Saturday, February 22, 2014

ABHISHEKAM OUT-FLOWS ARE SACRED; TREAT THEM WITH RESPECT

Abhishekham Out-flows are Sacred; Treat them with Respect
(Compilation for a discourse by N. R. Srinivasan, Nashville<, TN, February 2014)
“Abhishekam is an elaborate Hindu bathing ceremony of the chosen deity in water, milk, honey, ghee, fruit juice, Panchamritam (Five-in-one nectar), sugar and other liquids and solids. This resulting mixture after the ceremony is intended to be served as prasaadam (blessed food) to the devotees who offer their prayers. The pouring of these liquids on the deity is watched with reverence by all devotees gathered and this symbolizes the pouring of a devotee’s purest love for God.  Performing this ceremony, with a pure mind, faith and conviction is believed to result in washing away of sins and purification of the devotee’s own heart and mind” says a topic on the subject in the Internet.  Orthodoxy insists on Aachaara (cleaning with water all the utensils) in the worship. If you closely observe an ideal Abhisheka the first runs on the deity smeared with oil are with warm water as initial body cleaning.  Over a period Aagama worship codes have introduced a number of items like oil, honey, sugar, yogurt, tender cocoanut water as well as panchamritam (a five in one pudding) for Abhishekam.  It is customary to collect only the final runs through the body for distribution as Prasaadam. In olden days the effluent generated used to be let into to temple agricultural lands or fed to temple cows.

It is necessary to take proper care   for the disposal of the religious effluent generated like what we do for clay Ganesha visarjan or paalika visarjan   (a sacred ceremony honoring plant kingdom and fertility) etc. after rituals. The prescribed procedure was to make these idols from river bed clay and return back the clay after worship with the disinfectants used on it like turmeric, vermilion, holy ashes etc. As   you know the clay Ganesha we buy from the market is   considered as an art piece. It imbibes sanctity by simple consecration ceremony for ten days at home and temples, and then sent out with another ceremony called visarjan. I am not sure whether there are any Mantras in the Aagasmas for this. I know the households simply dump the clay model in waters saying Ganapati Bappa moriya or Ganeaha nee Poriya! This is an important ceremony for Maharashtrians and Tamils. Before starting our Abhishekam we do sthala suddhi (cleaning the space with holy water) and also invoke seven holy rivers into the Abhishekam waters.  We take all the care for the materials that goes into Abhisheka ceremony. It is equally important to take proper care of the sacred effluents that come out of the body of the Lord! At present no attention is given to these effluents. I am not sure whether there are any prescribed mantras or Aagama codes for collecting the Abhisheka Visarjans (Religious Effluents) to deconsecrate and send it to sewers or other means of disposal! Vedas say annam na nindyaat, don’t abuse food and discharged Abhisheka constituents are all sacred food. Hindus go to the other extreme in their devotion during worship. Often people out of ignorance enjoy as Prasaadam, the cocoanut pieces coming from smashing of the cocoanut on the ground (not hygienic food) for warding off all evils before the start of Lord’s procession.  This is against Hindu Aachaara (code of cleanliness)   as cocoanuts for worship are washed and broken in front of the deity on clean stone and then offered to the deity in the sanctum and not broken on the walking pathway. Devotees also enjoy the eatables like Vada, fruits and butter on Hanuman and Modakam and butter on Lord Ganesha used as garland and smeared during worship as vara-prasaadam (boon of the blessed food) however contaminated it may be. I have seen rats running around Garbagriha in India enjoying food on Ganesha!  Devotees just ignore and receive  the blessed food. Now-a-days these Abhisheka waters and food materials used on Lord for bathing are not distributed as Prasaadam for fear of health regulations and are invariably discharged into municipal sewers and thus unknowingly abused combining them with human refuses.   No thought has been focused on this aspect and tons of materials are discharged into sewers almost every week in all Hindu temples of America. It is much worse and deplorable in India.  But nobody can appeal to the senses of religiously blind Hindus in India. Therefore some thought has been given to find out ways and means of overcoming the problem, as Hindu Americans are drawn from enlightened society unlike the mass illiterates going to temple in India with blind faith who refuse to recognize all abuses in and around the temple.

I have seen the famous icons of Kerala Aiyappan and Krishna in Guruvayur are comparably small or miniature in size and so consume less of Abhishekam materials. On the other hand in Tamil Nadu icons are huge like the icon of Parthasarathy, 32 feet Hanuman in Nanganallur and Ranganatha in Srirangam.   Also in Karnataka I have seen huge icons of Ranganatha in Srirangapatna, Basava and Hanuman in  Bangalore.  It will be a good idea to keep the icons small to conserve food. But one of the English writers wrote about small Ganesha idol: “What a magnificent temple is there for such a ludicrous figure!”

Vishnu Dharma purana says: Abhishiktantu yacchoornam Vishnu-bimbetu yo narah | Haaridram Dhaara- yennityam  so-asvamedhaphalam labhet ||
If one performs Abhisheka to the icon of Vishnu and applies Sricharanam (tilak) he will derive the   same benefits as of having performed Aswamedha Sacrifice.

Devotees go overboard in performing this colorful ritual at least once a week in all Hindu temples.  American Hindu temples do not lag behind being rich and affluent.

This mode of worship draws its inspiration from Bhagavadgeeta—“Patram, pushpam, phalam, toyam  yo may bhktya prayachchati” . One fruit, one flower, one leaf and little water with lots of devotion, was Lord Krishna’s recommendation. These are the materials used in 16-steps pooja (worship). It is unfortunate many devotees on the other hand concentrate more on all these materials and little on Bhakti. Temples have to satisfy the religious hunger of these devotees; so the materials overflow the drains and find their way to effluent sewers. In the process we are disrespecting and abusing the Prasaadam (blessed materials), not being properly channeled. These materials achieve the status of prasaadam after they run through the body of the deity.  Abhishekam is done with rich nutrient and healthy products like oil, honey, yogurt,sugar, milk, panchaamritam  etc.  

Over a period this ritual has become more elaborate with more material application and time consuming, chanting whole Purushasooktam or Srisooktam in Vaishnavite Temples or Srirudram, Chamakam and Durgasooktam in Saivite temples during the entire ritual. In between, these sooktas are kept  on hold temporarily   and other Veda mantras are chanted at each application of the materials like sandal paste, honey, ghee, yogurt, tender coconut water, panchaamrita etc. These mantras for application of materials on the deity have no reference in the Vedas but mantras containing the words Gandha (Sandal Paste), Madhu (Honey), Dadhi (yogurt), Ghritam (Ghee) etc. have been picked though these mantras have deeper meaning and are  just picked randomly and not   related to  the  specific offering. Please go through my discourses on Shoedas Upachaara Poojaa Vidhanam as well as Some Veda Mantras used in Hindu Worship and Rituals describing these stage-wise applications of materials on the deity and corresponding mantras. This in turn has necessitated employing large quantities of these materials on the more often than not huge icons needing large amount of materials and problems connected with their disposal. Devotees also like to see the icon fully bedecked with the materials to appear in the color of the material applied to the accompaniment of waving of lamps to see the visible form of the black icon in the color of the material applied. Every icon is made to look like crystal Linga by over-coating the icon with large amount of the material.

In olden days, these products after Abhisheka were collected and absorbed in the temple soil that helped bio-degradation and served as soil nutrients to feed the earthworms, ants and plants. They were   often drained to collecting cement tubs with naked soil bottom for draining out. This was considered as one of the Yagnas (sacrifice) called Bootha yagna, in serving   God’s creations.  Often they were manually collected and fed to cows with rice husk. In America they invariably drain the waste into sewer system and also in India now-a-days. It was also customary to distribute Abhishekam liquids handled clean after worship which devotees used to consume with reverence as Abhisheka teertha prasaadam. This practice is given up in America to comply with health regulations but still many temples do in India.

Abhishekam is one of the favored and colorful paid services of the temple which has been made very elaborate to attract crowds. It is often performed on behalf individuals to fulfill their vows as a scheduled worship with a premium. Besides, temples on their own also conduct it once a week as scheduled worship attracting large gatherings.  This is a good source of income to the temple coffers.

Please recall my remarks about the outburst of a young Hindu American boy questioning his father watching Abhisheka on Lord Ganesha: “Dad, why do we have to waste so much milk on Lord and send it to sewers? Why not feed the poor? Dad silenced but I do not whether he explained convincingly  the inquiring mind! It is worth going through here the Internet message of www.livinghindu.com  drawing the attention of American Hindus. This write up has gone into the details of pros and cons of such a large   wasteful material generating ritual overloading the sewers and wasting valuable nutrient food which could very well be diverted to feed the hungry which I would not like to repeat. It also says how cruel it is to use milk got from cows to be used in Abhishekam in countries like USA where cows are reared for meat for short term. It also suggests he use of alternate milks like Almond milk for Abhishekam.  At the same time the message respects the sentiments of Hindu religious devotees and has given some suggestions which would not go against the Saastric injunctions and gives scope to keep all the steps of the ritual along with mantras to be chanted in totality from religious point of view. I would however like to add that in my days it was a common seen to watch a milkman milking the cows with a skin stuffed dummy calf placed before cow cheating it as if  its real calf to squeeze maximum milk from the cow whose calf had died early. One could also witness the cruelty with which the calf was dragged and tied when the udder got filled with milk. It was also common to find the male calves were starved to death while female calf was somewhat reared. So Hindus were not saints, as they enjoyed that milk and offered the same to Gods also. There had been a revolution in the dairy industry in present days and so you do not openly come across such cruelty to mother cow and calf.

