Importance of visiting temple and following rituals.

I have been asked several times by my foreign  friends - Why Hindus visit temples?
After researching and talking to few experts, I found few reasons. Apart from spiritual need, people went to temple for social and scientific reasons.

Darshan: We visit temple for Darshana or see the 'sight' of the supreme lord. This helps the devotee to connect the god mentally and emotionally. It also help in concentrating fully with god and forgetting the rest of the universe around us. This 'Dhyana' or mediation creates vacuum in our continuous flow of thoughts that facilitate to attain peace.

Idol: God is humanized in the form of 'idol' that helps devotee to concentrate on an object. It gives a definite shape or form to our imaginary thoughts. In addition, every god or supreme power has certain characteristic to his/her personality and we ultimately wish to have them or improve in those area.

Rituals: Rituals in Hinduism are in different form. One set of rules are for temples and another for personal life. Temple rituals revolves around "pranpratishtha" or installing the idol of a deity in the temple with proper rituals of invoking god/goddess with sanskrit chanting, bathing the idol with milk, water, honey, clarified butter and yogurt (panchamrut i.e. 5 nectors or liquids), dressing up with cloth, flowers, ornaments, offering food and singing bhajan (devotional songs).

Every ritual invokes human 5 senses - touching(touching the deity), seeing(seeing the deity), tasting (panchamrut), smelling (flowers, camphor, and other things), hearing (the chanting, arti, bhanjan)...bring 'self' the present state or in temple completely.

On daily basis the worshiping is done in smaller scale to invoke and sleep the god in the form of idol. The same process is followed at home in much smaller scale.

There are other rituals in Hinduism are meant for social occasions such as marriage, and death and so on... this signifies the life and meaning we have for every part of the life and the way we accept and respect it. These rituals associated with the special occasions reminds us our duty or role or 'dharma' during that phase. Most of them are beneficial and scientifically  proven. For example, the silver toe rings are part of acupuncture  therapy that regulates uterus function in women and avoid diseases associated with. It also improve a sexual desire in women and therefore forbidden for unmarried  or widows to wear them.

Concept of Brahma: This concept remind us the value of I. I am Brahma. So do others. The temple may have one of more deities whom we worship or devote ourself with the concept of I am one part of the universe. I am also God. The devotion teaches us to let go off "I" that is main cause of stress and conflict in the personal and professional life.

Architecture: Most ancient temples have magnificent architecture that have scientific as well as spiritual significance. The scientific meaning of the temple architecture is associated with the scientific construction that includes the decor, angles, lights, the environment and the other things.

The common features of the temples are:
1. Central sanctum enshrines for the main deity
2. Secondary sanctums are for other deities such as Ganesha, Nandi and so on...
3. The space for the trained priest to perform rituals
4. The space in-front of the main deity is for devotees to stand/sit to worship or attend the Arti
5. The outside areas  either within the temple premises or outside the temple premises meant for public for attending social functions or discourse
6. There is additional space for devotees for pradkshana or parikrama or walk around the garbha graham or main section of the temple, but this is within the premises/external boundaries of the temple.

Pradaksihina or Parikrama: The reasons behind pradkshana is - we consider god is center part of our action, our thought and our world. When we go around, we keep the deity at the center of the gravity and consider it as the main focus of our existence. This concept usually helps devotees to consider to take life as it comes or consider this is devoted to the god /universe and we all are part of it. This is one of the ways to keep our mind balanced and peaceful by removing the focus from 'self' or 'I'.

The role Temples in Society: Temples, in general, played a larger role in the society that provided educational, social support in addition to providing them an emotional, and a spiritual support. Most temples in ancient India were also served as educational institutes or gurukul and the center for social gathering in the evening. The additional space within the temple is provided to people to held social rituals and ceremonies. The spiritual guru used the same space to give the discourse that taught most to stay away from materialistic, physical or emotional vices. The environment also helped to inculcate the basic virtue through friendship, forgiveness, humility, tolerance, courage, guidance and more...thus improving overall improvement.




http://www.hinduismtoday.com/modules/smartsection/item.php?itemid=5315

Hindus see divinity in all living creatures.

