FESTIVALS:
1. Jyotir Bheemeshwar Vrata :
Bhima Ammavasi, also known as Jyoti Bheemeshwara Vratam, is an important Hindu ritual performed by women in Karnataka.Married Women perform Vrata on this day for better health and longer life of their husbend.
Bheemana Amavasya Vrata katha is associated with the legend.
The legend is that once a Brahmin couple decided to travel to Kashi to pray to Lord Shiva. But they had a daughter, a young girl, and the couple was not ready to take her with them as they did not want to risk her life. The journey was long and they were not sure whether they will make it safely.
So the Brahmin couple decided to leave the young girl with their elder son. The elder son was married and they left the daughter with him and said that if they did not return he should get her married.
The parents did not return after a year and the brother and his wife was worried that they would have to marry her off. He did not want to spend money on her and instead he had an eye on the property and money that the father had left for this daughter.
The brother one day happened to hear a strange announcement made by the King of the region. The son of the King died yesterday and he would like to have him married before he is taken to pyre.
No one was ready to take the offer but the greedy brother did. He and his wife dressed up the young girl and took her to the King and got her married to the dead prince in exchange of gold.
After the marriage ceremony, the king, the soldiers and the young bride carried the corpse to Bhagirathi River to burn it. But suddenly there was a heavy rain and all the people except the young bride left. The King asked her to come with him as she is now a princess but she did not go with him. Instead, she decided to stay with the dead prince.
Looking at the dead body of the prince she thought this would not have happened had her parents were here.
The night passed and next day was Ashada Amavasi and the puja day.
She remembered her parents observing the Vrata. She took bath and dug up clay from the riverbank and made two kalikamba lamps. She made wick from fiber of a fallen tree and did the rituals as her parents used to do. She also made mud balls instead of the kadubus.
While she was performing the puja, a young couple appeared there and asked her what she was doing with the corpse and what was this puja for. She explained her fate and said she was now alone and there was no one to break her Bhandara or mud balls.
The young man agreed to break it. He smashed the balls and blessed her – Dheerga Sumangali Bhava (Have a long and happy married life).
The young girl smiled and said how can that be, my husband lies there dead.
The couple looked at the dead prince and asked her why she has not woken him up. Go and wake him up. Hesitantly she shook the prince and he opened his eyes. She could not believe her eyes. Soon she realized who the couple were but when she looked up they were gone.
She prayed to the divine couple – Shiva and Parvati – and narrated to the prince all that happened.
When the king and the courtiers returned to burn the corpse, they found the young girl and prince praying to Shiva and Parvati. The word soon spread and from that day people started strictly observing Bheema Amavasi in Ashada month with the kalikamba lamps – lamps made from mud.
2. Guru poornima :
The word Guru has been derived from two parts – Gu that means darkness and Ru that is the antidote to the darkness. Naturally, the word Guru implies someone who shows takes us away from the darkness of ignorance to the light of knowledge.
The Guru is a teacher who dispels the darkness of ignorance and leads the student on the path of enlightenment.
Guru Purnima is on the full moon day of Ashadh (June - July) in Shaka Varsha celebrated in remembrance of great Veda Vyas by Hindus. He classified Vedas and wrote the 18 Puranas, the Mahabharata and Srimad Bhagavata. He is considered as a divine teacher "Jagat Guru" and hence the festival begins with his worship.
Guru Purnima is a celebrated day for Buddhists as it is believed to be on this day on which Lord Buddha gave his first sermon at saaranath.
Guru Purnima is a day to commemorate the profession of teaching and everyone associated with it.
The planet of Jupiter – kind, optimistic, giver of knowledge and wisdom is referred to as Guru, and thus, myriad literature also associates Guru Poornima with the worship and offering of reverence to the Lord Jupiter or Guru – the benign planetary teacher! You may also please the Lord Jupiter this Guru Poornima or offer respect to your Guru.
Guru Poornima is basically the festivals of the ‘seekers’ – the seekers of the divine wisdom, knowledge, spirituality, peace and greater prudence.
Guru is also equivalent to ‘Tridev’ – Brahma, Vishnu and Mahesh, and as per the Indian culture, only Guru (the spiritual master) is considered as someone who can show the path that leads to one of these Gods.
The following Shloka confirms this belief :
Gurur Brahma, Gurur Vishnuhu, Guru Devo Maheswaraha
Guru Saakshaat Parabhrahma, Tasmai Sri Gurve Namah
3. Friendship day :
The Eleventh House, House Of Friendships :
The Eleventh House is commonly referred to as the House of Friends. Through our friends, we find strength in numbers -- we see the power of the collective, the group. Groups addressed by this house include clubs, organizations, social groups, networking organizations and professional associations.
Eleventh House also speaks to destiny -- in simple terms, our hopes and dreams, what we desire and what we want to achieve. Our creative vision is highlighted, the simple act of working toward our maximal selves. The power of collective creation, as well as the creative sparks generated by the group, are also important to this house.
In joining with our friends, we not only accomplish a great deal, but we can also enjoy the fruits of our labour. The Eleventh House also addresses the kind of friend we are.
