Ashauch
Every question on the site tagged Ashauch, each answered from a timestamped source rather than a summary written from memory.
A state of ritual impurity, such as following a death or birth in the family, during which certain rites and recitations are restricted.
120 notes from our sourcesNotes from our sources
Mantra dosh from careless use of a siddha mantra: jhada given to a menstruating woman
The speaker says that once a mantra is siddha, most mistakes happen in the phase of using it, and these make it ineffective. His example: a man who has a siddha Hanuman Sabar Mantra gives a Jhada to a woman of his own family who is unwell, and she is menstruating at the time — then the mantra becomes ineffective and dosha-ridden, and the man himself incurs Dosha. He calls this one cause among many, says a mantra should be used only with full knowledge, and says that whenever such acts, knowing or unknowing, have reduced a mantra's capacity, the Holika-night restoration vidhan should be done.
Birth Ashaucha lasts five weeks, mantra awakening takes 27-108 recitations daily for 40 days, and Parad Shivling rules exceed most householders
Ashaucha after a birth in the family lasts five weeks; consecrated Kavachas can be worn directly with daily Bhairava Brahma Kavach recitation; awakening a mantra takes 27-108 daily recitations for 40 days; and Parad Shivling worship requires rigorous rules not easily kept by general householders.
Ancestral impurity from a daughter-in-law who breaks the lineage rules
The speaker's third cause is a son of the house marrying a woman — not necessarily a Muslim girl, he says, but any woman — who runs wholly against the kula tradition. His examples: meat is not eaten in your house and your Pitrs' seat and deities forbid it, yet she cannot live without it; she will not sweep and mop, will not do puja on time or at all, or ignores shuddhi and shauch (Ashauch); being very modern she does not observe menstruation and in that state touches the pitrs' seat, the deity images or enters the deity's place. This, he says, pains and impurifies the pitrs, who then bring suffering on the family — and it applies even if you yourself arranged the match.
What is the rule about food during these days?
Keep the arrangement of your meals well, he says, so that you do not have to eat any kind of niramish food — that is, so that you do not have to eat any non-sattvic food. If possible, give up garlic and onion too for these many days.
Yajnopavita wearers are asked what ingredients are in the soap and shampoo they bathe with
Since the subject of snan has come up, he says he will make it clear too, and takes those who wear a yajnopavita as the case. He asks by name: how many of you bathe with Dove soap? If you bathe with Dove soap, then just search on Google whether Dove soap is veg or non-veg and what ingredients have been mixed in it — you will find on good websites that non-vegetarian substances have been mixed, that yes, brother, the oil of meat has been used in it. Now tell me, he says: you wear a yajnopavita and you are bathing with Dove soap, Dove shampoo, or with Dettol — in Dettol too there is this.
A propaganda set for the decay of Hindus is being rubbed on the head daily
He says he will certainly make a separate video on this whole subject; it is a matter much to be thought over. You say, why is the fruit not obtained — this is the reason, he says, and this is the very reason many learned people forbid bathing with soap. Whether you accept it or not is your own wish; his subject is only to place the reality before you so that he and you may be saved from the harm being done. Where we try to avoid the touch of meat and the rest, that you cannot do it, in that very place it is being rubbed on your head daily. What fruit will that yajnopavita give you, what fruit will that rudraksha give you?
Search the product for vegan and not vegan, and look for the green mark
Whatever soap or shampoo you are going to use, search it once on YouTube and Google — vegan and not vegan, Dettol vegan and not vegan; it will come written there clearly, Google will not tell you wrongly, that yes, brother, this is proved, it is already written. And see that nowhere on all these soaps will you find that green mark applied. Whereas we know, he says, that the Himalaya company has kept this thing at some time; whatever the inner matter of it may be, there must be some standard rule — but on the maximum of their shampoos and the rest the green mark is applied, that is, no animal or meat of any kind has been used in it.
What is the consequence of bathing with such things and then sitting for japa?
Now know this, he says: if you are using such things and bathing, and after that you will sit and do japa, then somewhere or other, though we may have done it unknowingly, there is an ill effect, is there not — meat should not be touched, and we have bathed with it and are sitting with meat. It is an eye-opening subject, he says; it will blast in the mind, but you will not accept it, that is your wish; it was our duty to place it before you, and we had been thinking for a long time how to place it, so we are placing it. There will be discussion on this separately as well.
What is prescribed in place of soap?
This is why it has been said to bathe with ubtan, he says: that in seven days one should use seven kinds of ubtan — with besan, with haldi, with honey, with sugar; the same kind of niyam and vidhi as when we do the shodashopachara pujan of Bhagwan.
What goes wrong on the very first step of the Brihaspati puja?
So suppose you went to do the puja of Brihaspati Dev, and the very first thing you did that day was to go to bathe, and there you used such a soap — although on that day, on Brihaspativar, the use of soap and oil is also forbidden, that on Tuesday, Thursday and Saturday they should not be applied. But how much of this is to be accepted, he says; all this is treated as a matter of superstition.
What are the rules for japa of the Kamakhya kavach during rajaswala?
Those endowed with the Dus Mahavidya, he says, then have no dosha of rajaswala and the rest. And in the state of rajaswala, if you do japa of the Kamakhya kavach without sitting at the puja sthan — you are not to go to the puja sthan, not to touch the puja sthan, no lamp and so on — keep another complete asan and the rest of your own, sit comfortably in sukhasan where you have no difficulty, and you may do japa of the Kamakhya kavach. It will give the most divine effect. But it is not to be done going to the puja sthan, or by touching the vigraha and lighting a lamp. As for the raksha mala: any other mala should be taken off at that time and worn again later after becoming pure; and even if it is worn, then at that time you will have to give it a dugdha snan.
What if one has to travel during the Kumbh and purity of food cannot be kept?