As a religious devotee with spiritual inclinations on such topics I would like to bring the following facts studying present conditions in India.

1.       It has been found not practical and feasible for carrying out elaborate Abhisheka for 56 feet Gomateswara in Karnataka  even once a year and so they do it as Mahaamastakaabhisheka once in 12 years. Other days Abhisheka is done to his feet which attracts huge gatherings. This statue suffered cracks but was repaired and worship continues. Normally such cracked icons are discarded in Hinduism as not fit for worship.    Salagramas can be worshiped even if cracked.  Vishnupada Abhisheka in Vishnu temples is quite common and the sacred feet washed water is served as Vishnu paadodakam (sacred feet water of Vishnu) and Prasaadam.  Srirama Temple in Greater Kailash in Delhi has a sanctum for Vishnupadas where worship is conducted every evening. It will be a good idea if routine Abhishekam is done on Vishnupadas only, while Abhiashekam on huge deities are restricted to the Annual event of Brahmotsava. It is also a sacred gesture to install Vishnupadas in all sanctums of Vishnu for worship to conserve   Abhisheka materials flowing to the drain while distributing the excess material brought in to food trust. Small quantities of outflow materials are easier to manage and divert to plants.

2.    It is not practical to do Abhisheka to Lord Jagannath being a wooden icon and therefore Abhisheka is carried out on the mirror image of Lord Jagannath regularly and also when special Abhisheka is requested by individual performers. That sacred water is distributed as Prasaadam.

3.       In Melukote in Karnataka where Ramanuja spent lot of time doing Pooja, the stone icon is so worn out due to excessive Abhisheka, they have stopped all routine and scheduled  Abhishekam on the Moolavigraha (Stone deity) and do it only once during Brahmostava annually. They fear this naturally found sacred icon may crumple at any time if proper care is not taken. Abhisheka for desired devotees are done on the processional deity only.

4.       There are also some Moola Vigrahas (presiding main deity) sculpted out of wood in Tamil Nadu on which no Abhishekam is  not done.

Abhisheka on Salagrama is considered more sacred than Abhisheka on the consecrated idol. Salagramas need not undergo consecration because of the embedded sacredness. Therefore it   would be a great religious idea to conduct Abhishekam on Salagrama and or the processional icons symbolically to limit the waste and divert the excess collected material to feed the needy after worship creating a food Bank to adjust to the present day conditions without lessening the ritualistic aspects or effectiveness of Mantras. We could follow the foot-steps of the celebrated pilgrimage center Melkote (Tirunarayana puram) in the South and Puri Jagannath in the East. This is easy in Vishnu and Siva temples. I understand that there are also Salagramas of Ganesha and Devis. In Mangalore Devi is worshiped in Linga (Vykta-avyakta form) form as also as natural stone in Assam, Koormavaraha in Simhachalam and other places where customary  large icons are not seen.

We cannot change the Hindu ritualistic practices in India with the overwhelming orthodoxy and conservative and authoritative thinking. Certainly as Hindu Americans we can bring out a change understanding the wisdom contained in Veda Mantras.  This requires heart searching, deep thinking and calm discussions with temple authorities to gradually bring a change and divert the excessive   materials collected to food bank without over-discharging on the icon keeping to their minimum use in rituals.   We cannot totally avoid waste but we can keep it to the minimum. Ati sarvatra varjayet says a Sanskrit proverbavoid excessive stps at all times.

Abhishekam over a period has moved away from simple Saalagrama Abhishekam to elaborate ritual packed with Veda mantras.  Purushasooktam, Rudram, Chamakam, and Srisooktam are all  chanted with intonations during  Abhishekam to raise the spirit of devotees  to divine heights. This needs long hours chanting. To keep the audience thrilled  witnessing Abhishekam focused on deity the whole ritual is made more  colorful and dramatic by sequential pouring of food materials of choice and applying sandal paste   and vermilion   in between and  waving the lamps often   in between following Aagama guides. This is very elaborate and overdone in South Indian temples. These are intended to take the devotee to devotional heights and climax.  In this act of over-enthusiasm and outward expression of devotion devotees concentrate only what is served on the deity for the sacred bath and never think of what and how it drains out of the icon and find its way to the sewers. Then it is no exaggeration that tons and tons of materials are drained to the sewers without feeling the sinful act committed   abusing the essential food and discarding the food disregarding the Veda mantras  “annam na parichakshaeeta”—do not disregard food and “Annam na nindayaat”—don’t abuse food.

It is true that we cannot curb the devotional spirit of the crowds and refuse large quantities of      materials they bring in, but at the same time we cannot also drain the sacred effluents to sewers.   If we can’t think of the alternatives to partly distribute as prasadam and manually discharge the   sacred effluent generated on to the temple greenery or landfill, we should think of suitable religious effluent waste treatment.  It is as important as industrial waste water treatment being a necessary social obligation. As I have once mentioned before, our best saviors are eucalyptus trees.   They are the water thirsty and soil pollutant  drainers. They can even extract gold from soil and carry it to leaves as I had explained in my discourse on Christmas Lighting. It will be a good idea to develop   small patch of land with eucalyptus trees on temple grounds as well as   Esparto grass, collect the religious effluents   in a tank and pump them on to the plantation diluting with more water.  In my    own experience I have planned such treatment plants for industrial effluents. There it needed some chemical treatment, pH balancing and dilution before discharge on to the crops. The grass so generated was found edible as normal fodder grass after elaborate testing and approval by the government regulatory agencies. This will also comply with the mandate of the Vedas Vanas-pathayah Santih   contributing to greenery preservation. Of course there are other well-known waste water treatment on exclusive basis by drying and incinerating the sludge without letting into common sewers.

Taittareeya Upanishad says: Annam na nindyaat --Don’t abuse food; annam na parichaksheetaOne should not discard food; annam bahu kurveetaone should make   (conserve) food in plenty; na kanchana vastau pratyaachaksheetaone should not refuse shelter to anyone who has come for it; etad vratamthis is a vow enjoined on that individual -- These are the mandatory mantras to be contemplated  on food as if on Supreme Principal says, Taittareeya Upanishad.  We will be complying with these if we treat the effluents properly and divert them to the soil as nutrients. We will be discharging our religious obligations much better by our thoughtful approach on this popular ritual without offending our scriptures listening to these Vedic mantras and understanding their implied meanings while keeping up to our present day religious practices.


REFERENCES:
1.       Anantha Rangacharya, Principal Upanishads, Vol. 1, Bengluru, India.
2.       Abhishekam, www.livinghindu.com, Internet
3.       Ramananda Prasad, The Bhagavad Geeta, American Gita Society, Fremont, CA, USA
4.       Varadaraja Tirumale, Veda Maarga, Sri LakshmiHayagreeva Seva Trust, Bengaluru,  India



[This is a prepared lecture compiled from above references and others for a discourse at Sri Ganesha Temple, Nashville and to benefit those who are not able to attend the same in person. You are free to download and use it for your reading and reference as well as circulate to others to spread the wisdom of Vedas and Hindu values which good act will be appreciated.]



Thursday, February 20, 2014

WHOSE ABHISHEKAM ARE WE WATCHING ON MAHASIVARATRI--IT IS OF TRINITY ONLY

Whose Abhishekam are we watching on 

Maha-sivaratri—it is of   Trinity only……

(Compilation for a discourse by N.R. Srinivasan, Nashville, TN, USA, February 2014)


Mahasivaratri is a great festival that announces the end of cold winter according to Tamils. According to Vedic scholars the popular Pedestal Siva lingam that you see in temples is actually Vyakta-Avyakta form of TRINITY. This form of consecrated Lingam has Pedestal   base known as Brahma Bhaga (part), Pedestal  middle portion (yoni or female component) known as Vishnu bhaaga,  which are  normally not noticed  in worship as the focus is on the decorated Linga above the pedestal (Antya Bhaga).  They also reveal Shrishti (creation) sthiti (maintenance) and Laya (dissolution) and in that order.  Devotees focus on the top portion known as Linga (male component) of visible half Linga part (of the ellipsoid) in worship in all Siva temples, thinking they are praying to Siva only with their sectarian outlook.

