Devayajña
By Swami Harshananda and Vishal Agarwal
Devayajña literally means ‘sacrifice unto the gods’.
An awareness of one’s social responsibilities and the earnest attempts to repay one’s debts to the concerned persons, gradually evolved into the principle of ṛṇatraya (three debts) right from the birth. The same theory was conceptualized as an allied principle of pañcayajñas. They apply to all human beings and especially to the grhasthas or house-holders.
Devaṛṇa or the debt towards the gods like Indra and Varuṇa has to be paid back by devayajña[1] or offering of oblations ceremonially into the duly consecrated fire. Being sustained and pleased by such sacrificial offerings, these gods who have control over the elemental forces like rain or the growth of crops or granting worthy progeny, fulfill our desires. By thus mutually co-operating with each other both these gods and the human beings can live and prosper happily.
In the Bhagavad Gītā, Kṛṣṇa teaches:
- In ancient times, Prajāpati created humans together with yajñas and said, “By yajñas you shall procreate, let this yajña be the cow that fulfills your desires.” Gītā 3.10
- By this yajña, you shall sustain the deva-s, so that the deva-s sustain you. Sustaining one another, you shall obtain the supreme good. Gītā 3.11
- Sustained by the yajñas, the deva-s will give you the enjoyments that you desire. He who enjoys their gifts without giving to them in return is indeed a thief. Gītā 3.12
- The righteous, consuming what is left after the yajñas, are freed from all evil. But the wicked who cook only for themselves indeed eat only evil. Gītā 3.13
Elsewhere in the Mahābhārata it is said:
- Nakula said to Yudhiṣṭhira: The sinless Prajāpati created all creatures with the intent that “These will perform my worship by performing yajñas and give different types of priestly fee (dakṣiṇā).” Mahābhārata 12.12.20
- Nakula said to Yudhiṣṭhira: To enable the performance of yajñas, Prajāpati created different types of creepers and climbers, trees, herbs (and grains), sacrificial animals and other objects suitable as oblations in the altar. Mahābhārata 12.12.21
- Nakula said to Yudhiṣṭhira: These acts (yajñas) circumscribe householders within certain limits (of dharm). Therefore in this world, the dharm of a householder is the most difficult to perform, and to become eligible for. Mahābhārata 12.12.22
- Nakula said to Yudhiṣṭhira: The householder who does not perform yajñas despite being rich and having abundant grains and animals perpetually falls into an evil state. Mahābhārata 12.12.23
Agnihotra and Daily Offerings[edit]
Offerings are made to the deva-s in the fire altar, and Agni Deva, as their messenger, conveys the same to the deva-s in their subtle form. This ceremony is called the Agnihotra.
A mantra chanted while doing daily Agnihotra is:
- Asceticism, strength, reverence, shame, truth, wrath, forbearance, munificence, constancy, piety, resolution, voice, mind, ātmā, Brahman – in these I take refuge, may these help me. Bhūḥ, Bhuvaḥ, Svar, Om. In that great ātmā I take my refuge. Sāmaveda, Chāndogya Mantra-Brāhmaṇa 2.4.5
As stated above, not performing the daily Agnihotra begets evil karm:
- He who eats without offering oblations (to devatās), eats worms (so to speak). He who eats before feeding others, eats poison (so to speak). Vādhūla Smṛti 76
- Some feed on food, and some become the food of food. They alone are not eaten by food who offer a portion daily to deva-s etc. Dakṣa Smṛti 2.53
- The householder whose nature is to share his possessions, to forgive and show compassion and who is devoted to the deva-s and to atithis – such a householder is termed as dharmic (virtuous). Dakṣa Smṛti 2.54
Satiated with the daily worship, the deva-s keep the natural processes moving and send down rain etc., so that human beings can continue to survive, prosper, and flourish:
- An oblation duly thrown into the fire, reaches the sun; from the sun comes rain, from rain food, therefrom the living creatures derive their subsistence. Manusmṛti 3.76
In addition to the daily Agnihotra, there are periodic domestic yajñas that are also prescribed, but a detailed description of them is beyond the scope of the present compilation.
Modern Application of Devayajña[edit]
The Vedic yajña ceremony is performed only rarely by most Hindus, but several substitute practices have evolved in lieu. In modern times, we can perform the devayajña in alternate ways, some of which are listed below:
- Perform a pūjā every day, preferably with family members.
- Perform yajñas on important occasions like housewarming, weddings, births, and major festivals if they cannot be performed more regularly (e.g., weekly).
- Use whatever time is available to remember Bhagavān or one’s iṣṭa-devatā instead of listening to movie songs (e.g., while driving to work, cooking, etc.).
- Chant the names of Bhagavān (japa) while doing repetitive work like chopping vegetables.
References[edit]
- The Concise Encyclopedia of Hinduism, Swami Harshananda, Ram Krishna Math, Bangalore