*** Of Chitis, Yajnam and Athirathram by KV Sarma J ***

*** CAUTION: Long Post ***

The Panjal Athirathra Yajnam..takes 12 days to complete and is a very complex process involving Rig, Yajur and Sama Veda recitation and procedural details. Though Athirathram had been performed in 1990 and in 2006 as well, the importance of this Athirathram is that it is again being conducted in Panjal after a gap of 35 years. Panjal in Thrissur District in Kerala is considered as Yajna bhumi as it has a history of several Yajnas in the past.

…Panjal Athirathram 2011, should be treated as the Dharma Karyam of the year. In fact, one would have expected Governments of both Kerala and India to show support and make arrangements to ensure success of this project. However, Government of Kerala is going for polls while Government of India is busy supporting other causes. Vedic Rituals like Athirathram evoke immense sense of history among Hindus, the battered ones of this wretched and ungrateful country. As our tradition is slowly eroding in the waves of modernization, events like Athirathram give some hope that future generations may know that ancient Hindus were not barbaric lot as pictured in some History books, but were masters of various sciences.

For those who are interested in the structural aspects of Yagasala and Yajna-sthanam, please read KV’s first post on Athirathram here.  The history of Athirathram and its mention in historical records is fascinating in itself…As KV Sarma mentions:

“Pravara Sena I, who is placed around at 275 AD to 335 AD by the authors Ramesh Chandra Majumdar and Anant Sadashiv Altekar in this book, is said to have conducted all Yajnams successfully including the most difficult Vajapeya Yajnam, after which he was given the title “Samrat”, which can be loosely translated to Emperor in English.

Pravasena I (275 - 335 AD) performed Athirathra Yajnam

While dates of Pravarasena I, Vakatakas and Gupta dynasty is a topic of huge controversy and discussion, one cannot disprove the argument that Pravarasena conducted Athirathram and other Yajnams.

ASI Reviews

ASI in its 1957-58 review (page 56) revealed at least two types of altars – Kurmachiti and Syenachiti at Kausmbi near Allahabad. ASI would like to believe that Purushamedha happened at the site, despite no presence of Human Skull but only a Purusha made of lime. That is actually an interesting observation as ASI Review of the year 1997-98 (page 137) revealed another Syenachiti structure found at Mansar near Nagpur. While Mansar site finding is quite clearly syenachiti structure according to description of the sites, even though no human skull was found like at Kausumbi site, ASI seems to have arrived at the conclusion that Purushamedha was performed at both sites. It is astonishing that ASI didnt consult a vedic pundit to ratify these conclusions.

It gets even more interesting as one reads ASI Review of the year 1988-89 (page 76). ASI found a huge structure of several altar constructions mostly in the form of a rectangular structure at Sanghol near Ludhiana in Punjab. From what has been described in the document, it could be the Peethan, which is considered as fully grown falcon. This picture would give an understanding (click to enlarge)

A square (Chathurasra) variety of Syenachiti (Click to enlarge)

…

One may question the importance of dating these sites properly. The importance of such careful study lies in the fact that all these sites are miles apart. There was also a syenachiti structure found in Purola, Uttaranchal by ASI. This means Syenachiti strucutres were found in Northwest India, Central India, West India, Northern India. Given that Vakataka inscriptions indicate that Pravara Sena III also performed all Somayagams and he ruled from Malwa to Tungabhadra, there is a clear possibility that Somayagam practice was there not just in North/Central India but across India.

Some coins were found in Uttarakhand with Syenachiti imprinted on them. This means that Syenachiti might have been a very popular chiti structure in Soma and Havir yagams. However, the most important point with respect to Syenachiti structure is that Indus Valley civilizations have some fire altars. It is not very clear whether these were household fire altars are specialized fire altars where these yagams could have been conducted. The difference between these special yagams and nithya yagams like Agnohotra etc., lie in the type of material and length of the homa also. Pursuing investigation with this important piece of information could reveal a different story. But for such an open investigation, first we have to come out of the “vedic nomads” and separation of the periods when four Vedas were written. Such a paradigm shift is important in mapping India’s history as putting Indus Valley Civilization in sync with historical findings pointing to later years will mean direct connection that Indus Valley People later were known as Hindus and so invasion of Indus Valley people could have never happened.

Image courtesy: KV Sarma J

Athirathram in Epics

While Athirathram and Syenachiti findings around 2 BC to 2 AD are one side of the story, Athirathram and all other somayagams find mention in two of the most important epics of Hinduism – Ramayana and Mahabharata.

In Ramayana, when Dasaratha conducted Aswamedha Yajnam, he did not stop with Aswamedha Yajnam. He is said to have conducted other Yajnams too. To quote this verse from Bala Kanda,

ukthyam dvitiiyam sa.mkhyaatam atiraatram tathottaram |
kaaritaaH tatra bahavo vihitaaH shaastra darshanaat ||

उक्थ्यं द्वितीयम् संख्यातं अतिरात्रं तथोत्तरम |
कारिताः तत्र बहवो विहिताः शास्त्र दर्शनात् ||

Meaning

The ritual on the second day is called ukthyam, and the next one performed on third day is called athiraathra. These apart many of the preordained rituals are performed there in that ritual as envisaged in scriptures

…the fascinating part is about the mention of chiti that was constructed for these yajnams. The same Sarga (14th) in Bala Kanda has some details:

iSTakaaH ca yathaa nyaayam kaaritaaH ca pramaaNataH |
cito.agniH braahmaNaiH tatra kushalaiH shiplakarmaNi ||

sacityo raaja si.mhasya sa.ncitaH kushalaiH dvijaiH |
garuDo rukmapakSo vai triguNo aSTaa dashaatmakaH ||

