Bathing Ingredients:The principal element of the bath is pure water, with certain restrictions. Do not collect the water at night, nor touch it with your fingernails.In descending order of quality, the best water for bathing the deity is Ganga or Yamuna water, then water from any tirtha, water from a river that flows directly to the ocean, water from a tributary river, water from a natural spring, lake, pond, or man-made reservoir, water from a well, and finally water from a pot.Bring the water to a pleasant temperature for bathing, depending on the weather – cooler in warm weather and warmer in cool weather.One should bathe the Lord with water in which nicely scented flowers have been soaking for some time.By adding various ingredients, one may prepare many kinds of water for bathing the deity. You can also add sandalwood paste to the water. Tulasi should always be in the bathing water for the Lord.Tilaka and Lemon JuiceBrass deities require regular polishing. This is generally done with a paste made of tilaka and fresh lemon juice. However, you may also use a mixture of fresh lemon juice and “fuller’s earth”, (a very fine potter’s clay). Lemon juice should be from fresh lemons, (fresh limes are also acceptable).The purity of bottled lemon juice is uncertain therefore it is better to avoid. You may also polish the deities with a paste made from tamarind pulp and a little water.To make the paste, add fresh lemon juice to powdered tilaka, after a few moments the mixture will bubble. You may apply the tilaka to the body of the deity directly with your fingers, with a cloth or with cotton wool.Always check the paste before applying to see that there are no small stones that will scratch the deity.Towels for DryingThe towels for drying the Lord should be pure, soft cotton. Cotton is better than silk because it is absorbent and can be washed repeatedly. Do not use synthetics.Cotton flannelette is suitable for this purpose. It remains soft even after washing many times. It also dries quickly so that if it is washed and rinsed one day it is dry the next day ready for the worship.Always wash and dry new cloth before using for your deities.Dress for the Lord (vastra)The Lord should be dressed in upper and lower cloth that is durable, soft (not scratchy), clean, untorn, never worn by others, scented, and of variegated colors. The scriptures allow for various local styles in dressing the Lord, but traditional dressing, like traditional cooking, is very dear to Him.All colors may be utilized just suitable to your scheme.Synthetic fabric is allowable for deity dresses, although natural fabrics such as silk and cotton are best.The deities should be dressed in clothing suitable to the season – warm clothing in the cold season, light in the hot season. Dressing deities according to season is prominent in traditional temples in Vrndavana.Srila Prabhupada was displeased when devotees failed to dress the deities in clothing suitable to the weather:“It is not at all good that the deities do not have warm clothing for the cold weather.”Tulasi Leaves and BudsIf fresh tulasi leaves are unavailable, you may use dry tulasi leaves for offering food and for placing on the Lord’s lotus feet.OrnamentsSince precious metals and precious stones attract thieves, Srila Prabhupada instructed devotees to decorate deities with synthetic jewellery. However, semi-precious stones and silver generally may be used, with due consideration for protection of the deities and Their paraphernalia.Sandalwood PasteSandalwood paste is made by grinding sandalwood on a stone with a little water or rose water. If you are adding other ingredients to the paste, such as saffron of camphor, add them after you have made a little paste, then grind them into the paste until they are completely absorbed into the paste and there are no small pieces left.Sandalwood paste may be also made by adding a pinch of aguru (aloes), musk, or kunkuma. Finely ground tulasi wood may also be added.FlowersThe Hari-bhakti-vilasa dedicates an entire chapter to the subject of flowers. Flowers are a very important item in deity worship. Always try to offer the best flowers possible.If flowers are unavailable, you may offer leaves (especially tulasi, jambu, mango, amalaki, sami, and tamala leaves) or newly grown grass shoots.Srila Prabhupada writes:There is no question of using paper [or] plastic fruits and flowers for worshiping the deities. If no fresh fruits or flowers are available, then you can decorate with some fresh leaves. You have seen our temples; nowhere do we use such things… We are not after decoration; we are after devotional service for pleasing Krishna’s senses. Decoration must be there, of course, to make the temple as opulent as possible for pleasing Krishna. Outside the temple, you can use the plastic ornaments. But not for worship. For daily worship there must be fresh fruit, flowers, and leaves.Krsna belongs to the village atmosphere of Vrndavana, and He is very fond of flowers. As far as possible try to increase the quantity of flowers.Incense (dhupa)Incense may be of many varieties. It is popular nowadays to offer incense sticks (agarbatti), since they are convenient to light and offer. Strictly speaking, one can be reasonably sure that all purchased incense sticks contain impure substances-chemicals and possibly even animal products.Even “pure sandalwood” incense is likely to be synthetic. These impurities do not make such products unofferable, any more than synthetic jewelery is unofferable. As far as possible try to attain pure incense to offer to the Lord.Lamps (dipa)Ghee lamps offered in arati vary widely in shape and size and traditionally have an odd number of wicks, (more than three). The standard number of wicks for a full arati is five.The technique for making ghee wicks that burn properly-with just the right amount of ghee, and tapered to a fine point-must be learned from an expert.
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