Search:
Bhakti List Archives

Re: Sri Rama Navami date

From the Bhakti List Archives

Mani Varadarajan • March 29, 1999 


Sri Sridhar Srinivasan wrote:
> >From what I have been told, the pAncharAtra SrI rAma navami is 
> celebrated on the day of shukla paksha navami  in the month of 
> chittirai.  The relevant shlokam from vaalmiki raamaayaNam is the 
> basis: 

> thathaha cha dvAdashE mAsE chaitrE nAvamikE thithou
> nakshatrE~dithi daivatye...

Upon further research, I have learned that this is
based on whether one follows the lunar calendar or
solar calendar.  According to the lunar calendar, 
we are currently in chaitra maasam. The corresponding
month according to the solar calendar (chittirai) 
is in April, after the solar new year's day. Since 
most Tamil people follow the solar calendar, the practice in
Kanchipuram and Srirangam, etc., will be to celebrate
Sri Rama Navami next month.

My family is from the Mysore area, so we follow chAndramAnam
(lunar calendar) for many things. Therefore, we celebrated
Sri Rama Navami this month. 

I would like to know why Ahobila Matham and Munitraya
sampradAyam Tamil people also celebrated it this month. 

> Interesting point to note above: 
>  Sri Rama was born after a pregnancy term of twelve months (or six 
> two-month seasons).

There is an explanation for this.  According to the "cycle
of life" as explained in the Brhad-Aranyaka Upanishad, the
jIva sits idle before becoming a fetus for something
like two or three months (this could be in the father's body --
I'm not sure).   Add this to the normal gestation period of
nine or ten months, and we get twelve months. 

I will look this up and reply in more detail.

rAmAnuja dAsan
Mani