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Melise Tug
Prof. Suzanne Jacobs
World Religions HUMA-2300-002
June 3, 2014

Hinduism Field Trip Write Up
Before I went to the Hindu temple my pre-observation of the religion was simply gleaned
from the textbook and what little i had heard about it so far in my life. I had read that they used
statues and murti to symbolize the Gods and I knew that the priests and religious followers
worshipped the gods and prayed to them. I knew that they adorned these murti and gave up
offerings, but I didnt really understand what those things meant or why they did them before I
saw them being performed inside the temple. I was most curious as to what it meant when they
bathed the gods during the rituals.
As soon as I arrived at the temple I knew which building i was going to go into. The huge
golden pyramid shaped object topping the temple made it clear. I remembered that the God
they had chosen to primarily worship at this temple was Ganesh, the elephant headed God, and
I noted some small elephant statues standing outside the pebbled walkway leading up to the
entrance. As we got closer I admired the beautiful paintings on the ground. Most of them looked
like flowers, others seemed to represent symbols. When we entered the first thing I noticed was
the smell of burning incense. I love the smell of incense so I enjoyed the aroma throughout the
entire building.
As we walked into the main room of the temple, the thing that stood out to me the most
was the enormous golden plating of the main shrine of Ganesh. It was beautiful and shining
brightly. I know that in hinduism they use material things as symbols, so the gold must have
been a representation of wealth and prosperity. Many things were symbols that were offered up
to the God they were praying to that day, Vishnu. When the ritual began, even the chanting of
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the priests had a meaning, to awaken the God. The bathing part was very unusual to me but
also interesting as i had never seen anything like it before. They began with water, to refresh the
god, but also offered up milk and yogurt and spices to bathe the god in, to nourish him after his
sleep.
All my senses were stimulated during the ritual. The loud ringing of the bells and
chanting of the priests were especially prevalent. I remember thinking that while the ritual is
performed, it isnt easy to let your mind wander off. The constant chanting and ringing of the
bells, the sights and smells all draw your attention and sort of force you to focus on what is
going on in front of you. The ending of the ritual where the priests pulled the curtain and dressed
the God was confusing at first, I wondered what the point of not letting us see. As soon as they
pulled the curtain back I realized why we werent allowed to watch them. When you see the
statue as the curtain is pulled back you are taken aback by how stunning the statues
adornments are. In the beginning it was mostly bare, with only a cloth wrapped around its waist.
After they dressed it the statue was covered from head to toe in vibrantly colored cloths, golden
jewelry strung around its neck, and flowers draped down and around its body. If we were to
have seen them putting this on piece by piece it wouldnt have been as brilliant as it was to have
it revealed all at once as if the deity almost transformed.
I was extremely intrigued by the ritual. My post-observations were that the priests and
worshippers were very dedicated people that respected and honored their deities.They believe
that the Gods would bless them and watch over them, and to show their devotion they
performed these rituals and spent time learning or reading scripture and worshipping these
deities. As explained, they asked for happiness and well being, and for the strength to carry out
their dharma while not desiring more or envying others, which I thought was very wholesome
and inspiring.