Sankranti - The Transition

O Learned and Devoted Servants of God,

Samkraanti is transition from worldly life represented by south hemisphere (Dakshinaayanam) of time, which is six months from July, 15^th to January, 15^th, in to spiritual life represented by north hemisphere (Uttaraayanam) of time, which is six months from January, 15^th to July, 15^th. It is said that one shall die in Uttaraayanam to get salvation. Ignorant people think that one shall die in the north six months to get salvation! Several great devotees died in the south six months and got perfect salvation. Hence, the north half year means spiritual life and the south half year means worldly life. This concludes that one shall die in spiritual life and not in the worldly life. At least, before death, one shall enter spiritual life. Bhishma was said to have waited up to the north six months to die, which was his misunderstanding of the concept in terms of time. He always misunderstood even Pravrutti by keeping silent when Draupadi was insulted in the court (blindly bound to his promise that he will not oppose the king) and also supported unjust Kauravaas in the war. But, in his last period of time, Krishna came to him and Bhishma died praying Krishna with full concentration and got salvation. Ignorant people misunderstand that Bhishma got salvation because he died after January,15th!

The Veda says that spiritual life and worldly life are far from each other directed towards opposite north and south poles (Duramete vipariite vishuuchii). Based on this, the north and south regions of space entered and based on the movement of earth around Sun (astronomical scriptures of Aryabhatta and Brahmagupta reveal clearly that earth moves around Sun and not vice-versa), time spans entered and all this is only a picture of representation. The earth is divided into two hemispheres:- 1) North hemisphere starting from Makara zodiac and ending with Mithuna zodiac covering north-east direction and 2) South semi-sphere starting from Karkaataka zodiac and ending with Dhanush zodiac covering south-west direction. In the north hemisphere, deities called Kubera, Shiva, Indra and Agni are covered, in which Kubera stands for Makara and Kumbha zodiacs owned by Saturn (north), Shiva stands for Miinam zodiac owned by Jupiter (north-east), Indra stands for Mesha and Vrushabha zodiacs (Mesha owned by Mars and Vrushabha owned by Venus in east) and Agni stands for Mithuna zodiac owned by Mercury (east-south). In the south hemisphere, deities called Yama, Nirruti (demon), Varuna and Vaayu are covered, in which Yama stands for Karkaataka and Simha zodiacs (Karkaatka owned by Moon and Simha owned by Sun in south), Nirruti stands for Kanyaa zodiac owned by Mercury (south-west), Varuna stands for Tulaa and Vrushchika zodiacs (Tulaa owned by Venus and Vrushchika owned by Mars) and Vaayu stands for Dhanush zodiac owned by Jupiter. You can understand this picture clearly by keeping a square of 12 zodiacs superimposed on circular earth as per the above description. The motion of self-rotating Earth around Sun makes the position of Sun in one zodiac for one month (ex:- Sun exists in Makara zodiac from January, 15^th to February, 15^th with which Uttaraayanam starts and Sun exists in Karkaataka zodiac from July, 15^th to August, 15^th with which Dakshinaayanam starts). All this picture can be easily understood with the help of the knowledge of Astronomy. Due to self-rotation of the earth (one day for one self-rotation) all the 12 zodiacs distribute the time of one day among them. The earth completes its rotation around Sun in one year so that Sun exists in one zodiac for one month. Based on the position of planets in zodiacs and distribution of 27 stars among 12 zodiacs, one can see all the zodiacs, 9 planets and 27 stars on the sky in the specified times based on the above astronomical picture. Astronomy is science dealing with inert physical planets, stars and zodiacs. Astrology comes under spiritual knowledge in which the deities of planets and stars are dealt with. These deities of planets are the executives of the cycle of deeds and fruits of all the souls. Mars in Astronomy means an inert planet in the sky. Mars in Astrology means the deity of the planet and deity is an energetic being with which some unimaginable powers of God merged to enable it to perform its duties. Some confuse Astronomy with Astrology! Rahu and Ketu are demons and swallow Sun and Moon due to anger and this is called eclipse since both Sun and Moon indicated to God Vishnu about the cheating of demon (single demon was cut to become two demons). This eclipse is between the deities of planets and not between the inert planets. The eclipse we see is Astronomical phenomenon and not Astrological. The swallowing of the deities of Sun and Moon by the deities of Rahu and Ketu (shadow planets) can’t be seen by us and energetic beings only see it. However, instructions like bathing and worshiping God on the day of the eclipse we see is good Arthavaada (lie told for a good purpose) and shall not be disturbed for the sake of beginners. By this explanation, both physical science and spiritual knowledge are not disturbed at all! The shadow formed on Sun and Moon through the physical eclipse we see, is considered as Rahu and Ketu, the shadow planets. This is a representing simile of the actual concept taking place between the deities of planets.

