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Nithyanandapedia
March 26 2013

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A square fire pit with a lit fire of burning logs dominates the foreground, as a homa or yagna is performed. Seated on striped mats, a shaved-headed priest in saffron-orange robes with a white headband, rudraksha mala and white markings applies offerings from a brass plate, with brass bowls, a kettle-like vessel and ritual implements around him. Around the fire, several devotees in white clothes with orange and red sashes sit with palms joined in prayer, and a woman in white at left presses her hands together. Behind them more participants are seated in the dim hall.2013-04-01April 01 20132013-04-01Night-time Ganapati homa at an outdoor ashram setting. A golden-yellow square fire pit holds a flaming fire, with smoke rising. Several priests sit around it in saffron/orange robes and white dhotis, with rudraksha malas and white forehead markings; the priest at right wears a red and gold turban and white garment with gold border and offers something into the fire. Silver and brass vessels, a small pot with yellow flowers, and bowls of grain sit at the edges. Behind them a seated audience in white and red-sashed clothing fills the background, with a microphone stand visible at left. A partial garland hangs in the background.2014-10-11A photograph of an outdoor homa fire ceremony at night. A square stone fire pit with bright flames sits in the foreground. Around it, a group of devotees in white clothes with orange and red sashes and orange beaded malas sit cross-legged on mats. A priest in orange-brown robes with a rudraksha mala and a white tripundra on his forehead sits at right beside brass vessels, bowls of offerings and a tray of grains. Several participants sit with palms joined in prayer. Potted plants and a red pillar appear in the background. Visible people number roughly a dozen or more.2013-04-01July 06 20152015-07-06Night outdoor ritual at a fire pit: a standing man in a rust-red dhoti and saffron-orange shawl with a rudraksha-style mala holds a lit oil lamp aloft to the left. Seated devotees in white clothes with red waist cloths and orange-red shawls sit with palms pressed together before a stone fire pit with a burning flame and brass offering vessels. A shaven-headed priest in saffron with white horizontal markings kneels at the right foreground. Behind them, a golden-framed deity murti is seen in shadow, with a sanctum and plants nearby; more devotees sit in rows.2013-04-01A photograph of an outdoor fire ritual at night. A man in a rust-orange robe and orange turban sits cross-legged before a square brick fire pit with bright flames, with his hands over the fire. He wears a long layered gold beaded necklace and a large ornate gold pendant, and his long dreadlock-like hair falls over his shoulders. Behind him, a seated group of devotees in white and orange clothing, some wearing rudraksha malas, watch quietly. Silver and brass bowls, a brass bowl near the fire, lamps and a stack of offerings sit on the grass in front, and a blue-draped table stands at right.2013-12-09August 29 20142014-08-29May 20 20142014-05-20A night outdoor homa at a brick fire pit with flames rising on the left, its rim decorated with yellow flowers. A bald man with white tripundra markings wears saffron-orange robes, a rudraksha mala and ceremonial gold necklaces, seated with palms pressed in anjali on a brick platform before a green cloth and colourful rangoli. Around him, rows of women and a few men sit on white plastic chairs, mostly in white saris and saffron or orange shawls, hands folded. A small brass plate with flowers and a kalasha-like vessel sits near the fire, and a wooden stand is at the right edge.2010-12-16A square homa fire pit with a brick-lined interior sits on a white-plastered platform decorated with red kolam-style lines, surrounded by striped mats. Four coconuts with green leaves rest in silver-patterned bowls in the foreground, and small oil lamps line the right edge. On the right, a seated priest in a rust-orange robe with bare, shaved head and white ritual markings on his upper arm faces the pit and gestures with his hands, wearing a headset. Behind the fire pit a large seated group of about thirty participants wears white clothing with orange-ribboned lanyards and red sashes; a woman in a red-and-orange sari sits in the centre, and a woman in a white robe on the left is kneeling. A red-draped figure and a golden structure appear at the top left and a red statue-like form at the top centre.2013-03-29July 11 20142014-07-11