An eye on this Ritual

Few Rituals are followed for sake of following and nobody bothers to look at the reason behind it.

If one closely looks in to few rituals then can find the true meanings in it. Indian culture is very rich with these customs. Few of them really give the way to get the peace of mind and mind control. One such ritual which is followed from long is the “Brahmopadesha” i.e threading ceremony. Guys will be given this at the earliest of their life… means to say before they complete 8 years (treated as an ideal age).

The mantra that taught at this ceremony has lots of meaning in it. Only thing is the Guru should guide the chant properly.

The heart of this ceremony is the “Gayatri Mantra”.

The Gayatri Mantra is otherwise known as Savitri Mantra. The presiding Deity of the mantra is ‘Savitri’ or ‘Savitur’ (Lord Sun). This is the most important mantra written in vedic-metre called ”Gayatrl’, therefore, by tradition this mantra has come to be known as Gayatri Mantra.

Mantra invokes the Lord Sun, which in turn invokes the Self, the Atman within. The Atman is the illuminator of all perceptions, emotions, and thoughts, just as the Sun is the illuminator of all the world. The Gayatri Mantra is an appeal by the seeker to the divine Sun within to emerge out to the cloud of desires and shine forth its resplendent light.

The greatness of the Gayatri Mantra lies in its power — the power of mantra and the power of prayer. It is believed that when the power of prayer is combined with the power of mantra, one is fully equipped with the most effective instrument for the unfoldment of the spiritual potentialities. It is believed that anyone frightened in the dark, is advised to chant the Gayatri Mantra to overcome the nervousness of the fright. The congregational japa of the mantra is also believed to help overcome many of the societal problems.

The Guru initiates the boy into spiritual study by giving him the sacred Gayatri Mantra. The boy is considered dwijah, which means twice born. The first birth of the gross personality is when the physical body emerges from the mother’s womb. The second birth now is that of the subtle body when the mind and intellect are fully grown and ready to receive the knowledge of the supreme Reality.

The Gayatri Mantra is chanted generally at each Sandhya. There are two Sandhyas in a day — dawn and dusk. The word Sandhya means the blending point of day and night. According to one’s faith, devotion, and convenience, the mantra can be chanted any number of times at each Sandhya. The Veda advises us to chant the mantra both at the dawn and at the dusk, standing in water and facing the Lord Sun. The devotee chanting the mantra is required to carry water in his palm and at the end of each mantra japa, he must offer that water to the Lord Sun. The offering of the water signifies that the devotee is “going round” in reverence and devotion round the Lord Sun. The chanting of this mantra with the right understanding of its sacred meaning is believed widely to have the power to dispel all the negative tendencies in the human mind and thereby unfold the supreme Self within. As a rule, the Gayatri Mantra should not be chanted after the sunset.

To my cousin, uncle thought of giving this at the earliest. So preparation started like anything. The day came.

Following are few shots of the ceremony. These had been taken from my colleague Himanshu's Camera - Cannon S2 IS

Getting Ready for the ceremony

Putting the thread

Getting the Gayathri Upadesha

Taking the Bhiksha from parents

Ready for the Arathi

Taking(Grabing) the gift from his cousins :)

He is 8 years old. He still has naughty attitudes with in him. He followed whatever Purohits (Priest) taught. The fun part of the function was at the end. He supposed to say few mantras while taking the food i.e before start eating and before stopping it. Also he not supposed to talk in between. He started with great spirit but when it comes to the end, he saw all his friends playing so he just ran away with out saying the mantra. Poor fellow called again and made once again sit and say the mantra. Also he accidentally spoke in between while taking the food. Everyone was trying to make him speak.

In the evening, few were asked to teach him the mantra but fingers were pointed to each to other. For my astonishment nobody knows it properly. My youngest brother is bit OK in that. He came forward to teach him…
These good cultures are going away from new generation!!!