Bamboo Soop/Chatt Pooja

Bamboo Soop/Chatt Pooja is a traditional, handwoven bamboo basket used across India in cultural and religious ceremonies. Its presence is especially prominent in Hindu weddings and the Chhath Puja festival. With its deep cultural significance, the soop is both a spiritual tool and a symbol of prosperity, purity, and devotion.

Uses in Hindu Weddings:

• Welcoming the Groom: Women use the soop to perform aarti and wave grains or rice over the groom to ward off negative energies.

• Bidaai Ritual: The bride throws rice or puffed grains from the soop behind her, symbolizing the blessings and wealth she leaves for her family.

• Grihapravesh: In some traditions, the bride carries the soop on her head, indicating her readiness to take on household responsibilities.

Role in Chhath Puja:

1. Offering to the Sun God (Surya Dev):

   • The soop is used to hold sacred offerings (called prasad) during the main rituals of Chhath Puja.

   • These offerings include thekua (sweet wheat cookies), seasonal fruits (like bananas, sugarcane), coconut, rice, and turmeric roots, all beautifully arranged in the soop.

2. Arghya Ritual:

   • Devotees stand in rivers or water bodies at sunrise and sunset holding the soop to offer arghya (water and prasad) to the setting and rising sun.

   • The soop, when lifted in devotion, becomes a medium of gratitude, health, and fertility prayers.

3. Symbol of Purity:

   • Chhath Puja is known for its strict rituals of cleanliness and purity.

   • The soop, being handmade and natural, aligns with the eco-spiritual essence of the puja.