Whether Avatar of God is mentioned in the Vedas ?

There is clear mention of the Avatar ( incarnation) of God in the Vedas.

It is obvious from the Vedic Verse ajAyamAno bahudhA vijAyate (forming part of Purusha Sukta) that though unborn, Bhagavan takes avatar and that those who are steadfast know well his true form. The meaning is that a mortal is born due to his Karma whereas Bhagavan takes an Avatar based on His free Will. He is not bound by any Karma as He is always unattached towards it.

The following is from Taittiriya Aranyaka iii-40, iii-41 of Krishna Yajur Veda.


ajAyamAno bahudhA vijAyate
tasya dheerA: parijAnanti yonim

The following is from Vajasaneya Samhita - Madhyandina Sakha xxxi-19 of Sukla Yajur Veda

ajAyamAno bahudhA vijAyate
tasya yonim paripasyanti dheerA:

KARMAS

The Karmas are of three types :

Sañcita -- Accumulated over countless previous Births
Prarabdha -- Which has to be necessarily experienced in this Birth
Agami -- Produced now due to Current Karmas to be experienced in future.

There is always the concept of limited applicability of freewill as well. By doing Prayascitta Karmas it is possible to mitigate the ill-effects to some extent.

Karma phalas are of three types Papa, Punya and Misra (Mixed).

If an action is done without attachment to its result, it does not bind the doer.

The Yuga dharma also influences a person in his actions.

Whether Mangalya Dharanam is mentioned in the Vedic Scriptures?

As per Grihya Sutras, there is no practice of Mangalya Dharanam.

The important marriage ritual which consummates Marriage is holding the hand of the Bride by the Groom and doing Sapta Padi ( Joint Seven steps)..

From the bride's side it is Kanya Danam.
From the Groom's side it is Pani Grahanam ( Holding of Hand)

But there has been the practice of Mangalya dharanam for a long period.

What is the meaning of the word "Sutra" appearing in the Abhivadanam?

Sutra refers to the Grihya/ Srauta Sutra according to which one has to perform the various Nithya and Naimittika Karmas as per Vedic tradition. For example, for Krishna Yajur Veda , Apastamba Sutra is the prescribed Sutra . One who is born in this lineage has to perform the Vedic rituals in Krishna Yajur Veda as ordained by Apastamba Rishi in the Apastamba Grihya/ Srauta Sutras.

ABHIVADANAM

How to say " Abhivaadaye----"


1. Abhivaadaye
2. (.........) (..........) (.........) Trayaarsheya
{ Mention three Seers if your Gotra has three seers}
(OR)
(.........)(.........) (..........) (.........) (.........) Pancaarsheya
{Mention five Seers if your Gotra has five seers }
pravaraanvita
3. (...........) gotraH
{ Mention your Gotra}
4. (...........) sutraH
{ Mention your Sutra}
5. (..............) shaakhaa adhyaayi
{ Mention your Veda Sakha}
6. Shri (..............) sharmaa
{Mention your Name}
naamaahaM asmi bhoH !

While doing AbhivAdanam the following points have to be kept in view:

1) If One does AbhivAdanam to a respected person, that other person should say pratyabhivadanam (blessing) .

2) One should not say AbhivAdanam to SannyAsis, Women (other than one’s mother), Deities , Group of people .

3) AbhivAdanam should be done only on a one to one basis.

4) AbhivAdanam during performance of Karmas like Sandhya vandanam is allowed.

RELEVANCE OF VEDAS AND VEDIC MANAGEMENT

Links of my brief speech on Vedas posted in You Tube based on an interview:

Relevance of Vedas in current times
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7MDaAPUGjXE


Holistic approach to management with four dimensions
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=C6Bh8F0l71Q&feature=related


Environment-friendly messages in the Vedas
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZosXEHtewCI&feature=related

UPANISHADS IN ATHARVA VEDA

There are 31 Upanishads which belong to Atharva Veda.
List of Upanishads which pertain to Atharva Veda:

1) Annapurna Upanishad
2) Atharvasikha Upanishad
3) Atharvasiras Upanishad
4) Atma Upanishad
5) Bhasma-Jabala Upanishad
6) Bhavana Upanishad
7) Brihad-Jabala Upanishad
8) Dattatreya Upanishad
9) Devi Upanishad
10) Ganapati Upanishad
11) Garuda Upanishad
12) Gopala-Tapaniya Upanishad
13) Hayagriva Upanishad
14) Krishna Upanishad
15) Maha-Vakya Upanishad
16) Mandukya Upanishad
17) Mundaka Upanishad
18) Narada-Parivrajaka Upanishad
19) Nrisimha-Tapaniya Upanishad
20) Para-Brahma Upanishad
21) Paramahamsa-Parivrajaka Upanishad
22) Pasupata-Brahmana Upanishad
23) Prasna Upanishad
24) Rama-Rahasya Upanishad
25) Rama-Tapaniya Upanishad
26) Sandilya Upanishad
27) Sarabha Upanishad
28) Sita Upanishad
29) Surya Upanishad
30) Tripadvibhuti-Mahanarayana Upanishad
31) Tripura-Tapini Upanishad