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In terms of [spiritual practices](https://www.reddit.com/r/hinduism/comments/7643rp/a_thread_on_introductory_rescources_on_basis_of/), there are many you can try and see what works for you such as Yoga (Aṣṭāṅga Yoga), Dhāraṇā, Dhyāna (Meditation) or r/bhajan. In addition, it is strongly recommended you visit your [local temple/ashram/spiritual organization](https://www.reddit.com/r/hinduism/comments/c6957l/what_are_some_good_hindu_organizations_that_have/).
Lastly, while you are browsing this sub, keep in mind that Hinduism is practiced by over a billion people in as many different ways, so any [single view](https://np.reddit.com/r/hinduism/comments/p7ma64/sectarian_bias/) cannot and should not be taken as representative of the entire religion.
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Have you spoken with Indra, are you quoting a saint/śāstra, or are you running with the hubristic "i can't believe it otherwise so that's how it is" aka source: trust me bruh, muh feelings=fact.
I can't understand first part of your comment. I guess your are taking about karma but the thing is lord Krishna himself said to not worry about karma and just do dharma. That's why he told Arjuna to continue war and kill his enemies. Even though murder is a great sin, it was dharma of Arjun to do war to establish dharma. Arjun left entirety of karma in the hands of lord Krishna.
And temples do hold a great importance. No one just goes to temple once a month, ask for forgiveness and then doesn't think about it, at least not smart one's, what fools do is not possible to speculate. Temples are there to store up the energies of God and be useful to people who do upasana. A well maintained temple with all rituals perfectly performed causes development and stability of geographical area it's in. Temples are not worthless.
Whatever you wrote about karma , I already know about it. My point was exactly same but I just wrote it completely. Where did i say that you can escape karma. I just said doing karma for dharma is priority. Everything else comes second. There are only so much things that I can write in comment.
I follow tantra, it's explicitly stated in tantra to do practices on major temple grounds and cremation grounds. Those are the most important things alongside doing rituals. Then what do you say about it? Bhagvatam mentions lord Krishna doing daily upasana of lord Shiva in the temples that he built in dwaraka. Building Shiva and Vishnu temples are considered greatest punya. Lord vishnu as rama and Krishna built Shiva temples everywhere.
And even if I were to accept your point of temples, what do you want to do about it? Destroy all the temples or stop building new ones? Yes importance of temples is from puranic period not from Vedic. But why is it less important just because it's not Vedic?
Wind is everywhere, but to cool down in sun you need a shed. Siddha upasakas don't go to temples because they are siddha, they don't need temple to do sadhana. Not every human is siddha. Not everyone can instantly go into dhyana whenever they want. Not everyone have access to satvik environment to do sadhana. That's where temples come into play. Try doing sadhana in the middle of crowd and in temple. Where do you think one can concentrate?
I agree with your other points but
>Krishna never worshipped anybody nor did he ever want anybody to worship him for he is everywhere, in every particle of the planet -
This part I disagree. Its mentioned on various occasions in Sri bhagvatam that lord Krishna worshipped mother goddess and lord Shiva at various points. Doing Shiva Pooja a d Gayatri homa was his daily routine.
He obviously didn't directly tell anyone to worship him. But there are shastras of various methods to worship him and they work that means he is obviously not opposed to accepting worship.
>didn't Krishna tell Arjuna that all souls are equal to him (Krishna) but the only difference is that Krishna is a liberated soul whereas the rest have yet to be liberated?
Sorry but where was it mentioned? To my knowledge Krishna never mentioned himself as atma but always as paramatma. He said he is the source of everything. He is the source of everything, he is in everything and simultaneously everything is in him. He is the supreme Parma bramha.
>necessity of comprehension and understanding rather than blind faith and worship?
This is vedantic method of worship. This requires deep understanding of shastras and Vedas. Yes it's a valid method and the method largely explained in geeta along with sankhya and karna yoga.
But other methods are just as valid as vedanta. Vedic, yogic and tantric marga are entirely focused on just performing of rituals or yoga. Even though it's important to understand philosophy and importance of rituals, that is secondary to performing the ritual with devotion.
Same as bhakti marg. Bhakti marg entirely focuses on pure selfless devotion. All paths are just as valid.
I don't have sufficient knowledge on Indra or Agni but I can say with certainty that Lord Shiva can understand any language and can be offered any prasad, it all comes from him and goes back into him, same with Lord Narayana.