Eleventh House governs step children, foster children and adopted children.
The Eleventh House is ruled by Aquarius and the planets Saturn and Uranus.
4. Sravana maasa :
Sravana Nakshatra is believed to be the birth star of Lord Vishnu and hence this month is considered highly auspicious. Goddess Sri Mahalakshmi - the wife of Lord Vishnu is worshiped on the four Fridays of the month. Second Friday of the month is the most important day as Varalakshmi Vratam is celebrated on this day when Goddess Lakshmi Devi is worshiped in the form of Varalakshmi Devi - the goddess who grants boons. In addition to four Fridays of the month, four Tuesdays of the month are also important for the newly married women. They perform Sravana Mangala Gowri Vratam on Tuesdays and worship Goddess Parvati Devi in the form of Mangala Gowri for the welfare of their family, for a happy married life and for a healthy and long life of her husband.
5. Significance of first Monday of Shravan :
The first Monday in the Shracan is having a great importance among Hindus. Shravan is the fifth month of Hindu calendar. There are three types of fasts that can be kept on Mondays. These including fasting on Mondays, Solah somvar (fasting on sixteen consecutive mondays) and Pradosh fast. Any one of these fasts should be started from the first Monday of the Sawan month. According to beliefs, worshipping Lord Shiva on this day provides a person with wealth. On the occasion, thousands of devotees are likely to visit city temples to offer their prayers to Lord Shiva and Goddess Gauri. The month is governed by the star Shravan, hence it is called Shravan and is popularly called Sawan. Devotees pile the linga high with Bel leaves and flowers and fast till sunset. It is considered highly auspicious to wear a rudraksha in Shravan month.
The legend says that during the churning of ocean (Samudra Manthan) – 14 ratnas came out. Out of them 13 were distributed among gods and demons. The last thing that came out was a poison called halahal. Lord Shiva drank the ‘halahal’ and kept it in His throat. To reduce the strong effect of poison, Lord Shiva wore the crescent moon on his head. Thereafter, all the Gods started offering the Ganges water to Lord Shiva to lessen the effect of poison. Since this happened in the month of Sawan, it became a tradition to offer water to the deity during this month.
Dense clouds can be seen in the sky during the Sawan month. These clouds relieve the earth from the heat on raining. This month gives us a message to deal with the difficulties in our life. The rain gives a new life to nature and the surroundings. New buds can be seen along with flowers etc. Even the trees and plants give us a message to handle the problems in our life. The belief is that in the Shravan month, offering milk to Lord Shiva earns a lot of punya.
[18/08 9:26 PM] Sridhar Chakrabhavi: Story of Garuda- the Eagle God:
Sage Kashyapa had two wives named Kadru and Vinita. Kadru gave birth to thousand snakes who are considered to be the ancestors of the Snakes on earth. Vinita gave birth to the powerful Garuda.
Once Kadru and Vinita put a bet on the color of the tail of the horse Uchaishravas – a seven-headed flying horse that was obtained during the churning of ocean or Samudra Manthan. Kadru(mother of the snakes/serpents) claimed the color was black and Vinita (mother of powerful Garuda) claimed it was white. The stake was whoever lost the bet will serve the other. Kadru cheated by asking her sons, the Nagas, to hang on to the tail of Uchaishravas. Thus the white tail of the divine horse turned black as the nagas hung on to them.
Vinita and Garuda were thus forced to serve Kadru. They were treated badly by Kadru and her sons.
Later the nagas agreed to free Garuda and his mother if he brought the Amrit, or Elixer /Ambrosia which was in the possession of Indra, the king of Devas or demi gods. Garuda got Amrit from heaven and freed himself and his mother from servitude.
But the cheating and the insult suffered made Garuda- the Eagle God the arch rival of Nagas.
Naga Panchami falls on August 19th. 5th day of the 5th maasa.
Interestingly it is also termed as Garuda Panchami– as Garuda or the royal eagle is the natural enemy of the Snakes and serpents, worshiping Garuda on this day also grants a protective shield against all snake related malefic conditions in ones natal chart.
6. Kali Mardan :
Basically the celebration of Naga Panchami is the victory of Lord Krishna over the mythical Kali, a monstrous black serpent that was killed by Krishna in the Yamuna river. Kali had terrorized the villagers and Krishna was assigned to tame him. It is believed that the tussle that happened between Krishna and Kalia- the serpent is so famous that when Krishna emerged winner, he stood on the hood of the snake and the Snake acquired the feet impressions of the Lord as a mark of servility. The story is called as the “Kalinga Mardana” It is also believed that seeing the footprints of Lord Krishna- the Avataar of Lord Vishnu, Garuda(the eagle) who is the natural enemy of the serpent, does not harm it.
Snakes and serpents have great place and position in our ancient Hindu mythology. Basically during this time, in shravana maasa, when it rains and all the pits and holes are filled with water, snakes and other rodents come out of their hiding. There are hundreds of cases of snake bites and people and farmers especially and all those living near fields and grounds of dying of snake bite. Hence our ancients developed this ritual of worshiping the snakes that are most seen roaming out of their homes during this time, to appease them and request them not to bite people.
