SATURDAY-shanivar
shani is the son,of soorya and chaya devi (shadow goddess). he is the elder brother of yama. shani means slow moving because he is lame. saturn transits from one zodiac sign to another zodiac sign every two and half year. one will get good or bad effect as per their karma. he will observe our actions and punish or reward accordingly. To please him shani vruth , shanti , pooja is done.
as hanuman helped shani from ravana clutches, he promised hanuman that who so ever worships hanuman during shani dasa the effect of the shani will be reduced or removed.
lord shiva bestowed him with iswara title. once shani was waiting to catch shiva. lord knew this so he meditated in the middle of the pond. shani went there with a crocodile and caught shiva's legs. then lord shiva asked the reason for this. shani was scared as shiva's will open his third eye in case he gets angry. shani requested for the iswara title. shiva granted him .shani told him who so ever worships lord shiva during their shani dasa he will not come near him. since then he is called shaniswaran.
there are lot of temples for shani . in south india thirunallar is the place where people go during shani dasa take oil bath in the tank and worship. nala chakravarthy's one of south india king suffered the most in the hands of shani, he came to this place for pappa vimochana.
this vruth is observed in shukla paksha(after amavasya) first staurday of any month for 19 saturdays. black is the colour for shani. as shani was very dark in colour.. so seasmme laddoo is used on this day to please shani. with the shani photo, lord shiva, ganesh , rahu and kethu are also kept while worshipping. hanuman chalisa is chanted. black umbrella , blanket, iron vessles are given as dhan. dog is fed today. one time meals , with black urad dal or til is used taken.
story goes like this.
raja vikramaditya ruled over ujjain who was very religious, judicious, concerned about his people. there was happiness and prosperity in his kingdom. one day shani dev(saturn) came in his dream and warned him that two and a half years of shani dasa is coming , it is difficult days . but once it is over he will get back his good days. he woke up and worried as how to keep away his family and subjects from his bad time. ( raja 's bad time will affect everybody). early in the morning he got up , did shani pooja ,gave dhan to brahmans. he told his family and subjects that he is going out for some days. instructed the ministers to take good care of the people and his family.when enquired he did not reveal about his plan.
on horses back he left his kingdom. he travelled for quite some time suddenly horse got hurt and fell down and broke his leg. but raja was saved. he got up started to walk. he saw a village near by. so he went there. There was a merchant. he was also facing bad days. nobody returned the borrowed money . servants who went for collection came empty handed. he was not happy. raja vikramaditya came there. he was thirsty requested for water. he gave him water. immediately people started paying back the money . servants came with the collection. so he thought all this is because of this man. so he is lucky for him. he took that man home. he had a girl of marriageable age. he thought if he gets his daughter married to him and make them stay here then he can make more money..he did so and his business grew many folds. he became richer and richer.raja did shani vruth and pooja regularly .
one day there was a call from palace of the king of tamil nadu. queen's precious necklace got cut . so they called the merchant to weigh and fix the price .he brought it home .raja was sleeping in the room. merchant hung the nacklace on the wall and slept.that room was filled with different pictures. where this nacklace was hanging there the picture of a swan. raja woke up and saw that swan came out of the drawing and swallowed the nacklace. after some time merchant got up. he could not see the nacklace. he asked raja about it. he could not say anything. as what he saw no body will believe. but he had to give a reply so he told the truth. merchant got angry he did not believe him and took him to the king.
there he was questioned several times raja gave the same answer. he was put behind the bar. chained his leg and hands. little water and roti was given to him to eat. these were the bad days which he had to patiently undergo. he was worshiping shani dev and offered the food given to him afterwards he eat. he was happy in the jail like this. bad time got over.
his wife started doing all the seven days vruth. as the day went she became very week . Her father was worried about her health. one day when he was sitting in the room he saw that the swan from the picture came out and hung the necklace and went back. he was surprised . could not believe his own eyes. he rushed to the palace and told the king what he saw and gave back the necklace. king vikramaditya was called to the court. raja asked for pardon for wrong justice. he was released. raja vikramaditya gave his introduction and said no body is to be blamed it is the shani dasa of two and half year. he honoured king vikramadirtya . merchant was happy.
shani is the purifier. saturn will teach one to be more responsible and discipline.
when lord ganesha was born. all the devathas came to see him. everybody took the child and blessed him.lord shani was also there. he turned his face. pravathi gave ganesha to shani maharaj also for blessing. he said he is not a lucky person to look . she insisted and he saw the child, gahesha's face was chopped. immediately vishnu cut newly born elephants face and fixed it, since he is called gajamukha.
Singanapur has a temple for shani which is swayambu. There is no temple for the god. it is found on a raised platform. people do til oil abhishekam . it is very famous and visited by people of all religion. there is no door for the house . it is open. it is believed that no thief can harm these people of their belongings.
Monday, August 29, 2011
vruth for the days of the week-friday
FRIDAY - shukravar.
this graha is very important for good luck. placed favorably in the chart this planet will bring wealth, good speaker(suvaktha) and intellegence. the blessing of shukra is needed in marriage and other good ceremonies. this day's vruth is observed to please goddess laxmi. now a days people do santoshi maa pooja also.
this vruth is started on shukla paksh first friday(after amavasya) for a minimum of 21 days. white colour is used on this day. like white flower, rice or kheer, sugar is offered to god. white cloth or silver is given as dhan. after the evening lamp is lit , food is taken.
the story recited on this days story goes like this.
there was a raja who ruled wisely and he was very kind hearted and god fearing also. but his wife was very proud of her wealth. she considered beggar and sadhu's same. she did not respect the learned sadhu's when they come to her for alms. her husband tried to make her understand but she was not prepared to listen.
one day when she was in the garden, shukra dev came like a sadhu to her palace and asked for alms. she did not listen. He requested for a hand full of wheat flour again, when she refused, the sadhu said may be in future when she asks for alms she may not get. sadhu went empty handed.she narrated the incidence of sadhu to her husband. he was worried for her and his subjects. so raja made a wooden box asked rani to lay down in it and closed and let it float in the river. after floating for some time it stopped near a tree.
a merchant was building a huge palace. so labourers were working there. when they saw the box. they thought money will be inside this, so they pulled it out of the water and opened . rani came out of it. immediately she asked for food. workers told her take job of a labourer. evening wages will be distributed.then she can buy things , cook and eat.. she started working there as a labourer. she was not use to this hard work. she was finding it very difficult. of and on she remembered that sadhu's words. one day the merchant came to see the palace. his wife asked rani to work in her house. there also she could not do house hold work. two and half month went by.
one day when she was doing work sadhu came and asked for hand full of wheat flour. she immediately went and gave it to him .told merchant's wife to cut it from her salary.sadhu blessed her and went.
Raja realised his mistake of floating rani. he came in search of her on the river shore. He saw the palace and stopped his boat. he went there and merchant welcomed him and gave him food .he was asked to spent the night there. rani was asked to go to his room as dasi. she cried there. raja asked the reason . he recognised her voice. they both recognised each other. rani told him the bad days she under went.
next day raja told merchant his story and took her back home. merchants wife asked for pardon and she helped rani in dressing up nicely and both raja and rani went back home. since then her attitude changed. she was very good to all. started respecting the sadhu's, did shukravar vruth . they both lived happily afterwards.
this graha is very important for good luck. placed favorably in the chart this planet will bring wealth, good speaker(suvaktha) and intellegence. the blessing of shukra is needed in marriage and other good ceremonies. this day's vruth is observed to please goddess laxmi. now a days people do santoshi maa pooja also.
this vruth is started on shukla paksh first friday(after amavasya) for a minimum of 21 days. white colour is used on this day. like white flower, rice or kheer, sugar is offered to god. white cloth or silver is given as dhan. after the evening lamp is lit , food is taken.
the story recited on this days story goes like this.
there was a raja who ruled wisely and he was very kind hearted and god fearing also. but his wife was very proud of her wealth. she considered beggar and sadhu's same. she did not respect the learned sadhu's when they come to her for alms. her husband tried to make her understand but she was not prepared to listen.
one day when she was in the garden, shukra dev came like a sadhu to her palace and asked for alms. she did not listen. He requested for a hand full of wheat flour again, when she refused, the sadhu said may be in future when she asks for alms she may not get. sadhu went empty handed.she narrated the incidence of sadhu to her husband. he was worried for her and his subjects. so raja made a wooden box asked rani to lay down in it and closed and let it float in the river. after floating for some time it stopped near a tree.
a merchant was building a huge palace. so labourers were working there. when they saw the box. they thought money will be inside this, so they pulled it out of the water and opened . rani came out of it. immediately she asked for food. workers told her take job of a labourer. evening wages will be distributed.then she can buy things , cook and eat.. she started working there as a labourer. she was not use to this hard work. she was finding it very difficult. of and on she remembered that sadhu's words. one day the merchant came to see the palace. his wife asked rani to work in her house. there also she could not do house hold work. two and half month went by.
one day when she was doing work sadhu came and asked for hand full of wheat flour. she immediately went and gave it to him .told merchant's wife to cut it from her salary.sadhu blessed her and went.