Yes, he says: if according to desha, kaal and paristhiti you have to travel at the time of the Kumbh or at any parva-kaal, if your job is like that, then the purity of food and drink cannot be maintained. Do make the effort that purity be kept. Eat at good places where pure vegetarian food is available. Do make this effort. If there is no option then that is a different matter; but if an option is available, then eat as pure food as can be.
Can a big sadhana be done after a father's death, and until when not?
Asked by a listener whose father has passed away whether he can do no large sadhana, and until when, the speaker says: until the Holika Dahan takes place, after which in the new samvat you will again perform a new anushthan. Until then you can do as many recitations of the Shrimad Bhagavad Gita as possible — do the repetition of any one adhyaya; it will be very good.
Can a havan be done at home when a death in the family is less than a year old?
Asked by a listener whose grandfather-in-law has passed away less than a year ago whether no havan at all can be done at home, the speaker says that for a havan he too cannot say, because it is not known whether their varshiki has been done or not. But paath, deep, daan and the like can certainly be done.
Can Navratri and Ram Navami puja be done after a death in the family?
Asked by a listener whose relative died on a Navratri day in 2021 whether the Navratri and Ram Navami puja should be done or not, he says one should walk according to whatever the family directs, according to the elders of the house; or take counsel with the pandit ji of your own region. How near a relative they were — there are many things to be looked at — so take counsel once with a regional brahman who knows these subjects.
Can Navratri be done fully when a death in the family occurred less than a year ago?
Asked whether Navratri can be done completely when the mother-in-law's death took place in April 2022, the year is not complete and the father-in-law is not living, he says yes, it can be done. He also notes that for how to tell the negative effect of tantra in a house there are separate videos on the channel.
How long after a death in the family before sadhana may begin?
Asked how many days after the terahvin has ended one should begin some sadhana if a death has occurred in the family, the speaker answers: do it after a sava mahina. Do it only after forty-five days have passed — that is more excellent.
Can one join an anushthan after a death in the family?
Told that a listener's uncle passed away on the day of Dussehra, the speaker says: then you are in sutak now, are you not — how will you take part in the anushthan just now? Do not take part just now.
What if a sadhika's period comes during Navratri?
The speaker holds that the restriction is real and asks listeners to accept it rather than commit an offence by being led astray. Those who say on YouTube that nobody can stop a rajaswala woman from performing pujan, that she should do pujan, keep the Navratri vrat and do everything — brother, do it, he answers, but do it with a little of the niti and the niyam.
A rajaswala sadhika does not go to the puja place or touch the kalash, and performs no arti or pujan.
One should not go to the pujan place; one should not touch and so on. That you should go at that time and touch the kalash and the rest, perform arti, perform pujan — do not do all this. And if you do, the speaker says, the loss in it is yours alone; what is going to come of his saying it, it is your own wish.
What accusation was made against the teacher over restricting rajaswala women from puja?
That he forbids it because he is a man. At the time of the recent Chandra grahan, a sadhika who was rajaswala asked about it, although he had written everywhere that nothing is to be done in that state. The reply given was that he is a man, after all, and a man will never want a woman to advance — so by a so-called siddh sadhika he has been put in the category of such a man, who wants that women should not advance and forbids a rajaswala woman from japa in a Chandra grahan for that reason.
He is entirely clear about his own subject, and asks where such counsel against a rajaswala woman leads the woman who follows it.
That he is entirely clear about his own subject. If that person is telling someone that Rudransh ji wants that a woman should not advance, and so forbids a rajaswala woman from japa — then she is a woman who wishes your ruin as well, and is dragging his name along with it so that he may be defamed too. If you think that doing japa in the rajaswala state will get you fierce energy, then let whoever said it look for themselves at how their own life is dragging along.
What is a rajaswala sadhika actually to do in Navratri?
If you have become rajaswala from the very beginning of Navratri, keep the vrat — you absolutely can keep it — but eat the phalahar well, because at that time the body has need of it. Do not touch the Shri vigraha and so on. Do not go into the room made for the sthapana of the kalash and the pujan. At the time of arti you may stand outside the pujan room and watch the arti, and may sing the arti; but do not touch vessels of any kind, do not take the arti, and do not go near the arti.
What if a sadhika becomes rajaswala in the middle of an anushthan?
If you had begun the anushthan and became rajaswala in the middle, then even so complete your vrat. Do not give up keeping the vrat; stay with the phalahar. At that time the only rule will be that you are not to go and not to do anything.
The Kamakhya Kavach is japped on the bed, with no asana, no vessel and no coloured cloth.
The greatest of all, in any state, is the Kamakhya Kavach — the best for mothers, the speaker says. The anushthan you were doing seated on your asan near Bhagavati's kalash, near Bhagavati, do that japa in the rajaswala state seated on your own bed. No vessel is needed, no implement is needed, no asana is needed, the colour of the cloth has no importance. Your body is fully energy-filled: remember Bhagavati Kamakhya and do japa of the Kavach.
How should a sadhika regard it happening in Navratri?
She is not to become agitated. Know, the speaker says, that you have obtained a very great opportunity — that in Navratri you have become rajaswala. Only a little balance is to be kept, and the state of agitation that comes at that time is to be controlled. You are a sadhika; you can do it. This is not within the reach of ordinary people, whose mood swings make the whole house swing — leave them aside; he is speaking about a sadhika.
If someone's washing splashes you while doing japa at a ghat?
A listener writes from Dakshineshwar that he was doing japa in the Ganga and a man began washing his slipper and his clothes, and the splash of it fell on him. What dosha will attach to you, the speaker answers — it is hardly your offence. The one who did it, the dosha of that will attach to him.
Can hospital duty be done in Navratri where deaths occur?
A listener writes asking whether she can go to hospital duty in Navratri, where a patient's death occurs. She absolutely can go, the speaker answers — and tells her to perform the anushthan of the Kamakhya Kavach.
