- Dhuni
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A dhuni is (according to the dharmic religions such as Hinduism, Buddhism, Jainism, etc) a sacred site represented as a cleft in the ground. This cleft is emblematic of the yoni or female vulva and generative organ. A dhuni therefore represents a site of worship dedicated to Shakti. The etymology of the word Dhuni is connected with the Sanskrit root dhvan, to dun or to din. Sayana explains it by bending or shaking, and Theodor Benfey, too, translates it by to shatter.
A dhuni is worshipped by spiritual intention and the kindling of a flame inside it. Suitable materials are offered to the dhuni and consumed by the heat or flame. This represents the eternal process of change and transformation on all levels of existence.
"Like a river, a dhuni is always changing. Each dhuni also has its own personality that is as much subject to moods as a person. The glow of the dhuni is both a receiver and a transmitter, and like a screen on which Rorschach-like images are projected, it delivers a code".[1]
As the yoni is the nexus from which all manifest beings come into this world, the worship of the dhuni represents a sacred nexus for the path of return from the physical to spiritual level. This is an intentional process of inversion or return to our spiritual source. The dhuni is a sacred site and focal point for this form of spiritual exertion or sadhana.
Aside from the offering of sacred fuel to a dhuni, mantras are also offered, as well as the sounds of diverse musical instruments and ecstatic dance and gesture.
Although several cultures retain traditions of fire worship (out of which the zorastrianism is perhaps the most famous), a unique feature of the dhuni tradition is that it is the dhuni, the actual site itself which is considered sacred, not exclusively the fire kindled within it.
See also
References
2. Kapilnath, Shri. Awakening the Nath Dhuni: Tantric Guidelines for Perfect Pyromania
External links
Hinduism Portal Categories:- Religious places
- Objects used in Hindu worship
- Sanskrit words and phrases
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