Chapter 32 - The Rite of Jyeṣṭha Pañcaka

[Sanskrit text for this chapter is available]

Jaimini said:

1. Henceforth I shall describe (the procedure) of visiting the deities facing South.^[1] In this the benefit of a horse-sacrifice is obtained at every step.

2. Therefore, the devotee should worship (the Lord) with different kinds of divine foodstuffs and offerings and services in accordance with his capacity as well as with scents and wreaths.

3-6. The devotee should worship Rāma, Kṛṣṇa and Subhadrā with various offerings and services such as songs, dances etc., and shows of various kinds accompanied by faith.

Excellent Brāhmaṇas should be honoured with garments, sandal-paste, wreaths, etc. Similarly the Brāhmaṇas, devotees and great Bhāgavatas (followers and devotees of the Lord) should be honoured.

Thereafter, those deities should be taken (in procession) facing the South. As in the previous case of Hari, a great festival should be celebrated. One who sees Hari proceeding ahead facing the South along with Subhadrā, is not an ordinary man.

7. Devas who come for (seeing) the ablution, remain in the sky crowding together even after the ablution of the Sire of the universe is over, in order to see Hari, the destroyer of worldly existence, facing the South and proceeding ahead.

8. A person who sees (the Lord) facing the South and proceeding ahead, attains (the benefit of) all those rites prescribed in treatises on Dharma.

9. He who sees the Lord, the enemy of Mura, proceeding ahead, facing the South after the ablution, obtains the entire merit accruing from seeing the ablution (itself).

10-11. After performing the rite of Nīrājana (i.e. waving of lights in front of the idol of God) to the Lord of Ramā along with Rāma and Bhadrā and making them enter the Mansion, no one shall see (the deities) at all. This has already been said in detail by me, O Brāhmaṇas.

The sages asked:

12. O holy Lord, O most excellent one among those who know, speak to us what you said (before) that one invariably attains the benefit by seeing the Jyeṣṭhāsnāna.

Jaimini said:

13. I shall narrate to you that holy rite called Jyeṣṭhapañcaka.^[2] Nothing greater than this has been spoken by sages who have mastered the scriptural texts.

14. This is the most excellent one among the Vratas mentioned in Śrutis, Smṛtis and Purāṇas. This has been proclaimed at the outset by Parameṣṭhin Brahmā.

15-17. Since it is the greatest of all important Vratas, it is well-known as Jyeṣṭhapañcaka.The ocean is the bestower of great benefit. The Lord is the bestower of great benefit.

The merit of seeing (the Lord) for a year is obtained from Mañcaka (Couch) alone. What is to be obtained from Mañcaka, one gets in Mahājyaiṣṭhi.^[3] What has been mentioned by me before, O Brāhmaṇas, as the benefit accruing from witnessing the holy ablution, one gets it entirely in Mahājyaiṣṭhī. There is no doubt about it.

The sages said:

18. Recount (to us) Mahājyaiṣṭhī where the holy bath yields great benefit. O holy Brāhmaṇa, our eagerness in regard to that is very great.

Jaimini said:

19-22. On the fifteenth day in the bright half (i.e. on the full-moon day) of the month of Jyeṣṭha, in conjunction with a Thursday as well as when the Moon and Jupiter occupy the same part of the constellation Jyeṣṭhā, when all these astronomical combinations are present, it is called Mahājyaiṣṭhī. It is destructive of all sins.

All the holy places, all the Tīrthas, the seven oceans, sacrifices, the group of great charitable gifts (Mahādānas), penances, the eighteen types of Vidyās (Lores), different kinds of holy rites, pious rites of Śānti (propitiatory rite to avert evil) and Pauṣṭika (a rite promoting welfare) and the Sāṃkhya and Yoga (systems of philosophy)—all these collectively go to the holy place Śrīpuruṣottama.

23-24. They as a group say to everyone of those who go to the holy spot: “To which one fortunate enough to witness the holy ablution in the month of Jyeṣṭha (shall we render services)? We shall enter the holy spot in the Mahājyaiṣṭhī, vying with one another.” During that great period of astronomical combination they go to the excellent holy place of the Lord.

25. Mahājyaiṣṭhī is extremely meritorious. It increases the pleasure of the Lord. By worshipping the Lord of Devas, the ocean of mercy, on that day and by seeing him bathed, one is liberated from the mass of sins (or the sheath of sins).