The word ‘Samkraanti’ is also used when Sun moves from Mithuna to Karkaataka. Movement of Sun in 12 zodiacs in one year is assumed relative motion only and not the absolute true motion, which is actually the motion of self-rotating earth (in one day one rotation is completed) around Sun. The movement of earth is superimposed on the Sun as assumed relative motion. The worldly life starts with Dakshinaayanam when Sun transits (assumed relative motion) from Mithuna zodiac owned by Mercury to Karkaataka zodiac owned by Moon. The business done with God (represented by Mithuna of Uttarayanam) changes to the worldly mind (owner of Karkaataka is Moon standing for mind) starting to believe that business shall be done by the own plans of mind for success and not to depend on God. Hence, the soul feels that business devotion involving the faith in God is not better than the materialistic business. This transition means development of atheism replacing theism. The next zodiac is Simha owned by Sun standing for intelligence. This develops analytical knowledge of science involving only creation and not creator. The next is Kanyaa owned by Mercury indicating the business done based on unethics aiming at profit only. The next is Tula owned by Venus indicating unethical illegal sexual affairs. The next is Vrushchika owned by Mars shows fights for unjust gains. The next is Dhanush owned by Jupiter involving the rituals done for benefits not based on God, but, based on the doctrine of action or karma (Puurvamiimaamsaa). From Karkaataka to Dhanush, Dakshinaayanam stands. Uttaraayanam stands from Marakara to Mithuna.

Makara Samkraanti (Sun relatively moving from Dhanush in to Makara) means transition from cool winter to hot summer. Coolness represents happiness and convenience in worldly life whereas heat represents misery and inconvenience in spiritual life. It is transition from worldly life to spiritual life. The path to hell is full of roses whereas the path to heaven and God is full of thorns. This represents strengthening Sunlight standing for knowledge that removes darkness-ignorance. On this day (January, 15^th), Sun moves (in relative sense) from the zodiac called Dhanush to the next zodiac called Makara. The Lord of Dhanush is Jupiter whereas the Lord of Makara is Saturn. Jupiter is related to the religious rituals done for benefits. Saturn is the Lord of spiritual knowledge (Jnaanakaaraka). This is transition from Pravrutti to Nivrutti. Jupiter representing justice means that the soul has reached a stage in Pravrutti in which absence of sins is completely achieved and following state of doing merits is also attained due to recognition of unimaginable God rewarding merits and punishing sins (this is original Puurvamiimaamsa of Jaimini accepting God). Saturn representing the knowledge means the detailed spiritual knowledge about God. The subsequent zodiac of Makara is Kumbha for which also Saturn is the Lord. In the whole cycle of 12 zodiacs, such continuity of the same Lordship does not exist anywhere. This means that the analysis of spiritual knowledge must be always continuous. From this day (January,15^th) for six months the time is treated to be very precious and holy called Uttaraayanam. People say that the ritual Upanayanam must be done only within this Uttaraayanam. Actually, Upanayanam means coming close to God and in this essential sense anytime is holy. The north-east corner zodiac indicating the place of God Shiva, Miinam, is also within this holy hemisphere. God Shiva is said to be the deity of spiritual knowledge (Jnaanam Maheshwaraat...). The Lord of Miinam is also Jupiter, which indicates that you have to work for the welfare of the world even during Nivrutti by preaching justice to world in Pravrutti. Jupiter is the deity of justice (Dharmakaaraka). Next comes Mars of Mesha representing fights, which have to be done for justice. Next comes Venus of Vrushabha representing legal sexual life, which has to be done for extending the humanity in the service of God. Next comes Mercury of Mithuna representing business devotion with God, which is inevitable in the beginning stage having the advantage that at least the existence of God is accepted. All this is explanation of Uttaraayanam.

