period is called ‘dhanur maasa’ and roughly
corresponds to the time when the Sun transits the zodiac sign of Dhanus or
Sagittarius. It is said that the celestials wake up at this time and
perform special prayers to the Lord. Our shastras decree that during dhanur
maasa, humans too should wake up at the brahma muhurta and perform puja to
the Lord. People failing to do so will be cursed with leprosy and dire
poverty for 7 lives while those following these injunctions will be
specially blessed with health, wealth, happiness and the good fortune of
being a pious Vaishnavite in all seven lives. It should be remembered that
puja to the Lord should be performed every single day during the
dhanurmasam.
Thiruvathira has been celebrated for ages now but there is no clear theory
about the origin of the festival. There are numerous myths associated with
this Thiruvathira fast. But the origin of this festival is obscure.
Some legends say that it is the birthday of Lord Shiva. Some legends say
that Lord Shiva merged all nine powers into him before initiation of
creation, on this day. Some legends say that Lord Shiva’s return to the
world after ending the harsh austerities and tapas that he was performing
after the death of Goddess Sati.
Some legends say that Parvathi performed rigorous penance to win Lord
Shiva's heart and after a long penance on the Thiruvathira day Lord Siva
accepted her as his wife. Therefore, it is the holy day of marriage of God
Shiva and Goddess Parvathi.
Some legends say that it is the day when Kamadeva, the mythological God of
love was reborn. He burnt to ashes in the fatal flames of fire from the
third eye of Lord Siva. The Lord pardoned him, on request of Sree Parvati
and Rathidevi, later.
Another legend associated with this festival is that in tune with Narada
Maharshi’s advice, Rukmini followed the fast following Sree Parvati, to
become Lord Krishna’s bride.
The history of Dhanurmasa Vratam which is also known as pavai nonbu/
Margazhi Nonbu is more than 2000 years old and is mentioned in the early
scriptures. During dwapara yuga, Narada Maharshi tells the Gopikas to
perform the “Katyayani Vratam”, to get the blessings of Lord Krishna, hence
have been first followed by the Gopikas of Vrindavan and they were blessed
with His presence and all the troubles of the people of Vrindavan have been
removed. Women and girls observing pavai nonbu woke before sunrise, bathed
in the Kalindi river and made an image of Goddess Katyayani with the clay
found on the river bank and offered prayers to the Goddess to get good
husbands. It is also believed that Andal, one of the twelve Alwars, on the
advice of her father, Perialwar, performed pavai nonbu to merge with Sri
Ranganatha [Lord Vishnu]. The story of this was sung by Godadevi in the
form of Thiruppavai pasurams (meaning Auspicious Songs). She regarded the
presiding deity of the temple Sri Vatapatra Sai (Alilla Kanan) as the Lord
Krishna, villiputtoor as Vrindavan, the temple as Nanda Gopa’s home, her
friends as Gopikas and she herself as one Gopika. As a result she found Sri
Ranganatha swamy Lord Vishnu. Today women and girls undertaking pavai nonbu
during Margazhi take a bath in the morning, draw big rangolis and keep a
pumpkin flower with a little dung as a holder, and light oil lamps in front
of their houses.
The month of Dhanurmasam is very auspicious to Vishnu devotees.
Unlike the other days when the Lord Vishnu starts his day with Suprabhatam,
this month he opens his eyes listening to the Tiruppavai – pasurams.
Dhanurmasa is also known by the names Chapa Masa, Kodanda Masa, Karmuka
Masa etc. Chapa, Kodanda, Karmuka etc., in Sanskrit are synonyms of Dhanus;
meaning a bow.
The importance of this Masa is mentioned in the Dhanurmasam Mahatmya
of *Pancharatragama,
Agneya Purana* and also in a work called *Smruti Muktavali.*
In Pancharatra Agama, the Mahatmya of Dhanurmasa is presented in 4
chapters, as a conversation between the Hamasa form of Supreme Lord and
four-faced Brahma. The dialogue between Hamasa and Brahma is narrated by
Sage Suta in response to a query by Shaunaka.
In the first chapter, Sage Suta hails the greatness of the Month of Chapa
(Dhanus) and gives the fruits one would be blessed with by following the
prescribed austerities in this holy month.
In the second chapter, the Hamsa – Brahma Samvada is given where Brahma
asks Lord Hamsa to tell him the importance and greatness of Dhanurmasa. The
greatness of the Dhanurmasa is brought out by the story of the King
Satyasandha.