इष्टकाः च यथा न्यायं कारिताः च प्रमाणतः |
चितोअग्निः ब्राह्मणैः तत्र कुशलैः शिप्लकर्मणि ||

सचित्यो राज सिंहस्य संचितः कुशलैः द्विजैः |
गरुडो रुक्मपक्सो वै त्रिगुणो अस्ता दशात्मकः ||

Meaning

The bricks for Altar of Fire are well designed and made according to rules and standard measurements. The Brahmans who are experts in the architecture of laying Fire Altar, by calculating the ritual field with a one-ply rope and decide where and how the that shall be, the Altar of Fire is layered well with bricks in that ritual. That Altar of Fire of that King, the Lion, is layered by expert Brahmans in the shape of an eagle with golden wings, with its size being three folds bigger than the altars of other rituals, thus it has eighteen separators, and fire is laid on it.

A mistake that has been done by the translators is in translating “garuda” to “eagle”. Garuda is not considered as an Eagle. Garuda is considered as a Falcon. Some think of Garuda as a Kite. However, Garuda has been referred to in other puranas as Syena i.e., Falcon.  A very important question that could be asked is “if syenachiti constructed was 18 layered as mentioned in Bala Kanda, did people of Ramayana times know detailed mathematics involved in constructing Syenachiti?”. This question requires investigation not just because a Syenachiti is mentioned in Ramayana, but Syenachiti also finds a mention in Mahabharata as well.

In Mahabharata, the word Atiratra as a reference to yajnam along with other yajnams, happens in Vana parva. Following verse clarifies:

कृत्तिका माघयोश्चैव तीर्थं आसाद्य भारत ||
अग्निष्टोमातिरात्राभ्यां फलं प्राप्नोति पुण्यकृत ||

kṛttikā maghayoś caiva tīrtham āsādya bhārata
agniṣṭomātirātrābhyāṃ phalaṃ prāpnoti puṇyakṛt

Meaning

The one who takes the tirtha – piligrimage (of Prabhasa as referred to in preceding shloka) in the month of Karthika Or Krittika would acquire the same result as one who conducts Agnishtoma and Atiratra Yajnas.

…The most important point, with Mahabharata text is, however with respect to Garuda shaped fire altar. That which we now call Syenachiti is not referred to as Syenachiti in available text but as Garuda shaped Chiti.

इष्टकाः काञ्चनीश्चात्र चयनार्थं कृताभवन् |
शुशुभे चयनं तत्र दक्षस्व प्रतपतेः ||

चतुश्चित्यः स तस्यासीदष्टादशकरात्मकः |
स रुक्मपक्षो निचितस्त्रिगुणो गरुदाकृतिः ||

iṣṭakāḥ kāñcanīś cātra cayanārthaṃ kṛtābhavan
śuśubhe cayanaṃ tatra dakṣasyeva prajāpateḥ

catuś cityaḥ sa tasyāsīd aṣṭādaśa karātmakaḥ
sa rukmapakṣo nicitas triguṇo garuḍākṛtiḥ

Meaning

Bricks made of gold were used to build Chayana or Chiti. The Chayana made for the purpose resembled the chiti that was made by Daksha Prajapati. (meaning of only the first shloka above)

For translating the second shloka mentioned above, first compare it with the one describing chiti from Ramayana.

सचित्यो राज सिंहस्य संचितः कुशलैः द्विजैः |
गरुडो रुक्मपक्सो वै त्रिगुणो अष्टा दशात्मकः || [Ramayana description]

चतुश्चित्यः स तस्यासीदष्टादशकरात्मकः |
स रुक्मपक्षो निचितस्त्रिगुणो गरुदाकृतिः || [Mahabharata description]

Both descriptions are different, yet they both curiously use two words – अष्टादश, त्रिगुणो

The translation for अष्टादश is quite straighforward – 18. The translation for त्रिगुणो is different according to valmikiramayan.net and Kisari Mohan Ganguli.  valmikiramayana.net calls it “three times” where as Kisari Mohan Ganguli calls it “having three angles”. Defining त्रिगुणो as “having three angles” does not fit the context of Syenachiti structure – be it panchapatrika, shadpatrika or petthana because all these structures have at least four angles : at beak, two at wings and at tail. So, the meaning of the shloka

चतुश्चित्यः स तस्यासीदष्टादशकरात्मकः |
स रुक्मपक्षो निचितस्त्रिगुणो गरुदाकृतिः ||

should be

The chayana was 18 layered and was three times bigger than usual chiti.

Thus, both Ramayana and Mahabharata clearly mention shlokas describing the use of Syenachiti of 18 layers. Since it is clear from Vedic ritual that the chiti structure is not built as a single monolithic structure but is built out of several bricks of different shapes arranged in an orderly fashion, one can come to several conclusions. These conclusions will be part of concluding post in this series.

During British Raj and Post Independence

Since Athirathra yajnam, which is one of the seven somayagams, occupies such an important place in Hindu history starting much earlier than Ramayana times (by Ramayana time, the complete procedure seems to be quite mature), it would be interesting to see if there is any record of Athirathram being performed during British Raj and after Independence. This investigation is important to understand, support or counter, whichever the case may be, the theory that “Dr. Fritz Staal’s generous funding of 1975 athirathram protected it from extinction”. It is quite well documented that yajnas were performed during British Raj. For instance, this news piece from 1944 Windsor Star Daily records a “maha yajna” conducted on the banks of Jamuna River. Unfortunately not many details are present in this digitized news piece. The photograph (though not very clear) shown in the copy shows a yagasala which is pretty much like the one required for Somayagams.

