Ritual of Magh-Snan described by Bhagwan Shri Hari.
Ritual of Magh-Snan described by Bhagwan Shri Hari.
Suvrat said:-
’Hearing thus the words of Narayan muni, Shukanandmuni bowed with respect to him and asked him humbly. 1.
Shukanand asked:-
O Lord, I wish to hear about the ritual of Magha snana – bathing in the month of Magha, and also the performance of Chandrayan vrata. 2.
Suvrat said :-
O King, on hearing thus from the ascetic Shukanand muni, Narayan muni responded, making all the devotees happy. 3.
Shri Narayanmuni said:-
‘O Muni, I’ll now narrate to you the ritual of taking bath in the month of Magha, please listen. The month of Magha is particularly special; one should observe holy bath in this month in a holy place. 4.
One who follows the ritual of taking bath in the month of Magha, he himself become a holy, pious man. A man who has restrained his limbs, who is restrained in speech and balanced in mind and who is learned and has gained fame gets the good results of it. 5.
One who is sinful, pagan, suspicious and hates and abuses others never gets good results of it. 6.
The scriptures say that one can take bath at Prayaga, Puskara or Kuruksetra, wherever you can get good results. 7.
One who takes bath in the rivers that join the sea for three nights can get the good result of bathing in the sea. 8.
Maghasnana, when performed between sunrise and the morning time is holy and auspicious as said by the sages. 9.
When the stars shine bright in the sky – that time is opportune; it is better to be performed at sunrise and performing after sunrise is not good. 10.
As the repetition of non-Vedic mantras is fruitless, as seeking alms without chanting Vedic hymns is fruitless, as feeding guests without any witness is fruitless, so is bathing in warm water fruitless. 11.
O great sage, those who have the authority to perform Vedic rites (Brahmins, Ksatriyas and Vaisyas) should take bath uttering Vedic hymns. Those who don’t have the authority i.e. women and Shudras should take bath without chanting Vedic mantras. 12.
Maghasnan (bath) should commence from the full moon day of Pausa when the sun is the Capricorn zodiac; it should be continued for thirty days. 13.
One who goes for bath without carrying daily clothes and returns home with drenched clothes after bath gets the result of having performed Asvamegha sacrifice. 14.
Now to the rules and rituals of taking bath - ‘O Brahmin, the man who takes bath should at first take wet clay of that holy place and smear it in his head. While bathing, he should offer oblations to the Sun with Vedic hymns. 15.
Then, staying in water, he should offer oblations to manes and then come out of water. He then should worship God Purusottam. 16.
One who is strong, stout and a Brahmachari, should sleep on the ground only and take bath, and one who is weak; feeble should not follow these rules. 17.
As is told in the Smriti, one should perform the ritual of Maghasnana. Those who are too old or suffer from diseases should take hot water bath. 18.
Taking bath in sesame mixed with water, smearing one’s body with sesame, offering sesame in Yajna, offering oblations with sesame, eating sesame and offering sesame in alms are six types of sin-destroying rituals. 19.
Where there is no river, lake, stream or pond, one should store water in a new earthen pot without any lid on it, keep it for the whole night and take bath in the morning with that water; it is considered equal to water from the Ganga. 20.
O sage (Muni), there is no sin in the world that is not destroyed by performing Maghasnana; it is also better to observe fast in this month. 21.
When giving sesame in alms, it should be mixed with sugar; three fourth of sesame and one fourth of sugar should be the proportion. 22.
At the end of Magha month, six types of delicious juices should be offered. 23. A married couple should offer clothes of fine thread along with seven types of grains. 24.
Thirdly, Laddoos of sesame mixed with sugar should be given; also copper pots filled with sesame should be offered. 25.
Blankets, deerskin (Mrgacharma) and jewels should be offered according to one’s economic status. In addition, upper wear and coats should be offered. 26.
Footwear and socks also should be offered, as they destroy the sins of the donor. One who prefers other things, should be offered as desired. 27.
One who performs Maghasnana ritual should give/offer to Brahmins, what he wishes to and what the Brahmins prefer. 28.
O sage, my dependent should take bath in the month of Magha in river, pond, lake or well. He should take bath in the end before sunrise and not after sunrise. 29.
Thus ends the eighteenth chapter entitled ‘Description of the ritual of Magha Snana’ in the fourth Prakaran of Satsangijivan, the life story of Lord Narayan, also titled as ‘Dharmashastra’ (the rules of the code of conduct). 18
- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -