QUES ANSW DIVINE 62 Dearfriends,
These areinformation posted by members compiled as QA by me in 1998’s-2004’s and storedin my computer. At this date I have no information of the members posted. BEING COMPILATION THERE MAY BE ERRORS. Sincerely, R. Gopalakrishnan, 78, Former AGM Telecom Trivandrum dated 01-12-2021 Q1 What is essentially Vastushastra? A1 EssentiallyVastu shastra is the art of correct settings where by one can place himself insuch a manner so as to absorb the maximum benefit from the panchabhutas, the five elements (space, air, fire, water andearth) as well as from the influence of magnetic fields surrounding the earth. In those days Vastu Shastra coveredcivil engineering, architectures, designs, sculptures, temples, Raja Prasadasand building technology Q2 Who were the oldest vasthu experts? A2 Viswakarma, the greatestarchitect of Mahabharata times, designed and built Indraprastha (capital ofpandavas) incorporating all the update layout, wide roads, lakes, fountains,water facilities and connections of drainage system. Similarly"Maya sabha" designed and built by the great architect "Maya"wasmajestic manifestation of the ultra imaginative structure of beautiful fairylike royal palace. Q3 What is the effect of following and notfollowing Vasthu principles? Have we got good examples to show the same ? A3 Insamaraangana sutra-dhara the author explains that properly designed and plannedconstructions (pleasing houses) will be an abode of good health, wealth, intelligence, goodchildren, peace, happiness and will redeem one from debt of obligations Negligence of rules of architecture willresult in unnecessary travels, bad name in society, sorrows and disappointments. The location, direction and disposition ofconstruction have a direct impact on life. For example the temple of Sri. Venkateswara at Tirupatiis found adhering to the principles of vastu shilpa shastra i.e. the mainentrance is on the East, while the water tank is in the north-East and as suchGod is giving peace, prosperity and wealth to every one having darshana and byworshipping will be rich and desires will be fulfilled. They will becomfortable in their lives. Q4 Which book we have the description of treatmeant byYamakinkaras to the deceased? A4 TheArthasastra,a Hindu textbook from the second century BCE, offers a detaileddescription of some of the more frightening realms The hard-hearted men of Yama,terrifying, foul-smelling, with hammers and maces in their hands" come toget the deceased, who tremble and begin to scream. Filled with terror and pain,the soul leaves the body. "Preceded by his vital wind, he takes on another body of thesame form, a body born of his own karma in order for him to be tortured." The evil man becomes born as an animal, amongthe worms, insects, moths, beasts of prey, mosquitoes, and so forth. There heis born in elephants, trees, and so forth, and in cows and horses, and in otherwombs that are evil and painful When he finally becomes a human, he is adespicable hunchback or dwarf, or he is born in the womb of a woman of sometribe of Untouchables. When there is none of his evil left, and he is filled with merit, then he starts climbing up to highercastes, Shudra, Vaishya, Kshatriya, and so forth, sometimes eventually reachingthe stage of Brahmin or king of men. With so many unpleasant possibilities, it is easy tounderstand whyreincarnation is not the only goal of every Hindu. Those who lead a life of austerity, meditation andgrace can look forward to the possibility of reaching Brahmaloka.This is the "highest among the heavenly planes" and the dwellingplace of Brahma himself. "This is a place of intensely spiritualatmosphere, whose inhabitants live, free from disease, old age, and death,enjoying uninterrupted bliss in the companionship of the Deity." There is noneed for them to return to earth because they have freed themselves "fromall material desires." While they do experience a sense ofindividuality, they also experience a oneness with Brahma. This is the realm ofimmortality. Q5 What is the glory of Banaras in the case of death of aperson? A5 There is one other way to achieveliberation from samsara. This is to die within the city of Banaras, on theGanges. "Death, which elsewhere is feared, here is welcomed as along-expected guest." A city of many names, it was knownin ancient time as Kashi, the city of light, and the Mahabharata refers to itas Varanasi. The funeral pyres, which are located on the river, burnnon