SANATANA DHARMA -FORTY SAMSKARAS Part 14 K Rajaram IRS 2524 /3524 LDN
Kanchi
1 I used the word "samskara" above also explained its meaning according
to the Tarka-sastra (science of logic) as "impression on memory". {TO BE
TAKEN UP LATER} But this is not how the word is generally understood.
"Sam(s)"=well; "kara"=making. "Samskara" means making something good,
refining or purifying it.
2 All creatures long for everlasting happiness. There are two
abodes of eternal happiness. One is devaloga, the world of celestials or
paradise, the other is Atmajnana, the state of awareness of the Self
<https://kamakoti.org/hindudharma/part16/referp16.htm#SELF>. The Atman, the
Self is bliss; it is the Brahman. To realise this truth is to attain
everlasting blessedness. But this state, this joy supreme, is not
experienced by the mind or the senses. It is the highest, the most exalted
state and it transcends the senses and the mind; it is a state in which a
man becomes aware that "the body is not I, the intelligence is not I, the
consciousness is not I".
3 Paradise is the place where happiness is always experienced by the
mind and the senses. Music and dance - music of the gandharvas, dance by
Rambha and Menaka - Kalpaka, the tree that grants all wishes, Kamadhenu,
the cow that grants all wishes, the garden known as Nandana: devaloka means
all these. It is indeed a playground and there it is always joy. But a
difference exists between the joy known in paradise and the bliss
experienced by the knower of the Self. It is true that there is eternal
happiness in paradise but not so far the man who goes there because he will
not be a permanent resident of it. If he has earned a good ideal of merit
he will be able to reside there until he is reborn. When he has enjoyed the
fruits of his meritorious actions, the Lord will send him back to earth. It
is true that there are accounts in the Puranas of mortals who earn a great
ideal of merit and become gods themselves to reside in the celestial world.
But the same Puranas also tell us that the gods themselves are not
permanent denizens of paradise. There are stories in these texts of the
celestials being hounded out of paradise by demons like Surapadma and
Mahisasura and of Indra, their king, himself being pushed down to earth to
undergo suffering there.
On a hypothetical basis, eternal happiness may be ours in svarga or
paradise. But there is no instance of anyone having actually lived there
permanently nor does it seem possible for anyone to do so.
4 Happiness gained through the senses is derived from external objects.
These cannot be ours for all time. one who remains nailed to his Self. The
joy experienced by Indra is but a droplet of the vast ocean of Atmic bliss,
so says the Acarya in his Manisa Pancakam: "Yad Saukhyambudilesalesata ime
Sakradayo nirvrtah". According to Upanisads you will have external bliss
if the senses and the mind are removed in the same way as you draw off the
rib from a stalk of corn and remain just the Atman
<https://kamakoti.org/hindudharma/part16/referp16.htm#ATMAN>. It needs
great courage to pluck out the body and the senses realising that " I am
not the body. Its joys and sorrows are not mine". Such courage is not
earned without inner purity. Conduct of religious rituals is meant for
this, for cittasuddhi ( purity of the consciousness ). There are forty
samskaras to refine a man with Vedic mantras and to involve him in the
rites associated with those mantras. These are the first steps towards the
indissoluble union of the individual self with the Absolute - it is
Advaitic mukti, non - dualistic release.
5 We must strive to become inwardly pure by the performance of works.
Then, with the inner organs ( antah - karana ) also cleansed, we must
mediate on the Self and become one with It. This is the concept of Sankara.
If a man has such a goal before him and keeps performing rituals throughout
( even without becoming a sannyasin ) he goes to Brahmaloka on death. But
if a man performs rituals for the sake of rituals without keeping before
him the goal of oneness with the Brahman he will be rewarded with paradise,
but not the paradise that is eternal. Though the stay be brief he will
enjoy greater happiness there than on earth. It is samskaras that earn a
man heaven.
