Does Yagna/havan/agnihotra purify the air

If it is complete burning (what happens in sun) called a plasma state of element, than only it is pollution free, as Havan is incomplete burning and you get ash as remaining product, it is not purify air, in fact it is polluting an air around you. It is very debatable subject and if Havan is creating less then 100 AQI in room it may consider safe for you. So whenever you do Havan, you please measure the air quality and find out the result, there are instruments available with fair amount of accuracy for this. Havan does reduce pollution but it needs to be done properly otherwise you will end up causing pollution instead of reducing it.

If you use the right amount of ghee and samagri (and the samagri should not be adulterated) and the right kind of firewood, you will reduce pollution as well as reduce microbes around you. When the havan is performed the air touches the fire, gets purified and becomes lighter in nature. So this light air goes up and replaces the cold/ the impure air and this process continues (as we studied in geography ; how the lighter air from the plains replace the heavier air from the poles) and the air keep getting purified till the ritual is being performed.

The main ingredient in havan is mango wood which when burnt releases Formaldehyde a gas which kills harmful bacteria thus purifies the atmosphere as per the research of (scientist Trello from France). It is then scientists made Formalin from formic aldehyde gas which is used to preserve the fruits, vegetables and species in the medical laboratories. The jaggery burnt in the havan also releases the formic aldehyde gas. A scientist Tautlik found that if we stay in a place where havan is being performed for ½ an hour the germs of typhoid fever are killed.

The cow’s ghee the very important ingredient of havan has been referred as an antidote to the poison in Vedas. Its fragrance purifies the physical atmosphere. Ghee when burnt in fire goes up in the atmosphere and the fat particles get laden on the dust particles in the atmosphere (somewhat similar to the stickiness on the objects in the kitchen) and comes back to the earth in form of rain thus nourishes the vegetation on the mother earth. Dr. Shirowic a Russian scientist says that if cow’s ghee is put in fire its smoke will lessen the effect of radiation in the atmosphere to a great extent.

Sweets like honey and gur (jaggery), nutrition like ghee and dry fruits, aromatic herbs like ela, dalchini. Lavang rose petals, antibiotic herbs like guggul and gyal, and matter like ghee and samagri when burnt cause rain and purify the atmosphere. {Samveda mantra 534} Havan ritual is like giving back to the atmosphere what we have taken from the atmosphere. The aromatic herbs when burnt remove the foul odor in the atmosphere by their fragrance.

As per the research conducted by Dr. Kundan lal M.D. in allopathic medicine found that no bacteria was killed when 1 k.g. of mango wood was burnt in a closed room but when the same was burnt with havan samagri the bacterial count was reduced by 94% (chander Shekhar Nautiyal) Head of the division studying plant- microbe interaction. The air sample even after 24 hrs.showed that bacteria count was lower by 96%. So havan is helpful to prevent air born infections like T.B. and other viral infections.

Prof. Tilward says that fumes of havan kills the bacteria of T.B., Measles, Cow pox, Small pox.As it is said that basis of food is Earth and basis of earth is Water and basis of water is Air and if air is pure; everything would be pure. Even the ash from the havan seems to be having cleansing effect that is why it is a ritual to immerse the havan ashes in the water. East European countries use ash as soil treatment which has shown positive results. Formaldehyde is sprayed to disinfect walls and ceilings and is also used to preserve the fruits as formic acid which is produced by burning mango wood and jaggery (gur).

Havan has been found an effective method to reduce the fungal load in small office or room. As per the experiments conducted the havan fire smoke has the potency to kill fungi like Aspergillus, Penicillium, Curvuleria and cladosporium etc. (Earth environmental science) in June 2007 in Acrobiolagia A Journal published in Netherlands. The oxidation of hydrocarbons in (ghee and oils found in dry fruits) produce formic acid and acetic acid (vinegar) used to preserve food material.

Since, the formaldehyde is effective only in the presence of water that is why there is a ritual of sprinkling the water around the Havan kund and in the air. The water is also available in form of water vapours found in the atmosphere. Heal the atmosphere with havan and the healed atmosphere will heal you says Dr.Madukar Gaikwaad. Dr. Haffkin says that inhaling the fumes of havan from distance induces secretions from certain glands related to wind pipe that fills our mind and heart with relaxation.

The use of carbon dioxide as Cerebral stimulant suffering from lack of ventilation (mouth to mouth breathing technique) is a common practice in medical world. Similarly carbon dioxide produced in haven is at a very slow pace and then this smoke is rich with the aroma of all the material burnt in it acts as stimulant to the brain and the same carbon dioxide is used by the plants also. This was published as Yagna's Scientific interpretation (an article published in the proceedings of Ashawmedha yajna held in Montreal Canada 26-28 July 1996).

The chemical reaction which takes place during the burning of all the havan samagri during the process of havan is as----Co2 +h2o +112,000 cal----alcohol +o2. Carbon dioxide +water+112,000 cal---formaldehyde +oxygen. So, to large extent carbon dioxide is converted into oxygen by havan. While performing the ritual of havan it has to be kept in mind that there should absolute combustion of the material in the havan samagri to tap the maximum benefit of the havan.

I remember the fact as a child when we used to attend the havan ceremony in Arya Samaj that the seniors always laid stress on how to arrange the samidha (the wood used in havan) in the havan kund. They ensured it that enough space is left for the proper circulation of the air, and moment there was smoke; seniors used to say loudly “ghee dalo aur Agni prajawalit karo” means that pour enough ghee so that it catches fire as ghee is known to help in the process of combustion.

Other than purifying the atmosphere Havan has the capacity to influence the local rains Since, the havan is performed while chanting the holy mantras; so the havan ritual charges the atmosphere with positive energy also. Havan smoke is like inhalation therapy derived from Ayurveda and as described above it relaxes the mind and heals the body and has positive effects spiritually too because of the holy verses (mantras) chanted during the havan.

Earlier we didn’t have any proof for such beliefs but now because many foreigners are getting involved in such practices - they are conducting experiments with proper scientific equipment to prove the claims made by the founders of these practices. One such example is Agnihotra - It is a Yagna performed at the time of sunrise and sunset. It was claimed that it helps purifying the atmosphere and reduces the air pollution. People with scientific mind had an obvious question that whenever something burns it uses oxygen and adds more carbon in the atmosphere; so how come this ritual could reduce the pollution?

At present, Agnihotra is being practiced in total 80 countries (including India). Germany and other countries are conducting experiments to validate the authenticity of claims established by the practitioners. Not only Agnihotra Yagna helps in reducing pollution but its by product - the ashes - has many medicinal properties and can heal many diseases miraculously. In general, Yagna has its science associated and can be proved now a days with the help of various sensors and equipment.