Upadesh Saar : Verse 4 (Day 2)

Su: Hari Om, GP you are right,  I think I believe pooja is inferior and avoidable with no  consequences.  I don't see it as an imperative step.

I believe it's good for those who enjoy it and are easily able to do it and find happiness /fulfillment etc.  The rest can make do without it..

Of course Iam wrong I know that,  I will have to take effort to teach my mind otherwise. 

But it's also true that whenever I sit to do pooja (the few times that I have) there are no emotions I feel to embarrass myself.  It's mechanical. May be because of the above belief.  I think why should I do these rituals when the bond between me and Lord is inside me... and not dependent on these actions. Of course that may be an excuse my mind is giving.. and sounding intelligent about it.  But the fact is I don't like doing pooja.

When Iam doing my Japa alone or just sitting in the temple by myself with Jagadeeshwara in front of me,  that's when I experience strong emotions.  So in that case 1) is a pooja done so mechanically just for the sake of doing it of any use.. I think no.  2) is there a way for people like me to develop a sense of emotional involvement when doing a act the intellect is not convinced about. 3) sorry but asking again,  is pooja/rituals an essential unavoidable step towards development of Bhakti.

 

RP: Gurudev's quote - Knowledge without devotion is tasteless. Devotion without knowledge is mere empty idol worship.

I think acceptance if rituals come more easily if we know or appreciate the reason behind it. When I started in the mission I used to question why is everyone falling at the feet of Gurudev. Many teenagers ask why go to temple or why do namaskar etc.

I once asked one of our Swamijis if we should force children to follow simple rituals or let them understand for themselves- he replied we should not give up and encourage them to follow and gave example of Gurudev himself - you would recall Gurudev telling about his childhood days when the evening puja was a must in his house and how later he would develop the relationship with The Lord. Hope you remember.

 

AV: It is also a step towards the BMI integration, I feel. If my intellect can accede to a higher ideal, I should be able to bring my body and heart to it as well..... Only then will it be complete.

 

VS: If you are able to feel the Lord within yourself all the time its a higher state and is called Manasa pooja. Whenever or not we do pooja to a vigraha, we just imagine we are doing the same to the baby Krishna or Baby Shiva in our heart and then the connection is completed. when Saint Thyagaraja was praying to Lord Rama's Vigraham he was actually imagining praying to the living Rama in His heart.

 

‎KG: I remember Tapovanji Maharaj's writing - He says yatra/pilgrim is the lowest form of upasana... Still if we read his books, his earlier life was full of yatras. Twice kailas on foot.

Many times Pooja could be good for starters and especially like ramkumar ji's mention about helping next generation build a bond with lord in some form.

"Once a sadhak establishes in a higher step, he/she may not want 2 indulge in lower steps of sadhana" - this is general understanding :) But when we watch the routine of swami and swaminis around, u get 2 see their daily sadhana includes a good amount of ritualistic Pooja. I once heard about Swami Subodhanandji, elaborate regular Pooja must in his daily sadhana. Wonder then should we not entertain our body and mind in Pooja. Specifically towards choosen Ishta.

 

VS: Nice one Krishna

 

SS: It is definitely possible to connect to the Lord without Pooja. But lets understand what is the significance of a pooja for a vedantic student:

