Jaya nama Samvatsare
Mrigasira Mase
Krishna Pakshe
Tritiya Tithau
Mangala Vasare
Pushya Nakshatre
Well, I'm glad you asked.
In simple terms, puja is worship. Hinduism is about strengthening your personal connection with God. The first thing you'll need to know is bhakti, or love for God. This is why Hindus make offerings in temples. It's akin to taking a gift for a loved one whom you're visiting.
Puja is by no means restrictive. You can worship however you'd like. You can chant, sing, or meditate in the temple. You can bring an offering. You can even volunteer at the temple as a form of worship.
OK, now we get to the offerings.
As I said earlier, offerings symbolize our love and devotion towards God. In India, many temples have small stores where you can buy offerings. Every year, I visit the Dakshineswar Kali Temple in Kolkata, and buy an offering basket. My particular offering basket contains:
A garland of red hibiscus flowers
A garland of orange marigolds
A saree for the Mother
Bangles for the Mother
Alta (a red dye traditionally used by Bengali women to decorate their hands and feet) and sindoor for the Mother
A chunari (red drape)
Jasmine and lotus flowers
Vilva leaves
Incense
A coconut
and bhog (I will explain the significance of all these items in a later post)
Since the 12 Shiva shrines at Dakshineswar are usually unmanned (no priest), devotees are allowed to personally make their offerings. Being a Shiva worshiper, I carry a basket of offerings for one of these shrines too.
My offerings to Shiva are:
A garland of marigolds
A garland of jasmine or aparajita (a blue flower)
A garland of milkweed buds
Loose flowers (marigold, lotus, aparajita, etc.)
Dhatura flowers and fruits (a favorite offering of Lord Shiva, poisonous flower/fruit - not to be eaten as prasada)
Vilva leaves
Sandalwood paste
500 mL of milk for abhisheka
1 liter of Ganges water for abhisheka (taken from the river next to the temple complex)
A deepam, or oil lamp
A coconut
and incense
Different temples may sell different offerings, and they have many different baskets to choose from. Some baskets may be as simple as bhog and flowers. The basket I choose is usually a complex one similar to the ones described above.
My next few posts will highlight Ganesha, Vishnu, Siva, and Durga.
Mrigasira Mase
Krishna Pakshe
Tritiya Tithau
Mangala Vasare
Pushya Nakshatre
Well, I'm glad you asked.
In simple terms, puja is worship. Hinduism is about strengthening your personal connection with God. The first thing you'll need to know is bhakti, or love for God. This is why Hindus make offerings in temples. It's akin to taking a gift for a loved one whom you're visiting.
Puja is by no means restrictive. You can worship however you'd like. You can chant, sing, or meditate in the temple. You can bring an offering. You can even volunteer at the temple as a form of worship.
OK, now we get to the offerings.
As I said earlier, offerings symbolize our love and devotion towards God. In India, many temples have small stores where you can buy offerings. Every year, I visit the Dakshineswar Kali Temple in Kolkata, and buy an offering basket. My particular offering basket contains:
A garland of red hibiscus flowers
A garland of orange marigolds
A saree for the Mother
Bangles for the Mother
Alta (a red dye traditionally used by Bengali women to decorate their hands and feet) and sindoor for the Mother
A chunari (red drape)
Jasmine and lotus flowers
Vilva leaves
Incense
A coconut
and bhog (I will explain the significance of all these items in a later post)
Since the 12 Shiva shrines at Dakshineswar are usually unmanned (no priest), devotees are allowed to personally make their offerings. Being a Shiva worshiper, I carry a basket of offerings for one of these shrines too.
My offerings to Shiva are:
A garland of marigolds
A garland of jasmine or aparajita (a blue flower)
A garland of milkweed buds
Loose flowers (marigold, lotus, aparajita, etc.)
Dhatura flowers and fruits (a favorite offering of Lord Shiva, poisonous flower/fruit - not to be eaten as prasada)
Vilva leaves
Sandalwood paste
500 mL of milk for abhisheka
1 liter of Ganges water for abhisheka (taken from the river next to the temple complex)
A deepam, or oil lamp
A coconut
and incense
Different temples may sell different offerings, and they have many different baskets to choose from. Some baskets may be as simple as bhog and flowers. The basket I choose is usually a complex one similar to the ones described above.
My next few posts will highlight Ganesha, Vishnu, Siva, and Durga.
Love the bro bro !! amazing write up !! keep it coming :)
ReplyDeleteI meant love the blog :O me and my typos !! :O
ReplyDeleteHaha, it's ok typos happen! Stay tuned!
ReplyDelete