• Upasana means ‘sitting near’

– Worship is to get closer to God both in mind and spirit.

– It is a discipline in daily life of a devotee of God.

– Just like food nourishes body, prayer/worship nourishes the soul

– Coming closer to God, makes man discover divinity.

– Inviting God daily helps one realize that God watches us all the time.

– We live in His home, eat His food and live because of Him!

Inviting Ganesha

• Ganesha is the destroyer of all obstacles

• Begin all actions with worship/prayer to Ganesha

• He makes us aware that matter is temporary

शुक्लाम्बरधरं विष्ु ं शशशि् ंचतुर्ुजुम।् प्रसन्न-िदनं ध्यायेत ् सि ुविघ्नोपशान्तये॥

śuklāmbaradharaṁ viṣṇuṁ śaśivarṇaṁ caturbhujam |

prasanna vadanaṁ dhyāyet sarva vighnopaśāntaye ||

Aachamanam

• Washing the mouth with water is achamanam

• Sipping from the palm of the hand ॐ केशवाय स्वाहा

ॐ नारायणाय स्वाहा ॐ माधवाय स्वाहा om keśavāya svāhā om nārāyaṇāya svāhā om mādhavāya svāhā

Praanaayaamah

• Conscious Breathing

• Energizing the body, purifying the air, raising the spiritual energy

• Develops concentration

Chant Gayatri Mantra

• Worship of the Sun, the giver of life

• Intellect is blessed by Sun

• Gayatri along with Pranayama is highly effective

Samkalpa • Sankalpa is pledge • Place flower, akshata and little

water on the right palm, placed on right thigh

• Cover with left hand • State the intention of your puja,

invoking God’s grace

Ghantaa Naadah • To ward off evil

• To invite auspicious atmosphere at the puja altar

• To bring mind’s attention to the task at hand

Ganesha & Guru Smaranam

• Seeking the grace and blessings of Lord Ganesha for ritual and Guru for spiritual upliftment

Shiva Dhyaanam

• Bring the form of Lord shiva into your mind and ardently pray for Him to be with you during the Upaasana.

• Offer flower to the shivalinga

Aavaahanam • God really resides in our own heart

• Invoke him in the object you are worshipping Him as, by gently placing the left palm at your heart and right palm on the object.

Aasanam • Offering flower as seat for the Lord to sit

Paadyam • Offering a spoon of water to wash the feet of

the Lord. Pour at the base of the Shivalinga

• Lord’s feet is the world. Offering water to His feet is cleansing the entire world!

Arghyam • Offer water for the Lord to wash His hands

• All hands are His. Washing away the sins of everyone in the world is symbolically represented here.

Achamanam • Offering water for the Lord to wash His mouth

• All speech emerge from Him alone. Cleaning the mouth of the Lord is to eradicate all negative influences around and prepares us to listen only the pure and the auspicious!

Abhishekah • Pour the milk slowly on the top

of shivalinga slowly while chanting Rudram & Chamakam. Alternately chant just ‘Om Namah Shivaaya’ until the abhisheka is complete.

• Continuous pouring represent constant remembrance of God without break!

• After pouring the milk, take a small portion of milk for prasad, wash Shivalinga with water and dry it using cotton cloth.

Vastram • Wrap around

Shivalinga with a clean cloth. Alternately just offer flower.

Bhasma Rakshaa

• Apply ashes on Shivalinga in the way shown.

• It represents burning away of three qualities (sattva-rajas-tamas) of our mind in remembrance of the Lord

Gandha lepanam & Kumkum

• Apply freshly ground sandal paste at the center portion of the ashes mark.

• It represents the offering earthly attachments in remembrance of the Lord

Akshata • Akshata is made of

unbroken rice smeared with turmeric and kumkum

• It represents unbroken devotion to God.

• Offer at the top of shivalinga

Pushpa Maala • Offer a garland of fresh flowers

around shivalinga • The flowers strung together

symbolize that Lord is the link connecting all living beings.

Bilva Leaves • Bilva leaves are specially

offered to Lord Shiva • It represents the three eyes of

Lord Shiva. • Three eyes are Sun, Moon and

Fire – three sources of Light in the Universe!

Archana • Offer loose flowers with

every name of the Lord. • Flowers represent our

Vasanas (tendencies) which we should offer to Him.

Dhoopam • Offer burning incense to the

Lord. • It represents that we burn our

negative traits in His remembrance and bring fragrance of goodness around us!

Deepam

• Show a lamp lit with oil or ghee near Shivalinga

• It represent the burning away of our thoughts to gain enlightenment!

Naivedyam • Offer broken coconut,

fruits and food • Food comes from earth;

earth is nourished by rain; rain is due to sacrifice; sacrifice is from vedas; vedas came from the Lord.

• Thus Lord is the source of all food that we eat!

• Offer to Him with chanting of 5 praana-s (Praana, Apaana, Vyaana, Udaana and Samaana)

Raaja Upachaarah

• Offering of bhajans, dance and other musical performances

• Lord Shiva is the ultimate dancer, the deity who performed the cosmic dance!

Aarti • Offering many lamps in front

of the Lord, rotating the plate clock wise

• This represents that the light of the Lord alone is the center of the cosmic constellation.

Pradakshina Namaskaar

• Standing up and circling around oneself 3 times, chanting that the lord will forgive and destroy all our mistakes of past, present and future. Finally saluting by falling on the ground in front of the Lord.

Praarthana • Offer prayers to the Lord,

asking Him to forgive the mistakes while performing the worship.

• Pour down water through the fingers at the feet of the Lord Udvaasanam & Shaanti Mantrah

• Like before place left palm at the heart and right palm on Shivalinga to reinstall the Lord back into your heart.

• Chant the Shant Mantra in conclusion.