“snaanam”
If your faith is Sanatana Dharma, then you probably already know about the 3 “Rrunam-s” — the three congenital Debts of Gratitude every man is born with: (a) deva Rrunam (b) rishi Rrunam and (c) pitru-Rrnam.
Hindu belief is that Man’s first debt is to the many Vedic gods or devathas (such as Varuna, Surya, Apah, Agni, Soma, Indra etc.). They are all cosmic functionaries or agencies of the Supreme Deity who is hailed by the Upanishads as Brahman. These devas or devathas are responsible for working together in concert so as to keep the vast cosmic and natural order of Life or all Creation humming and stable through Time, synched in harmony with each other like a well-oiled machine.
Man is but mere, insignificant cog in that vast cosmic machine. Yet he is a beneficiary of the “devas” who bestow upon him all means of living, sustenance and wellbeing — rain, water, sunshine, fertile earth, food and good health. A man of faith must therefore, in return, out of pure gratitude, always strive to pay off this debt, this rrunam owed to the devas, and that is through performance of sacrificial rites — i.e. homam, yaaga, yagnya, vrata and other such as described in the Vedic scriptures.
Next, Man owes his second great Debt called rishi rrnum to the primordial saptha-rishis (seven sages viz.: Atri, Brghu, Kuthsa, Vasishta, Gautama, Vishwamitra and Kashyapa). This debt is incurred in the very moment Man is born. Even at birth a man is naturally endowed with unique and innate cognitive faculties that enable his inborn potential to acquire great gnyaana, spiritual Knowledge. Such gnyaana can be acquired by diligently studying and faithfully imbibing the teachings the rshis left behind them for the sake of posterity and which now today are found in their many works of revelation, scripture, mantra, smriti-s and dharma-sastra. To pay off the debt of gratitude incurred in having received inborn gnyaana and potential, a man must offer reverential homage to the rishis. To express such gratitude to the rishis, a man must duly perform the prescribed, mandatory Vedic “karma-s” viz.: meditative or contemplative practices such as “brahma-yagnya”, “sandhyavandana upaasana” , “manthropaasana“, “kaanda rishi tarpanam” etc.
Finally, the third congenitally incurred Rrunam is the Debt of Gratitude owed by every man to the “pitru-s” — that long lineage of known and unknown number of generations of manes — I.e. ancestors on both the paternal and maternal sides of his family. But for the existence of the manes, and all the forebears who went before him; and but for all the sacrifices they as parents made in their own respective lifetimes; and the trials and tribulations they encountered and overcame, a man’s birth, his very existence and survival in Life would not be possible at all; nor would he have been able to avail and fulfil the rare and precious opportunity of realizing the true purpose of human birth — “moksha” or salvation.
It was to underscore the extreme importance of paying off this particular Rrunum — the third of the three above — which is owed to the pitrus or manes that, in the Valmiki Ramayana, in the Ayodhya Kanda, we read how Sri Rama, living in exile then in the forests of Chitrakoot, upon learning from his brother, Bharatha, about their father, King Dasaratha’s death back in Ayodhya city, hastened at once to the banks of the River Phalguni (tributary of the Ganga) to perform “snaana” before commencing the prescribed funerary rites for the departed soul.
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The Vedic idea of “snaana” is a rather unique religious custom of India.
From it arises the fundamental belief that if Water (i.e. the elemental devatha known as “aapah:”) can cleanse the mortal body of all dirt and grime, surely the same powerful element could purify — given the right conditions, of course — the soul too? And also help the Atma rid the oppressive weight of the burden of all its sins (“paapam“), accumulated in life, bearing down heavily upon it?
What could be those “given right conditions?”, one may ask.
The answer is that if ritual bathing is done in a spirit of genuine atonement — and with shraddha, or abiding faith in “sastra” — and is performed at certain designated sacred spots on earth, where “teertha” or cool waters flow as either river, lake, pond, well or sea — then, of course yes, that would certainly constitute the “given right conditions” under which “snaana” will effectively cleanse the human spirit of impurity and free it of its karmic burden too. Those sacred spots go by the popular name “teertha-sthala-s”.
There is an old Sanskrit shloka which lists the seven teertha sthalas that eternally hold out the promise of lifetime atonement, karmic redemption and attainment of moksha, or spiritual liberation for Man:
“Kashi, Kanchi, Maya, Ayodhya, Avantika.
