Agnihotra or Fire Worship Must be Performed Daily

What does it signify when we say that by looking upon Fire as Purohit (religious preacher) worship and eulogize it? It means that one must imbibe idealistic inspirations embedded in the subtle aspect of fire. The special aspects of fire are: 1) Fire is always manifesting heat and light. Thus fire inspires to heat up our perseverance and hard work and its light inspires to become brilliant and well known in a wholesome way. 2) The flame of fire always points in the upward direction. One may try to pin it down and yet it will elude you and continue its upward march. This inspires to ignore that pressure which tries to induce us to lead a demeaned life of eat drink and be merry. Whatever be the enticement and allurement we must pay no heed to it and instead march in the upward direction of glory and greatness. 3) Any object thrown into fire merges into fire. Our greatness too should be such that whoever contact us becomes great too. Thus a cascading effect of greatness can take place in the entire world. 4) Whenever anything is given to fire it will not hoard but instead after making it gaseous spreads it in all directions of the atmosphere. In the same way how much ever wealth we possess, talent we possess it must be used for world well being without any discrimination or bias. We must refrain from hoarding wealth and skills and instead our inner character should be synonymous with generosity which should translate as selfless activities for world welfare. 5) The remnants of fire are in the form of ash. Why is the ash of Yajna fire applied to the forehead? The answer is that the human being needs to remember that death is round the corner and hence must use this precious human life for wholesome and selfless tasks which not only uplift that person but that he/she contribute like a cog in the wheel towards world welfare activities. These 5 teachings come under the 5 fold Science of Fire or Panchagni Vidya. Thus man is exhorted to deeply understand these precepts and actually manifest them in his day to day dealings with the world. Thus mankind gets a golden chance to lead a Yajna way of life. He or she who imbibes great teachings while performing the symbolic rite of a Yajna in his/her day to day lifestyle attains divine bliss and self fulfillment for sure.

Yajnas are very sacred religious rites and also a great philosophy of life. Yana symbolizes sanctity and spirituality. Fire itself is pure and purifies anything that it contacts even if the object is impure. Fire does nothing for itself and that all its actions are selflessly executed for others’ benefits. The Yajna doer denies himself/herself ghee, sweet meats, grains etc so that he/she can perform a Yajna for everyone’s well being. Fire makes these materials gaseous in form so that when they enter the atmosphere all creatures inhale it and thus benefit both physically and mentally. In this manner the Yajna doer via Ahutis gives subtle ‘food’ to all world creatures and thus acquires Punya or sacred merits. In comparison to food air is more precious. Once people inhale these Yajna fumes imbued with vital force attain bodily strength, good health and a long life span. In comparison to these sacred Yajna fumes the effect of eating healthy food is not very long lasting. Mediocre food can be endured for a certain time span but polluted air cause major problems almost immediately. Yajna involves rendering air very potent by imbuing it with strong vital force. This sacred potent air not only reaches a few people but that a large number of people greatly benefit from it. In comparison to feeding many people delicious food in a banquet potent Yajna fumes ‘served’ to a larger number of people is indeed more beneficial and meritorious by leaps and bounds.

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True Agnihotra (fire sacrifice ritual) means imbibing renunciation, self control, sense of service, good behavior, generosity, integrity, ethics, self creation etc. In a certain sense Agnihotra is a spiritual ‘drama’ which on viewing avidly inspires people to imbibe the above listed virtues. Selfish activities are thus replaced by selfless endeavors for world peace and prosperity. There was a time in ancient eras when this Yajna tradition was fully in vogue and hence it was full of joy, advancement and well being of all in the true sense of the term. And yet later when this Yajna attitude was ignored society started moving in one direction which was downfall. Today the world over mankind’s body is alive but inwardly he is like a dead corpse. Once in ancient times King Dashrath requested Vasishthaji to perform the Putreshti Yajna so as to sire children. But Vasishthaji humbly said he was not capable enough to do so and instead, sent King Dashrath to Rishi Shringi. It is not so important how scholarly the Yajna Purohit (priest) is because it is of greater significance how devotional and great he/she is from the character standpoint. Alas today this is just not witnessed virtually anywhere. So called priests are just running after Dkashina (fees offered to priests) and other gifts given to them. Thus the very aim of Yajna that involves sanctifying the psyche of devotees lies totally ignored and unheeded. In turn this is the very reason that despite so many Yajnas performed everywhere true fruits and results of Yajnas elude one and all.

