What Exactly is Jamboo Dwipa?

Whenever we do a sankalpa for a puja or samskara, we include desha kala sankeertana. Desha kala sankeertana means describing or pronouncing the glory of the place and time of the puja or ritual.

When you praise someone, they become favorable to you. This is a simple and straightforward technique. All of us have experienced this. It is the easiest way to get a favor or make someone favorable to you.

Here, we praise the place (desha) and time (kala) through desha kala sankeertanam. Even taking their names is sufficient.

So, we say: Jamboo dweepe Bharata varshe. What is this Jamboo dweepa?

Dweepa means island. According to the Puranas, there are seven such islands:

जम्बूद्वीपः प्रधानोऽयं प्लक्षः शाल्मल एव च।
कुशः क्रौंचश्च शाकश्च पुष्करश्चैव सप्तमः।
एते सप्त महाद्वीपाः समुद्रैः सप्तभिर्वृताः।
द्वीपाद् द्वीपो महानुक्तः सागरादपि सागरः।

The seven Mahadweepas are: Jambu dweepa, Plaksha, Shalmala, Kusha, Krauncha, Shaaka, and Pushkara. These are surrounded by the seven seas.

Of course, we know from basic geography that this refers to the seven continents. Jambu dweepa is at the center, representing Eurasia. Our Bharata is within Jambu dweepa, with the Himalayas to the north and the ocean on the other three sides.

The surprising part is: how did Vyasa know this? The Puranas were written during the Dwapara Yuga, at least five to six thousand years ago. There were no surveys or cartography. How did Sage Vyasa know all this? The Mahabharata says he sat in meditation, and everything flashed through his mind. This is the power of sadhana and meditation.

Saptwa dweepa vasudhara, Gange cha Yamune chaiva. Even in kalasha puja, this is mentioned. Isn’t this also a form of education? Puja is not just a ritual. You gain so much knowledge from the mantras and sentences used in puja. Every sentence is a vast resource of wisdom.

Ramaswamy Sastry and Vighnesh Ghanapaathi