| Rama Navami | |
 Images of Rama (center), with consort Sita and brother Laxman | |
| Observed by | Hinduism |
|---|---|
| Type | Birthday of Rama |
| Ends | Ninth day of Navami |
| Date | April |
| 2008 date | April 14 |
| Celebrations | 2 days |
| Observances | fast and feasting |
| Related to | Rama Sita |
Ram Navami (IAST Rāma-navamī) is a Hindu Vaishnava holiday which falls on the ninth day of the Hindu lunar year (thus named Chaitra Masa Suklapaksha Navami). Hinduism is a religious tradition that originated in the Indian subcontinent. Rama ( IAST: rāma Devanāgarī: राम Khmer: Phreah Ream Thai: Phra Ram Lao: Phra Lam Tagalog: Rama ( IAST: rāma Devanāgarī: राम Khmer: Phreah Ream Thai: Phra Ram Lao: Phra Lam Tagalog: SITA is a multinational Information technology company specialising in providing IT and telecommunication services to the Aviation industry The International Alphabet of Sanskrit Transliteration ( IAST) is a popular Transliteration scheme that allows a lossless Romanization of Indic A Hindu ( Devanagari: हिन्दू is an adherent of the philosophies and scriptures of Hinduism, a set of religious, Philosophical Vaishnavism is a tradition of Hinduism, distinguished from other schools by its worship of Vishnu or its associated avatars principally as Rama and The Hindu calendar used in ancient times has undergone many changes in the process of regionalization and today there are several regional Indian Calendars, as Ram Navami is the celebration of the birthday of Rama, a divine figure in Hinduism. Rama ( IAST: rāma Devanāgarī: राम Khmer: Phreah Ream Thai: Phra Ram Lao: Phra Lam Tagalog: Hinduism is a religious tradition that originated in the Indian subcontinent. [1]
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Hindu History
In the Ramayana, Dasarath, then king of Ayodhya, is believed to have had three wives named Kaushalya, Sumithra and Kaikeyi. The Rāmāyaṇa ( Devanāgarī: sa रामायण is an ancient Sanskrit epic attributed to the Hindu sage ( Maharishi) Valmiki Dasharatha ( Sanskrit: दशरथ IAST Daśaratha, Malay: Dasarata, Thai: Thotsarot) is the father of Ayodhya (अयोध्या IAST Ayodhyā) is an ancient city of India, the old capital of Awadh, in the Faizabad district Kaushalya ( Sanskrit: कौशल्या kauśalyā in the Hindu epic Rāmāyaṇa, was the eldest of King Daśaratha 's Sumitra ( Sanskrit: सुमित्रा( Ta:சுமித்ரா in the Hindu epic Ramayana, was the third of King Kaikeyi ( Sanskrit: कैकेयी Kaikeyī Malay: Kekayi Thai: Kaiyakesi in the Hindu epic Rāmāyaṇa, was the Their greatest worry was that they had no male children, and so they had no heir to the throne. Rishi Vasistha suggests him to perform Puthra Kamesti Yagna, through which he can have a desired child. A rishi (ṛṣi denotes a Vedic poet by whom Vedic hymns were composed or according to post-Vedic tradition a "sage" to whom they were "originally revealed" (Ṛṣis Vasistha ( Sanskrit: वसिष्ठ in Hindu mythology was one of the Saptarishis (Seven Great Sages Rishi) in the seventh i He also tells him to bring Maharshi Rushya Shrunga to perform this Yagna for him. Immmediately King Dasharath gives his consent, and heads to Maharshi Rushya Shrunga's ashram, to get him. Maharshi agrees and will accompany Dasharath to Ayodhya (Capital of Avadha) and performs the yagna. As the result of yagna, Yagneshwar appears and hands Dasarath a bowl of Payasam and asks him to give it to his wives. Dasharath gives one half of the payasam to his elder wife Kausalya, and another half to his younger wife Kaikeyi. They both give half of their portions to Sumithra. After few days all three Queens conceive. On the ninth day (Navami) of Chaithra Masa (first month in hindu calendar), at noon Kaushlya gives birth to Lord Sri Ram, Kaikeyi gives birth to Bharath, and Sumithra to twin boys, Lakshman and Shatrughan.
