Baby rice feeding ceremony

Annaprashan (first rice-eating ceremony) - BabyCenter India

Why is the Annaprashan celebrated?

Annaprashan is done when your baby is ready to make the transition from a liquid diet to solids. It can be performed anytime from six months until before the first birthday.

Annaprashan is usually performed during the even months for boys, in the child's sixth or the eighth month. For girls, it is usually performed during the odd months, in the child's fifth or the seventh month.

Where can I perform the Annaprashan?

Annaprashan is mainly done at home or at a temple. However, some parents prefer to hire a banquet hall or community centre for the function. In Kerala, many parents prefer to perform the ceremony at Guruvayoor, a famous Hindu temple.

Alternatively, many families in central or eastern India perform Annaprashan at home. If you're performing the ceremony at home, you may want to contact a priest to help with the religious rites.

How is the Annaprashan performed?

The Annaprashan ceremony is performed on a specific day and time after consulting a priest. The baby is dressed in new clothes, often traditional ones such as a dhoti kurta or a lehenga choli.

Annaprashan begins with a puja or a havan for your baby's health and happiness, followed by the symbolic feeding of the prasad or the first bite of solid food. It is an occasion for celebration, and family and friends are invited to attend.

The religious ceremony is often followed by a fun game where a number of symbolic objects are placed on a banana leaf or silver tray which your baby can then pick up. The objects include:

books symbolising learning
jewels symbolising wealth
a pen symbolising wisdom
clay symbolising property
food items symbolising a love for food

Family and friends have a great time cheering the little one while he makes his choice. It is believed that the object your baby picks up from the tray represents his area of interest in future.

What kind of foods are offered to the baby during Annaprashan?

A variety of food is served on the baby's plate. Food for the prasad is usually rice pudding (kheer or payash) if you want to offer your baby something sweet. Or it is plain mashed rice with ghee and some well-cooked dal if you want to include savoury fare.

Some also choose to have an elaborate celebration and serve fried rice, pulao, vegetables, meat and fish along with kheer.

Tips for safe Annaprashan

Here are some ideas to help you and your baby enjoy this special time.

Ensure your baby is well-rested before the ceremony. Some parents prefer to have the Annaprashan after their baby's morning bath.
It is best to limit the gathering to just a few close family members and friends as your baby may feel overwhelmed.
Choose clothes that your baby will be comfortable in, preferably made from natural fabrics. Outfits with mirror work, heavy embroidery, embellishments or metallic thread work may irritate your baby's tender skin.
Wash your hands thoroughly before feeding your baby.
Ensure your baby's food is prepared fresh and hygienically.
Keep a small towel handy to wipe any excess food around your baby's mouth.
Make sure your baby doesn't eat more than a few spoonfuls of the sweets and desserts as he may get indigestion or an upset tummy.
During the havan, ensure that your baby is not too close to the fire. Keep your baby's face away from the smoke. Open doors and windows to ensure proper ventilation.
It'll be easier to manage children if you can arrange for a separate area for them to play in. Put some toys and games to keep them busy in the play area. It's a good idea to get a willing relative or a maid to help out with keeping your little guests safe.
If you'd like to give 'thank you' gifts to your guests, a box of sweets (mithai) or dried fruits is a popular option.
Don't forget to record the occasion. Take lots of photos and videos!

Why not share your baby's Annaprashan photos with other mums and dads in our community!

Read this article in Hindi: शिशु का अन्नप्राशन संस्कार

Read more on:

Your child's timeline: when milestones happen
Starting solid food: an overview
10 things your baby needs to thrive

The Complete Guidance to Pasni - Why and How!

About Nepal

As soon as we are born, we cry, and the only thing we consume for a long time is our mother’s milk. It takes a long time for us – humans – to be able to develop a body that can digest solid food. Although mother’s milk is our only food source, it has all the nutrients that we need to grow both physically and mentally.

