Nag panchami
Encyclopedia
Nāg Panchamī also called Nagari , is an abugida alphabet of India and Nepal...
: नाग पंचमी) is a festival during which religious Hindu
Hindu
Hindu refers to an identity associated with the philosophical, religious and cultural systems that are indigenous to the Indian subcontinent. As used in the Constitution of India, the word "Hindu" is also attributed to all persons professing any Indian religion...
s in some parts of India
India
India , officially the Republic of India , is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-largest country by geographical area, the second-most populous country with over 1.2 billion people, and the most populous democracy in the world...
worship either images of or live Nāga
Naga
Naga or NAGA may refer to:* Nāga, a group of serpent deities in Hindu and Buddhist mythology.-People:* Nayan / Nayar/Nair people of Kerala Society* Naga people, a diverse ethnic identity in Northeast India...
s (cobras) on the fifth day after Amavasya
Amavasya
Amavasya is the Indian name for a New moon. The word Amavasya is common to many Indian languages especially Sanskrit, Hindi, Assamese, Kannada, Bengali, Konkani, Marathi, Oriya, Telugu, and Gujarati...
of the month of Shraavana
Shraavana
Shraavana is a month of the Hindu calendar, also known as Sawan. In India's national civil calendar, Shraavan is the fifth month of the Hindu year, beginning in late July and ending in the third week of August. In the Tamil calendar, it is known as Aavani and is the fifth month of the solar year...
. Traditionally, married young women visit their premarital households to celebrate the festival. Especially in villages in India, a traditional aspect of the celebration involves joyous swinging by young women on swings temporarily hung on tree branches.
According to Puranic scriptures, Brahma
Brahma
Brahma is the Hindu god of creation and one of the Trimurti, the others being Vishnu and Shiva. According to the Brahma Purana, he is the father of Mānu, and from Mānu all human beings are descended. In the Ramayana and the...
’s son Kashyapa had four wives. The “first” wife gave birth to Devas
Deva (Hinduism)
' is the Sanskrit word for god or deity, its related feminine term is devi. In modern Hinduism, it can be loosely interpreted as any benevolent supernatural beings. The devs in Hinduism, also called Suras, are often juxtaposed to the Asuras, their half brothers. Devs are also the maintainers of...
; the second, to Garuda
Garuda
The Garuda is a large mythical bird or bird-like creature that appears in both Hindu and Buddhist mythology.From an Indian perspective, Garuda is the Hindu name for the constellation Aquila and...
s; the third --named Kadroo--, to Nāga
Naga
Naga or NAGA may refer to:* Nāga, a group of serpent deities in Hindu and Buddhist mythology.-People:* Nayan / Nayar/Nair people of Kerala Society* Naga people, a diverse ethnic identity in Northeast India...
s; and the fourth, to Daitya
Daitya
In Hinduism, the Daityas are a clan or race or Asura as are the Danavas. Daityas were the children of Diti and the sage Kashyapa. They were a race of giants who fought against the Devas because they were jealous of their Deva half-brothers...
s. Nāgas were the rulers of Pātāl-Loka.
The following Sanskrit
Sanskrit
Sanskrit , is a historical Indo-Aryan language and the primary liturgical language of Hinduism, Jainism and Buddhism.Buddhism: besides Pali, see Buddhist Hybrid Sanskrit Today, it is listed as one of the 22 scheduled languages of India and is an official language of the state of Uttarakhand...
names of Eight Great Nāgas, namely, Ananta, Vāsuki, Padmanābha, Kambala, Shankhapāla, Dhārtarāshtra, Takshaka, and Kaliya
Kaliya
Kaliya , in Hindu mythology, was the name of a poisonous Naga living in the Yamuna River, in Vrindavan. The water of the Yamuna for four leagues all around him boiled and bubbled with poison...