Lord Ram is the seventh incarnation of Lord Vishnu, who takes birth on earth when Adharma over rules Dharma. He protects all his devotees by vanquishing the roots of Adharma. Lord Ram was born on earth to destroy the demon named Ravan.
Celebration
Hindus normally perform Kalyanotsavam (marriage celebration) with small murtis of Rama and Sita in their houses, and at the end of the day the deity is taken to a procession on the streets. In Hinduism, a murti ( Devanagari: मूर्ति typically refers to an image a deity in which the Divine Spirit is expressed ( murta) Rama ( IAST: rāma Devanāgarī: राम Khmer: Phreah Ream Thai: Phra Ram Lao: Phra Lam Tagalog: SITA is a multinational Information technology company specialising in providing IT and telecommunication services to the Aviation industry See also List of deities A deity is a Postulated Preternatural or Supernatural Being, who is always A procession (via Middle English processioun, French procession, derived from Latin processio, itself from procedere, to go forth advance This day also marks the end of the nine-day utsavam called Chaitra Navaratri (Maharashtra) or Vasanthothsavam (Andhra Pradesh) (festival of Spring), which starts with Gudi Padwa (Maharashtra) or Ugadi (South India). Spring is one of the four Temperate Seasons Spring marks the transition from Winter into Summer. Gudhi Padwa (Devnagari गुढीपाडवा is celebrated on the first day of the Chaitra month and is celebrated as New Year's Day by Maharashtrians Ugadi ( Telugu: ఉగాది Kannada: ಯುಗಾದಿ - from ಯುಗ yuga, era + ಆದಿ ādi, beginning the start of an era is the According to recent astrological studies, some consider his year of birth to be January 10, 5114 B. Events 49 BC - Julius Caesar crosses the Rubicon, signaling the start of civil war. C [2][3]
Some highlights of this day include
- Kalyanam, a ceremonial wedding performed by temple priests
- Panakam, a sweet drink prepared on this day with jaggery and pepper. Jaggery (also Transliterated as jaggeree) is a traditional unrefined Sugar used throughout South and South East Asia Black pepper ( Piper nigrum) is a flowering Vine in the family Piperaceae, cultivated for its Fruit, which is usually dried
- Procession of murtis in the evening, accompanied by playing with water and colours. In Hinduism, a murti ( Devanagari: मूर्ति typically refers to an image a deity in which the Divine Spirit is expressed ( murta)
For the occasion, Hindus are supposed to fast, or restrict themselves to a specific diet. Temples are decorated and readings of the Ramayana take place. The Rāmāyaṇa ( Devanāgarī: sa रामायण is an ancient Sanskrit epic attributed to the Hindu sage ( Maharishi) Valmiki Along with Shri Ram, people also worship Sita, Rama's wife; Lakshman, Rama's brother; and Hanuman, an ardent devotee of Ram and the leader of Rama's army in battle. SITA is a multinational Information technology company specialising in providing IT and telecommunication services to the Aviation industry Lakshmana ( Sanskrit: लक्ष्मण IAST Lakṣmaṇa Malay: Laksmana Thai / Lao: Phra Lak was the brother and close companion Hanuman (हनुमत् sa-Latn '''Hanumat''' nominative singular sa हनुमान् sa-Latn ''Hanumān'' known also as ' Anjaneya' (son of Anjana is one of the
Sri-Rama Navami is dedicated to the memory of Lord Rama. It occurs on the ninth day, or navami. The festival commemorates the birth of Rama who is remembered for his prosperous and righteous reign.
