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Nithyanandapedia
June 09 2009

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December 26 20092009-12-26A fire ritual in a temple hall. A standing priest in orange robes raises a flaming lamp high with both hands above a brick-lined fire pit. Beside him a kneeling assistant in orange holds a long-handled spoon, and a seated woman in a white sari with a gold border presses her palms together before a tray of fruit, bananas, sweets and flower garlands. Other orange-robed attendants and seated devotees stand and sit along the back wall, beneath a carved stone pillar and a hanging banana plant.2009-06-09A seated man in saffron-orange robes performs a homa at a brick fire pit, holding a long metal ladle-like implement with a flame rising from it. He wears a rudraksha mala and a gold chain. Beside him, a younger man in orange robes and a rudraksha mala sits attentively. Offerings are laid out on the left: sliced fruits, apples, a pineapple, lemons, a silver bowl, and flower garlands. Pink flower petals are scattered over the bricks. Behind them, seated devotees in orange, yellow and white clothing watch, and a figure in white moves in the background. A brass lamp stands on the right beside a dark curtain. The scene is a photograph of a fire ritual indoors. Two people are prominent in the foreground, with more visible behind them. The a person cues include saffron robes, a rudraksha mala and gold ornaments on the seated figure performing the fire offering.2009-06-09A homa fire ritual in a temple-like hall at night. A man with long dark hair, wearing saffron-orange robes and a rudraksha mala, sits on a leopard-print seat behind a fire pit, pouring liquid from a vessel into the flames. Another man in saffron sits to the left beside brass vessels and a plate of offerings. Seated devotees in orange and white clothing fill the background. White brick-like altar blocks are decorated with red flower petals, and a brass lamp stands on the right. A standing fan is visible.2007-02-16June 09 20092009-06-09February 16 20072007-02-16A photograph of an evening puja inside a open-sided tent-like hall with a corrugated roof and orange drapery hanging on the left. Several men in white dhotis and white shirts with orange shawls stand and hold lit oil lamps (aarti) before a decorated altar with brass vessels, a deity murti, garlands and banana leaves. Seated women in white saris and men in orange and white clothing face the altar, with fruit offerings including pineapples, oranges and bananas, coconuts and brass pots arranged on the floor in front. A man in the foreground wears a tilak and an orange-brown shirt. Framed photographs and banners hang on the back wall. About twenty people are visible.2009-06-09December 26 20082008-12-26June 09 20092009-06-09Indoor temple ritual in a whitewashed hall at night. Rows of brass oil lamps and lit lamp stands line the floor in front of a large spread of food offerings: fruit, pineapples, oranges, bananas, and many steel bowls of grains, pulses, sweets and cooked dishes arranged on red cloth. Behind them, several people in white and saffron-orange robes stand or kneel, with a man in saffron clothing seated near a decorated pedestal. On the left, a golden serpent-hooded image and a deity murti stand beside the altar. Potted plants with yellow flowers sit in the foreground. A man in a brown shirt sits at the lower edge of the frame, and a few women in saris are visible among the attendees.2009-06-09A photograph of a fire ritual, a homa or yagna, on a white-tiled fire pit where flames burn with wood and offerings. A central figure with long dark hair, a rudraksha-style gold bead necklace and an orange robe sits cross-legged, gesturing while speaking into a microphone on a stand; the appearance is consistent with the page's Swamiji candidate, so this is a probable Swamiji (probable) seated at the ritual. Beside him a smiling man in orange robes sits, and to the right another orange-clad man with a gold necklace holds a tray. Plates of flowers, fruits, brass bowls, a kalasha-like vessel and marigold garlands surround the fire pit. Behind them, devotees in white and yellow shawls and orange robes sit along a wall, with an orange-draped seat at left.2008-12-26Night ritual in an open-sided pavilion with a corrugated metal roof and string lights overhead. In the foreground a square wooden fire pit blazes with a homa fire, surrounded by offerings of rice, coconuts, banana leaves, brass vessels and a kalasha. Several priests in orange and saffron robes sit on a striped mat; one wears an orange turban and a rudraksha-style necklace, and another in orange sits with hands folded. Many devotees in white clothing sit or stand in the crowd behind, and a video camera on a tripod records the scene at right. Smoke drifts through the hall.2017-02-21