Subject
Ritual
What happens, and why it is done that way.
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Ritual
Satyanarayan Puja: A Ritual of Gratitude
Performed after a wedding, a new home or simply a good month, the Satyanarayan katha is one of the most loved household pujas. What happens and why.
Acharya Ramesh Shastri · 3 min
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Ritual
Performing a Ritual on Someone's Behalf
Can a puja be performed for you while you are in London or Toronto? What the tradition says about proxy rites, and how to take part from afar.
Pandit Vikram Aditya Singh · 3 min
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Ritual
Samagri: Why Ritual Materials Matter
Ghee, darbha, rice and wood are not props. A practitioner explains why each material has a role, and where substitution is acceptable.
Pandit Mahesh Joshi · 3 min
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Ritual
Navagraha Shanti: What It Addresses
Navagraha Shanti is a ritual of balance offered to the nine planetary deities. What it involves, when it is traditionally performed, and what it cannot promise.
Acharya Vishwanath Iyer · 3 min
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Ritual
Vivah Sanskar: The Seven Steps
Saptapadi is the legal and spiritual heart of a Hindu wedding. Here is what each step says, and why the vows still read well today.
Acharya Ramesh Shastri · 3 min
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Ritual
What Happens During a Yajna
A walk through the structure of a fire ritual, from sankalpa to closing.
Pandit Mahesh Joshi · 1 min
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Ritual
Namkaran: Naming a Child
Namkaran is often the first ceremony of a child's life. How the day is chosen, why the nakshatra may suggest a first syllable, and what the ritual involves.
Pandit Mahesh Joshi · 3 min
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Ritual
Bhoomi Pujan: Before You Build
Before the first trench is dug, families pause to honour the ground itself. What bhoomi pujan involves, and how it fits alongside engineering.
Pandit Arvind Mehta · 3 min
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Ritual
Rudrabhishek: Worshipping Shiva Through Abhisheka
Water, milk and the Sri Rudram: a careful look at one of the oldest forms of Shiva worship, and why it is chanted the way it is.
Pandit Shivkumar Iyer · 3 min
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Ritual
Griha Pravesh: The Ceremony, Step by Step
Entering a new home is traditionally marked with care: a chosen muhurat, a kalash at the threshold, milk boiled in the kitchen. The ceremony, step by step.
Pandit Arvind Mehta · 3 min
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Ritual
Mundan: The First Haircut
Why families shave a child's first hair, when it is traditionally done, and what the ceremony is really asking for on the child's behalf.
Pandit Mahesh Joshi · 3 min
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Ritual
Abridged and Full Rituals: What Gets Left Out
A two-hour puja and a two-day yajna can share a name. What changes when a rite is shortened, and how to shorten one honestly.
MyAstro7 Editorial · 3 min