Thank You Mr.Death

Death has a very charming way of being the most familiar guest in the living kingdom but the one who is most snubbed. But as a story once made famous, 'death is the only force that acts equal to all'. It is nature's little reminder that no matter how advanced we think we are, she still has a trump card under her sleeve.

The way death knocks at the door when least expected and refuses to leave alone is what makes it an unforgivable enemy. We all know for certain that death will hunt us down one day or the other, but still refuse to make the available time worthwhile. We neglect how fortunate we are to even be born as humans and be the only species capable of thoroughly enjoying nature. Instead we continue to cling on to our ego, hatred and greed.  We are not ready to make these few years in the beautiful home we call earth, as a happy stay.

Sure there is a lot of suffering and poverty in the world. But, wouldn't most of our problems be solved if we all just had a little more understanding and let go of our personal greed? Do we need to have death looming over the shoulder to realize how fortunate we are to be living?

Quite frankly, thats the best part about death. It serves as a constant reminder to try and keep people sane. It is the inevitable destination that everyone aboard the train called life is heading to. So while you are on the trip, you might as well be helpful and happy with your fellow passengers.

But putting all that aside, what really makes death stand-out from the crowd is the mystery surrounding it. The irony that you have to experience to know but can't tell once you experience it, ensures that nobody will and nobody should know. And if we really did know better about death, then it would certainly lead to a grave imbalance of society and everything in it. We wouldn't have anything to fear, wouldn't have anything to control and correct us. It would lead to the ultimate extinction of everything pure and noble. In a way, it is death itself or the fear of it, which keeps us grounded and prevents us from wrecking life completely.

For those of you who are wondering how this is all related to Hinduism, i would like to add that the base of Hinduism is to live a wholesome life along with making sure we do whatever help we can for our fellow living creatures. And, thats the basic message of this article :-)


So Mr.Death, thank you for being there, but you are still not welcome home. 

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This is a guest post by Mr.Ramkumar. Thank you. You can submit your articles, mantras, slokas or anything relevant to Hinduism through the YOUR CONTENT page

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Rama Navami Pooja (final day)

On the Rama Navami day (Aptil 1st in 2012), try to make all your family members to participate in the pooja/ritual. In the morning after you finish your bath, light two lamps in front of Lord Rama, or light one lamp with five threads. Then place the plate which has the key, in front of the lamp(s), and open the cloth. Now place a bowl with some rice beside you and keep another plate in front of the lamp. On the second plate, keep a few bananas. Then chant the following mantra as you take rice in between the ring finger and thumb of your right hand :

om ramaya ramachandraya ramabhadrya namosthuthe raghunathaya nathaya sithayampathaye namah

Then shower the key with the grains of rice. Repeat this process 108 times. It can be done simultaneously by all your family members as well. Then chant "hare rama hare rama rama rama hare hare" as many times as possible. Now light camphor and shower the photo of Lord Rama with flowers. Then distribute the bananas among your family members and friends. 

The key should then be tied in the same cloth without rice, and kept near the main door of your house. It can either be nailed over the frame of the main door or kept in a shelf beside the main door. If you have a lawn or empty area in front of your home, you can bury the key in front of your entrance. This will protect your house and family from all evil , and also ensure that you are all blessed with happiness and prosperity. Om

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Rama Navami - Introduction
Rama Navami - First Day Pooja
Rama Navami - 2nd to 8th day Pooja
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Rama Navami Pooja (2nd to 8th Day)

This post explains the rituals which have to be performed from the 2nd day to 8th day of Rama Navami celebrations. Hope you have already gone through the rituals for the first day (Rama Navami - First Day Pooja).

Rama Navami Rituals : 2nd Day - 8th Day (25th - 31st March 2012)
After bathing in the morning, light a lamp in front of Lord Rama's photo. Then place the plate which has the key, in front of the lamp. Open the cloth and keep the key exposed. Then take a bowl of water  and put a inch of turmeric in it. Then hold a spoon by it's opposite end (non-handle end) and dip the handle into the water. Now let the drops of water flow onto the key as you chant the following mantra 21 times :

om namo dasharathaputhraya ramabhadraya mahadevaya vasudevaya rama ramaya namah

Then tie the key in the same cloth and keep it in front of Lord Rama. If possible, light some camphor and chant "hare rama hare rama rama rama hare hare" as many times as possible.