Raja realised his mistake of floating rani. he came in search of her on the river shore. He saw the palace and stopped his boat. he went there and merchant welcomed him and gave him food .he was asked to spent the night there. rani was asked to go to his room as dasi. she cried there. raja asked the reason . he recognised her voice. they both recognised each other. rani told him the bad days she under went.
next day raja told merchant his story and took her back home. merchants wife asked for pardon and she helped rani in dressing up nicely and both raja and rani went back home. since then her attitude changed. she was very good to all. started respecting the sadhu's, did shukravar vruth . they both lived happily afterwards.
vruth for the daya of the week-thursday
THURSDAY-guruwar
this day's vruth is observed to get the blessings of guru bruhaspathi graha. In the solar system this is considered very important. guru's abounding in blessings will help in touching the sky .with his blessings all the grahas will also be pleased. it is believed to get the work done fast or to remove obstacles this vruth is observed. He is the deity for good life.
this vruth can be started before any shukla paksh (after amavasya) thrusday for minimum16 thrusdays. yellow color is used on this day. Keeping a yellow colour handkerchief atleast will help. yellow things like flowers,haldi are used in the pooja.chana dal and gur is offered as naivedya. for dhan yellow cloth is given. one can sit near the banana tree and do this pooja as banana tree is also to be worshipped. In the evening lamp is lit near shiva. After pooja one time meals can be taken for this vruth. yellow colour is added in the food prepared. this day- cutting hair, cloth, nails washing hair, applying oil is not done.
In karnataka people observe this vruth for ragavendra swamy. after bath they visit the ragavendra swamy mutt and recite slokas. his jeeva samadhi is in mantralaya in karnataka.
the story which is read on this day says god will bless only if we are true .
raja tungadwaj went for hunting. he did not realise that he had come deep into the forest. there he saw four boys doing this pooja . he was very tired so he sat there for some time. after the pooja the boys gave him the prasad. he did not take the prasad nor did he salute the god. when he went back home he saw that his family was not there and he lost his wealth also. he tried to locate them but could not. he realised that all this is because he did a mistake by not taking the prasad. on following thursday he came to the forest and heard the story and took prasad. slowly he got back the lost wealth and his family. since then raja tungadwaj worshipped bruhaspathi dev and was very happy.
this day's vruth is observed to get the blessings of guru bruhaspathi graha. In the solar system this is considered very important. guru's abounding in blessings will help in touching the sky .with his blessings all the grahas will also be pleased. it is believed to get the work done fast or to remove obstacles this vruth is observed. He is the deity for good life.
this vruth can be started before any shukla paksh (after amavasya) thrusday for minimum16 thrusdays. yellow color is used on this day. Keeping a yellow colour handkerchief atleast will help. yellow things like flowers,haldi are used in the pooja.chana dal and gur is offered as naivedya. for dhan yellow cloth is given. one can sit near the banana tree and do this pooja as banana tree is also to be worshipped. In the evening lamp is lit near shiva. After pooja one time meals can be taken for this vruth. yellow colour is added in the food prepared. this day- cutting hair, cloth, nails washing hair, applying oil is not done.
In karnataka people observe this vruth for ragavendra swamy. after bath they visit the ragavendra swamy mutt and recite slokas. his jeeva samadhi is in mantralaya in karnataka.
the story which is read on this day says god will bless only if we are true .
raja tungadwaj went for hunting. he did not realise that he had come deep into the forest. there he saw four boys doing this pooja . he was very tired so he sat there for some time. after the pooja the boys gave him the prasad. he did not take the prasad nor did he salute the god. when he went back home he saw that his family was not there and he lost his wealth also. he tried to locate them but could not. he realised that all this is because he did a mistake by not taking the prasad. on following thursday he came to the forest and heard the story and took prasad. slowly he got back the lost wealth and his family. since then raja tungadwaj worshipped bruhaspathi dev and was very happy.
Sunday, August 28, 2011
vruth for the days of the week-wednesday
WEDNESDAY/ budhawar.
wednesday is ruled by bhudha graha, son of moon.he is placed next to moon in the solar system. he is the master for knowledge, speech , poet, hand work, and attaining complete education. child born on wednesday will be brave,good spokesman ,cleaver and can handle any difficult tasks easily.
any month the wednesday before shukla paksha(after amavasya) we can start this vrutha with minimum of 7 wednesday. should not use red colour at all. green colour should be used. green moong dal kichdi can be offered to god and taken.
story recited on this day goes like this.
there was a merchant who had a well established business. slowly his servants started cheating him. so he decided to take up the travelling himself. that time his wife was in the family way. she observed Wednesday vruth regularly. merchant left lot of money for his wife . but the servants and the relatives took money from her. one day she took the left over jewellery and went to the next village and started living there. At the appropriate time she delivered a boy on Wednesday. Ten years passed and child was very cleaver and brave.
The merchant who went on tour, came back with money , gold and silver. As he was entering his village his cart got stuck in the slush. he could not remove it. so he went walking to the near by village to ask for help. there he saw some boys playing. seeing a new person one boy enquired the reason for his tension. merchant requested him to take the cart out of the slush. all the boys went and helped him. the cart came out. that boy told him to come home for food as it was getting dark and he was also tired. merchant agreed. when he reached the boy's home he saw his wife there. she narrated the story to him and said because of bhudha devatha we got a good , cleaver and a brave child. he only helped his father to take the cart out. all of them went back home and lived happily.
wednesday vruth will change our unfavorable days to favorable .
wednesday is ruled by bhudha graha, son of moon.he is placed next to moon in the solar system. he is the master for knowledge, speech , poet, hand work, and attaining complete education. child born on wednesday will be brave,good spokesman ,cleaver and can handle any difficult tasks easily.
any month the wednesday before shukla paksha(after amavasya) we can start this vrutha with minimum of 7 wednesday. should not use red colour at all. green colour should be used. green moong dal kichdi can be offered to god and taken.
story recited on this day goes like this.
there was a merchant who had a well established business. slowly his servants started cheating him. so he decided to take up the travelling himself. that time his wife was in the family way. she observed Wednesday vruth regularly. merchant left lot of money for his wife . but the servants and the relatives took money from her. one day she took the left over jewellery and went to the next village and started living there. At the appropriate time she delivered a boy on Wednesday. Ten years passed and child was very cleaver and brave.
The merchant who went on tour, came back with money , gold and silver. As he was entering his village his cart got stuck in the slush. he could not remove it. so he went walking to the near by village to ask for help. there he saw some boys playing. seeing a new person one boy enquired the reason for his tension. merchant requested him to take the cart out of the slush. all the boys went and helped him. the cart came out. that boy told him to come home for food as it was getting dark and he was also tired. merchant agreed. when he reached the boy's home he saw his wife there. she narrated the story to him and said because of bhudha devatha we got a good , cleaver and a brave child. he only helped his father to take the cart out. all of them went back home and lived happily.
wednesday vruth will change our unfavorable days to favorable .
vruth for the days of the week-tuesday
TUESDAY/ MANGALWAR
Tuesday 's god is MARS mangal devatha. he is worshipped for braveness and prosperity . to destroy enemy.to cure blood related diseases . he is the son of earth.
During uttarayan after amavasya this vruth is started for 21 or 45 Tuesdays. on this day red colour is used for pooja as mangal is red in colour. During this vruth people do not eat salt. Fruits can be taken. For dhan in the temple to brahman red colour cloth , masoor dal, copper vessels are given to please mangal.
hanuman was also born on tuesday. so he is also worshipped on this day . people observe vruth and do pooja to hanuman. red/sindoor colour flower, red chandan is used to decorate hanuman's picture. sundarakand and hanuman chalisa is recited. sindoor is applied on hanuman to fulfill their wishes it is given to people as prasad. hanuman is given jalebi, boondi as offerings. then distributed to all.
In south india , tuesday vruth is observed for lord muruga. during the month of Masi
all the tuesday's are observed as salt less for the health of the family. also vaidheswaran, lord shiva is worshipped. This vrath is observed specifically for skin disease or any other health problem .
In padma puran there is a story which talks about the blessings of mangal. In a village there lived a poor family . Mother, Father and Son . Their son was born on tuesday so they called him mangaliya. they could not have proper meals also. but that lady observed tuesday vruth with great difficulty. She will beg people and do some charity also with that money. that day she will not plough the field or mop the house with cow dongh. mangal devatha decided to test her determination. he came like a sadhu and knocked the door. She came out and asked the sadhu what he wanted. He said "I am hungry. I have atta and ghee. you just clean the place with cow dong. and I will prepare the food."she told him she would not mop the house with cow dong since it was tuesday, other than this she is prepared to do anything. he told her to give bath to her son and make him lay down. on his back he will prepare the food. she obeyed. She requested hanuman ji and mangal devatha to help her. Sadhu prepared fire on Mangaliya's back and made the food. The sadhu then asked the lady to call her son. She told the Sadhu since he had prepared food on his back on fire, how can her son be alive. Still sadhu insisted . so she called him by name and he woke up and came running to his mother. mangal devatha said , he came dressed like a sadhu to test her. he was pleased with her dedication ,kind heart and truthfulness. and blessed her with prosperity and moksha after death.
