Ananta Vrata - अनंत व्रता
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The Hindu festival known as Ananta Vrata is observed on the fourteenth day of the bright fortnight in the month of Bhadrapada called Avani in Tamil, which corresponds to the English months of August- September. The observance of this Vrata is believed to secure for the observer immunity from all sorrows. Some men go to the extent of saying that even a lost situation may be regained by a faithful observance of this Vrata.
The festival is celebrated in honour of Lord Narayana, the aspect of worship being one prior to the evolution of the worlds and the creation of the living beings.
The word Ananta means 'endless.' Therefore the Vrata called 'Ananta Vrata' is the worship of the deity who exists endlessly. In fact, time and space will cease to exist for one who raises himself to this state of consciousness.
The form in which the deity is worshipped on this occasion is one in which he reclines on the back of hydra with sankha and Chakra (couch- shell and wheel or discus, the usual appendages of Vishnu) in his left and right hands respectively.
A serpent of hydra generally symbolises space as well as wisdom. A reclining posture represents the state of inactivity. Hence the form used for worship on this occasion rightly symbolises the period of inactivity called pralaya or when the consciousness of the deity remains unmanifested. While he goes to sleep, everything goes to sleep following him. When he manifests himself, everything is manifested. At the time of pralaya, the various centers of consciousness, called jives are said to be like particles of gold dust in a lump of wax, with the consciousness centred in themselves.
Aeons of ages are said to pass by between the commencement of a pralaya period and a period of activity. The period of inactivity is said to be a night for the deity and the long period of activity is a single day for him. When he awakes from him sleep, or in other words, when he begins his activity a fresh and manifests his divine potentiality, he shoots a lotus bud out of his navel which blossoms into a flower. From the centre of the flower, the Lord of Creation, Brahma appears and creates the universe.
The mythical incident referred to above is highly allegorical and it graphically describes the Anda- Srishti or the genesis of the cosmos. It deserves to be deeplym pondered over.
Lord Narayana, the aspect of the deity worshipped on this Ananta Vrata day, symbolises the spirit of God brooding over the waters of space or the primordial substances out of which future cosmos or universe arises because of the application of His will.
The seven- headed hydra on which Narayana is said to rest, symbolises space and eternity, as has already been pointed out. The seven hoods or heads of the Seshanag stand for the seven forces, playing in the seven worlds of matter in the universe, kept under his domination. Some say that this hydra of Vishnu has only five heads and not seven, deriving it perhaps from the Hindu philosophy which says that a man has only five Kosas or bodies, corresponding to the five kinds of matter in the universe commanded by five kinds of forces.
At any rate, as the hydra has only one body there is only one force and consequently Only one kind of primordial substance. This force divides itself into seven or five, creating as many varieties of matter for the formation of the various universes of finer matter, pervading and interpenetrating the coarser ones near. Practical yoga consists in reducing the number of these forces playing in and around man and finally merging them into the one force of the cosmic deity in his first abode, and realizing the state of consciousness he is in.
The tantric observances of this Vrata are very interesting and highly instructive. The observer of the Vrata ties round his right arm a cotton band formed of fourteen threads and going by the name 'Ananta Daram'. The expression conveys the idea of the feeling of the observer that he realises for the time being the forces brooding over matter without affecting it at all. Cotton threads are symbolical representations of lines of forces. Learned yogic say that the core within a nerve is a streak of light in a bed of space. The bed of space is the body of Brahma, which is beyond grasp. The conception of a form with only streaks of brilliant lines of light creating a luminous sphere, is the conception of the form of an angel and that of a man in his final ethereal body. Even plants and animals have a web of these lines of forces more or less brilliant, causing around them more or less luminous spheres.
The Ananta Daram or the string to be worn on the Ananta Vrata day, is first placed on a Chakra mandala which is symbolical of health and wealth. At the end of the Pujas, it is taken out and worn on the right upper arm.
