Fri Dec 13 01:06:28 UTC 2024: ## Karthigai Deepam: Proper Rituals for Prosperity and Blessings
**Chennai, India –** With the Karthigai month, considered auspicious for all Gods, particularly Murugan, underway, many devotees are observing the traditional Deepam (lamp) ritual. However, many are performing the ritual incorrectly, according to religious beliefs. This article clarifies the proper procedures for maximizing the benefits of Karthigai Deepam.
Contrary to popular practice of lighting lamps in the prayer room first, the correct method involves beginning at the entrance. Devotees should light lamps at the entrance, symbolically welcoming the divine presence into the home, before proceeding to the prayer room. This should ideally begin around 5:30 PM on Thirukarthigai day, before sunset, coinciding with the lighting of the Maha Deepam at Arunachaleswarar Temple in Tiruvannamalai.
The recommended number of lamps is two at the entrance and five in the prayer room. These five lamps should be arranged in a circle to spread light in all directions. Using ghee (clarified butter) in the lamps is considered particularly auspicious.
Lighting a single-faced lamp is believed to provide moderate benefits, while two-faced lamps promote family harmony, three-faced lamps bring children’s well-being, four-faced lamps bestow blessings of cattle and land, and five-faced lamps are said to increase wealth.
The practice of lighting the Parani Deepam is believed to invoke the blessings of ancestors, ensuring a peaceful afterlife. Observing these rituals during the Karthigai month is said to bring prosperity and ward off misfortunes.
First Piper 