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Tuesday 's god is MARS mangal devatha. he is worshipped for braveness and prosperity . to destroy enemy.to cure blood related diseases . he is the son of earth.
During uttarayan after amavasya this vruth is started for 21 or 45 Tuesdays. on this day red colour is used for pooja as mangal is red in colour. During this vruth people do not eat salt. Fruits can be taken. For dhan in the temple to brahman red colour cloth , masoor dal, copper vessels are given to please mangal.
hanuman was also born on tuesday. so he is also worshipped on this day . people observe vruth and do pooja to hanuman. red/sindoor colour flower, red chandan is used to decorate hanuman's picture. sundarakand and hanuman chalisa is recited. sindoor is applied on hanuman to fulfill their wishes it is given to people as prasad. hanuman is given jalebi, boondi as offerings. then distributed to all.
In south india , tuesday vruth is observed for lord muruga. during the month of Masi
all the tuesday's are observed as salt less for the health of the family. also vaidheswaran, lord shiva is worshipped. This vrath is observed specifically for skin disease or any other health problem .
In padma puran there is a story which talks about the blessings of mangal. In a village there lived a poor family . Mother, Father and Son . Their son was born on tuesday so they called him mangaliya. they could not have proper meals also. but that lady observed tuesday vruth with great difficulty. She will beg people and do some charity also with that money. that day she will not plough the field or mop the house with cow dongh. mangal devatha decided to test her determination. he came like a sadhu and knocked the door. She came out and asked the sadhu what he wanted. He said "I am hungry. I have atta and ghee. you just clean the place with cow dong. and I will prepare the food."she told him she would not mop the house with cow dong since it was tuesday, other than this she is prepared to do anything. he told her to give bath to her son and make him lay down. on his back he will prepare the food. she obeyed. She requested hanuman ji and mangal devatha to help her. Sadhu prepared fire on Mangaliya's back and made the food. The sadhu then asked the lady to call her son. She told the Sadhu since he had prepared food on his back on fire, how can her son be alive. Still sadhu insisted . so she called him by name and he woke up and came running to his mother. mangal devatha said , he came dressed like a sadhu to test her. he was pleased with her dedication ,kind heart and truthfulness. and blessed her with prosperity and moksha after death.
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vruth for the days of the week-monday
For every day of the week people worship different gods. vruth is observed on that day to worship that particular god, with or without a wish .rahu fulfills wordly desire and ketu fulfills spiritual desire,called chaya graha , should also be worshipped .
MONDAY./SOMVAR
monday is the beginning of the week. this day's god is MOON. people observe vruth on this day for good health. moon is associated with medicine .
this day is associated with lord shiva and parvathi. generally people start this vruth on any first monday of the month.. minimum of 10 monday's or all monday's in a year are observed . pooja is done on the beginning and finishing day of the vruth. moon, shiva and parvathi is worshipped. offering white flower is considered good. white cloth and silver is given as dhan to brahman. one meal a day, or just fruits, milk or curd is taken on this day.
unmarried girls keep 16 monday vruth for good life. karthik month monday special shiva pooja is done . lamp is lit in the shiva temple . there is a story in the skanda puran which goes like this
a raja named chitravarma was rulling aryavruth. he was a good raja taking good care of his people . he worshipped shiva and vishnu. after a long time he was blessed with a daughter whom he called SEEMANTHINI. Astrologers said she would become a widow in the early years of her life. to avert this she was asked to do shiva and parvathi pooja and observe vruth on mondays. parents were worried. as time went she grew into a very beautiful women. she got married to a princess. one day he went boating with his friends. the boat toppled and he fell down. seemanthini became a widow but she was stopped from becoming a sati. she was very sad for her widowhood but she continued praying god and observing vruth.
The drowned prince was rescued by nagakanya. he was taken to under the earth (pattal lok) to nagraja takshak. on enquiry he gave his identity. Since he was also a shivabaktha he safely brought prince back to the shore . Since that day was monday, seemanthini came to temple to offer pooja. After pooja she saw her husband standing on the bank of the river. she was very happy. Both of them went back home happily .
We pray lord shiva to protect all.
MONDAY./SOMVAR
monday is the beginning of the week. this day's god is MOON. people observe vruth on this day for good health. moon is associated with medicine .
this day is associated with lord shiva and parvathi. generally people start this vruth on any first monday of the month.. minimum of 10 monday's or all monday's in a year are observed . pooja is done on the beginning and finishing day of the vruth. moon, shiva and parvathi is worshipped. offering white flower is considered good. white cloth and silver is given as dhan to brahman. one meal a day, or just fruits, milk or curd is taken on this day.
unmarried girls keep 16 monday vruth for good life. karthik month monday special shiva pooja is done . lamp is lit in the shiva temple . there is a story in the skanda puran which goes like this
a raja named chitravarma was rulling aryavruth. he was a good raja taking good care of his people . he worshipped shiva and vishnu. after a long time he was blessed with a daughter whom he called SEEMANTHINI. Astrologers said she would become a widow in the early years of her life. to avert this she was asked to do shiva and parvathi pooja and observe vruth on mondays. parents were worried. as time went she grew into a very beautiful women. she got married to a princess. one day he went boating with his friends. the boat toppled and he fell down. seemanthini became a widow but she was stopped from becoming a sati. she was very sad for her widowhood but she continued praying god and observing vruth.
The drowned prince was rescued by nagakanya. he was taken to under the earth (pattal lok) to nagraja takshak. on enquiry he gave his identity. Since he was also a shivabaktha he safely brought prince back to the shore . Since that day was monday, seemanthini came to temple to offer pooja. After pooja she saw her husband standing on the bank of the river. she was very happy. Both of them went back home happily .
We pray lord shiva to protect all.
Saturday, August 27, 2011
festivals and vruth
india is a religion based country with multi culture and tradition. dharma is attached to religion . festivals and vruth are attached to religious belief . it is said that for 30 days there are 33 festivals. that many festivals indians observe..treasure of hindu mythological stories talks about god's avatar's which adds a special meaning to our festivals. young or old likes to listen to these stories. india is the country where there is an university in naimesharinya to study about these stories.
upa means nearby -vasa means stay. so while fasting we stay near god. vruths are observed in two ways- with reason or without reason .upvas means forgoing food. upvas can be attached to vruth. vruth can be without food, only liquid, salt less, sugar less, self made food,or taking one meal a day. in observing vruth there is determination , procedure, discipline, a vow, bhakthi equivalent to tapasya(austerity). vrathi becomes strong mentally and physically by leading a systematic` and disciplined life . early bath , doing pooja visiting temple ,having one time light food , will help us come out of this wordly pleasure.
health comes first. aged people , pregnant women, people on medication will not be able to observe strict vruth . taking light food is always allowed. with good intension and true bakthi is only needed to please god.
indians worship the five elements of nature sky ,air, agni vayu and water. offering special flowers, fruits to particular god is also considered good. like arugampil (grass) to vinayaka, bilwa leaves to lord shiva,tazampoo to laxmi ,tulsi to vishnu.sacred months of the year are celebrated. certain trees and plants are worshiped .in india for seven days of the week there are stories and vruthas , which is followed by young and old. once or twice fasting during the week is good for health.
there is a procedure to observe vruth. vruthi while observing fast if he has a light diet on the previous day and has the food before the sunset on the vruth day and takes the meals early on the next day can enjoy the full fructification of the vruth.on the day of vruth afternoon nap should be avoided. there is a saying that to get rid of curse, a demon takes away the religious merit(punya)of the vruthi . (anyone knows the full story can help)
we should strictly observe the vruth for fulfilled satisfaction.
upa means nearby -vasa means stay. so while fasting we stay near god. vruths are observed in two ways- with reason or without reason .upvas means forgoing food. upvas can be attached to vruth. vruth can be without food, only liquid, salt less, sugar less, self made food,or taking one meal a day. in observing vruth there is determination , procedure, discipline, a vow, bhakthi equivalent to tapasya(austerity). vrathi becomes strong mentally and physically by leading a systematic` and disciplined life . early bath , doing pooja visiting temple ,having one time light food , will help us come out of this wordly pleasure.
health comes first. aged people , pregnant women, people on medication will not be able to observe strict vruth . taking light food is always allowed. with good intension and true bakthi is only needed to please god.
indians worship the five elements of nature sky ,air, agni vayu and water. offering special flowers, fruits to particular god is also considered good. like arugampil (grass) to vinayaka, bilwa leaves to lord shiva,tazampoo to laxmi ,tulsi to vishnu.sacred months of the year are celebrated. certain trees and plants are worshiped .in india for seven days of the week there are stories and vruthas , which is followed by young and old. once or twice fasting during the week is good for health.
there is a procedure to observe vruth. vruthi while observing fast if he has a light diet on the previous day and has the food before the sunset on the vruth day and takes the meals early on the next day can enjoy the full fructification of the vruth.on the day of vruth afternoon nap should be avoided. there is a saying that to get rid of curse, a demon takes away the religious merit(punya)of the vruthi . (anyone knows the full story can help)
we should strictly observe the vruth for fulfilled satisfaction.