26. Henceforth, I shall recount to you the holy rite of Jyeṣṭha Pañcaka. So also I shall tell you the different benefits that can be obtained by observing this Vrata.

27. The devotee should perform austerities on the tenth day after taking his bath in accordance with the injunctions early in the morning. He should then choose a Vaiṣṇava, a leading Brāhmaṇa, as his preceptor.

28-31. In this excellent Vrata he should take a pure Saṃkalpa thus: “O Lord of Devas, O Lord of the universe, O Lord taking (the devotee) across the ocean of worldly existence, beginning from today and until that great Mahājyaiṣṭhī day, I shall observe the holy rites, O Keśava, for propitiating you.

The holy ablution shall be performed in all the Tīrthas. There shall be Vratas and feeding everyday. At least one of your five forms shall be worshipped each day, O Lord, in all the three Sandhyā-periods (i.e. morning, noon and dusk), O Holy Lord, let this holy observance successfully conclude by your favour.”

32. Thereafter, he should take his bath in the five Tīrthas and return home. On the ground he should draw the mystic diagram of an eight-petalled lotus along with the pericarp.

33-34. In its middle (of the pericarp) he should place a pot filled with waters from the Tīrthas. It must have fruits and sandal-paste in it. A copper vessel must be kept above it. There must be a pot filled with raw rice-grains. Round it a cloth should be wrapped. Place into it (the idol) of Lord Madhusūdana made of gold.

35-38. The limbs of the Lord should be auspicious and splendid. It must be calm and quiescent (in appearance). It should be accompanied by (the idol of) Śrī on the left. On the right, it must be accompanied by Garuḍa touching the Lord from behind. He holds in his hand the conch and the discus is held aloft. The Lord occupies a lotus-seat.

The devotee or his preceptor should worship the Lord with all offerings and services, O Brāhmaṇas. He should devoutly offer a garland of blue lotuses to the Lord. If the worship is performed thus on the tenth day, it is conducive to the destruction of ten crores of sins. With palms joined in reverence he should pray repeating this Mantra:

39. “O Lord of Devas, O slayer of Madhu, obeisance to you, O lover of Mādhavī. Protect me, O ocean of mercy, I have fallen into the ocean of worldly existence.”

40-41. On the eleventh day the devotee should worship Nārāyaṇa who has four arms, who holds the conch, the discus and the iron club, who is stationed in the lotus and is made of five gold coins or half thereof. He should worship the Lord with a garland of lotuses.

The Naivedya offered should consist of milk pudding, sugar and plantain fruit. After offering different kinds of Naivedya, the devotee should joyously pray:

42-43. “O Nārayaṇa, obeisance to you. O Lord taking (the devotees) across the ocean of worldly existence, save me, O lotus-eyed one, affectionate to those who seek refuge in you.”

The Lord who is worshipped shall destroy all that worst heap of sins committed with the eleven organs (mind and ten conative and cognitive organs) and accumulated in the course of births without any beginning.

44-47. On the twelfth day, the devotee should worship the Yajñavarāha made of gold. Sandal-paste, agallochum and camphor should be applied as unguent and a garland of Caṃpaka flowers should be offered.

After offering as Naivedya different types of sweet pies with cream, fresh butter and various other kinds of foodstuffs accompanied with fruits, the devotee should recite this verse of prayer:

“You lifted and held up the Earth sunk in the ocean of Deluge. Are you not powerful enough to lift me up? I have fallen at your lotus-like feet. Therefore, O Govinda, redeem me; I have sunk in the ocean of grief.”

A year consists of twelve months. The Lord who is worshipped on the twelfth day, destroys greater and lesser sins committed in the whole of the year as well as in the births prior to this.

48-51. On the thirteenth day the man should devoutly worship Pradyumna holding the conch, the discus and granting boons and immunity from fear (by the positions of the fingers) on the mystic diagram of the lotus. The replica shall be made of four gold coins. The offering and services should be as mentioned before. The garland should be brilliant, consisting of Aśoka and Pāṭalī flowers and fixed with pearls.

The Naivedya offered should consist of cooked rice and pleasant ripe fruits. After the Naivedya has been offered, the devotee should bow down and pray with palms joined in reverence. He should remain pure (in body and mind).

“O Lord Pradyumna, assuming the form of Kāma, O fulfiller of all desires, let our desires be fruitful, obeisance to you, O protector of desires”.