Also, there are also websites which record history of yajnas done by vedic pundits since 1930s. While there are several records of Agnishtoma and Aptoryama conducted in Karnataka, Andhra Pradesh and Tamil Nadu, there is very little information on Athirathram being conducted between 1920s and 1950s. It is, however, a well recorded fact that 1956 saw an Athirathram near Panjal. Surekha Pillai who handled PR for Panjal Athirathram 2011 on behalf of Varthathe trust has taken pictures of 1956 and 1918 Athirathram sites. She says “it is amazing to see the site after so many years with a huge Banyan tree growing at the middle of the chiti”. Quite amazing indeed, as the picture itself shows.

Despite lack of direct evidence, there is one documented record from American Philosophical Society 1963 year book that Tamil Nadu was conducting all somayagams regularly.

TN was conducting all varieties of samayagams at a rate of 2-5 yearly.

To quote from the information available on Google Books:

While the Aiyars of Madras State continue to perform somayaga-sacrifices at the rate of 2 to 5 yearly, whilst all other six varities have been performed during the last decades, the Nambudiris used to perform only two i.e., agnistoma and (agnicayana-)atiratra, and this occurred last in 1956. That year may have marked the end of a tradition of millennia…..

This is an very important information, which basically may prove with some more evidence conclusively, that Kerala’s tradition of Athirathram was in danger but not Athirathra Yajnam as a whole. The notion that Athirathra Yajnam required foreign support to be preserved might as well be a misconception. However, the question still remains as to why “Kerala tradition was in danger at all?”. The plausible answer is

Lack of communication among Andhra Pradesh, Tamil Nadu, Karnataka and Kerala where vedic pundits and financial distress of the time could have been the reasons for such a desperate situation. Without much doubt, one can say the local administration didnt find these vedic procedures worthy enough to be encouraged.

Not that non governmental institutions were silent during this time. Some indepth reading indicates that several institutions were formed to ensure Vedic tradition continues. Several veda vidya peethams across South had collaborative programmes with those in Ujjain and Varanasi – a sort of knowledge sharing.

The history of Athirathram traces to as far as Ramayana. Depending upon which country one is from and the accepted school of thought, it could mean Athirathram goes back to 1400 BC or even further to 7000 BC or beyond Ice age (by Hindu Yuga structure).

…It has been explained on several occasions that ancients Hindus knew a lot about various sciences. There are several references clearly describing economics, politics, probability, geometry, trigonometry, mathematics of numbers, chemical sciences and several other fields. Yajnas are probably the best places to explore how vedas describe laws, rules and assumptions made by the ancient Hindus while exploring these sciences. For instance, many feel that Bhagavata Purana has metaphorical explanation of concepts like Time Dilation. Some feel that Vedas themselves were divided into Shakas by Veda Vyasa using principles of Graph Theory. Mathematicians also worked on mathematical analysis of Sanskrit. Yajna is no exception. Thus, Athirathram is no exception. Specifically, two areas are worth talking about.

1. What is the cumulative effect of a Yajna?
2. What is Mathematics involved in chiti construction?

…What is Mathematics involved in chiti construction?

The most fascinating aspect of Yajna, as described in part 1 of this series is perhaps Chitis (in both mahavedi and agnihotra sala) and its construction. Chiti comes from the sanskrit root Chit. Unfortunately, foreigners relate chiti to “pile”, but apte relates chiti to “chit”. A Chiti is made up of a specific structure. As mentioned in part 1 of this series, several types of chitis are used. Lot of research has already been done on Mathematics involved in chiti construction. All the structures known to Hindus have been explained in a great detail in Srouta Sutras detailed in Kalpa Sutras.

In the papers published so far, researchers quote several sutras as sources for chiti construction process. It is thus logical that chiti construction is distributed across sutras. Another curious question is

Could it be that there was a formal conference during which these sutras were drafted or direction of documentation of these sutras happened?

Foreign historians place each author of Kalpa Sutra books at various points in history. But the similarities present in these sutras is a very important aspect which cannot be ignored. Whatever be the case with dating of Kalpa Sutras, one cannot contest the fact that the chitis are described in these sutras in excruciating detail and often, mathematical precision reaches upto 10 or more decimal points. To quote John F Price in this paper,

For me, there are three outstanding features of the Sulba Sotras: the wholeness and consistency of their geometrical results and constructions, the elegance and beauty of the citis, and the indication that the Sutras have a much deeper purpose

John F Price also explains that all Kalpa Sutras have a common format.

The Sulba Sutras form part of the Kalpa Sltras which in turn are a part of the Vedangas. There are four main Sulba SUtras, the Baudhayana. the Apastamba, the Manava, and the Katvavana, and a number of smaller ones. One of the meanings of Sulba is “string, cord or rope.” The general formats of the main Sulba Sltras are the same; each starts with sections on geometrical and arithmetical constructions and ends rvith details of how to build citis which, for the moment, u’e interpret as ceremonial platforms or altars. The measurements for the geometrical constructions are performed by drawing arcs with different radii and centers using a cord or Sulba.

This quote from a Mathematics researcher actually strengthens our reasons to think in the direction of question posed above. There is a definite possibility that writers of sutras were contemporaries or at best 2-3 generations apart (generation being 2-3 decades). It is also possible that there was a formal mechanism to document these observations. It is common knowledge of every Hindu that all sutras are observations from Vedas. So another area of research would be to identify the sources of Sutras in Vedas so that any sutras which were lost in time could be rewritten.

…Syena Chiti

Syena Chiti is described by John F Price as shown in this picture.

Syena Chiti, Garuda shaped Chiti Schematic as described by John F Price.

There is a difference in schematic as described by John F Price and S N Sen and AK Bag in their commentaries. S N Sen and A K Bag also provide numbering on each brick used for chiti. This is an important aspect as in Athirathram 2011 also similar numbering was seen.

