September 30 2013 - Nithyanandapedia

Nithyanandapedia

September 30 2013

More like this

Open the gallery

Night outdoor ritual at a decorated shrine. A man in orange robes and a white forehead mark kneels on a low mat and holds a silver plate toward a lit fire pit beside a white platform. Behind him, a deity murti of a couple, adorned with marigold garlands and flower strands, sits in a shrine framed by a red cloth and banana plants. A second man in white with an orange cloth sits at left, and brass lamps and offerings lie before the fire. The setting suggests a homa or puja, with a fire, offerings and lamps.

September 30 2013

A night-time homa at a temple-like hall under a white canopy. Several sannyasis in saffron-orange robes and orange turbans stand around a raised golden fire altar with a large flame and smoke. One pours an offering from a brass vessel while others tend the fire. A black deity murti garlanded with white flowers stands to the right, with a seated figure in a red chair in the background, wearing orange robes and rudraksha beads. Pink petals, a kalasha wrapped in a green cloth with a red-and-white garland, oil lamps and brass plates lie on the striped floor mats.

Night ritual on a raised stone platform before a decorated shrine framed by red and white garlands and a gold arch. Two deity murtis with silver and gold ornaments sit on a red cloth-draped altar with kalasha pots and green leaves in front. Around ten young boys in orange cloths sit cross-legged in rows facing the altar. A bare-chested priest in white dhoti with a white headband and rudraksha mala stands at the altar, holding a brass vessel and pouring or offering. Another white-clad attendant stands to the left, and a shaved-headed boy in orange holds an item at the edge. Audience members are visible in the lower foreground. The scene appears to be a puja or abhishekam.

Night outdoor fire ritual on a colourful woven mat. A bare-chested man in a white dhoti with a yellow turban and gold chain sits at right, holding a long wooden stick over a small fire burning in a yellow brick fire pit. Another bare-chested man in a white dhoti with an orange shawl sits behind the fire, and a third man in a white dhoti sits at left with his eyes closed. Brass vessels, a brass kalasha, a plate of yellow rice, bowls of green grapes and a kolam-like rangoli design sit on a silver tray. Behind them stands a building with lit windows and a lamp-lit ground.

Night photograph of a homa fire ceremony on a tiered yellow-and-white fire pit with flames and smoke rising. Around it sit a group of young saffron-robed monks with shaved heads and white tripundra markings on their foreheads, some with rudraksha malas, hands joined in prayer. A standing monk in orange at the back, and a seated priest in white with a mala to the right. Brass oil lamps stand beside the pit, with yellow marigold garlands and offerings on a cloth in the foreground.

April 03 2017

Night-time ritual at a temple with a fire pit and offerings. Several shaven-headed young priests in saffron-orange robes sit on the floor facing a raised golden throne-like peetha decorated with multicoloured garlands. A figure on the throne wears a red cloth and is adorned with garlands and a rudraksha-style necklace. Two priests in orange sit near the fire, one holding a long white ritual stick and another with hands folded in prayer. Brass lamps and a silver bowl stand beside a yellow-edged homa pit with flames and flower offerings. A white-walled stepped structure with red stripes forms the backdrop.

Night ritual at an outdoor homa or fire-offering site under a decorated canopy of green and orange festoons and banana leaves. A man in saffron-orange robes with a hood-like head covering and layered beaded necklaces stands at right, holding a silver plate of flaming camphor or offering fire aloft. Seated devotees in orange and maroon garments press palms together around a square homa pit with brass vessels, marigold petals and yellow flowers. Smoke rises at left, and a garlanded deity murti sits in the background at right. Several people in white with yellow shawls kneel at lower right.

Evening fire ritual under a white tent at a temple, with a rectangular wooden homa pit burning at the centre, its flames rising from a copper-lined fire tray decorated with flower petals and rangoli-like markings. Seated priests in white dhotis surround the pit; one bare-chested man in an orange shawl sits at the far side and another in a pink-and-purple headwrap stands with arms raised, offering items to the fire. Brass bowls, plates of fruit and flowers, and a silver bowl sit beside the pit. Hanging decorations, a gold-framed shrine and a deity murti are visible in the background, with lamps strung overhead.

Night-time homa at an outdoor temple setting. In the foreground, a bare-backed priest in an orange dhoti and a pink-and-orange cloth at his waist stands facing a brass-framed fire pit where flames rise, with a bowl of ghee-like offering beside it. A second attendant at left, wearing white dhoti and a mala, holds a woven basket of flowers. Behind the fire, a golden peetha carries a draped red cloth and marigold garlands, flanked by a golden chair under a red-and-yellow canopy. Seated on the golden throne at right, a robed figure in orange-brown clothing wears a red-and-white garland. Smoke and dim lights fill the background.

Night puja at an outdoor shrine decorated with white and marigold garlands. A shaven-headed priest in a rust-red and orange robe with white body markings sits cross-legged at the lower left, bending over brass vessels, plates of fruit and small oil lamps arranged on the floor. Behind him stands a tiered, multicoloured shrine with carved lions and small figures, draped in flower garlands. A seated man in an orange garment is partly visible at the far left beside a gilded palanquin-like frame, and a large deity murti with flower garlands stands at the right edge. A striped red and white backdrop completes the setting, showing a deity murti and ritual puja in progress.