This aspect of the cosmic deity is worshipped on a day when the moon is in the asterism Mrigasira (orionis) in the month of Margasira, to shake off sterility and to get good children. The worship is given the name of putra Ananta Vrata. If human will is centred for a sufficiently long period of time on the attainment of certain desired ends at particular hours or particular days considered favourable for particular purposes, successful results are sure to follow. A belief in this statement makes people observe some Vrata or the other to obtain the objects in view. In fact, the Hindus believed, believe, and will continue to believe that no attainment is impossible, provided sufficient will power is directed at the desired ends.
The chief forms of manifestation of Mahavishnu are four in number, and they are known as, Vasudeva, Sankarshana or Adisesha, Pradyumna and Anirudha. Vasudeva is his consciousness in the highest and, perhaps, the finest form of matter.
Sankarshana is his conscious existence in the next level lower to the one mentioned above, and the other two are said to stand for his sankha and chakra.
Vishnu is always represented with four hands. In two of his hands, he holds nothing, having them ready to give his blessings. Of the other two which he raises, he holds in the right the chakra or the discus and in the left the sankha or the conch- shell. These two symbolical to denote chastisement and punishment of the evil- doers.
Varaha avatar: In this incarnation of Vishnu as a boar, he destroys an asura by name Hiranyaksha, to recover the earth from him, which was stolen by him and hidden under the ocean.
On the twelfth day in the bright fortnight of the month Magha, (January- February) which is know as Varaha- Dvadasi, the anniversary of this boar incarnation is celebrated.
Narasimha avatar: In this half man- half lion avatar or incarnation, Vishnu kills one Hiranya kasipu, an asura, for blaspheming him, having come out of a pillar when challenged by the asura to do so. He shows, by this act of his, that he is omniscient and omnipresent.
The anniversary of this avatar is celebrated on the fourteenth day of the bright fortnight in the month of Vaisakha when the asterism Swati (bootis) is entered into by the moon.
After the destruction of Hiranya Kasipu, Narasimha did not abate his terrific nature. So the devas were considerably alarmed. In order to mitigate the fury of Narasimha, Iswara is said to have assumed to Sarabha form. People believe that the worship of this form would secure for them success over enemies in battles and immunity from diseases.
Vamana avatar: In this dwarf avatar, Lord Vishnu is said to have humbled the pride of Mahabali, a king who had usurped even the kingdom of Indra, the god of the heavens, by his prowess. He begged of Bali thre feet of ground as a gift, and when that was promised, he assumed a huge form known as Trivikrama form and measured the whole of the heavens by one foot and the whole earth by the second. For the third foot of land, he placed his mighty foot on the head of Bali and pushed him to the nether world. Bali's life was spared as he was not thoroughly bad.
The worship of Vamana in the lagna or hours of the day known as Vrichika lagna, on the twelfth day of the bright fortnight in the month of Bhadrapada is said to confer on the worshipper prosperity and success in all the undertakings. Ifthe day happens to be a Sunday with the asterism Sravana (aquitoe) ruling over it, it is said to be specially favourable for the purpose.
Parasurama avatar: In this axe- bearing incaration Vishnu is sid to have extirpated. The Kshatriya race of asuric origin and exercised sovereignty in Malabar.
Rama avatar: In this arrow- bearing avatar or incarnation Vishnu is said to have Killed Ravana, the king of the Rakshasas of Ceylon or Lanka. The incidents relating to this are recorded in the famous Hindu epic Ramayana emphasizing the moral dictum- Though vice triumphas in the beginning, virtue would in the end crush it down and proper.
Krishan avatar: The lovely sky- complexioned Krishna is said to have killed the Vicious king Kansa who was his maternal uncle.
Matsya avatar: In this incarnation as a fish, Vishnu is said to have destroyed an asura or demon who had stolen the four Vedas from brahma, the creater. Vishnu is said to have recovered these Vedas from the bottom of the ocean where they were hidden by the asura, and restored them to Brahma, to his intense delight.