6 We speak of three worlds: devaloka ( world of the celestials ),
manusyaloka ( this world of ours ), and naraka ( hell ). The first has
nothing but pleasure; in the second it is a mixture of happiness and
sorrow; and in the third there is nothing but pain and sorrow. According to
our sastras a man who has committed terrible sins goes through torments of
hell before taking lowly birth again in this world. Our sastras also have
it that this world of ours is better than the others. How? There is not
this kind of freedom in the other worlds. Is a cow capable of earning
merit? The devas are like cows. So far as the cow is concerned there is
neither merit nor sin in its life. On this earth (bhuloka) only those like
us human beings can win liberation - we can do so through good actions.
Other worlds are like hotels where the denizens eat what we harvest here.
There you may enjoy the fruits you have merited here by your actions in
proportion to the punya you have earned or the papa you have piled up. Our
world alone is karmabhumi (world of works). And even in this world only
human beings are capable of thinking and acting on their own. All other
creatures live by instinct. Those who live in the other worlds have no
right for karma. A man's actions, his works, together with his character,
determine his passage to other worlds. Only in this karmabhumi can we
perfect our character by performing virtuous acts and thus qualify to go to
another world.
7 There is a proper time and a proper place for the conduct of a
religious rite. Do you think a sraddha can be performed at midnight? There
is a right time for it as well as a proper place. It is in India
particularly, that is Bharatavarsa, the Vedic karma must be performed, but
even in this land it is not permitted during certain periods. It has to be
carried out in hallowed places and during sanctified hours.
8 What is karma? It means work. Suppose you have to make a
vesti (dhoti). There are a number of processes, a number of works for it.
The cotton has to be gathered from the field; it has to be cleaned and spun
into yarn; then the yarn has to be woven into cloth and dyed. In the same
way a man has to be made a knower of the Atman through a series of rituals.
Karma has to be performed in such a way as to purify him both
outwardly and inwardly.
Such a karma is called samskara. That which removes the impurities from an
object, takes away all the bad or evil elements, and imparts good qualities
to it is samskara. Samskara is like combing the hair and applying oil to
it. Certain types of samskara are conducted on land. First the land is
allowed to dry in the sun, then it is ploughed and irrigated. Seeds, say,
of paddy, are sown and after they sprout the seedlings are transplanted.
The weeds are removed, the field irrigated again and the excess water
drained off. When the corn is ripe, the crop is harvested, threshed and the
chaff winnowed. The paddy has to be "seasoned" and pounded before the rice
is used.
9 How many different steps are there in making cotton into a vesti.
The weaver has to take great care that the yarn does not get tangled. Our
Self is in a tangle caused by the senses. It has to be untangled and made
eternally happy. There are many obstacles to accomplishing this. Now and
then we experience some happiness in the midst of all our trouble and
suffering. This happiness must be made to endure for ever. For that we must
go to Brahmaloka. In the presence of Isvara there will be no sorrow. After
the great deluge we will become one with him. We have to prepare ourselves
now itself towards that end. The sages have laid down the forty samskaras
and the eight "Atmagunas " for this purpose.The Self is ever pure. So it is
wrong to believe that it has to be purified by the samskaras. It is
nirguna, unconditioned and without attributes. So it is also wrong to speak
of what are called Atmagunas, since the Atman has truly no gunas or
qualities or attributes.
10 However in practice, owing to Maya we do not realise that we are the
Atman without qualities. It is the Self perceived in our dualistic life
that is referred to when we speak of samskaras and it is full of impurities
that have to be removed through the samskaras. It has also durgunas or bad
qualities which have to be removed by cultivating the eight good qualities.
Once we succeed in this, there will be neither any samskara nor any guna.
We will transcend all gunas, all qualities, including the highest of them,
sattvaguna. Finally there will be only the Self without any karma, without
any gunas and without any distinction between the jivatman and the
Paramatman. But to come to this state we have to go through the process of
samskaras and cultivate the eight Atmagunas.
