Holika Dahan This Holi – Take the guess work out of doing Holika Dahan puja on your own.
Holika Dahan is celebrated a day before Holi, where all families and neighbors gather together to perform Holika Dahan, a tradition that symbolizes the victory of good over evil. Holika, the bonfire, represents the demon king Hiranyakashyap’s sister, who tried to kill her nephew Prahlad, but was killed by God Narsimha, who stepped in to save Prahlad. Holika Dahan is going to be celebrated on 28th March 2021.
Shubh Muhurat of Holika Dahan 2021
The best time for doing Holika Dahan or the Shubh Muhurat starts from 6.37 pm to 8.56 pm. The duration of the Shubh Muhurat is 2 hours 20 minutes.
Ingredients Needed for the Holika Dahan Puja
- Coconut
- A Kalash full of water
- Akshat/ unbroken rice
- Deep
- Agarbatti
- Dhoop
- Cotton thread
- Haldi/ Turmeric
- Kumkum/ Vermillion
- Cow dung cakes and toys/ idols of Holika and Prahlad made of cow dung
- Logs of wood
- Flowers
- Gulal
- Moong daal
- Batasha or any other sweet
Process of Holika Dahan
Clean the place where you’re planning to perform Holika Dahan with Ganga Jal or cow dung water. Pile the logs of wood and cow dung cakes together in a bonfire pile. Before lighting up the bonfire, invoke Lord Ganesha to seek his blessings and then proceed with the puja afterwards. The idols of Holika and Prahlad are kept beside each other during the puja. However, the idol of Prahlad is taken away for safekeeping before the Holika Dahan begins. The process is a recollection of how the avatar of Lord Vishnu, God Narsimha, saves Prahlad when he was in trouble because he was a devout worshipper of Lord Vishnu.
Light a diya and keep God Narsimha in mind as you chant the following mantra:
Namaste Narasimhaya, Prahladahlada-dayine,
Hiranyakasiporvaksaha, shila-tanka nakhalaye |
Ito Nrsimhah parato narsimho, yato yato yami tato nrsimhah,
Bahirnarsimho hridaye nrsimho, nrsimhamadim saranam prapadye ||
Meaning of the mantra
I bow to Lord Narasimha, who protected Prahlad from the evil. I bow to Lord Narasimha, who eliminated stone-hearted Hiranyakashyap with his sharp claws.
Lord Narasimha is omnipresent. He is here, he is there. He is inside and outside. I bow at the feet of Lord Narasimha, the protector of the good.
Once you finish chanting the mantras and have offered your prayers to God Narsimha, you can perform the Holika Dahan after that. Light up the bonfire along with the idol of Holika. Next, offer flowers, dhoop, agarbatti, akshat, cotton thread, moong daal, sweets or batasha, haldi, kumkum, coconut, gulal and water subsequently in that order.
Close your eyes and offer your prayers and wishes to the deity Narsimha. Once you’ve offered up your prayers, end the puja by going around the bonfire in a complete circle either 3 or 5 or 7 times at once.