I liked this article very much! Why there is expression "Does it hurt?" in the headline?
Because Samashrayanam consists of 5 parts and the part 1 is "THAPAM" (the burning of Symbols of Bhagavan Shree Vishnu on the body):
1. thApam:
2. pundram:
To wear the dvAdasa Urdhva pundram (12 Thiruman & Srichoornam)
3. nAmam:
To be christened by the AchAryA afresh as"RAmAnuja dAsan"(addition of 'dAsA'at the end of ones name) to indicate that one is forever a servant of the Supreme Lord Sriman NArAyanA and BhagavAnRAmAnujA.
4. manthram:
To get the initiation of "Rahasya Traya MantrAs" - AshtAksharam, Dvayam and charama slokam.
5. Ijyai:
To learn the worship of Sriman nArAyanA in proper form (Bhagavad ThiruvArAdhanam).
You can see the thApam Ceremony on youtube:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=n7jG3GJ8NK0
See also in my dropbox, ge.tt, cubby and skydrive
Panchasamskara by Yadavadri - http://yadavadri.blogspot.ru/2010/01/panchasamskara.html
Whenever any discussion on Srivaishnavism related topics come up with my relatives, I am always asked questions about "Samashrayanam". Most of these questions are along these lines:
Does it hurt?
Do I have to give up eating in a restaurant after getting Samashrayanam done?
I thought I would write up an article explaining what Samashrayanam is and hopefully answer these questions. I am not really an expert on this topic and there are many more people who are way more knowledgeable about this topic.
The technical word for Samashrayanam is पञ्चसम्स्कारा: / ಪಂಚಸಂಸ್ಕಾರ / panchasamskara.
The word "samskara" means that which purifies. It is considered to be a ritual that purifies the unqualified to the qualified or the ineligible to the eligible.
There are many such samskaras that one undergoes during their lifetime, such as jaatakarma (purification ritual on birth), namakarana (naming ceremony), upanayana (initiation into study), vivaaha (marriage), etc.
But for a Srivaishnava, the most important set of samskaras are what are known as the panchasamskaras or the 5 samskaras.
It is these 5 samskaras that purifies our body and soul and qualifies it or makes it eligible to worship Sriman Narayana, do service to his devotees (bhAgavathas) and to do service to humanity, in general.
These 5 are described in this shlokam:
ताप: पुन्ड्र: तथानाम मन्त्रो यागश्च पञ्चम:
ತಾಪ: ಪುಂಡ್ರ: ತಥಾನಾಮ ಮಂತ್ರೋ ಯಾಗಶ್ಚ ಪಂಚಮ:
thApa: pundra: thaTHAnAma manthrO yAgashcha panchama:
What are the panchasamskaras?
thApa: - Let me explain this with an example. When you walk into a store and you need some help, how do you figure out who is a store employee and who is just another customer?
Typically, the store employees wear some logo or id card. The same is the case when you want to recognize an airline employee in airport.
Similarly, we need to be recognizable as Srivaishnavas.
Towards that end, we are marked with the "shankha chakra lanchanam" - mark of the shankha and chakra.
In the Ramanuja sampradayam, this is done by lightly marking the forearm (near the shoulder) with warm iron marks of the conch (left arm) and the discus (right arm).
This samskara seems to scare many people away from getting their panchasamskara done. There is really nothing to worry about as the iron mark is not really too hot and is only momentarily touched to the arm. The burning sensation is much less than what many of us have experienced while cooking or working with other hot objects.
pundra: - Srivaishnavas are also identified by the urdhva pundra that they wear on their body. The urdhva pundra are more commonly known as tiruman and sricharanam or as just namam. Srivaishnavas are expected to wear 12 urdhva pundras on their body.
nama - One of the samskaras is the adoption of a new name. The acharya who performs the samskara renames you with the name "Ramanuja Dasa". Prior to the samskara, each of us has a given name, which depending on the varna of caste of birth is suffixed with Sharma, Varma, Gupta or Dasa. However, after initiation with the panchasamskara, our name gets suffixed with "Ramanuja Dasa" indicating our association with Sri Ramanujacharya.
manthra: - This refers to the learning of what is known as Rahasya Thrayam (or 3 secrets) - Tirumanthram, Dwayam and Charama shlokam.
