Guest guest Posted November 18, 2008 Report Share Posted November 18, 2008 Shri Prashanth Nairji, Namaskar! Instead of quoting profusely from other sources, pl. go through Yogavasishtha Maharamayana yourself and you will come to the grips with all the seemingly irreconcilables like Agama and Niragama etc. etc. Regards, AKK , " prashanthnair999 " <prashanthnair999 wrote: > > AGAMAS- WHICH SHAPED BHARAT- part 1 > > Have you ever given a thought why the religious landscape of Bharat > remained > almost intact even after a thousand years of suppression by Muslim and > Christian > invaders ? Do you think it was the power of Vedas , Upanishads and the > Gita and > our peopleÂ's knowledge in our fundamentals ? NOPE.. It was by the > singular > attachment of the lay Hindu towards HIS God, that we are still alive as > heirs to > Hinduism. > > How did the common man develop so much attachment to his God, silently > suffering > under the brutal suppression of the worst enemies of Humanity then and > now ? It > was by the Agamas. > > I now present to you all a forgotten heredity of us all which has helped > shape > the spiritual landscape of Bharat. The essence of this heredity are a > series of > divine scriptures. They are AGAMAS. > > When you propose to build a house, (especially in South India), the plot > is > chosen by its straightness, the length and width. They have to be in > certain > measure of feet. Then the direction of the site. Then the house plan. > Specially > here, the location of the sump, the kitchen, the bedroom, the bathroom > are > finalized only after consulting vasthu. Vasthu science was given to us > by the > Agamas. > > All the temple rites are given to us by the Agamas. Even your daily > arathi and > the Murthis and photos you worship are given to us by the Agamas. In > short > temple worship was started by the Agamas only. > > Agama literally means coming down. > > Agamas were built into the society rather than accepted and studied. > Such has > been their subtlety. For example, the adage ,  " do not reside in a > village that > has no temple " is a direct Agamic edict that is followed to this > day by every > Hindu without himself studying anything about it. The society itself is > built up > on such edicts. > > Have you ever wondered why you stand up in front of the deity with your > palms > joined and raised to the level of the chest in such a way that the lower > joint > of the thumbs point towards the solar plexus ? Also , why do we go > around the > prakara of the temple in a particular way ? Why do we adorn specific > religious > symbols such as Vibhuti, kumkum , Chandan and Gobi on our foreheads ? > > The answers to all the above are in the Agamas . > > The three major sects of Hinduism have separate agamas. In fact each > have many. > Saiva sects have as many as twenty eight agamas( Tamil and kashmir > sects). > Vaishnava sects have two main agamas namely pancharatra and Vaikanasa. > Similarly > Saktha sects have their own. > > The power of Agamas is so great that, though these sects treat the vedas > with > respect, they do not consider the vedas to be their authority in their > sect. > Saiva Siddhantha people will resent if you thrust vedic thoughts on > them. In the > 10 th century AD, Yamunacharya, the founder of Vaishnavism as a sect > wrote a > treatise explaining why Vedas do not matter for his sect. > > Agamas are self sufficient literature in that they cover the man's life > from > cradle to grave. Even minute details such as brushing the teeth, > selection of > sticks for brushing etc are given. If you ever see some rites in a > funeral , > never laugh anymore. They are the direct links of the man and his > antique > forefathers. > > These agamas are principally in Sanskrit. The Tamil people developed the > grantha > lipi for writing the Sanskrit Slokas and till today they are in Grantha > form and > not in Devanagari ! > > > Today, the granthas are known only to a class of temple archakas known > as > kurukkal. I interviewed one kurukkal a few days back and what he told me > shook > me. He said that he studied for five years in a patashala to learn > Agamas alone. > And also he told me that he had nothing to do with Vedas. Remember , the > archakas are also brahmins, who do trikala Sandhyavandanam with gayatri. > > > But the fact remains that Agamas only use Vedic mantras for most > rituals. n fact > they can be considered as the watered down version of Vedas. They have > segregated many Vedic Gods among themselves to form sects of their own. > All the > Vedic Kriyas like Achamanam, Arghyam, Padhyam, Proshanam etc were simply > adapted > to suit temple worship. In short Vedism was fully Yagnic and Agamas were > temple > based. Hence it can be safely concluded that the Agamas can be dated > after the > upanishadic and Mahabharatic period since no temple was mentioned in > these > texts. > > Incidentally the 'Indus Valley Civilization' - also called Indus > Saraswati > Civilization was also an Agamic Hindu culture where they worshipped > Shiva Linga. > Saiva sect can be called the oldest Agamic sect. Thammanna Chettiar, a > saiva > scholar and writer opines that the symbology of Lord Nataraja of > Chidambaram > came from the Indus Saraswati Civilization. The Dixitars are some > Kashmir > Saivites. > > > > These sects had the same Vedic varna system, the same Sanskrit language > and the > same Guru- Shishya parampara. Only in Agamas, the initiation was called > a > Dhiksha. This Dhiksha is mainly Tantrik. Agamas also adapt a diluted > Sandhya > Vandanam and Nama Japam. > > He further said that they are proficient in grantha and have written > examinations in grantha ! The only people allowed to do consecretion of > temples > are kurukkals and the only mantras chanted are Agama mantras. > > The Indonesian Hindus call themselves as Agamic Hindus. > > > Seasons change, lives are altered for whatever reason, and nature holds > above > our heads the promise and the threat of what may be and what will be. > The > present is really all we can count on with any certainty, and we are all > challenged to use that time effectively. > > - RVR > Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted December 31, 2008 Report Share Posted December 31, 2008 AGAMAS- WHICH SHAPED BHARAT- part 1Have you ever given a thought why the religious landscape of Bharat remainedalmost intact even after a thousand years of suppression by Muslim and Christianinvaders ? Do you think it was the power of Vedas , Upanishads and the Gita andour peopleÂ's knowledge in our fundamentals ? NOPE.. It was by the singularattachment of the lay Hindu towards HIS God, that we are still alive as heirs toHinduism.How did the common man develop so much attachment to his God, silently sufferingunder the brutal suppression of the worst enemies of Humanity then and now ? Itwas by the Agamas.I now present to you all a forgotten heredity of us all which has helped shapethe spiritual landscape of Bharat. The essence of this heredity are a series ofdivine scriptures. They are AGAMAS.When you propose to build a house, (especially in South India), the plot ischosen by its straightness, the length and width. They have to be in certainmeasure of feet. Then the direction of the site. Then the house plan. Speciallyhere, the location of the sump, the kitchen, the bedroom, the bathroom arefinalized only after consulting vasthu. Vasthu science was given to us by theAgamas.All the temple rites are given to us by the Agamas. Even your daily arathi andthe Murthis and photos you worship are given to us by the Agamas. In shorttemple worship was started by the Agamas only.Agama literally means coming down.Agamas were built into the society rather than accepted and studied. Such hasbeen their subtlety. For example, the adage , Â"do not reside in a village thathas no templeÂ" is a direct Agamic edict that is followed to this day by everyHindu without himself studying anything about it. The society itself is built upon such edicts.Have you ever wondered why you stand up in front of the deity with your palmsjoined and raised to the level of the chest in such a way that the lower jointof the thumbs point towards the solar plexus ? Also , why do we go around theprakara of the temple in a particular way ? Why do we adorn specific religioussymbols such as Vibhuti, kumkum , Chandan and Gobi on our foreheads ?The answers to all the above are in the Agamas .The three major sects of Hinduism have separate agamas. In fact each have many.Saiva sects have as many as twenty eight agamas( Tamil and kashmir sects).Vaishnava sects have two main agamas namely pancharatra and Vaikanasa. SimilarlySaktha sects have their own.The power of Agamas is so great that, though these sects treat the vedas withrespect, they do not consider the vedas to be their authority in their sect.Saiva Siddhantha people will resent if you thrust vedic thoughts on them. In the10 th century AD, Yamunacharya, the founder of Vaishnavism as a sect wrote atreatise explaining why Vedas do not matter for his sect.Agamas are self sufficient literature in that they cover the man's life fromcradle to grave. Even minute details such as brushing the teeth, selection ofsticks for brushing etc are given. If you ever see some rites in a funeral ,never laugh anymore. They are the direct links of the man and his antiqueforefathers.These agamas are principally in Sanskrit. The Tamil people developed the granthalipi for writing the Sanskrit Slokas and till today they are in Grantha form andnot in Devanagari !Today, the granthas are known only to a class of temple archakas known askurukkal. I interviewed one kurukkal a few days back and what he told me shookme. He said that he studied for five years in a patashala to learn Agamas alone.And also he told me that he had nothing to do with Vedas. Remember , thearchakas are also brahmins, who do trikala Sandhyavandanam with gayatri.But the fact remains that Agamas only use Vedic mantras for most rituals. n factthey can be considered as the watered down version of Vedas. They havesegregated many Vedic Gods among themselves to form sects of their own. All theVedic Kriyas like Achamanam, Arghyam, Padhyam, Proshanam etc were simply adaptedto suit temple worship. In short Vedism was fully Yagnic and Agamas were templebased. Hence it can be safely concluded that the Agamas can be dated after theupanishadic and Mahabharatic period since no temple was mentioned in thesetexts.Incidentally the 'Indus Valley Civilization' - also called Indus SaraswatiCivilization was also an Agamic