Over the course of the next 6 months, we grow from weak and helpless to a bit more capable infant. Finally, after 6 months of relying purely on breast milk, we are finally able to consume a bit of solid food. Since it is a milestone in our life, we celebrate it and this rice feeding ceremony is called Pasni.

The day is preplanned and everything is set to place. The scientific and the religious point of view intersect here as after 6 months after which the child’s digestive system is finally good enough to digest some amounts of solid foods.

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But we do have the tradition of making it a religious offering with the blessings from our Hindu deities. The child is taken as a blessing from the god, and so is to be fed with the proper food elements with religious processes. But regardless of whether Pasni is done for religious or scientific reasons, this ceremony is just a phase in the life of a child where s/he is slowly being eased into eating solid foods.

Table of Contents

What is a Pasni?

Feeding or weaning as the westerns know – is a ceremony of feeding rice to an infant that we practice as Annaprashan or Pasni on an auspicious day. To feed an infant, we have to look for an auspicious day that has been stated by the guru or Jyotish. This ceremony is usually held on the 6th month from the birth of the child. However, if the auspicious day on the 6th month is missed for some reason, then you will have to wait for the guruji to find the next date in order to carry out this ceremony.

This day consists of having a simple puja to start the feeding ceremony. A pandit guru Ji is invited and all the elements and materials are prepared before the ceremony begins in earnest. Since the Pasni is a time of rejoicing, relatives and close friends gather around to celebrate this auspicious day.

Calling the Guru Ji

As soon as the infant is about to turn 6 months of age, a parent should consult with a Jyotish or pandit guru to choose the auspicious day to hold this festival. Pasni is held on the 5th month for the girls. Meanwhile, the same ceremony is held on the 6th month for the boy.

The reason for this is a traditional belief that the body of a female infant matures earlier than the male infant- which is a commonly accepted medical belief in modern times. During the consultation, everything that should be done and prepared for the day is learned and prepared.

Before the Main event

On the day of Pasni, required ingredients are prepared and laid out at the designated place before the pandit guru arrives. During this ceremony, a simple puja is done, which includes Diyo puja, Kalash Puja, and Ganesh puja. These three figures of gods are usually included in any simple puja and can be done with the guru’s guidance to have a boon from the day. However, this puja is not compulsory in the case of the Pasni.

Regardless of the Puja is done, Guru Ji lays out the rekhi to place the gods at their representative place and each ingredient is placed in tapara. The diyo is placed towards the east alongside Kalash and Ganesh on the other side.

Side note* the required ingredients for Pasni are listed out at the end.

Process

While Pasni is indeed an important ceremony in the lives of Hindus, it is not necessary a ceremony is celebrated in just a single way. The one who made the rules probably understood that not everyone is equal and as a result, there are two processes to do the pasni. One of the processes is somewhat short and simple, the other one is a bit long and complicated as well.

The short and simpler process

Pasni can be done right at your home but as there are still other options, let’s spread them out. If you have a temple nearby the house, then it’s a good practice to go there since Pasni is not a big ceremony. Taking the puja ingredients and the food items to offer to the gods in the temple is heavily practiced in our Nepali Hindu customs anyways.

It’s an easier and simpler method of achieving the completion of the process. The guruji from the temple will guide you through the temple. There you will worship each god and bow down offering Puja for the blessings from God to your child.

After the puja is done, the offered food is taken on a clean spoon and fed to the child by the most elder head of the family or a young girl from the family- who is also known as a Kanya kumari. This step is usually carried out by the grandfather. However in the case that he is not present at the time, then this process is carried out by the next of kin.

As the child will be new to these kinds of tastes and textures, s/he is just fed a bit for the ceremony. And that ends the ceremony of feeding the infant to the world of different food items other than milk. As time passes however the child is indeed slowly eased into solid foods later on after Pasni.

In recent times, as the day commences, there will be a gathering where the child is given items of importance by the family, the near relatives, and family friends. It’s time to celebrate the auspicious day. The child would be happy to see all of the people.

