October 12 2015 - Nithyanandapedia

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October 12 2015

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October 12 2015

A photograph of a homa fire ritual in a hall. A standing-height fire burns in a yellow brick fire pit decorated with white patterns. A man in a rust-red turban with a small gold ornament, rust-red and gold robe, multiple gold and dark bead malas, and glasses kneels at the fire, hand extended toward the flames. Beside him, a young assistant in white with a rudraksha mala and tilak sits near a copper bowl and ladle. Behind them, people in white clothes sit on chairs.

October 12 2015

A photograph of a homa fire ritual in a hall. In the centre, a man in an orange-red turban and orange-red robe with gold border sits before a fire pit, holding a ladle or spoon over the flames and wearing a large gold pendant and dark beaded mala with a gold-coloured necklace. Two men in white dhotis with gold borders and rudraksha malas sit beside the fire pit, one at the left edge and one behind the central figure. Behind them, seated rows of people in white clothes and orange shawls watch. A brass bowl and a brass lamp sit near the fire, with bananas at the lower right. The central figure has distinctive long-appearing hair? No: the central figure wears a turban, and the ritual appears to be a homa; the appearance-based identity is uncertain and no a person candidate is clearly confirmed from appearance alone.

A photograph of a homa at an evening gathering. A seated figure in saffron-orange robes and an orange turban, with long braided hair, rudraksha beads and a large gold pendant necklace, tends a small brick fire pit with flames. Brass bowls, a kalasha-style vessel, oil lamps and a tray of offerings sit around the fire, with bundled wood beside it. Behind them, about a dozen seated devotees in white clothing with mala beads watch and sit with hands folded. The setting is a tiled floor, and a blue cloth is visible at the right edge.

A homa fire ritual at a square orange-brick fire pit with tall flames. A man in an orange-red turban, rudraksha mala and gold ceremonial necklace, wearing an orange-red shawl, leans over the fire and places an offering with his right hand. Behind him a younger man in white with a rudraksha mala and tilak sits holding a brass ladle over a brass bowl. Brass oil lamps, a basket, banana leaves and metal plates of offerings lie on mats around the pit. Seated people in white and orange robes with garlands are visible in the background.

A homa fire ritual in an indoor hall with a fire burning on a stack of yellow-painted bricks. A shaved-headed priest in an orange-red dhoti with a sacred thread and beaded neck garland sits at left, gripping grass bundles and feeding them toward the flames. Beside him, a younger priest in orange cloth with a white tilak on his forehead watches the fire. Behind them, several men in white kurtas, one wearing rudraksha beads, sit observing. Silver puja vessels, a metal tray and a brass oil lamp rest on the floor in the foreground, and a woman in white is partly visible at the right edge.

Outdoor evening fire ritual (homa) at a brick fire pit lit by an open flame. A seated priest in a rust-red dhoti and red turban, with long swept-back hair, a gold-bead necklace and a large gold pendant, pours or offers ghee from a silver bowl into the fire with his right hand. Beside him a young person in an orange-saffron cloth with a red and white beaded mala and glasses sits near brass and silver ritual vessels and a kalasha. Several devotees in white clothes sit on the left with hands pressed in anjali, one woman with a red bead necklace. Dark pavement and a green leaf are visible in the foreground.

A homa fire ceremony in a hall with participants seated on colourful striped mats. In the centre a man in an orange-red turban and orange shawl, with long beads and rudraksha-style necklaces, tends a flame rising from a brick fire pit decorated with marigolds. Two men in white dhoti with red-orange shawls and beaded necklaces sit on either side, and a woman in a red-and-gold sari sits at right. Behind them, seated devotees wear white with red shawls. Brass bowls, fruit, and offerings surround the fire pit.

November 18 2015

A seated priest in orange-red robes and a matching orange turban performs a homa beside a sunken square fire pit with bright flames, marigold-yellow and white floral garlands, and brass vessels with offerings on a blue-and-red cloth. He wears a long rudraksha mala with a large gold ornament, reads from an open book, and has white tilak marks on his arms and forehead. Behind him, several figures in orange sit in the dim hall, and at right a young man in white dhoti with a gold-and-rudraksha necklace sits by the offerings. A tray of banana-like fruit and a basket of dried sticks sit nearby.