We may be wondering why Vishnu is associated with feminine aspect of Linga. In Vishnu Sahasranama we can find many names of Vishnu in feminine gender. In Puranas he took the   bewitching Mohini Avatar and married Siva. Ayyappan was the result of this union and addressed as Hariharaaatmaja. Siva is sometimes portrayed as Ardhanareeswara but not as a female entity altogether. Vishnusahasranama also has many names in neuter gender. Thus Vishnu ideally represented as Brahman who is always addressed in common gender as Tadekam or that One. That is why in his name as Narayana Vishnu is identified as Parabrahman. If we think deep Lingodbhava Moorti is a column of fire or Jyoti   and that represents Saguna Brahman as fire column or bright white column.  We learn from the Puranas that when the deadly poison Haalaahala or Kaalakoota came floating during the churning of the Ocean of Milk, Siva saved the disaster by swallowing the poison to become Neelakantha. There is a story behind this incidence. When the Devas requested Siva to save the world, Siva told Ganesha who was nearby, “Listen, Ahamkaraa (ego) is influencing the world. The spirit of time has made the qualities of Sattva, Rajas and Tamas”. Hardly were these words were spoken, when Sakti manifested herself in Siva, who immediately entered into Sakti and came out as a Linga. Ganesha, an eye witness to these miracles found Brahma, Vishnu and Siva and other divinities in the Linga and also beheld the Linga and Sakti without any change of identity and also as powerful as before. The whole universe was seen merged in it—Lingamoorti.  It is most enigmatic that the Linga was seen immersed in Prakriti and Prakriti was completely permeated with Linga—Sakti and Linga were found intertwined mutually and this is the origin of Lingodbhava-moorti whom you worship on Sivaratri night. In reality who  we are worshiping on this night is Trinity and their domain and that is Saguna Brahman as revealed to Lord Ganesha. That is the Abhishekam you witness on Pedestal Lingams which is the Vyakta-avyakta form of Saguna Brahman and not Siva alone as is generally thought to be.

Vaastu Mandla or the charged atmosphere in the temple is the imaging of the cosmos which is achieved by the presence of 32 divinities who are planets, stars and guardians of directions who are accommodated on the perimeter of Vaastumandala with various other deities subsidiary to the main deity who is the central shrine who occupies Brahmasthaana., the place of realization of Supreme Brahman. This is the place assigned to Brahma, the Lord of creation in the Vedic tradition. In Puranic tradition this position is assigned to the major Hindu Gods, Vishnu and Siva, making Brahma subordinate and pushing to the northern wall of the sanctum. But the concept of Trinity worship continues in Hindu Tradition. Siva manifests as Linga (Vyakta-avyakta form) while Vishnu manifests himself in his divine forms and his  incarnations (avatars). Both these are the Universal Brahman in their sectarian systems of beliefs and worships while the other Vedic deities remain as subordinates in their positions as pada-devatas. Therefore the worship in reality is directed to Trinity or Saguna Brahman only and so the Abhishekam we witness is for the Trinity. That is the reason why orthodox people do not prostrate with Saashtaanga Namaskaram in the   Vaastumandala to avoid pointing their feet within  charged atmosphere against any subordinate deity  and do only Atmapradakshinam (going round self).

Siva devotees rush to Amarnath on the holy  Sraavana Poornima day in August to worship Siva  thinking  again that it  is the most sacred and pure form of Siva Linga associating it with snow-clad  Kailasa. As you know Siva icons are always seen with white face (Siva, the white skinned) unlike Vishnu who is dark faced (Vishnu, the blue skinned).  Amarnath is situated at a height of 12730 feet in the Himalayas 87 miles from Srinagar. The cave of Amarnath lies up a narrow gorge in the Liddar valley. The sacred river Amaraavati flows at the root of the cave in whose waters a few very devout, sturdy and strong take a dip. Inside the cave is the six foot Lingam of ice resting on a platform of ice.

Normally on Mahasivaratri night individuals perform Abhishekam on a miniature Linga which is just an oval shaped icon.  That many Siva devotees feel   is exclusively Siva.   On Sivaratri night Hindus are worshiping the Lingodbhava Moorti only which according to Puranas contained the whole Universe under the control of Trinity Brahmaa, Vishnu and Siva as witnessed by Lord Ganesha.  Similarly many think   the ice formed Lingam in Amarnath, which suddenly comes and reaches its peak on Sraavana Purnima disappears on following New Moon day defeating scientific facts as a divine miracle.    This clearly indicates Saguna Brahaman appears as white and disappears as Nirguna Brahman. White reflects all light that is gives out everything to the world like Brahman. If you think deep these are Jyotis and represent Saguna Brahman as fire column or bright white column.  As you all know there is also Crystal   Linga being worshiped which is colorless or transparent. When a red flower is placed on it the whole Linga appears red. This is an example to explain how Nirguna Brahman appears as Saguna Brahman to us to bestow his benevolence. Nirguna Brahman is silent and invisible observer who keeps watch on us.

Among the miniature Siva-Lingas,  normally occurring,  Narmadesvara Siva-Linga  like Salagrama is considered to be the holiest that can only be found in Narmada River bed that flows through Madhya Pradesh, Gujarat and then into Arabian Ocean. It has been said that these Lingams were created millions of years ago when a meteorite collided with the earth at a place that is now the source of the Narmada River. The Narmadesvara Linga has red marking on them representing crypto crystalline quartz, the meteorite material. These unique materials’ blending from earth and space has excellent density and rhythmic vibration that brings positive energy and fertility in a house where it is being daily worshiped. Such lingams are considered very sacred for individual abhishekam on Mahasivaratri night.  Being a self- revealing natural Linga these Lingas are Lingas of Trinity only associated with their strength components—that is Brahmaa, Vishnu and Siva associated with their Sakti components Sarasvati, Lakshmi and Parvati.

These Lingas also lead us living on earth to heaven. Siva temples are seen with red and white stripes on the outermost walls about which we have talked about in detail. As we all know Siva is worshiped as five elements in five ancient temples of the South. Living on Earth we worship Trinity as Prithvee Linga and going to Amarnath we get the feeling we are looking to heaven and worshipping Trinity as Aakaasa Linga which is also Udbhava Moorti (natural phenomenon) and not hand sculpted one. When we enter the temple after seeing the red and white stripes we get the feeling we are leaving   the Earth (represented by red stripes) and proceeding towards heaven (represented by white stripes) climbing steps to reach sanctum during our temple visit. Here again the focus is on Trinity and not Siva of Sectarian feeling.
This natural phenomenon of drops of water shaping like a Linga in Amarnath is remarkable. Amazingly it dwindles in size till on the New Moon Day when the outline of the base of the Lingam alone remains on the pedestal. It is on the Full Moon Day in the month of Sravana (august) the Linga is at its maximum and crowds attending also the maximum. It cannot be said to be a stalagmite, for in that freezing atmosphere the stalagmite must increase in size and not get reduced and vanish except the platform. Science has no explanation!  Vedanta has an explanation. Saguna Brahmman who was with us for a while has gone back   to his invisible and silent form as Nirguna Brahman.

Siva and Vishnu complement each other—Vishnu, the custodian of Sattva Guna is dark outside and white inside while Siva custodian of Tamo-guna is white outside and dark inside. Brahma is their inseparable companion as there can be no temple without a niche for Brahma in the northern wall of the sanctums in all temples. All our worships in reality we meditate on Nirguna Brahman through the manifestation of Saguna Brahman in Trinity form in all temples. Siva and Vishnu complement each other and are not separable.  In Vishnu Sahasranama Siva glorifies Rama in the sloka “Sri Rama Rama Rameti” while in Rameswaram, the most sacred spot   Rama worshiped  Siva as  Rameswara Linga.  Hindus often name their children with a combination of Vishnu and Siva names such as    Sivarama or Sivarama Krishna or Venkatasubramniyan or Ganeshram. A section of  Hindus are not averse to worship of Vishnu and Siva together though Aaagmas are sectarian in outlook based on which worship takes place. Thus any worship to Siva goes to Vishnu and any worship to Vishnu goes to Siva and in both cases Brahma cannot be forgotten for the first worship in any temple worship must go to Brahmaa.  So it is logical and apt that on this night we are worshiping    Trinity or Saguna Brahman directed to Nirguna Brahman ultimately.  This form of worship of three-in-one is very prominent in Smarta Sampradaaya of Hindu   Tradition which you all know. This has come down as a tradition based on the Panchaayatana worship promoted by Sankara at a time when (the five deities included are Siva, Vishnu, Sakti, Ganesa and   Soorya; Skanda is represented by Siva as his intelligence) Hinduism was threatened by Buddhism and Hindus were quarreling among themselves with narrow sectarian compartmentalized outlook.

