WHY DO WE FAST?

Most devout Indians fast regularly or on special occasions like festivals.
On such days they do not eat at all, eat once or make do with fruits or
a special diet of simple food.
Fasting in Sanskrit is called upavaasa.
Upa means “near” + vaasa means “to stay”.
Upavaasa, therefore, means staying near (the Lord),
meaning the attainment of close mental proximity with the Lord.
Then what has upavaasa to do with food?
A lot of our time and energy is spent in procuring food items,
preparing, cooking, eating and digesting food.
Certain food types make our minds dull and agitated.
Hence on certain days man decides to save time and
conserve his energy by eating either simple, light food or
totally abstaining from eating so that his mind becomes alert and pure.

WHY DO OFFER FOOD TO THE LORD BEFORE EATING IT?

Indians make an offering of food to the Lord and later
partake of it as prasaada - a holy gift from the Lord.
In our daily ritualistic worship (pooja) too we offer naivedyam (food) to the Lord.
The Lord is omnipotent and omniscient.
Man is a part, while the Lord is the totality.
All that we do is by His strength and knowledge alone.
Hence what we receive in life as a result of our actions is really His alone.
We acknowledge this through the act of offering food to Him.
This is exemplified by the Hindi words “tera tujko arpan”– I offer what is Yours to You.
Thereafter it is akin to His gift to us, graced by His divine touch.
Knowing this, our entire attitude to food and the act of eating changes.
The food offered will naturally be pure and the best.
We share what we get with others before consuming it.

WHY DO WE APPLY THE HOLY ASH?

The ash of any burnt object is not regarded as holy ash.
Bhasma (the holy ash) is the ash from the homa (sacrificial fire)
where special wood along with ghee and other herbs is offered as worship of the Lord.
Or the deity is worshipped by pouring ash as abhisheka and is then distributed as bhasma.
Bhasma is generally applied on the forehead.
Some apply it on certain parts of the body like the upper arms, chest etc.
Some ascetics rub it all over the body. Many consume a pinch of it each time they receive it.
The word bhasma means, “that by which our sins are destroyed and the Lord is remembered.”
Bha implied bhartsanam (”to destroy”) and sma implies smaranam (”to remember”).
The application of bhasma therefore signifies destruction of the evil and remembrance of the divine.
Bhasma is called vibhuti (which means “glory”) as it gives glory to one who applies it and
raksha (which means a source of protection) as it protects the

WHY DO WE WEAR MARKS (TILAK, POTTU AND THE LIKE) ON THE FOREHEAD?

The tilak or pottu invokes a feeling of sanctity in the wearer and others.
It is recognized as a religious mark.
Its form and colour vary according to one’s caste, religious sect or the form
of the Lord worshipped.
In earlier times, the four castes (based on varna or colour) - Brahmana, Kshatriya,
Vaishya and Sudra - applied marks differently.
The brahmin applied a white chandan mark signifying purity,
as his profession was of a priestly or academic nature.
The kshatriya applied a red kumkum mark signifying valour
as he belonged to warrior races.
The vaishya wore a yellow kesar or turmeric mark signifying prosperity
as he was a businessman or trader devoted to creation of wealth.
The sudra applied a black bhasma, kasturi or charcoal mark signifying
service as he supported the work of the other three divisions.
Also Vishnu worshippers apply a chandan tilak of the shape of “U,”
Shiva worshippers a tripundra of bhasma, Devi worshippers a red dot of kumkum and so on).

WHY DO WE DO NAMASTE?

Indians greet each other with Namaste.
The two palms are placed together in front of the chest and
the head bows whilst saying the word Namaste.
This greeting is for all people –
younger than us,
of our own age,
those older than us,
friends, even strangers to us.
There are five forms of formal traditional greeting
enjoined in the Shaastras of which Namaskaram is one.
This is understood as prostration but it actually refers to paying homage
as we do today when we greet each other with a namaste.
Namaste could be just a casual or formal greeting,
a cultural convention or an act of worship.
However there is much more to it than meets the eye.
In Sanskrit namah + te = namaste.

WHY DO WE HAVE A PRAYER ROOM?
Most Indian homes have a prayer room or altar.
A lamp is lit and the Lord worshipped each day.
Other spiritual practices like japa - repetition of the Lord’s name, meditation,
paaraayana - reading of the scriptures, prayers, and devotional singing etc are
also done here.
Special worship is done on auspicious occasions like birthdays, anniversaries,
festivals and the like.
Each member of the family - young or old - communes with and
worships the Divine here.

WHY DO WE LIGHT A LAMP?
In almost every Indian home a lamp is lit daily before the altar of the Lord.
In some houses it is lit at dawn, in some, twice a day – at dawn and dusk – and
in a few it is maintained continuously - Akhanda Deepa.
All auspicious functions commence with the lighting of the lamp,
which is often maintained right through the occasion.
Light symbolizes knowledge, and darkness - ignorance.
The Lord is the “Knowledge Principle” (Chaitanya) who is the source,
the enlivener and the illuminator of all knowledge.
Hence light is worshiped as the Lord himself.