Fire Ritual Manual Fire Ritual Manual

Secret of Tantric Rituals

General Procedures

Construct the fire place, arrange the setting, and gather all the ingredients and utensils before you begin. Once you sit down and begin the ceremony, you’ll need to stay seated until you are finished; rising only if necessary to tend the fire.

Building a Fireplace (Kunda) The fireplace, or kunda, should be located and sized to suit your circumstances and the nature of the practice. See Preparations for Fire Rituals (video), and the lecture Tantric Method of Building a Sacred Fire for more information. In urban settings for a small fire, you may use a fire grate, or other free-standing fire bowls. Make sure the grate or bowl is clean, and if possible, dedicated to fire rituals only. A larger kunda is needed for larger fires involving several people making offerings at the same time.

Ritual Ingredients (Samagri and Ghee)

Ghee (clarified butter): You’ll need about 1-1.5 cups of ghee to make offerings to Agni at the beginning of the ritual. You can make your own or purchase from most natural foods stores. Heat the ghee before use, so it will pour easily.

Samagri Samagri (mixture of grains and herbs for fire offerings) is best mixed fresh right before the ceremony. If necessary, you can mix the grains and herbs ahead of time, store them in a clean air tight container, and mix in the ghee right before use. Check Middle Eastern and Indian grocery stores for reasonably priced black sesame and ghur. Substitute sugar for ghur if needed. All ingredients should be edible quality, clean and whole; (don’t use cracked barley).

Simple Samagri Recipe for Fire Offerings 8 cups black sesame seeds 1 c. rice or barley 1 c. ghur, (raw sugar) 1.5 c. ghee (enough to moisten the mixture)

Other readily available ingredients which you may add to the basic recipe: Dates Raisins Puffed lotus seeds Sandalwood powder Roses (dried, need a hot fire and to dip in ghee if fresh) Honey Coconut (dried) Agar, Eaglewood, Aquilaria agallocha Tagara, Waxflower Eryatamia coronaria Deodar, Cedrus diodara Guggul, Commiphora mukul

©Himalayan Institute, 2010 p. 2 Fire Ritual Manual

Clove, Caryophyllus aromaticus Kapur, Camphor Cinnamomum camphora Chandan, sandal Santallum album Nagar motha, nutgrass Cyprus rotundus Use camphor in very small proportion.

Himalayan Institute Samagri This is the recipe used at the Himalayan Institute.

Base x5 Base Recipe

5 cups rice 1 cup rice 10 cups barley 2 cups barley 20 cups sesame seed 4 cups sesame seed 40 cups dronaparni 8 cups dronaparni 2.5 cups apamarga ½ cup apamarga 2.5 cups sugar ½ cup sugar 2 cups roses ½ cup rose petals, dried 2 cups bilva fruit ½ cup bilva fruit, chopped and dried 1.5 cups ghee ghee to moisten

Yield: 1 bucket = 60 cups 12 cups

The apamarga and dronaparni are Ayurvedic herbs imported from our campus in Allahabad, India. Bilva fruit is also native to India and imported from our Allahabad campus.

Utensils For larger kundas, fireplace utensils like pokers are useful for arranging the wood in the kunda. You’ll also need a whisk broom and dust pan for cleaning up after the ritual. Use dedicated, clean bowls (stainless steel bowls are ideal) for the ritual offerings (samagri). For larger rituals, one person may be dedicated to keeping the bowls filled as the ceremony proceeds. At the end of the ceremony, the officiator offers all the samagri and ghee left in the bowls as the final offering(s). Use a dedicated clean stainless steel bowl or equivalent for the ghee. Offer the ghee with a dedicated clean wooden spoon. (Preheat the ghee so it pours easily.) You will also need: Wooden matches to light the fire. A pitcher of water for the purification mantras. A couple of clean hand towels.

Wood Use clean, dry, well-seasoned wood, cut to fit your kunda. You’ll need kindling or small sticks to get the fire started, and bigger sticks or logs, depending on the size of the kunda. Wood from fruit trees is particularly favored. Pine is resinous and makes good kindling, but tends to

©Himalayan Institute, 2010 p. 3 Fire Ritual Manual spark and therefore is not best for maintaining the fire. Avoid using any wood with insect damage, rot, or mold; or that has been treated with chemicals, stained, painted, nailed, etc. Place a large log (or stick for small fires) in the kunda as the base. Stack four logs in a square around the foundation log. Arrange the logs away from the sides of the kunda, and loosely stacked to allow air flow. Crumple clean, dry paper on top of the logs. (A small amount of camphor may be substituted for the paper, especially for small fires).