Generally Smartas worship the Supreme in one of six forms: Ganesha, Siva, Sakti, Vishnu, Surya and Skanda. The credit goes to Sankara who established Shanmata and is popularly known as Shanmata Sthaapaka (one who established six traditions). Smartas are the true followers of Sankara in this regard. Because they accept all the major Hindu Gods, they are known as liberal or nonsectarian. They follow a philosophical, meditative path, emphasizing man's oneness with God through understanding. It is not as overtly sectarian as either Vashnavism or Saivism and is based on the recognition that Brahman (God) is the highest principle in the universe and pervades all of existence. I think this is the most suitable method of worship for Hindu Americans as they are drawn from different traditions but go to one Hindu Complex on all festival days. The Sringeri Sharada monastery founded by Adi Sankara is the center of Smarta Tradition.

It is a common sight to see In American Hindu Temples,   Hindus  drawn from different traditions coming together  to worship on Vaikuntha Ekadasi Day (earmarked for Vaishnavites) as well as Mahasivaratri Night (ear marked for Saivites),  forced by a strange  situation and circumstances. Of course worships  conclude   with Mantra Pushpa which is directed to elements of nature glorified as Supreme Principal or Brahman  which majority do not comprehend being in Sanskrit language  and the popular Bhajan prayer Om Jaya Jagadeesa Hare addressed to Universal Person and Antaryamin (Inner-controller) in all of us in Hindi language which majority of South Indians do not understand.  Devotees only know it is the end of the prayer and the lunch or dinner time has come. In fact Hindus overseas are following Smarta sampradya which is popular among a small enlightened group in India. These are the people who are pioneers in promoting the concept of Siva‑Vishnu temples in India. Forced by circumstances Hindu Americans have settled down to the concept of Temple complexes finding a sanctum for every conceivable deity in the complex. But worships are conducted by Sectarian trained priests—Saiva Aaagama, Vaishnava Aaagama or Sakta Aagaama. So the whole worship looks like sectarian oriented and looks bewildering to   those who are not accustomed to that particular sectarian worship in progress like Thiruvaadippooram or Holi. So majority looks like watching the fun without knowing what is going on. It is therefore necessary to lead the crowd with Universal Oneness approach in such a complex audience and to bring home that the worship is focused on Trinity or Saguna Brahman to contemplate on Supreme Principal or Brahman. It is also necessary to understand Hindu crowd overseas is drawn from top ten percent of the intelligent   and not from majority illiterate or minimum literacy crowd like in India.

Yet another factor is forced by circumstances and immigration regulations we are fortunate to have highly trained priests in Sectarian Aaagama worship. They are not Vedic scholars or spiritual heads. In India situation is deplorable. But for a handful of priests in reputed temples majority of priests are drawn of family traditions who often do not go undergo   Aaagma certification. I know personally many priests who do not know Sanskrit at all, and who have not received much school education but mechanically chant mantras and slokas  often wrongly whom the crowds blindly follow. Neither the priests nor the crowd know the meaning of any of the mantras or slokas or procedures.  With everyday temples coming up in every nook and corner of the city the demand for priests though a low paid job is very demanding, only criterion being they look for a priest born in Brahmin priest family for Siva and Vishnu Temples. They have made compromises in some Devi temples like Mariamman or Kali where priests are from non-Brahmin families. But here often animal sacrifice is practiced.   Many a time, ill-educated and ill trained priests also exploit the sentiments of the devotees to get rich.  There is no sanctity in their professional practice. Fortunately we have good material in our imported priests who can reorient themselves to the present day needs of the religiously inclined Hindu Americans.  But many of them are not spiritually or philosophically inclined. They soon realize this is a land of opportunities and try to explore and exploit the situation. They are also not interested in bringing up their children in the family tradition of priests as this is not much rewarding and this makes us constantly to be on the lookout for attracting talented priests but not necessarily devoted. We are lucky if we have one dedicated!  Hence the tradition continues mostly as in India.

Hindu temple priests in India are salaried workers, hired by the temple authorities to perform ritualistic worship. They are not to be confused with Swamis (all renouncing Sanyasins) who do not work for money. Priests are family men who are adept in ritualistic worship. Traditionally they come from Brahmin or priestly class. This pattern is adopted by the temple authorities in America also. Therefore though American Hindu priests are very knowledgeable unlike average priests in India, they are not spared to explain things to the devotees and explain the Veda mantras or procedures they adopt or allowed to teach Vedas. So the tradition  continue as in India though warranted other way for Hindu Americans who are drawn from different traditions who often interact with the major religion of the land and are also influenced by it by the unavoidable inter-caste and inter-racial marriages to correct the situation and keep them in the Hindu-fold. We would not be wrong if we conclude that Hindu priesthood is gradually losing its sanctity and has become a profession for existence or exploitation whom devotees follow as a religious formality and part of Hindu way of living. Ramanuja during his life concentrated on this issue and streamlined worship in 108 Vaishnava Divyakshetras or divine spots in India appointing priests who were devoted and well versed in temple worship. The present conditions again warrant and look for such a holy person to correct the situation. Present day Holy men are confined to their own sectarian Maths or monasteries while temples are controlled by Endowment Boards with interference from government employees in India. In American Temples we do not have such interference and can make the temple more spirituality oriented with Universal Oneness appealing to Hindus of all traditions. This can start calling our temples as Trinity temples  and not named after one deity of choice of the founding fathers the way they are planned and also carry the worship in  that direction within Saastric injunctions. The temple in Livermore in California calls itself as Siva--Vishnu temple but unfortunately it has to depend on sectarian trained priests from India in directing the  worship. It is worth evolving a common traditional practice in our celebration of festivals and rituals   focusing on those that suit all in temples and lead the people more towards spiritualism while adopting chosen religious holidays of the alien country of adoption that fits into Hindu Philosophy and Saastras, which I have touched upon in many of my discourses often.



REFERENCES: 
1. Swami Bhaskarananda, The Essentials of Hinduism, Ramakrishna Math, Chennai, India.
2.  Ananta Rangacharya, Principal Upanishads, Bengaluru, India
3. Srinivasan N.R.,   Concluding  Veda Mantra for Contemplation at the end of Worship,  Hindu Reflections: <nrsrini.blogspot.com>
4. Srinvasan N.R., Why outermost walls of South Indian Temples are painted with white and Red Stripes? Hindu Reflections: <nrsrini.blogspot.com>
5. Champakalakshmi&Kris, The Hindu Temples, Rolli Books, New Delhi, India

APPENDIX
(E-Mail dent to HR Forum Participants on March 6, 2019)

SPIRITUAL VIGILANCE ALL-NIGHT IN DARKNESS ON MAHASIVARATRI

 
DHANYÁSHTAKAM BY SANKARACHARYA

On Shiva Ratri, the night of Shiva, one makes the effort to remain awake, searching for the ever-discerning light of immortal consciousness within him. 
  In 8 verses, Adi Sankaracharya paints a vivid pen picture of a blessed person. God realization is the highest state of blessedness. Anybody blessed by knowing Para Brahman can attain bliss. By coming out of 'I' and 'my' and by Atmavichara (Self-inquiry) one can rise to a higher level.

“These eight verses extolling the blessed ones reveal various levels of discrimination to be arrived at by the knowledge of Truth that frees one from time. At each step the resulting understanding and outcomes are also told. In the process this work shows us what are the real blessings in life. It ends with an account of the world view of one whose knowledge is complete” says Swami Prayag Bhodananda of Arsha Vidya Gurukul.
 

Tajòánam prashamakaram yadindrinyánám Tajòeyam yadupanishatsu nèshcitártham
Te dhanyá bhuvi paramárthanishciteháh Shesástu bhramanilaye paribhramanti.(1)

 

That alone is knowledge which brings about tranquility of the senses. That alone is to be known which has its significance established in the Upanishads. They alone are blessed whose aspiration is firmly set on knowing the Supreme Truth. Others are only whirling round (being caught) in an eddy (in the form of worldly life) or (living) in an abode of delusion.
 

Ádau vijitya vishayánmada moharága- dveshádishatrugaïamáhrutayogarájyáh
Jòátvá matam samanubhüya parátmavidyá- kántá sukham vanagruhe vicaranti dhanyáh(2)


Blessed are they who have conquered at first the attraction for the sense-objects and also the host of enemies in the form of conceit, infatuation, attachment, aversion etc. Thereby they win over the kingdom of yoga which is contemplation on the Supreme. They move about in the abode of forest, enjoying the company of the beloved in the form of knowledge of the Supreme-Self, having a clear understanding of their path of pursuit.
 

Tyaktvá gruhe ratimadhogatihetubhütám Átmecchayopanishadartharasam pibantah
Vètaspruhá vishayabhogapade viraktá Dhanyashcaranti vijaneshu vimukta sañgáh(3)


Blessed are they who are sipping the juice of essence of the Upanishads, at their free will without restraint. They have abandoned all sensuous enjoyment at home, which is the cause of one's downfall in life. Being free from desire and no attraction for enjoyment of worldly pleasures, they move about in solitude, with a sense of release from bondage.
 