In the third chapter, giving alms during this auspicious period is hailed.
The devotee is instructed to do pious deeds as per his capacity. Otherwise,
he is warned of dire consequences.
In the fourth and final chapter, different ways of feeding Brahmins are
discussed. Arranging for the meals of a Brahmin who cooks for himself is
lauded as the best way. The importance of this is brought out by a small
anecdote of the Pandavas.
Dhanur masa visesham is that . KR IRS 24222
On Wed, 23 Feb 2022 at 20:48, 'gopala krishnan' via iyer123 <
[email protected]> wrote:
> QUES ANSW DIVINE 2-2022-23
>
> Dear friends,
>
> These are information compiled as QA by me in 1998’s-2004’s and stored in
> my computer. They are posted by *learnt members*. Some QA have repeated
> but refreshing information.
>
> *BEING COMPILATION THERE MAY BE ERRORS.*
>
> Sincerely,
>
> *R. Gopalakrishnan, 78, dated 23-02-2022*
>
> Q1 What is the importance of Markazhi ?
>
> A1 Margazhi - It is the one of the most significant month among twelve
> Tamil months. Margazhi festival is celebrated at all temples in
> Tamilnadu and India. Mainly this festival is celebrated in all
> Vishnu temples and Shiva temples. The holy pilgrimage to Sabarimala
> Swami Ayyappa Temple comes to the closing stage at the Margazhi end. *The
> notable feature of this month are Bhakti and Music*.
>
> Margazhi month is an essential month among twelve tamil months, since it is
> the month for deities. During this month, all deities visiting the earth
> at early morning (ie. Brahma Muhurtham period - 4.30 a.m. to 6.00
> a.m.).
>
> In Bhagavat Gita, *Lord Krishna says, He is Margazhi among the twelve
> Tamil months.* Hence all the temples opened earlier and all people go
> to the temple at early morning during this month.Another importance of this
> margazhi is that the Tamil Holy Scriptures "*Thiruppavai" and
> "Thiruvempavai" are read during this month.*
>
> Q2 What is the History of Margazhi Thingal
>
> A2 Margazhi Thingal denotes Margazhi month, *in tamil "Thingal"
> indicates month.*
>
> The story behind this Margazhi festival is that Goddess Lakshmi
> incarnated as "Andal" in the earth, which is now called as holy place
> "Srivilliputhur" (Thiruvilliputhur) .
>
> *One significant feature of this temple is that this temple tower is the
> "Emblem of Tamilnadu". After* certain stage, Andal wishes to marry Lord
> Vishnu. So, She started Vrata called as Margazhi Nonbu (Pavai Nonbu)
> during this month. All the days in this month She woke up early morning
> and hummed songs on Lord Vishnu called as "Thiruppavai" with her friends.
> *Finally, She got married with Lord Vishnu.*
>
> Q3 What actually is the sound Om?
>
> A3 We observe that an ordinary fan with a speed of 900 RPM (Rotation per
> minute) moves, it makes noise then *one can imagine what great noise
> would be created when the galaxies move with a speed of 20,000 miles per
> second .*
>
> This is what this portion of mantra explains that the sound produced due
> to the fast - moving earth, planets and galaxies is Om.
>
> *The sound was heard during meditation by rishi Vishwamitra, who mentioned
> it to other colleages.*
>
> All of them then unanimously decided to call this sound as Om one of the
> name's of God, because this sound is available in all the three periods
> of time hence it is set permanent - eternal.
>
> Q4 What are th details of Rahu kalapooja?
>
> A4 Although Rahu kaalam period is considered inauspicious, *it is
> considered auspicious to pray during this time.*
>
> It is considered auspicious to light a lemon lamp to Goddess Durga on
> Tuesdays or Fridays during the rahu kaalam period. *It is believed that
> Goddess Durga fulfills the desires of women.* Women who desire to get
> married, who desire for a child, women who pray for a happy married life
> and a long life for their husbands, pray to the Goddess Durga by lighting a
> lemon lamp during the rahu kaalam period on Tuesdays or Fridays which are
> believed to be the days of the Devi.
>
> It’s also said that there is a delay in the marriage of many girls as they
> might have a Rahu dosha. *So during Rahu kaalam elders advice to keep the
> lemon lamp and pray*. It is a very effective parihaaram and has worked
> for many a people. Prayers, I believe have a deep psychological effect of
> human minds.
