The worship of nature has been a practice in India since ancient times. Our ancestors without making a big show out of it were more aware of the environment than we are today. It would be quite hard to find anything that they did not worship. Fire, air, water, trees, animals, birds –they revered everything. Today we too worship all of these but we restrict ourselves to homas and pujas. Most of us have absolutely no qualms about environment pollution, are not concerned about preservation of trees and have no sense of ecological balance. Be that as it may, one of the many gods worshipped in India is the powerful and much feared Naga Devata – the cobra. This god’s curse was and still is considered as the cause of many a woe and misery. If one doesn’t get married, doesn’t have children, contracts an incurable disease – all are attributed to ‘naga-dosha’. It is considered that the person has done something to incur the wrath of the Snake-God. Amends have then to be made by some elaborate ritual or puja to appease the god. One day is specifically assigned to the worship of the Naga. This is the fifth day in the month of Shravana and is known as Naga Panchami. This festival is supposedly to commemorate Lord Krishna’s victory over a serpent called Kalia but it is the serpent god who is worshipped on this day. The story goes like this. Kalia was a dreaded snake which had made the river Yamuna his home. His poison had spread all over the river making life difficult for the people there. The child Krishna took upon himself to get rid of Kalia. He danced upon the multi-hooded Kalia and the serpent was forced to leave the place and take refuge elsewhere. A strange custom is offering milk which is not a snake’s natural food. This is probably because the Naga is considered a god and the milk is an offering to the deity. In temples there is usually a separate enclosure for the nagas, and the naga idols there are bathed with milk on this day. Anantha, Vasuki, Takshaka, Karkotaka and Pingala are the five snakes that are worshipped on the day of Naga Panchami. The regard … [Read more...]
Diwali: Festival of Lights
Diwali also called Deepawali is one among the most important Hindu festival celebrated across India and Nepal. The name Deepawali has its origin from Sanskrit meaning “rows of deepam” and this festival is commonly called as “The Festival of lights”. It is also being celebrated by Jains, Sikhs and some Buddhists. Though the customs of celebrating Diwali varies from place to place the origin of traditions and the feel of joy spread an oneness amongst human. Diwali is known in different names in various places and is celebrated for various reasons but there is no Diwali without crackers at any place. Crackers play the vital role during Diwali and as there are crackers available for all age groups now, it has become a custom that people at all age groups have to burst crackers on this great day. In India and Malaysia, it is celebrated on the seventh month of the solar calendar and is celebrated for the success of Lord Rama over the ten head Ravana. This success is considered as the victory of good over evil. On this day, people start the celebrations by having oil bath. In some places of India, lamps made out of clay are lit using oil but in all places it is celebrated with crackers, homemade sweets, new dresses and delicious dishes. People also share the sweets with their neighbors and by this way people of all castes and creeds are brought together on this day. The lamps and the crackers that are burst on this great day symbolize the victory of success over darkness and to drive away the evil from everyone’s lives. In Nepal, Deepawali is known as Tihar and this festival is attributed to the elephant God, Ganesha and the Goddess Lakshmi. Here, they celebrate Diwali for five days and on the fifth day, sisters in the family pray for their brother’s well being and this day is known as Bhhaya Dooj; The most recent and the exciting news about this year’s Diwali is that it was celebrated by U.S President Barack Obama on Thursday 16th Oct 2009 by lighting the ceremonial lamp at the White house. Author: Vinupradha (Chennai) … [Read more...]
