Mangalore: Ayudha Puja - Time to Worship Equipment, Implements
Pics: Spoorthi Ullal
Daijiworld Media Network – Mangalore (SP)
Mangalore, Oct 16: The ninth day of Navaratri is celebrated in the form of ‘Ayudha Puja’ by the people. On this day, vehicles, implements, machinery, equipment and tools of work are cleaned, painted, decorated with flowers, and worshipped. Garages too hire priests to worship vehicles that have come to them for repairs, and also the tools, en masse.
Printing presses, tailoring machines, agricultural equipment, computers, cameras, and machine tools are among those that get worshipped on this day. Crackers are burst to celebrate the day, and the workers take a day off and give rest to their tools. This is an occasion to pay gratitude to the Lord for helping the people to fulfil their duties with the help of vehicles, tools and equipment.
Reportedly, the custom of celebrating Ayudha Puja started thousands of years ago, when royals started to worship their weapons, before starting war on Vijaya Dashami day, tenth day of Navaratri. The ninth day of Navaratri is also celebrated as Navami Puja in north India. It is also said that after annihilating the demons in nine days, Goddess Durga kept aside her weapons, as their work was over, and worshipped them. Legend has it that Arjuna took down the weapons hid by Pandavas in a tree before moving on their mandated period of exile, after the completion of this period, on this day, and worshipped them before starting to use them.
Paying respect to equipment of livelihood is a divine gesture to respect the tools which help us to eke out a living, and also a reminder to the mankind that they have to use the equipment, vehicles etc, with utter care and respect, and not rashly or with utter disregard to their capacities and principles of justice and social good. Office machines and computers too get worshipped on this day.
It is believed, that worshipping of vehicles and weapons on this day wards of any evil that may cause them to injure and kill people during the coming year. The machines that buzz all year along fall silent on this day, as they are cleaned and prepared for a year full of activity.