Vighnesh Poonal Invite

Upanayanam - Thread Ceremony of Vighnesh Venkatraman
It gives us great pleasure to invite you to the Upanayanam of Vighnesh, our second son. The function is to be
held at our ancestral home in our village of Sedanipuram, in what is now called Tiruvarur District and which was
earlier a part of Tanjore.
The village is situated on the road running between Kumbakonam and Nannilam and is about 18 kms from
Kumbakonam, which is the nearest railhead. It is located on the banks of one of the tributaries of the Cauvery
and has all the attributes of a traditional village in Tamil Nadu including a river, a pond and Shiva, Vishnu and
Ganesh temples, all in good upkeep.
Our ancestral home was built more than 100 years ago by Venkats great grandfather has been recently restored.
Without changing the basic architecture and functional intent, modern touches which we think are integral to a
comfortable urban lifestyle have been provided. We are all very happy with the way the ancestral home looks
now after the restoration.
As a forerunner to the Upanayanam, there will be a Grihapravesam or house warming ceremony on June 2,
2009. On the day prior to the Upanayanam i.e. on June 3, 2009, we have the ceremony of Nandishrardham and
on June 4, 2009, Vighneshs Upanayanam ceremony will be conducted. We have tried to give a flavour below of
what the ceremonies on June 3 & 4 entail and the intent behind the same.
June 3, 2009- Nandishrardham
This is a ceremony conducted to obtain the blessings of our ancestors (pitrus). It begins with the ceremony of
Udakashanti. Udakashanti involves invoking the presence of Varuna, the God of rain and water, and the other
devas and the holy rivers like Ganga, Yamuna, Godavari, Saraswati, Narmada, Sindhu, Cauvery, in the water
kept in the kumbham (pot) through the chanting of mantras from the Vedas and doing abhisheka (pouring over
the head) with that water to Vighnesh. Through this ceremony Nature in the form of holy rivers is worshipped
and its blessings are sought to protect the child and one prays for long life, health and happiness.
After Udakashanti is Paalikai, in which navadhanyas i.e. seeds of nine cereals and pulses are soaked in milk and
sown into 5 pre-prepared pots or paalikai kinnams by 5 sumangalis (married ladies). Colloquially it is called
paalikai thalikal. Typically the lady of the house first sows the seeds into paalikai, followed by the married
daughters and thereafter other elderly ladies present at the function will do the same. The sown seeds need to be
watered for 3 or 5 days by which time they sprout and grow to a good height. This symbolizes long life and
prosperity. After 5 days, the sprouts will be immersed in the village tank or our own well in the backyard.
Next is the kangandharan. A thread sanctified by mantras, is tied to the boys right wrist to ward off all obstacles
and give him long life and prosperity. It is believed that once the kangandharan is done, the proceedings of the
function cannot be stopped.
The nandishrardham differs from a regular shrardham which is performed annually on the thithi or date of
death of the ancestor. Unlike a regular shrardham in which the mood is somber, in a nandishrardham the mood is
festive due to the happy events that are going to follow on the next day. Another difference is that there is no
Agni sesham (offering of food to Agni-the God of Fire). But like the regular shrardham the spirits of the 3
generations of ancestors of our family are invoked. Usually 7/9 Brahmins who are believed to represent the
ancestors, 2 Viswadeva and 1 Mahavishnuswarupa are invited and fed.
Upanayanam on June 4, 2009:

The Upanayanam is the symbolic initiation of a boy into the religious tenets and beliefs of Hinduism. The term
dwija or twice born is applied in this context to signify that there are two births, one is the biological birth and
the other is the educational or spiritual rebirth through this ceremony of initiation. The term Upa means near
and the term nayanam means going, signifying going near a teacher/ preceptor to learn. In the traditional
system the child would have left the house to go the Veda Patashala i.e. the School where Vedas were taught.
The day will begin with a Punyavachanam or traditional bath of purification. After this follows the
Kumarabhojanam or the symbolic last meal he has with his yet to be initiated friends. Vivek still considers this
as the most memorable and fun part of his thread ceremony. In Vighneshs case, a couple of his close friends
from Bombay may accompany us for the event. After the meal, the ceremony of Vapanam or the shaving of the
head follows. Nowadays with both children and parents being a lot more conscious and aware of looks, this has
become a mere token ceremony with only a small tuft of hair being cut. A bath will follow and Vighnesh will be
bought in procession to the ceremonial place. The ceremony of Yagnopaveetha dharanam follows where he
will be invested with the sacred thread. Also a cord made of three strings of the durva grass is then tied around
his waist. A piece of deerskin is also attached to his sacred thread. Vighnesh will then be presented with a wand /
staff of Palasa tree to be carried by him henceforth. After this is the all important Brahmopadesam in which the
sacred Gayatri Mantra is imparted by the father in the form of individual words first and thereafter as a whole
sentence.
After the Gayatri Mantra is imparted the initiate then performs the Samithadhanam or the first religious
offering of sacrificial woods to the fire.
In the ancient ways, a seeker of knowledge was not expected to have his quest obscured by material
possessions. Traditionally, the student was supposed to lead a simple life and feed himself by begging for food
each day. This will be symbolized by Vighnesh going to his mother first and then to the other ladies and
requesting bhiksha.
This is followed by ashirvadams and exchange of gifts. A celebratory lunch will follow. Vighnesh and Venkat
will also stay over for another 3 days and they both intend to do the prayers (Sandhya Vandanam) on each of
these days along with the Samithadhanam.
But why do this?
In the modern day and age many of us often wonder whether all this makes any sense at all and the relevance to
our present lifestyle. Why hang on to rituals that seem to have no meaning in the modern society, as we now
know it?
Rituals, when performed blindly lose their original intent and meaning. But the same rituals when performed
with awareness and perception, acquire a whole new dimension. By taking him through the ceremony, as has
been done for generations before, we hope to equip Vighnesh with the tools to lead a life of social and moral
virtue. As parents, just as we would like our children to arm themselves with the latest and the best of education,
technology etc., we also sincerely believe that initiation into our traditional religious and spiritual beliefs and
values will help him in being a complete person.
We trust the above gives you a window of visibility about the story behind the invitation card. We request you to
make a sincere attempt to be there and see all this for yourself.
Venkatraman and Varalakshmi

Vighnesh Poonal Invite

Uploaded by

Document Information

Original Description:

Original Title

Copyright

Available Formats

Share this document

Share or Embed Document

Sharing Options

Did you find this document useful?

Is this content inappropriate?

Copyright:

Available Formats

Vighnesh Poonal Invite

Uploaded by

Copyright:

Available Formats

Upanayanam - Thread Ceremony of Vighnesh Venkatraman

Upanayanam on June 4, 2009:

You might also like