7. Naga panchami :
Naga Panchami falls on 5th day of the 5th maasa, shravana maasa.
Snakes and serpents have great place and position in our ancient Hindu mythology. Basically during this time, in shravana maasa, when it rains and all the pits and holes are filled with water, snakes and other rodents come out of their hiding. There are hundreds of cases of snake bites and people and farmers especially and all those living near fields and grounds of dying of snake bite. Hence our ancients developed this ritual of worshiping the snakes that are most seen roaming out of their homes during this time, to appease them and request them not to bite people.
Naga Panchami is also the occasion observed as Bhratru Panchami when women with brothers worship snakes and its holes, and offer prayers to propitiate nagas so that their brothers are protected and do not suffer or die due to snake bite.
Epic story :
In the Mahabharata epic story, Astika, the Brahmin son of Jaratkarus, who stopped the Sarpa Satra of Janamejaya, king of the Kuru empire which lasted for 12 years is well documented. This yagna was performed by Janamejaya to decimate the race of all snakes, to avenge for the death of his father Parikshit due to snake bite of Takshaka, the king of snakes. The day that the yagna (fire sacrifice) was stopped, due to the intervention of the Astika, was on the Shukla Paksha Panchami day in the month of Shravan when Takshaka, the king of snakes and his remaining race at that time were saved from decimation by the Sarpa Satra yagna. Since that day, the festival is observed as Nag Panchami.
Interestingly it is also termed as Garuda Panchami– as Garuda or the royal eagle is the natural enemy of the Snakes and serpents, worshiping Garuda on this day also grants a protective shield against all snake related malefic conditions in ones natal chart.
Epic Story of Garuda- the Eagle God:
Sage Kashyapa had two wives named Kadru and Vinita. Kadru gave birth to thousand snakes who are considered to be the ancestors of the Snakes on earth. Vinita gave birth to the powerful Garuda.
Once Kadru and Vinita put a bet on the color of the tail of the horse Uchaishravas – a seven-headed flying horse that was obtained during the churning of ocean or Samudra Manthan. Kadru(mother of the snakes/serpents) claimed the color was black and Vinita (mother of powerful Garuda) claimed it was white. The stake was whoever lost the bet will serve the other. Kadru cheated by asking her sons, the Nagas, to hang on to the tail of Uchaishravas. Thus the white tail of the divine horse turned black as the nagas hung on to them.
Vinita and Garuda were thus forced to serve Kadru. They were treated badly by Kadru and her sons.
Later the nagas agreed to free Garuda and his mother if he brought the Amrit, or Elixer /Ambrosia which was in the possession of Indra, the king of Devas or demi gods. Garuda got Amrit from heaven and freed himself and his mother from servitude.
But the cheating and the insult suffered made Garuda- the Eagle God the arch rival of Nagas.
8. Upakarma :
In ancient times, the learning of the Vedas begins in the month of Shravan with a Upakarma.
Rig Vedic Upakarma is observed on the day in/on sukla paksha Shravan month which has Shravana nakshatra.Rig Vedic Brahmins change the sacred thread on that day,
Traditional learners of Yajurveda observe the Yajur upakarma in the month of Shraavana on the full moon day,
Samaveda Upakarma: Should be done on hasta nakshatra on bhadrapada maasa, shuklapaksha.
Legend story :
Upakarma is usually held on the full moon day of the month of Sravana. The significance of this day is that Lord Vishnu took the form of a horse and restored the Veda that was stolen from Lord Brahma by the demons Madhu and Kaitabha. As lord Vishnu took the form of a horse, this incarnation is called Hayagriva or "horse-head". After lord Vishnu created lord Brahma, he taught Brahma the all eternal Vedas. Once lord Brahma had mastered the Vedas, he was filled with pride that he was the only entity that had the knowledge of the all eternal and holy Vedas. Lord Vishnu thought otherwise and created demons Madhu and Kaitabha from two water drops on the lotus that he mounts. He then instructed them to steal the Vedas from Lord Brahma and hide it. Thus, Lord Brahma was in a fix that he was not able to save the holy and all eternal Vedas from theft and prayed to Lord Vishnu to do the needy. Lord Vishnu took the form of Hayagriva or Hayavadana and restored the all pervading Veda to safety, Thus curbing the pride of Brahma. So the day of upakarma is also celebrated as Hayagriva utpatti. As the Vedas were restored on this day, Upakarma is performed on this day to mark a new begining for learning vedas.
9. Krishna janmaasthami :
Krishna was the eighth son of Devaki and Vasudeva. Based on scriptural details and astrological calculations, the date of Krishna's birth, known as Janmashtami is 18 July 3228 BC and he lived until 18 February 3102 BC. Krishna belonged to the Yadavas from Mathura, and was the eighth son born to the princess Devaki and her husband Vasudeva.
