‹ Puja Vidhi

Gudi Padwa and Ugadi Puja

The lunar new year: the raised gudi, neem and jaggery, and the year's almanac

Common way — most homes

Chaitra Shukla Pratipada, in the morning after sunrise. Muhurtha shows the day on the festival card.

About 30 minutes

The lunar new year opens with an oil bath, mango leaves at the door and a taste of bitter and sweet together, for a year that will hold both. Maharashtra raises a gudi; Karnataka and the Telugu lands make Ugadi pachadi and read the panchanga. If a mantra is hard, "Om Namo Narayanaya" can stand in for any of them.

Prayers in this puja

Shubham Karoti ›Vakratunda Mahakaya ›Shuklambaradharam ›Mushikavahana ›

Get ready

The day before

• Clean the house, and string mango leaves for the door.
• For a gudi: a long stick, bright cloth, neem and mango sprigs, a sugar garland and a small upturned pot.

In the morning

• Take an oil bath before sunrise if you can.
• Mix the neem, jaggery, tamarind, raw mango and a little salt.

What you need

For the new year

• 1Mango leaf garland (toran)
• 1 setGudi: stick, cloth, neem, sugar garland, potMaharashtra.
• A littleNeem flowers or leaves, and jaggery
• A littleTamarind, raw mango, salt, chilliFor Ugadi pachadi.
• 1 platePuran poli, shrikhand or holige
• 1This year's panchanga, or this app

For the altar

• 1Clean cloth to place it onRed or yellow is traditional.
• 1Puja plate (thali)

On the plate

• 1Oil lamp (diya) with a cotton wickGhee or sesame oil.
• 2Incense sticks (agarbatti)
• A pinch eachKumkum and haldi
• A littleSandal paste (chandan)No chandan? Use kumkum.
• 1 tablespoonAkshat — unbroken rice grains mixed with a little kumkum
• A handfulFresh flowers
• 1Small vessel of clean water with a spoon
• 1Small bellOptional.

To offer

• A littleFruit, jaggery, sugar crystals (mishri) or anything cooked fresh at home
• 1 or 2 piecesCamphor for the aartiOptional; the lamp can be used instead.

The puja

1. Light the lamp

   Light the lamp and place it to the right of the deity. Fold your hands to it.

   śubhaṁ karōti kalyāṇamārōgyaṁ dhanasampadaḥ. śatrubuddhivināśāya dīpajyōtirnamō'stu tē.I bow to the flame of the lamp, which brings good fortune, well-being, health and wealth, and destroys ill will.

   Shubham Karoti ›

2. Remember Ganesha

   Every puja begins with Ganesha, the remover of obstacles. Fold your hands and say the verse once.

   vakratuṇḍa mahākāya sūryakōṭisamaprabha. nirvighnaṁ kuru mē dēva sarvakāryēṣu sarvadā.O Ganesha of the curved trunk and mighty form, radiant as a crore suns, keep my every work free of obstacles, always.

   Vakratunda Mahakaya ›Shuklambaradharam ›Mushikavahana ›

3. Sankalpa — state your intention

   Hold a little water, akshat and a flower in your right palm. Say your name, today's date in the Hindu calendar, and why you are doing the puja — for example, for the well-being of the family. Then let the water fall on the ground or into a plate. Tap "Make sankalpa" to read today's full sankalpa.

4. Raise the gudi

   Tie the cloth, neem, mango sprig and sugar garland to the stick and set the pot upside down on top. Stand it at the right of the main door or at a window, tilted slightly outward. Offer a flower and a lamp to it.

5. Bitter and sweet

   Each person eats a little of the neem and jaggery mixture before anything else. Tradition says it readies you to take the year's sorrows and joys alike.

6. Hear the year

   Read the panchanga for the new year together: its name, rain and harvest predictions. Muhurtha shows the year's name.

7. Pushpa — flowers

   Offer the flowers at the deity's feet, one or a few at a time.

   ōm namō nārāyaṇāya. puṣpāṇi samarpayāmi.

8. Deepa — the lamp

   Lift the lamp and show it to the deity, circling it clockwise three times.

   ōm namō nārāyaṇāya. dīpaṁ darśayāmi.

9. Naivedya and meal

   Offer the festive food with folded hands, then eat together. Take the gudi down before sunset.

10. Kshama prarthana — ask forgiveness

    With folded hands, ask forgiveness for anything done wrong or left out. This closes every puja.

    āvāhanaṁ na jānāmi na jānāmi visarjanam. pūjāṁ caiva na jānāmi kṣamasva paramēśvara. mantrahīnaṁ kriyāhīnaṁ bhaktihīnaṁ surēśvara. yatpūjitaṁ mayā dēva paripūrṇaṁ tadastu mē.I do not know how to invite you, nor how to send you off, nor even how to worship; forgive me, O Lord. Whatever I have offered — lacking in mantra, in action or in devotion — may it be made whole.

Fasting

No fast is required. The neem mixture is taken first.

Good to do

• Begin something new, however small.
• Wear new or freshly washed clothes.

Tradition avoids

• Do not leave the gudi up after sunset.
• Do not skip the bitter part; it is the point.

A year has both tastes. Starting with both in one mouthful is the day's quiet wisdom.

Traditions vary. Follow your own family's way.

Muhurtha Puja Vidhi