Beeshma Ashtami - The Nurturing of Chastity - Feb/13/2ØØØ
Beeshma, the son of Ganga Devi, was the valorous grand uncle of the Pandavas and the Kauravas.
The name Beeshma means one who kept a great vow. In the case of Beeshma, it was the vow of chastity
throught out his life. Beeshma was honored by the celestial Devas and Devatas with this name. He is a
symbol of chastity, an ideal that all of us must strive to emulate in this modern age of decadence.
Ashtami = the eighth
thithi.
Of the 24 or 25 Ashtami thithis each year, one is marked as Beeshma Ashtami, in honor of the great
Beeshma, the eighth son of Sri Ganga Devi and one of the Ashta (eight) Vasu beings.
Whether young or old, married or single, man or woman, each one of us must strive to
lead a chaste life, say the Siddhas. We must stick to the moral code and be of blemishless character.
Beeshma Ashtami is a day on which we can lay the foundation for leading a chaste life and gain the
moral strength that contributes to an untarnished existence.
There are many who are tormented by improper sexual desires.
There are many who are addicted to masturbation.
These people should realize that
by seeking the grace of Beeshma and by following the Beeshma Ashtami worship procedures,
one can put an end to improper sexual desires.
In this day and age, it's easy to go astray in life. Youth fall prey to debilitating addictions.
They succumb to masturbation. Young and old alike do not pay attention to the moral code.
In search of money and pleasure,
their mantra is "anything goes." The Siddhas warn us that this outlook quickly leads us to
spiritual downfall. To reform oneself from these moral afflictions, one must seek the grace of
the great Beeshma and perform the worship procedures that he taught us. He followed these worship
procedures to nurture and protect his chastity.
Chastity is not just for women. It's not just
for single people. Chastity is something which applies to young and old, married and single, man and woman.
Single people must subscribe to brahmacharya, the vow of chastity; they should not entertain
sexual desires. Married people may entertain sexual desires only towards their spouses.
Whether married or single, one must not fall prey to masturbation.
These are the rules of chastity that all of us must follow throughout our lives.
This is very important especially for those who seek spiritual upliftment.
Sri Beeshma never once strayed from his vow of chastity. He was able to achieve this lofty goal
by diligently following many pooja worship procedures. The Siddhas say that by seeking Beeshma's
grace and by performing these pooja procedures under the guidance of a Sathguru, we too can reach this goal.
There are many parents who worry that their children may deviate from the moral code.
They are concerned about character flaws.
They are worried about their kids getting involved in sex, drugs and violence.
The Siddhas say that these parents must neccesarily perform the Beeshma Ashtami worship procedures with their kids.
The Benefits of Beeshma Ashtami Worship
One of the most important facets of this worship is the Beeshma Tharpanam.
This is especially important for bramacharis (young boys). There's a common notion
that one should not do the tharpanam rite if one's parents are alive. This is completely
wrong, say the Siddhas. They point out that tharpanam is a part of the Sandhya Vandhanam
daily worship procedure, e.g., Adityam Tharpayami, Somam Tharpayami and so on.
Thus Beeshma tharpanam is very important, especially for young boys. Parents must
encourage their boys to perform Beeshma tharpanam on Beeshma Ashtami.
These boys whose parents are alive must perform
tharpanam in honor of Beeshma and in memory of their friends who had
passed away. This is social service in the spiritual dimension.
This worship will fortify their character. They will be blessed with good health
and will become famous in society.
Those boys whose parents have passed on should perform the tharpanam rites in honor of their parents on this day.
They should also feed the poor and help them out in any way they can. (It's important to remember that
the tharpanam rite must always be followed by feeding and serving the poor.)
These boys can seek physical and financial help from householders (grahasthas) in completing this worship procedure
and in serving the poor. Why should householders help out, you may ask.
Remember that a good life and spiritual upliftment go hand in hand with the accumulation of punniyam (good karma).
Now imagine how much punniyam one can accumulate by conducting the kumba abishekam
ceremony for a temple! Those householders who help young boys complete their Beeshma Ashtami worship
will accumulate the same amount of good karma, say the Siddhas.
