Adhi Maas or the extra Month is also called the Purshottam Maas. This is an extra month in the Hindu calendar to align the Lunar and Solar calendars. This month does not occur on a regular basis and its position is also variable. It reoccurs about every 32.5 months of the Lunar Calendar. Thus after every three years, one extra month is incorporated in the Lunar Calendar to align the Solar and Lunar Calendar. This year there is Adhik AshwinMaas from 18th September 2020 to 16th October 2020.
Significance of Adhik Maas
Adhik Maas is also called the Mall Maas which means inauspicious month and during this month no festivals are celebrated. In Lunar Calendar, every month is assigned to one deity. When sages calculated this extra month, no deity was ready to assign this month to his or her name. Lord Vishnu was approached and he readily agreed to have this extra month assigned to his name, thus it is called Purshottam Maas too.
Although this month is considered inauspicious and no new or auspicious deeds are done in this month, yet people perform a lot of religious activities during this month to please Lord Vishnu.
People are supposed to detoxify all their toxic deeds during this month by devoting this month to self-appraisal, self-cleansing, self-evaluation, retrospection and cleaning the soul of all the sins. During Mal Maas, one should do charity, help the needy and feed animals to sanctify one's sins. People should fast and worship Lord Vishnu.
People perform Homas and yajna. Apart from this Swadhyaya or self-study of various religious scriptures is done. You should especially read Shri Vishnu Puran or ShrimadBhagwatPuran during this month. There is a lot of spirituality during this month with all these religious acts being performed thus leading to purity and transformation in the lives of people for betterment.
Benefits of Adhik Maas Pujas
- Fasting during Mal Maas is considered to be equivalent to thousands of Yajnas and Homas.
- Charity and donations done during this period blesses you with more wealth and prosperity
- Renting on the sins done by one during this time, purifies one’s heart and sins are removed.
- Malefic effects of the planets in one's Horoscope can be removed by performing Grah Dosh Nivaran Puja during this time.
- Performing Vishnu Puja and Chanting Vishnu Mantras and worshipping Vishnu Yantra during this time purges all your sins.
The Science behind Ahik Maas
Nothing happens in Hindu religion without a scientific reason. Adhi Maas also has a science behind it. As we have already told that it occurs to align Solar and Lunar Calendars, let’s learn how!
Solar calendar consists of 365 days and 6 hours, while the lunar calendar consists of 354 days. Thus there is a gap of about 11 hours between a Solar and A Lunar calendar. So, to compensate this difference of about 11 days in three years, one extra month is added to the Lunar Calendar, thus an Adhik Maas or the Purshottam Maas, the name of Lord Vishnu.
The difference between an Adhik Maas and a regular Lunar month is that the Adhikmaas does not have a Sankranti, which depicts the transit of the Sun in another Zodiac Sign. So during Adhik Maas the Sun does not change its Rashi or move from one zodiac sign to another and it does not have any Sankranti.
Always make the best use of this rare Adhik Maas
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