..Syena Chiti is described in Boudhayana Sulba Sutra in Second Section. First section describes construction of square, circle etc. Second section describes construction of Garhapatya chiti and subsequent sections describe construction of other complex chitis.

Ratha Chakra Chiti

Ratha Chakra Chiti schematic as described by John F Price

John F Price gives the following schematic of Ratha Chakra Chiti in his paper.

Ratha Chakra chiti description is fairly similar according to others like S N Sen and A K Bag. This chiti has an interesting mathematical detail according to John F Price.

The initial calculations for determining the different parts of the ‘*’heel are in terms of square bricks each of area 1/30 square purusas. Since the final area is required to be 7.5 square purusas, the number of bricks is 7.5 x 30 : 225. The nave of the wheel consists of 16 of these bricks. the spokes 64 and the rim 145, making 225 in all. The spaces between the spokes are equal in area to the spokes and so, if these spaces are included,the overall area is 225 + 64 : 289 bricks.

Notice that overall area is curiously comes from a Pythagorean set {8,15,17}.

…

Subhash Kak explains that there are as many as 95 chitis which are built in sequence. The obvious questions are

Why did the authors of Sulba Sutras propose this sequence?

What is the importance of this sequence?

There are a few questions that would be great points of research. Also, Sutras also describe a very detailed structure for odd and even layers. They are more like Figure and Ground. On this point, another question that comes up is

Whether number sequences described in Rudram relate to Chiti construction and layers involved?

Conclusion

In Truthiyadhyaya (3rd chapter) of Bhagavadgita, Sri Krishna explains to Arjuna on why Yajnas have to be done.

अन्नाद्भवन्ति भूतानि पर्जन्याद् अन्नसंभवः |
यज्ञाद्भवति पर्जन्यो यज्ञः कर्म समुद्भवः ||

Meaning

All living bodies subsist on food grains, which are produced from rains. Rains are produced by performance of yajna [sacrifice], and yajna is born of prescribed duties.

Sri Krishna explains this in third adhyaya which fundamentally gives an explanation of Karma Yoga. Panjal Athirathram thus becomes the Dharma Karyam of the year. Performing of Yajnas is a Hindu’s duty precisely because it results in rain which provides food. Thus, Yajna is a technological process at least by the time of Krishna.

The million dollar question on 15th of April at Panjal was whether or not it would rain. On 15th April 2011, at 9:30, just as Athirathram was about to conclude, Panjal experience heavy downpour for about 30 minutes. The same happened in 1975 according to media archives. More than what happened, people’s reaction is something to be taken into account. At around 9:30, Surekha Pillai tweeted live from Panjal:

there’s thunderstorm and people are cheering and clapping.

This is indication of the faith that people have in Yajna procedures. So, to the question of whether Vedic Ritual is a scientific experiment, well it seems to be so because it did rain during properly performed Yajnas.

Apart from being our duty, Yajnas also become part of Hindu culture i.e., India’s culture. Sutras which document everything related to Yajnas are clearly products of extensive research done on Vedas.

Several questions still remain

Are the detailed notes in Sutras annotated texts of Vedas and Upanishads?

Did civilization at the time of Rama know sutras? If so, were Sutra writers contemporaries or ancestors of the civilization of Rama’s time?

Altars seen in Indus Valley indicate that they are Grahapatya chitis, which are for domestic use. Does this mean Sutra writers were before or during IVC or does it mean IVC were vedic and Sutra writers wrote annotated texts to Vedas?

Given that IVC cities were very sophisticated in urban planning, what are the odds that IVC were using all the complex structures for chitis described in sutras?

Why is there such a great detail on construction sequence of Chitis? Is it only to preserve tradition with hard and fast rules or does it have a greater significance?

Each author of the four major Vedangas – Apasthamba, Boudhayana, Katyayana and Manava – wrote Sutras in four parts : Grihya, Sulba, Srouta and Dharma. Each set of four Sutras are definitely companion works and all the 16 should be put in perspective to get a bigger picture on how a common Hindu household would have been during the time of these works, as all these four describe all duties of a common Hindu. The similarities and cross referencing, if any must also be used while dating these writers because heavy citation/similarities across all 16 works would indicate that the writers were contemporaries and further, these works could have been the result of a formal convention on Vedic Studies of ancient times.

It is our Dharma to do our own research and put all these works in perspective with our Smritis and Puranas because these documents would provide a perspective on the life and times of our ancestors. It does not mean that foreign research should be discouraged. It only means that we should write our own history. If left to foreigners who do not understand terms like Dharma, Karma and other such important aspects of a common Hindu’s life, we would be left with inexplicable theories like Aryan Invasion.

धर्मो रक्षित रक्षतः |

***

To the history and research buffs amongst you, I would urge you read through the whole series on KV’s blog. You will notbe disappointed…and while you are at it, have a look at some pictures too…

Related Post: Lavan Vajra & The Art of Rain-making

*** Sad Story of Study in Sanskrit by Dr Jyotsna Kamat ***

Recently I was in Honavar, my late husband’s birth place, where I have built a community hall and free reading room and library.

While going through local newspapers, I read about Arvind Shanbhag, who was awarded PhD. degree for a detailed study of poet Billhana’s historical epic Vikramankadeva Charita, an 11th century classic in Sanskrit. Having written about Bilhana earlier, I was curious to know about the latest work on the epic. I wrote a letter to the young man (29) congratulating him on his efforts and adding a line that I would be happy to go through his dissertation for some time. If he could spare it for some. Arvind hails from Kodkani, a village one-and-a-half hour’s drive from Honavar.