Tyaktvá mamáhamiti bandhakare pade dve mánávamána sadrusháh samadarushinashca
kartáramanyamavagamya tadarpitáni kurvanti karmaparipáka phaláni dhanyáh(4)


Blessed are they who realize that the Kartá (doer of action) is different from the Self and resign the fruits of actions to that Kartá. They look upon all alike and remain the same both towards honor and dishonor since they have given up the feeling of `I' and `mine' the two shackles that tie down the individual.
 

Tyaktvaishaïátrayamavekshitamokshamárgá Bhaikshmrutena parikalpita dehayátráh
Jyotih parátparataram paramátmasamjòam Dhanyá dvijá rahasi hrudyavalokayanti(5)


Blessed are those twice-born, who in solitude visualize within their bosom the Supreme Effulgence, called Paramátman. Having given up the three desires, they seek the path of salvation, maintaining their physical existence, by means of nectar of alms.
 

Násanna sanna sadasanna mahanna cáïu Na strè pumánna ca napumsakamekabèjam
yairbrahma tatsamamupásitamekacittaih Dhanyá virejuritare bhavapáshabaddháh.(6)


Blessed are they by whom the Brahman is contemplated with one pointed attention in the following way.
 

`It is not That which is not, nor That which is, nor is It the combination of both. It is neither the big nor the subtle, nor is It the female or the male or the neutral. It is the one source of all'. Such people shine (with glory) while others remain imprisoned by the shackles of worldly life.

Ajòána pañka parimagnamapetasáram Duhkhálayam marañajanma jarávasaktam
Samsára bandhanamanityamavekshya dhanyá Jòánásiná tadavshèrya vinishcayanti(7)


Blessed are they who realize that the bondage of worldly life is ephemeral and cut off that bond with the sword of knowledge and remain firm. They came to understand that this worldly life means, to be caught in the mire of ignorance, devoid of anything worthwhile, abode of sorrow and associated with birth, death and old age.
 

Sántairananya matibhir madhurasvabhávaih Ektavanishcita manobhirapetamohaih
Sákam veneshuviditátma padasvarüpaih Tadvastu samyaganisham vimrushanti dhanyáh(8)


Blessed are they who ponder well over that Reality all the time in the forest. They are associated with people who are at peace within, whose attention is not diverted, and who are of sweet nature. They understand the significance of the word Átman with the conviction in their minds that Reality is one and remain free from infatuation.
 

 CONCLUSION

So aham apaapo virajo nirmukto muktakilbishah | naakasya prishthamaaruhya gacchet brahma salokatam || (Mahanarayana Upanishad)
 

May I being vigilant having wiped out my sin, becoming sinless, freed from the quality of Rajas, freed from the defect of Rajas of the mind, being freed from all defects proceed to the world of Brahman climbing the region of heaven! Such a blessed person shares eternal joy with Brahman in His abode.


[This is a prepared lecture compiled from above references and others for a discourse at Sri Ganesha Temple, Nashville and to benefit those who are not able to attend the same in person. You are free to download and use it for your reading and reference as well as circulate to others to spread the wisdom of Vedas and Hindu values which good act will be appreciated.]

Thursday, February 13, 2014

WHY TEMPLE OUTSIDE PRAAKAARA WALLS ARE PAINTED RED AND WHITE?


WHY TEMPLE OUTSIDE PRAAKAARA WALLS ARE PAINTED RED AND WHITE?
(
Discourse by N. R. Srinivasan, Nashville, TN, USA, January 2014)

Do you know why   the outermost walls of South Indian Hindu temples exposed to the roads (prakara) are painted with white and red stripes?  I do not think there is any citation to this practice in Vaastu saastra or Silpasastra dealing with temples and it could be a practice of recent origin.  I do not find it also in Pittsburgh or Nashville temples sponsored by South Indian philanthropists overseas who have gone deep into temple traditions where worship is done as in  South Indian Aagama practice. My common sense, religious and spiritual thinking took me to great heights in the absence of any clue from Vaastu Saastra or religious texts which deal with temple construction,  similar to my thoughts on Chamakam odd and Even numbers failing to find any possible explanation from great Acharyas or religious and spiritual  thinkers.


LAYMAN’S PRACTICAL EXPLANATION

Ancient temples were stone structures. Only recent structures are of mortar and lime plastered walls or cement. It is customary to white wash all our home walls white with lime.   Perhaps the practice of painting outer walls of temples with red and white stripes was to distinguish the divine abode from human dwellings.This would help people to keep the surroundings clean and not to misuse as all   passers-by will be watching. White alone could be adequate but since surrounding houses are also painted white, temple should be distinguished from normal houses and temple needs to be recognized as a holy place of worship. May be this is to bring fear in the minds of the passers-by not to misuse the temple walls, out of respect and fear  for God if not for violating public nuisance regulations of the land. We should also give credit to the ingenuity of Hindu artisans and artists. You all know Indigo was the dye produced by Indians for commercial applications from which it derives its name. Colors like red, white and yellow were easily produced from natural sources and were also long lasting.  That is why you see them prominently in all ancient paintings.  But the layman’s explanation of public nuisance does not explain why a hill temple like Tirupati and others should be painted with red and white stripes on its outermost compound. With the devotion and fear in mind people would not buy the wrath of God or passerby devotees in such temples.  May be this modern practice is not the reason why these temples are painted with red and white stripes; being old and historic, they may have a religious and spiritual significance.  These ancient temples do not adopt modern ideas easily. Electricity has not entered the sanctum sanctorum in these temples. The worship of the main deity is not televised or photographed as in American temples. It is strange some of the American temples televise Abhishekam and other worships of the main deity but display a board  stating photography is strictly prohibited and also distribute temple photographed main deity  pictures to devotees. We see such display prohibiting photography for ancient paintings like Mona Lisa. Frequent photography with flash lights fade  away these valuable paintings.

It is interesting to describe here an ancient practice of religious paintings in red and white colors. The sprawling caves of Bhimbetka are located about 45 km northeast of Bhopal in Madhya Pradesh in India. Bhimbetka owes its name to Bheema from the epic Mahabharata. The rock art of Bhimbetka has been classified into various groups on the basis of the style and subject.  Superimposition of paintings shows that different people used the same canvas at different times.  The rock paintings have numerous layers belonging to various epochs of time, ranging from the Upper Paleolithic, Mesolithic Age to the early historic and medieval periods. The most ancient scenes here are believed to be commonly belonging to the Mesolithic Age.    Executed mainly in red and white, with the occasional use of green and yellow with themes taken from the everyday events,   it depicts the details of social life during the long period of time, when man used to frequent these rock shelters. These are the colors you find on Lord Jagannath also.  May be they also use these natural colors   considered as sacred!  It is a marvel that these paintings have not been fading even after several thousands of years. The colors used by the cave dwellers were prepared by combining manganese, hematite, easily pulverized red stone, and wooden charcoal. Perhaps, animal fat and extracts of leaves, vegetables, and roots were also used in the mixture. Brushes were made of pieces of fibrous plants. The natural pigments have endured through the ages because the paintings are generally made deep inside a niche or on inner walls not exposed to direct light. The oldest paintings are considered to be 30,000 years old, but some of the geometric figures date to as recently as the medieval period. Though the South Indian wall paintings with red and white are of recent origin and are of lime and red earth, it is likely they have been motivated by these ancient religious paintings dominating in red and white.

RELIGIOUS EXPLANATION
It is also customary to paint temple walls with large holy religious marks of Vaishnavites which carries white stripes enclosing red stripe in between as you see in temples like Kanchipuram and Srirangam.  In Vishnu Temples white and red stripes could mean Naamam which Vishnu followers wear after bath.   Therefore, in Vishnu temples these two stripes can be associated with the concept of Naamam (Vishnu and Lakshmi).  This may not convince one who is a follower of Siva.  Temples other than Vishnu also carry these stripes.   We have to go to temple with a pure heart to perform a religious act of worship. Here   white may mean purity and red auspiciousness in Siva Temples and Vishnu and Lakshmi in Vishnu Temples (as religious mark namam represents).   
It is a convention to associate white with red in all Hindu religious acts. South Indians have a tradition of putting Kolam (a floor design) with red and white line before their houses. Rice mixed with Kumkum is considered auspicious in worship of the Lord called Akshatai or for blessing someone.  Kolam is drawn on the floor with Chemman (Red earth) and lime and that is considered to be auspicious. In Vaishanva tradition white naamam alone is considered inauspicious and resorted only in performing rites for the deceased. In all religious acts and normal life white and red stripes go together representing Vishnu with his Power aspect Lakshmi and Bhoodevi.  Even in Saivite concept Siva without Sakti (his power aspect) is considered as Sava (dead body). White must be accompanied with red for any auspicious act which in Sanskrit is expressed as Mangalakaram.  Siva temples are also seen with Kolam of red and white lines.   Siva paintings always show his face as white and Sakti as red.  Siva is described as white outside and dark inside while Vishnu is shown the opposite, dark outside white inside in icons.  The evolution of Sakti concept—each of the gods Siva and Vishnu having the Sakti or Power as his  consort—and the explanation that creation proceeds out of the combination of the God and his Sakti has made   Brahma superfluous  and least popular as the main deity for Temple  worship except in Pushkar  in Rajasthan.  

