Hindu samskars (var., samskaras) are sacred rituals or sacraments designed to imbue every stage of human life with dedication of activity (and action in that stage of life) to the divine. Hindu samskaras are inborn impulses which are brought across with the mind from the previous birth and cause samsara, the cycle of life, death and rebirth. The sixteen samskars laid down by Hindu religious texts are: Impregnation (Garbhadana) Pumsavana (Ensuring birth of a male child) Simanta (Hair-parting) Jatakarma (Ceremony on birth) Namakarana (Naming ceremony) Karnavedha (Ear-piercing ceremony)