If I may I'd like to contribute one idea to the notion of pūja. The highest & most sublime pūja (yajña) is pouring the Self into the self...
The great saint samaratha rāmdās has said
if there is any one religion in the world that is noblest of all, it is svadharma स्वधर्म .
.....
Now, when one does pūja before this occurrence of svātman it is practice; It is the practice of becoming absorbed in Self. That is why the proper way of doing pūja is important; the 16 offerings are important, the frame of mind, the outlook, all that , adds to the offer of the self to the SELF. If one is doing pūja and in between offers their mind is at the market, making lists, taking notes ( don't forget to do this or that) then one has decreased the effectiveness of what is to occur. And what is that ? Absorption. When I mentioned absorption it is known as samāpatti. This word is worth looking at because it can be viewed as sam-āpti .
· sam = 'intensity', or 'together with'
· āpti = abundance, gain
So
intense abundance = absorption, some like to call it engrossment. This is the fruit of pūja.
More on pūjā & abhiṣeka here on this post:
http://hindudharmaforums.com/showthr...hi%E1%B9%A3eka ( cut and paste into your browser - the direct link is not working for some reason)
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