Skip to content
Nithyanandapedia
A photo of a priest with his back to the camera, bare-shouldered and wearing a white dhoti, performing a puja before a framed deity picture. He holds a lit oil lamp or flame with green leaves near a framed image of a four-armed goddess seated on a pink lotus, her hands holding lotuses, wearing red and gold garments and a gold crown, set against a glowing orange-yellow halo. A red and gold patterned cloth drapes the frame. On the right stands a table with small Ganesha figurines, fruit, bananas, marigolds and a tiger-striped cloth; a painted mountain backdrop hangs on the wall. Yellow walls surround the scene, and a yellow printed sheet with Sanskrit reads Shabd-Ved beside the altar.

More like this

Open the gallery
A bare-backed priest in a white dhoti stands with his back to the camera, holding a lit oil lamp aloft before a shrine. He wears a thin white sacred thread and a rudraksha-style mala at his neck. The shrine shows a framed image of Goddess Lakshmi seated on a pink lotus, holding lotus flowers, decorated with a fern and flower garland above and a maroon paisley shawl at her sides. Beside her stands a yellow book cover printed with a Vedic image and the word शब्द-वेद. Brass figurines, flowers and small devotional prints sit on the altar. The priest performs an aarti during a puja.2024-08-10A photograph of a shirtless priest in a white dhoti and sacred thread, seen from behind, holding a lit oil lamp (aarti) before a home shrine. The shrine has a framed deity image of Lakshmi seated on a pink lotus, a yellow card reading Shabd-Ved, garlands, brass plates of fruit and offerings, and a white paper sign reading KAILASA TAIWAN. To the right is a large framed portrait of a smiling bearded man in an orange-and-gold turban, blue shawl and red-white flower garland with rudraksha mala, set against a mountain backdrop; it is a printed portrait, not a physical person. One physical person is visible.2024-10-10A bare-chested man in a white dhoti stands at a home altar, facing it from behind and pointing a stick or incense toward the shrine. A framed color print of a goddess with a lotus and a red-orange halo sits left of centre, beside a small framed photo. On the right, a large portrait of a bearded man in a red and gold shawl, with a crown-like headpiece, rudraksha mala and flower garland, has hands raised in namaskar. The backdrop is a large photo of a snow-capped mountain face lit gold. The altar holds brass lamps, kalasha-style vessels, a plate of offerings, green leaves, a tiger-striped cloth and a white sign reading KAILASA TAIWAN.A priest with bare upper body, wearing a white dhoti with a gold border and a sacred thread, lights a small oil lamp held in his right hand before a shrine. On the shrine, a framed image of a goddess seated on a pink lotus with lotus flowers in her hands is flanked by a yellow panel. Behind is a large mountain backdrop with snowy rock faces. At right stands a printed cutout portrait of a bearded figure in an orange turban and blue shawl, with a red and white flower garland and a rudraksha mala; the printed portrait is not a physical person. Stacked white packets form a pyramid at left, with a small brass lamp and figurines on the altar and a sign reading KAILASA TAIWAN in front.2024-09-10A photograph of a shirtless man in a white dhoti performing puja at a shrine set against a painted Himalayan mountain backdrop. He faces a framed deity murti of Lakshmi seated on a pink lotus, holding lotuses, flanked by elephants, and raises a small ritual implement toward it. Beside the shrine stands a large printed portrait of a bearded figure in an orange-red shawl, crowned with a turban, wearing red and white flower garlands and rudraksha beads, labelled as a sign reading KAILASA TAIWAN. The altar holds fruit, flower offerings, brass vessels, a lamp and a kumkum-marked plate, with a tiger-striped cloth draped over the table.2024-08-09A bare-chested man in a white dhoti stands at a home shrine performing a ritual, holding up a lit lamp or incense toward a framed deity image of a goddess seated on a pink lotus with gold ornaments and flanked by elephants. Beside it, a large cardboard cutout of a bearded man with a red-and-gold