Guest guest Posted March 1, 2004 Report Share Posted March 1, 2004 ====================================================================== FAQ 1: How many navarAtri-s are there every year? ====================================================================== There are four navarAtri-s every year and they are respectively in the months chaitra, aashhaaDha, aashvina, and mAgha. They start on shukla paxa prathama thithi and end in navami. The dates are fixed based on the chandramAna calendar. And it is better to remember it that way, as the English dates would keep changing. The chaitra and aashivina navarAtri-s are famous and also known by the their season, that is, vasanta and shArada navarAtri-s (after vasanta and sharad R^itavaH). And these two navarAtri-s are important according devI bhAgavatam. The devI bhAgavatam, which talks about these four navarAtri-s do not make any specific link to vArAhi, mAtangi, etc for each navarAtri. The procedure it outlines is same for all. But many shrIvidyopAsaka-s make the following association. * vasanta navarAtri with rAja mAtangI * AshhADha navarAtri with vArAhI * shArAda navarAtri with lalitA Also, some shriividya texts have the 4th navarAtri in paushya mAsa (saubhagyaratnAkara), instead of mAgha mAsa. ====================================================================== FAQ 2: Are there any rules regarding vighraha aaraadhana at home? ====================================================================== [contributed by Ramakrishnan -- ramki64] Agni Purana, Matsya Purana, Bhavishya Purana, Jayakhya Samhita etc., speaks about Deva Pratishtha at home and temples and rules to be followed. I have also heard my father saying that North of Vidhyas do not require any specific Pratishtha vidan as Brahma himself has performed Yagna at the Madhya Bharat i.e.., in and around Itarsi in Madhya Pradesh, India. After performing the Yagna he gave boon that usual Agamic rituals are not necessary there for any deva pratishta and anyone can do pooja etc., to deities. Hence the Agamic rules do not apply in the North of Vindhyas. There are puranic reference to this. Of hand I am not able to give reference. I would like to share certain views for Pratishta of Devata at home. Deities to be Installed at home should be made of Swarnadi i.e., meaning Pancha Loha because it contains Swarnadi pancha datu and its height should be not more than 1 Aunghustha or from 8 parva to 12 Aungula. In no case it can be more than that (Narada Purana 67/32). Photos or drawn pictures of any Murthy can be upto 23 Aungula. If it is photo it can have an height upto 1 hand and pooja can be performed (Jayakhya Samhita 20/8). In JS it is further elaborates that Murthy's made of Deva Daru (wood), Soil or Stone is prohibited for Pratishta at home because doing poojas to such deities at home will take lot of time to achieve siddhi (Jayakhya Samhita 20/69). That's the reason why Vishnu Samhita says that Murthy's made of above materials can be installed only in a temple. A Gruhastha should keep his pooja place at North East of his house. It will give Abhishtha Siddhi (Matsya Purana 258/33 and Agrni Purana 106/19). Gruhastha who desires Abhishta Siddhi should not worship only one Murthy at his place rather he should keep and worship different deities for fulfilment of his desires and wants (Aahnika Sutravali 104) . One should worship at home Surya, Ganesh, Shiva, Durga, Saraswathi, Lakshmi and in the end his Kula Devata (Padma Purana). At another Shloka it is also mentioned that a Grahastha should not keep and do pooja at his house for 2 Lingas, 3 Ganeshas, 2 Shankhas, 2 Surya Pratima, 3 Shakthi and 2 Shaligram Shila (Ahnika Sutravali Page No. 104). I hope the above points throw some lights on the rules for Murthy's to be kept at home. ====================================================================== FAQ 3: Are there any rules related to reciting Sri lalitA sahasranAma and Sri lalitA trishatI? ====================================================================== a) Restrictions based on the texts itself --------- Both lalitaa sahasranaama and lalitaa trishatii require that a) the text should be kept secret b) should be revealed and given only to those who are initiated to SriVidya + other good qualities such as devotee etc. You will see this in the uttara piiThika of these works. 2) What happens in practice: ----------------------------- a) Text is not a secret and available to all. And almost all groups and schools of thoughts agree on this point. b) Some upAsaka-s abide by the rules stated in the text and hold that initiation to SrividyA (or bAlA tripurasundari mantra based on daxiNamuurti samhita is required) is a must. But many others do not take those injucntions seriously. Latter is the majority. Mostly people treat it like any other devotional work, which you buy in a book shop and start reading. 3) What can one do: --------------------- a) There is no restriction in practice on listening to audio cassettes or reading translations etc. If you can find time to listen to an audio cassette once a day, it is even better than reading from a book. There are very good cassettes available. b) To chant the safe approach is to take initiation to SriVidya from a qualified teacher and get permission You got to be lucky to do this. c) Alternatives: There are lot of teachers who start you into this without Srividya. Find one of them, if you are not keen or do not see a reason for taking Srividya. Typically from both LS and LT, the responsibility is on the shoulders of the guru. There are teachers who are kind enough to do it. We know of an instance where shrii shrii bhaarati tiirtha swamigaL of shringeri maTha has permitted a devotee to start both sahasranaama and trishatii by blessing that devotee's book and asking the devotee to chant these works. Typically, teachers decide this on a case by case basis. Hence, YOU SHOULD CONTACT A TEACHER FIRST. 4) Additional Details ---------------------- See messages 3463. 3470. 3472, 3474, 3477, and 3484 on our group archives. or see http://ambaa.org/archives/msg03417.html http://ambaa.org/archives/msg03424.html http://ambaa.org/archives/msg03426.html http://ambaa.org/archives/msg03428.html http://ambaa.org/archives/msg03438.html http://ambaa.org/archives/msg03431.html 5) Disclaimer ------------- In any case, you and you alone are responsible for the decision you make. Please read the texts, understand them, consult your family elders and make a decision. God has given us intellectual power and we should use it to our fullest extent possible for making any decision. Then you can say, I tried my best and the rest is in God's hands. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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