Athirathram” – one of the most ancient and sacred ritual associates with Vedic Dharma

http://satyameva-jayate.org/2011/05/13/athirathram/

 

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.

 

 

 

http://satyameva-jayate.org/2011/05/13/athirathram/

 

http://vsmoni.wordpress.com/2011/03/27/athirathram/

 

Pictures

 

https://picasaweb.google.com/vividvivek/AVisitToPanjalAthirathramAndGuruvayurappan#

 

Vedas – The Basis of Hinduism – The Mantras which can give you everything

LISTEN TO THE SOUND OF THE VEDAS…THE MAGIC OF SOUND

Chant, Chant ,Chant the mantras and you shall see that your life is different..You have become the superman of the world

 

The Vedas are the ancient scriptures or revelation (Shruti) of the Hindu teachings. They manifest the Divine Word in human speech. They reflect into human language the language of the Gods, the Divine powers that have created us and which rule over us.
There are four Vedas, each consisting of four parts. The primary portion is the mantra or hymn section (samhita). To this are appended ritualistic teachings (brahmana) and theological sections (aranyaka). Finally philosophical sections (upanishads) are included. The hymn sections are the oldest. The others were added at a later date and each explains some aspect of the hymns or follows one line of interpreting them.
The Vedas were compiled around the time of Krishna (c. 3500 B.C.), and even at that time were hardly understood. Hence they are very ancient and only in recent times has their spiritual import, like that of the other mystery teachings of the ancient world, begun to be rediscovered or appreciated even in India.  Like the Egyptian teachings they are veiled, symbolic and subtle and require a special vision to understand and use properly.
The great compiler of the Veda and Puranas was Vyasa Krishna Dwaipayana. He was said to be the twenty-eighth of the Vyasas or compilers of Vedic knowledge. He was somewhat older than the Avatar Krishna and his work continued after the death of Krishna. Perhaps he is symbolic of a whole Vedic school which flourished at that time, as many such Vedic schools were once prominent all over India and in some places beyond.

Gāyatrī Mantra

The Gāyatrī Mantra is a highly revered mantra, based on a Vedic Sanskrit verse from a hymn of the Rigveda (3.62.10), attributed to the rishi Viśvāmitra. The mantra is named for its vedic gāyatrī metre.^[1] As the verse invokes the deva Savitr, it is also called Sāvitrī.^[2] Its recitation is traditionally preceded by oṃ and the formula bhūr bhuvaḥ svaḥ, known as the mahāvyāhṛti ("great utterance").

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gayatri_Mantra

 

Chant this Mantra Every day and see its effect on your mind and Soul

 

Mahamrityunjaya Mantra

The Mahamrityunjaya Mantra (Sanskrit: महामृत्युंजय मंत्र, Mahāmṛtyuṃjaya Mantra "great death-conquering mantra"), also called the Tryambakam Mantra, is a verse of the Rigveda (RV 7.59.12). It is addressed to Tryambaka "the three-eyed one", an epithet of Rudra, later identified with Shiva. The verse also recurs in the Yajurveda (TS 1.8.6.i; VS 3.60)

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mahamrityunjaya_Mantra

 

Chant this Mantra Every day and see its effect on your mind and Soul

Rig Veda

The Rig Veda is the oldest of the Vedas. All the other Vedas are based upon it and consist to a large degree of various hymns from it. It consists of a thousand such hymns of different seers, each hymn averaging around ten verses. The Rig Veda is the oldest book in Sanskrit or any Indo-European language. Its date is debatable. Many great Yogis and scholars who have understood the astronomical references in the hymns, date the Rig Veda as before 4000 B.C., perhaps as early as 12,000. Modern western scholars tend to date it around 1500 B.C., though recent archeological finds in India (like Dwaraka) now appear to require a much earlier date. While the term Vedic is often given to any layer of the Vedic teachings including the Bhagavad Gita, technically it applies primarily to the Rig Veda.  

The Rig Veda is the book of Mantra. It contains the oldest form of all the Sanskrit mantras. It is built around a science of sound which comprehends the meaning and power of each letter. Most aspects of Vedic science like the practice of yoga, meditation, mantra and Ayurveda can be found in the Rig Veda and still use many terms that come from it.

While originally several different versions or rescensions of the Rig Veda were said to exist, only one remains. Its form has been structured in several different ways to guarantee its authenticity and proper preservation through time. 

 

Yajur Veda

http://www.hindunet.org/vedas/yajurveda/index.htm

The Yajur Veda seen by the outer vision is the Veda of ritual. On an inner level, it sets forth a yogic practice for purifying the mind and awakening the inner consciousness. 
Several versions of the Yajur Veda exist, which differ in a number of respects.  It was the main Veda used by the priests in ancient India and has much in common with the Egyptian Book of the Dead.
Its deities are the same as the Rig Veda. The purpose of the ritual is to put together and recreate within ourselves the Cosmic Man or Indra. The ritual is to recreate the universe within our own psyche and thereby unite the individual with the universal. Its series of sacrifices culminate in the Atmayajna or the self-sacrifice wherein the ego is offered up to the Divine.  While the lesser sacrifices win the lesser worlds, the Self-sacrifice wins all the worlds and gains the greatest gift of immortality.

Sama Veda

http://www.hindunet.org/vedas/samveda/index.htm

The Sama Veda is the Yoga of Song. It consists of various hymns of the Rig Veda put to a different and more musical chant. Hence the text of the Sama Veda is a reduced version of the Rig Veda.
Its secret is in its musical annotation and rendering. The Sama Veda represents the ecstasy of spiritual knowledge and the power of devotion. The Rig Veda is the word, the Sama Veda is the song or the meaning. The Rig Veda is the knowledge, the Sama Veda its realization. Hence the two always go together like husband and wife. The Rig Veda is the wife and the Sama is the husband.  

 

 

 

Atharvaveda

 

http://www.hindunet.org/vedas/atharveda/index.htm

The Atharva Veda is the last of the Vedas. It has not always been accepted as a Veda, which are often spoken of as three.  It still contains many hymns from the Rig Veda but also has some more popular magic spells which are outside of the strictly ritual-knowledge orientation of the other Vedas.
Like the Rig Veda it is a collection of hymns but of a more diverse character, some very exalted like the Rig Veda others of more common nature. As such it gives us a better idea of the life of common people in Vedic times.
Atharvan is also an important figure in the Zoroastrian religion. Atar is the Persian name for fire and the Atharvan is the fire priest. The deities of the Atharva Veda are also the same as the Rig Veda although Rudra-Shiva assumes a more visible role. The language is a little simpler and less variable in its forms

 

 

Shanti Mantra from Atharveda

ॐ सर्वेषां स्वस्तिर्भवतु सर्वेषां शान्तिर्भवतु ।

सर्वेषां पूर्णं भवतु सर्वेषां मङ्गलं भवतु ॥

ॐ शान्तिः शान्तिः शान्तिः !!

 

ॐ सर्वे भवन्तु सुखिनः सर्वे सन्तु निरामयाः।

सर्वे भद्राणि पश्यन्तु मा कश्चिद् दुःखभाग्भवेत् ॥

ॐ शान्तिः शान्तिः शान्तिः !!

 

Auspiciousness (swasti) be unto all; peace (shanti) be unto all;

fullness (poornam) be unto all; prosperity (mangalam) be unto all.

May all be happy! (sukhinah)

May all be free from disabilities! (niraamayaah)

May all look (pashyantu)to the good of others!

May none suffer from sorrow! (duhkha