QUES ANSW DIVINE 2-2022-13 Dearfriends,
Theseare information compiled as QA by me in 1998’s-2004’s and stored in my computer.They are posted by learnt members. Of late repeatedly, Mr Rajaram responds the answers are wrong .But he has no correct answer. Responding for responsesake. BEING COMPILATION THERE MAY BE ERRORS. Sincerely, R. Gopalakrishnan, 78,dated 16-02-2022 Q1 What isShuddhi Shraddha& Pushti Shraddha? A1Offering food to priests (Brahmins) for acquiring purity is called as Shuddhi Shraddha. This is the‘undergoing of punishment’ part of Shraddha. Shraddha performedfor increasing physicalstrength and prosperity is called as Pushti Shraddha. Q2What is the purpose of immersing the ashes of the dead into sacred rivers? Whatis the period up to which it can be kept in the house? A2 The remnant of the dead body after burning is left behind in the formof ashes. It is customary to gatheror take the ashes on the fourth day after death. They are then immersed insacred rivers like the Ganga. If it is not possible to immerse themimmediately, they are kept in a locker in the crematorium or at home andimmersed as soon as possible. This should be done no laterthan a year after the death of the person. The Shankha Smriti (page 7) explains the consigning of ashes to the Gangaas follows: As long as the ashes of the deceased person remain in the Ganga, the person continuesto enjoy happiness in worthy places for thousands of years (in the nextexistence). Furthermore, in the Kurma Purana (35/31-34) it is said: Whatever number of yearsthe ashes remain in the Ganga, the departed soul is held in reverence in heavenfor thousand times the number. Of allthe pilgrimages and of all the rivers, Ganga is considered most holy. It grantsliberation to all, including those that have committed gross sins. Althoughaccessible everywhere to the common man, Ganga is unique at Haridwar, Prayag, and Gangasagar. Those who desire liberation, includingemotionally downtrodden sinners, there is no better place than the Ganga. Religious writersalso understand that the deceased person's journey towards the eternal home(the spiritual realm beyond heaven and hell) does not start until the ashes areconsigned to the Ganga. Q3Why do Hindus cremate their dead? A3 Amongst Hindus it is customary to do thelast rites by consigning the body to fire. In the Chudaman Upanishad it is said that Brahma gave birth only to theflame-like soul. From the soul, the sky was born. From the sky, airwas born, from air fire, from fire water, and from water the earth was born. These five elements united to form the humanbody. When a dead body is cremated in fire, the elements return to nature fromwhere they came initially. There is the understanding amongst Hindus that after death the soulcontinues to hover around the dead body due to its earlier attachment with it. When thebody is consigned to the flames and burnt to ashes the relationship between thesoul and the body ends. Therefore, to help speed the soul along to itsnext existence, the body is burned to ashes. Q4Why do the eldest son performs the cremation ceremony? A4 It is customary amongst Hindus that the sonof the deceased performs the cremation ceremony. This is to prepare the son to accept that his father or mother is dead. It also prepares himemotionally to take over the responsibilities of the household and also fulfillhis duties towards society. Q5What is the meaning of the pinda (pind daan) ceremony? How do the pinda isaccepted by the soul? A5 The custom of pind daan dates back to the time when the Vedaswere written. The pinda daan isperformed after the death of a person. The word pind means a body. The word daandenotes charity or giving Therefore, pind daan means giving charity to the bodyof the deceased. When aperson dies, the soul leaves the body. To end the relationship between the soul andthe body, the body is consigned to flames where it is converted into ashes. These ashes are consigned to aholy river like the Ganga. Thereby,nothing remains of the physical body, but the soul waits for a new body It is said that it may take ten days for thedeceased to enter a new situation. On the 11th and 12thday the food is offered to the deceased through the shraddha ceremony to beeaten. It isbelieved that on the 13th day the messengers of death usher thedeceased into Yamaloka, the abode