The long process with guru’s Guidance

In the long process of Pasni, a simple puja is done, which includes Diyo puja, Kalash Puja, and Ganesh puja. These three figures of gods are usually included in most of the pujas. However, although these pujas are not compulsory for the Pasni, it is still practiced by the highly religious ones.

Guru Ji lays out the rekhi to place the gods in the representing place and each element is placed in tapara that consists of rice. Diyo is then placed towards the east alongside Kalash and Ganesh on the other side.

Diyo- Kalash- Ganesh Puja

The puja process begins with igniting the diyo and worshipping the fire god through it. Then a gaudan sankalpa is done with a sankalpa mantra chanted by the guru ji. This Sankalpa process is a will statement stated for doing this puja for the pasni ceremony in the name of the child. It is followed by Argha puja, where water, mustard seeds, dubo, kus, curd, and banana are placed in Arghya Patra. These ingredients are then offered in the name of the sun and placed back in their place.

The ignited diyo is touched with flowers, akshyata and worshipped upon. Different elements of puja like Abhir, Kesari, Chandan, akshita, veti, naived are placed upon the diyo.

The standing Kalash is now worshipped from the base on the earth, then the rice which it stands on, followed by the body of the Kalash, and finally ending with the mouth of the Kalash. The ingredients – which are the same ones used in the Diyo Puja, are placed inside the Kalash. Additionally, In Kalash, we worship Varun, the god of the seas, and tirtha, the river gods.

Ganesh, which is represented by Coconut wrapped with red cloth is touched with flowers, akshyata, and prayed for the blessings of the child. Once again the new batch of elements that were used while worshipping the Diyo, are offered to Lord Ganesh. 21 rupees as Dakshina, 21 blades of dubo grass is placed with red flowers as Ganesh is fond of these things.

Feeding Ceremony

Completing the puja ceremony with the guidance of Guruji, all the prepared food items are brought and offered to the gods worshipped there. The child is brought and placed with the parents. The paternal aunt holds the baby while feeding but if the aunt is unavailable, parents themselves can hold the child.

Now, a young girl from the family (Kanya Kumari) or the grandfather of the child starts the feeding process. The parents and the family members feed the child as well during this process. The kheer that is usually prepared is fed to the child as a Prashad from the puja. With this, the feeding ceremony ends. The ending process of the puja is done by the parents with the guidance of the guru. This includes Bali, Purnapatra, Puspanjali, Bisarjan, and Sidha for Bhraman guru.

The total time required for this ceremony is usually 1 to 2 hours but can extend as per the will of the ceremony holders. Receiving tika from the guru starting with the child, all the family members put tika and gift the child with long-lasting materials like gold and silver jewels and other necessary items along with Money as Dakshina for the just fed child. Then the guru is given a justifiable amount of money as tika and Dakshina and with a satisfying meal to bless the child.

This event lasts for the whole day as the child playfully sits with the parents and enjoys receiving blessings and gifts. From this day forward the child receives solid food items to some degree and other nutritious items that are semi-solid like Lito and kheer. Although the infant is fed solid foods, s/he is still mostly dependent on the mother’s milk for a bit longer.

The difference in the reasons for Pasni when compared with the western culture

As we have mentioned, a concept similar to Pasni exists in the west as well which is called weaning. This is not a coincidence however as both of these practices have a similar reason of origin.

The westerners equivalent/reasons to Pasni

All throughout human history we have been feeding infants with premastication (mouth feeding). But gradually it started to cause diseases in the infants from the parents. Due to this reason, the practice was slowly transitioned towards the produced liquidy foods, that the child can consume while still being breastfed.

The internal digestive system’s growth is what the feeding steps actually rely on. The first step makes it a bit stronger to digest the next close alternative of milk. This first step can last anywhere from 6 to 12 months. After which, the infant is fed a bit more solid food until the child is 2. By that time, the child should slowly be learning to eat by themselves. Over the course of these two years, breastfeeding is also lessened and eventually stopped, however in some cases this can take up to three years.

