00:00 [Music]
00:11 Sweet food offerings to deities are an integral part of Hinduism,
00:16 including at Diwali time, where the goddess of light and prosperity, Lakshmi Mata, is worshipped.
00:23 Parasad is a local term derived from the Hindu word prasad or prasadam.
00:30 To understand the difference between this and the sweet flowery dessert that many people in TNT
00:36 and even parts of the Caribbean generally refer to as parasad,
00:40 we met with operations coordinator at a little store limited, Siddhi Sankar, for an interview.
00:46 So can you explain that for me? What is parasad, prasad or prasadam?
00:51 So loosely, prasad or prasadam in our Hindu culture refers to any food that you offer to the god.
00:59 Locally we know it as parasad through colloquial dialect and you know, passing down from generation to generation.
01:06 It is essentially any food that you offer to god.
01:13 And are there any specifications of food that you offer to god in Hinduism?
01:19 So from generation to generation, we've learned that your offering to god can be in any form.
01:28 It can be in the form of fruit, it can be in the form of sweets, mitai or what we traditionally call mohan bhog.
01:35 And that brings us to the vegetarian dessert that is made from flour or cream of wheat, sugar, milk, ghee,
01:43 also called cattle butter locally, and spices.
01:46 Fruits like raisins can be added.
01:49 It's made in a traditional halwa type preparation.
01:53 Halwa is a traditional or staple dessert in India where they would cook a variety of ingredients into a soft dish.
02:03 Sweet offerings represent celebration and serve as a thank you to the gods in their different manifestations for all the good things in life.
02:13 Mohan is another name for the god Krishna and bhog means food.
02:19 Placed alongside each other, mohan bhog is translated as food or an offering to lord Krishna.
02:26 Sankha tells us mother Lakshmi prefers sweet rice.
02:31 So how did mohan bhog come to be used as an offering for the goddess Lakshmi?
02:37 So Lakshmi mata, she is the goddess of wealth, she is the bringer of happiness, she is the goddess of light.
02:47 In the Hindu pantheon, we see Lakshmi mata as one of many and what we believe is that all our gods are one, they are part of the paramatma, the supreme soul.
03:01 And in that line, seeing her as part of one, she can be offered almost any parasad.
03:12 While the traditional name is not as widely known as the local vernacular parasad, Sankha tells us the process for making mohan bhog has remained almost the same.
03:22 Except that flour might be used more here than in India because of availability and the spices used for flavor may also vary in different countries.
03:32 The slight changes would have occurred during the days of East Indian indentureship in TNT.
03:38 Do you think that it is important from a cultural standpoint to draw a distinction between parasad or prasadam and mohan bhog?
03:54 From a cultural perspective, I think it is important for you to understand the difference because sometimes you may not have the availability, the convenience to prepare mohan bhog as it is a process that you take time to learn.
04:14 Whereas the deities themselves, they would accept almost anything once given with a clean and pure heart.
04:21 You give them fruits, they will accept it because at the end of the day, we believe that we are part of the supreme soul.
04:28 And us as human beings, when we partake of parasad, we become one with them.
04:34 While discussing mohan bhog, it was a plus that we got the opportunity to get insight into preparing it as well.
04:41 First, we made a pag or syrup consisting of milk, water and granulated sugar and brought that to a boil.
04:48 Then we parched our flour in the melted ghee.
04:51 So everything would kind of come together first and then it will start to get more liquidy and runny.
04:56 Our raisins and cardamom powder were added to the mixture as we continued stirring for a nice soft consistency.
05:05 It was a lot of stirring and for that, one can comfortably say four hands are better than two.
05:11 So I am doing okay? Yeah, you are doing good.
05:14 After attaining the desired texture, the pag, which we made before parching the flour, was then added to the mixture.
05:22 The stirring process continued until the mohan bhog was nice and fluffy.
05:26 While this was made as a demonstration, usually it would be offered up before being served as prasad or in our dialect, parasad.
05:36 So this is the finished product? Yeah, the finished product.
05:38 Can you tell me why you mainly use mohan bhog as the dessert that you distribute?
05:46 Mohan bhog or parasad, what we traditionally call, is used most often because it can feed a crowd.
05:54 It can share a long way.
05:57 Although you may have a little amount of ingredients in your home, you can bring these together and it will yield.
06:04 That way you will be able to serve all of your guests.
06:08 There you have it. Hopefully now you can make a distinction between parasad and mohan bhog.
06:19 Thank you so much Siddhi for helping us to get that information.
06:22 Now on the lead up to Diwali, is there anything you would like to say to the Hindu community that is celebrating the event?
06:29 I would like to encourage everyone to keep practicing making their mohan bhog for Diwali and Shubh Diwali to the entire community.
06:38 Before we go, I have one more question and that is to Veer. Veer, how did we do in the kitchen?
06:45 Good.
06:46 And that's his stamp of approval.
06:48 Reporting from the Little Store Home, I am Alessia Boucher, TV6 News.
06:53 things.
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