Namaskar - Apr09

mantras derived from the Rig Veda. These Vedas are a large
collection of ancient Sanskrit texts which forms the base of
Hinduism. And this mantra cultivates wisdom and is a prayer to
the giver of light and life – the sun (Savitur).
Gayatri is the five-faced Devi (Goddess). Gayatri Devi is an
incarnation of Saraswati Devi, the Goddess of the Arts and
knowledge with the quality of purity and virtue.
Here is the Gayatri mantra in Sanskrit with translation:
Aum Bhoor Bhuwah Swaha
Tat Savitur Varenyam
Bhargo Devasya Dheemahi
Dhiyo Yo Naha Prachodyat
Oh Creator of the Universe!
We meditate upon thy supreme splendour.
May thy radiant power illuminate our intellects,
destroy our sins and guide us in the right direction.
Personally I found this part of the ceremony very powerful. By
chanting together in a group it created an incredible sense of focus
in my mind, it no longer felt like we were individuals chanting
individually, it gave me a sense of one-ness and an overwhelming
feeling of peace and joy.
We were then each given some of the ghee (clarified butter) which
was used as an offering to the sacred fire and told by Shubhraji to
inhale its aroma and apply it to any parts of our body which needed
healing or to use it just as a blessing. The blessed ghee is believed to
have great benefits and powerful healing properties. I did not
hesitate to rub it on my sore elbows and aching hip!
The Raksha (ash) from the sacred fire was then offered to us, we
used our ring finger to place it on our third eye, throat centre, left
and right side of our chest as well as the heart centre. We were then
each invited to give an offering of a flower to the sacred fire and to
collect the Prasadam (food that is prepared and offered to God)
from Shubhraji. She also gave us a pleasant surprise by giving each
of us a Pancha-Mukha Rudraksha, five-faced Rudraksha seed from
India, believed to be spiritually beneficial to the wearer. Even
though it was my first time to meet Shubhraji, I felt her kindness,
wisdom and warmth just from her very presence and I felt much
gratitude to be part of this event. The ceremony concluded with the
Arati, which is an offering of light to symbolize truth and purity.
Wai Ling teaches yoga part time at the Yoga Room in Hong Kong
and is a Namaskar volunteer.
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