Hindu culture where they worshipped Shiva Linga.Saiva sect can be called the oldest Agamic sect. Thammanna Chettiar, a saivascholar and writer opines that the symbology of Lord Nataraja of Chidambaramcame from the Indus Saraswati Civilization. The Dixitars are some KashmirSaivites.These sects had the same Vedic varna system, the same Sanskrit language and thesame Guru- Shishya parampara. Only in Agamas, the initiation was called aDhiksha. This Dhiksha is mainly Tantrik. Agamas also adapt a diluted SandhyaVandanam and Nama Japam.He further said that they are proficient in grantha and have writtenexaminations in grantha ! The only people allowed to do consecretion of templesare kurukkals and the only mantras chanted are Agama mantras.The Indonesian Hindus call themselves as Agamic Hindus.Seasons change, lives are altered for whatever reason, and nature holds aboveour heads the promise and the threat of what may be and what will be. Thepresent is really all we can count on with any certainty, and we are allchallenged to use that time effectively.- RVR Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted January 1, 2009 Report Share Posted January 1, 2009 Dear Shri Sreedhar Would much appreciate if you could provide some pointers around the AGAMA basis of Shri Durga idols facing NORTH and SHri Dakshinamurthi facing SOUTH. Also can we say that AGAMA Shastra is to temples as Vaastu Shastra is to homes/houses. Thanks Venkateshwar--- On Wed, 12/31/08, sreedhar.nambiar <sreedhar.nambiar wrote: sreedhar.nambiar <sreedhar.nambiar AGAMAS- WHICH SHAPED BHARAT Date: Wednesday, December 31, 2008, 1:24 AM AGAMAS- WHICH SHAPED BHARAT- part 1Have you ever given a thought why the religious landscape of Bharat remainedalmost intact even after a thousand years of suppression by Muslim and Christianinvaders ? Do you think it was the power of Vedas , Upanishads and the Gita andour peopleÂ's knowledge in our fundamentals ? NOPE.. It was by the singularattachment of the lay Hindu towards HIS God, that we are still alive as heirs toHinduism.How did the common man develop so much attachment to his God, silently sufferingunder the brutal suppression of the worst enemies of Humanity then and now ? Itwas by the Agamas.I now present to you all a forgotten heredity of us all which has helped shapethe spiritual landscape of Bharat. The essence of this heredity are a series ofdivine scriptures. They are AGAMAS.When you propose to build a house, (especially in South India), the plot ischosen by its straightness, the length and width. They have to be in certainmeasure of feet. Then the direction of the site. Then the house plan. Speciallyhere, the location of the sump, the kitchen, the bedroom, the bathroom arefinalized only after consulting vasthu. Vasthu science was given to us by theAgamas.All the temple rites are given to us by the Agamas. Even your daily arathi andthe Murthis and photos you worship are given to us by the Agamas. In shorttemple worship was started by the Agamas only.Agama literally means coming down.Agamas were built into the society rather than accepted and studied. Such hasbeen their subtlety. For example, the adage , Â"do not reside in a village thathas no templeÂ" is a direct Agamic edict that is followed to this day by everyHindu without himself studying anything about it. The society itself is built upon such edicts.Have you ever wondered why you stand up in front of the deity with your palmsjoined and raised to the level of the chest in such a way that the lower jointof the thumbs point towards the solar plexus ? Also , why do we go around theprakara of the temple in a particular way ? Why do we adorn specific religioussymbols such as Vibhuti, kumkum , Chandan and Gobi on our foreheads ?The answers to all the above are in the Agamas .The three major sects of Hinduism have separate agamas. In fact each have many.Saiva sects have as many as twenty eight agamas( Tamil and kashmir sects).Vaishnava sects have two main agamas namely pancharatra and Vaikanasa. SimilarlySaktha sects have their own.The power of Agamas is so great that, though these sects treat the vedas withrespect, they do not consider the vedas to be their authority in their sect.Saiva Siddhantha people will resent if you thrust vedic thoughts on them. In the10 th century AD, Yamunacharya, the founder of Vaishnavism as a sect wrote atreatise explaining why Vedas do not matter for his sect.Agamas are self sufficient literature in that they cover the man's life fromcradle to grave. Even minute details such as brushing the teeth, selection ofsticks for brushing etc are given. If you ever see some rites in a funeral ,never laugh anymore. They are the direct links of the man and his antiqueforefathers.These agamas are principally in Sanskrit. The Tamil people developed the granthalipi for writing the Sanskrit Slokas and till today they are in Grantha form andnot in Devanagari !Today, the granthas are known only to a class of temple archakas known askurukkal. I interviewed one kurukkal a few days back and what he told me shookme. He said that he studied for five years in a patashala to learn Agamas alone.And also he told me that he had nothing to do with Vedas. Remember , thearchakas are also brahmins, who do trikala Sandhyavandanam with gayatri.But the fact remains