11 The eight gunas or qualities are : daya, ksanti, anasuya,
sauca, anayasa, mangala, akarpanya, asprha.
A "Daya" implies love for all creatures, such love being the very
fulfilment of life. There is indeed no greater happiness than that derived
by loving others. Daya is the backbone of all qualities.
B "Ksanti" is patience. One kind of ksanti is patiently suffering disease,
poverty, misfortune and so on. The second is forgiveness and it implies
loving a a person even if he causes us pain and trouble.
C "Anasuya" you know is the name of the sage Atri's wife. She was utterly
free from jealousy : that is how she got the name which means non-jealousy.
Heart-burning caused by another man's prosperity or status is jealousy. We
ought to have love and compassion for all and ought to be patient and
forgiving even towards those who do us wrong. We must not envy people their
higher status even if they be less deserving of it than we are and, at the
same time, must be mature enough to regard their better position as the
reward they earned by doing good in their previous life.
D "Sauca" is derived from "suci", meaning cleanliness. Purity is to be
maintained in all matters such as bathing, dress, food. There is a saying
often quoted even by the unlettered: "Cleanliness makes you happy and it
even appeases your hunger". To see a clean person is to feel ourselves
clean. In Manu's listing of dharmas that are applicable to all, ahimsa or
non-violence comes first, followed by satya (truthfulness), asteya
(non-covetousness; non-stealing is the direct meaning), sauca (cleanliness)
and indriya-nigraha (subduing the senses or even obliterating them).
E The fifth Atmaguna is "anayasa". It is the opposite of "ayasa" which
denotes effort, exertion, etc. Anayasa means to have a feeling of
lightness, to take things easy. One must not keep a long face, wear a scowl
or keep lamenting one's hardships. If you lose your cool you will be a
burden to yourself as well as to others. Anayasa is a great virtue. In many
of our rituals there is much bodily exertion. When we perform a sraddha we
have to remain without food until 2 or 3 in the afternoon. There is no end
to the physical effort we have to put in to conduct a sacrifice. Here
anayasa means not to feel any mental strain. Obstacles, inevitable to any
work or enterprise, must not cause you any mental strain. You must not feel
any duty to be a burden and must develop the attitude that everything
happens according to the will of the Lord. What do we mean when we remark
that the musician we listened to yesterday touched the "tara-sthayi
<https://kamakoti.org/hindudharma/part16/referp16.htm#TARA-STHAYI>" so
effortlessly? Does it mean that he performed a difficult musical exercise
with ease? Similarly, we must learn to make light of all the hardships that
we encounter in life.
F What is "mangala", the sixth guna? Well, "mangala" is mangala
<https://kamakoti.org/hindudharma/part16/referp16.htm#MANGALA>. There is
mangala or an auspicious air about happiness that is characterised by
dignity and purity. One must be cheerful all the time and not keep growling
at people on the slightest pretext. This itself is extremely helpful, to
radiate happiness wherever we go and exude auspiciousness. It is better
than making lavish gifts and throwing money about. To do a job with a
feeling of lightness is anayasa. To be light ourselves, creating joy
wherever we go, is mangala. We must be like a lamp spreading light and
should never give cause for people to say, "Oh! he has come to find fault
with everything". Wherever we go we must create a sense of happiness. We
must live auspiciously and make sure that there is happiness brimming over
everywhere.
G "Akarpanya" is the next guna. Miserliness is the quality of krpana or
miser. "Akarpanya" is the opposite of miserliness. We must give generously
and whole-heartedly. At Kuruksetra Arjuna felt dejected and refused to wage
war with his own kin. In doing so, according to the Gita, he was the guilty
of "karpanya dosa". It means, contextually, that he abased himself to a
woeful state, he became "miserly" about himself. Akarpanya is the quality
of a courageous and zestful person who can face problems determinedly.
