Varalakshmi Vratam

Varalakshmi Vratam (Sanskrit: वरलक्ष्मी व्रतम्, romanized: Varalakṣmī Vratam), also called Varalakshmi Puja, is a Hindu observance to propitiate the goddess of wealth, Lakshmi. Varalakshmi is the manifestation of Lakshmi who grants boons (varam). It is a puja primarily performed by married Hindu women in the states of South India. This occasion is observed on the Friday before the day of the full moon - Purnima - in the Hindu month of Shravana, which corresponds to the Gregorian months of July – August.

The Varalakshmi Vratam is primarily performed by married women (sumangali), for their own well-being, and in order to ask the goddess to bless their husbands with health and longevity. Many believe that worshipping the aspect of Varalakshmi on this day is equivalent to worshipping the Ashtalakshmi – the eight aspects of Lakshmi, all of whom represent different forms of wealth.