Those who perform Beeshma tharpanam (as mentioned above) and who serve the poor on this day will
receive Beeshma's grace in full measure. When it's time for them to leave this world, their final
days will be peaceful. They will get the help of many during their old age.
Beeshma's Prescriptions
As the Siddhas pointed out earlier, Sri Beeshma ensure that his strict adherence to the vow of chastity
by performing many worship procedures including fire ceremonies (havan), vratham observances, thapas and pooja.
Modern youth, both male and female, succumb to sexual desires rather easily.
To prevent this, they must perform Gayatri Jaoam everyday.
This is one of the best ways of ensuring freedom from improper sexual desires.
The Siddhas say that if we should not become a slave to sexual desires,
we must perform Sandhya Vandhanam, Soorya Namaskar and Gayatri Japam everyday.
It's because we do not do this that we stray from the moral code.
If your kids do not do this, parents should perform Beeshma Tharpanam and
Beeshma Panchakam worship, say the Siddhas. This is one way in which parents
can contribute indirectly to the good character and chastity of their offspring.
(Beeshma Panchakam is a five day worship procedure that
must be done in the October - November timeframe. We'll discuss this in AUMzine at a later date.)
Sri Beeshma has given us solutions for many of today's problems.
The Siddhas point out five of these problems and the corresponding solutions below:
1. There are many who are addicted to looking at pictures of scantily clad women
This causes great agitation in their minds and results in serious physical and
mental imbalances. The Siddhas tell us that for physical and mental well being, the
three subsystems of the subtle nervous system, vaatha, pittha and kapha,
should be in balance. Sexual agitation causes serious imbalance in the pittha subsystem
and thus leads to grievous physical and bodily harm. Masturbation complicates the situation even further.
This problem is known as the Vanjitha problem.
What's Beeshma's solution to this problem?
Pay your respects to your sisters and offer them any help that you can.
If you do not have any sisters, help out poor, young girls in a totally selfless way.
2. Deceiving those who were affectionate towards you or behaving in such a way that
hurts their feelings is a sin too. Feelings of anger and revenge towards those who
were affectionate towards you but could not continue the relationship because of
other pressures is a sin too.
These fall under the category of Bandha problems.
What's Beeshma's solution to this problem?
Offer help and assistance to your cousin sisters and nieces in a totally selfless way.
3. Assuming someone likes you and behaving in inappropriate ways towards that person
can cause serious disturbances in that person's life.
Man deceiving woman and woman deceiving man are sins too.
These fall under the category of Kalpitha problems.
What's Beeshma's solution to this problem?
Offer help and assistance to women older than you in a totally selfless way.
4. Marrying a woman older than oneself or getting into a marriage where there's a
large difference in age between the two are problems too, say the Siddhas.
These fall under the category of Vandhoolaka problems.
These can lead to problems in the respiratory and nervous systems.
There's much frustration in these marriages.
What's Beeshma's solution to this problem?
The man who married an older woman should
offer selfless help and assistance to a couple whose age difference is at least ten years or more.
Moreover, they should visit the sacred Pazhamuthircholai temple in south India and offer help and assistance to
poor couples living nearby.
5. Marrying someone for the sake of money or other material reasons
and not for love and affection and without seeking the advice of elders
is known as the Pranakaala sin. There's generally no love in these
marriages.
What's Beeshma's solution to this problem?
First one should repent and seek forgiveness.
Then they should offer help and assistance to young girls in orphanages in a totally selfless way.
These are five of Beeshma's solutions to modern day problems.
Put these solutions to use in your life and share them with others too.
Meditate on Beeshma and request his grace. Perform Beeshma tharpanam
and help out the poor and the needy on a daily basis.
Those who do this can get rid of improper sexual desires totally.
Parents should perform these worship procedures with their children.
This is a simple way of reforming youths who have gone morally astray.
They will lead good lives by the grace of Beeshma, the Siddhas assure us.
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| Om Salutations to Arunachala |
| Om Salutations to Sri Beeshma |
| Om Salutations to Maha Guru Sri Agasthiar |
| Om Salutations to the Agasthiar Lineage |
| Om Salutations to the Siddhas |
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