👶 Namkaran Sanskar
Also called Naamkaran · naming ceremony · नामकरण संस्कार
Namkaran is the naming ceremony — the sanskar in which a newborn is formally given a name and introduced to the family, the ancestors and the deities. The name is traditionally chosen to begin with a syllable drawn from the child's birth nakshatra, so the ceremony starts, in effect, with the child's birth chart.
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When Namkaran is performed
By custom on the eleventh or twelfth day after birth, once the period of confinement following a birth has ended. Where that is not possible — the mother and child are still recovering, or the family is waiting for relatives to travel — it is held later on a day the pandit finds suitable, and many families now hold it within the first few months.
The pandit needs the child's date, exact time and place of birth before the ceremony, in order to work out the nakshatra and the naming syllable.
How the name is chosen
Each of the twenty-seven nakshatras is divided into four quarters, called padas, and each pada is assigned a sound. The syllable belonging to the pada the Moon occupied at the child's birth is the one the name traditionally begins with.
Many families give two names: a name by the nakshatra, used in sankalps and rituals through the child's life, and a calling name of the family's own choosing. Both are perfectly in keeping with tradition, and the pandit will explain the options rather than insist on one.
What happens during the ceremony
The house is cleaned, and mother and child are bathed and dressed in new clothes. The pandit performs Ganesh puja and a short havan, and the sankalp is taken by the parents. The name is then written — commonly in a plate of rice — and the father whispers it into the child's right ear before it is announced to everyone present.
Elders bless the child in turn, and the ceremony closes with aarti and prasad. In many homes the child is placed in a cradle for the first time at this ceremony.
Namkaran Sanskar — common questions
How do I find the naming letter for my baby?
It comes from the nakshatra and pada of the Moon at birth. You can find both by generating a free Kundli with the child's date, time and place of birth; the pandit confirms the syllable before the ceremony.
Do we have to use the nakshatra letter for the name?
No. Many families keep a nakshatra name for religious use and choose a different everyday name. The choice is the parents'.
We missed the eleventh day. Can Namkaran be done later?
Yes. The pandit selects a suitable day afterwards. It is common for the ceremony to be held some weeks or months after the birth.
How long does a Namkaran ceremony take?
About an hour and a half, including the puja and the havan.
Ready to book your Namkaran Sanskar?
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Book this pooja →Choosing a date
See the tithi, nakshatra and Rahu Kaal for any day in today's panchang and the Hindu calendar for the month. The muhurat for your own ceremony is calculated by the pandit from your family's details once you book.
Understand the chart behind it: Nakshatra — the 27 Lunar Mansions · Free Kundli
Book Namkaran Sanskar in your city
Pandits travel across Delhi NCR for this ritual: Namkaran Sanskar pandit in Delhi · Namkaran Sanskar pandit in Noida · Namkaran Sanskar pandit in Greater Noida · Namkaran Sanskar pandit in Ghaziabad · Namkaran Sanskar pandit in Gurugram · Namkaran Sanskar pandit in Faridabad · Namkaran Sanskar pandit in Meerut.
Other poojas
Griha Pravesh Pooja · Satyanarayan Katha · Navagraha Shanti Pooja · Rudrabhishek Pooja · Vivah Sanskar · Ganesh Puja · Mahamrityunjaya Jaap · Bhoomi Pujan · Vastu Shanti Pooja · Mundan Sanskar · Manglik Dosh Nivaran Pooja · Lakshmi Puja
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