A number of ISKCON temples introduced a more prominent celebration of the occasion of the holiday with the view of addressing needs of growing native Hindu congregation. The International Society for Krishna Consciousness ( ISKCON) also known as 'the Hare Krishna ' movement is one of several Vaishnava groups A Hindu ( Devanagari: हिन्दू is an adherent of the philosophies and scriptures of Hinduism, a set of religious, Philosophical It is however always was a notable calendar event on the traditional Gaurabda calendar with a specific additional requirement of fasting by devotees. Gaurabda is the name of moon calendar used by Gaudiya as part of the liturgy [4]
Ram Navami is shared with Swaminarayan Jayanti, the the birth of Bhagwan Swaminarayan, who was born in the village of Chhapaiya in the state of Uttar Pradesh. Bhagwan Swaminarayan was born on Chaitra sud Nom Vikram Samvat 1837 in Chhapaiya. Chhapaiya is a village in Northern India - the state of Uttar Pradesh - about 14 kilometers from the major city of Ayodhya. Uttar Pradesh (उत्तर प्रदेश اتر پردیش pronounced, Translation: Northern Province) referred to as '''U
Ramrajya
(the reign of Rama) has become synonymous with a period of peace and prosperity. Mahatma Gandhi also used this term to describe how, according to him, India should be after Independence.
Rama Navami occurs in the months of March and April. Celebrations begin with a prayer to the Sun early in the morning. At midday, when Lord Rama is supposed to have been born, a special prayer is performed. In northern India especially, an event that draws popular participation is the Rama Navami procession. The main attraction in this procession is a gaily decorated chariot in which four persons are dressed up as Rama, his brother Laxman, his queen Sita and his disciple Hanuman. The chariot is accompanied by several other persons dressed up in ancient costumes as work by Rama's solders. The procession is a gusty affair with the participants shouting praises echoing the happy days of Rama's reign.
On the face of it Sri-Ramnavmi appears to be just a festival commemorating the reign of a king who was later deified. But even behind present-day traditions there are clues which unmistakably point to the origin of Ramnavmi as lying beyond the Ramayana story.
Sri Rama Navami occurs at the beginning of summer when the sun has started moving nearer to the northern hemisphere. The Sun is considered to be the progenitor of Rama's dynasty which is called the Sun dynasty. This dynasty is famous for great kings like King Dileep, King Raghu and many others. In all King Raghu was noted to stand for his word. Following the foot prints of his great ancestor King Raghu, Lord Rama too went to jungles to keep the promises made by his father Dasarath to his step mother Kaikeyi. Hence Rama came to be known as Raghunatha, Raghupati, Raghavendra etc. That all these names begin with the prefix Raghu is also suggestive of some link with Sun-worship. The hour chosen for the observance of the lord's birth is that when the sun is overhead and is at its maximum brilliance. In some Hindu sects, prayers on Rama Navami day start not with an invocation to Rama but to Surya (sun). Again the syllable Ra is used in the word to describe the sun and brilliance in many languages. In Sanskrit, Ravi and Ravindra mean Sun.
Significantly, the ancient Egyptians termed the sun as Amon Ra or simply as "Ra. " In Latin the syllable Ra is used to connote light. For example, we have Radiance which emission of light, or Radium which means any substance emitting light or brilliance. The common element is the syllable Ra which in many languages is used to derive words for describing Sun or light.
The occurrence of this syllable in most names used for Rama along with other clues is strongly suggestive that the festival Rama Navami antedates the Ramayana and it must have originated much before the Ramayana, as a 'Sun-festival' for invoking the Sun who was recognized as the source of light and heat even in ancient times. Many royal dynasties portrayed symbols of virility like the Sun, Eagle, Lion etc. as their progenitor. Rama's dynasty considered themselves to have descended from the Sun. This could have led to the tagging on, of Rama's birthday to a festival devoted to the sun.
References and notes
- ^ Gupte, B. A. (1919). Hindu Holidays and Ceremonials.
- ^ [1]
- ^ [2]
- ^ Zaidman, N. (2000). "The Integration of Indian Immigrants to Temples Run by North Americans". Social Compass 47 (2): 205. “Another example of a religious enterprise initiated by a board member was the organization of Lord Ramachandra Appearance Day (Sri Ram Navami). ”
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