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Showing posts from February 8, 2018


Bilva Leaves and Lord Venkateswara

Bilva leaves or Bel Patra is associated with Lord Shiva. But it is also offered to Lord Venkateswara (Balaji). The leaf of Bilwa tree is of great importance in Hindu pujas and worship. The leaves are trifoliate by nature. Symbolically it resembles the trident – Trishul of Shiva. It also represents Brahma, Vishnu, and Mahesh. Thus symbol of creation, sustenance and destruction.  It also represents the three gunas Sattva, Rajas and Tamas. According to Sri Sukta the Bilva tree was born as a result of the intense penance observed by Goddess Lakshmi. Hence the leaves of the tree is offered Srihari Vishnu. In the month of Dhanurmasa (December 15 to January 14) on all the days Bilva leaves are offered to Sri Venkateswara at the Tirumala Tirupati Balaji Temple during the early morning Archana.

Santoshi Mata Puja Vidhi with Mantra – How to Perform Santoshi Mata Puja at home?

Santoshi Mata puja is performed to achieve happiness, peace, prosperity and for desire fulfillments. Here is a brief idea on how to perform Santoshi Maa puja at home. This procedure or puja Vidhi also contains the mantra. The puja is also performed for early marriage of children, improvement in business, for success in exams and interviews. How to Perform Santoshi Mata Puja at home? Take bath and wear white color dress before starting the puja. Offer prayers to Ganesha in mind. The puja should be performed on the north side of the house. You should also sit facing north. Put a cream color cloth in the puja area and keep sculpture or photo of Santoshi Maa on it. Keep a kalash filled with water on the cream color cloth. Cover the kalash with a cup. Put jaggery, coin and chana (chickpeas) Light lamp using cow ghee – dip the wick in fragrance or apply perfume (Itar) before lighting the lamp. Light fragrant agarbhatti. Light karpur or camphor. Offer uncooked rice. Offe

Agarbatti Health Issues - Incense Sticks Used In Hindu Pujas Can Cause Asthma and Cancer

Agarbatti, incense sticks, used in Hindu Pujas were made from natural materials. It was a cottage industry. This statement was correct a decade back. Today there is mass production of Agarbatti by companies and there is rampant use of chemicals in them. There is no quality control check or proper study done on synthetic agarbattis in India. A recent study found that that the chemicals used to make Agarbatti can cause asthma, cancer and skin irritation. Health Issues from Agarbatti Various respiratory diseases including Asthma Inflammation of the lung cells Respiratory complications Coughing and sneezing Leukaemia Heart disease Regular use of Agarbatti increases chance of stroke by 19% Skin irritation Watery eyes Cancer The findings are as per the research  led by Rong Zhou of the South China University of Technology and the China Tobacco Guangdong Industrial Company in China, and is published in Springer’s journal Environmental Chemistry Letters . Incense smok

Kattil Mekkathil Temple near Chavara in Kollam – A Temple on Lake and Sea

Kattil Mekkathil Temple at Ponmana, near Chavara in Kollam District, in Kerala is located in a unique spot – where lake meets sea. The temple is on an island created by the lake and sea. The shrine is dedicated to Goddess Bhadrakali – the Mother Goddess worshipped here is ugra murti – she has just annihilated Demon Daruka. For devotees, Devi is the Mother Goddess who blesses and guides her children. There were three palm trees and two wells in the premise of the temple. The place got its name from the palm tree. Today a single palm tree is found in the temple premises and five freshwater wells. Even though the wells are located close to the sea, they provide fresh water and this is considered a miracle. The subsidiary deities worshipped in the temple are Ganapati, Durga Devi, Moorti, Yogishwaran, Madan Thampuran, Yakshi Amma and Nagas. Special pujas and rituals like Shatrusamhara Pushpanjali are performed on Fridays. The main Prasad offered to Goddess is Iratti M