Purattasi Sani is very special, because on this day, Shri Saneeswara Bhagvan is said to reduce his negative power and praying him helps us to get more benefits. Pooja on this day is believed to bless all those who suffer from chronic illness, financial losses and delay in marriage. Shani grants good health, longevity, leadership, authority, ambition, wisdom and immense wealth to his devotees. Worshipping Vishnu, Fasting on Purattasi Saturday would please Sani graha. Please read the detailed story of Purattasi sani I have shared in this post.
This year 2024, Purattasi month starts on 17th September and it lasts till 17th October. This year there are 4 Purattasi Saturdays (Sanikizhamai). So you can make this thaligai and do the pooja on 1st or 3rd of this month.
21 September 2024 – 1st Saturday
28 September 2024 – 2nd Saturday
05 October 2024 – 3rd Saturday
12 October 2024 – 4th Saturday
Last year we celebrated Purattasi Sani in my in-laws place. So I clicked the pictures and kept in draft to make this post. I hope beginners who look for Purattasi Pooja procedures would be benefitted by this post. And I consider this post as my record for future reference too.
Disclaimer : Pooja vidhanam/Procedures I have shared here is based on our tradition. It may vary from place to place. So please ask the elders of your family and make changes as per your practice.
Purattasi Sani refers to the worship practices and observances carried out on Saturdays (Sani) during the Tamil month of Purattasi, which typically falls between mid-September and mid-October. This period is considered sacred for the worship of Lord Vishnu, particularly for those in the Tamil community. Here is the story behind the significance of Purattasi Sani:
The Story of Purattasi Sani
According to Hindu mythology, Lord Vishnu manifested as Venkateshwara (also known as Balaji) during the month of Purattasi. Devotees believe that worshipping Lord Vishnu during this period helps them receive divine blessings for health, prosperity, and spiritual growth. Saturdays, in particular, hold special importance because they are dedicated to Lord Shani (Saturn), a planet associated with challenges and difficulties in astrological beliefs.
However, the belief goes that during Purattasi, Lord Vishnu grants his devotees protection from the harmful effects of Saturn. Even Shani himself, who is often feared for his harsh punishments, becomes benevolent under Lord Vishnu's grace. This led to the custom of dedicating Saturdays to Vishnu during this period.
One popular story connected to Purattasi Sani revolves around Lord Shani’s devotion to Lord Vishnu:
Once, the Devatas (celestial beings) were suffering from the harmful influence of Lord Shani, whose planetary position had created negative effects on their lives. To mitigate this, they approached Lord Vishnu, seeking protection from Shani’s harsh effects. Lord Vishnu, known for his compassion and mercy, instructed Shani to limit his influence during the month of Purattasi. Shani, as a loyal devotee of Vishnu, obeyed his command and promised to lessen his impact during this sacred month.
Thus, it became a tradition for devotees to worship Vishnu on Purattasi Saturdays, with the belief that this would bring relief from the malefic effects of Shani, as Lord Vishnu’s protection would shield them from Saturn’s influence.
Significance of Observing Purattasi Saturdays
Devotees observe various rituals and fasts during the Saturdays of Purattasi:
- Fasting and Viratham: Many devotees fast on these Saturdays to honor Lord Vishnu and seek his blessings for a good life.
- Temple Visits: It is common to visit Vishnu temples, especially those dedicated to Lord Venkateshwara. Some pilgrims visit the famous Tirupati Temple during this time.
- Non-Vegetarian Abstinence: Many people refrain from eating non-vegetarian food throughout the entire month as an offering of purity and devotion to the deity.
- Offering Special Poojas: Special poojas and rituals are conducted, such as lighting lamps and reciting Vishnu Sahasranamam (a thousand names of Lord Vishnu).
This period is seen as particularly auspicious for offering prayers to Vishnu, as it is believed that he is closer to his devotees during Purattasi and is more likely to grant their wishes.
The story of Purattasi Sani highlights the deep faith in the benevolence of Lord Vishnu and the desire to mitigate astrological challenges through devotion.