In this way, you can find the same item having two different angles called Pravrutti (Dakshinaayanam) and Nivrutti (Uttaraayanam). Knowledge can be worldly as well as spiritual. Rituals can be for benefits as well as for worshiping God without aspiration for any fruit. Fights can be for justice as well as for injustice. Sex can be illegal as well as legal. Business can be unethical as well as ethical. Both these angles depend on the nature of the soul. The planets only represent the existing nature of the soul and do not induce the nature into soul! Clever people reverse this and say that the sin is done due to the influence of a bad planet. The truth is that the sin done by the soul is represented by the bad planet. Upanayanam and Gayatri mean becoming close to God by singing devotional songs. In this true sense Upanayanam can be done at any time. The representative models indicate the concepts and the model and concept are not physically related in anyway. Our three coloured flag represents the country-India and there is no trace of physical relationship between the flag and country. In the flag, the upper red colour is Rajas (creation), the middle white colour is Sattvam (ruling) and the lower blue (or green) colour is Tamas (destruction) representing Brahma, Vishnu and Shiva respectively. The three colours representing three qualities indicate a living being of public whereas the stick, cloth and colours are non-living inert items. This means that the model always represents the concept and has nothing to do with the concept in real sense. Once, in a speech, Shri Satya Sai told “This is finger and that is flower. With the help of this finger, you should see that flower. Once you have seen the flower, the finger is not necessary”. This means that the finger shall not be cut since you have seen the flower! The finger shall be respected by you since it helped you to see the flower. If the finger exists, it will help others also to see the flower. Before you saw the flower, finger was essential for you also to see the flower. Similarly, in the beginning stage, model is essential to realize the concept. In the advanced stage also, after seeing the flower, you should be grateful to respect the finger that helped you and which is going to help others in future. This is the reason for everybody saluting and respecting the National Flag. Hence, in the beginning stage divine statues and photos of God are essential to understand the existence of unimaginable God. Once the unimaginable God is understood and realized by identifying the contemporary human incarnation, the statues and photos are not necessary for such a realized devotee. Even such realized devotee must be grateful to statues and photos, which help others in similar beginning state. The human form of the statue indicates the form of the contemporary human incarnation to be searched by you (it means that human form is common between statue and human incarnation). In this angle, even a realized soul worships statues and photos with gratitude and to stand as an example for other beginners (Lokasamgrahamevaapi... —Gita). Representative models are only for the beginners and not for advanced scholars in spiritual knowledge. The rigid religious traditions succeed in the case of an ignorant beginner, but, fail in the case of a true scholar. Shankara told that the knife used to cut the vegetables fails to cut a stone (Shilaaprayukta kshuraadivat...)!

Any statue or photo is made of some material consisting of both inert energy and inert matter, which lack non-inert awareness. Every statue in the temple is already associated with life initiation (Praana pratishthaa). Even in house while worship of photos and statues is done, life initiation is done. But, life is not appearing in these inert objects! Hence, it means inert matter+ inert energy+ non-inert awareness are essential in the object (which is human being) and this is the message of the ritual called life initiation. By this, the devotee is advised to search for alive human incarnation, which is matter+energy +awareness (external medium)+ merged unimaginable God (through energetic incarnation). One must transit from inert matter and energy into non-inert awareness to approach human beings and then search for human incarnation. This is real transition or Samkraanti, which is leaving bad traditions and following good traditions including meaningless traditions also meant for beginners (for their encouragement).

There are three types of tradition:- 1) Good traditions established by sages followed by realized souls. 2) Meaningless traditions established by sages for the sake of beginners followed by even realized souls and 3) Bad traditions established by ignorant priests in latter period of time.

A good tradition is to perform every ritual by knowing the internal meanings of the Vedic hymns to improve spiritual knowledge and devotion to God. Upanayanam means becoming close to God and Gayatri means pleasing God through devotional songs. Sacrifice (Yajna or homa) means pacifying the hunger fire of a soul (human being or bird or animal) by offering food. The Veda Adhyayana means knowing the deep meanings of the Vedic hymns.

