Religious Acts
Ritualistic Worship and pooja items used in Ritualistic worship
Waving a lit lamp symbolizes puja of Deity with...
Performing the puja of a Deity with Atmajyoti (Flame-like appearance of the soul) means performing...
Benefits of applying gandha followed by offering of haldi...
During Panchopachar puja, gandha (Sandalwood paste) is applied to the Deity with the ring finger...
Shodashopachar puja – Means of abiding Dharma in a...
Puja of Deities is an easy way of abiding by achars (Conducts) set by Dharma...
What are the benefits obtained from Puja preparations?
Preparation for a puja is truly the foundation for the ritual of puja. It not...
Importance of drawing Rangoli as a part of Puja...
When drawing the rangoli for a puja, the pattern should, as far as possible, be...
Sounding of a conch at the commencement of a...
Sounding of a conch at the commencement of a puja and before an Arti helps...
Importance of removing nirmalya from an Idol or a...
While worshiping a Deity, the Deity’s Principle is created in the flowers as per the...
Why are kalash, conch, bell and lamp worshipped before...
The puja implements are at the forefront in attracting Pancha-tattva (Five Cosmic Principles) from the...
Importance of applying tilak or bhasma by the pujak...
A unique feature of Sanatan Hindu Dharma is the deep thinking behind acquisition of Chaitanya...
Clothes to be worn by men and women while...
A pujak (Worshipper) does individual preparation of purification through the medium of external coverings (of...
Why should we perform Puja immediately after a bath?
The increased sattvikta as a result of the bath slowly reduces due to the constant...
Individual preparation by a worshipper before performing Puja
A unique feature of Sanatan Hindu Dharma is the deep thinking behind acquisition of Chaitanya...
Benefits of waving lit dhoop or lit incense-stick in...
After waving the dhoop, incense-sticks of a specific fragrance are waved in front of the...
Haldi, Kumkum, Gulal and Gandha
Haldi (Turmeric) being a tuber which grows below the surface of earth, the waves of...
Cotton vastra and Janeu (Sacred thread)
The cotton vastra represents the Sushumnanadi of the Kundalini and the seven cotton beads in...
Importance of Water of the seven Holy rivers in...
The seven rivers referred to, are the Holy rivers Ganga, Godavari, Narmada, Kaveri, Krushna, Brahmaputra...
Offering patri (Specific leaves) and flowers to Deities
It is beneficial to offer the patri (Specific leaves offered during worship) of those flower...
Which Flowers is offered to which Deity ?
When flowers associated with a Deity are offered to that Deity, for example red flowers...
Qualities to be learnt from the substances used in...
Read about the qualities to be learnt from the substances used in Puja (Ritualistic worship)
Importance of Rangoli and Panchagavya
Drawing a rangoli in a sattvik pattern around a wooden platform or altar before commencing...
Ritual of offering dakshina (Offering in cash or kind)
By offering dakshina, a virtue of sacrifice develops in the individual. From sacrifice, detachment develops...
Offering Naivedya to a Deity with a bhav that...
When offering Naivedya, first pray to the Ishtadevata (Benevolent Deity) and draw a mandal on...
Why are only unbroken rice grains used as akshata...
Akshata has the ability to attract frequencies of 5 Deities, to activate them, make them...
Importance of the substances used in ritualistic worship
Read information about how the substances should be arranged in the ritualistic platter and spiritual...
Substances used in puja and arrangement of implements
We will read about substances used in puja and arrangement of implements (like naivedya, conch,...
Temple at home
How should the Deities be arranged in a temple...
The temple at home is made with the intention that the worshipper gets maximum Chaitanya...
Prayer
Praying with purpose – Expectations vs Surrender
A person praying for spiritual gain surrenders more than a person praying with worldly expectations,...
Some prayers which are useful to awaken bhav (Spiritual...
Prayer means pleading fervently from God. In other words, it is asking God for something...
Significance of prayer experienced by Non-Hindus
Westerners and Hollywood film stars taking up Hinduism as their religion, after realizing the importance...
Prayers offered to Deities and associated with daily activities
Saying a specific prayer to a particular deity actually enhances our faith in the presence...
Importance and benefits of Prayer
Praying is essential for understanding God and for perceiving His existence through our body, mind...
How should we pray?
Let us understand how to pray, whom to pray, where to pray and the various...
Why should a prayer be done for expressing gratitude?
Prayer is actually a synonym for surrender. This act of surrender is completed only after...
Aukshan
Importance and spiritual science of performing Aukshan
This article speaks in detail about the ritual of aukshan (A ritual of waving lit...
Requisites and the method of aukshan
Let us understand about the objects required for aukshan, their arrangement in the ritualistic platter...
Birthday
Celebrating birthday as per Hindu Dharma
Probably many of us do not even know that celebrating birthdays as per the tithi...
Method of celebrating birthday
Celebrating birthday helps in protecting us from negative energies. Let us understand how to obtain...
Do you know the effects of these acts on...
Birthdays celebrated as per tithi (a lunar day) are very pious, because we receive a...