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Rajasooya Yajna 2003
Swami Satyasangananda Saraswati
 Just
as each individual has a character and a destiny, each and every piece
of land in this universe too has a character and also a destiny. Its character
is born out of the acts performed by the people who inhabit that land,
and these acts ultimately carve out its destiny.
The people who inhabited Bharatvarsha, now known as modern India, were
deeply rooted in the tradition of yajna. It was not just a ritual, it
was a way of life for them. They believed in its efficacy and sanctity
too. References to these yajnas can be found in the historical, geographical,
mythological, philosophical and spiritual granthas, or texts, of this
unique land.
They devised a systematic yet simple method whereby through the act of
yajna an unseen force is invited to visit your home in much the same way
as you would send an invitation to a very important person. Imagine what
lengths you would go to if the President of the USA were to visit you.
Moving heaven and earth, you would leave no stone unturned to make his
visit pleasant, comfortable, memorable and to his liking, choosing all
the items of food, decoration, entertainment and guests to suit his whim
and fancy. Of course, this is not exactly an apt comparison because that
unseen force which you call to the yajna is a universal phenomenon, not
confined to any country, religion, creed or gender. This very fact gives
it unlimited powers that supersede those of even the most powerful man
on earth.
 These
yajnas, which were conducted by highly proficient, skilled, learned and
benevolent souls, created, over the course of not just years or centuries
but eons or yugas, an immense spiritual aura over this land which can
be felt even to this present day when yajnas are not conducted as often
nor on that grand scale as they were in the past. It is this spiritual
aura which has set this land known as Bharatvarsha apart from others and
given it a definite character or identity, as well as its destiny to be
the Guru or spiritual preceptor among countries.
Prayag, the place where the sacred Ganga waters mix and merge with Yamuna
and Saraswati, got its name simply by virtue of being a spot where numerous
important yajnas were held. Yag is another term used for yajnas and the
prefix pra indicates the place where yajnas were held. From this itself
we can surmise what must have been happening there. Now Prayag is the
modern day Allahabad, yet its attraction has not abated and during the
Kumbha Mela it becomes the epicentre for spiritual forces.
Varanasi is yet another example. Although this city has absolutely no
standards of cleanliness, scenic beauty, or anything as picturesque as
the mountains of Switzerland or the landscape of Holland, yet it draws
people from all over the world. So too does the ancient city of Ujjain
and a host of other places that simply have nothing to admire on a superficial
level.
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