SIX TYPES OF PRANAMAM

It Shows Submissiveness

In a practically empty St. Peter’s Basilica, the pope began the liturgy of the Lord’s Passion lying prostrate on the floor.

This gesture holds deep penitential meaning. The Good Friday liturgy is one of the most somber, in which contemplation of the Cross is a fundamental element.

As in the recent Palm Sunday and Holy Thursday celebrations, the pope was accompanied only by a small group of his collaborators.

Prostration is the placement of the body in a reverentially or submissively prone position as a gesture. Typically prostration is distinguished from the lesser acts of bowing or kneeling by involving a part of the body above the knee touching the ground, especially the hands.

Major world religions employ prostration as an act of submissiveness or worship to a supreme being or other worshiped entity (i.e. God), as in the sajdah of the Islamic prayer, salat. In various cultures and traditions, prostrations are similarly used to show respect to rulers, civil authorities and social elders or superiors, as in the Chinese kowtow or Ancient Persian proskynesis. The act has often traditionally been an important part of religious, civil and traditional rituals and ceremonies, and remains in use in many cultures.

In Buddhism, prostrations are commonly used and the various stages of the physical movement are traditionally counted in threes and related to the Triple Gem, consisting of:

• the Awakened One (Sanskrit/Pali: Buddha) (in this meaning, to own potential)
• his teaching (Sanskrit: Dharma; Pali: Dhamma)
• his community (Sangha) of noble disciples (ariya-savaka).

In addition, different schools within Buddhism use prostrations in various ways, such as the Tibetan tantric preliminary practice of a 100,000 prostrations as a means of overcoming pride. Tibetan pilgrims often progress by prostrating themselves fully at each step, then moving forward as they get up, in such a way that they have lain on their face on each part of their route. Each three paces involves a full prostration; the number three is taken to refer to the Triple Gem. This is often done round a stupa, and in an extremely arduous pilgrimage, Mount Kailash is circumnavigated entirely by this method, which takes about four weeks to complete the 52 kilometre route. It is also not unusual to see pilgrims prostrating all the way from their home to Lhasa, sometimes a distance of over 2000 km, the process taking up to two years to complete.

Praṇāma  is a form of respectful or reverential salutation (or reverential bowing) before something, or another person – usually grandparents, parents, elders or teachers or someone deeply respected such as a deity. It is found in Indian culture and Hindu traditions.  

Pranama is derived from pra (Sanskrit: प्र) and ānama (Sanskrit: आनम); pra as prefix means “forward, in front, before, very, or very much”, while ānama means “bending or stretching”.Combined pranama means “bending, bowing in front” or “bending much” or “prostration”. In cultural terms, it means “respectful salutation” or “reverential bowing” before another, usually elders or teachers or someone deeply respected such as a deity.  

There are six types of Pranama.

• Ashtanga (Sanskrit: अष्टाङ्ग, lit. eight parts) – Uras (Chest), Shiras (Head), Drishti (Eyes), Manas (Attention), Vachana (Speech), Pada (Feet), Kara (Hand), Jahnu (Knee).
• Shashthanga (Sanskrit: षष्ठाङ्ग, lit. six parts) – touching the ground with toes, knees, hands, chin, nose and temple.
• Panchanga (Sanskrit: पञ्चाङ्ग, lit. five parts) – touching the ground with knees, chest, chin, temple and forehead.
• Dandavat (Sanskrit: दण्डवत्, lit. stick) – bowing forehead down and touching the ground.
• Namaskara (Sanskrit: नमस्कार, lit. adoration) – folded hands touching the forehead. This is another more common form of salutation and greeting expressed between people.
• Abhinandana (Sanskrit: अभिनन्दन, lit. congratulations) – bending forward with folded hands touching the chest.