WORSHIPPING MHA PUJA Prepared by: Dr. Prajwal Lal Pradhan Canadian Newa Guthi, Canada hf]hf]nkf JOJOLAPA gd:t] NAMASTE Mha Puja is an annual cultural and ritual event performed by the Newar people to purify, strengthening and empowering the soul as part of New Year celebrations. It is performed on New Year’s Day of Nepal Sambat, the national lunar calendar of Nepal, which occurs during this Swanti Festival. This is also a unique culture of Newar ethnic community. Mha Puja means “Worship of the SELF", and it celebrates the spirit within oneself. The ceremony signifies an auspicious beginning of the New Year, and invokes prosperity and longevity for the participant. Mha Puja and Nepal Sambat are also celebrated abroad where Nepalese have settled. The procedure of this festival differs from place to place . But the major objective remains same. MHA PUJA IS CELEBRATED ON THE FOURTH DAY OF TIHAR BY THE NEWAR COMMUNITY MHA PUJA LITERALLY REFERS TO SELF WORSHIP, MAKING OFFERING TO ONE’S BODY. Mha puja, the worship of the inner self, is unique to Newa people. They believe that one needs to understand and respect oneself before he/she can understand others. Mha Puja carries all the grandeur that a typical Newa festival or ritual possesses. It also is distinct from other Hindu or Buddhist worships in that it is the worship of oneself and not the usual worship of Gods and Goddesses or others. Mha Puja exposes the relationship of a person with the surroundings nature and the cosmos. Understanding of one's role in life makes him/her more knowledgeable and unselfish. Worshipping and blessing one self to achieve unselfishness and generosity is unique by itself. Mha Puja is also for prosperity and physical well being. No other Newar festival is solely devoted to enriching oneself both physically and spiritually. The religious and spiritual aspects of Mha Puja fall perfectly in line with the socio-religious nature of Newar festivals. Incidentally, Mha Puja is performed and celebrated on the New Year's Day giving additional social flavour. Mha Puja is celebrated with as much vigor as any other important festival. According to Hindu religion, soul or the inner self never dies. Only the body which the sole uses as a vehicle dies. The sole gets to be born in a bodily form (human, animal, plant, etc.) according to its performance in the past incarnations. Human life is considered the superior being at the top of the lifecycle. It is interesting to note that Mha Puja perfectly fits into this popular Hindu mythology and yet it is unique to Newa culture. The worship of the divinity in oneself takes place in a sophisticated, interesting and exhilarating atmosphere. The elaborateness with which Mha Puja is performed exemplifies the Newa tradition of well organized and devoted rituals on a grand scale. Mha Puja is conducted mostly in the evening or the afternoon to make sure that Mha Puja of Aagandya (The family Goddess) and Mha Puja of Goddess Taleju Bhabani at the three place of Yen (Kathmandu), Yala (Lalitpur) and Khwapa (Bhaktapur), and have been completed by the high Newar priests. These Mha Puja ceremonies of the Goddesses are not accessible to the general public. It is said that at the time of Newar Kings, the king, the priests and some high ranking Newars were able to verbally communicate with the Goddesses through tantricism and they helped perform the Mha Puja. The regular Mha Puja found in every Newar household is usually performed in the floor in the dining area. Newars residing outside Nepal miss this grand event very much and the details seem increasingly interesting. Basic elements of Mha Puja are the same for all Newars. Some procedural details may vary from family to family. ELEMENTS USED IN MHA PUJA There are certain essential elements required to perform this Puja. Some of the important elements required during the Mha Puja are mentioned further: Mandala One of the most essential parts of Mha puja is Mandala also called Mandaa. First of all, the floor is purified by sprinkling holy water collected from a sacred stream and the Madalas are created there in front of the row of seats for the family members. The total number of Mandalas depends upon the number of family members plus three extra. The smaller one at the top of the line is for the House-god. Then comes one each for the family members and the two at the end are for Yamaraj and Jamaraj, the ambassadors of Death who are always ready to rake sinners to hell. It is used as a medium to present the various offerings to the self. Each Mandalas is carefully prepared on the floor