The traditional approach for Pasni in Nepal

Although Pasni is a ceremony that is specific to Nepal, it is not a unique ceremony as similar concepts exist all over the world. The base concept is to start feeding alternatives to breastmilk. But we do have the tradition of making it a religious offering with the blessings from our Hindu deities. The child is taken as a blessing from the god, and so is to be fed with the proper food elements with religious processes.

The celebration of this ceremony brings all the relatives from near and far – the reason being having a get together for the sake of a memorable time with the ones you count as your own, makes the event much more precious for any individual.

Here are the basic required materials that you can prepare for the puja that can be found in the local puja store.

The list of the required elements for Pasni with Puja:

Abir (Vermillion)
Saffron (Kesar)
Black sesame (kalo Teel)
Barley (jau)
Halfa grass (kus)
flowers (red, white, yellow, etc.)
Bilva leaf (Bel Patra)
Incense sticks (dhup batti)
Fruits (of different shapes and color)
Naivedya (cooked food, kheer for feeding)
Red, White and Yellow cloth
Janai (sacred thread)
Betel nut (supari)
Coconut
Camphor (Kapur)
Cow Milk Curd Ghee Cowdung Cow urine
Leaves (Banyan, Peepal,mango and chhap)
Bermuda grass (dubo)
Yellow, black thread
Rice powder
Dhan Rice grain
Purnapatra (a vessel full of rice)
Dakchina (a certain amount of money)
Duna, Tapari (disposable leaf plates)
Mustard seeds
Sarv Aushadhi (a mixture of different herbs)
Sapta mritika (soil of seven places)
Pancha Ratna (five different stones)
Aachmani (copper utensils)
Ritual bell (ghanta)
Arghya Patra (a vessel to offer arghya)
Pakwan (dishes like Selroti, puri etc)
Diyo
Kalash
Betel nut
Cotton wicks (batti)
Sandalwood paste (chandan)

Before Pasni however, there another ceremony that a child has to go through. If you are curious about what that ceremony is, do check out our information on Everything About Nwaran You Need To Know About!

You require a child to fulfill the Pasni ceremony. That follows with the naming ceremony. Kindly go through the Ceremony of Naming of a newborn child, You might need it someday.

Nepali cultureNepali ritualspasni

Annaprashana (first feeding). R. B. Pandey. Ancient Indian home rituals. History books online. Electronic library

Feeding the baby solid food was the next important milestone in his life. The corresponding Persian custom of ritual feeding of the child shows that annaprashana was a common Indo-Iranian ceremony and originated when both peoples lived together. There are praises of food in the Vedas (Yajurveda, XVII, 33) and the Upanishads (Taittiriya Upanishad, III, 9), but it is not known whether they were said during a normal meal or on the occasion of the first feeding of a child. Probably, the ceremony of the first feeding of the child acquired a special ritual form during the sutra period. The sutras contain prescriptions for the time of its performance, the types of food, and the verses [97] with which it is accompanied. The later smritis, puranas and treatises contain some changes that took place in later times. Paddhatis follow the same ritual.

Time of . According to the Grhyasutras, the ceremony was performed in the sixth month from the birth of the child (Ashvalayana, I, 16; Paraskara, I, 19; Shankhayana, I, 27). The early smritis, such as Manu (II, 34), Yajnavalkya (I, 12), are of the same opinion, but Laugakshi (Viramitrodaya, I, p. food. He prescribes: "... or after the teeth show." Teeth were an obvious sign that the child was capable of taking solid food. Giving solid food until the fourth month was forbidden. For weak children, the postponement was allowed: “Let the feeding ceremony take place in the sixth month from the date of birth. If delayed, then in the eighth, ninth or tenth month; and some believe that it can take place after a year” (Viramitrodaya, I, p. 267). At the same time, an even number of months was prescribed for boys and an odd number for girls. Thus, here, too, a distinction was made on the basis of sex.

