By Swami Harshananda
Śuddhi literally means ‘purification’.
Śuddhi Topics[edit]
Śuddhi or purification, which is more ceremonial than physical, is a very vast subject. It covers the topics such as:
- Aśauca[1]
- Purification of a person after contact with an impure object or on certain occurrences
- Purification of food, vessels, ponds and other things after they are polluted
Literature on Śuddhi[edit]
The literature on śuddhi is very extensive. Śuddhi has been categorized in several ways, for instance:
- Bāhya - external, like bath
- Āntara - internal, like purity of emotions
Other Features of Śuddhi[edit]
According to another classification, śuddhi comprises purity of body, of speech, of mind and of financial dealings. A third one states śuddhi consists in avoiding forbidden food in associating only with sinless persons and in firmly abiding by one’s svadharma.[2] However, all dharmaśāstra treatises stress the importance of mental purity.
Śuddhi as per Āpastamba Śrautasutras[edit]
The Āpastamba Śrautasutras[3] declares that the performer of the Pavitresti[4] purifies himself and ten generations of his family. Various expiatory rites[5] also purify a person who might have committed sins or evil deeds, knowingly or unknowingly. The word śuddhi has also been used for the process of re-conversion to the religion.
References[edit]
- The Concise Encyclopedia of Hinduism, Swami Harshananda, Ram Krishna Math, Bangalore