>
> This is done to ward off the malefic effects of Rahu. *Rahu's chief deity
> is Durga (Who is another form of Parvati).* Goddess Durga is the ugra
> avatar of Goddess Parvati. When you pray to Goddess Durga, who is the
> presiding deity of Rahu, Rahu will be pleased and the malefic effects will
> be reduced.
>
> Q5 What is kanakasabhai?
>
> A5 Kanakasabhai is the *Arthamandapam in Chidambaram Mandir. *Kanakasabhai
> houses the Spatika Lingam of Chandramouleeswara along with Nandi Bhagawan
> and Rathna Sabhapathi.*This place is revered with the same sanctity
> reserved normally for the Garbha Griha. *
>
> The rights rest only with the Dikshitars to offer the traditional Pujas to
> the Bhagawan, including singing of the Thevaram from Kanakasabhai.
>
>
>
> *While in all Mandirs the Pujas end within the Garbha Griha, in
> Chidambaram, the Dikshitars render certain Pujas from the Arthamandapam
> called as the Kanakasabhai*. Therefore, the Kanakasabhai attains
> significance.
>
> Q6 What are all the legends behind Holi clebration?
>
> A6 The tradition of burning ‘Holika’ is religiously followed in Gujarat
> and Orissa also.
>
> * Here, people render their gratitude to Agni, the god of fire by offering
> gram and stalks from the harvest with all humility.* Further, on the last
> day of Holi, people take a little fire from the bonfire to their homes. *It
> is believed that by following this custom their homes will be rendered pure
> and their bodies will be free from disease *
>
> At several places there is also a tradition of cleaning homes, *removing
> all dirty articles from around the house and burning them*.
> Disease-breeding bacteria are thereby destroyed and the sanitary condition
> of the locality is improved.
>
> Holi also celebrates the legend of Radha and Krishna which describes the
> extreme delight, Krishna took in applying colour on Radha and other gopis.
> This prank of Krishna later, became a trend and a part of the Holi
> festivities.
>
> *Mythology also states that Holi is the celebration of death of Ogress
> Pootana* who tried to kill infant, Krishna by feeding poisonous milk to
> him.
>
> Another legend of Holi which is extremely popular in Southern India is
> that of Lord Shiva and Kaamadeva. According to the legend, people in south
> celebrate *the sacrifice of Lord of Passion Kaamadeva* ( the god of love,
> cupid or eros ) who risked his life to revoke Lord Shiva from meditation
> and help parvati to get married to shiva.
>
> Q7 What are the methods performing pooja at Chidambaram temple?
>
> A7 First of all in Chidambaram Temple the pujas are performed by Vedic
> version, which is the oldest as naratted by Saint patanjali. Only four
> temples in tamilnadu follows the vedic version , others being
> Avaduayarkoil, Kanchi kamatchi temple, Thiruvannaikoil.
>
> In this temples Agama has no place.ven the priest here are not Kurukkal
> or sivaacharaya , But only by Vedic Pandits like Dikshitar who had learned
> vedas considered as superior Brahamana's.
>
> Daily in this temples they performing 'Somayaga' , Rudra Japa and Follow
> Vedic version only, So no other language gets important than the Vedas
>
> Dikshitars of Chidambaram are considered as Siva Gana's on earth, Even the
> Devaram praise them lot and the "Lord Nataraja" himself was one of the
> Dikshitar
>
> My note- I have read else where Dhikshithers are Kerala Nampoothiries
> settled long back in Tamilnadu.
>
> Q8 What is the difference in thought between Vadakalai and Thenkalai?
>
> A8Vaishnava Cult established well by about 10th Century A.D. H.HYamunacharya
> was the head of Srirangam Mutt at Thiruchi. In the interest of
> readers I like to state that Srirangam temple Gopuram is the tallest in
> South India
>
> There are two schools of thought among Vaisnavates, called
> VADAKALAIS AND THENKALAIS.
>
> According to Vadakalais, Mahalaksmi is the feminine part of BRAHMAN and hence
> She is infinite in nature just as NARAYANA and equal to NARAYANA in all
> respects.
>
> According to Thenkalais MAHALAKSHMI plays only a part as mediator to
> attain
> salvation of JIVA and not a means.. They also belief that She is not
> infinite as LORD NARAYANA but only a JIVA like any of us.
>
> Q9 Everybody knows about Sri Rama Navami .What is his birth star?
