

MotherPage Cultural Pujas & Homas Pujas Puja FAQs 2

How to do a puja

A typical scene during a puja at Amritapuri

Which form of deity should I visualise during puja?
Visualise your chosen deity (ishta devata) or Guru.

Is Rahu a physical planet?
No. Astronomically, Rahu is the ascending node of the orbit of the moon and the sun. It is called a shadowy planet, because eclipses happen at this point.

Are there only three bad planets?
Any planet can exert a good or bad influence, depending on their positions in our birth chart. The major planets that generally cause the most misfortune are Mars, Saturn and Rahu.

What is so special about pujas conducted at Brahmasthanam temples?
Amma, after personally hearing the sorrows of more than a million people, and studying the periods of their lives, once more confirmed the ancient wisdom of our seers that the most critical periods of life occur during the times when Saturn, Mars and Rahu are creating unfavourable influences.

In a divine vision, Amma conceived the unique concept of Brahmasthanam, which not only serves the people as a temple open for one and all without distinction of religion, colour, gender or caste, but also as centres of mass worship where special forms of pujas are performed in order to nullify the bad influence of these planets. The merits derived from the pujas depend to a great extent on the purity and spiritual vibrations of the place where the puja is performed, the selflessness of the person who performs the puja on our behalf and our personal involvement, devotion and faith. The whole atmosphere of Brahmasthanam is charged with spiritual vibrations of Amma's sankalpa (pure resolve) and by mass Lalita Sahasranama Archana, the thousand mantras of high potency on Devi, performed from dawn to dusk annually under Amma's guidance. The benefit derived by each one in a mass performance of archana is equivalent to the product of the number of times the mantra is repeated and the total number of participants. The priests at Brahmasthanam are not paid employees, or householders, as in most cases, but monastic members of Amma's Ashram who have no desire for any personal reward from the performer of pujas. There is hardly any other temple in India where one can partake in puja under the guidance of the priest, irrespective of his religion and gender, without any previous knowledge of ritualistic worship. The personal involvement and sankalpa, in combination with the powerful sankalpa of Amma in a spiritually supercharged atmosphere creates the most conducive environment for fulfilment of our cherished desires.

Is it necessary that we should know our birth star or cast our birth chart in order to participate in the puja?
Not necessarily. But it helps. It can be compared to a PIN code in an address. By casting our birth chart, we can get a clearer picture of what pujas are to be performed, when and for how long.

What if I don't know my birth star or my time of birth?
Participation in pujas at any period is always beneficial. As mentioned earlier, the merit earned by doing these pujas will come to fruition at the appropriate times in our lives, either in the present or in the future.

What should I bring for the puja?
Nothing other than an asana (a piece of cloth, made of silk, wool or cotton to sit on) and some money for paying dakshina (a voluntary offering of any amount). All other materials will be supplied at the time of the puja. It is always good to come in clean clothes after taking a shower. Sit in a comfortable position, with the spine erect and your mind calm and composed.

How are the pujas conducted?
Step-by-step instruction will be given before the puja begins. The details of the pujas vary at each centre, in accordance with local traditions and customs.

Can I do puja on behalf of someone else?
Definitely, if you have a karmic relation with them; i.e., if the person is related to you by blood or marriage or long-standing close friendship. As a father earns and deposits money on behalf of his son, we can give the name (and birth star, if known) of the person on whose behalf we do the puja, at the time of registration, to help the priest to do the necessary sankalpa (pure resolve). At the start of the puja, we should mentally make a resolve that the fruit of this puja should reach that person. During the puja we need not think about or visualise the person.