stop. "Death, which elsewhere is polluting, is here holy and auspicious." People travel from around thecountry and the planet to spend their last days in Banaras because,"Death, the most natural, unavoidable, and certain of human realities, ishere the sure gate to moksha For those who are unable to die inBanaras, cremation onthe banks of the Ganges or the spreading of the ashes in her waters is the nextbest thing Q6 What are the broad Hindu death rituals? A6 Hindu death rituals in alltraditions follow a fairly uniform pattern drawn from the Vedas, withvariations according to sect, region, caste and family tradition. Religious pictures are turned to the wall, and insome traditions mirrors are covered. He is the eldest son in the case of thefather's death and the youngest son in the case of the mother's. In sometraditions, the eldest son serves for both, or the wife, son-in-law or nearestmale relative. The women then walk around the bodyand offer puffed rice into the mouth to nourish the deceased for the journeyahead Only men go to the cremation site,led by the chief mourner. Two pots are carried: the clay kumbha and anothercontaining burning embers from the homa. The body is carried three timescounter clockwise around the pyre, then placed upon it .The men offer puffedrice as the women did earlier, cover the body with wood and offer incense andghee With the clay pot on his leftshoulder, the chief mourner circles the pyre while holding a fire brand behindhis back. At each turn around the pyre, a relative knocks a hole in the potwith a knife, letting water out, signifying life's leaving its vessel Prolonged grieving can hold him inearthly consciousness, inhibiting full transition to the heaven worlds. In Hindu Bali, it is shameful tocry for the dead. Q7 What is the 31st-Day Memorial? A7 A priest purifies the home, andperforms the sapindikarana,making one large pinda (representing the deceased) and three small,representing the father, grandfather and greatgrandfather. . The large ball iscut in three pieces and joined with the small pindas to ritually unite the soulwith the ancestors in the next world Some perform this rite on the 11th day after cremation. At the yearly anniversary of thedeath (according to the moon calendar), a priest conducts the shraddha rites inthe home, offering pinda to the ancestors. This ceremony is done yearly as longas the sons of the deceased are alive (or for a specifiedperiod). They also demonstrate that death is something that canbe prepared for instead of being feared. A true Hindu shall love death as heloves this life. Mynote- Specified period can be up to Gaya srardha is performed or become veryaged. Q8 What are the duties of aGrahastha? A8 The duties of the Grihasta include the performance of 'PANCHMAHAYAGNA'(five great sacrifices) laid down in MANU DHARMA SASTRA. DEVA YAGNA : (Deityworship) - The daily worship and puja to Ganapathi,Kula devata and Ishtadevata. Visiting kula devata temple often or atleast once in a year. BRAHMA YAGNA : (Seer worship) Each day the householder expresses his debtto the the human kind by doing some services to the society. Performing onesown profession/vocation with the standards of ethics itself is a service to thesociety. BRAHMA YAGNA also includes Guru worship and studying, teaching,repeating and meditating upon the Vedic scriptures.( Vedic rituals) PITRU YAGNA : (Ancestor Worship) Respecting the ancestors, parents of theself and spouse and getting their blessings by making salutations to them byleaning towards their foot. Parentlesschildren should perform Annual Shraddas(Thithi) and observe fastingduring new moon days and beginning of months, offer rice balls (pindas) tocrows or in holy river. Those persons who do not know the thithi of their parentsdeath should perform thithi on the new moon day of the month "Thai"which usually comes between the second week of January and the second week ofFebruary. The thithi given or the fasting observed on thai amavasya constitutea remembrance of ancestors back to the 7th generation. BHUTA YAGNA : Worship of living beings by scattering grains, offeringfood at the threshold for animals, birds, insects etc. Loving and wateringplants also do constitute bhuta yagna. NARA YAGNA OR PURUSHA YAGNA OR MANUSHYA YAGNA (Guest worship)Obligationto love and honor ties of fellowship with humanity by showing hospitality to fellow humans, friends,relatives or even strangers and beggars. It is to be noted herethat a person performing his