Dr. Arvind responded immediately and came with the neatly bound volume of his Doctoral Thesis along with some of the articles he wrote in Kannada. Arvind narrated not only the hardships a university student has to undergo for research but laid bare the bleak future, that awaited serious students of language and literature in India.

Born to Chandrakant and Kusuma Shanbhag of Kodkani village of Mirjan taluk, in North Kanara district in 1982, Arvind completed school and college studies by winning scholarships. With three gold medals and 1st rank in M.A. in Sanskrit, he wanted to take up research further. Sanskrit is the mother language of twenty odd Indian languages. Many Indian Universities offer fellowships and Master’s degree in Sanskrit. Several Pontiffs of late, have started and encouraged simple and conversational courses in Sanskrit along with vocational courses in priesthood so that commoners could have easy access to this ancient language which was considered divine language (Deva bhasha) and a monopoly of Brahmin priests and the ecclesiastical class. I thought Sanskrit had good future after a lull of decades after India’s Independence. But I was wrong. Sad plight of Arvind depicted the real story of Sanskrit.

Arvind had no financial sources when he thought of pursuing research. His father Chandrakant is a cook in a small restaurant in nearby town and his mother Kusuma does some embroidery and stitching in her spare time to help their meager income. The fellowship Arvind was waiting for, came after a long time. He worked as part-time correspondent to local small newspapers and wrote articles. He could not get the classic he was working on, in all the parts. He had to go to Ujjain(in Madhya Pradesh) to get the III and final part of Vikramankadeva Charita and get is xeroxed.

I was shocked to learn that photo-copying charges are ten times more in Ujjain than in Bangalore, per page. Finally Arvind rented a room in Dharwad, started self-cooking and wrote down the thesis. He learnt typing and DTP (This is unusual in India where job-typing is easily available) as he could not afford typing fee. The 300 paged-thesis was finally ready with the financial help of some voluntary bodies and good Samaritans, whose names are gratefully acknowledged by Arvind in the introduction of the thesis.

Meanwhile Arvind was trying for a teaching job in school or college throughout the state. Corruption is rampant every where in India. A huge amount is expected as donation by the institutions, which advertise the post. The government is the only employer and pressure for employment is such that entrance examination for teachers’ jobs has become compulsory. Qualifying age is increased and job aspirants’ numbers are mind boggling. Arvind is ready to take any job, clerical, teaching or management.

Such is the fate of sincere-students of a “divine” and ancient language, which still has innumerable un-explored and un-researched works on prosody, grammar, botany, religion native medicine besides Kavyas (epics).

See Also: Romance of Billana and Champavati

*** End ***

P.S. Please do leave a comment here in case you are aware of any suitable employment opportunities for Arvind. I hope to speak to him sometime over the next few days and will be mentioning about these two posts to him: Public Service post on Positions, Vacancies in Indic Studies and Mathematics, History and worms eating manuscripts…

Picture of Sanskrit Scholar Arvind Shanbhag, courtesy Dr Kamat

UPDATE II: Added Gujarati.

Dear friends, kindly consider translating this short message in your own language and circulate it amongst your friends…It would help us to spread awareness on this important issue and do our bit to keep Sanskrit alive…I have already included the message in Hindi, Marathi and English below…please also have a look at Practical Sanskrit (also on facebook) and Samskrita Bharati

*** Request in Hindi ***

प्रिय मित्रों,
जैसे की आप ओ ज्ञात होगा, भारत की जन गणना अब अंतिम चरण में हैं | इस  इस माह जन गणना अधिकारी पुनः आपके पास आकर आपकी तथा आपके परिवार की जानकारी की पृष्ठी कर, आपका पंजीकरण करेंगे |
यह जानकारी देते समय आप अपनी मातृभाषा के साथ-साथ “ज्ञात भाषाओ” में संस्कृत भाषा का उल्लेख करना न भूलें | विचार करें, तो हम अपनी दिनचर्या में संस्कृत भाषा का प्रयोग कई बार करतें हैं – प्रातः ईश्वर-स्मरण अथवा मंत्रोच्चार से ले कर सायं-कालीन आरती के समय तक |  इसके अतिरिक्त महाशिवरात्रि, कृष्ण जन्माष्टमी, नवरात्रि व गणेशोत्सव जैसे अनेक अवसरों पर मंगलमयी मंत्र तथा श्लोकोंका पठन-मनन करते हैं |
संस्कृत भाषा को जीवित रखना हमारे हाथों में हैं | पिछले जन गणना सर्वेक्षण में संस्कृत जाननेवालों की संख्या घाट कर केवल कुछ सहस्त्र ही थी | हमें आशंका है की इस कारण इसे “मृत भाषा” घोषित किया जा सकता हैं | भाषा मृत घोषित होने पर उसके संवर्धन तथा विकास हेतु किसीभी प्रकार की निधि नहीं दी जाती – न ही उसे प्रचार-प्रसार में सरकार कोई सहायता करती है | ऐसी स्थिति में यह प्राचीन, पवित्र व भारतीय संस्कृति की आधारशिला-रुपी दैव-भाषा सदैव के लिए इतिहास की पृष्ठभूमि में लुप्त हो जाएगी |
हमारा अनवरत प्रयास ही इस भाषा को जीवित रख सकता हैं | आज संस्कृत की इस अवस्था के लिए हम सब उत्तरदायी हैं | परन्तु अब भी समय है | जब भी संभव हो, इस भाषा का प्रयोग करें व अपने परिवार तथा मित्रगणों में उसे प्रोत्साहना दें और यह सन्देश अधिकाधिक भारतीयों तक पहुँचाने का प्रयास करें | धन्यवाद |

|| नमो भारतं, नमो संस्कृतं ||

*** Request in Marathi ***

मित्रांनो ,

भारताची जनगणना आता अंतिम टप्प्यात आली आहे आणि या महिन्यात स्वयंसेवक पुन्हा एकदा तुमच्या कडे येतील तुमची आणि तुमच्या कुटुंबियांची माहिती परत घेतली आणि नोंदवली जाईल.

