Why!!! go to the Temple?

Why!!! go to the Temple?

Well, being a hindu we believe in the Omnipresent. When God is in everyone, everything and everywhere, why go to the temple? This is a very logical question. When Krishna himself preach about Aham Brahmasmi, and Tatwamasi, why where the temples constructed in the first place?

ENERGY SIGNIFICANCE

Sun emits a large amount of heat energy, but is not enough to burn a piece of cloth by merely placing it in front. Amazingly the same piece of cloth can easily catch fire by merely placing a lens between the both. Similarly temples, where thousands of people visit with God in mind and prayers in lips profuse the “Power of Intentions” by unifying the nature's matrix of Kinetic energy (atoms of every single being in the zone), magnetic energy (copper, bronze, panchaloha (5 metal compound commonly used in idols, and metals existing in human bodies), sound energy (mantras), light energy (diya's, homa's, yaga's), and heat energy (diyas, homas).

GEOMETRIC AND ASTRONOMIC SIGNIFICANCE (Based on Sthapatya Veda and Brihat Samhita)

Temples are geometrically symmetric buildings incorporating elements of astronomy and sacred geometry and numerology. Temples represents the macrocosm of the universe paralleling the microcosm of the inner space (Yatha pinde thatha brahmanda) . The Structure of the temple is in the form of a Grand Mandala. Mandala is a sacred shape consisting of the intersection of circle and square. Square represents earth, and Circle represents the cosmos (no beginning and no end). The thirty two stars, the constellations that the moon passes through on its monthly course are all charted according to the placement of the vastu-mandala.

"The Vastu-Purusha-Mandala represents the manifested form of the Cosmic Being, upon which the temple is built and in whom the temple rests. The temple is situated in HIm, comes from Him, and is a manifestation of Him. The Vastu-Purusha-Mandala is both the body of the Cosmic Being and a bodily device by which those who have the requisite knowledge attain the best results in temple building." (Stella Kramrisch; The Hindu Temple, Vol. I). The temple also represents the subtle body with the seven psychic energy centers called Chakras.

Please refer http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Vastu_Shastra

The center spot (Manipura Chakra) is the most sacred spot in the temple-mandala, and is the constructed without pillars, or windows. The center spot falls on the belly button of the Vastu Purusha. It connects the earth to it's universal energy source just like an umbilical chord connecting a mother to her child. Vastu Purusha Mandala shows Brahma (Jiva or Panda) at the naval of the Vastu Purusha. The Sthapatya Veda enforces the extension of the cosmic architectural principles into every home, every village design and every city construction. The Vastu Purusha principle is applied to the construction of most of the houses in India, and several houses have an open midsection with a Tulsi plant in the center spot.

When a devotee is entering the temple, he is physically entering into the mandala which is electromagnetically active due to its geometric positioning. This is a power field by itself. When you are circling the four sides of the temple, you are circling your four ashramas – Brahmacharya, Grihastha, Vanaprastha, Sannyasa. This ashrama system help enrich four aims of life – Dharma (righteousness), Artha (wealth), Kama (pleasure), Moksha (Liberation). The circling around the four sides of the temple also represent the four phases of the spiritual evolution detailed in Yoga, namely the Waking State (Jagrat), The Dream State (Swapna), The the Deep Sleep ( Sushupti) and the Highest Awareness (Turiya).

Now the climax. Have you thought about the tall pyramid like structure called the Gopuram, or Shikhara, directly above the shrine? Mythically it represents Mountain Meru (the one which Krishna talks about in Gita, “In Mountains i'm Mount Meru”) the mythical mountain axis of the universe. Now think deeper : Is there an interesting correlation of “special ceremonies on auspicious days such as Pournami, Rohini, Ekadeshi, etc” to the geometric structure of the temple? Is the temple creating a Prism effect on to the beings under its surface? If Moon can effect the tides in the ocean, estrogen level in humans (highest during the full moon day), isn't it absurd to believe it's non-existence in the temple premises? If Moon alone can effect every object on the earth's surface, then how about the effects of the stars, and the sun, and rest of the planets? Is the temple acting as a “generator” channeling the energy, and a “transmission station” distributing it?