Mathura (in present day Mathura district, Uttar Pradesh) was the capital of the Yadavas, to which Krishna's parents Vasudeva and Devaki belonged. King Kansa, Devaki's brother had ascended the throne by imprisoning his father, King Ugrasena. Afraid of a prophecy that predicted his death at the hands of Devaki's eighth son, Kansa had the couple locked in a prison cell. After Kansa killed the first six children, and Devaki's apparent miscarriage of the seventh (which was actually a secret transfer of the infant to Rohini as Balarama), Krishna was born.
The eighth Avatara, Krishna, who has become the Beloved of India and the world at large, had a three fold objective:
1. To destroy the wicked demons,
2. To play the leading role in the great war fought on the battlefield of Kurukshetra (where he delivered His wonderful message of the Gita) and
3. To become the centre of a marvellous development of the Bhakti schools of India
Krishna is a sign of paripoornate (completeness), indicating the no.8 is as special feature of similer chatacteristics.
8 :
The shape of 8 makes it unique. Invert the number or see it in the mirror you still get an 8. When you write this number you will come back to where you started. Such things never happen with other numbers from 1 to 9.
Draw a line vertically to split the number and you get 2 identical halves, a 3 and a laterally reversed 3. If you cut it horizontally you get two identical halves but this time they are 2 zero’s.
8 is the symbol of infinity that is familiar to mathematicians if you rotate it 90 degrees.
If you write all the numbers from 1 to 9 one by one the stroke of the pen always end downwards as you finish writing the numbers. Hence 8 is the only number that ends upwards when you finish writing a single digit number.
The loop in the 8 shows how life is. It reminds us that we come back from where we all started the journey. This is the number of hope.Life appears complicated like the knot you see in number 8 but on a closer look you get to know that it is just 2 bubbles.
Once you start trekking on the spiritual mountain you will get this fantastic but real view of life. Well until that lucky date life is all knots like what you see in 8.
For those who have not known it before, I like to inform you that number 8 is associated with Saturn the unique planet in our solar system.
If you see the image of Saturn I am sure you will agree that Saturn is indeed unique. Number 8 is associated and also favorable to all philosophers, deep thinkers and philanthropist.
10. Swarna Gowri Vrata :
Significance of the old saying in Kannada janapada gaadhe "Gathi Getta Aliya gowri habbake banda" gives a wonderful meaning in the context of rituals of Swarna Gowri vrata.
The hindu belief is that Goddess Gowri is the very incarnation of Aadhi Shakthi Mahamaya. She is the Shakthi of Lord Shiva. It is believed that on Thadige, or the third day of the month of Bhaadra pada maasa, Goddess Gowri comes home like any married woman comes to her parents' house. ( Here is a note : Shiva has not come to in laws house as like the sayings above ). The next day chaturthi Lord Ganesha, her son, comes as if to take her back to Kailasa.
An interesting part of the festival is offering the baagina. At least five baaginas are prepared as part of the vratha. Each baagina usually contains a packet of arshina (turmeric), kumkum, black bangles, black beads (used in the mangalsutra), a comb, a small mirror, baLe bicchoLe, coconut, blouse piece, dhaanya (cereal), rice, toor dal, green dal, wheat or rava and jaggery cut in a cube form. The baagina is offered in a traditional mora (winnow painted with turmeric). One such baagina is offered to Goddess Gowri and set aside. The remaining Gowri baaginas are given to the married women.
Another specialty of this festival is that the 'tavaru maneyavaru' (the married woman's parents and brothers) send gauri habbada mangaladravya to the married women of their family. Some send money as a substitute for mangaladravya. This good practice remains unchanged and keeps people closer. Newlymarried women give sixteen jothe baagina to sumangalis (married women) and obtain their blessings. One baagina is kept for Gauramma.
The Gauri is decorated with garlands, decorations made of cotton, and women have a 'gauridaara' (sacred thread with sixteen knots) tied to their right wrists, as blessings of gauri and as part of the vratha. Each of the sixteen knots is worshiped with mantras during the performance of the religious practice.
11. Vinayaka Chaturthi :
The origen of Ganesha, elephant shaped face and man shaped body is at the time of the creation of the world during dashaavataara. The order of the origen of dashaavataara is mathsyaavataara- fish only living in water, koormaavataara- tortoise living in both water & earth, next is narasimhaavataara- half man & half animal, during this period ganesha was borned.
Ganesha Chaturthi is the Hindu festival celebrated in honour of the god Ganesha, the elephant-headed. This festival, also known as Vinayaka Chaturthi, is celebrated in the Hindu calendar month of Bhaadrapada, starting on the shukla chaturthi (fourth day of the waxing moon period). The day usually falls between August and September. The festival usually lasts for 10 days, ending on Anant Chaturdashi (fourteenth day of the waxing moon period).
The modern festival involves installing clay images of Ganesha in public pandals (temporary shrines), which are worshipped for ten days. These are immersed at the end of the festival in a body of water such as a lake, along with the idol. Some Hindus also install the clay images of Ganesha in their homes.