माहिती भरतांना तुमची मातृभाषा जी काही असेल ती तुम्ही लिहाल पण “अवगत असलेल्या भाषा” मध्ये संस्कृत भाषा न विसरता लिहा. आणि खंर बघाल तर पूर्ण जरी नाही तरी आजही आपण ती भाषा वापरतो.संध्याकाळी दिवेलागणीला म्हंटली जाणारी स्त्रोत्रे किंवा गणपतीच्या दिवसातहोणारी सहस्त्र आवर्तने अगदी देवाच्या पूजेत किंवा लग्नात म्हंटले जाणारे मंगलमय श्लोक सगळे आपल्याला माहिती आहेत काही पाठ आहेत.

हि भाषा जिवंत ठेवणं आता आपल्या हातात आहे. कारण मागील सर्वेक्षणातसंस्कृत माहिती असलेल्या लोकांची संख्या केवळ काही हजारात आहे आणित्यामुळे तिला मृत भाषा घोषित केले जावू शकते. उलटपक्षी अरबी, फारसीमाहिती असलेले लोक बरेच जास्ती आहेत कारण काही राज्यात अगदी ठरवूरह्या भाषा पत्रकात भरल्या आहेत. मृत भाषा घोषित झाली की त्या भाषेच्याउत्कर्षासाठी कुठलाही निधी दिला जात नाही. आणि मग आपली ही पुरातन आणि पवित्र भाषा कायम स्वरूपी काळाच्या पडद्याआड जाईल.

तुमचा जाणीवपूर्वक केलेला प्रयत्न ह्या भाषेला जिवंत ठेवू शकतो. आजआपल्याच भाषेवर ही वेळ येण्यास आपण सगळेच जबाबदार आहोत पणअजून वेळ गेली नाही. जेवढी जमत असेल तेवढी गम्मत म्हणून का होईनावापरा जर तुम्हाला हा विचार पटत असेल तर जरूर आपल्या मित्रांना सुद्धा सांगा.

|| नमो भारतं, नमो संस्कृतं ||

*** Request in English ***

Dear friends,

As you know, the Indian census is in its final stages and census officials will visit you once again to verify your details and register your household.

When filling in the information related to languages, please do not forget to mention “Sanskrit” amongst the additional languages spoken/known. If you pause to think, you probably use “Sanskrit” several times during the day – from the time of your morning prayers to the lighting of lanp in the evening. And of course Sanskrit mantras and shlokas are an inseparable part of major sacred festivals including MahaShivRatri, ShriKrishna JanmAshtami and NavRatri.

It is in our hands to keep Sanskrit alive. The last census revealed the number of Sanskrit speakers to be fewer than thousand. There is a possibiliy that based on these dwindling numbers, Sanskrit might be declared a dead language. If this happens, it is likely to loose state support, grants and funds for further development. In such a situation, this ancient and sacred language might be lost forever.

We should strive to ensure this does not happen. We ourselves are responsible for the situation in which Sanskrit finds itself today. But we still have time. Please use this language whenever possible and please try and spread this message amongst your friends and family.

|| namo Bharatam, namo Sanskritam ||

UPDATE: Thanks to Ujjwol for the translation in Nepali and to Uma for Telugu.

UPDATE II: Thanks to AAryan for the translation into Gujarati.

*** Translated to Nepali ***

प्रिय मित्रहरु !
तपाँईहरुलाई थाहा नै छ होला की भारतको जन गणना अब अन्तिम चरणमा छ । यो महिनामा जन गणना अधिकारी पुनः तपाँईहरुको धरधरमा आएर जानकारी को पुष्टि गरेर पञ्जीकरण गर्नेछन् ।
यो जानकारी दिँदा समयमा आफ्नो मातृभाषाको साथसाथमा “ज्ञात भाषाहरु” मा संस्कृत भाषाको उल्लेख गर्न न भूलौं । विचार गर्नुहोस ! हामी आफ्नो दिनचर्यामा संस्कृत भाषाको प्रयोग धेरै पटक गर्छै – प्रातः ईश्वर-स्मरण अथवा मन्त्रोच्चारदेखि सायं-कालीन आरतीको समय सम्म । यस्को अतिरिक्त महाशिवरात्रि, कृष्ण जन्माष्टमी, नवरात्रि र गणेशोत्सव जस्ता अनेक अवसरमा पर मङ्गलमयी मन्त्र तथा श्लोकहरु पठनमनन गर्छैं ।
संस्कृत भाषालाई जीवित राख्ने काम हाम्रो हातमा छ । पहिलाको जन गणना सर्वेक्षणमा संस्कृत जानेहरुको की सङ्ख्या घटेर केवल केहि सहस्त्र मात्र भयो । हाम्रो आशङ्का के छ भने यो कारणले संस्कृतलाई “मृत भाषा” घोषित गर्न पनि सक्छन् । भाषा मृत घोषित भएपछि यस्को संवर्धन तथा विकास हेतु केहिपनि प्रकारको निधि दिईदैन – र सरकार पनि यस्को प्रचारप्रसारमा सहायता गर्दैन । यस्तो स्थितिमा यो प्राचीन, पवित्र र भारतीय संस्कृतिको आधारशिला रुपी दैव भाषा सधैकोलाई इतिहासको पृष्ठभूमिमा लुप्त हुनेछ ।
हाम्रो अनवरत प्रयत्नले यो भाषालाई जीवित रख्न सक्छैं ।आज संस्कृतको यो अवस्था हुनुमा हामि सबै उत्तरदायी छौं । परन्तु अहिले पनि समय छ । सम्भव भएसम्म यो भाषाको प्रयोग गरौं र आफ्नो परिवार तथा मित्रगणमा यस्लाई प्रोत्साहना दिउँ र यो सन्देश अधिकाधिक भारतीयहरुसम्म पुर्‍याउन प्रयत्न गरौं । धन्यवाद ।

Note: Please use Devanagari Danda Purna Virama (।) instead of pipe(|) for sentence ending in Hindi and Marathi as I have used in Nepali.