PANCHMAHAYAGNA everyday without fail will not bedisturbed by kali purusha. Q9 What was the position of wifeduring vedic period? A9 The wife always accompanies the husband in discharging hisduties. Marriage is no doubt, primarily for begetting children but it was alsorequired for the proper performance of worship. The husband is expected to first satisfy the wife's soul and the wife satisfies the husbandwith her bodyand gets his soul. Q10 Do abortion permitted duringvedic times? A10 NO NO. On Abortion, the Sastras are very clearlyagainst it. The foetus is considered to be a living person with consciousnesswho is required to be protected and reared with care and affection. Rigveda even goes to the extentof pleading for mercy on behalf of the foetus. Atharva veda characterizes thekiller of a foetus as brunagni , one of the most heinous sins. KAUSHITAKI UPANISHADequates it to the killing of one's parents. SUSRUTHA SAMHITA if the foetus is alive, every attempt should be made toremove it from the mother's womb alive In extreme cases, it permits inducingmiscarriage of the foetus if that were the only means to prevent the loss ofthe mother Q11 What are the four kinds ofsanyas? A11 Sannyasa is of four kinds: 'Vidvt'-a deathbed when there is no hope in living born out of realwisdom'Vividisha'- springing from a yearning for self-realization Aatura uponone's further Markata - embracing Sannyasa as an escape from great misery,disappointment or misfortune that one is not able to face in worldlyactivities. Sannyasa meansrenunciation not of life alone but of Kama, Artha and even worldly Dharmas.Sannyasa may be deemed a second phase of Brahmacharya. Q12 What are the details of theverses in the different Vedas? A12 Rg-Veda The heart of the entire Veda with 10,552 verses. Rg-VedaInterpretation(Poorna Pragnya). Yajur-Veda (hymns for oblations)apr. 2000verses. Sama-Veda (same prayers and hymns inmeters for singing)apr. 2000 verses Atharva-Veda (body/world maintenance anddestruction).Nearly 6,000 verses of prayers, charms and rites are unique. Q13 What is Vedanga? A13Thereare six aspects of knowledge in the Vedas known as Vedangas: | Siksa - phonetic science | Vyakarana – grammar | | Nirukti - context (conclusive meaning) | Candas – meter | | Jyotis - time science (astronomy & astrology) | Kalpa – rituals | Q14 How many main Upanishaths arethere? A14 Fourteen. It is accepted that all the ten principalUpanishads namely Isa, Kena, Katha, Prasna, Mundaka, Mandukya, Taittiriya,Aitareya, Chandogya and Brihadaranyaka are the most authoritative ancientUpanishads. In addition to thesethe Kaushitaki, Svetasvatara, Mahanarayaniya and Maitrayaniya are also takeninto account as they have been referred to by many early authorities. Thesebelong to the different Vedas as shown below: Rig Veda 1. AitareyaUpanishad 2. Kaushitaki Upanishad Sama Veda 1. KenaUpanishad 2. Chandogya Upanishad Krishna Yajur Veda 1.Katha Upanishad 2. Svetasvatara Upanishad 3.Maitrayaniya Upanishad 4. Mahanarayaniya Upanishad 5. Taittiriya Upanishad Sukla Yajur Veda 1.Isavasya Upanishad 2. BrihadaranyakaUpanishad Atharva Veda 1. Mundaka Upanishad 2. Mandukya Upanishad 3. PrasnaUpanishad Q15 How many Upanishaths arethere in total? What are the topmost? A15 There are 108 Upanisads, as accepted by disciplic succession. Among them the followingare considered as topmost: 1) Isa 2) Kena 3) katha 4) Prasna 5) Mundaka 6) Mandukya 7)Taittiriya 8) Aitareya 9) Chandogya 10) Brhad-aranyaka 11) Svetasvatara Q16 What is Darsana? How many arethere? A16 Darsana means, sightor vision They are also known assad-darsanas (six systems of philosophy The six philosophical treatises are: | Nyaya propounded by Gautama | Vaisesika propounded by Kanada | | Sankhya propounded by Kapila | Yoga propounded by Patanjali | | Purva (karma) Mimamsa propounded by Jaimini | Uttara (brahma) Mimamsa propounded by Vyasa | Nyaya, the philosophy of logic, maintains that the atom is thecause of the cosmic manifestation. Vaisesika, philosophy of specialised logic, maintains that thecombination of atoms is the cause of the cosmic manifestation. Sankhya, philosophy of analytical study, maintains that the materialnature is the cause of the cosmic manifestation. Yoga, philosophy of mystic perfections, maintains that universalconsciousness is the cause of the cosmic manifestation. Purva (karma) mimamsa, philosophy of actions and reactions, maintainsthat fruitive activities are the cause of the cosmic manifestation. Uttara(brahma) mimamsa