Offering milk to snakes on Nag Panchami is an old practice going on for ages in India and many other places. Nag Panchami is an auspicious Hindu festival that people celebrate on the 5th day of the bright part of the lunar month of Shravan, usually falling in July or August. The festival is meant for the worship of snakes, so called divine creatures as per Hindu mythology. People take part in very festival with great devotion and enthusiasm in India, Nepal, and various other parts of South Asia. On this particular day, people offer milk, honey, flowers, and vermilion to snakes and ask for their blessings for the well-being of their respective families. In this article we try to know more about Nag Panchami 2023 and the benefits of offering milk to snakes on this particular day.
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Nag Panchami 2023: Date & Shubh Muhurat
Nag Panchami 2023 will be celebrated on 21 August. The Tithi will starts at 12:51 AM and ends on August 22, 2023. The aspirant must perform the Puja in the above mentioned time and beckon the most benefits of this Panchami in the month of Shravana .
Mythological Tale Related to Nag Panchami
The Hindu mythologies are replete with fascinating stories. One such story refers to the celebration of Nag Panchami. The story revolves round a man whose name was Kashyap. He had four wives. His second wife gave birth to a snake named Takshak. Takshak grew up to become the king of snakes and resided in the world beneath.
Once, King Parikshit, the grandson of Arjuna, insulted a sage and threw a dead snake around his neck. This enraged the sage. The king died of snake bite. The news of the king’s death forced his son Janamejaya to swear to avenge his father’s death by conducting a snake sacrifice Sarpa Yagna.
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During the Yagna a sage named Astika intervened and asked the king to stop the ritual. Astika justified that the yagna would destroy many innocent snakes. He pleaded with the king to spare them. King Janamejaya moved by Astika’s appeal and decided to stop the yagna.
Nag Panchami is a festival to honor the snakes, respected since ancient time as divine creatures. The festival is to invoke the blessings of the snake god and goddess and to appease them. Hence, those who worship snakes on this day may have been saved from snake bites. Moreover, people seek blessings for good health, wealth, and absolute prosperity.
The mythological tale of Nag Panchami brings before us the eternal saying ‘Live and let live’. The occasion serves as a useful reminder of the importance of respecting all living creatures looming large on the earth and to maintain harmony in nature. The festival is to highlight divine qualities of the snakes and their vital role to keep the ecosystem safe.
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Astrological Significance of Celebrating This Nag Panchami
The occasion is celebrated in that particular time when the sky is overcast and heavy downpour keeps he earth moist all the while. During this monsoon season snakes seem to be active. And hence there seems to be great astrological significances. In Vedic astrology, it is Rahu and Ketu, two shadow planets those go on pertaining to the serpentine energy. These two are malefic planets that can bring misfortune and suffering if they are not appeased by all means. Therefore, the festival of Nag Panchami is the time to appease these planets and seek their blessings to lead he mundane life quite peacefully.
According to astrology Rahu is the north node of the Moon and represents the head of a serpent. Ketu is the south node of the Moon and represents the tail of the serpent. Hence it is regarded that these two planets have significant impacts on the environment and the weather. Besides these they are also connected with the karmic patterns of every individual.
Nag Panchami is regarded as an auspicious day to worship snakes. In this way one can appease Rahu and Ketu. Again offering milk to snakes can reduce the negative impacts of the planets. This worship in this way brings good fortune and prosperity.
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The festival accepts the importance of the snakes as divine creatures. In our mythology and ancient scripts snakes are described as living beings having possessed supernatural powers. We all know it that snakes are associated with divinity too. Various Goddesses and Lord Shiva Himself is associated with snakes. Lord Shiva uses snakes as His necklace too. The snake is there to represent the Kundalini energy, which is believed to reside at the base of the spine and can be awakened through vigorous efforts vide meditation and yoga.
How to Perform Nag Panchami in 2023?
Here we are going to highlight the detailed Puja rituals that can be performed on Nag Panchami 2023:
Before starting the Puja, all you have to do is to clean the house and go on decorating it with flowers, mango leaves, and colorful rangoli. The Puja items include flowers, milk, honey, vermilion, turmeric etc.
The idols of snakes must be bathed in milk and water. In this way you can purify them and go for their blessings.
The Puja starts with the recitation of mantras and the lighting of fragrant incense sticks. The devotees offer flowers to the idols and apply vermilion and turmeric on them too. Thereafter their blessings for the well-being of their families are sought by the worshipper.
The main ritual of the occasion is to offer milk to snakes. People offer bowls of milk to live snakes or to the idols kept in homes or temples. The milk is said to appease the snakes and brings good fortune and prosperity as a whole.
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After offering milk sometimes honey is also offered to the snakes. It is the saying that honey sweetens their temper and prevents all types of harms from snake bites.
Some people go on observing fast on Nag Panchami and take nothing else but only milk and fruits throughout the day. The fast purifies the body and soul and enhances spiritual energy to a great extent.
There goes the ritual of donating money, food or clothes to the destitute on Nag Panchami. It seems highly auspicious. By doing so, one can win the blessings of the snake gods and goddesses and all these reduce the negative impact of Rahu and Ketu.
The devotees go on reciting the Mantra of the Nag. It is a powerful mantra that is believed to protect the devotees from snake bites and other sorts of calamities.
Many visit the temples of Lord Shiva, who is seen to wear snakes around his neck. Devotees offer prayers and seek blessings from the Lord.
Nag Panchami is regarded a significant festival that goes on celebrating the divine energy of snakes. Devotes try to seek their blessings for the safety of individuals and society. Thus folks residing in many places of India and abroad observe various rituals with great devotion and utmost enthusiasm to invoke good fortune and prosperity.
Benefits of Offering Milk to Snakes on Nag Panchami 2023
Offering milk to snakes on the auspicious occasion of Nag Panchami is a significant ritual prevalent in Hindu culture. Thus, it brings several benefits to the devotees. Here we are trying to showcase some of the benefits of offering milk to snakes on Nag Panchami.
Snakes by all means are associated with Lord Shiva. Along with the Lord the snakes are worshipped too. If Rudravishek of Lord Shiva is done on Nag Panchami He is much pleased. In the Hindu Shastras the snake is addressed as the Naga. In various shastras the Nagas are regarded as demi-gods. In some cases the serpents are taken as the symbol of reproductive systems too. Besides these, some opine that the snakes are associated with divine power. According to folklores the snakes are residents of the Nagloka. It is place specially dedicated to them as they are always regarded demi- gods. You cannot find any story of the Hindu scriptures where the anecdotes of snakes are not referred. Hence it easily taken into account that snakes are there everywhere both in manuscripts and on human affair. So it is hard to eliminate snakes from human lives. Rather it is the ultimate notion to stay side by side without doing harms to them. It must be kept in mnd that snakes takes enough roles to maintain the eco-system of our beautiful planet. Hence they are given special place in Hindu religion too.
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It is seen that on the throat of Lord Shiva or Mahadev the snake has coiled three times. These three coil represent the Present, Past and the Future. Again it is seen that Lord Vishnu relaxes on the lap of Sesh Nag having thousands of hoods. This pose of the Lord is known as the Yoga Nidra. So in the Hindu religion snakes or Nag Devata or Nag Devi has special place. Hence the snakes are offered milk on the very day of the Nag Panchami.
Finally it is told that offering milk to snakes on Nag Panchami 2023 means eradicating all types of enemies and negativities from life forever.
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