Tulsi Vivah Celebration
Tulsi Vivah is considered highly sacred and auspicious in Hindu Tradition. The plant of Tulsi is considered to be incarnation of Mahalakshmi who was born as Vrinda.Tulsi Vivah is celebrated on the next day of kartik Ekadashi. It is on this day that Tulsi is married to Shilgram.
Traditional celebrations on the day of Tulsi Vivah include
Women folk engage themselves in various preparations, including preparation of wide variety of dishes well in advance.
A typical Goan ojhe (load of sweets) is sent to the daughter from her parental home along with jodi (cotton threads used to light lamp while performing aarti)
As it is Tulsi’s Vivah, Tulsi Vrindavan is decorated like a bride on this day.
Sugarcane and branches of tamarind and amla trees are planted along with the Tulsi plant
The food preparation includes only vegetarian food.
At midday, a full meal consisting of rice, moongachi gathi, puri , sweet potato kheer , red pumpkin vegetable cooked with pieces of sugarcane, amla and tamarind is offered to Tulsi Vrindavan
It is during dusk or evening that the actual ritual of Tulsi Vivah is performed.
Different Poha dishes are offered to Lord Vishnu.
The Prasad after the Vivah puja is distributed among al friends and relatives.
Tulsi Vivah Rituls
One must plant the Tulsi plant at home or forest and after three years one may perform her marriage.
The Auspicious time to perform her marriage according to the Hindu tradition is:
When the sun is moving in the north, Jupiter and Venus are rising, in the month of Kartika, from the Ekadashi to the full moon in the month of Magha, and when constellations that are auspicious for marriage appear, especially the full moon day.
One should first arrange a place for sacrifice (yajna-kunda) under a canopy (mandapa) then after performing shanti-vidhana, one should install sixteen goddesses, and do the shraddha ceremony for his female maternal ancestors
For the Vivah, one must call four Brahmins well read in Vedas, and appoint one of them as priest, one as Brahma, one as rishi and the fourth one as Acharya.
One should establish an auspicious water pot (mangala-ghat) under that mandapa according to the Vaishnava rituals followed by establishment of an attractive shalagrama-shila (Lakshmi-Narayana).
During dusk one should install a golden deity of Narayan and a silver idol of Tulsi.
With vasa-shanta mantra two cloths should be tied together, with yadavandha mantra the marriage bracelets (kangana) should be tied on the wrists, and with ko' dat mantra the marriage should be consecrated
Finally the host along with the acarya, rishi, and others should make nine offerings in the yajna-kunda.
After all the marriage rites and rituals have been successfully performed, the host along with wife and relatives should take a Parikrama around the Tulsi plant and offer food to Brahmins and other relatives.
