Introduction to our Religion

Introduction to
Hindu Religion
by Kajal G Patel & Nerali Patel
Part 1
 Prayer
 Puja
 Aarti
 Introduction to Swaminarayan Sampradaya
 Moral Codes
 Niyams
 Literature
 Temples
 Acharayas
Prayer
 What is the meaning
of Prayer?
 Pray: to address a
prayer to the holy spirit
of God; to make an appeal
to God with great emotion
 Prayer: a reverent
petition made to God; an
act of reverent petition to
God; a specifically worded
form used to address God
Prayers
 The 6 Main Types of Prayers:
 Morning Prayer
 Evening Prayer
 Sunday Prayer (usually in
mandir)
 Prayer for Safe Arrival
 Prayer for Rain
 Prayer for the Sick to Get Well
Puja
 What is the meaning of Puja?
 Puja is the act of showing reverence and the process of making a
spiritual connection with God through addressing Him with prayer
and worship.
 We can bring ourselves closer to God by concentrating all of our
senses on our representation of God.
Puja
 Procedure before starting Puja:
 Wake up early, before sunrise
 Visualize God in your mind
 Go to the bathroom, and then wash your left hand
ten times, and then both hands seven times
 Brush your teeth
 Take a shower
 Wear clothes that are clean
Puja
 Procedure of doing Puja:
 Sit on a piece of clean cloth, facing
east or north
 Touch your right middle finger to
your right thumb
 Place a spoonful of water into your
right hand
 Hold your left hand underneath the
right hand
 Sip the water, then repeat process
three times
 Men: Place Tilak Chandlo on
forehead, heart and both arms
 Married women: Place Chandlo on
forehead
Puja
 Mansi Puja process:
 Chant the welcome mantra:
 Utisthatistha Govinda, Utistha Garudadvaja, Utistha
Kamalkanta, Trailokyam Mangal Karu, Agachchha
Bhagwan, Svasthaan Parmeshvar, Aham Pujam
Karisyami, Sada Tvsm Sammukho Bhava
 While you’re still sitting on a cloth and facing either east or
north, lay another piece of cloth on the floor in front of you
and place pictures of God on it.
 Chant Asht-akshar mantra given by Acharya Maharajshree
 Do Mala, five minimum
Puja
 Mansi Puja process
continued:
 Chant Ashtakshar mantra given by
Acharya Maharajshree
 Do Mala, five minimum
 Stand up and balance on right foot and do
Tap Mala
 Do minimum of five Pradixina (walking
around puja)
 Do six Dandvat (men)
 Ladies - Bow down while sitting instead of
dandvat
 Sit back down and read minimum of five
Shloks from Shikshapatri
 Offer Prasad to God
Puja
Mansi Puja process
continued:
 Chant Kshama (Pardon) Mantra:
 Aparadh Sahastrani, Krintedarnish Maya
Dasosayamiti, Man Matva Kshmasva
Purushotam
 Chant Visarjan Mantra
 Svasthanam Gachh Devesh, Poojamaday
Mamkim, Eastkamprasidhyarth,
Punaragamanch
 Take Prasad. Gather up Puja materials. Say
Jay Swaminarayan to all your family
members.
Aarti
Translation of our Aarti:
I respectfully salute to Sahajanand Swami who has
many names.
I fold my hands together and show respect at your
lotus feet. I bow down to your feet.
All my miseries have been taken away.
Lord Narayan, you were born in a Brahmin family.
You have liberated innumerable souls.
Everyday, you perform new acts and you are
eternal.
All sixty-eight pilgrimage holy places rest at your
feet.
Bowing down to your feet provides results that are
far greater than visiting Kaashi a thousand times.
Those who visualize you will be relieved from the
cycle of birth and death.
They, along with their family, will be relieved from
the cycle of birth and death.
Lord, you are very gracious and kind.
You have shown us an easy path of liberation in
order to reach your abode (dham).
Introduction to our Sampraday

The Swaminarayan
Sampraday is about two
hundred years old. Since
the beginning of Hinduism,
there was always the
forecast of the creation of
the Swaminarayan
Sampraday and the birth of
Lord Swaminarayan.

