Sanskar - Meaning of the word and Sanskar

[ಸಂಸ್ಕಾರ, Sanskar = a process of purification and spiritual refinement that shapes a person from birth to death.]

It is a long-established human practice to use every object not merely in its raw form, but after refining or processing it. Animals too are living beings like humans, but they use everything just as it is: an herbivorous animal eats grass when hungry, a carnivorous animal eats flesh. Humans, however, wash those things, cook them, season them, and make them tasteful—that is, they refine and culturally process them before eating.

Likewise, when animals feel sexual desire, they mate without regard for relationship or kinship, as long as the other is of the same species. Humans are different. They give this union a religious, cultural, and moral form called marriage, and carefully examine relationships such as brother–sister, aunt–uncle, and other kinship ties before accepting a partner. The difference between other animals and human beings lies precisely in this social, cultural, and religious framework. From the moment a person is born until death, this process of refinement continues without interruption.

A human infant enters this world as merely a living creature. Such a being is then shaped and refined in many ways, preparing it for both worldly and spiritual life. The word samskara (refinement) can carry several meanings:

• Cleansing
• Purifying
• Divinizing

These express different stages of the same process. Similarly, it can mean:

• Transforming
• Modifying
• Improving

For example, when we bring a fruit from the market, to “refine” it means washing it well and cutting it properly. But when we place it on a plate and offer it to God as naivedya, refinement then takes on the meaning of making it sacred or divine.

The principles born out of this process of refinement are what later develop into civilization, culture, ethics, and religious law.

Religion gives samskaras with the aim of leading the individual toward the highest spiritual goal. If civic culture develops social awareness, and ethical culture nurtures humanity, then the samskara given by religion leads the person toward the Supreme Being. Religion also teaches how a being pursuing this final goal should harmonize with the units around it—family, society, nation, and so on.

Samskara also teaches how a human, who is a social being, can be integrated into the collective. Thus, the individual becomes a useful and inseparable part of society. For this very purpose of refinement, certain rites have been established religiously, and therefore such rites can be found in all religions.

The word samskara is also used in another sense. We often say:

What can be done? No matter what we say, they don’t understand; their samskara is like that.

Or:

“What a cultured person he is—civil, graceful, like a full pot.”

Here, the meaning is habit, inner training, and ingrained disposition within the individual.

Now let us understand terms such as rites and rituals, ceremony and observance, custom and rule, and related concepts

Rites, Rituals, Ceremony, Customs

1. Rites: These are the religious sacraments or observances performed for a person from before birth (or from birth itself) until death.
   The terms religious rites and religious sacraments are often used synonymously.
2. Ritual: Whenever religious rites are to be performed, there is always a prescribed method or ritual procedure.

   A rite is made up of several ritualistic activities.
   For example:

   • In the Vedic upanayana sacrament, the homa is one ritual activity.
   • In any Lingayat sacrament, Guru–Linga–Jangama worship are ritual activities.

   On reflection, it seems that although rites and rituals are often used as near synonyms, there is a subtle difference:

   • A rite is something done for a person
   • A ritual is something performed by the person

   For example:

   • birth rites
   • funeral rites

   These are done for a person.

   Whereas:

   • Ishtalinga worship
   • Guru Basava worship

   are rituals performed by the individual.

   These ritualistic acts are themselves often components of a larger religious rite.

3. Ceremony: Ceremonies usually follow a rite. For example:
   • After the Ishtalinga-wearing rite (ಲಿಂಗಧಾರಣೆ), there is the cradle ceremony
   • After the hair-removal rite (ಜಾವಳ.), there is the gana-prasada observance

   In common usage, these are referred to as function, ceremony, or observance. People may say: “Today there was the child’s first-hair ceremony, so we had gone there.”

4. Customs and Rules: Certain rules become established in society as customs. These customs may have:
   • their own philosophical background
   • a doctrinal meaning
   • or sometimes no deeper basis at all, surviving simply through continued practice Such things are described as Estblished by custom

   Some rules are customary in society. They may have their own philosophical background, ideological meaning. Or they may not have. These are said to have come into being in the tradition. (Although Lingayat religion strictly prohibits customary rules without ideological background, these can be seen as remnants of tribal practices that are abundant in Lingayat society.)

