Informative

The Shodasha Sanskaras – Part 2 of 2

The word Shodasha means 16 and the word Sanskara translates to psychological imprints, but in this case, it means a rite of passage for a human. The meaning makes sense because each of these rites of passages leave a deep and lasting imprint on a person’s subconscious and conscious minds. In an average Sanatan household, a person goes through 16 of these Sanskaras from their conception to their cremation and in this blog, we discuss the Last Seven Sanskaras, their meaning, importance and origins. To read about the first Nine Shodasha Sanskaras, click here (hyperlink to the first blog). 

10. Vidyarambha (Commencement to Knowledge) – 

Vidya means study and Arambha means beginning. Vidyarambha means beginning of study. This ritual is celebrated as a milestone, as this is the child’s first formal attempt to learn means of knowledge. This ritual is usually conducted at home in the modern times where the child writes a letter in their mother tongue with the help of their family members. 

The origins of this ritual lay in the Samskara Prakasha, prescribing this Sanskara to be conducted in the fifth year of the child. In modern times however, children are initiated into education when they are as young as two years old. 

As per the ancient tradition, the ceremony was observed on the day of Dussehra for all children, when Goddess Sarasvati and Lord Ganesh are worshipped to bless the child with wisdom and intellect. Usually, a teacher is invited or the child writes the alphabet and the numbers with the help of their parents. 

11. Upanayana (Entry into School) – 

Symbolizing the leading or drawing towards the self of a child, in a school, by a teacher, Upanayana is when a child goes to school for the first time. While in the ancient times it was for children who were eight years of age, in modern times all ages of children are open to begin school. In this ceremony, the Guru, accepts and draws a child towards knowledge and initiates the second birth that is of the young mind and spirit. As we read in the previous blog, a person takes two births, first physically through their mother and second intellectually through their teacher. This is their second birth. 

Compared with Baptism in Christianity, this ceremony also marks the introduction of the child into Spirituality. In the ancient times, owing to the caste system and the economical divide, children were introduced to school and education accordingly. For instance, the son of a priest would learn the Vedas, the son of a warrior would learn warfare, the son of a sculptor would learn art, so one and so forth. In the modern times, this division is finished and all children are taught everything and their parents are free to choose their school and methods of education. 

12. Vedarambha (Introduction to the Scriptures) – 

Vedas are ancient scriptures and texts. This was an initiation ritual where the child and their Guru sat in front of a sacred fire (Yagna), the teacher recited initiation hymns and the student followed. While the older texts do not mention Upanayana and Vedarambha differently, they are considered different rituals because formal Vedic education begins only when the student is ready for it. The Guru decides when to initiate a student into Vedas. The preparation for the students involved helping with school chores, living a simple life, going to villages and towns to ask for donation of food, collecting and bringing water, collecting fuel sticks for cooking and general maintenance of the school. These were on going rituals and weren’t considered as a distinct rite of passage. Before getting initiated into the Vedas, the students learned vocabulary, grammar and other basic studies like mathematics and science. 

13. Keshanta or Ritushuddhi (Shaving Facial Hair) – 

Observed when teens hit their puberty or when their facial hair first grew for male children. Ritushuddhi was when a female child first got their period or menstruation. This was the coming of age ceremony for both male and female kids. There was a huge celebration and an announcement was made that the children were now of age and the children took a vow of chastity (Brahmacharya). Both the male and female children were given gifts for their coming of age ceremonies. 

14. Samavartana (Graduation) – 

Just like we graduate from college, in ancient times the children would spend 12 years in the house of their Guru and then graduate. A ceremonial bath was organized and the child was not considered bathed in knowledge or showered with learning. This Sanskara marked the end of Brahmacharya but not necessarily the beginning of married life. In most cases, a significant amount of time passed between graduation and marriage. The ceremony was marked by the gathering of all students and their teacher, along with the parents just like modern times. The student would then ask the Guru what would be their Guru Dakshina (a gift in lieu of the education imparted) and the Guru would mention it, which if specified was the student’s responsibility to deliver over his or her lifetime.

After the recitation of the Graduate’s Dharma (duties to be fulfilled by the student as a graduate), they took a bath. The Snataka Dharma was mentioned in Taittiriya Upanishad as below – 

Never err from Truth,

Never err from Dharma,

Never neglect your well-being,

Never neglect your health,

Never neglect your prosperity,

Never neglect Svādhyāya (the study of oneself) and Pravacana (exposition of Vedas).

