Aarti and Homa: Velli Kavacham Charthal

What are homas and aartis?

A homa is a Fire Lab. This is also known as a Yagna or Fire Ritual. Enlightened Masters consider this ritual to be the most evolved spiritual technology on the planet. Fire is chosen as the medium for this ritual, as it is considered a purifying and transforming agent, a form of energy that helps us connect with the divine. Fire acts as the bridge between the gross material world and the subtle spiritual dimensions. The Fire Lab is a sophisticated use of fire, and acting as a multi-dimensional communication technology, it is used to invoke different aspects of divine consciousness known as Archetypes or Gods, Goddesses and Angels.

Archetypes exist internally as dormant potential within our psychophysical system, as well as externally as supernatural beings with whom our prophets, seers and mystics from every religion were in contact. Every one of them has unique abilities that can transform our reality in profound ways. A homa, or Fire Lab, is the most effective way to access them.

An aarti is an important religious ritual in which a traditional light or flame is shown (that is, offered to a deity). An aarti can be lit in a wick soaked in oil or ghee, or by lighting camphor. Any ceremonious or organized worship normally ends with a holy aarti, where the lighted flame is shown to the altar as a final offering for invoking the deity’s blessings. It is then presented to the devotees for their acceptance of the divine grace.

What is Velli Kavacham Charthal?

Velli is silver, the bright white metal; Kavacham can be termed variously as an armor, shield or simply an outer cover; Charthal is applying, and here can be taken to mean wearing or adorning. Thus, Velli Kavacham Charthal is a ritual of adorning the deity with a decorated and ornamented shield or outer cover made of silver metal. Metals like gold and silver have a lot of spiritual significance and are used extensively in religious practices. Even the idols of the deities are made normally of panchaloha, the 5 metals, which consist of gold and silver, apart from lead, copper and iron.

This Velli Kavacham Charthal is done for Goddess Bhagavati.

What is the importance of Goddess Bhagavati?

Bhagavati is Goddess Shakti, who combines in herself supreme power and motherly compassion. Known also by many other names, she is the active dynamic principle primarily responsible for all prosperity and is a generator of fertility, purity and abundance. It is Goddess Bhagavati who is invoked in the present worship.

How is the Velli Kavacham Charthal ritual performed and what are the benefits of doing it?

In this worship, a well-crafted and ornamental silver shield covering the idol of the deity is offered reverentially to the Goddess, and she is adorned with it. This ceremony is done as part of the rituals involving homas (fire labs) and aartis (light offerings), and also special Poojas.

These ceremonies shall please the mother Goddess immensely and get for the devotees her kind blessings. These can help to mitigate the problems the devotees are facing in life, provide success in their endeavors and bestow them with good health, all-around welfare and a contented frame of mind.