The public festival as celebrated in Maharashtra today, was introduced by Bhausaheb Laxman Javale in 1892 by installing first Sarvajanik (Public) Ganesh idol. In 1893 Lokmanya Tilak praised the concept of Sarvajanik Ganesh Utsav in his newspaper, Kesari, and the next year he installed a Ganesh idol in Kesari Wada too. Tilak's efforts transformed the annual domestic festival into a large well-organized public event.Tilak recognized the wide appeal of the deity Ganesha as "the god for everybody" and popularized Ganesh Chaturthi as a national festival in order "to bridge the gap between Brahmins and 'non-Brahmins' and find a context in which to build a new grassroots unity between them", and generate nationalistic fervour among people in Maharashtra against the British colonial rule. Tilak was the first to install large public images of Ganesh in pavilions, and also established the practice of submerging the idols in rivers, sea, or other pools of water on the tenth day after Ganesh Chaturthi.
A legend stories :
i) Ganesha's Appetite :
One anecdote, taken from the Purana, narrates that the treasurer of Swarga (paradise) and god of wealth, Kubera, went one day to Mount Kailash in order to receive the darshan of Shiva. Since he was extremely vain, he invited Shiva to a feast in his fabulous city, Alakapuri, so that he could show off to him all of his wealth. Shiva smiled and said to him: "I cannot come, but you can invite my son Ganesha. But I warn you that he is a voracious eater." Unperturbed, Kubera felt confident that he could satisfy even the most insatiable appetite, like that of Ganesha, with his opulence. He took the little son of Shiva with him into his great city. There, he offered him a ceremonial bath and dressed him in sumptuous clothing. After these initial rites, the great banquet began. While the servants of Kubera were working themselves to the bone in order to bring the portions, the little Ganesha just continued to eat and eat and eat. His appetite did not decrease even after he had devoured the servings which were destined for the other guests. There was not even time to substitute one plate with another because Ganesha had already devoured everything, and with gestures of impatience, continued waiting for more food. Having devoured everything which had been prepared, Ganesha began eating the decorations, the tableware, the furniture, the chandelier. Terrified, Kubera prostrated himself in front of the little omnivorous one and supplicated him to spare him, at least, the rest of the palace.
"I am hungry. If you don't give me something else to eat, I will eat you as well!", he said to Kubera. Desperate, Kubera rushed to mount Kailasa to ask Shiva to remedy the situation. The Lord then gave him a handful of roasted rice, saying that something as simple as a handful of roasted rice would satiate Ganesha, if it were offered with humility and love. Ganesha had swallowed up almost the entire city when Kubera finally arrived and humbly gave him the rice. With that, Ganesha was finally satisfied and calmed.
After coming back from the feast at Kubera's palace, Ganapati was riding on his mouse on the way home. It was a full moon that night. As he was riding, his mouse saw a snake and ran behind the bush. Ganapati fell to the ground and his stomach broke open. Ganapati started to put the food back in his stomach. The moon god saw him and started laughing loudly. Angered by this, Ganapati pronounced a curse on the moon god: "You shall be always black and never be seen by anyone". Frightened by the curse, the moon god started pleading for mercy. Ganapati said "Ok, but you shall be changing from new moon to full moon. Also if anyone sees the moon on my birthday, he or she shall not attain moksha (liberation)." The moon god kept quiet. After Ganapati had finished putting the food in his stomach, he took the snake and tied it around his belly. Then he continued going back home.
ii) Broken tusk of ganesha :
In the first part of the epic poem Mahabharata, it is written that the sage Vyaasa asked Ganesha to transcribe the poem as he dictated it to him. Ganesha agreed, but only on the condition that Vyasa recite the poem uninterrupted, without pausing. The sage, in his turn, posed the condition that Ganesha would not only have to write, but would have to understand everything that he heard before writing it down. In this way, Vyasa might recuperate a bit from his continuous talking by simply reciting a difficult verse which Ganesha could not understand. The dictation began, but in the rush of writing Ganesha's feather pen broke. He broke off a tusk and used it as a pen so that the transcription could proceed without interruption, permitting him to keep his word.
12. Anantha padmanabha vrata :
Anantha is one of the most significant and prominent names of Lord Sri Maha Vishnu. We find several references to the name Anantha. Lord Sri Krishna says in Sri Bhagawad Geeta that he is the Anantha among the Naga, a Serpent God. The name Anantha also popularly figures in Sri Vishnu.
The important ritual of Anant Vrata is tying the Sacred Thread, Anant Daara, to hand. The performers of Anant Vrata place the Anant Daaram along with the idol of Anant Padmanabha to sanctify the thread. Anant Daara is worshipped along with the Lord by showering turmeric powder, kumkum and akshata and all other pujas. Ananta Daara is made of 14 strands which indicate the 14 years of the observance of Anantha Vratha. In some places people prepare it of 14 knots.
In this vratha, Lord Sri Maha Vishnu is worshipped in the form of Anantha with shodasa upachaara pooja. Seven # Dharbha (Kusa grass) are tied together representing Lord Anantha with seven hoods. Goddess Yamuna Devi is also worshipped along with Lord Anantha on this day. In Anantha Padmanabha vratha there is significance for # 14.
