“Windows To Spirituality”
Samadhi Samadhi or Samādhi (समाधी, also called samāpatti), in Hinduism, Jainism, Buddhism, Sikhism and yogic schools, is a state of meditative consciousness. In the yogic traditions, and the Buddhist commentarial tradition on which the Burmese Vipassana movement and the Thai Forest tradition rely, it is a meditative absorption or trance, attained by the practice...
Jain Temple A Jain temple or Derasar is the place of worship for Jains, the followers of Jainism. Jain architecture is essentially restricted to temples and monasteries, and secular Jain buildings generally reflect the prevailing style of the place and time they were built. The Jain temple architecture is generally close to Hindu temple architecture and in...
Nature Worship Nature worship is any of a variety of religious, spiritual and devotional practices that focus on the worship of the nature spirits considered to be behind the natural phenomena visible throughout nature. A nature deity can be in charge of nature, a place, a biotope, the biosphere, the cosmos, or the universe. Nature worship is often considered the primitive...
Maleficium (sorcery) Maleficium (plural: maleficia) as a Latin term, “An act of witchcraft performed with the intention of causing damage or injury; the resultant harm.” In general, the term applies to any magical act intended to cause harm or death to people or property. Its use in English comes from “Early 17th century; earliest...
Fire Worship Worship or deification of fire (also pyrodulia, pyrolatry or pyrolatria) is known from various religions. Fire has been an important part of human culture since the Lower Paleolithic. The earliest known traces of controlled fire were found at the Daughters of Jacob Bridge, Israel, and dated to 790,000 years ago.[1] Religious or animist notions connected to fire are assumed to reach back to such early pre-Homo...
Christian Liturgy Christian liturgy is a pattern for worship used (whether recommended or prescribed) by a Christian congregation or denomination on a regular basis. Although the term liturgy is used to mean public worship in general, the Byzantine Rite uses the term “Divine Liturgy” to denote the Eucharistic service. It often...
Veneration Veneration (Latin veneratio or dulia, Greek δουλεία, douleia), or b, is the act of honoring a saint, a person who has been identified as having a high degree of sanctity or holiness. Angels are shown similar veneration in many religions. Philologically, “to venerate” derives from the Latin verb, venerare, meaning to regard with reverence and respect. Veneration...
Ritual A ritual is a sequence of activities involving gestures, words, actions, or objects, performed in a sequestered place and according to set sequence. Rituals may be prescribed by the traditions of a community, including a religious community. Rituals are characterized, but not defined, by formalism, traditionalism, invariance, rule-governance, sacral symbolism, and performance. Rituals are a feature...
Synagogue A synagogue (from Ancient Greek συναγωγή, synagogē, ‘assembly’; Hebrew: בית כנסת bet knesset, ‘house of assembly’, or בית תפילה bet tefila, “house of prayer”; Yiddish: שול shul, Ladino: אשנוגה esnoga, ‘bright as fire’, or קהל kahal) is a Jewish or Samaritan house of worship. Synagogues have a large place for prayer (the main sanctuary) and may also have smaller...
Jain Rituals Jain rituals play an everyday part in Jainism. Rituals take place daily or more often. Rituals include obligations followed by Jains and various forms of idol worships. Jains rituals can be separated broadly in two parts: Karya (Obligations which are followed) and Kriya (Worships which are performed). See: Jain Philosophy Six essential duties In Jainism,...
Ego And Worship This article covers Ego And Worship. A Vision of Humans Faces Man has two faces: one, concerning his ego, looks to the life of this world. The other, concerning worship and servitude to God, looks to eternal life. In respect to the first face he is a...
Does God Almighty Need Of Our Worship? We hear many people who are idle in performing the daily Prayers ask: What need does God Almighty have for our worship? Why in the Qur’an does He severely reprimand those who do not worship and threaten them with such a terrible punishment...
The Reality Of The Worship My dear friend! If you want to understand a little about the talisman of the wisdom of the world and the riddle of man’s creation and the mystery of the reality of the worship, then consider this short comparison together with my own soul. Once...
Baptism For The Dead Baptism for the dead, vicarious baptism, or proxy baptism today commonly refers to the religious practice of baptizing a person on behalf of one who is dead—a living person receiving the rite on behalf of a deceased person. Baptism for the dead is best known as a doctrine of...
Worship, Servanthood, and Deep Devotion Ibada, Ubudiya, And Ubuda This article is about worship, servanthood, and deep devotion in Sufi Tradition. Although some view worship, servanthood, and devotion as synonymous, most Sufi scholars and masters say that these words have different meanings and connotations. ‘Ibada (worship) means fulfilling God’s commands...
What Is Sunnah Prayer? Sunnah prayer (صلاة السنة) is an optional or supererogatory salah that can be performed by Muslims at almost any time of the day. These prayers are performed in addition to the five daily prayers, which are compulsory for all Muslims. There are a range of prayers available:...
Eid Prayers Eid prayers, also known as Salat al-Eid (صلاة العيد) and Șālat al-’Īdayn (صلاة العيدين “Prayer of the Two Eids”), is the special prayers offered to commemorate two Islamic festivals traditionally in an open space allocated (musalla or Eidgah) or field available for prayer. The two festivals on which these prayers are conducted in large...
![Lent celebrants carrying out a street procession during Holy Week, in Granada, Nicaragua. The violet color is often associated with penance and detachment. Similar Christian penitential practice is seen in other Christian countries, sometimes associated with fasting.[20]](https://slife.org/wp-content/uploads/Holy_Week_procession_in_Granada_Nicaragua-520x390.jpg)
What Is Lent? Lent (Quadragesima, ‘Fortieth’) is a solemn religious observance in the Christian liturgical calendar that begins on Ash Wednesday and ends approximately six weeks later on Holy Saturday, the day before Easter Sunday. The purpose of Lent is the preparation of the believer for Easter through prayer, doing penance, mortifying the...
What Is Love Of God? Love of God can mean either love for God or love by God. Love for God (philotheia) is associated with the concepts of worship, and devotions towards God. The Greek term theophilia means the love or favour of God, and theophilos means friend of God, originally in the sense of being loved by God...
Adoration Adoration is respect, reverence, strong admiration or devotion in a certain person, place, or thing. The term comes from the Latin adōrātiō, meaning “to give homage or worship to someone or something”. Ancient Rome In classical Rome, adoration was primarily an act of homage or worship, which, among the Romans, was performed by raising the...
