Deepavali anushtana procedure

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K.N.RAMESH

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Oct 15, 2022, 7:41:25 AM10/15/22

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*HOW TO CELEBRATE DEEPAWALI ? RULES AND OBSERVANCES AS PER SANTANA DHARMA SHASTRA*

Namaskaram

This article will give you a complete Vedic perspective of celebrating Deepawali as written down in our Dharma Shastras. Many of the points shared here will be things which you may be hearing for the first time in your life. The deep meaning of each day of celebration of Deepawali have unfortunately dwindled away with time from the Vedic era. Veda Ghosham here makes an attempt to revive, teach and make the people understand and practiss them by providing all mantras and procedure to observe this Deepawali each day. Please refer to the Deepawali Mantra Manjari PDF created by Veda Ghosham in sequential format for your convenience which is at the end of this post after the photos of various deepams/lamps. By following it and spreading this message you will help in revival of our ancient Sanatana Dharma.

All the below instructions in audio form are available on Veda Ghosham YouTube channel also. Click below link to see them.

*Deepawali as per Shastras: https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PL10yD0GfJOAVaBUPMvIA4kegLwiPhhypO*

*21st Oct 2022 – GOVATSA DVADASHI* – This is a very important day for performing Pooja of a cow along with a calf. On this day in evening locate a cow with a calf. Apply Chandan (sandal paste) and offer flower mala to both and pour water on their feet. How to pour this water? Take a copper kalash/chombu fill it with water, flower, akshata (raw rice mixed with turmeric) and black til. Now pour this slowly on feet of cow and calf chanting the mantra “Kshirodarnava….” (See Deepawali Mantra Manjari PDF)

Then offer urad dal vadas (10 or more number ulundu vadai) to the cow and calf each and while offering these vadas, chant these mantras starting with “Surabhi tvam…” (See Deepawali Mantra Manjari PDF)

Then by looking at the cow and calf, once feeding is over, chant the mantra starting with “Sarva-deva-maye” (See Deepawali Mantra Manjari PDF). Thus, pray to cow and calf as Kamadhenu on this day, as you are asking for all your wishes to be fulfilled as per the mantra. Pooja on this day will bring your success and good luck.

This completes the Govatsa Pooja. This day you should avoid fried food, and all items which we get from cow such as milk, curd, butter, ghee, paneer and buttermilk. Have one time food only in night time which has urad dal in it and avoid bed to sleep. Sleep on a mat on the floor.

*22nd Oct 2022 evening – TRAYODASHI* – This day is an important day for YAMA DEEPA DANAM, or offering lamp to Lord Yama for destruction of 'apamrityu' (accidental/sudden death). This day after sunset, light a lamp with til oil (sesame oil) and keep it outside the house facing south direction (Yamas direction). Put enough oil so as to keep it buring for the full night. The mantra for lighting and keeping the lamp outside your main door is “Mrityuna pashadandabhyam…..” (See Deepawali Mantra Manjari PDF for full sloka)

*24th Oct 2022 – NARAKA CHATURDASHI SNANA AND YAMA THARPANA* – On this day, all those who desire freedom from Naraka (hell) should take an oil bath. This bath should be before sunrise as on this day Goddess Laxmi resides in til oil and Ganga resides in water. Apply til oil (sesame oil) to head and body and take bath in warm water before sunrise (mandatorily before sunrise). Apply shikakai powder or Sugandit utna (scented powder available for Deepawali in stores) and take bath

During this bath ,one more important karma in Shastras should be followed. In between the Narakachaturdashi snana/bath, rotate leaves of the 'Apamarga' plant around your head by chanting the following mantra “Seetaloshta….” (See Deepawali Mantra Manjari PDF for full sloka).This will destroy the sins committed in the past. Apamarga is called Nayuruvi in Tamil, Chirchita in Hindi, Aghada in Marathi, Uttareni in Telugu and Kannada and prickly chaff in English. Also Shastra mentions using Tumbi (bottle gourd in English or Sorakkai in Tamil) leaves and Prapunnata/Chakramarda leaves (Hindi name Chakavad/Pavand, Marathi name Takla, Tamil name Tagharai, Telugu Tagiri English name Cassia tora). These leaves can also be used along with Apamarga during bath. But Apamarga leaves is the main thing to which the sloka is addressed in Shastra. So rotate these leaves clockwise 3 times while chanting the sloka, have a bath and then discard them. The Apamarga leaves are said to absorb all your sins during this bath.

Once you finish the bath, wear fresh clothes and perform Yama Tarpana (offering water and til to Yama) to please Lord of death. You have to sit facing South and offer Arghya (oblations) 3 times chanting each name. For this you should keep and Kalash/Chombu filled with water, add black til to it and chanting each name 3 times offer water each of the 3 times individually, for these 14 names of Lord Yama and his account keeper Chitragupta (See the Deepawali Mantra Manjari PDF). This should be done by all men and boys who have undergone Upanayanam including those who have their respective fathers alive. Shastra recommends one more bath after this called Tula Snanam or Kartika masa snanam.

