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Nithyanandapedia
October 16 2010

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A shaved-headed priest in white dhoti and shawl sits cross-legged before a brick fire pit (homa/yagna), with flames rising from the wood. He wears a gold-bead necklace and holds a ritual implement in one hand. Around him seated devotees, including women in pale and patterned saris and children, watch in the evening light. Yellow flower petals lie on the pit's edge. At right, a framed portrait garlanded with white flowers and a fruit offering on a tray sit beside the fire. A large white bag and an orange-clad standing figure appear in the background.October 16 20102010-10-16 +1 copiesOctober 15 20102010-10-15July 19 20132013-07-19June 19 20162016-06-19October 16 20102010-10-16 +1 copiesA photograph of a homa (fire ritual) performed indoors in a temple shrine. A large fire burns in a square brick fire pit, surrounded by brass oil lamps on tall stands. Behind it stand two dark-skinned deity statues in orange-saffron robes and a decorated shrine niche with a deity murti garlanded with flowers. In the left foreground a priest sits on a cushion wearing white dhoti and shirt with red-bordered cloth, a rudraksha mala around his neck, wire-rimmed glasses, and a shaved head, holding a small bell or ritual item. Offerings on brass plates in the foreground include bananas, lemons, pineapple, rice, coconut and a lit oil lamp. A small logo appears in the upper left corner. The mood is ritual and devotional.A homa fire burns in a square brick fire pit set on an orange cloth in an indoor hall. A priest in white dhoti and shawl, wearing a gold-beaded necklace and a red-orange sash, sits behind the fire with one arm extended over it and a microphone nearby. A younger priest in orange cloth sits at the upper right. Seated before the fire are a woman in an orange and green sari and several people in white clothes, including a man with a rudraksha-style mala, with hands folded. Steel pots with lids, plates of puffed bread, bowls of fruit and flower garlands surround the scene.2011-11-06A night homa at a fire pit lined with flower petals. A flame rises from the central square pit, with a standing priest in white dhoti and shawl at the top of the frame and several seated priests in white around the pit. One seated priest in the right foreground has a gold necklace and folded hands. A seated priest at centre right, with hands joined in prayer, wears white, with a rudraksha-style necklace and a shaved head. Brass vessels, a brass lamp and fruit offerings sit on the left and right. Behind the pit, a brass lamp burns beside a deity murti decorated with red flower garlands and a golden kalasha-like vessel with fruit. Strings of lights glow in the background. No clearly distinctive a person cues are visible in the frame, so the candidate is unsure.2010-10-16 +1 copiesA homa fire ritual in a hall with orange-painted walls and an orange floor cloth. A square yellow brick fire pit holds a bright flame at the centre. A priest in white dhoti and shawl with a gold-coloured yellow silk border, wearing a long beaded necklace, sits at right beside the fire, holding a ritual item and reaching toward offerings. Around the fire, a woman in an orange and green sari sits with palms together, and several men in white kurtas and rudraksha malas sit cross-legged, watching. Bowls of fruit, flowers, grains, pappadums and food are arranged on plates and steel dishes. Behind them, a figure in an orange robe and a man in orange sit near a red and gold throne-like seat. A microphone stands near the priest. Several people are visible, and a steel cooking vessel sits in the foreground.2011-11-06A homa fire ritual at night in a courtyard. A central fire blazes in a brick fire pit, and a priest bare-chested in a white dhoti with a red turban pours offerings into it from a brass vessel. Around the pit are marigold garlands, bowls of fruit, apples, brass vessels and kalasha pots draped in cloth. Several men sit on mats in white dhotis and rudraksha malas, and one man in saffron clothing is at the right edge. A man in the foreground with his back to the camera wears a rudraksha mala. Floral decorations and fruit offerings cover the ground around the fire.2016-08-05A homa fire ritual at night in an outdoor setting. A bare-chested priest with a white sacred thread, rudraksha mala and gold chain sits behind a brick fire pit where a tall flame rises, with a steel bowl of ghee or liquid offering held by a second person in the foreground. The second person wears a magenta head-wrap, a rudraksha necklace and a light cloth. Behind the fire, flower garlands in orange and yellow, coconuts and a large floral-decorated deity murti or pot are arranged. Marigold petals and red flowers are scattered on the bricks.2016-08-14