Another person who knows nothing may give the dhuni provided they are pure — not a mother who has just cleaned a child, unwashed and unchanged, claiming bhava.
Merely taking Batuk Bhairav ji's name is enough; if you have the whole paath by heart, do it while reciting. If there is some other person who knows nothing, tell them simply to become pure and give the dhuni. Do not show cleverness, he says, by claiming you will do it in bhava with an unwashed body. He gives the case directly: a mother with a year-old child who has passed stool and urine and whom she has cleaned, doing it without changing clothes, without bathing, without washing the hands — do not do that.
Do it with purity or do not do it: pride that asks why so much is required should decline the practice rather than invite ruin.
He says there is no need to grasp at it, and he addresses mothers particularly: do not take it up. If you have so much pride and arrogance that you ask why you should do so much, then do this favour to God and to yourself — do not do it. If you are to do it, do it with purity; if you are not to do it, then do not do all this and invite ruin.
Whoever's guruji says otherwise may follow him; the position here is only be pure and do it, or fold your hands.
Those whose gurujis say such things, he says, may listen to them and do as they say. Let them go where they will and take you where they will; it is no concern of his. His own position is clear: be pure and do it, or, if not pure, fold your hands.
A dhuna given on khair wood with an impure body gives an immediate effect at once, to woman and man alike.
If you feel you are wealthy and may do as you please, he says, then do not follow his manner at all — listen to someone else and do accordingly. Because if you give ahuti, that is dhuna, on khair wood and all these things with an impure body, then it will give you an immediate effect at once, whether you are a woman or a man.
Cleverness takes less than twenty-four hours to knock a person down — after which the blame is laid on the teaching, never on how it was done.
Cleverness, he says, will not take even twenty-four hours: you will be knocked down, and afterwards you will say that you did it because he told you to and this was your ruin. People say such things — my father came to such a state, my mother came to such a state — and, he retorts, who told you to do it that way? That part, he says, you will not tell.
Bathe, bring purity into the body, change the janeu if you wear one, and only then enter the mouth of the devatas.
Purify the body, bathe, bring purity into the body; if you wear the janeu, change the janeu; be pure, and then enter into the mouth of the devatas. Tantra is not a joke, he says. You do not go to see what your enemy's tantric sits and does, but you forget merely to be pure before giving the ahuti — and then you say you will offer it with bhava.
Brahmacharya at the time of the dhuna means only this: the body must be pure when it is given.
Whether the listener uses it in the deep or in the dhoop: when he performs the abhimantran he will be pure, and when he gives the dhuna also he must observe full brahmacharya. The meaning of observing brahmacharya, he explains, is only this — that at the time of giving the dhuna the body should be pure. Not from just any sort of body.
A prayoga is not a siddhi but the direct use of a thing, so one stays alert and keeps the deity pleased throughout.
You are not performing siddhi here, he says; you are making a direct use of a thing. In a prayoga one has to remain alert and has to keep the deity pleased. And if at any moment it should seem that yes, some offence has been committed by us — such as giving the dhuna with an impure body, having been carried away in bhava, saying "my love is pure, I am pure even in an impure body", and giving it —
Can one visit and worship at a temple on the way home from a hospital?
Why not, says the speaker — for an ordinary hospital visit there is no issue at all and pujan may be done. What should be avoided at that time is offering prasad and mala before them; and if the person was himself ill and is returning, he should bow with bhav from outside, not touch the vigrahas and not enter the garbhagriha, though he may go into the courtyard.
What is an ullanghan after a bandhan has been done?
He explains ullanghan as the crossing of the chaukhat that is so often spoken of: an enemy deliberately takes some negative thing, some abhakshya substance, and steps across your threshold with it, and all things are made impure by this; or blood and the like is thrown into the house.
When can pujan resume after a death in the family?
He tells Avadhesh ji that if the thirteenth has been done then do pujan; but see whether the barkhi has been done or not, and what the rule on your side is up to the barkhi. There are a great many places where people keep pujan-paath and mangalik work all closed until the barkhi has happened. Look at that and take the decision.
What if one is not in a pure state — can japa still be done with the pranav?
No, the speaker says: when that purity is not there, japa will not happen with the pranav. Mantra japa will not happen. If you are reciting some stotra, if you are reciting a sahasranama and something comes in the middle of it, if you are doing sabar — then that is a different matter.
What should be done for the mukti and shanti of a deceased relative?
Asked what to do for the mukti and shanti of an aunt who has passed away, the speaker says the vidhi vidhan that exists in the tradition should certainly be done, and along with that one should have the recitation of the Shrimad Bhagavad Gita performed. And if one is not able to have it performed, then oneself recite the seventh adhyaya for the whole period, as long as the sutak-patak is in force.
Can an anushthan be done when there has been a death in the kul?
He tells Snehal ji to first see what relation the person who died in the kul was to her, whether their barsi has been done, and what the custom of acceptance is in her kul. If you people have been relieved of the sutak and you have nothing to do with their annual rites, only then perform or have performed the anushthan; otherwise, if you have to observe a year's sutak now, or if the varshiki has not been done, then do not have it done at all.
How does sutak work in a very large joint family?
Asked by someone whose family is very large — about fifty, with a child being born in someone's house within seven generations all the time, so that the main household people observe a ten-day sutak and everyone else three days — he says yes, it does happen like that. In the seven-generation reckoning, only up to three generations is taken: that is, if it is you, then you will observe it up to your grandfather's brother; from the great-grandfather onward the rule becomes the three-day one.
What should someone do who has mrityu sutak till Bhai Dooj?
Asked what to do on Narak Chaturdashi by a person who has mrityu sutak in the kutumb until Bhai Dooj, he says: right now do the path only and only of the Shrimad Bhagavad Gita, or of the Gita of your own ishta aradhya. Do the naam japa of Bhagavan mentally. Only this much should you do now in sutak, and nothing else.
