Lakshmi Puja (Sanskrit: लक्ष्मी पूजा, romanized: Lakṣmī Pūjā), is a Hindu occasion for the veneration of Lakshmi, the goddess of prosperity and the supreme goddess of Vaishnavism. The occasion falls on the amavasya (new moon day) in the Vikram Samvat Hindu calendar month of Kartik, on the third day of Deepavali. It is considered to be the main festive day of Deepavali. In Assam, Bengal, and Odisha, this puja is celebrated 5 days after Vijaya Dashami.
Lakshmi Puja
Laxmi Pooja.jpg
Idol of the goddess during Lakshmi Puja
Observed by
Hindus
Type
Hindu
Date
āśvina māsa (amānta) / kārtika māsa (purnimānta), kṛṣṇa pakṣa, amāvāsyā tithi
2021 date
November 4
2022 date
October 23
Frequency
Annual
Related to
Deepavali and Tihar
Explanatory note
Hindu festival dates
The Hindu calendar is lunisolar but most festival dates are specified using the lunar portion of the calendar. A lunar day is uniquely identified by three calendar elements: māsa (lunar month), pakṣa (lunar fortnight) and tithi (lunar day).
Furthermore, when specifying the masa, one of two traditions are applicable, viz. amānta / pūrṇimānta. Iff a festival falls in the waning phase of the moon, these two traditions identify the same lunar day as falling in two different (but successive) masa.
A lunar year is shorter than a solar year by about eleven days. As a result, most Hindu festivals occur on different days in successive years on the Gregorian calendar.
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According to popular belief, Lakshmi, the goddess of wealth and prosperity, and Vishnu's wife, visits her devotees, and bestows good fortune and her blessings upon them. To welcome the goddess, devotees clean their houses, decorate them with finery and lights, and prepare sweet treats and delicacies as offerings. Devotees believe that the happier Lakshmi is during her visit, the more she blesses the family with health and wealth.[1]
In Assam, Odisha, and parts of Bengal, Lokkhi Pujo or Lakshmi Puja (লক্ষ্মী পূজা) is performed on Ashvin Purnima day on the month of Ashvin, the full moon day following Vijaya Dashami. This puja is also known as Kojagori Lokkhi Pujo. Women worship the goddess Lakshmi in the evening, after cleaning their house and decorating the floor of their houses with alpona, or rangoli. It is celebrated in the evening with all family members participating in decorating and cleaning home as part of the puja.
