Why do we do Pradakshina and what is it’s importance?

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  • #15482
    Srinath Seshadri
    Participant

    Can someone explain the deeper meaning and the symbolism of doing pradakshinas in temples?

    #15484
    Vinayak Iyer
    Participant

    Pradakshina (Sanskrit), meaning circumambulation, consists of walking around in a ‘circle’ as a form of worship in Hindu ceremonies in India. The devotees walk around the garbha griha, the innermost chamber of the shrine housing the temple deity. It is done around sacred fire (Agni), Tulsi plant and Peepal tree also.

    Pradakshina literally means: to the right (Dakshina means right). So in Pradakshina, one goes to the left hand direction to keep the deity around the Sanctum Sanctorum on one’s right side. Pradakshina is one of the customary aspects of going to a temple. Typically, Pradakshina is done after the completion of traditional worship (pooja) and after paying homage to the deity. Pradakshina is supposed to be done with a meditative mood.

    From the Rig Vedic verses –” Pra as an adjective means very much. Pra can also come as a prefix to verbs and take on the meaning of onward, forward. Onward to Dakshinam or south is pradakshina . When one does that, one’s right side is facing the deity inside the garbhagraham and the circumambulation is Dakshinacharam or auspicous as recommended by the Veda. ”

    Skanda Purana ~ In the word Pra-Da-Ksi-Na the syllable Pra dispels sin, the syllable Da bestows what is desired, the syllable Ksi causes the destruction of Karman and the syllable Na is the bestower of salvation.

    Hindus go round the sanctum sanctorium in the temples and sometimes the deities in the pujas or yajnas at home in a clockwise direction. We always assume God is the center of our existence. He also exists everywhere. So when we do Pradakshina or circumambulation, we accept that our actions and thoughts are always centred around God. The center point is always fixed and remains the same at whatever distance we do the pradakshina. So we are reminded of the eternal truth that God is the center of gravity and the main focus of our existence. This is the main principle of Pradakshinam. Just like in solar system, the sun is at the center around which the planets rotate, our pradakshinams should be done with god at the center. The Pradakshinam should be done slowly and never in a hurry, Our thoughts and actions must dwell on God. It is normal to do Pradakshinam always in a clockwise direction. This is because we assume that Lord is always on our right side. This reminds that we must always lead a righteous life , in the right path called Dharma.

    Skanda Purana States that The sins committed by the mind are destroyed by the first step (of pradaksina), the sins committed in speech by the second and the sins perpetrated by the body by the third step. Accordingly the number of pradakshinas are one for Ganesha, two for Surya (Sun), three for Shiva, four for Devi and Vishnu and seven for Peepal, Arayaal (sacred fig). In Shiva temples, the devotees start the Pradakshina as usual from the front and go clockwise till they reach the gomukhi (the outlet for abhisheka water) from the Sanctum Sanctorum. The drainage outlet for the ritual ablution offered on the Shiva Linga with water, milk is not to be crossed. So the worshippers have to return in anti-clockwise direction till they reach the other side of the drainage outlet to complete the circle. Accordingly the first padakshina destroys all sins including brahmahathya papa (sin due to slaying of Brahmins), the second makes the worshipper an adhikaari (qualified person for material and spiritual pursuits) and the third helps the person in obtaining naindra-sampaada (pleasures of life which lead to final liberation). A number of twenty one pradakshinas in a day is considered most beneficial. All these actions knowingly or unknowingly have salutary effect to ward off the ego from the mind of the devotee. It is noteworthy that the purpose of temple worship is never achieved unless one understands that visits to temples are meant to help the devotee to shed his ego.

