The five great Vedic sacrifices (Mahasattra)
Pancha Maha Yagya is the five sacred duties to be performed as a way of life for living in harmony. To live in peace with the world, we must be sensitive to ourselves, others, and the environment. The ability to relate with others gracefully and deal well with any situation we experience is one of the indications of emotional maturity. A sensitive and mature person does not take anything in creation for granted. He understands the importance of using free will appropriately, makes a deliberate choice to do what needs to be done, and does not give in to raga dwesha – likes and dislikes. Such a person expresses gratitude to the Lord and everything that he has been granted in life by performing the Panch Maha Yagya.
Pancha Maha Yagya consists of the five yagyas to be performed by Grihasthas or householders. People in the other three stages of life – Brahmacharya, Vanaprastha, and Sanyasa – depend on the fruitful completion of Pancha Maha Yagya by Grihastha. The five maha yagyas are Brahma-yagya, Pitra-yagya, Deva-yagya, Bhuta-yagya and Manushya-yagya.
The Pancha Maha Yagya is also known by the names of Ahutam, Hutam, Prahutam, Brahmahutam, and Prashitam.
- Bhuta-Yagya:- Daily foods are offered to living beings (animals,birds,etc.)
- Manushya-Yagya:- Daily Alms and Water are offered to Human-Beings.
- Pitra-Yagya:- Daily Water is offered to our Ancestors.
- Deva-Yagya:- Daily ghee is offered to Gods.
- Brahma-Yagya / Rishi Yagya:- Whenever possible Words are offered to Brahma. That is, one should read veda which is offered to Brahma.
Why to do Pancha Maha Yagya ?
- It is the blessing of the Devatas, that we are able to live on Earth.(We are unable to live on Mars or on Venus or even on the Moon). So, we should express our gratitude to the Devas by doing Deva-Yagya.
- It is due to our parents and forefathers, that we have this body. So, Pitra-Yagya is an expression of our gratitude to them.
- We are dependent on a daily basis on living beings as big as the cow for its milk and as small as the bacteria for converting the milk to curd. So, Bhuta-Yagya is an expression of our gratitude to them.
- Human Beings are dependent on each other for many purposes. So, Manushya-Yagya is an expression of our gratitude to each other.
- Knowledge, be it on the material level or on the spiritual level, is what enables us to reach our goals. So, Brahma-Yagya is an expression of our gratitude for it.
Our well-being is dependent on these five entities. So, these five entities deserve our gratitude.
Krishna says in the Gita:-
“By worshipping the Devas, the Devas are pleased, who in turn please us. Thus, in the process of pleasing each other, we become the Supreme.” In this way, we please, we are pleased, and become supreme. Krishna says this to illustrate the value of Deva-Yagya.
This holds true for the other four kinds of worship too. Hence, this five-part daily worship is a path to the Supreme.
Every day we do hinsa (violence) during our cooking, cutting, etc. To make up for this unavoidable hinsa, one should do the Pancha Maha Yagya.
Benefits of the PanchaMahayagyas:-
Man develops mercy by performing acts of kindness and sympathy on a daily basis. Hatred fades away. His cold, egoistic heart softens over time. He develops divine love. His heart gets bigger. He has a broader perspective on life. He tries to feel his oneness with all beings. His old feeling of separateness as a result of selfishness and egoism is gradually reduced and eventually eliminated. He realizes that the only way he can be happy is to make others happy, to serve others, to help others, to soothe others’ sufferings, and to share what he has with others. The five main daily sacrifices educate the man on how to treat his superiors, equals, and inferiors.
According to several Hindu scriptures, a householder who performs the Pancha Maha Yagya is more holy than a Sanyasi. It is also believed that adequate rains fall on Earth as a result of Grihastas’ Pancha Maha Yagna.
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