The commentator Shabara, the interpreter of the Jaimini Sutras, explains: “Those actions by which certain objects or persons become qualified or made fit are called samskara.”

Through such samskara, a person’s previous condition is removed—that is, former qualities fade away, and it is as if a new birth and new qualities arise.

Akka Mahadevi on Samskara

ಎನ್ನ ಕಾಯದ ಕತ್ತಲೆಯ ಕಳೆಯಯ್ಯ
ಎನ್ನ ಮಾಯದ ಮದವ ಮುರಿಯಯ್ಯ
ಎನ್ನ ಜೀವದ ಜಂಜಡವ ಮಾಣಿಸಯ್ಯ. - ಅಕ್ಕಮಹಾದೇವಿ

Dispel the darkness of my body, Lord.
Break the pride born of illusion in me.
Release the entanglements of my life. — Akka Mahadevi

ಅಂಗದ ಭಂಗವ ಲಿಂಗಮುಖದಿಂದ ಗೆಲಿದೆ
ಮನದ ಭಂಗವ ಅರುಹಿನ ಮುಖದಿಂದ ಗೆಲಿದೆ
ಜೀವದ ಭಂಗವ ಶಿವಾನುಭವದಿಂದ ಗೆಲಿದೆ. - ಅಕ್ಕಮಹಾದೇವಿ

The body’s brokenness is healed through the face of the Linga.
The mind’s brokenness is healed through the face of wisdom.
The soul’s brokenness is healed through the experience of Shiva. — Akka Mahadevi

The darkness of the body, the illusion of the mind, and the entanglement of the soul—these are the coverings wrapped around the body, mind, and life-force. To eradicate these—that is, to purify the body and mind (intellect) and shape a person into a complete and perfected human being—is the goal of samskara.

Vedic and Lingayat Ritual Traditions

The Lingayat faith was born precisely to correct the flaws and defects of the Vedic religion. When Guru Basavanna, who was born into the Brahmin religion, grew disillusioned by the shortcomings there—superstition, exploitation carried out in the name of religion, inequality, and similar evils—and established a new faith, that was the birth of the Lingayat religion. Therefore, where one says “this is hostility,” it says “this is love.” It does not oppose merely out of hatred or a desire to resist. Rather, it upholds truth, raises it high, and opposes the defects of the Vedic religion.

But, unfortunately, after the lifetime of Guru Basava and the other sharanas, priestly dominance entered the Lingayat community. Like Prahlada, who was born in the womb of the Shiva-devotee Hiranyakashipu yet turned against his own dharma and brought in the enemy who caused his father’s death, today the Lingayat community has destroyed its own culture. All the Vedic rites that Basava and the sharanas had rejected are now being followed by Lingayat priests and monastery heads with even greater devotion than the Vedic followers themselves. Like “smearing soot on Basava’s life and selling it as ripe fruit,” priests, swamis, and blind devotees who have fallen prey to Vedic custom are ready to worship anything for the sake of the offerings given by the superstitious faithful. Yet, from a doctrinal point of view, it is noteworthy that the Vedic religion and the Lingayat faith are as different as East and West.

1. Fire and Sacred Witness

In the Vedic religion, fire holds immense importance. All rituals are fulfilled by offering oblations into the sacred fire. Marriage is solemnized with fire as witness, and even the testing of a wife’s chastity is done through fire.

In the Lingayat faith, all rites are performed with Guru–Linga–Jangama as witness. Here, fire is merely one of the five elements, not a god. It is not considered an object possessing any special divinity or sacred purity.

2. Auspicious Time vs Inner Consent

In the Vedic religion, every auspicious act requires the fixing of a muhurta (auspicious time), and an almanac is absolutely necessary. Even if the minds of the couple agree, if the horoscopes do not match, the marriage is broken.

In Lingayat philosophy, the unity of minds is held as the sole prerequisite; all else is presumed harmonized.

