HARE KRISHNA TO ALL DEVOTEES,
I recently joined ISKCON this year in may. I want to know what is the history of putting white tilak made of chandan on forehead n on nose.( why put on nose also)
did ISKCON start it?
does it represent Krishna on our forehead?
did in satyuga people also used to put this tilak on their foreheads ( all people)
or lord Krishna used to put on his forehead??/
did it start in lord chaityna mahaprabhu era?
who started it n it which yuga it started n whats it motive ?
please tell its history in detail.thanks.
HARE KRISHNA
Replies
Hari Bol
Just to add some very small facts to all the knowledgeable information shared by all devotees.
Tilak wearing is not only confined to our universe and dates back to time prior to creation of material platform. Srimad Bhagwatam talks about Vishnu Dutas coming from Vaikuntha(Spiritual Kingdom-beyond the material kingdom) wearing Tilaka. That prooves the fact that tilak wearing is a process that existed way beyond our universe in time and space dimension.
Chandan(Sandal wood Paste is in mode of Passion), it can be used for Supreme Personality of God head but in our Sampradya we used clay(which is in mode of Goodness). In Gaudiya Vaishnav Sampradaya generally two type of clay is used, one white in colour called Gopi Chandan(is the clay of Gopi Talav) and the other black in colour called Radha Kunda Raj(is the clay of Radha Kunda). Gaudiya Matha and ISKCON(Bhakti Siddhanta Saraswati thakur prabhupada and his disciples) wear Gopi Chandan Tilak. Other branches of Gaudiya Vaishnavism wear Radha Kunda Raj.
The design below the urdhapunda in ISKCON represents a tulsi leaf. At the time of Chaitanya Mahaprabhu, his associates wear other decorations below the urdhapunda, like Lord Nityananda used to wear bamsapatra(bamboo leaf) and Adwaitya Acharya used to wear Batapatra(peepal leaf). Disciplic followers and hereditary lineage people use that design.
Please pardon if I have wrongly analyzed facts anywhere.
All Glories to Srila Prabhupada.
What You say is true, our body is material. But still even in spiritual world residents apply tilak. As we can see it in our Deities.
Gour Nitay, Krishna Deities are with tilak.
Yet we are not paramahamsas, aren't we?! So at least we act in a spiritual way with this body in order to remember about our original state.
Your servant in serving to Srila Prabhupada,
Hare Krsna Prabhuji,
PAMHO.
The name of the tilak we put on our forehead is urdhapunda. it represents two parallel lines, meaning lotus feet of the lord and one tulasi leaf on the nose. Applying the tilak is part of the vaishnava dress. The way a policeman will dress up in uniform or other professionals like firemen or sailors have their uniform, that same way, the tilak is part of the vaishnava dress and represents our allegience to the lotus feet of the lord.
Scientifically, it is said that if you put tilak on the 12 places as specified, then there will be no heat in the body - in other words, you will be able to tolerate any kind of summer heat. Spiritually, only when you start applying the tilak regularly do you realise that its purifying.
Haribol,
Rashmi
Hare Krsna !
Anyone who wishes to acknowledge the simple truth that “I am Lord Krishna’s servant” can wear tilaka, the clay mark devotees wear on the forehead and other places on their body. You may not feel you have much devotion to Krishna, but you’re not prohibited from wearing tilaka, because it’s a sign that you’re trying to be His devotee. What’s more, the qualifications for being Krishna’s devotee soon develop in a person who learns the art of wearing tilaka.
Why Decorate the Body?
A devotee of Krishna decorates the body because it’s a temple of God. Instead of decorating our body as if it were the self, or destroying it, or despising it for its filthy emissions, we can respect and care for it as a residence of the Supreme Lord. The soul lives within the body, and so too does the Supersoul, the Lord. As a house is built and maintained for the pleasure of its owner, so “our” body is meant for the pleasure of its real owner, Lord Krishna. Decorating the body with tilaka pleases Him.
Putting on tilaka helps remind us we belong to Krishna. And when others see a person wearing tilaka they are not only reminded of Krishna but relieved of sinful reactions.
