Pradakshina ( Circumambulation )

       


                       Pradakshina ( Circumambulation )



 Circumambulation is an act of respect to a higher authority.  In a temple, it is customary to circumambulate the deity. This practice is not based upon blind faith but has a scientific basis. Whetever in the temple the deity is consecrsted in accordance with the rules of scriptures, the image gets infused with divinity. It is Believed that this divinity radiates in the form of magnetic waves from the central point of the base of the idol. This spreads around in a circle . The vibrations are the strongest near the deity and gradually become less, as the circle becomes larger. The positive vibrations influence a person walking around the deity.

The divine halo always moves clockwise. So walking around the deity in clockwise direction is good and beneficial. This power of vibration serves as a blessing in increasing our strength and protecting us from obstacles and calamities . If some one does circumambulation in the anti-clockwise direction, there occurs a clash between the motion of divine energy and the divine atoms present in our body. With the result our strength and power get destroyed . Sometimes negative effects arising from that can cause difficulties in life. So it is prohibited and considered a sin .

It is a tradition that after abhisheka ( anointing the deity ) and prayers and offerings, circumambulation is done around the deity . In general it is customary to walk three to eleven times, odd in number around a deity.

According to scriptures, the ideal number of doing circumambulation is one in the case of Lord Ganesha, two for Sun, three for Shiva, four for Vishnu, five for goddess, six for Lord Subramanya and seven for the Pipal tree  .

Religious texts direct that when going around the image of Shiva one should not cross the line where the offering of milk and water flows.
It is said that when deities and asuras were churning the milky ocean with the help of a mountain and a big snake, first to come out was the poison. On seeing the poison, devas and asuras ran in fear.
While Lord Shiva consumed that poison in order to protect the world, the running away by the devas in fear is known as Somasutra-Pradakshinam.

In a temple, the place where the abhishekam water comes out from the deity is known as Somasutra m. Since this pradakshinam is performed without going beyond this place, it also gets the name Somasutrapradakshinam according to Shiva agama Shastra.

According to scriptures, while circumambulating Shiva, one should not go beyond this line where the offering of milk and water flows. For this reason, one takes only half a round around Shiva. The other half is done in the reverse manner . It is also believed that the divine vibrations radiate around the image of Lord Shiva both ways  clockwise and anti- clockwise.

This is symbolic of the fact that there is no need to continue one's journey  , once one has reached his aim, one may return. The Ardhapradakshinam in Shiva temple is considered equivalent to the controlled breathing ( Pranayama) performed by a yogi.

Thus an important practice associated with temple worship is circumambulation . We should not wear footwears on our feet, carry umbrella or any external thing.. This will not give us the benefit of circumambulation . The ideal manner of circumambulation is to walk slowly without the movement of arms, chanting the names of god, and with the mind focussing on the vision of the Almighty. Walking done at rapid pace does not result in Pradakshinam as it is supposed to be an upward journey.