Jaatkarma Sanskaara

Introduction

The जातकर्म संस्कार Jaatkarma sanskaara is intended to be done when the child is born (जात birth, born). This sanskaara is the fourth of sixteen sanskaaras and is the first sanskaara for a newborn. It welcomes the child to the world.

While the prenatal sanskaaras focused on the development of the fetus and the well-being of mother and child, this Sanskaara allows for the child’s first interaction with the पञ्चभूत pancha bhootas, the five basic elements of which the world is created – air, water, fire (heat), earth, and space. 

This sanskaara integrates the change from the womb to the world and gives attention to the child’s physical and mental senses and their development as they relate to the child’s development. It recognizes the massive changes experienced by the child as it emerges into the vast new world of space and time, where its perceptions, understanding, and responses depend on and are defined by the gross and subtle senses, where it is suddenly exposed to new energies and stimuli, from the cacophony of the external world to the lights in a million colors. When, with its first breath of vital air, it experiences the sense of smell and perceptions of touch.

Of particular note, this Sanskaar brings to focus:

Sight: 

At the child’s entry into the world, the eyes open to new light, a gift of a new world, very different from the perceptions of nine months within the womb. With sight activation, the brain’s processes and interaction with light kick off a sequence of biological and chemical processes that will last a lifetime. 

Hearing: 
The hearing sense through the ears is also initiated at birth, which triggers the perception of sounds from the world processed by the brain to give meaning to such sounds that will last a lifetime.

While one can choose to see by keeping the eyes open or close, as desired, the ears are always open and receptive to sounds. Therefore, inner strength must be developed to make choices of hearing, assimilating, and retaining external sounds. Thus, this Sanskaara includes the whispering of Om Vedo’si in the ears of the child, signifying that Om is the supreme sound that should always guide whatever other sounds enter the ears – and that the child becomes the embodiment of Wisdom (Veda), thus, only positive wisdom yielding sounds to be assimilated and retained.

With the significant act of whispering Om Vedo’si into the child’s ear, the first ever initiation of a person with his/her mantra is done – at birth. This process is the first and primary initiation of the child. When Spiritual Masters impart a mantra to their disciples, they whisper the mantra into the ear of the disciple. This creates a deep inspiration of not just words but of sounds, spiritual force (presence), and the time it is done. By whispering a mantra in the disciple’s ear, the guru combines the harshness of the voice with silence to produce a focused sound to the Initiate rather than a sound scattered to other objects than is intended. With that focused field of sound, the disciple alone hears it and becomes infused with the power and energy vibrations of the sound that becomes the mind-beat for the accompanying heart-beat of the initiate. The giver of the mantra, by whispering, also concentrates on the mantra and its sound; thus, the full force is transferred to the Initiate.

In this Sanskaara, this act of whispering such powerful words into the child’s ear not only represents the child’s first initiation but also signifies the acceptance by the mother and father to be the first Guru to the child. 

Touch or feeling: 

Touching/holding the child is done with caution as the skin discovers its billions of nerve endings and its ability to feel, sense, and interact with the world. The first cleaning act of the child is one done with prayers as the protection and surrounding of the mother’s womb is gone. This act presents the physical body to the world.

Tasting and Smelling
As with other senses, taste and smell are also initiated with this Sanskaara. Not only are the senses opened up, but the translation and reactions of the brain and other body parts (stomach, tongue, eyelids, nostrils, etc) are all impacted.

Speech

This Sanskaara includes a special act of writing on the tongue of the child: the pen is a gold metal object, and the ink is honey (gold of nature). By using the precious metal and the precious ink, prayers are done to bless the child so that the speech and personality are as rich, symbolic, and reflective of the favorable properties of Gold and Honey.

Timing of Jaatkarma Sanskaara:

This sanskaara begins with verses that protect both mother and child during and after birth. The timing of this Sanskaara in the Sanskaara Vidhi references authority from the Grihyasutras. In the historical context, the delivery of a child is usually in a room in which an experienced practitioner (midwife) assists with the delivery, and extra care is given to the use of water and other materials for delivery.

In the current era, most children are delivered in a healthcare facility, and after the health of both child and mother is confirmed, they proceed home. In this edition of this sanskaara, we accept that in most situations, the child is available for Sanskaara around the third day of birth. This Sanskaara should be therefore done as soon as it is practical.

It should be noted that the next Sanskaara (Naamkaran Sanskaara) identifies the 11th day for that Sanskaara – based on the premise that the mother comes out of the delivery room on the 10th day. Given the modern realities in which both Mother and child are sent home by the third day, both sanskaaras can be done on this third day.