We had a homam at our home yesterday. At the end, when we were offering dakshiNA to the upAdhyAya, he said two points that triggered some enriching reflections in us.

He asked us to say yathA shakti (यथा शक्ति) as we offered the dakshiNA (दक्षिणा) with a request that this be accepted as an indication of our gratitudes in the process. Secondly, he made another important point – that in our culture the hands of the person offering the dakshiNA has to be lower and that of the person receiving should be placed higher.

dakshiNA is not a mere transaction or exchange. dakshiNA is offered to someone as an indication of my श्रद्धा in the process (shraddha – level of sacrosanctity/ reverence that I place in an action/ person). Given the nature of the human mind, I may overtly or subtly have the ego that I am doing a great service to the other in offering the money (or any material). यथा शक्ति  ought to be a reminder for me at the time of offering, so I don’t get caught up with my sense of doership. When I am able to practice this and internalize this, I can offer my gratitudes with भव्यम् (bhavyam – humility).