    We cannot draw a circle without a center point. The Lord is the center, source and essence of our lives. We acknowledge this by performing Pradakshina. Recognizing Him as the focal point in our lives, we go about doing our daily chores. This is the significance of Pradakshina.
    Also every point on the circumference of a circle is equidistant from the centre. This means that wherever we may be or whoever we may be, we are equally close to the Lord. His grace flows towards us without partiality. According to Adi Sankaracharya, real Pradakshina is the meditation that thousands of universes are revolving around the Great Lord, the unmoving centre of all forms. There is a popular legend about the significance of Pradakshina. Once Lord Shiva wanted his two sons, Ganesha and Karteka , to get “worldly experience” and asked them take a “tour of the universe”. While Subrahmanya spent decades traveling the world on his peacock, Ganesha just walked a full circle around his mother and father and is believed to have explained “since the world is contained within you, I have already encircled the world”!

    #15499
    Midhun Narayan
    Participant

    Pradakshina is going around or circumambulating the deity with devotion. It is one of the aspects of Shodashopachara. Shodashopachara is the worship of deity done in sixteen segments. When we enter a Hindu temple, we see a lot of devotees going around the temple garbha griha, the innermost chamber of the shrine housing the temple deity, with their hands folded in front of them and their eyes closed (mostly), Commonly known as pradakshina (circumambulation) – this Sanksrit word means ‘moving around a sacred object for a good cause’.

    Pradakshina literally means: to the right (Dakshina means right). So in Pradakshina, one goes to the left hand direction to keep the deity around the Sanctum Sanctorum on one’s right side. Pradakshina is one of the customary aspects of going to a temple.
    With regular chanting of divine Veda manthras in the temple it is believed that there will be accumulation and roaming of positive vibrations/energy around the idol/temple. While making Pradakshina the mind will get purified, the devotee absorbs the positive energy and gets the divine aura that surrounds the Deity.

    Pradakshina is a form of Prayaschitta (expiation). It should be performed with utmost humility and devotion in a meditative mood with focus on the concerned deity and not just as a routine. Pradakshina is performed as a mark of respect, obeisance and total surrender to the deity. It should be performed slowly and not in a hurry with our thoughts and actions dwelled on the God with folded hands. We bow to the supreme divinity within us, chanting

    yaani kaani cha paapaani janmanthara kruthaani cha
    taani taani vinashyanthi pradakshina pade pade
    “All sins committed by an individual from innumerable past births are destroyed by each step taken during Pradakshina”
    From the Rig Vedic verses Rig: 2.42.3 and 2.43.1

    “Pra as an adjective means very much. Pra can also come as a prefix to verbs and take on the meaning of onward, forward. Onward to Dakshinam or south is pradakshina . When one does that, one’s right side is facing the deity inside the garbhagraham and the circumambulation is Dakshinacharam or auspicous as recommended by the Veda.”

    According to Skanda Purana Ch.9 v.68:
    Pradakshina – PRA + DA +KSHI + NA
    PRA – Dispelling Sin
    DA – bestowing the desire
    KSHI – Causing the destruction of Karma
    NA – Salvation

    Thus, Salvation of destruction of Karma and giving boon of having their own desire by destroying their SIN.
    “The sins committed by the mind are destroyed by the first step (of pradaksina), the sins committed in speech by the second and the sins perpetrated by the body by the third step.”
    (Skanda Purana Ch.9 v.28)

    Types of Pradakshina
    – Atma pradakshina : Circumambulating around oneself, acknowledging the atma in himself.
    – Giri Valam: Circumambulating around a hill.
    – Adi pradakshina: Circumambulating using very short steps; the heel of the foot touches the toes of the other foot and the person walks forward.
    – Anga pradakshina: After bathing in the temple’s pond or well, the person, with wet clothes, rolls around the temple chanting the Lord’s name.
    – Mutti podudal: Circumambulating the temple on one’s knees.

    Parikrama is done around :
    sacred fire (Agni – the fire God)
    Tulsi plant
    Peepal tree
    Sacred Cow (Go Pradakshina)

    At times the outermost parikrama path covers the whole village/town/city, thereby implying that the length of the path can stretch.
    Many people take vows to perform pradakshina rounds if their requests for divine help at the time of need are met. So it is common to see Hindus perform 10, 108, or 1000 rounds after a successful surgery, after a wedding or after the birth of a child. Each step of a pradakshina is said to eliminate sins that a person had committed in his present and past lives. It is not necessary that a pradakshina has to be only in a temple.

