June 12 2004 - Nithyanandapedia

Nithyanandapedia

June 12 2004

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An outdoor evening ritual under a thatched canopy strung with leaves and small orange flowers. A yellow brick fire pit (homa kunda) sits on sand in the centre, decorated with pink flower petals, with brass vessels and offerings placed around it. A priest in white with a white shawl and a tripundra on his forehead holds a microphone and gestures over the pit. Men in white dress and rudraksha malas sit on mats near the pit, and a man standing at the right in white with a rudraksha mala holds his hands in anjali. A seated elderly man in white with rudraksha beads sits at the left. Behind them a large crowd of mostly children and women in colourful saris and salwars sits on white plastic chairs and mats, many with hands pressed in prayer. Fruit, flowers and a brass lamp are arranged on a table at the right.

October 18 2007

December 26 2008

Outdoor homa or fire ritual at an open-air ashram setting. A brick fire pit with yellow-painted bricks burns with visible flames, surrounded by white chalk kolam designs on the ground. A seated figure in a white robe with gold-yellow shawl and long dark hair officiates, holding a ritual implement over the fire and a brass bell or small vessel nearby. Brass bowls, a kalasha-like vessel, plates of offerings and a tray with flowers sit around the fire. Behind, a seated congregation of about two dozen devotees in white clothing and rudraksha malas sits on mats, many with hands folded in prayer, including a woman in a teal shawl and women in white saris. A microphone stand stands beside the officiant.

2005-01-24 +1 copies

December 26 2008

A photograph of a homa at an outdoor ceremony. A figure with long dark hair and an orange saffron robe sits at the left, pouring from a brass vessel and ladle into a square fire pit built of red bricks, where a small fire burns. Around the pit, people in white clothes sit on mats, several wearing beaded necklaces. Behind them a large crowd of mostly white-clad devotees, some in dhotis and saris, watches from a platform. A brass kalasha and metal offering vessels sit on a mat in the foreground, and a microphone stand stands near the fire.

Outdoor homa ceremony under a large tent with a striped, maroon and multicoloured canopy and a yellow metal truss frame. A brick-lined fire pit with a small flame sits on the sand in front of a crowd of seated devotees in white. A man in white kneels at left, pouring offerings from a brass dish into the fire, while a figure in saffron-orange robes sits beside him. A man in white stands at left holding a long decorated ceremonial staff topped with a brass finial and a multicoloured fringed banner. Brass vessels, bananas, fruit, coconuts and a small tray of puja items lie on a striped mat in the foreground. Girls in white sit near the fire pit wearing beaded necklaces. Many seated people in white fill the background.

Outdoor homa ceremony with several devotees seated on the ground in white clothes, palms pressed together in prayer. Brick-lined fire pits, one with a bright flame, are surrounded by brass bowls, a ladle, dried wood pieces, yellow marigold flowers and a red cloth offering. A man at left wears a rudraksha mala and holds his hands in namaskar; a middle-aged man in white with a rudraksha mala sits with hands folded. Other seated devotees in white and some women in light saris sit on mats behind the fire pits.

A photograph of a puja ceremony in an open hall with a seated crowd of devotees, many with palms pressed together in namaste. In the foreground a bare-chested priest with a sandalwood-marked forehead, wearing a red-and-yellow dhoti and a white beaded necklace, holds a brass lamp with a lit flame and a brass vessel while performing the ritual. Nearby sit a bearded man in white with tripundra marks and a man in an orange robe. Before them is a brick-edged fire or offering platform decorated with bananas, fruits, flowers, pineapples and a red cloth-wrapped kalasha-like arrangement with paddy stalks. Several seated men wear white dhotis and white shirts; a few wear orange or saffron shawls.

A Vedic wedding ritual in progress inside a hall, with a fire pit (homa) built from white brick-like blocks decorated with yellow flowers and red-white markings. A bride in an orange silk sari with a long braid and jasmine garland sits at the fire beside a groom in white kurta with a flower garland. A priest in orange robes and rudraksha malas performs the rites, with a ritual plate of fruit, mangoes and flowers nearby. Seated devotees in orange and white surround the fire, and a cameraman films at left. A trident and a deity murti stand in the background near the wall.

April 05 2012

Outdoor homa at a brick fire pit. A man with long dark hair, wearing an orange saffron robe and a rudraksha mala, sits on a wooden seat and holds a brass ladle over the burning fire, with a brass bell and bowls nearby. Behind him, a man in white with a red-and-saffron shawl sits with hands folded. Seated devotees in white clothes, several wearing rudraksha malas, sit on mats in front of a large crowd of men and women in white. A tent-like frame and a white cloth hang at the left, and a brass kalasha and flower offerings lie on a striped mat at lower left.