?
http://www.indiadivine.org/audarya/sri-vaishnava/168804-re-upanayanam-age-39-a.html
By
Sudarshan Madabushi
A Vedic "samskAra" is far, far more than mere rite of
passage. For a Vedic adherent, the whole course of
human life is like a flowing river of "samskArAs".
If it is not really a rite of passage, we may now ask,
what then is Vedic "samskAra"?
In his book of discourses, "deivattin kural" ("The
Hindu Dharma"), the Sage of Kanchi, PujyaSri
Chandrasekharendra Saraswati has explained it all very
beautifully.
When we sit down to eat a typical south Indian meal,
we should, for once, take a moment to ponder over the
plentiful rice served. Before we tuck into the meal
with gusto, we should ask ourselves, "From where does
this wonderful "annam" come? And where does it go?".
No one needs enlighten us where the rice goes. It goes
right down our throat into the belly, of course. But
if we reflect a little more deeply upon the fact, we
realize that the "annam" ultimately transforms itself
into vital "prANa" or Energy. And it is mysterious,
ethereal, vital Prana that sustains the life-force
within us. In a metaphysical way of speaking, (as
indeed the Taittiriya Upanishad does in a very famous
passage), we are ourselves, body, mind and soul,
comprised of nothing but the essence of "annam".
What then, we should hence ask, is this "annam" made
of? How did it get to become the vital source of life
and the hi-octane energy that it verily is?
If we ponder upon that question, we will be led into a
grave contemplation of the various processes (or
"samskArAs") through which the grain that we are about
to eat had to serially undergo before arriving as
steamingly wholesome "annam" upon on our meal-plate.
First, there was the process of "seeding" which the
farmer performed. Then after careful tending in the
field, the paddy was "harvested". Merely upon
"harvesting" (which we may regard as roughly analogous
to a "rite of passage" for paddy), paddy does not
become fit for human consumption. Thereafter, the
grain has to undergo a few more "samskArAs". It has to
be "de-husked", then it has to be "separated from the
chaff". Then the grain has to be "bagged" and
transported before it finally arrives home. At home
(the "gruhasthAshrama", we might say!), the rice has
to undergo yet a few more kitchen "samskArAs" before
it can be served as full meal on a table. The rice has
to be "cleaned", for example, and then "cooked" and
placed inside a vessel...
The long and short of it all is that just as a grain
of rice, travelling from the farmer's field to the
dinner-table, must necessarily undergo a series of
processes before it can become fit finally for human
consumption, likewise, so does a human soul, according
to the Vedic faith, need to undergo a series of
"samskArAs", before it can become fit to arrive at its
divine destination in heaven -- on God's dinner-table,
so to speak. (In Vedantic theology, the Almighty is
often referred to as the ultimate "bhOgi", the
ultimate enjoyer of souls!).
The Kanchi AchAryA's metaphor of rice is a very apt
one indeed, if you think about it deeply enough.
Each of the several "processes" by which paddy is
rendered into rice and then finally into a meal...
each has to be necessarily performed at the right
time. None can be delayed or postponed if the final
wholesome quality of the rice is to be ensured. A
farmer must perform the "seeding" operation, for
example, at just the right season. The paddy must be
"harvested" at the right time. The rice cannot be
"de-husked" in the rainy season... so on and so forth.
So is the case indeed with Vedic "samkskArAs"! Each
must be performed at the appropriate time. When a
young man does not get married in time i.e. his
"vivAha samskArA", for some reason or other, gets
delayed, everyone besides himself will get terribly
perturbed. Again, when a person dies, his relatives
make sure they lose no time whatsoever in performing
his last rites, isn't it? People actually shudder to
even think of delaying or postponing the "antima
prEta-samskArA" of a deceased, don't they? We should
now ask ourselves rather pointedly why the "upanayana
samskAra" alone should receive a different, rather
cavalier treatment at our hands? Why should we be lax
in performing this particular "samskAra" when we will
ordinarily never brook delaying others?
In the Vedic scheme of things, a "samskAra" performed
at the right time ensures that a man faithfully
carries out the responsibilites appropriate to his
station in life. We can say hence that a "samskAra"
is really not so much a "rite of passage" as it is a a
"rite of growing responsibility".