that Agamas only use Vedic mantras for most rituals. n factthey can be considered as the watered down version of Vedas. They havesegregated many Vedic Gods among themselves to form sects of their own. All theVedic Kriyas like Achamanam, Arghyam, Padhyam, Proshanam etc were simply adaptedto suit temple worship. In short Vedism was fully Yagnic and Agamas were templebased. Hence it can be safely concluded that the Agamas can be dated after theupanishadic and Mahabharatic period since no temple was mentioned in thesetexts.Incidentally the 'Indus Valley Civilization' - also called Indus SaraswatiCivilization was also an Agamic Hindu culture where they worshipped Shiva Linga.Saiva sect can be called the oldest Agamic sect. Thammanna Chettiar, a saivascholar and writer opines that the symbology of Lord Nataraja of Chidambaramcame from the Indus Saraswati Civilization. The Dixitars are some KashmirSaivites.These sects had the same Vedic varna system, the same Sanskrit language and thesame Guru- Shishya parampara. Only in Agamas, the initiation was called aDhiksha. This Dhiksha is mainly Tantrik. Agamas also adapt a diluted SandhyaVandanam and Nama Japam.He further said that they are proficient in grantha and have writtenexaminations in grantha ! The only people allowed to do consecretion of templesare kurukkals and the only mantras chanted are Agama mantras.The Indonesian Hindus call themselves as Agamic Hindus.Seasons change, lives are altered for whatever reason, and nature holds aboveour heads the promise and the threat of what may be and what will be. Thepresent is really all we can count on with any certainty, and we are allchallenged to use that time effectively.- RVR Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted January 1, 2009 Report Share Posted January 1, 2009 Dear Sreedharji, To my knowledge the idol of Durga is kept is to the East of the worshipper for day-time worship and the same is kept to the north of the worshipper for night-time worship. If the idol is worshipped both during the day and the night it is kept to the North of the worshipper. I am not aware if the practice of the Durga idol facing North is encouraged, even though being a principal deity the Mother Goddess Durga can be worshipped in any direction as is the case with the worship of Lord Vishnu and Lord Shiva, though the recommended direction in Shiva-pujan is that in which the Shivalinga is kept to the North of the worshipper. I shall be glad if any member can give more details on this. Regards, Sunil Kumar Bhattacharjya --- On Wed, 12/31/08, venkatesh krishnamoorthy <vkfree23 wrote: venkatesh krishnamoorthy <vkfree23 Re: AGAMAS- WHICH SHAPED BHARAT Wednesday, December 31, 2008, 8:12 PM Dear Shri Sreedhar Would much appreciate if you could provide some pointers around the AGAMA basis of Shri Durga idols facing NORTH and SHri Dakshinamurthi facing SOUTH. Also can we say that AGAMA Shastra is to temples as Vaastu Shastra is to homes/houses. Thanks Venkateshwar --- On Wed, 12/31/08, sreedhar.nambiar <sreedhar.nambiar@ > wrote: sreedhar.nambiar <sreedhar.nambiar@ > [ancient_indian_ astrology] AGAMAS- WHICH SHAPED BHARAT ancient_indian_ astrology Wednesday, December 31, 2008, 1:24 AM AGAMAS- WHICH SHAPED BHARAT- part 1 Have you ever given a thought why the religious landscape of Bharat remained almost intact even after a thousand years of suppression by Muslim and Christian invaders ? Do you think it was the power of Vedas , Upanishads and the Gita and our peopleÂ's knowledge in our fundamentals ? NOPE.. It was by the singular attachment of the lay Hindu towards HIS God, that we are still alive as heirs to Hinduism. How did the common man develop so much attachment to his God, silently suffering under the brutal suppression of the worst enemies of Humanity then and now ? It was by the Agamas. I now present to you all a forgotten heredity of us all which has helped shape the spiritual landscape of Bharat. The essence of this heredity are a series of divine scriptures. They are AGAMAS. When you propose to build a house, (especially in South India), the plot is chosen by its straightness, the length and width. They have to be in certain measure of feet. Then the direction of the site. Then the house plan. Specially here, the location of the sump, the kitchen, the bedroom, the bathroom are finalized only after consulting vasthu. Vasthu science was given to us by the Agamas. All the temple rites are given to us by the Agamas. Even your daily arathi and the Murthis and photos you worship are given to us by the Agamas. In short temple worship was started by the Agamas only. Agama literally means coming down. Agamas were built into the society rather than accepted and studied. Such has been their subtlety. For example, the adage ,  " do not reside in a village that has no temple " is a direct Agamic edict that is followed to this day by every Hindu without himself studying anything about it. The society itself is built up on such edicts. Have you ever wondered why you stand up in front of the deity with your palms joined and raised to the level of the chest in such a way that the lower joint of the thumbs point towards the solar plexus ? Also , why do we go around the prakara of the temple in a particular way ? Why do we adorn specific religious