hello how do you connect with HIM? some people visit the temple everyday...offer prayers.. others perform elaborate poojas at home some keep the surroundings clean at home or pooja room others sing praises of the lord or chant prayers some help keep temple premises clean. some make garlands some sit on the stone and go chip chip chip .....................and make a replica of HIM..! some say hi...and twitch their fingers or say ...bye when they leave for work some touch their forehead everytime they see a temple church or mosque my uncles used to get up early morning 4 am and say suprabatham...and their day began with that...we as children were taught small slokas to say everyday morning and evening ...some of our children know these chota slokas although they find little time to say it..and after a certain age it is difficult to memorise slokas or elaborate mantras...perhaps the reason why they made us learn mathematical tables at a very young age...memorising sure is simple then... to pooja again what do you do.. i begin with karakre vasude lakshmi...and see her in my palm on rising.. say hi to chirp chirp and a smiling glance at the bilwa nava gooseberry trees... sometimes switch on to jaya tv but i love the sound of sanskrit subrapatham better.. and the day goes on a fast pace...i do say hi when im gardening...sometimes sing songs to myself (not a great singer so no public performances..!) after a bath light up the lamps first my mom would say...so put up the lamps put a nice kolam..really love to decorate small kolams with turmeric and kumkum...and perhaps a drawing of lotus or elephant etc..and light up the incense sticks...just sambrani no other brand as it has an artificial smell as far as i am concerned..and if i have the time will sit up to chant a few names like hare rama hare rama rama rama hare hare hare krishna hare krishna krishna krishna hare hare.. and if i do have more time i like to sit and tell my krishna a story or two like narasimha..prahalada story or imagine a story on my own where krishna is the hero..! these are not uttered aloud but just said silently..and smile ... who doesnt like their own childhood stories...im sure my krishna does...! my sons gifted a book of ganeshas cute paintings of ganesha with small everyday thoughts...a few days back when i was rearranging the shelves ..i found it ...i love ganesha (was born on ganesha chathurthi..)..but he does show his mischief with me too...there are thadangals in almost all the projects i take up including painting him..! but i have learnt by trial and error that it is his way of showing he is with me...now to the book again... with the demanding time ...i find very little time to say slokas sitting in front of the deity...but i thought if i dont have time for him will he have time for me...so i started drawing these ganeshas on bits of paper..(somehow drawing or writing in a book does not appeal to me..!) and it has now become a habit ..if i forget it looks as though he reminds me ...so soon after a bath and dressing up ..i draw a ganesh send a kutty prayer that all should be well and am on my way to start a beautiful day... sathya
This is a nice thread Sathya! I too would like to share how I connect to Him. My day starts between 5.00 and 5.15 am. I start with meditation, a hot cup of coffee, then a bath and over to Podhigai at 6.30 am for Kannananin peramudhu(bhagavadgita) . Then my cooking starts with the chanting of Suprabatham, other small slokas, Lakshmi ashtoththaram, vishnu sahasranamam, which together takes about 1 1/2 hrs. The cooking and kolam, vilakkeththudhal, pushpa alangaram to the deity's pictures in the puja room go on simultaneously! I am not able to spare a separate time slot for HIM. But in every action of mine the thoughts are with Him. So I do not feel guilty. If I have more time and phone calls do not start pouring in, I am able to recite the Gita chapters 7 to 15 excluding chapter 11 (Vishvaroopa darshanam)which I am yet to learn. (May be He thought I have not yet matured enough for that!) One of my wishes in life is to complete learning all the chapters of the Gita before I complete 50 years of age. Again I have to seek HIS benevolence for this and I am sure He will shower it upon me as in the past. In fact it was because of HIM that I had to leave it half way through since He has appointed me for some other more important assignment of HIS! And He knows best!