There were even
references made in past
sources showing the
forecasted birth of Lord
Swaminarayan.
Introduction to our Sampraday
 In these references, the Swaminarayan Sampraday was originally known
as the Uddhav Sampraday and it was founded by Shri Ramanand
Swami, an incarnation of Uddhavaji.
 Later on, Ramanand Swami gave diksha to Nilkanthvarni at Piplana in
1857.
Moral Codes/Basic Vows
 What are the main moral codes,
or Panch Vartman, for the
followers of our religion?
 No drinking (alcohol, caffeine, liquor)
 No eating meat
 No theft of any kind
 No adultery
 Don’t defile others, or get defiled by
others
Moral Codes/Basic Vows
 What are the main moral codes FOR THE SAINTS of
our religion?
 No drinking
 No eating meat
 No theft of any kind
 No adultery
 Don’t defile others, or get defiled by others
 Be lustless: Don’t have feeling of desire
 Be greedless: Unattached to worldly possessions
 Be tasteless: Don’t be tempted by taste
 Be prideless
 Be affectionless
Niyams
 There are 11 Niyams that each devotee of the Sampraday
should follow:
 Be non-violent by any means
 Do not have any kind of relationship with women other than your wife
 Do not eat meat
 Do not drink products that contain alcohol
 Never touch widows you aren’t related to
 Never commit suicide
 Do not steal
 Never blame others for something you don’t know about
 Never bad mouth any God or religion
 Never listen to holy stories from person who doesn’t believe in God or doesn’t
follow the rules established by God
 Never eat someone’s food if they don’t follow the other niyams
Literature
 Lord Swaminarayan
wrote the Shikshapatri
while on earth in order
to leave literature
behind that would help
guide all of his followers
along the right path.
 The Shikshapatri
includes all of the
various moral codes for
followers, saints and
Acharya Maharajshrees
to live by. By following
the rules in the
Shikshapatri, we can
work towards achieving
Akshardham.
Temples
What is a temple?
 A temple, or mandir, is a place to worship God.
 In temples, God’s idols, or murtis, are installed
through a Vedic process
 There are two types of temples:
Hari mandirs
Shikharbandh Mandirs.
Temples

Lord Swaminarayan
established six temples
while on earth,
installing his idol as
well other God’s idols.

The first temple was
built in Ahmedabad.
The second was built in
Bhuj. The third temple
was built in Vadtal. The
fourth was built in
Dholera. The fifth
temple was built in
Junagadh. The sixth
and final temple was
built in Gadhada.

Lord Swaminarayan
established
monotheism.
Acharya Maharaj
 Before departing earth,
God established two
dioceses and put his two
nephews in charge of
them.
1st Vadtal Acharaya – Raghuvirji Maharaj
1st Amdavad Acharaya –
Ayodhyaprasadji Maharaj
 The Ahmedabad diocese is
on the 7th Acharya
Maharajshree.
 The Vadtal diocese is on
the 9th Acharya
Maharajshree.
Current Vadtal Acharaya –
Rakeshprasadji Maharaj
Current Amdavad Acharaya –
Koshalendraprasadji Maharaj
Part 2
 Table of Contents
 Our Symbols
 Karma
 Janmangal Namavali
 Scriptures
 Hindu GODS
 Hindu Festivals
Our Symbols - Kanthi
•
A necklace of beads symbolizing OUR SURRENDER to the creator
of the universe (GOD)
o Swaminarayan Bhagwan authorized two Acharyas and Saints to
give Guru Mantra