Friday, August 26, 2011
julelall
julelall is the guru of sindhi's .chetichand festival is celebrated as a mark of their guru's birthday. they go to temple and offer all kinds of vegetables , pulses, rice and money to julelall. they lite lamps at home which is akanda jyoti( all 24 hours). sindh is situated on the bank of the river. varun devatha is the lord of ocean. julelall is considered as the incarnation of varun devatha who's vahana is fish.
nawab murakhshah was ruling sindh in 10th century. he was converting the hindu's . hindu's assembled in the bank of the river to raise their voice against it and went on fast for 3 days. they worshiped varun deva to help them .suddenly a splash of light came from the river and a voice came that he will take birth in nasarpur to protect dharma. all of them came home. in 1007 in nasarpur rajpoot shri rathanraj and his wife smt. devaki gave birth to a son on the second day after holi(poornima) . he was named udaychandra. since birth he did miracles. everybody believed him and gained confidence. now they started their agitation against the nawab. nawab came to know about the child. he wanted to kill him. so he sent his minister's but they could not kill him, they came back frightened. at the age of 6 udaychandra was sent to gurukul for education he came back home at the age of 13.
nawab's atrocities continued.udaychandra alongwith his father assembled an army and attacked the nawab. his horse did not run but flew in the air. so he was called UDERILALL. udaychandra use to be always in joyous mood so he was called JULELALL.
where ever there was nawab 's attrocities he use to reach the in no time and help people. his followers shouted AYO JULELALL. thus he protected the people . once nawab called him to his darbar. seeing julelall he also changed his mind. julelall explained to him that all the dharma's are the same. god is one for all.name only differs .everybody worships the god according to their dharma.since then he stopped troubling the people.
julelall being varun's incarnation accepted gorakhnath ji as his guru. since then he is known as julelall to hindu's and jinda peer to muslims.
there is one super power which is worshipped as god is the same for all.
nawab murakhshah was ruling sindh in 10th century. he was converting the hindu's . hindu's assembled in the bank of the river to raise their voice against it and went on fast for 3 days. they worshiped varun deva to help them .suddenly a splash of light came from the river and a voice came that he will take birth in nasarpur to protect dharma. all of them came home. in 1007 in nasarpur rajpoot shri rathanraj and his wife smt. devaki gave birth to a son on the second day after holi(poornima) . he was named udaychandra. since birth he did miracles. everybody believed him and gained confidence. now they started their agitation against the nawab. nawab came to know about the child. he wanted to kill him. so he sent his minister's but they could not kill him, they came back frightened. at the age of 6 udaychandra was sent to gurukul for education he came back home at the age of 13.
nawab's atrocities continued.udaychandra alongwith his father assembled an army and attacked the nawab. his horse did not run but flew in the air. so he was called UDERILALL. udaychandra use to be always in joyous mood so he was called JULELALL.
where ever there was nawab 's attrocities he use to reach the in no time and help people. his followers shouted AYO JULELALL. thus he protected the people . once nawab called him to his darbar. seeing julelall he also changed his mind. julelall explained to him that all the dharma's are the same. god is one for all.name only differs .everybody worships the god according to their dharma.since then he stopped troubling the people.
julelall being varun's incarnation accepted gorakhnath ji as his guru. since then he is known as julelall to hindu's and jinda peer to muslims.
there is one super power which is worshipped as god is the same for all.
Thursday, August 25, 2011
mythologival symbols of india-4
SHANKHA (devine shank)
in india shankha, is known in different places by different names.it is an inevitable item in all the pooja. in bengal shankhu nath is done to mark the begining of the daily pooja. even in buddisum one of the eight important symbols is shaku. shankha pooja is done as a procedure in our daily pooja.
GANGE CHA YAMUNE CHIVA GODAVARI SARASWATHI
NARMADE SINDHI KAVERI JALE ASMIN SANDHIDHIM KURU.
it is believed water from all these 7 rivers comes to this shankhu and makes few drops of water in the shankhu sacred. there are two types of shankhu, valam puri(right turn) edumpuri (left turn). valam puri shankhu is sacred. lord vishnu holds shankhu in his hand. lord krishna did shankhu nadh to announce the begining of kurukshetra battle. in the shankhu stays mahalaxmi, goddess of wealth.the powder of shankhu has medicinal value also.
ornaments made of shanku is used by ladies.
worhipping shankhu gives,fame, longivity of life and prosperity
ghanta or bell is an integreated part of the pooja. sound of the bell signifies the begining of the pooja.
aga-martham to devanam,gama narthamtu rakshasam
ghantaravam karoomyathow devathaahwana karanam
end of the pooja:
nirmalyam ghantam dharayami, bali nivedhayami.
ghanta is worshipped and continuously rung of and on throughout the pooja
sound of bell cleans the aura. a good bell will create a deep sound of representing OM . in the temple or at home during arthi bell sound is made to alert the baktas. inauspicious words during pooja or any good occasion is not heard in the bless sound.
bell is used in schools , transport , in the court, fire engine, factories, etc.everywhere it is calling attention and gives a message. while entering temple also, the bell is rung.
the body of the bell represents universe. tongue represents saraswathi .handle is the shakthi . top by nandi or garuda.
it is said in every house the sound of bell should be heard . which goes to say every house pooja should be performed .
in india shankha, is known in different places by different names.it is an inevitable item in all the pooja. in bengal shankhu nath is done to mark the begining of the daily pooja. even in buddisum one of the eight important symbols is shaku. shankha pooja is done as a procedure in our daily pooja.
GANGE CHA YAMUNE CHIVA GODAVARI SARASWATHI
NARMADE SINDHI KAVERI JALE ASMIN SANDHIDHIM KURU.
it is believed water from all these 7 rivers comes to this shankhu and makes few drops of water in the shankhu sacred. there are two types of shankhu, valam puri(right turn) edumpuri (left turn). valam puri shankhu is sacred. lord vishnu holds shankhu in his hand. lord krishna did shankhu nadh to announce the begining of kurukshetra battle. in the shankhu stays mahalaxmi, goddess of wealth.the powder of shankhu has medicinal value also.
ornaments made of shanku is used by ladies.
worhipping shankhu gives,fame, longivity of life and prosperity
BELL (GHANTA)
ghanta or bell is an integreated part of the pooja. sound of the bell signifies the begining of the pooja.
aga-martham to devanam,gama narthamtu rakshasam
ghantaravam karoomyathow devathaahwana karanam
end of the pooja:
nirmalyam ghantam dharayami, bali nivedhayami.
ghanta is worshipped and continuously rung of and on throughout the pooja
sound of bell cleans the aura. a good bell will create a deep sound of representing OM . in the temple or at home during arthi bell sound is made to alert the baktas. inauspicious words during pooja or any good occasion is not heard in the bless sound.
bell is used in schools , transport , in the court, fire engine, factories, etc.everywhere it is calling attention and gives a message. while entering temple also, the bell is rung.
the body of the bell represents universe. tongue represents saraswathi .handle is the shakthi . top by nandi or garuda.
it is said in every house the sound of bell should be heard . which goes to say every house pooja should be performed .
Saturday, August 20, 2011
mythological symbols of india -3
OM is the sound residing in all elements of the earth. every thing comes from vibration which is om.this is the sacred mantra used as a prefix and suffix to all the veda mantras. science also says that every atom and molecule is formed out of energy vibration. it has deep realities and leads to self realization .mantra is shakti and om is shiva . it is the first word spelt in the universe.. it is the combination of three words.अ refers to the brahma , उ refers to vishnu and म refers to shiva..
om is prava swaroop. it is the essence of vedas.lord muruga gave pranav mantra to lord shiva. chanting this again again will give mental strength.bhagavat geetha describes om as essence of vedas.
it is embodied in our culture to the extend that effortlessly we utter this word many times in a day during pooja and otherwise also.
GAYATRI MANTRA.
gayatri maha mantra is both prayer and worship.without chanting this no rituals takes place. tapasya, upasana, fasting, chanting the mantra, stuti differs according to the place and time but gayatri mantra is traditionally the same.so it is called sanathan mantra. boys after their upanayanam do gayatri japam as an untold tradition of the hindu society.
maharishi vishwamitra saw gayatri mantra. gayatri has five faces. this represents five life forces ,(praan, apaan, vyaan, udhaan, samaan) and five elements(earth,water, air,fire and sky) with the help of gayatri mantra maharishi viswamitra could create a separate indira loka for trishangu.maharishai vasistha and viswamitra both had the superiority complex. trishangu wanted to go to swargaloka with the body. it is against nature. to achieve this he approached maharishi vasistha. he did not agree to this saying it is not possible. then he went to maharishi viswamitra and pleaded . he also gave the same answer. since trishangu knew that both these maharishi's fight for superiority , he said "maharishi vasista did not agree. i thought if i approach you will will definitely help".
on hearing this maharishi viswamitra immediately agreed. he did yagya and with his power he sent trishangu up. he went upto indiraloka. indira pushed him down . he decended upside down . when viswamitra saw this he stopped him half way and created a indiraloka there for him.
maharishi could achive all this because of the power of gayatri. no words can describe the power of gayatri mantra, we cannot describe endless sky or the depth of the ocean.
gayatrayastu samo japyam na bhooto na bhavishyati.
there are 24 letters in gayatri mantra. there is no sacred mantra than this. she is the mother of all knowledge. in geetha shri krishna says gayatri chandasamaham. in mahabharat she is described as vedajanani.gayatri is brama's manasa putri . she is described as savitri also. gayatri mantra is sooryopasana mantra. .devas also worshipped gayatri. no other mantra will forgive our sin and will work as a prayaschitta also.we bow to goddess gayatri and seek her blessings.
om is prava swaroop. it is the essence of vedas.lord muruga gave pranav mantra to lord shiva. chanting this again again will give mental strength.bhagavat geetha describes om as essence of vedas.
it is embodied in our culture to the extend that effortlessly we utter this word many times in a day during pooja and otherwise also.
