Daily Puja and Mantra Japa at Home

Puja means worship or reverence of the Divine. Most of the Vedic scriptures and epics, including the Vedas, Upanishad, Ramayana, Mahabharata and more, emphasise the significance of performing daily puja at home. There are various types of pujas ranging from simple ones to really elaborate and complex ones. Pujas such as Rudra Abhishek, Satyanarayan Puja, Diwali Puja, Vastu Puja and others are performed on specific days and events only a few times every year. Many devotees often perform a small daily Puja before leaving home for daily blessings of the Divine, Sattvik living and positivity. Devotees mostly offer Deity Pujas either to their favourite deity or Ishta Devta or to a specific deity for a specific purpose.

Daily Puja Procedure

As per the shastras or scriptures, early morning is the best time to perform daily Puja. The time after sunrise in the morning is considered as most Sattvik as Sato Guna (mode of goodness) is highly active during this time. As a result, the mind is calm and highly focused. There are many rituals and steps involved in conducting the daily Puja such as Mantra Japa, Shlokas Chanting and even fire rituals. These steps together create the required vibration and energies to ensure blessings and positivity. Pujas are offered to various Gods and Goddesses depending upon particular day which is dedicated to a particular Deity. It is mentioned in the scriptures that offering Puja to any Deity is equivalent to offering Puja to the Supreme Consciousness (Brahman).

Devotees may use the below-mentioned steps to perform the daily pujas:

Simple steps to be done during daily puja vidhi

1. Take a bath and put on clean clothes, and sit peacefully in front of the deity idol or image
2. Concentrate and offer prayers while meditating upon the deity
3. Invite the deity to the altar and chant the mantra while offering flowers
4. Take a sip of water through the right palm and take a vow for the rituals
5. Bathe the symbolic form of the deity with water and auspicious items like milk, honey, curd, sandal or other items while chanting mantras
6. Dress or offer sacred clothes to the deity. Offer tilak and flowers and decorate the deity while chanting Deity’s name and mantra
7. Light an incense or dhoop stick and worship the deity with it, and spread its smoke throughout the altar
8. Wave a lamp in a clockwise pattern while the mantra is being chanted
9. Offer food to the deity, followed by betel leaves, betel nuts and money
10. After completion of basic puja, chant mantras, shlokas or stutis of the deity
11. You may also read the story or legend of the Deity
12. Circumambulate the altar, seek forgiveness for any mistake and bid farewell to Deity while the mantra is being chanted
13. Distribute and consume the food offered to Deity as Prasad

Detailed steps to be done during daily puja vidhi

Steps to be done during daily puja vidhi

1. Deepa Puja - Worship of the lamp
2. Ghanta Puja - Worship of the bell
3. Shankha Puja - Worship of the conch
4. Kalasha Puja - Invocation of the Holy Waters in the Kalasha
5. Sankalpa - Resolving to perform the puja
6. Vigneshwara Puja - Worship of Lord Ganesha
7. Atma Puja - Meditating on oneself as Atma
8. Peetha Puja - Worship of the seat of the deity
9. Guru Dhyanam - Meditating on one's Guru
10. Dhyanam - Meditating on the deity
11. Avahanam - Invoking the deity
12. Pranapratishtha - Infusing Prana in the Deity
13. Asanam - Offering seat to the deity
14. Padyam - Offering water to the deity for washing feet
15. Arghyam - Offering water to the deity for washing hands
16. Achamaniyam - Offering water to the deity for sipping
17. Madhuparkam - Offering a mixture of honey, curd and ghee to the deity
18. Snaniyam - Offering water to the deity for bathing
19. Payah Snaanam - Bathing with milk
20. Dadhi Snaanam - Bathing with curd
21. Ghrta Snaanam - Bathing with ghee
22. Madhu Snaanam - Bathing with honey
23. Sharkara Snaanam - Bathing with sugarcane juice
24. Panchamrita Snaanam - Bathing with Panchamrita (above five ingredients)
25. Shuddhodaka Snaanam - Bathing in the holy waters of rivers
26. Vastram - Offering Garments to the deity
27. Upaveetam - Offering sacred thread to the deity
28. Abharanam - Decorating the deity with ornaments
29. Gandham - Offering fragrant substances to the deity
30. Chandanam - Sandalwood paste
31. Pushpam - Offering flowers to the deity
32. Dhoopam - Lighting incense sticks before the deity
33. Deepam - Lighting an oil lamp before the deity
34. Naivedyam - Offering Food to the deity
35. Tambulam - Offering betel leaves and Nuts to the deity
36. Neerajanam - Waving camphor light before the deity
37. Pushpanjali - Offering flowers to the deity
38. Pradakshina - Circumambulating the deity
39. Pranama - Offering salutations to the deity
40. Stuti - Praising the deity with hymns
41. Kshamaprarthana - Asking for forgiveness for any lapse in the puja

Mantra Japa can be done

Most Popular Daily Mantras for Mantra Japa

Monday - Lord Shiva    || Om Namah Shivaya ||
Tuesday - Lord Hanuman    || Shree Hanumante Namah ||
Wednesday - Lord Ganesha    || Om Gan Ganapataye Namaha ||
Thursday - Lord Vishnu     || Om Namo Bhagavate Vaasudevaay ||
Friday - Goddess Durga     || Om Sri Durgaya Namah ||
Saturday - Lord Shani     || Om Shan Shanicharaya Namah ||
Sunday - Lord Surya Dev    || Om Shree Suryaya Namaha ||

Daily Mantra Japa vidhi

Mantra Japa is the practice of repeating ma antra while focusing on the meaning of the mantra. Mantra Japa is best done using a strand of beaded mala known as Japa mala made of Rudraksha, red sandal, Tulsi or sphatik beads. Chanting of mantra helps anchor the fickle mind, improve focus and concentration and help attain peace of mind.

You can follow the below-mentioned steps to repeat the mantra using a Japa Mala.

• Sit on an Asana (rug) in a steady and comfortable pose in Sukhasana or Padmasana.
• You may resolve to repeat a certain amount of mantras
• Use a rosary or japa mala with tassel or Sumeru and begin the Japa on a bead next to Sumeru or tassel or Guru bead by gently rolling it between thumb and ring or middle finger until you reach Guru bead.
• Do not cross the Guru bead instead, reverse the bead string and start with the second round and repeat the procedure mentioned above
• Ensure the level of mala is not below the navel, and do not use the index finger for rolling the mala
• Rhythm the mantra with the breath and think of the meaning of the mantra
• Repeat the mantra slowly with a feeling that the mantra is purifying your thoughts and heart
• After completion of mantra Japa, sit in silence for some time to imbibe the spiritual vibrations of the mantra Japa