— Taittirĩya Upanishad, I.11.1 

There were also behavioral guidelines for students to follow after school – 

Be one to whom a mother is as a god, be one to whom a father is as a god,

Be one to whom an Acharya (spiritual guide, scholars you learn from) is as a god,

Be one to whom a guest is as a god.[105]

Let your actions be uncensorable, none else.

Those acts that you consider good when done to you, do those to others, none else.

— Taittirĩya Upanishad, I.11.2 

Besides these, the students were also advised to perform charity, have faith, modesty, and cheerfulness as ethical precepts. 

15. Vivaha (Marriage) – 

Considered one of the most extensive personal rituals a person undertakes in their life, marriage occurred when a boy or girl had reached a level of maturity and sense to begin their own family. The wedding rituals begin with engagement and end after the completion of the wedding. Most of the rituals in weddings vary depending on the ethnicity but the major ones include Kanyadan (giving away of daughter by the father or walking down the aisle), Panigrahan (voluntarily holding hand near the fire to signify union), and Saptapadi (taking seven steps with each step includes a vow/promise to each other before the fire). The post-wedding rites include Grihapravesa (welcoming the bride into her new home by her in-laws and the groom), Chaturthikarma (rite on the fourth day of the wedding, when the bride cooks for the first time. The last rite is the Nishekam which is the honeymoon or the first night, consummating the marriage. 

During the married life, the couple also goes through fasting and austerity to help them stay on the spiritual path and not stray from it. Then the same cycle of impregnating and the child’s life repeats. 

16. Antyeshti (Cremation) –

Ant means the end, Antyeshti meaning the last rites or cremation. Sometimes, this is also referred to as Antim Sanskara or the last rite. An adult is cremated and mourned wherein an unmarried child is buried. The rite of passage is performed in harmony with the sacred premise that the microcosm of all living beings is a reflection of a macrocosm of the universe. The soul of the person is released during the Antyeshti ritual but the body that is made up of the five elements – air, fire, water, earth, and sky, is mixed back in the five elements. The origins of this ritual and belief system are found in Rigveda in section 10.16 as below – 

Burn him not up, nor quite consume him, Agni: let not his body or his skin be scattered,

O all possessing Fire, when thou hast matured him, then send him on his way unto the Fathers.

When thou hast made him ready, all possessing Fire, then do thou give him over to the Fathers,

When he attains unto the life that waits for him, he shall become subject to the will of gods.

The Sun receive thine eye, the Wind thy Prana (life-principle, breathe); go, as thy merit is, to earth or heaven.

Go, if it is thy lot, unto the waters; go, make thine home in plants with all thy members.

— Rigveda 10.16

The final rites of burial, in case of the untimely death of a child, is rooted in Rig Veda’s section 10.18, where the hymns mourn the death of the child, praying to deity Mrityu to “neither harm our girls nor our boys”, and pleads the earth to cover, protect the deceased child as a soft wool. 

The last rites are usually performed within the day of the death. The person’s body is bathed, and covered in white cloth if it’s a man or a widow and red cloth if it is a married woman whose husband is still alive. The toes are tied together with a string, cotton is stuffed in all the wholes, the ears, the nostrils, the anus, and the vagina. This is done to prevent any other soul from entering the dead body. The dead adult’s body is carried to the cremation ground by family and friends and placed on the pyre with their feet facing south. The eldest son, a male mourner, or the priest bathes before beginning the cremation. He circumambulates the dry wood pyre with the body, says a eulogy or recites a hymn in some cases, places sesame seed in the dead person’s mouth, sprinkles the body and the pyre with ghee (clarified butter), then draws three lines signifying Yama (deity of the dead), Kala (time, deity of cremation) and the dead. The pyre is then set ablaze, while the mourners mourn. The ash from the cremation is consecrated to the nearest river or sea. After the cremation, in some regions, the immediate male relatives of the deceased shave their heads and invite all friends and relatives, on the tenth or twelfth day, to eat a simple meal together in remembrance of the deceased. This day, in some communities, also marks a day when the poor and needy are offered food in memory of the dead. 

These are the Sixteen Sanskaras as mentioned in the ancient scriptures and sacred texts. In modern times, most Sanskaras have been modified to suit individual needs but they mostly occur in the same order as mentioned in these blogs. We hope these blogs helped you understand the rites of passage. To know more or in case of any doubts, feel free to write to us at info@chamundaswamiji.com