    Usually the pradakshina is done by circumambulating the whole temple but in Shiva temples, there is a slight variation. In a Shiva temple, one can go around the temple till the Gomukhi. The Gomukhi is the outlet where the water used for the Lord’s abhishekam is drained out. This Gomukhi is not to be crossed in a Shiva temple, as it is considered disrespectful to the deity. To complete the pradakshina, devotees have to turn around and go to the other side of the temple, to the other end of the Gomukha. The Gomukha should not be crossed under any circumstances.

    How to perform it
    Kalika Purana mentions the method of Pradakshina as,
    Prasarya dakshinamhastam svayamnamrashirahpunah
    Dakshinam darshayanparshvamanasapi cha dakshinah
    (By spreading the right hand in the front, by bending head and by showing our right part of body to the god and also by being modest, one should make Pradakshina.)

    Legend
    There is a popular legend about the significance of Pradakshina. It is said that the Goddess Parvati and Lord Shiva asked thier two sons, Ganesha and Subrahmanya, to get “worldly experience” in the pursuit of knowledge and asked them take a “tour of the universe”. Subrahmanya spent decades traveling the world on his peacock. Ganesha walked a full circle around his mother and father and justified his action by stating that “since the world is contained within you, I have already encircled the world”!

    Thus Ganesha justifies the importance that Hindus attach to the practice of Parikrama.

    Significance of doing Pradakshina
    We cannot draw a circle without a center point. The Lord is the center, source and essence of our lives. We acknowledge this by performing Pradakshina recognizing him as the focal point in our lives, we go about doing our daily chores. This is the significance of Pradakshina.
    Scientifically speaking, every point on the circumference of a circle is equidistant from the centre. This means that wherever we may be or whoever we may be, we are equally close to the Lord. His grace flows towards us without partiality.
    According to Adi Sankaracharya, real Pradakshina is the meditation that thousands of universes are revolving around the Great Lord, the unmoving centre of all forms.

    Pradakshina in a clockwise manner
    It is normal to do Pradakshinam always in clockwise direction. This is because we assume that the Lord is always on our right side. This reminds us we must always lead a righteous life, in the right path called Dharma.
    We always assume God is the centre of our existence. He also exists everywhere so when we do Pradakshina we accept that our actions and thoughts are always centered around God. The centre point is always fixed and remains the same at whatever distance we do the pradakshina so we are reminded of the eternal truth that God is the centre of Gravity and the main focus of our existence this is the main principle of Pradakshinam.

    The world is always rotating around itself on its own axis as well as around the sun. All the planets also rotate on their own axes. Just like in the Solar system, the sun is at the centre around which the planets rotate, Our Pradakshinam should be done with God at the center. The Pradakshinam should be done slowly an never in a hurry. Our thoughts and action must dwell in God.

    Number of Pradakshinas
    For each deity, the minimum number of Pradakshinas to be done are specified:
    Ganesha: 1
    Surya (Sun): 2
    Shiva: 3
    Vishnu, Durga, Devi: 4
    Ayyappa: 5
    Subrahmanya (Karthikeya): 6
    Peepal Tree: 7

    Pradakshina offered to Shiva should be half. The water outlet of the Shivalingam should not be crossed during Pradakshina as it is a part of Shiva lingam. Hence the Pradakshina should be half. This Pradakshina is called as Somasutri Pradakshina.
    The Swayambhu Agama says that doing Pradakshina 21 times to any deity is sanctified.

    Adding to this Our scriptures Say –
    Matrudevo bhava,
    Pitrudevo bhava,
    Acharyadevo bhava.

    Meaning: May you consider your Parents and Teachers as you would the Lord. With this in mind we also do pradakshina around our parents and divine personages.

    #181254
    sharmaakshay19101
    Participant

    we do it in indian ceremonies
    walks round in a ‘circle’ to worship god

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