WHAT IS POOJA/WORSHIP? WHY DO WE DO POOJA/WORSHIP?

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Permalink Reply by Tarun Goyal on July 6, 2011 at 9:08pm

Pooja/ Worship is done by people as a symbol of regard to the deities by the fact that they have higher values as compared to human beings. The deities were pure and so we can see their faces always smiling, and whenever we go to any religious place for pooja/worship, and when we stand in front of them, we have no impure intent and feelings , because we know that they were having higher values than us. Like we see from time to time, the number of deities are increasing, many new temples are being built, and even now a days, 'Peepal' pooja, and many other practices are being done. The main reason is the loss in the values of we souls and hence whoever is having higher values, we pray. As the world wheel progresses, there might also be time when the values would be so much  down that we might start praying Mahatma Gandhi or other persons who were rich in values.

 

Secondly, pooja/worship is done also as a matter so that we can remain close to the Gods and Goddesses, which would bless us in our lives.

 

Thirdly, it is done also as a matter of fear, I mean the prayers are done because of the fearlessness that something wrong might happen to us, so it is not truly what we can call remembering God, or accepting the God as our father, as we also say that God is our father, because the relation in pooja/worship that we are developing with the God is of fear, and if any relation has a base of fear, that relation can't be intense.

 

Fourthly, pooja/worship is a one-way communication with the God, means whatever we want to say, we say and go off. Also when we do gaytri-mantra or any mantra jaap, for some time we are involved in it with feeling, but slowly that feeling fades and our intellect roames somewhere else. Also any of the mantra's are not our own creations, no doubt whoever created all mantras he created them with very good feelings, but they were his own feelings, every human being has his own feelings, but when we are using other's feeling instead of using our own feelings, we can't express love and regard and full attention to whomever we are praying to.

 

So basically, the point I want to stress upon is Pooja/Worship is a one way communication, whereas Meditation is a two way communication with the Supreme Soul. And that two way communication can only be achieved if we tune our mind to the frequency of that Supreme Soul and then express our feelings to him. From a long time , from birth time we are involved in 'SOUND', meaning we need sound to express everything , even we need sound to pray, but it is written in all major religious books also that the true relationship with Supreme Soul can only be achieved through silence and Silence can only be achieved through meditation.

 

Generally when we do pooja/worship, we are still in sound and also in the physical surroundings, so we might be 90%(which is also I am talking a bit higher) absolutely involved in doing pooja and no other thoughts , but still if we analyze carefully, at a subtle level, we are not completely devoted. I mean we want to do 100 % devotion, but we are not able to even with our best efforts, so the main thing, if we can do meditation, then we are away from sound, and because of being away from sound we are to a certain higher level detached from the physical as well, and this is what is called divine eye or the third eye of vision, through which we can express our feelings and love to our father (Supreme Soul).

 

Happy Journey in Life!

Permalink Reply by VINOD BHASIN on July 31, 2011 at 12:06pm

Sri Om Jai Om...

Tarunji

Many many thanks for your enlightened message on Pooja and Meditation which is highly appreciable.

 

I do very much appreciate when you say :

 

"Also any of the mantra's are not our own creations, no doubt whoever created all mantras he created them with very good feelings, but they were his own feelings, every human being has his own feelings, but when we are using other's feeling instead of using our own feelings, we can't express love and regard and full attention to whomever we are praying to."

 

I think Pooja is like a Floater to a Swimmer. Initially, this may help a spiritual practitioner to an extent. But as a Swimmer slowly realises that he has to throw away Floaters so that he can swim freely and even go to deep water, in a similar manner one must make a conscious progress from Pooja to Meditation.

 

About two way communication, I may add that one has to do Chintan and Manan. One should start communication with Atma. When we go into silence through Meditational process, then Atma starts talking back to us. This is a great spiritual experience for a spiritual practitioner.

 

May God Bless all of us to share and care for each other !!

Permalink Reply by K.R.Yaadagiri Rao on July 6, 2011 at 10:59pm

Puja (alternative spelling pooja; Sanskrit: "reverence" or "worship") is a religious ritual which most Hindus perform every morning after bathing and dressing but prior to taking any food or drink. Puja is seen as a way of relating humans to the domain and actions of the divine, and can be performed for anything considered divine, from Vishnu to a holy tree.

Puja takes many forms, the simplest of which is darsan, gazing upon an image. The image is not believe to be divine itself; rather, it embodies the divine energy of the deity and provides a connection to the god or goddess. Puja also usually includes providing an offering to the object of puja, such as flowers or food, and possibly lighting a candle or incense.

The ritual may be observed in silence or accompanied by prayers. Hindu priests chant prayers in Sanskrit or another language while performing puja.

Puja may be performed by an individual worshipper or in gatherings. Sometimes a puja is done for the benefit of certain people, for whom priests or relatives ask blessings.