16 October, 2008

Why do we say and do Namaste..

I found this interesting article.
Indians greet each other with namaste. The two palms are placed together in front of the chest and the head bows whilst saying the word namaste. This greeting is for all - people younger than us, of our own age, those older than us, friends and even strangers.

Welcome to India

There are five forms of formal traditional greeting enjoined in the shaastras of which namaskaram is one. This is understood as prostration but it actually refers to paying homage as we do today when we greet each other with a namaste. Namaste could be just a casual or formal greeting, a cultural convention or an act of worship. However there is much more to it than meets the eye. In Sanskrit namah + te = namaste. It means - I bow to you - my greetings, salutations or prostration to you. Namaha can also be literally interpreted as "na ma" (not mine). It has a spiritual significance of negating or reducing one’s ego in the presence of another.

Read the entire article here.

2 comments:

I am said...

yup, the other interpretations that I know of Namaste are -

1. I bow to the lord inside you
2. It completes and holds the energy circle (aura) of our body/soul

The same goes with hugging too :)

~mE said...

Namaste is an Indian expression used as a greeting, by putting the palms of the hands together in prayer position. It means, “I honor the Spirit in you which is also in me.”