Re: Idol worship

Posted By Narahari B. N. Achar (nachar@msuvx1.memphis.edu)
Tue, 29 Apr 1997 11:29:33 -0700

Mani Varadarajan wrote on Apr. 24:
>there is a world of difference between a lump of turmeric or cowdung and a sAlagrAma or the temple murti. The former are mere pratIkAs.."
>But, the Deity I worship is the same Ganesha, whether invoked in a lump
of turmeric at home or at the temple. Srinivasa is the same whether I
worship after invoking in a mUrti at home or worship the mUrti at the
local temple where invoking was done at the time of pratiShThApana, or I
worship at Tirupati, a puNyakshetra, where the Lord has blessed us with a
permanent residence. So, it is really the Deity we worship.

> (the main stream western religions)..To them the very existence of an image at a temple to which we offer flowers, incense and prayers is
itself an abomination.."
>
>Some catholics actually pray in front of images such as Mary, light
candles. Although they do use flowers and wave incense, yes they do, it
is not like what we do. Then, they still criticize us ...

>
>...To me idol worship simply means offering worship to an image which we consider divine. To this exten, Hindus have for centuries proudly
practiced idol worship....."
>
>I go even one step further, to me IT IS DIVINE, because, the deity has
been invoked,by AvAhana in an image at home, by the PrathishthApana at a
temple, or the Lord blesses us by permanent presence in a puNyakshetra
such as Tirupati.
In another post in the same thread the word "vigrahArAdhana" was used.
Again, let me reiterate, it is the Deity's presence that we worship.
All of our manuals, whether they be of the VaikhAnasa, TantrasAra,
BodhAyana or any other Agamaic tradition, are titled "Deva pUjA paddati"
and not "mUrti pUjA paddati" or "vigraha pUjA paddati".
Regards-Narahari Achar
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