The Vedic gods are those gods who feature prominently in the four Vedas. These gods were worshipped by the Vedic people. Their mode of worshipping was through rituals and sacrifices to the gods. According to the Vedas, the Brahman created Gods and humans in such a way that they had to be dependent on each […]
Satyanarayan is the combination of two words – ‘Satya’ meaning truth and ‘Narayana’ meaning the highest being. So Satyanarayan signifies ‘the highest being that is the embodiment of truth’. Satyanarayan puja is the worship of the Narayana form of Lord Vishnu in order to attain self-purification and blessings. It is the easiest and most inexpensive […]
Fasting in Sanskrit is called Upavaasa. Upa means “near” + vaasa means “to stay”. Upavaasa therefore means staying near (the Lord), meaning the attainment of close mental proximity with the Lord. “The saintly persons get relief from all kinds of sins by partaking the food that has been first offered to gods as sacrifice. […]
Bhakti or devotion holds a very unique and important place on the path to God. It’s very common that all the yoga traditions are described as spokes of a wheel that all lead to the same hub (spiritual enlightenment). The 4 Yoga Traditions Generally, four yoga traditions are described (with the remainder falling into […]
Sankranti means transmigration of the Sun from one Rāshi to the next. Hence, there are 12 Sankrantis in a year. Each Sankranti is marked as the beginning of a month in the sidereal solar calendars followed in Andhra Pradesh, Karnataka, Maharashtra, Tamil Nadu, Kerala, Odisha, Punjab, Gujarat. On the other hand, in the sidereal solar […]
It is an age old tradition to ring the bell of the temple upon entering its premises. Bell ringing is an ancient Vedic ritual and one can see multiple bells hanging over the domes in many Indian shrines. It is said that the devotees knock God’s entrance to ask permission upon entering his holy sanctum. […]
Teej in Hindi literally means “three” it is the third day of the month. According to the Hindu calendar there are two teej in every month (30 days). Special significance is given to teej (or the third day) of special months. The Hindu festival of Teej is marked by fasting of women who pray to Lord Shiva and Goddess […]
The Vedas are an extremely large and comprehensive scripture that form the core of Hinduism. They are considered to be one of the integral scriptural foundations of Hinduism. Many Hindus believe that the Vedas were not written by anyone including Ishwar (the term used for God among the Hindus), but are eternally existing (apauruseya). While […]
From Hinduism, to Buddhism, to Christianity, to certain branches of Islam, to Hawaiian Kahunas, chanting has been an ancient practice that’s been part of various religious and spiritual traditions. Chanting is the practice of continuous recitation of mantras. A mantra, in turn, is a set of sacred words, syllables or sounds. I.e. chanting is the rhythmic speaking […]
Guru Shishya Parampara is the teacher-disciple lineage. Being a civilization that respects experiential knowledge, we hold high respect for the teacher of such knowledge. It is separated from the socio-political structure and spans across social/political divisions since such knowledge is beyond those divisions. This is the institution that kept religion and theological practices and beliefs from occupying […]
Throughout time, fire has been venerated as a symbol of spirit. The first sloka in the Rig Veda is to Agni, to fire: “Agni mide purohitam yagnasya devam ritvijam; hotaram ratna dhatamam” “I offer my humble prayer to Agni, who is the Absolute Divine, the awakener of the inner energy and the giver of prosperity.” […]
“Mother Cow is in many ways better than the mother who gave us birth. Our mother gives us milk for a couple of years and then expects us to serve her when we grow up. Mother cow expects from us nothing but grass and grain. Our mother often falls ill and expects service from us. […]
