Puja, Prasadam and Phalastuti.

Puja, Prasadam and Phalastuti.  - My View 

To understand Puja one needs to understand the roots of bhArateeyata. “bhAratam” by one meaning of the word is a land where Yagna’s are performed. “bhAratam” also means the Fire principle that acts like the interface between humans and divine elements. Not any fire but fire in the Yagnam. Bharat is a land of Yagnas.

The underlying concept is the Philosophical construct in Veda that says that there are many divine elements that exist in un-manifest form and they are responsible for almost everything that is manifested. Through Yagnam human being will make the environment conducive to manifest them. It is philosophical because that is how Sanathana Dharma models manifested universe. It is not an Unknown Factor. It was known to them through direct perception.  Due to normal day to day living there is an unbalance in environment (like say Global warming) and the Rishis performed the Yagnam to set the balance correct.  For each type of unbalance, a particular Yagnam is performed. Once the environment is properly prepared and made to receive the manifestation of un-manifest, the divine elements – by law of cosmos – will reveal.

It is not that difficult to comprehend this. As a crude example, all the radio waves are present everywhere. What you need is a radio and proper tuning to receive what you need. i.e. Music, Sports, News etc. For one who has no concept of an instrument called radio, when you tell him that all the channels are present everywhere in “unmanifest” form he will laugh at you or at least look at you with disbelief and tell that you are talking about unknown factor. Just like you need Radio as instrument, and Tuning to the proper channel, we need to prepare environment (which includes us humans) and Yagnam as tuning to manifest. Of course these divine “unmanifest” elements are not in our own space-time dimensions.

And, the Yagnam – tuning – has to be performed as per a scientific method. There is this Ghee made from a species of Cows that only produce A-2 protein. Need to make fire from only Aswatha tree in a certain manner. Need to chant the vedic hymns with swara and above all the performer needs to be a man of highest virtue. Once the Yagnam is performed with these requirements and the divine elements are manifested, they are present in “Energy” – “Vibration” form. The Ghee and Other havan’s will change the environmental balance. Those who are present at the place will absorb as per their readiness and samskaram. In order to store the “Energy” and make it easily transportable, water and food are used as capacitors. The food that absorbed the “Energy” has become the prasadam and the water became theertham. That is why it is important to take the prasadam.

At the end of Dwapara Yuga, Krishna Dwaipayana (Vyasa) encountered an existential threat to Vedic heritage. He foresaw the onset of corruption of human. He felt that the highest requirements needed to perform a proper Yagnam is not that widely available in the coming ages. He did what he did with everything. He packed the Vedic paradigms in Mahabharat, and Puranas for easy dissemination and easy reach for human. In the same way he packaged the benefits of Yganam in small doses for Gruhastu to get benefit from. In various puranas he had outlined all these various invocation procedures to manifest the un-manifest in small and homely environment. That came to be called Puja.

Phalasthuti is Veda Vyasas way of packaging the benefits of the intended procedure. The various degrees of punishment portrayed in the story at the end of not doing it may be a later day addition of carrot and stick policy.