H "Asprha" is the last of the eight qualities. "Sprha" means desire; a
grasping nature. "Asprha" is the opposite, being without desire. Desire is
at the root of all trouble, all evil and, all through the ages, it has been
the cause if misfortunes. But to eradicate it from the mind of men seems an
almost impossible task. By performing rites again and again and by
constantly endeavouring to acquire the Atmic qualities one will eventually
become desireless. Says Valluvar
<https://kamakoti.org/hindudharma/part16/referp16.htm#VALLUVAR>:
*1 Parruga parrarran parrinai apparrai parruga parru vidarku DON’T LEAVE
TO HOLD HIM WHO HAS NOTHING TO LEAN ON BUT ONLY INDEPENDENT. *
2 Tirumular goes a step further. "It is not enough, " he says, "to be
attached to Isvara who is without attachment and be free from other
attachments. You must be able to sever yourself from the attachment to
Isvara himself".
*Asai arumingal, asai arumingal Isanodayinum asai arumingal*
3 The Buddha calls desire thirst. Intense desire for an object is "trsna".
( The Buddha calls it "tanha" in Prakrt). His chief teaching is the
conquest of desire.
4 Desirelessness is the last of the eight qualities. The first one, daya,
is the life-breath of Christianity. Each religion lays emphasis on a
particular quality, though all qualities are included in the teachings of
Buddha, Jesus Christ, the Prophet Mohammed, Guru Nanak, Zoroaster,
Confucius and the founders of all other religions. Even if these qualities
may not have been pointedly mentioned in their teachings, it is certain
that none of them would regard people lacking them with approval. All
religions teach people to be loving, to be truthful and to be free from
jealousy, desire and greed. But our religion goes further by imposing on
us the performance of various samskaras to acquire these qualities in
practical life. There is no use in merely preaching, in asking people to be
like this or that. A man must be kept bound to a system consisting of such
works as would help him in practice to acquire the noble qualities expected
of them. Our religion alone does this. Other religions, it is claimed,
teach love and desirelessness. But Hinduism, it is alleged, does not give
any importance to such qualities and is, besides, ritual-ridden. This view
is totally erroneous. In fact, our religion does more than others: while
laying emphasis on the eight qualities, it imparts lessons to take people
beyond them, to a state that transcends these very qualities. It also
believes that merely talking about the qualities will serve no purpose.
After all, we know, don't we, that we have to be virtuous, truthful, loving
and so on? Still we find it difficult to live according to these ideals.
What purpose is served if our canonical texts merely keep urging us again
and again to acquire noble qualities? That is why, unlike other faiths
which contain a great deal of ethical and moral instruction, our religion
teaches ethics and morality only to the extent needed. But is that all?
Without stopping with mere precept it tells us how we may- in actual
practice- cultivate and acquire them. This it does first by telling us
stories through the Puranas of virtuous people who obtained fame and of
evil-doers who got ill fame. But it recognises that such examples are not
enough to provide the necessary inspiration, so it lays down a number of
samskaras for the purpose of obtaining inner purity. Ours is the only
religion that gives practical training in making people virtuous and in
acquiring moral excellence. Instead of being proud of this fact, is it
right to feel that there is something lacking in our religion?
12 The dharmasastras have prescribed rites to make us inwardly pure and
impart us the eight qualities. In this context the sutras of Apastamba and
Gautama have a dominant place. Among the Smrtis Manu's is the most
important. Apastamba and Gautama deal with the dharmas common to all
people. The former lays down the duties and samskaras separately for the
different castes also. Gautama deals with the forty samskaras and the eight
Atmagunas. These forty-eight are the means to take a man to Brahmaloka on
his death. He goes before the presence of Isvara, which is like going to a
great jnanin. He can remain quiescent in bliss. When Isvara, who conducts
the world himself becomes formless, he too [the man who attains Brahmaloka]
will be dissolved in him. Until then he resides in the world of Isvara
(saloka) and later attains sayujya, that is becomes one with him. "Yasyaite
catvarimsat samskarah astavatmagunah sa Brahmanah sayujyam salokatam
jayati", so it is said.
