Saraswathi is the Goddess of intelligence; she also indicates peace and hence is always in white clothes. Thus, peace, purity, and intelligence are three elements that the Goddess bestows people with. In Hinduism, a day is dedicated to worshipping Saraswathi, which is also known as Ayudha puja. This year, it will be celebrated on 14th October 2021.
The day is celebrated on the last day or ninth day of Navratri. It is celebrated in significant parts of India; however, it is known by different names. Such as in Gujarat, they call it Sharda Puja and Chopda Puja
The day is essential for every professional and student since they require intelligence to do their job properly or to grasp every subject efficiently. We can't progress in life without the blessings of Maa Saraswathi
On this Ayudha puja day, devotees can worship the Goddess at their homes. We bring you the procedure here. Let's read further
Traditions of Saraswathi Pooja
Goddess Saraswati should be adorned in white or yellow clothes as yellow also represents the sattva guna
The beej or seed mantra for invocation of Saraswati Devi is
AUM shreem bhreem saraswataye namah
ॐ श्रीम भ्रीम सरस्वतये नम
This mantra is used during the ceremonies to start any education source. However, when we worship the Goddess or when we sit in front of her, we chant the following mantra
“Saraswathi namasthubhiyam varade kamarubhini vidhyarambham karishyami siddhibhavatume sada.
Before beginning the worship, one should clean their home a day prior to this Puja. They should also clean all the tools and accessories
On the day, one can place the idol on a floorboard and adorn it with garland and flowers. You can also keep some holy books beside the idol
Next, you worship put turmeric & kumkum dots on these books and your important devices like laptops and tools. However, one day you worship these things; they shouldn't be touched or used. You can only remove them the next day of Ayudha puja; that is the day of Vijayadashami or the tenth day
Pooja Requirement
•Image or idol of Goddess Saraswati
•Plank to placing the idol.
•A white cloth
•Flowers – lotus or jasmine.
•Mango leaves & other decorations
•Turmeric
•Kumkum
•Raw Rice
•Coconut, betel leaves & nuts
•Banana and other fruits
•Banana leaf for keeping neivedyam
•Other pooja items like oil, ghee, camphor, incense stick, and sambrani/Dhoop.
•Puffed rice with gram dal, peanuts, and jagger
You can also prepare THULLU MAAVU by soaking the rice for an hour. After that, drain the excess water and mix grated jaggery & cardamom. This works as Neivedyam
People make five varieties of rice as Lemon rice, Tamarind rice, Coconut rice, Curd rice, and sweet Pongal, along with sundal & Pepper vada. However, you can also make a meal with no garlic and onions, such as Rice, Vendakkai Sambar , Broad beans Poriyal, Avial, Paruppu, Vadai, and Payasam
How to Perform the Pooja
Follow these steps to make sure you worship the Goddess in the right way
•Draw the rangoli in front of the pooja room.
•Keep the Goddess on a plank.
•Decorate the idol or image with garlands ad flowers.
•Use a new white cloth to cover the idol; if you use a picture, then place the cloth near it.
•Offer some flowers to the books and other objects too.
•Before starting, offer your prayer to Lord Ganesha by chanting “Suklam Baratharam.”
•Now you can light a lamp in front of Goddess plank. Smoke some agarbattis to perform Puja of the Goddess.
•Chant the shloka or Saraswathi sthothram from the book while worshipping Saraswathi.
•Once you have worshipped her, it is time to offer the prasadam or neivedyam that you have made.
•Show the arti to family members and finish the Puja.
•In the evening, you can offer sweet appam and Nei appam or idli and dosa too if you have a fresh battery available.
•Some people also offer dress material to a young girl along with betel leaves, betel nuts, bananas, bangles, and cosmetics. It is considered to bring the blessings of Goddess Saraswathi