symbols such as Vibhuti, kumkum , Chandan and Gobi on our foreheads ? The answers to all the above are in the Agamas . The three major sects of Hinduism have separate agamas. In fact each have many. Saiva sects have as many as twenty eight agamas( Tamil and kashmir sects). Vaishnava sects have two main agamas namely pancharatra and Vaikanasa. Similarly Saktha sects have their own. The power of Agamas is so great that, though these sects treat the vedas with respect, they do not consider the vedas to be their authority in their sect. Saiva Siddhantha people will resent if you thrust vedic thoughts on them. In the 10 th century AD, Yamunacharya, the founder of Vaishnavism as a sect wrote a treatise explaining why Vedas do not matter for his sect. Agamas are self sufficient literature in that they cover the man's life from cradle to grave. Even minute details such as brushing the teeth, selection of sticks for brushing etc are given. If you ever see some rites in a funeral , never laugh anymore. They are the direct links of the man and his antique forefathers. These agamas are principally in Sanskrit. The Tamil people developed the grantha lipi for writing the Sanskrit Slokas and till today they are in Grantha form and not in Devanagari ! Today, the granthas are known only to a class of temple archakas known as kurukkal. I interviewed one kurukkal a few days back and what he told me shook me. He said that he studied for five years in a patashala to learn Agamas alone. And also he told me that he had nothing to do with Vedas. Remember , the archakas are also brahmins, who do trikala Sandhyavandanam with gayatri. But the fact remains that Agamas only use Vedic mantras for most rituals. n fact they can be considered as the watered down version of Vedas. They have segregated many Vedic Gods among themselves to form sects of their own. All the Vedic Kriyas like Achamanam, Arghyam, Padhyam, Proshanam etc were simply adapted to suit temple worship. In short Vedism was fully Yagnic and Agamas were temple based. Hence it can be safely concluded that the Agamas can be dated after the upanishadic and Mahabharatic period since no temple was mentioned in these texts. Incidentally the 'Indus Valley Civilization' - also called Indus Saraswati Civilization was also an Agamic Hindu culture where they worshipped Shiva Linga. Saiva sect can be called the oldest Agamic sect. Thammanna Chettiar, a saiva scholar and writer opines that the symbology of Lord Nataraja of Chidambaram came from the Indus Saraswati Civilization. The Dixitars are some Kashmir Saivites. These sects had the same Vedic varna system, the same Sanskrit language and the same Guru- Shishya parampara. Only in Agamas, the initiation was called a Dhiksha. This Dhiksha is mainly Tantrik. Agamas also adapt a diluted Sandhya Vandanam and Nama Japam. He further said that they are proficient in grantha and have written examinations in grantha ! The only people allowed to do consecretion of temples are kurukkals and the only mantras chanted are Agama mantras. The Indonesian Hindus call themselves as Agamic Hindus. Seasons change, lives are altered for whatever reason, and nature holds above our heads the promise and the threat of what may be and what will be. The present is really all we can count on with any certainty, and we are all challenged to use that time effectively. - RVR Messages in this topic (2) Reply (via web post) | Start a new topic Messages | Files | Photos | Database MARKETPLACE From kitchen basics to easy recipes - join the Group from Kraft Foods Change settings via the Web ( ID required) Change settings via email: Switch delivery to Daily Digest | Switch format to Traditional Visit Your Group | Terms of Use | Un Recent Activity 48 New Members Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted January 1, 2009 Report Share Posted January 1, 2009 Sir, Namaste. During Pooja, Japa, Meditation and for any kind of Satwik worship It is not important that which direction the God or Goddesses are facing: but which side the Sadhak has to face.East is always good. North ls also good and it will limp rove the wisdom. It is not advisable to face South for any good things.You can pray and worship towards South only at the time of Sraddha-Pitru Poojana. Pitru Loka is in South.The God is All pervading and Sarvathomukha, Sarvathap Pani Pada:. Devi Temple, Goddess facing South is Considered very powerful and immediately responding. Hari. Venkataraman --- On Thu, 1/1/09, Sunil Bhattacharjya <sunil_bhattacharjya wrote: Sunil Bhattacharjya <sunil_bhattacharjya Re: AGAMAS- WHICH SHAPED BHARAT Thursday, 1 January, 2009, 10:48 AM Dear Sreedharji,  To my knowledge the idol of Durga is kept is to the East of the worshipper for day-time worship and the same is kept to the north of the worshipper for night-time worship. If the idol is worshipped both during the day and the night it is kept to the North of the worshipper. I am not aware if the practice of the Durga idol facing North is encouraged, even though being a principal deity the Mother Goddess Durga can be worshipped in any direction as is the case with the worship of Lord Vishnu and Lord Shiva, though the recommended direction in Shiva-pujan is that in which the Shivalinga is kept to the North of the worshipper.  