How to do Puja or Worship at Home

Here are some simple tips on performing the daily puja at home. The following steps are involved in performing the worship.

1. Arghyam: Offering water to the hands of the idols.
2. Paadyam: Offering water to the feet of the idols.
3. Snaanam: Offering water or sprinkling water over the body of the idols.
4. Aachamanam: Offering water to the mouth of God three times.
5. Stotram: This step involves paying obeyance to mother, father, teachers, the Lord of Obstacles, recitation of the 24 names of Vishnu, and some basic hymns praising the Almighty God.
6. Dhoopam: Lighting of sandal sticks and showing them around the idols.
7. Deepam: Showing the light of the oil lamps with your right hand towards God.
8. Naivedyam: Offering fruits and food to God.
9. Aachamanam: This step involves washing the hands and mouth of God, washing the feet, and offering water to God for drinking.
10. Mangala Haarati: Lighting camphor or showing the lighted oil lamps around the Gods reciting the Mangala haarati slokas. 

Having performed the daily puja for many years, I have shortlisted the above procedure for it, I would like to share my experiences of performing puja at home based on the above steps in a detailed procedure now. These tips can be easily followed by any novice in this field. Additionally, you can personalize the process with the help of these simple hints.

For example, you may omit certain processes such as sprinkling water, wearing a silk dress, or reciting too many slokas or hymns, and other things you may feel inconvenient.

Puja Materials

• An idol of God/Goddess or Photos/Images
• Lamp holder (either bronze, steel, or of any metal)
• Oil for lighting the lights
• Wicks and Matchbox
• Flowers (optional)
• Incense sticks (Agarbatti) and Camphor
• One or two small Metal Pots/vessels and Spoons (preferably copper or silver) filled with water for performing puja.
• A plate or wide bowl for dropping water into it as if offering to God or washing God's hands and feet.
• Naivedyam

Preparations for Starting the Puja

Before starting puja or worshiping God, one must get himself clean and pure by bathing and wearing pure and clean clothes. This keeps your body and mind cool and well-prepared for the meditation.

Dress for Puja

In our Orthodox tradition, a silk dress is often reserved exclusively for the purpose of puja. After completing the puja, the dress is stored in a sacred place for future use. As a result, it does not require daily washing. Instead, it can be washed weekly, sent for dry cleaning every two weeks, or even monthly, as it is worn for only about an hour during the daily puja.

If you are not accustomed to a silk dress, do not worry. You can wear any clothes washed daily and kept in a clean place without mingling with other dresses. You can wash them at night before going to sleep and wear them in the morning for puja.

Select a Clean, Good Place for Worship

Remember the following guidelines for maintaining a clean place of worship:

It is important to keep the area where you keep your deity clean. You can place your deity in a peaceful room, preferably in a corner, or if available, in a dedicated puja room. Keep the area tidy by cleaning it with a wet or dry cloth, or by using a small broom specifically for this purpose. Ideally, place your deity in the East or North direction and sit on the right side of the deity for ease of worship. If you are unable to position the deity in the desired direction due to the layout of your house, simply explain your situation to God and position the deity in a convenient location.

How to Perform  Daily Puja at Home

• Clean the worship place before starting Puja. The idols can be cleaned periodically. 
• Sit towards the side of the place of God on a wooden plank or mat (but not in front of Him).
• Then sprinkle some drops of water around the place of puja and the puja materials. 
• Before starting worship, light the oil lamp or deepam according to Hindu customs. The lamps are generally made up of brass or panchaloha metal. Keep the lamps simple and small so that smoke will not occur. You may wash and clean them weekly or so to keep them neat and clean.
• Change the cotton vattulu (or wicks) daily and fill the lamp holder with oil (only up to 75% level to prevent the spilling or overflowing of oil). Then light it with a matchstick.

• You may place two lamps on both sides of God. While placing so, one deepam will be kept towards the east (towards the Sun) and the other one towards the North (for God). 
• If lighting a single lamp, wicks are to be placed by combining two wicks into one. The combined wick represents a family or the man-woman bondage. This brings harmony and happiness to the family.
• After lighting lamps, sprinkle water over the idols. It is like bathing Gods. Puja is just a resemblance to the daily activities of your own lifestyle. It is just like getting up early in the morning, washing and bathing yourselves, wearing new clothes, and, then, taking food. In the same way, you are cleaning God by washing his hands, legs, and body. Then wear clothes to Him (offer a flower instead of the clothes), and offer your prayers and food to Him. 
• Keep a separate glass or small vessel with water and an empty plate so that you show the water to God with a small copper/metal spoon (or mango leaf or any flower) and then pour it into the plate symbolizing the offering of a bath. And, instead of clothes, you can place flowers as if offering clothes to God.
• After bathing the idols (and putting one or two flowers), you will chant/recite the hymns or sloka of  Lord Ganesha and Vishnu / Shiva "Suklambaradharam" etc., and then make the guru stuthi by paying respects to the tree of your gurus (teachers of the family tree). It starts with the guru of your old ancestors and ends with your present guru.
• Recite the 24 Keshava Namas in their order, and after that, sing the Vishnu Stuti and Lakshmi Stuti slokas. 
  
  
• Then, you can recite all your hymns and slokas in praise of God (known as stothram). You can read or recite as many hymns as you can according to your available time or family traditions. Puja books are available at any shop for puja material.
• If you can afford it, you may worship with flowers also.
• After the worship and prayers are over, you will light the incense sticks and show them around your Gods.
• After offering the incense, show the light of the lamps towards God with your right hand.
• Now, offer food and fruits by showing the food and fruit with your right hand towards God's mouth as if feeding Him.
• The last thing to offer is the lighting of camphor and reciting arati lines or songs.
• Now, your puja is complete and you can take the prasadam and offer it to your family members also.
• Those doing the Gayatri mantra japa daily will first perform the Gayatri puja by standing or sitting facing the direction of the Sun and, thereafter, start the puja.

Benefits of Doing Puja or Worship

You may ask what are the benefits of performing puja? My answer is that it is for our own happiness and satisfaction.

We experience a lot of happiness and peace of mind by indulging in the puja. We feel satisfaction and a feeling of relief and joy with this practice. It is like meditation. Freeing your mind from tensions for some time and experiencing tranquillity and peace.

Your health and brainpower will improve with this. You can concentrate on things. It results in happiness and leads you to success in all your endeavors. You can face and solve all your problems peacefully.

 

So, performing puja is always good for your life.