As seen in the Hinduism section, the trinity gods are Lord Brahma, Vishnu and Shiva. Brahma is not worshipped and there are very few temples in his honor due to ‘mythological’ reasons. Vishnu (and the incarnations of Him, Rama and Krishna), Shiva (and his various forms), their wives, are the most popular with numerous temples and followers. The wives of Brahma, Vishnu, and Shiva are Saraswati, Lakshmi, and Parvati, respectively. Collectively, they are sometimes referred to as Divine mother (or Shakti). Two of Parvati’s fierce but very powerful forms are Durga and Kali. The ‘sons’ of Shiva, Ganesha and Kartikeya (or Murugan) are also widely worshipped.

However, many rural Hindus worship their own village goddess or an earth goddess. She is believed to rule over fertility and disease — and thus over life and death. The priesthood is less important in rural Hinduism: non-Brahmins and non-priests often carry out ritual and prayer there. One worshiping all the above deities with offerings of flowers, is referred to as Puja. It is conducted to an idol made of gold, silver, bronze or even clay. Those who cannot even afford, worship the Gods in paintings/pictures.

Before the puja, one bathes to signify the outer purification. Mantras and sthotras are recited for inner purification. Even a very simple puja employs flowers. What is the inner significance? Flowers smell. This is called vaasaana. Vaasaana is also another name for the imprints in the jiva, which constitute the flavor/smell of our personality, habits etc. Flowers are picked up with the right hand and then, the fingers are pointed downward so that the flowers fall at the feet of the idol. The five fingers signify the five senses. The senses, which are normally directed outward for pleasure and now pointed downward showing that they are surrendered at His/Her Feet. Usually, the flower is placed after uttering ‘namaH.’ While namaH means salutation, it is also a corrupt form of ‘na mama’ i.e not mine. Thus, when offering flowers, one says, ‘I am offering to you my senses, attributes, character but none of them are really mine. Everything is yours’. Thus, even a simple puja has a great spiritual meaning which escapes a casual observer.

There are numerous Hindu temples in India and there are around 23 in Singapore. Hinduism as practiced in Singapore today is mainly governed by the Dravidian concept of bhakti or devotion as devotees make offerings to the deities installed at the temples or to the portraits of gods at their homes. Rituals, recitation from Vedas and religious music are still a very important part of Hindu worship.