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Significance of Offering of oblation

Offering of oblation is a significant ritual act in Vaishnavism and other Hindu traditions, encompassing various forms of offerings made during worship. These include food, rice-balls, and other materials intended for deities and ancestors, particularly during special ceremonies like Vyasa-puja. The practice is crucial for upholding dharma and seeking blessings, with rituals often designed to appease divine beings and ensure favorable outcomes. Both sacred texts and historical contexts underscore the importance of these offerings in spiritual practices.

Synonyms: Sacrifice, Gift, Presentation, Tribute, Dedication, Contribution, Donation, Offering, Consecration, Libation

The below excerpts are indicatory and do represent direct quotations or translations. It is your responsibility to fact check each reference.

Hindu concept of 'Offering of oblation'

Hinduism Books

The Offering of oblation in Hinduism encompasses rituals performed by Brahmanas, involving sacrifices to deities and ancestors, enhancing spiritual knowledge, and fulfilling dharma, while ensuring blessings and favorable outcomes through devotional acts and sacred texts.

Significance in Vedanta (school of philosophy):
Vedanta Books

From: Taittiriya Upanishad Bhashya Vartika

(1) The offering of oblation in the consecrated fires is conducive to the attainment of the good.[1] (2) The act of making a sacrificial offering in rituals, which is accompanied by specific guidelines as delineated in sacred texts.[2] (3) Ritual acts of giving that are used as a means to indirectly obtain knowledge of Brahman.[3] (4) The act of presenting a sacrificial gift or offering to gods or manes, which is facilitated by the utterance of specific mantras.[4]

Vedanta refers to a school of orthodox Hindu philosophy (astika), drawing its subject-matter from the Upanishads. There are a number of sub-schools of Vedanta, however all of them expound on the basic teaching of the ultimate reality (brahman) and liberation (moksha) of the individual soul (atman).

Significance in Purana and Itihasa (epic history):
Purana Books

From: Devi Bhagavata Purana

(1) Pranagnihotra, a ritual of making offerings to the sacred fire associated with life.[5]

From: Garuda Purana

(1) The act of presenting various offerings to the sacred fire and deities, as part of the worship process.[6]

The Purana refers to Sanskrit literature preserving ancient India’s vast cultural history, including historical legends, religious ceremonies, various arts and sciences. The eighteen mahapuranas total over 400,000 shlokas (metrical couplets) and date to at least several centuries BCE.

Significance in Dharmashastra (religious law):
Dharmashastra Books

From: Manusmriti with the Commentary of Medhatithi

(1) The act of presenting sacrifices or offerings into the fire as part of the worshipping rituals, which is specifically reserved for Agnihotrins.[7]

Dharmashastra contains the instructions (shastra) regarding religious conduct of livelihood (dharma), ceremonies, jurisprudence (study of law) and more. It is categorized as smriti, an important and authoritative selection of books dealing with the Hindu lifestyle.

Significance in Vaishnavism (Vaishava dharma):
Vaishnavism Books

From: Chaitanya Bhagavata

(1) The offering of oblations is a ritual act performed during Vyasa-puja to honor and pay respects to spiritual predecessors.[8]

Vaishnava or vaishnavism (vaishnavism) represents a tradition of Hinduism worshipping Vishnu as the supreme Lord. Similar to the Shaktism and Shaivism traditions, Vaishnavism also developed as an individual movement, famous for its exposition of the dashavatara (‘ten avatars of Vishnu�).

The concept of Offering of oblation in local and regional sources

History Books

The Offering of oblation is a ritual practice connected to religious or spiritual ceremonies, highlighting its significance in various cultural traditions as a means of devotion and connection to the divine.

Significance in India history and geography:

From: History of Science in South Asia

(1) This refers to a ritual practice, and it is related to religious or spiritual ceremonies.[9]

Plural form: Offering of oblations.