Satyanarayan Puja At Ramesh Garuds House Bandra, originally uploaded by firoze shakir photographerno1.
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There are a few house Ganpatis I shoot every year when I shoot the Ganpati pandals one of them is the Garuds the Pamaks and Farzans house ganpati.
I shoot this simply to show you the hospitality of the house that brings in Lord Ganeshs their faith their love and the sadness when the Lord leaves their house to go back to his own house in the sea.
So I blog and through my blogs take you time and again into a journey of life in a city called Amchi Mumbai.. a city that can make you or break you within seconds.
A city of hopes dreams and disillusionment.
I have blogged Bandra my immediate surroundings the lives the people the cats dogs goats .. the faceless fervor in the nooks crannies I have blogged filth garbage apathy and sometimes the eunuch soul of the people who stay here.
Nothing changes not the filth the garbage openly displayed for all and sundry.
And because a good photographer shoots good things of life as a photo blogger I shoot the underbelly of pain the beggars and misery and more pain.
I shoot crap I shoot shit I am known in colloquial undertones as the Rastachap Photographer of Bandra.
Roadside photographer as compared to street photographer.
With dark clouds looming in the horizon of my own life my blogging too is coming to the end of its shelf life.
And this is a fact, i now realize as my wife says you shoot the same things over and over again dont you get sick and tired.
Actually I shoot because I have a camera that is attuned to a poets soul, I shoot life as it shoots me.
I shoot simple ordinary mundane things things you dont shoot with a Mach 5.
But come what may I could never shoot cinematographic life with a mobile phone.
It just would not fit in on my mobile phone the first phone I have not changed since 4 years.
So I taught Marziya the importance of shooting pictures on my own Nikon D 80 , and as she has been away for over 3 weeks my life has lost its color and mirth.
Marziya will be 3 years old in Nov, and when I give Marziya my camera she will not take it without first pacing the long strap around her neck.
She knows how to hold the camera firmly in her hands as though she is holding the breath of her life , she learnt to feel the camera its contours the buttons as I would blindfold her and than ask her to shoot.. So she ended up teaching me photography.
About Satyanarayan puja from Wikipedia.
The Satyanarayan Puja is a Hindu religious observance. It is a ritual performed by Hindus before/on any major occasion like marriage, house warming ceremony etc. It can also be performed on any day for any reason.It is believed the ceremony originated in Bengal as Satya Pir ritual performed by all communities (Hindu, Muslim and buddhists) and later in 1800s morphed into Satyanarayan puja.[1],[2],[3]
The Satyanarayana Puja is usually done on the Purnima day of every month (the day of the full moon) or a Sankranti. It is also done on special occasions and during times of achievements as an offering of gratitude to the Lord. These occasions include marriage, graduation, new job, and the purchase of a new home to name a few. In addition, it is said that a devotional performance of this puja will bear children to couples trying to start a family.
The puja starts by a prayer to Lord Ganesha, to remove all obstacles that may occur as a result of incorrectly performing the puja. This is done by chanting all the names of Lord Ganesha and offering prasad (a food offering, usually consisting of one of Lord Ganesha's favorite foods - modak, a sugar and coconut mixture, or ladu) and the showering of flower petals.
Another part of the prayer involves a prayer to the Navagraha's - the nine important celestial beings in the universe. They consist of Surya (the Sun), Chandra (the moon), Angaaraka/Chevaai (Mars), Budha (Mercury), Guru aka Bruhaspati (Jupiter), Shukra (Venus), Sani (Saturn), Rahu (the head of the Demon snake), and Ketu (the tail of the Demon snake).
The rest of the puja consists of worship to Satyanarayana, an extremely benevolent form of Lord Vishnu. First "panchamritam" is used to clean the place where the deity is placed. After placing the deity in the correct position, Satyanaraya swami is worshipped. Names of Satyanarayana are chanted along with offering of a variety of prasad (including a mixture of milk, honey, ghee/butter, yogurt, sugar) and flower petals.
Another requirement of the puja is that the story of the puja be heard among all those observing and partaking in the pooja. The story involves the origin of the puja, the benefits of it, and the potential mishaps that may occur with the careless performance of the puja.
The prayer concludes with an Aarti, which consists of revolving a small fire-lit-lamp in the vicinity of an image of the Lord. After the puja is over, participants and observers of the pooja are required to ingest in the prasad that was offered and blessed by the Lord.
It is told that Satyanarayan Katha is in REVA volume of Skanda Purana. But this volume is devoted to pilgrimages on the valley of river REVA. In Satyanarayana there is no Reva river. In original Skanda Purana there is nothing like Satyanarayana. Recent Skanda Puranas added it with clear note of its new addition in Skanda.
The Satyanarayan Puja is performed in reverence to the Narayan form of Lord Vishnu. The Lord in this form is considered an embodiment of truth. This puja is conducted to ensure abundance in ones life. Many people carry out this puja immediately after or along with an auspicious occasion like a marriage or moving into a new house or any other success in life. It is believed the ceremony originated in Bengal as Satya Pir and was later adapted into Satyanarayan puja.
The Satyanarayan puja can be performed on any day. It is not a puja confined to any festivities. But Poornima (full moon day) or Sankranti are considered to be most auspicious day for this puja.
Performing this puja in the evening is considered more appropriate. However one can do it in the morning as well. On the day of the puja, the devotee has to fast. After bathing the person can begin the puja.
* 'Sinni': A special type of food offering, which is prepared by mixing unboiled milk, flour, sugar, smashed bananas, and other flavours like cinnamon etc., or optional garnishing like groundnuts, cashews, cherries, crushed coconuts/fruits etc.
* Kumkum powder, turmeric powder, rangoli
* Incense sticks, camphor.
* Thirty betel leaves, thirty betel nuts, two coconuts.
* Five almonds,
* Flowers to offer
* One thousand tulsi leaves; banana tree as a canopy[2]
* One square shaped wooden platform
* Two copper jars, two plates.
* One shawl
* A mixture of milk, curd, honey, sugar, ghee to make the panchamrita, Sandal paste.
* Akshat (rice grains) with kumkum powder.
* Attar, Indian perfume.
* Two flower garlands, conch shell, bell, a cloth, a ghee lamp and an oil lamp.
Gow muthra(Cow Urine)