When we wear tilaka on our bodies, the Lord protects us from all sides. When Srila Prabhupada gave a disciple the name Tilaka Dasi, he told her that Tilaka meant “victory personified.”
When to Wear Tilaka
Although you can put on tilaka anytime, the best time to apply it is after bathing or showering. Wearing tilaka is especially appropriate during your puja, or worship, at home. When you’re worshiping as a family, everyone can wear it, or at least the person offering arati (the pujari). You can also wear tilaka when you visit the temple or attend festivals like Rathayatra.
An important time to wear it is at death. Either before someone dies or just afterwards, if you apply tilaka at least to the person’s forehead, he or she will obtain eternal benefit. Of course, death can come anytime, and so it’s wise to wear tilaka always.
You may feel shy about wearing tilaka publicly, but don’t jump to conclusions about what others may think. They may be intrigued. Srila Prabhupada told a story about a factory in India where most of the Hindu workers were accustomed to wearing tilaka. When their new boss, a Muslim, told them that whoever kept wearing tilaka would lose his job, the next day everyone except one man came to work with forehead blank. So then the owner called a meeting and announced that from then on this one brave man would be the only person allowed to keep wearing tilaka.
Different Types of Tilaka
If you travel in India you’ll see a variety of marks adorning people’s foreheads and bodies. Such marks indicate their affiliation with a particular group and their devotion to a certain form of God or demigod. Broadly speaking, you will see two types of tilaka: the vertical mark of the Vaisnavas, or devotees of Krishna and His incarnations, and the three horizontal lines of the Saivites, followers of Siva and adherents to the impersonal conception of God.
Among the Vaisnavas are many sub-groups, identifiable by their styles of tilaka — it’s shape and color and the type of material used to make it. The tilaka worn by devotees in the Hare Krishna movement indicates that we are in the disciplic line from Lord Caitanya Mahaprabhu. The upper part of this tilaka, shaped like the prongs of a tuning-fork, represents Lord Krishna’s footprint, and the leaf-shaped part on the nose represents a leaf of the tulasi, Krishna’s favorite plant. The two lines also represent the walls of a Radha-Krishna temple, and so the space between the lines is Radha and Krishna’s abode. For other Vaisnavas the two lines may indicate Brahma and Siva, and the space between the abode of Vishnu. A red line in the center may represent Laksmi, Lord Vishnu’s eternal consort. The two lines may also indicate the banks of the Yamuna. Or they may represent Lord Rama and Laksmana standing on either side of Sita. The stroke at the base of the tilaka represents the devotee Hanuman kneeling at Their feet. Tilaka styles are as varied as the understandings behind them.
Source - The Ultimate Self Realization. com
Course by His Grace Sankarshan Das Adhikari, a disciple of Srila Prabhupada
Website: www.joincourse.com
(Tilaka: The Mark of God By Rohininandana Dasa)
Dean Prabhu answered nicely, thank You Prabhu!
Knowledge about keeping body and mind in purity is given in Vedas, Pancharatra Pradipa.
Since Vedas appeared when this Universe appeared even before it so this culture of putting Tilak is very ancient.
It is true different sampradayas differentiated by their tilak shapes.
In Gaudiya Brahma Madhava Sampraday we put long white tilak with Tulasi leaf under a long line in the forehead.
Long line represents Krishna's lotus Feet.
And the leaf as we told above Tulasi leaf offered to Krishna's lotus Feet.
Also we put Tilak not only on forehead but on 11 other places of our body. Body is considered as a Temple.
And Srila Prabhupada says that there are 12 Vishnu expansions which sit in 12 different places of the universe. So our body is a tiny copy of that huge universe. By putting Holy Chandan from the ashes of Gopis in those places where Lord is sitting we purify our body and remember Lord's Holy Names while applying Tilak, while seeing Tilak marks...
Even people who see us with long Tilak say "oh Hare Krishnas" so that only will induce people to remember Sri Naam Prabhu and perfect their lives.
Your servant,