Siva is snow white in color as you see in icons, which goes wonderfully well with that of his abode Himalayas. Siva who represents Tamas (the force of darkness and destruction) is pictured as white because of his snow white outside appearance, whereas Vishnu who represents Sattva (the force of light and enlightenment which is white) is pictured as dark (neela megha syaama) blue skinned outside. There is nothing strange in this since the opposing Gunas are inseparable. Hence Siva is white outside and dark inside whereas Vishnu is the reverse of it. Therefore the white and dark stripes in Siva temples represent Siva and Sakti while In Vishnu temples they represent Vishnu and red Sridevi and Bhoodevi as his Saktis. This justifies the Kolam with red and white lines before both the temples and painting walls with red and white stripes.

Before the use of modern colors people used only natural colors for wall painting. When the wall painted with white lime paste was painted with Turmeric paste yellow stripes turned red presenting twin painting of red and white stripes.  Saivites usually wear kumkum or turmeric or sandal paste over their religious mark of Vibhuti (sacred ash) to include Sakti aspect for auspiciousness.  Siva becomes active when Sakti combines with him.   This Sakti is red, sign of activity, which is also the color of auspiciousness.  Siva is worshiped as Prithvee Linga, as element Earth (red) in Tiruvanaikkkavil in the South.  He is worshiped as Aakaasa or Space (representing white) in Chidambaram. So, these stripes satisfy the religious aspirations of both Vaishnavites and Saivites. To Vaishanvite they represent Vishnu and Lakshmi or Mother Earth and to Saivite they represent Earth as red and Aakaasa as white both being elements and worshiped as Sivalinga.   Saivites and Vaishnavites,   both use Aaarathi of red color for all religious holy and auspicious occasions. Aaarathi is prepared by adding turmeric to colorless or white lime water which turns red. Thus it is a symbol of purity turning into auspiciousness.

SPIRITUAL EXPLANATIONS

Three types of characteristics or tendencies seem to engulf every created object. These have been designated as Gunas in Sanskrit in Hindu way of life—Sattvaguna, Rajoguna and Tamoguna. These three gunas in their purest form are fundamental entities. Their permutation and combination is the result of this world phenomenon.  Sattvaguna makes for lightness, goodness, and purity, knowledge and wisdom. It can be likened to centripetal force. Tamoguna which is the opposite or antithesis of Sattvaguna is responsible for all that is dark and heavy, evil and impure, ignorant and deluded. It is the centrifugal force as it were. It is the Rajoguna that maintains a delicate balance between these two opposing forces. Hence it has got to be in a state of constant internal activity and tension. It is this restless activity that manifests as chief characteristic in humans as passion and ambition in the psychological world.  

In Hinduism the two deities Vishnu and Siva whom we popularly worship in temples and Brahma the creator whom we worship in all temples unknowingly correspond to the three gunas in the cosmic play of creation, preservation and destruction.  The three aspects of Trinity combined together is Saguna Brahman. Also the Divines are addressed as Devas. This word comes from div to shine which is the characteristic of white. Hence divines are white or Sattva guna oriented. Vishnu is the custodian for white or Sattva Guna. He gives away everything and spreads all over the world protecting it.  He represents sthiti or preservation. Scientifically pure white reflects all light it receives. Black absorbs all light being opposite of white.  Siva is the custodian of tamo guna which is represented by black. He absorbs all sins. In Puranas he is depicted as swallowing Halahala poison and saving the world. He represents Laya or destruction.    Brahma is the   custodian of Rajo guna which is identified with red and fertility.  Rajoguna represents activity and creation. 

Activity starts with creation by Brahma, Vishnu takes over to maintain it and   Siva finally dissolves it or ends all activities.  This cycle is repeated endless times.  Rajoguna stands in between Sattava and Tamas, the two extremes.   Unlike other faiths Hinduism believe in reincarnation. It does not project one time hell or heaven based on divine judgment or Doomsday. Hinduism says every soul can be liberated and ultimately merge with the universal soul. It depends on the nature of individual soul and the time it needs to get out of all characteristics with which it started life. That is to attain the status of gunaateeta as Bhagavadgeetaa says, i.e. beyond all Gunas. As we all know human soul is the result of intermixing of the three gunas in varying proportions though rajo guna dominates in humans with the other two minor representations. So humans are identified with Rajo guna (red) while Devas or divines are identified with Sattva guna (White) and Rakshasas are identified with Tamo guna (black) in the Hindu scriptures.  Brahma custodian of Rajo guna symbolizes the possibility of the creation and reincarnation (srishthi)   resulting from the union of opposites, that is Sthiti and Laya.

As per one school of thought white represents   Siva as Siva appears white outside and dark inside, and red represents Brahma which show up as white and red stripes on the walls of temples. How can Brahma be justified while no temples are built for Brahma except for the lone temple in Pushkar in Rajasthan?  Even though no temples are built for Brahma and Brahma not elaborately worshiped like other deities, every temple, be it Siva or Vishnu, must have a niche in the northern wall for Brahma (Brahma represents red stripes) and must be worshiped.   Otherwise it reduces to Smasaana (Cremation ground) the favorite place of Siva as the destroyer.  In prayers Siva is referred as Smasaanavasa. Hence all temples have white and red stripes to remind the presence of these Trinity members. In spiritual sense it is Nirguna Brahman (Consciousness) turning into Saguna (Bliss) or three aspects as Trinity. Crystal linga is an example of this. Crystal Linga which symbolizes Nirguna Brahman turns into Saguna Brahman when a red flower is placed on it   showing   it is all red.     

Vishnu appears dark outside as blue skinned (Neelamegha shyaama).  Therefore in Vishnu temples the white stripes represent Siva with his white appearance and red stripes Brahma. In Siva temples white stripes represent Vishnu as custodian of Sattva Guna and preserver while red stripes represent Brahma.  Brahma is a must in both the temples. Thus the presence of Trinity should be felt in all temples.   In temple worship we pay our obeisance Brahma for the opportunity he has given us to be born as human beings. One has to be born human to get salvation. Of course all cannot get salvation but can hope to be evolved spiritually by one’s own action to reduce repeated births progressively hoping for salvation eventually. Therefore a devotee pays obeisance to Brahma. Humans depend on Vishnu for their very existence and functioning   in this world.  He gives us an opportunity to better our balance sheet of Gunas progressively. Without death our journey will not continue for salvation. Hence Siva is propitiated. Hence we go to temple to pay our respect to Saguna Brahman in trinity form whose presence must be present in all temples, be it Siva or Vishnu.   Any temple worship therefore focuses on Saguna Brahman in all the three aspects of Shrishthi (creation), Sthiti (Preservation) and Laya (Dissolution). So the red and white stripes in Siva temple remind us also of Brahma and Vishnu besides the deity of Siva in the sanctum sanctorum to be meditated upon in combination as Brahman. In Vishnu temple the white stripe represents Siva and red Brahman while the deity in the sanctum is Vishnu who in combination is to be meditated upon as Brahman.

Lord Siva represents the power of destruction, Lord Brahma represent the power of creation and Lord Vishnu the power of preservation. These three powers are the manifestation of the Supreme Reality in this world.  In fact, these powers are inseparable; they are the three facets of the same power. There can be no creation without destruction and no destruction without creation. When the morning is dead noon is born, when noon is dead evening is born, when evening is dead the night is born and when the night is dead morning is born.  The period between creation and death is the time for maintenance or preservation.
This aspect of three in one (Trinity) as the Lord of the Universe (Saguna Brahman) is well represented in Jagannath icon.  Its face is painted with black, red and white. Being Lord Krishna his nose is painted   black here deviating from the customary color of blue for Krishna being an avatar of Vishnu who is associated with blue skin (Neelamegha Syaama). Anyhow both black and deep blue are dark colors.

Let us examine this logical conclusion of all worships ending in Trinity worship in all temples irrespective of whom we worship in the light of Prayer mantras  of Mahaanaaraayana Upanishad which defines Brahman:

1) Om  tad Brahma | on m tad vaayuh | Om tadaatmaa | Om tat satyam | Om tat sarvam | Om  tat  puror namah ||  [Om that is Brahman. om that is Vaayu That means all five elements. Om, that is the finite Self (Jeevaatma). Om, that is the Supreme Truth (Paramaatman) Om, that is all.  Om, that is the multitude of citadels (the bodies of all creatures). Our  obeisance to that Brahman!]
Immediately it comes up with another Mantra as follows:

2) Om antascharati bhooteshu guhaayaam viswamoortishu | tvam  yajnastvam vashtkaara-stvam indrastvam  Rudrstvam Vishnustvam Brahmaa  tvam Prajaapatih  || [That Supreme Being moves inside the spiritual heart of all created beings possessing manifold forms. O Supreme! Thou art the sacrifice; Thou art the Yajna mantra vashat, Thou art Indra, Thou art Rudra, Thou art Vishnu, Thou art Brahmaa (the creator), Thou art the master of all subjects!