GAYATRI MANTRA.
gayatri maha mantra is both prayer and worship.without chanting this no rituals takes place. tapasya, upasana, fasting, chanting the mantra, stuti differs according to the place and time but gayatri mantra is traditionally the same.so it is called sanathan mantra. boys after their upanayanam do gayatri japam as an untold tradition of the hindu society.
maharishi vishwamitra saw gayatri mantra. gayatri has five faces. this represents five life forces ,(praan, apaan, vyaan, udhaan, samaan) and five elements(earth,water, air,fire and sky) with the help of gayatri mantra maharishi viswamitra could create a separate indira loka for trishangu.maharishai vasistha and viswamitra both had the superiority complex. trishangu wanted to go to swargaloka with the body. it is against nature. to achieve this he approached maharishi vasistha. he did not agree to this saying it is not possible. then he went to maharishi viswamitra and pleaded . he also gave the same answer. since trishangu knew that both these maharishi's fight for superiority , he said "maharishi vasista did not agree. i thought if i approach you will will definitely help".
on hearing this maharishi viswamitra immediately agreed. he did yagya and with his power he sent trishangu up. he went upto indiraloka. indira pushed him down . he decended upside down . when viswamitra saw this he stopped him half way and created a indiraloka there for him.
maharishi could achive all this because of the power of gayatri. no words can describe the power of gayatri mantra, we cannot describe endless sky or the depth of the ocean.
gayatrayastu samo japyam na bhooto na bhavishyati.
there are 24 letters in gayatri mantra. there is no sacred mantra than this. she is the mother of all knowledge. in geetha shri krishna says gayatri chandasamaham. in mahabharat she is described as vedajanani.gayatri is brama's manasa putri . she is described as savitri also. gayatri mantra is sooryopasana mantra. .devas also worshipped gayatri. no other mantra will forgive our sin and will work as a prayaschitta also.we bow to goddess gayatri and seek her blessings.
mythological symbols of india -2
KALASHA
poorna kalasha is considered as a sign of abundance , source of life and a good oman. mouth of the kalash is vishnu,the throat lord shiva, base lord brahma and at the bottom all the goddessess. thus in a small pot they establish all the god and the goddessess.water is one of the essentials to live. we cannot live without water.
kalash is made of gold , silver and earth(mud). For pooja earthern pot is considered good as it represents one of the five elements of nature. earth is worshipped as mother
.MATA PRITHVI PUTROAHAM PRITHIVYAHA.
pooja kalash or sacret pot is kept fully decorated .In india kalash is worshipped since ages. During the samundra mandhan between gods and demons dhanvantri came with the amrit kalash on his head.
Poorna kalash will bring fulfillment and happiness.
OOM POORNAMADHAHA POORNAMETHAM POORNAATHPOORNAMUTHACHAYEDH /
POORNASYA POORNAMADHAYA
POORNAMEVAVASHISYETE.
GANGA:
ganges is considered the most sacred river. just by spring ling ganges water all becomes pure let it be, place, thing or human .she is considered equivalent to
mother. ganga is also called tripatha-meaning- she flows in the sky, earth and
pathal lok also.bhagirathi comes from gangaotri joins in alaknanada in prayag .all together is called ganges. she is also known as bhagirathi ganga in north, in south as godavari ganga.
in haridwar ganga aarti is done daily. people take holy dip in ganges to purify themself. in india pilgrimage places like haridwar, rishikesh, prayag, varanasi etc are situated on the bank of ganga .
there is a story in mahabharat which talks , why ganga married shantanu.
rishi vashisht lived on the hills of meru. he had a cow called nandini, which
fulfilled all his wishes. one day all the eight vsu's(goddess of wealth) with their
wife came to the ashram. one of the vsu's wife liked the nandini cow and wanted to
take it with her. that time rishi was not there in the ashram. on coming back he heard what happened and got angry and cursed all the vsu's to take birth in earth(mrityu lok).on hearing this all the vsu's with the nandini cow , came back to the ashram and returned the cow and asked for the way for salvation of the curse. rishi said-ganga can only give save you from this curse. but one who wished to take the nandini , will live in the mrityulok for quite some time.
on hearing this all the vsu's came to ganga and requested her to become her mother and immediately after birth to throw them in the ganges. she agreed.
raja shantanu of kuru vamsh went on hunting one day. on the bank of the river ganga , he saw a very beautiful lady she was ganga.. he asked her to marry him. she said on one condition she will marry him.he should neither question nor stop her actions.if he does she will go back.he agreed and brought her as her wife. as a wife she was dutiful and compassionate, so he was very happy. after some time she delivered a son she floated him in the ganga . like this all the seven sons she floated. raja did not ask her anything for the fear she will leave him and go .but when she was about to do the same with the eight son. raja stopped her and asked the reason for doing this. she explained to him the curse and way for salvation of the curse.she also said this eighth son of his is academically fully qualified.he is very courageous ,glorified and very religious minded will have a longevity of life also.this eighth son of shanthanu and ganga is gangaputra bheeshma who was the grand father of pandavas and kowravas.
ganges when it comes from himalayas ,flows through jungles which is full of medicinal plants so her water is considered as nector.one who worships ganga can attain moksha. it the duty of indians to preserve and protect the purity of the ganges water.
mythological symbols of india-1
India is a multi lingual nation with varied customs and traditions. some of the symbols are commonly used in all poojas. SWASTIK, OOM, KALASH,TULSI and GAYATRI MANTRA any of these symbol is considered good in marriage or other good ceremonies. Knowing about the importance of these symbols will make us understand it better.
SWASTIK.
drawing swastik on the main door, before pooja, in front of the god is considered good. padma puran says swastik is the symbol of happiness and prosperity . proportionate two line meeting in the center,gives the message of balance. there should be balance in our thought and action for a peaceful life. according to puranas this refers to :brahmas four faces, four vedas, four ashramas, four varnas, four yugas, four purushartha- dharma , artha , kam, and moksha.
SU ASTHI ETHI SWASTHIK. sanskrit SU means GOOD OMEN .ASTHI means exists. .this also symbolises the power of lord vishnu and soorya.these four lines are considered as vishnu's four arms. center point is vishnu's nabi brahma is sitting on a lotus . vishnu puran compares swastik to sudarshana chakra .shiva puranas says it is jyotirlinga.
it is the symbol of mahalaxmi also. who is worshipped for wealth and prosperity.ganesh puran says it is the symbol of lord ganesha .so this symbol has the power to remove the obstacles .
By worshipping Swastik we get the blessings of indira in the east, varun in the west , kuber in the north and yama in the south. Maharishi yask describes swastik to be infinite. it is a concentration of power of all gods .
in short swastik symbolises satyam shivam and sundaram. So this denotes abundance and happiness in life .
TULSI:
Many trees and plants are worhipped for longivity of life , health and happiness . TULSI is worshipped as devi ,for happiness in the family.tulsi leaves are must for pooja or any other ceremonies.
she is considered very dear to lord vishnu. she is also called vrinda.in the month of karthik tulsi 's marriage is also performed.tulsi japa mala is used while meditating and worn in the neck . the mud beneath tulsi is considerd sacred, it is applied on the forehead after offering water and doing pooja to tulsi . tulsi as a whole plant has medicinal value also.
TULSI KANANAM CHAIVA
GRAHE YESYA VATHISTATHI
THATH GRAHAM TEERTH BHOOTHAM HI
NAAYAANTHI YAMA KINGKARAHA
meaning where there is tulsi that place becomes sacred and worth worshipping. yamdoot will not come there.
SWASTIK.
drawing swastik on the main door, before pooja, in front of the god is considered good. padma puran says swastik is the symbol of happiness and prosperity . proportionate two line meeting in the center,gives the message of balance. there should be balance in our thought and action for a peaceful life. according to puranas this refers to :brahmas four faces, four vedas, four ashramas, four varnas, four yugas, four purushartha- dharma , artha , kam, and moksha.
SU ASTHI ETHI SWASTHIK. sanskrit SU means GOOD OMEN .ASTHI means exists. .this also symbolises the power of lord vishnu and soorya.these four lines are considered as vishnu's four arms. center point is vishnu's nabi brahma is sitting on a lotus . vishnu puran compares swastik to sudarshana chakra .shiva puranas says it is jyotirlinga.
it is the symbol of mahalaxmi also. who is worshipped for wealth and prosperity.ganesh puran says it is the symbol of lord ganesha .so this symbol has the power to remove the obstacles .