Does sutak attach when a sister has a baby?
No, Amit ji, he says: she has had kanyadan done, the panigrahan sanskar happened; she has become the Lakshmi of their house, she has departed from your house. So when her child is born, or when a death happens at their house, its sutak does not attach at your place. But one condition should certainly be accepted, and it does happen: if a young woman is the only child of her parents, her marriage has taken place and she is in her sasural, then her husband bears her whole responsibility, and of his own in-laws too — then that whole rule will have to be observed by all the in-laws' side as well; the entire rule applies here too. Apart from this, if she has brothers and all, then this rule does not apply here.
Should the family celebrate Diwali when there has been a death?
Told of a death of a maternal uncle's son, on account of which the family is not keeping Diwali and not keeping the festival, he says: then leave it, do not take part in the anushthan this time. In such a way pujan too is happening for the maternal uncle's son, so do not stop the pujan of the devatas in Diwali; do not keep the festival. At least do the deepotsav in an ordinary way — kindle lamps at the chief places for the sake of the devatas. Do not burst crackers, do not decorate the house if it is very much a festival matter for you; but the pujan should not be abandoned, the pujan of Diwali too. Do the pujan of Diwali. The anushthan you may do in your own house. His own view is that this time you people should just leave it, if you are observing the rule to that extent.
How should a woman do the Kaal Bhairav Ashtak if there is a problem on that day?
Asked how to do the Kaal Bhairav Ashtak on the day of Kaal Bhairav Ashtami if a woman has that problem, the speaker says that if such a situation arises, you can have the pujan performed in your own name by someone else. Do not do it yourself.
Why is travelling with a deity treated as an offence?
When these aparadhs attach, he says, there will be much difficulty. In the train, bus or aeroplane in which you travel, in the place where you set them, there is no knowing who has brought a chicken into it, who has brought fish, who is bringing meat and such; of what level anyone's body is, what wrongdoing someone may be coming from whose body will touch that seat, who has sat there.
What rules should a household follow when a woman is rajaswala?
By that reckoning, he says, if a house had a mother-in-law and two or four daughters-in-law, the deities would have to be sent away forever. Since a rajaswala occurs every week where there are four or five women, where would the puja come from? His rules: let there be no touch from her; do the seva-puja without eating food from her hand, and if you are eating it then bathe, become pure and wear clean clothes; let nothing of the puja place be touched by her; do not use water or flowers given by her; if she is cooking, take the naivedya before Bhagavan but offer it from a distance rather than handing it over. And if you know how to show the matsya mudra and the vidhi of amritikaran, and know the full vidhi vidhan of pranayama, then the dosha is remedied as well.
Why is a rajaswala woman forbidden puja?
Some very great YouTubers have told on their channels, the speaker says, that if during Navratri a woman is doing sadhana and becomes rajaswala in the middle of the Navratri, then she may do the sadhana and no dosha attaches — that in earlier times people did this because there was the effect of impurity, whereas now there are many devices by which you can remain pure. This is entirely wrong, he says: no person can be a greater wicked and sinning one than those who tell such contemptible things by violating the maryadas of shastra. Maryada should never be violated.
What does the agni tattva do within a woman who becomes rajaswala?
Know what the cause is, the speaker says. When a woman becomes rajaswala, then Kamrup Kamakhya, who is the chief swaroop of Bhagavati, is the swaroop of the kamanas and the swaroop of agni. The quantity of agni tattva rises within a woman — he has said this before too — and the swaroop of the devas is itself connected with agni tattva. Now, a woman filled with agni tattva, who has herself become the very swaroop of shakti, and in an ordinary woman, on account of the predominance of agni tattva, becomes irritable — any woman will be very irritable at that time, anger will come, she will weep, she will be very emotional, that is, her ordinary level will be displaced. In such a condition, when she sits down to do pujan, maryadas will be violated.
What happens when a woman filled with agni tattva touches a deva vigraha?
The second thing is that a woman filled with agni tattva, touching a deva vigraha filled with agni tattva, performing pujan and the archan of flowers and the rest, or doing japa and smaran of their name seated at the puja place, will suffer distress from it — because agni will increase agni, and coolness will not be obtained at all, the speaker says. For this reason too it is forbidden. Secondly, if a lok shakti is present there, then the lok shakti at once moves away from that place: as with the Mohan Ram Baba someone asked about, if such shaktis are worshipped in someone's house and a rajaswala woman goes to their place, those things at once withdraw.
Is a rajaswala woman worshipped as the swaroop of Kamakhya in tantra?
People say that in the sequence of tantra a rajaswala woman has been held to be the swaroop of Kamakhya and her puja has been done, the speaker notes. Brother, its maryada is different, he answers — that pujan happens in a peeth. And in a peeth, in the karma pujan and the chakra pujan that take place, keep in mind that in every chakra pujan and in every saubhagya archan the entry of a rajaswala woman is forbidden. It is only in the Kamrup kshetra and in pujans of that kind — and not in every pujan even of Kamakhya.
How should a household treat a rajaswala woman?
The maryada of this thing should remain intact, the speaker says, and whenever a woman in the house is in such a condition, she should be given particular respect — every man should do it, and should take care of her. Somewhere, when she is gentle and content, if there is any woman-caused dosha in your birth kundali, that too is pacified by it. Therefore, somewhere, this was a very good rule made by our ancestors: that at such a time women would not cook food and the rest, and would rest, and the other people should do the work at that time.
What should someone do who cannot give up non-vegetarian food at once?
Try to give it up; keep it limited and let it go slowly. The rule is not that after the Dev Deeksha Vidhan you cannot eat it — but what you eat should be offered as Naivedya to your own Shraddha. If you do eat at home, keep the place of worship pure and at a distance, and do not go there without bathing.
Must a householder do Shiva's abhishek in Shravan even if he worships another deity?
