Temples have domes so that the resonance of one’s prayers can rebound on one. The dome is just a small, semicircular prototype of the sky. It has the same shape as the sky touching the earth on all four sides. Whatever prayers are conducted under its canopy, the words do not get lost as they would under the vast sky. The dome throws back the chants at the devotee. The rounder the dome, the easier it is for the sound to travel back, and its echo increases in the same proportion. Continue reading
In Negombo, we visited the Reclining Buddha temple. I have placed some pictures. The paintings on the wall depict different aspects of his life. Buddha cutting his hair and he was being given his mendicant garments. Continue reading
When one touches the deities’ feet, one is not just offering reverence one is saying, “I leave my burdens here. I offer my ignorance. I ask to walk your path.”
Your learning’s idle, incomplete
If you have not placed it at that source’s feet. – Tiruvalluvar, The Tirukurral, translated by Gopalkrishna Gandhi.
Do you not know that your bodies are temples of the Holy spirit, who is in you, whom you have received from God? You are not your own: you were bought at a price. Therefore, honor God with your bodies. – Corinthians 6:19—20
Visualizing Krishna. Seeing, touching and worshipping him. Praising and saluting his image and also the devotees. Reciting his glorious life. Listening to stories about him. Observing the special days dedicated to him. Offerings of worship and conducting the sacred rites according to Vedic and other scriptural texts. Chanting singing, and dancing in the temple. Continue reading
Dear ones, this is a beautiful song to baby Krishna. It expresses heart felt love. You can hear it on YouTube and you will want to sing along with it. Every Guru has adored this song.
I am giving the translation. The words are very simple and children can understand it and sing it. It is partly in English and Hindi. Continue reading
In the practice of Tantra, mantras are used. The mandala of sound in the beginning, when one practices the mantra, one chants Om, Om, Om aloud and one can hear the sound. Later one does not utter the sound, but one can feel it. Continue reading
It is a long and very sad story which has a happy ending. As you all know Ram is an incarnation of Vishnu and he came to the earth as a mortal to destroy an evil King by the name of Ravana. Ravana had been granted a boon that no God could kill him. Continue reading
In the previous blog article, I wrote about a prayer and a promise. We had gone to a forest sanctuary for a holiday. In India, where ever there are mountains, there are temples perched on a peak. We visited two temples and in both places the guide told us that one’s wishes were always granted but one had to fulfill one’s promise. I thought that was ridiculous as my understanding was that one went to offer prayers with a genuine and sincere heart. The divinity always understood what the supplicant was asking. Yesterday when I read Swamiji’s lecture, I appreciated what our guide was saying. Continue reading
My dear ones, I have discovered the beauty in the poetry of Rabindra Nath Tagore. The little book is called ‘Fireflies’.
While God waits for His temple to be built of love
Men bring stones.
Ayyappa is the son of Vishnu and Shiva? How did this come about? He was born out of the mystical union between Shiva and Mohini, who is the temporary avatar of Vishnu. Vishnu took the form of Mohini to undertake tasks that he could not accomplish in his original male form. Continue reading
How is it possible to meditate on food and drink? When one thinks of the amount of time one spends on the planning, purchasing and cooking of it, it’s a great deal of energy. It is important for us to do so as our body and mind need fuel. This fuel has to be healthy and pure, and one should think of one’s body as a temple. Continue reading
The temple domes were modelled on the sky. If one sits under an open sky and repeats AUM, one’s voice will be lost, because the strength of an individual’s voice will be lost in the sky. One will not be able to hear the reverberation and the echo of the chanting. The sky absorbs it. Continue reading
I was in Varanasi with my husband to celebrate our fiftieth wedding anniversary. Varanasi is considered the holiest city on earth for Hindus. It is supposed to be 5000 years old. The place where the supreme light shines, it is believed to be the home of Lord Shiva. When Shiva got married to Uma, the daughter of the Himavat, of Himalaya Mountain, he had to move from his abode in Kailash. Kashi was the most splendid city at that time and Uma was a princess and a goddess. It is believed that the river Ganga pays its respect to Lord Shiva by the direction in which it flows. The ajna chakra is on the banks of the Ganga and the Kashi Visvanath temple is where it is. Annapurna Devi‘s temple is next door. Continue reading
During ceremonial functions we use sacred symbols and objects as offerings and to decorate our homes. The principle underlying this custom is called sympathetic or imitative magic. It is based on the assumption that a desired result can be achieved by mimicking it. Continue reading