It is performed on the 14th day in the Shukla Chaturdashi in badrapada maasa. This vratha is performed for 14 years before it is concluded with Udyapana. Lord Vishnu is worshipped with 14 varieties of flowers, fruits and dishes. A special sweet dish made with wheat flour and jaggery is prepared in 28 # and half of it is given as charity to a Brahmin after Nivedana to Lord Anantha.
As per the script, it is said that Lord Sri Krishna had narrated the significance of Sri Anantha Padmanabha Vratha to Dharmaraja.
Lord Krishna suggested King Yudhishtira to observe Anant Vrata for 14 continuous years to get rid of his sorrows and to bring back his wealth and kingdom that he lost in gambling game of Kauravas. On the advice and direction of Lord Sri Krishna, Dharmaraja had performed this Vratha during their exile in forests.
Anantha Chaturdashi katha:
There once lived a brahmin called Sumanta born in Vasishtha Gotra and had married Brighu's daughter Dheeksha. They had a charming daughter called Susheela. When Susheela was a young girl, she lost her mother. Her father married a woman called Karkashe who was hard hearted and quarrelsome. She made the life of Susheela miserable. In spite of these difficulties at home, Susheela grew to be a fine lady ready to be married. When Sumanta was worried over her marriage, there came to his house looking for a bride, a rishi called Kaundinya. Sumanta gives his daughter to Kaundinya rishi in marriage. With his wife being uncooperative, he could give to his son in law as a marriage gift, a little of fried wheat flour.
Kaundinya accompanied by his wife Susheela left the place and reached the bank of a river during their travel. That day being Bhadrapada shukla Chaturdashi many brahmins and their wives who were wearing red dress, were worshiping Ananta Padmanabha. Curious Susheela approaches these ladies and asks them for details of the vrata. They say that the vrata is called Anantha vrata and the fruits are infinite (anantha); when Susheela showed interest in performing the vrata, they tell her in detail as follows:
The vrata is to be performed on Bhadrapada shukla Chaturdashi. Having taken bath and wearing a clean dress, decorate the altar with devotion. Keep a kalasha on the south of the altar in which you invite the Lord. Keep seven darbhas tied to each other to represent Ananta. Keep a red thread with 14 knots on the altar. Worship the Lord with 14 variety of flowers and 14 variety of leaves. The prasad for this vrata is Atiras. Make 28 of them and serve them to brahmanas. Those attending should be given food and respect. Do this vrata for 14 years each year replacing the thread that was worn in the earlier year. On the 15th year do the udyapana (conclusion with donation of gifts to brahmanas).
Having listened to the narration with attention, faith and devotion, Susheela performed the puja with those gathered there, distributed half of the fried wheat flour to brahmanas, wore the red thread and with the thoughts of Ananta Padmanabha accompanied her husband to his ashram. Because of the power of Anantha vrata, Kaundinya's ashram acquired beauty and wealth. All his relatives were eagerly waiting to do the Anantha vrata. Susheela had acquired an aura of brilliance.
One day Kaundinya sees the red thread on Susheela's hand and asks for an explanation. In spite of her telling him the truth, in a fit of anger and jealousy, Kaundinya forcibly removes the thread and throws it in the fire. Susheela picks up the half burnt thread and immerses it in milk. This behavior proved very dear to Kaundinya; pretty soon all his wealth was lost; his relatives deserted him; his cattle died and he now knew that this was on account of his rudeness to Ananta Padmanabha swami in the form of the red thread.
Kaundinya leaves his house in search of Anantha Padmanabha. Like a demented person he enters the jungle. After some days he falls down. The Lord in His infinite compassion comes there in the form of an old brahman, revives him and takes him to a palace where he shows him his four armed form along with Mahalakshmi. Kaundinya praises the Lord in many stotras. The Lord pleased, gives him three boons viz., removal of poverty, ability to follow dharma, mukti saubhagya.
Kaundinya returned home and did the puja with shraddha and bhakti. He lived a life of wealth and happiness. In the bygone days, sages like Agastya, kings like Janaka, Sagara, Dilipa, and Harishchandra have performed this vrata.
13. Mahaalaya Amavasya :
Mahalaya Amavasya is the special Amavasya for worshiping your ancestors.
The period lies between Ganesh Chaturthi and Durga Pooja.
According to the sacred Hindu epics, at the beginning of Pitru Paksha, the sun enters the zodiac sign of Libra (Thula). Coinciding with this moment, it is believed that the spirits leave Pitru–loka and reside in their descendants' homes for a month until the sun enters the next zodiac—Scorpio (Vrichchhika)
In case you have a badly afflicted 9th house in your horoscope then do not miss the chance to pray to your ancestors during this period.
