Talk:Gṛhasthāśrama:Aupāsana

By Sri Chandrasekharendra Saraswati Swami

Pāṇigrahaṇa, maṅgalyadhāraṇa, saptapadī and other vivāha rites are performed on the wedding day. *Aupāsana* begins with marriage and continues to be performed daily until one either renounces the world as a sannyāsin or until one's death. The sacred fire which bears witness to the marriage is preserved without extinguishment, and it is in this fire that aupāsana is performed daily.

The agni (sacred fire) occupies a central place in the Vaidika Dharma. During the brahmacarya stage, the student performs samidādhāna twice a day by offering samidh-s (sticks, usually from the *palāśa* or flame-of-the-forest tree) into the sacred fire. This practice ceases once he becomes a householder. In gṛhasthāśrama, various rites are to be conducted in the fire, and instead of samidādhāna, the householder now performs aupāsana.

The word *aupāsana* is derived from upāsanā, which in general usage means pūjā (worship), japa (chanting), or dhyāna (meditation). However, in the context of Vedic injunctions, *aupāsana* refers specifically to a ritual performed in the gṛhya-agni (domestic sacrificial fire) and is obligatory for all married Hindus.

Even members of the fourth varṇa (śūdra)—though they do not wear the sacred thread—undergo the vivāha-saṃskāra, and with it comes the duty of *aupāsana*. Dharmasāstra texts like the *Vaidyanātha Dīkṣitīyam* elaborate the procedures by which members of the fourth varṇa are to perform jātakarma, nāmakaraṇa, pūjā, śrāddha, and aparakarma (funeral rites). Unfortunately, reformists often overlook or suppress these details and falsely claim that the fourth varṇa has no rights in Vedic rituals.

Rather than denying these traditions, efforts must be made to revive and support them. *Aupāsana* is one of the daily dharmic duties enjoined even upon the fourth varṇa, to be performed with appropriate recitation of mantras and simple offerings in the domestic fire.