The Hawan - A Tradition

Even in this modern age, D.A.V. has not forgotten India's rich culture of performing hawan early in the morning twice a week. The founder of the D.A.V. group of schools, Swami Dayanand Saraswati has said, "The Deva Yagna is the second duty of man". In this great Homa we pray to Agni - the god of fire - to cleanse our body, mind and soul of all sins, to keep our spirits high like Agni. Some students perform the Hawan, while the rest chant the mantras along with them. This goes class by class. The Hawan is performed to purify the atmosphere. The heat of the fire kills micro-organisms and pollutants in the air and thus leaves the atmosphere fresh, clean, cool and fragrant. We start with the Sandhya, continue with Agni Hotra, which is followed by the Gayatri Mantra and which fi-nally ends with the "Shanti Path".