Nag Panchami 2023: Meaning, Significance and Rituals!

Did you know about the festival that honours snakes? In India, there is a festival which does exactly that, and it is known as Nag Panchami. This festival is widely celebrated in various parts of India in the Hindu community. On this day, people seek blessings from snakes and snake dieties for the well-being of themselves and their families. Furthermore, there are many one-of-a-kind rituals of this festival. These rituals are unique, just like this auspicious day. Let’s learn about the festival of snakes and its meaning in Hinduism. Keep reading to learn all about Nag Panchami 2023 date and time, its history, significance and celebrations!

• Nag panchami 2023 date: 21 August 2023
• Naga Panchami 2023 Puja Muhurat: 6:05 AM – 8:39 AM
• Tithi Begins: 21 August 2023 12:21 AM 
• Tithi Ends: 22 August 2023 2:00 AM

What is Nag Panchami?

India has a wide range of unique festivals and cultural traditions. These festivals enrich our lives and are filled with stories about our mythology. One such unique festival is Nag Panchami – the festival of snakes. This festival has many names because of the rich cultural diversity of India. Therefore, people also refer to it as Nagula Panhami or Nagara Panchami festival.

Learning about any festival’s meaning becomes easier with learning about what its name means. The word ‘Nag’ means ‘snakes’, whereas ‘Panchami’ means ‘the fifth day’. As the name suggests, this festival falls on the Panchami tithi of the Shukla Paksha of the auspicious lunar month called Shravan. Hindus across the country celebrate this festival with great devotion and sentiments.

Nagula Panchami is a festival to celebrate and respect nature by worshipping snakes and serpents. During Nag Panchami, the snakes leave their houses in search of new ones. This is because monsoon rain fills their caves with water. Therefore, seeing these holy creatures becomes easy on Nag Panchami. On this day, people offer prayers and offerings to snakes and deities, conduct pujas and chant various mantras to seek blessings of snake gods.

Nag Panchami Significance

Every festival in our culture has a deep religious or historical significance. Therefore, these stories and associations make our festivals even more enjoyable and meaningful. Snakes have always been protectors or loyal companions in Hindu mythology. Lord Vishnu rests on the coils of Sheshnag, who is also known as Adishesha. Adishesha holds the universe on its hoods and maintains the balance and functioning of the Earth.

Furthermore, in some regions, the Nagara Panchami festival is a sign of lord Krishna’s victory over Kalia Nag. Kalia Nag was causing havoc in Vrindavan by releasing its venom into the river Yamuna. Krishna, in his Baal form, defeated Kaliya and left his footprints on his head. Therefore, Nag Panchami celebrate Kaliya’s transformation and lord Krishna’s divine qualities.

Additionally, Nageshwar coils three times around Lord Shiva’s neck. The serpent deity represents the three phases of time. Furthermore, snakes represent one’s ego. Therefore, the coils around Shiv Ji’s neck represent his nature of overcoming ego and governing it. This day is the day to worship the Naga gods and seek their blessings. Therefore, people perform various rituals to please the snake gods and pray for their eternal support.

Also Read: Margashirsha Purnima 2023: Significance, Rituals And Vrat Katha

How to Celebrate Nag Panchami

Every festival is incomplete without its interesting rituals. In India, each festival is celebrated differently in each state. However, there are certain common rituals which people perform in order to make these festivals even more spiritual.

1. Preparations of Pooja

To begin with, let’s talk about the Nag Panchami Pooja at home preparations. On this auspicious day, people gather with their families to perform poojas honouring the snake gods. To prepare for this, people wake up early in the morning in Brahma Muhurat. Furthermore, they clean their houses and set up an altar for the snake gods.

2. Preparing Offerings for Nag Dev

Preparing the offering is one of the most important parts of the Nag Panchami Pooja. People prepare a mix of milk, honey, jaggery, gangajal and other holy ingredients to make Panchamrit. Panchamrit is a holy liquid which is offered to gods and then consumed by the family members as prasad. People also offer Kheer to the snake deities.

3. Nag Panchami Vrat

Vrats are a famous way to show our love and devotion to our beloved deities. Therefore, fasting enhances the meaning of each festival in Hinduism. On the Nagara Panchami festival, people observe a day-long fast. They either do not eat for the entire day or only eat fruits. Afterwards, they break the fast by eating the prasad offered to the Naga gods.

4. Naga Panchami Rangoli 

Naga Panchami Rangoli is a fun and interesting aspect of the Nag Panchami celebrations. On Nagula Panchami, people make rangolis in their homes. These rangolis are graceful drawings representing Nag devta. People use turmeric or Chandan to make these beautiful rangolis in their homes. Furthermore, people decorate their Naga Panchami Rangoli with flowers. Some people also make the five-faced naga at the entrances of their houses.

5. Naga Panchami Pooja

To perform the Nag Panchami Pooja at home, people keep idols or photos of Nag devta on their altars. Furthermore, they light a diya and keep it towards the right of the murti or photo. Afterwards, people offer Ganga Jal, rice and Sindur to the gods and ask for their blessings. People also recite the Nag Panchami Mantra to show their devotion and faith in the gods. Women also bathe the idols and decorate them with Chandan and Sindur.

Therefore, performing these auspicious rituals can grant you many spiritual and astrological benefits. People perform these rituals to get relief from the Kaal Sarp Dosha from their Kundlis. Furthermore, these celebrations also give us the blessings of Rahu and Ketu, along with the snake gods.

Also Read: Kali Chaudas 2023: Understanding The Significance And Rituals

Nagara Panchami Festival Story

Stories fill bright colours with our festivals. Since time immemorial, people have passed on these interesting stories to their younger generations. These stories and Kathas have acted as valuable lessons in the lives of many Hindus. Therefore, reading and listening to the Kathas behind our festivals is an essential part of the celebrations. These tales bring various benefits, as well as teach us various lessons about life.

According to Hindu mythology, the legend of Nagula Panchami goes back to the epic Mahabharata. The epic says that there was a king named Takshak. Takshak is one of the embodiments of the snake deities, and many people offer prayers to him in today’s times. Once, Arjun’s grandson Parikshit threw a dead snake at lord Takshaka. This greatly angered the serpent god and, therefore, bit King Parikshit leading to his demise.

King Parikshit haf a son named Janamejaya. Janamyejaya was devastated upon learning about his father’s demise. Therefore, he decided to perform a yagna to sacrifice snakes out of revenge. Hence, he gathered many priests and started performing the Yagyas. The power of the yagya forced snakes to come out of their houses. Afterwards, all of them burnt in the fire of the Yagya.

The effect of this ritual reached Takshak too. To avoid getting into the holy fire, Takshak wrapped his body around Lord Indra’s bed. Therefore, this led to both of them getting dragged into the Yagna. The gods were distressed, and hence they went to goddess Manas to ask for her help.

The motherly goddess had a son named Astik, who was a great sage. Therefore, Astik went to convince Janamejaya to stop the Yagya. He explained that killing innocent snakes would not bring him any good. Astik’s immense knowledge deeply touched Janamejaya, and therefore, he stopped the Yagna. As a result, he saved many snakes from the sacrifice, and Nag Panchami is the day to celebrate this event of mythology.

Conclusion

In conclusion, Nag Panchami offers a unique perspective on the blend of traditions, nature, and spirituality. By celebrating snakes, Nag Panchami encourages us to embrace the natural world and to find harmony with creatures often misunderstood. Therefore, this year, celebrate Nag Panchami by knowing its true meaning and bringing various blessings to your life. To read about more such exciting festivals, visit InstaAstro’s website and download our app!

Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs) 

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