Puja

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A puja as performed in Ujjain during the Monsoon on the banks of the overflooding river Shipra.
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A puja as performed in Ujjain during the Monsoon on the banks of the overflooding river Shipra.

This article is about Hinduism. Puja may also refer to certain devotional practices performed by Buddhists.

Pūjā (Devanagari: पूजा) (alternative transliteration Pooja, Sanskrit: reverence or worship) is a religious ritual that Hindus perform on a variety of occasions to pray or show respect to God (or gods).

Most practicing Hindus pray once or twice a day. Pujas are reserved for special occasions like house warming. Puja should be done after a shower or bath and it is recommended that rites be performed before food intake to ensure sattvic qualities and full concentration (dhyan). Puja is also performed on special occasions in addition to the daily ritual. These include Durga Puja, Pongal and Lakshmi Puja and other religious occasions.

Puja or Pooja is also a very popular Hindu female first name. Puja includes a bell to bring attention to the gods, a plate cup (sort of) and lots of other things!

Contents

[edit] Puja rituals

Puja consist of meditation (dhyana), austerity (tapa), chanting (mantra), scripture reading (svadhyaya), offering food (thaal) and prostrations (panchanga or ashtanga pranama, dandavat). The individual also applies a tilaka mark on the forehead with sandalwood paste, and then a vermillion (kumkum) dot (chandlo) in its centre. This signifies submission to the Almighty and also His Omnipresence. Puja is usually concluded with aarti to the Lord.

Puja may be performed by an individual worshipper or in gatherings. The ritual may be observed in silence or accompanied by prayers. Sometimes a puja is done for the benefit of certain people, for whom priests or relatives ask blessings. A Hindu priest (called a Pundit) will chant prayers in Sanskrit or some other language while performing puja.

Large pujas request the presence of fellow believers and pray to the god or goddesses in question. This usually involves a full day ritual where people are present for the actual puja ceremony and have puja prasad (blessed food that should not be thrown out), followed by bhajans (religious prayer songs) and an all-vegetarian dinner.

[edit] 27 steps of a puja

A puja generally takes the form of the Lord as your guest:

  1. Dhyaanam Samarpayami (Think or meditate on the Lord)
  2. Aawaahanam Samarpayami (Invite the Lord into your home/heart)
  3. Aasanam Samarpayami (Offer a seat)
  4. Paadyam Samarpayami (Offer water to wash the feet)
  5. Arghyam Samarpayami (Offer water to wash the hands)
  6. Aachamaneeyam Samarpayami (Offer water to drink)
  7. Snaanam Samarpayami (Give bath)
  8. Maha Abhishekam Samarpayami (Main head bath)
  9. Pratishtaapayaami (Make Him seated)
  10. Vasthram Samarpayami (Offer clothes)
  11. Yajnopaveetham Samarpayami (Offer the Holy Thread)
  12. Gandham Samarpayami (Offer sandlewood paste/powder)
  13. Akshatham Samarpayami (Offer Akshatha (rice))
  14. Pushpam Samarpayami (Offer flowers)
  15. Ashthothtra Poojam Samarpayami (Say the holy names of the Lord)
  16. Dhoopam Aaghraapayaami (Offer fragrance)
  17. Deepam Darshayaami (Offer light)
  18. Neivedyam Samarpayami (Offer food)
  19. Phalam Samarpayami (Offer fruiters)
  20. Taamboolam Samarpayami (Offer betel nut and leaves )
  21. Dakshinam Samarpayami (Offer wealth)
  22. Maha Nirajanam Samarpayami (Perform aarti)
  23. Pradakshinam Samarpayami (Continue aarti)
  24. Namaskaram Samarpayami (Prostrate before Him)
  25. Mantra Pushpam Samarpayami (Offer incantations and flowers)
  26. Praarthanaam Samarpayami (Offer prayers, request your desires)
  27. Kshamaapanam Samarpayami (Admit wrongdoings and ask for forgiveness)

[edit] The role of the Priest

Often, temple priests conduct pujas on behalf of sponsors. The sponsors either bear expenses of the puja ingredients or provide ingredients and dakshina.

[edit] Satyanarayana Puja

The Satyanarayana Puja is unique in that it does not require a brahmin to perform.

The Satyanarayana Pooja is usually done on the Poornima day of every month (full moon day). It is also done on special occasions and during times of achievements as an offering of gratitude to the Lord. These occasions include marriage, graduation, and the purchase of a new home to name a few. In addition, it is said that a devotional performance of this pooja will bear children to infertile couples.

The pooja starts by a prayer to Lord Ganesha, the elephant God and remover of all obstacles that may occur as a result of incorrectly performing the pooja. This is done by chanting all the names of Lord Ganesha and offering prasad (a food offering, usually consisting of one of Lorg Ganesha's favorite foods - modak, a sugar and coconut mixture, or lhadu) and the showering of flower petals.

Another part of the prayer involves a prayer to the Navagraha's, which are the 9 important celestial beings, in the universe. They consist of Surya (the Sun), Chandra (the moon), Angaaraka/Chevaai (Mars), Budha (Mercury), Guru aka Bruhaspati (Jupiter), Shukra (Venus), Sani (Saturn), Rahu (the head of Demon snake), and Ketu (the tail of Demon snake).

The rest of the prayer consists worship to Lord Satyanarayana, an extremely benevolent form of Lord Vishnu. Again, names of Lord Satyanarayana are chanted along with offering of a variety of prasads (including a mixture of milk, honey, ghee/butter, yogurt, sugar) and flower petals.

Another requirement of the pooja is that the story of the pooja be heard among all those observing and partaking in the pooja. The story involves the origin of the pooja, the benefits of it, and the potential mishaps that may occur with the careless performance of the pooja.

The prayer concludes with an Aarti, which consists of revolving a small fire-lit-lamp in the vicinity of an image of the Lord. After the pooja is over, participants and observers of the pooja are required to injest in the prasad that was offered and blessed by the Lord.

[edit] See also

[edit] External links

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