🤫 Mauni Amavasya Puja Vidhi — step by step
This is the household vidhi — a silent dawn bath, tarpan for the ancestors, charity, peepal and Tulsi puja; a lamp in the evening.
How to do Mauni Amavasya — the steps
- Rise in Brahma Muhurat (time above) and stay silent; bathe in a river/pond (or at home with Gangajal and sesame in the water) — 'Om Namo Narayanaya' in the mind; arghya to the sun.
- Sankalp (silently) — 'I do the Mauni Amavasya bath, charity and tarpan for the satisfaction of the ancestors and the family's welfare.'
- Tarpan for the ancestors: facing south, water with black sesame, kusha and akshat in a copper lota, three offerings of water for each ancestor by name — done by the man of the house, women may do it too (for mother/grandmother); water and sesame to the peepal tree and a circumambulation.
- Charity (after sunrise, till noon): black sesame, sesame laddoos, jaggery, blankets/woollens, ghee, grain, oil, shoes-umbrella (Shani) — to a Brahmin/the needy/a gaushala; green fodder to a cow, roti to crows and dogs (panch-bali).
- Worship of Vishnu-Lakshmi and Shiva at home; water to Tulsi; women keeping the Amavasya fast take fruit/one meal.
- Silence all day (or as long as possible) — reading, chanting and bhajan in the mind; no anger or quarrel; if silence must be broken, first the Lord's name.
- In the evening a mustard-oil lamp at the Tulsi platform, under the peepal and at the main door (for the ancestors and Shani); Hanuman Chalisa or Shiva mantra on the Amavasya night.
- Next morning (Pratipada) the normal routine; the Magh bath continues until Purnima.
Puja samagri checklist
The main items are sesame and the things for charity — the puja is simple.
- Gangajal, black sesame, copper lota, kusha (if available), akshat
- Charity: sesame, sesame laddoos, jaggery, blankets/woollens, ghee, oil, grain, dakshina
- Water, sesame, roli, mauli and a lamp for the peepal puja
- Picture of Vishnu-Lakshmi and Shiva, bel leaves, Tulsi, flowers, incense and lamp
- Mustard oil and clay lamps (for the evening)
- Roti and jaggery for the panch-bali (cow, crow, dog, ants, gods)
- Fasting food, rock salt
Amavasya food and the grain for charity
The food of Mauni Amavasya is sattvik — sesame-jaggery, khichdi; set aside portions for the ancestors/panch-bali first, then the family. Those who fast take fruit or one meal.
- Sesame-jaggery laddoos, sesame-rice khichdi (with urad dal), ghee
- Panch-bali: the first roti to a cow, to crows and dogs, flour and sugar for ants — in the ancestors' name
- Charity grain: a bundle (sidha) of raw rice, dal, flour, jaggery, ghee and salt to a Brahmin/the needy
- Fast: fruit, milk, singhara halwa; rice and grain are not forbidden on Amavasya, but nothing tamasic
- The family meal after the peepal lamp in the evening
Rules — do's and don'ts
✅ Do
- Bathe in Brahma Muhurat; silence at least until the bath and charity are done
- Tarpan for the ancestors and sesame charity — the root of this day
- Water and sesame to the peepal and a circumambulation; a mustard-oil lamp in the evening
- Donate blankets/woollens — the cold of Magha
- Away from anger and quarrel; chanting in the mind
❌ Don't
- New work, purchases, travel on Amavasya — traditionally avoided
- Meat, alcohol, tamasic food, cutting hair and nails
- Do not pluck Tulsi leaves
- Do not neglect the needs of elders or children in the name of silence — the silence is of the mind
- Never leave children or elders alone in the ghat crowd; no deep water
Vrat katha
The marriage of Gunavati, daughter of the Brahmin Devaswami of Kanchipuri, was fixed; but an astrologer said her husband would die right after the saptapadi. Her brother went to a washerwoman named Soma, who had the powe… Read the full katha →
Frequently asked questions
When is Mauni Amavasya in {Y}?
The date at the top is this year's Magha Amavasya — from panchang calculations; the Brahma Muhurat for the bath and the span of the Amavasya tithi are shown too.
How long should the silence be kept?
The scriptural rule is the whole day; in practice, silence from waking until the bath, puja and charity are complete (at least 2-3 hours), chanting in the mind. The whole day, if you can, is best.
Can women do tarpan?
Yes — where there is no man in the house, or for their own parents, women may do tarpan (akshat-sesame-water in place of kusha); peepal worship and charity are in any case mainly done by women.
Is Shani charity also given on this day?
Amavasya is a tithi dear to Shani — charity of black sesame, mustard oil, black cloth, shoes-umbrella, iron; special if it falls on a Saturday (Shani Amavasya).
What is the link between Mauni Amavasya and the Kumbh?
Mauni Amavasya is the main royal bath of the Magh Mela/Kumbh/Ardh Kumbh at Prayag — drops of amrit are believed to descend into the Sangam on this day; in the 2025 Maha Kumbh the biggest bath was on this day.
🏠 Mauni Amavasya 2026 — date, muhurat, full page · All vrat & festivals