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EveryParampara

Hindu traditions

Hindu traditions fill the calendar of South Asia and the many places where Hindus have settled, from Bali and Mauritius to Fiji, Trinidad and Britain.

Hindu traditions fill the calendar of South Asia and the many places where Hindus have settled, from Bali and Mauritius to Fiji, Trinidad and Britain. They include daily puja, the festivals of Diwali, Holi, Navratri and Pongal, pilgrimages to the Ganges and Tirupati, the sixteen samskaras that mark life from birth to death and a great many regional and village customs. Hinduism has no single founder or text, and practice varies by family, region and community. These pages describe the traditions as those who keep them do.

Home and temple

Worship begins at home, with a shrine, a lamp and a morning prayer, and continues at the temple, where a priest offers the deity water, flowers, food and light on behalf of devotees. Visitors take darshan, receive prasad and walk around the shrine. Festivals bring the whole street into the temple or the pandal, with processions, music and communal meals, and the cycle of the year is marked by fasts and feasts.

Rites of life

The samskaras include the naming, the first rice, the sacred thread, marriage and the funeral. The wedding, with its seven steps round the fire, is the best known, while funerals involve cremation and offerings to the ancestors. Every region adds its own customs, such as the kolam in Tamil Nadu, the rakhi in the north and the Durga Puja of Bengal. The diversity is part of the tradition.

About this page

Written by the EveryParampara desk with AI assistance. Background on Hindu (faith). Customs differ from place to place and family to family. If this is your tradition and we have it wrong, tell us.