Various kinds of food. The texts usually ordered to mix and give different kinds of food to the child (Paraskara, I, 19, 5). Some prescribe a mixture of curdled milk, honey and butter. Different types of food, including meat, were meant to serve different purposes. The father fed the child with bharadvaja poultry meat if he desired smoothness of speech for the child, kapinjala poultry meat and butter if he wanted an abundance of food, fish if he wanted speed, krikash poultry meat mixed with honey if he wanted a long life, ati and partridge meat - if you wanted a sacred brilliance, ⁴⁰⁾ butter and rice if you wanted splendor, curdled milk and rice if you wanted great intelligence, and all together if you wanted all this for a child (Ashvalayana, I, 16; Shankhayana, I, 27). It can be seen from these prescriptions that the Indians were not vegetarians during the Grhyasutra period. They did not abstain from eating meat if it brought them physical and spiritual strength. The Grhyasutras are even more imbued with the Vedic notions of animal sacrifice and meat eating. Therefore, they recommended meat for food. However, later a trend towards vegetarianism emerged. [98] This was due to the development of the idea of "doing no harm" (ahimsa), which greatly influenced the Indian diet, but products derived from animals, such as curdled milk, butter and milk, were preserved and considered the best kind of food for a child. In the end they began to give milk and rice. However, ritual books still talk about meat and fish food. Many of the paddhatis contain the injunctions found in the grhyasutras. The reason for this is that, although from the point of view of the religious ideal, meat eating is forbidden to Indians, in everyday practice there is promiscuity in this regard. Whatever the type of food, one thing was constantly kept in mind: that it be light and healthy for the child. Sushruta says: “Let the child be fed in the sixth month with light and suitable food” (Sharirasthana, 10, 64).

Ritual and its meaning. On the day of the feeding ceremony, the food intended for ritual feeding was first of all cleaned and then boiled, reciting the appropriate Vedic verses. When the food was cooked, they offered a sacrifice to Speech with the words: “The gods produced the goddess Speech. Various living beings use it. May she, sweet-sounding, highly revered, come to us. Svaga! (Paraskara, I, 19, 2). The next sacrifice was made to the Life Force: "May the Life Force come to us today." Having made these sacrifices, the father then made four more offerings with the following words: “By inhaling, let me enjoy food. Svaga! By exhaling let me enjoy food. Svaga! Through my eyes, may I enjoy visible things. Svaga! Through my ears, may I enjoy fame. Svaga! (Paraskara, I, 19, 3). Here the word "food" had a broad meaning. At the end, the father took all kinds of food and seasonings to feed the child and fed him silently or saying "hanta!" ("Good"). ⁴¹⁾ The ceremony ended with a feast for the brahmins.

⁴⁰⁾ Sacred brilliance (brahmavarchas) — the brilliance of the sacred knowledge of the Vedic texts.

⁴¹⁾ “Ashvalayana-Grhyasutra” (I, 16, 5-8) instructs to say while feeding: “O lord of food, give us healthy, strong food. Extend life to the one who gives, put strength into us, two-legged and four-legged. As with other rituals, the formulas were not pronounced over the girls (see: Ashvalayana I, 16, 6).

Rites. Sacred Kitchen. Religion and nutrition

Hindu religious practices are mainly aimed at realizing God, and sometimes receiving blessings from devas (demigods) as well. Therefore, in Hinduism, there are various ceremonies and rituals that help a person think about God in everyday life.

On the occasion of events such as the birth of a child, a wedding or a funeral, a number of complex religious rituals are performed. These include annaprashan (when a child is given solid food for the first time), upanayanam (formal start of education), sraddha (carried out for deceased relatives). In most Indian families, the exact time of various ceremonies, especially such as the engagement of a young couple, wedding, etc., is determined after consultation with a Vedic astrologer. A mandatory rite for all, except for sannyasis (monks) and children under five years of age, is the cremation of the body after death, when, during the traditional Hindu rite of cremation, the body is wrapped in cloth and burned on a funeral pyre.

