On rituals - a different opinion

[Govindarajan.L.N.]

I hail from the family of Achar and naturally believe in doing the Shraddha and other rituals for the departed soul. I came across a quiet contradictory article in another group, from Times of India. Friends may interact. These arguments themselves are based on Vedas, and Bhagavat Gita. LNG

 

AFTER DEATH RITUALS ARE MEANINGLESS TO THE DEPARTED SOUL !!

By: Yogeshwara Sri Krishna Guruji .

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My statement might sound shocking and crazy to the traditional people. but, I request all readers to give a patient reading and correct understanding of this post so that they ‘ll comprehend truth and appreciate my views.

Vedas are considered to be the highest authorities of INDIAN PHILOSOPHY. In all the four VEDAS consisting of 20000 + mantras there is no mention of after death rituals.

ANTYESTI or the final disposal of the dead body is the last of the SHODASHA SAMSKARAS described in the Vedas. Burning, burying , throwing in water, leaving the dead body in the ground or high altitudes to be eaten by eagles etc are the usual practices.

&n bsp; Vedas are silent after Antyeshti. They do not speak of the 14 day rituals which are widely practiced among traditional Hindus especially devout Brahmins.The Vaikunta samaradhana done on the 14^th day of death of a person is not only meaningless but also ridiculous. This ceremony claims to give sadgathi or moksha or liberation from all sins done during his/ her lifetime and directly send him/her to VAIKUNTA the abode of lord VISHNU.

Even the followers of other gods and goddesses other than LORD MAHAVISHNU like shiva , parvathi,ganesha etc who never chant the name of Vishnu during lifetime also want to enter Vaikunta after death !! Is it possible ? Is it so easy?

I am not discriminating between devotees of LORE SHIVA OR LORD VISHNU or devotees of OTHER GODS . I have utmost respect for all forms of god not only of Hindus but also of other religions. I am only questioning whether getting liberation or moksha is so easy for any one irrespective of his / her karmas or ACTIONS performed while alive.

If by performing Vaikunta samaradhana ,anybody can get salvation why spiritual sadhanas, mantra japa, pooja , religious practices, charities etc are required ? soon after the death, the 14 day ceremony would suffice !

Can any body who leads an adharmic or unpious life while living get moksha after performance of these rituals ? If yes, will it not violate the basic TENETS OF THE LAW OF karma ?

; The VEDAS, DASOPANISHADS, BRAHMA SUTRAS and BHAGAVAD GITA do not agree with or accept the above rituals as helpful for the departed soul. It is only in the PURANAS you can find stories of such rituals being performed and departed souls liberated. Due to high level of interpolation the Puranas are not considered as authorities on spiritual matters. I strongly feel and believe that these meaningless rituals are nothing but the EMOTIONAL BLACKMAIL TACTICS of the purohits ! It is for the benefit of these people such rituals were included in PURANAS and other texts which were well respected by Hindus and were highly popular among ordinary devotees. All could not have access to Vedas and other higher knowledge as they were restricted to only CASTE BRAHMINS and other upper caste borns only. These rituals became a source of exploitation in the hands of purohits whose words mattered much in religious matters from times immemorial .

; The following Gita verses make my point more clear . verse 13 of ch 4 says , according to the guna, karma and svabhava of a soul it gets re birth in chatur varnas (NOT CASTES ) . Krishna says further, the souls by virtue of their Actions done in the past lives create eligibility for being classified into any one of the 4 varnas and that the lord does not randomly select anyone for any Varna.

Verse 23 of ch 7 says lower form of rituals are only for the dull headed – alpa medhasas.

Verse 25 of ch 9 says those who worshiplower forms of gods do not get into higher levels after death. But , those who worship me i.e the supreme Brahman only get liberated. Those who do after death rituals like SHRADDHA , PITRU TARPANA for the departed nearest and dearest souls etc reach only PITRULOKAS . No mention is made of the dead people for whom all these rituals are done. At the most, this can give psychological satisfaction to the performer of these rites and a sense of relief from guilt feelings if any . for not looking after the departed ones with love and affection while living. It may also be because of the thankfulness for the departed ones for leaving behind them inherited properties.

