Mangala Gowri Vratham

Mangala Gowri Pooja

Married women should perform this pooja for the well-being of their husbands. This pooja should be done for five years. Unmarried women can also perform this pooja to find a good husband.

This pooja should start on the Tuesday following the Deepa Sthamba pooja in the month of Shravan. It should be performed on all Tuesdays (4 to 5) in Shravan. Even if the last Tuesday falls on Amavasya, the pooja must be performed. If the last Tuesday is on Amavasya, instead of an oil bath, take a hair bath with ghee mixed with milk as per tradition. The same rule applies if Ekadashi or Gokulashtami falls on a Tuesday.

Mangala Gowri Vratham to be performed during all Tuesdays of this month.

Steps for performing the pooja:

1. Clean the area and spread a blouse on it.
2. Place a big mirror or a photo of Parvathi Parameshwar with Ganesha and Subramanya on the blouse.
3. Fold blouse pieces into triangles and place them on both ends of the area. Put coconuts with soaked chana on both ends.
4. On a small plate, spread rice and place five turmeric Gowris on it (two in front, two behind, and one in the center). Place the Mangala Gowri given at your wedding at the front of the small plate.
5. Spread all the Mangala items, like comb, bangles, small mirror, bicholai, and kajal (two sets) in front of the blouse pieces.
6. Prepare and place five rava laddus on both ends.
7. Tie a mangalya thread connecting all five Gowris.
8. Place a turmeric-soaked thread with five knots around the Gowris.
9. Prepare Huggi made with toor dal and akki payasa for Naivedya.
10. Other Naivedyams include chiguli, kosambari, soaked chickpeas, fruits, and coconut.

Before starting the Gowri pooja, perform Tulasi pooja. Pray to Goddess Dhakshayani for blessings and invite the goddess to grace the pooja.

Make thembittu using rice flour, jaggery, ghee, and a little water. Make lamps out of this and prepare kajal from these thembittu lamps. Collect kajal using a small plate or dosa ladle, read the story of Mangala Gowri while collecting kajal, and sing Gowri songs. Once kajal is collected, offer a small amount to Maa Gowri with a petal. Then perform aarti with the thembittu lamp. Optionally, you can perform another pooja immediately after this.

Women who perform the pooja should apply the kajal. In the evening, invite other women and distribute betel leaves, betel nuts, coconuts, soaked chickpeas, kajal, and dakshina. Perform the pooja on all Tuesdays of Shravan, and on the final week, tie the thread on your right hand. If any Tuesday falls on Ekadashi or Gokulashtami, do not prepare Naivedyam or kajal. Just perform the pooja and complete the procedure the next day.

Story of Mangala Gowri Pooja

Once, Dharma Raja asked Lord Krishna to narrate a vrata that would increase lifespan. Lord Krishna described a special vrata that increases the lifespan of sons and prevents widowhood. In ancient times, in the city of Kundanipura, lived a wealthy merchant named Dharmapala, who had no children.

A sadhu would come daily for alms but leave without taking anything. One day, Dharmapala's wife put gold coins into the sadhu's hand. The sadhu became angry and cursed her, saying she would never have children. She begged for forgiveness, and the sadhu instructed her husband to wear black clothes and ride a black horse into the forest until the horse slipped. There, he should dig until he found a Devi temple and perform pooja to solve their problem.

Dharmapala followed the sadhu's advice, found the temple, and performed pooja. The Devi appeared and offered him a choice: a daughter who would soon become a widow, a wonderful son with a short life, or a blind son with a long life. Dharmapala chose the son with a short life. The Devi gave him a mango to give to his wife, promising their wish would be fulfilled. However, Lord Ganesha cursed that the son would die at 16 by a snake bite due to Dharmapala's greed.

They had a son named Shiva. When he was 10, his mother wanted him to marry, but his father sent him on a Kashi Yatra. Shiva and his uncle reached Pratishtanagara, where they met Susheela, whose mother performed the Mangala Gowri Vrata. Believing Susheela's blessings could save Shiva, they stayed near her house. Susheela's parents agreed to marry her to Shiva. On their wedding night, Susheela dreamed of a snake approaching her husband. She followed the instructions in her dream, captured the snake, and saved Shiva.

Lord Shiva appeared in Susheela's dream, confirming her husband's survival. Shiva's parents were relieved and performed the Mangala Gowri Vrata to ensure their son's long life. This pooja, done on Tuesdays during Shravan, should be performed with devotion and fasting.