Why do we do kalyanam on sriramanavami, instead of celebrating birthday of rama ?
THERE ARE 2 REASONS FOR PERFORMING KALYANA UTSAVAM TO LORD SRI RAMA ON SRI RAMA NAVAMI DAY.
A) THERE IS A SLO:KA IN A:GAMA SCRIPTURES SAYING “YASYA AVATHA:RA DIVASE: THASYA KALYA:NA MA:CHARE:TH” ‘ kalya:na utsavam should be performed to those particular incarnations on their birth days itself ‘. THE REASON FOR THIS IS, THAT THE VERY
PURPOSE OF INCARNATION ITSELF, TO DO GOOD TO THE WORLD. THAT GOOD CAN BE ACHIEVED ONLY THROUGH HIS MERCY. GODDESS IS THE PERSONIFICATION OF THE MERCY (DAYA:) OF GOD. SO WHEN HE COMES DOWN TO THE EARTH, IMMEDIATELY MERCY, THE DIVINE MOTHER, ALSO SHOULD COME AND JOIN ALONG WITH HIM. THEN ONLY HE CAN START
HIS WORK. THOUGH, BOTH OF THEM ARE ALWAYS TOGETHER, YET, WE FEEL SATISFIED WHEN WE SEE THEM BOTH JOINED TOGETHER. THAT JOINING FUNCTION ONLY IS CALLED ‘KALYA:NO:TSAVAM’. IN SUPPORT OF THIS STATEMENT WE QUOTE AN INCIDENT FROM SRIRAMAYANAM FROM AYO:DHYA KA:NDA. “WHEN SRI RAMA REFUSED TO TAKE SITA ALONG
WITH HIM TO THE FOREST, THEN SHE GAVE MANY ARGUMENTS AND AT THE END SHE CONCLUDED SAYING “GACHHA RA:MA MAYA: SAHA” ‘ THUS O RA:MA!, GO TO THE FOREST ALONG WITH ME ONLY’. THEN LORD RAMA ACCEPTS TO TAKE HER WITH HIM. This is the
reason why we perform kalya:nam and keep both of them together, on the day when the avatha:ra maho:tsavam is done.
B) ESPECIALLY FOR SRIRAMA, PERFORMING THIS ON SRIRAMA NAVAMI, STARTED FROM “BHADRACHALAM” ONLY. FOR THE PRA:NA PRATHISHTTA OF THAT TEMPLE WAS DONE ON SRI:RA:MA NAVAMI DAY BY SRI RA:MADASJI, DURING HIS TIME. SO AUTOMATICALLY KALYANAM WAS STARTED BEING DONE ON THE SRIRAMA NAVAMI DAY, WHICH LATER, BECAME
PRACTICE THROUGH OUT THE COUNTRY OR AROUND THE WORLD.
IN ALMOST ALL THE TEMPLES, KALYANOTSAVAS ARE PERFORMED DURING THE BRAHMOTSAVAS ONLY, LINKED WITH THE PRATHISHTTA DAY OF THAT PARTICULAR TEMPLE. IN OTHER WORDS, BRAHMO:TSAVAM MEANS, BIRTH DAY CELEBRATIONS OF THAT PARTICULAR TEMPLE OR DIETY.