13 The body is involved in various ways in performing the forty samskaras.
When you work in an office you use your hands and feet and mouth, don't
you? So is the case with the samskaras. He who performs them and cultivates
the eight Atmagunas goes directly to the Brahmaloka in which world there is
neither sorrow nor happiness. When are you without sorrow and happiness?
When you are with the One who creates them.
The Atmic qualities are described as "Atmasakti
<https://kamakoti.org/hindudharma/part16/referp16.htm#ATMASAKTI>". This
term has recently come into use in newspaper language. In the old Sanskrit
and Tamil texts we do not see the term "Atmasakti" used, only "Atmagunas".
The samskaras cover an individual's entire life-span -
"Nisekadi smasanantakam" - from the moment before he is conceived in his
mother's womb to the time when his body is offered to Agni. "Niseka"
<https://kamakoti.org/hindudharma/part16/referp16.htm#NISEKA>(impregnation)
is a rite performed with the sacrificial fire as the witness; and the
funeral rites which come last are performed in the fire.
14 Agni, the sacred fire, must be kept burning throughout a Brahmin's life.
The Brahmacarin or bachelor - student must perform the samidadhana
everyday. After he is married, with Agni as witness, he becomes a grhastha
(householder). He must now perform the aupasana in the fire. For the
vanaprastha (forest recluse), there is a sacred fire called "kaksagni". The
sannyasin has no sacrament involving the sacred fire: he has the fire of
knowledge (jnanagni)in him. His body is not cremated - that is there is no
Agni-samskara for it- but interred as a matter of respect. Strictly
speaking, it must be cut into four parts and consigned to the four quarters
of a forest. There it will be food for birds and beasts. In an inhabited
place the severed parts of the body would cause inconvenience to people.
That is why they were thrown into the forest. There it would be food for
its denizens; if buried it would be manure for the plants. Now over the
site of the interment of a sannyasin's body a Brindavana is grown [or
built] : this again is done out of respect. At such sites all that is to be
done is to plant a bilva or asvattha tree.
15 All castes have rites to be performed with the sacred fire. During
marriage people belongings to all varnas must do aupasana and the fire in
which the rite is performed must be preserved throughout. Today, only
Parsis <https://kamakoti.org/hindudharma/part16/referp16.htm#PARSIS>seem
to keep up such a practice of preserving the fire. Their scripture is
called the Zend-Avesta which name must have been derived from the Vedic
"Chando-Vasta". Their teacher was Zoroaster [Zarathustra] : this name must
have been derived from "Saurastra". Their homeland is Iran (from "Arya").
If the fire kept by them is extinguished at any time they spend a good deal
of money in expiatory rites. With us rituals performed in the sacred fire
have been on the decline from the turn of the century. The lifestyle of our
people has changed. If there is faith, this great treasure (rites performed
in the fire) could be preserved. The most important reason for the loss of
faith is the present system of education. This body of ours has to be
finally offered in the fire as ahuti (oblation) to the deities. It is
treated as a dravya(material for sacrifice) with ghee applied to it before
it is offered in the fire. The ceremony is called "dahana-samskara".