I shall be glad if any member can give more details on this.  Regards,  Sunil Kumar Bhattacharjya --- On Wed, 12/31/08, venkatesh krishnamoorthy <vkfree23 > wrote: venkatesh krishnamoorthy <vkfree23 > Re: [ancient_indian_ astrology] AGAMAS- WHICH SHAPED BHARAT ancient_indian_ astrology Wednesday, December 31, 2008, 8:12 PM Dear Shri Sreedhar  Would much appreciate if you could provide some pointers around the AGAMA basis of  Shri Durga idols facing NORTH and SHri Dakshinamurthi facing SOUTH.  Also can we say that AGAMA Shastra is to temples as Vaastu Shastra is to homes/houses.  Thanks Venkateshwar --- On Wed, 12/31/08, sreedhar.nambiar <sreedhar.nambiar@ > wrote: sreedhar.nambiar <sreedhar.nambiar@ > [ancient_indian_ astrology] AGAMAS- WHICH SHAPED BHARAT ancient_indian_ astrology Wednesday, December 31, 2008, 1:24 AM AGAMAS- WHICH SHAPED BHARAT- part 1 Have you ever given a thought why the religious landscape of Bharat remained almost intact even after a thousand years of suppression by Muslim and Christian invaders ? Do you think it was the power of Vedas , Upanishads and the Gita and our peopleÂ's knowledge in our fundamentals ? NOPE.. It was by the singular attachment of the lay Hindu towards HIS God, that we are still alive as heirs to Hinduism. How did the common man develop so much attachment to his God, silently suffering under the brutal suppression of the worst enemies of Humanity then and now ? It was by the Agamas. I now present to you all a forgotten heredity of us all which has helped shape the spiritual landscape of Bharat. The essence of this heredity are a series of divine scriptures. They are AGAMAS. When you propose to build a house, (especially in South India), the plot is chosen by its straightness, the length and width. They have to be in certain measure of feet. Then the direction of the site. Then the house plan. Specially here, the location of the sump, the kitchen, the bedroom, the bathroom are finalized only after consulting vasthu. Vasthu science was given to us by the Agamas. All the temple rites are given to us by the Agamas. Even your daily arathi and the Murthis and photos you worship are given to us by the Agamas. In short temple worship was started by the Agamas only. Agama literally means coming down. Agamas were built into the society rather than accepted and studied. Such has been their subtlety. For example, the adage ,  " do not reside in a village that has no temple " is a direct Agamic edict that is followed to this day by every Hindu without himself studying anything about it. The society itself is built up on such edicts. Have you ever wondered why you stand up in front of the deity with your palms joined and raised to the level of the chest in such a way that the lower joint of the thumbs point towards the solar plexus ? Also , why do we go around the prakara of the temple in a particular way ? Why do we adorn specific religious symbols such as Vibhuti, kumkum , Chandan and Gobi on our foreheads ? The answers to all the above are in the Agamas . The three major sects of Hinduism have separate agamas. In fact each have many. Saiva sects have as many as twenty eight agamas( Tamil and kashmir sects). Vaishnava sects have two main agamas namely pancharatra and Vaikanasa. Similarly Saktha sects have their own. The power of Agamas is so great that, though these sects treat the vedas with respect, they do not consider the vedas to be their authority in their sect. Saiva Siddhantha people will resent if you thrust vedic thoughts on them. In the 10 th century AD, Yamunacharya, the founder of Vaishnavism as a sect wrote a treatise explaining why Vedas do not matter for his sect. Agamas are self sufficient literature in that they cover the man's life from cradle to grave. Even minute details such as brushing the teeth, selection of sticks for brushing etc are given. If you ever see some rites in a funeral , never laugh anymore. They are the direct links of the man and his antique forefathers. These agamas are principally in Sanskrit. The Tamil people developed the grantha lipi for writing the Sanskrit Slokas and till today they are in Grantha form and not in Devanagari ! Today, the granthas are known only to a class of temple archakas known as kurukkal. I interviewed one kurukkal a few days back and what he told me shook me. He said that he studied for five years in a patashala to learn Agamas alone. And also he told me that he had nothing to do with Vedas. Remember , the archakas are also brahmins, who do trikala Sandhyavandanam with gayatri. But the fact remains that Agamas only use Vedic mantras for most rituals. n fact they can be considered as the watered down version of Vedas. They have segregated many Vedic Gods among themselves to form sects of their own. All the Vedic Kriyas like Achamanam, Arghyam, Padhyam, Proshanam etc were simply adapted to suit temple worship. In short Vedism was fully Yagnic and Agamas were temple based. Hence it can be safely concluded that the Agamas can be dated after the upanishadic and Mahabharatic period since no temple was mentioned in these texts. Incidentally the 'Indus Valley Civilization' - also called Indus Saraswati Civilization was also an Agamic Hindu culture where they worshipped Shiva Linga. Saiva sect can be called the oldest Agamic