The good who eat the remains of the yajna are freed from all sins; but the sinful ones who cook food only for themselves, they verily eat sin.
A deadly war waged with the object of exterminating the wicked is a virtuous act. A pious prayer to the Almighty for a selfish end may not be a sin; but it is not so meritorious as a prayer offered for common weal. An action becomes sacred to the extent the ego gets obliterated. All thought, word and deed require to be directed to the glory of the Lord and the good of the world.
Partaking of food is an obligatory work. Cooking the daily food has therefore to go on as a matter of course. But one ought to think of and provide for the hungry and the needy as much as for oneself. He who is exclusive and self centred in the procurement of food and in the partaking of it, is a sinful man. What he eats is nothing but sin. The bondage of sin that he creates for himself is boundless.
The king Yudhishtra performed a great Rajasuya Yagna when he ascended the throne after the great war was over. The learned and the wise unanimously praised that yagna was unparalleled. A mongoose having one side of its body turned golden, entered the sacrificial hall, rolled on the ground and pronounced the extollers as liars. But the assembled great men pleaded that they only spoke out of their considered opinion and that they did not lie. The half golden creature then explained itself - " A few years back a terrible famine raged in a particular province causing death to people in large numbers. A pious teacher, his wife, son and daughter-in-law lived a humble but dutiful life in that region. In the midst of privation the teaching went on regularly. When life was somehow lingering in that family, a scanty offering of flour was made to it by a devoted disciple. The famished four baked 4 pieces of bread with that flour, offered them to the Lord and sat to partake the sanctified food, when there was a knock at the door. The family felt itself blessed because the deity of a guest had arrived just in time when they had the semblance of a meal to offer. All the 4 fading souls reverently parted with their little shares, intent on appeasing the increasing the hunger of the new comer. He blessed them heartily for their hospitality and went his way. But the whole family perished of hunger. Just then I entered their hut and rolled myself on the floor. The remnants of the flour there came in contact with half of my body and turned it golden as you all see. It was so because of the purity of the motive and of the intensity of the spirit of self sacrifice in their act of cooking and serving teh guest. Since then I am on the look out for another yagna of that type that would turn the remaining half of my body golden. What King Yudhishtra is doing here is no great yagna as it has not brought any change whatsoever on my body". The assembly meekly submitted to the view of the strange mongoose.
Mahabharata
A day passed bereft of the performance of yagna is a day gone to waste. Such is the injunction enjoined in the scriptures. An ideal family man is he who engages himself daily in the 5 great yagnas. All the 5 of them form his nityakarma - obligatory work.
First and foremost among them is Deva yagna- the worship of God. The day invariably begins with it. This has to be gone through devoutly and to the best of one's knowledge. It may be augmented with rituals according to traditions and individual tastes.
The second in order is rishi yagna - the adoration of the Enlightened. The great ones who have had God-realisation have not allowed their rare experiences to go into oblivion. Out of compassion for the ignorant humanity they have passed them on to posterity in the form of scriptures and sacred books. A devoted study, assimilation and practice of the principles contained in them constitute this yagna. Expounding the holy scriptures with a devotional attitude to the ardent enquirers and devotees is also an aspect of this yagna.
Pitru yagna comes third in the rank. It has its two aspects. The living parents have to be revered and devotedly served everyday. He who pleases not his parents cannot please anybody here and hereafter. This is the first part of this yagna. Thinking daily holy and auspicious thoughts for the welfare of the departed ancestors is its second part.
Fourthly comes nara yagna - devoted service to mankind. Individuals are the limbs of the community. At all levels and in all fields the interests of the limb should be subordinated to that of the main body. Any position reverse to this is defintely harmful. That man who places the public interest above the personal and acts accordingly is doing nara yagna. This age is in need of emphasis of this yagna.
Bhuta yagna or a reverent relationship with all living beings completes the list. Since all creatures have come from God, the cosmic life, they have to be treated with due regard. The domestic animals and birds required to be tended on par with the human. The cow- gaumatha is worshipped in this land. Bhuta yagna doesnot preclude stern steps being taken against terrifying and venomous creatures that prove a menace to human life.
It is God himself who has become the entire creation. All beings are therefore to be revered as the various manifestations of Narayana. The tiger-Narayana, however, has to be respected from a safe distance
Through the meticulous practice of these 5 great sacrifices - Pancha Mahayagna the life of man on earth becomes prosperous and auspicious. Again, all the activities in life can be converted into yagna by the knowing ones. How this can be done is explained in the following slokas.
