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At SHARANYA, we are dedicated in our worship to Goddess Kali in Her myriad forms, including those as She is expressed through the world's various traditions that honor the Dark Goddess, the one who holds the wisdom of the full spectrum of human beingness. We honor through Maa her relationship to an unpathologized Sacred Male as manifest particularly through Shiva. This relationship is at the heart of the birthing potentials of the universe.

Ceremony is held in the <a title="The Tradition" href="http://sharanya.org/about-us/the-tradition-2/" target="_blank">Sha'can tradition</a> and lead by Rashani (ordained clergy) with help from community. Our puja infuses methods and practices from East and West in order to create a sacred space for worship, deepening, and opening on the path of the <i>bhakta</i>, or devotee of the Divine. An <a title="RSVP for Kali Puja" href="mailto:info@sharanya.org" target="_blank">R.S.V.P.</a> is requested if you would like to participate.

[testimonials category="puja-2" time="10" effect="fade" ]

<span style="font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif;">[toggle type="gray" title="What to bring" active=""]Offerings for the main altar are welcome. It is customary to bring flowers, fruit, wine, vegetarian offerings, or sweets and to refrain from wearing black to our public rituals. If you wish to wear a special color for Kali, we invite you to don red, a color associated with Her power in the phenomenal world as <i>shakti</i>, the activating force and the energy of creation. You are also invited to bring an object you would like to have blessed. [/toggle] </span>

[toggle type="gray" title="Donations" active=""]A sliding scale donation of $21-11 is suggested to cover the cost of the space, puja supplies and <i>prasad</i> (blessed food); however, no one is ever turned away for lack of funds, and any donation is graciously accepted. If you wish, you may <a title="Donate to SHARANYA" href="https://www.networkforgood.org/donation/ExpressDonation.aspx?ORGID2=%2094-3334334&amp;vlrStratCode=QfHkjvv7O3iNUsVQhMSxvV1lSAo5hzn%2bjcTdl9IU4KAZH1KCyhNWvn%2fBXD%2bsythO" target="_blank">donate online</a>. We appreciate the offerings you make to support our work and the community. Jai Maa! [/toggle]

[toggle type="gray" title="What is puja like?" active=""]Our pujas are participatory, devotional, sometimes deeply transformational and often, fun! The ritual begins by casting a circle hand to hand, creating a sacred space between the worlds. We honor and invoke the powers of Earth, Air, Fire, and Water, the elements of life, as guides and allies in our worship. Through breath, song, movement, and speech in both English and Sanskrit, unique voices then call forth ancestors and the Divine.

We first invoke Agni, Lord of the sacrificial fire, the dancing flame of all beings. Agni helps open a channel for us to commune with the Divine. Agni is also one of the most ancient deities of the Vedic tradition, honored with the first nine verses of the Rig Veda, the oldest religious text still used today. Our ceremony continues to open to the Divine by next calling Ganesha, the elephant-headed Lord of Obstacles who opens our minds and hearts to touch the Great Mystery. Through His worship, we are resolved of all that hinders our path and keeps us from fully experiencing the Divine.

Moving into deeper awareness of God and Self, we invoke Lord Shiva, the destroyer of life, sensuous yogi, Father of the Three Worlds, and Cosmic Consciousness alive in all things. His is the dance that turns the cycles of the seasons, the stars in orbit, and the ebb and flow the Universe. We welcome Him with our voices, chanting sacred verses that have lived in the hearts of humanity for thousands of years. Together we offer flowers and praise Shiva, singing "Shiva Shambo Mahadeva Shambo", honoring Shiva as the Great God and the bringer of peace. Opening to His love and compassion, we see the beauty and divinity of the world.

Fully in the flow of Divine awareness, we then call forth Maa Kali to join our circle. With deep yearning in our beingness, we welcome the Goddess with mantras that have been sung to Her for millennia. We bow to Her divine presence and perform <i>aarti</i>, offering incense, water, food, fan, and light before Her living image. Maa can be felt through her sacred image on the altar, and you are invited to take <i>darshan</i> with her. Darshan comes from the Sanskrit verb meaning "to see" and one can think of it as both seeing and being seen by the Divine. It also refers to sitting in the presence of the Divine and connecting by staring into the eyes of Kali Maa in the central image, the one that has been enlivened through <i>prana shakti</i> or life force energy. This practice will encourage peacefulness, insight, blessings and perhaps visions to come to you.

Together we then sing "Jai Maa", Victory to the Mother, as we open fully and allow Her to touch our hearts. We breathe Her in, reaching ecstatic states through which we can more deeply experience Her beauty and grace. With the use of sacred substances and tools, we further deepen our awareness and allow Her messages to come forth.

Through puja (worship) offered to Maa Kali, we allow the Goddess to heal us and renew our souls. When we set time aside, as a community or alone, to perform puja to the Divine Mother, we connect to the original whim of God to know Herself. As we attune to the elemental powers and offer devotion to the gods, we transform ourselves and give birth to new worlds of being. Puja becomes part of the cosmic creation, allowing us to journey beyond time space reality and aid in the continuation of life on this planet. It grants us the ability to move from individual heart space into places of unlimited possibility. We awaken to the Goddess in every facet of our being and transform our reality, coming to see Maa Kali as the Holy Mother in whom we live, move, and have our selves made whole.[/toggle]

[toggle type="gray" title="Temple etiquette" active=""]
<ul>
	<li><span style="font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif;">As you are entering the sacred space of our <i>mandir</i> (temple), touch the ground with your right hand, and then touch your forehead. This is a symbolic gesture of humility. Taking the dust from the feet of Maa, our Divine Mother, to our brow, we contemplate and bring mindfulness to the surrender of our egos and the openness of our hearts to Her. </span></li>
	<li><span style="font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif;">Do not turn your back to the altar; please back away for a few paces and then turn.  </span></li>
	<li><span style="font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif;">Do not to block the altar from other people and allow others to join you as you prostrate before Her. </span></li>
	<li><span style="font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif;">Please do not face the bottoms of your feet toward the altar as this is disrespectful. Do cover your feet with a shawl if you are able to do so in order to sit more comfortably. </span></li>
	<li><span style="font-family: Arial;"><span style="font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif;">As you move in the space, always try to go in a clockwise direction. This helps draw on the power of natural cycles and brings us into greater alignment with the mirroring of our individual selves and the turning of the universe.</span></span></li>
	<li><span style="font-family: Arial;">You are invited to wear red. Please abstain from wearing black during puja. </span></li>
	<li><span style="font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif;">Be mindful. </span></span></li>
</ul>
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<h5>Listen to a puja:</h5>
[thaudio href='http://sharanya.org/wp-content/uploads/2013/08/jaima64.mp3'][/thaudio]

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