House

From Hindupedia, the Hindu Encyclopedia

By Swami Harshananda

As per Gṛhyasutras and Purāṇas[edit]

Every gṛhastha or householder has to construct his own house and live there. The gṛhyasutras and the purāṇas have dealt with almost all the aspects, except the engineering details, involved in the construction of house and entering it. Subjects dealt with in this are:

Election of a suitable site
Starting of the construction
The various stages in construction
Entering the new house

Beginning of Constructing House[edit]

The construction must be begun on an auspicious day in the śuklapakṣa or the bright fortnight of uttarāyaṇa (northern solstice). Nakṣatras like Rohiṇi, Uttaraphālguni or Uttarāṣādhā should be present.

As per Matsyapurāna[edit]

The Matsyapurāna^[1] states the results of beginning the construction of a house in the twelve months from Caitra (March-April). If it begins in Aṣāḍha (July), the owner will gain in cattle and will get good servants. If in Caitra, he will suffer from diseases and so on.

Both the auspicious and non auspicious nakṣatras have also been mentioned. The rules regarding entering a new house, gṛhapraveśa, are observed even now.