PROPER VEDIC/HINDU PRAYER AND SANKALPA

GUIDELINE:
What is Sankalpa
Sankalpam is an oath (promise), letting God and Saints know when we are
doing the puja, what mantra we are going to chant, how many times we are
going to chant and what we want in lieu for our effort.
Simple Prayer and Sankalpam Guideline
The following simple sankalam does not take into account the year (Nama
samvatsare), ayana (Dakshinayana/ uttarayana), Season (ruthou), Month
(mase), Fortnight (Paksham), day (thithi), star (nakshatra).

1. Achamanam (Sipping water sanctified by mantras)

Sipping a little water, in the prescribed manner, for self-purification, remembering
the Supreme All-pervading Reality.
Sit in a squatting position, facing east or north. The
hands should be between the knees. Bring the tips of the
thumb and index finger together to form a ring. Bend
the remaining fingers slightly such that a hollow area is
produced in the palm. Take a very small quantity of
water in the palm and sip, uttering the following 3 mantras (one sip for each
mantra, hence you need to sip water 3 times):
au keavya svh | (take a little water in the palm, recite, then sip)
au narayanya svh | (take a little water in the palm, recite, then sip)
au madhavya svh | (take a little water in the palm, recite, then sip)

2. Ganapathi Dhyanam (worshipping the remover of obstacles)

While reciting the following Lord Ganesha mantra,
gently tap the two sides of the forehead with the fists
five times with the thought of Lord Ganesha as
described in the translation as well as that thereby the
nectar (amrta) in the head flows down through all the
nerves and invigorates them.
uklmbaradhara viu aivarnam caturbhujam |
prasaavadanam dhyyeth sarva-vighnopanthaye ||
1: (We Meditate on Sri Ganesha) Who is Wearing White Clothes, Who is AllPervading, Who is Bright in Appearance like the Moon and Who is Having Four
Hands,
2: Who is Having a Compassionate and Gracious Face, I Meditate on Him To Ward
of all Obstacles. (This is the first sloka from vishnu sahasranama)

The following Lord Gaea mantra can also be recited :

vakra-tua mahkya srya-koi samaprabha |
nirvighnam kuru me deva sarva-kryeu sarvad ||
1: O Lord Ganesha, of Curved Trunk, Large Body, and with the Brilliance of a Million
Suns,
2: Please Make All my Works Free of Obstacles, Always.

3. Pranayamam (regulation of breath)

Regulated breathings, as per prescription, for establishing psycho-somatic
harmony, using the Gayatri-Mantra.
Bend the index finger and the middle finger and press
the right nostril with the thumb and left nostril with the
ring finger and the small finger. Hence, it appears as if
you are pinching your nose between your thumb and
ring finger + pinky.
There are various ways to do Pranayamah
Firstly, as you mentally chant the mantra below, inhale through the left
nostril while pressing on/closing off the right nostril with the thumb.
Imagine that through the nostrils you are drawing the inanimate vital power
of Almighty (Brahma), which is pervading the entire universe and has the
omnipotence to destroy unhappiness and misery. With his thought in mind
slowly fill in the lungs to utmost capacity.
Secondly, hold the breath within, mentally chanting the same mantra again.
Imagine that the ' Pran' being drawn in the omnipotent and radiant like sun.
Imagine the energy emitted by it is permeating each and every part of your
interior.
Thirdly, let the breath out through the right nostril, again mentally chanting
the same mantra. Imagine that the pran (life force) is departing after
consuming your vices and weakness.
These three actions of inhaling, holding the breath and exhaling, during
which the mantra is chanted three times, together make up one Pranayamah.
Repeat this process again, but this time, inhale through right nostril and
exhale through the left nostril.

Inhaling
au bhu
au bhuva
ogu suva
au maha
au jana
au tapa
ogu satyam
Holding Breath
au tat savitur-varenya
bhargo devasya dhmah
dhiyo yo nah prachodayt
Exhaling
au apo jyoti-raso amrtam brahma
bhr bhuvas suvar au
An alternative to reciting the mantra above, is to use the 4 parts of the Gayatri
mantra :
Inhalation:
aum bhur bhuvah sva
Holding Breath / Retention After Inhalation:
tat savitur varenyam
Exhalation:
bhargo devasya dhmah
Holding Breath / Retention After Exhalation:
dhiyo yo nah prachodayt

Take your right hand (palm towards your face), touch your nose and then your
right ear, and during this say aum.
Aum is all the lokas - bhuh, bhuvah, suvah, mahah, janah, tapah, satyam. We
meditate on the adorable effulgence of the Lord who creates everything, so that it
may energize our consciousness.
Aum is water, light, the earth that yields tasty food, the air that sustains life, the allpervading either and the mind, intellect and the 'I' sense marked by the terms
bhuh, bhuvah and suvah.
4. Sankalpam (taking the vow / resolution)
Place the left palm, turned upward, on the right thigh
and place the right palm, turned downward on the left
palm. Recite thefollowing mantra :

au mamoptta samasta duritakaya-dvr

For removing all problems and pains in life

r paramevara prtyartham
For making Lord Parameshwara

happy

r parvat prasda siddhyartham

The blessings and grace of Goddess Parvathi... You can change or add more
god/goddess in place of Parvathi)

asmham sakudumbnam (or asya yajamanasya sakudumbasya - if you are

doing it on behalf of another person)
For our family (for the the family of whom you are it doing on behalf of)

kemasya, dhairyasya dhairya, vijya, ayur, arogya, aiwarya,

abhivthyartham
Good life, courage, victory, life, health, wealth; and the growth in all the above

