'U' students gather for Hindu prayer ceremony

Burning away imperfections

JESSICA JOHNSON/Daily Deepak Baskar and Chithra Perumalswami burn camphor last night to metaphorically burn away their imperfections at the Hindu Students Council first annual Saraswati Puja ceremony in Mosher Jordan Residence Hall. Nearly 75 students joined last night for the first annual Saraswati Puja, or prayer to the Hindu goddess of knowledge.

"It's a great chance to receive a blessing from God and receive good luck in my studies," said LSA senior Samir Patel.

The event, hosted by the Hindu Students Counsel, was held in the Nikki G. Lounge of Mosher-Jordan Residence Hall.

"We thought it would be nice to have the students have the opportunity to be blessed by the goddess of education," said LSA junior Payel Gupta, a counsel member.

The counsel hosts weekly discussions on culture and religion.

Students at the event said it marked the last three days in the holy Navratre, a nine-day celebration.

The first three days are dedicated to the goddess Durga, who removes the negative energies.

To fill the void with positive energy, the next three days are dedicated to the goddess Lakshmi, who is also the goddess of wealth.

The last three days, dedicated to Saraswati, are important in deciphering the good from the bad.

Students who joined in the festivities enjoyed an ambiance of Indian music, culture, tradition and food.

Students said they came together to form a sense of community through Puja, the prayer rituals, to form a complete self.

"It is important to create a balance between the spiritual and the material and focus on God in order to put one's mind at peace," LSA sophomore Vasudev Mahavisno said.

Prior to the ceremony, foreheads were anointed with turmeric powder. A prayer leader said she believes this herb reacts with water to create a warming effect on the place where the nerve endings come together in the forehead.

This provides added powers of concentration and focus, the prayer leader said.

During the ceremony, an idol representing Saraswati was placed at the front of the room and treated as an honored guest with offerings of flowers and food.

Camphor was burned because it leaves no residue.

Students said camphor is used symbolically because they hope not to leave remainders of their negative qualities after the ceremony.

Participants offered several traditional chants to Saraswati, followed by Namaskar, the action of prostrating or bowing down. Namaskar is derived from the root word "Nama," and means "not mine, only thine."

The ceremony ended with Prasad, a meal with food that had been blessed during the ceremony.

09-30-98