Purattasi Sani Pooja & Neivedyam Requirements
- One silver sombu/Pot or silver tumbler ( Use velli pathram) for drawing Namam, Sangu & Chakaram OR You can draw on walls too. It is assumed as the Lord. Invert the sombu and draw using Namakatti ( a piece of chalk). Refer the picture for the idea.
- Vada malai with 11 or 21 pepper vadas (without onion)
- Raw rice for 5 Rice varieties ( Sweet pongal, Coconut rice, Tamarind rice, Black Sesame seeds/Ellu rice, Curd rice) OR No onion No garlic full meals
- Sundal ( White or brown Chana OR Chana dal/Kadalai paruppu sundal)
- Maavilakku
- Fruits, Betel leaves & Nuts
- Tulsi water for neivedyam ( Add tulsi leaves, crushed cardamom, cloves, a pinch of edible camphor (Pachai karpooram) to a cup of water)
- Tulsi leaves or garland
- Incense stick, camphor
- Flowers
How to Plan for Neivedyam & pooja
You should undergo fasting till you finish the pooja on Purattasi saturday. Making rice varieties for neivedyam is very easy . You can prepare pulikachal paste, ellu podi the previous day night. Soak chana for sundal, Urad dal for vada and coconut rice. Grind the urad dal and make the vada batter. Store in refrigerator till next day’s use. Keep a sombu ready & draw the sangu, chakkaram, namam using namakatti or rice flour paste and let it dry.Wash the lamps and keep it ready by keeping sandal & kumkum dots.The next morning draw the Kolam. We usually draw Sangu, Chakkaram and Namam in the entrance and in pooja room. Take a pressure cooker and cook raw rice/pacharisi & dal for sweet pongal. In a small bowl or plate, take the soaked chana and cook along with rice and dal.
In another cooker, cook the raw rice for puliodharai, coconut rice, ellu sadam and curd rice. Remove 3/4th of the cooked rice and spread in a plate to cool down. Drizzle some sesame oil. Mash the remaining rice for curd rice. Add boiled milk, curd and salt to the mashed rice. Mix well and temper it. Temper and make the sundal. Grind the urad dal adding little water and make pepper vada batter if you din't prepare the batter the previous night. Make 11 or 21 vada and tie in a thread to make vada malai. Do not use onions in this day for offering God.
Prepare maa vilakku by grinding grated jaggery & rice flour adding cardamom. Add ghee and make a ball. Put a dent, add ghee. Put a thread & kumkum dots. Keep it ready for pooja.
How to do pooja
You should do the pooja in the auspicious time of the day. Avoid Rahukalam and Yamagandam. So after preparing rice varieties, sundal, sweet pongal, vada malai and maa vilakku, arrange everything in a banana leaf or a plate and keep in front of silver pot/sombu. Place the fruits, betel leaves, nuts and coconut in a plate. Light the lamp. Keep tulsi water. Light maavilakku and do the neivedyam. Show dhoop & dheep. Finish the pooja and drink the tulsi water first. Then you can have the lunch. We enjoyed the variety rice with koozh vadam & potato chips.
42 comments :
Good info.
Hey Chitra, thanks for the detailed info. btw, the link to sweet pongal is not working.
Very good information for beginners, ur blog awesome,
Thanks for the mention. I will update it.
Thank you sankar saranya :)
We shouldn't make this pooja on 4th sat since I can't make next week pls reply me in my mail id [email protected]
I have mailed you.Please chk it.
