Vedic mantras and rituals invoke Goddess Lakshmi at Flushing Swaminarayan Temple Chopda Pujan

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The spacious prayer hall of the Swaminarayan Mandir in Flushing, New York, resounded with more than 600 voices harmoniously chanting mantras after the priests leading the Chopda Pujan prayers and rituals at the auspicious ‘muhurt’ on Thursday, October 31, 2024.

More than 600 men, women and children sat on the floor with their books, laptops, notebooks and special BAPS diaries to be sanctified through the puja.

People had been coming in early to have time to get the Puja Kit which included betel nuts, abil, gulal, sacred thread, some grains of rice, flowers, sweets, and more. Those who did not have any books, could purchase a notebook, or a special BAPS diary with holy messages from all the gurus. Children brought their school books. Business owners brought real account books. Some brought their laptops.

Participants sat down in rows on the floor once everyone had their puja kits and their books to worship, facing the altar where a Brahmin priest and a BAPS ‘sant’ were performing the same puja giving the minutest instructions patiently throughout the puja which lasted almost two hours. Each Puja Kit also contained two small bowls, one filled with water, and one empty, and a small spoon, and a battery operated tea light.

“We provide all the material for the triple puja free to everyone. Only the books or laptop computers have to be their own for those are to be sanctified,” said Dr. Vipul Patel, BAPS Outreach and Public Affairs to News India Times. Patel further explained that the Chopda Pujan is not just worship for Lakshmi. It is also worshipping of Ganesh and Saraswati or Sharda.

Chopda Pujan is a term used especially by Gujaratis for Lakshmi Pujan performed on Diwali night. Chopda is the Gujarati word for Books.

The entrepreneurship of Gujaratis has been well known for centuries, and a lot of them own private businesses or family run large businesses. Chopda Pujan is performed to get the blessings of Goddess Lakshmi who is considered the supporter of life and wealth. Ganesh is worshipped along with to make sure that the businesses will run on the right path and without hurdles. And Sharda or Saraswati is worshipped to bless with knowledge in all business endeavors in life including education.

Diwali is the last day of the Hindu Vikram Samvat year. Gujarati New Year falls on the day after Diwali. Chopda Pujan is thus performed on the last day of the year, to seek blessings from the 3 deities for the coming year.

Old account books are put away and new ones are opened in front of the gods and sanctified.

A very special step of the puja is to write Shri Sava (one and a quarter) on each of the new books before placing abil and gulal tikka on them. This tradition has a reference to an ancient legend which involves Goddess Lakshmi, who, on a visit to Goddess Parvati, asked to take child Ganesh with her. Upon his mother agreeing, Ganesh began accompanying Lakshmi everywhere she went. Other gods and human beings began calling the two ‘Sava’, one plus one fourth, since Ganesh was a very small baby. After some time, Lakshmi took Ganesh back to his mother, but she and Ganesh remain connected in popular mind. Symbolically, Lakshmi brings affluence and prosperity. Ganesh is known to not just reduce obstacles but also to be a very learned and knowledgeable God. So his aura is supposed to complement one’s efforts to gain wealth. School children in rural areas still write Shri Sava on their exam papers and study books.

“The three pujas are performed separately, one after the other,” said Patel. He said the ‘sant’ or ‘sanyasi’ and the priest both are very well versed in their knowledge of the rituals and the accompanying prayers. “The whole puja is carried out in the strict Vedic tradition,” Patel said. The priest and the sant give the minutest instructions, he said. “If the puja requires water to be offered, they instruct people to take some water in their right hands, hold it while they recite mantras, before putting it away,” he said. An important ritual during the puja is reciting 1000 names of deities, Patel said. The chanting of names created an atmosphere of a Vedic Yagna which was attended by people of all ages.

In today’s day and age when computers are fast replacing physical books, when businesses have computerized accounting systems, this attraction for the Chopda Pujan seems to hold a very strong cultural significance for Indian Americans. It reminds people of the importance of learning and knowledge and of ethical business practices in everyday life. It thanks gods for looking after them up till now and seeks blessings for future.

Chopda Pujan is available at the Swaminarayan temples across the US and the globe. Chopda Pujan was earlier carried out by businesses at the business places. BAPS offering the opportunity to perform it in temples has not just simplified the gathering of the required items but assured its performance according to the prescribed Vedic tradition.

The Flushing temple has been holding the collective Chopda Pujan since its inception not just for devotees but for anyone who wants to participate. BAPS has also inculcated the cultural significance of it in the minds of young children who perform the puja along with adults. Their learning and knowledge of it is later tested during quizzes at the Children’s Diwali, thus preparing an educated future generation who will uphold Indian cultural traditions while living in the US.