Hindu Festival of Worshipping Snake

Hindu Festival of Worshipping Snake 

On the day of Shrawan Shukla Panchami (fifth day on the full moon fortnight of August), Hindu people celebrate a special festival of Naag Panchami. This is the very festival that brings about many other festivals. That means, from March- April, Hindu festival ends and there is no other festival until Naag panchami. After Naag Panchami there are a series of other festivals coming including, father's day, Janai purnima, kishna ashtami, and many more.

Ingredients needed for a typical naag panchami ceremony

In this occasion cow dung (gobar) is an essential ingredient which is used as a holy paste to stick the picture of snakes right over the main door. Nearly a decade back, the pictures of snakes were drawn by the brahmin or purohit. As a son of a brahmin, I myself remember drawing the snakes' pictures on paper leaflets for over a week. My father taught me and my brother to draw the figure and write the holy hymn at the bottom. Then my father would have hundreds of religious hosts (jajaman) whom he would distribute the pictures. If a Brahmin has a few number of hosts (jajaman), then one member of the brahmin would go to the host house and paste the picture after a worship. The host would offer some offerings (sida) and money (dakshina). The process of such a ceremony is called as 'naag tasne' in colloquial language.  

After sticking the picture, people worship it with vermillion powder. Incense stick and diyo are also burnt. Fruits (naibed) is also served and water (jal) is also sprayed.

The figure of Snake is pasted over the main door and worshipped

In Hinduism, snakes (naag) are believed to possess enormous power to protect the human civilization. So, it's the occasion when their role and importance is remembered and revered. Naag puja is also done some other time by Hindu in case the brooding ill fate is thought to be brought by the snakes' anger. These things are told by Jyotish (Hindu astrologers). Kalsarpa Yog is another occasion when bad fortune is erased by observing a celebration and worshipping of snake.

We (my brother and I) used to draw the snakes' coupling figure like this. With practice, the figure would be so nice and panache. But in the beginning, it was like this. Now when I tried today, I completely forgot and grappled to make like this. There is a four-liner mantra to be written underneath. Now I only know some parts of it. In 4 or 5 days, my father, brother and I drew over one hundred such figures to be distributed to the hosting houses.

My mother in a happy mood with her grandson after accomplishing the Naag Puja