Rituals in Vastu

The twentieth century has seen the discarding of many traditional practices, beliefs and ideas. Out of a wide host of subjects that have either been forgotten or disowned because the modern mind considers it shameful, one of the areas of contention the world over has been that of religious belief and ritualistic practices. 

Many gory and often meaningless rituals that are carried out in the name of faith are indeed difficult for the rational mind to digest. But at the same time an unexamined dismissal of all belief and ritual as being evil is again a double bind, a fact which has been realized rather late by many countries. The life energy of people and groupings are gathered from a celebrative and interactive link with the natural system. When all celebration also falls into the category of blind belief then we are tampering with the spontaneous impulses of a people towards the awesome nature of reality. Whatever scientific explanation may be given, who can ever watch untouched the early morning sunrise over the ocean? Or the flight of birds through the silent dusk sky? Poetry, beauty, love and sensuousness are all deeply linked with primal rhythms and natural vibrations. Hence to celebrate with water and flowers, to dance with the wind and to sing with the birds are all deeply ingrained in collective behaviour.

The Vastu Shastras are full of ritualistic data that pertain to the relationship of a person to the earth (bhoomi) or with the energies (vastu devata) or to the trees (vana mahotsavam, vana muhurtam). To understand the right time to plant, to sow, to build, to reap and to expand businesses are all part of the Vastu Shastras. Many  important functions such as the following have been pointed out in the texts.

Vastu Muhurtam: After referring to the Panchangam or Indian calendar, the right time is chosen to inaugurate the site and to propitiate the energies. The time chosen is when the Vastu Purusha is awake and therefore capable of participating in the ceremony in a powerful manner. The Vastu Purusha is awake during eight months of the year and asleep in the other four. Eight months of wakefulness - Mesha, Vrishabha, Kataka, Simha, Tula, Vrichika, Makara, Kumbha. Four months of sleep - Dhanur, Mina, Mithuna, Kanya.

Bhoomi Puja: Usually this puja is carried out at the same time as vastu muhurtam. A small 64-part diagram denoting the manduka padam and the Vastu Purusha within it is marked in the NE part of the property using different seeds and colouring substances. To each of the devas of this mandala chants and offerings are made. It is also common to makje a test pit in the NE in which the first bricks or stones are placed during bhoomi puja. An effigy of the Vastu Purusha is made in straw and burnt. This is to ward off evil spirits. It is recommended that this ritual be carried out in the morning.

Garbhanyasa: This is a ritual carried out to bring alive the building and its spaces. It is recommended that this ritual be carried out in the evening or night after the building has been completed and it is ready for occupation. For the ritual a specific location is picked and a small cavity is dug out into which a box made of copper or silver is placed. It may have nine or twenty-five compartments which is a mandala form known as peetha padam (nine), upapeetha padam (twenty-five). In the compartment facing east, offerings to Surya and Indira are made in silver and gold, in the south to Yama and Simha in iron and gold, in the west to Varuna in silver, in the north to Soma in silver and similarly to all the other directions. Nine grains, nine gems, minerals and herbs are placed in the box. The bottom of the cavity or pit should have earth from different places. First stones or bricks are placed and over these the box is placed. This is then covered with a wooden lid and placed in the cavity. The cavity is filled up amidst chanting and prayer. This box or casket is held to be the source of life and movement. By placing it with its offerings to the energies, the building comes alive. Garbha means the womb, hence this is the womb or life-defining ritual. The ritual may be carried out in the centre or brahmasthana, or in the north, west, east, south, on one side of the central axis (to the right facing from the outside).

Griha Pravesham: In residences, the final action of purifying and making ready the space for occupation is called Griha Pravesham. The planets and the devas are propitiated, Vinayaka invoked, the space sprinkled with holy water and sanctified with the sacred Vedic ritual. After this ceremony, the inhabitants may move into the built space and start their new lives. 

With all these rituals, the tradition has helped people understand the intrinsic and extraordinary relationship they share with their physical and spiritual environment. There is no connection with organized religion in any of the rituals, they take on analmost tribal character in the offering of energy back to the earthy systems. 

