Purity vs cleanliness

[Guest guest]

Namaste,

 

I admire the desire to maintain purity. However, let me say one humble word.

 

The new paint, washing of the floor etc make the house "physically clean", but not mecessarily "pure".

 

Qualities like desires, anger, greed, false pride, wantonness and jealosy in the minds of people sitting at a ritual are what make the place impure for gods to come. If people with devotion, surrender, equanimity and some control over the shadripus mentioned above are sitting at a ritual, the place is *pure* even if the paint is old and the floor unwashed and dusty and gods do come.

 

External cleanliness is a catalyst in the beginning. It instills the feeling of doing something "special" and "pure" and brings some devotion into the mind. However, external cleanliness is neither necessary nor sufficient for bringing internal purification, which is the real target. One clinging on to external cleanliness and not making an effort to clean up internal dirt will remain stuck.

 

* * *

 

The whole reason why rituals like homam are needed is that one is impure and wants to become pure. Maintain external cleanliness *to the extent possible* and keep performing homam. It will slowly purify you from inside. Doing a simple homam every day or week is far more useful than painting the house, washing the floor and doing it once a year.

 

* * *

 

If one feels that one's surroundings are impure and one is committing a mistake, that thought will corrupt the ritual and stop it from working optimally. One should try to overcome such thoughts. I suggest the following simple principles:

 

(1) As far as external cleanliness is concerned, do whatever you can realistically do every day or every week, but do not get bogged down. Elaborate measures make it unrealistic to do every day or week. Choose your measures so that they can be repeated every day or week. These measures are meant for *optimizing* the ritual experience and not meant for *blocking* the ritual itself due to fears!

 

(2) When you read "Gange cha Yamune chaiva..." and sprinke that water all arond you, imagine that the purest rivers have joined that water and purified you, your materials and surroundings. If you *truly believe* it, where is the worry of impurity?

 

Mind is the problem and mind is the solution. Purity, impurity - it is all in the mind. You engage in external actions that promote certain thoughts in the mind. When you sprinkle yourself, your materials and surroundings with water after that mantra and Varuna beeja, you should fully believe that everything is pure.

 

(3) At the end, when you say "sarvam Sri Krishnaarpanamastu", really imagine that Krishna is the doer and you are a mere instrument.

 

 

* * *

 

One pure-hearted lady who used to visit and help Sarada Mata at the Dakshineshwar temple once cleaned the toilets there and immediately made prasad for the temple without taking bath. Though others were offended and thought that prasad was unsuitable for offering to god, Sarada Mata disagreed with them.

 

I am not saying that you should wash toilets and then make prasad. Do whatever measures of external cleanliness you can take realistically, without putting the ritual itself in jeopardy.

 

But do not focus your mind on the external measures and get lost in them. Focus it instead on god.

 

Best regards,Narasimha- Free Jyotish Software, Free Jyotish Lessons, Jyotish Writings,"Do It Yourself" ritual manuals for short Homam and Pitri Tarpana: http://www.VedicAstrologer.org Films that make a difference: http://SaraswatiFilms.org Spirituality: Jyotish writings: JyotishWritings-

 

-

seshagiri

Monday, November 30, 2009 1:06 AM

Re: Controlling Food, Sex and Sleep (Re: Queries)

Narasimha garu i have some queries regarding homam. my parents are saying , we should not do homam at home because our homes are not clean like temples , where homam's are performed. Also women's get period every month , so our homes are not sacred to do homam at home. Even at my home we do satyanarayana swami vratam and Kedareswrara swamy vratam , after painting our home (in telugu we say ellalu veyinchina tarvata matrame) and no women when they are in periods should not enter into home till completion of the vratam. If this is the case , then how can i do homam at home , i dont have seperate pooja room ? How can i clean my home before doing homam ?(homam chaala pavitram ga , nishta ga cheyali ani) Also is the homa kundam should be of shape square or it can be any , i am not getting square shaped utensil at any where. is round shaped utensil can i use ? Please advice me Regardsseshagiri