RegionSouth AsiaSoutheast AsiaEast AsiaCentral Asia and the CaucasusMiddle EastNorth AfricaSub-Saharan AfricaEuropeNorth AmericaLatin America and the CaribbeanOceania
KindSpiritualFestivalRite of passageTable customSeasonalDressPerformanceEtiquetteCraftGameFolkloreHomeCeremony
MealBreakfastLunchDinnerSupperTea-time and snacking customsTea, coffee and drinking ceremoniesSweets given and sharedFeasts and festival mealsFasting and breaking the fast
🇳🇵 Bhaktapur, NepalBiska Jatra𑐧𑐶𑐳𑑂𑐎𑐵𑑅 𑐖𑐵𑐟𑑂𑐬𑐵 An annual solar new year festival in Nepal with chariot pulls and tall wooden poles.Festival 🇹🇹 Trinidad and Tobago and 3 moreHosay An Indo-Caribbean Muharram commemoration with ornate floats, drumming and processionsSpiritual · Fasting and breaking the fast 🇮🇳 Mumbai, IndiaDahi Handi A Hindu festival sport where teams build human towers to break suspended curd potsFestival 🇮🇳 Haridwar, IndiaKumbh MelaKumbha Mēlā A major Hindu riverside pilgrimage held across four rotating holy cities in IndiaSpiritual 🇮🇳 Palani, India and 5 moreKavadi Aattamகாவடி ஆட்டம் Tamil devotees of Murugan carry burdens as a vow during ThaipusamSpiritual 🇮🇳 India and 1 moreRangoliरंगोली Floor patterns of rice flour, sand or petals, drawn at the doorstep for festivalsCraft 🇮🇳 India and 2 moreKoothu Tamil street theatre with dance, music and epic stories, staged at temple festivals.Performance 🇮🇳 Nadia, IndiaDhunachi A Bengali incense burner, swung in worship and danced with at Durga PujaSpiritual 🇮🇳 Lucknow, India and 1 moreKathak A north Indian classical dance of stories, footwork and spins, from temples and courtsPerformance 🇮🇳 India and 5 moreKolamகோலம் A rice-flour floor drawing made at South Indian doorsteps before sunriseCraft 🇮🇳 Puri, IndiaOdissiଓଡ଼ିଶୀ A classical dance of Odisha, told through bends, gestures and sung poetryPerformance 🇮🇳 Trivandrum, IndiaKathakaliകഥകളി A classical dance-drama from Kerala featuring elaborate makeup and costumes to tell epic stories.Performance 🇮🇳 India and 5 moreBindi A dot worn between the eyebrows, red for marriage and devotion, worn daily by many womenDress 🇮🇳 IndiaAhimsaअहिंसा A daily Indian discipline of doing no harm, in deed, word and thoughtSpiritual 🇮🇳 Udupi, IndiaYakshaganaಯಕ್ಷಗಾನ (Kannada) A night-long dance-drama from coastal Karnataka, with sung dialogue and drummingPerformance 🇮🇳 IndiaSattriya A classical dance from Assam, kept in monasteries and performed on stages worldwidePerformance 🇮🇳 Imphal, India and 1 moreManipuri danceJagoi Raas, Raas Jagoi A classical dance from Manipur, danced as an offering to Radha and KrishnaPerformance 🇮🇳 India and 4 moreSindoorसिंदूर A red powder worn in the hair parting by many married Hindu womenDress 🇮🇳 IndiaMohiniyattam A gentle solo dance from Kerala, once a temple art and now taught in dance schoolsPerformance 🇮🇳 India and 3 moreBhajanभजनम् (bhajanam) Devotional songs of South Asia, sung alone or together with drums and cymbalsPerformance 🇮🇳 India and 2 moreRudrakshaरुद्राक्ष Seeds of the Elaeocarpus tree, worn as prayer beads by devotees of ShivaSpiritual 🇮🇳 Palani, IndiaPanchamritaपञ्चामृत (Sanskrit); பஞ்சாமிர்தம் (Tamil) Five sacred foods mixed and poured over temple images in Hindu and Jain worshipSpiritual · Sweets given and shared 🇮🇳 Kuchipudi, IndiaKuchipudi A classical dance-drama from Andhra Pradesh, with roots in temple and bhakti performance.Performance 🇮🇳 Delhi, IndiaLingamliṅga The pillar-shaped image of Shiva, kept in temples and home shrinesSpiritual 🇮🇳 India and 2 morePujaपूजा (pūjā) Hindu worship: light, flowers and food offered to a deity or a guestSpiritual 🇮🇳 Varanasi, IndiaHanuman Chalisaहनुमान चालीसा A forty-stanza Awadhi hymn praising Hanuman, said by Hindus each daySpiritual 🇺🇸 Spokane, United States and 5 moreFather's Day A day to honour fathers and fatherhood, kept on many different dates worldwideFestival 🇰🇪 Kenya and 5 moreBurial Placing the dead in the ground or a structure to honor them and guide their journey.Rite of passage 🇮🇳 India and 1 moreYajnaयज्ञ A Hindu ritual of offering items into a sacred fire to honor deities and ancestors.Spiritual 🇸🇬 Singapore and 3 moreMatchmaking The custom of using a trusted intermediary to introduce partners for marriageRite of passage 🇪🇬 Egypt and 5 moreLibation The ceremonial gift of drink given to deities, ancestors, and the earthSpiritual · Tea, coffee and drinking ceremonies 🇮🇳 IndiaSvayamvaraस्वयंवर An ancient Indian noble assembly where a bride chose her husband among suitorsRite of passage 🇮🇳 Madurai, India and 4 morePuthanduபுத்தாண்டு (Puttāṇṭu) The first day of the Tamil solar calendar, celebrated by Tamils with family feasts and auspicious trays.Festival · Feasts and festival meals 🇮🇳 Varanasi, IndiaHead shaving in Hinduism Ritual tonsure for spiritual renewal, life transitions, and devotion in HinduismSpiritual 🇹🇭 Bangkok, ThailandSongkranสงกรานต์ The Thai solar New Year marked by temple rites, elder blessings and water throwingSeasonal 🇮🇳 IndiaPumsavanaपुंसवन (Puṁsavana) A Hindu rite of passage held in the third or fourth month of pregnancy to celebrate fetal development.Rite of passage 🇮🇳 IndiaGuru-shishya traditionपरम्परा The lineage system passing spiritual and artistic knowledge from master to discipleSpiritual 🇮🇳 IndiaVidyarambhamविद्यारम्भ A Hindu rite of passage introducing young children to reading, writing and the artsRite of passage 🇮🇳 India and 1 moreJur Sitalजुड़ शीतल The first day of the Maithil year, kept with a rice meal, gifts and water blessingsSeasonal · Feasts and festival meals 🇮🇳 Thrissur, IndiaPooram An annual Kerala temple festival with percussion orchestras, elephants and fireworksFestival 🇮🇳 IndiaNirjala Ekadashiनिर्जला एकादशी A rigorous, waterless Hindu fast observed in early summer to honour the god Vishnu.Spiritual · Fasting and breaking the fast 🇬🇷 Thebes, GreeceDaphnephoria A nine-year festival in ancient Thebes featuring a laurel-bearer procession for Apollo.Festival 🇮🇳 India and 5 moreRemoval of footwear indoors The widespread custom of leaving outdoor shoes at the door for cleanliness and respectEtiquette 🇦🇱 Gjirokastër, Albania and 5 moreDodola and Perperuna A rainmaking ritual kept across Southeast Europe, where children dressed in greenery lead processions to call for summerSpiritual 🇮🇳 IndiaRitu Kala SamskaramRitushuddhi A South Indian Hindu coming-of-age ceremony for girls after their first period.Rite of passage 🇮🇳 India and 5 moreFirst haircut A rite of passage marking a child's first shave or trim across many cultures and faiths.Rite of passage 🇩🇪 Wittenberg, Germany and 1 moreVersus populum A liturgical stance where the priest celebrates Mass facing the congregation from the opposite side of the altar.Spiritual 🇮🇳 IndiaPushpanjaliपुष्पाञ्जलि A Hindu ritual of offering flowers with cupped hands, used in worship and as an opening dance.Spiritual
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The small pictures above come from Wikimedia Commons under free licences. Some are cropped to fit.

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