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SriRangaSri List Archive: Message 00127 Feb 2003

 
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SrI:

Dear Devotees of SrIman NaarAyaNa :

Today , my friend , SrImAn Kannabiran of Massachusetts 
sent me an attachment on some open questions regarding
Saaligramam worship . He has translated the input of
SrI U.Ve. MahA VidwAn , MelpAkkam NarasimhAcchAr Swamy ,
an authority on Vaidhika anushtAnams . Swamy's Q&A
had appeared in Nrusimha PriyA issues dealing with
SishtAchAram .(I will be using the spelling of
SaaLigrAmam instead of SaaLagrAmam 

Here is SrIman KannapirAn's translations and I thank 
him for these valuable inputs. I have taken the liberty 
of editing the input by regrouping some answers
slightly. 

By the way , a rich set of web pages dedicated to 
solely to Saaligrama AarAdhanam , Moorthy lakshaNams 
will be released soon. SrIman Aditya is working with me 
on creation and enrichment of these home pages.

SrI MelpAkkam Swami's Inputs ( 1996 Vintage):

Q: How many SaaligrAmams should be kept at home 
for AarAdhanam as a minimum ?

A: One is allowed. Two should not be there According to 
SaasthrAs , three and other odd numbers are not allowed. 
Some elders are of the opinion that only three is not
allowed and all other odd numbers may be acceptable.
>From this , it appears that one should be happy with what
one has . ( It may be difficult to get a clear answer 
on this subject.There is a diversity of opinion).

If there are more than one SaaLigrAmams are there in a house,
One should not perform AarAdhanam for two SaaLigrAmams.
Odd number of SaaLigrAmams should not be worshipped.
If there are 2 SaaLigrAmams , perform complete AarAdhanam 
for one and just NaivEdhyam for the other until you get 
two more. If there are three, perofrm AarAdhanam for one
and naivEdhyam for the other two.

The Best way for those , who can not do AarAdhanam , 
it is good to get quaified. It is not recommended to remove 
the SaaLigrAmams from the house, where they have been worshipped by 
the elders for a long time. Removing these SaaLigrAmams may
result in loss of fortune and even lead to bad things. 
Some people exchnage for some SaaLigrAmams , which are known
to bring auspiciousness.

In case we can not do AarAdhanam , it is better to get some one 
in the house or outside to do the AarAdhanam. On those days, 
when there is asoucham , it is better to give the Moorthams 
to some one to perform AarAdhanam until the theettu or
asoucham is gone. On busy days, atleast present Asanam
and NaivEdhyam . NaivEdhAnam could be done by the same
person performing AarAdhanam or by the Mother or wife or
some one else in the house.When the ladies do NaivEdhyam ,
they should do it without touching the SaaLigrAmam.

A HOME SHOULD NOT BE WITHOUT SAALIGRAAMAM.

" GRAHAM SMASAANAM THAVA BHIMBHA VARJITHAM
BHoKTHAVYAMABAKSHYENA SAMAM HI THATH "

(Meaning ): Do Not eat in the House , which does not
have SaaLigrAma silA. 

( If some one has some idea of importing SaaLigramams 
for daily AarAdhanam, Please let me know. Ideally ,
it will be desirable to get dhAnam of the SaaLigrAmams.
Paadhukaa aarAdhanam is another alternative). 

SaasthrAs say that Bhagavath Saannidhyam is always there 
in SaaLigramam since it is Svayam Vyaktham (Self Manifested)
in SaaLigramams.

"na prathishtA vidhAthavyA na cha samprOkshaNthikam
Saalagrama silAyAsthu poojAlOpO na dhUshanam "

(meaning): Since Bhagavath Saannidhyam is already there 
in SaaLigrAmam , there is no need for consecration 
after an accident (dhOsham). Also, if there si a break in
the AarAdhanam , it is not a major consequence.

When SaaLigrAmam is damaged , one can still worship as long as 
the ChakrAs are still there. According to VarAha PurANam,

" SaalagrAma silA bagnA poojaneeyA sachakrakaa
kantithA spootithaa vaapi SaaLagrama silA subhaa:"

(Meaning ): When it is slightly damaged , broken or 
cracked , as long as the chakra is there , that SaaLigrAmam
can be worshipped and will continue to confer auspiciousness.
If the chakrA(s) are damaged ,then that SaaLigrAmam 
can be discarded. 

Q: Is vigraha AarAdhana allowed with SaaligrAma Moorthys? 
Is there a difference in AarAdhanam?

A. It is perfectly alright to perform AarAdhanam for 
both the Moorthys. Every temple and Mutt (where vigrahAs
are worshipped ) , AarAdhanam is performed for SaaligrAmams 
along with VigrahAs. There is howevewr a difference in
their AarAdhanams. In the Vigraha poojA , there is aavAhanam
of the deity. In the SaaLagrAma poojA , there is no aavahana 
manthrams except Saannidhya Yaachanam .

Q: Is it alright , if one does not perform daily AarAdhanam
to the SaaLigrAma Moorthams ?

A: It is not that there is no need for daily AarAdhanam
for SaaLigrAmam. Without doing AarAdhanam One can not eat.
SaaLigrAmam does not need PrANa prathishtai (Consecration)
since it is divine by nature. In the case of VigrahAs ,
which have had Prthishtai , there is a need for prAyascchittham,
if there is a break in AarAdhanam even for one day. In the case
of SaaLigrAmam(s) , there is no need for PrAyascchittham and one 
can continue the worship after asking for forgiveness (AparAdha
KshAmaNam) . That is what is taken as no need to do 
ThiruvArAdhanam. It is not acceptable to miss the daily
AarAdhanam.

Q: In olden days , elders were completely qualified to 
perform AarAdhanam. Today , there are homes in which people
do not or can not perform AarAdhanam . What are these people
supposed to do , if there are SaaLigrAmams in their houses 
fromm their elders? can they give away these Moorthams ? 
Can we worship SaaLigrAmams that are broken (dropped by
mistake and chipped off )? Some suggest that they should
be dropped in the well .

The answer to these questions are covered in
the above sections.

SaaLigrAma KshEthra nivAsAya , Sree MoorthayE Nama:

Daasan , Oppiliappan Koil VaradAchAri Sadagopan
http://venkateswara.freeservers.com/index.htm
http://www.ramanuja.org/sv/temples/thiruvahindhrapuram.index.html















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