Arati

The act of waving a lighted lamp before
a deity. The deity may be present
in many forms, such as a picture,
statue, symbol (svayambhu image)
such as the shalagram, or even a
natural phenomenon such as a river, as
in the case of the Ganges.
The arati lamp usually is a shallow
vessel holding a cotton wick soaked in
oil or clarified butter, with a ring-shaped
handle to protect one’s hands. This is
one of the sixteen traditional offerings
(upacharas) presented to a deity as part
of worship. This particular act is the
offering of light.
Arati is arguably the single most
common act of Hindu worship, performed daily in Hindu homes and
temples throughout the world. Because
of this fact, the word arati is sometimes
used to refer to any act of worship,
even singing panegyric hymns during
worship. Before electric lights were
invented, when the temples were much
darker, arati also served to give the
devotees (bhakta) in the temples a
better view of the deity, which was
very important.