You may worship any mahashakti — if you were doing japa of Bhagwan Datta's ekakshari, do that; if you were doing an anushthan of Bhairav ji, do that. But along with it Bhagwan Shiva's abhishek must certainly happen. If a householder does not perform Bhagwan Shiva's abhishek in the month of Savan, the speaker says, there is no more unfortunate creature in the whole world.
How does a woman complete a thirty-day Panchakshari sadhana across her period?
Asked how to complete thirty days if one becomes rajaswala during the Panchakshari sadhana, and what to do during the gap, he says the four or five days that will fall are no difficulty. In that time the rule that applies is the usual one — not to touch, not to do puja. You need not be troubled about the four days that are missed; a little less will be done, but nothing else needs doing. If you wish very much, you may extend the sadhana by four more days, and that will be even better.
Ganapatya, Saura, Shakta or Vaishnava — every sampradaya and panth must do the Shiva abhishek in Shravan
Just as it is said that whether you are Shaiva, Shakta, Vaishnava or of any sampradaya or panth, everyone should keep the Navratri vrat and do Bhagavati's puja, and everyone should go to the Kamakhya kshetra and the Vindhya kshetra for her darshan and pujan — in exactly the same way, in the month of Shravan, whether you are Ganapatya, Saura, Shakta or Vaishnava, you must certainly do the abhishek and shringar of Bhagwan Shiva's shivling. It must not be bypassed, and not even one day should be missed.
Can a nurse conduct deliveries while doing a sadhana?
A nurse asks whether it is true, as she has heard, that one cannot conduct deliveries for patients while in sadhana. Since your profession is itself of that kind, for service, do not be troubled by it, the speaker says — do that work. But purity is to be kept: you will have to bathe daily, and at the time of sadhana the hair too will have to be washed, day after day, and that is a somewhat difficult matter.
What should those who work among birth and death wear?
In such a circumstance you should certainly wear a kamar band, he says; the waist should not be kept empty. For people who work at a place of birth and death, the waist and the wrist of the hand — not everyone can wear something on the wrist, but the waist should absolutely not remain empty — and at the neck there should be a good strong kavach, of metal, of gold or silver, so that impurity does not attach to it.
How should the trishul be treated during sutak and patak?
Since sutak and patak are a matter of the body, the speaker says, do not touch it during sutak and patak; after it has passed, have them bathed with gomutra and gangajal, have darshan of camphor and the like given, have them touched, and always keep doing dhoop dhuna there daily.
When must the thread of a Bagla-Pratyangira kavach be changed?
Answering a listener, he says the rule made for Bagla-Pratyangira is in the matter of suchita: for Bagla-Pratyangira, in any kavach, only in suchita — particularly if sutak has attached — you have to change the thread. Ordinarily they may be worn always in this way and there is no need to remove them.
The rule was that touching the deity in an impure state incurs dosha
The caller said the guru lays down so many niti-niyam that it is not possible to walk by them. Asked which, he said: the guru tells you to bathe in the morning and do pujan-paath, which is fine, but then says that if you touch Bhagavan in an impure state, dosha attaches. The speaker replied that the guru ji had said a correct thing.
Change the clothes and wash hands and feet before the evening puja
The caller objected that there are small children in the house who do touch one, and if one passes mal or mutra it is not possible to bathe again before the evening puja. The speaker asked what great matter there is in that — change your clothes. He himself changes clothes if he does not bathe. Bathing two or three times is not possible for everyone, but there is at least this much of a rule before the evening pujan: wash your hands and feet, change your clothes.
Their argument is that Bhagavan is hungry for bhav and pushes no child of his away
The people of the other channels say, in his account: yes brother, Bhagavan is hungry for bhav, you too are his children, and since you do not push your own children away, why would he push you away — so touch Bhagavan just as you are, smeared in mal and mutra, no dosha will attach. It is an astonishing subject, he says, and people respond that guru ji has spoken rightly and they will follow him.
Japa with the child in the lap, or milk the child has touched, is not permitted
But it is not so, he says, that now there is a small child so you should sit holding him in your lap and do japa in that state, touch the mala in that state, do the aarti in that state, and if the child has put his hand in the milk offer that same milk to Shiva ji, asking what has happened. No, brother. That is wrong. If it is like that, then do not do it — do an ordinary pujan instead. He cannot inspire anyone to commit an apradh knowingly.
May one go to hospital during an anushthan?
Asked whether one may go to hospital during an anushthan if the trouble in the body is great, and what to do if the hand is cut and blood begins to flow after sitting on the asana, he answers: if such a state has come that you have to go to the hospital, then absolutely go — why stop it. If the hand is cut, then first cure it, take the tetanus injection and so on.
How is the vigraha bathed when one's hand is cut?
Have the snan of the Vigreh done by someone else, he says; or if it is cut very badly, then water should not touch it. So follow whichever option is available to you. Otherwise leave off the daily snan and merely sprinkle Gangajal.
It gives the common rules for ordinary householders, not for the Shakta and Kaul parampara
A video on Sutak-patak has been put out today, he says; everyone should listen to it, because this question comes again and again — what the rules will be for those who are jaswala, and what rules apply when someone's death or birth has occurred. He states the common rules there. Now nobody should comment that we are Shakta, we are Kaul, and that at the time of death and birth there is a vidhan of japa in the sutika griha itself: then that video is not for you, and you should certainly do japa according to your own parampara, in which there is no restriction. The rules discussed are those for ordinary grihasthas, so that no confusion remains and they can set their sadhana, asana and mala in order after sutak-patak.
What must be avoided toward women in these four days?
It should never be done at any time in life, but in these four days in particular, avoid insulting women and mothers. And if any woman becomes Rajaswala in that time, know her at that time as Bhagavati Kamakhya's very form. Serve her those four days, whatever your relation to her, and let no feeling of untouchability be in you.
What should a Rajaswala woman herself do in these days?
