Description

There are forty samskaras prescribed in the Vedas of which sixteen, called the Shodasha samskaras, are in practice today. These samskaras to be performed by or for an individual beginning with conception and continuing up to the last rites performed after death. They are done in the five different stages of a human life i.e. –

The prenatal years,
The childhood years,
The student years,
The adulthood years and
The old age or wisdom years