लक्ष्मीपूजन

१Before you begin

The house is cleaned from end to end, a rangoli drawn at the door, lamps lit and a toraṇ tied above it. On a chaurang spread with a clean cloth go a bowl with the image of Lakṣmī, or a few coins standing for her; a second bowl of coins for Kubera; a kalaś of water topped with leaves and a coconut; and the tools of the household’s work: account books, pens, scales.

Keep ready for the offering lāhyā and battāse (puffed rice and sugar drops), and dhaṇe and gūḷ (coriander seed and jaggery).

२Opening

Oṃ three times, sips of water (āchaman), a verse of purification, अपवित्रः पवित्रो वा, and then the saṅkalp: the date, the place and the family’s purpose, said in the words of the pothī.

३Gaṇeśa first

Gaṇeśa is worshipped first, so that the pūjā goes without obstacle. Jñāna Prabodhinī’s pothī uses the verse सर्वदा सर्वकार्येषु; many families say Vakratuṇḍa Mahākāya.

• वक्रतुण्डVakratunda Mahakaya

४The kalaś, conch, bell and lamp

Each is honoured with a short verse from the pothī: the kalaś as the seat of the gods and the sacred rivers, the conch as Viṣṇu’s Pāñchajanya, the bell to call the gods, and the lamp as light itself.

५Kubera and the tools of work

The coins in the second bowl are worshipped as Kubera, lord of wealth, with श्रीकुबेराय वैश्रवणाय नमः. Then come the account books, pens and other tools of the household’s work. Many traders worship their new account books today, because their year begins the next day, on Pāḍvā.

६Lakṣmī, with the Śrī Sūkta

Lakṣmī is invited to be present (āvāhan) and bathed while the Śrī Sūkta is recited; some pūjā books have its verses said through the sixteen offerings that follow: cloth, sandalwood, haldī-kuṅkū, flowers, incense, the lamp and food. Its verses ask Agni to bring Lakṣmī, who never leaves, and to drive out Alakṣmī: misfortune, hunger and want.

Lāhyā and battāse, dhaṇe and gūḷ are offered, with whatever sweets the house has made.

• श्रीसूक्तShri Sukta

७The āratī

With the lamp lit on the tray, Gaṇeśa’s āratī comes first: Sukhkartā Dukhhartā. Then the Goddess’s. Many homes sing Jay Devī Jay Devī Jay Mahālakṣmī, to the Lakṣmī of Kolhapur; Jñāna Prabodhinī’s pothī gives Durge Durghaṭ Bhārī. Karpūragauraṃ is said as the camphor burns, and many homes close, as after every āratī, with Ghālīn Loṭāṅgaṇ and the Mantrapuṣpāñjali.

• सुखकर्ताSukhkarta Dukhharta
• महालक्ष्मीची आरतीMahalakshmi Aarti
• दुर्गे दुर्घट भारीDurge Durghat Bhari
• घालीन लोटांगणGhalin Lotangan

Not yet in the library: Karpūragauraṃ, Mantrapuṣpāñjali

८Asking pardon

The pūjā ends by asking forgiveness for whatever was done wrongly or left undone: आवाहनं न जानामि न जानामि तवार्चनम्, ‘I do not know how to call you, nor how to worship you’.

९After the pūjā

The lāhyā and battāse are shared as prasād. Many homes buy a new broom (केरसुणी) that day, offer it water and haldī-kuṅkū as a form of Lakṣmī, and only then begin to use it. In some homes Alakṣmī is driven out of the house at midnight: the same Alakṣmī the Śrī Sūkta asks to be rid of.