Puja - Worship
by Param Pujya Guru Rajneesh Rishi Ji
PH: 011 - 45051710, Shani Peeth, New Delhi
Pūjā or alternative transliteration Pooja, (Devanagari: पूजा) (Urdu: پوجا) (Sanskrit: reverence, honour, adoration, or worship) is a religious ritual performed by Hindus as an offering to various deities, distinguished persons, or special guests. This has also been followed by Buddhists and Sikhs to honour various beliefs. In Hinduism, it is done on a variety of occasions and settings, from daily puja done in the home, to temple ceremonies and large festivals, or to begin a new venture. The two main areas where puja is performed is in the home and at public temples. There are many variations in scale, offering, and ceremony. Puja is also performed on special occasions such as Durga Puja and Lakshmi Puja. The puja is performed by Hindus worldwide. Various poojas are performed at various times of the day and on various times.
Worship is an act of religious devotion usually directed towards a deity. The word is derived from the Old English weorþscipe, meaning worship, honour shown to an object, which has been etymologised as "worthiness or worth-ship"—to give, at its simplest, worth to something.
Evelyn Underhill (1946) defines worship thus: "The absolute acknowledgment of all that lies beyond us—the glory that fills heaven and earth. It is the response that conscious beings make to their Creator, to the Eternal Reality from which they came forth; to God, however they may think of Him or recognize Him, and whether He be realized through religion, through nature, through history, through science, art, or human life and character." Worship asserts the reality of its object and defines its meaning by reference to it.
An act of worship may be performed individually, in an informal or formal group, or by a designated leader.
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