PRABHU KI ASTHA

Anna Prashan Puja Samagri

Anna Prashan Puja, a significant samskara in Hindu tradition, celebrates a baby’s first intake of solid food. As a sacred ritual marking the transition in a child’s development, it is essential to perform the ceremony with proper devotion and the right puja samagri (ritual items). The samagri used in Anna Prashan Puja holds symbolic and spiritual significance, helping invoke blessings from deities and ensuring a prosperous, healthy life for the child. The primary item in this ritual is Anna, meaning cooked rice. Usually, sweetened rice or kheer (rice pudding) is prepared, signifying purity and sweetness in life. Ghee, milk, and sugar are added to the dish to enhance its sanctity and taste. A silver or new steel plate and spoon are typically used for feeding the child, representing auspiciousness and cleanliness.

For the puja setup, a clean and sacred area is arranged, often in the family’s prayer room or a hall decorated for the event. The puja thali includes essential items like kumkum (vermilion), haldi (turmeric), akshata (rice grains mixed with turmeric), sandalwood paste, flowers, incense sticks (agarbatti), camphor, and a ghee lamp (diya). These are used during the worship to offer respect to the gods and seek their blessings. Fresh flowers, especially marigold or lotus, are offered to the deities and used to decorate the puja area. Betel leaves and nuts, coconut, and fruits like bananas, apples, or oranges are also part of the offering, symbolizing abundance and fertility.

A small kalash (metal pot) filled with water and topped with mango leaves and a coconut is placed near the deities to invoke divine presence. Holy water (Ganga jal), if available, is used to purify the space and items. A sacred thread (mouli) is tied on the child’s wrist or around the plate to symbolize protection. Some families also include a navagraha puja setup, involving nine types of grains placed in a circular pattern to appease the planetary deities. A picture or idol of Lord Vishnu or Annapurna Devi, the goddess of nourishment, is often kept and worshipped as part of the ritual. Panchamrit—a mixture of milk, curd, ghee, honey, and sugar—is prepared and used in the ceremony to purify and bless the child.

In addition to these, if a priest is conducting the ceremony, he may bring or request additional items such as dhoop (resin incense), havan samagri (a mix of herbs for the sacred fire), and sankalp patra (a copper plate for the vow-taking). The environment should be calm, clean, and spiritually charged, often enhanced with rangoli, traditional music, or Vedic chanting. All the samagri collectively contributes to the successful completion of the Anna Prashan Puja, ensuring that the baby receives divine blessings for good health, wisdom, and prosperity as they begin their journey of consuming food and growing in life.