Through the centuries, Hindu religious scripts, stories, and rituals have attempted to drive home the importance of preserving nature by deifying every form of it.

For us, Ganga is not just a river but a mother, a goddess, and much more. It’s considered holy because it sustains life on a huge and fertile delta.

Peepul, Banyan and Neem are not just trees but they are regarded as the embodiment of deities and we worship them. The Bel leaves and fruits, Mango leaves, Tulsi leaves and Coconuts are offered to the God during worship. The Lotus is a sacred flower for Indians. The banana plant and leaves are used for decorating the temple and worship. Ayurveda tells us that all plants and flowers have medicinal value.

The bond between Indian people and trees is very strong. Ramayana and Mahabharata have innumberable descriptions of trees and forests. In the Bhagavad Gita, Krishna compares the world to the Banyan tree because it is so large and provides a home to many different creatures. The Mahabharata says that ‘even if there is only one tree full of flowers and fruits in the village, that place becomes worthy of worship and respect.’

In Indian iconography, there is a close relationship between the various deities, and their animal or bird mounts. Each God or Goddess is associated with a particular animal or bird, and this lends a special dimension to the animal kingdom.

Krishna is worshipped along with his cow who gives us so much yet asks nothing in return. Shiva is worshipped alongwith his bull Nandi. Vishnu flies on Garuda the Vulture. Saraswati is worshipped with her swan and peacock and Laxmi is worshipped with her owl. When you seek blessings from Ganesha, you seek blessings from his companion –mouse - too. Ganesha, the son of Shiva, is a combination of elephant and man; the elephant is worshipped in this country and even today forms an integral part of many temples and festivals.

We do not look upon cattle as mere beasts of burden, but treat them with dignity and gratitude; On the harvest festival in many parts of the country, bullocks, which are an integral part of the village economy, are honored, decorated and taken out in processions across the village.

The concept of ahimsa prevents a Hindu from causing harm to any creature, and therefore, many Hindus are vegetarian.

In Hindu pantheon, God incarnated himself first in the form of a fish and then a tortoise. His fifth incarnation was a man-lion.

The Atharva-Vedic concept of Vasudhaiva Kutumbakam includes human beings, animals, and all living creatures. It says that human beings cannot command or demand mastery over other creatures and are forbidden from abusing and damaging the nature. People did not spring fully formed to dominate lesser life, but evolved out of these forms and are integrally linked with them. They are expected to live in harmony with Nature.

Ahimsa does not only mean no violence to human beings. It also means no violence to air, rivers, oceans, plants, trees, forests, mountains, birds and animals.

But somewhere down the line, we forgot who we are and what is our relationship with nature. We thought worshipping trees is what uneducated rustic people do. We thought Ganga is a just a river and not our mother. We thought that the story of Ganga descending into the earthly planet as a result of severe austerities performed by Bhagiratha is a myth. We forgot how Yamuna was an important part of Krishna’s consciousness. We started mocking those who said that mountains are abode of Gods. We started treating Cow as just an animal and not our mother who gives us so much yet asks nothing in return. We forgot that lions and tigers are our God’s transport and not to be hunted. We thought vultures presented an ugly sight and we didn’t care as they were getting wiped out.

It’s time we woke up.

It’s time to recall who we are.

It’s time to recall what our ancestors taught us.

It’s time to recall we are part of this Nature of which birds, animals, trees, forests, rivers, and mountains are part too.

It’s time to understand that we cannot destroy the Nature without destroying ourselves.

It’s time to seek our own security!

It’s time to save the Earth!

It’s time to internalise the mantra of ‘Vasudhaiva Kutumbakam!’

It’s time we start seeing divinity in all living creatures.

Written by - Mr Rakesh Shrivastava 

‪#‎WorldEnvironmentDay‬