Gṛhakarman

By Swami Harshananda

Gṛhakarman literally means ‘the act of building a house’.

Any householder is expected to build a house for himself and his family (if he can afford it) and is also expected to observe certain rules and regulations while doing so. Some of these observances are:

• A place where the earth is whitish in color and the ground is level is considered suitable to build a house.
• One should build a well in one's compound.
• The entrance of the house should not be in south-east and north-west directions. East, west and north directions are recommended
• One should start building house on certain auspicious months only like Vaiśākha (April/May) or Āṣāḍha (July/ August)
• One should not be build in the inauspicious months like Caitra (March/April) or Māgha (February/March)
• The wood with the following characteristics should be avoided:
  • Wood of a tree from which its milk is oozing out
  • Trees on which birds are living
  • Trees which have fallen to the ground or those which have been burnt
  • Trees grown in the premises of temples
  • Trees in which deities or divine beings are believed to reside
  • Thorny trees

More details

More details have been provided in the texts relating to Vastuśastra as well as several different Purāṇas.

References

• The Concise Encyclopedia of Hinduism, Swami Harshananda, Ram Krishna Math, Bangalore

Contributors to this article

Krishna Maheshwari, Deval Sancheti

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