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Festivals bring the whole family into the pooja room, and each one comes with its own set of pooja items. The daily essentials are always there, but Diwali needs more lamps, Varalakshmi Vratham needs a decorated kalasam, Vinayagar Chaturthi needs arugampul and kozhukattai, and Karthigai Deepam needs enough oil and thiri for dozens of agal vilakkus. This festival pooja samagri list brings the lists for five major South Indian festivals together, so you can shop once, early, and enjoy the festival without last-minute runs to the shop. You can find most items in our pooja samagri collection.

Start with the daily essentials

Every festival list below assumes you already have the basics: lamp, oil and thiri, agarbatti and sambrani, camphor, kumkum, manjal, sandal, vibhuti, panneer, akshathai, betel leaves and nuts, flowers and fruits. If you need to restock these first, see our pooja samagri list for daily pooja.

Diwali (Deepavali) pooja samagri list

In Tamil homes, Deepavali begins before dawn with the oil bath (Ganga snanam), followed by new clothes, sweets and pooja. Many families also perform Lakshmi pooja in the evening.

• For the oil bath: sesame oil (nallennai), shikakai or herbal bath powder

• Lamps: extra agal vilakkus, oil and plenty of cotton thiri

• For Lakshmi pooja: kumkum, manjal, sandal, akshathai, lotus or other flowers, coins, a small kalasam

• Fragrance: sambrani and agarbatti for the whole house

• Camphor for aarti

• New clothes placed before the deity before wearing

• Sweets and savouries offered as naivedyam

• Deepavali lehiyam / marundhu – a traditional digestive prepared in many homes

Varalakshmi Vratham pooja items list

Varalakshmi Vratham is observed by married women for the well-being of the family. The heart of the pooja is the kalasam decorated as Goddess Lakshmi.

• Kalasam: a brass, copper or silver sombu – an Ashtalakshmi kalasa sombu is a popular choice

• Items to fill the kalasam: rice, coins, turmeric, betel nuts and other items according to family custom

• Mango leaves for the mouth of the kalasam

• Amman face (mugam) and jewellery to decorate the kalasam

• Blouse piece or saree to drape the kalasam

• Nonbu saradu / manjal kayiru: the sacred yellow thread tied on the wrist

• Kumkum, manjal, sandal, akshathai and flowers

• Naivedyam: kozhukattai, payasam, vadai and fruits

• Thamboolam for guests: betel leaves, nuts, manjal, kumkum, blouse piece and fruits

Vinayagar Chaturthi pooja items list

• Clay Vinayagar idol and a small umbrella (kudai) for the idol

• Arugampul (durva grass) – the most important offering to Vinayagar

• Erukkam poo maalai (calotropis garland) and other flowers

• Kozhukattai / modakam, sundal, aval, pori and fruits for naivedyam

• Kumkum, manjal, sandal, akshathai

• Agarbatti, sambrani and camphor

• A wooden plank (palagai) decorated with kolam to place the idol

Navaratri pooja items list

Navaratri lasts nine nights, with golu displays, daily pooja and visits from friends and relatives.

• Golu padi (steps) and golu dolls

• Kalasam for the Navaratri pooja

• Kumkum and manjal in larger quantities – guests are offered both every evening

• Thamboolam for visitors: betel leaves, nuts, blouse pieces, small gifts, sundal

• Different sundal (chickpea, green gram, peanut) as naivedyam each day

• Lamps, oil and thiri for nine evenings

• Agarbatti and sambrani for every evening pooja

• For Saraswati Pooja (Ayudha Pooja): books, instruments and tools placed before the deity, with sandal and kumkum marks, pori, aval and fruits

Karthigai Deepam pooja items list

Karthigai Deepam is the festival of lights in Tamil Nadu, when homes and temples are lit with rows of lamps.

• Agal vilakku (clay lamps): enough for the doorway, windows, balcony and kolam – often 27 or more

• Oil: sesame oil or ghee in larger quantity than usual

• Cotton thiri: several packets

• Pooja lanterns to protect lamps outdoors from the wind – see our pooja lantern collection

• Pori urundai (puffed rice balls with jaggery), appam and adai as naivedyam

• Camphor, kumkum, manjal and flowers

Pongal pooja items list

Pongal, the harvest festival in January, is celebrated over several days, with Thai Pongal as the main day of the sun-god pooja.

