Bhaktisandesam / Hindu Rites & Rituals

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Hari Om

 

The Ceremonies of Hinduism

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The ritual world of Hinduism, manifestations of which differ greatly

among regions, villages, and individuals, offers a number of common

features that link all Hindus into a greater Indian religious system

and influence other religions as well. The most notable feature in

religious ritual is the division between purity and pollution.

Religious acts presuppose some degree of impurity or defilement for

the practitioner, which must be overcome or neutralized before or

during ritual procedures. Purification, usually with water, is thus a

typical feature of most religious action. Avoidance of the impure--

taking animal life, eating flesh, associating with dead things, or

body fluids--is another feature of Hindu ritual and is important for

repressing pollution. In a social context, those individuals or

groups who manage to avoid the impure are accorded increased respect.

Still another feature is a belief in the efficacy of sacrifice,

including survivals of Vedic sacrifice. Thus, sacrifices may include

the performance of offerings in a regulated manner, with the

preparation of sacred space, recitation of texts, and manipulation of

objects. A third feature is the concept of merit, gained through the

performance of charity or good works, that will accumulate over time

and reduce sufferings in the next world.

 

Domestic Worship

 

 

The home is the place where most Hindus conduct their worship and

religious rituals. The most important times of day for performance of

household rituals are dawn and dusk, although especially devout

families may engage in devotion more often. For many households, the

day begins when the women in the house draw auspicious geometric

designs in chalk or rice flour on the floor or the doorstep. For

orthodox Hindus, dawn and dusk are greeted with recitation from the

Rig Veda of the Gayatri Mantra for the sun--for many people, the only

Sanskrit prayer they know. After a bath, there is personal worship of

the gods at a family shrine, which typically includes lighting a lamp

and offering foodstuffs before the images, while prayers in Sanskrit

or a regional language are recited. In the evenings, especially in

rural areas, mostly female devotees may gather together for long

sessions of singing hymns in praise of one or more of the gods.

 

Minor acts of charity punctuate the day. During daily baths, there

are offerings of a little water in memory of the ancestors. At each

meal, families may set aside a handful of grain to be donated to

beggars or needy persons, and daily gifts of small amounts of grain

to birds or other animals serve to accumulate merit for the family

through their self-sacrifice.

 

 

 

SOURCE: Library of Congress Country Studies

 

 

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Jai Shree Krishna !