She should remain steady at one place, not walk about or move around much. Because those who use the Kshudra shaktis awaken them at this time, and if they somehow learn of a Rajaswala woman they become capable, very rapidly, of their most distinctive Tantra prayogas through her.
Should a woman insist on worshipping during her period in these days?
No — and the speaker names the insistence he is answering: I am Rajaswala, so what, I am a feminist, I am modern, I will go and worship, I will go to the temple, nobody can stop me. The worship performed at this time, he says, will become the cause of a ruin, a great ruin. Do not make that mistake at all.
What do recurring dreams of ritual impurity mean, and how are negative dreams cleared generally?
Frequently dreaming of ritual impurity (Ashauch) calls for the Ashwattha Stotra or one's deity's Sahasranama — more generally, drinking Naivedya water, reciting Ratri Suktam at bedtime, and burning camphor in the bedroom helps eliminate recurring negative dreams.
What must be done to a yantra or kavach after a sutak or patak?
Keep one thing in mind about that yantra, he says: whether it is a kavach, any kavach at all that you wear round your neck, or any yantra — after a sutak or patak has attached, have agni sparsh done without fail.
How long does a birth sutak last, and does it attach to the yantra?
Suppose a child is born in your house: the sutak of birth attaches, the shauch attaches. Until the chhathi is done, and in any case at least a paksha does not pass — ten days, twelve days, as it may be; ten days is taken as the norm — you will begin the pujan only after twelve or fifteen days. Sutak, he says, will not attach to the yantra and kavach as such; but since we are going to touch them, the purification here is really our own.
Is a patak treated differently from a sutak?
When a patak has fallen, when someone has died, then too after the purification the whole rule remains the same, except that at that time all the thread will certainly have to be changed. At that time take special care, he says, and try to change the thread of the japa mala too — that would be proper.
May a worn gemstone ring be put into the Kalash?
No. Once you have worn that gem or ring, then however much you wash it you cannot put it into the Kalash. Do not put it in. If it is new, put it in; if it is not, do not.
May soap and shampoo be used during Navratri?
Ordinarily the body's purification is to be done with water alone. Below the waist you may use a herbal shampoo or herbal soap for cleanliness, because many times the mind will not settle without it. Beyond that it is your own wish, or your Guru's order.
Should someone under Sutak keep the Navratri fast?
Where a Sutak has attached, there is no need to keep the fast. Follow the rule of the Sutak.
What should a sadhak keep in mind before travelling?
Asked what to keep in mind before undertaking travel, he says that if you are a sadhak there is already a separate video made about what things should be carried along and what should be done. Even so, if you are doing sadhana in a sattvik manner, then: first, if the yajnopavit has been done, let there be no lapse in the rules connected with the yajnopavit; you should have all your things separately, to take care of purity. Second, you should also pay attention to where you eat your food. Third, you should pay attention to the purity of the place where you will rest and sleep. And you should also keep in mind not to carry along on the journey any such thing on which the effect of chhoot-chhat may fall.
He offered namaz five times a day but bathed only on the day of Jumma
He offered namaz five times a day, but bathed on only one day — the day of Jumma. On the other days he would not bathe, but would still go all five times. Asked why he did not bathe when he went so often to God, he said that nothing of the kind applied, that it was so among them, and that there was no problem in it.
The kriya he had been taught required that he not bathe
When the matter was opened up, the speaker says, it emerged that he did not bathe because a special kind of kriya had been taught to him, which he used to sit and perform there — and that it does not work if one bathes. He says the kriya was so kshudra that anyone listening while eating would be unable to eat afterwards, and does not describe it.
How far is purity and impurity reckoned?
This is also why the subject of shuddhi and ashuddhi is reckoned only up to seven generations, he says. If seven pass, only then is one pure; if seven pass, only then is one impure — a matter listeners will have heard in the discourses of sants.
A viral sant claims a pig's touch in Vrindavan carries the merit of Ganga
He describes a viral video of a sant who was asked about pigs touching one during the Vrindavan parikrama, which makes one feel glani and impure, and who answered that even the pigs of Vrindavan touching you is as meritorious as Ganga. This, he says plainly, is not maryada.
Then those who say so should carry a pig on the head as Shiva carries Ganga in his jata
If that is so, he says, then by his reckoning all those who have made such statements should go about carrying a pig in their hands, since it has been compared with Ganga — and should say, we are going about carrying Ganga. Ganga is in Shiva ji's jata; let the baba ji too put a pig on his head and say there is Ganga in our jata as well, since it is Ganga in person, when you are making the comparison.
The ultimate harm is sandhya karma abandoned and the distinction of purity abolished
The harm, he says, is ultimately to Sanatan Dharma; people will have to undergo it. He calls these heads, and says their proceedings will ruin you in one way or another: they will have you deprived of sandhya karma, and will keep no distinction of pure and impure — whereas suchita and ashuchita, shuddhi and ashuddhi, have been discussed again and again, and how shuddhi is to occur, and that you are not to remain in ashuddhi. And there you are being told that if a pig touches you there is no difficulty, that it too is as holy as Ganga ji.
What is the proper reading of the saying that tirtha residents are divine?
There is a subject about the human beings of the tirthas, he grants — that the human beings of a tirtha are of that kind, are these in person, are that; all of it is fine. But if they begin doing wrong deeds, or are fallen into ashuchita and are drinking madira, he says, they are not carrying that much with them in the present time.
No one should wash another's undergarments, machine or no machine
If you do not wash your own clothes yourself and your mother is washing them — a washing machine is a separate matter, he grants — but as for what is washed by hand, and even in a washing machine, no one should wash another's undergarments. Each should wash his own with his own hand and keep his own things.
Does sutak apply to a distant branch of the family living away?
