Kalasha
A pot topped with a husked coconut and a ring of mango leaves, used in puja to stand for any deity, especially Ganesha.
Meaning
For the Himalayan Academy the kalasha is the deity, present in worship. At a Hindu wedding, the Hindu American Foundation explains, the kalash puja uses a copper pot filled with water and topped with leaves and a coconut; the priest invokes the water of all rivers and oceans, purifies it with Vedic mantras, and uses it through the ceremony.
Origin and history
The word is old. The Monier-Williams dictionary records kalasha, a water pot or jar, from the Rig Veda, and a later sense: the round pinnacle on top of a temple, especially the one crowning a Buddhist stupa.
The coconut
Breaking a coconut before Ganesha’s shrine is, in the Himalayan Academy’s words, “the ego’s shattering to reveal the sweet fruit inside”.
Read next
See also
Sri Yantra, Trishula, Damaru, Shankha, Sudarshana Chakra, Padma.
Sources
- Sacred Symbols, Himalayan Academy
- Monier-Williams Sanskrit-English Dictionary (1899): kalaśa, Monier Monier-Williams, p. 260, Cologne Digital Sanskrit Dictionaries, University of Cologne
- What’s a Hindu wedding like?, Hindu wedding primer, Hindu American Foundation
The same shape elsewhere
Browse symbols formed from circles or curves and waves.
Researched, edited and approved by Rory Hansen before publishing. Last reviewed September 30, 2026. How we research
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