Puja

This is M performing her first puja (act of worship) at a mandir (temple) in New Friends Colony, Delhi, when she was two. The statue ('murti') represents the goddess Durga riding on the back of a lion.

I'm posting it because this morning we discovered, almost by accident, that we have a temple in our neighbourhood. The Vishva Shakti Durga Mandir is just around the corner, five minutes' walk away, in a small building which used to be an Orthodox Church. It's small, homely and rather charming, a contrast with the big temple a half-hour's drive south of Ottawa where we celebrated Diwali. I wish we'd found it sooner. As I said back in July, I'm not religious, but I find the cultural and spiritual grounding that religion affords very calming. After this morning's puja, this evening we'll be going to a carol service in the Anglican church at the end of the road. I'm looking forward to it, a lot, and I'm glad my daughter can experience these two important aspects of her cultural heritage.

I love Hinduism, it's non-proselytising, open, complicated, mysterious, exotic, and acts of worship involve incense, drums, bells, funky rhythms and the distribution of sweets to worshippers. What's not to like?? I've always been attracted to the ritual aspects of religion - whether it's the rakhi, thika and prashad (thread bracelet, crimson forehead mark and sweet offering) in puja or the wine, wafer and Latin chanting of mass. It's just so interesting.

Details: Minolta Dynax 5, 50mm lens, exposure not recorded. Vaishnav Devi Mandir, New Friends Colony, New Delhi, October 2003. Placemark (I think).