by following an elaborate procedure. A set of closely spaced concentric circles are first drawn in each Manda area by employing a mustard oil soaked cloth piece wrapped around a flower plant steam or a pencil. It may be worth mentioning here that Mha Puja stresses in strong, long-lasting, bright, healthy, fragrant and such other things with positive connotations and only materials that are considered clean and utilized. Oil marks last longer just as Ita (oiled strand of strings) burns longer. Circles signify completeness. On the top of the oil rings a beautiful and artistic geometrical shape which constitutes the core of the Manda, is created. The markings are done in yellow Potaye (Yellow mustard powder). On the outside is a large ring enclosing a smaller one within which two squares is overlapped to from eight triangular shapes. Abhir (vermilion powder) is spread along the various Potaye lines with respect to the worshipper (worshipped) and one at the center of the Mandala. ITAA Itaa means the lights. These are hand-woven cotton strands soaked in oil and are about two and a half feet long. These are lighted at each end and offered to the one who is worshipped who accepts them by chanting mantras in Sanskrit. The locations of the four outer paddy/rice lumps in Mandala are occupied by the four lighted ends of the Itaa. The lights must be kept on until the puja is completed. The offering of the light signifies the strength of the self and makes one more powerful and keeps evil away. SAGAN Sagan refers to the offering made to a person during the puja and is an important aspect of the puja. Dhau (yogurt) is the first Sagan to be offered with blessings and it involves receiving a mixture of rice, taye, vermilion powder and yogurt, also known as Akshyata. Next is the Khen Sagan which constitutes of the offering of Swataa which is the trio of egg, fish and meat on left hand and local wine on the right hand. It signifies one’s victory and control over animal beings living in cell, water and land. FLOWERS Flowers are the other essential elements of Mha Puja and the garland of ‘Gweswaan’ flower is worn around the neck by the worshiper. It signifies long and successful life. Jajanka which is made of many rounds of white cotton thread forming circle about two feet in diameter and tied with a small piece of red cloth in order to have no ends is used as a garland by the worshiper. It symbolizes the integration of the beginning with the end. GARLAND OF GWESWAAN JAJANKA FRUITS AND NUTS Variety of fruits, nuts and sweets are offered with a wish for fruitful and resourceful life. Walnut, Tahsi fruit, Singali (local chestnut), sugarcane are some of the fruits and nuts offered during the puja. The quality and characteristics of these fruits also denotes the relationship of human with nature. Also, the sweets shaped like star, moon, etc. are offered in the puja. The envoys of death, Yamaraj and Jamaraj are believed to be observing the puja and it is said that because of the physical and spiritual energy gained through various offerings, they are kept away. It is said that these two could not even touch the person who has performed the puja until the shell of the walnut rots, which is considered to be quite impossible. Nakin or Purohit Nakin or Purohit gives the shower of a mixture of paddy, flower, pieces of fruits, abhir (vermilion powder), aakhen (hand-milled rice) and taye in a kule (wodden or bronze container about half a gallon size) to the worshipper’s head. The puja is completed only after the Nakin drags the tuphi (local broom) from the House-God’s Mandala to theJamaraj’s Mandala. Hence, Nakin is also essential for the Mha Puja WORSHIPPING PROCEDURE The worship is started the same way as when worshipping God. Except this time each step is carried out first with the House-God followed by the members of the family and then Yamaraj and Jamaraj at the end. 1. Take a Nusala (a few drops of water in the right palm thrown into the worshipper's mouth serves to purify the worshipping body) 2. The pancha patra (pure water vessel) and pujabhu, the plate with worship material such as rice, flowers, taye (popped rice), vermilion powder are first recognized by offering water, rice and vermilion powder. 3. Everybody then worships his or her own Mandala. The Mandala is used as a medium to present the various offerings to the self. Usually a Newar Brahmin of the Nakin (the eldest female in the household) or somebody deputed by the Nakin goes over each step of the worship and also takes care of the worship for the House-God and Yamaraj and Jamaraj.