sect. Thammanna Chettiar, a saiva scholar and writer opines that the symbology of Lord Nataraja of Chidambaram came from the Indus Saraswati Civilization. The Dixitars are some Kashmir Saivites. These sects had the same Vedic varna system, the same Sanskrit language and the same Guru- Shishya parampara. Only in Agamas, the initiation was called a Dhiksha. This Dhiksha is mainly Tantrik. Agamas also adapt a diluted Sandhya Vandanam and Nama Japam. He further said that they are proficient in grantha and have written examinations in grantha ! The only people allowed to do consecretion of temples are kurukkals and the only mantras chanted are Agama mantras. The Indonesian Hindus call themselves as Agamic Hindus. Seasons change, lives are altered for whatever reason, and nature holds above our heads the promise and the threat of what may be and what will be. The present is really all we can count on with any certainty, and we are all challenged to use that time effectively. - RVR Messages in this topic (2) Reply (via web post) | Start a new topic Messages | Files | Photos | Database MARKETPLACE From kitchen basics to easy recipes - join the Group from Kraft Foods Change settings via the Web ( ID required) Change settings via email: Switch delivery to Daily Digest | Switch format to Traditional Visit Your Group | Terms of Use | Un Recent Activity  48 New Members Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted January 1, 2009 Report Share Posted January 1, 2009 Dear sunil ji and others The tantrika kriyas followed in kerala and tamilnadu is diffrnt i feel and also rest of india (pls others can correct me and giv us more clear explanations ) Kerala most of the temples having the shadadhara prathishta and directions etc decided by moorthy sankalpa ,so Ugra moorthi and soumya moorthi and male female Tatwa etc in considered .So i think in kerala most of this temples are either facing west ( so devotess is facing east ) or facing east i think . Tho was intitiated into stapatya vastu veda by brahmashri Kanipayur Narayanan namboothiripad ( then prof of Maharsi mahesh yogi University in vastu ) i cud not continue it as other obligations and family problems and the study needed us to visit various temples palaces and ancient townships -atleast some mini townships nearest to palaces ,also various villages like agraharams ( brahmin villages in south )( i think there is some 24 kind town ship mentioned in stapathya veda depends on location like desert ,mountain ,water bodies ,sea etc ) and submit our own study reports ,So the relation between vastu and planets is what some what i studied and cud not do much progress as the depth of subjuct is so vast . so other memebrs frm Kerala and tamilnadu also south can commnt on it as i am living far away frm south and now lost idea .So i hope others may come forward with their obseravations based on famous temples with devata sankalpa . regrds sreedhar Nambiar , Sunil Bhattacharjya <sunil_bhattacharjya wrote:>> Dear Sreedharji,> > To my knowledge the idol of Durga is kept is to the East of the worshipper for day-time worship and the same is kept to the north of the worshipper for night-time worship. If the idol is worshipped both during the day and the night it is kept to the North of the worshipper. I am not aware if the practice of the Durga idol facing North is encouraged, even though being a principal deity the Mother Goddess Durga can be worshipped in any direction as is the case with the worship of Lord Vishnu and Lord Shiva, though the recommended direction in Shiva-pujan is that in which the Shivalinga is kept to the North of the worshipper.> > I shall be glad if any member can give more details on this.> > Regards,> > Sunil Kumar Bhattacharjya> > --- On Wed, 12/31/08, venkatesh krishnamoorthy vkfree23 wrote:> > venkatesh krishnamoorthy vkfree23 Re: AGAMAS- WHICH SHAPED BHARAT> > Wednesday, December 31, 2008, 8:12 PM> > > > > > > > > > > > Dear Shri Sreedhar> > Would much appreciate if you could provide some pointers around the AGAMA basis of> > Shri Durga idols facing NORTH and SHri Dakshinamurthi facing SOUTH.> > Also can we say that AGAMA Shastra is to temples as Vaastu Shastra is to homes/houses.> > Thanks> Venkateshwar> > --- On Wed, 12/31/08, sreedhar.nambiar <sreedhar.nambiar@ > wrote:> > sreedhar.nambiar <sreedhar.nambiar@ >> [ancient_indian_ astrology] AGAMAS- WHICH SHAPED BHARAT> ancient_indian_ astrology> Wednesday, December 31, 2008, 1:24 AM> > > > > AGAMAS- WHICH SHAPED BHARAT- part 1> > Have you ever given a thought why the religious landscape of Bharat remained> almost intact even after a thousand years of suppression by Muslim and Christian> invaders ? Do you think it was the power of Vedas , Upanishads and the Gita and> our peopleÂ's knowledge in our fundamentals ? NOPE.. It was by the singular> attachment of the lay Hindu towards HIS God, that we are still alive as heirs to> Hinduism.> > How did the common man develop so much attachment to his God, silently suffering> under the brutal suppression of the worst enemies of Humanity then and now ? It> was by the Agamas.> > I now present to you all a forgotten heredity of us all which has helped shape> the spiritual landscape of Bharat. The essence of this heredity are a series of> divine scriptures. They are AGAMAS.