The "upanayana samskAra", for example, ensures that a
boy between the ages of 7/8 and 18/20 diligently
carries out the duties enjoined upon him by the stage
in life called "brahmacharyam". It is during this
period in his life that he must apply himself to
gaining knowledge and cultivating his intellectual
acumen. The "upanayana samskAra" he has undergone
helps him greatly indeed in remaining deeply aware of
this responsibility of his. Such awareness instils in
him mental concentration, perseverance and humility.
He also acquires good habits of personal hygiene,
mental alertness, gentle manners and a pleasing
personality. These ingrained habits of his soon turn
into character, and then character gradually
transforms itself into his very destiny...
The "vivAha samskAra" too similarly ensures that a man
duly carries out his various duties as a "gruhasthA"
--faithfully and responsibly. The marital vows he
takes as part of the "samskAra" include the
"saptapadhi" -- the solemn circumambulation of the
ritual fire 7 times -- and it is meant to help him
remain ever aware, at a deeply spiritual level, of the
many important tasks and duties that he, as even a
simple householder, owes to society.
***************
A Vedic "samskAra" is thus no mere "rite of passage".
It has much, much more profound significance. It is an
affirmation of a certain way of life, symbolizing as
it does, a commitment to a certain lofty Vedic ethos
and outlook on life and the world itself.
A "samskAra" can perhaps be defined, if definition is
possible at all, as a spiritual process of refinement
in life, a "kArmic" process meant to leave its
felicitous imprint upon the human soul as it
progresses through its long and eventful journey on
earth -- from its beginnings as an amorphous foetus in
the maternal womb, through the four great "ashrama-s"
of "brahmacharya", "gruhasthA", "vAnaprastha" and
"sannyAsa", and finally to its ultimate destination in
the lap of God...
http://www.indiadivine.org/audarya/sri-vaishnava/168804-re-upanayanam-age-39-a.html
By
Sudarshan Madabushi
A Vedic "samskAra" is far, far more than mere rite of
passage. For a Vedic adherent, the whole course of
human life is like a flowing river of "samskArAs".
If it is not really a rite of passage, we may now ask,
what then is Vedic "samskAra"?
In his book of discourses, "deivattin kural" ("The
Hindu Dharma"), the Sage of Kanchi, PujyaSri
Chandrasekharendra Saraswati has explained it all very
beautifully.
When we sit down to eat a typical south Indian meal,
we should, for once, take a moment to ponder over the
plentiful rice served. Before we tuck into the meal
with gusto, we should ask ourselves, "From where does
this wonderful "annam" come? And where does it go?".
No one needs enlighten us where the rice goes. It goes
right down our throat into the belly, of course. But
if we reflect a little more deeply upon the fact, we
realize that the "annam" ultimately transforms itself
into vital "prANa" or Energy. And it is mysterious,
ethereal, vital Prana that sustains the life-force
within us. In a metaphysical way of speaking, (as
indeed the Taittiriya Upanishad does in a very famous
passage), we are ourselves, body, mind and soul,
comprised of nothing but the essence of "annam".
What then, we should hence ask, is this "annam" made
of? How did it get to become the vital source of life
and the hi-octane energy that it verily is?
If we ponder upon that question, we will be led into a
grave contemplation of the various processes (or
"samskArAs") through which the grain that we are about
to eat had to serially undergo before arriving as
steamingly wholesome "annam" upon on our meal-plate.
First, there was the process of "seeding" which the
farmer performed. Then after careful tending in the
field, the paddy was "harvested". Merely upon
"harvesting" (which we may regard as roughly analogous
to a "rite of passage" for paddy), paddy does not
become fit for human consumption. Thereafter, the
grain has to undergo a few more "samskArAs". It has to
be "de-husked", then it has to be "separated from the
chaff". Then the grain has to be "bagged" and
transported before it finally arrives home. At home
(the "gruhasthAshrama", we might say!), the rice has
to undergo yet a few more kitchen "samskArAs" before
it can be served as full meal on a table. The rice has
to be "cleaned", for example, and then "cooked" and
placed inside a vessel...
