About Chitra Pournami
Chitra Pournami is a Hindu festival which commemorates the birth anniversary of Chitragupta, popularly known as the book-keeper of heaven. Chitragupta was born on Chitra Pournami (Full Moon) day in the Hindu month of Chithirai or Chaitra (April–May). He was reportedly born with a pen and a paper in his hands, signifying the role he was to play as the keeper of records. Prabhavathi, Neelavathi and Karnaki are his wives.
Chitragupta keeps a record of all the acts and deeds committed by a person in the world and when the person is claimed by Yama, the god of death, Chitragupta reads out all the vices and virtues of that person. This will ultimately decide the fate of the person, whether to be sent to heaven or to hell.
Chitragupta Temple at Kanchipuram
Chitra Pournami is a very popular festival in the Southern regions of the country. Thus, there are some temples dedicated to Chitragupta in Tamilnadu and Kerala.
The famous Chitragupta temple in Kanchipuram was founded sometime in 1907. When the land was being excavated for construction work, a statue of Chitragupta with Ambal was discovered, and this is still in the Karuvarai (sanctum sanctorum) of this temple. Chitragupta is Adhidevathai to Ketu and he is the provider of knowledge and salvation (Gnanam and Moksham). The temple in Kanchipuram is Ketu Parikara Sthalam and the Navagrahas are also present to bless us from this shrine.
Full Moon in Chitra
The Full Moon is considered to be very auspicious and has a profound effect in the attitude and behavior of people. Its rays light up the night sky and exert a tremendous influence on the tides. Since human beings are made up mostly of water, the rays of the moon are believed to exert their influence on people as well. That is why it is said that the Moon rules the mind and promotes creativity, positivity and increased intellect.
Sun in Aries
The Sun in Aries is believed to occupy an exalted position and causes favorable events to occur on Earth. This happens to coincide with Chitra Pournami, and thus, the Sun can confer positive benefits.
Chitra Pournami and Chitragupta
Chitragupta assists the God of death‘Yama’ by maintaining a record of all the deeds a person has committed on Earth. When a person’s soul is claimed by Yama, Chitragupta reads out the positive and negative deeds of that person to make it easy for Yama to make the final decision. The word ‘Chitra’ means picture and ‘Gupt’ means hidden, so it can be said that Chitragupta can foresee even the hidden deeds of a person. On the day of Chitra Pournami, the Sun and the Moon are in conjunction with each other to create a powerful energy around the Earth plane, and this effect is extremely intense on human beings.
People pray to Chitragupta on the auspicious occasion of Chitra Pournami day to wipe out their sins and erase the slate of their deeds on Earth. This constant vigil on the Karmic activities of a person will discourage people to commit evil deeds and encourage them to perform only good actions.
Story of Chitra Pournami
Legend states that when Lord Indra and Brihaspati had an argument, Indra did not pay heed to his Guru’s advice. This caused a rift and Brihaspati stopped advising Indra, which led to Indra making several mistakes. When Indra realized his folly, he immediately sought his Guru’s pardon. Brihaspati instructed Indra to descend to the Earth and visit places of worship. When Indra came down to Earth, he was relieved of the burden of his sins and started praying to a Shiva Lingam with a golden lotus on the day of Chitra Pournami.
Worship of Chitragupta
Chitragupta temples organize Special Poojas and rituals on this day. Most prominently, the Chitrgaupta temple in Kanchipuram, Airavateshwarar temple in Darasuram, Chandra Mouliswar temple in Thiruvakkarai and some other shrines conduct elaborate Poojas as prescribed in Hindu scriptures. Worship is carried out by first invoking the deity in an image or a Kalasa filled with water and then performing certain rituals.
Reciting the verse mentioned below can bring about the blessings of the deity.
Chitraguptammahaapraajnamlekhaneepatradhaarinam;
Chitra-ratnaambara-dhaararnmadhyasthamsarvadehinaam.
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