Guidelines

Please obtain the items exactly as given above and follow these instructions to the letter.

I will arrive at least half an hour before the puja — please have all the puja items ready as per the list — all fruit to be washed and kept ready on trays.

The family should take a bath before the ceremony and wear clean clothes. Loose fitting white clothes for men are preferable (kurta pyjama or dhoti and anga vastra) and coloured for ladies. Jeans and any other tight fitting clothes are not suitable.

If you cannot sit comfortably on the floor for 90 minutes please make some arrangement for stools or cushions or chairs. You MUST be seated comfortably during the puja so that you can concentrate.

All preparation should be completed before the ceremony starts as all fiddling and ferretingin the kitchen during the ceremony is discouraged.

Explanations will be given in English before and during the ceremony, all chatting and gossiping is to be avoided so that those who are serious can concentrate fully on the Puja.

I will not be reciting the story (KATHA), the focus of this ceremony will be on the puja which is quite elaborate and will take about one and an half hours. If you insist on having the story read please depute a family member or friend to recite on your behalf. Or we can read a shortened form in Sanskrit only — the first and last verses of each chapter.

Please note:

1. If fire alarms have been installed and they cannot be successfully deactivated then Homa (fire offerings) will not be performed — only Puja will be done. The sound of the alarm is extremely disturbing and destroys the vibrations of the ceremony. In order to deactivate the alarms you will need to remove the batteries and check that the electricity supply is disconnected. Check the deactivation procedure by holding a bunch of incense under the alarm to see if it is still active.
2. Until now we have avoided setting fees for Pujas, since it is our sacred duty and not our business, but due to the fact that some yajamanas have been unfair in their charity, indifferent to the value of our time and unmindful of the cost of living to which we too are subjected, we are now compelled to set a minimum dakshina for each ceremony.

Thank you for your patronage.