A bad tradition is like doing ritual blindly without understanding its background and without knowing even the meanings of the Vedic hymns. Upanayanam in real sense is not putting three threads and initiating the child into a Vedic hymn written in Gayatrii meter. Sacrifice does not mean burning ghee in physical fire and wasting food like milk in the name of worship while several hungry living beings die every day. God will be immensely pleased if hungry souls (issues of God) are fed. The Veda says that even a trace of food shall not be wasted even in the name of worship (Annam na parichakshiita). Ignorant priests burn a silk sari on the final Purnaahuti day in the worship of divine mother, who will be very much pleased if the same sari is given to a poor lady.

A meaningless tradition is for development of a beginner and not for a scholar. But, scholar also follows it for the sake of protecting faith in the beginners. Annual ritual for a departed soul on its date of departure is good because a deserving receiver fed and honoured with money and cloths is merit (Punyam) that protects the departed soul as well as the performer. This ritual can be done on any day and date of death is not necessary. But, sages have created certain lies (Arthavaada) so that a greedy person does this sacrifice on the death date of parents under the created impression that through feeding deserving priest the departed soul is fed! The departed soul is in energetic body and takes energy as food. But, this lie is created so that even an ignorant greedy person does this ritual with the fear that his parents will suffer with hunger if the priest is not fed on their death date! A true scholar knows the background truth, but, performs this ritual for the welfare of greedy persons! A scholar will not condemn a mother feeding her child by telling that Moon will come down if the child completes the food and the scholar supports this at least in the view of his own child!

These festivals are used to induce devotion to God in ordinary souls through worships. Festivals are specific times and holy places or specific places selected for the welfare of ordinary souls. A true scholar worships God always everywhere and such scholar is said to be in ‘Mahaavratam’ of Patanjali, which is beyond place and time. For ordinary souls, certain Arthavaadas are essential to attract their ignorant minds and hence, the truth in Arthavaadas shall not be revealed to them, which may damage their faith. Even a true scholar follows these Arthavaadas in the interest of beginners. But, if the true scholar (Jnaanii) violates these Arathavaadas occasionally due to certain special circumstances, such true scholar shall not be blamed by the ignorant priests. A saint shall not do the death rituals of his parents because he has crossed all the worldly bonds and also knows that any death ritual is only prayer to God to protect the departed soul. The ignorant priests objected saint Shankara to perform the death ritual of His mother and denied to give fire for it. The mother of Shankara has already gone to the abode of God directly without the need of any ritual (that is done for the body only and not for the soul). In anyway of cremation like burning, burying, drowning in water etc., the five elements of the dead body merge with the five cosmic gross elements only. There is also a tradition to leave the dead body in forest as food for birds and animals and in this way also the five elements of the dead body merge with the five cosmic gross elements only! Shankara being the incarnation of God Shiva burnt the body with the fire generated from His third eye!

In the case of Shankara the special situation was that His mother got a promise from Him that He will perform her funeral ritual before accepting His sainthood. Shankara promised her the same since He came down to the earth to propagate spiritual knowledge as a saint. In view of the importance of the program, He promised her about the same. Even an ordinary human being shall not break the promise given to any other human being and not to speak of mother. Hence, He performed her funeral ritual and this is not breaking the tradition because any ritual is only prayer to God to protect the departed soul and anybody can do it even for an unknown person.

The Gita says that the background knowledge of a traditional ritual is more important than following it blindly (Shreyo hi jnaanamabhyaasaat). Further, the Gita says that the attention by spiritual knowledge and devotion on God is more important than the background knowledge of a ritual because the essence of any ritual is only improvement of spiritual knowledge and devotion to God (jnaanaat dhyaanam vishishyate). At the end, the Gita says that service with sacrifice of the fruit of hard work is more important than mere theoretical knowledge and theoretical devotion and this is the final full stop (Dhyaanaat karmaphalatyaagah, tyaagaat shaanti ranantaram). The word ‘Shaanti’ in the Gita means full stop beyond which there is nothing remaining to be said.

★ ★ ★ ★ ★