Thus in temple worship it is all directed to Nirguna Brahman through his manifestation as Saguna Brahman or Trinity in his role of Rudra for laya (Dissolution), Vishnu for Sthiti (preservation) and Brahmaa for Srishthi (creation). Sayana, a   popular commentator on Upanishads says the 2) mantra above is employed for the contemplative worship of the Supreme after Gayatree visarjana (farewell) connected with twilight devotion.   Therefore it is logical to conclude all our temple or home worships of the chosen deity   should end with contemplative worship of the Supreme by employing the above mantra in 2). To the worshipper there is nothing other than the Supreme and everything has its value derived from the Supreme.


WHOM ARE WE WORSHIPING IN PEDESTAL LINGAM?

According to Vedic scholars  the Siva lingam that you see in temples is actually Vyakta-Avyakta form of TRINITY. This form of consecrated Lingam has Pedestal   base known as Brahma Bhaga (part) , Pedestal middle portion (yoni or female component) known as Vishnu bhaaga,  which are  normally not noticed  in worship as the focus is on the decorated Linga above the pedestal.  Devotees focus on the top portion known as Linga (male component) of visible half Linga part (of the ellipsoid) in worship in all Shiva temples, thinking they are praying to Siva only.  Normally on Mahasivaratri night individuals perform Abhishekam on a miniature Linga which is just an oval shaped icon.  That is considered as exclusively Siva because on that night Hindus are worshiping the Lingodbhava Moorti only.  Similar is the ice formed Lingam in Amarnath is considered as Siva only.  If you think deep these are Jyotis and represent Saguna Brahman as fire column or bright white column. As you know Siva icons are white in pictorial presentation. There are marble and crystal Lingas also which are white or colorless.  Among the miniature Siva-Lingam, Narmadesvara Siva-Linga  is considered to be the holiest that can only be found in Narmada River bed that flows through Madhya Pradesh, Gujarat and then into Arabian Ocean. It has been said that these Lingams were created millions of years ago when a meteorite collided with the earth at a place that is now the source of the Narmada River. The Narmadesvara Lingam has red marking on them representing crypto crystalline quartz, the meteorite material. These unique materials’ blending from earth and space has excellent density and rhythmic vibration that brings positive energy and fertility in a house where it is being daily worshiped. Such lingams are considered very sacred for individual abhishekam on Mahasivaratri night.  In home worship unlike Salagrama these miniature Lingas are also placed on a pedestal base and worshiped. Otherwise it turns out to be Salagrama Pooja. Perhaps you are aware there are Ganesha Lingas, as well as Devi Lingas also though not common. The red marks on these Lingams represent the Sakti aspect showing the union of Siva and Sakti which turns to Saguna form of Brahman.

The outside painting of walls with white stripes of Vishnu, custodian of Sattva Guna and red stripes of Brahma, custodian of Rajoguna in Siva temples makes one realize that when one goes inside what is being worshiped is Trinity and not Siva alone.  This is further substantiated by the niche for Brahma on the Northern wall of the sanctum in all Siva temples.   There are also Vishnu icons in many Siva temples though not prominently displayed or worshiped, to make temple habitable for Siva who normally lives in cremation or burial grounds and is called Smsaanavasa. When the devotee focuses his worship on the visible Sivalinga portion of the pedestal Lingam his thoughts   influenced by the red and white stripes  convey to him that he is in reality worshiping Trinity or Saguna Brahman reminding him to focus on the  base part as well as middle part  also in totality.  Only out   of ignorance devotee thinks he is worshiping Siva only.  In fact Rudram from Rigveda employed in Abhishekam is directed to Parabrahman only and I do not know why it can’t be chanted during Vishnu Abhishekam, similarly Purushsooktam? Mahanarayana Upanishad contains Panchabrahma Mantras, which Saivites use as Pancharudram in worship.

Yet another fact is invariably you find Nagapratishtha (Consecration of Serpent deity) under Vatavriksha    in Siva temples along with Navagraha Planetary sanctum which includes Rahu and Ketu serpent deities. These are symbols of Vishnu at the start of creation   (Vatapatra Saayee; Sesha Saayee) and show the pervading Vishnu in Siva temples.  The divine thoughts before entering the temple on red and white stripe to begin with, pedestal Linga form, niche for Brahma a must in all temples, and the feeling of pervading Vishnu all through the consecrated area in Siva temples clearly indicates that in reality devotee is worshipping Trinity or Saguna Brahman only whom he worships with the mantra    Sat-Chit-Anandaya (sacchidananda) Namah in Ashtottara(108 names of the Lord for special worship). Nagabhooshana(one  who has serpent as his jewel) and Seshasayee (one who is reclining on the serpent-bed) complement each other in Siva temple in association with Brahma.

FIVE ELEMENTS WORSHIPED AS BRAHMAN

Let us also go into yet another possible    spiritual motivation for painting temple prakaras with red and white stripes. Our purpose of going to temple is to have a darsan (audience) of symbolic God, pay our obeisance to Supreme Being through that image (Moorti) and to the five elements so essential for our existence and liberation. In Rigveda There is no mention of the word Brahman (called Tadekam) and only elements of nature are worshiped as Supreme Principal.  Please recall temple worship practices about which we talked about in the past. Our first act is to prostrate at the flag-post on earth paying obeisance to the element Earth.
Our last act is to sit at the northern end inside the temple after worship and gaze at the Vimana (temple cupola) looking at the white space above and paying respect to element Aakasa. So our aspiration is to look upwards spiritually towards divine focusing our thoughts to heaven coming from earth. In between receiving teertha (holy water) we pay respect to Water element (Aapah); we pay our respect to Agni while receiving the waving lamp and pay or respect to Vaayu (air) in the act of circumambulating the sanctum feeling its presence.   The temple white stripes remind us of the white space (Aakasa) above and red stripes Earth (Prithvee).  In Upanishads these elements are meditated upon as Brahman alone as its Vyaahriti.  Whatever deity we may worship inside the temple our focus is always on Brahman. Even in Linga worship a spiritual thinker feels he is worshiping Prithavee Linga recalling red  Earth   and Akasa linga recalling white, though Linga before him is black or off white or crystal,  both being Vyahritis  of Brahman only.   Born as humans, product of Earth or created, our next struggle in life is preservation.    Then we yearn for our liberation or Moksha or to merge with the Universal soul looking towards heaven when we complete our worship. 

Temples are usually built in places of scenic beauty such as on the hills or usually at elevated level. There are also temples carved out of cliffs.   The temple tower rises to great heights pointing towards sky. A devotee on earth who is also a representative of rajoguna goes to the temple to elevate himself to sattva guna to reach heaven (the abode of divines) or join the divines of Sattvaguna.  This aspiration of travel from earth to reach heaven is the dream of every devotee. He therefore feels temple is Bhoovaikunta or Kailasa. The white paste and red (chemman) earth stripes are therefore symbolic of heaven and earth.   Devote Hindus think the temple is heaven on Earth.  Puranas hail Tirupati and similar holy places as Bhoo-Vaikuntha.  There are always few steps to climb up to reach sanctum of the deity. In Sabarimalai and Puri-Jagannth one has to go up eighteen steps to view the lord. This symbolically means climbing to reach heaven from earth.  This could be another logical conclusion why temple walls are painted red and white conveying the feeling “here to eternity”, when you are inside the temple.  This reminds us of the Puraanic story of Bhageeratha bringing Ganges from heaven to earth to maintain the communication between Earth and Heaven.  The red stripes representing earth leads us to heaven indicated by white in our act of temple visit.  A human is a product of earth and he always looks at Heaven to join the divines.

As said above it also means to pay our respect to element earth as we enter and  pay respect  finally to the element space chanting Om Namah Narayanaya  or Om Namah Sivaaya  meaning thereby   the  five  element we have worshiped  while focusing on the deity in the temple are directed to  the Supreme Principal only. Essentially we pay our obeisance to the elements Water, Fire and Air during the worship focusing on the deity.

It is accepted in general   that   Supreme Being Para Brahman is light (Jyoti) and represents purity as white. Since Para Brahman is in the nature of giving away everything to all, the suitable color to represent Para Brahman is white as scientifically white reflects all without any absorption. Hence to represent Para Brahman the wall is painted white with lime paste. Brahman of pure white form turns to Saguna Brahman (as in aarathi waters) of activity which is indicated by red stripes.   This is achieved by painting with turmeric paste which turns lime red like the Aaarati.  Hence one goes to temple to worship Nirguna Brahman who turns to Saguna form for our sake to worship.

