OMG. It is already one month since my traditional baby shower - Seemandam, with less than 50 days to go for my little one's expected date of arrival. This post is long overdue and I better document it before the days get crazier and busier.
I am not sure about other traditions but we, tambrahms take seemandam a little too serious. We have exhaustive rituals that needs to be followed. I am sure these were framed with some logical reasoning behind it and regardless of how true it can be, I always liked to know the reasons behind each of them.
So this post elaborates in detail with as much reasoning i could gather for each of the ritual. Thanks to Google! What will I even do without it. This post may not be of interest to most of you, but I wanted to document it for my personal reference. Feel free to correct me if I am wrong anywhere as I am relying totally on google for the correctness of the information.
**************************
Living in the US, I never really thought I would have such elaborate Seemandam but I am so glad I got one. Again, thanks to my mother in law and my husband for without them, it would not have been possible and of course my parents who sent me bangles, saree and few other things through my mother in law.
The morning started with nalangu followed by valakapu where the mom-to-be's arms are stacked with glass bangles which should not be removed until delivery. It is said that the sounds produced by the bangles is good for the baby as she will be able to hear them constantly with the mom's movement of hands. But the priest who performed the pooja rather gave another interesting reason that it makes sure the mom-to-be gets enough rest and be all the more careful by not indulging in laborious work as it is not considered a good sign for the glass to break.
This is followed by UdagaShanti jabam which is said to format the developing fetus brain. The chanting is done in a soft and distinct manner and it runs for almost 90 minutes. The mantras are known to fill positive vibrations all around to keep the pregnant woman happy and confident.
A copper or brass vessel known as 'kumbam' is filled with fresh water. Bunch of mango leaves is kept with a coconut over it along with a bunch of holy grass known as 'Dharbam' which is inserted to the vessel.
Followed by Udagashanthi is Seemandham. One important ritual is to grind the tender leaves of banyan tree mixed with raw cold milk which is then made to a paste.This concoction would then be dropped in the mother-to-be's right nostril through a silk cloth which should be inhaled instantly. It is believed that this paste travels to the mother's womb and settles in the child's stem cell. It is said that the paste gradually becomes a protective mask for the stem cell tube and it is also widely believed that it cleaves the delivery passage to open for an easy downward movement of the child for a vaginal delivery.
My parents, sister, father in law and husband's grand mom watched every minute of the event through Face time/Skype with a special guest appearance of my little nephew and bro-in law. That really really made me happy. But every time they had a network problem, it made me so restless until they got the connection back. Finally, am so glad and thankful that they were able to make their presence atleast virtually.
Special mention to my brother in law who made the visit from California. It always feels good to have family around during such occasions.
And my dear friends who made the event extra special by their presence. There were few others who made it to the function but unfortunately didn't make it to the pictures :(
And last but not the least, my other friends and well wishers who sent me their love by messages and calls - Thank you so much! Trust me, it really means a lot!
If you made it this far, please let me know so i can award you for being the most patient reader! Thank you!
I am not sure about other traditions but we, tambrahms take seemandam a little too serious. We have exhaustive rituals that needs to be followed. I am sure these were framed with some logical reasoning behind it and regardless of how true it can be, I always liked to know the reasons behind each of them.
So this post elaborates in detail with as much reasoning i could gather for each of the ritual. Thanks to Google! What will I even do without it. This post may not be of interest to most of you, but I wanted to document it for my personal reference. Feel free to correct me if I am wrong anywhere as I am relying totally on google for the correctness of the information.
**************************
Living in the US, I never really thought I would have such elaborate Seemandam but I am so glad I got one. Again, thanks to my mother in law and my husband for without them, it would not have been possible and of course my parents who sent me bangles, saree and few other things through my mother in law.
Preparations and Arrangement Credits - MIL
The morning started with nalangu followed by valakapu where the mom-to-be's arms are stacked with glass bangles which should not be removed until delivery. It is said that the sounds produced by the bangles is good for the baby as she will be able to hear them constantly with the mom's movement of hands. But the priest who performed the pooja rather gave another interesting reason that it makes sure the mom-to-be gets enough rest and be all the more careful by not indulging in laborious work as it is not considered a good sign for the glass to break.
My mom had sent these bangles through mil
A copper or brass vessel known as 'kumbam' is filled with fresh water. Bunch of mango leaves is kept with a coconut over it along with a bunch of holy grass known as 'Dharbam' which is inserted to the vessel.
It is believed that vedic recitals causes aquatic vibrations and the holy grass absorbs the vibrations and transmits it to the water in the vessel. The water now gets the combination of phonetic+aquatic vibrations which is then used to bathe the pregnant woman. This stimulates the baby movements and the positive vibrations gives strength to the baby in the womb.
My parents, sister, father in law and husband's grand mom watched every minute of the event through Face time/Skype with a special guest appearance of my little nephew and bro-in law. That really really made me happy. But every time they had a network problem, it made me so restless until they got the connection back. Finally, am so glad and thankful that they were able to make their presence atleast virtually.
Special mention to my brother in law who made the visit from California. It always feels good to have family around during such occasions.
And my dear friends who made the event extra special by their presence. There were few others who made it to the function but unfortunately didn't make it to the pictures :(
And last but not the least, my other friends and well wishers who sent me their love by messages and calls - Thank you so much! Trust me, it really means a lot!
If you made it this far, please let me know so i can award you for being the most patient reader! Thank you!
No comments:
Post a Comment