Malaysians are suddenly witnessing a sudden growth of home shrines among most of its Hindu devotees. Home shrine seems to be taking a centre-point with the style and creativity of the worship place and affordability of the home owner.
As usually said, the heart of every Hindu home is its shrine: the sacred space set apart for honoring and worshiping the gods. While a particularly devout Hindu may visit a temple every day, others go there only to request a favor of the deity, to fulfill specific vows, or on festival days. The pujas that take place in the household shrine are the foundation of all family actions and decisions. Temple worship requires the intervention of a priest, but in the home the contact between devotee and deity is direct.
The size and decoration of a household shrine do not matter. The shrine may be large and impressive, an entire room or a beautifully designed edifice, or it may be simply a tiny niche, or even just a row of religious prints pasted on a wall.
Although children grow up following family beliefs, they are encouraged as young adults to make their own choices of which gods or goddesses they find personally inspiring.
Consequently, household shrines contain images of deities that pertain to the belief systems of all a home's inhabitants, and it is not uncommon to find several small individual shrines in one household.
Puja is usually performed by at least one member of the household every day. Puja is a means of honoring the gods or goddesses, whose presence in the home is believed to protect the family and to engender good fortune. The paraphernalia used include an incense burner and a tray with flowers, fruits, and food.
These are photos and videos of a home shrine recently constructed by a Hindu friend and devotee, Mr Kumeran from Forest Heights, Rahang, Seremban, Negeri Sembilan, Malaysia, who had successfully held his home shrine kumbabishekam on 3 September 2016.
- photos and videos taken by Mr. M. Sukumaran, Ms. G. Kokila and Mr Prasad C.K. Kannan
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