Why we do it क्यों

Four more customs people follow without being told why, and the reasoning built into each one:

· Why is Ganesha invoked before anything begins?
· Why do Hindus say God is everywhere?
· Why do students and musicians revere Saraswati?
· Why do engineers and craftsmen revere Vishvakarma?

Four more customs people follow without being told why, and the reasoning built into each one:

· Why is Shani feared more than he is loved?
· Why is Yama held in fear and awe at once?
· Why is Nature treated as worthy of worship?
· Why does the moon get such special attention?

Four more customs people follow without being told why, and the reasoning built into each one:

· Why are trees given the standing of elders?
· Why is the cow held sacred?
· Why is a human birth called the rarest one?
· Why is the caste system so heavily criticized?

Four more customs people follow without being told why, and the reasoning built into each one:

· Why does every deed carry weight?
· Why is a Hindu marriage called a bond beyond one life?
· Why is so much care taken over choosing a partner?
· Why does the groom arrive with a procession?

Four more customs people follow without being told why, and the reasoning built into each one:

· Why is a knot tied between the couple's garments?
· Why is naming a child treated as a ceremony?
· Why does the mother's family send Chhochak?
· Why is the teacher placed alongside the divine?

Four more customs people follow without being told why, and the reasoning built into each one:

· Why rise in the last hour before dawn?
· Why is the earth addressed as a mother?
· Why begin the day with pranayama?
· Why is caring for parents called the highest service?

Four more customs people follow without being told why, and the reasoning built into each one:

· Why is the swastika drawn before anything auspicious?
· Why is a guest treated as divine?
· Why is charity framed as a duty rather than a kindness?
· Why is the calendar so full of festivals?

Four more customs people follow without being told why, and the reasoning built into each one:

· Why is Lakshmi invoked on Diwali night?
· Why is the Char Dham the journey people save for?
· Why is the Kumbh held at only four places?
· Why face east while praying?

Four more customs people follow without being told why, and the reasoning built into each one:

· Why are flowers always part of an offering?
· Why does the lotus outrank every other flower?
· Why is the conch blown to open and close a rite?
· Why chant mantras, and why so many?

Four more customs people follow without being told why, and the reasoning built into each one:

· Why do people clap through a bhajan?
· Why is the name of God given such power?
· Why is the Sundarkand read on its own?
· Why is the Satyanarayan katha repeated so often?

Four more customs people follow without being told why, and the reasoning built into each one:

· Why is a coconut broken at every ceremony?
· Why does a kalash stand at the center of a ceremony?
· Why is a lamp lit before anything else?
· Why are the nine planets addressed before the main rite?

Four more customs people follow without being told why, and the reasoning built into each one:

· Why must mantras be chanted aloud, and exactly?
· Why are rites conducted by a priest?
· Why have temples if the divine is everywhere?
· Why do weddings stop during Chaturmas?

Four more customs people follow without being told why, and the reasoning built into each one:

· Why does each deity ride a particular animal?
· Why walk around the deity instead of standing before it?
· Why are the dead cremated?
· Why are the ashes given to a river?

Four more customs people follow without being told why, and the reasoning built into each one:

· Why are the last rites expected of the son?