& nbsp; Verse 4 of ch 17 speaks of devotees of sattvik, rajasic and tamasic dispositions who worship gods , ; demigods, spirits ,demons etc respectively get those destinations only and never get liberated.

Having Vedas as the yardstick , we should reject / dis card all AVAIDIC RITUALS for our own good failing which we’ll be exploited by unscrupulous elements .

Since the effects of after death rituals are are not to be confirmed by the departed souls this may remain an unresolved question for ever. Only people with analytical skill and wide reading of scriptures can accept the truth of my words.

Rituals , if , for the dead body is useless and if for the soul , it is meaningless because SOUL is immortal ! !

NAHI JNANENA SADRUSHAM PAVITRAMIHA VIDYATHE ….Gita verse 38 ch 4

[Ramachandra Puttaiah]

I am inclined to agree with this article. We do Shradha just to convey to the other living relatives that we respect our departed Parents. It would be much better if we respect them and take care of them in their old age when they are Alive. After all Soul is immortal-free from Birth and Death. 

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Regards,

P. Ramachandra

[echambadi sridhar]

dear all,

This is my opinion which may be wrong.Just as somebody has a doubt whether it is meaning less i also felt like responding on the subject.Please use delete button instead of trying to asses me.  

At the outset whatever is written their looks logical and acceptable.

But if such a scale is to be applied why one should pray to God .Is he really existing etc. remains unanswered. What is the proof that the Ramayana and mahabharatha  has actually happened.

Ultimately the creation of God and things associated with it is made by some intelligent individual who must have been psychologist. After all we are what our mind is. Unless our minds remain peaceful  man loses his mental balance.

I have come across an organization to which you can call at any time and express all your mental feelings and grievances. They will only listen to you and will not give any opinion or suggestion. This service is used by many in this city and in fact one of my friends is a volunteer for this service. This is a modern concept.

Compare this with God. You can go to him and pray scold, curse, he will keep his smile ready and may not answer your problems across. However this man goes with a hope it will be granted.

Like that all these things are hopes/believes. Nobody knows life after death. However all religions have kept one day in memory of their ancestors. Some call it all souls day. Many perform rituals on mahalaya amavasya day.If these are not done nobody is going to question you and perhaps you may have to answer yourselves. After all millions of people are there in the whole world. May be ).0000000001 % are even less may be doing this.

Instead of questioning and trying to establish whether some people are bullying you it is better to leave these to people concerned as it is question of one’s mental strength and satisfaction.

These are also matters for which no answers were found for generations and may be never be found at all.

e.sridhar

[Shantharam Kamath]

I agree with Sridhar. it is a question of one's faith & belief. The people related/connected to the deceased all assemble at the time of one's death to share the grief of the family and to extend  support and confidence to the family. The subsequent rituals "Kriya" from 4th day to 13th day are subjective - some  observe in a short way and those who are religious perform them in an elaborate way. On the day of Vaikuntha Samaradhane - some call it as "mithra Bhojana"- all near and dear ones are invited when the heirs express their gratitude for the solidarity shown. Similarly performing the anniversay on the date " thithi" of death is to remember the departed and express our gratefulness for all the good things done by the deceased for the family. This is the minimum the son/ children have to do for their parentas/elders as duty.
 
h s kamath
 

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Date: Wed, 16 Apr 2014 19:55:08 +0800
From: echambad...@yahoo.co.in
Subject: Re: (retireeforumsyndicate) On rituals - a different opinion
To: retireefor...@googlegroups.com

[se.m...@gmail.com]

I am totally in agreement.It is useless to talk of death after death as no one has seen it anyway.

The customs like shraddha etc are performed because of ones belief and desires.There is absolutely no compulsion.These things are better left yo the discretion of the individual.I do the rituals to the best of my ability but have never advised anyone to do it or otherwise as it is not my business.

The practice of doing these rituals is fast disappearing.

Sridhar is very right.

Mohan

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