By worshipping Swastik we get the blessings of indira in the east, varun in the west , kuber in the north and yama in the south. Maharishi yask describes swastik to be infinite. it is a concentration of power of all gods .
in short swastik symbolises satyam shivam and sundaram. So this denotes abundance and happiness in life .
TULSI:
Many trees and plants are worhipped for longivity of life , health and happiness . TULSI is worshipped as devi ,for happiness in the family.tulsi leaves are must for pooja or any other ceremonies.
she is considered very dear to lord vishnu. she is also called vrinda.in the month of karthik tulsi 's marriage is also performed.tulsi japa mala is used while meditating and worn in the neck . the mud beneath tulsi is considerd sacred, it is applied on the forehead after offering water and doing pooja to tulsi . tulsi as a whole plant has medicinal value also.
TULSI KANANAM CHAIVA
GRAHE YESYA VATHISTATHI
THATH GRAHAM TEERTH BHOOTHAM HI
NAAYAANTHI YAMA KINGKARAHA
meaning where there is tulsi that place becomes sacred and worth worshipping. yamdoot will not come there.
Friday, August 19, 2011
pradosha mahima
when the sun sets and the moon raises that time is called pradosha.like ekadashi this is also prevalent throughout india, vrutha is also observed. every trayodhashi is called pradosha. like this there are 24 pradoshams in an year. significance of the pradosham goes by its day of the week.Monday and Saturday is called maha pradosham and is considered auspicious.
sunday- good health and longevity of life.
monday- fulfill wishes.
tuesday-get rid of the disease and sins. general good health.
wednesday- to solve critical problem and fulfill the wishes.
thrusday- success in work and to win over the enemy
friday- sowbhagya and good wishes.
saturday- blessing of child and prosperity.
In short to attain dharma, artha , kam and moksha pradosh vrutha is observed .
like in ekadashi lord vishnu is worsipped, in pradosha lord shiva and parvathi is worshipped.once lord shiva and parvathi came to see the earth. parvathi saw people suffering. she requested shiva to help people to get rid of the sufferings. lord himself said, by observing pradosha pooja and vrutha , humans can lead a good life. they will not suffer.so lord siva is worshipped on this day. abhishekam of milk, curd panchamrutham , honey , rose water is done . Tender coconut water is considered important.in the sandhya time around 6 in the evening abhishekam is done to siva linga. priests sits facing east while performing the pooja. nandi is worshipped specially on this day. abhishekam is done to nandi.then milk is given as prasadam. the fast is broken by taking milk as prasadam.
With the blessings of Lord Shiva and by chanting his mantra we can purify our soul.
sunday- good health and longevity of life.
monday- fulfill wishes.
tuesday-get rid of the disease and sins. general good health.
wednesday- to solve critical problem and fulfill the wishes.
thrusday- success in work and to win over the enemy
friday- sowbhagya and good wishes.
saturday- blessing of child and prosperity.
In short to attain dharma, artha , kam and moksha pradosh vrutha is observed .
like in ekadashi lord vishnu is worsipped, in pradosha lord shiva and parvathi is worshipped.once lord shiva and parvathi came to see the earth. parvathi saw people suffering. she requested shiva to help people to get rid of the sufferings. lord himself said, by observing pradosha pooja and vrutha , humans can lead a good life. they will not suffer.so lord siva is worshipped on this day. abhishekam of milk, curd panchamrutham , honey , rose water is done . Tender coconut water is considered important.in the sandhya time around 6 in the evening abhishekam is done to siva linga. priests sits facing east while performing the pooja. nandi is worshipped specially on this day. abhishekam is done to nandi.then milk is given as prasadam. the fast is broken by taking milk as prasadam.
With the blessings of Lord Shiva and by chanting his mantra we can purify our soul.
ekadashi vrutham
Ekadashi vruth is observed to cleanse our self . some people observe for specific reason and take vow of 11 or more ekadashi's .while fasting rice or salt is not taken. once fruits or milk is taken.
on every eleventh day from amavasya or poornima ekadashi comes. there are 24 ekadashi's in an year.
lord vishnu is worshipped on this day. the conversation between shri krishna and arjun was told by sooth ji maharaj in naimesharanya. there was a demon called murr. he won over indira and troubled devas. they had to hide them self . indira on the advise of shiva went to vishnu for help. murr was living in chandravathi. vishnu fought with all the demons and killed them. but whenever he used the weapons against murr it was not effective. vishnu got tired. to take rest he went to a cave with a single door in badrikashram. murr followed him and he also went in. when he saw vishnu resting he took his weapon to kill him. that time from vishnu's body a devi emerged with weapons in all the four arms. she fought with murr and he died.
visnu woke up devi told him that she came from his body and she killed murr. vishnu was pleased . since that day was ekadashi, she is called utpanna ekadashi . he blessed her that one who fast on this day will get all the happiness and after death they will attain vishnulok.
on vruth day early bath, pooja and abishek is done to lord vishnu. gayatri mantra is chanted as many times as possible. vruth day after noon nap is not good. next day early bath and pooja is done.if possible one brahman should be fed and after that lunch before 9 am .fast observed like this will be fruitful. nishkam vruth is considered good.
there is a story how by observing ekadashi we attain prosperity in our life.
a raja called mandata was rulling ayodya. he ruled wisely. he looked after his subject . everybody were happy. once continuously for three years there was no rain. there was draught. king was surprised why this has happened . he could not see his people suffering. so he went to bhrahma's son aangrisha, and asked for the reason. he said observe ekadashi vruth.
he came and told people to observe ekadashi . rain started pouring and there was a bounty of crops.there was happiness everywhere.
By observing this vrath people can lead a healthy and peaceful life.
on every eleventh day from amavasya or poornima ekadashi comes. there are 24 ekadashi's in an year.
lord vishnu is worshipped on this day. the conversation between shri krishna and arjun was told by sooth ji maharaj in naimesharanya. there was a demon called murr. he won over indira and troubled devas. they had to hide them self . indira on the advise of shiva went to vishnu for help. murr was living in chandravathi. vishnu fought with all the demons and killed them. but whenever he used the weapons against murr it was not effective. vishnu got tired. to take rest he went to a cave with a single door in badrikashram. murr followed him and he also went in. when he saw vishnu resting he took his weapon to kill him. that time from vishnu's body a devi emerged with weapons in all the four arms. she fought with murr and he died.
visnu woke up devi told him that she came from his body and she killed murr. vishnu was pleased . since that day was ekadashi, she is called utpanna ekadashi . he blessed her that one who fast on this day will get all the happiness and after death they will attain vishnulok.
on vruth day early bath, pooja and abishek is done to lord vishnu. gayatri mantra is chanted as many times as possible. vruth day after noon nap is not good. next day early bath and pooja is done.if possible one brahman should be fed and after that lunch before 9 am .fast observed like this will be fruitful. nishkam vruth is considered good.
there is a story how by observing ekadashi we attain prosperity in our life.
a raja called mandata was rulling ayodya. he ruled wisely. he looked after his subject . everybody were happy. once continuously for three years there was no rain. there was draught. king was surprised why this has happened . he could not see his people suffering. so he went to bhrahma's son aangrisha, and asked for the reason. he said observe ekadashi vruth.
he came and told people to observe ekadashi . rain started pouring and there was a bounty of crops.there was happiness everywhere.
By observing this vrath people can lead a healthy and peaceful life.
Thursday, August 18, 2011
masi - panguni noombu.
This vrath is like karva chowth or vat savitri in north india.which is observed on the last day of masi.this is also called as karadai noombu in tamil nadu. married women observe fast pray goddess parvathi for the longevity of life of their husband and happiness of their children.. unmarried girls also pray for good life. auspicious time is fixed to perform this nombu.
early in the morning after taking oil bath preparation is done for the neivedhyam. karadai both salt and sweet is prepared. when proper time comes they put kolam and on it keep the banana leaf and keep two of each karadai with butter. yellow thread is kept along with vetthalai pakku. mother will tie for daughters. husband tie for wife. they chant this while tieing the thread
urukaddha venneyum oradhayam naan nootren
orukkalum en kanavar ennai vittu pririyadieukka vendum.
meaning - I offer butter and the karadai made out of kaara rise .my husband should never be seperated from me.
on this day , elders in the house narrate the story of satyavan and savitri.
in olden days there ruled a king called asrapathi . he had no children. he performed savitri yagya and was blessed with a baby girl who was named savitri. when she attained the marriageable age , her parents looked for a suitable match. but could not find any. so they told her to look for a groom herself. so she went on to look out and went into jungle. there raja dyumatsen ,who was cheated by his enemies,was living with his queen and son satyavan in a hut. satyavan was an obedient son and devoted towards his parents. so savitri was impressed and decided to marry him. she came home and told her parents about this. that time naradh muni came there, he heard this and said, it is a good decision, but dyumatsen is destined to die in one year from now. savitri's father told her to look for another groom.but she was adamant. so her father went to the jungle to talk to raja dyumatsen who was very happy at the same time worried how savithri will be able to lead this hard life in the jungle. but her father persuaded and they both got married and went to jungle. they lived happily.but savitri remembered narada's word always. so she did fast and pooja's regularly.she offered neivedyam made of kaarai rice and toor dal that is why this is called karadai nombu.
that day when satyavan went to cut the wood she went with him with the permission of her in-laws.while cutting he felt giddy and got headache . he stopped the work and rested on savitri's lap. that time yama came and took his soul and went.