:
अनन्तं वासुकिं शेषं पद्मनाभं च कम्बलम् |
शंखपालं धार्तराष्ट्रं तक्षकं कालियं तथा ||
Translation: Ananta
Ananta
Ananta is a Sanskrit word meaning "without end".It may refer to:*Ananta , one of the names of Vishnu.*Ananta , Actor and Producer for Bengali film.*Ananta, a serpent on which Vishnu lies, aka Shesha....
m Vāsuki
Vasuki
Vasuki is a Sanskrit name for a naga, one of the serpents of Buddhist and Hindu mythology. He is a great King of the nagas and has a gem on his head. Manasa, another naga, is his sister...
m Shesha
Shesha
In Hindu tradition, Shesha or Sheshanaag is the king of all nagas, one of the primal beings of creation, and according to the Bhagavata Purana, an Avatar of the Supreme God known as Sankarshan. In the Puranas, Shesha is said to hold all the planets of the Universe on his hoods and to constantly...
m Padmanābham
Padmanabha
Padmanabha may refer to:* Padmanabha , one of the aspects of Vishnu or God with a lotus issuing from his navel on which Brahma sits...
cha Kambalam; Shankhapālam Dhārtarāshtram Takshak
Takshak
Thakshak or Taxak, classically called the Taxilleans , is a gotra or clan of Jats and Rajputs found in India, Pakistan. This clan has descended from Nagavansh king named Takshaka.- The Shavi dynasty :...
am Kāliya
Kaliya
Kaliya , in Hindu mythology, was the name of a poisonous Naga living in the Yamuna River, in Vrindavan. The water of the Yamuna for four leagues all around him boiled and bubbled with poison...
m tathā
According to the scriptures, Lord Krishna
Krishna
Krishna is a central figure of Hinduism and is traditionally attributed the authorship of the Bhagavad Gita. He is the supreme Being and considered in some monotheistic traditions as an Avatar of Vishnu...
had conquered Naga Kālia and put an end to his evil deeds on Nāga Panchamī. It is believed that the Kathmandu valley used to be a vast lake. When human beings started to drain the lake to make space for settlements, Nagas became enraged. To protect themselves against the wrath of Nagas, people gave the latter certain areas as pilgrimage destinations, restoring thus harmony in nature.
According to other scriptures, a king used his Tantric
Tantra
Tantra , anglicised tantricism or tantrism or tantram, is the name scholars give to an inter-religious spiritual movement that arose in medieval India, expressed in scriptures ....
powers to force Nagas to return to the land rains which they had taken away. The Nagas gave in to the king’s Tantric power, but in recognition of their power to control rains, the king established Naga Panchami festival.
During the festival, Nepalese traditionally post pictures of Nagas above the doors of their homes to ward off evil spirits, offer prayers to Nagas, and place food items such as milk and honey in their fields for Nagas. A few men wearing demon masks dance in the streets as a part of a ritual. Hindus in Nepal
Nepal
Nepal , officially the Federal Democratic Republic of Nepal, is a landlocked sovereign state located in South Asia. It is located in the Himalayas and bordered to the north by the People's Republic of China, and to the south, east, and west by the Republic of India...
have their own legends surrounding Nagas, which lead them to celebrate Nāga Panchamī on a large scale.
In South India
On this day married women and the girls wake up early in the morning, take head bath, arrange the things necessary for puja and start to reach a nearest Ant Hill(Snake's Home). They offer puja and Milk to the Ant Hill and pray to Snake God(Indian Cobra - Lord Subramanya's Incarnation) for the Wellness of their brothers and their family. This day is like RakshaBandhan for South Indian Hindus. If there is no AntHill nearby, they offer milk and puja to the snake statues erected in the nearby temples. A portion of Milk taken for puja is taken back home and offered to everyone at home as prasadam(Thirtham).They invite their brothers to their home. They immerse a flower in the left over milk and apply it on their brothers' back and perform Arathi for their Wellbeing. They also gift them as per their wish and also the brothers of the women wish for their wellbeing and gift them as per their wish.
Sweets like Kadubu(Kannada, Kudumulu in Telugu), Nuchununde(Kannada, Kanduntalu in Telugu - A spicy item made of dal cooked in steam) are prepared, offered to Lord and then distributed. This festival is observed on the fifth day of Shravana month of Hindu Lunar Calendar after the amavasya of Ashada month.
This festival tries to bring the Sisters (married or unmarried) and their Brothers together for family welfare.