Griha Pravesh Puja for Your New Home
What is a Griha Pravesh Puja?
‘Griha Pravesh’ or ‘Grihapravesham’ is a housewarming ceremony performed on an auspicious day by Hindus, before entering a new house for the first time. The name is derived from the Sanskrit words ‘Griha’ which means ‘house’ and ‘Pravesh’ which means ‘entry’. A Griha Pravesh Puja is performed not just by the owner, but also by all the members of family, to welcome the blessings of the divine power. This puja is believed to purify the environment of the house, and ward off negative energies. The auspicious day and a ‘shubh muhurat’ (an auspicious time), to perform the puja are chosen by either a Vedic Astrologer or a Hindu priest. Akshaya Tritiya, Dussehra, Ganesh Chaturthi, Gudi Padwa, and Vasant Panchami are considered as the most auspicious days for performing the Griha Pravesh Puja.
The 3 types of Griha Pravesh
As per the ancient Hindu culture, there are 3 types of Griha Pravesh, which are:
- Apoorva – This type of Griha Pravesh is done in a newly constructed house or on a newly purchased land or area. The word ‘Apoorva’ is a Sanskrit word, which means ‘unique’.
- Sapoorva – The ‘Sapoorva Griha Pravesh’ is performed when an individual or a family moves into an already existing house like a rented house/flat, or an independent house which was constructed by a previous owner and was purchased during its resale. This is also performed when an individual or a family arrives from a foreign land and enters their newly purchased house for the first time.
- Dwandwah – If a house had been previously damaged due to fire or a natural calamity such as earthquake or flood, and had to be renovated or re-constructed, then in that case, a ‘Dwandwah Griha Pravesh’ is done and a new house has been constructed again in its place, to invite the flow of positive energy into the house.
Why is a Griha Pravesh Puja so important to a new house?
The Griha Pravesh Puja holds both scientific as well as spiritual significance. It is considered as the second most auspicious ritual only after a marriage ceremony, in Hindu culture. Performing a Griha Pravesh Puja yields the following benefits:
- Brings happiness, good health, and prosperity
- Wards off negatives energies and increases the flow of positive energies in the house
- Provides spiritual harmony to all members of the family
- Cleanses and purifies the house and its surroundings
What are the items needed to perform the Griha Pravesh Puja?
- Camphor
- Coconuts
- Coin
- Diyas
- Ghee
- Incense sticks
- Kalash
- Mango leaves
- Milk
- Nine varieties of grains
- Red cloth
- Wax gourd
How to perform the Griha Pravesh puja?
A Griha Pravesh puja is performed by chanting shlokas and mantras. It is performed on an auspicious day to ensure the proper alignment of all 5 elements of a house – the earth, space, water, fire, and wind, that are responsible for bringing in harmony, good health, and happiness to all members of the house. It is performed in the following manner:
- A wax gourd (winter melon) should be broken and left at the entrance of the house. A coconut is then broken and kept at the threshold of the house by a female family head of the house, to please the Vastu deity.
- Perform the kalash puja by filling a pot with water, a coin and nine types of grains.
- Tie a red cloth around a coconut and place it on top of the kalash along with some mango leaves on its sides. Chant the sacred mantras to perform the ‘Kalash Puja’.
- The kalash should then be placed near the ‘havan’ or ‘homa’, which is the ceremonial fire. All the family members of the house should sit around the ‘Havan Kund’ while sacred mantras are chanted. This age-old fire ritual is performed to invoke the blessings of the divine power and remove negative energies from the house. Diyas should be lit to attract spiritual energies.
- Then perform a ‘Ganesh Puja’, and a ‘Satyanayaran Puja’ to seek the blessings of Lord Ganesh and Lord Vishnu. It is believed that performing these pujas will bring in happiness and prosperity to the family.
- In many regions of India, people also follow a ritual where a cow and a calf are made to enter the house first, to invite positive energies.
- After the completion of the puja, milk is boiled, and some milk is made to spill over, as part of a ritual. The milk is then offered to all the members of the family.
