What is the Purpose of Bhasma Arati

What is the Purpose of Bhasma Arati

What is the purpose of bhasma arati at mahakaal ujjain?

Prayers is to completely reduce maya to it's most basic form - ashes (bhasm).

Any matter, broken up through the process of fire is reduced to its ‘bhasmic’ form, which is more refined and pure than the original matter, devoid of all impurities. The Sanskrit word bhasma literally means ‘disintegration’. Bha implies bhartsanam (to destroy), while sma implies smaranam (to remember). Bhasma is thus a reminder to us of the ephemeral nature of life. Also, if we wish to unite with God (or the ‘supreme self’) and remember him constantly, our ego or ‘little self’ has first to be disintegrated or burnt to ashes. Bhasma is a symbol of this process.

The Mahakaleshwar temple is one of the 12 Jyotirlinga temples. The idol of Mahakaleshwar faces South. This is a unique feature, upheld by tantric tradition, to be found only in Mahakaleshwar among the 12 Jyotir Lingams.

There are four yugas in the Hindu system, each many thousands of years long. They are the Sat, Treta, Dwapara and Kali. Presently we are in the Kali yuga. In the Sat and Treta yugas, the temple's Siva Lingam was worshiped with ashes from the cremation of God-Realized yogis who had left their bodies through the power of mantras. Nowadays there are no yogis who so left their bodies, so this practice is not followed. Today the ash used for the worship is cow dung burnt in the sacred fire. It is known as bhasma or vibuthi.

Bhasma is very dear to Shiva and is used in his worship.