~~OM~~

Lakshmi

1. In the Laksmi Puja there doesn't seem to be the nectar bath offering. Why?

   All the offerings are in the Cosmic Puja. I didn't want to keep cutting and pasting from one book to another, so I gave the shell of the puja, and you can supplement as per your desire.

Shrim

2. You have translated Shrim as Increase. Can you help me understand what it increases?

   Anything you want. Actually Sh means peace; r means your mind; ii means your intuition; m means perfection. That which brings your mind and intuition to perfection (increase) is Shrim. It is the bija mantra of Lakshmi.

   Lalita

3. Can we recite Lalita Sahasranaam before the altar of Durga?

   Absolutely. There is no scripture that the Gods and Goddesses do not like to hear!

Vishnu

4. In chanting the Vishnu Sahasranam, if you only have a limited amount of time, is it better to chant just the thousand names or just the puja?

   If you really are short on time can you break up the chanting of the thousand names into two separate sittings and should you do puja before both?

   It would be best to continue to practice each section, until it flows comfortably. Then link them all together, and the recitation will be yours.

Maha Saraswati and Maha Kali

5. Saraswati is giving us knowledge and yet Maha Kali is Jnana Shakti. How do we understand this?

   Watch and hear Swamiji's answer by clicking on this icon: .

Tara

6. I would like to modify the Beginner Durga Puja to pray to Tara Devi. Can you please tell me the Gayatri Mantra and Pranam for Tara Ma? Also any stotram that I can chant in her praise. Thank you

   Tara Gayatri: Om Tarave vidmahe, mahaugrave dhimahi, Tanno Tarah prachodayat.
   Pranam : Om Treem Tarave namah.
   Stotram : You can use any Kali stotram, or any generic Devi stotram
   

Dasa Mahavidya Puja

7. Is the puja to the Dasa Mahavidyas done as a whole?

   You can perform either individually for each deity or collectively as a whole.