Bhadrapad Shuddha Dwadashi
Canada: Students at Mississauga Ram Mandir celebrated Saraswati puja Monday, Sept. 1, just before the start of the new academic year. Hindus worship Maa Saraswati as the goddess of arts, knowledge and wisdom.
Since there are so many students coming to Shree Ram Mandir, it is always a big celebration.
It is a common belief that a prayer must be offered to the goddess for her blessing so that the rest of the mission proceeds without incident. The prayer starts with the cleansing the feet of Goddess Maa Sarawati with water.
Pandit Roopnauth Sharma and Pandit Ram Prashad led the ceremony, symbolically washing their hands with the water. Maa Saraswati was then prayed to and given offerings. Sweet drink, water, incense, a clean piece of cloth, flower petals, change and fruits and vegetables were offered.
Just before the ceremony’s end, the participants stood up and turned to their right three times to absolve themselves of their sins.
An integral part of the ceremony is the worship of instruments, textbooks, laptops and other means of learning one’s skills or practising one’s trade, and these were laid out on the floor next to the altar.
More than 150 young school going children along with their parents assembled here and offered aarti – puja before starting their new classes, as it is considered that the Goddess herself is blessing the books and the instruments. Goddess Saraswati represents intelligence, consciousness, cosmic knowledge, creativity, education, enlightenment, music, arts, and power. She is not only worshipped for secular knowledge, but for the true divine knowledge essential to achieve moksha (salvation).
On this occasion Nitya Puja Book was given to all students. In the evening many adults brought with them, instruments, laptops and music textbooks which were also blessed as a part of the Saraswati Puja ceremony.
Source: South Asian Focus