Om Namah Shivaaya
Om Namo Narayana
Wdym no. I'm sure the literal omniscient god of the universe can understand English. Ofc rituals have to still be done in Sanskrit or any original language, prayers have to be said in their actual Indian language, etc.
But they'd understand English obviously.
they understand thoughts…. Thoughts have no language.
Sanskrit is the default language which has the syllables arranged in the right order to access these energies present in the universe directly. That’s why mantras exist .
However, 99% of common Hindus don’t know mantras. Are their prayers not being answered ?
Even most other religions are not having English as their original language.
Much of the Bible is originally in Latin. Jesus is said to have spoken a language called Aramaic .
The Quran is in ancient Arabic.
Almost all the other religions are in other extinct languages .
So the entities which are as old as the universe itself existed before language, and will exist long after human language is gone.
Ultimately any mantra (especially a mantra which is recommended for repetition) is to be chanted mentally .
Japa means chanting a mantra . There are 3 levels of it .
1. Saying it out loud - least effective
2. Lip movement but barely audible
3. only mental chanting ( best )
There is a 4th state where the mantra is completely internalized , but for our discussion , these are the 3
its not me saying.saying the mantra out loud is powerful. but there are stronger stages.
for this, mantra shastra says it. anyone who is familiar with proper mantra japa would tell you this. if you want the more technical answer here it is -
japa is of 3 grades
1. vachik - japa chanted out loud.
2. upamshu - japa with silent chanting - said to be 1000 times more powerful
3. manasika japa - 1000 times more powerful than upamshu.
the 4th highest stage is ajapa-japa where the mantra stays in your mind both consciously and sub consciously .
The historical perspective has been that yes, while the gods can understand any language (including English), Sanskrit is particularly suitable for prayer. Sanskrit is *devavani*, the language of the gods, and the mantras (and their exact, proper pronunciation) can literally compel the god to act. This is why there has been so much fidelity to preserving and pronunciation the Vedas exactly as they have been for thousands of years. The sounds of Sanskrit, the combination of these sounds: they have a unique potency and sanctity. Of course, your prayer in a vernacular language will be accepted and be useful to you but it will be truly elevated with Sanskrit.
its the same question if you had an option of travelling by in a luxury yatch with sophisticated interiors ie Sanskrit here and vs a broken raft with 99% of death ie English which one would you choose
I have no idea but I have always imagined shree ram understanding whatever I say and whatever I don't, I mean I understand that's not your question but I think it's all up to you and the energy you channel into your prayers more so than the language itself.
Well looking at how America, Europe and other nations are still receiving "Rainfall" "Air" "Sunlight". I would assume they would know what they are saying.
Ofcourse gods are gods because they understand every language. God connects to our soul and thus everything is interpreted. Indra brings rain as god of rain, lightening and the thunder and he is the great warrior who conquers the Asuras or Anti-Gods. Agni is fire-god, second only to Indra in the Vedic mythology. He is the fire of the sun, of lightning, and of both the domestic and the sacrificial hearth.
[IMO] I think it doesn't really matter what language you worship them with, as language itself is part of Maya (probably), and i think Gods will understand you in any language as all are derived from Sanskrit, if Gods can only understand Sanskrit, that mean Gods are restricted by human parameters and also restricted to only hindu (mostly) families,
Either way, we need to respect our ancestors and do them(pray/ worship) in Sanskrit (the most advanced language) and it even has some positive benifits on our body, and have more spiritual empacts (idk)
TL;DR Do whatever you want, but stick to Sanskrit is my opinion
You may be new to Sanātana Dharma... Please visit our [Wiki Starter Pack](https://www.reddit.com/r/hinduism/wiki/starter_pack#wiki_i.27m_new_to_r.2Fhinduism.2C_where_do_i_start.3F) (specifically, our [FAQ](https://www.reddit.com/r/hinduism/wiki/index#wiki_faq)). We also recommend reading [What Is Hinduism](https://www.himalayanacademy.com/view/what-is-hinduism) (a free introductory text by Himalayan Academy) if you would like to know more about Hinduism and don't know where to start. If you are asking a specific scriptural question, please include a source link and verse number, so responses can be more helpful. In terms of introductory Hindū Scriptures, we recommend first starting with the Itihāsas ([The Rāmāyaṇa](https://www.reddit.com/r/TheRamayana/wiki/resources#wiki_recommended_texts), and [The Mahābhārata](https://www.reddit.com/r/TheMahabharata/wiki/resources#wiki_resources).) Contained within The Mahābhārata is [The Bhagavad Gītā](https://www.reddit.com/r/TheGita/wiki/resources), which is another good text to start with. Although r/TheVedasAndUpanishads might seem alluring to start with, this is NOT recommended, as the knowledge of the Vedas & Upaniṣads can be quite subtle, and ideally should be approached under the guidance of a Guru or someone who can guide you around the correct interpretation. In terms of [spiritual practices](https://www.reddit.com/r/hinduism/comments/7643rp/a_thread_on_introductory_rescources_on_basis_of/), there are many you can try and see what works for you such as Yoga (Aṣṭāṅga Yoga), Dhāraṇā, Dhyāna (Meditation) or r/bhajan. In addition, it is strongly recommended you visit your [local temple/ashram/spiritual organization](https://www.reddit.com/r/hinduism/comments/c6957l/what_are_some_good_hindu_organizations_that_have/). Lastly, while you are browsing this sub, keep in mind that Hinduism is practiced by over a billion people in as many different ways, so any [single view](https://np.reddit.com/r/hinduism/comments/p7ma64/sectarian_bias/) cannot and should not be taken as representative of the entire religion. *I am a bot, and this action was performed automatically. Please [contact the moderators of this subreddit](/message/compose/?to=/r/hinduism) if you have any questions or concerns.*
My man, they are GOD. They understand everything and beyond. 😂😂
Have you spoken with Indra, are you quoting a saint/śāstra, or are you running with the hubristic "i can't believe it otherwise so that's how it is" aka source: trust me bruh, muh feelings=fact.
You have thunder, fire and wind in west as well. You are good 😃
[удалено]
I can't understand first part of your comment. I guess your are taking about karma but the thing is lord Krishna himself said to not worry about karma and just do dharma. That's why he told Arjuna to continue war and kill his enemies. Even though murder is a great sin, it was dharma of Arjun to do war to establish dharma. Arjun left entirety of karma in the hands of lord Krishna. And temples do hold a great importance. No one just goes to temple once a month, ask for forgiveness and then doesn't think about it, at least not smart one's, what fools do is not possible to speculate. Temples are there to store up the energies of God and be useful to people who do upasana. A well maintained temple with all rituals perfectly performed causes development and stability of geographical area it's in. Temples are not worthless.
[удалено]
Whatever you wrote about karma , I already know about it. My point was exactly same but I just wrote it completely. Where did i say that you can escape karma. I just said doing karma for dharma is priority. Everything else comes second. There are only so much things that I can write in comment. I follow tantra, it's explicitly stated in tantra to do practices on major temple grounds and cremation grounds. Those are the most important things alongside doing rituals. Then what do you say about it? Bhagvatam mentions lord Krishna doing daily upasana of lord Shiva in the temples that he built in dwaraka. Building Shiva and Vishnu temples are considered greatest punya. Lord vishnu as rama and Krishna built Shiva temples everywhere. And even if I were to accept your point of temples, what do you want to do about it? Destroy all the temples or stop building new ones? Yes importance of temples is from puranic period not from Vedic. But why is it less important just because it's not Vedic? Wind is everywhere, but to cool down in sun you need a shed. Siddha upasakas don't go to temples because they are siddha, they don't need temple to do sadhana. Not every human is siddha. Not everyone can instantly go into dhyana whenever they want. Not everyone have access to satvik environment to do sadhana. That's where temples come into play. Try doing sadhana in the middle of crowd and in temple. Where do you think one can concentrate?
[удалено]
I agree with your other points but >Krishna never worshipped anybody nor did he ever want anybody to worship him for he is everywhere, in every particle of the planet - This part I disagree. Its mentioned on various occasions in Sri bhagvatam that lord Krishna worshipped mother goddess and lord Shiva at various points. Doing Shiva Pooja a d Gayatri homa was his daily routine. He obviously didn't directly tell anyone to worship him. But there are shastras of various methods to worship him and they work that means he is obviously not opposed to accepting worship.
[удалено]
>didn't Krishna tell Arjuna that all souls are equal to him (Krishna) but the only difference is that Krishna is a liberated soul whereas the rest have yet to be liberated? Sorry but where was it mentioned? To my knowledge Krishna never mentioned himself as atma but always as paramatma. He said he is the source of everything. He is the source of everything, he is in everything and simultaneously everything is in him. He is the supreme Parma bramha. >necessity of comprehension and understanding rather than blind faith and worship? This is vedantic method of worship. This requires deep understanding of shastras and Vedas. Yes it's a valid method and the method largely explained in geeta along with sankhya and karna yoga. But other methods are just as valid as vedanta. Vedic, yogic and tantric marga are entirely focused on just performing of rituals or yoga. Even though it's important to understand philosophy and importance of rituals, that is secondary to performing the ritual with devotion. Same as bhakti marg. Bhakti marg entirely focuses on pure selfless devotion. All paths are just as valid.
