Now arriving at Hindu Worship. Please watch your step when exiting the train. Thank you.

Now we move onwards to the many ways Hindus worship their various gods. As we explore the variations of worship, there are some general facts you should keep in mind.

1. Hindus worship in either a temple or a shrine at home. Normally, Hindus pray alone but sometimes they may pray in groups.

2. A typical Hindu worship involves repeating the name of the god many times and offering cheap gifts such as flowers or fruit.

3. Worships and prayers are performed either on a daily basis or on certain days of the year. The shoes are always removed in order to show respect.

4. The Hindu ritual practices can be divided into three categories: Nitya, Naimittika and Kamya. These categories will be expanded upon later.

With those guidelines in mind, we can now go in depth.

Types of worship – Nitya, Naimittika and Kamya

Nitya worshipping is when daily prayers are made to a shrine at home. These prayers are made to a murti. A murti is an object that resembles the god they are praying to. It channels the prayers and offerings to the actual gods so they can receive the blessings. You may get this confused with puja, the act of praying to Gods and goddesses. Nitya is just a daily prayer.

Naimittika worship occurs only on specific days of the year or after a specific time period, much like a holiday. For example the Kumbh Mela is a spiritual gathering which occurs 4 times every 12 years. Participants gather at Allahabad to wash in the Ganges and Jumna rivers. This is to erase all sin and start anew.

People taking a holy bath at the Kumbh Mela.

Kamya worships are optional, but they provide a sense of spiritual realization. A pilgrimage is an example of Kamya worship. Pilgrimages are a journey to find your purpose in the world.

Worships can happen whenever and wherever the person feels like it. At home, worship may be performed at a shrine. This is a special place for worship. The shrine is beautifully decorated and a murti may be placed in order to help concentrate. This murti is washed and sprayed with perfume before being offered gifts such as cooked foods and flowers. An incense lamp is burned and waved around. This ritual is called puja.

A typical Hindu shrine complete with offerings.

Another popular location for worship takes place at a temple. In the temple, the various Gods of Hinduism will be treated like royalty. This means they will be offered meals and gifts on a daily basis. Hindus can choose to listen to the sacred texts read by the preists or participate in a mantra. A mantra is a sound that helps the person focus on meditating.

Understand? No? You might find Hindu festivals much more exciting. I'll let Raj take over from here.

On the other hand, you could return to the index to look at another topic.