Three Green Candles (standard:non fiction, 1461 words)
Author: Juggernaut	Added: Sep 02 2013	Views/Reads: 4869/2053	Story vote: 0.00 (0 votes)
Juggernaut took three green candles made from veg oil to light them up at Hindu Temple, Muslim Mosque and Catholic Church. He received three different responses from a Hindu priest, Muslim Imam and Christian father at the church.

Three Green Candles 

Subba Rao 

Agni is the fire god in Hindu mythology. Fire plays an 

important role in Hindu rituals; flame as a symbol destroys evil to re- 

seed Dharma or truthfulness like fire destroys overgrowth on forest 

floor for rejuvenation of useful species. Not every kind of wood is 

appropriate to generate fire and flames during the rituals. The Hindu 

priest consults scriptures to select a particular tree bark or wood 

for a specific ritual.  If a ritual were to produce badly needed rain 

in severe drought, the priest after consulting scriptures will use a 

particular tree wood appropriate to yield results in making ritual 

fire.  It is like selecting a particular medicinal herb for treatment 

of an ailment in ancient medicine. Most priests carry wood chips of 

various plant species while visiting the devotees at their homes to 

conduct rituals. 

Near the shipping harbor in town, among the line of three hills, on top
of each one of them has a place of worship; a Hindu 

temple, a Muslim dargah and a Roman Catholic Chapel ‘Mother Mary's 

Church.' 

Devotees attending the Hindu temple carry a small bottle of 

vegetable oil or clarified butter, cotton wicks and shallow clay lamps 

to make diya or lamp at the temple as part of worship. Wicks saturated 

in oil placed in clay or brass lamp were lighted at an appropriate 

time on the advice of the temple priest during the ceremonies. 

Juggernaut instead carried three green candles to the Hindu 

temple to worship his favorite god Hanuman. “I brought few green 

candles to light them up if you would allow me,” Juggernaut removed 

green candles from a brown paper bag. 

“Burning candle is burning animal fat; for that reason we 

don't light candles in Hindu temples,” the old priest was polite. 

“These green candles were made from vegetable shortening not 

animal fat.” 

“You mean the kind of vegetable shortening used in cooking?” 

the priest was curious. 

“Yes, I used vegetable shortening and turned into wax by 

hydrogenation to make these candles burn for a long time and the green 

dye turned them into green. I request for your permission to light 

them instead of diya which could be a fire hazard.” Juggernaut was 



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