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Ramanuja List Archive: Message 00047 Apr 2006

 
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SrI:

I am glad that this topic has cropped up.

The speetha  vasthram that the Lord is wearing is a vasthram of golden
thread, and not of silk - i have heard from learned persons.

The Lord also wears yellow vasthram, the peethambaram, probably the
vasthram soaked in turmeric water. 

As far as I have enquired with the Vediks I have come across, I have
been told that specifications have been given in sastras regarding
every detail of different ceremonies and this also includes the type
of vasthram to be used. It has been invariably mentioned at many
places that the vasthram made of cotton has to be used. 

But the custom of using or gifting silk vEshti in marriage and
upanayanam has come into vogue, perhaps to falunt the affluence and
affordability. If one digs up what the satras say about most of the
ceremonies, it will be a shocking revelation that most of what is
being bought or gifted have not been mentioned by satras and silk has
no sastric sanction.

For instance, in the upanayanam ceremony, where it is customary for
the maternal grand father / maternal uncle to bring / buy 2 silk
vasthrams, there is no scope to wear them during the ceremony. That
is,  nowhere it is mentioned that the silk vasthram is to be used.

 The usage of the silk vEshti during Brhamopadesam is  a later
development, but it is not without a flaw. If the rules were to be
strictly followed, the 2 4-muzham Veshti is not sufficient to cover
the agni, the Brahma, the couple and the boy. But people desirous of
using these silk vEshti cover only the couple, at times the father and
son only with the Purohit peeping inside. This is not as per sastras.

Though there is every reason to believe that the uasge of silk entered
our community, when such vasthrams were gifted by the Royalty to
express their pleasure at the paandithyam of the Brahmins, there is
evidence to show that silk has been worn by the royalty from times of
yore, much before it was said to have entered from China.

I came to know from Dr H.P.Devaki, Director of Oriental Research
Centre, Mysore that the use of 'kaushEya vaasam' (the vasthram made
from pupa) had been very much in vogue during Ramayana times, as there
is frequent mention of usage of this vasthram in Valmiki Ramayana. She
 also opines that kalidasa's mention of "cheenamshuka iva" (the cloth
from Cheena) is a bit misleading, making us think that silk has
entered India from China. But mention of this in Ramayana makes us
conclude that silk is very much native to India and might have gone
from here to China. It might have been a forgotten thing during the
intermittant period, until it entered again from China as mentioned by
Kalidasa.

Now the question of ethics.

The last verse of Chandoghya upanishad says in clear terms that one
desirous of moksham is allowed to do 'himsa'only as approved by
scriptures. This is  interpreted by schoalrs and elders as approval
for animal sacrifice in yajnas only. Silk does not come under this
category. As far as I have heard and enquired, no text justifies or
stipulates the use of silk vasthrams.  Even the silk offered in Purna
ahuthi in a homa is not silk but 'pon-aadai', golden vasthram.

Secondly, if we extend the rationale of apportioning the sins of
eating non-vegetarian food as found in astrology texts, namely to be
shared by the one hunts the animal, the one who sells it and the one
who eats it, to wearing of silk, the wearer too shares the sin of himsa.

But the mention of silk in Ramayana may perhaps indicate a cultral
habit, not necessarily approved by sastras. 

- Jayasree saranathan




--- In ramanuja@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxx, "Mani Varadarajan" <manimani@...> wrote:
>
> The Lord and his retinue certainly do look majestic. It is, however,
> unfortunate
> that we please ourselves and think that the Lord is pleased by
adorning Him
> with the product of the blood of thousands of silkworms. Somehow I doubt
> this
> is what the shaastras intended.
> 
> On 4/12/06, Karthik M Nagaraj <karcoms@...> wrote:
> >
> >  Dear Bhaktas of Srimannarayana,
> >
> > March 30th to April 2nd 2006 was a very busy 4 day
Kumbhabhishekham and
> > Prana Pratista of Sri Rama Durbar, Padmavati, Lord Balaji and Sri
Shivan. I
> > have created an album that has a small subset of the pictures in
regard to
> > Perumal and his family moorthy stapana and Puja. Check out the
album at the
> > following link. It has about 92 pictures.
> >
> > http://imageevent.com/jsny/srinivasarpadmavatiramar
> >
> > Do not miss the LAST PICTURE. My 2 eyes are not enough to view the
gem and
> > silk studded Perumal and Padmavati.
> >
> > Sri Govindji and Sri Venkatesh Iyengarji have done a wonderful
service in
> > ornating Perumal and Padmavati. Sriman Govindji is the priest at
Fremont
> > Hindu Temple. Sriman Venkatesh Iyengar is a visiting ritvik from
Bangalore
> > who specifically visited Fremo nt Hindu Temple for the
Kumbhabhishekham and
> > Prana Pratista.
> >
> > Jai Srimannarayana
> >
> > Karthik
> >
> >
> > ------------------------------
> > Talk is cheap. Use Yahoo! Messenger to make PC-to-Phone calls.
Great rates
> > starting at
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> >
> >
> >  ------------------------------
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> >
> >
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> >
> >  ------------------------------
> >
>








Azhvar EmberumAnAr JeeyAr ThiruvadigalE Saranam 
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