Mathura, Dwaravati chaiva saptaita mokshadayika.”
The list above refers to seven sacred spots called “moksha-sapta-puri-s” — the “7 Cities where Liberation can be attained” through symbolic atonement — which is performing “praayaschitta” rites for sins through “snaana” and “shraadha“. Besides enabling the shedding of weight of “paapam“, “snaana” enables a man to finally discharge his “pitru Rrunam” fully as well.
A teertha-sthala is thus conceived by the man of faith to be “a ford, a bridge in the river of life between heaven and earth, across which one travels to Liberation”.
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Varanasi, the city known as Kashi through which the great River Ganga flows is the premier teertha-sthala among the 7 moksha-sapta-puris. The other 6 sacred sthalas in Hindu faith are Mathura, Haridwar, Ayodhya, Ujjain, Kanchipuram and Dwarka. These holy sthala-s have all been mentioned in the Ramayana, Mahabharata, the Puranas, the ancient Jain texts and even in the Buddhist Jataka tales.
Pilgrims come to Kashi in their firm belief that their stock of karma, “paapam” and “punnyam” — in other words, their life’s record of actions, lapses, transgressions, faults, guilt, regrets and failings — once they bathe in the Ganga will be washed away. It will then free them of spiritual burdens and afflictions. Others come to fulfil some solemn vow, or to give thanks in prayer to the gods and/or perform the funeral rites or shraaddham for the manes or for people they loved. By the riverfronts, one can see them all thronging the ghats, repeating after the officiating priests the Vedic chants and mantras meant to propitiate the devas, the rishis and the pitru-s.….
Varanasi is a teertha-sthala that accepts Death as inevitable and teaches man to regard it with acceptance, serenity and grace. For hundreds of centuries past, Kashi has always attracted the sincere seeker of truth and the pious pilgrim of God to her 64 bathing- ghats and to her temples which hold out to them the promise of final freedom from the endless cycle of birth and death. Which is why the old saying goes “Kashi evam maranam moksha” … or, Death in Kashi is true salvation!
So since times immemorial, people have come here to this city in their last days to spend them in solitude, prayer and in charity but fully aware of the one caveat that Varanasi does not offer salvation if the sense of atonement is not truly sincere.
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Inside the city of Kashi, my family and I walked through a narrow, winding alleyway to go and offer worship in an ancient shrine that is presided over by the demi-god called Dandapani . He is believed to stand just behind the gates of the city with a severe-looking, rod in hand– a “danda” — with which he hands out justice and retribution i.e. he ensures that only the deserving are liberated and cleansed.
We went inside the this Dandapani temple and prayed for his blessings. At an adjoining shrine beside the sanctum there is a Shiva-linga archa-murthy. I paused for a minute there and chanted two brief opening anuvaakam-s from the Sri Rudra Prashnam. We received from the priest the holy “prasad” of the shrine as a token of acknowledgment that Dandapani had seen us truly penitent souls seeking absolution and the grace of God. Dandapani was pleased with us and granted us entry to Kashi.
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“snaanam” at Kashi
While we were at Kashi, the great Hindu festive day of Deepavali fell on Sunday, 12th December 2023.
Amongst Tamil people all over the world, it is customary for families and people on Deepavali morning to greet each other warmly on the auspicious day with the cheerful question: “Enna! Ganga snaanam aachaa?!” It means “Have you had the ritual ritual bath in the Ganga this festive day?!”
What is the significance of asking one another such a question on Deepavali day?
Well, it is a very old sentimental belief amongst we Tamilians that wherever one may happen to be, and no matter how far away from the River Ganga, having a bath in the wee hours of the morning of Deepavali is tantamount to a holy dip in the River Ganga itself!
On the occasion of Deepavali, it is believed that Matha Ganga, the goddess Ganga, out of the compassion brimming in her heart, flows out in spirit to every nook and corner of the country and consecrates every water source in every home of every living soul in India! She then showers her grace and beneficence on every soul on that day — blessings of joy, goodwill and auspiciousness. A bath at home on Deepavali day is thus believed to confer upon everyone a spiritual beatitude only in a nominal yet very special sense of the expression ““Enna! Ganga snaanam aachaa?!”
For me and my family, however, December 12th, 2023 Deepavali was a day when our “Ganga snaanam” was experienced not merely in the sentimental or nominal sense, but in a very real sense. Our ritual bath on the day in the most sacred river in India was … well… first-hand, eye-witnessed and truly memorable!