Annaprashana (first solid food feeding). Feeding a child solid food is an important milestone in his life. The corresponding Persian custom of ritual feeding of the child shows that annaprashana was a common Indo-Iranian ceremony and originated when both peoples lived together. Probably, the ceremony of the first feeding of the child acquired a special ritual form during the sutra period. The sutras contain instructions about the time of its performance, the types of food and the verses with which it is accompanied. Later sources have some minor changes that have taken place in later times.

Some sources indicate that the ceremony is held in the sixth month from the birth of the child, others, without specifying the exact date, offer only signs when the child can eat solid food: "... or after the teeth show." Teeth were an obvious sign that the child was capable of taking solid food. Giving solid food until the fourth month was forbidden. For weak children, the postponement was allowed: “Let the feeding ceremony take place in the sixth month from the date of birth. If delayed, then in the eighth, ninth or tenth month; and some believe that it can be performed after a year. At the same time, an even number of months was prescribed for boys and an odd number for girls.

The ancient Vedic texts generally prescribed mixing and giving different kinds of food to the child. Moreover, different types of food, including meat, were intended to achieve different goals. So, the father was asked to feed the child with the meat of one type of bird, if he wanted smooth speech for the child; meat of other birds and butter, if you wanted an abundance of food; fish, if you wanted speed; meat of the third kind of bird, mixed with honey, if you wanted a long life; oil and rice, if you wanted splendor; curdled milk and rice, if you wanted a big mind; and all together, if you wanted all of the above for the child. It can be seen from these prescriptions that the Indians were not vegetarians in the early period of Hinduism. They did not abstain from eating meat if it brought them physical and spiritual strength. However, later a trend towards vegetarianism emerged. This was due to the development of the idea of ahimsa, which also influenced the rite of the first feeding of children, who were given milk and rice and / or a mixture of curdled milk, honey and butter.

On the day of the feeding ceremony, the food intended for ritual feeding was first of all cleaned and then boiled, reciting the appropriate Vedic verses. After a series of sacrifices of this food, the father took it and fed the child silently or saying “Khanta!” ("Good!"). The ceremony ended with a feast for the brahmins.

Upanayana is an ancient Indian rite performed on a boy from the Brahmin caste in the eighth year, on a boy from the Kshatriya caste in the eleventh year, and on a boy from the Vaishya caste in the twelfth year of birth. Upanayana ceremonies date back to ancient times.

On the day before the ceremony, during it and after it, many different rites were performed, which are not directly related to the topic of this book. The following points are of interest to us. After propitiating the patron god Ganesha and some goddesses, on the night before the ceremony, the boy was smeared with yellow powder and a silver ring was put on his forelock. After that, he was ordered to spend the whole night in absolute silence. This mystical part of the rite prepared the boy for his second birth: the yellow powder symbolized being in the womb, and absolute silence meant that the child again became, as it were, a dumb fetus.

The next morning mother and child ate together for the last time (shared meal) - after the upanayana the mother, as a rule, could not eat with him. After saying goodbye to the mother, they treated the boys - playmates - before leaving the initiate to the teacher's house for the period of study. At the very end of the initiation ceremony, the disciple was required to observe a three-day abstinence, including from certain types of food. Abstinence could last up to 12 days and even up to a year. This was the beginning of a harsh upbringing. The student was not supposed to eat salty food, he slept on the ground, he was forbidden to eat meat and wine, and also to sleep during the day. Nowadays the upanayana ceremony has changed and many auxiliary rites have fallen into disuse or have been simplified.

Shraddha (Vedic ceremony for the souls of ancestors). According to the Vedic tradition, the main shraddha is held once a year on the day of the death of the parents. It is believed that once a year, on the day of their death, they return to us and ask for food, because they also feel hungry. If on this day we do not remember them, do not present them with clothes and food (rice, legumes, vegetables, salt, etc.), this makes them unhappy. If they are unhappy, then their children will receive less support from them, and this will be reflected in the form of additional life difficulties and hardships on all living close relatives.