Within the Lingayat tradition, concord of minds alone is deemed sufficient; all other aspects are regarded as inherently aligned. This principle reflects the community’s emphasis on inner spiritual unity over external ritual conformity. Unlike traditions that prioritize elaborate ceremonies or social formalities, Lingayat philosophy underscores that genuine agreement of thought and intention between individuals is the true foundation of spiritual and social harmony.

ಎಮ್ಮವರು ಬೆಸಗೊಂಡರೆ ಶುಭಲಗ್ನವೆನ್ನಿರಯ್ಯ
ರಾಶಿಕೂಟ ಗಣ ಸಂಬಂಧ ಉಂಟೆಂದು ಹೇಳಿರಯ್ಯ
ಚಂದ್ರಬಲ, ತಾರಾಬಲ ಉಂಟೆಂದು ಹೇಳಿರಯ್ಯ
ನಾಳಿನ ದಿನಕ್ಕಿಂದಿನದಿನ ಲೇಸೆಂದು ಹೇಳಿರಯ್ಯ
ಕೂಡಲ ಸಂಗಮ ದೇವರ ಪೂಜಿಸಿದ ಫಲ ನಿಮ್ಮದಯ್ಯ - ಗುರು ಬಸವಣ್ಣ

If our people have come together, call it an auspicious union.
Say that the zodiac signs, compatibility, and sacred affinities are all in harmony.
Say that the strength of the moon and the strength of the stars are favorable.
Say that today is better even than tomorrow’s chosen day.
The merit of worshipping Kudala Sangama Deva is yours. — Basavanna

In the Vedic religion, the strength of the planets is considered important. In the Lingayat faith, the strength of the Creator is what matters. They say, “The fruit of worshipping Kudala Sanga is right in one’s own hand.”

ಚಂದ್ರಬಲ, ತಾರಾಬಲ ಎಂಬಿರಿ
ಇಂದ್ರಂಗೆ ಯಾರ ಬಲ, ಚಂದ್ರಂಗೆ ಯಾರ ಬಲ ?
ಮುಕುಂದಂಗೆ ಯಾರ ಬಲ,
ಬರದೆ ಸೊಡ್ಡಳನ ಬಲವು ?

You speak of lunar strength and stellar strength—
whose strength was there for Indra? whose strength for Chandra?
whose strength for Mukunda?
Was it not the strength of the Lord who came unbidden?

3. The Question of Ritual Impurity

In the Vedic religion, there is great anxiety around sutaka (ritual impurity): impurity from birth, death, caste, menstruation, and leftovers. Because of this, if a death occurs, auspicious events like marriage may be postponed, or even stopped altogether as a bad omen.

In the Lingayat religion, none of these impurities are troubling. There is a practice of removing the fear of impurity simply through bathing and worship of the Ishtalinga.

Even though this is so progressive, thoughtful, and simple, some misguided Lingayats, seeing what others do, have adopted many such customs. The fault is not entirely theirs, but of certain monastery heads—the “elder blind” who are leading these blind followers by the hand.

4. Purification and Ritual Practices

In the Vedic religion, the Panchagavya—cow dung, cow urine, milk, curd, and ghee—are means of purification. In the Lingayat faith, the compassionate sacred water of Guru–Linga–Jangama plays the central role.

Where Vedic followers first lead a cow into a housewarming ceremony, in the Lingayat faith the Guru (Jangama) is given the foremost place of entry.

The rituals, procedures, materials, and customs of the Lingayat faith have come to contain two kinds of impurities:
1. one from the scriptural Vedic tradition
2. another from tribal folk traditions

If homa and yajna entered from the Vedic side, then offerings and sacrifices made to minor folk deities entered from the tribal side.

For example:
• Lingayats in urban area may conduct homa for their children’s marriages or for their sixtieth-year shashtyabda shanti.
• In rural Lingayats may make vows to offer goats or chickens to deities like Maramma.

This creates despair about whether it is even possible to remove these impurities and purify the Lingayat community.

For so long, it has been like a cart running without both its main lamp and its horn. Yet the hope has not entirely died that, if these are fitted now, reform may still be possible.

