Samskaras in Hinduism's idea of salvation: Rites of passing

The subject of this study is the samskara rites of passage in Hinduism's idea of salvation. Transition rituals make it meaningful to move on to the next stage of life by influencing every stage of human development and change. Therefore, in this study, the rites of passage that give hope of salvation through sanctification and purification of human transitional stages in samskaras are discussed. As a matter of fact, the main purpose of the study is to reveal that samskara rites of passage are a part of the idea of salvation. For this purpose, samskara rituals were evaluated in the context of their relationship with basic issues such as salvation, human, worldly life and life after death. Based on these, while birth rituals seek salvation by turning to human nature, the mystical dimension of salvation comes to the fore in Upanayana samskara. The marriage ritual makes sense of salvation within the scope of the duties and responsibilities of a male Hindu. The funeral ritual develops according to the meaning of death and aims at the salvation of the soul. At the same time, by revealing the human self and, in parallel, the part of the human that can be corrected, a connection was established between the samskara rituals and the human. The potential to correct the flawed side of man gives hope for salvation, revealing the meaning of samskara rituals in salvation. Therefore, in this study, it has been understood that samskaras perfect the human body and mind, which is imperfect and unclean, and keep them alive, which is the ultimate goal, liberation.