A listener asks whether pujan and path stop for thirteen days when sutak-patak has fallen in the family of his grandfather's other brother, four generations back, since they live outside and there is no coming and going. The speaker says that if there is no coming and going and no eating and drinking together, then so far as sutak is concerned there is no thirteen-day sutak — but a niyam should be made: at least the niyam of the first day, and all the niyam of the last day, the thirteenth day on which the dashkatar happens, should be made by you people too, if it is within your knowledge.
Can a new vrat be taken within a year of a death in the family?
A listener whose husband's grandfather died less than a year ago has already taken a sankalp of eleven vrats of Ma Lakshmi in the Shukla Paksha of every month and has completed three. The speaker says that when there was doubt, at that very time she should at least have asked whatever learned person or pandit ji was near — some purohit will be there in a nearby temple and would have told her; it is a very ordinary matter that no new vrat is to be done within the year. An old vrat that you have been doing — Pradosh, Ashtami, Ekadashi — will not stop, that will continue. It is simply that nobody is to do a new one. And now, he says, we will not get it stopped by saying so either: ask your own purohit ji about that.
What may a sadhika do during her period?
The speaker says that when a stri sadhika is in her period, at that time she will not perform any of this pujan. Some other member of the family will do it. If nobody else does it, then until she has washed her hair and become fully pure on the fifth day, she will not touch — she may certainly do pranam mentally, and no dosh will attach. If she washes her hair on the fourth day, then having washed the hair and become pure on the fourth day, the adhikar of pujan is not obtained on that day: on that day she becomes pure only for her husband, she may do seva for his sake or may touch him, but only on the fifth day is she authorised for dev pujan. Those who do not wish to accept this subject, for whom this is superstition and whatever else is running nowadays, may take their enjoyment — the subject was not for them. It is not my work to stop anyone, he says; we have spoken the actual subject, if you do not want to accept it then do not accept it.
Rules for wearing the pran-pratishthit guru sadhana mala
The speaker says that once the Mala is worn there is no separate niyam with it: no need to take it off or to keep it anywhere; wear it always, wherever one comes and goes, and keep no doubt of any kind in the mind. The one exception is a Rudraksha mala: at the time of shauch and the like it should be taken off; remove it when going for shauch, and after bathing do pujan and wear it again.
Can puja and paath be resumed during sutak and patak?
A listener says both sutak and patak have attached in his household — twenty-one days have passed for the sutak and eighteen days for the patak — and asks whether he may study the Shiv Puran in Shravan and restart puja and japa from Guru Purnima. The speaker says that if sutak and patak have attached and are not complete, then puja paath, dhoop, deep and the touching of the Shri vigrahas should be kept entirely prohibited; they should not be done.
What may be recited during sutak and patak?
What paath can be done? On reciting the Shiv Mahapuran the speaker says he will not speak with full certainty, but you may recite the Shiv Gita in this state. If you wish to recite the whole Shiv Mahapuran too, then you may, having become pure, without lighting dhoop or deep, keeping it on good cloth and on a good asana. But dhoop, deep and all of that are not to be done, and it is not to be done in the puja room or at the place of worship.
What must still be observed while reciting the Shiv Mahapuran?
Full care is to be taken of shauch and ashauch, the speaker says, keeping all these things in mind. In the Saptashati, if you are doing the complete paath in Sanskrit at one sitting, many kramas emerge; and in the Shiv Mahapuran too there is its own great deal of krama, but you may do the ordinary paath. You may recite one adhyaya each day, or you may do more than that too. Asked whether he gives deeksha, he answers: no.
What should be done with the kavach in sutak and patak?
At the time of sutak and patak the thread is to be changed, he says. If you have worn it in metal, in gold or in silver, then you can keep wearing it — there is no difficulty; you can wear it as you would a limb. If there is no purity in food, if there are difficulties of any kind in achar, vichar and vyavahar, if you have to go outside, if there are many kinds of dosha, then a little attention has to be given to these things. But if you do dharma-related work, then there is no matter of difficulty.
Should sutak be observed for a divorced cousin living in the same village?
Asked whether the sutak-patak of an uncle's divorced daughter, who had been living in her maike — that is, in the questioner's own village — for ten years should be observed or not, he says: absolutely it should be observed. If her death has occurred here, and she used to live in this very place, then her sutak will be observed with the whole subject, with the full niti and niyam. And for her sake it is you people yourselves who should do everything, for her gati.
How long is the sutak for the death of a cow?
On the matter of the questioner's cow, he says: observe a sutak of five days first. Count five days from the day on which the death occurred. He adds that a video will be made on sutak and patak.
What is the rule for a shivling at home during sutak?
To Bhajan ji he says: whether it is a Narmadeshwar or any shivling at home, it is not to be touched, but a lota of water is to be kept daily in such a vessel that they can be bathed daily. Only the bath is to be given; there is no need to touch the shivling. The shivling will remain at home even in the sutak period, and the rule of sutak applies to it: no shringar is to be done, no flowers or anything to be offered, but a silver bilva leaf and so on should be kept upon the shivling, and at the least Gangajal should be poured on them daily — even if you pour only five drops. Their daily bath should certainly be given.
How does a woman keep the Kamakhya Kavach through the monthly days?
This is why the speaker says anyone can do the Kamakhya Kavach. During the four or five days of Raj-darshan, without going to the place of worship, seated on her own bed, she may perform the japa — without any text or book, once she has learnt it by heart, and then repeat it.
Does the energy of one's japa decrease when guests who eat outside come home?
A listener asks: we eat pure sattvik food, but when other people come to our house, does the energy of our puja and japa decrease or not — that is, if people who eat and drink come to your house. Look, he says, if some person from outside comes having eaten and drunk, or some relative of yours comes having eaten and drunk, then keep in mind that the person should not enter your pujan sthan.
What should not be done to please a guest, and what should a guest do?