52-57. On the fourteenth day the devotee should worship Narasiṃha of golden features. He is brilliant with manes and is delighted by Lakṣmī stationed in the region of his chest. He has kept his mouth wide open and laughs boisterously. He is stationed on the mystic diagram of a lotus on the Yogic silk cloth^[4] (?). The Lord has sharp claws. He is the dispeller of all calamities. He has splendid characteristics and is made of four gold coins. As before, the devotee should, with great devotion, worship the Lord with all the offerings and services. Garlands of Japā flowers (China rose) and jasmine flowers should be offered and handfuls of flowers be strewn on the feet. The Lord shall then be prayed to as follows, after circumambulation and obeisance:

“Just as with a desire for the welfare of all the worlds you tore up Hiraṇyakaśipu, so also, on being worshipped, destroy the mass of my sins.”

After requesting Lord Narasiṃha thus and after prostrating on the ground like a staff, the devotee should conclude his Vrata lasting for five days. He should offer five lamps during the day and five during the night.

58-59. At the end of feeding, he should, with great sincerity and faith, give the Brāhmaṇas five pairs of clothes, five umbrellas, five pairs of footwear, along with sacred threads and five pots each with five fruits.

60-64. He shall propitiate Vāsudeva by keeping awake at night, singing songs and making various offerings or by reading the Purāṇas. In the morning of the full-moon day he should take his bath and go to Śrīkṛṣṇa.

The priest should worship Rāma, Kṛṣṇa and Subhadrā in accordance with the injunctions. He should get the ablution (of the Lord) duly performed and see the same. Then he should take his bath once again in the sea as prescribed in the scriptural texts and return home. He shall kindle the sacred fire in a place to the west of the spot where the images of Viṣṇu were worshipped within the pots with due recitation of the Mantras. He should kindle the fire there in accordance with the injunctions and then perform all the rites in that sacred fire with the respective Mantras.

65-69. The names should be uttered with Praṇava (Oṃ) prefixed and the dative case terminations suffixed and followed by the word namaḥ (obeisance)^[5]. The Mūlamantra of the deities shall be used with the word svāhā at the end during the rite of Homa. Keeping each of the deities in view, Homas should be performed with Caru, ghee, twigs of a banyan tree and of a Palāśa tree, separately. Afterwards, a hundred flowers should be used for Homa (to each of the deities the flower pertaining to it should be offered). After offering the Pūrṇāhuti the devotee should give monetary gifts to Brahmā (the Brāhmaṇa presiding over the sacrificial and other rites).

To the preceptor he should give gold and a cow. The horns (of the cow) should be covered with gold, the hoofs with silver and various other subsidiary things also should be given. Charitable gifts of very valuable clothes should be made, so that the preceptor is pleased. The devotee should give the idols with all the adjuncts.

70. The devotee should feed the Brāhmaṇas with milk puddings along with sugar-candy and ghee. This excellent Vrata is called Jyeṣṭhapañcaka.

71-74. By devoutly performing this holy rite a man obtains the benefit of witnessing the ablution. He obtains the same entirely, O Brāhmaṇas. There is no doubt about this. The Ekādaśī (Eleventh day) that falls in between is proclaimed as Nirjalā (‘Devoid of water’ i.e. even water is not drunk on that day). The fast observed on that day alone in accordance with the injunctions and with great devotion, is as good as fasts observed on all the Ekādaśīs during the whole of one’s life. By performing this great holy rite one shall obtain the benefit of all the Vratas. Whatever he may desire he shall attain certainly.

Footnotes and references:

[1]:

‘Dakṣìṇāmūrti’ are the three deities, viz. Jagannātha, Balabhadra and Subhādrā when they proceed to the South. See vv 5 ff. below.

[2]:

Jyeṣṭha Pañcaka: Name of a Vrata extending for five days from the 10th day in the bright half of Jyeṣṭha up to the full-moon day of Jyeṣṭha. The pun on Jyeṣṭha (in v 15) meaning ‘The Senior-most’ and the month of the same name is used for the glorification of the Vrata, The Vrata extends over five days and hence is called ‘Pañcaka’.

[3]:

Mahājyaiṣṭhī: See vv 19-22 below for the description of the Vrata. Also vv 26-70.

[4]:

Yoga Paṭṭa generally means ‘a cloth thrown over the back and knees of an ascetic during abstract meditation’ Here it is used in relation to Narasiṃha.

[5]:

It plainly means: oṃ (jagannāthāya, balabhadrāya or subhadrāyai) namaḥ and at the time of Homa ‘oṃ (Jagannāthāya etc.) svāhā”—these are to be uttered.