Issue 2

Lamp Deepa Jyoti Worship Procedure - Part 1 [Based on the book Subha Mangala Deepa Mahima by the Arunachala Siddha, Sathguru Venkataraman published in the early 1980s. Even though lamp jyoti worship is a very easy spiritual practice, it is very potent in bringing mangala shakti (the power of auspiciousness) to us.] CONTENTS Inviting God into our homes The Lamp Jothi and The Lord of the Universe For every man and woman What kind of lamps to use Roll your own... wick! Which Oil to Use Two Wicks at a minimum More than two wicks is good The Ideal Time! "Cooling" the Lamp Jyoti What do the Lamp, Wick, Oil and Light mean? The Deep Symbolism! How Incense Helps Dhoopam (Frankincense) Pitrus and Lamp Deepa Jyoti Book on Lamp Deepa Jyoti Worship How to make your own lamp joti How to make ghee to light your lamp joti How to make wicks for your deepa joti Inviting God into our homes Woudln't it be nice if we can just invite God into our houses? Wouldn't all of us do it if it was possible? Is there an easy way to do this? Yes, there is, say the Siddhas. The Siddhas say that lamp jothi worship is one of the simplest ways of literally inviting God into our houses. The Lamp Jothi and the Lord of the Universe How is this possible, one may ask. As we have described elsewhere, Sri Arunachala is the primeval, all encompassing, first and foremost jothi in the universe. Every jothi in the universe is part and parcel of Sri Arunachala. Thus the simple lamp jothi that we light in our houses is also a representation of Sri Arunachala. More importantly, if you do this with love and an attitude of surrender to Sri Arunachala, the great Lord will personally become present in the jothi for you. Since Sri Arunachala is present in the lamp jothi, it's not just a flickering flame anymore; it's the Lord of the Universe who has personally made himself available to you in your house. This is the secret behind lamp jothi worship. Hence the Siddhas insist that every man and woman must perform this worship procedure everyday. For every man and woman Lamp jothi worship is one of the simplest procedures available to humans. It's so simple that even those who are not familiar with it can learn it in just a few minutes. But let not the simplicity fool you; it's one of the most potent spiritual practices there is. Sathguru Venkataraman has simplified this worship procedure so that every human around the world can practice it easily. Every man and woman in every part of the world must observe this practice everyday without fail. What kind of lamps to use The Siddhas say that earthen lamps and lamps made out of brass, bronze, copper, silver or gold are the ones that are ideal for lamp jothi worship. It is also easy to make your own lamp jotis. To start with, light your lamp jothis using sesame oil (available in Indian grocery stores around the world) and wicks made out of cotton. First pour the oil in the lamp and then place the wick in it. If you can't get sesame oil, you can easily make ghee for lighting your lamp joti. Roll your own... wick! If you can not get ready made cotton wicks, you may roll your own using cotton balls. You can place a thin strand of cotton between the palms of your hands and roll it into a wick. You may have to repeat the procedure many times before you get a wick that's ready for use. It's a Siddha injunction that when you do this, you should roll the cotton in one direction only, not in both directions. Which Oil to Use Is this all there's to it? Not quite. We need to understand that the Siddhas have provided a lot of details on what kinds of oil and wicks that one may use in lamp jothi worship. For example, there's an oil known as the pancha deepa oil which is made by combining five different oils. Using this in lamp jothi worship is particularly effective. We'll provide these details at a later date in this Website. Two Wicks at a minimum Lamp jothi worship is full of symbolism. We hear people using the expression, "A light has left this world", when some one passes away. This expression has much meaning in the spiritual world. The soul is know an aatma jothi. Thus the jothi is representative of the soul. Since the family unit is centered around a woman and a man, Sathguru Venkataraman says that we must light a minimum of two lamp jothis in this worship procedure, one to represent the woman and the other to represent the man, thus symbolizing the family unit which is fundamental in spirituality. It's ideal if you can light two lamps with a wick in each, but if you want to make do with just one lamp, then light two wicks in that lamp. More than two wicks is good Can we light more than two lamps? More than two wicks in a lamp? Yes, say the Siddhas. The more the merrier. For example, a lamp with five wicks is very effective. We'll explain this in detail at a later date on this Website. The Ideal Time! When can one perform lamp jothi worship? In the ideal case, it should be done twenty four hours a day, according to the Siddhas. But if you can't do that, make sure you do it in the morning, noon and evening. If you can't do that either, do it at least in the morning and evening. If not, definitely in the evening. The basic rule is that the longer the lamp jothi is lit in your house everyday, the more spiritual your house will be. "Cooling" the Lamp Jyoti The Siddhas insist that the spiritual aspirant must never allow the oil to run out in the lamp. Always ensure that there enough oil in the lamp for the jothi. When you think it's time to cool the jothi, drag the wick by its tail portion into the oil while saying Om Saantha Svaroopine Namaha. This is the proper procedure for cooling the jothi. What do the Lamp, Wick, Oil and Light mean? As we have remarked above, lamp jothi worship is full of symbolism. Here's one of many pointed out by Sathguru Venkataraman: lamp = body, wick = Sathguru, oil = faith, light = God. What does this mean? It means that if you have faith in the Sathguru, you'll see God. This is a fundamentally profound symbolism in jothi worship taught by the Arunachala Siddha, Sathguru Venkataraman. How Incense Helps Closely associated with lamp jothi worship is the use of incense sticks in worship. Light a minimum of two incense sticks along with your lamp jothis. Once again the more the merrier. Sathguru Venkataraman has repeatedly said that lamp jothis and incense have the power to neutralize negative forces since they bring the divine inside your house. They are a simple way of marshalling the divine force to drive away the negative forces from your house. Do negative forces exist? Yes, say the Siddhas. They are the forces that act as obstacles on the spiritual path. The world is beset with these forces but the Siddhas have provided us with ways and means of combating them. We must learn to use these techniques diligently from the Sathguru so that our spiritual progress is not marred. Dhoopam (Frankincense) The Siddhas say that they brought doopam (frankincense) from the world of Devas to us so that we humans can benefit from its deep spiritual properties. Doopam has the power to drive away negative forces and ensure a peaceful, spritual atmosphere. Doopam is an ideal offering to God. Doopam in jeeva samadhi (the tomb shrines of Siddhas) can solve a lot of our material and spiritual problems. Pitrus and Lamp Deepa Jyoti The pithrus (ancestral beings with great spiritual power who are responsible for the spiritual welfare of those souls that are part of their blood lines) also can make themselves present in the lamp jothi. When the pithrus are present in your house, they will bless you with contentment and peace of mind. Wherever they go, they bring goodwill and peace with them. This is why Sathguru Venkataraman says that you must light lamp jothis before entertaining guests for lunch or dinner. Your pithrus and your guests' pithrus will become present in the lamp jothis and bless both you and your guests with peace and goodwill. We all know that the one thing we can't buy in any shop anywhere is peace. But when the Sathguru has provided a simple technique for achieving peace of mind, why search for it? Follow this simple practice and reap the rewards. More on this later. Book on Lamp Deepa Jyoti Worship There are a lot more Siddha secrets on the topic of lamp deepa jyotis. Sathguru Venkataraman has spoken extensively on this topic under the title Subha Mangala Deepa Mahimai. These Siddha revelations on Lamp Deepa Jyoti worship were first published in book form in the early 1980s more than 25 years ago. You can get this book at the Agasthiar Ashram in Arunachala and in the Ashram store.

How to make your own lamp jotis
How to make ghee for lighting your lamp joti
How to make wicks for your lamp joti.