Good useful info.....
what is ontop of the sombu
To hold vadai malai i have kept a hundi box on top of sombu😊
hi chitra very informative post.though we dont do puja s on purattasi saturday happy to know about this.one small request for u. please search and find the recipe for tirupathi laddu.i am fed up of searching the net.i saw the laddu in a sweet shop called perambur srinivasa in chennai.though it is usually available in tirupathi as prasadham.i am die-hard fan for this laddu.please find and post this recipe.so that we can keep this also for neivedhyam .(though it is not a custom)
Hi Harini, Even I thought of trying this one. I will do some research and make it :)
Hi Chitra, nice info. I live in US but still I do Pooja for puratasi and I don't take NV for the entire month. However, my periyappa my dad's own elder brother passed away on 21st Sep 16. My family members told me not to do Pooja until 31 days. I wanted to know if I can perform Pooja irrespective of this? Also I broke the rule of taking non veg as I had egg. Will this be a problem? Can u answer me pls? My email id [email protected]
I will mail you.
whether puratasi thaligai can be done this year (2016) 3rd saturday (because on that day it is pradamai). please reply to my mail id [email protected]
Yes you can do it. Do the pooja in good time not in Rahu kalam and yama kandam.
Thank you for the dates and recipe :)
Hi
In my home town all are keeping full meals like dhal,rice and three varieties of vegeltables but here u mention variety rice is that k then ur sombu picture is not clearly seen can u put the picture
Hi, It depends on our practice. We can keep either full meals or rice varieties. You can follow your family's practice. It is good. For sombu, I have kept a box on top it to hold the vadai malai. I have also added a picture of our recent celebration. Hope it is clear. Thanks
Thank u , bt I m the beginner and this is my first time now I m in Singapore so we don't have tat much relation so only ,ur method is easy bt little confusion wil follow or not is that ur method will nop any type meals isn't k or there was any rule I m asking common
Hi
Some of them put 5 banana leaves and many varieties and some of 1 simply regular meals some of them varieties rice , I know it depends upon our practice bt I don't exact procedure just I want to know correct procedure if u know detail about tat pls explain me
Oh fine. Then you can follow any. Either variety rice or meals.
Sorry. I am not sure. I will ask about it to my mil and let you know.
Thank u
Hi Thanks Chitra
I currently live in USA
This is my first purattasi sani thaliyal pooka after marriage
Ur blog really helped me a lot I simply followed ur steps
Loads of thanks and keep posting 😊👍🏻
Thanku Chitra
I currently live in USA
Ur blog helped me a lot as this is my first purattasi thaliyal pooja after my marrriage
U r doing a great job by posting all these with clear explanation appreciated 😊👍🏻👏🏻
Thank you so much. Happy to know it :)
Hi
One general doubt during puratasi month we cook mushroom or not is mushroom is veg or non veg if cook means no prob ah
Hi, Mushroom is considered as vegetarian.So you can use :)
Thanks for the recipes we did exactly the same as your recipe and the pooja it was awesome and satisfying.but we did it this Saturday which is 4 th we already did the pooja . Is it good to do on 4th Saturday. Please advice.
Thanks. Glad this post helped you. Usually we don't do it in even number of weeks ie. 2 & 4. But its ok as you have done it unknowingly. Don't worry, any pooja done wholeheartedly is accepted by God :) Next year you can celebrate in 1, 3 or 5th week.
Thanks for the detailed post on thaliyal procedure (which we generally don't find :) We too do the same way except for the full lunch menu instead of variety rice. I found it very helpful before the pooja to cross check if I missed out anything.
Thank you so much. Glad it helped you 😊
Thanks for SOPs.few things not known to me so far. Please let me know if 3rd Saturday falls during தேய்பிறை, can we still perform Puja. Sridharan (9710684630)
Thank you for the information. One doubt, should the sadam varieties be be made only with பச்சரிசி or normal cooking rice.
Hello sir, Thanks. For this pooja, we don't see theipirai. So you can do it on 3rd week.
Hello Hema, you should use raw rice/ pacharisi as we are offering to God.
Dear Chitra, thank you for very informative blog post. Do you know by any chance why the odd Saturdays of Puratasi is more significant and chosen for perumal thaligal
Thank you
Hello, Thank you. I will check with my elders and share here.
Thank you Chitra. I await your reply. Kind regards,Smriti
Hai sis if can't do it in last Saturday can I do padayal on last puradhassi Sunday on my off day at 17oct
Sorry sis, it should be done on saturday not on Sunday.
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