Making of Yajnopavita material, Type and Mantras

[venkat veeraraghavan]

Dear Vidvans,

I'd like clarification on a few points.

I heard in an upanyaasam that the Yajnopavita is made from a variety of natural cotton that has 24 bijas in every cotton boll/fruit (Is there a pramaana for this?)

Google Swami opines that cotton comes in varieties of 27 to 40 seeds.

Apparently the Yajnopavita is hand woven with the following mantras:

TB 3-10-5-1

भूर्भुवः॒ स्वः॑। ओजो॒ बल॑॑म् । ....ऊर्जं॒ पृष्टिं॒ दद॑द॒भ्याव॑वृत्स्व ॥

Can you please give the source for the above information?

Its interesting that we have gotten so used to getting Yajnopavita from the shops/temples that many of us have stopped enquiring closely into the process.

Although Monsanto, Bt cotton and GM are all well publicised news items, its amazing how blind one can be in not realising the obvious.

Where does our Yajnopavita truly come from? 

I really dont think I want to know, but a more pertinent question would be:

Is there a place in India where Yajnopavita is made as per the rules given in dharmashastra with appropriate starting material?

If so, address and contact details would help many here.

This ofcourse is the Yajnopavita for Brahmins. Is there information on material and mantras for kshatriyas and vaishyas?

Interestingly one of my friends here who is a goldsmith (Vaishya) wears a yajnopavita of cotton.

Comments please?

Thanks,

Venkat

[Harissh Swaminathan]

Traditionally a spindle called takhli is used

Also a charkha is used as well. I have both with me

On Sat, 22 Feb 2020, 08:04 Harissh Swaminathan, <hari.ya...@gmail.com> wrote:

Namaste shri venkat

Kali yuga has not advanced that much that shishtaas have stopped making upaveetas

There are still more than a handful who do it the traditional way

I am still trying to learn it as it requires more practical guidance

If you are interested I can give you contacts for the same

Traditionally the cotton used is ashta beeja

Harish swaminathan

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[Harissh Swaminathan]

Namaste shri venkat

Kali yuga has not advanced that much that shishtaas have stopped making upaveetas

There are still more than a handful who do it the traditional way

I am still trying to learn it as it requires more practical guidance

If you are interested I can give you contacts for the same

Traditionally the cotton used is ashta beeja

Harish swaminathan

On Fri, 21 Feb 2020, 18:27 venkat veeraraghavan, <vvenk...@gmail.com> wrote:

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[Nagaraj Paturi]

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uslx0Mxn-E8  

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Nagaraj Paturi

 

Hyderabad, Telangana, INDIA.

Director,  Inter-Gurukula-University Centre , Indic Academy

BoS, MIT School of Vedic Sciences, Pune, Maharashtra

BoS, Chinmaya Vishwavidyapeeth, Veliyanad, Kerala

BoS Veda Vijnana Gurukula, Bengaluru.

Member, Advisory Council, Veda Vijnana Shodha Samsthanam, Bengaluru

Former Senior Professor of Cultural Studies, 

FLAME School of Communication and FLAME School of  Liberal Education, 

Hyderabad, Telangana, INDIA.

 

 

 

[venkat veeraraghavan]

Shri Paturi Garu:

Thanks for the video on spinning!

Shri Harish ji--

I am mighty glad to hear that the art is alive and well. 

Do you have access to the ashta beeja variety? I was told that this has vanished from view by certain upanyaasakas.

Regards,

Venkat

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[venkat veeraraghavan]

Takhli-->

That word brought up a memory (not a pleasant one) of "Dravidian" hatred towards Brahmins and their way of life.

The relevant section is from 4.25 till 4.30 of the video sourced from a popular movie of Kamalhassan.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xUnBkw5fSYY  

For those who don't understand the Tamizh:

"Ennangaanum Takhli noothundrukkeer" -- "What are you doing threading the Takhli" (Obvious reference to a yajnopavita)--The Tamizh here is a Tam-Brahm dialect

"Mayiru maadhiri theriyardhu..." --"looks like a piece of hair" (Although I have translated mayiru as hair the colloquial translation and meanings are perjorative and not complementary)

Enacted by 2 Brahmana bandhus...:(

On Sat, Feb 22, 2020 at 8:31 AM Harissh Swaminathan <hari.ya...@gmail.com> wrote:

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[Bijoy Misra]

Nagarajji,

Thank you for sharing the video on spinning.

