Contents
1. Garbhadhan/Rutushanti
1.1 The objectives
A. To overcome any defects in the ovum and the foetus and to purify the womb.
2% of all physical and psychological problems are constituted by defects in the ovum and womb, half of them being physical and the other half psychological in nature. The table below gives the percentage of people in whom defects in the ovum are seen and the period when it occurs.
The time when the
defects in the ovum
and the foetus
become manifestEffects
%The time when the
defects in the ovum
and the foetus
become manifestEffects
%From conception
till the first
month75 7 to 8 months 1 1 to 2 months 5 8 to 9 months 1 2 to 3 months 3 From birth till the
first year of life1 3 to 4 months 2 1 to 5 years 2 4 to 5 months 2 5 to 10 years 2 5 to 6 months 2 10 to 20 years 2 6 to 7 months 1 Later 1 Total 100 B. The son born through this sanskar (rite) has the capacity to acquire the knowledge of Brahman (Brahmavidya).
1.2 The auspicious time (muhurt)
This sanskar is performed on the first sixteen nights after the first menses following marriage. This period is referred to as the rutu period (rutukal). Excluding the first four, eleventh and thirteenth nights, the remaining ten nights are considered suitable for this sanskar. According to some, the fourth day should also be included. It is said that one who wishes that a son be born to him should have intercourse with his wife on the days with an even number (4-6-8-10-12-14-16) and one who desires a daughter, on odd number days (5-7-9-11-15). The sanskar of Garbhadhan is forbidden on the fourth (chaturthi), sixth (shashthi), eighth (ashtami), fourteenth (chaturdashi), new moon (amavasya) and full moon (pournima) dates (tithis) of the Hindu lunar calendar. On any of the remaining dates and on Monday, Thursday and Friday and during the reign of the lunar asterisms Shravan, Rohini, Hasta, Anuradha, Svati, Revati, the three Uttaras and Shatataraka the ritual should be performed after assessing a good propitious moon (chandrabal). Everything in Prakruti changes with time. Only Brahman is steady. Accordingly the fertilization of the ovum, the birth of a son or daughter, etc. vary with time. Thus based on these rules the dates, days of the week and lunar asterisms favourable for the birth of a son or daughter have been decided.
1.3 The ritual
A. Partaking of the juice of ashvagandha or a sacred grass (durva): Chanting the mantra, the juice of ashvagandha or durva is instilled into the right nostril of one’s wife who is seated to one’s left. After that juice is swallowed she should take a sip of water from her palm (achaman). The right nostril comes under the perview of the Pingala nadi (channel). For most actions to be successful it is essential for the Pingala nadi to be operational. The juice of ashvagandha or durva facilitates its activation.
B. The main deity of Garbhadhan and marriage (Vivaha) is Prajapati.
C. Offering oti: After worship of the sun (Suryastavan), five married women (suvasinis) should offer oti along with fruit to the woman and should hand over a coconut placed on a pair of betel leaves to the husband. Thereafter offering obeisance to the deities and elders they should have their meals. The sun being a symbol of the tej (absolute fire) element is worshipped to impart radiance to the foetus. The womb lies in the lower abdominal cavity. Thus the practice of offering oti is followed so that conception occurs.
D. The ritual of intercourse: At night, clad in white clothing the woman should enter the bedroom and sitting on the bed decorated with flowers should eat betel leaves along with her spouse. Then she should lie down on the bed. The husband should place his hand on her navel and chanting the (Upasthasparsh) mantra commence the ritual of Garbhadhan. The mantra means : ‘May your vagina be made potent for conception and may The Lord bestow His grace upon you so that the foetus grows happily and does not abort before ten (lunar) months’. Uttering this he should touch her vagina (upastha) with three fingers. Then he should have intercourse with her and say, ‘I am endowing your ovum with my sperm’. Again he should chant a mantra which means ‘Just as the earth is impregnated by fire, Yahi by Indra and the directions bear the wind as their progeny , I too am impregnating you’. The ritual is finally complete when he touches her heart and then sips water from his palm (achaman). Touching the heart signifies love and affection.
2. Simantonnayan (Parting the wife’s hair)
2.1 The objectives and the auspicious moment (muhurt)
The word Simantonnayan is derived from two words simant (meaning the line of parting of hair) and unnayan (meaning combing hair from the sides to the top). Simantonnayan thus means parting the wife’s scalp hair, drawing the hair from the sides, upwards. As a result pleasant frequencies enter her body through the Sahasrar chakra and facilitate the proper growth of the foetus.
When performing a sanskar (rite) on the foetus in the womb, a flat earthen plate which represents the uterus is used.
‘Just as for Punsavan a lunar asterism with the masculine gender is necessary so also for Simantonnayan. If this sanskar is performed in a month with an even number preferably in the fourth month then it proves most beneficial. Punsavan is performed to conceive a male child while this rite is for the purification of the foetus. Just as having a son is important it is equally important that he should be born without deformities, good health and intelligence. For overall development of all organs of the foetus Simantonnayan is important during pregnancy.
2.2 The ritual
The offering of the sacrifice (yadnyaprasad) charged with the mantras of Simantonnayan, branches of trees like the holy fig tree (oudumbar) which bear plenty of fruit and also have medicinal value, porcupine spikes (since it procreates in large numbers), etc. are used by the man to part his wife’s hair. As a result of this sanskar which is performed with spiritual emotion (bhav), the latent divine consciousness (chaitanya) present in the pregnant woman has maximum effect on the foetus.’ (2)
Reference:
‘Sixteen Sanskars and some other rituals’, published by Sanatan Sanstha.
Shastra Ase Sangate. First edition, fifth reprint – October 94, Vedavani Publications, Kolhapur 416 010.
1. Pg. 137
2. Pg. 138