of Yama When the last rites are performed withdevotion, the deceased enters Yamaloka happily, after which he may be given apleasant or uplifting situation. To Hindus this is important Therefore, thefood (pind daan) that is offered is accepted by the deceased throughthe scent of smell, not that it is actually or physically eaten. Thescent of smell and sound, and the transfer of emotions can still be felt by thedeceased from those who remain on the physical plane. Thus, the pind daan andthe shraddha ceremony are utilized to serve this purpose. It is explained in the YogaVashistha, (3/55/27): At this stage the soul is aware that the old body is deadand that it is through the pind daan of the son or brethren that a newbody has been created and relieved of any distress. This experienceis conveyed through feelings and sentiments. The physical rites are onlysymbolic. These sentiments embrace the deceased. On receiving pind daan thesoul or deceased feels happy and content, and after giving blessings proceedsto Yamaloka in an improved situation. A son who does not offer pind daan to thedeceased can be cursed in retaliation. Symbolically, a pind is a round ball made of amixture of wheat andrice flour with some sesame seeds mixed along with some milk andhoney. Seven balls are made out of 100 grams offlour. Of these, one is offered to the deceased and the rest to others as desired. Q6 Whether death s painfull? A6 InGaruda Purana and Atma Purana it is described that the pangs ofdeath are tantamount to the pain caused by the stings of 72,000 scorpions Q7 Brahmin married women are adorned with Thaly.What are the different types of Talies? A7 The "Thali"(mangalsutra) consists of two pieces, ONE FROM EACH FAMILY, traditionallydangling on a yellow thread It contains images of theShiva Lingam - Iyers .TheNamam and Sudarshana Chakra - Iyengars A pair of shell (shakha) and red coral (paula)bangles - Bengali .Ivory -Punjab and Rajastan Kashitali - gold chainwith coral beads and two black beads on either side of a diamond shaped goldpendant - Karnataka,specifically "Konkini" Rice grains, the Cobra’shood, Melon and Cucumber seeds are some of the common motifs of nature inspiredjewellery. -TamilNadu and Kerala. it is interesting to learn that the tying ofthe mangalsutra, which means auspicious thread or cord, isnot a religious practice but a social one, and that too of recent origin. It appearsthe mangalsutra evolved more as a popular practice than as a scripturalobservance. For Hindu women, the mangalsutra or "Thali" is the onesingle symbol of their wedded state. Three knots are tied - the first one by the bridegroom,the other two knots by his sister to make the bride a parts of the boy's family. The hymn recited by the bridegroom when heties the knot, is: "This is a sacred thread. This is essential for my long life. I tie thisaround your neck, O maiden having many auspicious attributes! May you livehappily for a hundred years (with me). (Praying the Almighty that I be blessedwith a long life )Oh soubhaygavati. Q8 What are the four aspects of life? A8 The Karma acquired from your past life, the karma you acquire byvirtue of your actions in your present life and based on these your futurelife. They classified our present life into four broad aspects. Dharma or rightliving, Artha or the monetary aspect, Kama or the desires and finally Moksha orspiritual progress and liberation. The Veda shastras for spiritual progress, the Dharma and Nyaya shastrasfor the legal and social conduct, the Artha ( finance), Ganita (mathematics),Vanijya (trade) shastras for earning money, Sangeeta (music) Nritya (dance)Shilpa (art) Kama (sex) Paka (cooking) shastras for pleasure. Q9 Whether Sri Chakra can be worshiped by all ? A9 Yes Sri Chakra can be worshiped by one and all irrespective ofreligion, caste or creed, sex or age, the learned or the ignorant, and the richor the poor. The Divine Mother is to be invoked byeveryone, and in every house, in every place and in every country. She is accessible to one and all. She is thedestroyer of the disease of samsara. She is described as the medicine or remedyfor samsara. -- 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 [email protected]. To view this discussion on the web visit https://groups.google.com/d/msgid/thatha_patty/2089386010.1653156.1645009812057%40mail.yahoo.com.