•
when offering kanthi, acharya/saints put water in right palm of person
who is accepting the kanthi and chant the ‘Sharnagat Mantra’ – ‘sacred
words of surrender’
consist of two strings
•
•
1st String: represents the SOUL
2nd String: represents the SUPREME Lord
Our Symbols - Kanthi
•
After wearing the kanthi one take 5 vows:
o I will NOT Consume alcohol
o I will NOT Eat meat
o I will NOT Steal
o I will NOT Commit adultery
o I will NOT Accept food or water served by a person not
approved by age old convention
o
In other words – I will NOT be converted into doing the above 4 things
•
•
•
•
Our Symbols - Tilak Chandlo
An auspicious ‘U’ mark on the forehead with circular mark inside
It signifies that we obey instructions from GOD and that we
surrender to God with devotion
It also symbolizes that Swaminarayan Bhagwan is always with us
Men apply the ‘U’ mark on their forehead, upper arms, and chest
o
the mark is made from powder of holy wood called
“Chandan”
o
the round mark in the center is made from “Kumkum” but
only applied on the forehead
o Women apply only the round mark with Kumkum
o * Widowed women do not apply any mark
KARMA
KARMA
•
•
=
what we
have done
+
what we are what we will
doing now + do in future
In Hindu philosophy, “KARMA” means actions.
Three kinds of KARMA
1. “Sanchit Karma” : accumulated actions
2. “Kriyaman Karma” : current actions
3. “Prarabdha Karma” : ripe or fructuous action
Acronym to remember what KARMA means:
K: ‘Know’ your karma and ‘Know’ GOD
A: ‘Action’ Good or Bad
R: ‘Re-Incarnation’ our future life
M: ‘Moksha’ liberation from Birth and Rebirth
A: ‘Akshardham’
Janmangal Namavali
•
•
•
•
108 Names of our Swaminarayan Bhagwan
Reciting the Janmangal absolves the sins and purifies those who recite them
The reciter attains the four ends of worldly life:
o
Dharma- the religious merit
o
Artha- the acquisition of wealth
o
Kama- the fulfilment of wishes and desires
o
Moksha- the ultimate release from the cycle of birth and death
The number 108 is symbolic
1: you are worshipping God as being only one as Swaminarayan Bhagwan
0: when you recite these names, your sins, evil thought are reduced to zero
8: you get eight types of miraculous powers to fulfill all your noble desires
Vachanamrut
•
“Vachan” means knowledge given through speech
by Swaminarayan Bhagwan
•
“Amrut” means eternal, live forever and Liberation
from Birth and Death Cycle
•
In the last ten years of his stay on Earth, Lord
Swaminarayan started giving his knowledge to his
devotees through speeches
•
o
while he gave speeches, SAINTS TOOK DETAILED
NOTES
o
notes taken by Muktananda Swami, Nityananda
Swami, Gopalanand Swami and Sukhanand Swami
were compiled in the form of a book
Each Vachanamrut describes the place, time and
clothes that Lord Swaminarayan was wearing
Shikshapatri
•
•
•
•
a book containing 212 Shlokas
•
it lists duties by categories like Devotees,
Acharya, Sadhus, Acharya Wives, Kings,
Brahmins and others by caste, and gender
•
it teaches the way of living a social and
spiritual life at its highest
a SHLOKA is a verse or hymn in Sanskrit
it is the book of guidance
the master key for worldly peace,
prosperity, happiness and final salvation
after death
8 Sat-sastras approved by Swaminarayan Bhagwan in
Shikshapatri
 4 Vedas
 Vyas Sutra
 Shreemad Bhaagvat
 Shreemad Bhagavat Gita
 Vidur Niti
 Yaag-na-val-kay Smruti
 Vasudev Ma-haat-miya
 Vishnu Sa-has-tra-naam
Other Scriptures
 Satsangi Jivan
 Ramayan
 Gopalanand Swami ni Vato
 Gunatitanand Swami ni Vato
 Bhakta Chintamani
Lord Ganesh
•
•
•
Ganesh was created by Parvati Devi
•
•
Ganesh has two sons names, Labh and Shubh
His brother’s name is Kartikeya
Ganesh has two wives names, Riddhi and
Siddhi
Every Swaminarayan temple has Ganesh
installed at the main entrance
o
•
•