turban, red-and-gold shawl, red and white garlands and a rudraksha mala is seated before a backdrop of snow-capped mountain cliffs. The altar below holds brass vessels, fruit, flowers, a tiger-striped cloth, a red-bordered table covering, and a sign reading KAILASA TAIWAN. The priest's activity matches a lamp-offering puja.A photograph of a shirtless priest with a sacred thread, wearing a white dhoti, standing with his back to the camera and holding incense sticks at an altar in a yellow-walled room. The altar holds a framed goddess murti in red and gold, a Shabd-Ved book, fruit, flowers, brass vessels and small bronze deity figures. Behind it hangs a large mountain backdrop, and at the right stands a printed portrait of a bearded man in an orange turban, blue shawl and red-white flower garland with rudraksha mala, a sign reading KAILASA TAIWAN on the table. a person appears only as the printed portrait, which is a depiction rather than a person physically present.2024-11-10A bare-chested man in a white dhoti with a sacred thread stands with his back to the camera at a home altar in front of a large mountain backdrop. He is raising one arm, apparently marking or sprinkling near the altar. On the altar are a framed goddess image with a lotus seat and red-gold background, a framed portrait of a bearded sage wearing a red-and-white flower garland, small brass lamps, a brass kalasha, fruit, bowls, flower offerings and a sign reading KAILASA TAIWAN. A small framed black-and-white photo sits beside the sage portrait. The altar is covered in red, gold and maroon cloths.2024-12-10A shirtless priest in a white dhoti stands with his back to the camera before a home shrine, marked by a white placard reading KAILASA TAIWAN on a gold-brocade covered table. The altar holds brass vessels, bowls of fruit and sweets, flower arrangements and small deity figures. Behind it hangs a large mountain backdrop, and a printed portrait of a bearded man in a saffron turban, blue robe and red-and-white flower garland stands on the right, labelled with no readable name. A framed deity print with a pink lotus sits center-left beside a yellow placard reading shabd-ved, and oil lamps are lit. The priest's skin bears white ash markings on the back.2024-12-10A shirtless man in white dhoti stands with his back to the camera at a shrine, extending his right arm toward an altar. Before him is a framed chromolithograph of a goddess seated on a lotus, with two elephants and a gold-ornamented figure, and a small framed image nearby. On the right, a large printed backdrop of a snow-covered mountain shows a figure in red-and-gold robes, orange turban, and red-and-white flower garland with a rudraksha mala, posed with a raised hand; this depicted figure is a printed picture, not a physical person. The altar holds brass vessels, a small deity murti, green leaves, and a white sign reading KAILASA TAIWAN. Wood-grain patterned altar cloth and gold-trimmed red fabric complete the scene.2024-08-30A bare-chested man in white dhoti and an unstitched white cloth stands at left, one arm raised to touch a framed red-and-gold image of a goddess seated on a pink lotus, with a crimson-robed figure of a bearded man in a saffron-and-gold turban with rudraksha malas and garlands on the right, both on a shrine table. The table holds brass plates, a kalasha-style vessel, flowers, a small deity murti, lamps and offerings, with a white card reading KAILASA TAIWAN in front. Behind is a mountain backdrop and yellow walls. This appears to be a puja performed at a home shrine.A bare-backed man in a white dhoti and a rudraksha mala stands at a shrine, lifting a lit lamp or flame toward an altar. Beside him a framed printed image shows the goddess Lakshmi seated on a pink lotus with elephants and a golden halo. On the altar, a large cut-out or printed portrait of a bearded man wears an orange-and-gold turban, red and gold shawl, and a garland of red and white flowers, with a rudraksha mala draped over him. Behind is a backdrop of snow-dusted orange and grey mountain cliffs. The altar is covered with a tiger-stripe cloth, brass vessels, a potted plant, fruit and small deity murtis. A white paper sign on the altar reads KAILASA TAIWAN.2024-12-09