1. Senses are extrovert and fickle. To withdraw the mind from the senses and focus on japa etc is not easy. We need to master the senses for it. Pooja provides an opportunity to engage the senses and also divinise them. We see HIS form, chant HIS name, offer flowers, naivedya to HIM, Listen to HIS glories etc. Walking to the temple, cleaning it, preparing it etc also train the senses and the mind.
2. most of us complain that our mind wanders in japa or meditation. A person who has done pooja learns concentration, visualisation because one constantly keeps one form in the mind and does the offerings. For children especially its very effective.
3. Integration also happens because BMI come together.
4. Develops a relationship with the Lord and channelise emotions through it. Hanuman looked upon Ram as the Lord. Ramakrishna as a mother. Meera as a beloved. Surdas as a friend. Whats my relationship with HIM i should find out and invoke love. When there is love we want to give. Pooja is giving what HE likes. Hence we say offer bilva, abhisheka, bhasma to shiva. Offer alankaar and lotus to vishnu. Offer kumkum to devi etc. Ofcourse it has symbolism too.
5. From physical pooja to maanas pooja to japa to meditation. This is the order of progress. Try it and you will see the difference.
6. Pooja is not a mechanical ritual. Its an expression of love and gratitude. One may say i can do that without pooja also. Fine. But the asana-siddhi, manah-shuddhi, sukhshma-buddhi and antarmukhi drishti that Pooja brings is unique.
7. Mantras have their own powers and when chanted with meaning it prepares us for contemplation.
8. To do a Pooja one has to live life in discipline and self-control. One cannot be indulgent and immoral and benefit from Pooja. It applies to all the spiritual practices. But rules for Pooja are simpler than for japa and meditation etc.
9. Pooja has 16 steps. Each of them invoke a bhaav. Eg. archana reminds me to offer my vasanas, aarti- to surrender totally, pradakshina - to let HIM be the centre of my life and let life revolve around Dharma etc. Will that happen if i just sit in front of the Lord? Mind needs activity  and dynamism.
10. Even if i dont know the meaning but if i do the pooja it will make me think- who is the Lord? Why should i worship? How? Etc. That itself is progress. Devotion arises.
11. Whole day i think about myself. Pooja is a time to ask what does HE like? What can i offer HIM?
12. I become more open to God's Grace
13. Sattvik actions help us to earn punya and punya brings satsang in our life. Pooja is one of the most sattvik actions whether done knowingly or unknowingly.
14. When devotion grows then only one goes beyond steps and becomes spontaneous. Without following the steps of Pooja, how can i be spontaneous? This applies in arts, science, martial arts, sports etc.
15. Pooja of a form is only a beginning. Slowly the same bhaav extends to all actions and whole world becomes our altar of worship.
    Its not the Pooja thats the problem actually. Its our lack of faith in the form, in pooja's effectiveness, our incapacity to submit ourselves to discipline and our belief that as an intellectual im not the -'Pooja-type'.
16. To cultivate the head is easy but to nurture the heart is tough. Pooja is an opportunity to put aside intellectual skepticism and tamas. Its actively invoking devotion and cultivating the heart. Questions like- does God want my offerings? Why waste money and resources in Pooja? Etc show human contradictions. Do we ask these questions when we waste so lavishly on branded products, elaborate parties, big-fat indian weddings or even as simple as the food we waste in our plates? Im not justifying. Milk offered in abhisheka can be collected and given to the needy but to call it sheer waste and not to do it in the name of intellectualism is not appropriate.

Swami Tapovanam used to visit soumya kasheesha temple everyday in uttarkashi. Guruji does Ram Pooja everyday and distributes prasad of his altar in the afternoon at His kutia. Meera, bharat, tulsidas, alwars of the south who are devotees of Vishnu, nayanmars who are devotees of shiva....all used pooja every effectively

 

JV: Devotion is so natural as you get closer and closer to the knowledge.

All the stotras, hyms, praises follow spontaneously.

 

VS: Swamiji what a wonderful explanation...

Thank you sooo much

 

RP: Superb and Detailed step by step explanation Swamiji!

So Sunitha is now inviting all of us to her place for Satyanarayan puja this Saturday! Good decision Sunitha !

 

Su: Superb Swamiji!!  Thanks a ton!!  Lot of food for thought.  And I like what you said... easy to cultivate the head tough to nurture the heart..... so true. It's difficult.

And Ramkumar... give me some time... I may just do that!!

 

SR: Thank you swamiji. Your explanation was so comprehensive. It gave me clarity  in my understanding. As well as in explaining the significance of pooja to others specially the children.

 

VS: Alphabet Safari A to Q of Pooja

 

SS: R to Z can also be filled up if required