When he stays in that house after bathing and in a pure form — but to please him, saying that the son-in-law has come and so serving him fifty-six kinds of meat and fish, none of this should be done for anyone, however near and dear they may be. And whoever goes as a guest to someone's house should also have this rule, which is as per the shastra: that whatever tradition of sattvikta belongs to the house we are going to, we should live according to it; we are to eat as we are given, and whenever pujan-paath takes place there, we too are to fold our hands and make pranam to the devatas.
What is sparsh dosha, and how does it affect japa energy?
From that, if there is a dosha of sparsh and the like, then your japa energy and so on will be somewhat in that condition, he says. Only keep it in mind that the dosha of sparsh and the rest does not attach. The meaning of sparsh is: now your anushthan is running, and at that time some relative of yours has come, he has come after drinking, he has come after eating meat and fish and so on, and if he is going to make pranam to you — it is for this that it has been said that in an anushthan you should never have anyone make pranam to you, nor give a blessing.
Refuse it well — say instead that it is you who make pranam to them
You are not even to speak; refuse them, and refuse them nicely — no, no, babu, do not make pranam; you too make pranam, saying that it is I who make pranam to you.
A death has occurred in the extended family — should the household puja stop?
Motivation With Bhakti ji writes that her grandmother's brother-in-law has died, so puja-paath at home is stopped, and that she had made it a rule to give water to Surya Dev but the household people are forbidding it. Follow the rule that belongs to sutak-patak, he answers; the rule of sutak-patak should run in your house.
Can an anushthan be done when an aunt died a month ago?
If in the following moment the varshiki has been completed, and the matter of sutak does not apply in your household, then it can absolutely be done, the speaker says. If the varshiki has not been done and you had to observe the full thirteen days of sutak, then take the full information about the further matter according to your own custom, there, and only then decide whether it can be done or not.
When can the Sankat Nashan be begun after a death in the family?
Let the sava mahina of sutak be completed, the speaker says; after that you can do it.
Can the vrat and full pujan be kept when the varshi has not been done?
You may keep only the vrat, the speaker says; as for the full matter of pujan and paath — with Ekadashi and the like, even when the varshi has not been done, Ekadashi cannot be given up. If you keep the vrat of a tithi then you cannot abandon it; that you may do.
How does sutak at a birth belong to tantra?
When we take birth, sutak kaal falls first of all. If a child is born in a mool nakshatra — there are four or five nakshatras of the mool — then on the twenty-seventh day, what is called satiisa in common speech, when that nakshatra comes round again, the pujan of that nakshatra is done and only from there is the sutak kaal held to be concluded. That too, he says, is a subject of tantra.
What if someone performs abhichar on us during sutak or patak?
It is a very good question, he says, and a separate video on it has been made and awaits editing; still he gives a small answer. The very first thing: in ninety-five percent of cases abhichar karma does not run in the sutak and patak period. Ninety-five percent of it cannot be done. As for the five percent that does happen, how much brain has been applied behind it he will discuss separately.
What can be done if sutak and patak were not observed properly earlier?
A listener says that in the initial period he could not observe the sutak-patak observances and now wishes to complete them in the same manner, and asks whether he should just do panchang sevan. Yes, absolutely do it, the speaker says; do panchang sevan itself — you are quite a good sadhak.
Should a leather wallet or leather shoes be avoided?
In today's time, is this possible, he asks — for the people of earlier times it was possible. At present a shoe will mostly be found of leather only; sports shoes are one thing where you do not get all this in leather. So if it is possible for you, if you do not do that kind of work, then wear a shoe without leather; it will be very good. A purse without leather is available — keep that. But if you work in some factory or the like, a safety shoe is made of leather only, and there it will not be possible for you.
Why is a newborn not touched before the chhathi?
Because sutak is in force, he says; that is why there is a prohibition on touching the child before the chhathi has taken place.
May a Rajaswala woman perform mantra japa?
The speaker rejects it outright. A very well-known Tantrik on the podcasts claims that a woman may do japa even then, including of the Mahavidya mantras, and that no Shastra says otherwise. Many have already given the proof from the Parashara Smriti — the first day Brahmaghatini, the second Chandalini, the third of Raja.
What happens when a mantra is used on an impure body?
He says that doing it indirectly through the deity means that if the deity wills it, it will be set right in an instant, and if not, not — and you too remain protected while the other person at least gains some good. In trying to do him good you cause your own harm, and afterwards, when your own state goes wrong and you do a prayoga, nothing happens: this is the mantra becoming keelit. You do not know the physical or mental state of the woman seated before you, and you run the mantras straight upon her. At least you can ask. When a body is impure and mantras are used, the mantra goes fruitless and a dosha attaches to you — both mantra dosha and deva dosha attach.
May sweeping be done while a puja is going on?
Asked whether sweeping may be done while doing puja, since many pandits forbid it, he takes the question to mean that someone else is sweeping while you sit at puja — and in that case it absolutely should not be done. At the time of performing puja, sweeping, mopping, or giving anything to anyone in alms, all these things must remain stopped. So long as the puja runs, sweeping, mopping and bhiksha must not happen.
What else must be controlled for the Shiv pujan remedy to work?
You should also keep control over your food and drink and over your own thinking; only then will it work, and a 100% difference will be made.
May japa be done during sutak at Holi?
No — do not do japa during sutak at Holi.
What should women do who cannot do japa because of the monthly period?
He first tells the listeners to understand which things are tantrokta and which are vaidik, and to do nothing at all otherwise. Those mothers and sisters who will not be able to do japa and the rest on account of the masik dharma should do only the naam jap of their ishta aradhya; there is no need to do anything else.
What happens to a house's protective shaktis when a bali offering is made deliberately impure?
The shaktis will withdraw from it. Ordinarily put, it is a matter of making impure — because one would have to spread impurity deliberately. The shaktis will certainly withdraw. As for the Mahashaktis, he says, if you do the avahan of Hanuman ji then they will mount and be seated and the whole story will end — but this is wrong: you are making it impure.
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