Dear Sathya, He Himself had revealed the path , not only to connect but to reach Him by practising Karama Yoga. That is the easiest way for us. I have a picture of Lord Balaji in the bed room. As soon as I get up I fold my hands and do the Namaskaram. After morning ablutions I light the lamp and after that i boil the milk and offer it to Him. While cutting vegetables and doing the cooking I chant Astothrams of Lakshmi, Rama and Krishna which I had memorised very early in life. It is not the slokas or sthothras which connect us with Him, but if we just think of Him with deep devotion and true bakthi even for a single minute, He is ready to embrace us. But by chanting sthothras and slokas we get contentment and peace of mind. Love, Pushpavalli
Hi everyone, I am delighted to read all ur posts:-D Myself, I hardly do any of these things...MY grandfather at a very early age abandoned the house/family & became a sanyasi even before my parents got married. thereafter my father stopped believing in God as prayers,puja but always believed in goodness of people..do good(even in thoughts do not think of revenge)..karma yoga is prayer maybe this is not the complete path to God..HE has a reason for everything..maybe I will get enlightment sooner or later
Hello Sathya, You've started this beautiful thread.I just thought I'd share with you what I feel.Doing everything which we do during the day as an offering to God is my way of looking at things.Every moment of our day, when we offer it to the Lord and do things as an offering,whether we are cooking,cleaning etc that itself is best way to go about,in my opinion.GOD is everywhere. So dedicate every bit of this life HE has given us to appreciate the beauty around us-THAT is really important.We become so busy on our day to day activities,we dont wait and appreciate anything around us.Its taken for granted.Look at the nature and admire it and learn to love it and preserve it,then I think we have done our bit because GOD is everywhere. Regards, Asha
Hi very informative and useful, thanks so much for starting up a thread on these topics. keep it up and all the best. thanks in advance om sai ram
I chant some stotras and mantras every day. As I chant in a sitting pose, I also do some hand mudras which are very good for health. Mantra I chant daily is Gayatri mantram. At least 10 times daily - standing and offering arghyam to the Sun. Stotrams I chant daily in the mornings are Aditya Hridhayam and Navagraha Stotram. I chant AH 3 times on Sundays. Stotram I chant in the evening or whenever I get time is Vishnu Sahasranama Stotram. I also chant a short stotram called Apad Uddharana Stotram, dedicated to Sri Rama. When I chant, I try to think of the One divinity who is resplendent in brilliance like the Sun, who controls everything in the universe, including myself. I try to feel that such meditation gives me strength. This method has helped me attain peace several times. Mudras I do often are Jnana Mudra, Prana Mudra and Prithvi Mudra. Regards Hari
Hi Sathya, Its a nice thread , i always enjoy talking abt God, so to say now no one likes to talk to me since invariably bring God in the conversation.So i have started placing a rein in my talks.But since this thread is on HIM i can say something There are numerous way of connecting to HIM depending on your nature or swadharma. I love to see HIM in everything, the nature,the birds, the flowers, the sea,t he stones, the clouds etc etc. But my routine starts with karagare looking at my palms, also i check on my swara (which nostril is breathing - left or right) and praying to the rudraksha in my chain ( just touch the eyes in reverance). Then the bath and lighting the lamps and usual simple prayers like Guru vandana, and mantra recitation(have received mantra diksha from my Guru) and meditation. This is the best time of the day where i experience alot ,ofcourse at times my DH says it is my sleeping time again (kutti thookam) ,i just laugh as i call it as my time. Then onwards my time is for others, rushing to prepare breakfast, going to work. My journey to work is another divine time ( where i play bhajans and i cry for God and have my own conversations with HIM). But i know the core of GOD is love and compassion for all , i notice istill got long way to go and hope one day i reach that state of mind. I try to include HIM in everything. While cooking right in front i keep the sloka pasted 'brahmarpanam..." thinking that food is cooked for HIM ,so even if don't offer seperately for him i have already offered to HIM My flowers speaks volumes of HIM, i look at the sky try to decipher the picutures i get of him ( i have collection of pictures of clouds with Aum, trishul, smiling moon etc) End the day after dinner thinking & praying to HIM. But i know i have miles to go before i sleep,miles to go before i sleep May God bless you. Jaya
Hi all, This is my favourite topic..I connect with him by connecting with tht deep feel inside.Tht seems to grow sometimes when concentrating or when looking at some delightful natural scene.I think HE is just about everywhere,even inside your worst enemy.For us to just remember that always really helps in dealing with life.
hi all, this is a nice thread.i start my day with the first glimpse of my tulsi plant which can be seen across my bedroom balcony. with krishna -krishna in my lips i start myday. then its yoga &pranayam.after bath i immerse myself in drawing kolams ,.decorating the various gods with flowers,lighting lamp&dhoopam.then i sit chant the various shlokas for an hour concluding with paal neivaidhyam.this gives me sense of happiness &calms my mind .ifeel it gives me the mental strength to face the day.