Then choose from the below what desired result you expect from your japa... you
can select as many wish as you need :
1. pathi vasikaranartham
For attracting and keeping husband in hold

2. ita kamyartha sidhyartham

For getting wishes fulfilled

3. sakala vigna nivthi dwara karya sidhyartham

To remove the obstacles and make the attempt successful

4. sakala vyathi nivthyartham

To remove all diseases

5. yana vapthyartham
For knowledge

6. sakala vasikaranartham
To attact desired things, to attract all the good things in the world, including lover

7. swaya hara jaya vabyartham

To win in court cases

8. abam-ruthyu doa nivru-nartham

To get well from diseases/ for successful operation

9. dhana dhnya samthyartham

To get dhanam (money) and dhanyam (materials)

10. dharmartha kama moka chathurvidha phala puruartha siddhyartham

To get dharma, desire, wealth, salvation

11. sakala san mangala vapthyartha arogya druda gathratha siddhyartham

To get healthy body with all blessings

12. kalyna prpyartham

To get an early and happy married life

5. State What Mantra Japa You Are Going To Perform

r swayamvaraparvathi mah mantra japam aham kariye
I am going to do swayamvaraparvathi maha (great) mantra japam

You can change "swayamvaraparvathi" with the name of the mantra you are doing,
such as r gayatri mah mantra japam aham kariye, or r viu sahasranama
japam aham kariye or sri mahlakmi atothra japam aham kariye etc.
You can also mention the number of times you will do the japa as part of your vow /
oath.

6. Start Doing The Mantra Japa / Prayer

7. Concluding Prayers (Mantras)

I.
II.
III.

Recite the following :

Concluding Guru mantra (i.e twameva mata)
Shanti mantra (seeking peace to all the three worlds)
Kshamasva mantra (seeking foregivensss for any mistakes/errors you
committed during the recitation of the mantras and prayer)

If you do not know these prayers you can also recite aum shanthi shanthi
shanthihi in place of the shanti prayer and simply request God to forgive you for
any mistakes/erros you committed during the japa and prayer.

8. Rituals After Japa / Prayer Is Completed

Finish the japa / prayer with naivedyam (offerings), dhoopa (incense log)
arati, dheepa (lamp) arati, etc.
Pupnjali (offering of flowers / petals while reciting the name of the God)
Chant the 9, 11, 21 or 108 names of the God offering flower petals for each
name
End with : nna-vidha parimala patra pupanjalim samarpaymi
Dhpa rati (Incense log you may use 3 incense sticks as an alternative)
Chant the mla/bja (i.e. seed) mantra for the God while doing dhpa rati
This is meant to purify the ego, contemplate on that
Dhpa rati (big oil lamp)
Chant the mla/bja (i.e. seed) mantra for the God while doing dhpa rati
This is meant to awaken your knowledge, contemplate on that
Naivedyam (offerings fruits or newly cooked foods, sweets) [ -ai- = I ]
Chant the mla/bja (i.e. seed) mantra for the God followed by naivedyam
samarpayami while offering the naivedyam
For example, if the sankalpa was directed towards Lord Ganesha:
o au ga gaapataye nama | naivedyam samarpaymi |
This is an offering to God, can also an offering of your devotion, so
contemplate on that
Note : The -ai- in naivedyam and in all proper Sanskrit transliterations
is pronounced as the word I (i.e I am happy)
Karpura jyoti rati (Small lamp lit with karpuram)
Chant the mla/bja (i.e. seed) mantra for the God while doing karpura
jyoti rati
This is meant to clear any mistakes that took place during the prayers and
rituals

9. Concluding With Namaskara (prostration before God)

The Sashatanga is where one lies down flat on the stomach with eight
limbs touching the ground. The eight limbs are chest, head, hands, feet,
knees, body, mind, and speech. Only men generally do this sashtanganamaskaram.
Traditionally, women do only panchanga namaskaram. A panchanganamaskaram is where one, generally, a woman kneels down with palms
joined together or touching the feet of the revered one in front.
A woman does not do sashtanga namaskaram for the following reason. Our
rule makers (makers of sastras) while making the rule that namaskara should
be by lowering the body prostrate on the ground, eschewing every thought of
self importance and finding the lowest level with the ground, they duly
thought of the Universal Mother aspect (matrutwam) of Parasakthi (Ambal)
which is a distinguishing divine principle in women, and took care not to
imply any suggestion of lowering its importance. They ruled that the part of
the body, which sustains the growth of the foetus during pregnancy, and the
part that creates within itself the nourishment for the newborn and feeds it
should not be allowed to come in contact with the ground. If the torso should
not touch the ground, then the shoulders have to be excluded so that the
namaskara can conveniently performed. Thus, excluding the three angas, in
their case it becomes panchanga. This also symbolises the need for women to
have a "bending" nature. Bowing down itself means bending and it seems
that the namaskara performed by women is real bow down.