Tirumanthram refers to the 8 syllabled verse - "om namo nArAyaNAya".
Dwayam refers to the pair of verses - "shriman nArAyaNa charaNou sharaNam prapadhye" & "shrimathE nArAyaNAya nama:".
The former claims wholehearted surrender to Narayana, while the latter requests for eternal service to Narayana.
Charama shlokam talks about the ultimate means for liberation or moksha.
This is the 66th shlokam from the 18th chapter of the Bhagavad Gita - "sarva DHarmAn parithyajya mAm ekam sharaNam vraja aham thvA sarva papEbhyO mOkshaishyAmi mA shucha:".
Krishna directs Arjuna to take refuge in Krishna and Krishna only.
Through the token of Arjuna, we are also directed to do the same.
The samashrayana acharya preaches these verses and their meanings to the initiate. Note, that the first 3 samskaras are more physical or for the body. This samskara is for our mind and soul.
yAga: - This does not refer to the regular yAgams that we hear of, but refers to the daily pooja that we do the Lord, also known as Tiruvaradhanam. The samashrayana acharya instructs us in the steps of performing this aradhana.
Once the acharya administers these 5 samskaras, one becomes qualified or eligible to perform service to Narayana, and to receive the Lord's grace.
After performing these samskaras, the acharya turns to the Lord and introduces the initiate to the Lord as one who has expressed interest in forming an association with Sriman Narayana.
The association is like a link or a chain. Starting my immediate acharya, it goes through his acharya, and then his acharya and so on till Sri Manavala Mamuni, his acharya and so on till Sri Ramanujacharya, his acharya and proceeds till Nammazhwar, Vishwaksena, Mahalakshmi Devi and finally Sriman Narayana himself.
This lineage is known as the "Guru Parampara".
The acharya then reminds the Lord of his promise to Sri Ramanuja that all people associated with Ramanuja will be granted moksham (this is a separate blog entry by itself). And hence, because of our link with Ramanuja now established, we also become eligible to receive the moksham as promised to Ramanuja.
Who can administer the panchsamskaras?
Sri Ramanujacharya setup a system of 74 mutts to propagate his Srivaishnava philosophy and he, in turn, authorized the heads of these 74 mutts to perform panchasamskara on their disciples. This authority then goes from the head of the 74 mutts to the next acharya who takes that position.
Who can get the panchasamskara done?
Anybody can receive the panchasamskara from an acharya. There is no restriction on caste, gender or age.
At what age should I get this done? Do I need to change my lifestyle?
To answer this question, let me quote an example I heard from one of Sri Velukkudi Krishnan's lectures.
As part of an infant's regular checkup, the infant is vaccinated for different illnesses like Hepatitis, Polio, etc. The child is unaware of the purpose of the vaccination, but reaps the benefit of that vaccination at a later age (when she/he leads a healthy life).
One does not wait for the child to grow up and understand the benefits of the vaccination before vaccinating the child. It might be too late by then.
Similarly, if one waits to reach a particular age before getting their panchasamskaras done, it might be too late.
Getting association with Ramanuja can be done at any age, even though you might not realize the need or the importance of getting this done. And just like the vaccination, you will reap the benefits of this panchasamskara at a much later age when you think you are ready.
When you are much older and wish to get Ramanuja Sambandham, you do not have to go hunting around for an acharya to perform the samskaras for you as you have already had it performed at a younger age.
If you are unable to perform Tiruvaradhanam daily today, that is fine. Once you have received the panchasamskaras, you are qualified to do it for life. You can then choose to start doing it at a much later stage in your life.
I hope this answers many of the questions that are commonly posed to me about samashrayanam. Please do send me questions and/or comments.