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We woke up at 4 AM that morning. It was cold, dark and misty as we walked the short distance from our living quarters, passed the Sankara Muttam and headed towards the bathing spot at Hanuman Ghat. When we arrived there on the banks of the River Ganga, there were no more than a dozen other pilgrims seen having their holy Deepavali dip.
In the early hours of dawn, when the sun had not yet risen, the Ganga flowed past us silently but swiftly. We climbed down a steep flight of stone steps to the waterline. The morning mist was slowly vanishing and through the dissipating fog, the Ganga appeared before us in all her power and glory — muddy brown, yet clear, deep and majestic! What a magnificent sight the Mother was!
Mentally, I first offered prostrations to the river goddess, the darling of all the Vedic gods in the Hindu Pantheon — Vishnu, Shiva, Indra, Varuna. Ganga was the mother too of the great soul, Bheeshmaachaarya of the Mahabharatha…. And how can anyone calling oneself a Hindu ever forget the fun and divine frolicking that Sri Krishna of Srimadh Bhagavatham (krishna leela) too had on the banks of River Yamuna, the grandest of Ganga’s tributaries!
Everything that happened in past eras of a thousand centuries and more in this vast nation of ours …. whether they were wars, or the rise and fall of empires, of dynasties, kings and uprisings; or were the birth and decline of religions; or, the enlightenment of the rishis, prophets, saints, sadhus, Acharyas, mystics and anchorites; or were prime inspirations for artists, poets, musicians, for governments and prime-ministers too…. Hadn’t Maatha Ganga witnessed it all?
I stepped reverentially into the river and waded twenty-odd yards into the chill but bracing water. I felt the gentle tide of the Ganga wash all over me. I dunked myself beneath the waters a dozen or more times; and every time I came up for air, I thought I was feeling almost instantly and miraculously rejuvenated in body, mind and spirit! I cannot find words to say anything more other than that it was some kind of an inexpressible sense of reinvigoration.
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The momentous impact the event of my ritual bath in the Ganga on Deepavali day had on me was not lost on any of the other members of my family either! For the very first time in our life, our “Ganga snaanam” had been for real and not nominal! It was actual, literal and not sentimentally imagined! The waters into which I dived was that of the Ganga, the holiest of rivers upon planet Earth… the purest of divine rivers that had cascaded down from celestial realms! Our “Ganga snaanam” was, truly and wholly, “Ganga snaanam“!
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So overwhelmingly real did the experience seem that I was moved at once to sit down in a quiet spot on the stone-steps of the ghat at a little height above the waterline and begin chanting a Vedic “prashna” from the Mahanarayana Upanishad: a brief passage and soulful paean to the great rivers of India, beginning with Maatha Ganga. It is the “aghamarshana suktham” —
- “Aghamarshana Suktam” (Translation, courtesy P.R.Ramachander). This “suktham” is a mantra that helps a person to purify his body and understand his true nature as well. The Sukta is chanted before, during or after taking bath as it is believed that it washes away sins. This belief is because Aghamarshana Suktam is dedicated to Varuna, the Lord of the waters. He is the guardian of night (sins and other doshas of beings). He stays in waters and gives room for purity and sanctity. He is a doshapaharakah. He is a practical deity interested in helping the people devoted to him. He is associated with other deities and they are friendly and supportive of him. A good coordination and cooperative functioning is excuted by the deity for the promotion of the world and social order. He is prime deity to whom prayers are submitted while wanting to cleanse the body and attain the degree of spirituality needed for the use of the body for saatvic purposes.
- Reciting this Vedic hymn while taking bath brings immense Punyam, removes sin committed by knowingly or unknowingly accepting gifts from those who have sinned. This hymn is named after Aghamarshana Rishi. Of the rivers mentioned in this Hymn, only Ganga and Yamuna exist in India, Saraswathi believed to be running under the earth and other remaining rivers flows now in Pakistan.)
- I take refuge in Varuna, who is of golden lustre or who has a golden diadem. O Varuna, being entreated by me, grant me the saving grace. For I have enjoyed what belongs to bad people andaccepted gift from sinners. May Indra, Varuna, Brihaspati and Savita completely destroy that sins committed by me and my people in thought, word and act.
- Salutations to fire hidden in water. Salutation to Indra. Salutation to Varuna. Salutation to Varuni, the consort of Varuna. Salutation to the deities of waters. (Through the power of this mantra). let all that is injurious, impure and troublesome in water be destroyed.
