Raksha Bandhan (2024 Dates)

Raksha Bandhan is the festival that celebrates the beautiful bond between a brother and a sister. It is celebrated on Shravan Poornima, which in 2024 falls on Monday, 19th August. The sister ties the rakhi on her brother’s hand with a prayer to make him prosperous, and the brother pledges to protect his sister in every birth. While Raksha Bandhan celebrates the relationship between brothers and sisters, it is also a spiritual bond which helps in reducing the give and take between them and helping them further on the path to God realisation.

A. Place a short wooden seat for the brother to sit on.

B. Draw a sattvik rangoli around this wooden seat (Sattvik waves are emitted by the rangoli designs made in this way and they help in making the environment of the place sattvik.)

C. Have the brother sit on the seat. He should be wearing new clothes. The sister should stand in front of him holding a platter for aukshan. The siblings must first close their eyes and pray to God for each other’s protection.

D. The sister must now apply a tilak of vermillion to her brother’s forehead.

E. She should then tie a rakhi on her brother’s right wrist. (The sister should recite the ‘yena baddho…’ prayer that is given below)

F. After tying the rakhi, the sister must wave the ghee lamp i.e. arti (in a semi-circular manner) in front of the brother.

G. After waving the arti, the brother must gift his sister something. The sister must show her respect for her brother by accepting the gift.

Nowadays markets are flush with fancy rakhis. Some of them have images of Gods or Dharmik symbols. (Some examples are given below) After Raksha Bandhan, the rakhis are often forgotten and start collecting dust, some fall off and get trampled upon. When this happens with a God’s image, it is gross denigration of that Deity. This will also amount to sin. So, to avoid this, do not tie such rakhis. 

Raksha Bandhan is to strengthen the bond between brothers and sisters, and also to lessen the give and take account between them. This is the spiritual reason underlying Raksha Bandhan. Similarly, all our festivals have some spiritual basis. Sanatan Satsangs explore the spiritual basis of our festivals…

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History of Raksha Bandhan

A. Goddess Lakshmi made King Bali (from hell) her brother, by tying a rakhi on his wrist and thus freed Narayan (Her husband). This was the day of Shravan Pournima.

B. The Gods and demons were in a war for 12 long years. The demons were on the verge of winning the war. Indra, the king of the Gods was dejected and decided to withdraw from the battlefield. Indrani sensed his dejected and approached Guru Brahaspati for advice. Guru Brahaspati meditated for a while and told Indrani – Use the power of your fidelity, pray for Indra to be protected and tie a thread on his right wrist. He is sure to be victorious. Indrani followed the instructions and tied a thread while reciting the following shlok – येन बद्धो बली राजा दानवेन्द्रो महाबलः । तेन त्वाम् अभिबध्नामि रक्षे मा चल मा चल ।। (yena baddho balī rājā dānavendro mahābalaḥ । tena tvām abhibadhnāmi rakṣe mā cala mā cala ।।) Meaning : I tie the same fragile thread which bound the all powerful King Bali to your hand. May this thread stay intact and protect you.

C. As stated in the Bhavishya-Puran, Rakshabandhan was originally meant for Kings. A new custom of tying rakhis began from the historical ages.

A historical rakhi
This is a small bundle of rice grains, gold, and white mustard seeds tied together with a silk thread.

Spiritual science underlying the tying of a rakhi

Increase in love and decrease in give and take account

The give-and-take account between siblings is approximately 30%. This account is lessened through the medium of festivals like Rakshabandhan; hence, though the siblings get entangled at the gross level, at the subtle level the existing give-and-take account between them is settled.

Spiritual perspective : To bind the waves of the Yama Principle

On the day of Shravan Pournima high speed waves of Yama Principle are activated in the universe. Particles of the Tejtattva are generated due to the friction between these high speed waves. These particles of Tejtattva are emitted into the atmosphere. They become inert because of their union with the earth particles and they create a covering on the ground. This is called raksha.

Emotional perspective : To nurture a healthy relation between siblings

The sister is supposed to tie a rakhi on her brother’s wrist. The emotion in this is that the brother should become prosperous and he should protect his sister. More important than a sister tying a rakhi to her brother, is a young man getting a rakhi tied from a young woman. By doing so, the attitude of men towards women changes. It is a sort of a religious observance that the youth can follow. All sinful thoughts cease to exist before the pure bond of love between a brother and sister. This is also a festival that closes the chasms that are opening up in homes.

Spiritual Significance of Raksha Bandhan

Reference book

This article on Raksha Bandhan contains excerpts from the following publication. Get your copy today and learn about our various festivals and how to celebrate them in a spiritually beneficial manner.

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