PSYCHOLOGICAL SIGNIFICANCE

The senses of humans approaching the area are engulfed in the ringing of the temples bells, and the chanting of the mantras, while the spirit of the crowd waiting to see the God enriches the soul. The fragrance in the temple is a form of aroma-therapy, while the prasad satisfies the belly and the nutritious needs of all that enters the temple. Thereby all the 5 senses are completely engaged in engulfing the beauty of “experiencing the God”.

Of course, you will find people gossiping, and you will obviously be distracted by a pretty lady loaded with gold ornaments passing by. But training your mind to concentrate is the purpose of our visit, and it becomes our duty to listen to what God has to say to you, rather than the temptations surrounding you. After all, growing spiritually involves taming your mind and building your will power, right?

Other Reasons

1. If we truly believe in the Omnipresent, how difficult is it to bow to an Idol? Why cant we develop the humility to see God in a medicinal plant such as Tulsi leaf, or a nourishing river like Ganga or an old black stone in your neighborhood temple? Unfortunately we are all bond by the Maya of Material! Yes, the Illusion of the material. Do you believe God is within you? If so, the atoms you are made of and the stone out of which the Idol is made of is one and the same... A little learning of chemistry would do the the trick here. Now, turning to a bit of psychology of humans, will it be ok if I through a rotten egg at a portrait of Mahatma Gandhi? Well then, if you can see a loving Bapu in a portrait, why cant we see the love of God. Why cannot we try to understand the true spirit of the actual message of God? - I'm everywhere...
2. A point of concentration – The Idol. Each idol carrying a specific personality, enable the devotee to concentrate on a particular quality of that idol. For example: when he prays to Lord Ganesha, he can concentrate on intelligence, clarity of thought, love to parents, and removal of obstacles. Likewise, when he prays to Goddess Lakshmi, the concentration is fixed on prosperity.
3. Social service: Temple donations going back to the community in the forms of anna-dhaanam (Mass Feeding), prasaadam, low cost community marriages and other social services. Every Utsav (festival) brings prosperity to the community surrounding each temple.
4. In South India, Men remove their shirts when they enter the temple. A man's bare body is exposed with all his flaws whether it is his big hairy body, or his big belly. He has to accept it and move on. Pride and self-consciousness is replaced by humility, and humbleness.
5. Now wearing shoes, and walking on bare stones :being close to mother earth, conducting yourself and grounding yourself into the energy field.
6. Many of the temples are located in remote areas that required long and hard travels (places like Sabarimala, Badarinath, Kedarnath, Gangotri, Yamunotri, etc). Treacherous roads, wild life hazards, and other hardships transforms the first glimpse of the God extremely memorable. A human's will power, devotion and perseveration is tested on this process. Those who do not want to wait for God probably would shy away from the long queues faced in most temples (I can never forget my wait to meet Lord Krishna, at Guruvayoor Temple, Kerala).
7. Temple (with few exceptions ofcourse!) are by far the most cleanest place in the thickly populated country such as India. At least, humans do not urinate, spit or pass faeces in the premises; with an exception of Elephants ( Elephant dung is known to contain phenolics and other complex chemical system that influence germination and seed growth, reference research paper: http://www.ias.ac.in/currsci/aug252002/374.pdf).
8. God is far far away, very far away, up in the heavens. Where is God? I cant see it, I cant touch it, I cant feel it, I cant sense it. Then how do I PRAY? Meditation? What would I Meditate on? Light? If so, how do I love the light? Do u feel a maternal love towards the light or is it a paternal love towards the light? Do u feel like respecting and bowing to the light? Have you fallen in love with the light? Well, what happens when u cannot focus on an Idol is, you loose the BOND. Most of us hindu's grow up with the Gods in our neighborhood. For my mother, Lord Krishna is her son, and she is Yashoda. For me Lord Krishna is a loving lad protecting me from heavy rains, and for my husband Lord Krishna is the unlimited sea of knowledge which inspires him to seek, and strategize. So just with one personality we were able to successfully build connections, and through connections meditations become easier. Now, does it make sense to pray to mere light...or will it be helpful to pray to a personality that you can meet everyday?

CONCLUSION

Temples may be made of bricks;

Circuits may be made of wires;

but once they are properly aligned;

they are CHARGED. (by srija)

It is very important to question the legitimacy of the primordial science, but it is more important to seek answers. Seek answers from within, seek answers from books, whatever it is, do become a seeker.