Ayudha Pooja

October is holiday season in India. We had two work holidays last week (for the end of Ramadan and Gandhi’s birthday), one this week, and in a few weeks is Diwali, the biggest holiday of the year.

Yesterday was Ayudha Pooja (known as Durga Puja in other parts of the country). (A pooja or puja is a special prayer or worship ceremony, often performed with the help of a priest.) Today is Vijayadashmi. Ayudha Pooja celebrates the goddess Durga cleaning her weapons before killing the demons, which happened on Vijayadashmi (it also celebrates Rama killing the demon king Ravana). More on the origin of the holiday can be found here and here. Basically, it is a day set aside to consecrate the devices that are used to implement one's work, whatever they may be. Thus, an auto rickshaw driver will wash and clean his vehicle, decorate it with flowers and paint, and park it at the temple over night. Similarly, my co-workers will leave their computers in front of an idol overnight to be consecrated to the god (I suggested that this might be a good idea for all of us, even the non-Hindus, as all our computers seem to be possessed in some way or another).

At IFMR the day was celebrated with a special ceremony in the library. The room was cleaned and a table was arranged with pictures of gods, fruit, and flowers. When the priest arrived, he scattered the flower petals and other offerings in front of the pictures as he performed ancient Sanskrit incantations. The ceremony lasted about ten minutes as the room filled with incense. At the end, those who wished went forward and received a traditional mark of powder on their foreheads (representative of submission to the Almighty and also his omnipresence) and treats were distributed to everyone.

Here, the idea that everything has an essence manifests itself in respect, even for inanimate objects. Although the forms and rituals are vastly different, the idea of consecrating material possessions to God is a familiar concept in Mormonism. Although I’d gladly offer it, I’m pretty sure God wouldn’t want my computer, however; it would vastly decrease His productivity.

IFMR decorated for Ayudha Pooja.


Preparation for the pooja in the library.


The priest here is doing aarti, in which light from wicks soaked in ghee (purified butter) is offered to one or more deities.





Speakers are placed at many street corners during holidays to blare music through the neighborhood. Very festive.


Truck decorated for the pooja.





Auto rickshaw decorated for the pooja.


Manually powered Ferris Wheel.

More pictures can be found here and a video of part of the IFMR library pooja is on my Facebook video page.