Legend story :
When Karna, the brave warrior whose acts of giving are legendary even today, died in the epic Mahabharata war, his soul transcended to heaven, where he was offered gold and jewels as food. However, Karna needed real food to eat and asked Indra, the lord of heaven, the reason for serving gold as food. Indra told Karna that he had donated gold all his life, but had never donated food to his ancestors in Shraddha. Karna said that since he was unaware of his ancestors, he never donated anything in their memory. To make amends, Karna was permitted to return to earth for a 15–day period, so that he could perform Shraddha and donate food and water in their memory. This period is now known as Pitru Paksha.
The scripture Markandeya Purana says that if the ancestors are content with the shraddhas, they will bestow health, wealth, knowledge and longevity, and ultimately heaven and salvation (moksha) upon the performer.
Charity in the form of food is important during this observance. Life depends upon food. You cannot preach religion to empty stomachs. This human body is the most important vehicle for realising God. How precious must food be which keeps the body fit for Yoga! The gift of food is the greatest gift. Therefore, give food in plenty, not only during the Mahalaya fortnight but all through the year.
Shraddha is performed on the specific lunar day during the Pitru Paksha :
When the ancestor—usually a parent or paternal grandparent—died. There are exceptions to the lunar day rule;
Special day is allotted for people who died in a particular manner or had a certain status in life.
Chautha Bharani and Bharani Panchami, the fourth and fifth lunar day respectively, are allocated for people deceased in the past year.
Avidhava navami ("Unwidowed ninth"), the ninth lunar day, is for married women who died before their husband. Widowers invite Brahmin women as guests for their wife's shraddha.
The twelfth lunar day is for children and ascetics who had renounced the worldly pleasures.
The fourteenth day is known as Ghata chaturdashi or Ghayala chaturdashi, and is reserved for those people killed by arms, in war or suffered a violent death.
14. Sharan Navaratri :
Sharan Navaratri is the most popular and significant Navaratri of all Navaratris. That's why Sharan Navaratri is also known as Maha Navaratri. It falls in lunar month Ashwin during Sharad Ritu. The name Sharan Navaratri has been taken from Sharad Ritu. All nine days during Navaratri are dedicated to nine forms of Goddess Shakti. Shardiya Navaratri falls in the month of September or October. The nine days of festivial culminates on tenth day with Vijayadashami.
Navaratri is divided into sets of three days to adore three different aspects of the supreme goddess
First three days:
The goddess is separated a spiritual force called Durga also known as Kali in order to destroy all our evil and grant boons.
Second three days:
The Mother is adored as a giver of spiritual wealth, Lakshmi, who is considered to have the power of bestowing on her devotees inexhaustible wealth, as she is the goddess of wealth.
Last three days :
The final set of three days is spent in worshiping the goddess of wisdom, Saraswati. In order to have all-round success in life, believers seek the blessings of all three aspects of the divine femininity, hence the nine nights of worship.
In the Vedic Age of the Indian Culture, the religious philosophy and devotional practices were focused towards true knowledge and ultimate realization of the supreme power of Gayatri. The Vedas were the basis of all streams of spirituality and science those days. Gayatri mantra has been the source of the divine powers of the gods and goddesses in the heavens. Gayatri sadhana was also paramount in the higher level spiritual endeavors of the yogis and tapaswis. Gayatri Mantra was the core-focus of daily practice of sandhya-vandan (meditation and devotional worship) for everyone. As guided by the rishis, specific sadhanas and upasanas of the Gayatri Mantra were sincerely practiced during the festival period of Navaratri by every aspirant of spiritual enlightenment.
Navratri :
The festival of nights, lasts for 9 days with three days each devoted to worship of Ma Durga, the Goddess of Valor, Ma Lakshmi, the Goddess of Wealth and Ma Saraswati, the Goddess of Knowledge. During the nine days of Navratari, feasting and fasting take precedence over all normal daily activities amongst the Hindus. Evenings give rise to the religious dances in order to worhip Goddess Durga Maa.
1st - 3rd day of Navratri
On the first day of the Navaratras, a small bed of mud is prepared in the puja room of the house and seeds are sown on it. On the tenth day, the shoots are about 3 - 5 inches in length. After the puja, these seedlings are pulled out and given to devotees as a blessing from god. These initial days are dedicated to Durga Maa, the Goddess of power and energy. Her various manifestations, Kumari, Parvati and Kali are all worshipped during these days. They represent the three different classes of womanhood that include the child, the young girl and the mature woman.
4th - 6th day of Navratri
During these days, Lakshmi Maa, the Goddess of peace and prosperity is worshipped. On the fifth day which is known as Lalita Panchami.
7th - 8th day of Navratri
These final days belong to Saraswati Maa who is worshipped to acquire the spiritual knowledge. This in turn will free us from all earthly bondage. But on the 8th day of this colourful festival, yagna (holy fire) is performed. Ghee (clarified butter), kheer (rice pudding) and sesame seeds form the holy offering to Goddess Durga Maa.
Mahanavami :
The festival of Navratri culminates in Mahanavami. On this day Kanya Puja is performed. Nine young girls representing the nine forms of Goddess Durga are worshiped. Their feet are washed as a mark of respect for the Goddess and then they are offered new clothes as gifts by the worshiper. This ritual is performed in most parts of the country.
