This afternoon Swami Vishwananda demonstrated how to make a simple tilak on your forehead.
He would be very happy to see that worldwide the tilak looks (more or less) the same and not big and short, or long and thin, or only a red line or the Guru doton top, etc. but that the Bhakti Marga tilak is also applied with a sense of unity.
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Here is the demonstration:
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All you need is Chandan (it is white or dark and is made of the earth of Vrindavan or Radha-Kund) and Kumkum (red powdered colour) and a thin wooden stick (best is an incense stick - just remove the incense)
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The best Chandan is the "Gopi-Chandan".
Just put a few drops of water in your hand and rub the block of chandan together with the water 'til you get a paste.
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Dip the ring finger of your right hand into the chandan paste and paint a vertical line in the middle of your forehead. Paint the line in an upward motion; from the base of your nose to the hairline. There are different mantras chanted when applying tilakam on various parts of the body. When applying tilak on your forehead, chant 'Om Keshavaya Namaha'. After this, with your (dry) ring finger, you can clean the middle part creating a 'U' shape. (This symbolizes the feet of Vishnu). You can use the incense stick to go over the lines to make them more apparent but make sure to use your finger to make the tilak first.
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With your middle finger, take some more chandan and make the Tulsi leaf, starting from the base of your nose going downwards - creating a leaf shape. You can form and correct the outline of the leaf a bit with your fingers. The Tulsi leaf represents devotion which is small at first, and just like the leaf it keeps increasing in size until we can reach the Lotus Feet of the Lord.
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Then, use the incense stick to make the 'Guru-Dot' with the red Kumkum. Paint the dot in the middle of the Tulsi leaf and chant 'Om Sri Gurubhyo Namaha'. Afterwards paint the shakti line in the middle of Vishnu's feet. The line symbolizes Vishnu's Shakti - Lakshmi devi who helps us reduce our attachments which are big at first and then disappear, just like the red line. Draw the line from down to up.
Finished!