Celebrating Vishwakarma Puja or Day of the Machinery God

India is a nation known for its colorful festivals. Indians celebrate these festivals with great piety and fervour. It is part and parcel of our culture. One such Puja is Vishwakarma Puja or Vishwakarma Jayanti, which the people of the nation celebrate to honour Lord Vishwakarma, the Hindu God who is considered the divine architect.

Lord Vishwakarma is believed to be self-existing, which is called 'swayambhu' in Sanskrit. It means that Lord Vishwakarma is not created by anyone, rather he is said to have risen naturally. Moreover, according to Hindu Mythology, he is considered to have created the world.

There are many ways and stories to introduce one to Lord Vishwakarma. Mythology states that Lord Vishwakarma created Dwarka, the holy city that Krishna ruled. Along with that, it is said that he also created the palace of Indraprastha, where the Pandavas resided. Moreover, he is also credited with developing many phenomenal weapons for various gods.

People also address him as the divine carpenter. In the Hindu tradition, he is referred to as the 'Divine Engineer of the World'. There are mentions of him in the Rig Veda and Sthapatya Veda- which is the science of mechanics and architecture.

The Hindu tradition assigns a day to every God. Similarly, Lord Vishwakarma has also been assigned a day, which is the 17th of September. Addressed as the world's first engineer, he existed a few days prior to the creation of the world. It is believed that he is the God who originally created the world.

Vishwakarma is the deity who presides over all the craftsmen and architects. Moreover, it is also said that he built the palaces of all the gods.

Vishwakarma was born to Vashu Prabhasa and Yoga Siddha. Vishwakarma is known to have five sons. They are Mannu, Maidev, Tavashta, Shilpi, and Devagya. The name of Vishwakarma's wife is Gayatri Devi.

It is also said that Vishwakarma is the seventh Dharmaputra of Lord Brahma. Legends state that he was born as a result of Samudra Manthan.

God of Machines and Engineer of the Gods are common phrases that people use to describe him.

17th September is the date when Vishwakarma Puja is usually meant to be celebrated. The last day of the Bengali month Bhadra is supposed to be the day when Vishwakarma Puja is celebrated and it usually falls on the 17th of September. The last day of the Bengali Bhadra month is also known as Bhadra Sankranti.

On the other hand, according to the Hindu calendar, Vishwakarma Puja falls on 'Kanya Sankranti'. Besides that, it falls between the dates 16 to 18 September on the Gregorian Calendar. In the solar calendar, this is the last date of the Indian Bhado month.

Several states of India follow the Solar Calendar. They are Assam, Uttar Pradesh, Karnataka, West Bengal, Bihar, Tamil Nadu, Odisha, Tripura, Jharkhand, and Kerala. Other Asian nations which also see the celebration of Vishwakarma Puja are Nepal, Sri Lanka, Bhutan, and Bangladesh.

On the occasion ofVishwakarma Puja, people worship their machinery. This action comes in with the belief that Lord Vishwakarma influences the existence of different kinds of tools, weapons, and iron items. The festival is seen being observed in factories, industrial workshops, and setups with metallic objects. They clean up their workplaces and machines before starting the Puja. Workers and members of such workspaces use their shop floor to organize the Puja procedures.

Along with the engineers and the community of architecture, artisans, craftsmen, welders, mechanics, as well as factory and industrial workers, all celebrate this day to worship Lord Vishwakarma. This group of people prays for a safe and secure working experience while also asking for his blessings to protect their machinery. They seek blessings to achieve success in the respective field of work that they are involved in.

People at home wash their vehicles and clean the respective gadgets that they possess. Along with worshipping the Murti (idol) or pictures of Lord Vishwakarma, they also seek blessings and pass on offerings to the vehicles, gadgets, and machinery that they possess in their homes.

Puja Muhurat or Shubh Muhurat is a term used to refer to an auspicious duration of time when it is ideal to carry on with the Puja proceedings. Usually, the priest figures this out and informs everyone. For this year, the Puja Muhurat has been mentioned to begin at 7.36 am, according to some pundits.

The Rig Veda also asserts that Lord Vishwakarma possesses multi- dimensional vision along with supreme strength.

Indian mythology is full of tales and myths about the gods and goddesses. Likewise, Lord Vishwakarma also has tales of his own.

One such tale states that he created the golden palace of Lanka, where the demon Ravana resided. The story narrates that Lord Shiva once requested Vishwakarma to create a palace for him and Parvati. Consequently, Vishwakarma created a golden palace. Lord Shiva invited the demon Ravana to carry on the rituals. Ravana was mesmerized by the aura of the golden palace and when Lord Shiva gave him an opportunity to seek a 'Dakshina', Ravana asked for the golden palace itself. This is how the golden palace became Ravana's abode, according to this mythological tale.

In some parts of India, Vishwakarma Puja celebration also involves flying kites to mark the beginning of the festive season. Also, unlike other Gods who have many temples all across the country designated to them, very few Vishwakarma Temple in the nation as well as across the world is known to exist. One of the oldest Vishwakarma Temple and probably the only one of its kind in this part of the world is located in Guwahati City of the northeastern state of Assam. This temple is located at the foothills of Nilachal Hill or Kamakhya Hill. The exact date of the temple being established is unclear. However, some reports state that it might have been established somewhere in the 1950s or 1960s.

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