has two different categories: Q17 Who summarised the Darsanas? A17 After studying the six philosophical theses, Vyasadeva completelysummarized them all in his Vedanta-sutra darsana: The Absolute Truth isthe Supreme Personality of Godhead, who is the cause of all causes. Srila Vyasadeva wrote the Vedanta-sutras and taking theessence of all vedic literature, established the supremacy of the SupremePersonality of Godhead. Q18 What are the most importantmanthras? A18 While there are plenty of mantras available, there are afew that are chanted with high esteem by the shaivas. praNava, paNJchAkashra, gAyatri to name a few. paNJchAkashra, This great mantra is namaH SivAya (namah Sivaaya). The fivesyllables in this mantra are na - maH - si - vA - ya. The Holy Five SyllablesnamaH SivAya is the heart of vedas Q19 What are sadyojAtapaNJchAkshara and aghora paNJchAkshara? A19 namaHSivAya is the sadyojAta paNJchAksharaand SivAyanamaH is the aghora paNJchAkshara or the aghora mantra. As the paNJchAkshara namaHSivAya is at the center of vedas,it is referred as vedic way paNJchAkshara. SivAyanamaH is the paNJchAkshara isused very much in the Agamic worship of the Lord. So it is referred as theAgamic way paNJchAkshara. Q20 What is shaDAkshara mantra ? A20 This mantra could be chanted as it is as paNJchAkshara orcould be chanted along with the praNava (aum) as shaDAkshara mantra (om namahSivAya . While the rudraksha andHoly Ash are the ornament externally for the devotee the internal ornament isthe paNJchAkshara mantra. Q21 What is Pranava manthram?Where it is described? A21 The mantra that is held very sacred by all Hindus is themantra Om also calledpraNava mantra The praNava has five parts. They are akara, ukara,makara, bindhu, nAtham. (aum). Consequently this is also one of the gloriouspaNJchAkshara mantra. The scriptures thatexplain the glory of this praNava mantra are quite many. However thesignificant one is from the skandha purANa Itis a well known purANic event that skandha described the real meaning of thepraNava mantra to God Siva. In the above mentionedepisode of skandha purANa the sage vAmadeva seeks the boon from Lord skandha to tell him too that description.(Vamadevareferred during gayathri prayer before chanting) Lord skandha who was pleasedwith the devotion of sage vAmadeva told him that great secret. Q22 What is Srichurna? A22 Thevertical three lines (or at times single red line) that is worn by theVaishnavites is called shrI chUrNa The two outer lines will be in the white color and the middleone in the red. The red line is normally with kumkum or the red sand at thebase of the tulsi plant. This custom has been introduced in the later parts oftime by rAmAnuja as vaiShNavite symbolism. VaiAhNavas not belonging to rAmAnujasampra-dAya (for example mAdhvas) do not follow this custom. Q23 what is the importance ofnandi A23 Thisis the Holy Bull - the vehicle and the disciple of Lord Siva. So Nandiis the first Guru Shaivites. On the wall of the Shaivites temples, in theflags, in the message headers and many other articles this emblem could befound. The ancience of this emblem will be very evident from thefact that this emblem has been found in the excavations of Harappa mahanjadaro (theso-called Indus valley civilization sites). According to Shaivites scripturesbull represents the dharma (justice). Q24 What is Holy Ash / bhasma/vibUti A24 The three bandsone could see on the foreheads of the gods andgoddesses. These three bands are worn by the Shaivites and the other religionsin that family. Thissymbol is called tripunDra (three bands). As the God appeared as aSupreme Flame (This need not be confused with agni. Agni becomes one of theaspects of God but not the Supreme itself), in the Shaivites religion,naturally Ash becomes the symbol that indicates the association with that Parmajyoti (Supreme flame). Q25 What are important symbols of Vaishnavites ? A25 The counch calledpAnchajanya and the disc called sudarshana in the hands of Lord Vishnu are the important symbols of Vaishnavites. These twoare printed as emblems in the artifacts associated with VaiAhNavas. -- You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google Groups "Thatha_Patty" group. To unsubscribe from this group and stop receiving emails from it, send an email to thatha_patty+unsubscr...@googlegroups.com. To view this discussion on the web visit https://groups.google.com/d/msgid/thatha_patty/435805168.4640326.1638326865863%40mail.yahoo.com.
