Skip to content
Nithyanandapedia
A homa fire burns in a brick-floored hall with concrete pillars and barred windows. Several men in white dhotis, one bare-chested, stand and bend around the blaze; one holds a long stick toward the flames while another kneels to tend the fire. Offerings of fruit and flower garlands sit on a platter to the right, and a yellow sack and a basket rest near the pit. No clear a person candidate is visible, so the figures are priests or assistants performing a fire ritual.

More like this

Open the gallery
Outdoor-style homa ritual at a brick fire pit under a thatched open hall with a banana-leaf canopy. A man in a black shirt and white dhoti, seated at left, holds a lit oil lamp toward the blazing fire pit. A bare-chested priest in white dhoti with a red flower garland stands at right, facing the fire beside a woven basket of flowers and offerings. Behind them, a group of devotees in saffron and orange robes, white dhotis and sarees stands watching, including a bare-chested man with a yellow cloth over his shoulder. Smoke rises from the fire, and marigold petals and flowers lie on the ground in front.2012-09-24September 24 20122012-09-24September 24 20122012-09-24September 24 20122012-09-24A photograph of a homa fire ritual in a dim brick-walled room. A fire burns in a rectangular brick fire pit surrounded by flower garlands, fruit and offering plates. A bare-chested priest in white dhoti with a red cloth over his shoulder kneels and feeds the flames from a bowl, while another priest in white dhoti stands behind with hands joined in prayer. A man with a red turban and rudraksha-style beads sits at left holding a ladle over the fire, and a bare-chested young man with a tilak sits at right. Brass vessels and leaves lie on the floor.2016-10-16A homa fire burns on the floor of a open hall with unfinished concrete pillars and a banana-leaf and bunch-of-bananas canopy overhead. In the foreground, a priest in white dhoti and shawl, with a red rudraksha-style mala, holds a long ladle or spoon raised over the flames. Beside him a second priest in a yellow shawl and white dhoti holds a small red offering vessel, and a woman in a dark sari with floral print bows her head near the altar. Flower heaps of marigolds, pink lotuses and green leaves surround the fire. Behind, a standing group of devotees in orange and saffron robes and white clothing watches, including a man with a rudraksha-style necklace and a few women in red and orange saris. A figure in white dhoti stands at the left edge.2012-09-24A homa fire burns in an open pillared hall with a banana-leaf canopy overhead. In the foreground a bare-chested man in white dhoti and shawl, with a red rudraksha-style cord at his neck and a red waist cloth, raises a wooden ladle over the flames while holding a brass bowl. Behind him a group of devotees in white and saffron-orange robes stand with hands folded, watching the ritual. Pineapples and offering items sit at the left edge near the fire pit.2012-09-24October 16 20162016-10-16Photograph of a fire ritual, homa or yagna, inside a stone-walled hall with rough brick and stone blocks. Several priests sit on the floor around brick-lined fire pits where flames rise, with bowls of offerings, leafy green stems, marigold-like flowers, a basket of sticks and brass vessels nearby. The priest in the centre wears an orange-saffron cloth draped over his body with a tilak on his forehead. A bare-chested priest on the right wears a yellow head cloth and white dhoti. Attendants in white and orange garments tend the fires and handle offerings in the background.2016-10-16A homa fire ritual in a open-sided hall with brick pillars and a thatched or leafy ceiling. A fire burns in a rectangular stone fire pit with ash, and a red kalasha-like pot decorated with flowers sits in the flames. A priest in white dhoti with red-and-gold border and a red beaded necklace stands at right holding a brass ladle and a bowl of offering. Beside him, a bare-chested man in a dark shirt and white dhoti holds a brass dish. Behind them, a group of people in saffron and orange robes and rudraksha malas stand with hands folded in prayer, and a few in white stand at left. Flower garlands and a tray of offerings lie at lower left.2012-09-24A night homa fire ritual in a dark courtyard beside a stone wall. A large fire blazes on a square altar covered with floral-decorated offering plates and marigold garlands. A priest in white dhoti and a yellow-and-brown headcloth, seated at left, extends his arm toward the fire. A bare-chested young assistant in white shorts leans over the altar, and another bare-chested man kneels to the right, holding a ladle or offering stick over the flames. A brass vessel sits in the foreground.2016-09-28A photograph of a homa fire ritual in a pillared hall. A bare-chested priest with a red rudraksha-style bead necklace and white dhoti bends over a brick fire pit, holding a large plate of flaming camphor or ghee lamp toward the blaze, with flower offerings and a brass pot nearby. Smoke rises from the pit. Behind him a man in a white shirt and blue-and-white dhoti stands with palms pressed together, and another man in a yellow shawl and white dhoti holds a small bell. A crowd of devotees in white, saffron and orange clothes stands in the background, hands folded. Banana leaves hang at the left edge.2012-09-24