Guest column by Sat Maharaj - Kartick, symbol of environmental protection

File: A Pandit performs Kartik prayers at Manzanilla beach 

Today (Thursday), thousands of Hindus in T&T will join their counterparts across the world in their annual pilgrimage and puja to observe Kartik Snaan. 

The eighth lunar month of the Hindu calendar is known as Kartik and this year it began on October 13. Kartik Snaan occurs each year on the full moon day of this month. 

Kartik Snaan is viewed as the culmination of months of intense and sustained prayer and devotion for the Hindu. 

It began with the observances of Krishen Janma (the birth of Lord Krishna), Ga-nesh Utsav (the 12-day festival of Lord Ganesh) in August, followed by Pitra Paksh (ancestral worship) and Nau Raatri (nine days of devotion to the female aspect of God) in September and then Ramleela (the play of Ram) and Deepawali (the festival of lights) in October.

The Padma Purana (a Hindu religious text) outlines that during the holy month of Kartik, one who bathes early in the morning attains the punya (religious merit) of bathing in all places of pilgrimage. 

It is also widely believed that taking a holy dip on the auspicious Kartik Snaan will help in attaining Moksha (salvation) and wash away sins committed. 

Therefore, whereas the observances from August to October signify a spiritual or inner cleansing of the devotee, Kartik symbolises the physical or outer purification. As such, on this Kartik Snaan day, devotees will visit the various beaches and rivers to perform their pujas, make their offerings and, most importantly, have their spiritual bath.

Some will worship Lord Shiva and Ganga Devi (the goddess who presides over the Holy Rivers) while others will worship Lord Satyanarayan (a form of Bhagavan Vishnu). 

A few devotees also worship Lord Kartikeaya (the brother of Lord Ganesha). This month of Kartik is actually named after Lord Kartikeaya. 

The legend is that when Lord Ganesha (elephant-headed) was designated as Pratham Pujya (the first deity to be worshipped), his younger brother Kartikeaya inquired as to what would be his role and position. It was determined that a month in the year would be dedicated to Kartikeaya and this month would be called Kartik.

The month of Kartik also represents a time when the Hindus reaffirm in a tangible and resolute manner their commitment to environmental awareness and protection. 

Other mainstream religions assert that plants and animals, that is nature or the environment, were meant for human beings to use as sustenance for their survival. They propose that man has dominion over these plants and animals. 

Hinduism on the other hand, through its scriptures and practices, unequivocally demonstrates that human beings must co-exist with nature and the environment. The month of Kartik emphatically highlights this point. The month of Kartik began on October 13 and ends today and during this period various observances are undertaken that illustrate Hinduism’s perspective of the environment.

The Puranas (ancient traditional scriptures) outline that the month of Kartik (October-November) is loved by Tulsi and on the specific day of Kartik Shukla Dwadashi (the 12th day in the bright half) of this month there is a tradition when Tulsi plants are beautifully decorated with structures made of sugar cane, mango leaves and flowers and then a puja is offered. Here the divine in the form of a plant is worshipped. 

Most people are aware of the celebrations and observances of Divali, but few are aware that the day after Divali is just as significant to the Hindu. On the day after Divali, Hindus worship God in the form of Goverdhan (mountain) and Gow (cow). 

In Bhagavat Maha Purana, Lord Krishna explains that on Kartik Shukla, Pra-tipada (the first day in the bright half of Kartik) devotees should worship the Goverdhan mountain and the cow as these are the sources of all sustenance. Here once more the divine is worshipped as land and animals.

During this month of Kartik Hindus also worship Ganga Devi, the goddess who presides over the holy rivers and ocean. This therefore represents the worship of the divine as water. 

It can be clearly seen from Hindu scriptures, practices and traditions that during the month of Kartik, God is worshipped in the form of plants, animals, land and water—all aspects of nature and the environment. 

The inherent philosophical thinking of Hinduism is that if nature or the environment is regarded as manifestations of the divine personality, then human beings would show their love, appreciation, care, respect and consideration for the environment.

This translates into proper management and use of natural resources, the adoption of preventative and protective measures to safeguard the environment and, most importantly, maintaining a harmonious balance between humans and the environment. 

Since 1952 when the Sanatan Dharma Maha Sabha was created by Act No 41 of 1952, Kartik Snaan has been observed with Manza-nilla Beach as the major Kartik venue. Temple groups from north and east Trinidad coverage at the 41-mile post, together with their pundits and devotees, from early morning. Older devotees still hold images of a bare-backed Bhadase Maraj and Simboonath Capildeo chanting the Sanskrit mantras in the Manzanilla “coconut.”

• Satnarayan Maharaj is the secretary general of the Sanatan Dharma Maha Sabha

THOUGHTS

• Kartik Snaan is viewed as the culmination of months of intense and sustained prayer and devotion for the Hindu
• It is believed that taking a holy dip on Kartik Snaan will help in attaining salvation
• During the month of Kartik, Hindus also worship Ganga Devi, who presides over the holy rivers and ocean

(The above column was reproduced from the Trinidad Guardian)