16 The forty samskaras which are meant to purify the individual self
are: garbhadhana, pumsavana, simanta, jatakarma, namakarana, annaprasana,
caula, upanayana, the four rites like prajapatya (Vedavratas) performed
during gurukulavasa (the years the celibate student spends in the home of
his guru), the ritual bath on completion of gurukulavasa, marriage, the
five mahayajnas performed everyday by the householder. We have listed
nineteen so far. Then there are seven pakayajnas, seven haviryajnas and
seven somayajnas to be conducted by the householder. Thus 19+21=40
<https://kamakoti.org/hindudharma/part16/referp16.htm#19%20+21%20+40> The
seven pakayajnas are: astaka (anvastaka), sthalipaka, parvana, sravani,
agrahayani, caitri, asvayuji. The seven haviryajnas: agniyadhana,
agnihotra, darsa-purnamasa, agrayana, caturmasya, nirudhapasubandha,
sautramani. The seven somayajnas: agnistoma, atyagnistoma, uktya, sodasi,
vajapeya, atiratra, aptoryama. Out of the forty samskaras some are to be
performed everyday, some at certain times and some at least once in a
lifetime. In the first category there are five mahayajnas
(panca-mahayajnas). Rites done to the chanting of mantras are more
beneficial than those done without it - a sacrament involving mantras is a
samskara. The social service that a house holder does is included among his
daily panca - mahayajnas. The panca - mahayajnas are: brahmayajna,
devayajna, pitrayajna, manusyayajna and bhutayajna. The chanting of the
Vedas constitutes brahmayajna. Sacrifices and puja are devayajna. Tarpana
is pitrayajna. Feeding guests is manusyayajna. And offering bali to various
creatures is bhutayajna.
17 Aupasana and agnihotra are part of the daily religious routine.
Though a pakayajna, aupasana is not included in the group of seven
pakayajnas mentioned above, while agnihotra is one of the seven
haviryajnas. Darsa - purnamasa is a haviryajna to be performed once in
fifteen days. The other five haviryajnas and the seven somayajnas are to be
performed once a year or, at least, once in a lifetime. As if out of
consideration for us, the Smrtis have granted us this concession: that the
difficult somayajnas need be undertaken only once in a lifetime. But for
the parvani - sraddha which is to be performed once a month and the
sthalipaka every Prathama
<https://kamakoti.org/hindudharma/part16/referp16.htm#PRATHAMA>, the other
five pakayajnas are to be performed once a year. To put it differently: the
five mahayajnas (brahmayajna, devayajna, pitrayajna, manusyayajna,
bhutayajna) together with agnihotra and aupasana are to be performed
everyday; darsa-purnamasa and sthalipaka once a fortnight; parvani-sraddha
once a month. The other yajnas are to be conducted once a year or at least
once in a lifetime. On a plot of land growing one crop, harvesting is done
once a year, while on another plot growing three crops the same is done
once every four months. Some crops have to be watered everyday, some on
alternate days. Such jobs are samskaras.
18 The samskaras begin with garbhadhana, that is from the moment of
conception [or, more correctly, impregnation]. The "sarira-pinda
<https://kamakoti.org/hindudharma/part16/referp16.htm#SARIRA%20-%20PINDA>"
must be formed to the chanting of mantras. People mistakenly think that
rites like Pumsavana
<https://kamakoti.org/hindudharma/part16/referp16.htm#PUMSAVANA>and simanta
<https://kamakoti.org/hindudharma/part16/referp16.htm#SIMANTA> are meant
for the mother. Actually, they are for the life taking shape in her womb,
the foetus and are meant to purify it. The elders have a responsibility in
this matter. One may not do the rites meant for oneself, but it is sinful
to be negligent about those meant for another life. Nowadays people omit to
perform garbhadhana, simanta, etc, since they think that such rites are not
fashionable.
Where there should be some delicacy in man-woman relationship people act
without any sense of shame after the fashion in the West. But, when it
comes to performing Vedic rites in which the well-being of the new life
created is involved, they feel a sense of awkwardness. Such an attitude is
not right.
1 Garbhadhana, pumsavana and simanta are performed before the child is
born. The sexual union of man and wife must be sanctified by the mantras.
Instead of being an act of animal passion, it is raised to the level of a
samskara with the chanting of mantras: the purpose is the well-being of the
life to be formed. It is madness to give up such rituals without realising
the high principles inspiring them and, instead, thinking them to be
"uncivilized". If there is any feeling of delicacy on your part about the
garbhadhana (rtusanti) ceremony, you do not have to invite a crowd. But the
rite itself must be gone through within the four walls of the home. It is
no longer the custom to have a four-day wedding with the couple doing daily
aupasana. Nor is the rite of sesahoma conducted following the day of
wedding. The couple have sexual intercourse on the same day as the marriage
without any ceremony and the chanting of mantras. This is an evil practice
and sinful. Since the intercourse takes place in an animal manner, the
children born too will be likewise. Pumsavana must be performed in the
third month of pregnancy and simanta in the sixth or eighth. Nowadays both
rites are gone through together anyhow.
