Most of us follow religious rituals blindly without making efforts to understand why we are called upon to do things in a particular manner. Our elders never explained things to us when we were young (they probably were never told by their elders) & we seem to be continuing the (in)glorious tradition. Religious practices are sacrosanct and analytical discussions are strongly discouraged but I sincerely feel that if we are expecting real or perceived benefits out of them, we should not shut our eyes under the excuse of being faithful to our ancient culture.
Two things about the प्रदक्षिणा need some explanation: [1] What extra benefits are expected to accrue by going round the idol in a temple? Why isn't just standing and praying sufficient? [2] Why do we go around in the clock-wise direction only?
Many relate this practice to the mythological story of how Ganesha won the race against his elder brother Kartikeya (when both were challenged by their parents - shiva and parvati, to go around the world in the shortest possible time) by just doing a प्रदक्षिणा around his parents and claiming that they were indeed his world. Devotees in a temple are surely not a part of any race and going around the world (the idol) does not have religious significance in terms of any salvation that Hinduism wants us to achieve.
The crux of this practice is summed up in the following two liner
यानी कानी च पापानि जन्मान्त्रक्र तानी च
तानी तानी विनश्यन्ति प्रदक्षिण प् दे प् दे
Roughly translated, it conveys a beautiful idea. While going around the idol, you are calling upon GOD to ensure that with each footstep that you take , HE cancels or destroys one sin that you have committed in this or previous births. Obviously many of my friends who take pride in going around 11 times must be BIG SINNERS since they require so many more steps to cancel all their sins. This also explains why one has to go around on foot while doing प्रदक्षिणा.
Whether the sins actually get cancelled is besides the point... shouldn't the believers have this thought at the back of their mind while doing the प्रदक्षिणा ?
Now friends I want you to investigate and tell me why we must go around in the clockwise direction only?
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6 comments:
Dear Prakash : In Hinduism, sins get cancelled very easily - by doing a parikrama as you have explained or mere bathing in the Ganges. With a zero opening balance, the person is fresh and ready to commit more sins.If people stop committing sins temples will be out of business.I like the look of your blog and thoroughly enjoyed voting.
Dear Prakash,
My understanding of this ritual is that people specially the women got a chance to get out their house and their daily domestic work for a while at least in the name of Lord.By doing pradakshina they got the benifit of walking and it was made binding to them in the name of Lord as it was -- NOT TO REASON WHY type of rule. During the festive times these pradakshinas increased in number as there was overindulgence in sweets and other special items of food. To add to the dicipline of not chit chatting during the pradakshina all walked in one direction now i feel they had to choose from just 2 directions that people could walk in circular fashion clockwise or anticlock wise, and randomly one was chosen.
Dr Sunita Shanbhag
Dear Sir,
Pradakshina is always done in a circular form.The God, Parents are at the centre. This simply means that there is a central force who guides us all. Also "Prakar" pradakshina pathway which everybody takes is the same, this also signifies that we are all equal before the Supreme who is at the centre. And about the clockwise direction I think this was basically created and continued to avoid traffic Jam kind of situation.I am not very sure abt the direction.
The circumambulation(parikrama) is done usually in a clockwise direction except in the Shiva temples. The clockwise direction is followed since the devotees should have their rightside towards the object of worship. For this, the devotees will have to walk towards their lefthand side from the front of the object of worship. Pradakshina literally means: to the right (Dakshina means right). So in Pradakshina, one goes to the left hand direction to keep the deity on one's right side.
Folks who cannot walk around the temple (for accessibility problems, crowds or other reasons) often perform "auto-pradakshina" by going around themselves -- this is like glorifying the God within oneself.
Traffic rules, silly. Do it anti-clockwise, you'll get a ticket.
Sir,
this is with regards to the question u asked at gmcs batch at pune. why we dont take a full pradakshina at shiv mandir?
The logic as told by a pandit is that the water which flows from the shivling is considered ganga, and then but for obvious reasons as ganga is sacred and stuff like that, we r not supposed to cross it. that why only half pradakshina is taken at shiv temples. As to question of clockwise and anti clock wise i still dont have an answer
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