How to Worship Properly — Auspicious Days, Preparation, and Cautions
Venerating Tao Wessuwan well has details worth knowing — from auspicious days, to preparing oneself in body and mind, to placing his image in the home, to the matter of making and fulfilling vows. This chapter gathers proper guidance grounded in both custom and the Dhamma.
Many people keep an image of Tao Wessuwan to venerate, yet are unsure whether they are doing it the right way.
On which day should one worship? How should one prepare? Where in the home should the image be placed? And, most importantly, are there any prohibitions or cautions to bear in mind? This chapter will answer all of these questions, so that our worship may be correct and bear good fruit, both in accordance with custom and in accordance with the Dhamma.
Auspicious Days for Worship
By custom, the days held to be auspicious for worshipping Tao Wessuwan are Thursday (the teacher's day), the observance days (wan phra), and the full-moon day, the fifteenth waxing day — which are believed to be the days on which he grants his blessings most clearly.
No Need to Worry About the Day
Although certain days are held to be especially auspicious, if those days are not convenient, one may worship on any day at all. What matters more is consistency. To worship with a steadfast heart, regularly, every single day, is surely better than to worship only on auspicious days while doing so off and on.
Preparing Yourself Before Worship
Before performing the rite of worship, the custom observed is to prepare both body and mind to be ready.
In body, one should bathe and cleanse oneself thoroughly and dress neatly and decently, as a show of respect. In mind, one should undertake the Five Precepts and settle the heart, calling to mind the Triple Gem, the kindness of one's parents, and one's teachers, before beginning to recite the worship mantra.
The Customary Sequence of Practice
Bathe and dress decently.
Light incense and candles, and arrange the offerings.
Undertake the precepts and call to mind the Triple Gem.
Recite the Namo three times.
Recite the mantra of worship to Tao Wessuwan (three, seven, or nine times).
Set the heart in aspiration and ask for a blessing, then pour water to dedicate the merit.
Placing the Image in the Home
For those who keep an image of Tao Wessuwan to venerate at home, its placement is also a matter that deserves care.
By custom, the image should be placed in a high position, higher than the level of one's head, in a place that is clean, quiet, and fitting. It should not be placed in a low spot, or in an area that is unclean. Placing it high is a way of showing respect for his status as a great and mighty deity.
A Recommendation
If possible, there should be a dedicated shelf or altar table, kept clean at all times. To tend regularly to the cleanliness of the place of worship is itself a part of showing respect and care.
On Making and Fulfilling a Vow
One belief that is very widely held is that of making a vow, asking him to help in various matters, and then, when the wish is fulfilled, fulfilling the vow as one had promised.
Fulfilling a vow is customarily done in keeping with what was asked. For instance, for matters of work it is customary to offer saṅghadāna; for matters of health it is customary to offer prayer books and to release fish; for matters of study it is customary to make merit by sponsoring the printing of the Tipiṭaka or by supporting the education of monks and novices.
An Important Reflection on Vows
Notice that fulfilling a vow, in most cases, is "making merit and giving alms" in one form or another. This holds a profound meaning — in truth, what helps our lives improve is not the "bargaining" with a deity, but the merit we have made through fulfilling the vow itself. The vow is thus a subtle device that draws people into doing good without their even realizing it.
Cautions
There are certain points to be wary of, which the worshipper should heed, so that the worship rests upon the right path.
First, one should not ask for anything immoral, or ask that one prosper while others suffer for it, for this runs counter to the virtue of one who is a noble being.
Second, those whose livelihood is dishonest, who exploit or bring suffering to others, will find it hard indeed to reach his grace, for as was told in Chapter 9, Tao Wessuwan favors those who keep the precepts and does not favor those who are without virtue.
Third, one should not be heedless — thinking that, because one has his image to protect, one may then do dangerous, risky things or neglect due caution. True protection must come together with our own heedfulness.
The Heart of Worship
The truest worship of Tao Wessuwan is to "worship through practice" — taking his virtues as a model: his faith in the Dhamma, his being a giver, and his steadfastness in goodness. This is the worship he favors above any offering whatsoever.
Before We Go On
We now know thoroughly how to worship properly — the auspicious days, the preparation, the placing of the image, and the cautions.
The question many wonder about next is this: what, then, are the "fruits," the benefits, of worshipping Tao Wessuwan? The notions of fortune, wealth, and protection from harm that people believe in — how should they be rightly understood? In the next chapter, we will unravel the matter of the fruits of worship, with a view that rests upon the Dhamma.