The prayers “mrityor moksheeya   maamritaat” and “Tamaso maa Jyotir gamaya”--liberate me from death but not immortality; lead me from death to immortality are directed to Supreme Reality. Whatever may be the deity we say in our ashtottara Sat-Chit-Aaanadaya namah.  Also while offering food   we say Brahmane swaaha.  All these mantras are directed to Brahman only.  All these explain our   sole purpose of temple visit is to focus on Brahman through the medium of Moorti (moorti upaasana) or image.  This is the spiritual inspiration that springs in the mind of the devotee seeing the red and white stripes on the outermost wall while entering the divine charged atmosphere and wanting to meditate on Supreme Principal through the deity in the temple.   It prepares his mind from the beginning of the entering the divine charged atmosphere. “Oh Lord!  Lead me from death to immortality” was the sudden outburst of our sages who were bogged down with the mystery of death!     

The above are the possible different explanations from practical, religious and spiritual concepts of thinking about red and white stripes usually found on the outermost compound walls exposed to public roads.


SRICHAKRA CONCEPT

Let us focus our attention on the central point Bindu of Srichakra. The central point is the Supreme and transcendental (paraa), identical with Rita, Aaatman, Brahman and Sat-chit-ananda. It is the point of Consciousness. This point is also called   Meru (Sacred Mountain) that reaches Aakasa (heaven) in the three dimensional projection of Srichakra.  This corresponds to Brahmasthana or seat of Brahman (garbhagriha) of   Hindu Temple  in line with the central Kalasa at the top which points towards sky. The ninth enclosure  in  Srichakra is a triangle filled with all bliss. Although called triangle it is actually the point which is central to the primary triangle. This central point is composed of three dots—Red, white and mixed color. It is the three puras over which the goddess presides red represents   Moon, White represents  Sun and   mixed color Fire.  She is therefore called Tripura Sundari. Durga is addressed as Jataveda (fire) in Durga sooktam. Red is a symbol of fertility or Kriya Sakti. White is a symbol of Purity or JnaanaSakti. Fire is Iccchaskati or Consciousness. Red and white stripes in temple walls represent   Brahma (red)  and  Vishnu (white) which merges with fire as you visualize Garbagriha  in the  process of absorption to give you eternal bliss as you meditate.


VAISHNAVA PANCHARAATRA CONCEPT

As soon as the devotee sights the threshold of the gateway, the devotee touches down the earth before entering the temple premises beyond the flag post. To him it means a transition from the ‘way of the world’ (Red) to ‘way of God’ (White).  As you know Red is one of the constituents of white light in VIBGYOR colors. These are symbolized by red and white stripes. He gets a feeling of ascending going through the elevation and steps. The sanctum represents the concrete and worshipful (Archaa) manifestation of the divine power. The icon inside is the Antayamin (inner controller) corresponding to the divine presence in each individual called Self or Aatman. The Vimana (the top of the tower) over the sanctum represents the Vaibhava (glory) aspect of the divine. The crown-vessel on top of the Vimaana is the patterned expression (Vyooha) of the divine power. The pinnacle which vanishes to a point is the transcendent (Para) aspect. That is the reason his temple worship is not complete till he reaches the northern side of the inner praakaara (circumambulatory path), sits, gazes at the pinnacle and meditates   on Narayana. Five Paancharaartra theological aspects are; Archaa; Moorti; Vaibhava; Vyooha and Para.

AMERICAN HINDU TEMPLE COMPLEXES PROJECT TRINITY CONCEPT FOR WORSHIP BY ALL

The ingenuity   of American Hindu complexes where Siva and Vishnu icons  are found side by for worship with Brahma on the Northern wall,  though intended for pleasing all traditions with a variety of Siva and Vishnu family members, depicts  the ideal concept of worshiping Trinity as Saguna Brahman to meditate upon  the Absolute or Brahman. Even in India of late some Siva-Vishnu temples are built moving away from the orthodox tradition of exclusive Siva or Vishnu temples that include the individual sanctums for Siva and Vishnu family members in its complex.    It looks rather contradicting that temple-complexes in America are named after a particular deity and worship is focused more on one deity   than other deities installed in daily worship! This is perhaps based on the choice of the founding fathers of the temple to name it after their chosen deity, though they have the concept of all-traditions’ integration in mind.  However one temple in Livermore calls its temple as Siva Vishnu Temple giving equal weight-age for both Siva and Vishnu.  It would have been appropriate to have called this as Temple of Trinity as Brahma icon is omnipresent in all Hindu Temples.  Probably this temple also thinks Brahma does not deserve worship! Calling Trinity temple would have pleased the migrants coming from Rajasthan tradition too. There is a lone temple for Brahma in Pushkar in Rajasthan and there is a grand worship and celebration taking place once a year lasting for several days. Open worship of Brahma though not popular is not prohibited.   It may be of interest to recall the annual ten days festival of the temple in South India  is called Brahmotsava and the presence of Brahma for ten days is essential. Why not then for all 365 days? It is surprising that American Temples promoted by philanthropists from the South and following the South Indian Aagama tradition and architecture style do not have these red and white stripes on their outer walls, unintentional may be, or by divine intuition because they are essentially built to focus on all deities as Saguna Brahman, and to meditate on five elements as Nirguna Brahman. This concept is reflected in  their concluding prayers  when they invariably chant some Vedic mantras  pleading to Brahman and also sing the Bhajan “Om Jaya Jagadeesa Hare” addressed to Universal Lord,  though not  its theme brought to the specific  focus of the crowd or understood by the crowd. Of late it has gone further installing deities of other faiths and beliefs making it possible to have the concept of Universal Oneness in Hindu worship following the Vedic wisdom of “Eko Viprah Bahudaa vadanti” --the One, the Pundits call by many names. Hindu American thoughts are crystallizing to head towards Universal Oneness   forced by circumstances, which was started by our ancient sages by declaring “Eko  Viprah Bahudaa vadanti”—the ONE the Pundits call as many, known as Sanatana Dhrama that has turned to modern Hinduism.

I have come out with these practical, religious and spiritual explanations as there is no such   information available in temple literature as to the motivation to paint these walls red and white. I had similar approach in explaining the odd and even numbers of Chamakam in my discourse, “What do odd and even numbers in Chamakam signify?”. Hope someday our great Aacharyas will come out with better explanation on Chamakam and white and  red stripes on temple walls! 

REFERENCES:
1.       Swami Hashananda, Hindu Gods and Goddesses, Ramakrishna Math, Chennai, India
2.       Parthsarathy A, The Symbolism of Hindu Gods and Rituals, Vedanta Life Institute, Mumbai, India.
3.       Mukundan T, A Concept of Hinduism, Bharatiya Vidya Bhavan, Mumbai, India.
4.       Ramachandra Rao, S.K., Indian Temple Traditions, Kalpatharu Research Academy, Sringeri Vidhyaa Peetham, Bangalore, India.
5.       Tarun Surti, Salagrama and Linga, private communication. 6

  

APPENDIX
(Information provided by coutesy Tarun Surti, Nashville, TN)
There are many reasons for using the red-white color combination as you have discussed. One other reason is that white-red colors are basic colors and were easily produced. They are also longer lasting and its proof is in Bhimketka caves where they found red-white paintings as old as 30-100 thousands years old. To read more about it, click on Bhimketka, a blog by Sandhya Maanne because it is very informative. “It is a marvel that the paintings have not faded even after thousands of years. The colors used by the cave dwellers were prepared by combining manganese, hematite, soft red stone and wooden charcoal. Perhaps, animal fat and extracts of leaves, vegetables, and roots were also used in the mixture.
 Once they found out that these colors are best, they stopped using other colors.
 Please use this link if the link above does not work.


[NOTE: I lived for many years in Madhya Pradesh and I knew about these marvels as well as all pervading Marble rocks near Jubbulpore. But I was wondering how to connect the same to the present topic of discourse. If you really think the basic colors found on Lord Jagannth mainly consist of white, red yellow black and blue. The first four colors found on the icon are the colors of the human beings all over the world. Vishnu is represented by blue color always. So these colors indicate that Lord Jagannath in his role of Vishnu among trinities takes care of the human race spread over the entire world. Also it is interesting to note that India discovered the first blue dye Indigo which derives its name from Indi. Also our ancient painters knew about paint materials that could stand for several thousand years without fading and losing its luster. Hence these colors were used in all religious motifs including Rangoli and wall paintings—N.R.Srinivasan]


 [This is a prepared lecture compiled from above references and others for a discourse at Sri Ganesha Temple, Nashville and to benefit those who are not able to attend the same in person. You are free to download and use it for your reading and reference as well as circulate to others to spread the wisdom of Vedas and Hindu values which good act will be appreciated.]