*** Translation into Telugu ***

ప్రియమైన మిత్రులారా,

భారతీయ జనగణన చిట్టచివరి దశలో ఉందని, గణనాంక అధికారులు మరొక్కసారి మిమ్ములను కలిసి మీ వివరాలను తెలుసుకొని నమోదు చేస్తారన్న విషయం మీకు తెలిసే ఉంటుంది.

భాషలకు సంబంధించిన సమాచారాన్ని నింపుతున్నప్పుడు, ‘ఇతర భాషల ‘ వివరాలలో ‘సంస్కృతాన్ని ‘ చేర్చడం మరచిపోకండి. మన దైనందిన జీవితంలో సంస్కృతానికి వాడుకలేదన్నది మనలో చాలామందికి ఉన్న అపోహ. కానీ, మనమొక్కసారి ఆలోచిస్తే, ప్రొద్దున్న చేసే ఈశ్వర ప్రార్ఢన నుంచీ సాయంత్రం సంధ్యా దీపాన్ని వెలిగించే వరకూ రోజులో మనం ఎన్నోసార్లు సంస్కృతాన్ని ఉపయోగిస్తున్నాము. సంస్కృత మంత్రాలు, శ్లోకాలు, మహాశివరాత్రి, జన్మాష్టమి, నవరాత్రి వంటి పండుగలన్నింటిలో స్మరించుకుంటూనే ఉంటాము.

మన సంస్కృత భాషని రక్షించుకోవడం మన చేతులలో ఉంది. క్రిందటి గణనాంక వివరాల ప్రకారం, ఈ దేవ భాషని మాట్లాడే వారి సంఖ్య వెయ్యి లోపే ఉంది. ఈ విధంగా సంఖ్య తగ్గడం ద్వారా, సంస్కృత భాషని మృత భాష గా ప్రకటించే పరిస్థితి కనబడుతోంది. ఇదే జరిగితే భాషాభివృధ్ధికై ప్రభుత్వం నుండి వచ్చే నిధులు, గ్రాంట్లు నిలిచిపోతాయి. ప్రాచీనమైన, పవిత్రమైన, మన భారతీయ సంస్కృతికి మూలాధారమైన మన దేవ భాషని శాశ్వతంగా కోల్పోతాము.

ఈ విధంగా జరగకుండా చూసుకోవలసిన బాధ్యత మనందరిపైనా ఉంది. సంస్కృత భాషకి ఈ గతి పట్టడానికి మనందరమే కారణము. కానీ ఇంకా సమయం మించిపోలేదు. అమృతతుల్యమైన మన భాషని వీలైనంతగా వినియోగిద్దాం, ఈ సందేశాన్ని మన స్నేహితులకూ, హితులకూ, కుటుంబ సభ్యులకూ అందిద్దాం.తద్వారా మన అత్యంత ప్రాచీనమైన భాషని కాపాడుకుందాం.

నమో భారతం, నమో సంస్కృతం.

*** Translated into Gujarati ***

સંસ્ક્રુત અને સંસ્ક્રુતિ – એક નમ્ર નિવેદન

પ્રિય મિત્રો,

આપણા બધાને જાણકારી છે, કે ભારત મા વસ્તી ગણત્રી આખરી તબ્બકામાં છે. આ મહિનામાં વસ્તી ગણત્રીના અઘિકારી ફરી પાછા તમારા નિવાસસ્થાને આવીને તમારા પરિવારના સદસ્યની નોંધણી કરશે.
ભાષા સંબંધિત જાણકારી આપતી વખતે “વસ્તી ગણત્રી પત્રકમાં” આપ આપણી માતૃભાષાની સાથે-સાથે “અન્યભાષાઓમાં” સંસ્ક્રુત ભાષાનુ ઉલ્લેખન કરવાનુ ન ભૂલશો. વિચાર કરિએ તો આપણે આપણી દિનચર્યામા સંસ્ક્રુત ભાષાનુ ઘણી વાર ઉપયોગ કરીએ છે. જેમકે સવારે અને સાંજ ભગવાન પાસે દીવો અને પ્રાર્થના કરતી વખતે, તેમજ શ્લોક અને મંત્રોના ઉચ્ચારણમાં પણ સંસ્ક્રુત ભાષા જ બોલીયે છે. મોટા ભાગના મુખ્ય તહેવારો જેવાકે મહાશિવરાત્રી, જન્ષ્મટમી અને નવરાત્રી સાથે સંસ્ક્રુતભાષા તથા સંસ્ક્રુતી જોડાયેલ છે.

