The Indie Writers (Team Entity)

Hidimba Devi (Hidimbi) is a Goddess that is primarily worshiped in the state of Himachal Pradesh. She is not an orthodox deity and she is from the race of rakshashas (giants) who according to the Puranas are the descendants of the Sage Kashyapa, one of the 7 Saptarishis (according to the Mahabharata) i.e. the 7 sages who remain constant in each manvantara and the daughter of Daksha (one of the 10 manasa putras or those who were born from Brahma’s intellect) and Krodhavasha. An interesting fact about the rakshashas is that, in addition to being gifted with tremendous strength, they also have the ability, though they look ferocious and intimidating in their natural state, to take human shape and form or assume any form that they desire, and they may appear as either male or female. In more contemporary terms, they are shape-shifters. Hdimba Devi’s story starts in the Mahabharata and she is a Goddess who surfaces towards the end of Dwapara Yuga and at the start of Kali Yuga. In

Having acquired some understanding of the altar and having gained some knowledge as to how to set it up, it is now time for us to take a closer look at the other items that are used to make the altar more presentable and more acceptable or suitable for worship. Let us start with the oil lamp which is crucial to worship. The lamp is fueled either by ghee, gingelly oil or unadulterated coconut oil. Under no circumstances must palm oil or groundnut oil be used to fuel the lamp. Gingelly oil is probably the cheapest, ghee and unadulterated coconut oil are fairly expensive and therefore it is far more economical to use gingelly oil. The wick is lit prior to the Pooja being started and it is kept alight for the duration of the Pooja. Once the Pooja is over, after a reasonable time (at homes it is usually half an hour to an hour after the Pooja has been concluded) it is put out and the Pooja area cordoned off. The lamp is put out using either a flower or by drowning the wi

The traditional or orthodox Hindu rite of worship is called Pooja and ideally it should be conducted at least twice a day i.e. once in the morning and once in evening (as per the instructions given by Lord Shiva). The first Pooja was conducted by Shakti when she worshiped Shiva and in so doing the Goddess paved the way for all Hindus to worship and venerate the Gods. The morning Pooja is the most important, followed by the evening Pooja. However, if work commitments or health limitations prevent a person from attending two Poojas per day then it is best to attend or be part of at least one Pooja on a daily basis. The word Pooja itself comprises of two syllables, Poo means Joy and Ja means attain and the therefore Poojas are a means for all Hindus to attain joy and liberation. Poojas are divided into two types - Aanmatha Pooja and Parartha Pooja. The former is conducted for the benefit of the self-i.e. to attain spiritual or material rewards and the latter is conducted for t