How Vastu Shastra Works

The seers and sages of ancient India carefully observed the effects of the five elements (earth, water, fire, air, and space) on the human organism and environment. In a natural environment all five elements are in balance. As soon as the environment is altered by the introduction of a structure, however, this balance is disturbed. Any such disturbance then affects the health, wealth, and happiness of those who live and work inside the building. Over thousands of years the sages collected such observations of natural balance and imbalance within environments. The resulting body of knowledge is the science of Vastu Shastra.

In a sense, Vastu is yoga for the home or office. Yoga balances the five elements in the body through postures and breathing exercises that eliminate stress. Vastu extends this principle by balancing the five elements to eliminate stress in a physical environment. Using the principles of Vastu, you can bring any building into balance, attract beneficial energy, and enhance prosperity and abundance. In this way, your home or office will become a haven, a sanctuary where you feel productive, healthy, and at peace.

In any structure the five elements must be in balance to gain the support of nature. Each of these elements is associated with a particular direction (earth, southwest; water, northeast; fire, southeast; air, northwest; space, the central area). The interplay between these elements and the directions affects you on every level of existence. Each of the five elements, together with the directions north, south, east, and west, has a specific planetary influence as well, making a subtle but profound impact on your daily life.

People seldom think of their homes as living entities, but the benefits of understanding this premise are truly life-changing. Vastu Purusha is affected by energies that come from different geographic directions. These energies are of two kinds. The magnetic energies of the north and the solar energies of the east (ultraviolet rays) exert positive, supportive influences, while the south (infrared rays) and the west (gamma rays) exert influences that are not life-supporting. For this reason in ancient India, buildings were designed to receive the abundant, life-enhancing energies from the north and east, while shielding their inhabitants from the gamma and infrared rays of the west and south. The positive energies from north and east flowed around the structure without obstruction and collected in the southwest area of the building, where they supported the health and well-being of the people inside.

Over time, people lost touch with the importance of living in harmony with the natural environment. Our homes and places of work have gradually become filled with unnecessary stress and strife. Very simple adjustments, using tools that return the five elements to balance, will often alleviate this stress. Such adjustments can be made economically, without disturbing your environment. When you honor and enliven Vastu Purusha, the spirit of your building, the result is greater health, prosperity, and happiness for all who enter.

The Power of Vastu

Within the Vedas, there is a sacred science of building called Vastu Shastra (vastu means building; shastra means science). It explains how to create an environment in accordance with the laws of nature, so that one experiences support and prosperity in life. It is the science that reveals why we feel uneasy in some environments and why in others we are uplifted.

In 1922, archaeologists under the direction of R.D. Banarjee, began excavating Mohenjo-Daro, an ancient city in the Indus Valley. It was determined that the city was at least 5,500 years old and that it had been built using the principles of Vastu. Mohenjo-Daro had been an advanced and prosperous civilization featuring elaborate architecture and sophisticated works of art. Streets were set up in a grid system running north-south, east-west, at right angles to each other, with open space and a temple at the very center of the city. The homes were built according to a rectangular design with a cooking area in the southeast and an open central courtyard.

As a result of a series of foreign invasions the knowledge of Vastu was lost. For thousands of years, portions of this valuable knowledge were retained for the exclusive use of the upper echelon of India’s society. Recently, as Westerners have begun seeking out new ways to improve the quality of life, the enormous benefits of Vastu have once again become available through Vedic translations to people worldwide.

The far-reaching influence of Vastu can be seen in great architectural monuments that have withstood the ravages of time and the elements: the Egyptian and Mayan pyramids, the Roman Coliseum, the Greek Parthenon, and the Taj Mahal. In every respect these monuments were built according to the principles of Vastu: in shape, proportion, measurements, and alignment to the cardinal directions. 

About three thousand years ago monks crossed over the mountains from India, through Tibet and into China, carrying with them this ancient Vedic knowledge. In China the science of Vastu Shastra was adapted to local climatic and cultural conditions. In this way, Vastu gradually evolved into the various schools of Feng Shui, the ancient Chinese art of placement and design that results in improving the flow of energy in an environment.