Bas itna sa khwaab hain …

Prayers are something we all grow up with. Almost all our festivals in India (and we have quite a few in India) have the element of religious touch and prayer is an integral part of it. We have plenty of Gods in all shapes and sizes (literally) and dedicated festivals for them and related worshipping methods. From dedicated day of the week to 10-day festival seasons; we have them all.

So in effect, we pray a lot – with or without the festival. Our parents try to inculcate the praying habit in us right from early childhood and it becomes an integral part of our lives. Praying becomes a part of the early morning rituals and we seek blessings from Gods for every small and big challenge of life.

In the past decade or so, I have kind of 'standardized' my prayer. I ask for the same thing over and over again from all the different Gods. Yes, the same single prayer asking for the same set of things. So what do I ask for you ask ???

I ask for Happiness, Peace, Prosperity, Health, Wealth, Wisdom/Knowledge and Success. And very recently I have added the 'joy of having a child' also to the list.

You must be wondering if that is all I ask, what is really left to ask for. Because that about covers everything a person might want J Well, call it asking for everything in one go J

But this blog post prompted me to think about all the funny, stupid, serious, unnecessary things we keep asking God in everyday life. It is said that there are moments in life when Gods grant wishes and it would be such a waste if God were to be looking at you while you were reeling out one of those stupid wishes.

School children sometimes ask for their school to collapse or their teacher to fall sick or the rains to come down heavily and flood the city … because they are not prepared for the test and don't want to go to school. I won't be surprised if some of the office-goers also ask for similar things when they are not ready with their 'deliverable' on the set deadline and they have a tyrannical boss. Girls and Boys in college keep asking for their 'crushes' from God … and fortunately / unfortunately they keep changing their crushes every few weeks. Guys ask for a bombshell as their girl-friends but a 'seedhi-saadhi Indian girl' as their wife; while gals ask for a 'handsome stud' as their boy-friend and a stable straightforward high-income professional as their husband. Parents keep asking God for things for their kids … they should be good in sports, in studies, in hobby classes, in summer camps, in dance, in singing, in playing a musical instrument, in (u can fill in whatever u want); while those kids keep asking God for some 'space' and freedom from their parents pressure … and sometimes for better parents. Elders ask God for good health and continued support from their kids while the daughter-in-law might be asking God for a nuclear family without the mother-in-law … with the guy crushed between the two … simply asking God for some peace.

We live strange lives; asking something or the other from god, every day, every hour … most of the time never realizing that most of it is in our own hands. We keep sending our wish-list to the almighty wrapped in prayers and we make our prayers elaborate with so many things and ingredients starting with the simple diya and agarbatti to the full fledged pooja consisting of over 100 ingredients including fruits, vegetables, flowers, leaves, milk, curd, water and the list goes on.  

When I see my father doing the Diwali pooja, I am amazed by the sheer number of things that are needed for the pooja, the mantras, the process etc. I often wonder how will I manage to do it in future. I often wondered if there was a 'user guide' or a booklet to guide through the whole process with clear cut instructions. A visit to www.PurePrayer.com introduces you to one such product package that solves this problem. The Cycle brand of agarbattis has been around for a long time and PurePrayer.com is their website where they are prominently promoting their product package Sampoorna Lakshmi Pooja Pack which brings together all the pooja ingredients and also includes help for people for conducting the pooja.

Sampoorna Lakshmi Pooja Pack is a pack containing everything that you would need to perform the Lakshmi Pooja. Do the pooja yourself, with your family. This pack contains all basic materials required for the pooja as mentioned in the Skanda Purana. The booklet (script in 6 languages) and audio CD have the procedure, necessary shlokas and Shree Vinayak Ashtottarashata Naamaavali for performing the pooja.This pack comes with instructional booklet & CD; with options to recite the shlokas along with the CD if you wish. The traditional way made easy for today's generation. Recitation of shlokas and steps for performing Lakshmi Pooja along with all that is needed.

I am sure, the GenNext is going to find this product interesting and helpful. They are a generation which has not yet broken away from tradition but they can't ignore them either. And in their 'simplified' lives, a diwali pooja is a complicated affair J  

So comparatively, I have kept it simple; a very standardized wish … asking God the same things every day - I ask for Happiness, Peace, Prosperity, Health, Wealth, Wisdom/Knowledge, Success  and the 'joy of having my  child'

Bas itna sa khwaab hain …