Skip to content
Nithyanandapedia
Night outdoor ritual with a fire pit sending up smoke and flames at centre right. A man in a saffron-orange dhoti and shawl stands at left with hands folded in prayer, beside an ornate red-and-gold throne draped in marigold garlands. Several people in white ritual clothes and saffron-robed monks kneel and stand around the fire, one holding a brass vessel. Marigold garlands wrap large covered pots and kalasha-style vessels in the foreground, with mango leaves and red flowers, and brass cups and lamps are laid on a low table at right. Devotees stand in the dim background watching.

More like this

Open the gallery
A homa fire is burning in a sunken fire pit on a red floor inside a decorated temple hall, with a flower-tiered offering platform and coconuts and fruits to the right. Several priests in white dhotis with gold borders and bare upper bodies stand at the fire; the central priest in a maroon turban pours from a brass vessel with a flower garland, while others hold offerings. Umbrellas with ornate canopies and marigold garlands decorate the hall, and a few onlookers in orange and white sit at the edges. No figure is clearly identifiable as a person, so this is a ritual scene with priests and devotees.2018-04-14November 07 20132013-11-07A homa fire ritual under a white tented pavilion hung with colourful paper lanterns. A smoke plume rises from a fire pit at centre as priests sit on striped rugs behind rows of flower-decorated brass and copper kalasha pots, garlands and offerings. A bearded man in a saffron-orange shawl and rudraksha beads sits in the centre, with a white-clad priest beside him and a shaved-headed man in white to the right. In the foreground a bare-backed man in a white dhoti and an orange cloth sits facing the fire, with a black bag at left. Hundreds of seated devotees fill the hall behind, and a gold-domed shrine with a deity murti stands in the background.2016-12-15March 11 20172017-03-11 +1 copiesSeptember 15 20152015-09-15A ritual fire ceremony under a tent-like canopy with bright lights and rising smoke. A shirtless young priest with a purple head cloth and beaded necklace leans over a wooden platform holding a metal vessel while a flame rises from it. Another priest in orange cloth and a white-clad assistant stand beside him. Marigold garlands, red flowers, bananas, fruits and a kalasha-like offering decorate the altar, and a young man in glasses wearing a white shawl watches at right. Yellow marigold garlands fill the foreground. Appears to be an abhishekam or homa offering in progress.2016-12-02A photograph of a ceremonial homa-style ritual in a large hall with white-covered chairs and red-draped tables. In the foreground, a shirtless man with a rudraksha mala and gold chain sits beside a silver-framed ornate throne decorated with yellow and red garlands. A brass plate holds offerings, and a fire burns in a wooden fire pit ringed with flower garlands and kalasha pots wrapped in cloth. Other priests in white dhotis and orange garments sit or move in the background, and a man in an orange shirt and white dhoti walks at right. The silver throne is empty of any visible occupant. Yellow and red flowers, brass vessels and scattered petals fill the floor.2018-01-06A night-time outdoor ritual homa at a tented event. A fire pit with smoke rising sits in front of a row of wooden boxes and flower-decorated offerings. Four men in white dhotis sit with their backs to the camera, bare-chested with rudraksha necklaces, one wearing an orange shawl. Behind them, a standing priest in a white dhoti and orange shawl stands near a bare-chested attendant in a white dhoti with a green head cloth who holds a ritual item. On the right, a decorated ratha-like offering table is garlanded with red flowers. Rows of seated devotees in white and orange clothing fill the tent. No figure can be confidently identified as a person from appearance.2016-07-04October 15 20132013-10-15A homa fire ritual inside a hall decorated with marigold garlands and a golden canopy. A central priest in a white dhoti with gold border and a red turban, and bare-chested with gold necklaces, holds a ritual vessel over a fire pit. Two other priests in white dhotis with gold borders stand nearby, one with hands folded in prayer. Yellow and orange garlands hang on the right, a golden decorated umbrella stands over the pit, and brass pots, a fire pit lined with gold-coloured blocks, and offerings of flowers and coconuts sit on a red floor. Several people in orange and saffron clothing stand in the background.2018-04-14April 14 20182018-04-14Outdoor homa at night: a brick fire pit with a large flame rises in the centre, decorated with pink and red flower petals along its ledges. A bare-chested priest in a green waist cloth and white dhoti, with a green head cloth, pours an offering from a brass bowl into the fire. Beside him a shirtless man in a green dhoti and white cloth sits cross-legged, and at left a shirtless man in white dhoti with an orange-saffron shawl holds a small offering. Brass pots, a bowl of petals and rice sit on the ground at lower left. Behind them, a seated crowd in white clothes with red shawls watches, several with tilak marks.2016-07-04