2 On the birth of a child, its jatakarma
<https://kamakoti.org/hindudharma/part16/referp16.htm#JATAKARMA> must be
performed. Gifts must be given away. Namakarana is on the eleventh day.
Even this, the naming ceremony, has a purificatory purpose according to the
sastras. There are rules regarding the name to be chosen for the child in
accordance with the naksatra or asterism under which it is born. It must be
one from the many names of the Lord and to call the child by such a name is
itself a samskara since it has a cleansing effect. We do not have the
custom of "christening" our children as "Longfellow" or "Stone". But
nowadays even in this land similar names are given to children. Also when
the child's name is that of the Lord it is corrupted or twisted clumsily.
The name given to a child during a Vedic ritual must be treated with some
respect.
3 When the child is six months old it is time for its annaprasana. The
samskaras from the garbhadhana to namakarana are performed by the parents
on behalf of the child. In annaprasana, even though the father chants the
mantras, it is [obviously] the child that takes anna or food.
4 If the mother takes medicine, the baby is nourished, is it not? In the
same way the inner thoughts and feelings of the parents will affect the
foetus and its character will be shaped accordingly. There is a difference
between what you write when your mind is calm and what you write when you
are in an angry mood: the first will be good to read while the second will
not be so pleasant. The body too is subject to good and bad influences. The
sexual union must take place when the couple are imbued with good thoughts:
it will then lead to the creation of a blob of life (pinda) that will have
the potential to develop into a noble character. This is the reason why the
marriage is consummated with the intonation of mantras.
There are people who have not altogether ceased to observe such rites, but
sometimes they go through two or three rites together. There is a right
time for every samskara and there are mantras as well as dravyas
(materials) appropriate to them.
5 Caula comes after annaprasana. It is meant for the "sikha" which is
essential to the conduct of all good rites. The sannyasin has no sikha and
is shaven-headed; in fact, the sikha has to be removed with the recitation
of mantras at the time one receives initiation into sannyasa. It is worn in
the caula ceremony with the chanting of mantras and with a vow made to
Paramesvara (as part of the samkalpa). So it is wrong to remove it as we
like in violation of this vow. Is it proper to remove this lock of hair as
if it were just a handful of leafy vegetables? People install the sivalinga
or salagrama
<https://kamakoti.org/hindudharma/part16/referp16.htm#SALAGRAMA> for
worship. Would it be right on their part to discard them as they like. It
would be a different matter if they were stolen or lost accidentally.
Similarly, to wear a sikha ceremonially and then remove it, as and when we
like, and wear a crop is not proper.
6 The chanting of the Vedas, the performance of Vedic rituals and the
dharma practised by the householder with his wife strengthen both body and
mind (the latter through the vibrations in the nadis produced by the
mantras). The sikha on the Brahmarandhra
<https://kamakoti.org/hindudharma/part16/referp16.htm#BRAHMARANDHRA> is a
protection and a means of obtaining such strength. It is like the tiles on
the roof of a house. Only when you cease to perform Vedic rites is it not
needed, that is when you are no longer a householder and became an ascetic.
Today even as student-bachelors or as householders we have ceased to chant
the Vedas and practise Vedic rites. So, naturally, we do not wear the sikha
also.
7 Upanayana comes after caula. It is the first samskara that a boy
performs, chanting the mantras himself. Those conduced until this ceremony
are meant to protect the child from the evil influences arising from the
sins committed by its parents. These are either "garbhika" or "baijika"
(belonging to the womb or to the seed or sperm). The samskaras performed by
the parents are to remove the ills caused to the child by these harmful
influences.
