Mahadeva's favorite flowers

[Vasa]

Namaste.

I will be initiated into Kriya Yoga this weekend and there is a puja right before the initiation. I know blue lotus flowers are very auspicious to Shiva but I am not having any ability to find them for sale. Please forgive my ignorance, but is there another type of flower that will be close and easier to obtain? The more auspicious the better. :)

[yajvan]

hariḥ oṁ
~~~~~~

namasté



Namaste.

I will be initiated into Kriya Yoga this weekend and there is a puja right before the initiation. I know blue lotus flowers are very auspicious to Shiva but I am not having any ability to find them for sale. Please forgive my ignorance, but is there another type of flower that will be close and easier to obtain? The more auspicious the better. :)
Because of śiva's purity, one can never go wrong with white... as to the ~ best~ ? If I were choosing and could find them , I would have white habiscus. Yet you are asking the master artist (śiva) to choose His favorite painting, his favorite creation.... they are all dear to Him.

http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3025/2982984861_ff525e45f6.jpg


praṇām

[yajvan]

hariḥ oṁ
~~~~~~
namasté


Because of śiva's purity, one can never go wrong with white...


Also note too that we do not smell the flowers before the offering in the pūja¹; we do not offer any dropped flowers, any thing used, or not of the best quality and purity i.e. uncut cloth is offered as vastraṁ; sweet ripe fruits are offered, nothing green and still ripening. It is all about wholeness and purity.

praṇām


1. more on pūja at this HDF post: http://www.hindudharmaforums.com/showthread.php?t=7048

[shian]

Vanakkam,

wow !

Thank you for the knowledge, i never see white Hisbiscus flower, i only find red hisbiscus here in Indonesia. But hisbiscus flower is without any smell.

How about red rose, jasmine and white Tuberose ? very easy to buy red rose, white jasmine and white Tuberose here.

Then also very easy to find green flower "Cananga odorata", very fragrant. May i know, is this Cananga odorata have significane in Hindu ? or howi can use it in puja ?

Thank you

[Vasa]

hariḥ oṁ
~~~~~~

namasté



Because of śiva's purity, one can never go wrong with white... as to the ~ best~ ? If I were choosing and could find them , I would have white habiscus. Yet you are asking the master artist (śiva) to choose His favorite painting, his favorite creation.... they are all dear to Him.

http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3025/2982984861_ff525e45f6.jpg


praṇām

Namaste Yajvanacharya.

I suppose it does sound silly when you put it that way, I had understood that there were some flowers that were auspicious and some that we're never to be offered to Shiva, and I did not want to choose any from the latter category in my ignorance. White hibiscus seems to be a solid choice and should be fairly easy to obtain. Thanks for the link to the other thread as well, I shall read it with interest.

[yajvan]

hariḥ oṁ
~~~~~~

namasté


Vanakkam,

wow !
Thank you for the knowledge, i never see white Hisbiscus flower, i only find red hisbiscus here in Indonesia. But hisbiscus flower is without any smell.

How about red rose, jasmine and white Tuberose ? very easy to buy red rose, white jasmine and white Tuberose here.

Then also very easy to find green flower "Cananga odorata", very fragrant. May i know, is this Cananga odorata have significane in Hindu ? or howi can use it in puja ?
Thank you

White is good; I myself bring red habiscus for pūja-s involving śrī gaṇeśa (vakratuṇḍaṁ), sūrya, maṅgala, and the like. Yet I would avoid roses which are filled with thorns... a wonderful smell yet the thorns are the feature to avoid.

praṇām

[Arjuni]

Namasté,

Vasa, it isn't a silly question at all. When receiving an honoured guest, we naturally wish to offer foods and fragrances that the visitor enjoys; how much more we shall feel this way, when inviting Lord to our worship!

Mahadev is not to be worshipped with tulsi leaves; everything else is acceptable, as far as I know. Because Śiva is the swallower of poison for the welfare of the world, datura flowers - also known as angel's trumpet - are sacred to him. Of course, as others have said, white is appropriate for the pure Śiva, and certainly sweet fragrant blooms - like roses, jasmine, and tuberose, as Shian asks - are such loving offerings. (Though it is only a personal opinion, I think of tuberose as the very scent of devotion itself. :) )

Indraneela
===
Oṁ Indrāya Namaḥ.
Oṁ Namaḥ Śivāya.