Today it has almost become a rare wonder of the world to find Yajna doers and priests themselves first imbibe greatness and spiritual values in their day to day living and then perform Yajnas that inspire others to follow in their footsteps towards higher pinnacles of glory and divine grandeur. This unfortunately is greatly lacking in this world. In order to overcome this lack the following prayer is executed:
“O Lord! Do please send us such a Guru/preceptor who teaches us the art of conducting mental Yajnas”.
…………………….Atharva Veda

Until we learn to perform Yajnas mentally its real aim remains unfulfilled even if the Havan or fire ritual is executed. The supreme goal of a true Yajna is to surrender ones entire being at the hallowed feet of almighty God. It involves offering (Ahuti) ones mind, intellect, psyche, ego, 10 sense organs (5 of action and 5 of knowledge), 10 Pranas and all our inner wealth to Almighty God i.e. there should be total surrender. This sort of a Yajna has been discussed in the Upanishads as follows:
“In this spiritual Yajna the Yajmaan is the soul, faith is the Yajmaan’s wife, Vedi is the heart, Shikhaa are the Vedas, Hotaa is ones speech, Udgaataa is the vital force, Ardhavyu are the 2 eyes, Brahmaa is the mind, Aagreedhra are the ears and Aahvaneeya is the mouth”.
One such other description is as follows:
“Speech is the Yajna’s Hotaa, eyes are Ardhavyu, vital force is Udgaataa and mind is Brahmaa”.
…………………………Brihadaaranyak Upanishad (3/1/3-6)

The Yajna Purusha is Almighty Lord himself. When like the wood fuel of Yajna fire we surrender our all to the Almighty Lord we become God himself just as materials added to fire merge into it and become fire itself. Yajna means imbibing divine light in our inner being by performing spiritual practices like self study, acting as per God’s commandments, listening to divine inspirations, renunciation and sacrifice, devotion or Bhakti etc. By experiencing the omnipresent Lord in every pore of the cosmos we can abstain from subtle lowly activities. Even the most daring criminal will not act criminally right in front of a police station. In the same way if a person experiences the Lord’s presence 24 X 7 in every nook and corner of the world he will not even think untowardly let alone act unwholesomely. This is because if in his very soul he experiences God ‘staring’ at him how can he harbor tainted thinking which would definitely displease the Lord Almighty? Similarly if in every pore of the external world a person feels God’s presence very tangibly where will he find a ‘secret’ place to execute criminal/illegal activities? Hence he who experiences God’s omnipresence both within and without will harbor goodwill to all object of the world without discriminating whether they are conscious or inert. So this means that a spiritual Yajna is supreme wherein by looking upon Yajna Purusha/Almighty God as all pervasive we imbibe cosmic consciousness in our entire being. Great Yogis are known to persevere intensely so that they can visualize God’s presence everywhere without exception both in their soul and in the external world of name and form. Great scriptures to agree with this saying that the all pervasive Lord eternally dwells in Yajnas:
“The act of Havan is God, Havi is God, Havan is performed in fire who is God himself and God himself performs the Havan. In this manner when in the intellect of any person all actions become divine the person himself merges into God so as to become God incarnate”.
………………………Bhagwad Geeta (4/24)

“I (Almighty God) am Kratu, I am Yajna, I am Swadhaa and I am Mantra/Ghee/fire/Havan”
…………………….Bhagwad Geeta (9/13)

Within the Bhagwad Geeta in order to give us the deep import of spiritual Yajnas the latter have been portioned into smaller categories. They are Daiva Yajna, Brahma Yajna, Atma Yajna, Tapa Yajna, Yoga Yajna, Swadhyaya Yajna, Jnana Yajna, Prana Yajna, Sanyama Yajna etc. It means that while walking on the path of God/self realization and soul advancement all those means utilized are Yajna manifest.

Dravya Yajna helps spread spiritual electric currents in subtle space and thus vile mental taints like hatred, sins, selfish desires, criminality, hard heartedness etc are destroyed. The cascading result seen will be in the form of many problems getting solved. Various problems like mental complexes, stress, fear, tension, worry, anxiety and dire possibilities can be warded off. In ancient times Kings, wealthy class, Rishis, Munis etc conducted gigantic Yajnas as a result the atmosphere in a very widespread area became sacred and pure. In addition national, international and social evils were rooted out completely. The laymen householders performed Yajnas on a smaller scale which helped solve their family and village problems in a big way. For widespread joy, peace, rains, wealth, sound health etc gigantic Yajnas were required. And yet small Yajnas carried out by laymen certainly helped solve their day to day problems maybe in a bit of a limited manner. If you compare the cost of conducting Yajnas know for sure that the benefits both material and spiritual are a thousand fold more and this is not an overstatement. Thus it is crystal clear that Yajnas can never put us into a loss but is a clear win-win situation.