Kurma avatar: This form of tortoise is said to have been used as a place of ret. For the mountain Mandara, used as a churning rod by the devas and the asuras when they churned the ocean of milk to obtain nectar of Amrit from it, by drinking which one is said to become immortal. The anniversary of this avatar or incarnation is celebrated on the Akshaya Tritiya day in the bright fortnight of the month Vaisakha (April- May).
Balarama avatar: This incarnation is said to be the dual aspect of the avatar of Vishnu as Sri Krishna of Dvaraka. Many asuras are said to have been destroyed by Vishnu in his incarnation as the elder brother of Krishna.
Kalki avatar: This horse- faced incarnation is yet to take place at the end of the Kali Yuga.
Of the numerous temples famous for tehse various avatars of Vishnu, Srimushnam in the South Arcot district is famous for the avatar named Varaha avatar, Singaperumalkoil near Chingleput and Simhachalam near Waltair are noted for the Narasimha or half man- half lion avatar.
Tirukkoilur in the South Arcot district is dedicated to Tiruvikrama avatar referred to in the incidents relating to Vamana avatar. The temple of Ananta padmanabhaswami in Trivandrum is said to commemorate theParasurama avatar. The Parthasarathy temple at Triplicane in the city of Madras commemorates the avatar of Vishnu as Sri Krishna.
Of the above named avatars that going by the name 'Rama avatar' is perhaps most familiar to the people since the country has many temples dedicated to it. Ramaswami temple in kumbakonam in the Tanjore district, where he is represented as seated to be crowned, is one of them.
The festival is celebrated in honour of Lord Narayana, the aspect of worship being one prior to the evolution of the worlds and the creation of the living beings.
The word Ananta means 'endless.' Therefore the Vrata called 'Ananta Vrata' is the worship of the deity who exists endlessly. In fact, time and space will cease to exist for one who raises himself to this state of consciousness.
The form in which the deity is worshipped on this occasion is one in which he reclines on the back of hydra with sankha and Chakra (couch- shell and wheel or discus, the usual appendages of Vishnu) in his left and right hands respectively.
A serpent of hydra generally symbolises space as well as wisdom. A reclining posture represents the state of inactivity. Hence the form used for worship on this occasion rightly symbolises the period of inactivity called pralaya or when the consciousness of the deity remains unmanifested. While he goes to sleep, everything goes to sleep following him. When he manifests himself, everything is manifested. At the time of pralaya, the various centers of consciousness, called jives are said to be like particles of gold dust in a lump of wax, with the consciousness centred in themselves.
Aeons of ages are said to pass by between the commencement of a pralaya period and a period of activity. The period of inactivity is said to be a night for the deity and the long period of activity is a single day for him. When he awakes from him sleep, or in other words, when he begins his activity a fresh and manifests his divine potentiality, he shoots a lotus bud out of his navel which blossoms into a flower. From the centre of the flower, the Lord of Creation, Brahma appears and creates the universe.
The mythical incident referred to above is highly allegorical and it graphically describes the Anda- Srishti or the genesis of the cosmos. It deserves to be deeplym pondered over.
Lord Narayana, the aspect of the deity worshipped on this Ananta Vrata day, symbolises the spirit of God brooding over the waters of space or the primordial substances out of which future cosmos or universe arises because of the application of His will.
The seven- headed hydra on which Narayana is said to rest, symbolises space and eternity, as has already been pointed out. The seven hoods or heads of the Seshanag stand for the seven forces, playing in the seven worlds of matter in the universe, kept under his domination. Some say that this hydra of Vishnu has only five heads and not seven, deriving it perhaps from the Hindu philosophy which says that a man has only five Kosas or bodies, corresponding to the five kinds of matter in the universe commanded by five kinds of forces.