• Pongal panai: a new clay or brass pot for cooking pongal

• Raw rice, jaggery, moong dal, ghee, cashews and cardamom for sweet pongal

• Sugarcane and manjal kothu (fresh turmeric plant) tied around the pot

• Banana leaves for offering the pongal

• Kolam powder and colours for the front-yard kolam

• Kumkum, manjal, sandal, flowers, camphor and agarbatti for the sun pooja

• Bananas, coconut and betel leaves as offerings

Preparing thamboolam for festival guests

Navaratri, Varalakshmi Vratham and many other festivals involve offering thamboolam to visiting women. A typical thamboolam includes:

• Betel leaves and nuts (vetrilai paaku)

• Manjal and kumkum in small packets or containers

• A fruit – usually a banana

• A blouse piece or small gift

• Sundal or a sweet on Navaratri evenings

Plan quantities by counting expected guests across all the festival days, and buy kumkum, manjal and paaku in larger packs to save money. Small reusable containers for kumkum and manjal make the thamboolam neat and avoid spills.

When to buy festival pooja samagri

• 2–3 weeks before: non-perishable items – kumkum, manjal, sandal, camphor, thiri, oil, agarbatti, sambrani, kalasam and decorations.

• 1 week before: clay idols (Vinayagar Chaturthi), agal vilakkus, golu dolls.

• 1–2 days before: flowers, garlands, betel leaves, mango leaves, arugampul and fruits.

Buying early avoids crowded shops, stock-outs and inflated festival prices.

Eco-friendly festival choices

Festivals create a lot of waste, but a few simple choices make a real difference without changing the rituals:

• Unpainted clay Vinayagar idols dissolve naturally when immersed, unlike plaster of Paris idols.

• Natural kumkum and manjal are kinder to skin and to the water bodies where offerings are often immersed.

• Cotton thiri and pure oils burn cleaner than synthetic wicks and mixed lamp oils.

• Reusable brass and copper vessels – a kalasam, lamps and aarti plates – last for generations, while disposable plates and plastic decorations end up in landfill.

• Fresh flowers and banana leaves can be composted after the festival.

• Buying in planned quantities avoids leftover powders that lose freshness before the next festival.

Tips for a smooth festival pooja

• Make one combined list for all festivals in the season – Navaratri, Deepavali and Karthigai Deepam fall within a couple of months, and many items overlap.

• Buy thiri and camphor in larger packs at the start of the festival season.

• Store festival-only items together – kalasam decorations, amman face, golu dolls – in one labelled box for next year.

• Plan homams separately – if a festival includes a homam, use our homam samagri list.

About RSS Online

RSS Online (rssonline.in) helps families prepare for every festival, from Deepavali and Varalakshmi Vratham to Vinayagar Chaturthi, Navaratri and Karthigai Deepam. Kalasa sombu, lamps, lanterns, thiri, kumkum, manjal and more are available at rssonline.in, so you can shop early and enjoy the festival without last-minute runs. 

In summary

Each festival has its own pooja items, from the decorated kalasam of Varalakshmi Vratham to the arugampul of Vinayagar Chaturthi and the rows of agal vilakkus on Karthigai Deepam. Start with your daily essentials, add the festival-specific items, buy non-perishables two to three weeks early, and leave flowers and fresh items for the last day or two. You can find kumkum, manjal, sandal, camphor, thiri, sambrani and much more in our pooja samagri collection.

Blog 3 FAQs

Q1. What are the items on the Diwali puja samagri list?

A typical South Indian Deepavali list includes sesame oil and herbal powder for the oil bath, agal vilakkus with oil and thiri, kumkum, manjal, sandal, akshathai, flowers, camphor, agarbatti, sambrani, new clothes and sweets for naivedyam.

Q2. What items are needed for Varalakshmi Vratham pooja?

A kalasam (often an Ashtalakshmi sombu), mango leaves, amman face and jewellery, a blouse piece or saree, nonbu saradu, kumkum, manjal, sandal, akshathai, flowers and naivedyam such as kozhukattai and payasam.

Q3. What pooja items are needed for Vinayagar Chaturthi?

A clay Vinayagar idol with a small umbrella, arugampul, erukkam poo maalai, kozhukattai, sundal, aval, pori, fruits, kumkum, manjal, sandal, agarbatti and camphor.

Q4. How many lamps are lit for Karthigai Deepam?

Customs vary. Many families light 27 or more agal vilakkus around the house, along with the main lamp in the pooja room.

Q5. When should I buy festival pooja items?

Buy non-perishable items two to three weeks before the festival, idols and lamps about a week before, and flowers, leaves and fruits one or two days before.