The Thirteen Samskaras
The Manusmriti recognizes thirteen samskaras (life-cycle rites):
1. Conception (ಗರ್ಭಧಾರಣೆ)
2. pumsavana (ಪುಂಸವನ)
3. seemantonnayana (ಸೀಮಂತೋನ್ನಯನ)
4. birth rite (ಜಾತಕರ್ಮ)
5. Naming cermony (ನಾಮಕರಣ)
6. first outing (ನಿಷ್ಕ್ರಮಣ)
7. first feeding of solid food (ಅನ್ನಪ್ರಾಶನ)
8. first tonsure (ಚೂಡಕರ್ಮ)
9. sacred thread initiation (ಉಪನಯನ)
10. first shaving / coming of age (ಕೇಶಾಂತ)
11. completion of study (ಸಮಾವರ್ತನ)
12. marriage (ವಿವಾಹ)
13. death rites (ಮರಣ)

Swami Dayananda Saraswati adds three more to these thirteen, making a total of sixteen. These are Mahanamni, Mahavrata, and Upanishad-vrata. ಮಹಾನಾಮ್ನೀ, ಮಹಾವ್ರತ, ಉಪನಿಷದ್‌ವ್ರತ

Within the philosophical framework of the Lingayat faith, the following may be identified:

1. Womb-linga wearing and the seemantha rite ( ಗರ್ಭಲಿಂಗಧಾರಣೆ ಮತ್ತು ಸೀಮಂತ)
2. Ishtalinga wearing – naming and cradle ceremony (ಲಿಂಗಧಾರಣೆ - ನಾಮಕರಣ, ತೊಟ್ಟಿಲು ಶಾಸ್ತ್ರ.)
3. First tonsure (ಜಾವಳ)
4. Receiving food as prasada (ಅನ್ನ ಪ್ರಸಾದ ಸ್ವೀಕಾರ)
5. Beginning of education (ವಿದ್ಯಾರಂಭ)
6. Coming-of-age anointing / puberty rite (ಮೈ ನೆರೆಯುವಿಕೆ)
7. Ishtalinga initiation (ಇಷ್ಟಲಿಂಗ ದೀಕ್ಷೆ)
8. Marriage and remarriage (ವಿವಾಹ ಮತ್ತು ಪುನರ್ವಿವಾಹ)
9. Vibhuti-Vilya (ವಿಭೂತಿ ವೀಳ್ಯ)
10. Death (Ling-aikya) rite (ಲಿಂಗೈಕ್ಯ ಸಂಸ್ಕಾರ)
11. Purification – repentance of object and person (ಶುದ್ದೀಕರಣ - ವಸ್ತು ಮತ್ತು ವ್ಯಕ್ತಿ ಪಶ್ಚಾತ್ತಾಪ .)
12. Ayyachara (Kriyamurti initiation)(ಅಯ್ಯಾಚಾರ (ಕ್ರಿಯಾಮೂರ್ತಿ ದೀಕ್ಷೆ))
13. Prasada initiation (ಪ್ರಸಾದ ದೀಕ್ಷೆ)
14. Jangama initiation (ಜಂಗಮ ದೀಕ್ಷೆ)
15. Investiture into office / succession (ಪಟ್ಟಾಧಿಕಾರ)
16. Adoption, wedding anniversary, birthday celebration, sixtieth-year observance, renewal, and Ganachara initiation (ದತ್ತು ಸ್ವೀಕಾರ , ಮದುವೆಯ ವಾರ್ಷಿಕೋತ್ಸವ, ಹುಟ್ಟುಹಬ್ಬ ಆಚರಣೆ, ಷಷ್ಠ್ಯಬ್ಧಿ, ಪುನಶ್ಚೇತನ ಮತ್ತು ಗಣಾಚಾರ ದೀಕ್ಷೆ)

Further classification:
1. Of the sixteen rites, two belong to the life of renunciation (Sanyasi):

• Jangama initiation
• succession rite / enthronement

2. Some are related only to girls/women.
3. Some apply to both men and women.
4. Some are compulsory, for example: wearing the Ishtalinga (ಲಿಂಗಧಾರಣೆ.)
5. Some are optional, for example:

• Prasada initiation
• Vibhuti–Vilya rite: This is the last religious rite performed while the person is still alive, yet it is also the first rite of the final funeral observances.