Talk:Gṛhasthāśrama:A Day in the Life of a Brāhmaṇa
By Sri Chandrasekharendra Saraswati Swami
"How can any brāhmaṇa perform so many saṃskāras these days?" is perhaps a natural question. "What is the use of speaking about things that are not practicable?" Suppose I myself give two lists, the first containing the saṃskāras that are easy to perform these days and the second containing those that are not so easy. What will happen then? You will keep on adding items to the second from the first list and, eventually, I am afraid nothing will be left for you to perform. So, on your retirement at least, you must perform all the religious rites imposed on you as brāhmaṇas. You must not ask for an extension of service with your present employers nor look for a new job.
Let me now speak about a brāhmaṇa’s daily religious life according to the śāstras. It is indeed a harsh routine. A brāhmaṇa must get up five nāḍikās, or two hours, before sunrise. "Pañca-pañca uṣatkāle", so it is said. Pañca-pañca means five times five—pañca-pañca uṣatkāle denotes during the 25th nāḍikā. From sunset to sunrise is 30 nāḍikās. So a brāhmaṇa must rise during the 25th nāḍikā—from this time to sunrise is brahma muhūrta.
After getting up, he cleans his teeth, bathes in cold water and performs sandhyāvandana and japa. Next he goes through aupāsana and agnihotra. These rites come under devayajña, sacrifices to the gods. Next is brahmayajña, the daily study and chanting of the Vedas. As part of this rite there are some tarpaṇas or libations to be offered. (For people following certain sūtras these come later.) If daytime is divided into eight parts one part would have been over by now.
In the second part of the daytime, the brāhmaṇa must teach his disciples the Vedas—this is adhyāpana. Afterwards, he must gather flowers himself for the pūjā he is to perform. Since he is not expected to earn a salary—and if he does not own any land received as gift—he must beg for his food and also for the materials for the conduct of various sacrifices. The brāhmaṇa has the right to beg, but it is a restrictive right because it means that he can take only the minimum needed for the upkeep and what is required for the performance of the rituals. A considerable part of what he receives as gifts is to be paid as dakṣiṇā to the priests officiating at the sacrifices he performs.
Of the six "occupations" of the brāhmaṇa one is pratigraha or accepting gifts. Another is dāna, making donations to others. It is asked why brāhmaṇas alone have the right to receive gifts. The answer is that they are also enjoined to make gifts to others. Indeed, the brāhmaṇa accepts gifts for the purpose of the charity he himself has to render. This apart, he has also to make gifts during the rites to be mentioned next, atithya and bhūtayajña.
After the second part of the day and a portion of the third have been spent thus, the brāhmaṇa must bathe again and perform mādhyāhnika. Next he does pitṛ-tarpaṇa, that is, he offers libations to the fathers; and this rite is followed by homa and pūjā. In the latter rite he must dedicate to the deities all those objects that he perceives with his five senses (the five jñānendriyas). It must now be midday and the fourth part of the daytime will have been over and the brāhmaṇa must have completed the rites meant for the deities, the Vedas and the fathers.
Of the five great sacrifices or pañca-mahāyajñas, two remain—manuṣya-yajña or honouring and feeding the guests, and bhūta-yajña which includes bali to the creatures of the earth and feeding the poor (vaiśvadeva). Rice is offered in the sacrificial fire and also as bali (that is, without being placed in the fire). In bali, food is placed in different parts of the house to the chanting of mantras—food meant for outcastes, beggars, dogs, birds, etc. In the manuṣya-yajña, guests are entertained and it is also known as atithya. The brāhmaṇa has his mealtime only after going through these rites. Until then he must not take anything except perhaps some milk or buttermilk, but never coffee or any snacks. If he has any other sacrifices to conduct—pāka, havis or soma—his mealtime will be further delayed. If he has a śrāddha to perform also, he will have to eat later than usual. A śrāddha ceremony must be commenced only in the apara-ahna: I will tell you what it means.
Daytime, we have seen, is divided into eight parts. But it can also be divided into five, each of six nāḍikās. If the sun rises at 6, 6 to 8.24 is morning or prātaḥ-kāla; 8.24 to 10.48 is saṅgava-kāla; and 10.48 to 1.12 is mādhyāhnika. From 1.12 to 3.36 it is apara-ahna; and from 3.36 to 6 (or sunset) is sāyaṃ-kāla. (The time close to sunset is pradoṣa. Doṣa means night, the prefix pra meaning "pre" or "before". The English "pre" is derived from pra. Pradoṣa thus is the time before night.)
I said that the time for śrāddha is apara-ahna. Rites meant for the gods may be performed only after the completion of the śrāddha. After his meal, the brāhmaṇa must read the Purāṇas. Next he has the duty of teaching members of other castes their hereditary vocations, arts and crafts. He does not have a moment for rest or relaxation. For soon it will be time for his evening bath, sandhyāvandana, sacrifices and japa. Vaiśvadeva has to be performed at night also before the brāhmaṇa has his meal and retires to bed. On most nights he takes only light food consisting of fruits, milk, etc. On Ekādaśī he has to fast the whole day.
There is not a moment without work. It is clear that, if the brāhmaṇa created the śāstras, it is not because he wanted to live a life of ease and comfort. On the contrary, the śāstras impose on him a life of hardship and austerity, a life of utter physical and mental discipline.
Even today brāhmaṇas who work in offices or other establishments must try to live according to the śāstras. They must get up at 4 a.m. (brahma muhūrta), perform aupāsana, agnihotra, brahmayajña, etc., in the traditional manner. They may perform pūjā and mādhyāhnika during the saṅgava time (8.24 a.m. to 10.48 a.m.). Mādhyāhnika as the name suggests is a midday rite but, making allowances for present-day life, it may be performed during the saṅgava-kāla. In the evening too the rites may be gone through in the śāstric manner. As they say, if there is a will there is a way. On holidays it must be possible for a brāhmaṇa to perform all the rites expected of him.
Even those who are on the morning shift and have to rush to their places of work must perform the rites as best they can. In the evening the Gāyatrī-japa may be extended to compensate for non-performance in the morning. If it is morning shift for a week, will it not be mid-shift or night shift in the subsequent weeks? There could be adjustments made to suit these timings.
Brāhmaṇas must feel repentant if they fail to perform the rites they are duty-bound to perform. They must devote the years of their retirement to the pursuit of their dharma instead of feeling sorry for not going out to work. There are rare cases—perhaps one in a lākṣa—of people who have learned the Vedas during their retirement and lived the rest of their life according to the tenets of the śāstras.
The rites of our religion go back to a time when no other faith was prevalent. We must make every effort to ensure that they do not cease to be performed. They are not meant for our sake alone [as individuals] but for the welfare of all mankind.