It is usually the responsibility of the eldest family member to conduct the sraddha ceremony, but any family member (male only) can also perform this ceremony. However, there are also established rules for this ceremony: 4 pandits participate in its conduct (this term means brahmin, scientist or simply educated man ). One of them conducts a puja (prayer) for the rest of the pandits, who are the personification of various natural forces. Before the ceremony, the pandits observe a fast all day before and on the day of the ceremony, before the start they take a bath and put on new clothes. They are the personification of three different Divine powers.

The first pandit personifies the ancestors: fathers, grandfathers, great-grandfathers, mothers, grandmothers and great-grandmothers. The second pandit personifies the Vishwa Devas, who are considered the bodyguards of the departed souls. Vishva Devas are always accompanied by departed souls to guard them. For Vishva Devas, as well as for the ancestors, an offering is made. The third pandit, the personification of Vishnu, is the main deity during shraddha. Further, these energies are revived by uttering mantras (prayer phrases), performing certain rituals. Then comes the meal. During the feast, the pandits are offered two or three varieties of sweets and several other dishes cooked in oil, two or three varieties of vegetables, as well as rice and other dishes. After the meal, the pandits are offered new clothes.

After that, pinda (a kind of large dumplings or balls of boiled rice, sesame seeds, honey and oil, sacrificed by the Hindus to the ancestors during the rite of their remembrance) is prepared, essentially similar to the funeral pancakes of the Russian ritual tradition. Usually six such balls are prepared: for father, grandfather, great-grandfather, mother, grandmother and great-grandmother. It is believed that such food, the preparation of which is accompanied by the singing of mantras, is filled with strength and energy. After that, it is offered to the souls of the ancestors. After the ceremony, the rice balls are left to feed the crows, placing them in such a way that no other animals can reach them. Ravens are believed to represent the souls of the dead. This is an ancient tradition that has been observed for thousands of years, all of its ceremonies are described in the Vedas.

In addition to the annual commemoration, sraddha is usually performed in honor of recently deceased relatives, on certain days of the lunar month. There are also daily sraddhas, which consist of bringing boiled rice or milk, fruits, and sometimes only water to the ancestors. Modern Hindus are content with daily pouring water into a special drinking vessel for their ancestors.

Puja (Skt. - "worship" or "prayer") - a religious rite in Hinduism, performed to pray and pay respect to God (or gods). It is held both in the temple and at home - Hindu families, as a rule, have their own altar from murti (statue or painting) of a certain form of God.

Most practicing Hindus pray once or twice a day. Puja should be performed after the person performing the ritual has taken a shower or bath, and preferably on an empty stomach in order to fully concentrate. Puja consists of meditation, chanting, reading manuscripts, offering food to God ( prasada - see below) and prostrations. During the ritual, participants apply a sandalwood paste tilak mark on the forehead or a scarlet dot in the center of the forehead, which is a symbol of submission to the Almighty and His Essence. There are special religious holidays on which puja is performed: Durga Puja, Lakshmi Puja and others.

Prasad (Sanskrit - "divine grace", "divine gift") in Hinduism - food, or any other element offered to a deity during a religious ceremony and then distributed among believers as a spiritual and sacred substance, as a symbol of Divine grace . Not a single ritual, not a single holiday, not even a simple meal is complete without such an obligatory element as prasadam. Followers of Hinduism believe that during the offering ceremony, the material elements come into contact with the object of worship and acquire its spiritual qualities, becoming indistinguishable from it.

One of the varieties of prasada is charinamrita ( "nectar of the lotus feet" ) - a mixture of yogurt, honey, ghee and other products, previously used in the ritual bathing of the deity. In modern Hindu religious practice, the desire to receive prasadam and darshan ( "seeing the deity" ) are the two most important motives for making pilgrimages to holy places and visiting temples.