Nag Panchami 2016 = 7th August (Sunday)
As a religion, Hinduism or Santana Dharma is many sided yet bound by a common search for Truth and according to Hindus; it is a way to live the life and a fellowship of faiths. With the arrival of the Aryans, it originated as a simple form of worship of the forces of nature, drawing in its system action in social companies, local creeds, deities, and modes of worship.
Nag Panchami is a vital festival among all Indian Hindu festivals and is celebrated on the fifth day of the moonlight fortnight in the month of Shravan (July - August). This is the time when snakes invariably come out from their holes that get deluged with rain water to find shelter in gardens and many time in houses. Such situations are dangerous to man.
Therefore, may be snakes are worshiped on this day. Right from that time, when people started accumulate some type of culture, the sun and snakes have been invoked with prayers and ritual worships in most of the countries. In India, the tradition of snake worship was in prevalence from Vedic time.
The Legends of Nag Panchami
In ancient India, there lived a clan of snakes in Indus Valley named as “NAGAS” whose culture and traditions were highly developed. The Indus Valley civilization, 3000 BC before gives a sample proof of popularity of snake worship among the Nagas whose culture was widely spread in India. After the Nagas culture got unified into Hinduism, the Indo Aryans themselves accepted various snake deities of the Nagas in their temples and some of them even enjoyed a pride of place in the Puranic Hinduism.
The main Cobra snake was described in the Puranas by the name of Anant, Vasuki, Shesh, Padma, Kanwal, Karkotak, Kalia, Aswatar, Takshak, Sankhpal, Dhritarashtra and Pingal. Some historians mentioned that these were not snakes but Naga Kings of different areas had immersed power.
The thousand headed Shesh Nag is symbolized as the couch of Lord Vishnu eternity. It is on this couch that the Lord reclines between the time of the dissolution of the universe and creation of another. Hindus believe in the immortality due to the proprty of snake of sloughing its skin. Such Eternity in Hinduism is often represented by a serpent eating its own tail.
In Buddhism and Jainism snakes are regarded as sacred having divine qualities. It is known that a Cobra snake saved Buddha's life and another protected the Jain Muni Parshwanath. As evidence, today we find a huge snake carved above the head of the statue of Muni Parshwanath. In medieval India, the figures of snakes were carved and painted on the walls of many Hindu temples. The worship of snake are found in the carves at Ajanta images of the rituals. In his "Arthashastra", Kautilya has given detailed description of the cobra snakes.
The most popular and famous legend is about Lord Krishna, when he was a young boy. When he was playing the game of throwing the ball with his cowherd friends, the legend goes to tell that how the ball fell into Yamuna river and how young Krishna vanquished Kalia snake and saved the people from drinking the poisonous water by forcing Kalia to go away.
It is an old age religious belief that the snakes are loved and blessed by Lord Shiva. That’s why, Shiva put on the snake as an ornament around his neck. Most of the festivals falling in the month of Shravan are celebrated in honour of Lord Shiva and blessed to devotees. Along with Shiva, snakes are also worshiped.
Specially, on Nag Panchami Day live cobras or their pictures are worshiped and religious rights are performed to seek their good will. To seek immunity from snake bites, they are bathed with milk, haldi-kumkum and is sprinkled on their heads and milk, and rice are offered as "Naivedya". The Brahmin who is called to do the religious ritual is given "Dakshina" as silver or gold coins, some times, even a cow is given away as gift.
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| Happy Nag Panchami |
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