Yesterday was Saraswati Pooja. Saraswati is the goddess of learning, so on Sarasvati Pooja, all institutions of learning have special poojas to Saraswati to bless the students and their studies. Anyone who participates in Saraswati Pooja is supposed to refrain from studying at all on that day to honor the goddess. Since we were refraining from studying, we all went out to the nearby movie theater to see Agnipath (“The path of fire”), a remake of a 1990s Amitabh Bachchhan movie. It was ok, I thought it was really violent; the director made every scene of the movie into an EPIC scene but not always with an EPIC reason behind the epicness.
We have also started studying Arabic with a young man who works in a madrassa, a school where children are taught Arabic, Urdu, and the Koran. We had our first lesson in a park outside a Hindu temple, which I thought was funny.
Kate and I, excited for the puja to start.
The pujari (Hindu priest) setting up a room in our program house for the Saraswati puja.
Vimal ji, our Hindi teacher, acting as the yajnamana (the main beneficiary/representative of household i.e. our program) over the agni yajna (fire sacrifice).
The sacrificial fire is lit.
Everyone goes to take blessings from the sacrificial fire.
Zach during the puja.
Saraswati ji.
Elin ,I received youe card the other day. It was great to hear from you!Oh the experience you must be having! U.Doug
ReplyDeleteOh the experience you would have if you came and visited me!!!!!! :D
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