Guidelines for Offering Remove your shoes before entering the offering area. Do not bring food, drink, or any other items other than those used for the ceremony into ritual space. Sit in a designated space around the havan kunda. Use cushions or folded blankets for ease and comfort. Avoid pointing your feet at the fire. Offer only the selected ingredients to the fire. Avoid smelling and carelessly handling the ingredients. Do not offer spilled ingredients to the fire. Offer a pinch of the samagri with the recitation of "Svaha." Take a pinch using your thumb, middle and ring fingers (do not use the index finger), and gently offer it to the fire with your hand palm up.

Mantras for Fire Rituals Begin with a brief explanation if others are taking part in the ceremony. When everyone is seated and settled, begin with the following mantras.

1) Invocation of auspicious forces: (Scatter a few grains of rice or other grains as you recite the following mantras.) ॐ मगलं ं भगवान िवः् ु mangalaṁ bhagavān viṣhṇuḥ May the all-pervading Divine Being bring into our lives all that which is auspicious. मगलं ं गणजः। mangalaṁ garuṇadhvajaḥ | May the Divine Being with Garuna as his flag bring into our lives all that which is auspicious. मगलं ं पण्डरीकाक्षःु mangalaṁ puṇḍarīkākṣhaḥ May the Divine Being with his lotus-eyes bring into our lives all that which is auspicious. मगलायतनों हिरः॥ mangalāyatano hariḥ || May the Divine Being, the delight of our soul, bring into our lives all that which is auspicious.

2) Purification of the surroundings. Sprinkle water using a spoon, a flower, or a few blades of grass as you recite the following:

©Himalayan Institute, 2010 p. 4 Fire Ritual Manual

ॐ अपिवऽः पिवऽो वा सवावार् ं गतोऽिप वा। यः रे ण्डरीकाक्षु ं स बाारः शिचः॥ु om apavitraḥ pavitro vā sarvā-vasthāṁ gato'pi vā | yaḥ smaret-puṇḍarīkākṣaṁ sa bāhyābhyantaraḥ śhuchiḥ ||

May we, whether pure or impure, in all situations and circumstances, achieve both inner and outer purity by remembering the divine name of the lotus-eyed all-pervading Divinity.

3) Asking negative forces in the surroundings to leave: ॐ अपसपर् ु त े भताःू om apasarpantu te bhūtāḥ य े भताःू भिमसू िताःं ye bhūtāḥ bhūmi-saṁsthitāḥ य े भताःू िवकतारःर् ye bhūtāḥ vighna-kartāraḥ त े ग ु िशवाज्ञया te gacchantu śhivājñayā

ॐ म फट् ् om hūm phaṭ (with clap) May all forces residing in this location and posing any form of obstacle, leave this place in compliance with the ordinance of Shiva.

4) Now recite the Vishve Deva Sukta, an invocation for the group of 33 divinities—all the forces of nature. Or, in place of the Vishve Deva Sukta, recite three times: िवदे वाे इह आगताम ् viśhvedevā iha āgamyatām

5) Now you are ready to start the fire with the Agni Hotra Mantras. Light the fire with a wooden match, recite the two mantras for lighting and seating the fire.

To light the fire and place the fire in the kunda: ॐ भभू वःर्ु सविरव् भाू पृिथवीव विरा।

ता े पृिथिव दवयजिने पृ े अि ं अाद ं अााय आदध॥े

om bhūr-bhuvaḥ svaḥ-dyauriva bhūmnā pṛithivīva varimṇā|

©Himalayan Institute, 2010 p. 5 Fire Ritual Manual

tasyāste pṛithivi deva-yajani pṛiṣhṭhe agniṁ annādaṁ annādyāya ādadhe||

Om, bhūr-bhuvaḥ svah. This kunda, in plentitude as grand as heaven, in grandeur as great as the earth, O Fire, this altar is your locus. This is your home. Here I invoke and invite the sacred fire. I place you here for the welfare of those who receive their sustenance from food.

To bring the fire to life: ॐ उदब् धु या् े परित् जागिहृ तविमाप् तू  ससृजं थामये ं च।

अिनसध् े अतु तरिन् िव् े दवाे यजमानशच् सीदत॥

om ud-budhya-svāgne prati jāgṛihi tvam-iṣhṭā-pūrte saṁ- sṛijethām-ayaṁ ca| asmin-sadhasthe adhyuttar-asmin viśhve devā yajamānaśh-ca sīdata||

O Sacred Fire, please awaken. In turn awaken us. Please create the environment within and without conducive to rituals. Please reside in this hall of rituals. With you, may all gods, all divinities, and all beneficiaries of rituals reside in this ceremonial hall.

Add the kindling or smaller sticks along with ghee as you recite the third mantra for lighting the fire (below). You may recite this mantra several times as needed, with ghee, to ignite the sticks and nourish the fire. Then proceed with the Agni Sukta or equivalent.