Details of 4 different types of navaratri's celeberated in different parts of india :
1. Vasanta Navaratri : It's nine days are dedicated to the nine forms of Shakti (Mother Goddess) in the month of Chaitra (March–April) and is observed during the Shukla Paksha (waxing phase of moon) of Chaitra. The beginning of this Navaratri also marks the start of the new year as per the Hindu mythological lunar calendar.
2. Ashad Navaratri : Gupta Navaratri, also referred as Ashadha or Gayatri or Shakambhari Navaratri, is nine days dedicated to the nine forms of Shakti (Mother Goddess) in the month of Ashadha (June–July). Gupta Navaratri is observed during the Ashadha Shukla Paksha (waxing phase of moon). This is mostly observed by shaktas only.
3. Sharan Navaratri :This is the most important of the Navaratris. It is simply called Maha Navaratri and is celebrated in the 'pratipada' (first day) of the bright fortnight of the lunar month of Ashvin. Also known as Sharan Navaratri, as it is celebrated during Sharan (beginning of winter, September–October).
4. Pausya Navaratri : Pausya Navaratri, also referred as Shakambari Navaratri, is eight days dedicated to the nine forms of Shakti (Mother Goddess) in the month of (December–January). Pushya Navaratri is observed during the Pausya Shukla Paksha (waxing phase of moon). Shakambhari Purnima is the last day in the 8-day long holiday of Shakambari Navaratri.
Most Navaratri begins on Shukla Pratipada except for Shakambari Navaratri, which begins on Ashtami and ends on Purnima in Pauhya maasa.
Durgastami :
As mentioned in various Hindu religious texts, before the era of Lord Rama, Chaitra Navratri used to be the most significant time to worship Goddess Durga. However, the significance of Chaitra Navratri was lessened and shifted to Durga Puja during the era of Lord Rama.
As per Puranic legends, Lord Rama worshipped Goddess Durga before going to war with Ravana. It is believed that Lord Rama had performed Chandi Homa and sought the blessing of Goddess Durga before going to war. As it was untimely invocation of Goddess Durga, the worshipping of Goddess Durga during this time of the year is also known as Akal Bodhan i.e. untimely invocation. As Lord Rama was blessed with victory over powerful demon Ravana, this time of the year is considered the most suitable to seek blessings of Goddess Durga and to perform Chandi Homa.
Durga saptashati :
Durga Saptashati which is also known as Devi Mahatmya and Chandi Path is a Hindu religious text describing the victory of the Goddess Durga over the demon Mahishasura. It is part of the Markandeya Purana, written by sage Markandeya.
The text contains Saptashata i.e. 700 verses and because of that the whole composition is known as Durga Saptashati. The seven hundred verses are arranged into 13 chapters. For ritual reading purposes a number of subsidiary texts are appended before and after of 700 verses.
Durga Saptashati is significant composition to perform Chandi Homa which is one of the most significant Homa(s) done to gain health and to conquer over enemies. Chandi Homa is performed while chanting verses from Durga Saptashati. Total 700 Ahuti i.e. offering to Goddess Durga through sacred fire are made during Chandi Homa.
Aayudha pooja :
In South India most calendars mark Saraswati Puja along with Ayudha Puja. However according to most Dharma Shastras Saraswati Puja during Navratri is suggested during Purva Ashadha Nakshatra.
Historically Ayudha Puja was meant to worship weapons but in its present form all sort of instruments are worshipped on the very same day. In South India it is a day when craftsmen worship their tools and instruments.
Durga, Lakshmi and Saraswati are not different entities, but different faces of the singular Divinity.
Some of the spiritual practices associated with Navaratri include fruit and milk fasts, japa (mantra chanting), chanting of hymns dedicated to Devi in Her different forms, prayer, meditation and recitation of sacred texts including the Devi Mahatmya, Sri Lalita Sahasranama and the Durga Saptashati.
Vijayadashami :
Vijayadashami is celebrated as victory of Lord Rama over Demon Ravana and also triumph of Goddess Durga over the buffalo Demon Mahishasura. Vijayadashami is also known as Dasara.
Celebration of Dasara in Mysore :
Mysore is well known for the festivities that take place during the period of Dasara, the state festival of Karnataka. The Dasara festivities, which are celebrated over a ten-day period, it made official festival of the state by King Raja Wodeyar I in 1610.
On the ninth day of Dasara, called Mahanavami, the royal sword is worshipped and is taken on a procession of decorated elephants, camels and horses. On the tenth day, called Vijayadashami, the traditional Dasara procession (locally known as Jumboo Savari) is held on the streets of Mysore. An image of the Goddess Chamundeshwari is placed on a golden howdah on the back of a decorated elephant and taken on a procession, accompanied by tableaux, dance groups, music bands, decorated elephants, horses and camels.The procession starts from the Mysore Palace and culminates at a place called Bannimantapa, where the banni tree (Prosopis spicigera) is worshipped.
The Dasara festivities culminate on the night of Vijayadashami with a torchlight parade, known locally as Panjina Kavayatthu.
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