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Showing posts from January 27, 2018


Pushkaram in 2018 – Bhima River or Bhimarathi Pushkaram in 2018

Bhima or Bhimarathi River Pushkaram is held once in 12 years and is conducted in Bhima River banks in Maharashtra, Karnataka and Telangana through which Bhima River flows. Bhima River Pushkaram 2018 dates are from October 12. This pushkaram is held when Jupiter enters Dhanu Rasi (Sagittarius). The main ritual includes taking holy dip in the Bhimarathi River River. Note - The Bhima Pushkaram in some texts is also refered as Tamraparni. Tamraparni River flows in Tamil Nadu. There is a river of the same name in Chandgad Taluka in Kolhapur District of Maharashtra. A Pushakaram takes place once in 12 years when Jupitar (Brishaspati) enters a particular zodiac. There are total of  12 rivers where Pushkaram  takes place. The most famous is the Godavari Pushkaram. The ritual of pushkaram is more popular in Telangana and Andhra Pradesh. What do Hindus do during Bhimarathi Pushkaram? During Bhimarathi Pushkaram, Hindus take holy dip in Bhima River at the auspicious time decided

Sweet That Can Be Offered as Prasad or Bhog to Shani Bhagavan

Puja of Shani Bhagavan is offered daily by thousands of people and on Saturdays the number swells into millions. What is a simple sweet that can be offered as Prasad or bhog to please Shani Bhagavan and get his blessings? Prasad or Bhog or Naivedya is the food offering given to a deity to get blessings. Any black or brown color sweet can be offered as Prasad or bhog to Shani. The best options are: Gulab Jamun Black Halwa made especially in the South Indian state of Kerala. Oil dripping roti is also considered an ideal option. In some regions, special Kala Gulab Jamun is prepared. This is a very good offering to Shani Dev. Sweet prepared using black urad dal is also considered a good option but it requires lot of preparation.

Smarta Ekadasi – What is Smartha Ekadashi?

If you are used to observing Ekadasi fasting, you might have come across consecutive days marked as Ekadashi. The first day will be usually marked as Smarta Ekadasi and next day will be marked as Bhagavat or Vaishnava. So what exactly is Smarta Ekadasi? Smarta Ekadasi is based on the calculation that when the sunrises if it is the Ekadasi day then it is Smarta Ekadasi. Bhagavata, or Vaishnava, Ekadashi observance is based on the rule that Dasami or the tenth day during a lunar fortnight should have ended before Arunodaya (96 minutes period before sunrise on the Ekadasi or the 11 th day in a lunar fortnight). As the Sunrise occurs at different times of the same day at different places, maximum of three Ekadasis in a year (sometimes none) will have to be observed on different days in different places. The Smarta and Vaishnava Ekadasi are based on geographical reasons. Since the difference is purely geographical, you should consult the nearest Vishnu temple fro