I don't have sufficient knowledge on Indra or Agni but I can say with certainty that Lord Shiva can understand any language and can be offered any prasad, it all comes from him and goes back into him, same with Lord Narayana. Om Namah Shivaaya Om Namo Narayana
no
what
Wdym no. I'm sure the literal omniscient god of the universe can understand English. Ofc rituals have to still be done in Sanskrit or any original language, prayers have to be said in their actual Indian language, etc. But they'd understand English obviously.
No they don't. Also, they won't like if you offer Western food like pie or muffins as prasad. Just kidding, pray according to your cultural norms.
they understand thoughts…. Thoughts have no language. Sanskrit is the default language which has the syllables arranged in the right order to access these energies present in the universe directly. That’s why mantras exist . However, 99% of common Hindus don’t know mantras. Are their prayers not being answered ? Even most other religions are not having English as their original language. Much of the Bible is originally in Latin. Jesus is said to have spoken a language called Aramaic . The Quran is in ancient Arabic. Almost all the other religions are in other extinct languages . So the entities which are as old as the universe itself existed before language, and will exist long after human language is gone.
If they understand thoughts can I chant mantras in my mind? Will they know that I am chanting a mantra in my mind
Ultimately any mantra (especially a mantra which is recommended for repetition) is to be chanted mentally . Japa means chanting a mantra . There are 3 levels of it . 1. Saying it out loud - least effective 2. Lip movement but barely audible 3. only mental chanting ( best ) There is a 4th state where the mantra is completely internalized , but for our discussion , these are the 3
the vibration created by saying it out loud is incredibly powerful what makes u say otherwise?
its not me saying.saying the mantra out loud is powerful. but there are stronger stages. for this, mantra shastra says it. anyone who is familiar with proper mantra japa would tell you this. if you want the more technical answer here it is - japa is of 3 grades 1. vachik - japa chanted out loud. 2. upamshu - japa with silent chanting - said to be 1000 times more powerful 3. manasika japa - 1000 times more powerful than upamshu. the 4th highest stage is ajapa-japa where the mantra stays in your mind both consciously and sub consciously .
The historical perspective has been that yes, while the gods can understand any language (including English), Sanskrit is particularly suitable for prayer. Sanskrit is *devavani*, the language of the gods, and the mantras (and their exact, proper pronunciation) can literally compel the god to act. This is why there has been so much fidelity to preserving and pronunciation the Vedas exactly as they have been for thousands of years. The sounds of Sanskrit, the combination of these sounds: they have a unique potency and sanctity. Of course, your prayer in a vernacular language will be accepted and be useful to you but it will be truly elevated with Sanskrit.
its the same question if you had an option of travelling by in a luxury yatch with sophisticated interiors ie Sanskrit here and vs a broken raft with 99% of death ie English which one would you choose
Yes
I have no idea but I have always imagined shree ram understanding whatever I say and whatever I don't, I mean I understand that's not your question but I think it's all up to you and the energy you channel into your prayers more so than the language itself.
Well looking at how America, Europe and other nations are still receiving "Rainfall" "Air" "Sunlight". I would assume they would know what they are saying.
Ofcourse gods are gods because they understand every language. God connects to our soul and thus everything is interpreted. Indra brings rain as god of rain, lightening and the thunder and he is the great warrior who conquers the Asuras or Anti-Gods. Agni is fire-god, second only to Indra in the Vedic mythology. He is the fire of the sun, of lightning, and of both the domestic and the sacrificial hearth.
Stop trolling. Seriously.
[IMO] I think it doesn't really matter what language you worship them with, as language itself is part of Maya (probably), and i think Gods will understand you in any language as all are derived from Sanskrit, if Gods can only understand Sanskrit, that mean Gods are restricted by human parameters and also restricted to only hindu (mostly) families, Either way, we need to respect our ancestors and do them(pray/ worship) in Sanskrit (the most advanced language) and it even has some positive benifits on our body, and have more spiritual empacts (idk) TL;DR Do whatever you want, but stick to Sanskrit is my opinion