By Jayaram V
In Hinduism, puja is essentially a
ritual suggestive of symbolic offering of ourselves, our thoughts, desires,
actions and things we own to God, as a mark of devotion and surrender, enjoying
whatever that comes to us as a gift from Him. In Hinduism puja is the most
popular form of divine worship. It is performed either by individuals or by
groups and either directly by a worshipper or indirectly by a priest on behalf
of the worshipper. Although many people take liberties with it to express their
love and devotion to God in their own individual ways, the traditional form of
puja has a definite form and structure built around, which is usually followed
in more traditional households, temples and religious places. The way a puja is
conducted traditionally in Hindu households is akin to the way a guest is
invited into the house and treated with utmost respect. The Hindu tradition
equates a guest with God with this simple expression, "Athidi devobhava",
which means a guest is verily God Himself.
We have discussed elsewhere both the
outer
aspects of puja and its historical
development. Here we will discuss the symbolic significance of puja
and the symbolic meaning of the various objects used during the ceremony.
The
meaning of puja
The word "puja" consists
of two letters, "pa" and "ja". "Pa" means
"parayana" or continuous repetition of the names of God and
"ja" means "japa" or continuous mental recitation of the
names of God. So according to this interpretation "puja" is
essentially a kind of worship in which both parayanam and japam are practised
by the devotees.
According to another interpretation,
"Pu" means "pushpam" or flower and "ja" means
"jal". In the puja ceremony both flowers and water are offered to the
deity during the worship. The letter "ja" can also mean
simultaneously "japam". So if we take these twin meanings of
"ja" into consideration, puja becomes that ceremony during which
water and flowers are offered to God along with recitation of His names.
Lastly "pu' means
"purusha" and "ja" means "janma" , to arise or
wake up. During the puja ceremony life breath is installed in the deity and He
is brought to life or into His dynamic aspect. It also means that the purusha
in the worshipper also wakes up after the ceremony as he receives a new life
and new consciousness (with the partaking of prasad) from the deity.
Vigraham. Vigraham means the statue
or the image of the deity. Vigraha (vi+graha) also means that which removes the
ill effects of the grahas or planets.
Symbolism
of various objects used in puja
In a puja ceremony we use certain
objects, mantras and methods of worship. On a superficial level we assume that
they are liked by the deity who is being worshipped and therefore
by using them in our worship we gain the grace and goodwill of the deity.
However, from a spiritual perspective a puja ceremony should not be conducted
for personal gain but to express our love, devoting and surrender to God. Puja
is a formal way of doing meditation upon God and declaring one's faith in Him.
It helps us to focus our minds upon God and remain in a heightened state of
devotion. And when we do it in a formal manner by following a definite
procedure, we are expressing our willingness to forego our personal choices and
follow the required discipline as a mark of our surrender to God. The various
objects used in the puja ceremony are meant to establish a direct relationship
with God on personal level and seek His help. We discuss below the symbolic
significance of these objects.
Purna kumbha or Purna kalasa (the sacred vessel):
It is generally placed as the chief
deity or by the side of the chief deity before starting the puja. Symbolically
it stands for mother goddess in general, or goddess Lakshmi in particular. It
consists of an earthen or a metal pot with either water or rice in it , with
leaves (of generally five specific species) in its mouth and a bowl of rice,
flowers and coconut at its top. The pot represents mother earth, the flowers
represent the ornamentation, the rice in the bowl represents either the
material wealth or the powers of the goddess or both and the coconut represents
the divine consciousness.
Naivedyam:
It is our ignorance (avidya) which we offer to the deity.
The food symbolically stands for the earth element and in human beings for the
gross body. So it can also means the body and the mind (which stand for the
ignorant consciousness in us) which we place in front of the deity for
transformation. When it is blessed by the deity it becomes the bestower of
knowledge.
Pushpam:
It stands for the good in us. We offer the deity the good
that has blossomed in us. On the side of the elements it stands for the element
of water because the flowers (especially the lotus) grow out of water.
Phalam:
It is the fruit of our action which we are supposed to
offer to God as a symbol of our detachment, self-sacrifice and surrender.
Gandham:
It stands collectively for the desires (vasanas) and the
desires we have for various things in life, which we are supposed to offer to
the deity in order to become free from the cycle of births and deaths.
Dhupam:
It is the smoke or the clouded consciousness (the very
mind with all its thoughts and ignorance) that exists in us which is also an
obstacle on our path to self realization. As long as this cloud is there, we
cannot see the light or illumination in our consciousness. Dhupam also stands
for the illusion which keeps us chained to this world. When we offer dhupam to
God, we offer symbolically our illusions and our fickle mindedness. On the
elemental side, it stands for the element of air or the breath body in us. It
stands for prana which we offer to the deity with a sense of sacrifice.
Deepam:
It is the light in us, the very soul that exists in us
which we offer to the deity as acknowledgement of our surrender and devotion.
On the elemental side it stands for the element of ether that exists in us as
Atman.
Kumkum and turmeric powder :
The red powder stands for our emotions or for our inner
wisdom. The turmeric powder stands for our inner purity and on the negative
side, for our inner pride and egoism.
Prasad:
When we offer our ignorance to God He suffuses it with
knowledge and light. The word "prasad" is a combination of two words,
"pra" + "sad". That which is near life and truth. The food
that is offered to God is symbolic representation of the gross body into which
at the end of worship God breathes new life new light making it divine. When we
share the prasad with others, we share with them symbolically the knowledge we
so gained during the worship.
ALSO SEE : Symbolism in Puja
