Being an Indian, I know that we Indians do not spend a day without worshipping GOD in our home temple. All ceremonies, daily worship rituals, auspicious functions, religious occasions as well as new ventures start by worshipping the GOD. And you will find either a whole room dedicated to the temple (Mandir) or a small temple hanging on a wall, in almost every household. As per Hindu Mythology, worshipping God is the most important ritual to follow twice or thrice a day. The temple at home is a sacred place and is considered the most peaceful place. So, this blog is all about the home temple accessories that you must have in your temple.
Before sharing the list of accessories, here are some Vastu tips for home temple. Why Vastu? Because without considering the Vastu shastra, it may be unauspicious to place your home temple at home anywhere. Maybe you are not superstitious; however, it is necessary to keep below things in mind to bring health, prosperity and happiness in the family.
Vastu Tips for your Home Temple
- The home temple should always be in the north-east zone of the house. North-East zone is the Ishan-Kona of the house.
- The temple area should always be neat and clean to have a nice and healthy flow of energy.
- The worship room should not be against a bathroom. And you should not place a dustbin below the temple.
- While praying, your face should be either towards the north direction or east direction.
- You should not place the Temple against a bathroom wall, below the stairs or a toilet on the upper floor.
- One should not keep the Photographs of the dead/ancestors in the temple.
List of Must-have accessories for your home temple
Diya (Jyot)
To worship GOD, to maintain concentration while performing aarti, and to clean your surroundings, lighting a Diya is a must. The light of Diya produces magnetic changes in the atmosphere of your surroundings. The presence of light means the absence of darkness from our lives. Always note that Diya should be of silver or brass as these metals are considered pure, and their quality enhances as years pass by. So, brighten up your temple with this diya or oil lamp.
Diya Batti (Cotton Wicks)
Without baati, Diya is considered as empty, hence Diya and baati complete each other. You should always lit up baati in pure ghee. Your concentrating power will improve if you try to concentrate on the flame of baati. When we lit batti regularly, it will not only invite Goddess Lakshmi’s blessings but also bring peace and calmness around you. You should change the batti every time you lit Diya.
Dakshinavarti Shankh
Shankh is used to worship GOD and to offer milk/water to the GOD. Keeping it in your home temple and Blowing it is good to bring abundance, peaceful atmosphere and good luck. The shankh represents wealth, good luck and prosperity. Keeping shankh in your temple is auspicious as it removes negative energy from your home. It would help if you always keep the shankh on the stand. Here is the beautiful combo of shankh with its stand.
Bell for your Home Temple
Every temple must have a temple bell as the sound of the bell remove away all the negative energy from the house and also summon the GOD. The bell with Garud Ji on the top is auspicious. People believe that Garud Ji is a vehicle to bring lord to your home. If one keeps the bell with garud Ji in their home temple, Lord Rama, Krishna, Lord Vishnu and Narasingha will be pleased. We believe that when you ring the bell, then your mind becomes empty from outside thoughts and soon, you enter in the state where you are more receptive and aware.
Aasan
One should always sit on aasan while performing puja as we can concentrate more on a peaceful mind. And the aasan should always be of Woolen or silky material. Performing the rituals while sitting on an aasan brings wealth, knowledge, good luck, peace, and siddhi. When you sit on aasan, it breaks the direct connection between your body and the earth, which results in stopping the energy produced during worship to reaches the earth.
Jal Patra for Home Temple
Jal patra is also a necessary accessory to keep in your home temple always filled with water. It should be of copper or brass material. Copper vessels are good for Pooja purpose. It is also known as Kalash and is required while worshipping. After that, you should offer its water to Surya Bhagwan and fill it again with water and place in the temple. You can also tie the Mauli around the Kalash’s neck.
Mauli Thread
This ritual thread is traditionally worn by the males on the right wrist and the left by the females. People also call it “Raksha Sutra”. It is tied with a request to GOD to save us from all the evils in the world. It is also believed that the wrist vein controls our complete body. So, if we tie Mauli on the wrist, it helps regulate the body’s blood circulation. It helps to purify our thoughts and turn them into positive ones and also keeps the evil and negative energy away. Mauli thread also symbolises the sister’s love and prayers for her brother’s well-being and the brother’s lifelong vow to protect her.
Jaap Mala
Jaap mala (Rudraksha Mala) is used for chanting mantra and is made with the auspicious number of 108+1 bead. The +1 bead is called ‘Sumeru’ and is not supposed to be crossed while chanting. You should keep this mala in your home temple always and can wear it in your neck for protection, blessings, health, good fortune and also well being. Wearing rudraksha mala results in the destruction of negative karma from previous birth that causes difficulties in the present life. When using your Mala for Japa purposes, hold it with your right hand only, and use our thumb, ring finger and middle finger to move from one bead to the next as though you are ‘guiding’ the beads towards you.
Roli Tilak
In Hindu Culture, applying tilak on the forehead is an important daily ritual as a sign of auspiciousness. You need to apply the tilak between the brows on the forehead as this point is of immense power, and also we believe that the person comes in confidence after applying the tilak. Tilaks are of different colours, designs, shapes, and ingredients, and they symbolize different meaning for people based on their gender, castes, regions, etc. In my culture, we use the ring finger or middle finger to apply tilak; however, this too depends on person to person or religion or culture. Tilaks can be of sandalwood, kumkum, holy ash, sindhoor, cow dung etc. based on the regions or caste, etc.
Final Words
So, these were the must-have accessories to keep in your home temple. I am sure I do not have to mention God Idols because that is obvious in temples. You can get idols too at eCommerce sites.
In conclusion, I hope, I have been able to help you all by listing important accessories here. Just let me know if I have missed on something, I will be glad to add that too in the list. Finally, Let’s all hail; Jai Mata Di.