this indicates that devotees should leave
all evils such as lust,anger,greed,jealousy,
etc. outside
Lord Ganesh is the Lord of good wishes
He is always worshipped first in any Hindu
religious ceremony
Lord Shiva
•
Shiva is one of the Hindu Trinity,
o
Brahma= the creator
o
Vishnu= the preserver
o
Shiva= the Destroyer and Re-Producer of Life
•
Shiva is also known as Mahesh , Mahadev and
Nataraj
•
He is portrayed as sitting on a tiger skin, and he
has poisonous snakes around his neck, his hair
and his body
•
Lord Shiva has a third eye in the center of his
forehead along with a crescent moon
•
•
His powerful weapon is the Trishul, the trident
His favorite vehicle is the sacred bull called Nandi
24 Incarnations of Narayan Bhagwan
 Sankandik
 Nrusinh
 Varah
 Vaman
 Yagna
 Hanas
 Haygreev
 Narayan
 Nar-Narayan Dev
 Manvantar
 Kapil Bhagwan
 Parshuram
 Dattatreya
 Ramchandraji Bhagwan
 Rushabh Dev
 Vyas
 Pruthu
 Shri Krishna Bhagwan
 Macch
 Buddha
 Kacch
 Kalki
 Dhanvantari
 Hari
Lord Swaminarayan
•
Lord Swaminarayan incarnated at 10:10pm on
the second of April in 1781 in Chhapaiya
•
Lord Swaminarayan assumed a mortal human
form as the son of Dharmadev and Bhaktimata
•
He has nine names:
•
•
Ghanshyam, Hari, Krishna, Harikrishna, Nilkanth
Varni, Sarjudas, Narayan Muni, Sahajanand Swami,
Swaminarayan Bhagwan
After fulfilling His mission of establishing the
Bhagavata Dharma and the task of rejuvenating
and revitalizing the ancient Vedic path, He left His
mortal body at Gadhpur on the 10th day of the
bright half of Jeth month of Vikram Samvat 1886
Hindu
Festivals
Makarsankranti
•
A kite festival also known as “Uttarayan” that
occurs on the 14th of January every year
•
In Gujarat, it is celebrated by flying kites and
preparing various items from sesame seeds
•
The moral of this festival is to become soft
like sesame seeds, forget the past ill-feelings
and hostiles and remain friends.
•
This festival helps maintain the social
relationships within family, caste and
community
•
You should also donate generously on this
day
Ram Navmi
•
•
Ram Navmi celebrates the birthday of Lord Ram
•
In our Sampradaya, we celebrate Ram Navmi as
well as Hari Jayanti on the same day which is the
birthday of Swaminarayan Bhagwan
•
This festival is celebrated in every Swaminarayan
temple all over the world
•
Many devotees stay awake the night before Ram
Navmi and sing kirtans of Lord Ram
Lord Ram was born on the ninth day of Hindu
month Chaitra in Treta Yuga
Vasant Panchami
•
The festival marks the first day of
spring
•
Vasant Panchami was when Lord
Swaminarayan gave the great gift
of the Shikshapatri to his disciples
•
This festival is dedicated to
Saraswati, the goddess of learning
•
Vasant Panchami is full of religious,
seasonal and social significance
with a new sense of optimism
Holi – Dhuleti - Fuldolutsav
1. HOLI – marks the day when Narayan Bhagwan protected his
devotee PRAHALAD from being burnt up in a bon fire
2.DHULETI – Festival of Colors
3.FULDOL UTSAV – Celebration of the birthday of Nar – Narayan
Bhagwan
Diwali
•
•
•
Diwali is the last day of the Hindu calendar
It is the festival of Lights
The festivities last twenty days
o
•
it all starts on Dusshera- Lord Rama killed Ravana
The Diwali festival itself last five days:
o
Day 1 Dhanteras: ‘Dhan’ means wealth and ‘Teras’ means
thirteen
o
Day 2 Kali Chaudas: ‘Kali’ means dark or evil and ‘Chaudas’
means fourteen
o
Day 3 Dipawali: ‘Dip’ means light and ‘Awali’ means row
o
Day 4 New Year: the first day of the new year
o
Day 5 Bhaibij: a symbol of love between sisters and
brothers
Other Hindu Festivals
 Maha-Shivratri
 Janmastami
 Rath Yatra
Summary
 Hindu Religion is very diverse
 Difficult to cover all topics in 30 minutes
 THIS WAS A VERY BRIEF SUMMARY OF OUR RELIGION
Thank you for your time
Jay Swaminarayan