Nagula Chavithi Naivedyam and Significance of Nagula Chavithi

Nagula Chavithi!!!, an auspicious day celebrates in Andhra Pradesh. Nagula Chavithi festival is celebrated on the fourth day of Karthikamasam after the Diwali festival. This Nagula chavithi festival is especially the Women's festival. On this day women observe fasting and perform naga pooja and worship the Snake god with prayers in the name of Lord Muruga(Subrahmanya Swamy). It's a ritual in South India performed for Children's better health.         

At my home, we perform this Nagula Chavithi festival with complete dedication. All members of my family woke up early in the morning and take a head bath without applying shampoo or shikakai overhead. Later we perform"Nitya Pooja" as usual. I pray Lord Subrahmanya Swamy with different ashtotharam,ashtakam, and with ashtothara namavali. On this day I usually prepare Chimli or Sesame laddu, pachi chalimidi (a sweet made with rice flour and jaggery),  Vadapappu (Soaked Yellow moong dal), Panakam(liquid made with water, jaggery and, peppercorn powder ). Here I am giving the method of preparation for naivedyams.

Method of preparation :

Chimili / Nuvvula vunda /Sesame laddu: 

Take Jaggery and Sesame seeds in equal quantities. Mix both well and make laddus. Some people don't make laddus, they just mix both well and make powder. If you need more sweetness then you can add more jaggery. It can be mixed as per your taste.

Pachi Chalimidi : Soak the rice grains for one hour, drain the water, and spread on a cloth for about 15 minutes. Once it gets semi-dry, take that semi-dried rice and make fine rice powder. Take equal quantities of rice powder, jaggery, and cardamom(2 no.) mix well to make chalimidi. For this, you can add 4-5 spoons of water to make wet chalimidi.

Vada Pappu: Soak half a cup of yellow moong dal in 2 cups of water for about half an hour. Drain the water at pooja time.

Panakam/ Jaggery Lemonade: Take 40gms of jaggery in 1 cup of water, 1/2 tablespoon of Black Peppercorns crushed to powder, 1 green cardamom. Mix all ingredients well. 

Process of Naga Pooja :

We take naivedyams(chimli,pachichalimidi,vadapappu,panakam)

made at home and turmeric, kumkum, flowers, akshinthalu, cow milk, coconut, bananas, custard apples, rice rava, Chandan, water to the Snake Pit. I do decorate the Snakepit with flowers, kumkum, turmeric powder, rice flour. Then I sprinkle rice rava over the snake pit. Later we put all naivedyams at the snake pit along with cow milk requesting snake god with this. That time we mention all family members' names will pray on behalf of whole family members. Finally, we give all naivedyams, fruits, coconut as Prasadam for snake god. Later we do 5 pradakshinas around the snake pit, will take the "Soil at the snakepit" as Muruga(Subrahmanya Swamy) Prasadam and apply it to our ears. It's a very important thing in Nagula chavithi pooja. It's a belief here that if we do perform this Naga pooja on Nagula Chavithi, there will be no problems in the ear and eye like ear infections, eye infections. Married couples who are desirous of having children must perform this Nagaaradhana because this is especially for the better health of children.

This is the significance of Nagula Chavithi. Perform this Naga Pooja with dedication, get blessed with the blessings of Lord Muruga(Subrahmanya Swamy).