The Maha Rudra Yagya

Description
Every yagya has as its fundamental purpose, the removal of obstacles to the development of material and spiritual fulfillment in the life of each individual. Each of the various deities for whom the yagyas are performed have their own role to play in this process; Lakshmi to grant material comforts, Narasimha for family harmony, Dhanvantri for health, etc. But in each person's life, there seems to always be some impediment to be destroyed so that light and success can enter. In that sense, every yagya includes the power of Shiva (in the form of Rudra, the Destroyer) because we are destroying what we don't want, in order to leave room for what we want.

This time of year is linked particularly to Shiva because his night; Shivaratri takes place at the end of the winter season. It signifies the end (destruction) of Winter to pave the way for the growth of Spring when light, warmth, and green replaces winter's cold grey darkness. The Maharudra Yagya is particularly powerful and effective at this time of year.

This yagya is called Maha Rudra because of its grand scale.  It requires 11 priests to chant a particularly long and powerful section of the Yajur Veda called Rudram, 11 times each day for 11 days. Rudram praises Shiva in all 11 of his various forms. (You can listen to Rudram by clicking here)

Each chanting of Rudram takes about 30 minutes while offerings of 11 different ingredients (milk, ghee, coconut water, sandalwood paste, vibhuti, rose water, Panchamritam, orange juice, lemon juice, yogurt and honey) are poured over the Shiva lingam. For the last recitation of Rudram each day, the homa fire is lit and the recitation is made while ghee and samhit are offered into the sacrificial fire. Finally, at the end of each day, another mantra hymn from Yajur Veda, called Chamakam, is recited. Chamakam is a request to Shiva to grant us every material and spiritual desire. (You can listen to Chamakam by clicking here)

In this yagya 11 priests are chanting Rudram 11 times for a total of 121 recitations each day. Since this yagya is repeated for 11 days, it brings the total number of recitations 1,331 plus 11 recitations of Chamakam. Is this significant? Yes, because all Vedic mantras used in traditional rituals rely on repetition for their power. The more repetitions of a mantra the greater the effect.

Cost and Details

This yagya will be performed in Kanchipuram a town about 1 hour south of Madras famous for its many temples and for the of the Shankaracharya Mutt. Within the city there are over 1,000 Shiva lingams (temples) all of which are given at least a small puja on Shivaratri. It is also one of 5 special sites for Shiva each dedicated to one of the 5 elements. This place is special for the earth element. Kanchipuram is also sacred for the divine mother in the form of Kamakshi Devi; one of the 50 fundamental shakti temples in India.

The cost of this yagya is $101. Our total cost of the event is over $5,000; 11 priests for 5 hours each day for 11 days (a total of 605 priest-hours) plus facilities, supplies, food, etc.. With 50 participants (as we have had for past events) this is achievable without undue financial strain on anyone. We are compensating the priests at a rate of about $6 per hour which although quite modest for us, is both adequate and generous for them. In fact, our sponsorship of this event goes a long way toward supporting and preserving these wonderful Vedic traditions and the talented priests who have dedicated their lives to performing them.

Prasadam are the "remains of the yagya". Traditionally we send some ash from the homa fire because they are felt to contain the power of the yagya. In addition we have arranged for a day of the event to be video taped and (as we did last year), a video CD will be prepared and sent to each participant about a month after the event.

Please join us. It is rare that this yagya is performed on this scale even in India. Don't miss this great event!