To nourish and feed the fire while offering sticks: ॐ अय ं त इधम् आा जातवदे ने धे यस् व् वरधस् व् चदे ध् वरधय् चाान प् रजया् पशिभबु रहर् ् मवर् चस् ने अाने समधये ाहा ॥

om ayaṁ ta idhma ātmā jātavedas-tenedhyasva vardhasva ceddha vardhaya chāsmān prajayā paśhubhir-brahma-varchasena annādyena samedhaya svāhā ||

This stick is your soul. O Jatavedas Agni, with these sticks may you grow ever larger. May you make performers and participants of rituals grow and prosper. May our sources of nourishment, our cattle, and everybody and everything which is a part of the web of life, prosper. May you enlighten our inner and outer world with the radiance of Brahma Varjas—the purest and highest form of knowledge. With your help and guidance and support, may everyone and everything prosper and attain their purpose of living and being.

©Himalayan Institute, 2010 p. 6 Fire Ritual Manual

6) Make offerings to Agni, the sacred fire, with ghee, reciting the Agni Sukta, or repeat the following mantra three times in place of Agni Sukta: ॐ अय े ाहा om agnaye svāhā

7) General set of offerings to make before the main offerings. Make an offering of ghee with each of the following mantras:

ॐ गणशािदे पदवताोे नमः ाहा om gaṇeśhādi pañcha-devatābhyo namaḥ svāhā Homage to Ganesha, etc., the five divinities.

ॐ इािद दशिदालेो नमः ाहा om indrādi daśha-dikpālebhyo namaḥ svāhā Homage to Indra, etc., protectors of the ten directions.

ॐ आिदािद नवमहोे नमः ाहा om ādityādi nava-grahebhyo namaḥ svāhā Homage to the Sun, etc., the nine planets.

ॐ यज्ञराये ौीिवव े नमः ाहा om yagyeśh-varāya śhrī-viṣhṇave namaḥ svāhā Homage to the all-pervading presiding force of our ceremony.

ॐ ानदवताोे नमः ाहा om sthāna-devatābhyo namaḥ svāhā Homage to the presiding deity of our locality.

ॐ मामदवताोे नमः ाहा om grāma-devatābhyo namaḥ svāhā Homage to the presiding deity of our community.

ॐ कुलदवताोे नमः ाहा om kula-devatābhyo namaḥ svāhā

Homage to the presiding deity of our family. ॐ पररादवताोे नमः ाहा om param-parā-devatābhyo namaḥ svāhā Homage to the presiding deity of our spiritual lineage.

ॐ इदवताोे नमः ाहा om iṣṭa-devatābhyo namaḥ svāhā Homage to your personal deity.

ॐ मदवताोे नमः ाहा om mantra-devatābhyo namaḥ svāhā Homage to the presiding deity of the mantra.

ॐ सवाोर् दवताोे नमः ाहा om sarvābhyo devatābhyo namaḥ svāhā Homage to all the benevolent divinities.

8) Main offerings—the heart of the ritual. This could be the Shata Rudriya, a collection of mantras from the Veda, a personal mantra, or a mantra like maha mrityunjaya. The Shata Rudriya is recited, but other mantras are usually repeated silently, using a mala. Follow each repetition with “svaha” as you make the offering of samagri. (Vocalize “svaha” if others are also making offerings.)

ॐ कं यजामह े om, tryambakaṁ yajāmahe सगिु ं पिवधु नमर् ।् sugandhiṁ puṣhṭi-vardhanam उवाकिमवर् बनान ् urvā-rukamiva bandhanān

मृत्योमक्षीयर्ु माऽमतातृ ॥् mṛ(i)tyor-mukṣhīya mā'mṛ(i)tāt I meditate on, and surrender myself to, the Divine Being who embodies the power of will, the power of knowledge, and the power of action. I pray to the Divine Being who manifests in the form of fragrance in the flower of life and is the eternal nourisher of the plant of life. Like a skillful gardener, may the Lord of Life disentangle me from the binding forces of my physical, psychological, and spiritual foes. May the Lord of Immortality residing within free me from death, decay, and sickness and unite me with immortality.

9) Offerings to finish the ceremony and offer the remaining ingredients and ghee. The officiator stands up, collects any samagri left and offers it to the fire with the following mantra. For larger ceremony, use the last three mantras of the Shat Rudriya as the final offerings. Short version: Final repetition of the main mantra, followed by: भगवत े िदवाये ाहा bhagavate rudradevāya svāhā

Finish with a quiet moment of inward focus. This concludes the fire offering ceremony.

After the Ceremony Leave the fire to “digest” after the final offerings are made. After the fire has receded and the ashes are cool, sweep up the spilled samagri and offer it back to nature in the garden or bushes. The ash may be removed and used in the garden to enrich the soil, or just given back to the earth. The ash may also be used to clean the rim of the kunda, if the ghee has spilled and stained your bricks. Sprinkle on the stained areas and use a scrub brush to remove the stain. (Avoid chemical cleaning agents.)