Sometime back a friend asked me the question: “Ravi, why are we offering flowers to deities, what is the special attribute of flower for such offerings?” My answer was almost like as follows: “Well, Mohan, to answer your question we should look into the symbolism of flowers. A flower is the finest creation of God, the most benevolent creation, found on this earth. A flower blooms not for its own fulfilment, it spreads happiness among the beholders, it sheds its fragrance that wafts in the air we breathe, and finally when it becomes a fruit it quenches hunger and thirst of humans, animals and birds. The flower becomes the symbol of beauty, benevolence, perfection, and purity. Flowers are the 'wordless prayers of Nature', beautiful expressions of its yearning for the Divine. And each flower has its unique aspiration, its own vibration, its true meaning’, said the Mother of Aurobindo Āshram. She further says: ‘A flower contains all the elements of Nature air, water, fire, earth and ether. Apart from its beauty of form, colour, fragrance and texture there is something more an indefinable, subtle and mysterious quality about it. In the words of Liselle Raymond, "in its simplicity, it carries the vibrations of the akasha the ethereal element itself, that is, all that is most abstract, pure and perfect. It is, above everything else, the form, behind which is the sound, the all powerful creative mantra”. “Be like a Flower’ Mother ( of Aurabindo Ashram, Pondicherry) advises: ‘Be like a flower. One must try to become like a flower: open, frank, equal, generous and kind. Do you know what it means? A flower is open to all that surrounds it: Nature, light, the rays of the sun, the wind, etc. It exerts a spontaneous influence on all that is around it. It radiates a joy and a beauty. It is frank: it hides nothing of its beauty, and lets it flow frankly out of itself. What is within, what is in its depths, it lets it come out so that everyone can see it. It is equal: it has no preference. Everyone can enjoy its beauty and its perfume, without rivalry. It is equal and the same for everybody. There is no difference, or anything whatsoever. Then generous: without reserve or restriction, how it gives the mysterious beauty and the very own perfume of Nature. It sacrifices itself entirely for our pleasure, even its life it sacrifices to express this beauty and the secret of the things gathered within itself. And then, kind: it has such tenderness, it is so sweet, so close to us, so loving. Its presence fills us with joy. It is always cheerful and happy. Happy is he who can exchange his qualities with the real qualities of the flowers. Try to cultivate in yourself their refined qualities’ The flower is also the symbol of all that is good in the worshipper; it is symbolic of his or her ‘vasana’, the totality of one’s ‘essence’. So by offering the flower we are offering to the deity ourselves. There is another symbolism also. You know a flower appeals to our ‘manas’ (mind) and never to our buddhi (intellect). In other words flower is a symbol of our mind, our feelings, emotions, aspirations and everything the mind stands for. The ‘mind’ is also the seat of our self, our ego. Through the offering of flower we are surrendering our ego at the feet of God, surrendering ourselves with all the selfish feelings and thoughts at the feet of the deity. In other words it is symbolic of a total surrender of oneself at the feet of the deity. The life of a flower is ephemeral so also the body of a human. The ephemeral man offers his ephemeral life through the offering of flower at the feet of the eternal God. In that remote past, when the primitive man looked around searching for things to offer to his primitive gods, there were no better choices than the flowers around: attractive, colourful, fragrant and pure. And he collected them and made the offering. Even now, after many millennia, we could not find a better substitute for offering to the gods we worship”. About flowers some of the most beautiful lines ever written: “I am a kind word uttered and repeated By the voice of Nature; I am a star fallen from the Blue tent upon the green carpet. I am the daughter of the elements With whom Winter conceived; To whom Spring gave birth; I was Reared in the lap of Summer and I Slept in the bed of Autumn. …………………………………. I am the lover's gift; I am the wedding wreath; I am the memory of a moment of happiness; I am the last gift of the living to the dead; I am a part of joy and a part of sorrow. ……………………………………….. But I look up high to see only the light, And never look down to see my shadow. This is wisdom which man must learn.” (Khalil Gibran)