Vaastu Shastra / Origin of Vaastu

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The origin of Vaastu Shastra have taken place well over thousands of years ago. The learned men of those days may not have lived in houses themselves but they most definitely dedicated their lives to the development of the science "Vaastu Shastra" or "Vaastu", as it is popularly known today.

The principles of the science laid down during those days were based purely on the effect of sunrays during different times of the day. The observations and corrections made were noted and concluded only after in-depth screening of the situation.

Proofs of Vaastu Shastra can be found during the time of Ramayana and Mahabharata. Even in the cities of Mohanjodaro and Harappa the application of Vaastu Shastra can be seen.

Since the science goes far back to the times of Lord Rama and Lord Krishna there are many interesting mythological stories concerning the origin of Vaastu Purush (the deity).

 
One such story
   
 

Lord Shiva had killed a devil named Andhak after a long war that had continued for years. A spirit originated out of the perspiration of Lord Shiva and consumed all the blood from the body of the devil. His hunger was still not satisfied. He then undertook penance. Lord Shiva was impressed and highly satisfied by his penance and offered him a boon. The spirit then went wild and started eating men and animals. This terrified even the Gods in heaven. 81 Gods including Lord Bramha laid the spirit face down and they then sat on different parts of its body. When the spirit asked for forgiveness Lord Brahma offered him a boon: "After building any structure, the people who offer you prayers and worship you as Vaastu Devta will be blessed with pleasures and prosperity. However only those people, who do not offer you prayers shall be at your mercy and you may trouble them in any way". There is a possibility that these stories were added in the olden scripts only to scare people and make them conscious about the subject. The science of Vaastu Shastra is however no mythological story and has stood the test of time for thousands of years.