7 reasons why visiting the temple is good for your health

Right from ringing the bell to performing the pradakshina, every ritual has a hidden purpose. Find out.

Sandhya Raghavan | Updated: June 15, 2018 2:11 pm

Whether you are a believer, an agnostic or an atheist, you can’t deny how your spirits and senses feel elevated when you visit a temple. The fragrance of incense sticks, the tinkling of bells and the chanting of prayers has a calming effect on your body. With our hands folded in prayer and our eyes shut, we place our biggest fears and greatest hopes in the hands of the almighty we trust. Irrespective of the problems with which we came in, we leave rejuvenated, happy and content. Ever wondered why we feel so enlivened after a temple visit?

Hinduism is the oldest religion in the world and, we revere and follow the culture that we have inherited from ancestors. For the longest time, we have placed our bets in the wisdom of our forefathers without questioning it even once. Every ritual we follow has a lot of thought behind it and that includes our temple visits. We asked Dr Surya Bhagwati from Dr Vaidya’s New Age Ayurveda about the shastra or the science behind temple rituals. Her revelations are mind blowing.

She says, “A temple is a place of blessings, where there is no discrimination of class, creed or religion. Everyone comes with a positive thought which creates an wave of positivity in the temple space. This can help calm our minds down and absorb more and more of these positive vibrations and energy.”

“We humans have five senses. And each ritual, like ringing the bell, lighting the camphor, offering flowers, applying tilak and performing Pradakshina in the temple, is meant to activate our senses.” Once these senses are activated, the human body can absorb the positive energy generated in the temples to the optimal level.

She reveals further: “These rituals in fact, activate all the seven healing centers in our body.” It’s no surprise that many people claim to have been healed after visiting places of religious importance.

Why do we enter the temple barefooted?
Irrespective of where you belong to — North India or South India — no temple in the country encourages the use of footwear in the temple space. “It’s because temple spaces are high in pure vibrations of magnetic and electric fields. The temple floors are good conductors that absorb positive energy. Walking barefooted on these floors will help the energy pass through your body.” It is also symbolic of leaving your ego behind according to Dr Bhagwati.

Why do we ring the temple bell?
Temple bells are made of a combination of metals like lead, copper, cadmium, zinc and nickel. The ringing of the bell creates a pleasing chiming sound that helps calm you down. “The hearing sense is activated when you ring the temple bell. The sound creates harmony between both the hemispheres of the brain,” says Dr Bhagwati.”

Why do we light camphor?
Lighting of the camphor has a two-fold purpose. Camphor is often lit in a thali during an aarti because it activates the sense of sight in your body according to Dr Bhagwati. When the thali is brought in front, we hover our hands over the burning flame and touch our head or eyes with it. By doing so, our sense of touch is activated.

Why do we offer flowers at the temple?
Be it hibiscus for Ganapati or lotus for Laksmi, flowers are always a common fixture in temples. The sight of colourful blooms coupled with their sweet smell is enough to bring us out of a bad mood. The sense of touch is also activated by the softness the flowers says Dr Bhagwati.

Why do we drink theertham?
The ‘theertham’ or holy water is a mixture of pure water with herbs and flowers stored in a copper or solver vessel in front of the idol. “It is supposed to activate one’s sense of taste,” adds the doctor. Drinking water stored in metals like copper does have its own health benefits. “Storing water in copper vessels for over eight hours can also balance the tridoshas: vata, pitta and kapha,” she says. The metal charges the water with positive vibrations, which on consumption can provide a host of health benefits for the body. “Issues such as colds, cough and sore throat are mitigated when you drink the theertham,” says Dr Bhagwati.

Why do we do pradaskina?
Once the prayers are offered, it is a custom to walk around the idol clockwise. Dr Bhagwati says, “The term pradakshina literally means ‘towards the right.’ While the pradakshina is performed, the body absorbs the good vibrations from the idol and the temple premises, aiding good health and a calm mind.

Temple rituals are not blind traditions that are followed by droves of believers without any thought behind them. It is evident that every ritual has a symbolic and a scientific objective behind it.

Image source: Shutterstock

Published: June 16, 2017 5:46 pm | Updated:June 15, 2018 2:11 pm

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