> > When you propose to build a house, (especially in South India), the plot is> chosen by its straightness, the length and width. They have to be in certain> measure of feet. Then the direction of the site. Then the house plan. Specially> here, the location of the sump, the kitchen, the bedroom, the bathroom are> finalized only after consulting vasthu. Vasthu science was given to us by the> Agamas.> > All the temple rites are given to us by the Agamas. Even your daily arathi and> the Murthis and photos you worship are given to us by the Agamas. In short> temple worship was started by the Agamas only.> > Agama literally means coming down.> > Agamas were built into the society rather than accepted and studied. Such has> been their subtlety. For example, the adage , Â"do not reside in a village that> has no templeÂ" is a direct Agamic edict that is followed to this day by every> Hindu without himself studying anything about it. The society itself is built up> on such edicts.> > Have you ever wondered why you stand up in front of the deity with your palms> joined and raised to the level of the chest in such a way that the lower joint> of the thumbs point towards the solar plexus ? Also , why do we go around the> prakara of the temple in a particular way ? Why do we adorn specific religious> symbols such as Vibhuti, kumkum , Chandan and Gobi on our foreheads ?> > The answers to all the above are in the Agamas .> > The three major sects of Hinduism have separate agamas. In fact each have many.> Saiva sects have as many as twenty eight agamas( Tamil and kashmir sects).> Vaishnava sects have two main agamas namely pancharatra and Vaikanasa. Similarly> Saktha sects have their own.> > The power of Agamas is so great that, though these sects treat the vedas with> respect, they do not consider the vedas to be their authority in their sect.> Saiva Siddhantha people will resent if you thrust vedic thoughts on them. In the> 10 th century AD, Yamunacharya, the founder of Vaishnavism as a sect wrote a> treatise explaining why Vedas do not matter for his sect.> > Agamas are self sufficient literature in that they cover the man's life from> cradle to grave. Even minute details such as brushing the teeth, selection of> sticks for brushing etc are given. If you ever see some rites in a funeral ,> never laugh anymore. They are the direct links of the man and his antique> forefathers.> > These agamas are principally in Sanskrit. The Tamil people developed the grantha> lipi for writing the Sanskrit Slokas and till today they are in Grantha form and> not in Devanagari !> > > Today, the granthas are known only to a class of temple archakas known as> kurukkal. I interviewed one kurukkal a few days back and what he told me shook> me. He said that he studied for five years in a patashala to learn Agamas alone.> And also he told me that he had nothing to do with Vedas. Remember , the> archakas are also brahmins, who do trikala Sandhyavandanam with gayatri.> > > But the fact remains that Agamas only use Vedic mantras for most rituals. n fact> they can be considered as the watered down version of Vedas. They have> segregated many Vedic Gods among themselves to form sects of their own. All the> Vedic Kriyas like Achamanam, Arghyam, Padhyam, Proshanam etc were simply adapted> to suit temple worship. In short Vedism was fully Yagnic and Agamas were temple> based. Hence it can be safely concluded that the Agamas can be dated after the> upanishadic and Mahabharatic period since no temple was mentioned in these> texts.> > Incidentally the 'Indus Valley Civilization' - also called Indus Saraswati> Civilization was also an Agamic Hindu culture where they worshipped Shiva Linga.> Saiva sect can be called the oldest Agamic sect. Thammanna Chettiar, a saiva> scholar and writer opines that the symbology of Lord Nataraja of Chidambaram> came from the Indus Saraswati Civilization. The Dixitars are some Kashmir> Saivites.> > > > These sects had the same Vedic varna system, the same Sanskrit language and the> same Guru- Shishya parampara. Only in Agamas, the initiation was called a> Dhiksha. This Dhiksha is mainly Tantrik. Agamas also adapt a diluted Sandhya> Vandanam and Nama Japam.> > He further said that they are proficient in grantha and have written> examinations in grantha ! The only people allowed to do consecretion of temples> are kurukkals and the only mantras chanted are Agama mantras.> > The Indonesian Hindus call themselves as Agamic Hindus.> > > Seasons change, lives are altered for whatever reason, and nature holds above> our heads the promise and the threat of what may be and what will be. The> present is really all we can count on with any certainty, and we are all> challenged to use that time effectively.> > - RVR> > > > > > Messages in this topic (2) Reply (via web post) | Start a new topic> Messages | Files | Photos | Database> > MARKETPLACE> > > > From kitchen basics to easy recipes - join the Group from Kraft Foods> > Change settings via the Web ( ID required)> Change settings via email: Switch delivery to Daily Digest | Switch format to Traditional> Visit Your Group | Terms of Use | Un> > > > Recent Activity> > > 48> New Members> Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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