Those who have enough resources should conduct large scale Yajnas. The mouth of fire is the mouth of God. Whatever is fed to fire indeed is divine food. Giving Ahutis in a Yajna means feeding almighty God himself. Since God feeds us all every day it is our duty as his beloved children to conduct worship without being stingy. Of course there are those who are not financially well off and hence they are advised to volunteer in gigantic Yajnas and serve it selflessly. Else individually they can manage small Havans with whatever materials they possess. One more option is for a group of individuals to contribute finances and materials and with this collected Yajna materials perform a big Yajna. In a gigantic Yajna people of less financial means can give their time, service and help in whatever way is possible and thus actively avail the benefits of Yajna.

Agnihotra that is required to be executed daily is very easy to do so. It is not expensive and hence even a lower middle class householder can perform it. Those whose finances are extremely low should perform a Yajna on every Sunday or on a full moon day or on a moonless night with whatever materials they possess. Even the dos and don’ts of these small Havans are not burdensome at all. In the book called Gayatri Yajna Vidhaan all this has been detailed. On its basis without taking help from a priest any Dwija can easily perform Havans. If a person is totally unaware of the dos and don’ts they should offer only Ghee Ahutis by saying ‘Swaha’ every time a Gayatri Mantra is chanted. If in some form or the other the Yajna tradition flourishes it will be a great service to Indian culture. This seemingly small ritual will not only purify your household atmosphere but that the psyche of all family members will be rendered pure and taintless. Wherever Yajnas are performed regularly sin does not enter these households. Ghosts, ill fate, poverty and stress are totally rooted out. Agnihotra pleases demigods and they in turn shower us with both material and spiritual bliss.

Not from any standpoint can Yajnas incur losses of any kind. Ordinarily the wealth utilized to perform even small Yajnas is like depositing it in the ‘banks’ managed by demigods. They in turn return this wealth to you with a very big percentage of interest at the most appropriate time when that person most requires it. More important and precious are those Havan performed as per scriptural injunctions and observing apt dos and don’ts. Such Yajnas can be compared to divine weapons (they induce creativity and never destruction). It is a sure shot method of attaining divine help. In ancient times Yajnas were known to shower its doer with desired fruits. Valiant warriors imbibed a lot of divine energy via Yajnas and thus became invincible. Yogis perform penance performing Yajnas too and thus attain Self/God Realization. Yajnas are fathers of all Ridhi-Sidhi i.e. material/divine forces. Vedas call Yajnas ‘Kamadhuk’ i.e. one who fulfils man’s needs and wards off various obstacles on our path of material/spiritual progress.

For Gayatri devotees Yajnas are imperative and hence they must continue this tradition in a big way. It is the prime duty of every Dwija to maintain a Yajna atmosphere of ones home and psyche in particular. An ordinary Homa too is quite beneficial. It purifies the atmosphere of ones home, overcomes diseases and the self is protected from dire invasions. Of course it also shows that if Yajnas performed with special aims following proper scriptural injunctions will be beneficial manifold times. Yajna is a science wherein a scientific admixture of the 5 elements (earth, water, fire, wind, space) manifests intense divine energy. This energy is conjoined to Dvi Murdhaa, Dvi Naasik, Sapt Hast, Dvi Mukha, Sapta Jihvaa, Uttar Mukh, Koti Dwaadash Moortyaa, Dvi Pancha Shatkalaa Yutam etc. In this statement of deep import it is indicated that the Murdhaa of Yajna fire is both material and spiritual. These areas can be made successful gigantically. The gross and subtle aspect of nature is the nose of Yajnas and one can gain mastery over it. All the 7 glories are the hands of Yajna fire and the Vaam and Dakshin Maarg are its 2 mouths. The 7 worlds are its tongue and all the special qualities of these worlds reside in the moth of Yajna fire. The mouth of Yajna fire harbors the magnetic center of the North Pole. The 52 Kalaas of Yajna are such that Ravan the demon became extremely powerful despite imbibing a very small number of these Kalaas. Hence imagine if all Kalaas manifest and are utilized wholesomely how powerful and terrific mankind can become akin to an inferno. Thus the greatness of Yajnas is limitless. Even a minor application manifests stupendous results. For Gayatri devotees Yajnas are like divine fathers and must be revered from the bottom of ones pure heart.