How To Celebrate Chitra Pournami At Home

by Astro Ved Online Astrology Consultation

All human beings commit good as well as bad deeds during their lifetime. But does someone call us to account for our deeds? Most people believe that we are accountable to God for our actions. Interestingly, in Hinduism, there is a deity, a divine book-keeper, so to speak, who has been assigned this sensitive and important job. He is none other than Chitragupta. Chitragupta is the assistant of Yama, the God of death, in Hinduism. It is believed that Chitragupta came into being because Lord Yama was finding the task too difficult to perform on his own. The story goes that he was created by Brahma through the Sun god, and is in fact, the younger brother of Yama. His birthday is celebrated as Chitra Pournami or Chitra Purnima. It is a very auspicious day in the Hindu calendar. It is predominantly a Tamil festival, and it is observed on the Pournami (full moon day) during the Chithirai month (April-May). It is supposedly a very auspicious day as the full moon, and the Chitra star occur on this day.

Up in the heavens sits Chitragupta, keeping a meticulous record of all the deeds a person commits during his life on earth. Nothing escapes his vigilant eye. Once a person dies, their soul reaches Yama’s abode, where Chitragupta tallies his good and bad deeds so that Yama can decide what rewards or punishments should be meted out to him. Chitragupta is also the ruling deity for Ketu, one of the shadow planets. So people who suffer from Ketu Dosha also worship him on this day. The only temple for Chitragupta in Tamil Nadu is in Kanchipuram. Lord Indra is also revered on this day. Many special poojas are performed on this day, and people take a dip in sacred water bodies, a ritual that supposedly helps to wash away one’s sins so that one can have a good afterlife. Some devotees observe a fast and worship in Tiruvannamalai. Many offer food to the needy too. Chitra Pournami 2021 is on April 27, a Tuesday.

Celebrating Chitra Pournami at Home

In most Tamil homes, people celebrate Chitra Pournami grandly. Women draw maakolam and offer Nava Dhaniyam or 9 kinds of grains in a muram or winnowing basket. They also offer salt-free white Pongal, sweet rice kozhukattai (dumplings), raw mango pachadi, neer mor, and panagam as neivedyam.

Ingredients for Pooja and Neivedyam

Winnowing basket (muram)

New mud pot for making Pongal and for keeping neer mor and panagam

Any 9 grains (like chana, moong dal, masoor dal, urad dal, toor dal, peas, ragi, wheat, rajma, karamani or black-eyed peas, chana dal, etc.

Raw rice flour for drawing maakolam

Raw mango – 1 (to be kept near the muram)

Visiri/hand fan

A coconut, preferably with shell

A paper on which is written ‘Chithiranar, Puthiranar, Sivanadiyar, Perungkanakar’.

A pen

A lamp, wick, oil. ghee, matchbox, incense sticks, dhoop, camphor

Betel leaf and nut, banana (2), one coconut

For neivedyam

Raw rice flour for making sweet pidi kozhukattai

Raw mango, green chilli, and jaggery for making mango pachadi

Curd, water, ginger, green chilli, and seasoning items for neer mor

Raw rice for making white Pongal

Water, jaggery, edible camphor, cloves, cardamom, for making panagam

Previous night’s preparations

On the night before Chitra Pournami, the lamps should be washed well. Put some Kumkum and turmeric dots on the lamps and some resh thread also in it. Sweep and clean the house thoroughly. Prepare the rice flour for the kozhukattai to be made on the following day. Draw a maakolam at the house entrance and also in front of the pooja room. A thear (chariot) kolam is usually drawn for this purpose. Also, draw the foot of Chitragupta, an umbrella, a hand fan, a bull’s foot, stick, a horse’s foot, and a flag.

All these should be drawn from the entrance till the pooja room in the same way Lord Krishna’s feet are drawn for Krishna Jayanthi. This is done to show that Chitragupta is visiting our house on this day.

The muram should be washed and divided into 9 segments using maakolam, and 9 types of grains must be kept in these. You can also keep a fresh bunch of veppam poo or neem flowers. Also, keep a raw mango, coconut, and hand fan near the muram.

Take a white paper and write ‘Chithiranar, Puthiranar, Sivanadiyar, Perungkanakar’ on it and keep a pen near it. Keep a raw mango and coconut in the muram.

What to do on Chitra Pournami day?

On the day of Chitra Pournami, wake up at 6 am and take a head bath. After this, make the neivedyam dishes. Sweet pidi kozhukattai can be made using 1 cup of rice flour in jaggery syrup, ¼ cup of cardamom powder, and 2 tbsp of grated coconut. Shape it into balls and steam them in an idli vessel.

Wash and pressure cook ½ cup of raw rice with 2.5 cups of water. Cook for two whistles on a low flame. Open the cooker, mash the cooked rice, and transfer to a bowl. Make a hole in the middle. Keep some jaggery, a small piece of banana, and a tsp of ghee. You can also make sambar without onion and garlic. Make panagam by mixing water, jaggery, edible camphor (just a pinch), crushed cardamom, and cloves. Prepare neer mor and temper it. Keep all the neivedyam items in mud pots. At an auspicious time, light the lamp and place the neivedyam items before God. Keep the muram with 9 grains, paper, and pen in it. Keep betel leaves, nuts, coconut, and banana on a plate. Keep the neer mor and panagam in bowls. The Pongal and pidi kozhukattai can be kept on a plate. After the arati, complete the pooja. Some people read the story of Chitragupta and also chant slokas. Some devotees make payasam and vada for lunch.

It is the practice to offer food to the needy on this night. This will bring divine blessings and also remove bad karma.

Chitra Purnima 2021 is almost here. So get ready to host Chitragupta and unburden yourself of your sins and bad karma.