Last Updated on 20 August 2023 IST | On the festival of Nag Panchami 2023, know its significance & history, True Way of Worship, how this festival is celebrated around the country, and much more. 

Nag Panchami 2023: Introduction

Nag Panchami is amongst the most popular Hindu festivals which is celebrated annually in India and other neighboring countries where Hindus live. It is a traditional festival which marks the worshipping of snake or nag for the sake of the well being of the devotee. This day derived its name from the fact that firstly it’s related to the worship of snakes and secondly it falls on the fifth day after Amavasya or moonlit-fortnight in the month of Shravana.

Nag Panchami History

India is a country where God and Goddesses are worshipped. At this point, many questions strike in the mind, “Why are snakes Worshipped in India and Why do people celebrate Nag Panchami?”. There is a whole lot of history behind it.

Nag Panchami 2023| Various Holy books in Hindu religion give stories of worshipping snakes; about what happened in the ancient time which marks this day as Nag Panchami. In the Mahabharata epic, the son of King Parikshit, Janamejeya was doing a snake sacrifice called as “sarpa satra”, in retribution for the death of his father King Parikshita due to the biting of snake king Takshaka. Well-known brahmins were called and a sacrificial fireplace was being set up to eradicate all the snakes from the world. As planned, the recitation of mantras was so powerful that all the snakes were falling into the Yagna Kunda (sacrificial fireplace).

True Story Behind Nag Panchmi

Brahmin priests found out after some time that the king of snakes Takshaka is not coming into the Yagna Kunda as he has gone into the refuge of Indra for protection. As a solution, they increased the pace of recitation of mantras which forced both Takshaka and Indra to fall into the fireplace. This situation frightened the other Gods and they requested Mansadevi to step in and handle the situation. Then she sent her son Astika to request Janamejaya to stop the sacrificial fireplace. Astika then went there to request Janmejay, he accepted his request to stop the Yagna.

■ Read in Hindi: Nag Panchami पर जानिए नागपंचमी की वास्तविक कथा 

Nag Panchami 2023: That’s how Takshaka & his race’s life was spared, along with this Indra was also sent to Mansadevi to worship her in return for this favor. That day happened to be the fifth day after Amavasya or moonlit-fortnight in the month of Shravana and since then it is celebrated as it marks that their life was spared on this day. As per Garuda Purana, worshipping snakes on this day shall be considered as beneficial and one’s all wishes are fulfilled. But this is opposite to the guidance given in Vedas.

The Story behind Milking a Snake in Nag Panchami

Along with this historical incident, there is a Nag Panchami 2023 story which is also associated with the festival. Folktale is about a farmer. He had two sons out of which one of them killed three snakes while doing farming. The mother of the snakes, by biting the farmer, his wife, his two sons on the same night took her revenge and they all died.

■ Also Read: Age of Hindu gods (Deities) explained by Saint Rampal Ji

The only daughter who survived this attack, begged in front of mother snake the following day with an offering of milk, apologized to her and requested her to restore her family’s life. Pleased with her request and milk offering, the mother snake restored her family’s life.

Is Nag Panchami a National Holiday?

Yes, the day of Nag Panchami falls in the list of national holidays. Naag Panchami 2023 date in India happens to be on 21st of August. 

What should we do on Nag Panchami?

The only purpose of performing snake worship is to ensure that it doesn’t bite you or your family for a lifetime. The only way to get this done is by performing the true worship of the Supreme God Kabir after taking Initiation from a True Saint, and not by performing arbitrary worship of snakes (Gita Chapter 16 Verse 24). Because only the All-capable Supreme God Kabir can save one from snakebite and can heal the snakebite as told in the Story of Queen Indramati by Saint Rampal Ji.

Do snakes drink milk?

According to the rituals, milk is offered to the snake and if the snake drinks the milk one is considered very lucky. The flute is also played at the time of giving milk to snakes along with the recitation of Nag Panchami Mantra. However, unlike ancient times, modern-day thinkers suggest that drinking milk can lead to the death of a snake and one must be very careful while following rituals.

Who is the Snake god?

There are mainly five Snake Gods in Hindu mythology namely Astika, Adishesha or Sheshnaga, Vasuki, Kaliya, Manasa Devi. These Gods are worshipped on this auspicious occasion. Along with this, readers may also think about which snake has the naagmani? Amongst the snake gods stated above Vasuki is said to be blessed by Lord Shiva, also believed to have a jewel called Nagmani on his head.

Nag Panchami Significance

Nag Panchami 2023: Along with worshipping snakes, Lord Shiva is also worshipped on this day as it is always depicted that he wears Vasuki snake as his ornament. Around the country on this very day, especially in the temples of Varanasi and Ujjain various snakes and cobras are being brought by snake charmers and being released in front of the image of God. Devotees offer milk to the snakes and wish not to suffer a snakebite throughout their lifetime.

As we are through with the history of this festival and since we have been celebrating these festivals for many years, we should draw our attention towards the fact that, Is Lord Shiva the immortal God? Is worshipping Lord Shiva mentioned in our holy Scriptures? The answer to these questions is NO. In the Holy Shrimad Bhagwad Geeta Chapter 7 from Verse 12-15, it is clearly written that those humans who worship Rajguna Brahma, Satguna Vishnu, and Tamguna Shiv, are demons in the form of humans.

In the Holy Shiv Puran pieces of evidence are there which prove that there is some other God than these three. In holy Devi Bhagwad Puran on page 123, 3rd Skand, it is clearly written that these three gods are into the cycle of birth and death which proves that worshipping these three Gunas is not prescribed in Holy Scriptures.

There is Only One True Saint at a Time

All the great sages who are worshipping these three Gunas are on the wrong path of worship and it has been proven in history itself. In Mahabharata epic, when king Parikshita was about to die on the seventh day from the bite of Takshaka snake as per a curse given by a sage, it was believed that Shrimad Bhagwat Sudha Sagar must be narrated to Parikshita so that his mind can be liberated from all the materialistic things and he can easily go to Heaven after death.

No sage including famous Ved Vyas (who wrote Shrimad Bhagwat Sudha Sagar) came forward for narrating the story because all of them knew that they are not the authorised narrator by whom benefits can be passed on to King Parikshita and were afraid since the result was to be declared on the seventh day after narration.

So for completing the task Sukhdev Rishi was called from Swarg Lok (Heaven) by sacrificing some good deeds of King only and hence the narration was completed thereafter. Hence it proves, that these all sages are not the true narrators and they are not doing worship according to our holy scriptures.

Who is giving the True Way of Worship at Present?

According to Chapter 16 Verse, 23-24 of Holy Shrimad Bhagwad Geeta worshipping according to scriptures is considered as correct. And in today’s time, the saint who is giving us the true way of worship according to our scriptures is one and only Saint Rampal Ji Maharaj. All His disciples are living a happy life since the day they have taken initiation from Saint Rampal Ji Maharaj as they are being given mantras according to Holy scriptures i.e. in accordance with Chapter 17 Verse 23 of Holy Shrimad Bhagwad Geeta.

How to Acquire Initiation?

For more information on who is the Supreme Almighty, one can always watch the spiritual discourses of Satguru Rampal Ji Maharaj on TV channels mentioned below:-

• Sadhna channel 7:30 to 8:30 pm
• Shraddha MH ONE 2:00 to 3:00 pm
• Ishwar 6:00 AM to 7:00 PM
• Nepal One 6 AM to 7 PM

The initiation is given completely free & all the items necessary for the same are provided free of cost to the devout person. You can fill the form for taking initiation by clicking here

FAQs About Nag Panchami