On this day evening, light a lamp with four wicks and donate it to a temple or mutt or keep it outside your house. This is for destruction of sins committed in the past. Mantra for lighting and keeping this lamp starting with “Datto deepachaturdashyam……” (refer to Deepawali Mantra Manjari PDF). Each family member needs to chant it and keep one lamp with 4 wicks for themselves. Eating curry/sabzi made of urad dal leaves is recommended as per Shastras this day. Donating multilayered lamps in temples on this day is considered to fetch lot of punya (merits). Apart from these lamps, you can light regular Deepawali diyas/Agal vilakku and keep outside your house. Keeping these agal vilakku and lighting crackers on this day (Narakachaturdash) and Deepawali day on Amavasya (laxmi pujan day) has a very big significance, which will be explained below.

*24th Oct 2022 – Deepawali Amavasya/Laxmi Pujan*– On this day once again oil bath is recommended in the morning followed by Parvana Shraddha / tarpana for deceased ancestors in the noon time and evening after sunset lighting of lamps and Laxmi Pooja / Pujan

On this day ladies should observe Kedara-Gowri Vratham where Kalasha with water, mango leaves and coconut is established and Ardhanareeshwara roopam of Shiva is worshipped with puja and neivedhya. This is the vrata which Parvati observed to become a part of Shiva in the Ardhanareeshwara roopam. Although thus vrata is started 21 days before this amavasya day (which becomes culmination day of the vrata), those who can’t do it, can do it here for a single day. Full day fasting and Pooja is recommended.

*WHY DO WE LIGHT LAMPS AND KEEP THEM OUTSIDE THE HOUSE ON DEEPAWALI DAY ? AND WHAT ABOUT LIGHTING CRACKERS (SPARKLES/KAMBIMATAPU/FUL-JADHI)?*

Shastras says that those ancestors who have come to earth to your house during Mahalayam/Pitru paksha period in September, lighting lamps and sparkles outside your house shows them the road back to go to their world which is Pitru Loka. Therefore the lamps we light during Deepawali act like flood lights from the earth to the ancestral world (Pitru Loka) and shows them the path to return back to their abode. Similarly the sparkles which we burn and raise up and down shows them the way to go back to their dwelling place. Lighting bombs with big sound should be completely avoided in order to avoid terrorizing our ancestors during their departure. This is the Dharma Shastra explanation for keeping lamps outside house or donating the lamps during Deepawali. Dharma Shastra also says light lamps in temples, prakaram, streets, gardens, goshalas, horse and elephant stables and also quotes slokas/mantras which should be chanted while lighting and keeping these lamps and crackers. These slokas start with “Agni-dagdhascha ye jeeva……” (Refer to Deepawali Mantra Manjari for full slokas while lighting and keeping Deepawali lamps). Then we should perform Laxmi Pooja with white new clothes and have only one meal in full day and that is dinner.

*26th Oct 2022 – SHUKLA PRATAMA* – This day Govardhana Krishna Pooja is performed as Lord Krishna lifted the Govardhana Parvata this day. In olden days in many parts of the country, Bali Pooja was performed on this day (similar to Onam of Kerala) Then on this day other festivities like Gokridanam, Margapali Bandanam, Vastikakarshanam/Yashtikakarshanam etc are done. Some of these are not followed anymore, but anyone who needs explanation of these can email or WhatsApp us separately.

*26th Oct 2022 – YAMADVITEEYA OR BRATRUDVITEEYA* - On this day, Lord Yama, the brother of Yamuna had food at her sister’s house. Yamuna gave a blessing of long life to Yama while Yama blessed Yamuna with Soubhagya or long married life. So this day, every brother should visit his sister in the afternoon and have food from his sister’s hand. In case if someone doesn’t have a sister, Dharma Shastra recommends to go to a friend’s sister’s house and have food there. Give gifts like new clothes, ornaments etc to the sister in return. Before the sister feeds the brother on this day, the sister should offer arghya with water to Yama facing South with the following mantra starting with “Yeh-Yehi….” (Refer the Deepawali Mantra Manjari PDF). This Arghya will please Yama who will bless in return. Then before feeding the brother she should look at the brother and chant the following mantra starting with “Bratah svanujata….” and then feed brother (Refer to Deepawali Mantra Manjari PDF)

Veda Ghosham aims to bring back ancient Vedic rituals back for benefit of common people who are engrossed in the current problems of the modern world with nobody to guide them on the path of Dharma. Veda Ghosham also believes that by properly following instructions of Vedic Rishis prescribed in Sanatana Dharma Shastra will help people uplift themselves on a higher spiritual planes leading towards development of a better human being. Feel free to email us at vedag...@gmail.com.