In my 4th grade (1954) and possibly 5th, we had a full period

to spin on Takli.  The quality of thread produced was scored

by the teacher.  The production was a good test of hand-eye

coordination.  It was also a function of the quality of cotton,

fresher the better.

Sweet recollection, a fun class.

Bijoy Misra

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[Subrahmanyam Korada]

नमो विद्वद्भ्यः

Vid Venkat Veeraraghavan ---

1. >I heard in an upanyaasam that the Yajnopavita is made from a variety of natural cotton that has 24 bijas in every cotton boll/fruit (Is there a pramaana for this?)

Google Swami opines that cotton comes in varieties of 27 to 40 seeds.<

 

कार्पासम् उपवीतं स्यात् विप्रस्योर्ध्ववृतं त्रिवृत् -- 

कार्पासः = cotton .

A विप्र should wear a  यज्ञोपवीतम् having three threads made of cotton .

The rest is unnecessary . 

2. >Apparently the Yajnopavita is hand woven with the following mantras:

TB 3-10-5-1

भूर्भुवः॒ स्वः॑। ओजो॒ बल॑॑म् । ....ऊर्जं॒ पृष्टिं॒ दद॑द॒भ्याव॑वृत्स्व ॥

Can you please give the source for the above information?  <

This is from the first काठक - कृष्णयजुर्वेद  - called / starting with  -- संज्ञानम् ।

( I often quote ओजो बलम्  to explain ओजःक्षय / AIDS of आयुर्वेद )

It is green in my mind -- some sixty years ago my father used to spin उपवीतम्-s --- cotton - thread  with a Takili

but did not notice reciting any मन्त्र । Nor do I know any प्रमाणम्  ।

Let me confess I did not learn for some reason or the other - it consumes a lot of time to make one .

As every now and then we discuss -- people made simple विधि-s more and more complicated and in most of the cases , the so called ब्राह्मण-s do not know / question the प्रमाणम्  । Ex - मुद्राः etc in सन्ध्यावन्दनम् ।

                                                            

3. This ofcourse is the Yajnopavita for Brahmins. Is there information on material and mantras for kshatriyas and vaishyas?

Interestingly one of my friends here who is a goldsmith (Vaishya) wears a yajnopavita of cotton.

Comments please?

There is no any specific / separate material  for उपवीतम् for क्षत्रिय-s and वैश्य-s .

Goldsmits ( स्वर्णकार-s -- not वैश्य-s ) etc also wear  उपवीतम् ।

Bonus Info --

The मन्त्र -- यज्ञॊपवीतम् परमं पवित्रम् .... is taken from ब्रह्मोपनिषत् ( 108 उपनिषदः ) |

यज्ञोपवीत्येव अधीयीत (one with यज्ञोपवीत only should recite  वेद ) -- तैत्तिरीयारण्यकम्-2) |

A संन्यासी should not wear उपवीतम् ।

धन्यो’स्मि

Dr.Korada Subrahmanyam
Professor of Sanskri,

299 Doyen , Serilingampally, Hyderabad 500 019
Ph:09866110741(M),91-40-23010741(R)

Skype Id: Subrahmanyam Korada

Blog: Koradeeyam.blogspot.in 

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[venkat veeraraghavan]

Namaste Shri Korada Garu,

Thank you  once again for your clear directions.

The mantra seems to be a Tamizh tradition that diverges from others as in vareniyam vs varenyam  issue. 

Out of curiosity how much time did it take to make an upavita from scratch?

Regarding Yajnopavita I remember reading somewhere that kshatriyas wore hemp and vaishyas wool(??)....since most of these people nowadays wear (if at all) without any of the nityakarmas I guess information may have been lost over time.

The Shankhayana Grihyasutra also opines that each varna was given a different version of the savitri--with chandas gayatri, trishtubh and jagati to the 3 orders.

The problem with some of these upanyaasakars is that when asked for pramana they tremble with outrage ( :( ). The same people on stage say things like "where is the pramana for this that..?"

Horses for courses...

Regards,

Venkat

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[venkat veeraraghavan]

Dear Shri Harish ji-

Would you be able to share contacts?

Also do you have access to the ashta bija variety?

Many of the traditional sciences like Ayurveda mention that like increases like by the principle of resonance. Its interesting therefore to note that the grihyasutras prescribe upanayana within the 8th year from date of conception for Brahmanas, 11th year for Kshatriyas and 12th year for Vaishyas.

All other samskaras (if I am not mistaken) are counted from birth and not conception.

Thanks,

Venkat

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