Presently Saligrama Shila is worshiped in the worship chamber of almost every Hindu family as a manifestation of Lord Vishnu. This very auspicious stone to the Hindus can be identified from other stones by some special markings. It is widely believed that Saligrama Shila generally resembles the paraphernalia of the Lord Vishnu. The paraphernalia of Lord Vishnu include the four holy signs worshiped by the Hindus. These are gada (mace), chakra (wheel), sankha (conch) and padma (lotus).
Saligrama Shila is generally carried by the Hindu priests and these are generally inherited property. The priests inherit these Saligrama Shilas from their father or from any other senior persons who worshiped these Shilas. We find reference about the divinity of Saligrama Shila in the Hindu mythology. In Padma Purana, Lord Shiva a very powerful Hindu god declared in his own style the divinity of Saligrama Shila. Lord Shiva has emphatically told that the merit that a devotee gets by seeing and worshiping idols of lord Shiva for a thousand times can be obtained worshiping the Saligrama Sila just for one occasion.
The worshiping of the Saligrama shila is generally associated with the Vaishnava belief. According to the cult of Vaishnavism any worshiper should worship this Shila with due respect and should maintain a few rules strictly while worshiping the Salgrama Shila. A worshiper of Salagrama Shila should not touch the Saligrama Shila without bathing and he should never place this Shila on the ground. A worshiper of Saligrama Shila should not be involved in any kind of bad practice or he should not have any bad habit like the consumption of liquor or smoking. He should maintain purity in his family life and he should not be indulged in any kind of hedonistic activities. A worshiper of Saligrama Shila should be pure in heart and should show charity to the poor.
Saligrama Shila is also worshiped in the puja (Hindu worship) of the idols of the Hindu gods and goddesses like Shiva, Kali, Durga, Ganesh and Kartik.
The largest and the most weighty Saligrama Shila is found in the Jaganath Temple in the Indian state of Orissa. This famous temple of the Hindus has its location in the coastal town of Puri. Maximum number of Saligrama Shila outside the India are found in the temple of International Society of Krishna Consciousness. (ISCON) in Scotland. This temple of International Society of Krishna Consciousness. (ISCON) in Scotland is known as Karuna Bhavan. This is a temple specially made to worship the lord Bishnu.
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