When savitri saw Yama taking her husband's soul , she followed him.he asked her to go back home. but she followed him pleading him to leave satyavan and talking with him regarding dharma .yama was pleased and told her satyavan's life is over he cannot return him instead he can give her 3 boons. first she asked that her father in law should get back the kingdom next his eye sight should come back .last she requested for a son for her father. yama granted the wishes.
again she started following him persuading him to return satyavan. yama told her not to follow him and return home. but she did not listen , so yama blessed her with one more boon.but not to ask satyavan. savitri said she would like to have children. yama granted.suddenly he realised savitri's cleaverness. he appreciated her determination to marry the man she loved knowing that she can live with him for only one year. so her dedication saved her husband. he returned satyavan. she came back to the place where satyavan was lying .she woke him up and went back home happily. she saw her father in law got back his eye sight and kingdom. she told them what all happened and they lived happily.
early in the morning after taking oil bath preparation is done for the neivedhyam. karadai both salt and sweet is prepared. when proper time comes they put kolam and on it keep the banana leaf and keep two of each karadai with butter. yellow thread is kept along with vetthalai pakku. mother will tie for daughters. husband tie for wife. they chant this while tieing the thread
urukaddha venneyum oradhayam naan nootren
orukkalum en kanavar ennai vittu pririyadieukka vendum.
meaning - I offer butter and the karadai made out of kaara rise .my husband should never be seperated from me.
on this day , elders in the house narrate the story of satyavan and savitri.
in olden days there ruled a king called asrapathi . he had no children. he performed savitri yagya and was blessed with a baby girl who was named savitri. when she attained the marriageable age , her parents looked for a suitable match. but could not find any. so they told her to look for a groom herself. so she went on to look out and went into jungle. there raja dyumatsen ,who was cheated by his enemies,was living with his queen and son satyavan in a hut. satyavan was an obedient son and devoted towards his parents. so savitri was impressed and decided to marry him. she came home and told her parents about this. that time naradh muni came there, he heard this and said, it is a good decision, but dyumatsen is destined to die in one year from now. savitri's father told her to look for another groom.but she was adamant. so her father went to the jungle to talk to raja dyumatsen who was very happy at the same time worried how savithri will be able to lead this hard life in the jungle. but her father persuaded and they both got married and went to jungle. they lived happily.but savitri remembered narada's word always. so she did fast and pooja's regularly.she offered neivedyam made of kaarai rice and toor dal that is why this is called karadai nombu.
that day when satyavan went to cut the wood she went with him with the permission of her in-laws.while cutting he felt giddy and got headache . he stopped the work and rested on savitri's lap. that time yama came and took his soul and went.
When savitri saw Yama taking her husband's soul , she followed him.he asked her to go back home. but she followed him pleading him to leave satyavan and talking with him regarding dharma .yama was pleased and told her satyavan's life is over he cannot return him instead he can give her 3 boons. first she asked that her father in law should get back the kingdom next his eye sight should come back .last she requested for a son for her father. yama granted the wishes.
again she started following him persuading him to return satyavan. yama told her not to follow him and return home. but she did not listen , so yama blessed her with one more boon.but not to ask satyavan. savitri said she would like to have children. yama granted.suddenly he realised savitri's cleaverness. he appreciated her determination to marry the man she loved knowing that she can live with him for only one year. so her dedication saved her husband. he returned satyavan. she came back to the place where satyavan was lying .she woke him up and went back home happily. she saw her father in law got back his eye sight and kingdom. she told them what all happened and they lived happily.
Wednesday, August 17, 2011
MAHASHIVARATRI
during the month of feb- march(masi in tamil nadu)after poornima chaturdashi day we celebrate maha shivaratri. to cleanse ourself and surrender ourself to god on this day people fast and as the name goes, fullnight they worship lord shiva .next day morning after pooja they eat food.
throughout india this is celebrated. people get up early in the morning have, go to temple, offer milk, curd, different kinds of fruits and vegetables on shiva linga. in north people themself offer. but in south india priest does the pooja. vilva patra is one of the important item in shiva pooja. after pooja half pradhakshina is taken on that day.SHIVASYARDHAM PRADHAKSHINA.
. in the temple four times , EVENING AND NIGHT special abishekams are done four times ,( from 6PM to 6AM. this period is divided into 4 parts (jamam) one jamam is 2 muhoortha time. one muhoortha time is one and a half hour.(as we have seen marriage muhoorthams), so 2 muhoortham is 3 hours make one jamam) . so four times abhishekam is done on this day. all visit the temple to seek shiva's blessings. bhajan are held.prasadam is distributed to devotees.
on this day midnight brahma created rudra roop of lord shiva. siva took linga form . shiva got married to parvathi. so it is auspecious in many ways.
lord shiva can be seen with ashes all over body and having snake on his neck. SHAM KAROTHI ETHI SHANKARAHA. one who does good to others is called SHANKAR.. he can be pleased easily so he is called AASHUTOSH. but when he gets angry he destroys everything so he is called RUDRA. he has three eyes, sun , moon and agni, so he is able to know the past, present and the future. he is worshipped by devas and ashuras .in ramayana, mahabharatha ,puranas also we can see that he was worshiped . he took the poison came from the ocean so he is called NILAKANT. to cool himself he took moon on his forehead, so he called CHANDRASHEKAR. when ganga came to earth , shiva took her on his head to stop the powerful flow , so he is called GANGADHAR. one and only god who gave half of his body to parvathi .so he is called ARDHANAREESHWAR. it is believed that KASI is on the trishool of shiva.
there are two stories which is very popular.
1.raja dhaksha married his daughter sati to lord shiva.dhaksha did yagya and he did not invite shiva. as she could not bear her husband's insult she jumped into yagyakund and died. but she decided that in her next birth also she wants shiva to be her husband. in her next birth she became daughter of himalaya. she penanced to marry shiva .on this day she got married to lord shiva.
2.this story was told by lord siva imself to parvati according to linga purana.lord shiva said one who fasts and does pooja and does not sleep on shivaratri day, will attain shivalok.
there was a poor hunter.with great difficulty he made both ends meet. so he took some money from the lender. since he could not repay on time, lender locked him in the cell in siva mandir. pooja and bhajans were going on. throughout the day hunter was listening. night lender gave him food. hunter went home.
.early in the morning he went for hunting.through out the day he hunted but could get any prey..he was tired. it was evening.there was a tree. he decided he will sit on the tree and spend the night there. he made arrangements for that. Under the tree there was a shivalinga. with the leaves he made bowl and filled it with water for him to drink at night..whenever he moved drops of water from that bowl , fell down.the hunter did not know these.
1.this day is mahashivaratri.2.he is on vilva tree.3.there is a shiva linga beneath that tree. 4.it is 6 in the evening and the pooja is started for shiva linga.
during the early hours of night he saw a pregnant deer. he wanted to hill her . she said i will deliver the baby and will come back to you.midnight another deer came with the children . he took his bow and arrow, she said i am going to meet my husband and leave my children with him .afterwards i will come back to you. another deer came looking for her sister. hunter tried to kill her, she said wait i will go home and see if my sister is there, then i will come here. . he agreed. pre dawn husband deer came under the tree. he said i will definitely kill him. all the three deers did not come back. i do not want to miss . hearing this deer said all the three are my wives. unless i reach home how will they come to you. so u allow me to go now, all of us will definitely come back.he let him go and waited. whenever he changed position , some leaves and water fell down. like this through out night he was fasting. and took the left over water from leaf bowl .he came down the tree to go home.that time all the three deers with her husband came there. when he saw that how true these animal were to their words. he left the idea of killing them. he threw his bow and arrow and bow down to them. he was fasting throughout night, without his knowledge and seeing his kind heart of not killing the deers lord shiva and parvathi appeared before him and blessed him with prosperity in his family. lord shiva blessed the four deers who were responsible for this change in hunter, to be the shining stars in the sky .named this group of stars as MRIGASHERISHAM. innnocence and ignorance gave the hunter a blessed life.
pure and kind heart is needed to worship god and seek his blessings.
throughout india this is celebrated. people get up early in the morning have, go to temple, offer milk, curd, different kinds of fruits and vegetables on shiva linga. in north people themself offer. but in south india priest does the pooja. vilva patra is one of the important item in shiva pooja. after pooja half pradhakshina is taken on that day.SHIVASYARDHAM PRADHAKSHINA.