સંસ્ક્રુત ભાષાને જીવંત રાખવી એ આપણા હાથમાં છે. પાછલી જનગણત્રીના પરિણામમાં સંસ્ક્રુત ભાષા જાણનારની સંખયા હજાર થી પણ ઓછી જોવા મળી હતી. એના પરિણામ સ્વરુપે સંસ્ક્રુત ભાષા “મૃત ભાષા” ઘોષિત થવાની શક્યતા ધરાવે છે. તેથી સંસ્ક્રુત ભાષાના વિકાસ અને પ્રચાર અર્થે મળતી તમામ સરકારી અને આર્થિક સુવિધાઓ મળતી બંધ થવાની સંભાવના રહે છે. અવિ સ્થિતિમાં આ પ્રાચીન, પવિત્ર અને ભારતીય સંસ્ક્રુતિની આધારશિલા-રૂપી દૈવી ભાષા સદેવ માટે ઇતિહાસની પ્રુષ્ટભૂમી પરથી લુપ્ત થઇ જશે.

આપણા અનાવરત પ્રયાસથીજ આ ભાષાને જીવંત રાખી શકાસે. આજે સંસ્ક્રુત ભાષાની આવી અવસ્થા માટે આપણેજ જવાબદાર છે. હજી પણ સમય છે. જ્યારે પણ સંભવ થાય ત્યારે સંસ્ક્રુત ભાષાનો ઉપયોગ કરવો અને પરિવાર તથા મિત્રજનો ને સંસ્ક્રુત ભાષાનો ઉપયોગ કરવા માટે પ્રોત્સાહિત કરવુ. આ સંદેશ દરેક ભારતીય સુધી પહોંચાડવાની નમ્ર વિનંતિ.

ધન્યવાદ,

|| નમો ભારતમ્, નમો સંસ્ક્રુતમ્ ||

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P.S. Thanks to Vijaya-ji for this thought and for sharing the Marathi version and to Sandeep for the version in Hindi. Image courtesy: Practical Sanskrit

Snakes and Ladders originated in India as a game based on morality called Vaikuntapaali (stairs to Vaikuntha) or Paramapada Sopanam (the ladder to salvation).  This game made its way to England, and was eventually introduced in the United States of America by game pioneer Milton Bradley in 1943.

…The game was played widely in ancient India by the name of Moksha Patamu, the earliest known Jain version Gyanbazi dating back to 16th century. The game was called “Leela” – and reflected the Hinduism consciousness around everyday life. Impressed by the ideals behind the game, a newer version was introduced in Victorian England in 1892, possibly by John Jacques of Jacques of London.

Moksha Patamu was perhaps invented by Hindu spiritual teachers to teach children about the effects of good deeds as opposed to bad deeds. The ladders represented virtues such as generosity, faith, humility, etc., and the snakes represented vices such as lust, anger, murder, theft, etc. The moral of the game was that a person can attain salvation (Moksha) through performing good deeds whereas by doing evil one takes rebirth in lower forms of life (Patamu). The number of ladders was less than the number of snakes as a reminder that treading the path of good is very difficult compared to committing sins. Presumably the number “100″ represented Moksha (Salvation). In Andhra Pradesh, snakes and ladders is played in the name of Vaikuntapali..

Image courtesy: V&A

This book by Harish Johari titled “The Yoga of Snakes and Arrows“ tell us more about the moral and spiritual aspects of the “game”:

Four things are necessary for one or more to play Leela: the Leela book and game board, a die (of karma) and a significant object that belongs to the player, such as a ring, to serve as the player’s symbol during the game. Each of the seventy-two squares on the board of Leela represents a virtue or vice, an aspect of human consciousness or a plane of being. The players’ progress is dictated by the fall of a die corresponding to the forces of karma. The seven planes through which the player must pass before he reaches the eighth plane – the plane beyond all planes – are the seven chakras. Leela is not merely an entertainment but a serious method of understanding the phenomenal world of Maya  (Illusion), and the spiritual nature of our individual self that leads us to the journey towards liberation.

The saints who invented this game used the game-board to recognize the present state of their own being. By playing the game time and again they consciously observed which snake brought them down and which arrows took them up. Observing their own inner self, they could tell whether they had understood what it is to be not involved. The uniqueness of Leela – the game of self-knowledge – is that it is a study of scriptures and discovery of the self at the same time.

This website informs us that:

The origins of this game appear to be found in 2nd century BC documents from India. Some historians point out that the game may be a variation of the ancient game of dasapada played on a 10×10 grid

In his brief blog post about the “game”, Abhilash mentions some of the original squares and what they stood for:

The ladders represented virtues and snakes vices. In the original game square 12 was faith, 51 was Reliability, 57 was Generosity, 76 was Knowledge, and 78 was Asceticism. These were the squares were the ladder was found.

Square 41 was for Disobedience, 44 for Arrogance, 49 for Vulgarity, 52 for Theft, 58 for Lying, 62 for Drunkenness, 69 for Debt, 84 for Anger, 92 for Greed, 95 for Pride, 73 for Murder and 99 for Lust. These were the squares were the snake was found.

The Square 100 represented Nirvana or Moksha.

Thats it for now…Have a relaxing weekend…and please share the story with the young ones in your family.

On this auspicious day, let us pledge to do our best to get rid of the three major evils that plague India – poverty, illiteracy and an ineffective, incapable & thoroughly corrupt political leadership – and promise ourselves to work towards building a proud, strong and united Bharat….

And as you go about your day today, please spare a thought for the forgotten residents of Deganga – “Humiliated and simmering with rage, abandoned and forsaken by their own“ - who are not celebrating their most important festival this year.  Below, a photograph taken during the immersion of the icon of Goddess Durga at the Ichamati river that divides India and Bangladesh.  The other side of the river is Satkhira in Khulna district of Bangladesh. Satkhira is just a few kilometres east of Deganga. The immersion of Durga images at Ichamati is supposed to be quite a spectacle and an occassion of great festivities on both sides of the border. The Hindus of Deganga are unlikely to be at Ichamati this year.

Photograph Courtesy: Press Information Bureau of India.

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