>
> *A9 Rama was born on the Navami tithi of Shukla Paksha of Chaitra masa* *At
> that time, the nakshatra was Punarvasu, and Sun, Mars, Saturn, Jupiter and
> Venus were in Aries, Capricorn, Libra, Cancer and Pisces respectively.
> Lagna was Cancer and Jupiter & Moon were shining together.*
>
> Q10 What is the importance of Ahobila hill?
>
> A10 Ahobila Hill is the place where Mahavishnu took Narasimha Avatar
> initially.
> Lord took this avatar again to the fullfill the wishes of saptharishi and
> vamana devars. Lord Anjaneya helped these rishis by killing two
> demons(kaalan and keyan).
>
> If you spend 24 minutes(kadikam) in this place, it leads to moksham, hence
> the name Thirukadikai or Kadikaasalam ( kadikai-24 minutes,asalam - mountain)
> .Well known saints Thottachariya and erumbiyappa lived in this place.
>
> Q11 What is the importance of kula deivam?
> A11 Our Kuladaivam is like our parents. If we do not take care of our
> parents, then we can expect similar treatment by our sons or grandsons in
> the future. This is true for our Kuladaivam as well. *If we do not
> visit our kuladaivam (visit does not mean lip service/show off visits),
> we are only going to ruin the life of our family -*sometimes
> immediately and usually the next generation onwards.
>
> Q12 What is the Savithri’s story associated with karadayan nombu?
>
> A12 Savithri was the daughter of king Aswapathi who ruled Mathra. She was
> married to Sathyavan, son of another king, according to her wish.
>
> Despite Naradha's warning that Sathyavan would die within a year of
> marriage,Savithri married him.
>
> But as a devout wife, she started worshipping Goddess Gowri to protect
> her mangalyam, - that is, to change the fate and give her husband a
> long life.
>
> On the first day of Panguni, the following year, fate snatched away
> Sathyavan suddenly. When Yama appeared to take away the life of Sathyavan,
> Savithri did not give up easily. *She argued with Yama, and regained
> the life of her spouse and in addition begot four more boons too!* And
> they lived happily ever after. Thus goes the story....So following the
> tradition the nonbu is observed every year by all women to protect
> their mangalyam.
>
> Q13 What are the attributes of Karpagambal temple in Chennai Mylapore?
>
> A13 Legend says that Thirugnana sambhandhar sang "mattita punna" pathigam
> in this shrine by which "Poompavai" came back alive where she was bitten by
> a snake and dead earlier.
>
> Brahma, Sukrachariyar and Lord Rama had worshipped in this temple.
> Goddess Parvathi had worshipped in this temple in the form of peacock
> (Mayil) and hence the name thirumayyilai to this place
>
> *Q14 What is the importance of Panguni uthram? What poojas are done on the
> day?*
>
> *A14 The Tamil month of Panguni falls between March 15th to April 15th.*
> The birth star Uthiram (Uthiraphalguni) occurring during this month is
> called Panguni Uthiram which is an auspicious day of the Vedic Calendar.
>
> Poojas performed on Panguni Uthiram Day is the best remedy for all the
> obstacles and obstructions threatening the marriages.
>
> It is on this day three divine couples were married.*Siva and
> Parvati-Muruga and Devasena Rama and Sita *
>
> This Full Moon Day, Phanguni Uthiram, is also the most auspicious day for
> Lord Muruga. In time immemorial, the most powerful of the Indias sages,
> Maharishi Brighu, meditated on the mantra Om. His meditation became so hot
> and powerful that it threatened to burn down the universe. Out of
> compassion, Lord Siva woke the sage Brighu from his deep meditation on Om.
> Brighu, rather infuriated by being disturbed from his concentration, cursed
> Lord Siva that he would forget the power of Om.
>
> As soon as he issued the curse, Brighu realized his error and promised
> Lord Siva that he would be taught the secrets again by his son.
>
> It is on this Full Moon day that Lord Muruga revealed the secrets of Om to
> his father, Lord Siva where the Swaminatha Swami Temple now stands in Swami
> Mallai, India.
>
> *Q15 What is Umamaheswari pooja?*
>
> *A15 Uma Maheshwara Pooja:* This pooja is performed for *Lord
> Siva and Goddess Parvathi.* This pooja is mainly performed to attain the
> grace and blessings of the divine *for strong relationship between
> husband and wife* and for a successful marital life.
>
> Q16 Which planet is to be worshipped for harmoney between husband and wife?
>
> A16 The rituals designed for Mars will ensure that suspicions between
> partners are smashed and are translated to greater harmony.
>
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