- May the King Varuna efface by his hand whatever sin I have incurred by unlawful eating, unlawful drinking and accepting gifts from an unlawful person. Thus being sinless, stainless and unbound by evil and bondage, may I ascend to the happyheaven and enjoy equality of status with Brahman.
- May the sin-effacing Varuna who dwells in other sources of water like rivers, tanks and wells also purify us. O Ganga, O Yamuna, O Sarasvati, O Sutudri, O Marudvrudha, O Arjeekeeya, come together and listen to this hymn of mine along with Parushni, Asikni, Vithasta and Sushomaya.
- From the all-illuminating Supreme, by His resolve, the right and the true were generated. From Him night and day were generated. And from Him again was generated the sea with different waters. Then, after the creation of the vast ocean the year was generated. Afterwards the ruler of the world of sentient and non-sentient beings who made day and night ordained sun and moon, sky and earth and the atmosphere and blissful heaven, just as they were in the previous cycles of creation. May the sin-effacing Varuna, the deity presiding over the waters, purify the taint of sin that attaches to the beings dwelling on the earth, in the atmospheric region and in the space between the earth and heaven and also connected with us (the performers of religious deeds).
- May the Vasus purify us. May Varuna purify us. May Aghamarshana, the sage called by that name, purify us.
- He, Varuna, is the protector of the world that was and also the world that exists at present between the past and the future worlds. He grants to the doers of meritorious deeds the worlds which they deserve and to the sinful the world of death called Hiranmaya. Again Varuna who is the support of heaven and earth, having become the sun is wholesome and attractive.
- Being such, blissful in nature, thou O Varuna, grant us thy favours and purify us.That Supreme Light which projected Itself as the universe like a soaked seed which sprouts (or that Supreme Light which shines as the substratum of the liquid element) – I am that Supreme Light. I am that supreme light of Brahman which shines as the inmost essence of all that exists. In reality I am the same infinite Brahman even when I am experiencing myself as a finite self owing to Ignorance.
- Now by the onset of knowledge I am really that Brahman which is my eternal nature. Therefore I realise this identity by making myself, the finite self, an oblation into the fire of the infinite Brahman which I am always.
- May this oblation be well made. He who is a transgressor of the scriptural conduct, a recreant, a thief, a feticide or an outrager of his preceptor’s honour is released from his sins; for Varuna, the regent of waters and effacer of sins (absolves them from sins by the repetition of this mantra). I am the ground of sins. Therefore you causeme to weep. Wise men say (don’t make me weep, but favour me by destroying my sins).
- The Supreme represented as the ocean has over flown to the whole creation. He has created at first creatures according to the deserts of their various past deeds. He is the ruler of the universe and the munificent giver of gifts to the devotees. He dwells together with Uma (His power giving spiritual illumination) in the hearts of devotees which are holier than other parts of their body (the seat of the Divine) and therefore superior and elevated like a peak and affording protection. The Jiva who is his abode grows to be infinite. He is the Lord who delights the individual souls by guiding according to their deeds and conferring on them fruits of their actions.
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After the Ganga snaanam at Hanuman Ghat, while I continued to be seated on the banks of the Ganga, and reciting the Upanishadic passages of the “aghamarshana suktam“, I could not help lingering longer. I remained rooted at the picturesque and soul-stirring spot. I felt that I must take a little more time still left of the dawning hours on Deepavali Day. I must sit still and give myself to silent reflection upon a little more than the “aghamarshana suktam“.
The “snaanam” had truly left behind in the mind a strange but exhilirating impression of self-cleansing … as though body, mind and soul had been freed of its taint, burden and weight. But I needed to dwell still a little bit more upon that uplifting feeling.
The Sanskrit word for that kind of rare and heady feeling is “pavamäna“. What does it mean? One may say it denotes in some obtuse way an “unbearable lightness of being”! So, I felt impelled to remain seated beside the Ganga just a little while longer and begin chanting the “Pavamaana Suktham”, yet another Vedic chant:
Pavamana Suktha (Translation, courtesy P.R.Ramachander)
This hymn is for purification. Soma, the sacred intoxicator is the lord of delight. Pavamana is another name for Soma. Pavamana also means that which flows. That which purifies.
Hiranya varnaa suchaya paavakaa, Yasu jatha kasyapo yaswindrah, Agnim ya garbham dadhire virupaa, Tha na aapaa sam syona bhavanthu.
