According to Sankhya philosophy, this festival programmes the inner consciousness to create love and commitment in family, says Vastushastri Khushdeep Bansal
Indian customs and sciences have deep-rooted logic. These might not be apparent or not everyone might be aware of them, but documented research shows how these are equally effective for all of us to live with love, happiness and money in today’s world.
Whether it is a festival like Raksha Bandhan or Holi or an ancient Indian science like ayurveda, vastu shastra and yoga — all are meant to help you live a better life and are based on time tested logic and wisdom.
People who believe in Indian values and customs, fall into two categories: either they know all the reasons why these festivals are celebrated or they don’t. Whatever the category is, this write up will satisfy your quest for knowledge on Raksha Bandhan. It is a free platform to let you know about easy remedial solutions in maha vastu on how to enhance your relationship with family members.
As we all know, Raksha Bandhan is the festival of celebrating love, affection and bonding among family members. It is also the day to reinstate the commitment of men towards the welfare of their family. From maha vastu’s perspective, love, affection, care and the commitment to protect each other within a family are granted primarily by two of the 16 maha vastu zones — southwest and southeast.
As per vastu shastra, southwest is the zone of relationships and family bonding. It governs the bonding, love, connectivity and harmony among family members. It also governs your commitment towards the welfare of your family. A healthy southwest zone in a house ensures not only healthy relationships within the family but also blessings of ancestors, which again work as a protective force for the family. When this zone is in balanced state, your brothers or/and sisters are willing to support you by all means. There is a natural inclination to safeguard each other’s interests and protect the entire family from difficulties of life, which has been the basic purpose of celebrating Rakhi.
All the Indian festivals, traditions and rituals have some deep-rooted scientific logic hidden underneath, which are basically meant for human welfare. Most of them are based on the theory of five elements in nature which you can easily learn through maha vastu books, courses, Facebook/Twitter posts, consultations or one-to-one sessions. The five elements are water, air, fire, earth and space. Of these, fire has been used right from the primitive ages to protect oneself from threats and fears in the external surroundings of the human dwelling-places. Time passed by and with the evolution of the mind and civilisation, money came into prevalence and soon became the accepted power to counter all kinds of hurdles, fears and problems for the mankind. So, contemporarily, money has become a symbol of the fire element. It has become a symbol of security, power and confidence.
This is the major reason for development of the tradition of giving cash by a brother to his sister on this pious occasion of Raksha Bandhan. When you have money, you need not worry; you can do almost anything with cash in hand. In maha vastu, southeast is considered the zone of fire element. Thus, due to the very characteristics of fire inherent in it, it extends safety, security and protection in our lives. A balanced state of this zone ensures the availability of ‘cash in hand’. Raksha Bandhan is deeply related with the energies of this vastu zone.
On the day of Raksha Bandhan, sisters tie a thread called Rakhi on the right wrist of their brothers. In some of the traditions prevalent earlier in India, not only sisters but wives also used to tie a red cotton thread on the wrist of their husbands, and daughters on their fathers’. The red thread was used to strengthen the fire element as it denotes the fire. So, it was supposed to bring in strength, security, power and protection against all evils.
From the perspective of Indian Sankhya philosophy, this festival offers the most practical way for programming the inner consciousness to create love, harmony, affection and commitment among family members.
If you notice, Raksha Bandhan is celebrated in the month of Saavan (as per the Hindu calender, which is based on lunar dates) on the day of full moon (Poornima). In the month of Saavan, human emotions for attachment with each other are at their peak. On the full moon of this month, women experience the peak intensity of their emotions. With such state of emotions, if she ties a Rakhi on the right wrist of a man, she programs him emotionally to protect and support her through thick and thin.
These days, markets are flooded with Rakhis available in myriad designs and types. Many of them contain figures of various gods and goddesses. In the absence of sound logic and reasons for continuing with a tradition, people make their own set of interpretations and prefer such designs of Rakhis with god figures attached to them. These misinterpretations as also these Rakhi designs must be avoided. These prove to be inauspicious for maintaining healthy relationships between brothers and sisters. Of course, Rakhis containing our sacred symbols like aunkar and swastika can be purchased; these do not cast any adverse effects on your relationships but prove auspicious for those you are purchasing for.
Similarly, many affluent families, prefer Rakhis made of gold and silver or those containing metallic parts. Rakhis made of metals should not be used as they are inauspicious. You should always buy a Rakhi that is made up of only natural fibres like cotton, jute and silk.
Very few people know that a simple remedy that swastika placed in north-northwest can increase mutual love and affection. So, dear friends bring a swastika this Raksha Bandhan to spread love in your family.
The writer is a Delhi-based Vastu expert