Srinath Raghavan posted on fb the success story of his personal attempt to calm the nerves of an over active child through the means of having the child sit and perform a Homam or an act of feeding the sacrificial fire.
A concerned parent requested a Soulfully Yours. session for their over active children, whose nervous energies were high and sporadic, enough to cause trouble and stress to everyone around.
Now to counsel adolescents is a different deal, as they least take anyone seriously, because they feel, "I know it all dude, so why bother to tell me?" So with a little introspection and preparation, I decided to do something different to tackle the pressing issue.
Introducing Homa Therapy!
Through the medium of external fire, one's internal fire is regulated and modified to give tangible results, especially in children who are very receptive to the energies of fire, more than anyone else.
So we began with a Laghu Homa, or Short Homa, with the children showing visible halfheartedness in the ritual. We explained to them the process and the effects it has on mind and body.
Chanting the most powerful Agni Mantra, the Homa commenced and to everyone's surprise, the restless children started to turn calmer and composed with every offering; they also took active part in the process, thoroughly enjoying it. With the raging fire in front of them, their inner energies were being powerfully transformed by the external one.
Slowly they became receptive to the words of the facilitator and they listened to the counsel with good intent. We shared with them, the daily process to be practiced and they agreed to follow it, till they see long lasting results.
Such is the power of ancient fire, which can transmute and transform even the densest of energies, inside out!
Many are the benefits in performing a Homam or the Yagna (a larger scale). I was instructed by Tavayogi Thangarasan Adigal to start doing one. When I told him I had no idea how to go about it, he gave me encouragement saying that it was a simple task. He said all the stuff that goes into the fire is readily available in the market. He told me further that it would suffice to chant the names of the Siddhas for a start. That is how we at AVM began performing the Homam. Later on in a Nadi reading Agathiyar reveals that the act of feeding this ancient fire can remove one's karma.
To read further on this ancient practice and its further benefits see Feeding the Flame