Saraswati pooja in India

@tigeraunt (6326)
Philippines
January 28, 2012 2:40am CST
hello mylotters, just now from a friends mail, in india, i have learned today they are observing Sarawati puja, she is Goddess of learning and wisdom. so all schools and colleges are closed, the students go school and observe this, there are students of so many religions, but all observe the pooja, worship the goddess, enjoy it. they also observe Ganesh puja, the elephant headed God of learning and wisdom. this is not all schools have xmas holidays and also on some muslim festivals, like eid and Muharram the hindu shopkeeper who runs Laxmi general store, does Laxmi pooja and distributes sweets, coconut etc. here in Philippines we have holidays on some Muslim festivals and Chinese New Year only. other than that, all are local holidays and some government declared holidays. how about your place? please share and comment. ann
2 people like this
4 responses
sumatix
@sumatix (257)
• United Arab Emirates
28 Jan 12
yes today its MAKAR SANKRANTY..it is a auspicious day and you know as we indians see calender for doing some\ goodthings like marriage, engagement and all that..this is the day where nothing has to be thought and one can perform any ceremony on this day.. I remember in our college we use to wear absolute white cloths on this day and there was a huge puja and havan on this day we use to participate in it and this was the day when prizes were distributed for the whole year activities..I won the "BEST STUDENT AWARD" ahhhh..those good old days....
1 person likes this
tigeraunt
@tigeraunt (6326)
• Philippines
28 Jan 12
am very happy to read and share your college experiences. it must be really something. i guess this makar sankranty is also a thanksgiving sort of a kind. thank you for your response. ann
dollar3235
@dollar3235 (2062)
• India
28 Jan 12
I think today is "BASANT PANCHAMI" and "MAKAR SANKRANTI" we celebrated on 14th January.
Kalyni2011
@Kalyni2011 (3496)
• India
28 Jan 12
Hi Anny dear Seems you are free today , there is no office? Yes here we have Saraswati puja today , with hubby professor we observed it in home after Subhee came from school, she brought home coconut, sweets those were offered to the goddess, she distributed to all members in family.. My son had bought an idol of Saraswati, we all worshiped that, distributed sweets, coconut etc. Happy posting, cheers. Kalyani
1 person likes this
tigeraunt
@tigeraunt (6326)
• Philippines
28 Jan 12
hello, i can see the little granddaughter is growing up very religious. i heard from the professor that she recites mantra. wow! i know you are very proud of what she is achieving now and the way she is growing up. cheers! ann
dollar3235
@dollar3235 (2062)
• India
28 Jan 12
Today is "BASANT PANCHAMI", we celebrate Saraswati Puja on this day and it's very important day for students, especially children who are in schools, I still remember how special this day used to be, as a child I used to go to every house in my neighborhood to raise funds and then on this day, we used to perform all the rituals and then we used to distribute prasad (sweets/fruits that you get at the end of Puja) and then we used to go for Aarti. Aarti (Hindi ????), also spelled arathi, aarthi (from the Sanskrit term Aaraatrik) is a Hindu religious ritual of worship, a part of puja, in which light from wicks soaked in ghee (purified butter) or camphor is offered to one or more deities. Aartis also refer to the songs sung in praise of the deity, when lamps are being offered. Unfortunately, there is nothing like this here in South India, actually, South India is completely different from other parts of India, here people have their own rules and people here don't celebrate most of the important festivals of the other parts of India.
buddha3
@buddha3 (1026)
• India
28 Jan 12
You are right about what you said about south India:) I am a south Indian. Actually here also saraswati pooja is celebrated, but not now. It is in Navratri..we also call it "sharada pooja" here. India is just an incredible country with so much diversity in the religions, rituals, festivals and everything:)
dollar3235
@dollar3235 (2062)
• India
4 Feb 12
Yeah, I agree with you, sometime back I heard Karunanidhi saying Ram and Ramayan are mythology, poor fellow doesn't even know the meaning of his own name..India is badly influenced by the western culture people do all the non-sense things thinking that it's western culture, however, it's completely different in western countries..
fantabulus
@fantabulus (4000)
• India
28 Jan 12
Yes today is the most important day for Saraswati pooja. Today is Basant Panchmi and lots of people do the pooja. Today is holiday also. You are right different religions but everyone feel happy or enjoy with their worship ways. God is one but we provide them lots of different name.