In this golden , pure and purifying, Waters were born Kashyapa and also Indra, The fire God of various forms was also made by these waters , And let these waters be full of bliss and make us happy.
Yaasaam raja varuno yathi madhye, Sathyanruthe ava pasyaan janaanaam, Madhuschutha suchayo ya pavaka, Taa na aapa syona bhavanthu.
The king Varuna is in their middle, Examining men for truth and falsehood, These waters are honeyed , pure and purifying, And let these waters be full of bliss and make us happy.
Yaasaam devaa divi krunvanthi bhaksham, Ya anthareekshe bahudha bhavanthi, Ya pruthweem payasa udanthi shukrah, Taa na aapa syona bhavanthu.
These waters are the food for gods, They are found in various environments, These pure waters drench the earth, And let these waters be full of bliss and make us happy.
Shivena maa chakshusha pasyathaaapa,Shivaya thanuvopa sprusad thwachama may, Sarvaan aagnir aapsushadho huve, Vo mayi varchaa balamojo ni datha.
Oh Waters see me with your peaceful eyes, Oh waters , please touch my skin with your body. And oh fires , which exist in different waters, Please bless me with brilliance, strength and power.
Pavamanas suvarjana,Pavithrena vicharshanee, Ya pothaa sa punathu maa.
Those who purify live in the suvar lokaa(world), Let them , with holiness and thought, Along with deity Pota purify us.
Pnanthu maa deva janaa, Punanthu manavo dhiyaa, Punanthu vishvaa aayava,
Let the gods purify me, Let me be purified by manu and other learned ones, Let all human beings purify me.
Jaathavedaa pavithravath, Pavithrena punaahi maa, Shukrena deva dheedhyaath, Agne kruthwaa kruthamranu.
Oh God who knows all those who are born, purify us, Oh God purify us with purity, Oh God who shines with purity, purify us, Oh Fire God ,purify us and give us will power.
Yaththe pavithram archishi , Agne vithatham antharaa, Brahma thena puneemahe.
Oh fire god, Purify our knowledge using your power, Which is spread all over and is in the midst of your flames.
Paavamaniryo adhyethi Rishibhirsambhrathaam rasam, Thasmai Saraswathi duhe, Ksheeram sarpir madhuudhakam.
He who recites Pavamana Suktha, Which is essence of Vedas collected by sages, For him Saraswathi extracts The milk of knowledge, clarity and exhilarating Soma..
Paavaamani swasthyayani, Sudhughaa hi payaswathi, Rishibhir sambrutho rasa, Brahmeshwamrutham hitham.
This Pavamani suktha leads to peaceful and indestructible life, They can be easily understood and knowledge can be improved, The sages understand the essence of Vedas from these, And this is the nectar for the knower of God.
Paavamaanir dishanthu nah, Imam lokamadho aamum, Kaamaan samradhayanthu nah, Devir devai samaabhruthaa.
Those who are purified by Pavamana Suktham, Get this world as well as the next, Their wishes would be fulfilled, And they would be united with gods and goddesses
Pavamana svasthyayani, Sudhugha hi gruthaschutha, Rishibhir sambhrutho rasa, Brahmaneshvamrutha hitham
This Pavamani suktha leads to peaceful and indestructible life, They can be easily understood and mental clarity would be released, The sages understand the essence of Vedas from these, And this is the nectar for the knower of God.
Yena devaa pavithrena, Aathmaanam punathe sathaam, Thena sahasra dhaarena, Pavamanya punanthu maa.
Those Gods who are pure, Purify our souls, With thousand showers of purity, May Pavamana Suktha purify us.
Praajapathyam pavithram, Shathodhyamam hiranmayam, Thena brahma vidho vayam, Pootham brahma punimahe
These purify the creator himself, Makes us hundred fold great and with golden luster, Makes the knowledge of Brahma as ours, Makes us pure and purifies us.
Indrasuneethi saha maam punaathu, Soma savashthyaa, Varuna samichyaa, Yamo raja pramrunaabhipunaathu maa, Jathavedaa morjayanthya punaathu.
May Indra purify us by the right path, May Soma purify us by peace and well being, May Varuna purify us by his closeness, May king Yama purify us with strength, May Jataveda purify us with energy.
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More about “snaanam” on Deepavali Day in ensuing blogs of mine.
Sudarshan Madabushi