To awaken spiritual emotion rapidly, initially one needs to make constant efforts at the level of the mind and intellect. From Issue 232, we have been learning how to practice various types of the nine-fold devotion.

    In the last Issue, 235, we examined a type of the nine-fold devotion, namely service of The Lord’s Holy feet. Today we will discuss another type of the nine-fold devotion, namely offering. We will also read an example of a spiritual experience resulting from this type of devotion.

Developing spiritual emotion by Offering (archan)

    Ritualistic worship (puja) of The Lord, i.e., the Divine Principle that one worships, with faith, devotion and respect is called offering.

    To develop spiritual emotion towards a particular deity or Divine Principle, first one has to develop love for that Divine Principle. Worship of the manifest (physical) form of the Divine Principle, by performing ritualistic worship, helps to develop love for the Divine Principle faster than worshipping the unmanifest of the Divine Principle by chanting*. That is precisely why ritualistic worship, singing hymns, performing the ritual of moving lit lamps (aarti) before the image of the Divine Principle, etc., prove helpful in awakening spiritual emotion.

    Installing a picture of the Guru on the altar at home or worshipping Him mentally fall under this kind of devotion.

Guidance received while mentally worshipping His Holiness (H.H.) Dr. Jayant Athavale’s Feet

    During ritualistic worship every day, when the incense stick is lit, I used to not know how to put out the flame. Many times the incense stick would emit black smoke as its flame grew, and then I would put out the flame by shaking the incense stick vigorously.

    Every day, I try to worship H.H. Dr. Athavale’s Feet first thing after waking up. One day in February 2004, during this mental worship, as I lit the incense stick, H.H. Dr. Athavale noticed that I was shaking the incense stick vigorously. He mentioned that to get the incense stick to not emit black smoke, one should pray to it instead and circulate it gently. Later that morning during actual ritualistic worship at the altar, according to the guidance received during mental worship, I prayed to the incense stick. With the spiritual emotion that the incense stick is my fellow seeker, I circulated it gently around Lord Ganesh’s picture. Immediately, the flame went off and there was no black smoke. Instead the incense stick burned peacefully.

    Ever since, I have been wholeheartedly praying to the incense stick and all the tools used during ritualistic worship, such as to the clarified butter (ghee) used for lighting the lamp for worship to bring vibrations from the region of heaven (svargalok). I have also been feeling closeness with the tools used for ritualistic worship.