At any rate, as the hydra has only one body there is only one force and consequently Only one kind of primordial substance. This force divides itself into seven or five, creating as many varieties of matter for the formation of the various universes of finer matter, pervading and interpenetrating the coarser ones near. Practical yoga consists in reducing the number of these forces playing in and around man and finally merging them into the one force of the cosmic deity in his first abode, and realizing the state of consciousness he is in.
The tantric observances of this Vrata are very interesting and highly instructive. The observer of the Vrata ties round his right arm a cotton band formed of fourteen threads and going by the name 'Ananta Daram'. The expression conveys the idea of the feeling of the observer that he realises for the time being the forces brooding over matter without affecting it at all. Cotton threads are symbolical representations of lines of forces. Learned yogic say that the core within a nerve is a streak of light in a bed of space. The bed of space is the body of Brahma, which is beyond grasp. The conception of a form with only streaks of brilliant lines of light creating a luminous sphere, is the conception of the form of an angel and that of a man in his final ethereal body. Even plants and animals have a web of these lines of forces more or less brilliant, causing around them more or less luminous spheres.
The Ananta Daram or the string to be worn on the Ananta Vrata day, is first placed on a Chakra mandala which is symbolical of health and wealth. At the end of the Pujas, it is taken out and worn on the right upper arm.
This aspect of the cosmic deity is worshipped on a day when the moon is in the asterism Mrigasira (orionis) in the month of Margasira, to shake off sterility and to get good children. The worship is given the name of putra Ananta Vrata. If human will is centred for a sufficiently long period of time on the attainment of certain desired ends at particular hours or particular days considered favourable for particular purposes, successful results are sure to follow. A belief in this statement makes people observe some Vrata or the other to obtain the objects in view. In fact, the Hindus believed, believe, and will continue to believe that no attainment is impossible, provided sufficient will power is directed at the desired ends.
The chief forms of manifestation of Mahavishnu are four in number, and they are known as, Vasudeva, Sankarshana or Adisesha, Pradyumna and Anirudha. Vasudeva is his consciousness in the highest and, perhaps, the finest form of matter.
Sankarshana is his conscious existence in the next level lower to the one mentioned above, and the other two are said to stand for his sankha and chakra.
Vishnu is always represented with four hands. In two of his hands, he holds nothing, having them ready to give his blessings. Of the other two which he raises, he holds in the right the chakra or the discus and in the left the sankha or the conch- shell. These two symbolical to denote chastisement and punishment of the evil- doers.
The ten avatars or incarnation of Vishnu are
On the twelfth day in the bright fortnight of the month Magha, (January- February) which is know as Varaha- Dvadasi, the anniversary of this boar incarnation is celebrated.
The anniversary of this avatar is celebrated on the fourteenth day of the bright fortnight in the month of Vaisakha when the asterism Swati (bootis) is entered into by the moon.
After the destruction of Hiranya Kasipu, Narasimha did not abate his terrific nature. So the devas were considerably alarmed. In order to mitigate the fury of Narasimha, Iswara is said to have assumed to Sarabha form. People believe that the worship of this form would secure for them success over enemies in battles and immunity from diseases.
The worship of Vamana in the lagna or hours of the day known as Vrichika lagna, on the twelfth day of the bright fortnight in the month of Bhadrapada is said to confer on the worshipper prosperity and success in all the undertakings. Ifthe day happens to be a Sunday with the asterism Sravana (aquitoe) ruling over it, it is said to be specially favourable for the purpose.
Tirukkoilur in the South Arcot district is dedicated to Tiruvikrama avatar referred to in the incidents relating to Vamana avatar. The temple of Ananta padmanabhaswami in Trivandrum is said to commemorate theParasurama avatar. The Parthasarathy temple at Triplicane in the city of Madras commemorates the avatar of Vishnu as Sri Krishna.
Of the above named avatars that going by the name 'Rama avatar' is perhaps most familiar to the people since the country has many temples dedicated to it. Ramaswami temple in kumbakonam in the Tanjore district, where he is represented as seated to be crowned, is one of them.