Procedure of Vishwakarma Pujaविश्वकर्मा पूजा की प्रक्रिया

Vishwakarma Puja honours Lord Vishwakarma, revered as the divine architect and craftsman of the gods and the patron of artisans, engineers, mechanics and industrial workers. What sets it apart from most pujas is that the tools, machines and vehicles people work with are worshipped alongside the deity. This page gives an overview of the procedure: who performs it, the order the puja follows, and how it differs at home and at a workplace. For the detailed steps with mantras, see the Vishwakarma Puja vidhi.

When the puja is performed

In eastern India and in most workplaces, Vishwakarma Puja is performed on Kanya Sankranti, the day the sun enters Kanya (Virgo), which usually falls on 16, 17 or 18 September. In parts of North India, such as Punjab, Haryana and Delhi, Vishwakarma Day is observed on the day after Diwali, and some communities also mark Vishwakarma Jayanti in the month of Magha. The puja is usually held in the morning or at the time your priest or local panchang recommends. See the Vishwakarma Puja date for the year.

Who performs the puja

• At a workplace, the owner or the senior-most person usually sits as the yajman (the host of the puja), often with their spouse. Many factories invite a priest to conduct the rituals, while workers take part in the tool worship, the aarti and the prasad.
• At home, the head of the family or any adult member can perform the puja. A priest is not essential; the puja can be done with simple offerings and the name mantra "Om Vishwakarmane Namah".
• Individual craftspeople, such as carpenters, tailors, blacksmiths, electricians, mechanics and drivers, often worship their own tools or vehicles themselves.

Everyone taking part bathes and wears clean clothes, and many people fast until the puja is complete, as a personal choice.

The order of the puja

Customs vary by region and family, but the puja generally follows this order:

1. Bath and clean clothes. The person performing the puja bathes in the morning and wears clean or new clothes.
2. Cleaning the workplace and tools. The premises, tools, machines and vehicles are cleaned, usually a day before, and the machines are switched off. See Vishwakarma Puja preparation.
3. Setting up the altar. A chowki covered with a yellow or red cloth is placed on a clean spot, often in front of a rangoli or an eight-petalled lotus alpana, and the picture or idol of Lord Vishwakarma is placed on it. The place and the samagri are purified by sprinkling water, and a ghee lamp is lit.
4. Sankalp. Holding water, akshat, a flower and a coin, the yajman states their name, the place, the occasion and the purpose of the puja. A raksha sutra (mauli) is tied on the wrist.
5. Ganesh puja. Lord Ganesh is worshipped first, as at the start of every Hindu ritual.
6. Kalash sthapana. A kalash filled with water, with five mango leaves and a coconut on top, is placed beside the altar.
7. Worship of Lord Vishwakarma. The Lord is invoked and offered water, sandalwood, roli, akshat, flowers and garlands, incense, the lamp, fruit, sweets and panchamrit.
8. Worship of tools and machines. Each tool, machine and vehicle receives a tilak of roli or sindoor, flowers and akshat, and sometimes a mauli thread.
9. Katha. The Vishwakarma Puja katha is read or heard.
10. Aarti. Everyone joins in the aarti "Om Jai Shri Vishwakarma", followed by pushpanjali (offering flowers with folded hands).
11. Havan (in some places). Many factories and priest-led pujas include a havan with offerings of ghee and havan samagri. Some priests perform it before the final aarti.
12. Prasad. Prasad is offered to the Lord and then shared with everyone present, often followed by a community meal. Dakshina is given to the priest.

Vishwakarma Puja at home

At home the puja is usually short and simple. A framed picture is placed on a small chowki, and the household tools and machines, such as a sewing machine, kitchen appliances, a computer, a bicycle or the family car, are cleaned and worshipped together. A kalash, a lamp, incense, flowers, fruit and sweets are enough. The family reads the katha, sings the aarti and shares the prasad. Many households also pray for the safety of family members who work with machines or travel daily.

Vishwakarma Puja at a workplace

In factories, workshops, garages, printing presses and construction sites, the puja is a community event. A larger idol is often installed, sometimes in a decorated pandal, especially in West Bengal, Odisha, Jharkhand, Bihar and Assam. Work stops for the day and the machines are switched off, cleaned and decorated with flowers. After the main puja, the priest and the owner go round the premises worshipping each major machine where it stands. Vehicles such as trucks, buses, taxis and auto-rickshaws are washed, garlanded and given a tilak. The day usually ends with prasad, a shared meal and, in many workplaces, gifts or a bonus for the workers. In Bengal and Bihar, kite flying is a popular part of the day.

After the puja

Where a clay idol has been installed, it is usually kept until the next day, and some families keep a lamp burning beside it through the night; if you do this at a workplace, make sure someone stays to watch the flame. The idol is then immersed (visarjan), along with the flowers and other offerings, often in a procession. Many towns now ask devotees to immerse idols in designated tanks, and some families immerse small idols in a bucket of water at home, which is kinder to rivers and ponds. A framed picture stays in place and needs no visarjan. Work and machines usually resume the following day.

Belief behind the puja

Devotees believe that worshipping Lord Vishwakarma and the tools of one's trade brings blessings for skill, safe work and prosperity in business. For many workers, the day is also a way of giving thanks to the machines and tools that support their livelihood throughout the year.