Any samskara must be performed at the right time and by doing so we are
absolved of our sins. To wash away the papa earned by us in the past we
have to go through samskaras in which our body, mind and speech are applied.
19 We think evil with our mind, tell lies with our mouth, and sin with
our body also. Indeed we practise all kinds of deception. The wrongs
committed by mind, speech and body must be wiped away by applying mind,
speech and body to virtuous purposes. With the mind, Paramesvara must be
meditated upon; with the faculty of speech, mantras must be chanted; and
with the body, noble deeds must be performed. It is from the time of
upanayana that one becomes mature enough to perform samskaras that bring
together mind, speech and body. I must speak about another matter. Apart
from the samskaras that a father performs specifically for the sake of his
child (from garbhadhana to caula), those (including other types of rites)
he conducts otherwise also benefit the children. This is according to the
saying, "The good done by mother and father goes to protect the children".
Until recently the children of Vaidika Brahmins
<https://kamakoti.org/hindudharma/part16/referp16.htm#VAIDIKA%20BRAHMINS>were
particularly bright, the reason being the impetus they received from the
samskaras performed by their forefathers. What our ancestors did by way of
good works served as the foundation of our moral and intellectual uplift
for two or three generations. Children born afterwards have been so much
embroiled in worldly affairs as to have become degraded.
20 Our fathers did not perform any samskaras. So we may feel sorry that
we have been deprived of the benefits that would otherwise have come to us.
Let us not give room for our children to make the same complaint about us.
Let us perform samskaras for our sake and theirs. atakarma, namakarana,
annaprasana and caula are common to all jatis. Only Brahmins, Ksatriyas and
Vaisyas have the upanayana ceremony. There is nothing discriminatory about
this nor need there be any quarrel over the same. People belonging to the
fourth varna do physical work to serve the world and in the process acquire
inner purity. They will gain proficiency in their hereditary vocations only
by learning them from their parents or grandparents. They do not require
gurukulavasa over some twelve years [as in the case with Brahmins] nor do
they have to learn the Vedas. If so their work will suffer.
21 Upanayana is the first step taken towards gurukulavasa. When a boy
learns the Vedas he must have no ego-feeling. At home he has a lot of
freedom. His father will not be able to discipline him because his
affection will come in the way. That is why the child is to be brought
under the care of a guru. Vocations that require physical effort are
different from the pursuit of the Vedas. There is no room for intellectual
arrogance in them or for the nursing of the ego. So such work may be taught
at home by the father or some other elder in the family. Those who serve by
doing manual work do not require to go through upanayana or gurukulavasa.
Certain special skills or the finer aspects of an art or craft that cannot
be taught at home may be learned from a Brahmin teacher. The Brahmin is
expected to be proficient in all arts, all subjects, but none of these is
meant to be a source of his livelihood. His vocation is teaching and the
chanting of the Vedas and the performance of Vedic rites.
22 There is a relationship between the samskaras described for a man and
his vocation and mental outlook. So it would be wrong to think poorly of
certain jatis who do not have to perform certain samskaras. You may think
it strange, but it is my view that it is those who have to undergo more
samskaras than others that must have been thought of poorly. The idea is
that these people need more rites to be rendered pure. Others are not in
need of so many to be cleansed within. The larger the dose of medicine
taken by patient the greater must be his affliction.
23 None excels the sages in impartiality. They do not talk glibly like us
of equality but they are truly egalitarian in outlook since they look upon
all as one with Isvara. The conduct of the world's affairs is such that it
requires people following different vocations, doing different jobs and
with different mental qualities in keeping with them. It is in conformity
with these differences and dissimilarities that the sages assigned the
samskaras also differently to different people. There is no question of
high or low among them. It is in observance of the same principle that the
sastras lay down upanayana for the first three varnas (Brahmins, Ksatriyas
and Vaisyas) and also certain samskaras connected with it. K Rajaram IRS
3524//2524
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