22/10/2025
Mha Puja: the Self Worshiping Festival -
Mha Puja is a Newari ritual that means "worship of the self," focusing on purifying and honoring the body, mind, and soul. Celebrated by the Newar community in Nepal, it marks the beginning of the Newa calendar year, Nepal Sambat, and is observed as the second day of the Tihar festival. The ritual emphasizes self-respect, inner peace, and prosperity for the year ahead, as it recognizes the divinity within the individual.
Meaning: The word "Mha" translates to "body" or "self," and "Puja" means "worship". In a broader sense, it is the worship of the entire self: body, mind, and spirit.
Purpose: The ritual is a way to start the new year with self-purification and positivity, invoking blessings for health and longevity. It's a day for self-reflection and a reminder of spiritual and physical well-being.
Timing: Mha Puja is celebrated on the first day of the Nepal Sambat lunar calendar, which falls on the day after Laxmi Puja during the Tihar festival.
Practice: Unlike other rituals that focus on deities, Mha Puja is a personal and familial ceremony that emphasizes one's own existence. It involves drawing a mandala for each person, lighting lamps, and offering ritualistic foods.
Significance: It represents a unique focus on the living self, celebrating the inner spirit and creating a foundation for a positive and prosperous new year.
Each member of the household begins by sitting in a meditative pose (sit in cross-legged pose), aligning themselves in a row from eldest to youngest. This posture encourages a calm, introspective state, setting the tone for the ritual.
The mandala represents the individual’s body, spirit, and mind, and forms the base for the rest of the offerings.
The traditional Mha Puja mandala features intricate Astamangala symbols on its outer edges.
Let's join to clean our mind, body and soul this festival and do good for humanity.
