Wednesday, October 26, 2011

Another Laxmi Pujan.....




We are well into the various celebrations that are done during the four days of Diwali in Maharashtra, and the second celebration is that of Laxmi Pujan , or the worship and celebration of the Godess of Wealth, Laxmi.

This is called Lakshmi Pujan,  and in many families,  there is an elaborate laying out of jewellery and valuables, in honor of the Goddess, and a worship ritual is followed, with everyone in the family dressed in their Diwali best.   Different days of Diwali are celebrated by different families in varying degrees of importance, depending on what you have traditionally followed all along.

And then I came upon, what I thought, was a very unusual Laxmi Pujan , which, my household help S., (hitherto greatly blogged about and known to readers of this blog), was checking with me about.

This morning, she suddenly took out the traditional Indian calendar where it was hung on the kitchen wall, and brought it to me .  I know she doesn't really do a religious celebration of Diwali, but it is more of a social and family holiday event for her.  

" Can you check and tell me what the actual timings for Laxmi Pujan are, today (26th) ?"  she asked me .  The Indian calendar is moon based, and the moon calendar days can change during any time of our normal sun-calendar day. I checked and confirmed for her that the timings recommended for Laxmi Pujan were between roughly 6 pm to 8:30 pm.


And I was completely intrigued because S has never followed all these rituals in all the years that I have known her.
 
S had recently become a grandma for the 4th time, with the arrival of a grandson. The new mother and the baby were, as per tradition, at her maternal home, and would  return to S.'s  abode some time later after the naming ceremony and so on, most likely after a month or two.

" Today completes 12 days after the baby's birth.  It is Laxmi Pujan , a good auspicious day. I thought I would have a small celebration for the new mother(her daughter-in-law) and baby, invite 5 ladies, honor them, place the little fellow in their lap for blessings. She has enriched us with the new grandchild, and I thought this was a nice thing to do for the new mother during Laxmi Pujan".

And she went on to tell me about some new saree she had bought to present to the new mother, her youngest daughter-in-law, as well as a fancy bonnet for the baby boy. She discussed the refreshments she was planning to serve, and how her own daughter, who was a trained mehndi artist was planning to do a wonderful design for her youngest sister-in-law, on her hand, in honor of the occasion.

All this on the day of Laxmi Pujan, when you celebrated and worshipped the Goddess of Wealth.  

And i thought what a lovely thought this was about wealth and riches in a life.   Which did not necessarily mean money. And jewellery. And the like.

In a state where girls were being named "Nakoshi" (unwanted), because they happened instead of a son,  and where, having discovered several such instances, the government was  having a huge public renaming of these girls, here was "S.",  living in these amazing unimaginable conditions , secretly hankering after a granddaughter, but immensely pleased yet with the birth of the youngest grandchild, a male,   and celebrating with the new young mother, because she has enriched the family !

And yet again, I marveled at S.'s  thought processes,  and her ability to figure out what Diwali, the bright lights, the Goddess Laxmi, and her worship, was all about......

And how lucky I was to know her .



11 comments:

  1. And a very Happy Diwali, in the very best way, to you, my friend!

    Sylvia

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  2. Very touching post, Suranga. Blessings to you and your friend and her family.

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  3. Hat's off to S
    It confirms what I have always believed.
    You don't need to be educated in order to be cultured.
    Glad to hear about the arrival of her latest grandchild.
    My blessings may please be conveyed to her
    Does she know that she is famous in Blogosphere?
    Regards
    GV

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  4. You are lucky to have S and we are lucky to get to know her through you. In these days of bride burning and the like S decides to honor he DIL for enriching the family! Hat's off.

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  5. This comment came on my email, but did not appear here. Adding it .

    crypticrow has left a new comment on your post "Another Laxmi Pujan.....":

    S is an amazing amazing lady with such path-breaking ideas and thoughts! kudos to her yet again :)
    wish you and S and your respective families a very happy happy diwali :) :)

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  6. Hi!!

    Happy Diwali!! Wish you happiness,health, wealth, peace and prosperity for coming days.

    Felt sad to know about "Nakoshi". Wish good luck and prosperity to 'S' also.

    www.santoshspeaks.blogspot.com
    www.belovedlife-santosh.blogspot.com (हिंदी कवितायेँ)

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  7. Nice post.Surprised you managed to post during Diwali!
    Best wishes for you and your family for this festive season and always.
    BTW,Rangoli in the pic is beautiful!

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  8. Sylvia Thank you !

    Gigihawaii Thank you, and will convey your blessings !

    GV Yes ! "You don't need to be educated in order to be cultured."... I will certainly convey your blessings to S. And yes, she knows I write about her, and one post once resulted in someone helping her out with some legal costs when she needed a certificate for something. She is also aware of the concept Googling, and I have once taken a photograph of her in front of the screen, handling a mouse :-)

    HHG Yes, hats off to her indeed !

    Crypticrow For some reason, your comment appeared in my email but not here, so just copied it here. And Happy Divali to you and your family too !

    Santosh Kumar Thank you for your wonderful wishes !

    Sharmila Best wishes to you and your family too ! Sometimes you have some amazing experiences which make you wonder, and your wish to share it with friends makes you sneak out of the lukh lukh chanderi and do a post.... And thanks re the rangoli ! Its done by the daughter ! Displayed more of such stuff on her blog Photokadha

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