8/9/2019 Srila Prabhupada Puja and Murti Care Standards

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Srila Prabhupada Puja and Murti Care Standards

Temple Room Srila Prabhupada Murti

Dress:Daily change Srila Prabhupada into clean clothes. Ensure the clothes are freshly washed andironed, without holes, stains, and odor, or in disrepair. The clothes should fit properly. Pure silkor cotton are the best fabrics to use for Srila Prabhupadas clothes. Synthetic cloth shouldnever be offered

Dress Srila Prabhupada in the style and color of clothes he wore when he was physicallypresent

Devotees who dress Srila Prabhupada are encouraged to study photos of Srila Prabhupada,such as in the Vyasapu!a book, so they can learn the way Srila Prabhupada dressed hi"self.

#ndress and dress Srila Prabhupada privately.

$here possible dress Srila Prabhupada so both his feet are showing.

Murti:

The murtiof Srila Prabhupada should be in the standard pose, that is sitting crosslegged withhis hands together or with the hands apart and the right finger raised.

The murti"ust closely rese"ble Srila Prabhupada.

%eep the murtiof Srila Prabhupada spotlessly clean. Pay special attention to his nostrils, in hisears, and in between his fingers and toes. The inside of the ears and nostrils can be cleanedwith a "oistened cotton bud &'tip( or si"ilar.

)t is nor"al for resin murtisto sag over ti"e. )t co""only happens that the ar"s get closer to

the legs. This is not so"ething "ystical and can "ake it "ore difficult to dress the murtiSo"eti"es it is necessary to replace resin murtis.

The murtineeds repainting occasionally. *lways keep the features of the murti, such as eyeseyebrows, tilaka,lips, finger and toenails, etc. in good condition. )t is helpful to keep a good'uality photo of the murti, taken when the murtiwas properly painted as a reference forrepainting. +epainting or touching up the paintwork should only be done by an eperiencedartist who has knowledge of the appropriate paints to be used for the murti.

Vyasasana:

-lean the vyasasanadaily. The area i""ediately around Srila Prabhupada is best cleanedafter re"oving his clothes.

%eep the vyasasana, including upholstery, cushions and woodwork, etc. in good condition. Thevyasasana"ust be stable.

The vyasasana is the seat of the representative of Srila Vyasadeva. -leaning ite"s anddevotees personal belongings such as beadbags, etc. "ust be stored elsewhere. )t isacceptable to hang the camaraand peacock fan &in season( on the back of Srila Prabhupadasvyasasanaas these ite"s are used daily in the worship of Srila Prabhupada.

$here possible, illu"inate the vyasasana with suitable lighting. %eep Srila Prabhupadasco"fort in "ind, for ea"ple, it would be unco"fortable for Srila Prabhupada to sit under hotspotlights all day.

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%eep the brass vases, incense holders, etc. bright and clean.

%eep at least one vase of fresh flowers near the vyasasana. n festival days when the deitiesare offered etra flowers, offer Srila Prabhupada etra flowers, "ore opulent garlands, and"ore vases.

Worship:

*s part of regular daily worship, Srila Prabhupada is offered guru-pujawith full aratialong with

the singing of the Guru-vandanaprayers written by /arotta"a Das Thakura. During guru-pujadevotees co"e forward and offer flowers or flower petals to Srila Prabhupadas lotus feet. Theflowers "ust be fresh, not wilted or old. Do not use wet flowers or wet petals.

)t is reco""ended that the flowers offered at Srila Prabhupadas lotus feet be re"oved afterthe te"ple "orning progra" is co"pleted.

ffer Srila Prabhupada a fresh flower garland or a maha-prasadamgarland &in good condition(daily. This is nor"ally done !ust before the start of the guru-puja.The garland is left on SrilaPrabhupada until the te"ple is closed at night. $here possible, avoid garlands "ade withflowers that will stain his clothes. Do not use artificial flowers.

Srila Prabhupadas forehead can be anointed with sandalwood paste (candana) at thebeginning of guru-puja.This is "ore co""only done during the hot season but "ay be done

daily as part of the regular worship. This candana"ay either beprasadafro" the deities orfreshly "ade for Srila Prabhupada. )n so"e cases candana"ay eventually cause da"age tothe murti.

The large resin deity is generally not re"oved fro" the vyasasana. )f there is a need to re"oveSrila Prabhupada, this "ust be done with care. ccasions that Srila Prabhupada "ay be takenfro" the vyasasana are Ratha-yatra&when he rides on the cart(, or when there is a publicabhiseka,such as on Srila Prabhupadas Vyasapu!a. The altar deity of Srila Prabhupada "aybe bathed for Vyasapu!a instead of the te"ple murti.

)te"s offered during the arati to the te"ple deities "ay also be physically offered to SrilaPrabhupada on his vyasasanabefore being offered to any of the asse"bled devotees in the

te"ple. 0owever, this is not "andatory. This is done in the sa"e "anner the ite" would beoffered to any other devotee, i.e. the la"p is not offered in aratistyle but held before SrilaPrabhupadas hands so he "ay respect the prasadaof the 1ord. -are should be taken toavoid hot ghee staining the vyasasana.

Other Notes:

a( *void rubbing offered scents fro" the deities on Srila Prabhupadas hands. This wileventually da"age the murti. The scents "ay be held !ust before Srila Prabhupadas handsand devotees can "editate they are offering the" to Srila Prabhupada.

b( During the "orningjapaperiod, Srila Prabhupada "ay be offered a beadbag.

c( 2efore the Srimad-Bhagavatamclass, place Srila Prabhupadas glasses on hi". pen theSrimad-Bhagavatamto the current verse and place it in front of Srila Prabhupada on abookstand so he "ay read it.

d( %eep a glass of water and3or water pitcher near the vyasasana for Srila Prabhupada todrink. -lean the glass and refill it with fresh water at least once a day. %eep the glasscovered. Do not put flowers on top of the cover.

e( So"e te"ples also have on or near the vyasasana, a walking cane, a gong, and beadbagwith beads, for Prabhupadas use.

f( So"e te"ples have shoes for Srila Prabhupada on a footstool in front of his vyasasanaThis is not "andatory.

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g( )f devotees would like to offer glasses to Srila Prabhupada according to the prescription hewore, his prescription is4

+ight 1ens

.D. 56.7 8.99 :9

1eft 1ens4

.S. 56.7 8.99 :9 *dd 5;.;7

:9 is *is

*dd 5;.;7 is bifocal. 0ave the opto"etrist do the bifocal as a s"all circle in thebotto" of the lens.

Respecting Srila Prabhupada:

$hile taking darsanaof the Deities, as far as possible avoid standing directly in front of SrilaPrabhupadas vyasasanaor with your back directly facing Srila Prabhupada.

)f there is a na"e pla'ue, use Srila Prabhupadas full na"e and title as it appears on 22Tpublications4

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Srila Prabhupadas rooms

>or te"ples fortunate enough to have roo"s for Srila Prabhupada, it is i"portant tounderstand that these roo"s are a "e"orial to Srila Prabhupada. The appropriate "ood whilein the roo"s is one of awe and reverence. This will help increase our appreciation for SrilaPrabhupada. $hen guests enter Srila Prabhupadas roo"s, they should beco"espontaneously appreciative of the devotees love and devotion for Srila Prabhupada.

)n a letter to =urudas written in 8:, Srila Prabhupada gave the following instructionregarding his roo"s at +adha Da"odara4