Naga Panchami – Extremely Important Day for Rahu and Ketu Remedies

Naga Panchami (Sanskrit: नाग पंचमी) is a traditional worship offered to serpents. It is offered on the fifth day of the bright half of Lunar month of Shravana (July/August), according to the Hindu calendar and this year it falls on the 21st August, 2023.

The meaning of Naga is vast and enormous, and it is not just limited to snakes. The transformational forces operating outside and within us are all forms of Nagas. They are nothing but pure awareness. The most important is the Kundalini Shakti (coiled serpent) within us. So Naga Panchami is a day to honor these transformational forces and not just limited to the worship of snakes.

Timings

New York, USA
Panchami Tithi Begins – 02:51 PM on Aug 20, 2023
Panchami Tithi Ends – 04:30 PM on Aug 21, 2023

India
Panchami Tithi Begins – 12:21 AM on Aug 21, 2023
Panchami Tithi Ends – 02:00 AM on Aug 22, 2023

For local timings download the align27 app.

The abode of snakes is believed to be patala loka, (the seven realms of the universe located below the earth) and lowest of them is also called Naga-loka, the region of the Nagas, as part of the creative force and their blessings are sought for the welfare of the family.

According to mythology nagas were born to Sage Kashyapa, grandson of Lord Brahma. Kashyapa’s wife Aditi is the mother of the 12 Adityas who belong to the Deva clan. Kashyapa’s other wife Kadru is the daughter of Daksha and mother of thousands of nagas. So both the Devas and the Nagas have the same father and this signifies that both positive and negative energies coexist and it is within each one of us. All we have to do is to know how to subdue our poisonous nature and nurture the goodness within.

The significance of Naga Panchami

The lunar nodes represent serpents. Rahu is connected to the sarpas and Ketu is connected to the nagas. Nagas are mystical creatures full of wisdom and hidden treasures. If you have issues related to Rahu & Ketu like Kaal Sarpa dosha or sarpa dosha or if you are running Rahu or Ketu mahadasha or antar dasha or if you have Rahu/Ketu transiting over natal planets or natal planets transiting over Rahu/Ketu then it is highly effective to worship the Nagas, especially on Naga Panchmi to get their blessings to bring balance and prosperity into our lives.

Naga Panchami Rituals

1. Worship Lord Shiva by chanting or meditating on the Shiva Panchakshari Stotram. This stotram opens with the line – Nagendra Haaraya. Naga means snakes, Indra means the best, excellent or chief, Haara means Garland. Lord Shiva is addressed as the one who wears the excellent of snakes as HIS garland. The simple symbolism is that when you learn to manage the Rahu Ketu axis in your own chart, they can be worn as an ornament.
2. Pranayama and Sudarshan Kriya helps us experience the power of the Kundalini Shakti (the most important among the nagas) within us.
3. Honor the Jyotirlinga of the planet Rahu with the mantra Aum Namah Shivaya Namo Nageshwaraya and Ketu with the mantra Aum Namah Shivaya Namo Viswanthaya
4. Do the Shiva Guided Meditation by Gurudev Sri Sri Ravi Shankar available on the Sattva app. This Guided Meditation invokes the Shiva Pranava to remove all negativity and bring prosperity and fulfillment.
5. Strictly avoid Non-Vegetarian food and have a simple sattvic meal. Avoid fried food. Milk-based products can be taken. If you are able, you can fast today as well.
6. Feed Sattvic food to people who are less fortunate than you. Rahu and Ketu represent poisons. It is best to avoid feeding toxic/poisonous food to people. Alchohol, Non-vegetarian food, etc are all considered poisonous.
7. Worship Lord Ganesha with the mantra – “Aum Gam Ganapataye Namaha”. Lord Ganesha is the deity associated with Ketu.
8. Worship Goddess Durga with the mantra – “Aum Dum Durgaye Namaha” as Goddess Durga is the deity associated with Rahu.
9. Lord Vishnu has the power to protect us from the evil effects of Rahu and Ketu. If you remember the story of Samudra Manthan, Lord Vishnu attacks the demon Svarbanuwith his Sudarshan Chakra and cuts him into Rahu and Ketu. Offer incense stick which represents Vayu tattva (air element) connected to Rahu to Lord Vishnu.
10. Light a lamp which represents Agni tattva (fire element) connected to Ketu and offer it to Lord Vishnu.
11. Meditate on the picture of Lord Kubera with a mongoose. Mongoose is the only animal that can successfully defeat a snake. If you have Rahu/Ketu in the 2/8th axis in your horoscope it is highly recommended to have a picture of Lord Kubera (with mongoose) in your office.
12. Donate – Today is an extremely auspicious day to make a donation. if possible you can donate to a priest or a temple.

For personalized rituals based on your own horoscope, download the align27 app.

The significance of Rahu and Ketu

Rahu Ketu axis in our birth charts gives us very important clues about what our current life goals desires are vs our past life merits issues to be dealt with. As per Vedic astrology, Rahu and Ketu have an orbital cycle of 18 years and are always 180 degrees from each other orbitally (as well as in the birth charts). Rahu and Ketu are always 7 houses apart which means if Rahu is in the 1st house Ketu is always in the 7th, Rahu in 3rd will always put Ketu in the 9th. They are exactly opposite to each other, and to study their placement in our birth chart the sign they are in, the nakshatra they are in etc gives us a big clue about our life. There is always a swing between these 2 houses based on their placement in our birth chart.

In Hindu astrology, Ketu represents karmic collections both good and bad, spirituality and supernatural influences. Ketu signifies the spiritual process of the refinement of materialization to the spirit and is considered both malefic and benefic, as it causes sorrow and loss, and yet at the same time turns the individual to God. In other words, it causes material losses in order to force a more spiritual outlook in the person. Ketu is a karaka or indicator of intelligence, wisdom, non-attachment, fantasy, penetrating insight, derangement, and psychic abilities. Ketu is believed to bring prosperity to the devotee’s family, removes the effects of snakebite and illness arising out of poisons. He grants good health, wealth and cattle to his devotees.

Ketu is considered responsible for moksha, sannyasa, self-realization, gnana, a wavering nature, restlessness, the endocrine system and slender physique. The people who come under the influence of Ketu can achieve great heights, most of them spiritual.

Rahu, being a karmic planet would show the necessity and urge to work on a specific area of life that has been ignored in the past life. To balance the apparent dissatisfaction one has to go that extra mile to provide a satisfactory settlement in the present lifetime.

To know more about how the Rahu/Ketu axis influences you as per your birth chart you can order our personalized report here.

You can also order our past life analysis consultation here .