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Rama Navami - Introduction

Rama Navami - First day pooja
Rama Navami - Final Day Pooja

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Rama Navami - First day pooja

Rama Navami celebrations are usually conducted over a period of 9 days, such that the ninth day falls on Rama Navami (which is on April 1st in 2012). Rama Navami is an apt occasion to change one's habits and to lead a more righteous life. The focus of this post is a simple ritual/pooja which anyone can perform for the betterment of their security, health, prosperity and happiness. I have split the rituals that have to be done during the 9 days of celebration , into 3 posts.

First Day (24th March 2012)
On the first day of Rama Navami celebration, make sure you finish your bath early in the morning. Then place a lamp in front of a photo of Lord Rama, and keep a new key (of any size) at the base of the lamp. Now keep 3 plates in front of the lamp. Now place few pieces of jaggery on one plate, this is meant for Lord Ganesha. Then keep some cooked rice on the second plate, this is meant for Lord Rama. In the third plate, keep few bananas, for Lord Hanuman. Now keep a bowl of ghee/honey near you. Then after all your family members are seated in front of Lord Rama's photo, light the lamp. Then together chant "om gum ganapathaye namah" 18 times. Then place the ring finger of your right hand on the rim of the plate which has jaggery. Then keep your left hand over the right hand and chant the following sloka 11 times.

om lambhodaraya ganapathaye kshipraprasadhaya mahabhala vigneshwaraya ekadantha gowriputhraya samarpiyami 

Now wash your palms with a few drops of water and then let your family members chant "hare rama hare rama rama rama hare" while you perform the following rituals. 

Take a spoon and hold it by the curved end. Now dip the handle of the spoon in honey/ghee and then hold the spoon over the rice, such that drops of honey/ghee fall over it. Then chant the following mantra 11 times as the drops of ghee/honey fall over the rice :

om ramachandraya namosthuthe om shree rama ramaya samarpiyami

Then wash your palms with a few drops of water. Now peel one side of the bananas which you have kept in the third plate, and chant the following mantra 5 times :

om ramabhakthaya vajradehaya namosthuthe om vayuputhraya samarpiyami

Then wash your palms again with water. Now end your pooja by lighting camphor and showering the photo with flowers. Then you may take the edibles on the plates and distribute it among your family members. Keep the key at the base of the lamp for sometime and then tie it in a piece of cloth and place on a plate in front of Lord Rama's photo. Thus ends the  first day's Rama Navami pooja.

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Rama Navami - Introduction
Rama Navami Pooja - 2nd to 8th day
Rama Navami - Final Day Pooja

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Lord Vishwakarma - Mantra and Introduction

Lord Vishwakarma is a deity who is seldom remembered by the general Hindu community. Vishwakarma is known as the Lord of arts, architecture,crafts and creation in general. He is known as the son of Lord Brahma in some puranas, while others refer to him as a supreme independent deity.

Lord Vishwakarma is said to be responsible for all the miraculous creations of this universe. Raavana's Lanka is said to be designed and created by Viswakarma. Viswakarma is also attributed to having built Dwaraka and Lord Krishna's palace in it.  It is also believed that most of the divine weapons that various deities yield, have been created by Lord Viswakarma. The 'vajra ayudha' of Lord Indra is a famous example of one such weapon. Other examples include the MahaSudarshana chakra of Lord Vishnu, the trident of Lord Shiva and  the 'vetri vel' of Lord Murugan.

Lord Viswakarma is described as having 5 heads and 4 hands. The following 5 prajapathis are said to have originated from the 5 heads of Lord Vishwakarma : Manu, Maya, Twosta, Silpy and Viswajna. 

It is said that all architects and artists should pray to Lord Vishwakarma beofre they start any new projects or ventures. The following is a simple mantra of Lord Vishwakarma which can be chanted in such occasions.

Om shree shrishtinathaya sarvasidhhaya vishwakarmaya namo namah

Chant the above mantra 7 times before you start any new ventures. 

Please do share this post with any architects, artists and engineers that you know. Om