''Ardaas'' is a
Balmiki
Chuhra is a Dalit caste in India and Pakistan. Populated regions include the Punjab region of India and Pakistan, as well as Uttar Pradesh in India, among other parts of the Indian subcontinent such as southern India. Their traditional occupatio ...
ritual performed in the
Ashram
An ashram ( sa, आश्रम, ) is a spiritual hermitage or a monastery
A monastery is a building or complex of buildings comprising the domestic quarters and workplaces of monastics, monks or nuns, whether living in communities or a ...
at the beginning of the community service called
Puja. It is performed standing facing the
murti
In the Hindu tradition, a ''murti'' ( sa, मूर्ति, mūrti, ) is a devotional image such as a statue, or "idol" (a common and non-pejorative term in Indian English), of a deity or saint. In Hindu temples, it is a symbolic icon. Thus ...
of
Valmiki
Valmiki (; Sanskrit: वाल्मीकि, ) is celebrated as the wikt:harbinger, harbinger-poet in Sanskrit literature. The epic ''Ramayana'', dated variously from the 5th century BCE to first century BCE, is attributed to him, based on ...
with hands folded, and the following words are repeated (in Punjabi):
[Amarjit Thaper, Wolverhampton Balmiki Ashram, Steelhouse Lane/Cable Street, Wolverhampton]
Oh Lord we stand before you and pray, we beg for your protection.
Bless us to call upon you with every breath we take and beg you to protect us from all sins, guide us so that we always pray to you. Bless us so that we always do good deeds Oh Lord and Creator of all things.
Bless us with peace of mind and infinite wisdom, show us the way of righteousness so our soul be cleansed. Bless us so that we never forget your teaching Oh Lord and that we shall sing your praises, light candles and incense, Oh Lord those who pray to you with all their heart shall go and meet you in heaven.
Oh Lord those who read and listen to your holy scriptures, you are so merciful upon them.
Oh Lord we beg you to show us the way so that we can be spared from evil.
References
{{Reflist
Balmiki
Prayer