The long and short of it all is that just as a grain
of rice, travelling from the farmer's field to the
dinner-table, must necessarily undergo a series of
processes before it can become fit finally for human
consumption, likewise, so does a human soul, according
to the Vedic faith, need to undergo a series of
"samskArAs", before it can become fit to arrive at its
divine destination in heaven -- on God's dinner-table,
so to speak. (In Vedantic theology, the Almighty is
often referred to as the ultimate "bhOgi", the
ultimate enjoyer of souls!).
The Kanchi AchAryA's metaphor of rice is a very apt
one indeed, if you think about it deeply enough.
Each of the several "processes" by which paddy is
rendered into rice and then finally into a meal...
each has to be necessarily performed at the right
time. None can be delayed or postponed if the final
wholesome quality of the rice is to be ensured. A
farmer must perform the "seeding" operation, for
example, at just the right season. The paddy must be
"harvested" at the right time. The rice cannot be
"de-husked" in the rainy season... so on and so forth.
So is the case indeed with Vedic "samkskArAs"! Each
must be performed at the appropriate time. When a
young man does not get married in time i.e. his
"vivAha samskArA", for some reason or other, gets
delayed, everyone besides himself will get terribly
perturbed. Again, when a person dies, his relatives
make sure they lose no time whatsoever in performing
his last rites, isn't it? People actually shudder to
even think of delaying or postponing the "antima
prEta-samskArA" of a deceased, don't they? We should
now ask ourselves rather pointedly why the "upanayana
samskAra" alone should receive a different, rather
cavalier treatment at our hands? Why should we be lax
in performing this particular "samskAra" when we will
ordinarily never brook delaying others?
In the Vedic scheme of things, a "samskAra" performed
at the right time ensures that a man faithfully
carries out the responsibilites appropriate to his
station in life. We can say hence that a "samskAra"
is really not so much a "rite of passage" as it is a a
"rite of growing responsibility".
The "upanayana samskAra", for example, ensures that a
boy between the ages of 7/8 and 18/20 diligently
carries out the duties enjoined upon him by the stage
in life called "brahmacharyam". It is during this
period in his life that he must apply himself to
gaining knowledge and cultivating his intellectual
acumen. The "upanayana samskAra" he has undergone
helps him greatly indeed in remaining deeply aware of
this responsibility of his. Such awareness instils in
him mental concentration, perseverance and humility.
He also acquires good habits of personal hygiene,
mental alertness, gentle manners and a pleasing
personality. These ingrained habits of his soon turn
into character, and then character gradually
transforms itself into his very destiny...
The "vivAha samskAra" too similarly ensures that a man
duly carries out his various duties as a "gruhasthA"
--faithfully and responsibly. The marital vows he
takes as part of the "samskAra" include the
"saptapadhi" -- the solemn circumambulation of the
ritual fire 7 times -- and it is meant to help him
remain ever aware, at a deeply spiritual level, of the
many important tasks and duties that he, as even a
simple householder, owes to society.
***************
A Vedic "samskAra" is thus no mere "rite of passage".
It has much, much more profound significance. It is an
affirmation of a certain way of life, symbolizing as
it does, a commitment to a certain lofty Vedic ethos
and outlook on life and the world itself.
A "samskAra" can perhaps be defined, if definition is
possible at all, as a spiritual process of refinement
in life, a "kArmic" process meant to leave its
felicitous imprint upon the human soul as it
progresses through its long and eventful journey on
earth -- from its beginnings as an amorphous foetus in
the maternal womb, through the four great "ashrama-s"
of "brahmacharya", "gruhasthA", "vAnaprastha" and
"sannyAsa", and finally to its ultimate destination in
the lap of God...
knr
--
If God brings you to it, He will bring you through it.
Happy moments, praise God.
Difficult moments, seek God.
Quiet moments, worship God.
Painful moments, trust God.
Every moment, thank God
--
If God brings you to it, He will bring you through it.
Happy moments, praise God.
Difficult moments, seek God.
Quiet moments, worship God.
Painful moments, trust God.
Every moment, thank God
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