[Eastern Mind]

Vannakkam: Konrai are considered particularly sacred to Siva. Aum Namasivaya. http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2133/2528049927_862a46fac7.jpg

[Sahasranama]

Namasté,

Mahadev is not to be worshipped with tulsi leaves; everything else is acceptable, as far as I know. Because Śiva is the swallower of poison for the welfare of the world, datura flowers :) )
===
Tulasi leaves can be offered to Shiva, but not to Ganesha.

[Arjuni]

Namasté,

Sahasranama, I read the relevant story here (http://www.hindu-blog.com/2011/09/why-tulsi-leaves-are-not-offered-to.html); I haven't read the original text myself, so can't comment as to whether the tale is actually in there, or if the blog post is in error..?

And thanks for the flower pictures, those who have posted them. Beautiful.

Indraneela
===
Oṁ Indrāya Namaḥ.
Oṁ Namaḥ Śivāya.

[JayaRadhe]

Vanakkam,

wow !

Thank you for the knowledge, i never see white Hisbiscus flower, i only find red hisbiscus here in Indonesia. But hisbiscus flower is without any smell.

How about red rose, jasmine and white Tuberose ? very easy to buy red rose, white jasmine and white Tuberose here.

Then also very easy to find green flower "Cananga odorata", very fragrant. May i know, is this Cananga odorata have significane in Hindu ? or howi can use it in puja ?

Thank you
Namaste!
Jasmine is definitely good! Shiva is called "Chennamalikarjuna" or "the Lord as white as jasmine" by one of his greatest bhaktas, Sri Akka Devi. Jasmine reflects Shiva's purity. If it is easy to find in your area, then that is a beautiful offering. Also, always remember what Lord Krishna says in the Bhagavad Gita 9.26: "If one offers Me with love and devotion a leaf, a flower, a fruit, or even water, I will accept it."
Happy searching! :)

[shian]

Vanakkam,
thank you all,

for puja , myself also like jasmine, the fragrance is fresh and serenity.

btw,
i love how Shiva and Vishnu choose color, Shiva white and Vishnu black
but sometimes i find Shiva is dark blue light color.

[McKitty]

Vanakkam,

This id an interesting subject, thank you for all those inspiring suggestions :3
I have a question however, does anyone know similar kinds of flowers that can be offered to. Shivji, but that can grow in apartements ? I don't have a garden to plant or pick flower, and it's expensive to buy flowers every day or weeks...


Aum Namah Shivaya

[Eastern Mind]

Thank you for the knowledge, i never see white Hisbiscus flower, I only find red hisbiscus here in Indonesia.

Vannakkam Shian: Not just yellow, but all sorts of beautiful colours, and with cross-pollination, more all the time. See this: http://gardening.ktsa.com/Hibiscus/7653602

Aum Namasivaya

[Vitani]

Tulasi leaves can be offered to Shiva, but not to Ganesha.


Namaste Sahasranama,

Why are Tulasi leaves not to be offered to Sri Ganesh?

Shivoham.

[Necromancer]

Namaste!
Jasmine is definitely good! Shiva is called "Chennamalikarjuna" or "the Lord as white as jasmine" by one of his greatest bhaktas, Sri Akka Devi.

I was just browsing this whole forum because I had nothing better to do - I can't be in meditation all the time, no matter how much I really like it and would have no 'life' otherwise.. only about an hour or so a day is enough, but I do other things...

One thing (a 'just now' thing by reading this thread) is remembering all of the Vachana poetry of Allama Prabhu and all the great Lingayat Saints of South India I read as a teenager. Allama Prabhu referred to Lord Shiva as 'Guheshwara' (Lord Of Caves) and I worshipped my Lord Shiva for many years as Lord Guheshwara.

I used to own a book (and a very battered one it was at that) with the whole library of Vachana poetry translated from Kannada into English. The devotion shown was incredible...especially that of Sri Akka Devi to her 'Lord White As Jasmine' *weeps.

Flowers:

Chamelli (Gardenia)
Night Queen
White Magnolia
Jasmine
Lily Of The Valley
Datura
Lotus (blue or white)

Aum Namah Shivaya