. in the temple four times , EVENING AND NIGHT special abishekams are done four times ,( from 6PM to 6AM. this period is divided into 4 parts (jamam) one jamam is 2 muhoortha time. one muhoortha time is one and a half hour.(as we have seen marriage muhoorthams), so 2 muhoortham is 3 hours make one jamam) . so four times abhishekam is done on this day. all visit the temple to seek shiva's blessings. bhajan are held.prasadam is distributed to devotees.
on this day midnight brahma created rudra roop of lord shiva. siva took linga form . shiva got married to parvathi. so it is auspecious in many ways.
lord shiva can be seen with ashes all over body and having snake on his neck. SHAM KAROTHI ETHI SHANKARAHA. one who does good to others is called SHANKAR.. he can be pleased easily so he is called AASHUTOSH. but when he gets angry he destroys everything so he is called RUDRA. he has three eyes, sun , moon and agni, so he is able to know the past, present and the future. he is worshipped by devas and ashuras .in ramayana, mahabharatha ,puranas also we can see that he was worshiped . he took the poison came from the ocean so he is called NILAKANT. to cool himself he took moon on his forehead, so he called CHANDRASHEKAR. when ganga came to earth , shiva took her on his head to stop the powerful flow , so he is called GANGADHAR. one and only god who gave half of his body to parvathi .so he is called ARDHANAREESHWAR. it is believed that KASI is on the trishool of shiva.
there are two stories which is very popular.
1.raja dhaksha married his daughter sati to lord shiva.dhaksha did yagya and he did not invite shiva. as she could not bear her husband's insult she jumped into yagyakund and died. but she decided that in her next birth also she wants shiva to be her husband. in her next birth she became daughter of himalaya. she penanced to marry shiva .on this day she got married to lord shiva.
2.this story was told by lord siva imself to parvati according to linga purana.lord shiva said one who fasts and does pooja and does not sleep on shivaratri day, will attain shivalok.
there was a poor hunter.with great difficulty he made both ends meet. so he took some money from the lender. since he could not repay on time, lender locked him in the cell in siva mandir. pooja and bhajans were going on. throughout the day hunter was listening. night lender gave him food. hunter went home.
.early in the morning he went for hunting.through out the day he hunted but could get any prey..he was tired. it was evening.there was a tree. he decided he will sit on the tree and spend the night there. he made arrangements for that. Under the tree there was a shivalinga. with the leaves he made bowl and filled it with water for him to drink at night..whenever he moved drops of water from that bowl , fell down.the hunter did not know these.
1.this day is mahashivaratri.2.he is on vilva tree.3.there is a shiva linga beneath that tree. 4.it is 6 in the evening and the pooja is started for shiva linga.
during the early hours of night he saw a pregnant deer. he wanted to hill her . she said i will deliver the baby and will come back to you.midnight another deer came with the children . he took his bow and arrow, she said i am going to meet my husband and leave my children with him .afterwards i will come back to you. another deer came looking for her sister. hunter tried to kill her, she said wait i will go home and see if my sister is there, then i will come here. . he agreed. pre dawn husband deer came under the tree. he said i will definitely kill him. all the three deers did not come back. i do not want to miss . hearing this deer said all the three are my wives. unless i reach home how will they come to you. so u allow me to go now, all of us will definitely come back.he let him go and waited. whenever he changed position , some leaves and water fell down. like this through out night he was fasting. and took the left over water from leaf bowl .he came down the tree to go home.that time all the three deers with her husband came there. when he saw that how true these animal were to their words. he left the idea of killing them. he threw his bow and arrow and bow down to them. he was fasting throughout night, without his knowledge and seeing his kind heart of not killing the deers lord shiva and parvathi appeared before him and blessed him with prosperity in his family. lord shiva blessed the four deers who were responsible for this change in hunter, to be the shining stars in the sky .named this group of stars as MRIGASHERISHAM. innnocence and ignorance gave the hunter a blessed life.
pure and kind heart is needed to worship god and seek his blessings.
Monday, August 15, 2011
vasantha panchami
in the month of thai, after amavasya fifth day vasantha panchami is celebrated. in india we have got six ruthu's(season).greeshma,varsha,sharadh,hemanth,shishir and basanth.basanth is considered king of all seasons. nature takes a beautiful form after winter. new flowers , leaves . cool breeze makes life good.this is the festive time for nature. man by celebrating vasanth panchami joins hand with nature .generally people wear yellow colour dress on this day.
goddess saraswathi is worshipped on this day.bengal celebrates this function in grand scale. in pandals goddess sharada's idol is kept and cultural prorammes are organised.aksharaabyas, is done on this day for kids those who are ready to go to school.
in some places kamdev with rathi is worshipped . in puranas there is a story which gives the importance of sound .
lord vishnu was on sheshasaiya.a lotus came from his nabi and brahma was sitting on it. vishnu told brahma to start the creation of the universehe created mountain , ocean, birds, river etc. brahma went to look at his creation. he was upset to see, no sound . everywhere there was silence. brahma, took water from his kamandal and springled it on all the four sides. when drops fell on trees, a devi came with four hand.having books on one hand, japa mala on one hand, holding veena with both the hands .brahma requested her to play veena. vibration started and it became sound . it is the greatest power and supreme wisdom.sound is god. nature became admirable with birds chirrup, sound of the waves of the ocean, thunder of the cloud,whistle and so on.
with the blessings of saraswathi there is life everywhere.
goddess saraswathi is worshipped on this day.bengal celebrates this function in grand scale. in pandals goddess sharada's idol is kept and cultural prorammes are organised.aksharaabyas, is done on this day for kids those who are ready to go to school.
in some places kamdev with rathi is worshipped . in puranas there is a story which gives the importance of sound .
lord vishnu was on sheshasaiya.a lotus came from his nabi and brahma was sitting on it. vishnu told brahma to start the creation of the universehe created mountain , ocean, birds, river etc. brahma went to look at his creation. he was upset to see, no sound . everywhere there was silence. brahma, took water from his kamandal and springled it on all the four sides. when drops fell on trees, a devi came with four hand.having books on one hand, japa mala on one hand, holding veena with both the hands .brahma requested her to play veena. vibration started and it became sound . it is the greatest power and supreme wisdom.sound is god. nature became admirable with birds chirrup, sound of the waves of the ocean, thunder of the cloud,whistle and so on.
with the blessings of saraswathi there is life everywhere.
ratha sapthami bheeshmashtami
this is the celebration to mark the beginning of spring.this comes on the seventh day after amavasa of thai.sun on this day moves from the southeast to the northeast. people worship sun on this day.he who takes bath early in the morning with arka leaf is purified by mother ganges. seven arka leaf(errukkam leaf) is important on this day.ladies keep seven leafs with turmeric and raw rice on their head and take bath . one on their head, two on shoulders, two on knees and two on feet. men without turmeric.fasting is important on this day. it is very auspicious day to offer tarpana to our ancestors. women put rangoli with seven horses and chariot representing sun god.. chakkrai pongal is prepared, (akkaravadasal) is prepared and offered to god for good health and prosperity.
Next day is celebrated as bheeshma astami..bheeshma observed strict celibacy (brahmacharyashrama).battle of kurushetra went on for 18 days. on the 10th day commander bheeshma , got injured with arjun's arrow's and fell down. the arrow's were countless and he did not allow them to be removed. he just converted them into a bed and laid down on it. he was profoundly bleeding . that time it was dhakshinayana, since he had the boon that death will come when he desires. he waited till uttarayana to leave for heaven. pandava's won the battle.lord krishna gave him darshan when he was alone , In praise of Lord Krishna he said vishnu sahasranamam . Lord in return happily accepted the versus and said these preachings are precious. lord knew that bheeshama is in a critical stage . so told pandavas to go learn about dharma. he preached about four ashramas, varnas and their duties, and at last how to attain moksha. bheeshma felt thirsty asked arjun for water . arjun immediately shot one arrow and ganga ,his mother,came and bheeshma drank enough water.he left for heaven. Since Bheeshma was a Brahmachari everybody takes bath for him. Gents perform tarpan.
THIS SHLOKA IS RECITED WHILE HAVING BATH:
SAPTHA SAPTHA MAHA SAPTHA ,SAPTHA DWEPA VASUNDARA
SAPTHA ARKA PARNA MADHYA,SAPTHAMYAM SNANAM ACHARETH
With the grace of Sun god everybody should take the right path in life.
Next day is celebrated as bheeshma astami..bheeshma observed strict celibacy (brahmacharyashrama).battle of kurushetra went on for 18 days. on the 10th day commander bheeshma , got injured with arjun's arrow's and fell down. the arrow's were countless and he did not allow them to be removed. he just converted them into a bed and laid down on it. he was profoundly bleeding . that time it was dhakshinayana, since he had the boon that death will come when he desires. he waited till uttarayana to leave for heaven. pandava's won the battle.lord krishna gave him darshan when he was alone , In praise of Lord Krishna he said vishnu sahasranamam . Lord in return happily accepted the versus and said these preachings are precious. lord knew that bheeshama is in a critical stage . so told pandavas to go learn about dharma. he preached about four ashramas, varnas and their duties, and at last how to attain moksha. bheeshma felt thirsty asked arjun for water . arjun immediately shot one arrow and ganga ,his mother,came and bheeshma drank enough water.he left for heaven. Since Bheeshma was a Brahmachari everybody takes bath for him. Gents perform tarpan.
THIS SHLOKA IS RECITED WHILE HAVING BATH:
SAPTHA SAPTHA MAHA SAPTHA ,SAPTHA DWEPA VASUNDARA
SAPTHA ARKA PARNA MADHYA,SAPTHAMYAM SNANAM ACHARETH
With the grace of Sun god everybody should take the right path in life.
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